Midnight Whispers - Paranormal Romance (16 page)

The man’s
mouth firmed. “You are demons, and we do not negotiate with demons. We have
tried to drive you out time and time again, and instead of leaving you came to
my farm and slaughtered my herd. I cannot forgive or forget such a thing.” His
eyes swept the shifters once more. “Thankfully I don’t expect this to be a very
long fight. We outnumber you two to one.”

Charles drew
his sword, and a loud ring of steel echoed off the trees. “You will find that
what we lack in size, we make up in strength. Attack!”

The shifters
charged forward with a snarl, and the humans rushed to meet them with war cries
of their own. Soon the forest air was filled with the sound of swords clashing
and warriors screaming. Bryce soon forgot all about the lead in the pit of his
stomach that told him he was betraying Kyra as he was lost in the heat of
battle—the humans seemed to be especially intent on him for some reason,
possibly because he’d verbally attacked their leader. Bryce cut through them,
staining his sword with their blood, but it was quite an effort—the
humans were more skilled than he would have thought.

By the time
he’d felled his eighth enemy he had numerous cuts and lacerations. Groaning, he
wiped the sweat off his face, then kicked the dead body out of his way. He
heard a battle cry behind him, and turned just in time to block a downswing
from the blond-haired man.

“It’s time
you paid for that flesh wound!” he said, swinging again. Bryce snarled and
leaped forward, striking with his own weapon, but the man blocked and countered
skillfully. They parried and thrust, blocked and countered, slashed and stuck,
but neither seemed to be able to get a hit in.

“You are very
good,” Bryce spat as they circled each other, “for a human.”

“And you’re
not bad for a beast,” the man responded. “But this is no game, and I have no
time for compliments. Your time is up, demon.”

“NO!!!” Kyra
shrieked, throwing herself between them just as the man thrust his sword. Bryce
watched in horror as the blade tore through her shoulder, as blood bloomed
across the fabric of her blue dress.

“Kyra!” Bryce
roared, grabbing her as she screamed in pain. The entire clearing fell silent,
both sides lowering their weapons as their heads jerked around toward the
familiar voice. The man wrenched his sword back, tearing another scream from
her, and stumbled back, a look of horror on his face.

“Kyra? Oh God!”
He reached forward, and then flinched as Bryce let out a threatening growl.

“It’s… it’s
okay, Bryce,” Kyra said through clenched teeth. “Jake is a friend.”

“Friend? He
just stabbed you with his sword!”

“I… I can’t
let you two fight.” Kyra struggled to lift her head up so she could look at
Jake. “Jake… these people…they aren’t the creatures you seek. They’re just like
us. Bryce… he is my soul mate. And you… you are one of the closest friends I
have ever had. I don’t… I don’t know what I would do if you two killed each
other. P-please…”

Her body
started to shake violently, and Bryce lowered her to the ground. He ripped away
a piece of her dress so he could get a look at her shoulder, and his heart
clenched at the bloody mess of a wound, stark against the paleness of her skin.

“It looks
like he missed your heart and lungs,” Bryce murmured as Jake and Charles
commanded their men to stand down. He pulled off his tunic and started tearing
it into strips to use for a bandage. “Why did you do such a foolish thing?” He
breathed in deeply through his nose and tried to steady his shaking hands as he
wrapped the bandage around her, but a bone-chilling fear had begun to settle
into his nerves. “You could have been killed!”

Kyra only
smiled. “I’m sorry. I… came to warn you… they were coming, but I arrived too
late.” Her voice grew faint, and her eyes fluttered shut. “Bryce… I’m so very…
tired…”

“Hang in
there,” Bryce said urgently. “Kyra, you’ve got to hang in there!” Her features
went lax, and his heart pounded—she’d lost too much blood.

“KYRA!”

****

When Kyra
woke, her shoulder was on fire and her throat felt like a barren wasteland. Her
eyes were heavy, but she forced them open to find herself staring at the
ceiling of Bryce’s room. What was she doing here? The last thing she remembered
was rushing to warn Bryce…

Bryce.
Fear lanced through her as she remembered Jake thrusting his sword
forward—a killing blow. She struggled to sit up, but her shoulder
screamed with pain. She opened her mouth to cry out, but her throat was so dry
all she managed was a croak.

“Take it easy.”
Bryce was suddenly at her side, easing her gently back onto the bed. He helped
seat her up against the pillows, then pressed a glass to her lips. “Here, drink
some of this.”

Kyra opened
her mouth and allowed the cool water to saturate her parched mouth, drinking
greedily. Bryce refilled the glass again before she finally leaned her head
back against the pillows, sated.

“It’s nice to
see you’re back amongst the living again,” Bryce told her, sitting back in his
chair. He held onto her hand with both of his, as though he were afraid she
would float away if he let go. She squeezed his hand reassuringly. “How are you
feeling?”

“My shoulder aches,”
Kyra replied. “What happened to me?”

“You threw
yourself in front of a blade meant for me,” Bryce said, pulling some dark brown
leaves from a drawstring pouch and handing them to her. “Here, chew on these.
They will help dull the pain.”

Kyra pushed
the leaves into her mouth and bit down—a bitter juice burst from the
leaves, and she scrunched up her face in distaste. Bryce laughed.

“I never
liked those much either, but believe me when I say they are worth the pain. I
should tell the doctor that you are awake.”

Kyra blinked.
“Doctor? I didn’t know you had a doctor.”

“We don’t,”
Bryce admitted. “Your…
friend
, Jacob, sent the doctor who was caring for
your aunt.”

“Jake’s here?”
Kyra’s head spun, and she closed her eyes. “How long have I been out?”

“Only a day
and a half,” Bryce assured her. “Did you really mean it back there, when you
told… that man… that I was your soul mate?”

Kyra couldn’t
help but smile at the mixture of anxiousness and hope in his voice. “Yes…I
did.”  Kyra swallowed the lump that rose in her throat at the thought of
losing Bryce.  She reached out, squeezing his hand tightly.  “Bryce?”

“Yes?” 
Bryce’s eyes locked onto her face, unwilling to let go.  Wanting…needing
to hear the words on her lips.

“I love you,
Bryce.”

He gave her a
blinding grin, and leaned over to kiss her softly. “I feel like I’ve been
waiting forever for those words. I love you too, Kyra.”

Kyra opened
her mouth to say something else, but her vision swam, and she had to close her
eyes again. “Why can’t I focus?”

“It’s a
side-effect of the leaves—they cause drowsiness.” Bryce stroked her hair
gently. “Get some sleep, Kyra. I’ll answer more of your questions when you’re
feeling better.”

Kyra wanted
to curse him, but she was already asleep before he’d finished the words.

****

The next few
days passed quickly, with regular visits from the doctor as well as several of
the village women, including Leah. She didn’t get to see them for very long
lengths of time before Bryce would shoo them away, like the protector that he
was, claiming that she needed her rest. If Kyra hadn’t been so sick of sitting
in bed, she would have thought it was amusing. As it was, she wanted to
strangle him.

One thing
about getting lots of visitors and being confined to the bed was that she was
able to glean a lot of information. Apparently Jake had called off the attack
completely, and had willingly agreed to come in and negotiate a peace treaty
between the humans and the wolves. She’d asked several times if she could see
him, but Bryce refused to let him anywhere near her—apparently he wasn’t
ready to forgive Jake for running her through with a sword, even if it had been
an accident.

There was
also some contention between the wolves as to whether or not Jake should be
executed for his crimes against the Hunters, but Charles had convinced them it
would be in their best interests to go with the treaty. Kyra could only imagine
how the wolves must have felt at having to swallow their anguish and let him
live, but at the same time she knew that Jake had been misguided, not evil.
Charles was a wise man—he knew that by killing Jake it would only anger
the humans and cause more bloodshed. Keeping him alive was the best way to
ensure peace between the two races.

Even so, Jake
and the doctor had both been blindfolded when they’d been taken to the village.
And while the doctor was free to come and go as he pleased, Kyra was told that
Jake needed to have a guard around him full-time—both for his protection
and the clan’s.

On the third
day, Kyra threw back the covers and yelled for Bryce to come. He skidded into
the room, a comically alarmed expression on his face as he looked wildly around
the room.

“What? What
is it? Are you hurt? Is something wrong?”

“Not at all,”
Kyra quipped as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. “I’m just tired of
languishing in this bed. I’ve been breathing the same air for days. I need a
bath and some sunshine.”

Bryce
hesitated. “The doctor hasn’t said—”

Kyra grinned
at him, yanking down her shoulder. The wound was completely gone, no trace of
it left. “The doctor isn’t used to dealing with patients who have shifter blood
in them. I’ve humored him long enough. I need out,
now
.”

Bryce finally
relented with a helpless grin and a light chuckle. “As you wish. I’ll be right
back.”

Ten minutes
later there was a large, wooden tub filled with steaming water, waiting for her.
“You’re awfully demanding,” he teased as he helped her up from the bed.

He released
her, and she hesitated, looking at the tub. “Is something wrong?”

She looked
away. “My shoulder is still a bit stiff. I… I think I’m going to need some
help.”

“Oh. Well, I
think I can manage that.”

Kyra shivered
as Bryce moved behind her, and then helped pull her nightgown over her head.
She wore nothing beneath it except the bandages on her shoulder, so she felt
his fingers skim her skin as he undressed her, and heard his sharp, in drawn
breath. Her heart wasn’t quite steady as his fingers trailed down her back.

When he
didn’t say anything, she lowered herself into the tub unsteadily, then picked
up the bar of soap and lathered her body. The water felt absolutely heavenly,
the heat soaking into her muscles and releasing the tension in them. She would
have been able to relax completely if she weren’t hyperaware that Bryce was
still in the room, and that his eyes were still very much on her.

She leaned
forward, exposing her back, and he immediately took the soap and cloth from her
before kneeling next to the tub. His hands were warm and strong as he cleaned
her gently, but she could feel the slight tremble in his fingers, and knew he
was holding onto his control by a thread. Her own breathing was unsteady, and
she gripped the edge of the tub tightly.

“These past
few days… have been very difficult,” Bryce murmured, replacing his hands with
his lips. “I was scared out of my mind when the doctor was stitching up your
wound, talking about infection and fevers. I’d forgotten humans were so
fragile.”

“I…” It was
hard for her to think when he was trailing kisses up her spine. “I’m sorry to
have frightened you so. But just so you are aware, I would have done it again
in a heartbeat.” She straightened as his lips moved up to her neck, and
shivered as she turned to face him. “I do love you so, Bryce.”

“I love you, too,
Kyra.”

His lips met
hers gently, searching, seeking, and she welcomed him without question, without
reservation. There were no words needed between them—the time had come, and
despite all they’d been through—or perhaps because of it—they both
knew they were ready.

He lifted her
carefully from the tub, carried her to the bed, and then stripped off his
clothes before joining her. Kyra sighed with pleasure at the feeling of his
warm, hard body pressed against hers—he was being very careful not to put
all his weight on her, and yet still allowing her to feel him. She kissed him
again, long and slow, and he used his fingers to tease her body into readiness,
to forget about anything but him, and the pleasure that awaited.

“Please,
Bryce,” she gasped, having peaked twice already beneath his skillful fingers.
“I’m ready now.”

He nuzzled
her neck, then nipped gently. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

As they
joined for the first time, Kyra felt as though her mind was opening up to
something completely new. Bryce seemed to invade all her senses, so that she
saw nothing else but him. He became larger than life, filling her entire field
of vision, and it was as if the rest of the world had fallen away. She saw him
running through sunlit fields with her; holding her hand tightly as she went
through childbirth; then swinging a child through the air that had his green
eyes and her long, blond hair. Her heart swelled with the sheer enormity of it
all; of her love for him and the endless possibilities of their future
together.

From the look
of wonder passing across Bryce’s face, she could tell that he was going through
a similar experience, and she realized that it must be the bond
completing—their souls and hearts binding together so that they were one.
She’d never felt so completely loved or cherished in her life, and clung to him
tightly, not wanting the moment to end. But eventually it did, with a burst
that left them breathless and shattered, followed by a warm, comforting glow.