The group nodded.
“And Ara, that’s not how we work. We’ll get him, but we’ll do it together,” Ghost said.
She swallowed past the lump in her throat, and nodded. She would have apologized, but she knew that it would do no good.
Running out of options to protect them, all she could think of was to increase her training sessions and experiment with her powers. And when the time came, either she would die or he would.
Chapter Fifteen
Reaper
Reaper had finished the overnight shift, and although Jade had tried to keep his mind off Ara for the last several hours, he couldn’t help but worry. His heart stopped in his chest when she suggested herself as bait, and it took everything in him not to lock her in the room upstairs and go after the fucker himself. He understood her desperation—they all felt it—but there had to be another way to go about it, something they hadn’t quite figured out yet.
With those same thoughts swirling in his head, he bound up the steps two at a time, and paused when he reached the closed door of their shared room. He could have sworn he heard a painful moan from somewhere upstairs, but when he listened again, no sound came. Shaking his head, he entered their room; when he moved to shut the door, the moan came again. This time from the bed. His gaze narrowed so he could focus in the darkened room, and when his gaze moved to the bed, a severe sound of pain came from Ara’s open lips.
In a flash, he was at her side. When his hands reached for her, they encountered fevered, damp skin.
Ara cried out in pain at his touch and flinched away from him, taking him by surprise. She pulled at her clothing, trying with diminished strength to remove them.
With quick motions, he lifted her shirt off her and waited to see whether she wanted him to continue. Her exhales were deep and uneven, and when he failed to remove the last of her clothing, she ripped them away herself.
He tried to reach for her again, but heat radiated off her body and she whimpered when he made to move closer. She relaxed a fraction as his lips moved to press against her forehead, but he jerked back before he could touch her. A fever scorched her skin, as well as his, when he got close. Before he could think about his actions, he removed his clothing and lifted her in his arms.
Her cries intensified with each step he took toward the bathroom, and he grappled with the guilt that it caused, but logic won over emotion. He needed to lower her fever, and the only way he knew how was a freezing shower.
He set the shower for lukewarm at first, not wanting to shock her body and cause more pain, and stepped in with her still cradled in his arms. Her scream echoed throughout the room, and although he braced for it, the sound still tore him apart.
“I wish I could take your pain away, beautiful.”
Holding her tight to his chest underneath the spray, he lowered the temperature of the shower until cool water cascaded down on both of them. As the minutes passed, he noticed that her pain lessened as the cold increased. He lost track of how long they stood under the icy spray, but when she snuggled deeper in his arms, he happened a glance down at her face and found her relaxed in sleep.
With tender care, he flipped off the water and stood there, waiting for signs of discomfort from Ara. Her skin felt cooler to the touch, and there were no longer sounds of pain coming from her in her sleep.
Using caution, he toweled her dry and settled her onto the bed. He then ran a towel over his body with quick motions and discarded it. Moving her to a sitting position, he slid on one of his loose-fitting tees and a pair of her panties and laid her down to rest. Again, he waited to see her reaction.
For over an hour, she slept and he waited anxiously for any signs of pain to return. The room cooled, and he left her side for a moment to grab some underwear. When he turned back to her, her hand pulled at her shirt before a loud grunt of pain passed from her lips. Kneeling beside her, he could see that her skin was slick with a sheen of moisture and noticed that the heat had returned.
“Ara?”
When she lifted her eyes to meet his, the tears that poured down her cheeks felt like a stab to his heart.
“What’s wrong?” That was all he could choke out. If she could describe her symptoms, then maybe Liv could figure out a solution.
“Everything hurts. My bones ache, my skin feels burnt, and the pressure in my head is unbelievable,” she groaned.
Without jostling her, he laid her back on the bed. He stripped the sheets and comforter before turning on the air conditioner to the lowest setting. He watched as the breeze from the vents poured into the room, and within moments, he shivered at the coldness that spread throughout the room. Ara settled back onto the pillow and blew a sigh of relief.
“I’ll be right back.”
Exiting the room and closing the door behind him, he dashed to Liv and Kai’s room and knocked on the door. Liv opened the door, a note of surprise on her face. She reached out and squeezed his arm for reassurance.
“Ara’s sick. She’s running a fever and she tells me she aches everywhere. The shower on cold settled her for only an hour. I turned on the air conditioner and it’s helping, but I don’t know what’s wrong.”
Liv guided him back to his room with a hand on his elbow, and when he opened the door, Ara’s moan reached them. He rushed to her side, closely followed by Liv and Kai. Liv placed her hands on Ara’s forehead and flinched away at the heat emanating from her skin. When she turned her worried gaze to Reaper, he shook his head.
“Ara, honey, I need to see if you have a virus. Can I draw some blood?” Liv asked.
He was about to voice his protest, but Ara nodded.
“Please, tell me what’s happening,” Ara begged.
Liv disappeared for a moment, and Reaper reached for Ara’s hand.
Her rebuff was painful, but he understood. Before he could allow panic to overwhelm him, he felt Kai’s reassuring hand on his shoulder, and he relaxed.
Whatever this was, Ara would pull through. She had to; he’d just found her.
Liv arrived back from her lab with the needle.
Pain choked him as Ara cried out.
Liv made quick work of the blood draw, and she ran back down to the lab. With one last squeeze of reassurance, Kai followed Liv, and shut the door behind him.
Because he couldn’t touch her, he wandered around the room, adjusting the vents so the air was directed toward the bed. When he found that he couldn’t stay away from her any longer, he slid into bed, careful not to touch her.
The next few hours were pure torture for both him and Ara. The air conditioning had helped, along with several cold showers. When he put her to bed after she’d cooled off, he had forgone clothing, knowing it would chafe when she warmed up again. He kept up a steady stream of words, hoping that some of what he said would calm her, but she never made a sound except in pain.
The others came to visit, concerned by the information they had gotten from Kai and Liv, but their visits didn’t last long. Watching anyone in pain was a form of torture, but they couldn’t stand to watch as Ara vocalized hers. In the light of day, the flush on her skin was visible, as was the sheen of sweat and the pain etched on her face.
The only relief she felt were the brief showers they had taken. By the time they had finished their fourth shower, he had decided to forgo carrying her back and forth to the shower and came up with another idea.
He soaked towels in cold water and wrapped them around Ara. Every half an hour, he would replace the hot towels with fresh, cool ones, and only then did she finally fall into a restless sleep. At times, she would moan his name, and not knowing if she were in pain, he would reassure her without touching her, talking to her until she fell back to sleep.
He had finished replacing the towels right after sunset when there was a tentative knock on the door. Liv walked in and her expression caused his breath to stall in his throat. Kai came in behind his mate, and shook his head when he noticed the panic in Reaper’s expression.
“I’ve been observing Ara’s blood, comparing it to her other sample…” Liv paused and Kai pulled her close.
Reaper surged to his feet, but before he could react, Liv continued.
“Her cells are mutating, getting stronger. They look, well, similar to your cells.”
Reaper’s legs gave out and he fell back into the chair he’d vacated next to the bed. He watched, stunned, as Liv rounded the bed and stood next to Ara’s head. She moved Ara’s hair away from her neck, and he knew what she saw. His mark, their mating mark, on Ara’s neck. When Liv motioned him over, he noticed the mark, which had darkened to black the morning after he claimed her, as it lay red and pulsing on her shoulder.
“When did you claim her?” Kai asked.
“Two nights ago.”
Liv muttered numbers under her breath. He supposed she had been calculating the time between his bite and when she had developed symptoms. He knew what it meant, but he couldn’t fathom the possibility, even when it was evident.
“By this time tomorrow, Ara will be a full-fledged shifter.”
Chapter Sixteen
Ara
Ara jolted awake, sensing that something had changed since she had gone to bed the night before. Her eyes tracked to the window, where darkness greeted her, before she glanced at the clock. She couldn’t remember when Reaper had gotten back from his shift, but she knew for certain that he hadn’t woken her.
When she had gotten ready for bed the night before, her body hummed with desire. Her clothes felt too tight and her skin too warm. She moaned as her bare legs touched the softness of the sheets as she climbed into bed. As she laid her head back on the pillow, she debated whether she should pleasure herself to relieve the lust that had gripped her. After warring with herself, she bit her lip and decided to wait for Reaper.
She fell into a fitful sleep, tossing and turning as each movement sent pleasure straight to her core. Biting her lip to hinder her need for her mate, she flipped onto her back. Her eyes blinked open and she stared at the ceiling, unable to understand the heat that throbbed inside her. As she threaded her fingers through her hair, her fingertips accidentally brushed across the mark that Reaper had left on her shoulder. With the ecstasy shooting toward her core from the small touch, she could no longer hold back.
Her hand brushed across her breasts and she suppressed a moan when she found that her nipples had hardened to tight peaks. The nerve endings sent wave after wave of pleasure through her. She shivered and gasped for breath as her core clenched and relaxed at the simple touch.
Her hand traveled across her belly before dipping underneath the band of her panties.
Squeezing her eyes closed, she let the sensations overtake her body. As she brushed one finger against her clit, she turned her head to bury her face into the pillow and howled as pure bliss rushed through her with an intensity that left her fluttering with need. With one more flick of her clit, her body tensed as her orgasm exploded through her. She clenched her muscles, unable to relax, as her release held on.
Only Reaper’s touch and him driving deep inside her had brought her to orgasm faster.
Minutes ticked by as she worked to catch her breath. When her sanity returned, her face heated as sparks of pleasure continued to linger throughout.
Before long, the heat that had driven her crazy became scorching. Her skin felt as though she had walked too close to an open flame, and soon, every part of her ached with pain. She tried sitting up, lying on the floor, naked and with clothing, but the pain raged without end.
Somewhere during the night, she must’ve blacked out from the pain, because her mind became fuzzy. She thought she had spoken to Reaper, and heard Liv’s voice, but she couldn’t push those memories to the forefront. As much as she tried, the memories remained indistinct.
She turned to Reaper, who lay on his stomach with his hands propped underneath his pillow. Gently, so she wouldn’t wake him, she placed her hand on his back. She expected his skin to feel hot to the touch, but he didn’t feel as warm to her.
Before she contemplated what it meant, another pressing need called to her.
Placing a soft kiss on his back, she deftly slid to the edge of the bed and stood. She couldn’t detect any pain as she walked to the bathroom, and she breathed a sigh of relief that the strange sensations had passed.
As she washed her hands, she glanced down at the shirt she wore, a simple white tee. It looked wrinkled and dirty.
She flipped on the shower as a memory tried to work its way to the forefront, but she couldn’t grasp it. Shaking her head, she undressed and stepped into the shower, flinching as the normal setting scalded her skin. By the time she had adjusted the setting to cold, she was comfortable enough to step under the spray.
She had lost track of time and although she felt refreshed, guilt assailed her as she remembered where she was. She switched the faucets to off and reached for a towel, drying her hair, before she wrapped it around her torso.
The instant she stepped onto the bathmat, an unfamiliar tingle in her lower back startled her. She gasped as the pressure continued to increase, and by instinct, she lowered herself onto her hands and knees. Panting through her clenched teeth, she found that it relieved the unusual pressure that surrounded her in its entirety.
Opening her mouth to call out to Reaper, she found that she couldn’t unclench her jaw long enough to do so. The tension in her body increased, and she felt the tears fall on the mat below as her head bent. Again, she opened her mouth to call for Reaper, but lost her breath when her stomach compressed, driving her breath from her. The tingling on her spine increased. Instead of staying in one centralized location, the sensations spread lower to her thighs, knees, and then her feet.
Reaper! Please, I need you. Reaper.
“Ara?” His scratchy voice called out from the bedroom.
Help.
The next moment, the door swung open and slammed against the wall. Frantic, Reaper burst through the door and stopped when he noticed her on the floor of the bathroom. She caught a flash of pain on his face, but before she could question why, another crushing wave gripped her.
Trying to concentrate on something other than the weird pressure, her gaze followed Reaper as he lowered his handsome face in front of her, and some of the tension that held her body captive relaxed. As she perused his face, she noticed that his eyes were bloodshot and tired.
What’s wrong? She couldn’t express her concern through speech, but she was able to communicate with him somehow.
“Are you in pain?” He ignored her question and asked one of his own.
Taking a deep breath, she assessed the sensations that coursed through her, and she realized that pain wasn’t one of them.
No, no pain. It feels as though someone is pressing down on my body but at the same time, stretching my limbs and squeezing me.
At her explanation, he flinched as though she physically struck him. Her gaze dropped to his throat as he swallowed. Reaper had never been anything but direct when speaking to her, but something about his expression worried her.
Am I dying?
“What? No, beautiful. This is my fault.”
How?
“When I claimed you, I released venom into your system without limiting the amount. I was too far gone to realize that my venom might affect you in this way. According to Liv, your cells mutated from the amount I released into your system, and this morning you will become a fully developed shifter.” His voice broke on the last word.
Everything about the night Reaper had claimed her rushed back, and she could recall details that her human mind would’ve already forgotten. Every word that had been spoken between them, his declaration of love, etched into her memory. Reaper had never put her at risk, but he looked horrified that she would become a shifter.
Did you…not want me anymore? Is that why you’re upset by this?
“Fuck! No, beautiful. I didn’t know that there was a possibility that you might become a shifter. All I though
t about since I found you again is wanting to claim you as my own. I’ve never met a shifter who’d met their mate, so it never crossed my mind that my bite might cause you to change, but I don’t regret it. I just regret the pain you’ve gone through. Trust me, beautiful, there is nothing more that I want in this world than you.” Reaper rubbed a spot on his chest.
I love you, Reaper.
The change in Reaper made her regret not being brave enough to tell him sooner. She had wanted to, a million times, but the time had never been right. She had no idea what would happen after she became a shifter, but she needed him to know how much she loved him.
“I love you, too, Ara.”
His words and his presence allowed her to relax her taut body, and the pressure lessened.
Am I going to shift?
“Yes. The pain you experienced yesterday along with the fever culminates in your first shift.”
Her hands unclenched and released the hold she had on the mat underneath her. Although she didn’t trust herself to move, she forced herself to unlock her muscles slowly. Before she could relax into a sitting position, his words sunk in.
What pain yesterday?
“It’s Monday morning, beautiful. Early Sunday morning, I found you in pain, and I tried everything to keep your fever down. Liv took a sample of your blood, and that’s how we realized what was happening to you.” His hand reached for her and hesitated.
You can touch me—I’m fine.
He caressed her cheek using a single finger with gentle strokes, worried that his touch would cause her to cry out in pain. She leaned into his hand, and the familiar smell of forest and rain settled inside her. She knew that whatever happened, she would have Reaper by her side.
Her back arched, moving her face away from his hand.
Reaper settled down next to her and placed his hand on her back. He rubbed slow, deliberate circles as she transitioned, and because of his calming presence, she settled into it and allowed the change to happen.
Reaper (A Dark Assassins Novel Book Two) Page 13
