by Black, Tasha
No, whatever lay beneath the floor of the submerged temple was the exact opposite of the darkness that had called to him from deep within the woods.
A tiny sliver of worry worked its way under his skin.
Whatever it was, it was still out there somewhere.
Chapter 10
Ainsley waited on the bank, breathless. Her wolf was in agony, howling in her chest.
Breathe, she told herself and ran a hand over her belly.
The baby stirred inside her and for a moment, woman and wolf were spellbound.
No matter how unbelievable the idea of shifting into a wolf might be, nothing seemed more incredible to Ainsley than the idea that a person was growing inside her - a person made of the love she shared with her mate.
Sylvia, she said inwardly to the baby without speaking out loud.
Having the pack doctor, veterinarian Thad Volker examine her was something Ainsley liked to get through quickly, so she and Erik had not found out the baby’s gender through ultrasound.
But Ainsley was sure she was carrying a girl. A girl she would name after her own mother. It would be good for the child to be named after her grandmother, so that Sylvia Connor could be part of her life, though they would never meet.
Suddenly there was a lump in Ainsley’s throat.
The child had already lost both her maternal grandparents to Clive Warren. Was she about to lose her father to the Federation?
Or to the open portal below the creek?
Ainsley tried not to think about the last time she’d been down there, the sinister runes carved into the walls and the hungry, evil thing under the floor.
Just then, a thousand bubbles shattered the placid surface of the water.
Javier bobbed to the top first, followed quickly by Erik.
Ainsley was so happy she nearly threw herself into the water after him.
Erik ripped off his mask and called to her happily.
His familiar deep voice resonated in her chest and she enjoyed the view of his muscular frame encased in the form-fitting suit, tiny rivulets of water sliding down him like a commercial for something mouthwatering.
“You’re okay,” she called back to him.
“Ainsley,” he said again as he headed over.
She recognized the edge of hunger in his voice. That was why the sound of her own name had given her a pleasant little chill before.
She opened her arms to him and he swept her up and kissed her.
It wasn’t a sweet kiss.
No, this was a frank invitation, bordering on a coup.
She kissed him back with wild abandon, not caring that they were in the open, or that Javier was quietly packing up his gear behind them.
Something was delicious about Erik today, as if some magic clung to him, making him shimmer with irresistible power.
Erik moaned at her response and his fingers tightened on her.
The next thing she knew he was laying her down on the bank of the creek, ripping off his wetsuit as she scrambled to rid herself of her own clothing.
He lay down beside her, wrapping a hand in her hair to kiss her again, frantically.
She moaned into his mouth and he pulled her close, rolling her on top of him, his hands already clenching her hips, easing her onto his rigid penis.
Her last coherent thought before the pleasure transported her was to wonder what had happened under the creek.
Chapter 11
Cressida walked in the moonlight along the beach.
The rush of the wind off the tide was exhilarating. Her wolf capered teasingly in her chest, urging her to shrug off her human skin and splash through the salty water’s edge and nose the fragrant meat out of the shells that tumbled up on the beach with every wave.
Had Linc Monroe not been by her side, she might not have been able to resist the temptation to do just that.
But as things were, she tried to remain ladylike. Or at least as ladylike as she was capable of being, which wasn’t very. The moon was still pretty full, and there was her libido to think of.
“What’s that smile for?” Linc’s voice was deep, flirty.
He was so much less standoffish than he’d been the night of the party. He seemed relaxed. She figured maybe they had that in common - being happiest outside.
“Just wondering why you dragged me out here,” she teased.
Linc chuckled.
“I’m glad you agreed to come,” he said. “It feels good to get out of the house for a while. I needed to get my mind off of things.”
“Makes sense,” Cress agreed. “Distraction can be a good thing.”
“You’re a very distracting woman.”
“Uh, thanks,” she said, feeling her cheeks get warm.
“A woman I’d like to get to know better,” he said, his voice as smooth as honey.
Cressida’s commitment alarm started to go off, but she silenced it. There was no way this guy wanted anything from her but what she was eager to give and get in return, a little relief and a little fun.
“Well,” she said, turning her own voice sweet and slow, “I might like to get to know you a little better, too. Let’s take a break from this walk, and I’ll take your mind off everything for a while.”
She took his hand and pulled him toward the dark area under the boardwalk where it jutted out under the amusement park. She was so ready for him, she could practically feel the sand under her ass and the tide pulling at her toes while Linc got her off.
But he pulled back, resisting her urging.
“No,” he said. “Let’s keep walking.”
She tried not to get offended when he steered her away from the boardwalk and closer to the water. After all, he had just lost his brother. She could give him a pass on the mixed signals, though her wolf was indignant.
As they passed the area she’d wanted to hole up in she realized she’d probably dodged a bullet anyway. Something under there didn’t smell too good.
They walked a while in silence. Linc hadn’t let go of her hand, and Cressida couldn’t help but think they must look like a commercial for a motel or adult diapers or something, wandering the beach in the moonlight.
Linc smiled when they reached the edge of the boardwalk. He let go of her hand to pick up a stone, and throw it into the surf.
It reminded Cress of skipping stones on the creek as a teenager in Tarker’s Hollow. She bent to retrieve a stone of her own and enjoyed the feeling of flinging it into the foam.
“We used to play here all the time,” Linc said at length. “Me and Joshua, when we were little.”
The expression on his face was the dictionary definition of sad.
“Grace told me they don’t have any real suspects in your brother’s case,” she said, more eager to delve into revenge than to watch him torture himself with memories.
“Is that what they are saying?” he asked, turning to her.
“Is it not true?” she asked.
“I’d say the problem is that they have too many,” he said.
“What do you mean?”
“My brother wasn’t very popular,” Linc said. “His ideas about bringing the park up to modern times didn’t sit well with anyone. He wanted it to be all fancy video games and virtual reality booths. It was going to cost a lot of people their jobs. People who have been part of the park for generations. Plus, the history of the park is what draws people here. The entire economy of Fletcher’s Cove is based around the park. If his plan failed, it would be a disaster. Anyone with an interest in stopping that would be a suspect. Which is pretty much everyone in town.”
“Huh,” Cressida nodded, recognizing the truth in what he said.
Chapter 12
Ainsley and Javier strolled along the leafy streets of Tarker’s Hollow, right past Ainsley’s own house.
She didn’t even look up.
They weren’t chatting, but their wolves were united in the normally companionable task of tracking.
Unfortunately, this time the
y were tracking a suspicious person, and he appeared to be headed right for the local toddler park.
She heard Javier’s heartbeat speed up as their quarry opened the gate in the split rail fence of the playground. Children squealed and laughed, swinging and climbing and spilling their snacks.
Ainsley placed her hand over Javier’s to prevent him from walking faster. It was hard to hold back, but as a very pregnant woman, she wasn’t exactly inconspicuous. They had to play it really cool.
Dulcie Blanco had tipped her off earlier today. With all the new people arriving in Tarker’s Hollow, Ainsley was grateful Dulcie could keep an eye out for undesirables.
Dulcie’s text had said the man’s name was Stewart Pinkwater. Her reason for suspecting him of being up to no good was the single sentence: He wasn’t being completely honest with me.
Ainsley had no idea how Dulcie could know that a stranger wasn’t being completely honest with her. But she had learned not to question Dulcie’s skill as a good judge of character. The woman really did seem to have an incredible knack for reading people, and Ainsley preferred enjoying the info more than she wanted to ask questions.
So here they were.
They had followed the small, mousy-looking man through the village all afternoon - watching him quietly buy some takeout lunch at a local cafe, holding the door open for an older lady, then buy a local paper and calmly walk down Princeton.
But now he had arrived at a children’s park to eat that lunch alone.
Ainsley supposed there was nothing technically wrong with going to a toddler park without any toddlers. The park was one of the nicer spots near the shops in town, and it had a few picnic tables. It wasn’t unheard of for people to enjoy it without a kid in tow.
But something about this man being there gave her the creeps.
Pinkwater opened his lunch bag and spread the contents neatly on top, arranging his sandwich, chips and iced tea in a perfect line.
Ainsley and Javier had gotten close enough that she had to stop looking at the man. She jutted her chin out to indicate to Javier that they should go around the block.
Though it rankled her horribly to let Pinkwater out of her sight for a moment, she forced herself to walk slowly.
When they passed the park the second time, he again failed to notice them. He was watching the kids intently now, ignoring the food in front of him.
They walked around the block a second time. Tension crackled under Ainsley’s skin as both wolf and magic fought to escape her outward calm. She could sense Javier’s barely constrained beast rattle its cage next to her.
The park was sacred space. One day soon, Ainsley would be taking her own child to play there. Before Ainsley was born, her parents had banded together with several other couples to fund a project for turning a neighbor’s soggy vacant lot into a shaded playground between the village and the homes on Elm Avenue and Princeton. The created a happy place where kids met and stayed friends through adulthood - kids like Ainsley and Grace.
It seemed impossible to think of joining the carefree world of the ponytailed moms and energetic kids when the shit just kept hitting the fan.
On their next pass, they saw Pinkwater stoop down to pick up something from the mulch. Ainsley strained to see, but she couldn’t make out what it was.
“What do you make of this guy?” she asked Javier, slowing almost to a stop.
“I don’t like him,” Javier said immediately. “Not even a little. Did you notice his lunch?”
She hadn’t.
On the table, the lunch was still laid out in a perfect row. The sandwich had been torn into tiny pieces, but Pinkwater hadn’t actually eaten any of it.
Shit.
Ainsley was impressed with Javier’s sharpness. It was easy to think of him as mindless muscle, especially since that was the role he seemed to cultivate for himself. But he had a good head on his shoulders, and he was fiercely loyal. She missed Grace and Cressida horribly, but it was good to have Javier around.
There was a high-pitched wail as one of the little ones at the park began to cry. They were close enough that Ainsley could see tears squeezing out of the big dark eyes and running down chubby cheeks as the girl cried out something unintelligible that sounded like juicy.
Thankfully, it seemed to have nothing to do with Pinkwater. Maybe she wanted a juice box or something.
A dark haired woman picked up the baby immediately and walked her around the perimeter of the park to retrieve a flowered diaper bag and head out.
Javier sucked in his breath and Ainsley turned to see Pinkwater dumping his uneaten lunch in one of the trashcans and heading in the same direction as the lady with the baby.
Ainsley strode after him and Javier fell in beside her to follow.
The woman headed through the village, the red and black flowered diaper bag bouncing off her hip like a target. When they reached the Co-op, the little girl yelled to be put down and the woman’s progress slowed.
They meandered through the quieter streets just outside the little village area, Pinkwater narrowing the gap between himself and the duo as soon as they were out of the most populated part of town.
It was getting harder to follow them all without being spotted. But Ainsley didn’t dare let them out of her sight. She sped up and Javier followed her lead.
Pinkwater must have been fixated enough on the mother and child that he didn’t notice he had company right behind him.
There was another cry. The little girl had tripped on the uneven sidewalk and skinned her knee.
Ainsley could smell the blood.
Pinkwater moved in, his hand going into his jacket pocket. He pulled something out as he approached the pair, who didn’t seem to notice him coming. The man was unexpectedly fast.
But Javier was faster.
Before Ainsley could react, Javier was intercepting Pinkwater, colliding with him so forcefully that the smaller man sprawled in the grass between the street and the sidewalk, the item in his hand tumbling free.
Ainsley spotted it just as the little girl did.
“Lucy!” the little one squealed, her tears forgotten.
Ainsley picked up the doll and handed it to her. Lucy, not juicy. The child had been upset over her lost doll. The doll must have been what she had seen Pinkwater pick up at the park.
A low growl alerted Ainsley to the fact that Javier had hoisted Pinkwater up with one hand.
“Uh, thanks,” the mom said uncertainly to Ainsley as she scooped up child and doll and headed out of dodge.
The child was pattering away to the doll and seemed unharmed. The mother threw one last confused glance over her shoulder at Ainsley before they turned the next corner, but she seemed more weirded out than concerned.
No, Ainsley would probably never really be accepted into the world of the stroller set.
But that was okay. She had a job to do.
She turned to Pinkwater, allowing the fire of the wolf to burn through her eyes.
“We need to have a little talk,” she told him in her low, alpha voice.
“I-I wasn’t going to hurt anyone,” he whimpered. Javier was holding him up so high his toes barely touched the ground. He looked like he was going to wet himself.
Good.
“Well, I can’t say the same for my friend here,” Ainsley said, indicating Javier, who obligingly bared his teeth. “He doesn’t like you.”
To her surprise, the man started to sob.
Javier looked to Ainsley and she gestured for him to release Pinkwater.
The moment Javier let him go, he slumped down to the ground, crying broken-heartedly.
Javier gave Ainsley another look, but all she could do was shrug. They watched the man’s small body convulse with sobs.
At last he stilled.
Rolling her eyes at her own soft-heartedness, Ainsley reached into her bag and grabbed a tissue.
“Here,” she said gruffly.
He flinched at the sound of her voice, but when he saw
the tissue his expression turned grateful and he took it from her, blowing his nose so loudly and thoroughly that Ainsley was reminded of the sound of the town fire horn.
“What are you?” she asked.
“I’m a monster,” he said softly. “A freak. You wouldn’t understand.”
“I can turn into a wolf, and my best friend can talk to dead people. Try me,” Ainsley replied.
“Really?” he asked, looking genuinely interested.
“No fooling,” she replied drily, not interested in a two-way getting-to-know you session. “Now what are you?”
“I… don’t really know,” he began. “I’ve never met anyone else like me. I think I’m some kind of vampire.”
Javier glanced up at the afternoon sky.
“You must be wearing a whole lotta sunscreen.”
“Not like that,” Pinkwater said. “And I don’t drink blood.”
Ainsley thought of the drained deer.
“I feed from people though,” he admitted. “On their emotions.”
“Emotions?” Ainsley asked.
“Yes. Any strong emotion will do,” he said. “But happiness is the most nourishing. And there is nothing like the pure happiness of children. That’s why I was at the park. I haven’t fed since I came to town. I was so hungry.” He broke off, looking mortified. “That’s why I picked up the doll,” he continued, looking down at his hands. “I knew she would be so happy when I returned it. I wouldn’t need to feed again for weeks.”
“And that doesn’t hurt anyone?” Ainsley asked dubiously.
“God, no,” Pinkwater said in a horrified tone. “I would never hurt anyone, especially a child.”
“Well that’s new,” Ainsley observed. “Why did you come to Tarker’s Hollow?”
“I’m not sure,” he said slowly. “I just felt drawn here.”
Ainsley’s thoughts went to the open portal.
“There’s such a strong positive energy being released somewhere in this town,” Pinkwater continued, oblivious to her concern. “I just knew I had to stay here.”