“King,” shouts one of my men. I run toward him. He’s one of the Warriors left behind to guard the homestead. His chest is covered in blood, and the gaping wound in his stomach tells me his chances aren’t good. I land at his side and begin moving his straps to keep his insides where they belong. “No time,” he says. “They attacked us and took Knet. Che and Ruth followed.”
Knet is another Warrior whose job it was to guard Homestead One. He was never good at following orders and his desire was to be one of my personal guard. That would never happen, and I hoped by sending him here, he would stay out of trouble. “The kids followed?” I asked to be sure I understand.
“I saw them near the rocks,” he gasps. “They trailed the Federation soldiers. Ruth had a whistle.”
“What about Maylin and Baby Boot?”
He coughs up blood, and it sprays between his Warrior fangs. “Maylin had the baby with her; that’s all I know.”
I look into his eyes and see his waning life force. “You did your job and will receive a Warrior’s burial. Go in peace, my brother.” His hand finds mine and he squeezes before life leaves his eyes and a part of me dies with him. Even though I am no longer Alpha, I continue to feel the pull of a Warrior’s force when it’s extinguished. Maybe it’s mating with Marinah that continues the connection. My men don’t have it.
The sound of additional gunfire comes from the houses along the water. My home is about a mile up the shore and more secluded. The humans like being close to each other, and they didn’t want to claim the homes farthest from their village. With a burst of speed, I round the building standing between me and the gunfire. Marinah is fighting three men though it started as more. Bodies are piled around her.
Another shot fires from above us, and I look up. Missy is in an upper window using her lethal marksmanship on Federation soldiers. She’s deadly with a bow too. I attack a soldier farthest from Marinah and make quick work of him. Marinah handles the other two with sweet efficiency. The red stripes are easier to kill than hellhounds.
Another burst of gunfire has me looking back the way we came. Several Federation soldiers are almost on top of us. A glance at Missy’s last location tells me she’s found another vantage point. Slowly, I raise my hands, showing the soldiers my empty palms.
“You want to fly?” I whisper from the side of my mouth to Marinah.
“Sounds good, baby.” She turns my way and leaps up as I jump and shove everything I have into her legs. The small sting in my shoulder doesn’t hurt, much. She goes Nova before she lands in the middle of the men. If we want one alive, it won’t be from this group.
She’s amazing, impressive, and scary as hell. If Marinah grew two heads and six arms, I would still find her beautiful. In Nova form, there are no words. She’s bigger and more powerful than anything I’ve ever seen. She’s also deadlier. Like a Viking berserker of old, she’s goes a bit crazy when Nova takes over.
I count six men holding guns on us. Within sixty seconds, there are none. My mate is covered in blood and continues growling as she spins, looking for someone else to kill. A woman’s scream is all she needs and she’s off again. I follow but only to watch the show. I wouldn’t dream of getting between Nova and her prey.
Several men drag a woman across the center of our small-town square. Other women are pelting them with fists, trying to get them to release her. One of the men backhands an unlucky helper and she falls. Other women take her place. Marinah wastes no time. The women fall back, dragging their injured sisters with them.
Marinah’s claws slice through a soldier’s stomach, spraying blood and guts in a wide arch. Her giant jaws rip into another soldier’s throat, and he releases a wet gurgle. The third soldier tries to run. He makes it ten feet. Marinah leaps into his escape route with her powerful legs, and he has no time to do more than whimper. His bodiless head flies toward the women in another spray of blood.
Three hellhounds bound into the square, and it’s my turn to join the action. I dispatch the first one and remove its head. The other two come at me together. They lead with their fangs, exactly like dogs. The idea is to avoid the dripping razor teeth and use my claws or sword. I gouge one in the stomach though it isn’t a death blow. The only way to kill a hellhound is to take the head. Once they’re dead, they turn to ash. This also helped form a biblical solution as to what they were in the beginning. Of course, hellhounds are part of Greek mythology but somehow because of the ash thing, the religious fanatics dubbed them creatures from hell.
I turn to the other hellhound, grab its head and twist. The hellhound missing most of its stomach attacks. I slice its throat deep with my left clawed hand. Pulling hard, I separate the head from its shoulders, drop the head, and throw the body across the square. I didn’t realize my foot was standing on entrails. The hellhound looks like a freakish kite, the ribbon flowing behind it, before it lands with a heavy thud. With blood-filled eyes, I look around for more.
Marinah stands twenty feet away, breathing hard, looking for something else to kill too. Her glorious claws and fangs drip blood as she snaps at the air in frustration. The island women slowly back away, their terrified gazes locked on my mate.
“Marinah, we’re safe,” I say gently. “I need you to return to your Warrior form. It’s important.” I don’t touch her. She needs a few minutes to process my words while her bloodlust dissipates. She shakes her mammoth head. Blood mixed with saliva flies in every direction. The women back farther away.
Once her brain kicks in, Marinah’s transformation back to Warrior takes less than a minute. A few of the women gasp as her body pops and molds itself into her smaller Warrior form. When Marinah lifts her head, intelligent eyes shine back at me.
“Whath’s importhant?” she lisps through fangs that haven’t yet returned to normal size. It’s cute but if I told her that, it would be my entrails on the end of a kite.
“Maylin and Baby Boot are safe, but Che and Ruth followed some Federation soldiers and they’re missing.”
Her eyes go hard. “Followth them where?” she demands.
“To the beach.”
Her head falls back, and a horrible sound pours from her throat. My sensitive ears don’t like it. The women are actually cowering now, their soft cries and gasps drowned out by Marinah’s rage. Shadow Warriors hear the call and slowly enter the town’s square.
Marinah’s scream suddenly cuts off. “How dith the Federation get onth the island without us knothing?” she yells at the men, twirling around to look at each of them accusingly. “I don’th care whath it takes, finth those kiths.”
At least she’s thinking clearer.
“Head to the citadel,” I say to the women who are still staring at Marinah like she has two heads.
“They have a whale,” yells Che from about ten yards away.
“It’s not a whale you dummy, it’s a submarine,” Ruth reprimands as they run toward us.
“It’s a whale and you’re the dumbest.”
Marinah lets out a huff of air that could fill a hot air balloon. Che, with no fear, runs up and throws his arms around her leg. “It was super cool. It came up out of the water and then was swallowed again.”
Ruth’s hands are on her hips. “It wasn’t swallowed, it was electronically controlled.”
“Tell her to stop picking on me. She’s been mean all day,” Che whines.
Marinah bends low and puts her jaws in Ruth’s and Che’s faces. The roar she lets out has everyone jumping a foot in the air. The kids cover their ears. I’m sure Marinah’s hellhound dead breath doesn’t help.
Ruth points to Che. “It was his idea.”
Chapter Seven
Marinah
During the next twenty-four hours, we receive no demands from the Federation for Knet, not that we expected any. Knet has information they want and to them, he’s little more than an animal. I never completely trusted Knet, but he’s one of my people so his loss affects me.
The soldiers who attacked us simply disappe
ared. At least the ones we didn’t kill. I’m sure having a submarine makes that easier. From what we know, soldiers landed, a group captured Knet, returned to the sub, and left soldiers behind to kill as many humans and Shadow Warriors as possible. Those who stayed behind are dead now and still my rage simmers.
I turn the corner and see Maylin and Missy talking. Missy is Beck’s mate and Maylin is Nokita’s. They’re both pretty and neither changes into an alien monster. And yes, I’m being petty. I simply don’t want to deal with them right now. Missy wastes no time getting up in my business and both women block the hallway. “You haven’t slept. The only way you’ll be of help to anyone is if you’re in top form.”
“I’m heading to a meeting. We’ll be sending a crew to the mainland to see if they can track the soldiers.” Maybe if I give them a little info, they’ll back off.
“Have you thought about meditation?” Maylin asks in her strong Cuban accent.
“Meditation?” I reply like she’s speaking a foreign language. She’s been spending too much time with Cosway who swears by meditation. Cosway is a young woman we found in the U.S. She loves cats and she’s a gift, even if I don’t like her very much right now either.
Missy butts in. “If you meditated, your head would be clearer.”
I can’t help myself and repeat, “Clearer?”
It’s Maylin’s turn again. “The women in the kitchen say you haven’t been eating enough.”
If roaring would help, I’d do it. If running in the opposite direction worked, I’d try that also. To hold back a growl of frustration, I bite my tongue so hard I wouldn’t be surprised if blood drips from my mouth. “The women in the kitchen want nothing to do with me. They’re scared to death,” I grind out stubbornly. There have been no additional demands from them and no further threats to strike since the rumor of my Nova form became public knowledge.
“They’re worried if you don’t eat enough, you might eat them and their children.” This from Missy.
Of all the idiocy. “That’s ridiculous.”
She touches my arm, which is something no one but King does. Ms. Beast grumbles while I silently blast her with my laser gun and she slinks away in submission. I’m not happy with Ms. Beast right now either.
“You’re blaming yourself for the attack.” Missy’s eyes show pity and I go from biting my lip to licking it at the thought of tearing her face off. What the heck is going on in my head?
I turn and face her fully. Even though she’s stopped meeting my eyes the K-5 suddenly spikes and I realize this could end badly even though these are my friends. “I’m in charge and that makes the attack my fault. The buck stops here.” This part of leadership I understand. The person at the top takes responsibility, always.
Now it’s Maylin’s turn to screw with my head. “No, it’s no one’s fault, Marinah. We need you, but it’s like you’ve checked out.”
I haven’t “checked out” even though King said almost the same thing to me last night. It’s my rage and I can barely see past it.
Maylin holds my gaze and the K-5 spikes higher. I go back to biting my lip so I don’t actually tear her head off. She’s Che’s mother and right this second, I want her dead. It’s not Ms. Beast leading this thought and I have no idea where it’s coming from. Losing my mind is the only explanation.
Missy won’t give up. “Cosway suggests meditation. She’s been using it and it helps her,” she defends stubbornly.
I knew Cosway was responsible for this assault. “She’s crazy,” I say. From the expression on Missy’s face, she has no intention of backing down. I move closer and attempt to do what King does with his eyes that say your life is over. “Do you want me to kill you?” I ask. My ability to hold on to my human self is deteriorating by the second.
From her expression, my attempt is a major fail. These women are married to hardheaded Shadow Warriors and they simply don’t understand the danger they are in right now. “I want you to lead,” Missy encourages. “To do that, you need to eat. Once you eat, you will be able to think rationally.”
The stubborn fool. Too bad she wouldn’t look as pretty without a nose. The sympathy in both their eyes almost sends me over the edge, again.
There are few walls at the citadel that haven’t felt my boot these past few days. The Warriors walk on eggshells, and King is purposely keeping as much space between them and me as possible. It’s why I called the meeting I’m trying to get to. I go between rage, sorrow, and frustration within minutes. I think it’s my Nova and the lack of understanding what’s happening to me, drives me nuts. I don’t want to be around me!
With a loud growl that I can’t contain, I gently move Missy aside and stomp away, muttering about friends who are a pain in the butt. Each stomp is a count by three—three, six, nine…. Maybe it will calm me enough to get through the coming meeting without spilling blood.
The rumble of my guard’s voices can be heard before I open the door and step inside. They see me and you could hear a pin drop. King meets my eyes. His chin tips down regally, but he doesn’t look away. I would swear he’s challenging me. Ms. Beast couldn’t care less, of course.
“Are you trying to set me off before the meeting starts?” I demand through teeth that jam together as soon as the words leave my throat.
His gaze slides away. “Just a check to see where you’re at.”
“I’m here and we’re having a meeting,” I say and slam my butt into THE chair. I emphasize “THE” because it was King’s chair and now it’s mine which doesn’t make me any happier. “We have a missing Shadow Warrior, no information on his whereabouts, and no word from the Federation. Ideas, anyone?” Nope, that didn’t sound like a spoiled rotten brat.
Beck, in all his idiocy, decides to be the brave Shadow Warrior among them. “It only makes sense if they want a Shadow Warrior to experiment on.”
My eyes snap to his. Stress fills his expression and dark circles at his eyes show he hasn’t slept. I take a calming breath. “Okay, Sherlock, why do you think they took him to experiment on?”
“If not to experiment, then they want answers.”
“Torture,” I say. It’s the word I’ve been staying away from. Losing a Shadow Warrior is one thing. Picturing torture and knowing it’s quite possible are different. The Federation thinks we are animals and Knet is nothing more than a lab rat to them.
Beck’s eyes go to the floor, but I notice the subtle tightening of his fists on the table when he speaks. “Knet is dead to us, and we need to prepare for a large-scale attack from the Federation.”
Kill. The K-5 explodes and the world goes murky gray. Ms. Beast slams through my defenses and I’m no longer in control. With a low cry, I leap across the table and take Beck’s throat between my jaws, ready to pull my head back with the contents of his neck locked in my fangs.
King grabs my head and slams his fist into my jaw. I release Beck and snap at King. Rage fires through me; a dark wall of red mist surrounds me. Nokita quickly drags Beck away, and I growl in his direction. Nokita freezes. Hot blood pulses through my body, igniting more fury with every beat. Kill.
“Marinah,” King shouts.
My pulse slows. I see a break in the mist, and I’m able to speak. “Understand this,” I thunder. “We will never forget a Shadow Warrior. Never!”
Ms. Beast stares down the men, and they quickly look away. Energy swirls in the room as the temperature rises. I fight for control, beating back the need to kill. Finally, I’m able to speak again. “I’m going to Del Rey,” I state.
King nods, his eyes almost black as he fights his own Beast. “I’ll take you,” he grinds out. We feed off each other’s energy, and my explosion to Beast is testing him.
“No, Cosway will take me.” I’ll try anything. Even, as ridiculous as it sounds, meditation. I walk from the room, my head high, my mind filled with chaos. Something is wrong.
Chapter Eight
Del Rey (Love Island)
Marinah
“Stare a
t water, pretty butterfly,” Cosway instructs while she pets the small tabby cat she kept for herself. It’s Callie’s brother even though they look nothing alike.
Butterfly is the name Cosway chose for me. She’s the only human besides Ruth, Che, and their mothers who has no fear, even if I were to shift into Nova. She accepts me completely for who I am even though that person is extremely screwed up right now.
Since Cosway came to the island, her skin has softened with repeated washing, and her hair is no longer something from the legends of Medusa. I’m envious of the soft auburn color that has a wavy quality with delicate wisps and everything. Her brown eyes shine with a light that attracts people. Or maybe it’s her entire persona. She just makes you feel comforted when you’re with her.
Some would say Cosway is simple-minded. They would be wrong. Yes, she has a simple way of figuring out problems, but she solves them. She also has a way of helping me sort my feelings. She’s been wanting me to meditate for weeks, and I’ve done everything I can to avoid her and the entire idea of meditation until now.
“This won’t work,” I say, frustration dripping from each word. It’s been three days. Clearing my head is simply impossible. My brain is filled with too much turmoil and as soon as I reach a point where I think I’m safe, images pop before me. Ms. Beast is another problem. She refuses to cooperate and remains constantly agitated. My emotions are all over the place and she won’t calm down. Nova remains a shadow with a strange warmth surrounding her. It’s infuriating and anything even resembling tranquil, eludes me.
“You no try!” Cosway’s testiness doesn’t help but she refuses to give up on me.
With a deep breath, I try again, exhaling the bad, inhaling the good. I’m standing on an outcropping of rocks at the ocean’s edge while my brain winds through what should be fluffy white clouds. Cosway thought clouds would be the ticket. My problem is the clouds that form in my mind are blood red and not in the least relaxing. I simply can’t release the image.
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