Authors: Stacey Kennedy
Sweet Jesus!
This guy lived hard.
My hands inched their way along his strong arms, relishing the curve of each carved bicep. I grasped them tightly in my hands, felt each muscle flex with need for me.
His gaze bored into mine. Lust, love, and need raged in his eyes. I wiggled against him, wanting to feel more of his hard warmth, and he groaned in response. Leaning down, he took my mouth with pure hunger. I leaned my head to the side to capture more of his mouth as his tongue swirled with mine in a smooth grace that sent wet warmth pooling between my thighs.
When he began to move our bodies in sync with the music, his hot body teased mine and I nearly lost my mind. His hands ran all over my body, as he seemed unable to get enough.
I definitely needed more of him. The heat building within my body began to burn, to hurt with urgency.
I grasped his arms tighter, grinding my hips against his until it became too much to endure. I tore away from his mouth. “I need you.” My voice was so husky I barely recognized it.
Kyden growled and pulled me up around him, which was harder than it looked. These jeans were not very giving, plus the added tension between my legs made me want to scream with agony.
As we passed the crowd, Talon’s laughter came deep. He knew when it came to each other, our control was always lacking. Now, I could hardly care and ignored him entirely, and began ravishing Kyden’s neck. His body filled with tension and his groans became growls with each step he took.
Within minutes, a door slammed. I realized we were home, but I never stopped tasting his delicious salty skin. He rushed toward the bedroom, and threw me onto the bed, separating us.
His gaze focused on my face, molten lustful eyes stared back at me. I pulled my shirt off and wiggled off my heels. Getting to work on the jeans, I watched as Kyden tore his muscle shirt and jeans from his body. I yanked at the jeans, squirmed, and shoved.
“Shit,” I gasped. “I can’t get these fucking things off.” They were glued to me. I angled my butt up, trying to pull them down, but it was impossible. With Kyden’s smoldering eyes staring at me, urgency was beginning to consume me.
Now naked, his erection ready and eager, he lunged forward, grabbed the waist of my jeans and pulled. With the effort he put in, I went flying off the bed, landing flat on my back¯hard. He burst out laughing. “That didn’t go as planned.”
“
Ouch.” I laughed, rubbing the back of my head, then I squirmed again¯the throbbing between my thighs was reaching near lethal levels “God, just get them off.”
He knelt down as I raised my butt off the floor and pulled again, but nothing happened. Being that I was already sweaty, they were stuck on like superglue. This was brutal!
I wanted him more than my body could control and being restrained like this made the moment unbearable. He swore, grabbed the side of the jeans, and with all the strength he had, ripped the side of them open.
The second I was free, he tore my panties off, and dove in between my legs with a fierceness that had me gripping his head in my hands. I watched his mouth work wonders against my skin. Oh, he knew me well. He knew the spots to hit and just how to work them and bring me to climax, and oh did he! His mouth only released me when the shuddering of my orgasm eased. I shoved him back, grabbed his erection and took him into my mouth with more determination that I’d ever felt in my life. As my strokes and licks pulled him toward sweet glory, his breath deepened, his groans became ones of desperate need.
He stood with me still attached to him. I wasn’t at all ready to let go of the wildness overtaking me. I glanced up at him, the desire moving through him only made me work harder.
With a hiss of breath, he finally tore himself away, regardless of the fact that I wanted to keep going. He reached down to cup me under my arms and lifted me to him. He tucked his arms under my knees and leaned over me, palming my backside as I wrapped my arms around his neck.
In a second, he was home thrusting inside me with ferocious strength. I screamed out at the pure satisfaction of being stretched so deeply, so fully. He used my body to guide the movements and immediately began thrusting harder toward fulfillment. His groans were deep, my screams loud. Sweat poured off our skin.
There was nothing gentle about this. Right now, this had nothing do with love and emotions. It was about hard cold sexual satisfaction. He wasn’t waiting for my release to build naturally. He demanded it, but he wouldn’t come without me. Thrusting the way he was, hard and fast, was one sure way for me to lose my mind. And he knew it.
My breath became nothing more than shallow gasps as my orgasm began to build into
holy shit
territory. Kyden growled deep as my muscles went into spasms around him. He plunged harder and I saw stars.
Then, I was thrown on the bed with him resting on top, breathing deeply in unison with one satiated male.
Sometime later, my thoughts came back to me. I blew the hair away from my face. “We should get back.” I pushed softly so he lay beside me. “I hope Rynn is okay.”
Good friend I was! I’d forgotten all about her and was kicking myself for being so selfish. Not that I didn’t enjoy it, but I was filled with mixed emotions.
“Not to worry,” Kyden replied, jumping off the bed. Instead of putting his clothes back on, he pulled me to the bathroom. “Briggs is with her. Shower first, then we will return to the meadow.”
A retort was on the end of my tongue, but it was true, I was all sweaty. A few more minutes away wasn’t going to be the end all to end all.
After a quick shower, we both dressed in our guardian gear. Now that we were home, it felt awkward to be wearing anything but our normal attire. Within minutes, we were out of the door and making our way back to the meadow.
The moment we joined the party again, I was pleased to see that Kyden had been right. Briggs had Rynn wrapped within his arms as they danced intimately. Ahh, new love, it’s so sweet.
Haven and Finn were nowhere in sight—probably off indulging in their own selfish necessities. I hoped they were. It would make me feel less guilty for disappearing with Kyden.
Suddenly, Briggs’ head shot up and he glanced past me. I turned, followed his gaze to see Valor quickly approaching. Dante and Isla were immediately beside me. I glanced at Dante and chuckled. He wasn’t his normal put-together self—his cheeks were flushed and there was a relaxed edge to him. Zennah had a hand in that I was sure—literally.
“What is it, Father?” Dante asked quickly, breathless.
Valor looked grieved, his body tight with tension. “There have been two more attacks against women not far from our home.”
Dante looked stunned, his tone equaled as much. “In Utah?”
Valor nodded grimly, rested his hand on Dante’s shoulder. “I am afraid it is true. Come now, all of you, we must meet with the Council.”
Kyden grasped my hand and we followed Valor into the Council’s Hall where Finn and Haven also waited. Apparently, they had been notified of the meeting and urgently, if Haven’s look was anything to go by.
She was a mess. When we reached her, I helped smooth her curls, which were in complete chaos.
“There, much better.” I laughed.
She giggled. “Thanks.”
Talon and Zia quickly joined us, and took their seat beside Brax and Zade. As he sat, Talon asked, “What has happened, Valor?”
“I was contacted earlier tonight by a fellow pack member. His oldest son lost control and killed a woman.” Valor sighed deeply. “I went to him immediately, needed to handle the matter. As you can imagine the wolf could not willingly kill his son.”
“Understandable,” Zia said. “Did he say what happened? Did he know why his son committed such an act?”
Valor shook his head. “His son has never given him trouble and had just recently mated. They are expecting their first cub early next year. He has no explanation for why this would happen.”
“What state was the wolf in when you found him?” Zade asked.
“He was in an utter rage. The power that emanated from him was intense. Powerful enough…he took a couple good bites out of me.”
A gasp escaped everyone in the room. It was unheard of. Valor’s strength gave him the ability to finish off a wolf in a split second. The fact that this wolf had enough strength to attack him at all was incredible.
I quickly realized Valor was injured. Deep, gaping wounds layered his arms. “Here let me help,” I reached out, drew in on the Spirit element. With a trickle of adrenaline, I released my magic, watching the wounds heal before my eyes.
Valor groaned a little, then smiled a thank you.
“And there was more than one wolf attack?” Brax asked.
“Yes. Immediately after returning home, I was contacted by a long time friend, who suffered a similar situation. He handled his wolf, but received great injury by doing it.”
“Jesus,” I exhaled.
Kyden gave my hand a squeeze, feeling the trepidation right along with me. Crazed wolves on the loose killing humans—talk about one hairy situation.
“What are your thoughts on this?” Talon asked Valor.
He shrugged, his expression completely baffled. “I have never met a wolf who was capable of attacking me. My strength is unrivaled. I have no understanding of what is going on here. Why our wolves are attacking humans with such rage and at these staggering numbers are beyond me.”
It was only three, but even that was an outstanding number in such a short amount of time. Wolves were generally gentle creatures—nothing of this capacity.
“Hmm…it is quite the problem.” Zade pondered. “What could be their motive behind it?”
I interjected. “What reason do any of them have—they’re all nuts!”
Kyden laughed deeply. “Well said.”
“We must return to the scene, recreate it, see if there is anything we can learn from the events that transpired,” Zia said.
“Right,” Valor agreed. “I believe that is our only choice. I am at a total loss about these incidents. Hopefully your insight will shed some light here.”
“Go on then, all of you,” Talon commanded. “Find some answers as quickly as you can.”
Briggs looked utterly tormented. He had himself wrapped around Rynn protectively. “Boss…” he started.
Valor raised his hand to stop him. “As of tonight, I release you from your duty to me. Your place is with her now.” He rested his hand on Briggs’ shoulder, gave him a soft smile. “Your position will be waiting for you when you are ready to return.”
Briggs exhaled a deep breath. “Much appreciated.”
“Make it right for her and that is all the thanks I will need,” Valor said softly.
Briggs gave a gallant nod.
On my way out, I hugged Rynn. “Will you be okay now?”
She hugged me back and whispered. “I think so. Thank you so much for everything.”
Before I could respond, Valor shouted, “Isla, go home.”
She scowled and yelled in return, “If you think I am not taking part in this…”
In the quickest of moves, Valor pushed her out of the Council’s Hall. Seconds later, loud screams and too many obscenities to count echoed through the hall just before a door slammed loudly.
A moment later, Valor came back grinning. “We can leave now.”
The surroundings looked very similar to Valor’s ranch, mountain skyline with lush wilderness. Actually the landscape where we presently stood reminded me of an episode of
Little House on the Prairie.
It just had that old feel about it. “Where is your home from here?” I asked Valor.
“This is Hyde Park. It is only a few hours away from Cache Valley.”
A small house was nestled in a surrounding forest—almost a mirror image of my Carson City home. A bit rundown, but full of character with white washed wood paneling, black windowsills, and an old rickety swing sitting on a large porch.
“It is best that I speak to the family before we go around back.” Valor told the group, then looked at me. “Would you mind coming along?”
“Not at all,” I stepped forward.
“I will wait here for you,” Kyden said, giving my lower back a light rub.
I smiled, returning his
as if that is even a question
grin.
Just as we walked away, I heard Haven say. “Oh Finn, look, it’s so pretty here.”
I smiled, hearing the awe in her voice. Utah was beautiful—an outdoor enthusiast’s playground.
Valor climbed the old rickety steps, knocked on the door, and it immediately flew open. A woman stood before us, trembling, eyes rimmed red and her face was stone white. “Valor,” she said with a deep sniff. “Please, do come in.”
“Thank you, Ayan.” He glanced back to me. “This is Nexi.”
She smiled softly. “Welcome to our home, Nexi.” She waved us in. “Please, won’t you come sit?”
Hospitality right to the core, even when all that surrounded her was despair, she was still using manners. It made this entire situation all the more bizarre. How could a wolf that came from this woman be capable of such brutality?
After Ayan sat down, Valor and I followed suit, opposite her on the flowered couches. Valor looked around. “Is Narn not here?”
Ayan shook her head, tears forming in her eyes. “I do not know where he has gone. He…is,” she raised a tissue to her nose, “not handling the death of our Rhoden well.”
Without hesitation, I stood, then knelt down in front of her and took her hands in mine. “I’m so sorry for your son. Believe me, Ayan, we will find out what has happened here.”
She squeezed my hands, her palms clammy. “You are a Guardian?” she asked.
I nodded softly. “Among other things.”
“Then, I trust that you will keep your word. Our Rhoden would do nothing of this cruelty. There must be an explanation.”
“May we go around back?” Valor asked.
She nodded, releasing my hands to wipe her nose. “By all means, do whatever you need to catch the one who did this to my son.”
After a few reassuring words from Valor, we exited the home. Kyden met me at the door. “Alright?”
“Yeah.” I waited until Valor joined us before I filled them in on what I knew. “She truly believes that he is innocent,” I told everyone. While I held her hands, I read her a little, searching for anything that could help us. “From what I saw, her son definitely didn’t seem the type to do something this vicious.”
Valor sighed, and gave his head a rub. “Let’s go see.”
When we reached the back of the home, there was a little vegetable garden off to the left and an uninhabited area filled the rest. Sitting next to a rock was a man, sobbing hysterically.
“Narn, I take it?” I asked Valor.
Valor nodded, then approached him. “Narn,” he said loudly.
The man lifted his face, heartbreak aligning every part of his face. I froze where I stood. I had seen eyes like that staring back at me in the mirror just after Gloria and Frank died. They were completely desolate.
“Valor…I…apologize you are seeing me this way,” Narn said, desperation hitting every note.
Valor helped him to his feet, his hand tight on the Narn’s shoulder. “Think nothing of it. I would be in no better condition.”
“Narn, do you think it wise that you stay for this?” Dante asked him.
“I must be here,” Narn replied, his tone firming with each word. “I need to be here to see what happened to Rhoden.”
I understood why. The unknown is always the worse part of loss, the hardest thing to get over. He was searching for a reason, needed to find some sense in all this tragedy. My eyes connected with Haven’s and I gave her a nod to proceed.
She stepped forward, raised her hands to the sky, and within seconds the scene was before us. The Earth element gave her the gift—which Zia also had—an ability to manipulate time and bring a moment back. They could recreate past events that happened, imprints on time that showed exactly what had taken place in this backyard.
What we saw wasn’t good. A woman, knocked out cold, was lying on the grass as Rhoden growled fiercely beside her. His teeth were pulled back in a snarl as salvia poured from his mouth. I’d never seen anything like it. His expression was crazed and he looked rabid.
Suddenly, the woman stirred, moaning as she awakened from unconsciousness. She turned her head slightly. When she saw the wolf, she scrambled away, only to be stopped by Rhoden.
He bit into her calf, forcing her still. She screamed out loudly as Rhoden went wild on her. Tearing into her slowly, he ripped pieces out of her flesh.
Terror and horror shot straight through me, but it wasn’t all mine. I turned to see Finn grab Haven and cover her ears with his hands as she hid against his chest. I glanced back to the scene as the woman was mauled to death, piece by piece.
By the time it was over, all that remained was her skeleton. My stomach turned. “He ate every piece of her?” I said to Kyden, aghast.
He nodded grimly. “Indeed he did.”
Haven sobbed in Finn’s arms. She never could deal with this part of our jobs. Hell, I wasn’t sure I could deal with it. Gruesome never did sit well. Usually that part was easy to get past, when the need to stop the one who did it began to consume me.
The wolf lay next to the bones, stared intently at his kill. “When I found Rhoden,” Valor said. “He had not moved. He was still in this exact same position.”
Narn stepped forward, wiped tears off his face. “His eyes are not his. None of my son lies in there.”
Squinting my eyes, I looked closer, more intensely. Rhoden was lying down, breathing oddly. His quick, shallow breaths just didn’t seem normal. When I looked into his eyes, I instantly understood what his father meant about the eyes. They didn’t seem in any way right to me either.
Wolves eyes were always yellow or silver—a bright vibrant color. Rhoden’s were dark, completely shadowed. I reached out with my powers, searched the area and opened myself to all that was here. I could sense something was off. It was faint, but it was definitely there, and I had felt before.
I glanced urgently at Kyden. “We need to get Zia here immediately. There’s something wrong here.”
He shot a look in Finn’s direction, who instantly rushed off with Haven to the front of the house.
Seconds later, the scene faded as Haven returned to the Otherworld. Within minutes, Zia arrived.
“Haven is sleeping soundly,”
she assured me.
Zia had had to erase more memories from Haven’s mind than I could count. She just couldn’t deal with the violence. Her sweet heart couldn’t bear it. Zia promised it didn’t cause her any damage, and I couldn’t deny that it wasn’t for her benefit.
“Glad to hear it.”
Then, I looked around. “There is something here,” I announced.
Zia stepped free from the crowd and lifted her arms, bringing the scene back again. It flashed by quickly. My stomach was as unforgiving as the first time. When it froze, she knelt down and examined the wolf. Then, she met my gaze with a knowing look. “Dark Magic surrounds him.”
I sighed deeply, glad I was on the right track, but annoyed by it too. “I thought it could be something like that.”
My experience with Black Magic was limited, but it felt very similar to when I fought a Black Witch not long ago. Had the similar edge to it that made it difficult to breathe, but a little fainter.
“You think Rhoden was influenced by Dark Magic?” Narn asked.
Zia stood, wiping her hands on her long black skirt. “He was either seduced by it or somehow it was placed upon him.”
Narn cried. “I knew it. I knew something had overtaken him. He would never do something like this.”
Zia glanced my way.
“He may have chosen it.”
“Why would he?”
I couldn’t imagine why he would do such a thing when he had a wonderful home and family.
She shrugged, then glanced to Narn. “He was not having any trouble?”
Narn shook his head. “He was happy, awaiting the birth of his first cub. He was a good soul. Never would he turn to the darkness. He had everything he needed. Someone must have forced him into it. They must have.”
Zia examined Rhoden a little longer, then looked at me again.
“Darkness is wrapped so tightly around him I do not sense anything good in this wolf, do you?”
“He ate her entirely. I can’t see anyone with an ounce of good doing something like that.”
“What do we do from here?” Valor asked.
“We return to the Council,” Zia said, and instantly headed toward the front of the house, each of us scrambling behind her.
The moment we hit the front lawn, we all grasped hands, making the needed connection for teleportation. Then, with a bright flash, Utah disappeared as we landed back in the Council’s foyer. Weird as it was, that’s the way it worked. Wherever you stepped through the wooden door, the magic held within the portal, read your mind on the location you needed to go. To return, you only had to revisit that spot and think of the Otherworld. Quick and easy transportation at its finest.
When we stepped into the Council’s Hall, Zia didn’t waste a moment in bringing the other Council members up to speed. Within minutes, she was done, and the room was silent enough to hear a mouse scurry.
Finally, Talon broke the silence. “Dark Magic!” he exclaimed, surprise widening his eyes.
Zia nodded without hesitation. “It had overtaken him completely.”
“Intriguing,” Brax exhaled.
“This makes no sense!” Valor said. “Rogue wolves are normally the ones to turn to Magnus’ realm. They have been cast out by their packs, needing somewhere to belong, but Rhoden wasn’t rogue. He had a family, a cub on the way.”
My thoughts ran along the same lines. “I agree, something’s screwy here. When I read into his mother there was nothing at all that would lead me to believe he would accept the darkness.”
“Could he have been bewitched?” Kyden asked.
Zia was thoughtful for a moment then said, “I suppose it could true, but what would they want with a crazed wolf?”
No one had the answer to that.
“If this is true.” Valor sighed deeply, breaking the eerie silence. “We are in grave danger. None of us are safe here.”
“I should say not,” Zia noted grimly.
Without any warning, Valor suddenly growled, deep and low. He was eager to annihilate something, as was Dante. Then like a bat out of hell, they ran from the hall.
“Well that was just weird.” I said aloud.
Kyden nodded. “Indeed.” He stepped forward, his body tight with concern.
Curious as to what had caught his interest, I followed his gaze and immediately understood his distress. Valor and Dante rushed back into the hall, carrying a wolf. Isla followed close behind, her face streaked with tears.
Zia ran toward him before I even had a chance to comprehend what was happening. After Valor and Dante placed the wolf on the floor, she knelt down, rested her hand upon his chest and began shaking.
Shock froze my breath. I had never seen Zia strain so much healing someone—the wolf must have been very close to death.
Zia wavered, nearly toppling over, but Talon lunged forward to scoop her up before falling over just as the wolf shifted.
The moment Zia’s hand released from the man’s chest, I sprinted forward, drew on Spirit and gave Zia a little burst of healing. Within seconds, the tiredness left her eyes and she gave me a quick wink.
Glad that little bit of silliness was over, it was time for answers. I straightened up to find the wolf was Thor, the Alpha of Texas. He looked the same as he did the last time I saw him—gentle with a perfect baby face. Not what you’d expect to see in an Alpha, but appearances were sometimes deceiving. I’d seen this wolf kill another in a split second.