20 Shades of Shifters: A Paranormal Romance Collection

by Demelza Carlton

  Tempest took the metal bar and nodded.

  “Does she need whiskey?”

  Jonas glared at Cristin.

  A moment later, Pliny brought the boiling water into the living room and set the pot down.

  Cristin set a few washcloths on the table beside the syringes, then moved to stand by Davin and Rasputin. “What? Just trying to lighten the mood here, brother.”

  “Good. Thank you, Pliny.”

  He saluted Aelfwine and returned to stand with the others.

  Jonas watched her dip the needles into the water, then wipe them off with the washcloths, using a different washcloth for each needle. She pulled out a clear bag with long plastic tubing, punctured it with one end of a needle, and set it down beside the other needles. Stretching the tubing out, she examined the entire length before lifting her head and looked at Tempest. “Are you ready?”

  Tempest nodded.

  Jonas watched the needle go into her arm from the corner of his eye. His main focus was torn between Tempest and his ailing sister. He wanted to get down and hold Nadine’s hand, tell her it would be all right, but he knew it was more important to stay out of the way.

  His meddling in her life had caused enough problems.

  Fifteen minutes had passed with little a sound as everyone stared at the bag attached to a tube and the syringe draining blood from Tempest.

  Jonas resisted the urge to do something possessive with Tempest in front of his brothers, it would be superfluous. They all knew how things stood.

  Once the blood had been drawn, Aelfwine set the syringe and bag on the table next to the other two and the vial she’d pulled out. Then she pieced gauze and a small bandage over the pinprick.

  “You know I’ll heal in like ten seconds, right?”

  Aelfwine blinked. “We do not have a lot of Fae in the Shadowlands, but I have spent more time on Earth, until the last few months.”

  Tempest nodded and moved beside Jonas. She took his hand.

  He looked down at her, aware of his lack of reflection in her eyes.

  She swayed slightly. “You’re welcome, babe.”

  “Easy darlin’. Even the supernatural aren’t immune to losing a pint.” Carefully putting his arm around Tempest’s shoulder, he drew her in.

  She moved against him, settling into his body.

  Aelfwine pulled open the vial with a brown solution in it, then mixed it in with the halfling blood in the bag. Careful to hang it on the rack above her, she waited until the mixture changed colors and began to sparkle. She then picked up another needle, pushed it into the stopper and watched blood flow down the tube until it hit the clamp. When the line was completely full, she held it up and looked at the others, her expression cautious. “Need to have a care with this, as it’s sort of like an adrenaline shot to the heart. Only it’ll explode and kill us all.”

  Ire filled Jonas and only because of Tempest leaning against him did he have the restraint not to pick up the tiny vampire and slam her into the wall. “You didn’t say anything about the dangers of this.”

  She returned her focus to the blood-filled tube. “You didn’t ask.”

  “Easy, brother. You did the research, math checks out, right?”

  Letting out a long sigh, Jonas nodded at Cristin. “Right.”

  Aelfwine knelt before Nadine. “She’s going to wake right up, okay? She may be a bit disoriented, so I need all of you,” she glanced around the room, “to stand back.”

  “We understand.”

  “Jonas?”

  “Yes. Got it. Fuck.” He raked a hand through his hair, heart hammering loud and steady in his chest. That was a new sensation but so was actual panic. His sister’s life hung in the balance and hopefully this would actually save her. “How long will it take to—”

  Tempest brushed his lips with two fingers. He looked at her, saw the soft expression on her face, and instantly stopped talking.

  Besides, it was better to hold the breath he didn’t usually take.

  She dipped a washcloth into the boiling water, let it cool for a few seconds, then rubbed an area on Nadine’s arm.

  Nadine stirred, her head lolling to the side. Her eyes opened partially, her lips moved slightly. “Jonas.”

  “I’m right here, baby sis. This is going to fix this, okay? Just hold on.”

  Weakly, she nodded. “Okay.”

  The room seemed to collectively inhale when Aelfwine inserted the needle into Nadine’s arm and release the clamp, the sparkling mixture flowing freely into her.

  The room collectively remained silent, Jonas switching his focus from Tempest to his sister and back again before taking another breath.

  Damn human gestures.

  Half an hour later, Aelfwine took hold of Nadine’s hand and murmured something in a language Jonas had never heard before.

  He started for her but Tempest clutched his shoulder and shook her head.

  He understood her silent expression. But damnit, this fucking sucked.

  A moment later, Nadine opened her eyes fully. Life seemed to slowly return to her dark gaze, bringing an effervescence to them before she blinked.

  “It’ll take a few minutes to begin working through each cell, but she’ll no longer be a full vampire.”

  “What?” This came from Tempest.

  Aelfwine glanced at Tempest. “You are half vampire, half Fae, no?”

  “I am. But how does this work?”

  “I can tell you the Fae blood is the blood of li—”

  The front window shattered and a canister hit the ground, rolling toward them.

  Without thinking, Jonas leapt over the table, landing square on his sister before the explosion hit and the room filled with smoke.

  Commotion rang out and the sound of guns cocking echoed. Jonas looked beside him, saw Tempest had flung herself on top of his sister, before moving off for fear of crushing her head. “We have company.”

  “True, and I fear it’s not what was promised.”

  “Prez, what do you mean?” Jonas remembered the discussion with Pliny about getting the bikes safely to where they needed to be as a favor the Faery Queen but Davin’s tone suggested another deal had been struck. He’d have to ask later.

  “Get her out of here. Get her to safety.”

  “What did you do, Davin?”

  “On behalf of the club, you must trust me.”

  “Fuck.” Jonas and Tempest scrambled to lift Nadine up.

  She stared at him. “Most isolated place in here?”

  “Bathroom in the master bedroom.”

  “Let’s get her in there. Aelfwine, come with.”

  “Certainly.” The little vampire crouched and followed Jonas and Tempest carried his sister into the bathroom. Bullets began to pierce the walls around them, shatter more glass and puncture the door.

  “Set her here in the bathtub, Jonas.”

  He nodded and the two of them carefully placed Nadine in the tub. “Stay here, both of you.”

  Nadine nodded.

  Jonas grabbed his gun at the same time Tempest did. “Stay here Tempest.”

  “Bullshit. Remember, one of my bikes is out there.”

  “Fuck.” He had to respect her as a fighter, though he didn’t like it. “Okay, come on, darlin’.”

  Both of them crouched low and made their way back into the living room. Pliny and Cristin ducked by the window, returning fire while Davin and Rasputin moved to the back door.

  “What did he do, Cristin?”

  Cristin shook his head. “Later, brother. Trust me.”

  “That’s my fucking property, asshole.” Tempest moved by the window and held up her gun. Firing off two shots before pulling back, she eyed Cristin with the same glare Jonas had seen several times over the last few days.

  “Apparently they didn’t get the memo. But you only have the one bike, right?”

  “Don’t matter, brother. My ass is on the line for this.” Jonas peered over the ledge, spotted the culprits responsible for
the firefight. “Fuck.”

  “Bet it is. Who is it?”

  “Those are the assholes who rode with the Fae fuck who murdered our queen’s paramour.”

  “Goddamnit. You sure?” He held his gun over the windowsill and fired a round.

  Jonas nodded. “Yeah man. Look out the window. Same patches and everything. They’re using the trees for cover.”

  Cristin glanced over the windowsill, then quickly ducked back down. “Shit. Thought we’d seen the last of them.”

  “What makes you think that, Cristin?”

  Cristin shook his head and popped off another shot.

  Jonas didn’t like the lack of response.

  “Fucking be careful. Don’t hit my bike.” Tempest stood in a crouch and moved toward the front door.

  “What are you doing, babe?”

  “Planning your funeral in my mind while I go get that bike out of the way.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  “Did you not see me drive your ass here through the Harshlands?”

  She had a point. But he couldn’t let her go alone. “No. Stay here and I’ll go.”

  Shotgun blasts from behind them interrupted them.

  “I do believe we have hit one and he is down.”

  Fuck, Davin. What the fuck had he gotten the club into and what reason did he have?

  Oh, right. Stealing the bikes and getting back here, only to sell the fuckers for a profit. The original plan. “If we survive this shit, I’m going to call a vote to remove his head.”

  Cristin popped two rounds out, reloaded his pistol. “Maybe it’s time for a new president?”

  “Not the time to discuss, but I am throwing the idea out there if he’s getting us into shit we don’t belong in.” Jonas crawled past Tempest, opened the front door and fired off one round, nailing one of the Fae and dropping him instantly. “Shit, you weren’t kidding.”

  “No. But I’m betting your club is using standard bullets while they have the same rounds we have.”

  Shit. That didn’t bode well. Jonas looked at Cristin. “Cover Davin and Rasputin. They’re older and guns aren’t exactly their forte.”

  “Roger.” Cristin crept across the carpet, ducking low until he made his way into the kitchen.

  “Pliny, cover me.”

  “You got it, brother.” Pliny moved to the other side of the door, using it for cover while he fired off two rounds.

  Tempest moved to the other side of the door. He had no idea what the fuck he was going to do, because he couldn’t let the bike get damaged, but he couldn’t leave his sister alone. Not if the cure actually worked. She needed to hear his apology and know he did what he did because he loved her.

  Firing off two more shots downed two more of the Fae thugs. “Those aren’t Sluagh.”

  “Nope.” Tempest shook her head, pointed, popped another Fae thug. “But if we leave any of them alive, we’re all dead.”

  “Shit.”

  “That’s right.”

  Jonas downed another Fae guard before ducking back inside behind Tempest. “I need a favor, darlin’”

  She cocked her head. “Not sure this is the time to be asking for any further favors.”

  “No but right now I am kinda pissed at my brothers.”

  “Hey, I didn’t do anything.”

  Jonas glared at Pliny. “How did the vote pass, Pliny?”

  Pliny blinked, telling Jonas all he needed to know. “We’re bleeding, brother. We’re losing out, dying off slowly as a race and we needed to get back here. Our queen needs us.”

  Another burst of gunfire pumped into the walls and through the shattered window, sending the three of them scattering for cover.

  Jonas fired into empty air. “We renounced her, I thought!”

  Another shotgun blast from the kitchen followed two more.

  Pliny reloaded and shot twice out the window. “That was Bogart, not us.”

  Again, Jonas nodded, crawling toward Tempest. “He needs an ass kicking.”

  “Duly noted, brother.”

  Jonas turned toward Tempest again. “I trust you. Do you trust me?”

  “What are you thinking, Jonas?”

  Jonas tried to get out another shot but his gun was empty. He pulled the spare clip from his cut and loaded the .45 before peering around the corner. Three more Fae stood, two of whom had shotguns. “Shit.”

  Buckshot sprayed the door, shattering it and sending splinters flying everywhere. A few shards of wood flew past Jonas, slicing his arm. He didn’t bother looking down at the wound, it would heal anyway. Head and heart, only way to kill them. Hopefully, the Fae didn’t know that. “Guard my sister. I’ll handle this mess.”

  Chapter 10

  Before she could respond, he kissed her full on, sliding his tongue into her mouth.

  She didn’t fight back. In fact, she wrapped a hand around the back of his head and pulled him deeper into the kiss.

  Her Fae scent came through even over the smell of blood and gunfire. Jonas pulled back. “Go, please.”

  “Be careful.”

  Before he could see her run back to the bathroom, he darted out, drawing the fire of the two idiots with shotguns. Jonas had to hope the feeding earlier gave him enough strength to do the stupid thing for the right reason.

  He stopped, waited for the first Fae to pop out and fire before Jonas leapt into the air, formed his left hand into a raven’s talon and caught the tree.

  The only thing he saw was the explosion of the bullet leaving the chamber before he’d latched onto the tree before kicking back off and firing, catching Fae guard number one in the head with a direct shot.

  As he fell, he pointed behind him and shot the second guard in the chest, blood splattering everywhere before the body dropped, leaving him with one guard with a shotgun between him and the bike.

  Jonas dropped into a crouch and lifted his head, pointing the gun at the Fae. The creature was large, fairly imposing. His bald head bore numerous tattoos. Muscle shirt, military style pants and boots completed the outfit.

  The asshole towered over Jonas by a good foot and stood his ground with the confidence of a creature with no fear.

  Broad shoulders swelled with muscle and the creature’s eyes glowed a menacing bright color. “You’re not supposed to survive, blood sucker. Give up, show us the location of the truck and return what is rightfully ours.”

  “You killed the lover of our Queen. I’d say ripping you off and taking out more of your goons until we find the one responsible for his death is a fair trade.”

  “You’re not supposed to come into our realm. But you did. And what happened? You brought pestilence and death. The Fae are dying because your kind is killing off Fae for food.”

  “Not my problem.” Slowly, Jonas stood, still keeping his gun aimed at the Fae. Either of them could shoot first, or Jonas could be on the receiving end of buckshot. “Nor my truth. You got a name, fucker?”

  “Ha. I know better. The rules of the Fae apply no matter what realm, so you do not get to harm me with trickery.”

  “We do not trick.”

  “Then how do you explain the dying of our kind? Our immortal kind?”

  “Dumb fucking luck, asshole.”

  Jonas heard the explosion before it registered in his eyes and barely moved fast enough to avoid getting caught with the bulk of buckshot.

  Landing on the ground, he rolled far enough away to right himself before the brute cocked the gun.

  Darting behind a tree big enough to hopefully absorb the spray of lead, Jonas looked up at the dark night sky and hoped for a miracle. Wished for one for him and Tempest, and prayed that his sister was alive and well. Oh, yeah. He also hoped he could make it out of this shit alive to uphold his promise to Tempest. He loved her. “You’ve already fired two rounds. You’re out.”

  “Ha.”

  Jonas glanced around the side of the tree, watched the Fae put two more large rounds into the chamber and cock the gun again. He to
ok aim.

  Looking to his right, Jonas decided to circle back, get closer to the bike.

  The Fae shot, the boom echoing loud in the forest.

  Shot shattered the bark of the tree behind Jonas. He’d managed to evade that shot and make it to another tree for cover. Then he popped off a round.

  He only had to hit the fucker and he’d go down, right?

  Shotgun blasts from inside the cabin escalated. What the fuck was Davin firing? Or did Rasputin have a semi auto rifle? Jonas hadn’t seen either of them carrying those.

  If they prepared this much…what the fuck had Davin done?

  Another blast shattered the silence in the forest before Jonas hit his third point and ducked for cover.

  That was two rounds. The fuck would have to reload. Jonas ducked, took aim and popped off two more rounds, barely missing the Fae.

  The asshole laughed and shoved a shell into the rifle. “I’m not Sluagh. But I move fast.”

  Jonas took another shot, missing the Fae but disrupting his ability to shove another round into the shotgun.

  Maybe he needed to get in close.

  Darting to another tree, Jonas jumped up, caught a tree with his boots and kicked off, firing two more rounds near the Fae.

  Damn but that fucker did move quick.

  When Jonas landed, he rolled off to his left, closer to the bike. If he blew up the motorcycle, Tempest would kill him.

  Of course, the blast would severely wound both him and his opponent. But the question remaining was who would recover first?

  Shaking his head, Jonas forced himself to reason. Destroying the motorcycle wasn’t an option. He respected the bike too much. Loved the feel of it underneath him, almost as much as he loved riding Tempest.

  Taking off in a dead sprint away from the cabin, Jonas did a mental count. He had only a few shots left.

  The Fae darted off toward him.

  Drawing him deeper into the forest would hopefully provide Tempest and the MC one less worry.

  Right. Because the MC had his back. If he survived this, he needed to seriously re-evaluate his life.

  Jonas slammed into something heavy and hard, knocking him back onto his ass.

  The Fae had caught up and stopped him.

  He pointed the gun at Jonas.

  “You die.”