My Protector (Bewitched and Bewildered Book 2) (28 page)

Aiden looked relieved. "I prefer the printed forms, you can keep your databases."

Ryuu walked in and bowed. "Ladies, gentlemen, dinner is ready."

Everyone stood and started toward the dining room when Aiden's cell phone rang. Everyone froze.
 

He answered. "McKenzie here."

Elizabeth clearly heard Aiden's father over the phone. "Son, over a dozen ferals have been spotted north of the city."

"We're on it."
 

"Be careful," Byron commanded.

"Yes, sir." Aiden ended the call.

"Colton, Darian, you're in charge of the trainees. I don't want to include them, but we have to start somewhere. If things get bad, get them out."
 

Colton and Darian ran to the stairs yelling for the trainees to turn out.
 

Aiden turned to Gavriel. "In or out? I'm leaving it up to you."

Gavriel stepped forward. "I'm in. Even if the only thing I can do is keep your retreat path open, I'm going."

Meryn began to shake.
 

Aiden kissed the top of her head "It will be okay baby, just like us doing drills. We'll be back before you know it." He stepped back and looked at Ryuu.

Ryuu stepped forward and pulled Meryn to his side. "Nothing will come near her, I swear it."

"I'll hold you to that," Aiden said. They nodded at each other.

Aiden turned to the last member of the Alpha Unit. "Keelan, looks like you can try some of those visibility spells sooner than you thought." Aiden's smile was dangerous.

Keelan's answering smirk was just as deadly. "I can't wait."

Aiden looked around. The trainees were breathing hard and pulling on their gear in the foyer. The Alpa Unit members were pulling out their gear to be put on in the car while en route and checking the large duffel bags that held their weapon sand ammo.

Gavriel pulled Elizabeth close. "I have to go," he whispered.

She nodded without saying a word.

"I love you." He stepped back and kissed each eyelid gently.

"I love you too! That's why you have to come back to me," she said her heart in her throat.

"I will," he promised.

Aiden strode towards the door. "Alpha Unit. Move out."

Elizabeth prayed to anyone listening to watch over her mate.

*****

Gavriel stood to the south and took aim. Multiple rounds were going off all around him. Some of the ferals were visible, some weren't. With the extra manpower provided by the trainees, the prospect of taking out a dozen ferals wasn't impossible, but that didn't rule out fatalities. Over the radio he heard Gamma's Unit leader, Sascha, report that a fresh wave of ferals was heading their way and that Gamma was right behind them.

"Aiden! Ferals coming up on our six," he called out.

Gavriel brought his gun up and fired. He took out the feral that had been running up behind Keelan. The more they killed the more there seemed to be.

"Not too long now. Then you'll be like us," a voice taunted. Gavriel turned and fired several rounds into empty air. Heinous laughter surrounded him. Growling, he felt his fangs burst through his gums.

Not now, please Gods not now!

Taking deep breaths he focused on the sights at the end of his gun barrel and kept firing. He was reloading when more ferals spilled out of the woods from the south.

"Sonofabitch!" Aiden roared.

The ferals ignored the unit warriors and ran past them heading north towards the mountains. Sascha burst from the tree line at a dead run and began yelling out his report. "Delta and Beta got called out to take down a pack northeast of the city. Zeta and Epsilon are about fifteen klicks east of here taking down another reported dozen.

"Let's get these fuckers!" Oron yelled.

Gavriel stopped as Sascha's words sunk in. "Freeze!" he yelled. The men stopped their forward advance and fell back to surround him.

"Talk to me, Gavriel, why did you stop us?" Aiden demanded.

"All of the feral packs are converging to the north, I think they're leading us into a trap. Delta and Beta are to the northeast and Zeta and Epsilon are to the northwest. I think they have something designed for us in those mountains," he explained.

"Why would they want all the units together in the mountains?" Keelan asked thinking out loud.

Gavriel felt ice flood his veins. He turned and looked back.

"Oh Gods! We're not being led into a trap, we're being led north." Gavriel began to shake.
 

"What is south of here that's so special?" Christoff asked.

"Meryn," Aiden whispered.

"The Alpha estate," Colton replied at the same time.

Gavriel threw his head back and roared.
 

Beth!

They were after his mate. Gavriel felt his fangs descend even further as blood began to pour from his fingertips as longer, sharper claws emerged.

"Fuck! It's his apex!" Christoff turned to the men. "Stay back and no matter what you do, do
not
get in his way!" he yelled.

Gavriel was beyond caring. Under the surface of his skin his muscles were ripping apart. Each tendon snapped and lengthened the pain was immeasurable.

"Keep the ferals off him!" he heard Aiden yell.

Gavriel opened his blood-filled eyes. The ferals had realized that they weren't being followed and had doubled back to attack them en masse.

He opened his mouth and released a sound that thundered through the mountains. Around him even the ferals stopped to stare at him in horror. He used every ounce of pain, every spasm that set his body on fire to fuel his rage. His fangs dropped to their full battle length and his shirt ripped as his chest expanded. He was taller, broader, faster, stronger.

Laughing manically, he moved forward. Everyone was moving so slowly. Cackling, he used his new claws to rip the throats out of the ferals who seemed like they were standing still.

Kill! Kill! Kill!

He wanted blood and death. No one harmed his mate!

When he looked around and the only bodies that stood were his fellow unit members he hesitated. He tried to remember why he shouldn't kill them.

"Gavriel, if you're in there, look at your belt. Look down! Elizabeth is in trouble, we have to get home!" Aiden yelled, pointing.

He looked down and saw a bright blue flashing light.

Keystone. Beth. Mate. My mate. Beth! Beth in trouble!

He turned towards the direction where his mate waited for him and unable to wait for the others, he began to run. The ground flew under his feet and the trees became a blur.
 

"Fuck! How fast is he now?"

"Get to the vehicles!" he heard the men shout.

BethBethBeth

The litany of her name drove him forward.

*****

Elizabeth checked the safety on the gun. She slid it off and held it facing up. All around the house ferals snarled and growled.

"Where are they?" Meryn asked sitting on the sofa clutching hands with Noah, both were pale as a sheet. Jaxon sat in his chair in the doorway facing the foyer. The taunts outside grew louder and Meryn covered her ears.

We're coming!

We're coming to rip your baby from your stomach, you human whore!

"Fuck off, assholes!" she yelled.

Elizabeth knew that it was just bravado; Meryn was scared to death. So was she. She looked over to where Ryuu sat back in the recliner speaking the same phrases in his language over and over again under his breath. Sweat ran down his temples and saturated his shirt.
 

Outside the ferals were being kept back from the house by a faint blue glow. Whatever Ryuu was doing was working but it was exacting a terrible price. The squire looked like he was in agony.
 

She held up her pendant that was glowing a bright blue. She'd activated it the second Ryuu detected the ferals approaching. That was five minutes ago.

"Please hurry," she whispered.

Ryuu groaned and Elizabeth heard a loud crash in the foyer. Ryuu's eyes opened.

"I can't hold this one back," he choked out fighting for breath.

Meryn stood as if to go check out the noise.

Elizabeth pushed her back down to Noah. "Stay here! Think of the baby!" Elizabeth yelled and ran past her.

She ran into the foyer where Jaxon was staring at the opened front door in horror. Without hesitation Elizabeth leveled the small revolver and began shooting. When the gun was empty the feral was bent over clutching at its chest.

Grinning, he staggered to a standing position. Jaxon wheeled forward placing himself between the bleeding feral and where she stood.

"Jaxon, no!" she cried.

"What are you going to do you little crippled shit?" Blood and drool dripped from the feral's chin.

"This!" Jaxon extended his left arm and moved the small brass charm inside the spell circle. Elizabeth had to shield her eyes as a huge fireball shot forward, engulfing the feral in white hot flames.

His screams filled the air as the stench of burnt hair and flesh permeated the foyer. Jaxon rolled backwards, coughing on the smoke. Elizabeth pulled his chair backwards away from the screeching blaze, back to the family room.

"Who told you that you couldn't be a warrior?" she asked gasping for air.

Jaxon grinned as he coughed. "Good thing Ryuu showed Noah and I the alarm spells yesterday.

Suddenly the ferals disappeared from view. They were no longer trying to get in through the windows and couldn't be seen anywhere. The silence was eerie and unsettling. In the distance she heard the sound of a car screeching to a halt and a deep bellow.

"That sounds like a bear," Elizabeth said moving back to the opened front door.

"Aiden?" Meryn asked, coming to her side.

"Nope. Byron. Oh dear. Did you know that was physically possible?" she asked, unable to look away from Byron's carnage.

"No, but fuck if that isn't the coolest thing I've seen in a while." Meryn watched unblinking.

The sound of an inhuman cry sent chills down her spine.
 

Meryn looked up at her, terrified. "What was that?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "I don't know. I've never heard that sound before."

Outside Byron stopped, his eyes widened. He threw down the body parts in his hands before he and two other men leapt for the porch. Elizabeth darted forward and disarmed the front door spell. The men ran inside the house looking spooked.

"What the fuck is that, Byron? A new monster the ferals created?" a tall man with a greying, shaggy beard asked.

"No idea, John, but I'm staying out of its way." Byron wrapped an arm around Meryn and kissed the top of her head. "Thank all the Gods you're safe. When we pulled up and saw them swarming the house I thought the worst."

"Ryuu kept them away," Meryn said, pointing to the family room.

"And it was not easy," Ryuu joked. Noah helped him forward, holding him up on one side with Jaxon steadying him on the other.

Elizabeth edged toward the door and caught a glimpse of the savage monster that was stalking the ferals outside.

"Oh sweet Gods above, Gavriel. Oh my poor mate," she whispered, tears in her eyes. He had hit his apex during the battle and was now drowning in bloodlust.

"That's Gavriel?" Byron whispered.

Two SUVs pulled up, keeping a distance from Gavriel. The unit warriors poured out of the vehicles and trained their guns on her mate.

"No they don't!" she yelled.

She jumped from the porch and ran over and placed herself between her mate and the men, her arms outstretched.

"Leave him alone! How could you?" she screamed.

"Get out of the way Elizabeth!" Aiden yelled.

"No! Never!"

A low growl had her turning to face the monster that was her mate. His fangs were soaked in blood and extended four to five inches past his chin to his chest. She stared at their impressive lengths. Vampires grew approximately half of an inch of fang for every thousand years of life. Though most older vampires only extended their fangs part way to feed or show aggression. It was only during instances where a vampire felt threatened did they extend fully. There was no hiding his age now; it was on display for all to see.

"If you think you're biting me later with those things you have another thing coming." She put her hands on her hips and faced him down. She hoped levity and humor would break through the killing haze in his mind.

He paused and tilted his head at her. She was getting through to him.

"Sexy fun time will only happen if you retract those suckers, mister," she said her voice trembling.

"Beth. My mate." His voice sounded harsh and deeper than she had ever heard it before.

"That's right my love, it's Beth, your Bunny." She swallowed hard against the knot in her throat; she couldn't lose him now, not when she had finally felt what it was like to be complete.

Gavriel's mouth twitched and his fangs began to recede. He took deep breaths and within seconds they were retracted completely. When he looked up his eyes were back to their normal grey color and focused.

"My Beth, my Bunny," he whispered and opened his arms.

Crying out she collapsed against him, sobbing.

"Shh my love, I'm okay, it's over. Thank the Gods, it's finally over." His lips were dry and cracked as they pressed against her forehead.

"They almost shot you," she cried. Then she remembered, they had almost killed her mate. She whirled around and flew at Aiden, punching wherever she could reach.

"How could you! How could you try to kill him!" She could barely see through her rage.

"Aiden, seriously what the fuck!" Meryn kicked Aiden in the shin.

"Ow! Ow! Dammit! Someone get her! Colton you deranged shit get them off of me!" Aiden did his best to block her blows.

An arm came up behind her, pulling her away from the Unit Commander.

"I hate you! I hate you!" she cried.

"Beth! Beth! Baby, they had tranquilizers!" Gavriel croaked trying to get her to hear him. She stopped fighting.

She turned. "Really?" she sniffled.

"Yes, baby. Though, now that I think about it, even if they had shot me, I think I would have been okay."