Silverbow

by Shannon Simmons

  I was starting to see the bigger picture. If I wanted to be with him, I couldn’t or I would run the risk of being killed. His target would become mine. They would hurt me to get to him. If I wanted to walk away from him, I could. But I would forever be in pain and ache for him. I would hurt everyone around me trying to get back to him. I would never truly be able to give myself to another. Yes, I now understood. My life would forever be a war from here on out I wondered how he would be able to react. If the pull was that strong for me, it had to be for him too. He was supposed to walk away from me and leave me to deal with this on my own…but here he was, unable to say goodbye to keep me safe.

  “What are you going to do,” I asked and laid my hand on top of his. His tension seemed to melt away at my touch. His shoulders relaxed and he leaned closer to me. His lips grazed the back of my hand and then his eyes met mine.

  “For once, I have no clue,” he replied honestly. I sighed and lifted both of my hands to the sides of his neck. I pressed my lips to his and his arms circled my waist, pulling me to his lap. Our flesh buzzed to life and our heat seeped out in crashing static waves. Neither of us had the answer to what came next but we both gave into that could happen that very moment.

  He kissed me hard as one hand slid up to grab my hair at the nape of my neck. I pressed into him wanting to become a part of him. My need for his touch was a hundred times stronger this time but far less desperate. He pulled my head back and kissed my throat. I let one hand run through his thick black hair and let a soft moan escape me as his lips found my collar bone. He gently pulled the straps of my tank top down one at a time and I eased back to allow him to pull the whole shirt down to my waist, slipping free of both straps. His lips and gentle nips found my breasts. The air around us felt alive. He reached down and cradled me in his arms and stood. With ease he carried me up the stairs.

  I kissed at his neck as he walked by my current bedroom and headed for my old room. Only my scent was present here. Carrying me to the bed, he lay me down and stood to remove the coveralls he had borrowed. After removing what little I still had on, he lay next to me and pushed my hair from my face. His lips found mine quickly and his hands moved to please me. Rolling my hips into his touch, I closed my eyes and lay my head back. After a moment, I pushed his shoulders, rolling him to his back and straddled him. His silver gaze seduced me beyond his touch and my ache deepened as he bit his bottom lip. Sitting back, I lowered myself onto him and my lips parted in a soft gasp as I rocked with him. One of his hands rested on my hip and the other moved to my passion, his thumb circling the spot that would send me over the edge quick and hard.

  I rode him slowly at first. Letting him watch me and take me in. As I grew closer and closer to climax he gripped both of my hips and pulled me against him with more force. My back arched back as I felt him deeper inside of me. Sitting up and pulling me closer with both arms around my waist he growled hungrily. He was nearly there too. Wrapping my arms around him, my nails bit into his back as my body screamed for release. This brought him closer to the edge and we both began to tremble. Quickly he rolled me to my back and pushed as deep as he could. Our bodies devoured one another as we spilled into ecstasy together. My hands ran through his hair as I pulled his face to mine to kiss his lips. Taking my bottom lip between his teeth, he kissed me again. I moaned hard against his soft growl and tightened my thighs around him, forbidding him to leave me. We lay in a sweaty tangle for an hour before taking a shower and starting all over again in the steam. The rest of the night seemed to happen in slow motion. I was thankful for that.

  CHAPTER 21

  I heard the front door close downstairs. My eyes shot open and I felt like a panicked young girl. The clock read, “3:30 am”. I rolled over and Murphy lifted a thick hand to rub his eyes as he sat up. The sight of him in my dark purple satin sheets made me excited all over again but I knew Greyden was home and this could be a huge mess. Dressed in a black tee and white boy shorts, I stood and tossed Murphy a shop t-shirt and an old pair of jeans that had belonged to my father. Before I could slip out the door, Murphy spun me around with my back pressed to it and kissed me again. Smiling against his lips, I ran my hand over him and quickly slipped away.

  I had no idea how I was going to handle this. I wanted to laugh, cry and scream all at once. How was I going to explain this?

  “Dakota, you still up,” Greyden asked when he heard me on the stairs.

  “Yes,” Murphy and I said at the same time. I nearly fell down the stairs when Murphy spoke too. Startled I slowly stepped into the kitchen with Murphy on my heels, completely dressed.

  “What the fuck,” exclaimed Greyden as he reached for his gun.

  “Stop!” I tossed up my hands and stood in front of Murphy. “No need for that. He came to my rescue tonight,” I informed him.

  “That gang of trash showed up and wanted to take her back to Reno,” Murphy added. “I'd been tailing them to make sure they stayed clear of her.” Clearing his throat, he took a seat at the table and glared up at Greyden. “Where were you? This isn't the time to leave her by herself.” Oh shit, I did not want a fight between these two in my kitchen.

  “Where was I?! How about we talk about the things you did to her! Dakota, why is this fucking lunatic in your house?” Greyden was trying to keep his cool the best he could since I wasn't flipping out but he had yet to put his gun away. I calmly reached out and took it from him, laying it on the table where I took a seat.

  “Do you know everything there is to know about a Binding,” I asked Greyden. He grew so quiet that I wondered if he was still breathing. His eyes fell to the floor as he sunk into a chair.

  “Yes, I talked to Laney about it all night,” he admitted. I exhaled deeply and he shook his head. “It's not fair.”

  “It can't be helped now,” Murphy said as he placed a hand on the back of my chair.

  “I'm not leaving,” Greyden stated. I glanced at Murphy and look back to Greyden who was standing his ground.

  “I'm sure you will leave when you please and leave her broken. I'm telling you now I will always be the one here to pick up her pieces. Dakota, I love you. I don't want to lose you to this shit. Even if you can't love me back...I'm always going to be here.”

  My heart broke. I knew how he felt and I knew how I once felt. I was no longer madly IN love with Greyden but I still loved him. I could not imagine my life without him and here he was telling me I would never have to. I wanted to tell him he was crazy and he should run from me but I knew it would be of no use. I had nothing to say. I just sat forward and wrapped my arms around his neck. Holding me back, I could feel him look over my shoulder at Murphy and only imagined the looks being exchanged.

  “All she has to do is say the word and I swear I will kill you. However if she asks me to accept things, I’ll try.” Greyden was always the best at reading me and knowing what I would want. I pulled back and nodded to him. With understanding but unhappy eyes, he stood and headed for the stairs. Murphy and I sat in the kitchen in silence. When the shower turned on I turned to him.

  “Are you going to leave,” I asked quietly. We had big decisions to make and I wasn't looking forward to making them.

  “You will lose everything if I stay here. I can't stay put and do my job.” He took my hand in his and squeezed it. “You do understand that I'm not a good guy, right?” His eyes filled with worry, his crows feet deep.

  “I know,” I whispered. Closing my eyes and shaking my head. My gut churned as I thought about Hines. I knew Hines had been feeding on travelers and I too had killed a trucker. Shit, was he warning me? I didn’t want to ask. I didn’t have to.

  “I'm sorry, D,” was his reply to my unspoken question. I wasn't happy with this at all but I knew there was little I could do. Or was there? I wanted to call Hines and tell him to run. I wanted to distract Murphy in a million ways and give Hines enough time to get away. Either way, someone would not be forgiving me.

  “Does he know you are coming for him,” I
asked. He shook his head. I exhaled slowly and let go of his hand.

  “I don't think he knows who I am. But his toll here alone is 38. I'm sure you didn't know that,” he informed me. My mouth fell open and I shook my head. Hines was worse than I had thought. “Government told me it was now or never.” I nearly choked on the thought of Murphy standing over a dead Hines. As bad as Hines seemed to be, I didn’t know if I could let it happen.

  “Are you back at the inn,” I asked. He shook his head. I would offer him to stay with me but I knew he wouldn't. “So you will take care of Hines and leave?”

  “I'll be back, Dakota. I could never be away for long. You can always join me on occasion too. But you know what would happen if we tried it permanently.” I didn't like anything coming out of his mouth. Dammit.

  I didn't want to talk about any of it any more. I was tired and just wanted to close my eyes. I stood and Murphy looked at me questioningly. I pulled his hand and led him up to my old room to lie back down. I fell asleep tucked into his chest and finally slept without horrible dreams.

  * * * * * * *

  The sun violated my sleep. I rolled over and found that I was alone. I buried my face in the sheets and inhaled our mixed scents. My eyes shot open as panic hit my gut. If Murphy wasn’t here then Hines was in trouble. As I dressed I fought with my conscience. Would I let Murphy do his job? He had good reason to pick off Hines. Or would I protect a friend and mentor? Fuck. I buttoned my flannel shirt with trembling fingers and rushed into the hallway. Greyden stepped out of the bathroom with a toothbrush hanging from his mouth. Quickly, I moved past him and shut the door.

  “Dakota,” he grumbled. “What are you up to?” A cord of worry struck in his voice. He read me so well. “Murphy headed out about an hour ago. Let me guess, he didn’t say goodbye?” I could hear him pacing outside the door.

  “I have to get to Hines,” I informed him as I spit my toothpaste into the sink, ditched the toothbrush and pulled my hair back in a messy ponytail. Yanking the door open to let him back in, I slipped out and headed for the stairs. I listened to him rushing to get ready but I was faster. With my boots, gun and jacket on, I headed for the shop to get Pop’s bike. Firing her up, I put on my helmet and was out of the driveway before Greyden could get outside to ask me where I was going.

  I sped through the strip and past the inn. The Watering Hole parking lot was empty and buzzards were picking at something dead just a mile outside of the tiny neighborhood Hines lived in. This neighborhood was the nicest Silverbow had. The houses were old but nice, much like mine. The DeHavens, Yates and Laney’s family were the mass of its residents. Hines resided in the smallest of twelve houses. His Jeep was still in the driveway which was bad news. He should have been at the school.

  I parked my bike at the end of his driveway and scurried up to the front door. I knocked and called out to him. No answer. I tested the lock and the door opened. Worry made my palms sweat as I entered and quietly closed the door behind me.

  “Hines,” I called. There was still no answer. I checked the kitchen and covered my mouth when I spotted the puddle of blood by the back door. “Shit! Hines,” I yelled this time. He was no where to be found in the kitchen or living room. My boots thundered quickly up the stairs and towards the second puddle of blood outside the closed bathroom door. I placed my ear to the door and hand on the knob. “Hines,” I nearly whispered.

  “Go home,” a hardly audible groan came from the other side of the door. I could hear a high pitch screech of something sliding in the tub. The door was locked but in my panic my strength heightened and my shoulder sent the door sailing open. My eyes darted over the bathroom until I found a bloody mess in the tub. Hines lay on his side caked in dark red and black blood. I rushed to his side and turned on the shower. The cold rush of water made him scream. He was naked and when I managed to flip him to his back I noticed the gaping wounds in his side and head.

  “What the fuck happened to you,” I gasped as I tried my best to rinse away the grime and caked blood from his ribs and face.

  “Armed trucker,” he whispered and winced as the now warming water stung his wounds. “I’ll heal,” he said and began to cough. Blood spattered his lips as he tried to sit up and fight the barking cough.

  “I need to get you to the hospital,” I demanded. His hands quickly grabbed mine and his weak eyes grabbed my worried gaze.

  “NO,” he choked. “Promise me.” He let me go and wiped his face. “I was hunting. They will know. The guy got away.”

  My mind raced. He was just as horrible as all the other monsters out there and I had sympathy for him. Something inside me told me I could help him. I could help him fight his urge and not feed on innocents. I would try. I knew so little but felt I owed him for helping me. Together we could get through all this. I couldn’t let Murphy kill him. I wouldn’t let Murphy kill him.

  “Listen to me. You are in much bigger trouble than you think. I am about to place myself in harms way to help you out of it. I am only doing this because I need you. You are going to help me manage this new life of mine and I, in return, will help you escape death. Do you hear me,” I asked seriously. His coughing subsided and he nodded. It took me nearly an hour to clean him up and get him into his bed. After I dried off, I sat at the foot of his bed shook my head.

  “So it is him, isn’t it,” he asked quietly. I was sure I knew he was talking about Murphy. Maybe Murphy’s reputation was a little more known that he wished. I nodded and thought Hines looked as if he could cry.

  “You’ve done so much damage and its on the government’s radar. He has to deal with it or,” I trailed off and Hines shifted. “I’ll do what I can. I’ll fight him.”

  “Don’t get yourself killed over me, Dakota. It’s not like we are best friends.”

  “You are still important to me…and to the kids out here.” I stood from the bed and paced across the room towards a window. My mind raced down every possible avenue of thought. Somehow, I came up with an idea. What if I could get Murphy to pin it all on Darius and his minions? Hell, we had already killed his worthless posse. If I promised Murphy I would clean up Hines and could get him Darius, maybe he would go for it. I had to try.

  I turned back to Hines and cleared my throat, “Promise me you won’t kill on the highways again.” His eyes closed and opened, focused on mine.

  “I promise,” he swore.

  “Break this promise and I will kill you myself, Hines,” I stated firmly as I turned and closed the door behind me. Downstairs, I locked down the fort and took at seat at the tiny kitchen table. The house was dead silent. I knew Murphy would be coming for him and I would be waiting for him when he arrived. For hours I didn’t hear anything except a car leaving the neighborhood and Hines coughing. I watched my silent cell phone on the table top and wondered if I would hear from Murphy or Greyden.

  Nightfall was approaching and my phone buzzed to life. I didn’t recognize the number. I pushed the answer button and sat silent.

  “Dakota? Hello? Its your mom…I mean Viv,” she verbally stumbled on the other end. Right away I hung up, grabbed my gun and silently moved to the stairway. The air shifted and I felt as though a wall were being forced around me to stop me from feeling others. I closed my eyes and listened with my new senses. There was added warmth to the house. Someone else was here and a soft struggle in the bedroom told me it was Murphy. Quickly I glided up the stairs and kicked in the bedroom door. Murphy stood over Hines with a knife to his throat. Those harsh steel eyes darted to mine and he snarled.

  “You can’t keep using her to distract me. Put it down, Murphy, we need to talk,” I spoke as collected as I possibly could. Hines lay still beneath Murphy’s huge frame and clamped his eyes shut. “Put it down or I will shoot,” I warned him. The wall I felt earlier slowly dropped and his heat washed in around me. I could tell he was angry and worried. “I have an offer to make,” I included. I felt a flicker in his emotions and firmed up my grip on the trigger. He knew I was serious.r />
  “D, you have to let me do my job.” His voice was void of emotion but he knew he couldn’t hide it from me. “I have to put him down,” he said as his blade bit into the flesh of Hines’s throat. Hines whimpered and I adjusted my aim and pulled the trigger. A bullet bit into Murphy’s thigh, he went weak in the knees and regained his stance quickly. The knife did not move and Murphy stood his ground against the pain.

  “I will shoot again,” I promised and unleashed my own emotional heat into the air. Murphy’s nose twitched and I watched him bite into his lower lip. Slowly, he pulled the blade away from Hines and stood straight. His eyes were filled with rage and impatience. “Let me fetch Darius for you. Let me keep Hines. He has promised me he will stop. I need him to teach me. I need him to help me. You can’t stay with me; leave him to be my aide. With Darius and his crew dead we can pin the ET murders on them and they fall for all those they have killed here already. Please, Murphy, please,” I begged.

  Murphy shifted and winced when he placed pressure on the leg I had shot. Hines remained still in the bed though his eyes were bouncing off Murphy and I. Clearing his throat, Murphy put away his knife and began to slowly cross the room towards me. I noticed an open window behind him and quickly returned my gaze to him. He must have triggered my mother to call me in order to distract me. I wasn’t going to let him play me like a fiddle. My anger jumped and he paused midstride.