When the impromptu council disbanded, Ashe pulled Cohen aside. She glanced around, making sure no one could hear them.
“Why are you being so shifty? Don’t tell my you’re going to confess that you actually killed Sampson. Don’t say it. I don’t care if you did.”
She scowled at him. “I did not hurt him!”
He licked his lips and nodded.
“I was going to ask for your help. I want to… I want to help patrol.”
“But you only have a human form.” Cohen touched her arms with concern in his eyes.
“I think… I think there’s another form in me and it might be ready to come out. I know I always said there wasn’t but I’m starting to think it could have been tied to the power I wasn’t using. The more I use my mother’s magic, the stronger it gets. What if I have a form and I can help the patrol?”
He scowled. She knew he wasn’t going to like the idea of putting herself in harms way. She could see the affection that pulled him toward her, a single world lurking in her mind. She batted it away and turned back to the conversation.
“I think my animal is some kind of bird. I wouldn’t even be on the ground.”
“I have never, in all my years, heard of a bird shifter.”
“Well, thanks for your support and trust,” she scoffed.
“I’m sorry, I just… I don’t know. It sounds farfetched. Even if there was a bird inside you, how long would it take for you to learn how to fly? It’s nothing like walking. It’s a whole new set of skills I know nothing about.”
She growled in frustration. “What does it matter? Just help me do this!”
“Calm down, woman. I will help you, but you have to promise me that you won’t try to use it until this is over. Promise me you won’t shift and find yourself stranded.”
Ashe hesitated. She could promise that, but there was a desire inside her to fly. It craved the freedom of the open skies. She swallowed. It could wait. She’d waited twenty-four years to even find the shape of the creature lurking inside her. Flying could wait a little longer, too.
“I promise,” she said.
“Alright. Let’s get this started.”
“Right now?”
“Was there some other time you thought this would happen? It’s not like we have all the time in the world.”
“You’re right. You’re right,” she said, following him outside.
Archer’s truck was parked in the muddy lawn again, the word PUSSY halfheartedly scrubbed from the side. It made her smile. There was a life waiting for them on the other side of this. It was a life that could be filled with joy and laughter.
She knew Joanna’s secret, just by looking at her. The way she held herself, the way she cringed at the smells Ashe’s cooking had left in the kitchen. The Alpha of the Bart Pack was very much pregnant. She just hadn’t told anyone other than her fiancé yet.
Ashe didn’t worry about herself anymore. She had a lot more to worry about. Joanna had a small one on the way, a life that would demand stability. That wouldn’t be found until they’d rid their lives of the plague that was Killian.
Behind them, the shifter grumbled and shouted through the fabric gag in his mouth. His hands and ankles were bound with the same silver wire he’d used on Gage and Cohen. It would keep the man out of trouble for a while.
“We should move him to the shed, at least,” Ashe suggested. “I almost feel bad leaving him outside like this.”
“We’ll do it when we get back.” Cohen waved her off and continued forward.
She shrugged at Killian as if to say, what else could she do, and turned to run after her mate.
Mate.
That was what he was. He belonged to her, and she to him. It’d always been that way, no matter how near or far they’d been from each other. Their strengths might not have been the same, but they both feared their own power. Together, they found a way to balance their power.
She watched Cohen stalk ahead of her, enjoying the view of his round ass and the breadth of his shoulders. He prowled like a wild beast, his footfalls precise and his muscles screaming with power. It surprised her to think they were evenly matched for one another. She’d felt weak and submissive her whole life, not daring to look toward the clout that swirled through her.
It seemed as if they’d both lived in fear of themselves. Cohen glanced over his shoulder. There was no more of that wary fear in his eyes. They burned like ice and sent chills up her spine, stopping at the smile that curled over her face.
“Should you be walking through brush and mud in those dainty shoes?” Cohen asked.
She looked down at her feet. The toes sticking out of her sandals were plastered with mud. She scowled at them, not once thinking about her shoes. There’d been too much going on. There was a war to prepare for.
Cohen smirked and turned toward her, wrapping his arms around her waist. He hefted her off the ground as if she weighed nothing at all, when she knew that was very much not the situation. His hand covered her ample ass, squeezing a cheek.
“Hey, now! I didn’t ask for a ride.”
“It’s my pleasure,” he purred.
They reached a clearing, probably the same one Gage and Kaylee had used while she learned to master her second form. Ashe would have to ask Kaylee for some pointers if they all lived through this.
Cohen set her down and her gaze lifted to the sky above her, her heart soaring with excitement. Wings fluttered inside of her. She closed her eyes and reached inside, trying to coax the creature out. Feathers scraped along her skin, but nothing moved. The animal stayed stuck deep within.
“What is it?”
She hadn’t realized she’d been grinding her teeth. Forcing herself to let go of the tension, she sighed.
“Did you really think it would work on the first try?”
“Maybe?” she said, cracking open one eye to look at her mate.
He tried to hold back his laughter, but failed, the sound bursting into reality. She scowled at him. Her mate wasn’t supposed to laugh at her. She needed this form if she was going to be of any help. If she could fly, she could be the first one to know when the dangerous pack arrived. She could give them the advantage they needed.
“This isn’t going to happen overnight,” Cohen told her.
“But, I need it to. I need this.”
She felt him step closer, his body heat caressing her skin moments before his fingers did. He pulled her closer. Possessive hands gripped her tight. She wanted to push away, to try to focus, but his presence was too much. She melted into him, her hands running up his chest.
He growled, the sound turning into a purr. Her hands glided up to settle behind his neck.
“We didn’t come out here for a quickie,” he said, even though she could hear the desire in his voice. He nuzzled her neck, breathing in her scent before exhaling with a groan.
“I thought we came out here to find my inner animal.”
Cohen growled. He sank to the ground with her in his arms. “I know one way to become an animal.”
She warmed through and through at the suggestion in his voice. Until the other day, she’d been untouched. Untouchable. No one had ever looked at her the way he did, no one saw the woman behind the witch. She’d tried hard to use a fraction of her magic, the parts that were harmless. Simple incantations. A bit of astral projection.
Yet, she unfurled the full potential of her mother’s power before him and he barely flinched. It was frightening, but so was he. She could feel the strength coiled in his muscles as his hands ran down the length of her. His touch worshipped her, and it made her eyes drift shut.
“Practice,” she managed to whisper.
Cohen paused. When she looked up at him, she saw the indecision cutting him in two. He clearly wanted to move forward, but they both knew they would need the animal inside her for what was coming.
A sly smile cut across his face. It was boyish and took her breath away. She could barely react as his head dipped and his
fingers brushed aside the fabric of her dress. The sensation of skin on skin made her gasp. Every time, it was a new sensation.
“Cohen,” she breathed.
The sound in her voice was permission enough. She lost the fight and fell into him. He growled, a deep and rumbling sound that shook through her. It should have terrified her. It should have made her want to run.
But, she was not the rabbit anymore.
She was a predator in her own right.
Cohen’s lips left a trail down her stomach, one that danced with fire. She belonged to him, body and soul. There would never be anyone else who would know her the way he did. There would be no one else to find their way inside her, and she was okay with that. Cohen was all she would ever want.
She reached down, gripping his hair, and gently pulled his head up so that she could kiss his lips. He tasted of salt and earth on her tongue. His hands worked at his belt, fumbling as if he couldn’t move fast enough. The belt came free, then the fly, his jeans sliding down his hips to reveal the length of his hardened cock. He was ready.
She felt her core pulse. She was ready, too. He let out a small groan as his fingers slid between her folds. She arched into him, uncaring of the dirt floor beneath her. She wished she could have said her gaze was caught on the drifting night clouds over head, or the sparkling of the infinite stars, but her gaze was stuck on Cohen as he lowered himself over her.
Her breath caught in her throat as the head of his cock rubbed her entrance. She wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to that sensation. It heightened as he pressed forward and sank into her. Cohen let out a small sound, somewhere between a sigh and a moan.
He filled her to the brim, almost uncomfortably. Pain tingled around her core, making her bite her lip. Cohen looked down at her, a softness in his eyes, and gently touched her cheek. As his hips began to move, the pain melted away to be replaced by a wave of pleasure. It arched and crashed into her, like the ocean waves on her feet as she stood on the shore.
She rolled her hips, waiting for the big wave to crash and take her away. Her nails raked over his shoulders, catching on the fabric of his shirt. The sound of her moan echoed between the trees. It was followed by his rough groan.
Small creatures skittered through the wet underbrush, running away from their lovemaking as his grunts grew ferocious. He slammed into her. She cried out in surprise. Her nails sunk through his shirt and into flesh.
The beast inside her sank its talons into Cohen. It would never let him go. They were meant to be together. She’d known it since the very beginning. It’s only taken time.
Time she wished they had more of. Before she could think of what was coming, her orgasm rose and thundered through her. Cohen’s hand fisted in her hair, tugging as he gave one, last, hard thrust. He spasmed into her and the thunderous wave of her orgasm multiplied.
Her limbs trembled as the pleasure reached into her fingers and toes to render her boneless. She fell back into the ground, unable to move as it coursed through her, the last of the aftershocks becoming an echo. This time was unlike the first, all at once greater and better.
Cohen sank forward, rolling to lay beside her. “We came out here for a reason. Right?”
Ashe had no words to use. She had no voice. All she could do was turn her head into him and nod. The beast inside her was closer to the surface. Its wings beat against her skin and made her shudder again. Cohen’s arm around her tightened in response.
Even though her legs wobbled beneath her, she forced herself up. She tightened the belt of her dress and readjusted her panties with warm cheeks. Cohen watched her move with hungry eyes before standing and fixing his own pants. Her mouth went dry as she watched his hands deftly tuck his cock back inside his jeans and button them back up.
With their hunger for one another gorged for the time being, they were able to turn back to the mission. Ashe wanted to free the beast inside her, yet, as time passed, she realized it was not going to happen that night.
Frustration tightened her shoulders and made her jaw ache. No matter what they did, the beast stayed tucked away. She started to feel a little ridiculous, throwing her hands into the air as if she could fly away.
“It’s no use,” she cried.
Cohen stifled his sigh. “We’ll figure this out. Maybe not this time, but another. We have all the time in the world.”
Her eyes burned. “How can you say that? We don’t know anything. We don’t know if there will be a tomorrow for us.”
His lips formed a flat line. He looked away. They both knew she was right. The future, in that moment, was a precarious precipice. They didn’t know which direction to move, not until something happened. As it was, they were merely passing time until the next shoe dropped.
Unable to get what she wanted, they both stomped back toward the house. While Cohen ducked inside to grab food, she hesitated. She wasn’t ready to face the rest of them. For a brief moment, she’d thought she could be like the rest of them.
Like her Pack.
Yet, she was still trapped in her human body. She pushed Cohen to go ahead and lingered outside the door. The darkness of the night fell and wrapped around her.
Chapter Fourteen
It was quiet, the night motionless. Nothing stirred, surprising for a spring night. Animals should have been frolicking and calling out to their mates. Yet, Ashe stood behind Vancourt house and strained to hear anything.
A cold, creeping feeling ran down her spine. She’d pulled cards earlier, but each card she’d turned had been blank. It’s been a shock through her chest. Each and every card had been faceless, no matter how many she’d overturned. Nothing like that had ever happened before and she wasn’t quite sure how to read it.
Was this the end of the line for her? Or was she supposed to face the next few days with no help?
She ran a hand through her hair. Her world was constantly changing, the arrival of the Vancourt boys some kind of catalyst. There was an equal amount of good and bad. It was only a matter of time before it tipped into the awful. Now that she could no longer gauge the near future, she felt adrift.
“The only sure way to kill a witch is with fire,” a voice muttered.
Ashe spun around on the spot to find two male figures in the shadows. She opened her mouth to scream, but one leapt at her and slapped a hand over her mouth. In the light that filtered through the kitchen window into the back yard, she saw Grover’s scowling face.
Fear washed over her, cold and unstoppable. Her knees turned to liquid beneath her. She was so utterly useless. She cursed herself and fumbled to reach for her power, but fear had rendered it to putty in her hands.
Another figure stepped out of the shadows, the pale light turning Killian’s face garish. He smiled, the shadows over his face exaggerated and cartoonish. Her stomach turned. He’d followed through on his promise. She hadn’t delivered and now her own Pack was turning on her.
She tried to scream, tried to struggle, but more figures appeared. They grabbed her and held onto her flailing limbs. She’d always thought they’d come with pitchforks and torches. Instead, they’d come silent in the night, when she’d thought she was strongest. Shame filtered through her. She couldn’t fight back. No matter how much she tried, her power was intangible. Fear turned into ice in her heart.
This was it. This was the end of the line for her.
***
Cohen was woken by a scream. He shot up, breath coming fast. He patted the bed beside him and found it empty. Cold slammed into him like the crash of a wave, so hard it knocked him back. Where was Ashe?
He threw himself out of bed and flew down the stairs. She was there, she had to be. Instead, he found Gage. His brother was breathing heavy, clutching the doorframe. Cohen knew what was wrong as soon as he saw him.
“They’re here,” he whispered.
Gage’s lips formed a grim line. He searched for words, each moment dragging out scraping along Cohen’s consciousness. A note was clutched in Gage’s hand, crum
pled as white knuckles gripped it. Where was Ashe?
“There’s only one man,” Gage said, finally. “Just… one.”
“That doesn’t sound half as bad as I thought. I expected an entire pack of Killian duplicates. Why should we fear one man?”
Gage swallowed, the sound echoing through the silent kitchen. “There’s something… something odd about him. While I was out there, I smelled something familiar. This shifter smells like us.”
Cohen thought back to his conversation with Killian. “He did say it was another bear shifter.”
Gage shook his head. “No, it was more than that. I mean this guy smelled like he could be related to us. I don’t know how, but…” His words trailed off.
Cohen could barely focus. He still scanned the kitchen as if Ashe would materialize from the shadows and reach for him at any moment. He wouldn’t put it past the witch and her amazing powers, but he had a sinking feeling she wasn’t around.
The bear roared inside him, a deafening sound that shook his bones. He needed to find her. They needed to make sure she was safe. There was no future, no life without her. She wouldn’t just up and leave them.
Would she?
His eyes dropped to the paper in Gage’s hand. His brother glanced down at it, too. A long moment passed, time suspended between them. Rage flowed through Cohen. He stomped toward his brother, backing him into the wall as the sensation of cold fire enveloped his body.
Gage looked up at his brother, betrayal and anger clear in his eyes. He slapped the paper against Cohen’s chest, shoving him back.
“That’s from your so-called mate.”
Cohen froze. He glanced down at the note, vision blurring for a moment. The words written before him were clear, even if he didn’t want to see it.
Don’t come looking for me because I’m where I belong now. Killing your father was all too easy and you’re all too boring.
Ashe
His heart sank to the floor. The bear shifter Killian had warned them about had arrived and the woman he’d thought was his mate had disappeared. During the fight with Killian, she’d stood behind him. Cohen hadn’t thought much of it, too wrapped up in the fight at the time, but now his mind wandered.
Cohen Page 11
