A Mate for York

by Charlene Hartnady

  As soon as she mentioned Cadon though, he stopped advancing on her, the muscles on the sides of his neck bulged.

  Maybe she was on to something. “If you hurt me in any way he would hunt you down, to the ends of the earth if need be; he would kill you.”

  “Interesting.” The male nodded his head, he seemed to consider what she had just said.

  “Are there any more of you?”

  “What do you mean, more of me?” She felt herself frown. Fear and dread still coiling in her stomach.

  “Females…are there more females here?” He looked up at the ceiling. “Kwan, go and search upstairs. There may be more. Leave no stone or fur unturned.”

  When she looked behind the man in charge, she noted that all the creatures had returned to their human form. They all had long hair and hard eyes. All the same yellow color. One of the men broke away from the rest. He nodded, heading for the stairs, then took them four at a time.

  Then the black-haired one grabbed her wrist and hoisted her to her feet. Her knees almost buckled when he sniffed at her. “Mmmmmmm, sweet.”

  She tried to move away but he held on tight. “Stop it! Leave me alone.” She grit her teeth, trying not to react too much when all she wanted to do was kick and bite. It wouldn’t help her. It might enrage him.

  He kept on sniffing, putting his nose against her. She finally grabbed a handful of his hair and pulled, trying to get him off of her. “No!” she yelled.

  The man finally backed off, that same vulgar smile on his lips. “Funny, my sense of smell might be off, but I don’t scent a male on you. Not Cadon or otherwise.”

  This was bad. The way he was looking at her was even worse. Kerry swallowed thickly.

  Cadon hovered. The side of the house had a gaping hole in the east wall. It was clear to him that the breach had come from the outside as there was very little rubble on the outer perimeter. There were two possibilities. He hated both of them in equal measure.

  Moving quickly and quietly, he dropped in for a closer look, careful not to alert any humans to his presence.

  Blast! How did they know? Why were they here? Leukos was going to be beyond enraged.

  “Mmmmmmm, sweet.” It was that bastard Magnar. He’d recognize the evil fuck’s voice anywhere. Cadon dropped lower, moving in behind an outcrop of trees. His males were down. Possibly dead. None had been decapitated. Magnar might still burn the bodies though. This was a mess!

  Movement brought his attention back to Magnar. He had the human in his grip. By all that had feathers he was smelling her. This was worse than he thought. “Stop it! Leave me alone.” She squirmed and tried to pull away but Magnar held on tight, continuing his study.

  Cadon had to hold back a shriek of rage. The male had zero scruples, he’d have a female on her knees in seconds if he wished and it seemed like he did. The clever thing to do would be to cut his losses and to head back to Feral territory. Leukos needed to know about this. Instead, he stood rooted to the spot.

  The female finally took a fistful of Magnar’s hair. “No!” she yelled. Her voice filled with equal amounts of fear and anger. Cadon grit his teeth and clenched his fists to keep himself from going over there. What could he do? Magnar had a whole team of males. It was just him. He couldn’t leave his males though. Magnar might finish them.

  When the bastard finally pulled away, he had a smile that made Cadon want to slash his face to ribbons. The way he looked at the female made him want to rip his eyes out while he was at it. “Funny, my sense of smell might be off, but I don’t scent a male on you. Not Cadon or otherwise.”

  Damn!

  This was a disaster.

  The female squirmed some more. “It’s not my fault you have such a bad sense of smell.”

  “Hagan,” he called to one of the males. “Come and scent this female.”

  “Can I have her?” The male’s cold eyes glinted as they raked across her body. She wore an oversized sweater that did a good job of concealing her tiny bump.

  “No!” Magnar growled. “I haven’t decided what to do with her yet. I might just keep her for myself.” The bastard pulled her against him, folding an arm around her.

  “You can forget that!” Kerry yelled, kicking Magnar in the shin and pulling away.

  The male threw his head back and laughed. “I like a female with a bit of spunk. Maybe I’ll try you out. I have a feeling I’d like you.” He grabbed at her ass, making Kerry kick and punch at him. Her blows had no effect.

  What she didn’t realize was that a male like Magnar would get off on her fear. He would love that she was fighting him. This was headed in the wrong direction. It would probably cost him his life, but he needed to intervene.

  Cadon shifted and closed the distance in a few heartbeats. He hovered outside, a screech was torn from him.

  Magnar turned to face him, finally letting the female go. “Look who decided to join the party,” the male sneered. Most of his team moved in, leaving one or two males at the perimeter to keep an eye on the downed shifters.

  Cadon slowly entered through the gaping hole and carefully dropped to his feet.

  The female moved away from Magnar, putting her back to the wall. Her eyes were wide, her chest heaved. Within seconds he was in his human form. Eyes on the Fallen king’s general. “Why are you here?” May as well get right to it.

  “Good to see you too.” Magnar smiled. There was no humor in it. Not a shred.

  “Let’s drop the pleasantries, shall we?” He knew he was skirting a fine line. Despite them being evenly matched. Right now, if Magnar wanted him dead, he was a goner. “Tell me why you are here,” he added. There was no way he was sucking up to this male. Even if it meant his own death.

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Magnar’s gaze moved to the female. “I’m here to mount, to mate, to breed.” He kept his eyes on Kerry the entire time he spoke.

  Cadon couldn’t help the deep rumble of warning that left him.

  Magnar moved his gaze back to him. “Human females are abundant. It seems you have decided it is fine to take them, so why not us?” The males behind him cheered. “We may no longer be welcome amongst The Feral but we are still living and breathing beings.”

  “Here, here!” someone cheered to the right.

  “Can we find some right now?” another male asked.

  “It has been so long,” yet another added.

  “That’s not how this is going down,” Cadon growled, his eyes narrowed. “We can’t just take females. The human race would end up waging a war against us.”

  Magnar snorted. “Let them try.”

  “The Feral do not want to start a war with the humans and possibly the other species as well. We are not taking females against their will. That would be wrong. Surely, even you can see that. Do you have no honor?”

  The male visibly bristled. “Do not speak to me of honor.” Magnar’s eyes narrowed. “I am strong and capable. Any female would be lucky to have me choose her. To let any of us mount them. I have seen human males.” He laughed. “They are weak and lacking.”

  “Human females are different to ours. They look for different things in a male. They are not affected by the mating call like we are and are hard won,” Cadon tried to dissuade Magnar. Even if he could see it was futile.

  “Females are females.” Magnar shrugged.

  Cadon couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped. “That is where you would be very wrong. If you try to take one she would fight you. We tried it and failed. You would have to force mount any female you took. Forget mating, forget breeding.”

  A look of disgust crossed Magnar’s face. “Nonsense!” he spat. “You won a female.” Magnar glanced at Kerry. Then looked back at Cadon. He cocked his head, scrutinizing him. The male’s eyes roamed Cadon’s face. “Is the female really yours?”

  “She is with child.” Cadon needed to handle this delicately. He didn’t want to claim the female but maybe he would have to in order to save her from Magnar. He trusted The Fallen not at all.


  “Child?” His brow furrowed. “What do you mean with …” Then his eyes widened with realization. “Oh! I see, she is with clutch.” He turned back to Kerry, studying her more closely. “I seem to remember you having a mate, but I must have been mistaken.” Magnar smacked the side of his arm. “That is good news. It means we will be able to take mates, that we can get them with clutch. This will work!”

  A chorus of shouts and cat-calls reverberated around the room. “Thank you for the information!” Magnar shouted.

  “Wait!” Cadon tried to interrupt. “You can’t just—”

  “I am Magnar, General to Ekon the Fallen king and in my mind, the only king. I can do as I please.”

  “You need to—”

  “I need a female and nothing more. You have your female, your clutch. I will have mine. To the sky.” He gestured to his team who yelled and beat their chests.

  “I urge you to reconsider…” But even as he spoke, the males shifted, one by one, leaving through the decimated wall.

  “It won’t work!” he shouted at their wings as they made a hasty retreat. Not sure why he was even trying, he should be happy they were leaving. It would give him a chance to regroup. To tend to his males.

  From somewhere behind him the female sniffed, reminding him of her presence. What the hell was he going to do with her now? She knew too much.

  Chapter 12

  This wasn’t happening. She almost wanted to rub her eyes. To look again to see if things had changed. Maybe then the wall would be whole again. Maybe there wouldn’t be lifeless bodies and blood and gore everywhere. She felt tears well and tried to blink them away.

  Thankfully the terrible creatures responsible were gone. Cadon was one of them though. She’d seen it with her own eyes. He stood with his back to her, his gaze on the opening in the wall. Every muscle was rigid. From the ones on the sides of his neck to those down his back, his arms and thighs. Heck, even his glutes were tensed. His ass was just as muscled as the rest of him. It—

  She shouldn’t be looking at his ass. Kerry swallowed thickly and sniffed. Still trying hard not to cry. Her stupid eyes kept welling anyway. She wished she could bury herself into the ground and hide. Or make herself invisible. Or escape without his detection. This was especially true when his gaze flashed to her. Those intense golden yellow eyes boring into hers.

  He was big.

  He was frowning heavily.

  Make that, he looked pissed. Cadon turned around. Pissed and very naked. Every part of him on display. His long muscular limbs and his…she gulped, quickly averting her gaze.

  “Leave me alone.” She tried to sound in control and failed. Her voice actually shook.

  Despite the fear that raced through her, icing her blood, she rose to her feet. Her knees felt shaky but she planted her feet, looking him head-on. “I’ll be on my way now.” One of the men groaned in the background.

  It was Worth. He clutched at his belly. She bit her lip. How he must be suffering. She couldn’t believe he was even alive, his belly slashed open, his insides…she swallowed down bile. Worth groaned.

  “Please help me,” Cadon said, his eyes had gone from hard and angry to pleading. He looked from her to Worth and then back again.

  “What are you?” She had to ask, had to know.

  Cadon’s jaw tensed. “This is not the time to talk. All you need to know is that I won’t hurt you. I swear.”

  None of this was his fault. She genuinely believed that he had brought her here to help her. She nodded. “Do you want me to call an ambulance?” She knew it was a stupid question, even as she asked it.

  His lips twitched and he shook his head. “Our species have superhuman healing capabilities. We’re shifters. In order to heal properly, our bones have to be aligned and our organs need to be in the right place. Otherwise it would mean re-breaking bones and cutting…”

  “Okay, I get it.” More bile rose but she swallowed it down. “I think the others might be dead. Andy…” Her voice hitched. “His chest isn’t…it…it isn’t moving. Orrick…” So much blood. Her eyes were filling. She tried to blink them back but it didn’t help. A single tear escaped. She quickly wiped it away.

  “Only prolonged decapitation or being burned to ashes will keep us from regenerating. Otherwise, our hearts beat again, our lungs fill again…”

  It was too much. “Are you serious? That can’t be,” she muttered the last to herself, shaking her head.

  “Very serious.” He nodded once. “They will live again and soon. We just need to get them back together so that they can heal. I need your help. We’ll start with Worth. I’ll do the gory work. I need you to…help. Are you okay with that?” His face filled with concern and his eyes softened.

  Maybe he saw her grow pale. Or maybe her face had turned a lighter shade of green. She wasn’t normally this queasy. Then again, she’d never experienced something like this before. She was still sure that the pregnancy was wreaking havoc with her system. She nodded. “This pregnancy has made me quite nauseous. I was feeling much better, but…”

  “Okay, I understand. I’ll have to do my best to make do on my own. It’s just…”

  “No.” She shook her head. “I’ll help you. Should I boil some water? Tear up sheets to—”

  “Nothing like that.” Cadon looked amused. “I’ll tell you what I need. You do your best to comply. If you need to…throw up…try not to do it onto my males.”

  “I wouldn’t do that.” Her lip twitched with the need to smile when she realized it was a distinct possibility. “Okay, I’ll try not to.” It wasn’t something she had complete control over. She found herself praying it didn’t happen. Praying even harder that she’d be able to help him.

  Cadon nodded. “It would be a perfectly normal reaction. I’ve seen hardened warriors reduced to puking in situations less gory,” he said as he made his way to Worth, who was blinking; his eyes weren’t focusing. One hand still held his gaping wound.

  Her stomach rolled but she managed to hold it together. I can do this. I can! “What should I do?”

  “This is going to hurt,” Cadon murmured, crouching next to Worth. “In this case, I would like for you just to talk to him. Maybe hold his hand.”

  “That bad?” Worth croaked.

  “Glad you’re back.” Cadon squeezed Worth’s shoulder. Probably the only part of him, besides his feet, that wasn’t injured.

  “Are you alright?” she asked. “Shit! Sorry, stupid question. What do I say to someone…in your position?” She made a noise of frustration. “You probably don’t want to know what’s wrong with you.”

  Worth chuckled. This was followed by a groan of pain. She couldn’t believe he was alive let alone conscious. He shouldn’t be. “I don’t want to know, although I can guess.” He grimaced. “Tell me something about yourself.”

  Cadon removed Worth’s hand from the gaping wound. The one holding onto the intestines. Don’t look, Kerry! “Okay.” Her voice was high-pitched. “Sure.” What the hell did she say? “My dad died when I was nine,” she blurted.

  Worth groaned, arching his back as Cadon began to work. By work, he seemed to be fiddling around inside of him. His hand was actually in there making squelching noises.

  She turned and gagged. And then dry heaved and then gagged again, choking loudly. “I’m sorry!” she finally got out. “So glad I didn’t get around to having that steak.”

  Worth smiled. “You would have loved my steak.”

  “Maybe you can still make me one once this is all said and done.”

  “I will.” He grit his teeth, threw his head back and cried out. The sinews on his neck roped. Kerry felt so bad for him.

  Cadon leaned in. “Sorry, buddy, your liver was almost sliced in two, had to fix it.”

  Worth was sweating, his throat worked. “Glad it’s done. Anything else slashed or broken?”

  “That was the worst.”

  “You sure?”

  Cadon made a noise that pretty much told
Worth that the liver may have been the worst but that it wasn’t over yet.

  Worth’s glassy eyes moved to her. They were yellow. Not brown. Not blue but yellow. It seemed like that was a trait of their…species, rather than a product of familial genes. At least, that seemed the most plausible. “I might need you to hold my hand.” He held it out, dripping with his blood and something else she didn’t want to think about. She took it anyway and gave it a squeeze. “Tell me what happened,” he pushed out between deep breaths.

  “What do you mean?” Her voice shook, she tried to focus on him and not on what Cadon was doing. There were more squelching noises, but she tried to ignore the sound.

  Worth groaned as Cadon began to pack his intestines back into his stomach cavity. “Your dad,” he moaned out the words. “How did he die?” between clenched teeth.

  “Suicide,” she blurted. Not sure why she had brought this up to begin with. She never spoke about it. Hated to even think about it.

  Cadon glanced up from what he was doing. “You were nine?”

  She nodded.

  “Harsh,” Worth growled.

  “I’m sorry.” Cadon shook his head. “No one should have to go through that. Do you know why he did it?”

  “Hey!” Worth said. “This is our conversation. You mind your own business and get back to work.”

  “It’s not something I like to talk about.” She swallowed. “I’m having a son.” She glanced down at her belly.

  “A son…” Worth groaned, squeezing his eyes shut. “You nearly done?” he directed the question at Cadon.

  “Almost,” Cadon said. “I’m being as careful as I can. Have you gone soft?”