“Here you go, sorry about that,” she apologized. He opened the door as she was yawning. He looked down at her with a strange smile on his face and offered her his hand. She took it and allowed him to haul her to her feet. She sighed and smiled.
“Sorry, I hadn’t planned on falling asleep,” she told him.
“I am glad you did. That was the calmest night I have ever spent as a werewolf. Between that and dinner I owe you. So if those mob boys show up, it is on the house.” He leaned in and kissed her lips gently.
“Thank you,” he said with a soft kind voice. Then he was off to the bathroom. She stood there with a hand on her lips for a moment before shaking her head and taking the blanket and pillow back to the bedroom.
They ate and had breakfast quickly before he set up for the day. Setting up consisted of making sure a large number of weapons were prepared and ready to go. He got that done in what, to her, had to be record time. She was positioned at the front window watching the road. If they were coming, Kurt was sure it would be early. They did not know the terrain and could not be sure what he would be prepared to do. The Big Guy in the suit would want plenty of time to take care of business. It made a sort of sense to her. Kurt placed guns at every window with ammo for reloading, then got a cup of coffee for them both and came over to join her.
“So now we wait. It is the worst part of ambushing. You never know for sure when they are coming, despite any intel you may have,” he confided to her. It occurred to her, late she thought, that this was not his first rodeo.
“I am sorry to get you into this. I should have just gone to the cops. The last thing you need is to go into combat. You have enough problems,” she told him. He chuckled.
“Honestly, I am pretty optimistic and it is my pleasure to take care of this for you, and me when it comes right down with it. They made a mistake that put me with you. They had no way of knowing for sure you would be with me based on what the guy in the deli told them. It is not like we left together. They are making the mistake of assuming everyone acts like they do. I mean, I imagine if they had to go on the run they would all leave by different doors with an overnight bag,” he said. Elizabeth could not help laughing.
“True, except their assumption ended up being true,” she pointed out.
“Maybe, but considering the odds of it actually being right, they got lucky this time. Still if they know where this place is and they are working off of their assumptions about us, they have to come here. I would. Just check each possibility off of the list until one pops. Well if they show up here I will give them pops,” he said with a grim smile. I was going to comment on that when we both saw dust coming up the road.
“Shit, here we go. I was hoping I had been wrong. Do you know what to do?” he asked Elizabeth. She shook her head.
“No, other than stay out of the way,” she told him.
“Hell no. You are going to be my eyes if things heat up. They can’t shoot through the windows or through the walls unless they have a rocket launcher and I am sure they won’t have one of those. So when things get really hopping you keep your eyes out. If you see someone trying to go around the cabin, you let me know. Do not be shy, shout it out if you have to, ok?” he asked. She nodded feeling her fear rise up higher in her.
They watched as three cars pulled slowly up the dirt road. They stopped maybe twenty feet behind her car and his.
“I wish I had a cigarette,” she said.
“I didn’t know you smoked,” he responded with a glance.
“I don’t, but it seems like a good time to start,” she said absently while watching the men getting out of the cars. He laughed a short bark and she realized what she had said was funny. Elizabeth had actually meant it. The Big Guy in the suit was up front followed by six other guys in suits. They seemed completely out of place in this wooded retreat.
“Kurt Landan. We know you are in there. We can see you. Just give us Elizabeth Darley and you are out of it. She is the one we need,” the Big Guy shouted up at them. Kurt snorted and chuckled.
“My ass,” he murmured. Then, “Yeah as if I believe that. Besides, you are here to kill a lady who lives next to me. I would not be acting as a good neighbor if I did not help her out. What, were you raised in a barn?” Kurt shouted back. He brought his rifle up to his shoulder. The windows were all slightly cracked open for a muzzle of as gun.
“If you are trying to be a hero you are wasting your time. She is not worth it,” the Big Guy called out. Kurt looked like he was focusing in on something in the scope.
“She gives a great hand massage. My arthritis has not been this good in weeks,” Kurt called back and then there was a hug bang, of his gun going off. With ringing ears Elizabeth saw the man to the Big Guy’s left fly backward screaming reaching for his shoulder.
“Freeze Big Guy! You do not want to know where I am aiming now, I guarantee you will not like it!” Kurt informed him as he rolled his head on his neck before sighting in again. He was so calm, it was helping Elizabeth from having a meltdown. Later, she told herself. There would be time later. The men standing in front of the cabin froze. She did not see why. Then she saw glimpses of people moving through the woods on either side.
“There are people circling through the trees. They have more men!” she told him.
“Shit, here we go!” Kurt said and then took three rapid shots. Three of the five remaining in the front went down screaming. The Big Guy and two others hit the ground too fast to get hit. The smell of gun smoke was intense as a cloud of it wafted through the room.
“Okay Beth, go the side window over there and keep an eye out. Shut that window first,” he said as he shut the window he was at. They did this just as the attackers opened fire at the front of the house. Staying down she crawled to the window he had indicated and he went to the other side.
“They are trying to distract us. Let me know if anyone on that side gets too close,” said Kurt.
She agreed shakily. She watched and tugged her tank top down. It always made her uncomfortable when her clothes did that. She thought she saw two guys in the woods getting closer. Fortunately the trees did not come right up to the cabin, she thought. At least she hoped that was good.
She watched them closely while bullets were still being fired at the front of the place. She heard Kurt’s gun go off three times in rapid fire. Then as she was about to turn, someone popped up from under her window, a black haired man with a mustache. He got a hand slipped into the crack of the window, and began pushing it further open. Elizabeth screamed and threw her weight against it, smashing his hand against the window jam. He swore and began shoving harder.
“Hold on Beth, hold on, ok, down!” he cried. She let go and rolled backwards as she heard the window slide open. Kurt’s rifle fired again. Once, twice, and at the same time she heard the third she heard another, different sounding shot and screamed as her shoulder felt agonizing pain. Several more bullets fired from inside the cabin and then Kurt was next to her dragging her back down the hall.
“God damn it Beth, I should never have let you do that. Shit, let me see it. Easy girl, I got you,” she heard him say through the pain.
“Oh Christ, ok, the bullet just creased your shoulder. It didn’t puncture or break anything,” he told her, wrapping a bandana around her shoulder. “Put pressure on it with your hand on it and stay put. I am done playing with these bozos.”
The look on his face would have terrified her if she thought it was directed at her. She watched him head back to the front of the cabin. He picked up another gun. This one had a long clip and a big barrel. Uh oh, she thought to herself. She glanced down at her shoulder and could see blood leaking through her fingers. She pressed down tighter.
“Just you three left Big Guy. Come on out and play boy. What are you waiting for, think you are out of your league! You don’t even know,” he shouted furiously out the front window. His gun came up and there were rapid fire gunshots.
“Now it is down to two of you.
I can do this all day. You don’t have that kind of time though. You have to know the cops are on the way,” he told the mob men. Cops, Elizabeth thought. He called the cops? He could have told me, she thought. Her shoulder hurt and was throbbing badly. She was doing everything she could to just not cry when she heard the voice of the Big Guy in the suit.
“Now who is out of his league Marine Boy!” she heard him say. She saw Kurt turn and run towards her.
“What? Kurt what is—” said Elizabeth, her words cut off when he scooped her up and ran into the bedroom, diving down with her behind the side of the bed.
“Sorry Beth, they have a rocket launcher!” She felt the tears come then and he curled around her. Trying to protect her body with his.
“I wish I would have hit on you when I had the chance. If we get out of this I will court you properly,” he whispered to her and then he kissed her on the mouth. She returned it until they both heard sirens and a loudspeaker.
“Drop the weapons, this is NCIS. We have you surrounded.”
Then there was silence. Kurt and Elizabeth looked at each other in surprise.
“I thought you called the cops,” she told him. He shook his head.
“I was bluffing,”
*****
Kurt had not called the cops, or NCIS. His buddy who had warned him had. When his friend, whose name was Jack Low, found out exactly how much trouble Kurt was in he figured to let the people who look after SEALs handle it. He had not been positive the cops would be able to.
Apparently, according to the agents who had responded, the only reason the rocket launcher had not destroyed the cabin was that Kurt had shot the only guy who knew how to use it. When NCIS pulled up the Big Guy was trying to fire it, but he didn’t know exactly how and was trying to figure it out.
An ambulance EMT had bandaged her, but she had refused to go to the hospital. She knew as night approached, it would be Kurt’s last night of the month that he would change. She wanted to be there for him. She was not sure she was in love with him but she did know that some of the love songs she had heard all of her life were beginning to make sense. She thought that was a good sign. They watched the bad guys being driven away by the last of the NCIS agents, and they both sighed in relief.
“Do you think they will get a prosecution?” Kurt asked as he escorted her inside. The pain medicine she had been given was working well so her shoulder barely throbbed. He was treating her like she was fragile and needed help every step. She did not need help, but had to admit privately that she enjoyed the attention.
“Oh I think they will. I gave them my file from work when you were being interviewed. I made the suggestion they look in a couple of specific companies to prove what I was saying. In a few days they should have all they need to prosecute. I however will be out of a job. My boss was making a lot of money off of the mob. That won’t fly, no matter what he might say,” she told him honestly.
“Sorry about that. Considering the people he was doing business with I suppose it was inevitable things went south on him. Now you just sit here, I am making dinner. I need to work off some adrenaline anyway,” he chided her. He then went to the kitchen and she got to watch a man make her dinner. It was a first for her and she thought she could get to like it. If this was a real date with him, she could do more of them, without the shooting she reminded herself. She turned her phone’s music on and they sipped beer and he cooked.
The dinner was a chicken and rice dish with Indian flavors that smelled heavenly while cooking. He moved around the kitchen completely at ease with it and she decide she liked watching him cook. Or do anything really, she told herself with a slight smile. Despite everything that had happened she still found him incredibly attractive. Now that she knew him better she thought they might have a good shot at it.
“I hope you don’t mind me having to check out again tonight. You could have gone home and slept in your own bed,” he said. It sounded like he was feeling guilty.
“You fought heroically to save my life. The least I can do is be here for you. Besides, I hate hospitals and I would have been lonely.” As she said the last, she was surprised with herself. Elizabeth had not meant to say it, it had just came out. His eyes softened. Elizabeth continued. “I don’t know why. Just after everything, I still haven’t absorbed it. Even if you are a wolf and locked up, I will not feel alone. I hope you don’t mind, Kurt. I know I have probably been a pain in the ass this whole weekend,” she admitted to him.
Kurt shook his head while bringing the dinner to the table. He served her.
“Truthfully, as shocked as I was by your initial visit I was glad to see someone I know. It can get pretty lonely up here too,” he admitted to her.
They ate in silence and the food was excellent. She was feeling tired and knew she would not last long after he changed. They finished in a calm silence. As if nothing needed to be said right then. It was nice for Elizabeth and she enjoyed being comfortable with someone.
Later when she had stroked Kurt’s paw until he went to sleep she fell asleep in the hall, and dreamed. In the dream she and Kurt were at a stream, having a picnic lunch and laughing. It was a peaceful rest they both had that night.
Tomorrow was going to be a good day.
THE END
Bonus Story 17 of 25
Taken by Two Alpha Dragons
“I’ll see you tomorrow then Steph,” I said. I waved to Alyssa on her way out of the office. The day had been hectic with the strange influx of emergencies. Usually many pet owners would go to the other, much larger, emergency pet hospital down the street from ours. But even they had a huge load of patients they couldn’t keep up with and consequently sent some over to us. Denver was home to many pet lovers and not just your usual cats and dogs either. In Colorado it was legal to own an exotic variety of pets, and all needed to see the vet at some point. So there was a lot of busy work for me as a veterinary technician.
My day was finally almost over though and it was pushing seven thirty at night. It was already pitch black outside since we were nearing the end of November and into December. I finished up with some paperwork and went to do some last checks on the animals before I closed up shop. Alyssa usually helped me close up at night, but she had to go to her daughter’s dance recital and I told her that I could handle closing on my own.
It was nearly nine o’clock by the time I left the building to head out to my car. Denver was pretty much just like any other big city, there was always lots of activity on the sidewalks and streets. I was thankful for that as I walked down the sidewalk that would lead towards the back of the building where employee parking was. However, the small lot behind the building was only lit by one light post and at night I always hurried to my car. Even though I was a twenty-six-year-old woman, I was still afraid of the dark, and what could be hiding in the shadows.
I made it to my little blue Honda Civic and breathed a sigh of relief once I was inside. I quickly turned on the car so I could get the heat going, and the car warmed up. Soon after I was pulling out and heading home towards Montbello. I lived fairly close to the wildlife refuge and it was always sort of peaceful in my neighborhood. I pulled up to my cute little two-bedroom house and parked in the drive like I always did. My house was fairly tucked away from the rest of the street; it was built towards the back of my lot and hidden by shrubs lining the perimeter of the house and a few trees. I started walking towards the porch and then I felt the hair raise on my nape. I glanced around behind me, but I couldn’t see into the shadows. I stared, but it didn’t appear that anyone was watching me.
I glanced across the street and saw that my neighbor’s lights were on inside, but there were no movements in the windows or anything like that. Plus, the Wilsons weren’t the type to spy on their neighbors. I just needed to chill. I’d had a hectic day at work and I hadn’t had a chance to really unwind yet. I took a deep breath and continued up to my porch and then into the house. When I stepped through the front door I realized that I’d lef
t my purse in the car. I had only grabbed my work bag in the hurry to get inside. I sighed and walked into the family room to drop the bag on the couch and then I headed back out to the car.
As I walked down the steps of my porch I saw a dark figure walking up the drive. I stepped forward with caution and met the stranger halfway, by my car. He grew bigger the closer he got to me, both taller and more muscular. When we were standing in front of each other in the cold night air, I found it odd that he was wearing a skintight black t-shirt and dark jeans. Meanwhile I could see my breath in the air when I exhaled and I was close to shivering in thickly lined parka and Ugg boots.
“Hello, my name is Micah,” his voice was deep and had that sexy rasp to it. I looked up, and up, at his face. Of course he was handsome as well as tall, he had an intense brow and almost unnatural teal colored eyes. His hawkish nose led down to plump lips and a cleft chin. He had a square jaw that was speckled with brown stubble. I glanced up at his brown hair and saw it was styled into an undercut bun. His incredible good looks coupled with his height and build lent me to believe that he wasn’t quite real.
“Um…uh, hi. I’m Stephanie…” I said. Micah inclined his head in an almost old world fashion.
“It is a pleasure to meet you Stephanie,” Micah said with a small upwards quirk of his lips. I was growing confused and uneasy as to what he was doing in my driveway. Micah was also just staring at me, his eyes almost calculating as they roamed my body from head to toe.
“Ah, it’s good to meet you too?” I said in confusion. “Can I ask what it is you’re looking for exactly?” Micah tilted his head slightly to the left and grinned, his smile was predatory and it definitely sent a frisson of warning up my spine.
“Yes, I’m looking for you. There is someone I need you for. I’ve been watching you for a few days now and upon closer inspection I’d say you’re the perfect fit.”
Alpha Vampire Romance: Vampire’s Mate (Paranormal Shapeshifter Alpha Demon Vampire Romance) (Coming of Age Werewolf BBW Shifter Women’s Fiction Short Stories) Page 55
