Fever (Blood Moon Rising, #1) (15 page)

Jason finally set his jaw and nodded.
“Okay.” Holding up the gun, he aimed and waited. The moment the gem
came into view, he fired - and missed.

Onyx’s eyes snapped onto him, and he
growled, stalking toward him.

Jason’s eyes went wide, and Danica
screeched, “Shoot again!”

Jason fired another round, but Onyx
was prepared. He moved at the last second so the bullet went toward
his chest, bouncing off of it.

Jason swore and Onyx lunged, forcing
him and Danica to dive to either side. Danica landed hard on her
elbows, hearing them crack. She cried out and the next instant, Nik
had changed back to a man and was beside her. “You all right,
love?”

“
I’m fine,” she gritted
out. “The gem. We have to destroy it.”

Jason was now in wolf form and was
fighting for his life. The big white wolf she knew to be Gage had
taken a few knocks. His beautiful coat was marred by bloody
patches, which smeared across the floor as Onyx tried fighting them
off.

Nik grabbed the gun without question
and checked the clip. “Three rounds. Better make this count. Hey,
shitface!”

Onyx turned around just as his jaws
were about to close around wolf-Jason’s neck.

Nik grinned and held up the gun. “You
sure you’re a wolf or a pussy? To be as big as you are, we’re sure
holding our own.”

Onyx barked, a deep sound that
reverberated around the warehouse, and ran toward Nik.

Nik fired once. The bullet skimmed the
stone. The second round hit the floor as Onyx leapt out of the way,
and Nik swore. Onyx was air-bound now, paws outstretched toward
Nik, jaws opening wide to literally bite his head off.

Nik shoved Danica out of the way of
the wolf and ran forward, sliding along the floor below Onyx. He
aimed straight at the gem, which was directly above his head now,
and fired. The bullet sailed true, embedding in the gemstone. It
cracked and Onyx groaned in agony before the gem exploded. Onyx
screamed as shadows swirled around him, leaking out of him as he
fell to the floor and rapidly shrank in size. Within a few seconds,
he lay on his back, naked and covered in blood from the many bullet
holes, lacerations, and bite marks all over his body.

Gage immediately shifted back and
stumbled over to Danica. She rose and went to him, hugging him
fiercely.

“
I thought I’d lost you,”
he breathed into her hair.

“
It’s going to be harder
than that to get rid of me,” she said with a shaky grin.

He smiled, kissing her forehead and
holding her close.

“
What’s up with all the
wounds?” she asked, gesturing to Onyx. “I thought he was
practically Superman.”

“
Must be a loophole of the
spell. As long as he remains in wolf form, the shadows protect him,
absorbing the pain. But the moment he turns back, he takes on all
the injuries as if he’d fully received them.”

“
Ouch.”

Nik knelt beside Onyx and placed the
barrel of his gun to his head. Though Danica and Nik knew the gun
was empty, Onyx did not. “I’d start talking,” Nik said.

Onyx chuckled, spitting up blood. “You
don’t know who you’re dealing with.”

“
Why don’t you inform us?”
Gage said in a steely tone.

Onyx shook his head, his eyes wild
with pain. “I am but a pawn for the greater good. My master will
bring forth a whole new world for us, one where we don’t have to
hide or be persecuted for being different.”

Nik looked at Gage. “He’s gone
mad.”

“
You’re all fools!” Onyx
sang. “When the never-ending night falls, anyone who stands against
her will die!”

“
Who?” Nik shook him. “What
the hell are you talking about?”

Onyx started chuckling again.
“Mis-”

There was a cracking sound, and black
foam spilled from Onyx’s mouth.

Gage grabbed Nik, yanking him up as
the liquid spewed from the were’s mouth like a geyser. “Someone
just detonated a killing spell. Don’t touch it.”

“
Yeah, I kind of figured
that,” Nik said dryly, shrugging out of his brother’s
grasp.

Onyx slowly stilled, his eyes finding
them once more. “The end… has… only… begun…”

Silence filled the warehouse as Onyx’s
last breath was spent delivering the cryptic message.

“
What do you think he
meant?” Nik asked.

Gage sighed and pulled Danica closer,
who couldn’t take her eyes off the dead man. “I don’t know. But
something tells me this isn’t over yet.”

Chapter 16

As per paranormal law, the D.P.I. was
called shortly thereafter. The Department of Paranormal
Investigation, made entirely of paranormals, crawled the area,
asking the Moonstruck wolves questions, which Danica backed up.
After about an hour and a half of questioning, they were free to
go. No one spoke on the drive back from the warehouse, though
Danica knew what was on everyone’s minds.

What kind of revolution had Onyx been
talking about? Was there some sort of civil war about to break out
in the Underworld?

She waited until they were back at the
manor and in their bedroom to ask Gage about it. “What do you think
Onyx was talking about?”

“
Probably the ramblings of
a cult,” he said, rinsing off his face. They were in the bathroom,
with Danica leaned up against the door with her arms crossed. “I
have a contact in the D.P.I. who’s supposed to let me know if they
find anything.”

“
And you trust this
person?”

“
With my life. She’s
actually an ex of Nik’s.”

“
Wow. It’s nice to have
friends in high places, I guess.”

“
As a royal were, that’s
crucial.” He toweled off and came to her, holding her shoulders. “I
know you’ve endured so much, and if this were any other time, I
wouldn’t press it. But the Blood Moon rises three nights from
now.”

“
So we need to be mated, or
forever hold our bachelor-hood, er, bachelorette-hood. You know
what I mean.”

“
Yes. Danica, I don’t want
to push you into anything you don’t-”

She pressed a finger to his lips. “I
already made up my mind back in the cave, when I saw what you were
willing to do to protect me.”

Gage held perfectly still. It didn’t
even look like he was breathing. “And your answer is…?”

She smiled brightly. “Yes, Gage. I’ll
be your mate.”

Guilt overshadowed the brief
flickering of happiness she saw in his eyes. “I don’t want you to
feel like you owe me anything.”

She placed a finger to his lips. “I’ve
lived in the same house my entire life, but it never felt like
home. This town never felt like home. Then I met you.”

His gaze softened.
“Danica-”

“
And,” she went on before
he could interrupt again, “I want you to know I’m not doing this
out of some need to repay you or because I’m some desperate, lonely
woman.” She pressed his hand to her chest, right over her heart.
“I’m doing it because I feel a connection between us I feel is
worth exploring. You make me feel safe. For the first time in my
life, I feel wanted. Needed, even.” She took a shaky breath. “And I
want you to know I need you, too.”

For a moment, he looked stunned. Then
he smiled and swung her up into the air, twirling her. She giggled
as he nuzzled her neck. “Danica, you have no idea how happy you’ve
just made me. I swear to you I’ll always be loyal and true, and
I’ll protect you with my life.”

“
As I shall do for you,”
she said softly as he set her down and she stared up into his
eyes.

Gage bent down and kissed her, and she
wrapped her arms around his neck, that familiar feeling of “home”
wrapping around her.

***

The next three days were a blur of
grief and anticipation for the upcoming mating ceremony. The
weather had been forecast for the funerals, the air heavy with
sadness. Danica hated funerals. She generally disliked anything
that made her really sad. Though she hadn’t known the young wolves
who were killed, she felt their loss all the same. Gage had said it
was because of her were bond to them. She wondered what other
changes she would face. Gage had told her since they’d mate on the
next full moon, her first Change wouldn’t officially happen until
the next month. She didn’t know whether to be excited or
disappointed. On one hand, she was relieved she didn’t have to face
it now. On the other hand, that meant she had another whole month
to get worked up about it. But it was hard to focus on being
nervous about the Change when her stomach was alight with
butterflies over the mating ceremony.

The third night sneaked up on her. It
was beautiful out. It wasn’t even that cold, being only fifty
degrees. They stood out on the lawn under the light of the
blood-red, full moon, surrounded by Gage’s pack. Gage swore to them
he bore them no ill will for not aiding in the retrieval of his
mate, but Danica could see the hurt in his eyes. It pained him his
comrades hadn’t come to his aid when he needed them most. From what
he told her, Malachite’s rule had been bloody and full of sorrow.
Gage said it would take a long time to heal those wounds when he
was sheltering so many traumatized wolves.

She stood by him, holding his hand,
both of them dressed in the white ceremonial robes of the mating
couple. Nik was performing the ceremony, a sort of “were wedding.”
A roaring bonfire sat behind Nik, warming the altar laying on the
grass in front of it. The altar was much like a bed, with silk
blankets and flowers strewn along the rim. Danica’s cheeks burned
as she stared at it. Gage had explained to her how it worked, that
they must consummate their vows before the pack. Having sex in
front of a group of strangers made her stomach crawl with
butterflies, but she couldn’t deny the thrill at finally becoming
one with the man she desired more than anything else in the
world.

Gage looked handsome, the firelight
bouncing off his freshly shaved face. Clean-shaven, he looked a few
years younger, and his eyes were alight with happiness as he gazed
at her.

“
Do you, Gage Johnson,
Packmaster of the Moonstruck Pack, hereby take Danica Williams to
be your queen?”

“
I do,” Gage said, his gaze
never wavering from hers.

“
And do you, Danica
Williams, Marked by PackMaster Gage Johnson of the Moonstruck Pack,
vow to take Gage as your king?”

“
I do,” she said, nerves
tickling her belly.

“
Hold out your
palms.”

Danica wasn’t too crazy about this
part, but she knew it had to be done. Nik produced a ceremonial
dagger and ran the blade first across Gage’s palm, then hers. He
was as gentle as he could be with hers, making a light incision.
“Join hands.”

Gage took Danica’s palm in his own.
“You okay?” he whispered.

She nodded. “Never better.”

He smiled wistfully, leaning his
forehead against hers.

“
By taking this blood oath,
you are bound for life. Do you both swear to remain faithful to one
another and protect one another until you draw your last
breaths?”

“
I do,” Gage and Danica
both answered at the same time.

“
Then let it be.” Nik ran
the bloodied dagger through the flames and embedded the blade in
the ground. “Do our brothers acknowledge this alliance?”

“
Yes,” the other weres
answered.

“
Then let it be known from
now on you are lawfully mates. Please proceed to the mating
bed.”

Finally, the last stage of the ritual.
Danica’s heart rate kicked into high gear as Gage led her to the
bed and removed her robe. It fell away and he tossed it onto the
grass. The night air, along with the desire coursing through her
veins like fire, made her nipples swell and harden. Gage let his
hungry gaze rove over her bare body, and she caught her breath as
she finished untying his belt and removed his robe.

He was beautiful. Though she’d seen
him naked before, he seemed to glow with a pale blue light. Her
eyes fell on the erection that was already hardened between his
legs.

“
Are you ready?” he
whispered, taking her hands in his.

Her heart hammered inside her chest,
making her breathless. She nodded and her voice shook when she
spoke. “I’m ready.”

Tenderly, he lowered her onto the silk
sheets. He lay beside her, shielding her from the onlooking stares
of their packmates. “Don’t think about them,” he said into her ear.
“This night - this moment - is for us.”

“
For us,” she murmured as
he gently brought his mouth down on hers.

The kiss was tender and sweet as his
fingers probed her, testing her folds, seeing if she was prepared
for him.

She moaned as he touched her,
spreading her legs as her juices coated his hand. Slowly, he
repositioned himself over her, spreading her legs apart so her
knees were on either side of his hips. “Don’t let me hurt you,” he
breathed. “Tell me if I’m hurting you.”