“Are you really complaining? I’m fine.”
He began to move slowly inside her, sending ripples of pleasure flowing through her. His fingers rubbed across her peaked nipples and he pulled her head down to kiss her.
“I love you very much.” Aleron brushed her hair back off her face and slid his fingers across her mouth.
She nipped at his fingers and then said, “I know, and I love you.”
Gradually, he moved faster and rubbed her clit. She arched her back as hot delight tingled from her toes to her fingertips. Aleron groaned as his orgasm shook his insides and clearly sent a wave of euphoria straight to his head.
Jewel rolled off him and they lay holding hands and catching their breath. A loud knock at the door got their attention.
“Raoul’s back.” Aleron kissed her forehead before rolling off the bed. He grabbed his jeans and pulled them up and put his shirt on. “Just in case I’m wrong. I wouldn’t want to shock your nurse.” He gave Jewel a loving glance and unfastened the door.
“It’s about time,” Raoul said as he came into the room. “You all were having too much fun, and I was bored sitting in the dining room.”
“Poor thing, come here. I’ll kiss you to make you feel better.”
Raoul grinned. “Good, you took my hint.” He leaned down to her and she kissed his mouth. “That’s not a kiss. This is.” His mouth covered hers and his tongue ravished all around the inside, spiking her desire again.
When Raoul raised his head, his eyes sparkled with mischief. “That’s a kiss, my darling.”
* * * *
“No sign of them yet,” the man’s voice said into the leader’s cell phone. “They did say midnight?”
“Yes, damn it. What trick do they have up their sleeve now? Don’t relax. They’ll come.” The leader snapped his cell phone shut. Victory was within his grasp. All these years of pretending would be over. He’d kill Mitch and Daren if they’d tricked him, if it was the last thing he did on this earth. And he’d destroy that smart-mouth shape-shifter, Aleron, who must have warned them. It was all his fault and the rest of the third tribe’s. Until they visited, no one among the two tribes had suspected anything.
Frustration and anger gnawed at his stomach. Fury swept over him. He hit his fist against the wall of his bedroom.
He didn’t care if they picked up on his vibes again. He intended to win and be the one leader. How could he find out what was going on? It was too late. If he tried to sneak around, he might get caught. Patience had been his strong suit, but it was wearing thin.
* * * *
Just before dawn the bird shifters of the third tribe met in the barn near the ranch house. Aleron explained the plan. “Garth will be with the other leaders. We’ll shift and leave one by one out the back door and hide near the last exit. When I fly over you the net will be down for one minute for you to fly out. Go to the spot I’ve shown you on this map. Does anyone have questions?” They shook their heads no then shifted, and one at a time they left.
Aleron called Mitch. He and the other leaders had set up headquarters in one of the third tribe’s tents. “Everyone has left the barn. I’m leaving now. Wait one minute and release the net.” He snapped his cell shut and shifted into his golden eagle. Aleron flew up and took deep breaths of the cool morning air. He kept his altitude low. When he saw his men, he swooped down and then went straight up.
Hovering above, he watched as the bird shape-shifters flew toward the area he had specified. Other shifters left through the third gate, and he spotted Raoul with his other wolf shifters. Aleron flew to the second gate and watched as the warriors ran out and into the nearby bushes for cover. The game was on. Exhilaration rushed through him as he swiftly flew toward their enemies’ site. He wanted to be sure they weren’t expected. From high up he could see them, but they wouldn’t see him.
The camp was quiet. Most of the men had apparently gone to bed, leaving a small contingent guarding the perimeter. From here Aleron saw the warriors and shape-shifters getting closer to the encampment. While he waited for the initial surge, he contacted the other eagle and hawk shape-shifters to join him. In a minute they converged around him.
“We’ll dive-bomb them when the attack starts. It’ll make them more confused. But watch out. I’m almost certain they have some of their own bird shifters left. Don’t get hit by their beaks or talons,” Aleron instructed them telepathically.
Aleron saw Nick go in first and silently take out one guard at a time. Amazing, they were far enough away from each other that no one heard or saw anything. Now the warriors, wolves, tigers, and other shape-shifters slowly entered the perimeter. At Justin’s signal they rushed the tents. Their enemies were stunned. Some of them staggered out then ran back in for their guns and rifles.
“Now!” Aleron instructed. The birds flew directly downward. They’d spread out and each found an enemy to attack. Men screamed when the sharp talons tore into their heads. The birds immediately flew straight upward.
One enemy got a shot off and winged a hawk. Another hawk flew to his side, and they headed back toward the ranch. Aleron sent Garth a telepathic message. “Release the net for the wounded.” Garth didn’t respond. He tried again with no luck.
Aleron tried contacting Jewel. “Are you receiving me?” he asked her.
“Yes, what’s happening?”
“I can’t reach the tent headquarters. Have someone contact Lang. Tell him to be careful. I have a bad feeling about this.”
“All right. I’ll let you know what he finds out.”
Aleron had been hovering high in the sky watching the battle and his men continuing to dive-bomb the enemy. He flew lower and circled the area. “Is that a man holding a child?”
“Yes.” His second-in-command, the other eagle, sent him a message. “A little girl.”
Swooping lower, Aleron saw it was Caitlin, Sara’s daughter, and Phillip. Why the hell did he bring a child to see this carnage? Then he saw the gun Phillip held to Caitlin’s head and the stricken look on Justin’s face.
At a signal from Justin and Phillip, the battle stopped. He’d been right. Phillip was the male leader, but Aleron never suspected he’d take a child for his cover. Aleron flew in a circle all around the camp.
The remainder of Phillip’s men waited for his command. The warriors had been instructed to drop their guns. Aleron saw one of the black birds still flew toward his men. “Be careful of that guy’s beak.”
Flying a bit farther out, Aleron saw two people in a tree that overlooked the compound. It was Payton and Averil. Aleron landed behind some bushes and quietly walked under the tree.
Payton glanced down. “Damn, man, where are your clothes?”
“It happens when we have to shape-shift away from where we first shifted and left our clothes. How can I help you all stop this madness?”
Averil didn’t look away from the scene in front of her, but she said, “You shift into an eagle, right?”
“Yes.”
“It’ll be dangerous, but can you come at him from his right side? If we can get him to turn just slightly from the girl, we’ll take him out.”
“No problem. Are you ready?”
“Yes,” Payton said.
Aleron shifted immediately and went straight upward. He flew to the other side of the camp. Justin was talking on the phone, and Phillip still held Caitlin tight with the gun against her small head. Rage filled Aleron. He’d like to kill the man with his talons. Bullets were too good for him, but he’d stick to their plan. It was more likely to end with Caitlin unhurt.
Once in position, Aleron sent a message to Raoul about his plan.
“If I don’t get out of this, tell Jewel I loved her, and I want you two to still get married.”
“Don’t be crazy. You’re the fastest there is in the air.”
“Sure. Anyway, protect Caitlin.” Aleron readied himself and flew toward Phillip from the right. As he got closer he let out a loud squawk. Phillip jerked to look at hi
m, and two bullet shots rang out. When Phillip fell, everyone stood stunned.
* * * *
Raoul immediately placed his wolf body between Caitlin and the others.
When realization hit, warriors grabbed their guns and bullets flew through the air. Raoul lay down close against Caitlin’s body.
“Get on my back. I’ll take you to safety.” He doubted the child could receive his message, but she was a child of three people who were descendants of the first tribes. It was worth a chance. If not, he’d drag her out of range of the bullets hitting all around them.
Her little face scrunched up. Then after a few seconds she smiled and threw a leg across his back. She grabbed his mane of hair. “Go, doggy,” she said.
Raoul streaked to the left and into a thicket of bushes. He didn’t stop until the sound of the battle was far away.
“I’m going to take you home. I won’t hurt you.”
“Good doggy. I want my mamma,” she said, and Raoul heard the tears in her voice.
“Your mother and father will be proud of how brave you have been.” Raoul took his time, being careful so she didn’t slide off his back. He wanted a little girl like Caitlin, only with Jewel’s beautiful hair. He liked children. They’d have to convince her she could have both, her paintings and a family.
When he got to the gate, the guard saw Caitlin and called to have the net released. Just as he started to go toward headquarters, Aleron sent him a message.
“Be careful. Headquarters wasn’t responding. I asked Jewel to contact Lang and his men.”
“Jewel? She’ll be right in the middle of it,” Raoul messaged back to Aleron. “Caitlin, I’m going to take you to the ranch house. You run inside and find your mother. I’ve got to go see your daddy. Hold on tight. I’m going fast.” Raoul waited until he felt her grip tighten then he ran faster and soon stopped in front of the ranch house porch.
Sara must have been anxiously waiting and watching. She ran out and grabbed her daughter. He heard her yell “thank you” as he took off. Now he stretched himself to the limit. Once headquarters was in sight, he slowed. He saw Lang’s men riding fast toward the tent. He shifted and waved at them to stop. Lang grinned when he saw Raoul nude.
Lang leaned across the horn of his saddle. “You left home quick, I see.”
“Yeah. Look, I want to get close and hear what’s going on inside the tent. I’ll motion when you all should join me.”
“We’ll wait here.”
Shifting again, Raoul carefully moved to the back of the tent. He heard voices inside.
“I don’t know what happened, but if you don’t stop this battle now, your brother, Daren, dies.”
“Damn you, Nate. Our daughter may be dead, and you threaten my brother, too. We thought you’d been forced to do their bidding,” Mitch said.
Raoul raced around to the front of the tent and peeked around the corner. As he feared, he saw Jewel’s small kitten slinking along the edge inside the tent toward Daren. Raoul’s heart stopped.
He guessed what she planned to do.
“I’m here. Get out. Lang and I and his men will handle it.”
But she ignored him. She rubbed against Daren’s leg. Daren didn’t move or look down from where he stood with Nate’s gun pointed at his heart. Raoul waited. It was too late to stop her.
Her kitten sprang, and in midair she shifted to her cheetah. Her jaws clamped onto Nate’s wrist and he dropped the gun. Mitch and Daren jumped in and took him down.
“I want to shake you, I’m so angry. You knew we wanted you safe at the hospital, and the doctors said to not shift.”
She shifted to her kitty and wrapped herself around his leg then purred. “I’m a woman, not a child. And I have skills that helped in this situation. Get used to it. If I’m needed, I have to help. This was serious. Our whole way of life depends on us winning this battle. The doctors agreed I could shift. They understood the urgency and will check me over when I return to the hospital.”
“I hate it when you put your life in danger.”
“But it wasn’t. I knew how it would end.” Then she ran down the dirt road and out of sight.
Mitch looked at the entrance to the tent and saw Lang and his men. “Who contacted you?”
“Jewel did. I gathered ten men and was almost here when Raoul asked me to wait.”
“How did you know we had problems here at camp?” Daren asked Raoul.
Raoul shifted. “Aleron couldn’t contact you, and then Phillip was at the camp with Caitlin. Aleron managed to get his attention, and the sharpshooters took Phillip out. I left Caitlin at your house.”
Mitch swallowed hard, and Daren looked down. Raoul realized they truly feared their beloved daughter was dead.
The ambulance arrived, and the men came rushing in with a stretcher. “Who’s hurt?”
Daren nodded to Nate lying on the floor with his hands and feet tied. “Who called you?”
“Jewel.”
“That lady gets around. All right. Have his wrist checked, but then he’s to be locked in the steel cell below ground at the ranch house.” Daren motioned to two of his men standing beside him. “Guard him constantly. I want one of you inside the cell and one out at all times. Go with the ambulance.”
Raoul turned to Mitch. “I’m going to shift and go back to the battle. They many need me, or it may be over.” He went outside, shifted, and then took off running fast toward the battleground.
* * * *
Aleron watched as the last of the huge black birds flew into the sky. The other bird shifters were nosediving and coming from the back, hitting the black birds’ heads with their beaks. Aleron got the attention of two of the black birds. He flew straight downward. They followed him but didn’t have his speed. Near the bottom, Aleron turned. The two heavier birds couldn’t move as fast. Aleron heard the gunshots and glanced back.
Justin had shot them down. He waved at Aleron. On the ground the warriors were rounding up the enemies still alive. Other than the three black birds above, the battle was over.
“Get away from the black birds. Fly back to the ranch,” Aleron instructed the other bird shifters. They immediately left the area. Confused and seeing only Aleron, they headed toward him. He dove, bringing them closer to ground, where Payton and Averil were able to shoot the last of them.
Aleron flew back to the barn where the others had already shifted. Several of the men hung their heads. Aleron searched among them to see who was missing. It was another one of the hawks, Charles.
“What happened?” Aleron asked.
“While you were helping save the child, Charlie got too close to one of the black birds’ beaks. A second more and he’d have made it,” one of the men said. “The beak went right through his body.”
He looked around for the wounded hawk. The shifter bird Aleron had sent with him wasn’t there, either. “Does anyone know what happened to Tim and George?” Aleron asked.
“They landed outside the gate and waited. Tim messaged us that the gate finally opened. When I got the last message, they were headed to the hospital,” his lieutenant said.
“I’ll check on them. The stuff on those beaks can be fatal. I’m glad we didn’t lose anyone else. It’s going to be difficult telling Charlie’s wife. I’ll do it,” Aleron said. “You did a great job. Rest, and we’ll talk more later.”
Soon the warriors would be back. Hopefully, there weren’t many casualties among them. Aleron headed to the tent where the women were gathered. Telling a woman her husband had died was the hardest part of his job.
* * * *
Mitch and Daren welcomed the warriors and shape-shifters back to the ranch. Mitch directed the wounded to the hospital. The few prisoners were taken to the ranch to be confined in cells downstairs.
“All the others are dead?” Mitch asked.
“Dead and buried. We cleaned the area as you directed. Anyone who might happen to stumble by will see evidence of a small fire. But I doubt anyone will be around ther
e in the next ten years. It’s really in the middle of nowhere. No roads, nothing,” Justin said.
“Good. The sheriff is already puzzled and questioning what goes on at the ranch. With our new family joining us we’ll have to come up with some plausible explanations.”
Daren stepped up behind Mitch. “Let’s go to the ranch house and get all the reports.” Garth nodded his agreement.
“Justin, get our lead group of warriors together and join us,” Mitch said. “Also put two men guarding each prisoner. We can’t trust them out of our sight.”
Mitch swung his arm around Daren’s shoulder. “Let’s go home.”
* * * *
Jewel waited impatiently to see Raoul and Aleron come through the cabin door. She’d been pacing since she got home. Her surgeon and Jack had checked her at the hospital. They told her shifting had not done any damage, and they pronounced her well. She pulled her blouse up to look at the surgery area. Her scars had gotten so faint they were hardly noticeable.
As soon as Aleron or Raoul got here she was going to have a long talk with them about her skills and about when she’d be using them. They must accept her need to help when necessary.
She heard the front door crack open. A hand holding a bouquet of yellow roses waved through the small opening. She waited to see what would happen next. Another hand popped through the crack and held a small white box.
“Come in, whoever you are,” she called out.
Aleron, holding the box, and Raoul, with the flowers, pushed the door wide open. They were smiling. She searched along their bodies and saw no bandages.
“You are both all right?”
“We couldn’t be better, darlin’,” Aleron said. He strode across the room and kissed her.
Raoul swept her a deep curtsy and handed her the huge bouquet of yellow roses. “For our beauty.”
She looked at him skeptically. “This is a change from a few hours ago.”
“I tend to explode when I’m upset and regret my outburst later. I guess we’ll both have to get used to each other.”
Commando Cowboys Entice Their Beauty [Wyoming Warriors 6] Page 14
