Hate Awakened: Book 3: The Feral

by Hartnady, Charlene

  “Who are you?”

  “It doesn’t matter, sweetheart. I’m letting you go so that you can get dressed. You’ll have a minute to do so.”

  Claire cleared her throat. It felt like a lump had lodged itself there. She nodded once.

  “No noise!” he whispered sharply, his mouth still right there by her ear. Her back still flush against his front. He was naked. Skin to skin. Her skin crawled.

  “Let me go already. I want to get dressed,” she whispered.

  He did as she asked. Claire took a step away from him, turning. She put a hand over her breasts and another over her vagina as she did.

  Claire noticed a couple of things. He was tall, although not as tall as Leukos. He was strong-looking, and he was most definitely Feral. His eyes were yellow and narrowed on her. For a moment she was tempted to get dressed first. To at least get her shirt over her head. Now was her chance to escape, though.

  “Get dressed. Do it now!” He pointed to her shirt.

  Claire pretended to bend down but ducked away at the last second. She screamed, running for the bathroom. Maybe the door had a lock. Maybe she could get to it in time.

  “Fuck!” the stranger muttered.

  He was on her in a second, he clamped his hand firmly over her mouth again. Her neck jerked back. He grabbed her body too. She felt scales and feathers under her skin. The ceiling seemed to come closer.

  No!

  That wasn’t it. It was she who was rising towards the ceiling. The stranger was shifting, she was dangling in his arms. He ducked at the large entrance and jumped. Her stomach lurched. They hadn’t fallen far when he shot into the sky. Her stomach lurching all over again. Claire very nearly threw up.

  She realized that his hand was no longer over her mouth, but she couldn’t scream if she wanted. It sucked that she couldn’t even breathe, let alone scream, they were moving too fast for her to do either.

  She caught movement. There were others following. More than one. She prayed to god that they caught up. That one of them was Leukos. He’d save her. She just knew it.

  Chapter 12

  Leukos walked through the house, careful not to make a sound. All was quiet. He wondered if Amy and Worth were sleeping, or if they had left. It was most likely the latter. He entered the kitchen, switching on the light. Leukos waited but all remained quiet.

  This was the best place to get food for his female. His! He needed to be careful of saying things like that out loud. He would scare her off. Humans were, in many ways, different from shifters. They didn’t have their sense, their drives, their instincts.

  Right then, everything was telling him to get back to her. Not to let Claire out of his sight. To bed her again. To make her happy. To keep her happy. To win her. At all costs.

  Win!

  She was a human and not likely to test compatibility with other males, but he couldn’t help his instincts. Leukos bristled with the need to do all of those things, and to do them immediately. He grit his teeth. His prick began to harden but he forced himself to think of other things. Like food. He began to rummage through the fridge, seeing several things he thought she might like. He was an idiot for not stocking his own fridge. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined taking a human to his furs on the first night.

  Leukos smiled to himself as he took out the various food items, packing them into the bag he had brought. There was a chocolate cake at the rear of the fridge. It had a chunk missing. Looked like Worth and Amy had come up for air at some point. Grinning, he took out the treat, placing it on the counter, remembering that Claire had said she ate a chocolate chip cookie for breakfast. She must enjoy the taste of chocolate. This way, she could have cake for dessert.

  He looked through a drawer and pulled out a long knife. Leukos was about to cut into the cake when he heard a loud screech of alarm, followed by a second cry. It could be anything. It wasn’t though. His males didn’t screech in such a manner unless there was something serious going on. His hackles were up. Adrenaline pumping. The only logical explanation was that Claire was in danger. His blood ran cold at the thought. Feathers erupted. His mouth turned sharp as his beak pulled through. His vision narrowed and focused. Not for the first time, he wished he had better night vision.

  Leukos dropped the knife as he continued to shift. He ran, taking a chunk out of the side of the door along with him.

  “What’s going?” he heard Worth shout behind him but he ignored the male. The sense of urgency he felt was too strong. Adrenaline continued to pump through his veins. Leukos took to the air as a third screech of warning sounded. He screeched himself. The sound filled with rage. Who dared take his female from him? Who dared enter his territory?

  Unfortunately, he knew the answer all too well. Ekon. The Fallen king. His brother. He’d expected it. Prepared for it, and yet he hadn’t thought it would happen quite so soon. He’d been wrong! He’d messed up. His instincts not to leave Claire had been right. Leukos should have listened to them.

  Flying as fast as he could, he scanned the area. From the dark shapes moving in the sky, there were quite a few of his males circling up ahead, more joining them by the second. They circled a large, wooded area that led to a ravine.

  Leukos screeched as he approached, and several males screeched back. All but one continued on their current path. It was too dark to tell exactly who was approaching. The male began to descend.

  Leukos wanted to keep searching. He wanted to gouge out the eyes of the male responsible for this. To cut off his claws with a silver blade. He wanted to taste his blood. Forcing himself to calm down, he followed the descending male. Knowledge was power. He needed to find out exactly what was going on so that he could rescue Claire. Abducted twice in one day. She might not want to even stay after this. Leukos wouldn’t blame her.

  He landed next to…Reece. Good! Leukos shifted quickly. “What happened?” he barked.

  “It’s…one of the humans…Amy.”

  He breathed out hard. Oh, thank the gods! Leukos felt instantly bad for feeling relief when there was still a female out there somewhere.

  “I’m not sure how he got past our perimeter.”

  “A Feral?”

  “We believe so, sire.” Reece nodded.

  “Could be one of our own,” he countered. They needed to be logical about this.

  “Indeed.” Reece raised his brows. “I heard what happened earlier…with Orrick.”

  “Give me the details.” Claire might be safe, for now, but there was still a human out there in need of rescuing.

  “The guards you posted around your nest heard a scream. Two of them spotted a male Feral fleeing with the human. The light was already bad and—”

  Leukos’ heart pounded so loudly he was unable to hear anything for a few moments, save the blood pumping through his veins. More adrenaline shot through his system. “My nest? What do you mean…?” He growled, struggling to stop himself from grabbing Reece and shaking the male. “What do you mean my nest?”

  Reece looked fearful for a moment, but his expression quickly turned impassive once more. “Yes, sire, your nest. That’s where the abduction occurred.”

  “You said Amy. It was Claire who was in my nest. Amy is with Worth.” The ramifications set in and his blood turned icy all over again.

  “Then it is the human, Claire, who was taken. My apologies for the misinformation. I was not aware the two of you had swapped. I didn’t think it customary amongst humans.”

  “You say one of the guards saw someone leave with her?”

  Reece nodded. “We were well prepared.”

  “Not well enough.” He couldn’t stop the words from tumbling from his mouth. His fists were clenched at his sides. The need to shift raged through him.

  “Not well enough.” Reece looked down at the floor for a moment. “The good news is that he knew he wouldn’t get away and must have landed somewhere in that forest.” Reece pointed at where the males were circling. “We’ll send teams in to flush them out.
He won’t escape. Your female will be found.”

  Then something occurred to him. Something Reece had said. It made his heart pound so hard he thought he might just crack a rib. “You said that one of the guards saw them leave?”

  “Yes, sire. It was Bastian followed by Rath who saw him flee. I can call them to—”

  “Did any of the guards see this male enter my nest?”

  Reece stopped short, Leukos could see the male’s mind racing. “Come to think of it,” he shook his head, “no. They only saw him flee. How can that be?”

  “Exactly!” Leukos clenched his jaw. “Chances are that one of the Fallen has her. If he escapes, he will take her to Ekon.” The noise he had heard earlier when he had been mounting Claire. It was the male. Whoever had taken Claire was already inside his nest…watching and waiting. Fire lit him from the inside out. “We must capture this bastard. I want him put to death. An example made. I will kill him with my own hands.”

  “But sire, our warriors are assembling with silver-tipped spears. We need to bring him down in order to save the human.”

  “Shoot to wound. Don’t kill him.” Leukos wanted that satisfaction. “Make sure every male knows my orders. I will end this bastard myself. Find them! Find her!”

  Chapter 13

  Magnar clutched the female to his torso. He kept his hand firmly over her mouth. Every so often she squirmed, but for the most part, she was motionless. “Fuck,” he whispered to himself.

  She squirmed as a response. The tension hadn’t left her body once. Not even for a second. “It’s not like I can let you go. If only I’d thought to bring rope and some duct tape.”

  The squirming became more frenzied. The human thrust her body forward, trying to jerk herself free. This wasn’t the first time she’d tried it. It was getting on his last nerve. “Quit it! It won’t work,” he whispered as loud as he dared. “The only thing you’re accomplishing is to grind my dick to shit and to piss me the hell off. Believe me, you don’t want to do that.”

  She stopped, breathing hard.

  “I can’t take my hand off your mouth. I don’t trust you to keep quiet.”

  They had to have been huddled like this for a couple of hours. His arm ached. His right leg felt like it was falling asleep. Magnar had worse problems though. “I need to take a leak.” He pushed out a heavy breath.

  She made a noise of agreement.

  “You too.” He could feel her try to nod.

  “This is going to be fun then.” He half-chuckled. “I’m standing up.” He kept her where she was, right in his lap. Releasing the arm around her waist for a moment to push himself up, he quickly got to his feet. Snaking the arm back around her waist as soon as they were up, he pulled her against him. Having a lame right leg didn’t help things. He groaned softly, feeling the blood return to all of his body parts.

  She tried to say something, but he ignored her. There was no way he was letting her mouth go. He didn’t trust her one bit. Not after that little stunt she’d pulled earlier. The human had balls. Something he admired. It meant he had to be extra careful. “Listen up. I’m going to have to let you go.” He squeezed her a little tighter around her middle. “I’m going to need this arm to hold my dick while I pee.”

  He heard her breathing more heavily, could feel tension pulsing through her.

  “I don’t plan on hurting you. Not unless you try something. If you try to get away or alert those fuckers, I’ll have to knock you out. I don’t want to be forced into violence, but I will do it in a heartbeat. Do you understand?”

  She didn’t say or do anything. Her heart raced, he could feel it under his forearm which rested against her chest.

  “Don’t be stupid,” he added for good measure, slowly removing that arm. “Any sudden movements…any rash decisions and I’m going to get pee all over you. Try something drastic and you’ll be unconscious and smelling of piss. I’m sure you don’t want that.”

  The human said something against his hand. The urgent need to empty his bladder was gnawing at him. He clasped his dick, almost groaning as the pressure released. It took at least two or three minutes to get the job done. The female remained as still as a statue. Maybe he should have threatened to pee on her earlier. Maybe that would have kept her from screaming. He gave his dick a shake, grabbing her hip to keep her in place. “Your turn, sweetheart.”

  She tried to shake her head.

  “Come on, you must be desperate. No need to be shy. I saw you naked, Sleeping Beauty. Saw every inch of you. Pissing is a normal body function. Ferals can’t see too well at night. I’d empty that bladder of yours now if I was you.” He knew he sounded like a jerk but… Oh yeah, he was a jerk. Besides, he was too tired to give too much of a shit. The human had to be just as desperate as he was. “I’m giving you a chance. Once this window closes, it isn’t going to open for a while. You can beg and plead and squirm all you want.”

  She said something.

  “Fuck!” he sighed. “I’m going to lift my hand so that you can talk. If you scream, you know the consequences. I don’t like saying the same thing over again, so I’m not going to spell it out.”

  She made a noise of agreement.

  Magnar lifted his hand but only by an inch. The human bit him. She clamped her little pearly whites down on his hand. Feisty little thing. Magnar laughed softly. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. I happen to enjoy biting. It turns me on.”

  She opened her mouth instantly. “You bastard!” she snapped. “Let me go.”

  “No can do, you’re destined for my king, but tempt me enough and I’ll be forced to test the merchandise myself.”

  “You wouldn’t!”

  He shrugged. “Don’t fight me and we’re good. Do as I say, and you’ll be just fine. I’m going to squat behind you. Close, where I can keep an eye on you.”

  “Squat behind me…?” she muttered, sounding shocked. “I’m not peeing in front of you,” she ground out. “While we’re at it, I need clothes. I can’t walk around like this.” There was a hitch to her voice. “Please,” she added, sounding desperate.

  “I gave you a chance to get dressed and you fucked it up, sweetheart.”

  “Stop calling me that.” She made a whimpering noise and danced on her feet. “I do need to pee.”

  “Let’s squat then.”

  She made an agonized groaning noise that irritated him. “We don’t have all day. Squat or hold it in.”

  “I’ll pee all over you if you’re not careful. I can’t just hold it in,” she whispered harshly. “Let me go behind that tree. I promise I won’t try to run or to scream”

  He chuckled low and soft. “Not happening, honey. You can pee on me all you want. I don’t care.” He suspected that she would hate doing it, even if she did hate him.

  She made a noise of frustration. “Fine, but don’t look or listen.”

  He exhaled a heavy breath. “I won’t.”

  They slowly squatted. Magnar kept his hand on her hip, his other hand on her shoulder so he could grab her if she tried to scream. He fixed his eyes on the back of her head. Two minutes later and they still sat there squatting like idiots. “What’s the problem?” he asked, his voice gruff.

  “Take your hands off me. I can’t go to the toilet with you touching me. It’s bad enough that you’re watching.”

  “I’m not watching.” Magnar let her go and she nearly fell onto her ass. It was one heck of an ass. Plump and… Finally, she let go. Magnar lifted his eyes until she finished. Then placed a hand on her hip. There was a screeching overhead.

  “Quiet,” he warned.

  Of course, she didn’t listen. Why had he ever thought differently? The human jumped to her feet. “Help m—!” He clamped a hand over her mouth, gritting his teeth. So much for waiting for the right moment to make their escape. That moment had just turned into right now.

  Magnar felt his tendons and muscles rope and stretch. He felt his wings unfold and both fur and feathers break out through his skin. The
n they were taking to the sky and tearing through the canopy. Thank fuck there was only one guard nearby. The male who had just flown over them. The one whose screech had sparked Miss Feisty into testing her lung capacity yet again. It was on him, though. He was pretty sure she’d been having him on about the ‘peeing while being touched’ thing. Magnar should have known better.

  Pushing hard, he flew like he’d never flown before. Although he could feel he was losing the closest male, he could also feel that others were gaining on him. Trying to close him in. Swooping shadows getting closer and closer. There was a gap and he was taking it. Magnar made for the gap. His eyes watered from both the wind and the exertion. He ignored it. Ignored his protesting muscles and flew harder still. He could not fail. Would not. Ekon was not only his king. The real king. The justified leader of the Ferals. The male was also his best friend.

  The female in his claws was perfect for Ekon. The human would make an excellent queen. A fantastic mother. No wonder Ekon’s hunger had awakened without even laying eyes on her.

  Then a glint caught his eye.

  Fuck!

  He tried to swerve but was too late.

  Chapter 14

  Claire hated flying. She hated it with a passion. Especially when dangling in the clutches of a deranged shifter. She hated it even more than being abducted in the first place. Although, they probably went hand-in-hand.

  Two words came to mind while hanging in the air, precarious and green about the gills. She was barely holding back – what felt like – a ton of vomit. How was that possible? Her stomach wasn’t just empty, it was eating itself at this point. Not that she was hungry. Just thinking about eating, about food, made her feel sick.

  It wasn’t as dark as she expected. Maybe her eyes had adjusted. It could also have something to do with the full moon. Looking at the ground far below made her feel queasy, it made her mouth fill with saliva, so Claire kept her eyes squeezed shut. The dickhead who had captured her lurched to the left and then again to the right. He flew even faster than he had before. Breakneck speed. She only hoped she survived this.