Revelation (5 page)

I sigh, a
nnoyed to be left out of their private conversation. Gage finally gets tired of Asher’s intimidation and turns in a lazy manner toward his car, walking past me and tipping his head in my direction. “Eve, it was a pleasure.”

Before Gage gets into his car
, he spins back to Asher. “Oh, Asher, please do give Michael Deacon’s best.” Satisfied he has goaded Asher, he smiles, gets in his car, and drives off.

Asher just stares
with an intense heat in the direction Gage left in. “Fuck,” he growls out.

Antici
pating some type of explanation, I twist to face Asher. He’s in deep thought, ignoring me.
Okay then.
I’m restless, tired, and like everyone else on campus, I just want to go back to bed.

Pacing agitatedly
, Asher takes out his cell phone to make a call, allowing for my escape. Without a word, I turn and start walking toward the student pathway connecting the college to the downtown area that is hidden in the dense woods. 

“Eve
, wait,” he demands from behind me.

“Goodbye
, Asher,” I throw over my shoulder.

“Dammit
, Eve, stop walking,” I hear him ground out.

I keep going
, focused on the tree-lined area in front of me. Just as I get to the path, Asher gently grabs my arm, forcing me to turn around so I’m facing him.
Crap, he’s fast
.

“What?” I screech
, surprised with how quickly he got to me.

“Let me take you back to the dorm
. It’s safer than walking through the woods of a college campus when no one is around,” he offers, nodding to the trees.

I’m not
used to being looked after so Asher’s sudden concern causes my throat to go dry.   “Asher, I’ve done this a thousand times. Please let go of me.” I attempt to squirm out of his clutches.

It
’s then I realize I’m still wearing his leather jacket. I put my coffee on the ground and move to take it off when a low growl emanates from behind me. I look up at Asher, startled.

His striking
face pales and his horrified focus shifts behind me, locking in on the wooded area. In the blink of an eye, he grabs my upper arms, pressing me to his solid chest. Using a voice so low and uptight, I can barely hear him. “I need you to stay calm.”
Well, shit, that can’t be good.
Frightened, I lift my gaze.

Asher
shifts his gaze to me, locking with my eyes. Sympathy mars his striking features. The thing growls again in warning, causing fear to take over my body. Asher, however, is composed while trying to keep me calm.

With a serious tone
, he snaps his head back to the woods. “There’s a large, black dog behind you and it looks like it might be rabid so we need to do this very carefully. Understand?” He’s obviously worried.

“Do what?” I
ask as the panic sets in while the dog hisses at me again. “By the way, Asher, that most certainly does not sound like a dog. A wolf maybe, a dog not so much.” My voice sounds petrified and hysterical.

At my tone, his
expression becomes stern. “I’m going to slowly switch your position so you’re behind me and I’m standing in front, blocking it from you. When I do, I want you to gradually,” he blows out a long breath, “back away and run to the Aston Martin. It’s unlocked.”

I swallow hard
, terrified to stay but at the same time, frightened to leave him.

“You’re not to look back. I want you to wait for me in the car and lock it. Do not open the doors for anyone.
Do you understand?” Asher speaks unhurriedly, not spooking me.

I nod
my agreement. “What about you? Shouldn’t we call someone or get help?” My voice quivers. I scan the area and notice we’re alone. My body panics at thoughts of physically leaving him.

The animal growls again
, causing Asher to stiffen. “There’s no time. I’m going to move you now. Ready?”

“Not really but what choice do I have?”

At a slow pace, Asher relocates me behind him. The motion angers the animal and it sneers at us. I tighten my hold on Asher’s right arm, which is stretched behind him and wrapped around me. The animal lurks closer and we both remain still.

From this position, I get a good look at the predator. This creature is a monstrosity
. Its black fur is sticking straight up. Glowing yellow eyes are fixed on us, and a snarled mouth is showing off its razor sharp teeth. I shiver as I notice its huge claws are twice the size of me.

Scared
to death, I clutch Asher tighter. “That’s a cross between a werewolf and panther. It’s definitely not a friggin’ rabid dog!” I whisper yell.

“Relax
, siren. I’ve got this.” He tries to reassure me. I’m amazed he sounds like he’s suppressing a laugh. Not working. I’m not at ease in the least.

The large beast tilts its head as if listening to our conversation
, its eyes narrow while it sniffs the air.
Oh my god
. Can it understand us?

“Please tell me you don’t have meat or something in your pocket,” I joke
through my nervousness.

“Eve,” Asher warns. “I want you to slowly back away.
Now.”

I let go of Asher’s arm and turn at
the same time the dog-like creature pounces on top of him, scratching his chest. Blood begins to coat the t-shirt.

“Fuck,” Asher
growls out in pain. “EVE, RUN!” he commands in a firm tone.

I swallow a scream
, watching Asher writhe in pain in front of me while fighting the evil animal. It gnashes its large teeth, growling and hissing in his face as he grabs its mouth, attempting to clamp it shut with both hands.

Realizing Asher is pinned, I rebelliously
lock eyes with the creature. “Hey, mongrel, leave him alone,” I taunt it.

It snaps its head up
in a sharp, fluid motion, pushing out of Asher’s hold. Then it narrows its chilling eyes at me and rushes toward where I am. I spin and run as I hear Asher shout, “DAMMIT, EVE!”

Taking a chance,
I look back over my shoulder just as the angry creature swats its paw, barely missing me but causing me to stumble forward. As I land on the grassy ground, my head hits the green earth with a small thud.
Fuck that hurt.
I squeeze my eyes shut and wait for the attack, but it never comes. After a brief moment, I throw them open, fearing for Asher. I rotate onto my back only to see he has the animal restrained on the ground. His hands are wrapped around its neck, squeezing as he straddles it.
What the hell?

I hear Asher’s deep
, menacing voice. “Beidh mé tú a mharú go mall agus millteanach,” he threatens through clenched teeth as he releases his hold and jumps off the monstrosity.

In an instant
, the beast vanishes in blue flames. I shut my eyes then quickly open them, thinking I’ve gone crazy. When I look at the area again, there’s nothing except Asher watching me with pensive eyes.

In four long strides
, he’s in front of me, crouching so we’re eye level. Without hesitation, he brushes the hair and grass off my face then cups the sides of my head, holding it still.

“Eve,” he says
calmly, but his anxious eyes glide all along my body, looking for injuries.

“I’m okay
.” I exhale deeply to reassure him. With a shaking hand, I brush over the spot on my head where the welt is starting to form and a dull ache is throbbing. “Thank you,” I offer but I think I’m in shock.

Asher
breathes out in uneven spurts, still panting from the fight. “Shit. You’re so stubborn,” he grunts out once he sees me conscious and blood-free. “Next time, run,” he scolds, offering me his hands and pulling me to a standing position.

“Next time?”
I breathe out. “By the way, that was so not a dog,” I say in an inaudible yet strained voice.

He lets out a short laugh.

I groan. “I think I’m going to be sick,” I mention while shaking uncontrollably.

Asher
pulls me into a secure embrace, rubbing my back in a methodic motion. “It’s okay, I’ve got you,” he says with compassion. “It’s just the adrenaline running through you. As soon as your body relaxes, the nauseous feeling will pass.”

Being
this close gives me a good view of the blood on his shirt.  “Are you okay?” I lean back and scan his chest and face.

He looks
down at his shirt and back at me with devastatingly beautiful eyes. “I’m fine. It’s a scratch. It looks worse than it is,” he says in an easy way as the blue in his eyes deepens.

I
scrutinize his face, not believing him. “What was that language you were speaking,” I ask, changing the subject.

“
Gaelic. I thought perhaps it would calm it,” he offers casually and shrugs.
Odd
.

I study him. “
You thought Gaelic would calm it? What did you say?” I demand.

Asher
sighs. “I told it I would kill it slowly and painfully.” He cringes as he watches my reaction.

I snort a
nd touch my head where it connected with the ground. “Is it the same language you used with Gage?”

“
No. Can you walk?” He motions to the car, shutting down the questions.

“Yes
.” Without warning, his palm is on my lower back, causing my skin to warm under the touch as he guides me toward the car.

At
the contact, my body begins to relax and crash from the adrenaline high. I start to shake again. “Where did it go? It just vanished into blue flames.” My voice is becoming mildly hyper.

Asher stops walking
, turns to me, and studies my face with an intense and straight expression. “It ran away limping. I think I choked it enough it got scared and ran into the woods.”

I shake my head. “Asher
, I saw it with my own two eyes. You pinned it, strangled it, then poof, it turned into blue flames.” As I recount what I witnessed, my eyes don’t leave his.

Uncertainty crosses over
him for a moment then he becomes rigid. “I didn’t see any blue flames. Eve, just get in the car,” he commands.

“Excuse me?”
It comes out somewhat irate. He did not just order me around after disregarding what I saw.

“
I said, get in the car, now!” His voice is calm and controlled.

“You’re kidding
, right?” I stand there with my arms folded, not budging an inch.

Aggravated as if he
’s dealing with a petulant child, he takes out his cell phone and makes a call. His voice is cool while he irately instructs someone on the phone to make the call. A few seconds later, my cell phone rings.

“Answer it
,” Asher demands.

“What?” I shriek in annoyance.

“Your phone, answer it.” He says each word at a slow pace while pointing to my bag.

I give him the death glare
and pull my phone out of the bag. “Hello,” I answer.

“Hi
, Eve. It’s Abby. Asher just told me what happened with the crazy dog. He said you hit your head and are seeing blue spots. Are you okay?” she questions with an edge in her voice.

I exhale
a short breath. “I’m fine, Abby.”

“Oh
, thank goodness,” she replies in relief. “Listen, Kenna and I are at Asher’s house. He happens to be a very close family friend. Once a week, we meet up with him and his brothers for dinner. Why don’t you come back with him? You can tell us everything, rest, have dinner and I’ll take you back to the dorms myself when we’re done. Please, I’m awfully worried about you,” She’s trying to guilt me into agreeing.

I
chew on the inside of my cheek and whisper into the phone. “I don’t know, Abby. I really don’t want to impose on a family thing and to be honest, I’m pretty shaken up by this
dog
attack.”

“That’s exactly why you should be with us tonight. Come
on, we’ll take good care of you. I promise there is no imposition,” she begs.

“What about Aria? I can’t
just leave her.” I rub my head, which is still aching.

“She
’s out with Leo tonight. Besides, what if you have a concussion and fall asleep in the dorm without any of us there? Please. We would love to have you. Just trust me on this,” Abby pleads some more.

I hold the phone to my ear while
watching Asher. He’s agitated. His eyes are darting everywhere as if he’s on high alert, looking for danger. It’s making me nervous.

Too tired
and freaked out to put up a fight, I huff. “Fine.”

She squeals a
, “thank you,” as I hang up.

I quickly text Aria to let her know where I’ll be this evening and throw my phone in my bag then shift my focus to Asher. “You know, you could have just politely asked me to come. You didn’t need to sic Abby on m
e with all the dramatics.”