“I’m not married. And who could have told you what?” he asked, the look on his face odd, almost like he knew but was being kind enough to let her explain it to him.
Deryn rubbed her neck. “Did you just run into Kane? Did he tell you something about me, about why I’m here?”
“Answer my question, Doctor. What happens if you can’t prove that I’m not your husband? And I don’t care about them trying to kill me. Will they hurt you?”
She was about to answer when Kane pushed his way up and next to them. Issac followed close at his heels as did Ondrea. Kane’s eyes widened when he looked at her. “Uhh, Deryn, you’re unarmed and in your underwear.”
“Which is not my way of saying kiss me,” she bit out, still confused by how the kiss had made her feel.
Kane jerked back a bit. “Okay. Though, I should tell you that I learned my lesson when you bit the hell out of my lip for trying that. If you’ve been thinking about giving a relationship between us a go just say the word.”
That didn’t make any sense. He’d just kissed her not even five minutes ago while she was in his tent. “Kane?”
The sound of another whip cracking caught her attention. “I have to help him, Kane. Do you remember what grandma taught us about how the tomb guards fight?”
Issac laughed. “No offense but why are we going to listen to a grandma?”
Ondrea snickered. “Everyone assumes she’s wrinkled up and old. Picture that,” she pointed at Deryn, “with darker hair. That would be grandma or Nava if she hasn’t adopted you as a grandchild yet. I’m sure she will the minute she sees you. She has a thing for blondes. Kind of like me.”
Issac shook his head. “Hold up, I thought Dr. Murray was human. She’s giving off all the signals a human does and nothing else.”
“Shit, he’s right, Deryn. You’ve got to stop masking your scent and your power if you’re going to be able to fight these guys. You got your ass kicked all over the girl’s bathroom today because you were holding back.”
“I know.” Looking up nervously, Deryn locked gazes with Alejandro. “Colonel, I....”
“Alejandro,” he said, correcting her.
She nodded. “Alejandro, I honestly thought you knew all about me before I agreed to come here. I would never harm you or any of your people. Please remember that.” Unable to offer anything else, Deryn unmasked herself. As her power released, washing over her, she knew what it was doing. It was changing her into one of her pre-chosen slayer garbs and giving her pale skin its natural sun-kissed look back. It also allowed the others to sense who and what she was--a killing machine.
She looked up to find Alejandro visually tracing his way over her body. She already knew that she had on a black pair of boy cut bottoms and a matching fitted tee-shirt. She tapped a now boot covered foot on the ground as she ran her hands over her hair, double checking it was pulled back and away from her face. When she felt the do-rag on her head, she snickered. “I finally got that one right. It only took me fifteen years worth of trying.”
“Your eyes,” Issac said.
Ondrea laughed. “Everyone is always amazed with how blue they really are, Deryn. It’s a good thing you keep that hidden or everyone would guess you were something supernatural.”
She looked at Issac and found him smiling wide. “I don’t scare you?”
“You’re a slayer, right?”
Ondrea snorted. “Not just a slayer but yeah, you could call her that.”
“My people spent centuries fighting vampires and dark ones. To the Fae, slayers aren’t the reaper, they’re frontline soldiers who deserve our respect and assistance. Now, to shifters and vampires....”
Deryn glanced at the ground. “I represent all who they’ve encountered before me. The ones who were gifted with the ability to fight among supernaturals and entrusted to help police them but used the power for personal gain--siding with the governments, taking part in witch hunts, mass killings, the hunt and slaughter of so many that it sickens me.” She stared at Issac. “Yeah, I know. Just as so many of the distilled blood lines of slayers don’t discriminate when it comes to killing supernaturals. The supernaturals don’t discriminate when it comes to killing a slayer.”
“I take it that you adhere to the original reasoning for your creation,” Issac said. “To only take out the ones who prey on innocents. If you didn’t, you wouldn’t be best friends with Kane and Ondrea.”
Deryn nodded. “That’s right to a degree but I wasn’t made to police supernaturals as you know them. I was made, first and foremost, to,” she pointed behind them at the tomb guards, “police them. To keep the tomb guards from turning on the Avatars. Oh, and kill the evil things that are the sworn enemy of the Avatars. I’ve never actually fulfilled my true destiny because until I got here I’d never met one.”
Issac’s brow furrowed. “When you were attacked, on the night of your prom, you had no idea what your true identity was, did you?”
Not wanting to talk about the vampire attack, Deryn simply shook her head and averted her gaze. “No. My grandmother was hell bent that I not be used by the government to destroy innocent supernaturals and for some other reason she doesn’t like talking about. Anyway, until that night she didn’t think I was in any danger. She thought that if she kept it hidden from me that others wouldn’t sense it either.”
“She was wrong,” Alejandro said, matter-of-factly. “I sensed it in you the first night I met you--outside the bar. You weren’t able to mask your scent then like you do now. I didn’t get a good look at you then to be able to recognize you later.”
Kane slid up next to her. “Deryn, what is he talking about? Do you know Alex from somewhere else?”
Puzzled, she stared at Kane. “I just explained this all to you in your tent. Weren’t you listening?”
It was his turn to look confused. “Deryn, I wasn’t in my tent. I was in Ondrea’s talking about what happened today and what it might mean. Our tents are next to each other so I knew I’d hear you if you woke up or if anything approached. I asked Che to watch over you and alert me if you needed me.”
Deryn huffed. “No. You were in your tent and Onnie was not there.” She thought about what Kane had just said. “Wait, your tent is by Onnie’s? I thought it was four down from mine.”
Kane’s face went blank and for a moment, Deryn thought he’d sounded her out. When he glanced at Alejandro she knew he’d been listening. “So, Colonel, get an ear full?”
“Kane?”
He sighed. “I’m not mad at you, Deryn. You got turned around and confused. After the evening you had it’s understandable.”
“Not mad at me for what?”
Pulling her down towards the ground, Kane locked gazes with her. “I need you to be level headed right now. Everything is fine. We’re fine. You know that, right?”
“I thought I did. You got all touchy feely on me in your tent and now I’m not so sure.”
Arching a black brow, Kane glanced towards Alejandro. “Touchy feely? Umm, sorry about that. It won’t happen again.”
“That’s a shame. I actually liked it,” she said with a wink. “You’re right. My head needs to be in the game. I’ve never come up against anything close to these guys and to be honest, I’m a little scared. Onnie’s right. I did get my ass kicked all over that bathroom today. Normally, even without tapping into my slayer abilities I can take down just about anything.”
Kane arched a brow. “Like two guards that were assigned to you?”
“Hey, they were trying to watch me shower. I just taught them a lesson. They’re fine, aren’t they?”
“One has a broken nose but yes, they’re fine,” he said, barely managing to hide a smile.
Exhaling, Deryn tried to mentally prepare herself for what she was about to face. “I need to be the one to figure out how or if they can be killed. I won’t risk any of you.”
“Deryn.” Kane kissed her forehead. “You keep forgetting that we aren’t human either. You know that I’m..
.” He stopped and glanced around nervously.
She knew why he didn’t want others to hear him. Kane was more than just your average dragon shifter. He too descended from the Avatars, though he had no slayer blood in him. She forced a smile to her face. “I know that you’re not weak and I know you can hold your own. My gut tells me that we’re going to need a distraction. I’m going to be it. Follow my lead and then come in with your guns blazing.”
“Shit, Deryn,” Kane ran his hands down her arms, “you’re unarmed, sugar. You can’t go out there like that.”
She winked. “I won’t be unarmed for long. I promise. Oh, and however they die, I’ll probably die that way too so if they do get a leg up on me, don’t let them take me with them alive. Kill me.” She took a deep breath. “I refuse to be some fucking god-like man’s whore for eternity. If you don’t, I’ll find a way into the sunlight, Kane, and you know how horrifically slow and painful that death will be for me. Make it quick and clean. Please.”
She pointed at Ondrea. “Don’t forget what you promised.”
Ondrea glanced over at Alejandro. “I’ll keep in contact with her and make sure she’s safe, Deryn. I promise. And I’ll watch over her son. I’ll explain it to Kane so he can, too. You have my word. Now, worry about what you need to, not all of us. We’ll manage.”
“I already told Kane all about the dreams.”
“Told me about what dreams?” Kane asked, looking lost.
Rolling her eyes, Deryn chanced a glance at Alejandro. He didn’t appear to be shocked or horrified by her secret. In fact, he looked horny as hell. “You okay?”
“Yes. Are you?”
“I mean, are you okay with me being a slayer?”
He nodded, a slow grin moving over his handsome face. “Oh, I’m fine with that.”
“Told you they were different here, sugar.”
“Kane, I can mask your scents and make it so that the tomb guards have a hard time hearing you. It will also wake the camp.”
Issac shifted a bit. “What do you mean? What are you going to do?”
“You aren’t the only magik worker on the premise, Issac.”
Licking his lips, he narrowed his gaze on her. “But slayers aren’t magikal.”
Ondrea chuckled. “Told you she was more than a slayer or did you miss the whole mystical change of her clothing thing?”
“I’ll keep the rest of the camp from hearing what we’re doing,” Issac said, keeping his gaze trained on her. “Worry about what you have to, Deryn, nothing else.”
“Fulk!”
The sound of Vonni’s voice made Deryn cringe. “Aww, shit. She is the bane of my existence. Who let her out?”
They all pointed at Alejandro. He shrugged.
“I vote you kill her,” Ondrea said, smiling wide.
Deryn winked. “What fun would that be? Though, I won’t hesitate to knock her on her ass if she pulls another stunt like she did at the bar. Anyone got a problem with that?”
No one objected.
“Great, are we set?”
“Wait.” Ondrea held up a digital camera and grinned. “I finally remembered to bring it along. That time that group of werewolf bikers thought they could have a little fun with the two girls on a road trip is the last thing I have pictures of. The head in the jukebox is a classic. That guy never saw it coming. I got you an eight by ten for your birthday.”
Deryn rolled her eyes. “You would. Gee, you were so much help that night, sitting at the bar sipping your drink and snapping pictures while I fought a pack of werewolves.”
Ondrea wagged her brows. “You had it all under control. I’d have just been in the way or broken a nail.”
“I love you. Take care of them if something happens to me.” Without a second thought, Deryn took off running out and into the open.
Vonni came rushing in from the other direction. “I should have known you were behind this! You came here to cast your spells over them, make them want you, just so you can kill them, slayer.”
“The word you’re looking for is åricus.”
The tomb guards rushed at Vonni. Several more came out of the shadows and came at Deryn. Pointing at their loincloths, she laughed. “Nice get up. Does that only come in medium? I’m in the market for an extra large. But I did dream about one that was actually too big. Never thought I’d hear myself say that.”
“Shit, Bookworm, go,” Fulk said, sounding like he was in a great deal of pain. “The colonel will kill me if anything happens to you.”
She cast a sideways glance at him. “Rodriquez, there won’t be anything left for him to kill when they’re done with you so shut-up and pray real hard that when I throw my books, I hit my target.”
Vonni lashed power out at the tomb guards coming at her. They absorbed it and snatched her up and off her feet. For a split second, Deryn entertained letting them keep her as a parting gift. Deciding against it, she put her hands up and let her power free, filling the area with the sound of music. She picked something loud, confusing with a hard beat.
The guards stopped and stared around. They began speaking in their native tongue, wondering what sort of god was causing it to happen. Deryn whistled. They looked over at her. Smiling, she answered in their language. “That would be me and Rob Zombie. Amazing, isn’t he?”
They couldn’t have looked more shocked if they tried. She winked and continued speaking in Avatarian. “That’s right, boys. I told you what I was and you didn’t listen. I wish to speak to your god.”
They glanced around amongst themselves. One, who Deryn could only assume was the leader stepped forth. “You will not stop us from killing the rightful god. You will die,” he said, in Avatarian.
“Bookworm, you got any idea what the hell they’re saying?” Fulk asked.
She nodded. “It would appear that we have a group of traitors attacking us. That means....”
Fulk coughed, clearly in pain. “It means there will be no reasoning with them. I got it. Thanks for clearing that up now get the hell out of here.”
“Can’t do that, Rodriquez,” she said, keeping her eyes on the tomb guards. “They know who and what I am now so they have no choice but to kill me and they never had any intention of leaving any witnesses. Dying is not on my to do list tonight so what do you say I get us out of this?”
“I’ll make you a deal, Bookworm. You get out of here and I’ll stop teasing you about being smart.”
Shaking her head, Deryn snickered. “No deal. Tell you what. You let me get you out of here alive and I’ll let you call me whatever you want.” Concentrating on the tomb guards, she put her arms out. “Your only option is to kill me because I will tell your god what you’re planning and technically, I was created to keep you from harming him so I guess I’ll just have to kill you to keep my end of the bargain.”
They all came running straight at her. Two shifted into large black panthers. Another held his whips out and began to flip them around, watching her carefully. Deryn concentrated on him, learning his technique.
A panther leapt up, heading straight for her. Jumping into the air, Deryn spun, thrust her leg out and slammed the heel of her boot into its rib cage. A cracking sounded as it fell off its original course and hit the ground with a thud.
Landing on her feet, Deryn could almost feel the whip as it moved through the air. The man wasn’t aiming at her. No. He was aiming at Fulk. Running hard and fast, she launched herself into the air once more and took the brunt of the whip across her back rather than let it hit Fulk again.
Fulk’s eyes widened as he fought against this restraints. “No!”
Deryn hissed as her skin split from her low back to her upper shoulder. Her power flared to the surface, instantly beginning to heal her. She landed directly in front of Fulk and stared up at him. “Do you trust me?”
“Huh? Doc? What the hell?”
“Do you,” she fought for breath, “trust me?” She straightened slowly and stood before him.
“Yes.”
“Yes.”
“This is going to hurt at first.” Deryn punched her hand through Fulk’s stomach, driving it past his flesh and deep within him.
Vonni screamed and thrust magik out at Deryn even though she was being held by tomb guards. Putting her free hand out, Deryn harnessed Vonni’s power and used it to help her with Fulk. He slumped forward and she put her forehead against his. “Now, we’ll heal together, Rodriquez.”
Her power flared through her, mending the wound from the whip. It didn’t stop with her. No. It went straight into Fulk, repairing the damage he’d sustained from being tortured by the tomb guards.
Pulling her hand out of him, she left no damage to his stomach. There wasn’t even a drop of blood. Fulk lifted his head and locked eyes with her. “Thanks, Bookworm.”
“Feel up to kicking some ass?” she asked, already knowing that Fulk now carried some of her power within him, thus giving him a higher healing rate and additional strength.
He nodded.
Deryn took hold of his left wrist. “On the count of three. One. Two. Three.” She yanked hard with him. The chain broke free of the post but remained attached to his wrist. She did the same with the other side. Fulk dropped to the ground, crouched and then stood tall, looking pissed.
“How do I kill them?”
“Not sure yet,” Deryn said, spotting the other panther headed straight at Fulk’s back. “Can I use you?”
A slow smile spread over his face. “Bookworm, you can do whatever you want to me.”
Laughing, Deryn spun Fulk around fast, moved in front of him and grabbed hold of one of the chains. “Throw me as far as you can and then yank on the chain hard.”
Fulk eyed the panther and then smiled down at her. “Clothesline. I love it.” Lifting her like she weighed nothing. Fulk twisted to one side and sent her hurdling through the air.
Deryn held the chain out and dropped a second before the panther struck. She wrapped the chain around its neck, flipped over its back and prepared for Fulk to yank. He did. She and the panther hit the ground hard. Not giving up, she rolled with it, wrapping the chain tighter as she went. It stopped struggling and she knew it was dead.
Shifter Fated Mates: Boxed Set Page 73