by A. C. Arthur
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About the Author
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GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Shadow Shifter Tribes
Topètenia—the jaguars
Croesteriia—the cheetahs
Lormenia—the white Bengal tigers
Bosinia—the cougars
Serfins—the white lions
Acordado—the awakening, the Shadow Shifter’s first shift
Alma—the name of the spa at Perryville Resorts Sedona. Means “soul” in Portuguese
Amizade—annex to the Elders’ Grounds used as a fellowship hall
Companheiro—mate
Companheiro calor—the scent shared between mates
Curandero—the medicinal and spiritual healer of the tribes
Elders—senior members of the tribe
Ètica—the Shadow Shifter Code of Ethics
Joining—the union of mated shifters
La Selva—the name of the restaurant at Perryville Resorts. Means “the jungle” in Portuguese
Pessoal—secondary building of the Elders’ Grounds that houses the personal rooms of each Elder
Rogue—a Shadow Shifter who has turned from the tribes, refusing to follow the Ètica, in an effort to become their own distinct species
Santa Casa—main building of the Elders’ Grounds that is the holy house of the Elders
The Assembly—three Elders from each tribe that make up the governing council of shifters in the Gungi
The Stateside Assembly—body of shifters selected to help govern the Shadow Shifters living in the United States
Stateside Assembly Leader—(Roman Reynolds) the shifter that has been selected to lead their people, guided by social equality and dedicated to upholding the laws of the Ètica
Stateside Shifter Hierarchy
Stateside Assembly Leader—Roman Reynolds
Mountain Zone Faction Leader—Sebastian Perry
Pacific Zone Faction Leader—Jace Maybon
Central Zone Faction Leader—Cole Linden
Eastern Zone Lead Enforcer—Dominick Delgado
Eastern Zone Lead Enforcer—Xavier Santos Markland
Lead Guards—Ezra & Elijah Preston
CHAPTER 8
Chaos had broken out so quickly and definitively that Nivea had only a second to catch her breath from being extremely aroused to ready for battle. Every guard in the ballroom was on alert the moment she stepped from the stairwell alone.
Obviously she was the only one getting the memo a day late. At any rate, she was ready for whatever was going down in the next moments. Inhaling deeply, she searched for whatever had warned Eli. Her body trembled as the scent filtered through her. It was strikingly familiar, so much so she’d placed a hand to her heart to still its rapid beating. Swallowing deeply, she looked around again to make sure she’d seen the other guards on alert as well.
X and Ezra were on their feet at the back of the room near the table where Rome, Kalina, Caprise, Nick, and Ary were still seated. Jax, Leo, Zach, and Tobias flanked that table. There was an identical EXIT door across the room and Nivea noticed the guard standing there was poised for battle as well. Then her neck snapped to the left, her nose twitching as that familiar scent grew stronger. For one heart-stopping second she thought she’d see him standing there, dressed in that perfect suit, fitting him as if it had been made just for his expertly cut body. She found herself searching for those damned sunglasses, the tight line of his lips as he glared at her impatiently, the warmth that emanated from any place his hands touched her. Eli. The name was a whisper in her head.
But he wasn’t the one she saw. He wasn’t the owner of the scent. It was the enemy.
“Three o’clock. Black pants, white dinner jacket, long curling auburn hair, and green eyes. Glowing, green eyes,” she spoke into her com link, already moving toward the target.
Out of the corner of her eye she saw the other guards moving in the same direction, following her lead.
“Do not engage,” she heard loudly through her earpiece. “Do not engage, Cannon!”
The directive was from Ezra. She clenched her teeth, totally prepared to ignore the Lead Guard. This wasn’t an invited guest, she knew that instinctively. She also knew without any doubt in her mind that whoever this was, he was somehow connected to Eli, or had been in contact with him in some way. Why else would they share the same scent?
She didn’t stop moving, had no intention of not saying something to this person, trying to find out what his connection to Eli was. But as she grew closer, and as he turned to her, locking her gaze with his own, she started to reconsider her plan. Taking deep breaths and slowing her steps minutely she figured she’d approach him as if he were just a man and she was just a woman. She would talk to him, get information from him, then turn him over to the other guards—the ones that were moving through the guests as quickly and discreetly as they possibly could.
But the moment she reached him, her plan changed, for the worse.
The man opened his mouth, baring sharp teeth and a long thick tongue that rolled out as if on command. The growl was loud and rattled the chandeliers above. At first the guests froze, then they screamed, and panic ensued.
He reached for her, grabbing her arm with claws that immediately locked into her skin. Nivea didn’t think about how powerful this sonofabitch was, or how she planned to take him down. All she could do was react. With her left hand, her claws bared, she sliced at the man’s neck, twisting her body so that he would release her arm. He didn’t, so ultimately it felt like he was actually ripping her shoulder from its joint. With a slight bend she was able to propel herself into the air, turning quickly so that her free arm could wrap around his neck. Locking on she pulled and pulled, all while searing pain radiated from her other shoulder. When he still didn’t let go she bent forward, teeth bared now, and bit the side of his face. The next roar was of rage, not pain, she was almost certain. The beast reared back and Nivea was once again air bound, falling back to what she was sure would momentarily be the floor.
If so, it was the best-smelling and warmest floor she’d ever encountered as strong arms wrapped immediately around her, holding until her feet were able to touch the floor.
“Stay back!” Eli yelled in her face before pushing her behind him and running straight at the beast.
Fuck that! she thought, rolling her head on her shoulders and mentally getting herself back in order. When she turned again Eli and Ezra were tag-teaming the beast, the two stronger guards attacking with timed precision. Eli knelt to the ground, sweeping the beast’s legs from beneath it while seconds later, Ezra straddled its neck as it hit the floor, punches raining over its face.
“Below the ear!” she heard Eli yell. “Get it below the ear!”
Nivea was already moving, not sure if Ezra had heard Eli or not. She came around the left side of the beast, the other guards shuttling away the guests that were too shocked to run out of the ballroom. As the beast continued to roar, slamming its huge fists into the floor causin
g the entire room to shake, Ezra continued punching it in the face, his thighs covering the beast’s neck. But she glimpsed something, a crack just beneath its ear.
“Get the hell back!” she heard Eli yelling. Knowing he was talking to her and clearly prepared to ignore it, Nivea’s clawed hand was in the air swinging downward, just missing Ezra’s cheek by an inch or so, before landing right along the line of the crack in the beast’s neck.
Its mouth opened, tongue lolling to the side as it made a half-roar sound and green ooze shot up into the air. Ezra and Eli both yelled as the ooze splattered on them. Nivea backed up but still managed to get splashed.
“What the fuck is that?” Nick asked, pushing past the two guards that had helped to form a circle around where the beast, Nivea, Ezra, and Eli now stood.
“I’m guessing what serves as the blood of a hybrid,” Ezra said, coming to his feet and removing the tuxedo jacket he’d been wearing.
Eli had already pulled his jacket off, the seams of both arms ripped after all his movements. He had it balled up and was currently using it to wipe his face, just before he looked over to her with what she’d already deemed his death-glare. He was angry with her because she hadn’t listened to what he’d told her to do. She knew that just as she knew she’d hear an earful at some point tonight. Funny how he was never suffering from lack of words when it came to chewing her out about something. But after they’d made love—radio silence. Typical arrogant shifter behavior? No, typical Eli Preston behavior.
“Two more down in the bathroom,” Brayden announced, entering the room with his brothers flanking him.
Rome cursed. The First Female was right beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder, her light complexion in stark contrast to the black of his tuxedo jacket. She wore a shimmering silver gown that earlier this evening had caught every twinkle in her hazel-colored eyes. Now, those eyes looked worried.
Ary Delgado also stood beside her mate, her gaze transfixed on the hybrid while Nick scowled.
Caprise Delgado—a woman and shifter that Nivea admired for her strength, beauty, and tenacity—had already walked up to the hybrid, kicking the now disintegrating carcass, frowning when that part of its leg melted into ashes.
“They aren’t worth the tainted DNA they’re using to make them,” she stated.
“How many were outside?” Rome asked sternly.
“One,” Eli replied. “One big-ass motherfucker with only one objective—to kill.”
“What makes you say that?” X asked him.
“Its eyes,” Eli told him, tossing the jacket onto the closest table. “There’s no comprehension there, no movement or focus. They’re blank, like a robot. A programmed robot that was coming for us but able to take out anything in its path.”
“They’ve been tagged,” Aidan said to Rome. “Each one of them had this little pin just beneath the right ear.”
“So, the crack beneath the left ear—the one that makes them look a little like Frankenstein—is their Achilles’ heel and the pin at the right ear is their GPS?” Nick asked, his eyebrows drawn so close it looked as if he had one wicked unibrow.
Aidan nodded. “Right. We’re going to take these and work our magic. Meet you back at Havenway,” he said concisely, but still waited for Rome to respond.
Rome looked to the younger shifter that he’d brought into the fold. “Good. I want a full report within the hour.”
Aidan’s reply was a tight nod to Rome, and another one to his brothers as he turned and headed for the doors. Caleb and Brayden followed him out.
“Get Priya on the phone. I want a conference with her and all of the other FLs the moment we arrive at Havenway. Jax, take someone to get the vehicles and bring them around to the service entrance. We’ll be there in ten minutes.”
Jax mimicked Aidan’s previous nod, turn, and walk-out motion as Eli immediately moved to Rome’s side. With Kalina’s guard gone, he would assume protection detail for both the Assembly Leader and First Female. Without being asked, Nivea went to stand at Kalina’s side, noting the First Female’s nod of acceptance as she moved past her.
“X, I want you to stay behind to make sure all of this is cleaned up. Nobody gets in this ballroom until it’s done. And check those bathrooms before you leave,” Rome directed. “Caprise will ride with Nick.”
Nivea almost thought Caprise would say something in response, but in the months since she’d come to Havenway and mated with X, the female shifter had begun to take the hierarchy seriously. Nivea had worked hard to train herself for the same allegiance, but taking Eli’s orders was becoming harder and harder the more personal their relationship became.
“Their DNA is still unstable. They’ll turn to ash to be swept up,” Ezra told Rome.
The Assembly Leader looked down at the floor where the beast that was terrorizing them just minutes before was now nothing more than a steaming pile of gray ash. “Make sure we take care of it. I don’t want any human sweeping it up and trying to figure out what it was. It’s apparent that Crowe somehow got his hands on a shifter through our carelessness. I’m not used to making the same mistake twice.”
With that, X moved to whisper something to one of the other guards. They in turn left the room, no doubt to find a broom and trash bag to sweep up the ash, Nivea thought.
“The trucks are here,” Eli said to Rome.
“Fifteen minutes after we’re at Havenway I want all of you in the debriefing room,” Rome told Nick and X.
Eli and Ezra would attend as the Lead Guards. Nivea would not be in attendance, which meant she’d have to wait to find out what their next step would be. As she walked behind Rome and Kalina—Eli moving quickly in front of them—she thought there would be definitive next steps in finding out where Crowe was so they could stop him. Apparently what happened in Arizona had not slowed the man down one bit.
* * *
“What the hell did you think you were doing? I told you to stay back!” Eli yelled the moment he’d found Nivea and pulled her out into the hallway at Havenway.
The conference call was over, and to say the shifters that had been in the room were running high on tension was a vast understatement. He was angry and irritated beyond belief that because of her he’d been distracted in the meeting. When he should have been listening intently to every word that was being said, every facet of the new game plan being laid out, he was instead thinking of what that beast could have done to her.
As it stood now, the image of her being twisted around the beast’s back, her arm about to totally dislocate from her body, had him simmering with rage. He’d wanted to rip that bastard apart with his bare hands and only because he might have injured her in the process did he hold tight to the heated rage that bubbled inside of him. He couldn’t take it if something happened to Nivea. That, for Eli, would be the last straw, the third strike where females in his life were concerned and he had no idea what he’d do after that.
“I was doing my job,” was her calm reply.
She’d been sitting in the cafeteria, her hands holding a cup of coffee, her gaze forward. He’d wondered what she was thinking so intently about but had been more attuned to the scent he’d picked up the moment he entered the room. It was the first time he’d scented her in he didn’t know how long, the first time his body reacted before he’d actually seen her. Did that mean his senses were back on point? Was whatever had been going on with him over now? He couldn’t tell, but was certainly hoping for that.
“I told you to stay back. I am your superior!” he yelled at her.
“You’re an asshole,” she snapped back. “I did what I was trained to do and I helped take that bastard down. So why don’t you just say what’s really on your mind, Eli? Tell me why you’re really so angry with me, so intent on pushing me away.”
He loved to watch her lips move, to see the sparks of emotion in her eyes when she was angry or aroused. He did not like what she was insinuating.
“It was dangerous out there tonight. You don
’t know anything about those hybrids. Nobody does,” he countered.
“You knew where to strike to take it down. How is that?” she asked, her back still pressed against the wall. “This was your first time seeing one, right? How did you know what to do?”
Eli took a step back. He wanted to look away, to regroup, but he couldn’t. Her hair was curly at the ends, hanging loose down her back. She’d changed from that sexy-as-hell dress to sweats and a loose-fitting T-shirt and yet he still wanted to wrap her legs around his waist and pound into her warm, wet pussy until his mind cleared, until his body and his cat felt finally free.
At his sides his fists clenched, jaw ticking with the pressure of gritting his teeth. “Instinct,” he told her. “I’ve been training longer than you. It was just instinct.” Only Eli wasn’t so certain that was it entirely. He’d seen the spot beneath the beast’s left ear and then he’d seen the beast falling, crumpling to the ground and he knew. In the next moment he acted. It was as simple and perplexing as that.
Nivea shook her head, the left corner of her mouth lifting slightly. “Another thing you suck at is lying, Eli. You knew something about that hybrid. And now, I do too.”
“What?” He stepped closer to her again because staying away was just futile. “What do you know?”
She looked around then, her head moving from side to side, her gaze searching for someone. Finally she came up on tiptoe, pressing her lips to his ear and whispered, “It shared your scent. I thought it was you but it wasn’t. Why is that, Eli?”
He jerked away as if her words had somehow scorched him.
“Why did that killer smell like you and how did you know how to kill it?” she asked again.
Eli kept moving back, trying desperately to get away this time. Not from her, he thought, as his legs continued to move. From everything.
“You know, don’t you? You can tell me, Eli. You can trust me.”
“No!” he yelled. He couldn’t trust her. She was just like the other females that had come and gone from his life. They were soft and smelled like heaven. Highly sexual and desirable and he wanted them. No, correct that, he needed them. For the moments it took for him to get off and to move on, he thought finally. Because now, after all he’d been through, Eli would never allow anything more.
