by Eve Langlais
Her sister, crouched on haunches in front of her, rolled her eyes. “It was kind of obvious. I’m surprised at you. You’re usually so vanilla about your fun.”
Did everyone know? Ruth wanted to sink into the ground with embarrassment. “I still am. It was a one-time thing.”
“If you say so.”
“I do say so. Besides, they only did it because they were horny and there was no one else around.”
“Oh, Ruthie. I wish you wouldn’t put yourself down like that.”
Ruth rolled her shoulders. “Like what? I’m not deaf or blind.” She’d endured enough taunting in high school and college to have no illusions. “Face it, I’m not dainty. Or girly.”
“So you have curves, you also have the most beautiful smile, great hair, a nicer complexion than me, and you’re smart.”
Ruth patted her sister’s hand. “I love you, Carlie, but I’m not sleeping with you.”
Her sister snorted. “And that’s another thing I love. Your humor. Seriously, though, as usual, you underestimate yourself. Forget the asshats you dated in the past. Right now, we need to focus on the present. And presently, there are two guys down there determined to fight so they can win you back.”
“There are?”
“Very. According to my mates, they lost their minds when you were taken away back at the ruins. One of them even gave Acat a black eye. Which he totally deserved,” Carlie vehemently stated.
Ruth couldn’t wrap her mind around it. “Are you trying to tell me Kendrick and Joel fought for me?”
Carlie nodded. “Chaob said they only lost because of sheer numbers. So, you’ll have nothing to worry about. They’ll win the fights hands down. It’s the part after you won’t like.”
“What part after? You’re not making any sense.”
Carlie grabbed her hands. “See, they don’t just make you a bride. They change you first.”
“Into what, a new outfit?”
“No, into something not human. Or not completely at any rate.”
Ruth narrowed her gaze at her sister, peering into her eyes, wishing she had more light to check on her pupils. “When was the last time you drank some water? Show me your tongue?”
“I’m not dehydrated or nuts. The tribe has found a way to change humans.”
“I really wish you’d stop talking in riddles.”
“That’s just it. I’m not. How much plainer do you want me to make it? These men aren’t human.”
“Uh, yeah, they are. I think you’ve eaten one too many jungle fruits, sis.”
“I wish. I don’t know about your guys, they smell different, but mine are cats, jaguars to be exact, and they’ve changed me to be like them. And they’ll change you, too.”
Ruth snickered, then outright laughed. “Good thing I got here when I did. If they’ve got you believing they’re shape-shifting cats, then you’ve obviously lived in the jungle too long.”
“It’s the truth.”
“Bullcr—” Ruth never finished the swearword as her sister, a sad look in her eyes, let go of her hands and backed away. However, as she retreated, she began to change. A long and low scream rang from her lips, evolving into a screeching yowl as her sister went from woman to …
“Holy freakn’ cat!” Ruth scrambled back as the golden jaguar paced in her direction, blue eyes, uncanny, the large teeth frightening. “Oh damn. Oh damn. Don’t eat me.” She scooted on her butt across the floor. The jaguar stopped stalking her and flopped to the floor, then, chin down, it crossed its forelegs over its head and hid its eyes.
The gesture, so familiar, so Carlie, hit her and sucked the breath from her lungs. What am I doing? This overgrown kitty was her damned sister. Not some monster or freak. My sister. “Oh, Carlie. I’m so sorry,” she murmured, reversing her direction and flinging her arms around the golden furred neck. She rubbed her nose in the soft plush. “Only you would stumble across some ancient tribe and get turned into a giant fur-ball.”
A raspy tongue swiped her cheek. Ruth recoiled. “Eew!”
The feline snuffled in apparent amusement.
“I’m glad you think this is funny, because I’m beginning to think I’m the one going nuts.” First threesomes, now a shape-shifting sister. What was next? A thought occurred to her and Ruth giggled. “Oh my God, you do realize Mom’s going to hate this. You know she’s allergic to cats.”
With a chuffing sound, Carlie padded off and Ruth moved further as the hairy body contorted. Carlie, naked, pale, and sweating, emerged with a low keening sound, her breaths coming hard and fast. “Fuck that hurts.”
“Then why do it?”
“As if you’d have believed anything else.”
“True. Damn, sis. Is it permanent?”
“As far as I know.”
“Other than the pain, is it hard to do? How many times have you done it?”
“Enough to know it gets easier. It’s gone from unbearable to really unpleasant. But at the same time, what a rush. I mean, it’s like a whole new world when I change. Everything is so much sharper, more alive. The cat, its mind and whole perception, is on a completely different, more primitive wavelength. It’s kind of liberating.”
Ruth didn’t see the appeal, just like she didn’t understand joggers. How could a sport where a person looked tortured feel good? “So you’re happy they did this to you?”
“Yes. No. Maybe. All of the above. None.” Carlie sighed. “I’m still figuring that part out. What I do know is you can’t tell anyone, and I mean anyone, about this. I wasn’t supposed to show you, just like I wasn’t supposed to tell you about the ritual. But I needed to talk to someone. Someone who wouldn’t cry a river or call the government on me for experiments.”
“Well, that would depend on the price they’d pay and the credit I’d get,” Ruth quipped.
“Evil sister. Figures you’d take this all in stride.”
“I don’t have much of a choice, but just so you know, I am not keeping any giant-sized litter boxes in my apartment.”
Carlie laughed. “Oh, how I’ve missed you.”
“And me, you.” Ruth hugged her, trying to ignore the fact her sister lacked clothing. “Never fear. Your secret is safe with me. I’m glad you told me because I don’t want to do the ritual. Unlike you, I don’t aspire to climb trees or lick cream out of a bowl.”
“Don’t knock the licking part.” Carlie winked. “But seriously, you might not get a choice. Your lovers might make you. It’s what happened to me.”
“They forced you?”
“Yeah, in a sense, but I’d rather not talk about it right now. We don’t have much time.”
“So what do we do to avoid this?”
“When the winners come to get you, don’t drink anything they give you and make it clear you don’t want it. Maybe you’ll have better luck than I did.”
“Has it occurred to you the doctors back home might be able to reverse it?”
“I won’t be going to see a doctor. There is no cure, and I’m not sure I want one. Yes, I’m angry about how Acat and Chaob lied, but at the same time, I don’t hate what I’ve become. I want to explore what it means. See the world with another pair of eyes.”
The drums went silent and they both turned their heads to look at the only door leading out of the hut.
“What does that mean?”
“The fight is about to start.”
“Joel and Kendrick?”
“Now battle for the right to take you as bride.”
A mighty snarl followed by a feline roar split the air. “What the hell was that?”
“Their challengers.”
“That didn’t sound good. We need to stop this.” Because unless Joel and Kendrick hid a shape-shifting secret of their own – which she doubted since she’d pretty much seen and touched most of their bodies, their very human, male bodies – then they were in major trouble.
“How do you suggest we do that?” Carlie asked with an arched blonde brow. “Trust me, I tried to find a way out of t
his place when I was locked in here. It’s impossible.”
“But you’re like Catwoman now. Surely, you can do something? Like, I don’t know, climb the walls. Gnaw through some vines. I can’t just sit here waiting to see if my guys win. What if they don’t? I won’t let some strangers rape me and change me into a pussycat. I just can’t.” She ended her speech on a hysterical note.
Taking a deep breath, Carlie motioned her back. “Give me some room. I’ll see what I can do.”
The second transformation wigged Ruth out just as much as the first. Despite her sister’s feline grace and beauty, Ruth couldn’t imagine becoming an animal. She needed to put a halt to this madness. Needed to find Joel and Kendrick before they got hurt, or changed. And lucky for her, Carlie’s new shape provided the means of escape in a hut not built to keep in predators.
As to how she’d extricate herself from this mess? Ruth hoped she’d have a plan by the time they finished climbing down the ridiculously tall tree. If not, she might wish she owned nine lives.
“Six guys?” Kendrick remarked, cracking his knuckles as he eyed the dudes lined up across the ring. “Piece of cake.”
“You only fight two per round,” Chaob volunteered, having designated himself their guide for the event.
“How many rounds?”
“Three per night, until all the challengers are gone. We fought nine groups, Acat and I,” Chaob boasted. “Our female was in high demand.”
“How many do we have?” Kendrick asked.
“Lucky for you, the scent of your seed clung to the female when she was captured. Only three sets of challengers stepped forth. The first two pairs will not be hard to beat; Bola, however, is a beast.”
“Great. So let me get this straight again. We get the challengers to cry uncle and we walk out of here with Ruth.”
“After you mark her, then yes. You will be allowed to leave.”
“And we don’t have to change her into anything?” Kendrick asked.
“So long as she keeps our secrets, the choice is yours.”
“Then let’s do this.”
Stripped down to their boxers – because, as Chaob revealed, they could fight as men or beasts – he and Joel stretched their muscles.
As predicted, despite the fierce roars and chest-thumping, they beat the first two sets of contenders quickly, barely raising a sweat to the crowds’ booing annoyance. Funny how the thought of these men lusting after his woman could make him flatten them with pretty much only a single shot. He doubted they’d get away so easily against the last set.
“Whoever wins against their opponent quickest gets to mark Ruth first?” Joel asked with a quirk of his brow.
“I thought we were supposed to fight the cats, not each other,” Kendrick quipped. Levity might seem inappropriate given the seriousness of the upcoming brawl, but Kendrick didn’t know any other way to greet life. Sometimes you just had to laugh at the hand fate served you and kick its ass.
“What’s wrong? You afraid you can’t take the big guy and win quickly?”
Kendrick eyed the giant with the faint ring of fat around his middle. “You’re on, buddy. First one to subdue their opponent gets first choice of where to bite. I’ve been dreaming of placing my mark on one of her sweet tits.”
Joel groaned. “Damn. I was eyeing those babies. I guess one on each would probably push it.”
“She is human.”
“Ass or thigh?” Joel mused aloud while Kendrick couldn’t help picturing said body part.
Ours? his wolf queried. Soon. Very soon. He just had to do one teensy thing first. He nudged his wolf to pay attention. He fixed his gaze on the obstacles in his way to pleasure. Those two guys standing over there, cracking knuckles, wanted to take Ruth from him. Steal from his wolf. Grrr. As if Kendrick would ever let a stranger lay hands on his woman. Never. Her heart and body belonged to him. Yes. Belonged to Joel. Grrr. Better to share with Joel than watch her be claimed by cats. Double grrr.
Ready to chase some pussies for some tail? Kendrick asked his inner furry friend. The eager howl in his mind split his lips into a feral grin. A wild smile that momentarily wiped some of the brashness from his opponents’ faces. Tilting his head, he caught sight of a three-quarter moon, its belly rounded as the full one approached. The howl which swept forth from him began low and eerie, gaining in tenor, and possessed of an echo as Joel joined him.
Game on.
There was no official bell or signal, no real warning other than their opponents snarling at the crowd before rushing across the cleared area in the jungle.
Basic brawling, one-oh-one – never take the brunt of a tackle head on. Kendrick sidestepped at the last moment and swept a foot out. One cat went tumbling, but the other knew to leap and thus kept his feet.
A swipe by Bola, the one still standing, showed fingers tipped in claws. Partial shifts. Nice. Hard to maintain for any length of time and really dependent on inner strength, of which Kendrick doubted the dumb pair owned much. He ducked, then blocked Bola’s hopeful attempt at evisceration. Kendrick wound up and threw a fist into the cat’s gut.
Fat on the outside, maybe, but covering thick muscle, the guy barely oomphed. Awesome. He did so love a challenge.
Pummeling with his fists, Kendrick put the guy through a flurry of punches as Joel sparred with the other cat. Very few of his landed blows staggered the big dude, but Kendrick could see him getting pissed as the crowd hooted at him, their derision clear.
Giving into his rage, Kendrick’s opponent swept a leg while shoving, a move Kendrick would have avoided had Joel’s fellow not bumped into him. Down he went, and up he came, however, in that minor lapse, tired of getting his human ass handed to him, the guy changed. What fun. Kendrick now faced a very large, sharp-toothed jaguar.
Yeah, control or not, he wasn’t standing in the way of his wolf. Out it came bounding from the confines of his mind, taking over his body, his transformation rapid and smooth from years of practice.
Landing on four feet, he took rapid stock of the situation. Big-ass cat with annoyed glint and slavering jaw coming at him. Human-skinned Joel dancing with a catman, and laughing.
“Come on, you hairy bastard. Do I have to tie an arm behind my back for you to feel brave enough?” The cat stepped forward, right into Joel’s fist. Hard skull or not, it had to hurt and left the fellow dazed. Joel backed up and twitched some fingers at the guy in a come-and-get-me gesture.
Kendrick grinned. Joel always knew how to get the most out of a fight. He turned his attention back to his own opponent, who’d dropped into a crouch and sprang just as Kendrick paid him mind.
Did the felines not have more than one trick? Kendrick learned how to avoid this one when he was just a pup and played with the neighbor’s cat, to his mother’s annoyance.
Attack sidestepped, Kendrick whirled and pounced, his teeth snapping at the jaguar who managed a lucky score of claws along his side. But he’d gotten much worse from the family scuffles back home, so he ignored it in favor of clamping the skin of the cat’s neck and squeezing.
The heavy body went rigid and squirmed away, breaking his hold. He yipped at the twitching tail and the crowd laughed. Blazing gold eyes whipped around to glare.
Kendrick flipped around, scratched his hind paws, kicking up dirt, tail high. With a screech of rage, the jaguar came after him. And now they fought in earnest.
Savagely, teeth flashing, claws digging, fur and blood flew as they each strove to gain the upper hand. What the cat owned in extra weight and pin-sharp claws, Kendrick overcame with cunning and determination.
But even when he held the bloody guy to the ground, his teeth around his throat, the bastard wouldn’t yield. He growled and shook. A set of hands grabbed his jaw, trying to pry them off. Seriously. He tightened his teeth, the sharp tips tearing into skin, blood flowed.
“Enough. The wolf has won. The gods deem him worthy of the bride,” the old shaman shouted. The crowd went wild.
Muzzle now wet wit
h blood, Kendrick, more beast than man at the moment, lifted his head and howled a victorious yell. He’d won. Won the right to claim his woman. He changed back to his man shape, his wolf, sated and happy at their win over the enemy.
Joel clapped him on the shoulder, grinning from ear to ear. “Good fight, eh? Almost as good as the brawl from that Thanksgiving a few years back.”
“Shh. Don’t talk about it,” Kendrick joked. “Ma still hasn’t let us forget about the mashed potatoes on the ceiling. Twelve coats of paint it took to hide the stain. Holy –” As he turned to wave at the stomping crowd, Joel froze at his side. A moment later, Kendrick joined him.
Ah shit.
Eyes open wide in appalled disbelief, her hand held before her lips, Ruth stared at them. An icy chill went down his spine. Uh-oh. Not good. How much had she seen?
Judging by the way she took a step back for every one he took forward, too much.
“Ruth, honey, we can explain.”
But, her human mind in overload, his mate didn’t stop to listen. She pivoted around and took off running.
Sigh. Maybe he should have said yes to the potion.
Then again, watching her heart-shaped buttocks flex as she ran, he wasn’t ready to give in. Sure, she’d received a scare and a shock; however, he knew she was made of tougher stuff than that. It was one of the things he loved about her. While initially cautious or timid, once Ruth conquered a fear, it didn’t come back to haunt her.
Knowing that, with the right words – or sensual persuasion – maybe he, with the help of Joel, could make this right. Turn the moment into a positive one. Give her the truth and never live with the worry about their secret getting out. And pray they never made her mad enough she’d sell their story to a tabloid.
But that wasn’t the only reason he took off after her at a leisurely lope. Blood running high, in full grips of the mating fever, and victorious in front of a crowd, Kendrick wanted to claim his prize. Wanted to sink his cock into her along with his teeth and make her his in all the ways that counted.
That and he just couldn’t resist a chase. Awoooo!
Chapter 15