Sea Panther (Crimson Storm) (18 page)

The doctor’s lips contorted into a mocking smile. “Really?”

She reached around Kimberly and opened the door, crowding,
pushing her back into the room with the panther. Kimberly exhaled a ragged
breath. “Who the hell do you think you are?”

Patrice continued to intrude on her space. “Did you ever
imagine what you thought a cougar in your nightmare might actually be a Florida
panther? From interbreeding, mature Puma
concolor coryi’s
have
distinguishing flaws. As you can see on our friend here, they have a crooked
bend near the tip of the tale.” She walked to the cage and pointed. “And if you
look carefully you will notice a whorl of fur that grows along the center of
their backs.”

“Thanks for the zoology lesson, doctor, but I’m out of
here.” Kimberly cast her gaze over the animal one more time. The big cat in her
dreams did have the described imperfections. Her curiosity spiked. “I’ve never
seen a Florida panther until today.”

She stepped closer to the beast.

“Of course not, Miss Scot. But isn’t it worth considering?
The same panther as in your dreams—here?” The doctor’s gaze moved past her
shoulder. She stuck out an oversized chest, stood a little straighter, and
plastered on a plastic smile.

Just great. Kimberly slowly turned around. As she’d
suspected, Robert filled the doorway, arms folded across a broad chest, a deep
frown cut into his hardened face. Anger radiated from him like heat from a
furnace. She didn’t know to whom he directed the hostility. Her or the doctor?

Kimberly wanted to get the hell out of there, but she pushed
the idea into the corner of her mind and faced off with the two-timing SOB.

“Robert,” Patrice’s voice purred.

His clenched jaw twitched. He glanced from Kimberly, to the
doctor, back to Kimberly. His gaze scorched her. “Kim—”

“Robert, I must have a private word with you,” Patrice
interjected before turning to Kimberly. “Would you be a sweet girl and run to
my office.” She combed fingers through her mussed bottle-blond hair. “I left an
important file on my desk. If you would get the folder for me, I’d appreciate
it. The file is important to Robert’s case. I want to review the report tonight
at home so we can start therapy tomorrow.”

“Dr. Knight, ’tis nae longer your place to give orders.”
Robert glared at the woman.

Tension lay heavy between them. Kimberly shifted her gaze
from Robert to Patrice, feeling confused, wanting any excuse not to deal with
him or the betrayed emotions the sight of him sparked.

“Sure, what the hell, I’ll run to your office and meet you
in the parking lot with the file.”

As she scooted past Robert, he reached for her. “Lass, I can
explain.”

She easily avoided his grasp, and quickly made an escape. Dr.
Knight was good, Kimberly thought as she walked back to the scene of the
lovers’ tryst. A true manipulator. She gave the doctor points for that.

Several minutes later, she stared at the large envelope
lying in the center of Dr. Knight’s desk with Robert’s name neatly printed on
the front in boxed lettering. She shouldn’t look, but…

Biting down hard on her lip, she dropped into the swivel
chair and slid out the manila folder contained within the envelope. The red
stamp mark CONFIDENTIAL glared at her. She couldn’t remember a time when she’d
felt more betrayed. It had hurt when Jason deserted her, but Robert’s
indiscretion cut deeper. She should have known he would leave her like every
other man in her life. Her father. Jason. And now, Robert dropping her for
Patrice.

A fancy designer desk clock ticked off the seconds. Kimberly
could feel her heart pounding in her ears to the same beat. Reflux burned her
throat. She needed to calm down.

Her father’s death wasn’t her fault. Jason’s infidelity had
nothing to do with her. And Robert had made no promises other than protection.

She ran a palm over the smooth surface of the file folder.
Curiosity had gotten her in trouble before. Often when she was a child. And
since…

On that night on
Sea Panther
, when Robert had punished
her with a toe curling kiss. Damn the man. How dare he be with Patrice?

Kimberly glared at the folder. The bold red ink glared back.
Grasping the corner of the cover between a thumb and forefinger, she hesitated.
She had no right to read his personal health records. Such things were private
matters between doctors and patients. Though a lot more went on between Robert
and Patrice besides a mere professional relationship, and Kimberly had been
privy to the disgusting details.

Nausea gurgled in her stomach. Dammit, she loved the man.
Even if she was angry with him, she still needed to learn how serious his
illness was. She’d worried so many times he might be near death. The need to
know just how sick he was drove her crazy.

A dull ache throbbed near her heart. She took a deep breath.
Calm down. Think clearly. Her hand trembled as she opened to the first page. No
matter what had taken place between Robert and Patrice, Kimberly wanted to know
just how sick he was.

The first couple of pages showed the comparative results of
blood tests. She skimmed through that. Then she turned to Patrice’s summary
notes and started to read.

At nearly three hundred years of age, Robert MacLachlan’s
uncontrollable transformation to and from a Florida panther seems to be the
direct result of a Voodoo curse.

A sharp pain pierced Kimberly’s heart.
What the fuck?
Robert? A panther? Ridiculous. Patrice must be insane. Did she think Kimberly
stupid enough to fall for her ploy? The file must be a fake. The manipulative
bitch was messing with her again.

Could be true? It would explain the big cat on the dock in
Annapolis. And the Florida panther Kimberly thought she saw last night outside
her room. She focused on the page and read the next sentence.

However, his blood lusting seems to imply a bite from a
vampire
.

Holy shit. A vampire? A shape shifter? Kimberly looked
desperately around the room, gaze landing on the surveillance camera. Why did a
panther research facility need almost as much security as a military
installation?

She thought about the strange hours Robert kept. His dated
speech patterns. Their strange sleeping arrangements. Kimberly trembled, unable
to get her reflexes under control. She couldn’t read any more.

Vampire? Panther?
Bizarre enough to be real. She had
to leave.

Her legs did the Elvis shake, almost giving out on her as
she stood. The report dropped to the floor in her haste to escape. She ran from
the office, darting through the halls to the building’s entrance, and out onto
the veranda.

Robert and Colin stood a few feet away, conversing. Kimberly
scanned the area for a way past them. If she could make it to the trail that
led into the swamp, she could get away. Run away. Far away. As she was about to
make a dash for it, Robert glanced up, and her stomach lurched. He appeared
relieved to see her. Her heart twisted, causing her to clutch her chest.

“Lass, I need to talk with you.” He stepped forward. “Why
are you shaking so? I can explain everything.”

Kimberly didn’t believe he could. She took a couple of steps
back.

“Where are you off to in such a rush?”

She attempted to pull herself together. “I need some time. I
thought I’d go for a jog.”

“Please, let me explain about Patrice.” Robert’s eyes
pleaded. “It is not what you think.”

If she didn’t get away from him, she’d melt into a puddle of
jellied nerves.

Panther? Vampire?

Kimberly swallowed. “I need to calm down before I can talk
to you.”

“It is getting dark.”

“I won’t be gone long.”
And shit, if you are a vampire,
the night is yours
.

“Please, trust in me.” He leaned in, lowered his head, and
gently brushed her lips with his sensuous mouth. “Come back to me, my love,” he
whispered.

Her heart burst into a thousand shattered pieces like a
broken mirror. She ran to the start of the swamp trail and twisted around for
one last look. Dr. Knight stepped through the entrance onto the veranda, and
Robert strode toward her. He seemed to grow in stature. Fear sparked in the
doctor’s eyes. Kimberly took an awkward step backward and a dead twig snapped
under her foot.

Robert spun toward the sound. His eyes blazed blood red.
Sharp fangs marred the beauty of his mouth.
Vampire
.
Shit!
She
darted through the foliage into the swamp.

A
bright moon
spilled a ghostly glow over the swamp trail. Night insects screamed at Kimberly
as she darted through jungle-like vegetation. A pain burned her side. She
stopped to get bearings unsure how far she’d run. In places, the thick canopy
cast a heavy shadow and the trail became nearly impossible to see.

Fear prompted her onward. She reached deep within for
strength and sprinted through the marshy tangle of trees. He’d follow. He
wouldn’t let her leave.

She ran blindly. Clawing fingers from the underbrush tore at
her clothes. Scratched exposed skin. Breathing came hard. Her pulse raced.

Oh, my God
. Robert had fangs. He was a monster with
blood-red eyes.

She had to get away, far away. At a clearing, she slowed.
Changed directions. Sped up. A twig snapped behind her. Spurred her forward.
Fangs and blood flooded her mind. She must escape.

Before her loomed a large pond bordered by deep mires
forming dangerous traps. An alligator slid off a log into the water. Kimberly
swerved. Raced along the edge. Slipped on the wet clay, caught herself, and
kept running.

Her flight reminded her too much of the nightmares.

Hands grabbed her. She screamed. A man wrestled her to the
muddy ground. Pinned her arms. Not Robert, a stranger. The stalker had found
her again. She fought with all her might, kicking, scratching, biting.

“Satan’s whore.” He spat as he spoke, the reek of garlic
heavy on his breath.

With an adrenaline-induced burst of strength, Kimberly
pushed him off and started to rise. A hard slap stunned her. He pushed her
back. Forced her to the ground.

It was definitely the stalker, though he looked different.
Ugly. His face was swollen, pocked, blotchy. His hands roved over her body,
gripping at her clothes, bruising skin, touching intimate places through the
cloth.

“Get off me!” she wheezed.

The buttons on her blouse popped. No way. This was
not
going to happen. She kicked up and caught him in the balls with a knee.

“Bitch,” he hissed. He fell to the side, clutching himself.

Kimberly scooted away. As she got to her knees, a
threatening growl rumbled. Her attacker turned toward the sound and paled.
Panic filled insane eyes. She followed his stare. Robert crouched. His body
shuddered, his clothes shredded, and he morphed into a big tawny cat. He lunged
for the attacker, canines bared.

The man screamed. Cloth tore. Somehow, he managed to crawl a
few feet away from the snarling cat.

Kimberly drew in great gasps of air and picked up a heavy
limb from the ground. She had to help the man. She couldn’t allow the panther
to rip the guy to shreds. Before she swung, a warm breeze blew across her
cheek, the touch of feathers, and then Raven appeared from behind. Robert’s
sister grabbed the end of the makeshift weapon and stopped Kimberly’s momentum.

The big cat circled the quivering man, hissed, and then
loped toward the trees. The panther stopped, slowly twisted his head toward
Kimberly, and burned her with a greenish-amber stare. He yowled mournfully
before disappearing into the cypress trees, leaving an impressive paw print in
the wet marl.

Raven released her hold on the limb and moved to stand over
the young man.

“Why did you stop me?” Kimberly asked. “Robert has turned
into some kind of monster. He might have killed the guy.”

“Florida panthers must be protected,” Raven said. “Besides,
this punk intended to rape you and who kens what else.” She picked the guy up
by the front of the shirt and held him against a tree with unnatural strength.
Then she snapped her gaze to Kimberly. “Leave us.”

Kimberly took a shaky step back. “But…what about Robert?”
She pulled the sides of her blouse together to cover her breasts and tied a
knot at the center with the loose ends. “And you? You appeared out of…nowhere.”

“Go. Now!” Raven hissed. Her cinnamon eyes glowed red like
Robert’s had earlier.

“Don’t leave me here with her. She’s a monster too,” the guy
shrieked.

Shit! Another vampire? “Are you…”

Raven smiled pleasantly. “I only plan to have a wee talk
with the misguided youth.”

Kimberly glanced from Raven to the stalker, frozen in
indecision. Whatever trouble Raven gave him, he deserved. Kimberly had problems
of her own. She couldn’t go back to the compound. What she learned there was
near impossible to believe. The nature of things was not as she’d been taught.
Frightening dark secrets…

She inhaled a calming breath. Monsters existed. Vampires and
shape shifters existed. And she didn’t want to imagine what else existed.

“Go,” Raven said. “Go now.”

Kimberly bolted, leaving the guy to his fate. She had to get
as far away as possible, as quickly as possible. Taking a bend in the path, she
stumbled on a loose stone. A snake slithered out of the tall grass near her
foot. Kimberly curbed the desire to scream and jumped away from the reptile.
The slithering creature was the least of her worries. She jogged along the
trail toward the sound of a car engine. Headlights flashed in the distance.
Maybe at the highway she could hitch a ride. She flicked a clump of mud from
her sleeve. A passing driver might take pity.

A large owl flew through the trees, its wings whirring as it
passed. Then the wooded area became eerily quiet. Kimberly stopped and stared
back at the path. Was she wrong to leave the young man with Raven?

She had to. She had no other choice. There was too much
danger to go back for him. Besides, he wanted to hurt her. Kimberly ran toward
the headlights.

A gunshot sounded in the silence. She franticly spun around,
searching the shadows within the tangle of plants surrounding her. Then she
darted around a large tree and ran into a rock hard chest.

* * *

Dino Rizzetti held an armful of squirming woman. Before she
could detangle from his hold, he braced one arm behind her back and pressed her
securely against his chest. He felt the rapid-fire of the bitch’s heartbeat
through his shirt. The pressure from hard nipples jazzed him to a sharp edge.
His balls tightened.

He grabbed a fistful of hair and jerked her head back.
Frightened brown eyes stared at him. His quarry looked like a doe caught in
headlights. She opened her mouth, inhaling air deep into her lungs, making
ready to scream.

“Don’t.” He yanked hard on the hair he held.

Tears filled her eyes. She didn’t shed a drop though. A
strong one. Impressive.

He twisted her around, forced an arm up into an awkward
position then pushed her toward the rental car. Lady luck had kissed him. The
kid JR sent hadn’t shown up.

The woman whimpered at the sight of the dead panther lying
in the beam from the headlights. A victory thrill ran through Dino. He’d bagged
himself a big cat and caught the woman. He would find out what she had on JR
then kill her. It would be entertaining to coerce the information from her
before her life ended with a bullet between the eyes. The hit payoff would be
enough to retire on.

He repositioned her to the side while opening the trunk. She
struggled, and he almost lost hold, but he wouldn’t let the bitch get away. Not
from him.

“Get in,” he ordered.

“No.” She wriggled and fought like a wild cat about to be
dropped into a barrel of water.

He pulled his handgun from its holster and slammed the grip
against the side of her head. She slid to the ground, out cold. Dammit. His bum
leg hurt like hell and now he’d have to lift dead weight to get her into the
trunk. He struggled, breathing hard, but managed to lift the body. He dropped
it into the car, and reached for the hood.

Y-oo-www-llll.

Alarm raced up his spine. A second yowling spooked the hell
out of him and he hit his head on the trunk hood. He glanced at the dead cat.
It hadn’t moved.

He turned around warily, hand trembling on the grip of the
gun. Another panther lunged for him, its sharp teeth bared. Dino fired a shot
into the beast. The big cat grabbed hold of an arm, sinking canines into flesh,
but suddenly weakened and let go. The sound of many approaching ATV’s forced
Dino to hobble into the cover of the swamp. He clenched his teeth against pain.
His leg and arm hurt like blazing hell as he worked his way deeper into the
bush. He refused to allow the compound’s security detail to catch him.

Fuck the money. This job wasn’t worth what JR was paying.

* * *

Bright lights hurt her eyes and Kimberly shut them tight.
Her head thumped like the drumbeats performed by her favorite Scottish tribal
band.

“Kimberly, wake up, lass.” Colin’s voice coaxed as if from a
distance.

Someone gently slapped her cheeks. Muscular arms slid under
her. She fought the assault.

“Stop!” Colin shouted next to her ear.

She jerked her lids open. “What the hell?”

A blurry Colin obscured her vision, and the pounding in her
skull increased in magnitude to an intolerable agony. She closed her eyes
again, allowing him to lift her into strong arms while she concentrated on
dulling the pain in her head.

“I’m taking you to the compound where a doctor can check you
for injuries.”

She managed to utter the word, “no,” but not with much
force.

A soft chuckle cut through the misery. “You might have a
concussion.”

How had everything gone so wrong? Despair overwhelmed her.

“Robert’s dead,” she said before blessed blackness engulfed
her.

* * *

Willy stiffened within the female vampire’s grasp. Urine ran
down a leg and soaked the crotch of his pants. He would die, or worse, be
turned into a monster.

She held him firmly against the rough bark of the tree with
one hand pressed to his chest. His feet hung loose, a foot off the ground. He
squirmed, trying to get away. The effort was futile. With a swish of a red
fingernailed hand, his worn shirt tattered into strips and slid from his body.

The bitch scratched his chest, a single sharp nail cut deep.
He thought he remembered what to expect. But this time, the intense burn lasted
longer, nearly causing him to pass out. His heart slowed then raced, pumping
toxin through his system. He felt the poison flow through his veins, slowing
body functions. The sound of a sporadic heartbeat terrified the shit out of
him.

His limbs froze in paralysis. The only things he could move
were his eyes and mouth. That meant he could only see what was directly in
front of him, and gasp in fear.

The woman’s teeth grazed his neck. Several times. His skin ultra-sensitive,
every nerve ending zinged at her touch. She played with him. Teased.

Blood rushed to his cock.
Damn the bitch to hell
.

Although he couldn’t move, he felt every touch with
heightened senses. She rubbed against him, making him hot, needy. She leaned
in, flicked a pink tongue along the seam of his closed lips. He opened wide,
craving more. She refused him.

His erection throbbed to the point of pain. “Please,” he
begged. “Bite me.”

She threw her head back and laughed. Then she sank sharp
fangs deep into his throat. Fireworks exploded in his mind as an intense orgasm
rolled down the length of his cock.

Then she dropped him like a piece of unwanted garbage before
disappearing into the swamp. He slid the length of the tree to the ground and
wept. When no more tears remained, he tried to move. Unlike the previous time,
he could. He laughed hysterically. She hadn’t turned him into a vampire.

The Slayer doctor had the wrong information. The Hungarian
told Willy the second bite would convert him into a vampire. But nothing had
changed. He felt fine. Better than fine.

His senses seemed sharper. Swamp sounds played music for his
ears. He tromped through the woods on a silent step. The moon slid behind the
clouds, yet he could clearly see the armadillo foraging through the decaying
vegetation. His stare locked on the animal. Willy’s stomach clenched from hunger.
He rubbed his tongue over his teeth.

What-the-fuck?
Fangs emerged from his gums.

Willy woke in a cold sweat. The nightmares were worsening.
He’d soiled another pair of boxers. The sheets. The mattress too. He sat on the
edge of the bed, limbs gripped by lethargy. He forced himself up, staggered to
the bathroom, and looked in the mirror. Bloodshot eyes stared back. Opening his
mouth, he ran his tongue over the upper gum. No fangs. He released the held
breath. When he returned his gaze to the mirror, his heart kicked into
overdrive.

Behind him stood the raven-haired vampire.

* * *

“Kimberly, lass, wake up.”

“Let her sleep.”

“But she’s been sleeping for two days.”

“I gave her a sedative. She needs rest in order to heal.”

Voices in the shadows. Kimberly didn’t understand what they
were talking about, although she knew they referred to her. She attempted to
shake the fuzz from her brain. Why couldn’t she remember anything? She glanced
around, but could only make out dark shapes, everything covered in a flowing
gray fog. Where was she? Tendrils of pungent smelling vapor surrounded her,
wrapped around her, skimmed across her skin.

The air thickened, making it difficult to breathe. She
reached up and tore at elusive fingers encircling her throat. Strands of gossamer
fiber seemed to cloud her thoughts. She clawed at layers of sticky mental
cobwebs, fighting to be free from the imprisoning gloom. Finally, the haze
cleared, and she stood in a familiar corridor. Why couldn’t she concentrate?
The lights dimmed. With a strong shake of the head, she tried to un-jumble her
thoughts.

Oh, yeah. Colin. She was supposed to deliver a message from
Colin.

She stepped forward. The corridor stretched out in front of
her, elongated into an endless tunnel. The ghostly white walls pulsed as if
breathing. Kimberly’s heartbeat stuttered in her ears. Dread became a heavy
weight pressing against throbbing temples.