by Elle Boon
Coti sheathed his swords with a thought, then dropped to his knees, unable to stand. “I thought nothing could kill me. I’ve tried, throughout the years you know? I’ve tested what could and couldn’t kill me. This, losing her, will kill me.” He would claw his own heart out. A man couldn’t live without his other half, the woman who was made just for him. He didn’t care if she was a bear, a sprite, or even a damn dragon. She was his.
Coti felt his two beings expand inside himself, the wolf and vampire, merging. He wasn’t like Damien and Lucas, born with the abilities of a shifter, but essentially a vampire. He was, or had been, three beings in one body, each one co-existing. Now, they merged, strengthening. His vampire half and his wolf rolled around inside his head, then forged to become the man.
“Damn, I think Grasshopper has become the teacher. Should we call dad and Ezra?” Damien asked, backing away from Coti.
Coti rolled his neck, his skin feeling too tight. “We’re on the same side, right now.”
“What the hell is going on?” Kellen growled, his claws out.
“Well, you see, this one here, is like a superhero being. Kind of like Deadpool of the vampire shifter world, I think. Only, he doesn’t look like an ugly avocado that nobody wants to have sex with. Ouch, fuck! Damien, I will beat your ass if you do that again.” Lucas pulled a knife out of his leg.
Kellen pointed the iron claws at Coti. “Alright, so you’ve got some shit to explain. However, we’re about to be converged on inside this mothereffen train car. The last thing I want is to rumble in a tin can with that,” he pointed at Coti. “I say we get the hell out of here and into an open field.”
Xan held his hand up. “I’d just like to point out, that you shouldn’t be pointing your freaky ass Freddy Krueger like knives for claws at someone and saying shit. Just saying.”
“Don’t kill him, yet. We might need him,” Turo implored.
“I can call Creed,” Lucas said.
“Who’s going to open this tin can up?” Bodhi asked, bouncing on his feet.
Coti raised his hands, but the top of the train car groaned, a hole forming within seconds as the upper half was ripped off.
“Yo, anybody home?” Creed asked, looking in through the top. “Ps. I got pants on, so you boys won’t get dick envy. No need to say thank you. Oh, and there’s like twenty freaky ass shifters heading this way.”
Coti jumped out, landing next to the large red-skinned son of Satan. “Thanks, Creed.”
Creed nodded. “No problem. We need to finish this quickly, my female wants me home, so we can watch chick flicks.”
Xan coughed, the sound of pussy made Coti wince. “Don’t kill him, he’s a good fighter.”
Kellen and the others jumped out of the train car, lining up to face the contingent of shifters coming toward them. “Damn, son, you sure do know how to piss off a man.”
Coti raised his head, sniffing. “Let’s show ‘em what fucking with the Iron Wolves will get them.”
He stood shoulder to shoulder with Damien on one side, Kellen on the other, knowing when the bodies settled, he’d have a lot of explaining to do. But first, his claws itched. “Should we offer them the chance to back off and live another day?”
Creed sighed. “Damn, there’s always one of you who has to be the fun ruiner. Hold please.”
The big man in his partial shift walked forward, eating up the space in long strides, his voice booming. “Stop, you vile beasts. If you want to live so you can go and hump your females another day, turn around, tuck your tails and run screaming to your mamas. Continue on your path now, and I’ll render you from gut to throat and feed your entrails to my pets.”
Xan put his hands up under his chin and sighed. “Goddess, I love him. He has such a way with words. If I were female, and not mated to a male as magnificent as myself, I’d totally look down and want him.”
Creed looked over his shoulder. “I knew it, you dirty bastard. You all looked down. There’s no shame in admitting it. First step in all programs is admittance. Damn, I feel them breathing. They’re continuing on the forward journey, which means they went with option B. Why do the idiots always go with option B? Do they think I have no beasts to feed their insides to?” He turned back around, swatting a couple of wolves away.
“Let’s do this,” Kellen roared.
Chapter Nine
Each man held his human skin as the ones coming toward them didn’t shift. The stink of shifters came at them, but they weren’t all wolves. After seeing what NeNe had become, Coti figured there had to be bears and wolves mixed into the group. He’d never come across a mixed pack, yet his musings had to be put on hold. The crazy bastard, that was Creed, was making good on his promise of gutting men left and right, making several turn around and run back the way they’d come. Coti narrowed his eyes, searching for the supposed alpha of the pack, Mac. His enhanced sense of smell was filled with too many other scents. Although he’d catalogued Mac’s unique blood trail in his brain, the open field was filling with death and blood, too many others to get a bead on the one he wanted.
He dodged a meaty fist, hitting one of the brawlers he’d seen fighting the night before in the throat, crushing his windpipe in one blow. Before, he’d always pulled his punches to keep from damaging his opponents to where they wouldn’t heal properly. The ones coming at him and his friends were given a chance to turn back or fight. They chose wrong.
He took a hit from the side, grunting at the small injury. The shifter who hit him with the tire iron smirked, showing pointy canines. “Is that all you got?” Coti asked.
His swords would end the fight before it had a chance to begin, but Coti allowed the man to swing his weapon again, jumping backward before it could connect with his head. He felt another shifter sneaking up behind him, along with one on his right. The man in front was the distraction while his friends were the ambush. Poor bastards, they thought they could get the drop on him. Coti pretended to not notice the others coming at him, allowed the man in front to think he was engaged in a fight for his life. At the last minute, he pulled both katanas out of their scabbard, spinning in a smooth half circle and swung right and left, neatly removing the approaching men’s heads. When he spun to face the first man again, he’d blanched, dropped his weapon and shifted, his clothing ripping, hindering his shift.
“Well shit, boy, don’t go losing your balls now,” Coti growled. He contemplated shifting, changing his mind when he saw most of the others hadn’t. He wasn’t sure what his shift would look like and didn’t want to find out in front of Kellen his friends.
The big wolf snarled, bits of torn fabric clung to him, making Coti laugh. “Dude, you look like a fool. Didn’t you learn to take your clothes off before shifting?”
His snarl warned Coti he was going to attack seconds before he launched forward, his hind legs lending him strength. If he’d been of the mind, he could’ve played with the wolf, but he wasn’t. Instead, he ended the shifter’s life in midflight, his yelp of pain cut off. Coti didn’t watch him fall to the ground, knowing the Goddess would take those who were worthy home with her, the others would fall into Creed’s father’s realm. A roar shook the ground, making him flinch. Kellen tossed a man away from him, into Creed while two more jumped onto his alpha’s back. His roar wasn’t one of pain, but frustration. Coti saw one of the men had tried to jam a knife into Kellen’s back, a sure-fire way to get dead.
Two more men, much larger than any of the others he’d faced broke from the fighting. Bears. He scented them, their smells reminding him of Mac and NeNe. He sheathed his katanas, wanting to rip these men apart with his bare hands. “What up, boys? Looks like you two went to the same store to buy your clothes. Was it lumberjacks are us, or what?” He sneered, eyeing their ripped flannel shirts that had seen much better days. Not that Coti didn’t like flannel, hell his closet was filled with them. However, when your shirts had more holes than a barrel on a shooting course, you should get rid of it.
“You think you
’re funny? You won’t be laughing when we make your bitch ours.”
Coti looked at the man who spoke, his words ran around his skull on replay, making everything appear black and white. He didn’t see anyone else on the field, couldn’t hear anything but a ringing in his ears. His skin split, claws ripping out from beneath the tips of his fingers. “You will never touch what is mine,” he promised, his words came out deeper, almost incoherent.
He took a step toward the men. The ground shook, the earth sinking in with each step he took. How he was still on two legs, instead of all four, he wasn’t sure, he’d never done a partial shift like Kellen, but he couldn’t stop his beasts from their mission. Kill. Their fear fueled him, making him hunger for more. In several strides, he had the man, who’d dared to speak, in one hand. “Where’s your alpha?”
The bear shook his head, making Coti roar. He kept his eyes on the shifter, taking in each motion down to the way his hair blew back from his face. Coti knew there was something majorly wrong with him, but his own beasts were in control, only he too was on board with them. Kill. Yes, they were going to kill each and every shifter around them. The sound of bones snapping while the stupid shifter tried to take on his bear form made Coti laugh. “Don’t you think it’s a little late for that?” He dropped the fool, looking around for his partner. The other man was backing away, trying to escape. Coti pointed his finger, his claw longer than ever. “Shift,” he ordered. As if his word was law, the man bent, groaning in pain while his bear was forced out of him.
“Holy fucking shit, Coti, what the hell you doing man?”
Coti turned, pinning Turo with a stare. “Stay out of this.”
Turo raised both hands. “I’m on your side, brother.”
He nodded, turned back to the bears and waited. He’d not felt blood on his claws for what they’d done to his mate. Taking a look around the field, he saw the others had eliminated the threat. In his head, he counted how many he’d taken out, but none of them were the one he wanted. These two, the bears in front of him, were part of Mac. His beasts wanted their blood.
In a forward lunge, he picked up one, tossing him several feet away. A sickening crunch echoed around them.
“Yo, maybe we should ask them some questions before we off them?” Xan spoke up.
Coti turned, pointing at Xan, then at the bear who reared back, roaring. “He’s pack to the one who turned my NeNe. They all need to die.”
Creed moved between him and his kill. “I get that, really I do. I’d want them all dead, and I’d even delight in their deaths. However, do you know where this Mac is? You might want to slow your roll on the crazy beast mode a bit and see if we can’t get some info out of him. Afterwards, you can totally rip his head off and play pickleball with it if you want.”
“This one’s dead,” Bodhi yelled.
Kellen sighed. “Thanks for the update.”
“I could’ve told you that before he went all the way over there,” Xan said, nodding toward Bodhi who was jogging back to them.
“Who’s gonna clean this mess up, is what I want to know?” Slater asked, his hands on his hips, a look of disgust on his face. “Seriously, I’m all for a good rumble, but I’m not about to dispose of bodies.”
Damien and Lucas both sighed. Their loud gusts of air made everyone turn toward them. “First of all, he can do it if he knew what the hell he was,” Lucas said pointing at Coti. “Since it looks like he’s as clueless as the rest of you, we’ll get it taken care of. You, cousin from way down the line, need to get right in the head. That’s not right.” He waved his hand up and down Coti.
Coti growled, his fangs snapping together. “Why don’t you come over here and say that?”
Damien laughed. “Because, we both happen to like being in our Hearts Love’s good graces. If we hurt one of hers, even if you are on both sides of the fence, she’d be angry. I’m not sure how, or who can even you out, but right now, you’re all kinds of fucked up. For real, I think even Lula would freak.”
Xan opened his mouth, but Kellen slapping him on the back of the head silenced him. Coti took a deep breath, then another. He searched for a calmness inside himself where he’d only been feeling rage. Slowly, color appeared around him, the grass became green again. His body cracked, the joints popping while everything became larger, back to normal. Bending at the waist, he took in a gulp of air, followed by another and another, resting his hands on his knees for support. “Fuck, what the hell happened?”
“Well, I’d say you went Beastly on us. Kinda like Hellboy, only way uglier.” Turo squeezed his shoulder.
“Yo, why you gotta have my name in your mouth like that?”
Coti stood, looking up at Creed. “Did I at least have pants on?”
Creed tossed his hands in the air, walking away mumbling.
NeNe eyed the pink dragon, her body too heavy for her to make stand. God, what had she taken that was making her hallucinate? Memory came rushing back to her, swift and brutal. She’d done what all stupid women did in horror movies. “I’m so stupid. Mark my name next to the ones that are too stupid to live and put a check mark next to my name,” she groaned.
“Oh, but you’re so pretty and soft. I don’t want you to die. Me thinks you should just get your furry butt up and learn to accept your new self. Come on, up you go. You can do it. It’s like riding a bike. Can you ride a bike? I can’t but that’s because I don’t have one. If I did, I’m sure I’d be able to. Nevertheless, the sentiment is the same. So, you getting up, or do I need to rig a harness?”
Wait, she heard the other woman, but the dragon didn’t open its mouth. Now that she had a moment to orient herself, she realized she’d not been speaking either. “Are you in my head? Am I dead, and you’re like, God?”
Laughter filled her, then the dragon moved closer, nuzzling over her. “You are most certainly not dead, and while I like to pretend I’m a higher power, I’m assured daily, I am not. And, since you sort of asked, I will answer. We’re speaking telepathically. I believe that is the human term for this way of communicating. Although, you’re not technically completely human any longer. My name is Lula, by the way.”
NeNe looked down at what she rested on, seeing huge brown furry arms. She gasped, jerking backward. Her arms flailed, only they were the furry ones. She stopped moving. Her breath froze in her throat as she raised and lowered first one arm, then the other. “What am I?”
“You’re a magnificent bear shifter. I believe grizzly is the species. Yes, that is correct, grizzly. I just double checked, and since you’re not black you are a grizzly. Do you know anything about bears?” Lula sat next to her, picking up her paw, examining the long black claws.
She shook her head. “I...no, I only know they’re big and to be avoided if encountered in the wild.”
Lula released her paw, then nodded. “Well, you are a predator, so that is a good rule for most to follow. There is much for you to know about your new existence, and a short time to learn it. Are you ready, Danielson?”
NeNe looked over to see a petite pink-haired girl sitting where the dragon had been. “I was slipped some sort of hallucinogen, wasn’t I?”
“One would think that, yes, but I fear that isn’t the case. This is your new normal. Welcome to Fey, sweet NeNe. Here, you’ll learn how to be the grizzly female you are now and merge her with the human you. Right now, your mind is fractured. I had to put the bear to sleep. Your bear’s a fighter. Do you think you can handle all of that?”
NeNe glanced down at the body that wasn’t hers, wondering what Coti would think of her if he saw her. A sob welled up. “What do you mean, put the bear to sleep? I’m still a bear. I can’t. I don’t want this. Can’t you take it out of me?”
Sadness crossed the other woman’s face. “I couldn’t reach you, the human so I made the other sleep. You’ve been given a great gift by the Goddess, NeNe. To turn it away would be a great disservice. Besides, there is no take backs on this matter. You either merge with the bear, or th
e bear takes over.”
“That’s not fair. I didn’t ask for this.”
“Life isn’t always fair, young one. So, what’s it to be?” Lula asked, standing and holding out her hand.
What was she to do, place a paw in her hand or her head? She’d never navigated a world with such uncertainty, not even when she’d lived with her dad and brother knowing their drunken tirades could lead to violence. She imagined what a bear did to stand, feeling all four limbs like they were her own, which she guessed they were, and stood on them. Her entire body shook like a newborn colt who’d just been born. “Dear lord, what am I supposed to do now?”
Lula’s hand rested on her head. “Now, you let me teach you.”
NeNe shifted again, her body flowing from bear to human with ease. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been with Lula. Days, weeks, heck for all she knew, years had passed. Her heart ached for Coti and what could’ve been, should’ve been. Yet she knew there was no way she could go back to him as a bear. She wasn’t even sure she was ready to go back to Earth, not knowing there were shifters like her. An image of Mac appeared in her mind, her bear rumbled beneath the skin, itching to seek the man out and make him pay.
“Hi, Miss. NeNe. Whatcha doing out here?”
NeNe smiled at the young girl named Asia. “I’m just enjoying the afternoon. How are you doing? Did you get your schoolwork done?” It still amazed her to find the women from Earth inhabiting the home. Once she’d shifted and shown Lula she was safe, she’d been brought to the castle-like home, shocked to find the mother and daughter duo living happily amongst the Fey.
Asia grinned. “Of course I did, silly. You think my mama would’ve let me out if I hadn’t. I’m so happy here,” she whispered.
“It’s beautiful,” NeNe agreed. She knew a little of the girl’s and her mother’s pasts and understood why they preferred to stay in Fey, but for NeNe, each day made her miss home. More specifically a tattooed bad boy.
