Red Wolf

by Jennifer Ashley

  The sound Dimitri made was a cross between a howl and a scream, a terrible cry of rage and bloodthirsty need for vengeance.

  The damned Collar wouldn’t cease, arcs of blue electricity streaming into Dimitri’s throat. Dimitri became his half beast with little effort and dug his fingers into his own flesh, sinking them around the chain. Just as Cian had burrowed his fingertips into the stone, jerking it loose to free them from the dungeon, so Dimitri sank his fingers into his neck where the Collar had embedded itself.

  Dimitri no longer cared about petty things like pain. He wrapped his fingers around the Collar and ripped it from his throat.

  Collars were designed to burrow in, to become one with the Shifter, and removing a collar was usually a long and harrowing process. Dimitri cut the process short by tearing the chain away, his nerves screaming where they let go, blood pouring from his neck. He threw the blood-smeared chain to the stones, and it skittered across the parapet with a clinking sound.

  Dimitri roared—every sorrow of his past, all the anger, the grief that Brice had caused him, streaming forth. Brice had told Dimitri with a straight face that he had rescued Dimitri from the fire, twisting the tale so Brice became its hero.

  Fucking asshole.

  The words came from Dimitri’s mouth as he closed both arms around Brice’s body and yanked Brice from Jaycee.

  Jaycee fell, panting, coming up again covered in blood. Dimitri crushed Brice’s ribs, the bear howling, before Brice squirmed around and began to fight.

  Dimitri knew he should be half dead from the battle, then from falling, being shot with an arrow, and last, gouging the Collar out of his throat, but the feral beast that existed inside every Shifter had taken over, infusing him with strength. Dimitri’s past and present merged into a continuous line, the cub and the adult finding each other at long last.

  Both of them seriously wanted Brice dead.

  Dimitri saw real fear enter Brice’s eyes. He could no longer hide from Dimitri, or from himself.

  He’d fight to the end, though. Brice became his half beast, a giant of a bear-man, and met Dimitri in a crash of bodies. They fought, hand to hand, claw to claw, Dimitri feeling nothing but the bright need to kill. Survival didn’t matter anymore, only destroying the man who’d taken his family.

  Dimitri was going down under Brice’s greater weight, but he didn’t care. He kept on battling, the cub striking out at the beast who’d killed his parents, the adult beating on the man who’d tried to kill his mate.

  Brice opened his mouth, his bear maw with its huge teeth coming at Dimitri’s neck, ready to rip out his throat.

  Jaycee let loose her best leopard scream. She landed on Brice, her clawed paws going to his throat, tearing it open. Blood streamed down on Dimitri, and Brice roared, swinging around to hurl Jaycee off. They were too close to the wall—if he threw Jaycee from him here, she’d go over the side.

  She didn’t, of course. Brice managed to jerk her loose and toss her away, satisfaction in his eyes as she flew toward the parapet’s edge.

  Jaycee twisted herself and landed atop the parapet’s low wall, bounced on her three good feet, and came into a crouch once more at Dimitri’s side.

  Where she belonged. Dimitri heaved himself up, and together he and Jaycee seized Brice and sent him to the ground.

  “Payback’s a bitch,” Dimitri growled, and then he grabbed the terrified Brice by his great head and broke his neck.

  * * *

  Jaycee clung to Dimitri as she lay panting, the stones beneath her cutting into her hurt leg. Shifting back to human was painful, but she wanted to hold Dimitri, just hold on to him.

  Dimitri lay beneath her, his throat wet with blood, so much that at first Jaycee feared Brice had managed to get in a killing blow. But no—a Collar, bloody, rested on the stones. Someone had put a real Collar on Dimitri, and he’d torn it off when it had tried to prevent him from rushing to fight for Jaycee.

  If Dimitri hadn’t managed to reach her, Brice would have broken Jaycee’s body and flung her from the precipice. She wouldn’t have had the agility to save herself—she knew that with chilling clarity.

  “Thank you,” she whispered.

  Beneath her, Dimitri shifted to his human body and wrapped one shaky arm around her. “Hey, baby. I’ve got your back, remember?”

  Jaycee kissed him, though her lips hurt, and from his wince, his did too.

  Tiger roared, the sound vibrating the stones. The Fae had surrounded him, swords flashing, but they couldn’t get close to him. The Fae whom Jaycee had recognized as a dokk alfar, like Reid, fought the Fae savagely, stabbing at them with a dark knife like the one Ben had given Jaycee.

  She and Dimitri should rise, fight, help Tiger and the dokk alfar. Too bad Jaycee had an arrow in her leg and no energy left.

  “What is that?” a deep voice asked. “I want one.”

  Dimitri jerked his head up and let out a groan. A Fae soldier had emerged from the castle, this one standing calmly as he stared at Tiger in amazement.

  “Damn,” Dimitri said. “I wondered when he’d show up.”

  “Who is he?” Jaycee asked, looking the tall Fae up and down. He wore silver armor and animal skins and carried a sword, but he simply watched the fight instead of joining in.

  “That’s Simeon,” Dimitri said. “He owns the place.”

  “Ah—Simeon Mac An Bhaird.”

  Dimitri looked at her in astonishment. “You know him?”

  “Heard the name. Looks like a jerk.”

  Dimitri shook with laughter, then moaned in pain. “You got that right.”

  Simeon moved on light feet to stand over Dimitri and Jaycee, his right boot near Dimitri’s face. He moved his sword to tap Jaycee. “You. You’re comely. I’ll take you for my own.”

  “Comely?” Jaycee turned a scornful gaze up to him. “Seriously? And get that sword out of my face.”

  “Jase,” Dimitri said worriedly, but Jaycee didn’t care who this guy thought he was. Aisling had called him a prat, and Jaycee decided she agreed.

  Simeon’s brows drew together. “You’re even more insubordinate than he is. I shall enjoy myself taming you. Soon you’ll beg to come to me.”

  “Oh, please.” In a sudden swift movement, Jaycee rolled over, grabbed Simeon’s sword between her hands, and yanked it out of his grasp, just as Dimitri had done with the Fae in Brice’s basement. She and Dimitri had practiced that move for a long time.

  Jaycee flung the sword away, triumphant, right before Simeon grabbed her by the hair and pulled her up, a silver knife at her throat.

  Dimitri kicked him in the balls.

  Simeon grunted, loosening his hold on Jaycee’s hair enough for her to squirm away. She rested on her good leg and her hands, ready to leap. Dimitri kicked out again, laughing when he caught Simeon high up inside his hip.

  Simeon stumbled but was back in an instant, murder in his eyes. He raised his knife and brought it down at Dimitri’s throat.

  “That will be quite enough of that.”

  Relief washed through Jaycee as Lady Aisling’s clear, imperious tones rang through the courtyard. “Oh, thank the Goddess she’s here,” Jaycee whispered.

  “Who’s here?” Dimitri asked, cranking his head around.

  Lady Aisling swept onto the roof, and she could truly sweep in the silver and green robes she’d put on over a shimmering blue tunic and leggings. Fur lined the cloak and the tops of her boots—she’d dressed for the occasion. Flanking her were three Shifters in animal form—a black-maned lion, a black wolf, and a very large polar bear.

  Tiger let out a roar and scattered the Fae who’d been trying to cut into him. The soldiers caught sight of Aisling and her new friends and went ashen. Swords fell from hands, clattering on the stones, and a few of the Fae dropped to their knees.

  The soldiers’ reaction annoyed Si
meon, but he turned, gave Aisling a brief bow, and spoke to her with some deference. “What brings you here, my lady?”

  “You do, Simeon,” Aisling said, pinning him with her green-eyed stare. “You and your ill-advised actions. I am taking the Shifters with me. All of them.”

  Simeon’s eyes flared with rage but Jaycee saw him tamp down his anger. He swept his arm to indicate Jaycee, Dimitri, and Tiger. “Fine. Take them,” he said bad-temperedly.

  “I mean all of them,” Aisling said, her voice firm. “Including the ones hidden in your stables.”

  Simeon scowled. “Those Shifters are here of their own free will.”

  “I am sure you told them that. The bear is dead.” Aisling glanced at Brice’s limp body lying in the bright moonlight. “The others will come with me.”

  Simeon shrugged. “Those that wish to, will.”

  The lion changed to human with a crackle of sinew. “Where are they?” Dylan asked in a harsh voice.

  “As her ladyship indicated, in the stable.” Simeon waved a dismissive hand. “Go. My men will not prevent you.”

  Without another word, Dylan headed back into the castle. Angus, the black wolf, after only a moment’s hesitation, went with him.

  Zander remained, his polar bear taking in the surroundings. Jaycee saw by the look in his eyes that he was enjoying scaring the Fae shitless very much.

  Except that Jaycee suspected their fear had more to do with Aisling than any of the Shifters. Aisling had done nothing more than walk in and look regal, and she had the Fae quaking in their boots.

  “Tiger, polar bear,” Aisling said. “Help Jaycee and her mate down to my carriage.”

  Zander rose on his back legs, stretching his arms upward as he shifted to his human form. He finished standing at full height, extremely nude and large all over, as bears were.

  He moved to Jaycee and Dimitri, his path taking him right by Simeon, who eyed him in great distaste. No one could be more naked and obvious about it than Zander Moncrieff.

  Zander deliberately brushed against Simeon, then paused and tweaked his nose. “Hi there,” he said in a loud voice; then he was past him, kneeling to Jaycee and Dimitri.

  Zander’s expression changed to worry as he laid one hand on Dimitri’s shoulder and the other on Jaycee’s. “I’ll fix you up,” he whispered. “Don’t worry. But we have to get away first. Are you up to it?”

  Tiger made the question irrelevant. He strode to Jaycee, lifted her in his arms, and carried her away.

  Jaycee squirmed, looking back to see Zander helping Dimitri to his feet. “Put me down,” she said to Tiger as he ducked into the castle. “I have to make sure Dimitri is all right.”

  “You have an arrow in your leg,” Tiger said. “Zander will help him.”

  “Dimitri is my mate.” Jaycee’s fighting strength was waning, and she heard the tears in her voice.

  “Zander is a healer. The best thing for your mate is for you to not hurt yourself more.”

  He had a point, but the emotion rocketing through Jaycee’s body wouldn’t listen to logic. Tiger gave her a look of sympathy, understanding, but he wasn’t about to put Jaycee down.

  “Zander will help him. He is a good healer.” Tiger grunted. “Even if he is a very large pain in the ass.”

  Jaycee laughed, and ended up crying. She covered her face with her hand and gave up struggling as Tiger carried her down many flights of stairs and all the way down the hill to a luxurious carriage, painted sparkling gold, that waited at the bottom.

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  The Shifters didn’t want to go home. Dimitri heard Dylan telling Tiger this in disgust when Dylan finally emerged from the castle.

  Zander had carried Dimitri down the hill in surprisingly gentle arms to a coach where Jaycee already waited.

  “I can heal you,” Zander had said to Dimitri as they’d descended. “But not on this hill. I’d pass out from the pain, and then we’d fall, and then we’d both need a healer. Can you hold on until we get back to the Fae woman’s house?”

  “Yes,” Dimitri had said, resigned. Not very dignified, being carried over a large, naked man’s shoulder, but what choice did he have? “Who is the Fae woman?”

  “Apparently a very powerful person,” Zander answered. “Those Fae soldiers turned green when they saw her, and these are guys who weren’t scared of Tiger.”

  “Ignorance,” Dimitri said, his teeth clenching as Zander took a hard step. “All Fae should be afraid of Tiger.”

  “True,” Zander said. “But it’s good to note.”

  Jaycee was waiting in the carriage, dressed now in a silver silk garment that clung to her curves. She drew Dimitri close when Zander set him on the seat beside her. Never mind that he was bloody and getting it all over the pretty silver robe—Jaycee simply held him. That was when Dimitri knew everything would be all right.

  * * *

  When they reached the house, Zander healed Jaycee first—Dimitri insisted—then he closed Dimitri’s wounds. After that, Zander headed out into Aisling’s garden to lie on his back and breath heavily while he studied the stars. He’d be all right, he said to Jaycee’s worried questions. He’d healed Shifters who’d been hurt much worse. But she should leave him alone for a time—and then bring him a beer.

  Jaycee watched him with concern, but she concluded that Zander knew from experience what he needed to do to recover. She let him be.

  Angus and Dylan returned with Brice’s body. Brice was of his Shiftertown, Angus said, and needed to be taken to his Guardian. He was a shit and a murderer, but Brice couldn’t be left inside, with his soul floating free for the Fae to enslave.

  Aisling lent Angus a cart and sent him off toward the sundial, explaining what shadows he should look for to ensure he went back to the right place.

  Dylan had convinced a few of the Shifters to return with him, ones who’d realized they’d gotten in way over their heads. They were subdued as they followed Dylan to the sundial and out of Faerie. Maeve wasn’t one of them. According to Dylan, when Jaycee asked him, she’d said she wanted to stay—Simeon was going to take her as mate.

  “Poor Casey,” Jaycee said to Dimitri later as they lounged in a large room in Aisling’s house, one with a glass roof. The two moons hovered straight overhead, bathing the room in white light.

  “Lucky Casey,” Dimitri said. “Losing a mate who’d rather be with a Fae is no loss. He’s a nice guy, if gullible. He’ll find someone who appreciates him.”

  Cian, the dokk alfar Dimitri said had gotten them out of the dungeon and had fought valiantly for them, had departed. He’d come down the hill with Dylan and Angus, stopped to say something to Tiger, then turned to Dimitri and saluted him. He made a low bow to Aisling, who studied him in surprise, and then ran off into the woods, disappearing quickly from sight.

  “He said Goddess go with you,” Tiger told Dimitri. “And that he will send the Shifters his people have healed back home when they are ready. He also salutes you and your lady warrior. May you be happy and strong.”

  “A very dokk alfar thing to say,” Aisling remarked. “And they don’t like very many people.”

  “He’s a good guy,” Dimitri said.

  “For a dokk alfar?” Aisling had asked, brows rising.

  “For an anything,” Dimitri had answered, before he’d turned to Jaycee and closed his eyes.

  * * *

  Home. Or at least Jasmine Samuelson’s weird-ass house.

  Jaycee felt the usual prickle of strangeness as she crossed the threshold of the door that led to the sitting room, but she also felt the house’s welcoming, plus a little of its relief. The house had worried about them, she thought.

  It was afternoon here—late, from what Jaycee could see. Clouds covered the sun, rendering the landscape light gray, but it was peaceful and serene, the tall trees around the house deepening the s
hadows.

  Ben hurtled into the sitting room as Jaycee and Dimitri emerged. Jaycee had resumed the black pants and tank top she’d left in Aisling’s garden but Dimitri had lost his clothes in Brice’s New Orleans house. Jaycee didn’t mind him walking beside her without them.

  Ben slammed his arms around Jaycee and Dimitri at the same time, kissing Jaycee soundly on the cheek. “I am damned glad to see you. Goddess, I thought I’d lost you both.” He hugged them tighter, the homey, slightly smoky tang of his scent an agreeable change from the acrid odor of the Fae.

  “We’re fine,” Dimitri said. He pulled back and grinned at Ben. “Didn’t realize you loved us so much.”

  “Hey, you stand here and watch your friends be swallowed into Faerie and see how you like it.” Ben gave Dimitri a severe look. “On second thought, don’t. It sucks.”

  Zander and Tiger came through as he finished speaking—Dylan and Angus had already gone, Angus to carry Brice’s body back to the New Orleans Shiftertown and Dylan to escort the Shifters who’d wanted to return home. Dylan had also rescued the bones and skins of the long-dead Shifters from Simeon’s war room, taking them back to be released by a Guardian. Likewise, Cian had promised to return the Shifters his people had healed.

  “What sucks?” Zander asked. “Coming back out of Faerie doesn’t. Whew! Thank the Goddess for this world. Those Shifters who want to stay in Faerie are fucking nuts.” He sobered. “Goddess go with them. They’re going to need her help.”

  As Tiger stepped through the door after Zander, it slammed, one vine twining itself around the doorknob.

  Tiger looked at the door, then did a careful scan of the room, taking in every aspect of it, including the vines that arched over the doorframe. “The house is lonely,” he said. His tone went wistful. “Like I was.”

  Dimitri put his hand on Tiger’s shoulder. “Not anymore, big guy.”

  Tiger lost his pensive look. “That is true.” His eyes glinted with the wisdom he hid from so many. “I will go home now to Carly and my cub.”

  He squeezed Dimitri’s hand, then went to Jaycee and enfolded her in a tight embrace. “Take care of your mate,” he said. “Congratulations.” He moved his finger to Jaycee’s abdomen then, before she could ask what he congratulated her for. Tiger strolled out of the sitting room, making for the front door.