The quietness we left behind seemed like a riot ground next to that of the deserted park. Though snow lined the trees either side, small icy patches still clung to the path, and would have foiled my steps if not for the grip of my killer heels.
“You often go to parks after dark?” I asked.
“I don’t really need to.” His hold tightened on my arm when my foot slipped an inch. “There’s a vast patch of woodland around a half mile from my home. I just go there when the mood dictates.”
“In the dark?”
“Night-time’s the best. Besides the added challenge of visibility, the entire aura of the space alters the moment the sun dips and the moon rises to take her place.”
My eyebrows rose a little. Deep. “You must really love it there.”
“Certainly do. Less people traffic means more wildlife, too.”
“Surely that just makes it more dangerous?” I’d heard badgers could get pretty mean.
He shrugged. “Had a family of Kite move in for the winter. I think they must have got confused and missed the mark on their real destination.”
“Senile birds.” My fingers wiggled in mock horror. “Terrifying creatures. That the best you got?”
“No. There’s also a fox and his family, an entire army of scary rabbits … lions …”
“Lions? In Hereford?” A small laugh escaped.
“You’d be amazed by what you see when you wander around at night, Cole.” Although his lips curved up, and only humour dominated his tone, his eyes held a seriousness I struggled to interpret—one that sent a shiver through me and not from the cold.
“In the woods, I mean,” he said with a low chuckle.
Of course he did. I pulled my coat tighter around my neck.
“Dare to find out?” His low voice seemed to hold a bunker-full of promises as he gestured toward the infestation of trees that passed as the park’s woodland.
If you go down to the woods today … As the childhood nursery rhyme spun through my mind, my body stiffened.
“Relax, Cole.” A chuckle. “I’m just kidding.” He released my elbow, his arm sliding around my back.
For some reason, the flippant humour in his tone, the security of his hold, seemed to ease the tension claiming my shoulders. While the lack of sound in the park should have unnerved, it didn’t, and my heels once more picked up their lazy cadence.
“It’s so quiet,” I murmured, almost coming to a stop before Benjamin’s arm nudged me forward. Even the drone of engines from roads I knew to be no more than a half mile away barely reached us.
“It reminds me of winter in the woods,” he said. “Where nothing else exists beyond the perimeter your soul creates.”
My gaze lifted toward him, though I saw only the red of my hood. “Sounds ominous.”
He chuckled, low and throaty, drawing tightness to my stomach. “It was meant to sound enticing.”
“Those doughnuts had better be pretty special,” I muttered, ignoring the implication of his words—as well as the effect he seemed to be having on my body. “My toes are bloody freezing.”
“I’ll warm them when we get there.” His gentle squeeze swayed me a little. A wayward branch trembled as he flicked it from our trail. “And I can vouch for the cruller … though it’s nowhere near as special as the company I’m keeping.”
A slow smile spread my lips before I could stop it—until I remembered who I was with and our circumstances. “I’ll bet you say that to all your dates.”
“Actually—” His arm stiffened across my back, his fingers digging into my waist and bringing me to a halt.
I reached up for my hood, went to tug it back to see what had stumbled his flow, but barely moved it more than an inch when a guy, then a second and third stepped into our path.
Left to right, all three of them looked big enough to bruise a sumo, and pissed enough to throw a punch.
A gulp lodged in my throat.
“Benjamin Gold.”
He knows them?
The one in the middle, who’d spoken, had hair the colour of fallen sycamore leaves and wore head-to-toe black like he was auditioning for a role as the Milk Tray Man. “What brings you to Horton tonight?”
“Just passing through, Ivan,” Benjamin said. “Permit me to escort the lady elsewhere, and I’ll gladly come back and discuss this with you.”
“You and I both know it should have been ‘discussed’”—he actually did air quotes—“prior to you being here. Little late for an appeal, wouldn’t you agree?”
“I’d have to say not.”
I really wanted to ask Benjamin what the heck he was supposed to be appealing for, but something told me not to take my attention off the men—especially the duo at Ivan’s sides—who stood in attire no more flamboyant than the one they flanked. The only item missing from their secret service getup was an earpiece with coiled wire tucked into their jackets.
Ivan’s attention skipped to me, like he’d only just noticed I stood there. “Maybe the lady could appeal to us on your behalf.” The way his gaze trailed south gave me the creeps.
“The lady has nothing to do with this.” Benjamin’s voice held a deepness that bordered on gruff.
A low thrum of power seemed to surround us until my fingertips tingled, and my lips turned more numb. Without even a full understanding of the situation, my heart stumbled.
Benjamin’s arm swung me against his chest, and his gaze dipped to meet mine.
Before my mouth could even open to ask, What the bloody hell’s going on? Benjamin’s hands gripped my waist, and he threw me so fast my eyes could scarcely decode the blurred outlines that whizzed past.
My bum met with something hard that vibrated beneath the blow.
My skull collided with something solid enough to send sparks sizzling through my brain.
Once they fizzled out, a heavy blackness moved in and coated my thoughts with the intensity of asphyxiation—until, like fireworks exploding beyond my visual shutters, light penetrated my lids with enough power to send an ache right through to the back of my eyeballs, jolting me from whatever shadows I’d retreated to.
I let out a sharp cry, jerked to the right, my head banging against something solid and as rough as old bark. With a groan, I pressed a hand to my head, finding tenderness beneath a duet of abrasions. As the harsh glare dimmed away, an inhuman growl rumbled through the trees until every hair erected along the curve of my spine.
When a hissing erupted like the woods had been struck by a sudden snake invasion, my eyes flicked open.
I let out a gasp, my mouth stretching into a ridiculous O, and snatched my legs up until my knees hit my chin.
The broad limb of a tree supported my rear around eight feet from the ground, and beneath my dangling feet, the craziest scene I had ever witnessed filled the air with growls and hisses and crashes and snaps, as rabid-looking beasts rolled about and attacked one another.
Against my better judgment, I stared harder through the melee, identifying what looked like a lion—a freaking lion—two panthers, and a black … Pitbull?
The side to side whipping of my head could scarcely keep up with the frantic darts, leaps, pivots, and lunges.
Tearing my gaze from the insanity, I made a rapid scan through the trees and foliage, wondering where the hell my date had gone and why the heck he’d … Why the heck did he leave me here?
No golden hair caught the moonlight, though. No broad shoulders clothed in black.
Way to go, Cole. You picked a date that dumps a girl in a zoo fed on rage.
I gave another rapid scan. Maybe I hoped a solution to my problem of being stuck in a tree above rampant beasties would suddenly appear. Maybe it would have—if my gaze hadn’t landed on the scattered and shredded remains of clothing.
The kick-off of one of the panthers sent a strip of white fabric spiralling upward to meet me. As though on autopilot, my hand shot out to snatch hold of it and brought the scrap to my nose.
The cotton c
arried a muskiness blended with sandalwood that I hadn’t realised, until that moment, I’d smelled the entire night.
Benjamin.
I let out a sob and searched the ground again.
No Benjamin.
Bastards had eaten him.
What if I’m their next meal?
As I studied the ground and realised only clothing remained of Benjamin, another sob erupted.
The lion landed from a dive. Its head turned my way.
When the feline’s gaze connected with mine, I slammed a hand over my mouth. Like that could stem the sudden onset of hyperventilation.
The twin amber orbs somehow radiated concern and regret in a single glance, the spilling emotions making them appear far too human.
Benjamin.
I had no idea why his name popped into my head, but in the next half second, I studied the golden fur framing the eyes, the likeness to a certain someone much closer than I had any intention of accepting.
Insane.
The connection snapped as one of the panthers smacked into the lion’s shoulder with a victorious roar and sent the lion soaring.
Shaking my head clear, I grabbed hold of a neighbouring branch and wriggled until my bum slid off its perch.
A small squeak escaped when my body dropped way faster than anticipated, followed by a cry I forced quiet when my shoulders burned against the strain, and my useless fingers slipped. As my feet hit the ground, my knees crumbled, the collision between my shoulder and the trunk saving me from a full-out tumble. I glanced toward the scrapping animals.
The lion could barely be seen amongst the attack of black beasts—until the golden head thrust upward, parting the way with the force of a volcano. Its teeth locked around the throat of the Pitbull, and with a toss of its powerful head, the lion sent the dog flying until it bounced off a tree with a piercing yelp.
In the next breath, roars, hisses, and growls set my pulse rocketing, as the two panthers attempted reciprocation, and the three felines blurred in a dizzying roll—away from me.
Move yourself, Cole. Snapping my attention from the tussling cats, I took off in the opposite direction as fast as my stupid heels would allow.
By only the faint glow of the winter moon, I speed-trotted around trees and branches, getting sprayed by a fine mist of snow any time I didn’t veer wide enough. More than once I cursed my blasted footwear as my feet wobbled, my ankles almost twisting beneath the force of my unhinged steps. If not for the straps securing the shoes, I’d have kicked the offending articles off.
Come on, come on.
Around one trunk, and another, my breaths panted from me, each one seemingly shorter than the last.
A badly-judged dodge resulted in a scratch across my cheek, before the assaulting twig caught in my hair and yanked strands from their binding. I gave a low cry, tears threatening to well at the ridiculously terrifying situation I’d gotten myself into. I only prayed my feet carried me in the right direction.
Though, with the preceding luck of the night as a pointer, I’d probably end up travelling full circle and land myself right back into the thick of it all.
A quiet boom-boom pattern of noise chased me.
My chin whipped up and round, my eyes flittering in an attempt to see all directions at once.
Only branches waved like hag’s fingers beckoning me closer.
The beat hit ground somewhere off to my right.
My head spun that way.
Shadows danced as wood and brush trembled in the breeze.
Tearing my gaze back ahead, I willed myself faster, arms winging back and forth with each manic step.
Something thumped right behind me.
I shrieked.
A heavy force rammed against my back.
The ground surged to meet my body, but a belt made of steel wrapped around my torso, pinning my arms before they could flail.
When my feet left the ground, and my body bulleted forward, breath evaded me. My mind caught up with the rapid haze of passing trees and the realisation that someone had grabbed me.
I opened my mouth wide, releasing a scream of banshee proportions, and kicked back like a mule.
A grunt told me I’d struck well—just as a hand slapped over my mouth. “Hush, they’ll hear us.”
Benjamin? Though the question actually left my throat as ‘Em-um-im?’
“Yes, relax.” His panted breaths heated the side of my neck. “Dammit, Cole. Why couldn’t you just stay put?”
Light headedness speared through my brain as the girder about my ribcage tightened with each bounding jolt of his body. Trees rushed toward us, Benjamin’s weaving missing them by inches. Tiny screams squeaked from me at every turn.
The trees thinned and railings appeared through breaks in brush. I wanted to gush out a sigh of relief, except Benjamin’s palm stalled even that.
“Get the gate,” he said, aiming us straight for it.
My hand went to lift. His arms didn’t allow it.
“The gate, Cole.”
Hauling my knees up, I booted out with both legs the second we reached it, a clang ringing through the air as it shot outward to allow access.
Without breaking stride, Benjamin burst out onto the pavement, raced across the road to the opposite side of the street, and bolted into an alley as dark as a cavern.
My heels scraped concrete, my knees wobbling as my weight settled onto them.
The hand left my mouth, and Benjamin spun me until my back hit the side of whatever building hid us.
I gasped in a few breaths. “What the flipping heck’s going on?”
He placed a finger to his lips.
“Do you know those men, Benjamin?”
With a little shush sound, his gaze left mine, and he stepped to the left.
My attention followed him into the faint spray of lamplight.
All of him.
All six and a half naked feet of him.
My eyes widened.
He reached out, wrapping his fingers around the corner of the wall. The movement sent a ripple through muscles across his chest, over a ridge-packed stomach, and all the way down to … Holy crap, that’s big.
“You have no bloody clothes on!” ‘Cause they’re shredded, my mind hissed. Shaking my head, I forced my gaze north. “What the heck happened to you? Where the hell did you go?”
He pressed his finger back to his lips, still focusing somewhere out in the street.
“I can’t believe you stuck me in a tree …”
“Hush, will you?”
“… A tree! You bloody left me there. With those … those—”
His mouth smothered mine, and I gasped, hadn’t even seen it coming. His tongue darted out; my low moan escaped. “Jesus, you taste good,” he murmured. “But we need to get you out of here. Where’s your mobile?”
“My …” As he stepped away, I peered down at my hands as though confused over their emptiness. “I lost my bag.”
We both turned toward the park.
“Tell me you didn’t lose it in there.”
“I lost it in there.”
He cursed, turned back to me. “Listen to me. You’re going to take off your shoes—”
“What? It’s sno—”
His palm cut me off. “You’ve already proved they slow you down. And I need you to run as fast as you can to the river car park. Drake will be there. Get in the car with him. Tell him where I am.”
I nudged his hand down. “And you?”
He dropped to his knees, his fingers unleashing my shoes like he’d had a lot of practice. Once he’d slipped them off, he straightened and handed them to me. “I’m going for your purse.”
“But—”
“Run.”
“But—”
He darted back out into the street, his totally hot arse bouncing around beneath the lamplight, and left me standing in a dark alley in Horton with my feet fast going numb.
My body turned to go the way he’d ordered, but my head tried
to send me back the other way. Car. Ben. Car. Ben.
A snarl ripped through the air.
I squeaked and bolted.
The end of the alley couldn’t come fast enough. My stocking-clad feet trampled over stones and rubbish and who knew what else, each little stab accompanied by my string of inventive ‘Ouch’s. Breaths panted from me by the time I burst from the shadows onto the soggy mush of the street and angled left. Dashing along, I hoped nobody noticed the crazy, hyperventilating, vagrant-looking woman racing along as though pursued by the hounds of hell.
Thirty metres ahead, the orange glow of the car park lights lent a blush to the sparkling ground, where they peeked through the trees that separated the road from the river.
A minute later, I spotted the Mercedes.
Oh, thank God!
On feet frozen beyond feeling, I raced through the entrance. Straight to the car. Banged on the window.
Nothing.
I ducked forward, peering through the windscreen.
Empty.
I gave a small whimper.
A moment later, frustration fuelled temper, and I kicked the door, slapping the window. “Where the bloody he—”
Hands grabbed my waist.
I swung around. Raised my heels. Swung them down on my attacker.
“Bollocks!”
I flipped my arm up again and drove it back down.
A hand snaked round my wrist. “Quit! I’m not gonna hurt you.”
My breath wheezed out, and I blinked the terror from my vision.
“Where’s Ben?” Drake’s gaze scanned me. His nostrils flared. “Oh, shit!” His hand released me. In the next second, the alarm bleeped, the lights flashing through the shadows. “Get in the passenger seat.”
I didn’t need telling twice. My bum met with leather as the engine sprang to life, and I snapped my seatbelt on.
“Where?”
“Mersion Park.” I still panted a little. “This side. Benjamin was taking me for a cruller.”
The car screeched through the gates. “Flunkies?” Despite his tense arms flipping the wheel to the right, Drake made the question sound like casual chat.
Curse of Christmas: A Collection of Paranormal Holiday Stories Page 55
