Assassin's Mate (Supernaturally Shipwrecked Book 1) (3 page)

Chapter Five

She froze. The world around her began to spin.
‘Someone wants you dead.’
She knew who that someone was. How did he find her? She did everything right. She escaped his compound, changed her identity, and took this job to get as far away from him as possible.

She turned around slowly, forcing strength she wasn’t feeling onto her face. “How did he find me?”

“Who?” Brock ran his hand over his stubbly chin. He was finally getting somewhere.

“You don’t work for Joshua?” Confusion creased her forehead.

“No. I’m a freelancer.” He took a careful step toward her. She instinctively stepped back. “I’m not going to hurt you, Scarlett.”

“You’re an assassin,” She whispered as tears stung her green eyes. She couldn’t defend herself against hired killers.

“Why does he want you dead?”

“Because he’s a maniacal psychopath, and I ran before he could marry me. His ego is wounded.”

“And he’s determined to see you dead.” Brock nodded.

“How much?”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“How much?”

Brock ran a shaky hand through his black shoulder length hair. “Two million.”

She sucked in a startled breath. Her life was worth two million? That seemed insane to her. “Why haven’t you killed me?”

“Because I had the misfortune of running into you first.”

“Misfortune?”

“I said that wrong. I met you and I, strangely enough, like you.”

She raised her chin. “You have a funny way of showing it.”

“Scarlett, we need to find a way to remove the contract on your head. If we don’t and I fail at killing you, more will come.” He didn’t’ need to tell her if he chose not to complete the job he’d wind up dead too.

Scarlett shook her head. She didn’t think, only reacted. She ran, ran far away from him and what he was saying. She knew in this case, running wouldn’t change her fate, but she didn’t care. She needed to escape.

Brock followed. His mind and body were in complete conflict with each other. He was supposed to kill her and all he wanted to do was protect her. He wasn’t going to kill her. He’d do his best to protect her, but it was only a bandaid fix.

“Stop following me,” she snapped as she opened her cabin door.

He pushed her inside and followed, closing the door behind him. Trapping her inside. Which brought the cat to the surface. “I told you, I’m not going to hurt you. I want to protect you, Scarlett.”

“Silver.”

“What?”

“My real name is Silver Scarlett Jamison. If you do kill me you should know who I really am.” She hugged her shawl close to her body like a protective cocoon.

Deflated, he sat down. “I’m not going to kill you.”

“Right,” sarcasm thick in her voice.

“I still don’t understand why he’d place such a high price on your head. Are you sure it’s Joshua that wants you dead?”

“My family’s bloodline has magic intermingled with shifting chemicals. He was promised me at birth. Marrying me would’ve made him shifter royalty. Not to mention, he’s psychotic. He told me the night before our wedding, if he can’t have me, no one will.”

“Okay, so maybe we can appeal to him, get him to release the contract?”

“You’re wasting your breath. The only way he’ll call off the contract is if he’s dead. I know too much.”

“What do you mean?”

“He’s done evil things.” She shivered.

“So we turn him over to the authorities.” The supernatural authorities were less forgiving with supernatural crimes, especially ones that could expose them to the humans.

“He has far too many contacts. Even if he goes to prison he can still pay the hit.” Silver couldn’t believe she was facing this fate. “I’m as good as dead. I knew this when I ran, I just hoped I could live a little more before he had me killed.”

Brock shook his head with conviction. He didn’t understand it, but he knew he would die protecting her. “I won’t let that happen to you.”

She laughed. It was an ugly laugh. “So you’re going to take on every hit man that comes after me. No one is that good.”

“You and I will do it together. I’ll teach you to protect yourself.”

“You’re delusional.”

“Perhaps, but I know the way I feel about you. I can’t lose you.”

“You barely know me.”

“Can you honestly say you don’t feel a special connection between us?”

She could say no. She could lie, but at this point, why? “I feel something, but the reality of what I’m feeling and the two million bounty on my head doesn’t make sense. I’m guessing you’ve been doing this for a long time?”

He nodded. “I have.”

She sat down on the bed. “You have to forgive me, but I find it hard to believe you can walk away from a two million dollar contract.”

“Two million is pocket change for a man like me.”

Silver rolled her eyes. “That’s reassuring.”

“You’re right. It’s not.” He crossed the room with inhuman speed and knelt down in front of her. “We both know I could’ve killed you multiple ways by now.”

“And that is frightening.” She shivered.

“But I know I’m not alone in feeling…whatever that connection is when we kiss. Hell, it’s there even when we touch.” He ran his hands down her arm causing goose bumps as he went. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

She shook her head. “You’re not wrong.”

“You and I both know how rare it is to find what we have.”

Silver found it hard to swallow past the lump forming in her throat. He was right. It was rare, but she had no idea what it meant. She’d heard stories about fated mates, but never truly believed they existed. She’d heard stories, but in her life they were never a reality. Shifters in her family married to make deals. It was basically a business proposition. One she refused to honor which was why she was in this position.

“Silver? Or should I call you Scarlett?”

“I don’t know anymore.” She closed her eyes.

“But you do know this…” He kissed her softly and she responded instantly. She couldn’t deny him even if she wanted to. “You know this is right.” He nibbled on her neck, causing heat to rise in her body. A moan escaped her lips as her cat purred its appreciation. Somewhere in the hazy fog he was creating in her brain she knew she was still in danger.

Instinct made her push him back and scramble from the bed, stumbling across the room. “I know that you said you were hired to kill me. That makes anything between us a little more complicated, don’t you think?”

“I do, but I spent the entire night trying to find a way to keep you safe, looking for a reason for the hit, trying to discover who put the target on your head. If I wanted you dead, if I wanted to collect the price on your head I would’ve finished the job already. I know where you slept last night.”

He had a point. He could’ve killed her last night. But could she believe that he really wanted to protect her? They just met. Why would he jeopardize his professional reputation for her?

“Don’t over-think it, Silver.”

“I need proof.” She insisted, her hands fisted at her side. She needed to deny her want for him and causing minor pain as her fingernails cut into the palm of her hand was a good distraction.

“Aren’t my actions proof enough?”

She was reluctant to answer, but he was right. He hadn’t done anything… yet. “I suppose.”

“And my offer to teach you to protect yourself?”

“I’d be a fool to turn you down.”

“And this thing between us?” He took a step closer.

“I’m afraid of what it means.”

“I am too.” He took another step toward her. Her breath caught in her throat, but she refused to step back. Sooner or later she was going to have to give him the benefit of the doubt. “There is only one way we can know for sure.”

Silver’s eyes flew to the bed and his followed hers.

“Do you want to know for sure?”

Did she? She bit her lower lip as she contemplated his proposal. What harm would it really do? “Yes,” she whispered.

“What was that?”

She raised her chin. “You heard me.”

He flashed that sexy smile which made her knees go weak. Why did the man have to be so damned gorgeous? Using the stealthy speed panthers are known for, he was across the room, inches from her within moments. “Your words were music to my ears, I just wanted to hear them again.” He pressed her against the wall and slowly ran his hand from her neck, down to the valley between her breasts igniting a fire in her body, pausing at her navel for only a moment.

His fingers unbuttoned her jeans while his teeth scraped across her neck. Before she knew what was happening his fingers slipped past her panty line and found her center. Her head fell backward when he knelt before her and slipped her jeans down her legs. “You smell amazing,” he mumbled as he nuzzled her upper thigh the stubble on his face ignited more fires as it tickled and scraped against her skin. “I want to taste you.” He slid her black lace panties down, slowly, painstakingly slowly never looking away from her face. She knew she should feel self-conscious, but instead, she felt powerful.

“Wait.” She needed to catch her breath, prepare for what was about to happen.

He didn’t wait. His tongue delved into her core and her eyes rolled back in her head as waves of passion slammed against her like the ocean rushing to the shore. She braced her hands in his black hair to steady herself from crumbling. Her legs went weak as he purred his appreciation for her.

He rolled his tongue over her feminine core and slipped a finger into her body playing her like a master pianist, and she was certain she was going to lose all consciousness.

It was the thump that forced her eyes open as she lost her footing and fell into a heap on the floor. The first thing she saw when reality sank in and her vision returned was Brock knocked out on the floor and five pairs of feet standing around them in the tiny cabin room.

Her eyes traveled up the legs and her worst fear was realized. Joshua and some of his pack stood with guns aimed at her and Brock. “What the hell?”

“Get dressed, Silver.” Joshua didn’t even look at her. Ralph and Jericho grabbed her under her arms and lifted her from the floor.

She attempted to fight, but the enforcers were far stronger than her. Embarrassment colored her cheeks. She had no choice but to pull up her pants and glare at her ex-fiancé. “What do you want, Joshua?”

“My fiancé,” he snarled and finally looked at her. His steely grey eyes were colder than she’d ever seen and made her shiver. “Kill him, Anastacia.”

“No!” Silver pleaded. “I’ll go with you, just don’t hurt him.”

Anastacia turned her dark brown eyes to Joshua who cocked his head at Silver. “Silly girl. You’re coming with me either way. You have nothing to bargain with.” Silver’s face fell as fear for herself and Brock slid down her spine like cold water down treated wood. “I said shoot him.”

“With pleasure.” An evil grin spread across Anastacia’s face as she pulled the trigger to the silenced gun in her hands.

Brock groaned and went still.

“No! You bastard!” Silver charged Joshua, slamming her fists into his chest. Her vision blurred from the tears. Heat rose in her body from anger. The cat was suddenly released from the cage in her mind and her body began to transform into her tigress. Claws slashed at his face, ribbons of red blood bloomed from the wounds.

“Sedate her.” He grabbed her wrists and shook her violently. She felt the sting of the sedative as it entered her blood stream and fanned out, shutting down her change and her body, forcing blackness to take over as the tranquilizer sealed her fate and the darkness took over.  

Chapter Six

The image of Brock’s unconscious body being shot played over and over again on a loop in her sleep. Silver pleaded with anyone listening to allow her to wake, but her body was paralyzed and uncooperative. She was trapped in a nightmare, watching her potential mate die time and again, and she was helpless to do anything to save him.

She couldn’t even get her eyes to flutter or her fingers to move. The cat was even more immobilized than her human half. She wanted to scream, to cry, to… anything.

“She’s coming out of it.” A familiar voice broke through her induced sleep. It sounded like her mother, but that couldn’t be right. It was Joshua who captured her. Her parents and siblings were supposed to take sanctuary on Refuge Island. They were supposed to be far out of Joshua’s reach. And so the nightmare worsened.

“Keep talking to her.” Her father’s familiar voice echoed in her mind.

Her mother’s loving caress on her forehead and soft whispers played in her mind as she watched Anastacia shoot Brock again.

She screamed in her mind for mercy.

“Darling, she’s burning up.” Her mother’s worried voice filled the darkness as the loop started again.

She was hot. It was a fleeting thought as she was drawn to Brock’s devious grin, ‘You heard me.’ She didn’t want to say the words, knew it meant she’d experience moments of soaring pleasure, then fear, and heartbreak. If she ever got out of this place she’d kill Anastacia and Joshua with her bare hands.

A large hand that reminded her of her father’s clamped down on her own. Cool liquid washed across her forehead. What was her father doing here?

“Sweetheart, I need you to wake up now. We don’t have much time.” Her mother pleaded.

“Shoot him.” Joshua repeated the order that would end her lover’s life.

“Silver, wake up now!” Her father growled.

Puft, puft.
The distinct sound of two silenced rounds were heard. Silver watched herself as she screamed, ‘No’ and attacked Joshua.

The sound of her father’s and mother’s encouragement was more appealing to her than this terror. Maybe this was her mercy. She turned away and headed toward the voice of her family as her heart broke again.

When she opened her eyes she saw the worried faces of her mother, father, brother, Felix, and sister, Zoe. She tried to move, but her head answered with a horrific pounding. “What? Where am I?”

“We’re at Joshua’s compound,” Felix answered.

“No, not possible. I saw you get on the boat to Refuge Island.” She ignored the pain and sat up, holding her head for fear it would explode. “You were all safe.”

“Joshua got to my sister.” Her mother smiled softly.

“Auntie Coral?”

“When news of her death found us we knew we had to come out of hiding and deal with Joshua,” her father added. “Lay back down, daughter. No sense in over-exerting yourself.”

“No, no, no! This can’t be happening!” Her lover and Coral were dead because she refused to marry a monster.

“It’s okay, sweetheart. We’re all okay.” Her mother offered a weak smile. It was a lie. She could always tell when her mother was lying.

“He kidnapped my family, killed Coral and my mate. How is any of this okay?”

“Your…mate?” Her father asked.

“Yes!” She couldn’t believe she said the words out loud. They hadn’t been able to prove their assumption, but she knew they both had thought the same. Now she’d never know.

“Did you bond?”

“No, he interrupted us as we were about to consummate.”

“That’s a relief.” Father placed his head in his hands.

“Excuse me? How is that a relief?” Her face fell. “You and mother found your true mate. I would think you’d want the same for your children.”

“If you had mated and Joshua killed him, you’d be dead too,” her mother, Clara offered.

Silver shook her head. “No, you’d know that because I’d already be dead. Why is that a relief, father?”

“Because you are promised to be mine.” Joshua entered the room.

“Correction, the contract was broken and I refused to marry you.” She spat angrily. Anger boiled in her blood and knocked the pounding in her head dead. She glared at him, feeling nothing but bitter rage.

“And your parents re-signed the contract. You’re mine and you will be my wife,” Joshua crossed his arms over his rock hard chest. His dark brown hair brushed his shoulders and blue eyes sparkled wickedly in his tanned face. The man was good to look at, but eventually he opened his mouth and disgusted her. This time the words he spoke had her looking at her parents, whose heads were lowered in shame.

“Why?”

“To keep our family safe. Surely you can see that.” Zoe snapped, answering for her parents.

Silver had never really gotten along with Zoe. It wasn’t that she was a bad cat, she just had bizarre priorities and lived a different life. Zoe was the one Silver worried about when her family left for the island. She worried she wasn’t the kind of person that could adapt to living off the grid.

“You’re the most selfish woman I’ve ever met,” Zoe continued her rant.

“Enough, Zoe!” Their father, Edward hissed.

Zoe crossed her arms over her chest and raised a coppery-red eyebrow. “I’m only saying what we’re all thinking.” She cocked her hip and waited for someone to deny her claim. No one did.

“So, in order to keep my family safe, I need to marry you. Why?” Silver couldn’t understand why the handsome man in front of her still fought for her. He had exotic good looks, was an alpha in all areas that counted, and commanded an army. His body was chiseled from granite and he looked better than an underwear model. He could have any woman he wanted. She made it clear she didn’t want him, she didn’t love him, and they weren’t mates. Why did he fight so hard to force her into this?

“Because your power blended with mine will make our army untouchable.” He tilted his head and examined her like she was insane. “Your bloodline has power over the element of fire. Mine has air. Once we’re married, those in my army with the ability to harness fire will be strengthened and some may even be able to yield this power with a little extra juice from your line.” He moved across the room with inhuman speed, “Not to mention, our union will produce powerful heirs and has been prophesized. If you marry someone else all that was written about our joining will be destroyed and I will fall to ruins. How can I not demand you marry me?”

“You’re an idiot. Just because control over the element of fire is in my blood doesn’t mean I have ability.” She’d never been able to harness the power of fire, none of her immediate family members had. The idea that someone could siphon that power from her blood via a blood-letting and bonding ceremony was insanity.

Joshua grabbed Silver by the shoulders and pulled her out of the bed against his body. “Don’t ever call me an idiot.” His breath was hot against her skin, rage radiated off him in waves.

“Get your hands off my daughter,” her father growled as he grabbed Joshua’s shoulder.

Joshua moved one hand to the collar of Silver’s nightgown, pulling it tight across her throat, minimizing the air flow into her body. With the other hand, he backhanded her father, and Silver watched as her idol flew across the room from the blow.

Silver clawed at Joshua’s hand squeezing around her neck to open the airway and allow her to talk. “Stop it!” She croaked out past the restriction.

Her mother, Zoe and Felix ran to Edward’s side and helped him up off the floor.

A sneer spread across Joshua’s cold, handsome face. “What did you say?”

A tear fell down her cheek. “Please, stop.”

Joshua released her and she fell back onto the bed. “So we have a deal?”

Silver’s eyes fell on her family and then back to the evil, hot alpha standing in front of her. The man who ordered Brock’s death. He destroyed her life and she would return the favor. As his wife she was in a better position to exact her revenge. The initial thought set a plan in motion. She’d kill him. She’d marry the alpha and kill him while he slept.

Then she and her family would be free.

“I’m not a patient man, Silver.” Joshua warned.

“We have a deal.” The words pushed past the lump in her throat. She refused to cry, not in front of him.

“Good, very good.” He left.