Summon (35 page)

“Don’t worry about Tomas,” Daphne said. “My Sire
can handle himself.”

“Wonderful as that is to know, I am talking about a
vampire, not a phantom. A boy named Raj.” Cael chopped with the side of his
palm at his collarbone. “He is yea high and possesses a certain vulnerability I
inexplicably find myself unable to exploit. I’d prefer he survived the night.”

Half turned to leave, Baako studied him. “There’s
something not quite right about you.”

Cael smirked. “Funny. That’s what my last enemy
said realising I held his beating heart in my hand.” Cael scrutinised the
moving lines of demons and hummed in satisfaction. “Shall we press on?”

Po-faced, Lochlann inhaled deeply and walked away
from the he-witch though it was clear he wanted to tear him to pieces. Conall
and Kian flanked the fairy High Lord and the others followed.

It was time.

Releasing her nape, my hand caressed down Maeve’s
back and arm until I entwined our fingers. I was unsure of how to express how I
felt for her in a way she’d completely understand. We’d experienced bad
communication issues, and I needed her to know in case something happened to
me. “Maeve, my own, I–”

She twisted and fit a finger across my lips. “You
are a good Alpha, but you’re going to become a wonderful life mate.” She
giggled, nervous. “I’ll be the best alpha female I can. We can do this, Alec.”

Overwhelmed, I cupped her elbows and leaned my head
to hers. Our lips brushed. She smelled and tasted sweet. Wanting nothing more
than to take her somewhere private, groaning, I pulled back, and calmed the
frenetic beast wanting to mark her. “Later, Eve.”

“I know.” She twinkled at me. “We need to focus on
the battle.”

“Are you sure you want to be here? I can send you
home….” I trailed off at her steely glare.

I stripped and chuckled as she flushed and bit her
lip at my nude body. Beaming, I crouched to Change with the rest of
our
Pride. The stooped males gave me
knowing grins while the females rolled their eyes before focusing on their own
morphing bodies.

After this
battle, I’ll return home and Claim my mate.

The thought made the shift from human to panther
happen in the blink of an eye. My heart quickened, and my body shook. My
muscles tensed and contracted until I vibrated with tension, and as if flint
struck glassy stone the sparking moment when the primal opus of my being
transformed from man to beast was a ferocious judder that snapped my head back.
Only another shifter could see the
emerald coils of energy swirling around me.
It saddened me Maeve would never witness the beauty of two-natured magic.
I inhaled. Held the breath as the burn
became scorching. Exhaling, the Change rolled over me too quickly to brace
against. Nose flattening and brow slanting to become sleekly feline, my pupils
dilated then contracted into oval slits. My ears lengthened to rounded points
and moved upwards as my face stretched and my teeth elongated to bright white
fangs. My back arched as my spine extended. I thrashed my tail side to side, a limb
as long as my body. Dense fur pushed through the skin of my shortening limbs
and raced up my arms and legs, appearing a jet-black stain across my back and
belly. My maw wrenched open, and I snarled as the final bolt of heat shifted my
organs and everything tightened into place. Powerfully muscled jaw receding to
a softer triangle, my face was furred, and my body warm and snug under a
gleaming coat.

My hide featured waxen rosettes, and having seen
how attractive they appeared on a distant relation, I’d grown vain about them.

I purred, imagining rubbing myself against Maeve’s
legs hoping she liked them since I adored everything about her.

Blinking rapidly as I adjusted to the keener
dimensions of my sight, I stretched, flexing my paws to scratch at the earth
with my claws.

Yawning, my tongue flicked out and I hastily sucked
it back in, disgusted by the reek of decomposed flesh permeating the air. I
focused my nose on the fruity perfume emanating from Maeve and the spicy,
comforting scent of my fellow shifters.

Our musk was heavy in the air after so many
Changing at once, and the sound of throaty screams and gruff roars were music
to my twitching ears.

While smaller in size than some of the weretigers
and werelions in the pride, I adapted best, fought the fiercest, and none were
better at climbing, a priceless skill to have when dealing with so may other
demon species that claimed territories with radically different topographies
than the grasslands we lived in at the Pride.

The Pride flanked me for a while then we split and
weaved our way through the ranks of horses carful to avoid their hooves. The
ends of crimson cloaks brushed the top of my head and back as I moved. The
unpleasant memories of being attacked by Clerics make me shiver.

Controlling their mounts with their knees, the
Clerics armed their rifles as they rode into the city. The clomping of hooves
sounded loud on the paved streets. It made me wince, knowing the noisy advance
would warn our enemies from miles away.

It
surprises me humans survived as long as they have.

Shoving my nose higher, I picked up on Samuel and
Lorken’s scents and slinked up beside them. Maeve joined us, scarlet irises
uneasy as she stared into the mist.

I rubbed my face on her armoured calf to let her
know I protected her. She stroked me between the ears, intensely studying the
city, tapping her bow firmly on her other leg.

She was alpha female and the Pride knew to protect
her as best they could whilst in combat, but I worried about her stubborn
streak. We’d had a long conversation during the journey about her staying close
to me at all times. So far she’d done as we agreed, but I felt a mounting
tension she refused to speak of. I shook off my unease and concentrated.
Whatever she was worried about could wait. She was likely upset over her
damaged relationship with her brothers, something we’d remedy in time.

Tribal fairy Knights, bare chests marked with war
paint, glided silently between the advance. Goblins strode beside them, short
knives and clubs held tightly in their brawny fists.

It was up to mine, Samuel and Lorken’s people to
destroy as many vampires and zombies as possible north of the river as the
fairies headed south to the Coven Wyld to determine what happened with Breandan
and Rae.

Ana confirmed they were alive, but refused to
explain anything else, which made us wary, but hopeful too. Rae and Breandan
were our most powerful allies. I doubted we’d be able to rally if they were
destroyed.

If it came to it, I’d have to retreat to keep my
Pride and mate safe.

We’d lost too many of our number to survive another
culling.

I retched when the stench of rotting flesh teased
my nose. I growled, a sound echoed by the rest of the shifters.

A lower, deeper rumble revealed Baako’s presence
not too far from where I prowled.

The scent intensified until we shifters reacted to
the Clerics abrupt charge and broke rank. We raced forward past the galloping
hoofs to leap, claws extended, fangs bared, onto the surge of zombies cresting
the mound of debris.

As I mauled an eyeless wretch spoiled blood and
putrid flesh oozed into my mouth. The vicious liquid coated my tongue, and
putrid gristle wedged between my teeth. My eyes watered. Snarling, I ripped out
its throat and finished the decapitation with my paws. Saliva slicked the walls
and roof of my maw and I hunched over, battling through my gag reflex. It
passed. I shuddered, tilting my head to scan for prey.

Forked lightening split the sky and thunder rolled.
The heavens opened and rain wet my fur as the winds howled mournfully.

The deafening sound of rifle discharge and the dull
thud of head’s hitting the ground had a thrill zipping down my spine.

I flicked my tail and stuck my nose higher to find
my mate. Her trail took me through a graveyard of crushed bodies with arrows
protruding from their eyes and mouths.

Maeve and Lorken fought a circle of zombies and
vampires.

The goblin doubled in size, a giant. Lorken swung
his club and smashed the heads of three zombies before grabbing a vampire and
ripping its arm off. He bludgeoned the blood drinker to death with its own
limb. He roared. Thick veins streaked across his bulging muscles, and the cords
of his neck bunched. His pupils dilated to solid discs of black and held not a
whisper of gentle emotion. His expression was pure rage and aggression.
Attention turning to me, he took a threatening step.

Hackles raised, I arched my back and lowered my
head. I snarled, and the vicious sound shook me from nose to tail.

He shivered, battling the berserker frenzy that
made the goblins shunned among demonkind. He shook his head and retreated,
holding up a hand. “I am myself,” he rasped.

Daring a glance over her shoulder, Maeve frowned at
us, remaining stood at Lorken’s back. Switching her attention back to the
fight, her bow sang as she notched two arrows and took down a bloated zombie
charging her with serrated bone where an arm used to hang.

A vampire rushed her from the side.

A fierce growl vibrating my chest, I gathered my
back and fore paws. I tensed until still, focused, ready to spring an attack, but
the demon collapsed, a dagger slicing through its jugular.

Hissing, Gunarr dropped from the roof above in an
intricate tumble with daggers flying from his hands, each embedding a target.
The fairy Knight joined the duo as they steadily took down wave after wave of
droning zombies. “Have you seen Wasp?”

“No,” Maeve replied, breathless. Her eyes scanned
the heaving landscape. “I doubt you will find her in this unless she
wants
to be found.”

I dragged my claws across the hamstring of a zombie
lurching past and made quick work of finishing it off.

A mad cackle sounded across the noise startling
Lorken into throwing too much force into his punch. He shoved his fist clean
through a zombie’s skull and out the other side.

I twisted seeking the source of the spine-chilling
laughter.

Two struggling figures fell from a high building,
plummeting towards the river.

My heart plain skipped a beat when the pair
separated and my vision honed on the smaller winged shape.

I screamed as Rae hit the river and floated lifelessly.

She sank under.

Crossing the violent water would be impossible in
animal form, and I froze in uncertainty.

“
No
.”
Maeve shouted already in motion, leaving Gunarr and Lorken to finish the
zombies she’d abandoned.

I jumped in her way, but she evaded me and defied
gravity to run up the vertical side of a building. Catching the lip of the roof,
she dead-lifted her weight then swung a leg over to gain her feet.

Maeve bolted along the decapitated rooftops.

Damn,
she’s fast.

Furious, I raced after her below, watching as the
occasional vampire or zombie plunged to the ground as she ran and fired.

Reaching the end of the street, Maeve smoothly
somersaulted off the slanted roof. Her speed increased until her limbs blurred.
She’s going to jump the freaking river.
Bow slung across her back, hands fisted, she dexterously weaved and dodged past
the demons fighting along the overflowing riverbank without breaking stride.

I followed in her slipstream pushing hard, but it wasn’t
enough.

Maeve reached the river’s
edge and soared, arms wheeling, legs peddling in a flat out sprint. She cleared
the distance in the single bound. Landing stooped the other side she rolled,
sprung up, and whipped her head side to side her expression wrathful.

She flung herself at the godling.

They went down and were
lost in the throng of zombies and werewolves swarming at Marinette’s feet.

I skidded to a stop at the
water’s edge and roared, fury coursing through my veins, boiling my blood until
I thought I would explode.

A lioness yelped as she was
pinned by a vampire.

I pounced, going for its
throat, praying Maeve’s battle skill kept her alive long enough for me to find
a way to her.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Breandan

Marinette
curled her fingers, and her hold on my insides tightened.

I coughed, and blood wet my lips.
This is your chance. Rae fades. This is a
chance to join her.
Looking Marinette in the eye, I sneered in disgust.
“
I don’t want you.
Never
you
.”

She raised her fist and I levitated ten feet into
the air. She dropped it. I plummeted and slammed into the concrete.

Dazed, I watched as she raised her arm higher.
“Then die.”

Flesh-coloured talons closed over Marinette’s fist.
Striking eyes piercing, mouth parted to show her fangs Rae yanked the loa back
to hiss in her face.