“Clever, clever.” Bradley touched the side of his nose with one finger, indicating how impressed he was at the goblin’s escape. “But inside is where I’s needs go.”
The goblin licked its lips. “Yous smells of magic, wolf, and a bitty bit demon mark-ed. Can’t get yous there for yous-self?”
“I’s could, but wants to stays in the shadows.” He pointed to the bag. “Don’t want theys to know what I’s am gonna get from theys.”
The goblin’s eyes gleamed. “Clever, clever. Careful the path to takes. Play with demons, they don’t let yous go. I’s show you a way. Yous take us with yous to yous lair?”
Bradley appeared to consider the request, but he’d already decided that the roof of the building was no place for the goblins. They were pests, true, but fairy pests, and he was the closest thing they had to a warden. “I’s Morgan’s claw and got to return the prize to my’s best gracious lord.”
The goblin nodded. “Lord Morighan. I’s remember that one. He’s always a good one. Never squash goblins. Says fairys gotta choose a king in theys hearts. Always good prizes for hims. We pledge. You get the prize and you take us toos him. Tell Morighan we’s helped yous.”
Like most supernaturals, goblins had their own way of politics. Theirs just happened to be kind of nasty in Bradley’s opinion. Still, he impressed the little goblin by snorting and hocking the biggest lougie he could, spitting the thing on the ground between them. “Good one.” The goblin told him. “Mine bigger.” The goblin sucked in breath through his nose, coughed it up, and spat it next to Bradley’s. Yep, it was bigger. He refrained from telling the creature that it could probably use an antihistamine.
The goblin’s way in, turned out to be a big shadow. He would have dismissed it, except for the deeply magical resonance that called to him. Bradley was impressed. Squatting in front of it, he looked sideways at the little critter. “Yous do this?” he gestured at the shadow.
The goblin nodded. “Shadow-hole. Yous can do toos. Not hard. Jest watch out for iron guns.”
Bradley nodded and dropped down into the shadow-hole before he could talk himself out of it. He fell forever. Time and distance became confused. Cold fingers of darkness and magic touched him, sending shivers down his body. Finally, his feet thudded on solid ground. The world tilted, righting itself in his senses. Like the first couple of times he’d teleported, his stomach lurched, threatening to empty itself. He swallowed hard, forcing his body into obedience.
The crack under the door provided enough light for Bradley to see that he was in a storage closet. Small animal noises and cries of more human-like creatures filtered through the air, assaulting his sensitive wolven ears. He took a breath, wrestling the outrage that urged him to rampage through, freeing prisoners and killing the captors.
With no change in the general distress, he opened the door, slowly. Instead of cages, he saw a naked woman chained to a post in the floor. She stared at him with eerie rose-pink colored eyes. He couldn’t tell what the chain was made of, but he could see the glowing drawings of a spell etched into the links. Gouges around the neck of her collar told of her attempts to escape. Her hair was a chopped mess, as if a child had gone after the locks with scissors. Still, that didn’t detract from the strange beauty of the shifting rainbow colors in her hair. It was much like watching the shifting colors in an oil slicked puddle.
An orange and black tiger lay on its side, not resisting the restraints around its neck and ankles. Gray mingled in his ruff and edging his stripes gave the tiger a look of being tipped with frost. Once again, Bradley could see the glow of magical runes etched onto the restraints. A bad tempered, bobbed tailed cat lay in restraints with his ears pinned flat. His were yellow orbs of fury. In one corner, a copper red Irish setter panted contentedly, watching Bradley with brown eyes. The restraints didn’t bother the dog much as it raised a hind leg to scratch behind one ear.
In a glass cabinet radiating warmth sat the all-important ruby egg. Beside that, was the empty stand, reminding him of another oval-shaped mineral sporting geometrical shapes and shifting rainbow colors hidden on Packhome forest property, deep in one of his old hidey-holes. Past experience with rescue missions made Bradley go to the incubator first. A tiny bit of fairy magic unlocked the door. He reached in, intent on grabbing the ruby egg when the noise of claws on tile made the hair on the back of his neck rise. Bradley turned around, absolute surprise widened his eyes. A smoke gray dragon glared at him through angry yellow slitted eyes.
Thief! You were right, demon. The wolves have my egg.
“Hello, baby.” Bradley’s wife smiled, showing sharpened teeth. Her voice dropped to the sultry succubus tones that he remembered so well in his nightmares. “Miss me? I’ve missed every delicious inch of you.”
“Nicole. How very not nice to see you. I’d hoped you were burning in hell.” Nicole’s dark eyes burned with amusement.
“Oh, what delightful wit, my love.” She trailed a finger down the dragon’s scales as she moved with seductive grace that would have made one of the legendary starlets like Marylin look like a clumsy cow. “You know, that you will not be able to free your pathetic little playmates here. Not with the witch runes imbedded on their restraints.”
Her brown hair, the exact shade of brown as his sister-in-law’s, was tousled in come-hither waves. Yeah, Nikki remembered well how she’d found him, mooning over the loss of Karen all those years ago. The succubus used both his old fantasies and his guilt against him. Too bad for her he’d outgrown his infatuation with the wrong woman, because the sight of her no longer inspired his lust. Only the remnants of the spell that tied him to Nicole called his blood to fire.
“Who says I’m here for them?” Bradley said, deliberately ignoring the prisoners.
The demoness, ran one hand, tipped in sharp blood red nails, suggestively down her breast and hip as she walked towards him, one stiletto booted foot in front of the other. She looked mildly perturbed at his question, but not thrown off stride. Soft white leather molded to her thighs and legs, leaving nothing but the color of her skin there in question. Only one button clasped the silky white peasant blouse between her breasts. The loose ends fluttered open, drawing attention to her curves.
The effect was Nicole at her worst. Innocence and dominatrix mixed together. The siren call of lust stirred within him as he watched her. Part of him wanted to take her now, without caring who watched. The other part of him wanted to run and never look back. Panic stirred in him. If she touched him, he’d never leave. He’d be trapped again. Already her spell of lust held him where he stood, unable to think past what it would be like to thrust his cock inside her. Drown himself in the power of her magic.
What the hell, Bradley palmed the gem. Smoke curled out of the dragon’s nose. Mine! My egg! The grey dragon’s scream of possessiveness was a dagger in Bradley’s head. The prisoners moaned and whimpered, pulling back. Then all hell broke loose. The dragon lunged. Nicole screamed as the spell of lust failed. Bradley dodged, juggling the ruby egg. Unfortunately, it was hard to dodge a dragon the size of an elephant with wings and the agility of a lizard.
Bradley didn’t move fast enough. He flinched back before teeth the size of this fingers snapped at his arm. The triangular nose brushed the egg, and in the slow motion born of desperation and horror. He watched as the dragon’s eyes fixed on the glittering, falling egg. Fast as he was, Bradley could not twist backward far enough to catch the falling gem. The angle shone just right, and he caught a shadow of something in its depths before it hit the ground with a crack. Fine lines shone through the crystal facets. Every creature in the room exploded into sound. Cries of dismay, fear, and anger assaulted Bradley’s ears.
The dragon snapped and screamed. Palming the damaged gem, Bradley scrabbled backwards, not caring of the direction until he bumped into the wall between the Irish setter and the tiger. Deftly under the cover of the reigning chaos, he slipped the object into his bag.
The dog growled at the dragon, both
of them coming to their feet. Bradley kicked out. Did he dare teleport in this chaos? The room was charged with a mixture of energies. What would the combination of demon magic, dragon magic, and whatever else was in the room, do? Morgan had never gone over that with him.
Unlock the restraints. The gruff voice in his head sounded familiar, but definitely not dragon. Bradley blinked, then glanced around and grabbed the tiger’s restraints. The witch magic felt wrong and slippery in his mind, but he wrestled with it, used to working with magic not his own.
Finally, he understood the goal of the magic was to keep the prisoner from using their own magic. The lock wasn’t affected at all! With a burst of fairy magic, the lock snapped open. The tiger roared and pounced on the attacking dragon as the lizard’s teeth chomped down on Bradley’s shoulder.
With a yell, Bradley threw the magic into the room, unlocking everything it touched. The freed prisoners yelled, barked, howled and whatever else sound they could make. With the dragon shaking him, ripping his shoulder from its socket, Bradley couldn’t tell what was going on until the first shot rang out. Damn. He’d forgotten about the guard.
You broke my egg! The dragon’s voice screamed in his mind. My precious precious egg! Ruined! All that magic, wasted! Bradley’s body hit the wall then jerked sideways as a rainbow hued blur slammed into the dragon. A soft fur covered head nudged him to move before fire spewed from the gray dragon and licked at the spot where he’d just been.
The next spray of fire was blocked by the rainbow dragon. Teeth marks from the gray marred her skin, along with missing chunks of tissue, torn out during the fight. More shots rang out, though in the chaos, Bradley still couldn’t see where the guards were hiding. She screamed, as bullets hit her and hissed a spray of liquid at the gray dragon. Acid immediately ate into the gray’s scales, making it spray back in fire. They would all die, Bradley thought, as collateral damage to the dragon’s fighting.
“Bradley! My love. Come with me.” Nicole stood among the fighting, untouched and beautiful. His breath caught in his throat as his blood surged, hot and ready to mate. A growl and a nudge at the painfully throbbing wound in his shoulder brought him back to the reality that he was probably bleeding to death.
Bradley shifted the messenger bag to his front to better protect the cracked gem and complete the mission. If the egg was beyond repair, then it was a waste, just as the dragon had screamed, he understood. Life, barely realized, and destroyed because of the succubus’s power game.
“Go to hell,” Bradley struggled to his feet, holding tight to the dog’s neck. “I don’t want you Nicole. Not then. Not now. Leave.” He shoved magic into the demand in his words, hoping to force her into leaving.
She looked as if he’d slapped her. Her beauty fell away, revealing the terrible darkness that she truly was. Wings unfolded. Her skin darkened to ash. Her eyes were red orange with the flames of the underworld. “Come Smith.” She ordered and the dragon let go of the rainbow dragon, letting her limp body fall to the floor. Someone yelped as Smith the gray dragon hit him with his tail. Nicole pointed at Bradley. “This is not over. I will have you.”
“No. My soul is my own.” Bradley told her. “And I’ll be rid of you for good.”
Darkness flowed over both the demon and the gray dragon, hiding them from sight. Then the darkness pulled in on itself, nothing eating nothing. Finally they were gone, leaving the remains of the chaos for Bradley to deal with.
“Tolds yous that demons is bad to bargain.” Said the goblin, now showing itself.
Bradley glanced down and hobbled to the dragon laying curled into herself. Her rainbow hues were fading as her red blood pooled beneath her. “I don’t think you said it quite that way.” Bradley told it then knelt at the dragon’s head. He looked with sad certainty at the injuries and dared touch the ridges that made up her cheek. Up close, she was more beautiful than watching her move in the fight. “Hey, hold tight. I think I can teleport you to the fairys.”
I am dying. Do not waste magic that could save others. Her voice was a butterfly against the inside of his mind. But I will go on, thanks to you.
“I think I have your egg.” Around him, Bradley could see an aged oriental man organizing the few still in the room. A guard lay propped against the wall, unconscious, as the stink of death had not tainted the room. Yet.
He shifted, balancing on his heels, concentrating on the effort. He was in bad shape if that movement left him dizzy. Blood smeared onto the metallic surface then faded as if soaked up. He didn’t want her to die because of him. Desperately he bargained, knowing who the rainbow hues of his earlier prize belonged to.
“Let me bring you with me. The other egg I took before is yours right? You’ll see, your egg is okay. You can take her home.” He pulled on the magic of the necklace, knowing that it would take a lot to get the dragon and everyone else back to Morgan’s before more guards showed up.
I knew… when you came before. Always, I wanted a child…not to hoard the magic. The dragon shifted her wing with the reserves of her strength. She moaned with the effort. My precious gem is yours now. Tend it diligently. The combination will be a wonder to seeeee. Her last word was a breathy exhale of air, the dragon settled into the stillness of death. Her colors faded more, until they were faded and tarnished.
The goblin tugged on Bradley’s leg. Two more goblins were huddled beside it, scared silly. “We’s goes now, wolf.” The first goblin told him. Bradley nodded, but stopped since the room started spinning. Blood loss due to a dragon bite. Now that was a bummer.
“Okay, everyone who’s going, circle round and make sure to make contact with me.” He took a steadying breath and pulled in more magic. He laid a hand over the bulge in his messenger bag, determined now that the life he’d hidden away would have a chance. “I’m not making two trips, so you better hang on tight.” He thought about swirling colors of his egg and hoped Morgan wouldn’t be too pissed at the outcome.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Matthew jerked awake, his body on fire, every part of him aware and aroused. He sat up in the bed as the dream teased his senses. Naomi. Her name wrapped around the need coursing through his body, just as delicious as it rolled from his tongue. He groaned as the image of her naked, spread across a flat rock in the middle of a field, like a sacrifice waiting.
He rubbed a hand across the stubble on his cheeks. God, he’d had wet dreams before, but… In his dream, sliding skin to skin. He shuddered, his cock swelling painfully as he imagined the hot slick sensation of finally entering her body. And he was naked now. It wouldn’t be far to her room. Matthew groaned. Standing, he decided that a cold shower was in order.
In the bathroom, he leaned against the sink and stared at his reflection in the mirror. He had to have more control than this. The thought of one woman should not consume him to the point where he wanted to slam through the house, tearing open doors until he found her. Demanding that she accept him in every way. The mental image of her bending over, presenting her naked backside to him was like a punch in the gut, only lower, much lower and much more visceral.
He twisted the knobs on the sink, bending to splash water on his face. Closing his eyes against the urge to have sex, he counted measured breaths. No, he didn’t just want to have sex. He wanted to slam himself into her body until she cried his name out. He wanted to feel her clench against his cock, wet and trembling as she came. He wanted to mate, to fill her with himself again and again. And never let go.
Matthew groaned. No. He was still himself, Matthew Ridley. Not an animal that rutted when the urge hit. He reminded himself that he had a purpose. For the first time in his life, he could make a difference. Yeah, his lust reminded him. He could make a big difference by doing Naomi. All he had to do was take her as his mate. It would be big. Amazingly big. Fuck till you drop.
Mate. The word stopped him cold. It wasn’t just a word for fucking your brains out. To these people. To take a mate meant marriage. His dad was an alcoholic that ruine
d four marriages. What did he know about fidelity and commitment?
Soft fingers stroked down his back. Not forty-eight hours away from waking and already you are wriggling out of your promise? Matthew yelped and twisted. At the sight of Bastet, as regal and feline as before, he scrambled back against the toilet, nearly falling sideways into the tub. Disappointment more than disproval colored her tone. Her nose wrinkled as her ears tilted back. Tsk. Tsk. I had thought you meant your promises this time.
“I…I...I. B-b-b…” he jerked the towel flung over the shower rod down into his lap and tried to stop stuttering. “Bastet. What are you doing here?”
She tilted her head and flattened one ear. The expression looked very much like she’d raised an eyebrow in question. I was in the area. Leaning forward, she pulled the towel from his lap and folded it precisely before arranging the cloth over the towel bar opposite the toilet he now sitting hunched over trying to cover himself. The goddess faced him once more. Now, my reluctant Leo. She rolled her eyes, the yellow-green slitted gems flashed with impatience. Oh, do stop with the dramatics. I am not about to accost you. You are a shape shifter. Nudity is natural state for you.
“Not for me.” He wondered what kind of idiot he was for trying to argue with a goddess. “I’m a lot more comfortable wearing clothes around other people.”
I have noticed that. I also notice that you have not taken a mate yet. I have sent you five choices thus far. You are in rut. The females are mostly receptive. Why are you still unattached?
“Excuse me?” He didn’t think he’d heard that last part right. He hoped he hadn’t heard that right. In rut? Receptive females? Should he be insulted? The images made his blood run hot enough for him to break out into a sweat, answering that question. Nope, not insulted. Embarrassed and extremely horny, but not insulted.
Cat Scratch Fever; Blue-Collar Werewolves V Page 22
