“How about you?” I asked. “Are you going to help me and then blow out of here like the wind you rode in on?”
There was something there, in his eyes, something that told me he wanted to say no. Something that told me it was because of me.
“I’m having a hard time looking past the here and now,” he said.
His fingers brushed my cheek, rough skin but tender touch. I leaned into his palm, brushing the pad of his thumb with my lips. The shifter part of me screamed that this was it, that Axel was my mate, and that there was nothing more vital than that.
I took in his scent, listened to his heartbeat, and watched the heat burn in his eyes. He wanted me as much as I wanted him.
I kissed his thumb, soft, tender, but kept my gaze locked with his. Fanning the flames, I spread my lips, licking his salty skin.
“Penny,” he growled, and closed his eyes. His voice was deep, raw, and as much wolf as man. If that wasn’t enough, the tent in his jeans told me what I already knew.
Every inch of my skin awakened, and excitement filled me. I loved the way he reacted. I put my hand on his, and took his thumb between my lips.
“I’m afraid I won’t be able to stop,” he said.
“Maybe I don’t want you to,” I replied. I wanted him to be my first. I wanted him to be my only.
With that, his hands held my wrists beside my head; his body pinned my back to the roof top. I gasped at his speed, at his strength as he straddled my legs. The jacket beneath my back was soft, protecting me from the rough surface below. Had it been anyone else, I would have been scared instead of nervous. But this was Axel, and this was exactly what I wanted.
He leaned down, so the rough stubble of his cheek scratched along my jaw. “I’m no good for you,” he said, lips by my ear.
“I don’t care,” I replied, and it was true. I’d never wanted nice. I’d never wanted to hide in the constable making raven shifter babies. I wanted adventure. I wanted thrill. I wanted Axel.
His teeth brushed the lobe of my ear, and I moaned as the sensation carried through me.
“Tell me to leave,” he growled. “Tell me no, and I’ll go.”
“I can’t,” I whispered. “I won’t.”
His lips trailed down my neck, the skin cool where each kiss was left behind. I tipped my head back, exposing myself to him. It was right there. One bite and we were bonded. One bite and I was tied to him forever. He lingered above my collarbone, warm breath tickling my bare skin.
Then his tongue was deep within my mouth, delving, claiming me to my darkest depths. I kissed him back, just as desperate to relieve the tension within me, just as eager to show him how serious I was.
He released my arm, instead kneading my aching breast. It felt so good, tender, as he held back. I didn’t need him to hold back. I wanted everything, every raw emotion, everything he had to give.
With my free hand, I reached between us, to the cock that pressed hard against his fly. I stroked his length, encouraging him. His tongue moved deeper, claiming every inch, before he let me breathe.
And just like that, he sat upright. For a moment I was afraid he would pull away again. He didn’t. I watched as he slid his shirt over his head. Each inch revealed more of him to me. His abs were toned, defined. His chest was broad, his tanned skin covered in light scars. I wanted to know the story for each one. They were what we both were—stories of pain, stories of survival.
I pulled off my shirt, and watched him devour me with his eyes. I hoped he liked what he saw. All of this was so new to me. I needed acceptance, and he didn’t disappoint.
“Beautiful,” he said.
I smiled, and tore open his jeans. His cock sprung free, huge and ready for me. The size was as impressive as it was intimidating.
He slid my pants down over my hips, and somehow I didn’t care that I was naked on a roof in the middle of town. All I cared about was the feeling of his cock in my fist, the look of need in his eyes, and the excitement that flowed through me.
His fingers teased, circling my clit, as he kissed my breasts. I expected hard and rough, but he offered soft and slow. “Axel,” I moaned. “Axel, please.”
“Anything,” he said. “Anything for you.” With that, he grabbed my hips, and tilted me up to meet him. Thick and firm, he pushed gently in. It was different than I’d expected, more intense. I felt a burning, stretching sensation as I matched his girth. The feeling was as exquisite as it was painful. But the sting quickly passed, leaving only pleasure.
I dug my fingers into his shoulders as he pushed farther and farther inside. Rough and hard was what I had expected, and once I’d taken his entire length, that’s what I got.
The sun shone bright behind him, watching over us in the afternoon sky. I bit my lip to keep from screaming as Axel filled me like no man had ever done before. I held onto his neck, and let wave after wave of ecstasy wash over me.
It was more than I’d hoped for, all that I’d wanted, and exactly what I’d needed.
Chapter Fourteen
Axel
It wasn’t smart. It was the exact opposite of what I’d told myself I needed to do. But I didn’t regret it even for a moment. Seeing Penny lying there on the roof, hearing the way she’d called my name, feeling the perfection of being inside her—more than ever I knew I could never leave her. If she wanted me, even if only for a little while, I’d take it. I wanted nothing more.
I watched as her naked breasts rose and fell with every breath. I watched her pink cheeks and the flicker of her closed eyelids as she rested. I’d watched her like this for the better part of an hour, long enough for the sun to sink behind the horizon. I could be content like this forever. She was heaven. I didn’t deserve a moment of her, but couldn’t keep myself away. Not after that. Hell, I was kidding myself to think I could have ever managed to leave town without her.
Movement at the edge of my view caught my attention. After hours in that house, the coroner was finally on the move. He’d put on a trench coat and sunglasses, which he didn’t have before. He looked like an idiot, as inconspicuous as a cartoon spy. All he needed was the false mustache.
“Penny,” I said, with a gentle touch on her shoulder.
Her fingers squeezed my wrist. Her eyes shot open. She looked at me; recognition dawned and she released me.
“Sorry,” she said. “I shouldn’t have fallen asleep.” She looked up at the darkening sky, then threw on her clothes.
“It’s okay,” I said. “He only just came out.”
Trench turned his key on the car door, then climbed inside his silver Charger. The car was as ridiculous as the sunglasses in the dark. Neither would go unnoticed anywhere in Corbeau.
“I never let myself get so distracted before I met you,” Penny said, as she raced to the ladder. “Why’d you let me sleep so long?”
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” I replied. “And because you needed it.”
She didn’t argue, or slow down. In a town with so little traffic, we weren’t about to lose our mark. I was content to give him a little space before we followed. Penny was eager to go. She even hopped on the bike before me.
“Come on,” she said, with a pull on my arm.
“Don’t worry,” I said. “We’ve got him.”
I took off without another word between us. Penny held tight as the wind whipped past. I loved the feel of her, the way she wrapped herself around me, the softness and warmth that she offered. It was as if I’d never really ridden before, like I’d been missing the most important part—Penny.
First stop was a hardware store. We kept our distance and didn’t have to wait long. The little bits of sunlight that remained faded behind rooftops. Trench carried out two black, lumpy bags and dropped them in his trunk.
The next stop was the cemetery. We parked and watched.
“We should follow him,” Penny said.
“Not yet,” I said.
“The guy’s carrying a bag full of who knows what to the cemetery,�
�� she said. It was true; he was. “It could be voodoo candles and whatever magical crap he needs to raise the dead.”
“From the hardware store?” I asked.
“A shovel,” Penny said. “A hand shovel so that it fits in that bag.”
“Any of the zombies you encounter have a funeral first?” I asked.
Penny squinched up her lips and narrowed her eyes. “I wouldn’t know,” she said. “Not that I heard, but I only interact with people at the shop.”
That’s right, the reclusive nature of her pack—her secretive constable. “Wouldn’t someone notice if graves were being torn apart?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” she said, then hopped off the bike. “But I’m going to see for myself.”
I knew better than to try to stop her. Plus, I wanted to know, too.
The coroner held his head low as he walked through the dark, between tombstones. His path was certain. He knew where he was headed.
Crickets chirped, frogs croaked, and grass rustled beneath the tall man’s feet. The moon hid behind cotton-like clouds, allowing us to hide easily in the blackness.
Fifteen feet away, Trench entered a small stone structure, a family mausoleum. Penny stopped, and I with her. The sound of rustling plastic came from within, likely the bag Trench had brought along. He was quiet for a moment, before his shoes shuffled, and he reemerged.
He was alone. Part of me was disappointed. It would have been easier if we had seen him do something, like raise a zombie, and we caught him red-handed. Though as I thought about it, I noticed his hands were empty. No black bag.
“He left his bag,” I whispered.
“We should see what he left in there,” Penny said, then moved before I had a chance to respond. We’d have to move quickly, or we wouldn’t have time to catch up.
When he was far enough away not to notice us, we slipped inside. Unlit candles lined stone walls. Some were old, half-melted. Others were new.
“Maybe some kind of ritual,” Penny said. “If so, he’ll be back.”
“I don’t want to wait,” I said, and took her hand. “He may not come back.” I headed toward the bike, a shadow in the wind, with Penny by my side.
We were back to trailing the Charger by the time he’d rounded the first corner. We followed at a distance, until he stopped in the middle of town. At the clinic. Again, I parked a street down, a block over. It was close enough to watch him, far enough for him not to see us.
“Not really a suspicious stop,” I said.
“No,” Penny said. “But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to discover.”
We watched and waited as he entered the building, as it seemed that once again we’d hit a dead end. That’s what I thought, at least—until we heard the screams.
Chapter Fifteen
Penny
It was a voice I’d know anywhere, even from a distance, even when her cries of agony sounded nothing like her giggles, or the soft way that she spoke.
Kaylee.
My chest was tight, fighting for air, as my wings fluttered. The sound reverberated in my ears, even after the silence. I’d gone without thought, without regard for witnesses to my shift or the danger that awaited me. I went for her, for the sister I would protect above anything else. Kaylee, who needed me. I couldn’t lose her, too.
I shifted back and tried the door. It didn’t budge. A back door, maybe I could get in through the back. I ran around to the back of the clinic, and found exactly what I was looking for. And something more. Axel stood, holding the door open. Glass shards covered the ground beneath his feet.
“Let’s go,” he said.
I rushed past, and scanned the dark room for my sister. Empty chairs. No sign of her.
“Downstairs,” Axel said, again opening a door for me. Was it scent that told him? Or did he hear something I couldn’t hear? Either way, I was grateful.
The basement was darker than the windowless lobby upstairs. In the center of the room, the middle of the morgue, was a person, still on the table. I pushed back the fear of the scent, the metallic tint in the air that told me I was too late. She could be bleeding and still be okay. She had to be okay.
I ran to Kaylee, ignoring everything else. If there was danger, Axel was with me. If whoever had hurt her remained, he would stop them. My priority was my sister.
I grabbed her wrist, and found a faint pulse. I could hear it, but that wasn’t enough. I had to feel it to know for sure. I released the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.
Bright light filled the room, blinding after the blackness. Axel stood by the switch. I turned back to Kaylee, and lifted her head.
“Kaylee.” My voice cracked, desperate and foreign to my ears. “Kaylee, it’s me. I’m here.”
Her skin was cold, her face pale. And her eyes didn’t open.
“Kaylee,” I said, with a gentle shake of her shoulders. “Kaylee.”
“Penny.” Axel’s voice was soft, as was his touch on my wrist. “Penny,” he said, “look.”
He pointed to the side of my sister’s neck. There were two round puncture wounds, like she was the victim of some kind of horror movie vampire. That was what my life had become, some terrible horror movie filled with zombies and wannabe vampires.
“Have you seen anything like it?” Axel asked.
“No.”
“Think the coroner drained her for his zombie ritual?” he asked.
I said nothing, only stared down at my sister. She was too pale. And it didn’t matter why. It only mattered that she had been hurt.
Something white caught my eye, a piece of wrinkled, white paper in Kaylee’s hand. I knew what it was before I looked. Still, I rolled back her fingertips and confirmed my suspicion. It was my letter. She was out looking for me. Of course she was. There was no way Kaylee would break curfew if it hadn’t been to follow me.
“Let’s get her home,” Axel said. It was both the best and worst idea I’d heard all night. I couldn’t go back there. I couldn’t bring Axel there. But I had to. “I hope it’s not a long walk, because there’s no way I can hold her on the bike while I drive. And I don’t think we’re going to fit three on the seat.”
We didn’t have to. I reached down to my sister’s neck, and pressed her thumb to her amulet. I said the words out loud, not caring that I wasn’t supposed to say them. Not in front of anyone. “Tos. Servitio. Magica facienda. Pinnarum in cineres abit.”
Pale skin morphed to black feathers in my palms. It was what had to be done. I knew I could trust Axel. I did so with my life, and even more so, with Kaylee’s.
Axel’s eyes were wide as he looked at my hands, at the raven I held. “You never cease to amaze me, Penny.”
I looked up at Axel, to the compassion in his dark eyes. It didn’t matter what anyone thought. I could trust him with anything, with everything. He was meant to be my mate.
I didn’t enjoy the drive home. Not like I had our other rides. I held Kaylee as we rode, and ignored the world to watch her. She didn’t move, though she breathed. She would heal. We’d made it in time.
I couldn’t help but feel responsible. If I hadn’t been out, she would have listened to our father. She would have been home safe, where she belonged. It was just like it had been with Danny.
I wished I could have listened, as much as I wished I could have belonged. But I didn’t. And I couldn’t. And that hadn’t changed, no matter how much easier it would have been.
When I walked through the door, I’d expected an assault. I’d expected a tirade of blame and disappointment for leaving. What met me instead was my father’s arms. He held me, and Kaylee. And he cried. I’d never seen him cry.
The great room was filled with my extended family, the constable that cared about my sister’s safety. First and foremost, was Austin. They’d been waiting there since Kaylee had left. They were waiting for her, and for me.
The crowd moved for us as we headed to the stairs. I heard the whispers and recognized the looks of concern and dis
approval. Not only was Kaylee injured, but I’d brought home a wolf.
Corey grabbed my arm. “Who the hell is this guy, Pen?”
“Back off,” I said.
Axel stepped closer, but I didn’t need to be defended.
“How could you bring this, this—”
“It’s not the time, Corey,” my father said in a voice that left no room for argument, then he ushered us up the stairs.
Only our family, Axel, and Austin came up to my sister’s room.
I laid Kaylee in her bed before releasing her to human form. With her settled, there was little to do for her but wait for her body to heal itself.
I could feel Axel’s nearness, even though he hadn’t entered the room. Just outside my sister’s door, he kept himself within reach if I needed him. I appreciated the sentiment, though the protection he offered couldn’t spare me this pain.
“Penny,” my father said, with his hands on my shoulders. “Tell me how this happened.”
“I wish I could,” I said. I wished I had been there. I wished I could have protected her. “I heard her scream. And when I reached the morgue, she was like this.”
“You made her shift in front of the wolf,” he said. It wasn’t a question.
“Yes,” I said. “I’d do it again.”
He ran a hand over his face, releasing me. “He’s not one of us,” he said. “You shouldn’t have showed him. You shouldn’t have brought him here.” There was more anguish than anger on his face. His features were tight, more wrinkled than I remembered, as if he’d aged years in a matter of hours.
“I trust him,” I said.
“We can’t trust an outsider, Penny,” my father said. “You know—”
“He’s my mate.” I knew Axel could hear, and I hadn’t spoken the words to him. Here I was, declaring my love for him, without him in the room. It didn’t matter. I wanted him to know. Both Axel and my father needed to know.
My father’s eyes went wide, as he searched my neck for the mark of our bond.
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