Beauty and the Shapeshifter (Evil Rising, #4)

by Raven, Melody

  Jackson struggled to control the car after her sudden outburst caused him to swerve into another lane of traffic.

  All of her previous groans had been short and over in a second. This was different. She screamed and screamed until she gasped for air. Her head thrashed from side to side and a tear escaped.

  All Brock could do was stare helplessly while he ordered Jackson to drive faster, not caring about speed laws at the moment.

  Ten minutes later, Elsie finally passed out.

  A long hallway stretched in front of Elsie. She turned around, but the only thing behind her was a closed door. Her hand went to the doorknob, but it wouldn’t turn.

  She turned back to the hallway. Wherever she was, it was huge. The passage was at least three hundred yards long, with marble floors and rich columns adorning the walls. Between the columns on her left were paintings and photographs of people she didn’t know, and on her right were beautiful floor-to-ceiling windows.

  Not knowing where to go, Elsie took a cautious step forward. “Is anyone there?”

  She tried to remember how she’d gotten here. What was the last thing she remembered?

  Her mind drew a blank. Something had happened with Brock, but she didn’t know what. Was this his house? She frowned at the thought. This place didn’t seem like Brock’s cup of tea. Too formal.

  The intricate decoration was more a vampire’s style, but the windows didn’t have any sun-proofing on them. Just sheer curtains that would never block the sun.

  When no one responded to her shout, she kept moving ahead.

  The marble floors were cold against her bare feet and a cold breeze swept by her, pushing the white nightgown tightly against her back.

  Her heartbeat kicked up a notch as she turned in a circle, looking for the source of the wind. No windows or doors were open. She told herself it was probably a vent in the ceiling, but for the life of her, she couldn’t see one.

  Determined to find her way out of the strange hallway as soon as possible, she quickened her steps. “Seriously, is anyone there?” She tried to keep the rising panic from her voice.

  She passed by multiple closed doors, but every one she tried was locked. Looking out the windows, she saw she was at least three stories up. Even if she could open them, she would never chance the fall.

  A creaking noise sounded from behind her. Her nerves were so far on the edge by now that the sound caused her to jump a good six inches.

  As she struggled to control her breathing, she eyed the door that had just swung open. “Hello?”

  Her feet wanted to run away from the door, but she cursed herself for her cowardice. The silence and unfamiliar location were just playing tricks on her.

  Elsie squared her shoulders and approached the door that had been locked just minutes ago. She walked inside the room and saw an ornate bedroom decorated in rich purples and greens. The bed was huge with four posts on each corner, every post thicker than Elsie’s head and sitting ten feet high. Even at that height, there was plenty of space between the posts and the high ceiling.

  Sitting on the bed was a petite blonde. She faced away from Elsie, feet hanging over the edge. She wore a long white nightgown similar to the one Elsie wore; her hair was long enough to just touch the comforter on the bed. She was so still, Elsie almost thought she was dead, but the subtle rise and fall of her shoulders told her otherwise.

  “Hey there,” she whispered, not wanting to startle the woman.

  The woman’s head whipped around at the sound and Elsie took a step back. The woman’s eyes glowed gold and two fangs protruded from her growling mouth.

  Elsie took another step back, prepared to run from the room, but she was too late. The woman shot off the bed as though she was flying, and her claw-tipped fingers wrapped around Elsie’s throat.

  Elsie’s eyes snapped open as she struggled to breathe. Her hands went to her neck, but there was nothing there. She started to focus on her surroundings and she realized she wasn’t in the same room as the one in her dream.

  Judging by the rustic furnishings and pine trees outside the window, she wasn’t even in the same house.

  “You’re awake!”

  The booming, feminine voice caused Elsie to wince. She held her head as waves of pain let her know she wasn’t dreaming anymore.

  The girl walked farther into the room. She had blonde hair, but was much younger than the woman in Elsie’s dream. Probably in her mid-teens, but it was hard for Elsie to tell ages. Growing up around immortals left her age-guessing ability lacking.

  Was it a dream? Most realistic dream she’d ever had, that was for sure.

  “Are you okay? I didn’t think you’d ever wake up. Are you really married to Brock? Lana can’t wait to meet you.”

  Every word felt like a hammer hitting her head. “Slow down,” she murmured. “Where am I?” She remembered collapsing in her office and she remembered Brock carrying her into Jackson’s car, but everything after that was a blank.

  She felt the blood rush into her face at the memory of sitting in Brock’s lap. How embarrassing! As if she were a little kid who needed comforting.

  “You’re in Connecticut. Brock wanted you to recover somewhere relaxing.”

  Elsie pushed herself into a sitting position to see out the window better. It certainly looked relaxing. Pine trees led down to a lake, where gentle waves lapped at the shore. She stood up and pushed open the window, suddenly needing the fresh air.

  The cool spring breeze blew over her face, and the pain in her head finally subsided. Elsie moaned a sigh of relief, finally being free from the pain of bonding with Brock.

  She had known immediately what was happening in her office. Ever since she was a child, her mother had told her stories of the magical bond a siren had with her mate.

  No one ever told her it would feel as if she just got hit by a semi. There never should’ve been a bonding! She kissed him! In what crazy world was a kiss enough to start the bonding process?

  Now that her headache was gone, she suddenly remembered her manners. “I’m sorry, I haven’t had a chance to introduce myself. I’m Elsie.” She turned to the teen.

  “You’ve been kinda busy.” The girl smiled. “I’m Dani. I live here with my mom and Lana.”

  Elsie stood up and pushed the heavy comforters and quilts away. She was relieved to see an oversized t-shirt and shorts instead of the nightgown from the dream. “Who changed my clothes?”

  Dani’s brow furrowed at the question. “Brock. You’re his mate.”

  Shit. “Speaking of, where is he?”

  “He took your dog out for a run a few minutes ago. He should be back soon, though. So how long have you and Brock been together? He never mentioned you. Has he prepared you for Lana? She isn’t happy about this. Whenever anyone mentions you, her face squinches up like she just bit into a lemon.”

  Elsie really wanted to know who this “Lana” was, but knew better than to ask. She and Brock were mated now, so there was no point in letting his family know just how little they knew each other.

  Elsie studied Dani. Though she was still growing into her body, it was obvious she would be stunning in a few years. Her face was still in the awkward transition between young girl and woman, but the tank top and loose shorts she wore revealed curves a lot of women would kill for.

  As of right now, she and Dani were about tied in the chest department—Elsie being a solid B and sometimes even a C cup, depending on the brand—but she bet Dani wasn’t done developing.

  Whoever her father was, he was going to have to make sure he kept his shotgun handy.

  Suddenly, Elsie zoned in on what Dani said. “Did you say he was running with my dog?”

  Once again, Dani looked at Elsie as though she was the crazy one. “Well, yeah.”

  Elsie started to run for the door before she promptly fell flat on her face. Apparently her legs were not happy with her decision to suddenly move.

  “Oh my God! Are you okay?”

  “I
’m fine,” grumbled Elsie as she pushed herself up. “Only thing that hurts right now is my pride.”

  Dani smiled at her as she offered her hand. “Don’t worry. You haven’t walked for a week.”

  Crap. A week in bed at a strange house, surrounded by strangers who consider her married to Brock and, to top it all off, her dog was here. Crap.

  “I need to see Riggs,” she mumbled as she started to walk again, this time much more cautiously. Dani held her arm to support her, but Elsie pulled away, determined to walk without help. She had already relied on these people too much.

  She made it to the stairs without needing to lean on anything for balance but was grateful for the excuse to use the handrail.

  The railing was the same aged wood that carried the rustic theme throughout the considerable sized house. It was nowhere close to the size of the mansion in her dream, but she passed another three bedrooms on her walk to the stairs, and there were probably a few more on the lower level.

  Though the cabin was rustic themed, it was a rich rustic. There were obviously multiple generators to power all the lights and appliances, and everything seemed new and well maintained.

  Trying to appear as normal as possible while walking down the stairs became more difficult as people came from all over the house to congregate right below her. Two women came out from what appeared to be a kitchen while another man walked up from the basement. They all looked expectantly at Elsie.

  At a loss, all she could mumble out was, “Hi.”

  It was obvious the women were related, though, like most immortals, they appeared the same age, late twenties to early thirties. The one who gave Elsie a stern look of disapproval was probably Lana.

  Elsie had to give Dani credit. The woman did look as though she just bit into something extremely offensive to the taste buds. Elsie looked over her shoulder and made eye contact with the teen, who immediately burst into laughter.

  Elsie managed to contain her own laughter, but her smile was unavoidable. The other woman tried her best to look stern, but her expression ended up settling on slightly amused. “What on earth is so funny, Dani?”

  Dani quieted her laughter, but the smile stayed. “Nothing, Mom. Just an inside joke.”

  “You’ve been awake for less than an hour and you and Dani already have inside jokes? No wonder Brock fell for you so quickly.” It was a sober reminder of the reasons she was at the cabin and surrounded by strangers. Luckily, Dani’s mom didn’t leave her clueless for long.

  “I’m Gloria, and this is Lana and Russell.” She didn’t say how any of them knew Brock, but if Elsie and he really were in a serious relationship, she would’ve known all this.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” she said, calling upon her manners perfected through years of rubbing elbows with the vampire monarchy and high council. “I wish it was under better circumstances.” She threw in a smile that warmed even the iciest politicians. Gloria smiled back.

  Lana was not amused.

  Russell stepped forward. He looked so much like Brock, they were almost twins. Where Brock had short and well-kept black hair, Russell had his long mane tied back in a loose ponytail. They both had golden brown eyes, but Russell’s nose and cheekbones were a tad narrower than Brock’s.

  The biggest difference was Russell’s physical bulk. The man looked as if he could bench-press a truck. His muscles were so large his navy t-shirt could barely contain them.

  “Brock should’ve told us about you sooner,” he said in a gruff voice.

  Well, that got awkward quickly.

  The front screen door opened, abruptly breaking up the silence. Elsie’s jaw almost hit the floor as Brock, sans shirt, walked in. Riggs happily trotted next to him.

  She’d only ever seen him in his suits and ties. Sure, the jacket would come off at times, but how could he have hidden all those abs for so many years?

  When he saw her, his face betrayed his shock. “Elsie! When did you wake up?”

  She probably would’ve started drooling if Riggs hadn’t bounded halfway up the stairs to meet her and rub against her bare legs.

  She forced herself to look away as a blush swept up her neck and cheeks. “Just, um, I got up a few minutes ago,” she stuttered.

  Get a grip! It wasn’t as though this was the first time she’d ever seen an attractive shirtless man. It was just the first one she was mated to.

  Technically, he was hers to touch.

  Brock crossed to the stairs. “Let me get cleaned up and we’ll go for a walk.”

  Cleaned up. As in showering. The uninvited image of all that beautiful muscle under a flowing stream of water popped into Elsie’s mind. “Sounds good!” she shouted, much too cheerfully, before she turned and shamelessly ran back to her room.

  Brock tried not to stare at Elsie, but she didn’t make it easy.

  They walked along the stony beach, just out of reach of the waves. The gentle breeze and bright setting sun made for the perfect first date setting. This was not a perfect first date.

  He’d never seen Elsie in anything other than her perfectly pressed suits. Her face was makeup free and hair pulled away from her face. She seemed so much younger. When she held her hand up to shield her eyes from the sun, she almost looked like a teenager.

  She wore a pair of Gloria’s shorts and one of his old t-shirts, which hung down to the middle of her thighs.

  “Was Lana nice to you?” he asked, not even sure he wanted to hear the answer.

  Backing up his concerns was her smile at the question. “Lana and I aren’t best friends. Let’s just put it that way. Gloria seems sweet and Dani’s funny. How are they related to you?”

  “Lana is my grandmother on my mother’s side. Russell is my brother and Gloria is my sister.”

  Elsie carefully stepped around a washed up log and Brock deftly hopped over it, the motion subtly inhuman. He knew she caught it by the look she gave him.

  She might as well get used to this side of him. He hid it at the office, but he couldn’t keep his wolf hidden while surrounded by woods and water.

  “Is it true that you guys have big families?”

  “I had five brothers and sisters, but none of them have had that many children. There’s still time, though,” he added.

  “How many of them are left?”

  Leave it to Elsie to pick up every detail. “Russell, Jensen, Gloria, and Kayla, Jackson’s mother. Jackson and Dani are my only nieces and nephews.”

  Elsie looked out over the water and he knew she was trying to commit his family tree to memory.

  “Don’t worry. I’ll draw you a chart of the whole family.”

  She gave a snort of laughter. “Yeah, that might be necessary. Are all your brothers’ and sisters’ spouses werewolves too?”

  “Jensen is the only one of us mated. And, yes, Stephanie is also a werewolf.” He knew it wasn’t what she wanted to hear. No one wanted to be the odd one out in a new family, and this situation was already uncomfortable enough.

  Instead of dwelling on it, she changed the subject. “Where is Dani’s dad?”

  Brock stopped walking at the question. “Elsie, I need to be completely honest with you. How much to you know about my family’s history?”

  Her brow furrowed. “I know that the crown passes hands a lot. Usually bloody hands. Alpha wars and all.”

  Well, at least she had some idea of his history. “There are a fair amount of wolves who don’t believe I should be in charge. Dani’s father is one of them. Don’t get me wrong, we all love Dani, but Gloria shouldn’t have ever been with Derek.”

  “Why don’t they think you should be king? If you can handle your wolves like you handle your company, I’d think you’d be a great king.”

  Her vote of confidence was unexpected. “You think I’d be a good king?” He smiled and stepped closer to her.

  She grinned at his teasing tone but didn’t step back. “Finish your story.”

  “There was a queen. Years ago. Marella. She had powers th
at no other werewolf had and everyone keeps on waiting for another queen to rise up. The king doesn’t do much besides manage money and wait for a mate who can harness the powers of Marella.”

  “This is just more reason for us to find a way out of this.”

  Brock raised an eyebrow at that. “Get out of this? You were in a coma all week because your life force was ‘bonding’ with mine.”

  “Well, I certainly can’t be a werewolf queen!”

  “Maybe that’s not such a bad thing.” At her questioning glance, he continued. “Every queen since Marella has died within a month of mating the king. They start dreaming of her within days of the public claiming and die in their sleep.”

  Elsie’s face paled and she took a step back. He quickly tried to reassure her. “I don’t want you to worry. Since you aren’t a wolf, you should be fine. You didn’t have any dreams while you were out, did you?”

  She looked at her feet and shook her head. “Every queen?”

  “My mother and my first mate included.” He’d rather not bring up such a sensitive topic, but he needed her to know what they would be up against.

  “I never knew you were married,” she said.

  “It was a long time ago. I’m a bit older than my company bio would suggest,” he admitted.

  “Really? How old are you?”

  “One hundred twenty-three.”

  Elsie put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes. “Seriously? You’ve been over a hundred years old the entire time I’ve worked for you? Cradle-robber!”

  “It’s not that big of a difference. I’ve met immortal couples with millennia between them.”

  She cocked her head at that. “You really aren’t upset about this mating?”

  He stepped closer to her again. “Why did you kiss me?”

  Redness filled her cheeks. It was the cutest damn thing he’d ever seen.

  “It was stupid,” she muttered. “You were supposed to realize how bad I was at it and run away screaming.”

  “Why would you be a bad kisser?” Running hadn’t been on his mind during the kiss. He had been debating how big of a mess he would make if he swept everything off his desk, hiked her skirt up and took her right there and then.