Falling Hard

by Shelly Bell

  Shit, what the fuck? Mitch knew he was too young to have lost a whole day. Something had fucked with his memories.

  After a few moments, there was no answer. He walked around the house and sniffed the air. That smell. It was dank, like an old urinal in a baseball park or . . . no, it was the smell of death.

  A shudder rattled him to his bones.

  In a flash, Aurora was before him again. No, not Aurora. Rory. That was what he called her. She was screaming for her life. And then she was on the ground. Something struck her.

  “Rory!” Mitch shouted into the night. He could see her, and then the bottom of a steel girder.

  The bridge. Aurora was on the bridge.

  The image was gone, and regardless of whether or not he was on campus and someone would see him, Mitch pulled every stitch of clothing from his body. Even though he was pissed off and scared and worried, the shift didn’t come. “Fuck,” he screamed at no one.

  His roar echoed into the trees.

  The potion. All of a sudden, he could remember. Hazel had given him a potion. And it had knocked him out. And they were going to fight her father.

  Now they were on the bridge, alone. With a demon.

  Aurora couldn’t die like his father. Mitch would rip her father to pieces with his bare human hands if he had to.

  Chapter 18

  Aurora fought to pull herself from the ground. The slap from her father had been so hard and devastating, it made her knees buckle. He was in full form now. His legs were deformed. He had the body of a satyr. His hind legs were slender like a goat’s and his tawny, gray skin was covered with wrinkles. There were horns on the top of his head, but not like from the pictures of demons. His horns were like a ram’s.

  “You can’t kill me, father. I won’t let you,” she said.

  The beastly figure stood above her, his nostrils flared and his teeth bared in his scowling mouth, “Oh, but I can, dear girl. If you were to think about it, you’d find that this is something you want. Isn’t that the reason you haven’t tried to stab me with your bag of tricks? You see, I know everything. And when I’m done with you, I’ll send you back to kill each of your friends, one at a time,” he said.

  Aurora watched her father—the thing that was turning into flesh and bone before her. It wasn’t time yet, though. She needed a few more moments.

  Reaching behind her, she unzipped the side of the bag and searched for the handle of Ruby’s knife. When she had a firm grip, she rose to her feet. Alchoe was taller than her by a foot, his hands long and gangly on his arms.

  Taking a deep breath, she slowly backed away. One step, then another. As she moved backward, Alchoe advanced.

  “You’ve ruined my life, but for the first time, I know what it feels like to be almost normal. I won’t let you take that from me.” She snatched the knife from the bag and raised it into the air.

  “Are you waiting for something dramatic? As if I’d shrink away and cower in fear of your little knife? I’m sorry, child. That’s not how things work in the real world. That knife doesn’t mean anything to me. Come with me, before you have to suffer the mortal pain of dying. There’s nothing in me that prevents me from snapping your neck. Right here. I told you before, dead or alive, Aurora. This is your very last chance.”

  The air grew too thick for Aurora to breathe normally. Choked with her own fear, she panted and attempted to calm herself.

  “And I’ll give you one more chance. If you don’t leave me and my friends the fuck alone, I’ll kill you. I don’t mean that shit metaphorically. I will kill you and walk away as you dissolve into nothingness.”

  “My, my. Now that sounds more like something a child of mine would say.” Alchoe was a second away from her. So close she could scent the brimstone. “I’m almost proud of you.”

  Aurora steeled herself, another moment and he would be in full form. Just a second more, if she could keep him talking. “You should be. After all, I’m daddy’s little girl,” she said. Bringing the knife down, the hilt of the blade plunged into his rib cage, just inches away from what would have been a human’s heart.

  “Tsk, tsk. Too soon. You always underestimate.” He slowly pulled the blade from his chest and tossed it to the side. “I’m not fully formed yet, didn’t you’re little witch friend tell you? She said, ‘In your case, since you have the power to be both, you’ll have to make a conscious choice to be good in order to kill your father.’” It was horrifying hearing Hazel’s voice coming from his body. With a wicked laugh, he continued, “And clearly, you haven’t made the choice.”

  Alchoe raised his hands to Aurora’s neck and wrapped them both around her throat. She struggled to fight against him, but it was futile. He was too strong for her. As he strangled the breath from her body, he lifted her into the air and held her with her head right in front of his. He stared at her, eye-to-eye, and waited for death to claim her. Aurora kicked and thrashed. She grew weaker with each movement.

  The last of her will was draining from her body. Giving up wasn’t an option, but the power in her to fight was fleeting.

  “Give up, girl. There’s nothing more to be done,” he told her. Even his breath was cold against her skin.

  It was a hard fight, but she refused to let him win. There was Mitch. They’d only just started to grow close. And for the first time in her life, she had friends. It had been weeks since she’d done anything bad. And goddammit, she was only twenty. There was so much to live for.

  A warmth came over her. It was so safe and familiar. In the far distance, it was coming and she wanted to run to it. Rory . . . where are you?

  She heard it, but is seemed like a dream. Then again, Rory?

  Mitch was there. She couldn’t see him and she didn’t know exactly where he was, be he was coming for her. She wanted to call out to him, but all she had were her sparse thoughts. Mitch, I love you. With the last breath of air she had, she kicked her father. In her raised position, her foot sank into the flesh of what would have been a cock.

  The bag she’d had was so far away, and with each passing moment, she felt herself floating further and further away from consciousness. She was dying. The stranglehold Alchoe had around her neck was causing her lungs to collapse into themselves.

  Hazel’s chant was louder now. It was nearly all Aurora could hear.

  She closed her eyes to concentrate on it, the comfort of Hazel’s human voice lulling her into a deep slumber.

  Chapter 19

  Mitch found them.

  He couldn’t see Zee, but he heard her. The bridge was a few hundred feet away. Her chanting was constant.

  He looked around, trying to determine which way to go first. He hadn’t been able to shift. The cold of the night was cutting into his naked skin. From the trees, he laid eyes on the most disturbing sight he’d ever seen: something was strangling Aurora.

  “Rory!” he yelled out, a guttural growl.

  Mitch took off at top speed, undeterred by the pain of his shift. At first it was reluctant, but finally his beast tore free from his human skin.

  In a second, he was fully beast, his long black coat blowing in the wind.

  Mitch stopped an inch away from the monster who held his woman. His animal mind was unable to rationalize how to get her free before ripping the thing who held her to shreds. It was a demon, no less her father, but none of that mattered.

  Mitch rose on his hind legs and bit down into the demon’s neck. He slashed at the monster with his large paws, his claws gnashing at his skin. With a yelp, the demon dropped Aurora to the ground. She lay there, seemingly unconscious, but Mitch needed to focus. Circling, he stood in front of her on his four legs.

  His panting was mixed with a growl as he pushed forward. Mitch stalked towards his prey, backing him away from Aurora’s limp body.

  Demons were dangerous, both magical and strong, but for some reason, he wasn’t using his powers. Mitch sized him up and the demon tilted his head, looking at him warily.

  “Oh, I see. Y
ou’re the boy. I must admit, you’d make quite a pet in Hades. We have a few just like you down there. One of them must have been your father. You see, you can always tell by the pelt. When I killed him, he hardly put up any fight at all. And your sweet mother walked away. I was tired that day, so I didn’t give chase. But I should have. Had I killed her that day, I wouldn’t need to do the same for you now. No matter. I’m versatile. I can adjust to any situation.”

  Mitch wished he could speak in his wolf form. He would have told this asshole exactly what he was thinking.

  Mitch proceeded forward, nipping at his feet. He needed him far enough away from Aurora so he couldn’t grab her again during battle. It was an exercise in patience, and Mitch barely had any left. He bit at the demon, wanting to take him apart in small chucks and digest the pieces.

  “Listen, dog . . . I’ll give you a chance to run for your life. You can either flee now and die another day, or I can kill you here on the bridge. I’m feeling generous today, so I’ll let you choose.”

  Mitch saw red, all cunning leaving him. Raising up on his hind legs, he charged, using his paws to knock the demon over once more. Something had weakened him, or had made Mitch stronger; either way, he ripped at his throat and pulled out a section of it, leaving only half in place.

  The demon’s hands grabbed at his throat and pain seared through Mitch. Somehow, the demon had cut him and Mitch could see the blood on his fingers as he bit the freak’s wrists. With a slap, he pushed Mitch off him and jumped to his feet. Skin from the hole in his neck hung down his chest.

  With one charge, Mitch had him on his back again. He used his paws to split open his chest and continued to pummel him. Holding him down by his neck, he continued an assault on various parts of his body, ripping skin from bone. Mitch felt the pull of his fur from the demon’s nails, but it wasn’t enough to stop him. He clawed into him and silently swore he wouldn’t let him get to Aurora again.

  The demon was silent as Mitch lashed at him, tearing him to pieces.

  From behind him, Mitch smelled Zee. With one leap, she was over the two of them and came down into the demon’s open chest with a blade.

  A shrill yell came from the demon and echoed across the sky.

  Mitch jumped back. There was a blinding light emitting from the tangled mess. Zee was on the other side, knocked to the ground from the force. Before their eyes, the demon swelled into a mushy, gray, bulbous lump. Bright red light radiated through the holes in his skin and filled the surrounding area and into the night air.

  In another second, the lump exploded. Parts of him scattered, and Mitch backed away from the deafening sound.

  Mitch ran to Aurora, still in wolf form, and licked at her face. She wasn’t waking up and the fear of losing her consumed him.

  Zee came over to her and began to administer CPR. Mitch backed away, watching, praying his sweet Rory would respond.

  Chapter 20

  Aurora blinked her eyes, her body shivering from the cold. Hazel knelt over her, pressing into her chest. The cough hurt so deeply in her lungs, but she gulped down air in spite of the pain.

  “I’m up . . .” she managed.

  Hazel stopped her rapid compressions and looked at her. Tears streamed down her face and her electric blue eyeliner ran the length of her cheeks. “Oh, my god, you’re back,” Hazel exclaimed.

  She fell onto Aurora, hugging and kissing her cheeks.

  Aurora tried to rise, but everything hurt. She felt like she’d been boxing. The pain wracked her from her feet to her head. “Is he gone?” she managed to ask Hazel, even though she still hadn’t caught her breath.

  “Yes. Thanks to Mitch,” she said.

  Aurora looked to her right to find the most beautiful creature she’d ever seen. His body was covered in deep, coal-colored fur and bright blue eyes stared at her with such pain and compassion, she felt as if she was dying again inside them. “Oh, Mitch . . .” she gasped. She held her hand out to him. There was no fear in her, even though he was the size of a compact car. He padded over to her, his tongue lolling, and licked her hand.

  His warmth was still radiating and overpowering. Aurora sank her hands into his fur and stroked, indulging in the softness.

  “Guys, we’d better get off the bridge. I don’t know the odds of a Seeker tracking down a witch and two supers on the same night versus us all being nearly killed by a demon, but I’m not interested in finding out. Let’s get to the car.”

  Aurora attempted to stand, but her knees buckled. Mitch was waiting there, catching her with his body and standing still while she crawled onto his back. Hazel gave her a hand with climbing the rest of the way on.

  Being on Mitch’s back was a lot like horseback riding. Aurora hung on for dear life to the long hairs of his neck as he followed Hazel to the Jeep parked a half-mile from the bridge.

  For the first time in her life, Aurora felt free. Despite the pain. Regardless of being unable to use one of her arms without searing heat ricocheting through her body.

  Hazel helped her into the passenger seat, then opened the door to let Mitch into the backseat of the truck.

  She had to let the seats down so that he wasn’t so cramped, but he still couldn’t stand in the car. He whined pitifully. “Sorry about this, buddy, but you know you can’t walk back to wherever the hell your clothes are,” Hazel explained.

  Aurora wanted to laugh, but she ached too badly.

  ***

  Waking up in a strange place had always been disconcerting to Aurora. The room was bright with the morning sun.

  Aurora rolled over and found a body next to her. He was warm and familiar. Mitch raised his head and smiled. His brilliant white teeth and powerful blue eyes made her go weak, not that it was a stretch, considering her body felt like she’d been used as an Olympic punching bag.

  “Good morning, Rory,” he said. He was leaning on his arm and gazing down at her as if she was the only woman to have ever lived.

  “Morning, Mitch,” she responded. Her voice was hoarse and scratchy, but it didn’t matter. She’d awakened next to her most prized possession.

  “Morning. You and Zee have a lot to make up for, but I’ll give you preliminary forgiveness since we all could have died yesterday,” he said.

  She wished she could have laughed, but her chest was on fire. “Can I please have some water?” she asked, giving him a smile.

  “Sure.” He stood up as she watched. He wasn’t wearing anything at all, his stripped down butt muscular and toned. Aurora wanted to grab it, but trying to sit up was a notion she couldn’t fathom.

  Mitch returned from his compact refrigerator with two bottles of water. Handing one to her, he kept the other in his hand and climbed back into bed.

  “Where are you hurting?” he asked, gently.

  “Everywhere. My face and chest are the worst,” she responded, then took a sip of the water, which tasted a lot like heaven.

  “Okay, let’s start with the nasty bruise on your eye,” he said. “It’s safe to say classes are out this morning.”

  “I don’t even think I can move. It’s okay. I haven’t missed any this semester,” she responded, wincing slightly as the cold bottle touched her face.

  Mitch held it in place as she slowly got used to the freezing temperature. “Look at you, being the good girl. You can stay with me today. I don’t have any tests, so I can miss a couple of days.”

  A thought passed through Aurora’s mind and made her mini-panic. “Will your roommates mind?”

  “Please. There’s at least one other girl here now,” he said. Regret appeared on his face the moment he said the words. “I mean, not that we have a lot of girls roaming through here . . .”

  “Mitch, it’s okay. I just don’t expect anyone else to roam into your bed from now on,” she said with a sweet but deadly smile.

  “That’s not something you have to worry about. You’ve managed to take care of that for the rest of my life. Do you even know what it means to imprint on someone? I�
��m sorry, but I’m yours to keep.”

  Aurora fought against the pain and rolled onto her side and looked him directly in the eyes. “I know what being imprinted means. I just hope you realize, I have a dark heart.”

  Mitch removed the bottle from her face and moved it off to the side. Stroking her hair back, he leaned into her and whispered, “And now, I have one, too.”

  Other Books by Aliza Mann

  A SOULMATE FOR CHRISTMAS

  DISARMED

  FURY RISING

  About Aliza Mann

  Having developed a preoccupation with reading as a small child, her mother would literally have to bribe her to go outside and play with her friends. After finding her first romance novel at the bus stop when she was fourteen (probably a little too young, but nevertheless), Aliza has been hooked on the genre ever since. It was not until the age of sixteen that her interest in writing peaked. A kind English teacher had given her a journaling assignment that would last the duration of the semester and it changed her life, forever.

  After obtaining an MBA and working in the Healthcare industry for the last 15 years, she decided to give her writing the attention that it deserved. In 2010, she began honing her skills and joined Romance Writers of America and the Greater Detroit Romance Writers. She has discovered that while her muse dictates what stories are written and when, her favorite romance sub-genres are contemporary, paranormal, and suspense.

  Aliza lives in Michigan with her young son and the man of her dreams. She had one adult daughter who cannot come home enough. When she is not writing, she can usually be found on Twitter or taking hikes through her neighborhood. She loves trucks, movies that bring her to tears, baking, and Scrabble.

  To learn more about Aliza, you may follow her on Twitter (@alizamannauthor) or visit her page on Facebook: Aliza Mann. She is also a guest blogger on Heroes and Heartbreakers, www.heroesandheartbreakers.