by J. E. Cluney
“Wait! I know a warlock. He could be here in a jiffy and have him up with ease,” Lachy declared excitedly.
“Well, call him then!” Kev sputtered when Lachy just stood there grinning stupidly for a few moments.
He pulled his phone out and dialed just as Jackson came back shaking his head.
“He’s completely out of it,” Jackson sighed.
“How’d he even get there?” I murmured, frowning as I wondered where the shark shifter was. His scent was in the area, but he was nowhere to be seen.
What didn’t we know?
“Hey! Lucas, was going to call the Area Enforcer, but figured you might be free instead. Got a tourist shifter here who fell off Tibro onto a ledge, do you think you could come help?” Lachy spoke into the phone.
The muffled voice was quick to respond, and Lachy fist-pumped the air.
The next thing I knew, a portal was opening up right by us. A big, galaxy looking rip in the air, and a young man stepped through.
“A shifter tourist?” the man asked with an arched eyebrow.
I just stared at him, a wave of sickness washing over me. How on earth was he not roasting in that purple suit? He had a diamond-like earring too that was glinting in the sunlight, and his dark emerald eyes were not amused.
Hell, this guy looked really out of place, and rich.
And a warlock? I’d heard of them, powerful, magical beings capable of incredible magic. Never met one though.
“Hey, yeah, he was with us last night at camp, went missing this morning. We tracked him here,” Lachy informed him.
“Whereabouts?” Lucas sighed as he gazed around the area, nodding at the rest of us in acknowledgement.
“This way,” Jackson thumbed in the direction of the ledge before leading Lucas over.
The warlock knelt down as he peered over the edge.
“Did he fall?” he asked as he gave us a quizzical look.
“No idea, we only just found him,” Darcy answered.
Lucas nodded, then raised a glowing purple hand.
I watched completely dumbstruck as I saw Tyler begin to rise up from the ledge. He floated up through the air, and Lucas guided him with his magic to a safe spot closer to the trail.
We crowded around Tyler instantly, and I grimaced at the sunburn that had settled over him.
“So, what drugs were you all enjoying last night?” Lucas queried, the corner of his mouth curving up knowingly.
Lachy gave a sheepish grin, and I growled.
“Drugs? I thought you guys were just drinking!” I snapped, before turning on Jackson. “Did you know there were drugs?”
“Of course not!” Jackson threw up his hands in surrender. “I’m not stupid.”
“Just a few, but he didn’t have any, just me and a couple of the guys,” Lachy muttered as I gave him my foulest look, loving how he squirmed under my gaze. Good. Fucking drugs around my mate. That was too far.
“Well, no idea how he got here, but will you guys be okay handling him from here? I’ve got a family lunch on with my mate, so, you know,” Lucas said as he glanced at all of us questioningly.
“We’ve got it from here, thanks mate,” Kev said, and Lucas nodded before creating a new portal and stepping through.
Portals.
I’ll be damned. They were a thing.
“Tyler? Hey, bud, you okay?” Jackson knelt down as he shook Tyler’s shoulder.
“Is he hurt?” I asked as I knelt down and ran my hands over him.
I closed my eyes, willing my unique power forth. No broken bones that I could find, just some bruising and the ugly sunburn, nothing I couldn’t handle. I let my magic flow forth into him, spurring his own healing abilities and boosting them into overdrive.
I opened my eyes, watching as the ugly redness in his skin faded away slowly.
“Wow, how’d you do that?” Lachy hissed as Kev stared as well.
“She’s a healer,” Darcy stated as he watched me work.
“A healer?” Kev murmured, and Darcy explained it to him in a quick summary.
Tyler groaned as he opened one eye weakly, and I sighed in relief.
But it was short-lived as anger bubbled up inside me as Tyler struggled to sit.
“What the fuck, Tyler? You go fucking missing, don’t answer your phone, we’re all worried you’re dead or something, seriously?!” I snapped, not caring that his eyes practically bugged out of his head.
“Where is your phone, anyway?” Jackson asked as he patted Tyler’s pockets. At least he had shorts on, but he’d lost his shirt at some point, and his flip-flops.
“You had T worrying like a nervous wreck! You goddamn idiot. We’re on a vacation, dickhead. You don’t pull this shit on vacation,” Darcy growled at him.
“Where’s Bruce?” Tyler finally muttered, his voice raspy and dry, making me feel a little guilty for him. We were all thirsty, but he sounded bad. And he didn’t seem to care that we’d just gotten angry at him.
“Obviously he ditched ya, mate,” Lachy clucked his tongue.
“No, he’ll be back,” Tyler groaned as he rubbed his face. “Fuck, my head hurts.”
“Guess he never got you the Slog Grog huh?” Kev snorted.
“Shut up,” I barked, getting tired of Kev and Lachy’s easy-going attitudes during all this. “This is not how I wanted our holiday to go,” I muttered.
“Topaz, I’m sorry, it’s not what you think,” Tyler croaked as he reached for me.
I fought off the urge to swat his hand away and hit him. Something in his voice worried me.
I let him pull me into a hug, and I glanced over his shoulder at Darcy and Jackson, who both looked equally confused.
“We need to get away from here before he comes back,” Tyler whispered.
“Who? Bruce? Why?” I sat back, gritting my teeth as I searched those panicked brown eyes.
Tyler was panicked, which was definitely bad.
What could possibly have him so worried?
9
Tyler.
Topaz was not happy. That was the understatement of the year. Those furious chocolate eyes ripped into me at first, and my head thumped something shocking as I sat up. Great, perfect combo.
I ignored the verbal onslaught as I tried to focus, my memory hazy.
Bruce. He did this.
He’d offered to help my hangover, but he’d drugged me and brought me to the base of the mountain.
I managed to get out of his van and ran up the mountain…
I groaned as I rubbed my face and apologized to Topaz. God, my head was killing me. Had I fallen?
Yes…wait, no. I’d been shoved.
Bruce, we’d struggled, and he’d pushed me by accident. I’d landed on the ledge, the last thing I saw was him looking down at me before it faded to black.
God, my throat felt so sore and dry.
“Tyler, what happened?” Topaz asked gently as she cupped my face.
I sighed as I felt her magic flow into me, targeting my pounding headache and relieving it a little.
“Bruce drugged me, I escaped, but he caught up to me up here. I couldn’t really fight back, and he pushed me… accident… I think,” I rasped.
“Why would he drug you?” Topaz asked aloud as she looked to her companions for help.
Two kangaroo shifters from yesterday were here too. Kev and Lachy, at least, that’s who I thought they were from memory.
Yesterday was a little hazy too, but that was probably the alcohol.
“No idea,” I muttered.
God, what I wouldn’t do for some water.
“C’mon, let’s get you off this mountain,” Darcy suggested as he knelt down to slide an arm around my shoulders.
I allowed him to help me to my feet, and I gave Topaz a reassuring smile as she gave me a worried look.
Fuck. This was the last thing I’d wanted. To worry her and ruin our holiday.
This was meant to be her special trip with us.
Of course
I’d messed it up.
“I’m sorry,” I mumbled as Topaz stroked my cheek before allowing Jackson to help me on my other side.
“Don’t be, sounds like there’s more going on than we thought,” she said softly.
“Yeah, I’d like to know what,” Jackson growled as he began the descent down the mountain with me.
The two other shifters walked behind us, and Topaz led the way, making sure to warn us of any potential rough terrain or overly steep parts.
Where had Bruce gone? And what the hell had he been planning on doing with me?
“What do you think he wanted with you?” Jackson asked softly.
“No idea,” I muttered, wincing as I stepped on some sharp rocks.
“Maybe he was doing a date rape drug thing,” Darcy suggested, and I baulked at the idea.
“Possibly, although maybe it was something else,” Jackson mused.
“Glad I went over the cliff. Screw being fucked by a shark-man,” I muttered. That was a big no-no for me. Sharing Topaz with the others was one thing, but I wasn’t down for other stuff.
“Maybe he was going to harvest your organs?” Jackson offered.
Great, even better. Maybe he was going to fuck my liver while he was at it.
I grimaced as I imagined a man fucking my liver. All gooey and bloody… shit, what the hell was going on with my mind.
“Either that or he was going to turn you permanently into a tiger somehow and sell your parts for Chinese medicine,” Darcy snorted.
Of course they were enjoying this.
Then again, things could have gone horribly wrong. I was alive, and making light of the situation was helping, a little.
Rather than thinking how close I came to death.
If it hadn’t been for that ledge…
I forced myself to focus on Topaz instead, watching her long legs as she walked out before me.
How had I ended up with her? The most amazing woman ever?
I felt like shit for having made her worry so much.
But the fact she’d worried so much warmed my heart. She really did love me.
“Ummmm, we have a problem,” Topaz declared as she came to a halt.
“What? Brown snake?” Kev sighed.
“Worse,” Topaz muttered. “Shark.”
10
I glared at Bruce, at the way his bald head glistened with sweat under the harsh sun.
And he wasn’t alone.
He had three other guys with him, carrying assorted ropes and harnesses. Were they coming to get Tyler? I doubt it was a rescue mission.
“What do you want with Tyler?” I spat as I planted my feet.
Bruce looked a little pissed off at finding all of us here, with an ugly scowl on his equally ugly mug.
God, those beady eyes were off-putting, reminding of his shark side a little too much.
I just had to remind myself that technically, he was a giant fish. And I was a giant cat.
Come here, tuna fish.
“Well, considering he’s got Rick with him, I think it was some black market shit,” Kev spoke up from behind me.
One of the men with Bruce growled, and I drew in his scent. Some kind of canine, not one I was familiar with.
“They smell like cats too,” the man said, whom I assumed was Rick.
“Two more tigers, one panther,” Bruce growled as his beady eyes flicked around our little group.
Four against six. Surely we had this. Then again, Tyler was not really with it, and I wasn’t sure how the two kangaroo guys were in a fight.
“They’ll fetch a nice figure for the shifter ring,” Rick mused. “We’ll take all of them.”
“Like fuck you will,” I spat. So they were going to sell Tyler off? Seriously? So much for a vacation.
Bruce and the guys dropped all their gear, and I took up a stance as they shot towards us.
I heard Tyler grumble behind me.
“Ah, fuck me,” Lachy groaned.
I dodged the punch from Rick, hating how Bruce barreled past me with the other two.
“C’mon pussy cat, show me what you got,” Rick laughed, and the stench of cigarette smoke hit me as I swept my leg to knock him off balance.
He jumped over my leg, and I had to quickly pull back as he went to punch me once more.
Damn, he knew how to fight.
Shit.
Rick’s dull brown eyes flickered golden, and his teeth elongated as claws protruded from his fingers.
So this little mutt wanted to play this game, huh?
I grinned wickedly as I dodged another punch, and I felt all my senses heighten as I let my tiger out to play.
Time for some fun.
Rick clawed at me, and I grabbed his wrist, yanking him forward and slashing across his face with my own deadly claws.
He cried out as he stumbled back, holding his bloody cheek.
“You bitch!” he snarled.
“Thought I was a pussy cat,” I smirked.
Fuck, it was blazing hot out here.
Rick snarled as he came for me again, but I easily side-stepped him and clawed his back while shoving him to the ground.
I took the chance to check on the others, finding Darcy and Jackson were handling one of the other guys, and Kev was easily knocking some sense into the other canine shifter.
Bruce, on the other hand, was putting up a good fight as he went for Tyler, and Lachy had leaped onto his back and was punching his head.
Not that that was doing much it seemed, especially since Bruce had partially shifted, his head and neck becoming one, and rows of jagged teeth jutting from his mouth.
I shot forward as Bruce caught Tyler’s arm as Tyler stumbled, and I cried out as he was yanked forward and Bruce chomped down on his shoulder.
Tyler shrieked, his eyes glowing golden as he clawed at Bruce, managing to slash his beady eye and forcing him to release his mangled shoulder.
Tyler fell to the ground, holding his bloody, injured shoulder as Lachy began punching Bruce in the injured eye.
I leaped forward, sliding across the dirt, not caring that I was grazing my legs as I slammed my foot into the back of Bruce’s knee.
The satisfying crunch as his leg gave way did little to relieve me as I rolled to the side just as Lachy jumped off him and went to aid Kev.
Darcy and Jackson had apparently knocked out the other guy, and they were rushing our way as Rick shot towards me.
He didn’t make it far as Jackson launched onto him, roaring as he tore into him and Darcy slammed a heavy punch into his face.
He was out like a light after that.
I flew to Tyler’s side, hissing as blood streaked down his chest and side as he held his shoulder, his face twisted in agony.
I reached out, willing all of my power forth to heal him, pushing it to its limits. This injury was really bad. Bruce had torn through muscle, and I was doing my best not to look at the flaps of skin that were hanging down.
He’d bleed out.
I closed my eyes, focusing my power into his shoulder, boosting his own healing and making sure to start with the deeper muscle and tissue damage.
“Fuck, that looks bad,” Kev muttered as he joined us. He and Lachy must’ve handled the other guy.
What about Bruce? Was he still on the ground holding his injured eye and broken knee?
I didn’t care.
“I’m calling the Area enforcer,” Lachy said, and I heard his phone start ringing.
I focused back on my task, gritting my teeth as I exerted myself. He was healing though.
Thank God.
“T,” Darcy knelt down beside me and put a hand on my shoulder. “Be careful.”
I knew he was right. Pushing myself too much could result in damage to myself. If I depleted my healing power, I’d weaken considerably, become bed-bound for days, if not worse.
But Tyler was hurt bad. I needed to help him.
“Topaz.”
I opened my eyes, finding Tyler’s swe
et, earthy eyes locked onto mine. He was still in pain, but it had lessened.
“Don’t hurt yourself for me, okay, babe?” he managed to rasp out.
I gave him a soft smile as I pulled back a little on the healing.
He was out of the danger zone now. But I certainly was feeling quite drained.
I flinched as a portal opened up by us, and another warlock stepped through. This one reminded me of the first, although he was older and sleeker, with a grey suit and his greying hair slicked back.
“This is them?” the warlock asked as he eyed Bruce and his fallen companions.
“Yes, that’s them,” Lachy nodded.
I focused on Tyler as Darcy inspected his healing wounds. I could hear the warlock reciting some rights to the conscious two before cuffing them and creating another portal.
“There’s a first aid kit in the SUV, we should get him down there and patch this up. You’ll be healed in no time though, thanks to T,” Darcy managed a gentle smile as he patted Tyler’s other shoulder.
“Looks like a mess though, so much blood,” Jackson remarked.
He wasn’t wrong, even though it was healing nicely, the initial wound had left a lot of blood all over Tyler.
“I’m sorry to hear what has happened here, although your friend seems to be healing up quickly. Will he require medical treatment?” the warlock came back over after another man came through the portal to remove the unconscious men. He easily picked them up, which made me wonder just what he was.
Special Council guy, probably.
“No, we’ve got a first aid kit, the worst has healed,” Darcy answered. “Thanks though… Mr?”
“Mr Brady, Area Enforcer here. I’m glad Lachlan called this in. We’ve been after Rick for some time, and his colleagues. They’ve been known to kidnap and sell supes on the black market, for fight rings and other various purposes,” Mr Brady sighed, clearly frustrated with the whole situation. “Well, we’ve got him now. We’ll be questioning him and shutting down his operation for good. So, thank you.”
“No problem,” Tyler said weakly, and I scoffed.
Lachy spoke with him a little longer as Darcy and Jackson helped Tyler to his feet yet again.
Once Mr Brady had left, we began the final stretch back to the SUV to get Tyler patched up.