Ready to Were (13 page)

“Are you all right, sweet thing? Did those girls try to hurt you?” he cooed and pulled me flush against his huge frame. Thank god, Hank was outside. This was nothing I wanted him to see.

I shook my head yes and wove my fingers in his hair, pulling his face toward me. He needed no more of an invitation to crush his lips to mine. He forced my mouth open and plundered inside. I spit the solution into his mouth and he jerked back as if burned.

“My god,” he sputtered as his lips puckered unattractively and he coughed. “For such an exquisite girl you have appalling oral hygiene. You need to brush your teeth. Immediately.”

“But your lips are so hot,” I shouted and almost burst out laughing at the puzzled look of horror on his face.

Hank came through the door and everything froze for a moment. Confusion ripped across the Dragon’s face quickly replaced by an anger so intense I almost turned away. How an animal with this much power and ire had been kept at bay by the Council for so many years was mind boggling.

Hank’s power and magic filled the room, and the Dragon looked startled for a brief second. To be honest, I was a little thrown too. When in the hell did Hank get so deadly? The Dragon spread his arms and began to chant.

Nothing. Nothing happened.

His eyes narrowed and the chant became frantic. Hank and I stood our ground and waited. There was power in stillness. Let him play his hand first. Let his fury make him sloppy. We needed any advantage we could get.

Puck Flare’s eyes turned blood red and narrowed to slits. “What have you done to me?” he demanded as a spear of fire flew from his lips. “What have you done?”

Ducking so I didn’t fry was necessary, but he did ask a question. I’d been raised in the South and was occasionally polite. The man deserved an answer.

“I leveled the playing field,” I told him.

“There is no playing field,” he roared. “I am the superior being here. You are dirt beneath my feet.”

“That’s not very nice,” Hank drawled. “I think you should apologize.”

“You think I should
what
?”

The Dragon was icy and calm. Surely that was not a good sign. He moved toward us as smoke wafted from his nose and ears.

Everything moved in slow motion…and then it didn’t.

It was violent and bloody and I was frozen in shock. The sounds of breaking bones and grunts filled the room. The two men were locked together, fighting for their lives and all I could do was watch in horror. It was almost balletic in its precision and I had no idea who was winning.

Snapping jaws with bloodstained mouths tore at each other.

Holding back was killing me, but Hank was right. He was physically stronger and it seemed like he knew what he was doing.

“Essie, destroy the eggs,” Hank shouted as he took a sharp right hook to the face.

Moving with Vampyre speed, I grabbed a large, heavy tin and began smashing everything on the counters and walls. The Dragon wailed and my blood curdled. I didn’t look back and I didn’t stop. My job was as important as Hank’s. If we died, we would not die in vain. Dying was not on my agenda, but the sound of the battle behind me was nauseating. I quickly crushed the last vials beneath my feet as the Dragon roared with such volume and ire I had to slap my hands over my ears to keep my eardrums from bursting.

Done. I was done. Nothing in the room was salvageable. Wait a minute. I had moved with Vamp speed…I had Vamp strength. What was I thinking?

Turning back to the fight, I tried to find an opening. The Dragon had the Wolf by the neck. Hank struggled and elbowed the Dragon with such force that he flew backward. Both men were in bad shape. Watching time was over. It was my turn to play.

“Hey Puck, I ate a mint. Do you wanna make out now?” The utter ridiculousness of my statement threw him off his game long enough for Hank to pin him. I dove forward and narrowly avoided the explosion of flames Puck aimed at me. Reaching for his neck while Hank had him down was my goal. The vicious head butt to my face was unexpected and my eye began to swell shut immediately.

“Hey…asswipe. That hurt,” I shouted as I pummeled his face, landing a jarring left hook to his nose. The crunch of bone under my fist was sickening, but I wanted more. I was so intent on getting to his neck I completely missed the fact that I was fighting him alone. Hank was on fire and rolling on the floor to put himself out.

“You think that hurt, you little bitch?” the Dragon hissed viciously. “I will make you hurt so badly you will beg for death.”

I saw the fist coming before it landed and he was right. Several more of those and I
would
beg for death. New goal…avoid the fist. Jumping back, I dropped into a fighting stance and waited for his next move. He laughed and winked.

“I like your spirit — you would have been a good egg donor. Too bad you have to die.”

He lunged and I moved to my left, raising my knee and propelling it into his Adam’s apple as he went for me. The sheer force I had used surprised me. Again, I mentally kissed Dwayne. However, my strength surprised the Dragon even more. Defensive fighting was no longer an option. I fought with everything I had, but so did he.

The sound of bones snapping was sickening, especially because they were mine, but I healed instantly. Using a combination of martial arts and sheer brute force I was holding my own…
barely
. Blood ran from my forehead, my nose and god knew where else. I wasn’t going to last much longer. At least I’d destroyed his masterpiece…

The howl from my mate chilled me to the bone. Hank was dying and the Dragon had killed him. I had nothing left to lose. Nothing. The Dragon made the mistake of glancing in the direction of the sound and I knew I had one last opening. Without thinking, I sprang forward, grabbed his head and twisted for all I was worth. The shrill scream and the bones unhinging under my fingers gave me power I didn’t know I possessed. I had no idea if Hank was alive or dead, but I was going out fighting. I twisted and I twisted. I yanked, grunted and howled.

Hot liquid covered my hands and made my grip slippery, but I held on. No letting go. If I let go, I die. Break his neck, restrain him. Break it and we might live. Break. Snap. Destroy. Hurt the Dragon like he had hurt my friends—like he had hurt the Panther and Bear Shifters that had died because he wanted to play God.

Dwayne’s Vampyre blood running through my veins stung. The fury and desperation I felt was my own, but it was mixed with something unfamiliar and terrifying. I needed to get to Hank and make him shift…give him my blood, make him drink. But if I let go, I would be lost. Twist. Twist.

He hadn’t even asked me to marry him yet. He couldn’t die before he asked me to marry him. Twist and pull.

Dwayne was going to wear a dress and Granny was going to give me away.

Break the neck. My weeping sounded distant to my own ears.

Gushing blood and tears blurred my vision. Twist…break.

“Essie, stop.” Hanks voice was harsh, but he didn’t understand. The Dragon was going to kill us. I just needed to twist one more time.

“Look at me,” Hank demanded. “Now.”

I stopped and stared. He was alive and I was too. Had I broken the Dragon’s neck? Was he restrained? I glanced down at my hands and screamed. In a death grip I held the head of a Dragon. His body lay on the other side of the room. Dead eyes stared at me and I dropped the head in horror.

“How did I do that?” I gasped and my body shook like a leaf. “I didn’t know I did that. How did I not know?”

“Essie, it’s okay. You’re okay. The Vampyre took over and you decapitated the Dragon.”

“Decapitation means to cut a head off. I yanked it off of his body,” I said in a shrill voice I didn’t recognize. Curling into a ball, I rocked back and forth and tried to get a handle on myself. “I don’t want to be a Vampyre. It’s dark and wrong.”

“You’re not a Vampyre. You’re a wolf. Dwayne gave you—gave us—a gift. We’re alive because of what you did.”

“I tore his head off,” I said flatly and then started to laugh. I knew I was probably in shock, but all of a sudden I was crazy happy about the fact I’d just torn the head off of a Dragon. This wasn’t much different than other jobs I’d been on…
actually it was
. I’d used weapons and I’d been detached from the situation. I didn’t know the victims personally and I hadn’t torn their heads off with my bare hands. No amount of psychotherapy—or even a lobotomy—was going to dull the memory of this one.

“Would it have made a difference if you’d used a sword?” he asked as he gathered me in his arms.

“I don’t know. I’m bleeding on you,” I muttered.

“Yes, and I’m bleeding on you. You saved our lives. I was on fire, for god’s sake. We should be dead.” He held me close and his body shuddered. “You do realize we’ll have to name our first child Dwayne.”

That gave me pause. As much as I loved Dwayne, I wasn’t crazy about his name. “Do we have to?” I asked.

“Yep.” Hank grinned and pulled me to my feet. “Come on, Essie the Ripper. We need to check on the others.”

“I think I would have felt bad even if I’d used a sword.”

“Why? You did what you had to do.”

“Honestly, I don’t feel bad about killing him. It was him or us. I feel bad about my loss of control, and the small but significant fact, that I had no clue I’d torn his noggin off of his body.”

“I can see how it might seem a little odd,” Hank agreed. “But it was sort of hot in a female Rambo kind of way.”

“Oh, hell no. You did not get turned on by watching me rip a dude’s head from his shoulders?”

“No. That part was actually fairly gross. It was watching you fight and own it. You were a machine.” He held me tight to his body and I drank in his strength and calm.

“You know, this Vampyre thing will wear off and I won’t be such a machine anymore,” I said as I snuggled closer.

“I’m good with that.” He laughed and pulled me from the carnage. “I’ll take you any way I can get you.”

“Ditto,” I said and never looked back once. “And if you ever call me Essie the Ripper again, I’ll rip something off you to prove I’m a woman of my word.”

“Duly noted.”

Chapter 14

The Tinas were bound in silver chains and hung upside down. Appropriately, the evil she-wolves hung from the very same rusted out pipes the girls had been attached to. They were missing teeth, and from the smell, they’d clearly had a little upchuck session. Junior was in the corner staring at Sandy Moongie like a love struck puppy. Hmmmmm.

“You look like hell,” Sandy said as she looked me up and down, not looking much better herself. “I sure hope the other guy looks worse.”

“He does.”

“Is he dead?” Junior asked.

“Quite,” Hank told him.

I was relieved Hank didn’t go into details. I wasn’t sure it was a story I wanted told. Ever.

“We didn’t kill them,” Debbie said, referring to the strangely subdued Tinas. “We would be no better than them if we did.”

“But we fought, Essie. We defended ourselves like you said.” Frankie grinned bashfully and wiped the blood from an ugly gash she sported.

“They were something to be reckoned with,” Junior said with pride, eyes still glued to Sandy. “These gals had it covered. I just stood back and watched.”

I caught a quick exchange of sexually charged glances between Sandy and Junior and I bit back a grin.

“I have their teeth if you want them.” Jenny tried to hand me a collection of bloodstained pearly whites.

“Um, no. While I’m honored and proud of you and um…no.”

Jenny grinned and shoved the teeth in her pocket as the gals fist bumped each other in victory. As we contemplated what to do with the traitors, a shrill hiss and a gust of icy wind ripped through the room. Everyone gasped in terror and ducked for cover.
Could a Dragon live with no head
?

“I was amazing,” Dwayne squealed triumphantly as he landed gracefully in the middle of the room. “I did the meld and they bubbled and turned a lovely bluish-orange-green and then BOOM! The sound was incredible. Absolutely fabulous—like fornicating cats and Madonna.”

“Holy hell, did you fly here?” I asked as I got shakily back to my feet and decided not to broach the cat/Madonna thing.

“You had the car keys. What was I supposed to do? This place is a disaster. Of course, it’s not quite as bad as downtown,” Dwayne announced as he took in the room.

“Understatement,” Hank muttered and Dwayne grinned evilly.

“It is a mess,” Junior agreed. “Who’s gonna clean this up?”

“The Council is cleaning up the debacle,” Dwayne informed us victoriously. “I called up your boss, Angela, and read her the riot act. I got her up to speed and then I tore her a new one. I forbid her to send you into anything so dangerous again. I have been worried sick and that is not good for my digestion. I told her to send down a crew because there are Dragon innards covering half the town and I assumed there would be more to take care of out here. Do you want me to mind meld the Tinas?” He cocked his head toward the hanging traitors.

“No!” everyone yelled in unison.

“Just a suggestion,” Dwayne huffed, completely offended.

“Well, I don’t know about you, but I want to get out of here,” Frankie said.

“What time is it?” Dwayne asked frantically. “I have a show tonight and I’m doing all three
Charlie’s Angels
.”

The girls looked confused. “Don’t ask,” I said. “Let it be a surprise.”

“Do we just leave them?” Sandy asked.

“For the moment, yes,” Hank said as the Tinas hissed and swore. “Enough,” he bellowed.

The Tinas whimpered and everyone else flinched. I might be the alpha’s mate, but Hank was definitely the alpha.

“You have disgraced yourselves and this Pack,” he went on coldly. “Your behavior merits death, but that is far too good for you. You will be shunned. I will leave you in your final hours of belonging to a Pack and let you think about what you have done. After tomorrow I never want to lay eyes on you again.”

We filed out and left the Tinas hanging upside down in the holding cell. We heard their sobs as we formed a circle outside.