His Darkest Embrace

by Juliana Stone

  He glanced down at the aching hard-on. If not, it was gonna be a long, uncomfortable trek.

  Once they were both dressed, they gathered their bags and joined Nico back where they’d left him.

  The warrior greeted them with a grimace.

  “She’s awake but not talking.”

  Jagger’s gaze rested on the woman Nico had tied securely to a tree.

  She was tall, athletic. She tilted her head and her large dark eyes regarded him in silence. Her long hair was loose, blowing into the breeze like snakes in the wind.

  He could just make out the telltale markings along the side of her neck and he paused, surprised.

  Not only was she jaguar, she was a warrior as well. It was extremely rare in his world to come across a female warrior, especially one on her own. The males developed their tats in their teen years, when they progressed from boys to men. A female warrior’s tattoos only materialized when they had sex with their mate.

  So where was hers? And what clan did she belong to?

  He would have asked her, too, but Skye broke from his side and dashed across the small clearing, an unearthly yell breaking from deep inside.

  She leapt over Nico, who was crouched on the ground in front of the mystery woman.

  With a resounding thud, her fist connected with the jaguar’s cheek. The hit was hard and he watched, shocked, as the woman’s head snapped back and a second later fell forward.

  She was out cold.

  Skye turned to him, her breaths coming in spurts as she tried to clamp down on the emotion that was running through her.

  “What?” she said defensively. “She had that coming.”

  Skye hiked up her bag and looked at the both of them, her voice commanding. “Bring her along. I’m not done with her.”

  She turned. “Let’s get cracking, boys, we don’t have all day.”

  Jagger watched as the most delectable ass he’d ever come across walked ahead of him, back into the jungle.

  He looked at Nico, who seemed to be as shocked as he. The warrior shrugged and untied the unconscious woman, hauling her across his powerful shoulders.

  A ghost of a smile played along Nico’s lips as he followed in Skye’s footsteps. “Christ, man, I wouldn’t want to get on her bad side.” He disappeared as well, his words hanging in the air behind him. “I wish you luck.”

  Jagger fell in behind and smiled to himself.

  Bring it on, he thought.

  Bring it on.

  Chapter 18

  They continued to hike through the dense jungle, across streams, larger rivers, and deep waterfalls. After what seemed like hours, Nico motioned for them to stop.

  “The cave you seek is up the side of that mountain.” He pointed to the largest one in the range. It looked fairly close, but Jagger knew how deceiving that was and how difficult the hike would be.

  “We rest, leave at sunrise, and should be there sometime tomorrow afternoon.” Nico’s teeth slashed through the thickening gloom. “Unless we run into another hunting party.”

  They found a cave halfway up a steep incline next to a waterfall, one that was hidden beneath a heavy fall of mist. It would provide shelter and a safe place to spend the night. There was no sense pushing forward until they’d had time to eat and rest.

  Jagger let his gear fall to the ground, his gaze drifting toward Skye automatically. She’d been quiet most of the way, avoiding his attempts at conversation.

  “You all right?” he asked as he moved toward her.

  “I’m fine,” she said, but the tone of her voice indicated she was anything but.

  “You sure? Nothing you want to talk about?” he prodded.

  She nodded her head and didn’t answer. Jagger stared at her for a few seconds and then moved away. Something was up, but Jagger decided to give her some space. A lot had happened in a short period of time and it was a lot to take in.

  He crossed over to the female jaguar they’d brought with them. She’d regained consciousness an hour into their hike and had been on her own power ever since.

  “You want some water?” he asked roughly, his dislike clearly evident.

  She looked up at him. Her large dark eyes narrowed, and Jagger knew there was a lot going on behind them, but then she looked away without answering.

  He smiled wickedly and took a long swig of the cool liquid, wiped the sweat from his brow and leaned in close. “Not very smart"—his voice lowered even more and the contempt he felt lined his words thickly—"for a jaguar warrior.” He stepped away. “I won’t offer again.”

  She ignored him and he walked over to Nico.

  “You get anything from her?”

  “No. She wasn’t into polite conversation.” Nico spit into the ground and looked back toward their prisoner. “Too bad, really.”

  “What’s that?” Jagger asked.

  “A female warrior is rare, worth something, but she’s obviously damaged goods. There’s no reason to keep her around.”

  The meaning behind Nico’s words wasn’t hard to miss and Jagger sighed in frustration because he knew the warrior was right. The woman was not needed. She was the enemy.

  It really left only one choice.

  “Let me talk to her, see if I can get some intel. Maybe it just requires a woman’s touch. It might give me the edge that we need.” Skye walked between the two of them and looked at Nico. “You don’t exactly inspire the warm fuzzies.” She shrugged her shoulders. “No offense.”

  Nico grunted and shook his head. “None taken. Have at her, Kamikaze,” he said. “But it wasn’t me who jumped like Superman and clocked her in the head.”

  Skye blushed, the color warm against her cheek. Jagger fought the urge to lay his hand there, to feel the heat of her flesh against his.

  “Well, she shot at me first.” Skye looked over at the woman. “Give me a can of beans, some water and let me see what I can find out.”

  When she turned back, her blue eyes were hard, unyielding. Jagger could tell she wouldn’t take no for an answer. “If she doesn’t cooperate, I’ll take her out myself.”

  Jagger retrieved his bag and handed Skye food and water.

  “Don’t expect much. If Nico couldn’t convince—” He was shut down by the disgusted look she threw him. “Don’t you dare go there, Castille. I think I’ve more than proven myself.”

  Jagger kept a straight face but relaxed into a grin when she turned away from him. He stretched out long muscles, closed his eyes, and opened his senses to the elements.

  What he found was troubling.

  He could sense discord in the energy that ran along the earth. The natural rhythm of the jungle had been sliced, damaged; harmony was broken. The unnatural quiet was so harsh on his ears that he fought the urge to cover them.

  The animals had all but fled, because they could sense it, too: the evil that was slowly seeping into the local landscape.

  It left an awful taste in his mouth and Jagger shook his head, fighting the savage urge to bark his anger.

  Fucking magicks and their dark arts. Did they honestly think the human realm would benefit from the legions of demons that would escape?

  His eyes flew open and he turned toward Skye and the prisoner, watching in silence as she settled down in front of the female warrior.

  “I need to hunt,” Nico said quietly, his eyes, too, on the women. “And scout. Could use some help.”

  Jagger rotated his shoulders, but it did nothing to alleviate the stress and tense muscles that lined his powerful frame. He needed to shift, to run free as a jaguar.

  He knew it was the only way to alleviate, if only briefly, the burning need and want that fired every cell in his body.

  “She’ll be fine.”

  He looked at the older warrior and nodded. “I’ve no doubt of that whatsoever.”

  He could see Nico’s jaguar shifting below the man’s skin, and it only fed his animal’s desire to be set free.

  “Skye,” he said roughly as he began to mov
e toward the mouth of the cave. “We’ll be back. If anyone crosses this threshold, do not hesitate to use the goodies Declan gave me. They’re in my bag.”

  She cocked her head to the side but didn’t turn to meet his eyes. “Be careful,” she whispered.

  Jagger hesitated, even as the burn began to sizzle across his skin, but there was nothing more.

  He turned, pissed and not knowing why. What had he expected? A kiss and a pat on the ass?

  He stripped, welcoming the magick as it wound its way up his body. His mind cleared as bones popped and elongated. He ran, his long limbs sliding into the thick black pelt of his jaguar.

  Jagger joined the other warrior, who waited at the bottom of the waterfall, and without a backward glance disappeared from view, melting into the darkness that surrounded them.

  In the cave, all was silent.

  Skye regarded the woman before her, noting the tired circles under her eyes that marred the otherwise perfect skin. She winced slightly as the bruising on her face began to take root, a dark mottled blemish that ran along the length of her jaw.

  “Admiring your handiwork?” the woman hissed. “The entire right side of my face is fucking killing me. Thanks for that.”

  Skye’s eyes widened. “Um, last time I looked I was saving your ass. Nico would have ripped you apart. Besides, you shot at me, remember?”

  “Don’t flatter yourself.” The woman held out her bound wrists. Skye rummaged around in Jagger’s bag and found a knife. She quickly cut the restraints. “And just so you know, both the bullets and the arrows were charmed. You would have been fine.”

  “What are you doing out here, Jaden?” Skye asked as she handed the woman the beans. “It seems a little extreme even for you—I mean, don’t you think your brothers are going to wonder why you keep disappearing from the resort?”

  “First off, my brothers don’t give a rat’s ass what I do. I only hear from them when they want something.” She laughed, a low harsh sound. “I’m pretty much on the bottom rung as far as they’re concerned.”

  Her eyes deepened then with an intensity that was palpable. “You disappeared off the grid—what the hell do you think I’m doing out here?”

  “But it’s so dangerous. If your family finds out what you’re doing … what you’ve been doing for years, they’ll—”

  “Yeah, I know. No more Jaden. I get that and I’m fine with it.”

  Skye studied the dark woman across from her. She’d not known Jaden DaCosta for long, had only met her on a few occasions, the first being when she’d been held prisoner at the DaCosta compound less than a year earlier.

  She was edgy, dark; a woman whose emotions ran deep. Jaden’s family wholly believed that she was deeply entrenched in the DaCosta agenda. Skye knew better.

  Jaden DaCosta worked special ops for the government. To the outside world, she was the successful owner of one of the most posh resorts in Mexico.

  Jaden had promised to help her find the portal. She had no intention of seeing her family get their hands on it. Whatever her reasons were Jaden hadn’t shared, and even though she was jaguar, Skye trusted her.

  Jaxon Castille had managed to get her out of the compound before Jaden had returned, and as soon as she was able, Skye had contacted Jaden at the resort she owned in Mexico.

  She’d been secretly helping Skye, feeding her information, intel on the operations of the DaCosta clan and when she could, tips about the possible resting place of the portal. She’d definitely stuck her neck out and Skye could do nothing but admire her for it, because she knew that if her complicity was ever found out, the repercussions would be deadly.

  “Are things that bad?” Skye asked quietly, not really wanting to hear the answer.

  Jaden shook her head and looked away. “It’s about as bad as it can get.” She shook her head. “Worse, actually. Cormac is on the warpath, and he’s put a bounty on your head. Every fucking mercenary from here to China is descending on this jungle, all with orders to find you or find the portal and kill you.”

  Skye grimaced and looked away.

  “My brothers are in a frenzy to find it before Cormac. Dumb bastards think they can double-cross him.” Her words were bitter. “I hope they all rot in hell.”

  “I’m close to it Jaden. I can feel it.”

  “I hope so, because I’ve been walking around with a sick feeling in the bottom of my gut for days.” Her dark eyes bored into Skye’s. “You need to get to the portal and destroy it once and for all.”

  Jaden took a long draw from the water bottle and then turned to Skye with a wicked smile in place. “I’d love to know how the hell you ended up out here with the youngest Castille brother. I thought he bit the bullet after the compound was attacked.”

  “It’s a long story,” Skye murmured.

  “I’m sure it is,” Jaden snickered. Her dark eyes remained fixed on Skye. They made her nervous.

  “What?” Skye said, more than a little defensively.

  “You do know that the Castille boys aren’t keepers.”

  Skye frowned at that. “I’m not looking for a keeper, thanks.” It’s not like I’ll be around for that, anyway. “You know them personally?”

  Jaden’s face darkened but her voice was light as she answered. “I’ve read both Libby and Jaxon’s files. The only Castille I’ve ever met in person is the oldest.” Her gaze drifted to a place just beyond Skye as she continued. “Once. A long time ago.”

  “You mean Julian … he’s here, in the jungle.”

  Something flickered across Jaden’s face, but was gone just as quick. “Julian Castille is an arrogant prick,” she said, her face hard, and then she laughed. “He’s still out here? I’m impressed. Thought he’d go running back to his plush office and endless parade of women.” She snorted. “I can’t see it. He’s too white collar. Christ, the man is totally Hollywood.”

  “That doesn’t sound like the person I met. Julian Castille seemed very intense, dangerous even.” Skye shrugged her shoulders and stood up. “They all seem … so complicated.”

  “You don’t know the half of it.”

  Skye paused. “What do you know about Jagger?”

  In a way she hoped that Jaden knew nothing. There was no point, really, in knowing more, and as the words left her lips she wished she could take them back.

  Jaden stood as well, stretching out long legs and running her fingers through the curtain of dark hair that fell halfway down to her waist.

  She turned to Skye and pursed her lips, exhaling slowly before answering. “I don’t know much. He’s the youngest, followed Jaxon into the military, where he was trained as black ops. I don’t think he was ever attached to PATU, instead served his country in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I know he resigned his commission several months ago and has been in the States ever since. Well, until recently, that is.”

  “You don’t know anything about a woman named Eden, do you?”

  Jaden shook her head. “No, sorry, who is she?”

  Skye turned away. “No one.”

  “A word of advice?”

  Skye stilled.

  “Do not get involved with Jagger Castille. It will only bring heartbreak. Look at Libby Jamieson, at how she suffered because of her love for Jaxon.”

  “But they’re together. Things worked out.”

  Jaden raised an eyebrow. “And you know this because …”

  “I saw them together just before I fled Caracol. There’s no mistaking how intense his feelings were.”

  “For now,” Jaden said grudgingly. “But at what price? She lost years of her life and nearly that of her child.”

  Skye was silent as she studied the shifter. She got the feeling something else was at play but didn’t push as she sighed softly. “It doesn’t matter, anyway, it’s not like I have much …” Her voice trailed off as she thought to herself, time.

  “What are you not telling me, Skye?”

  Jaden grabbed her arm and sp
un her around.

  Skye smiled and shook her head sadly. “Nothing. Everything will work out and be fine once I get my hands on the portal.”

  Jaden thought the same as everyone else: that she was going to destroy the portal and life would return to the status quo. If only it were that simple.

  Her mind turned to Jagger. What was she doing with him? It made no sense. She had nothing to offer him except pain. Skye did not want to be Eden number two.

  She kept her face neutral and refused to look away from Jaden’s eyes, asking instead, “So what’s your plan? Can you not come clean with Jagger and Nico?”

  “No.” Jaden shook her head violently. “I can’t trust a soul. No one can know I’m the mole in the DaCosta organization.”

  Skye made a face. “Okay, I get that. What’s next?”

  “I’ll head back and try to buy you as much time as I can, but it won’t be much. There’re just too many mercenaries arriving each hour.” She spat into the ground. “The entire jungle smells like a fucking paranormal melting pot.” She raised her eyebrow. “And that’s a stink I can barely stomach.”

  “Okay, let me come up with something. Jagger and Nico aren’t dumb, they’ll be all over your escape and—”

  A sharp pain exploded along the side of her temple and Skye tilted forward as the world began to spin.

  What the hell?

  She tried to articulate her thoughts but her mouth didn’t seem to be working. Her eyes tried to focus on Jaden, but the woman was nothing more than a blur.

  “Sorry chica, but really, you had that coming.”

  Skye heard the words spoken and then everything went dark.

  It was a dark moonless night, one meant for the predatory beasts that roamed the jungle.

  Yet Jagger took no pleasure from his nocturnal jaunt. Things had changed. The darkness that was threatening could be felt everywhere. It seeped into the earth at his feet, and poisoned the air that he drew into his lungs.

  It made him sick to his stomach to think that certain factions of all the paranormal beings—vamps, shifters, magicks—were actively looking to unleash the demon underworld in the human realm.

  Were they fucking clueless? Did Cormac and his cohorts actually think they could control the beasts of the underworld?