by Cree Storm
Benji’s eyes lit up as his smile widened. “The kind he makes from scratch, not that instant crap?”
“Yup. And from what I hear, he put some sliced strawberries in it,” Gill replied.
“Damn, I need to get there before it’s all gone. Have a good night, Mack, and good luck with the writing. Talk to you later.” And with that, Benji took off across the parking lot, crossed the street, and headed toward Twixie’s.
Benji stood there chuckling to himself as he watched until Benji disappeared inside Twixie’s. A chilled wind blew around the building and Gill shivered as he tightened his light hoodie around his neck. Shit. He should have worn a heavier coat. Just as he was about to turn to head back inside he heard a small, meek voice down the side of the building, in the shadows.
“Help,” the voice was so low and whispered he wasn’t sure if he actually heard it or not.
Gill took a step around the edge of the building and turned his head to listen harder. As he took a second step, he heard the voice again. “Help.”
Cautiously, Gill took a few more steps, heading toward the voice, when suddenly he realized the voice was coming from somewhere toward the rear corner of the building, in the dark shadows. He stopped his motion and called out, “Hello! Is there somebody there? Do you need help?”
He got no answer except for a small rattling couch. Shit, what if whoever this was, was hurt and dying? He had trained to be a firefighter and knew he had to help. He just couldn’t walk away if someone was in need. But just as he took another step closer, the thought of every horror movie he had ever seen came crashing into his memory and Gill froze. What the hell am I doing, someone needs help. Yeah, but what if it’s some psycho killer who wants to strap you to a table as he slowly peels the flesh from your bones, then boils it and makes you eat it before he pulls your limbs off one by one like a bug?
Gill shook his head to clear the gross images, then narrowed his eyes, trying to look harder into the shadows, but he still couldn’t see anything.
The next sound he heard had his blood run cold and terror like he had never felt before filled his body, and Gill was now frozen for another reason. The sound of a small, angry growl, like a pissed off animal about to attack had him shaking so hard he thought he would pee himself.
A cold, sandpapery rough voice came out of the shadow had Gill’s feet moving again, this time in the opposite direction. “Come here little human and let me feast on you.”
Gill turned tail and ran. As he got to the corner he slid on a patch of ice and thought he was going to go down and that would give whoever this was a the second he needed to catch Gill, but he reached out a hand and grabbed hold of the corner of the building, using it to steady himself and help push him along around the edge.
Once he was sure of his footing, Gill picked up speed, but his heart began to pound faster and louder as he heard heavy footfalls getting closer behind him. He didn’t want to turn and look over his shoulder to see how close this guy was. Everything in him screamed not to and that this was the moment in the movie when the girl looked back, lost her footing, and was captured, that everyone yelled at the screen at her for being such a stupid head, but Gill just couldn’t help it, he needed to see how close this guy was.
He turned his head to look over his shoulder and all the blood in his body that had already gone cold, now froze as his heart damn near stopped. He had no idea what was chasing him, but he knew it wasn’t a man. Was that…that…thing, even a man? Was it human or some kind of botched military experiment that escaped? Gill had no idea what he was seeing. All he did know was that he needed to get away from it or he would die. There was no doubt in his mind that if this creature caught him, that he would die a very long, painful death.
Gill stumbled slightly but caught himself as he turned his head back to the front. Seeing the entrance to the shelter only about thirty feet away gave him some hope and Gill smiled to himself as he tried to move faster.
The entrance got closer and a sense of relief hit him. He was going to make it. At the last second, he realized he needed his pass card, and Gill pulled it from his front pocket. A deadly growl came from behind him and Gill jumped, dropping the card to the ground. “No!”
That thing was close, he could feel it, and knew that if he stopped to get the card he was done for. He wouldn’t even be able to get to the front door and bang, hoping someone would hear him and get to him on time. With it being so late, everyone was either gone or in their private rooms for the night and no one would hear him. He needed to think of something else.
Gill felt fingers brush against his right shoulder and he screamed in fright as he ducked down away from the grasp, spun right, and ran toward the parking lot. In this late hour there were only a handful of cars, but Gill hoped it was enough for him to hide.
He ran between two cars and hunched down, then hurried around the tail end and went up the other side of the car. Suddenly, Gill realized he didn’t hear anything besides his own heavy breathing and his heart as it pounded in his chest.
He stopped and leaned back against the car, trying to catch his breath and listen for the monster, but heard nothing. Where did the thing go? It had been right on his heels. Surely, it had seen him duck behind the cars. Gill waited a few more minutes, his heart erratic as the fear he felt gripped him tight. He turned his head frantically from left to right, trying to get a glimpse of the creature, or a movement somewhere, but everything was still and quiet except for a cold breeze here and there.
It felt like an hour had passed, but Gill knew it was more like five minutes, and still nothing. Maybe someone had actually come to the door and spooked the monster, so he gave up his chase? Gill slowly crab-walked to the front of the car, keeping low. Once he made it to the bumper, he peered around the edge, his gaze sweeping over the parking lot and entrance to the shelter. He found no one and no boogeyman.
Gill released a sigh of relief as the tightness in his body relaxed and he fell back on his ass on the cold pavement, leaning back against the car. He closed his eyes and smiled as he slowed his breathing. The smiled dropped from his lips as his heart sank and he felt like he would drop dead right on the spot. He knew this was the end of his life when he heard the harsh but amused voice coming from above him.
“Just how I like my food. Fast, take out, and drive-thru.”
Large hands gripped his shoulders and claws dug into his flesh, causing Gill to scream out in pain. Then with a strength Gill didn’t think possible, the boogeyman, monster, whatever, lifted him right off the ground and pulled him up over the top of the car. Gill found himself laying with his back on the roof of the car looking up at a creature who looked sort of like a lion, but grotesquely deformed. Its eyes were deep, muddy brown pools with a hint of blue around them where the whites should be. But it was the nose and mouth that made Gill’s stomach clench, threatening to lose his dinner.
The nose was wide and furry like a lion but twisted to the side and looked like it was splitting down the middle and a sick, yellowish green puss oozed from it. The lips were large and looked very swollen, and they were covered in lesions and scabs. Some cracked and bleeding. Big, sharp canines poked out of the sides, but instead of pearly white, they were a dark orange brown with black rings at the gum line. And as the creature opened his mouth, Gill saw that what remained of the other teeth, although not as sharp and pointy, matched the fangs.
Then Gill's stomach really rolled when the creatures eyes filled with lust and a long, snakelike tongue slid out between those twisted lips and the creature lowered toward him. Gill closed his eyes tight as his body shook uncontrollably, waiting for the moment that disgusting thing made contact with his flesh.
Suddenly the creature let out a load, ear-splitting roar, and drool and saliva flew from that mouth, bathing Gill’s face. He clamped his eyes and mouth shut tighter, trying to keep the vile stuff from getting inside him.
The creature suddenly released him harshly and Gill was slammed against the roof
of the car so hard he felt the metal cave below him and he cried out from the pain that raced down his spine.
CHAPTER 16
“What is that?” Wade asked as he looked at the paper Suneth was holding.
“Illan called and told me the council received a call from someone in Maddox who claims a band of gypsies were moving through the area and heading in this direction. I told him I would have some of my men check it out.”
Wade’s brows rose as he smirked. “Gypsies? Are they any kind of threat?”
“Depending on what type of gypsies they are, then yes, they could be a very big threat. If they’re normal human gypsies, then no, I’m not really concerned, but if they are a band of shifters, then we need to find out what type and what they want. All gypsies have some kind of magic and if they are paranormal as well, then their magic is concerning,” Suneth replied.
“And why is that, mate?” Wade asked as he ran a hand up Suneth’s thigh, causing him to shiver.
“Gypsy curses can last a lifetime. And seeing as shifters live for a long time, that can be even more devastating than it is for a human. It’s also damn near impossible to get a gypsy to remove a curse once they’ve placed it on someone.”
“Maybe these gypsies are after this bad man like we are? You said he had a very wicked curse on him and now these gypsies appear,” Timmy said, pulling Suneth and Wade’s attention to him.
Suneth looked at Timmy in awe, then he smiled with pride. Wade chuckled from beside him and Suneth looked to his mate.
“A lot of the time it’s so simple it can reach out and bite you, yet you can’t see it, but the most innocent of us see it loud and clear,” Wade said with amusement in his voice as he looked at Timmy.
“What? What does that mean?” Timmy asked.
Suneth turned back to face his littlest chimera member. “It means that my mate and I are thrilled to have you on our side and so proud of you.”
Timmy smiled bright as he sat up straighter. “Oh, okay.”
“Run, Gill, run!” Donny yelled, drawing everyone's attention.
Just as Suneth turned to look at Donny, the man jumped to his feet as he kept his eyes glued to the computer monitor that showed them the street camera view of the shelter.
“Shit, why aren’t they there yet? He’ll never make it,” Rory said in a panic as his fingers flew over the keyboard.
He, Wade, and Timmy moved closer to get a good look.
“Wait! He made it to the cars. But where did that thing go?” Timmy asked as he feverishly looked around at all the monitors trying to find where the beast had gone.
An alarm sounded, causing them to jump. “What is that?” Suneth asked.
“That’s the secure line,” Wade answered as he moved closer to Rory’s side, then hit the button on the desk phone, putting it on speaker. “Flyer? Is that you?”
“Yeah, it..m…Com..ander,” Flyer answered, but the connection was full of static and his voice was jumbled.
“Flyer, we have a bad connection. Where the hell are you?” Wade commanded.
“I ad to ake a sma detour. Porcupine spikes in m…sorry. Coffee sp…my instrument…Had to land and refue, then clea…p…the mes…I’m in th…air agai…but my GPS…out. I storm...ly around…longer…get…ere.”
“What the hell is he saying?” Donny asked.
Timmy looked shyly at all of them then whispered, “He said he had to take a small detour and land the plane to refuel and clean up. There was a…um…”
“What, Timothy?” Suneth asked softly.
Timmy looked to his leader and gave him a guilty smile. “Something about a porcupine spike in his something, then coffee spilling and now his GPS isn’t working. But he’s okay, except he’s taking a detour around a storm and will take longer to get to his destination.”
“A porcupine? Shit, how the hell did Spike get on that plane?” Wade asked as he ran his hands across his shaved head in frustration.
“To hell with that, how can you understand what the hell he’s saying to begin with?” Donny asked in frustration.
Shrugging, Timmy replied, “I don’t know. He sounds perfectly clear to me.”
“Command…are you…ere?” Flyer came back on.
Wade placed his palms flat on the desk and leaned down over the phone. “I’m here, soldier. You need to stop and land. Don’t proceed. We got a tip that the enemy knows we’re coming. Do you hear me, Flyer? Do you know your coordinates?”
“GPS do…not sure whe…I…so…What th…uck!” Flyer screamed the last word and they could all hear the shock in his voice.
“Flyer! Flyer!” Wade yelled.
The phone crackled and hissed, but suddenly Flyer’s voice came in load and clear. “Shit! Going down! Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!” Then everything went quiet.
They all stood frozen just staring at the silent phone for a few moments, then Wade grabbed the receiver and put it to his ear as he yelled, “Flyer! Aiden! Aiden Caldwell, do you hear me? Flyer!”
* * * *
Savage couldn’t believe what he was seeing as they approached the shelter. Everyone had taken off out of the garage at top speed. The gargoyles shifted, but he and the others all ran on their human legs, afraid of freaking the human out more when they got to him. But now seeing the condition of the cursed one that lay over the human on top of the car, Savage knew nothing he shifted into would be a bigger shock than that grotesque thing. What the hell had the fucker done to have had that curse placed on him? It must have been really bad, which only told Savage that the man would deserve whatever they dished out.
As Savage neared the car, he saw the creature lick its lips and knew he was ready to strike the human. Without another thought, Savage shifted into a dragon in the blink of an eye and took off. He hovered over the pair on the car, then dug his claws in the creature’s shoulders. The thing roared in pain, but Savage couldn’t give a damn. He flapped his wings and lifted, pulling the creature off the human and taking flight.
There was only one thing left for him to do. Savage knew whoever placed the spell on this man would never remove it and he also knew this beast that the man had become would only get more twisted and evil if he were allowed to live. Savage flew toward the mountains, then climbed higher. The beast in his grasp squirmed and fought for release, but Savage only tightened his grasp.
Once he felt ice forming on his wings, he knew he was high enough. Looking down he saw that he was directly above a deep canyon. It was the perfect place. Savage opened his claws, releasing the beast. The man dropped fast as Savage remained hovering, watching to make sure he would no longer be a threat to anyone. Especially his mate.
When he had approached the man on the roof of the car, Savage’s senses were filled with the most wonderful smell ever. It was the same scent he had caught on Christmas when they had gone to the party at the club in Maddox. He quickly realized that it was the erotic scent of his mate and rage like he had never felt before filled him as the words, protect and kill rang through his head.
Someone was harming what belonged to him and the protectiveness that engulfed him actually scared him momentarily. He had always known that the pull of a mate and the bond that was created was the strongest force in all of creation, but until you felt it for yourself, there was no preparing for it. He was in a red-hot, blind rage to defend and protect what the fates had gifted him. And not just for himself, but for the man that he had been blessed with. It was now his job to make sure this human, his mate, was safe and happy for the rest of their lives. And for this human, Gill they had called him, to be mated to Savage, that meant that Gill would now potentially be immortal.
Savage flew down, keeping an eye on the screaming beast as it got closer to the earth. Then suddenly he stopped and pulled up as the beast continued down, slamming into the boulders that lay on the canyon floor. A sickening crunching and popping sound came to his ears as Savage saw blood explode from the beast’s nose, mouth, and ears at the moment of impact.
He d
idn’t feel any remorse for the loss, only relief. He knew the men of Maddox, Crystal, and elsewhere were now safe from the beast. Savage turned and flew off back toward town and his mate.
* * * *
As he got closer to the shelter he noticed Snake, Ozcog, and the others all kneeling in a circle on the pavement next to the car his mate and the beast had been on. Flicking his gaze to the car, he saw that his mate was gone, but the roof of the vehicle had a deep dent. He flinched, thinking that he had caused that, but most importantly, that he had caused his mate harm. Guilt filled him as he landed, then shifted, and quickly ran to join the others.
Snake moved aside to let him in and Savage dropped to his knees and gasped as he saw a pool of blood surrounding his beautiful mate’s shoulders and head. He wanted to touch Gill but was afraid of hurting him. “Where is he hurt? Why is no one doing anything?” he asked in a panic.
“Doc Rob is on his way. The paramedics were at the hospital when the call came in and Rob jumped in the rig with them to come on site. Illan called him and told him this one needed his attention immediately,” Snake answered.
“Then where the hell are they? Shouldn’t they be here by now?” Savage asked, his gaze fixed on Gill’s handsome face. His mate’s eyes were closed, and he knew he was unconscious, but he was breathing, and Savage could hear his heart beating, which gave him some comfort.
“It’s only been a few minutes, Sav, they’ll be here soon.”
“That’s not good enough. My mate needs medical attention now, damn it!” he seethed, then closed his eyes and took a deep, calming breath.
“Shit, your mate? Gill is your mate?” Ozcog asked.
“Yes,” Savage said simply as he opened his eyes. He reached out and gently pushed a strand of hair from his mate’s forehead. Gods, he’s breathtaking. His hair is so soft and golden, almost like a field of wheat.
His mate began to move as a low moan escaped his lips. Then suddenly his eyes flicked open and Savage was lost in the beauty of his cobalt blue eyes, but just as suddenly, they closed, and a small whimper escaped Gill’s lips. Fear raced through Savage as he leaned in closer. Gill’s heart rate was slowing, and his breathing becoming shallow.
