Shifters in the Shadows: Seventeen Paranormal Romances of Sexy Shifters, Dangerous Vamps, & Things That Go Bump in the Night

by J. K Harper

  “Thank you, Mrs. Kessler. You look lovely too.”

  “You’re such a dear,” she told me, pulling me in for a hug. “You have no idea how happy I am that you’re here with us for Angel’s special day.”

  “Me too. I wouldn’t miss it for anything. Is Angel all finished?”

  “Yes, she’s in the second bedroom.”

  “Great,” I told her, stepping carefully into her sunken living room to get to the bedroom.

  “You go on and keep her company. I need to get a bracelet from my car … and a bottle of whisky to calm my nerves. All that fruity stuff in the minibar won’t cut it at a time like this. I’ll be right back.”

  Smiling, I headed in.

  I was speechless when I saw Angel. She stood beside the floor-to-ceiling windows, staring out at the Vegas Strip skyline and mountains in the distance. I wished I had my camera right this second. She was exquisite from head to toe. Diamond drop earrings, a tiara-styled comb holding up her veil, the most gorgeous mermaid gown made of satin, lace and tulle, hugging every curve on her body. A row of covered buttons down the sheer back accentuated the style, and a structured bow at the back of her waist made it all the more perfect. Even her skin seemed to shimmer, and it was not the makeup.

  Angel turned to me when she noticed I was in the room. “Do you like it?” she asked timidly.

  A wave of emotion flooded over me. “Like it? Awww, honey. You’re perfect. I have never … ever … seen a more gorgeous bride. And you know what?” I started fanning my eyes. “Goodness, I think I’m gonna cry!”

  I hurried back out of the room to find some facial tissues. I had not shed a tear since my mom passed when I was eleven. That was thirteen years ago, so I took comfort in knowing I broke the dry spell for my dearest friend. Which reminded me that I’d brought a gift for her. Grabbing my clutch purse, I returned to the room.

  “I have something for you.” I pulled out the last-minute gift. “It’s old, borrowed and blue, but I promise you it’s exactly what you want.”

  Her eyes widened when she saw it. “Oh my God, don’t tell me that’s—”

  “It is,” I beamed. “The blue moonstone necklace my grandmother left me. I remember how much you loved it when I wore it to the prom.” I stepped up behind her and placed it around her neck, clasping the closure. “And it’s good luck, too.”

  “But it’s so rare. Are you sure?”

  “Positive.”

  “I’m beyond shocked that you’re letting it out of your sight.”

  “I’m not, hun,” I smiled. “I’ll be watching you like a hawk.”

  She looked in the mirror and got all misty-eyed. “It’s perfect. I love it. Oh God, I’ll end up crying again too.” She looked up at the ceiling, blinking a few times before stretching out her arms to hug me. “Thank you, love.”

  Mrs. Kessler returned a few minutes after. The limo was downstairs, waiting to take us to the chapel. Axe, Vincent and most everyone else had already made it there, so it was just the three of us left.

  “Ready?” I asked.

  “Yes … but if anyone asks me that question again, I won’t be. Let’s go before I need to take a piss again.”

  Vincent

  Axe and I were at the altar, and the guests were mingling when the moment we had all been waiting for finally arrived. The organ player got the signal, and started his Halloween version of the wedding song. Mrs. Kessler headed up the aisle first, followed by Sonya. I had to swallow the lump in my throat. Her eyes dazzled, but she didn’t look my way, not for a second. Understandable. I still admired every detail of her face and every contour of her body in her stunning blue gown.

  Silence fell around the room when Angel entered the chapel, escorted by Cole, the vice president of Axe’s motorcycle club. She took slow steps to the altar, moving in time with the music, eyes locked on Axe. Just as for the countless grooms I had the pleasure of witnessing before today, he was also transfixed, eyes filled with admiration and mad love, as he would put it. Finally at the altar, Cole joined her hand with the groom’s.

  After a brief pause, the justice of the peace cleared his throat to address the couple and congregation.

  “We are gathered today to bring this couple together in marriage, and to celebrate this memorable, joyous occasion in the presence of these witnesses. The act of marriage is a joining of two souls which unify to one, and is not to be taken lightly…”

  Some of the justice’s speech fell into the background after I noticed Sonya staring at me. I gave her a wink. She looked away, but I continued to observe her. This woman had such an effect on me, it was a miracle I’d left her side earlier. She was clever for putting on the brakes. It was for the best.

  My attention returned to the ceremony when the justice instructed the couple to face each other and join hands.

  “Will you, Axe Arnold Voltaire, take this woman to be thy wedded wife, to live with her in the state of holy matrimony, forsaking all others, to love and comfort her through good times and bad, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, so long as you both shall live?”

  “Hell yeah,” Axe declared, to a few nods and approving cheers in the audience.

  “I’ll take that as a yes.” He turned to Angel. “And do you, Angel Rachel Kessler, take this man to be thy wedded husband, to live with him in the state of holy matrimony, forsaking all others, to love and comfort him through good times and bad, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, so long as you both shall live??”

  “I do.”

  “As you take these vows, Angel and Axe, I would have you remember that all things are possible with faith and love in each other. Do you have the rings to exchange a token of your union?”

  I reached into my pocket and passed the wedding bands to Axe.

  The justice of the peace continued. “Axe, repeat after me: With this ring, I thee wed. Let it forever be a symbol of our love and devotion.

  Axe repeated it, and Angel did the same after she was instructed to make the same declaration.

  “As you Axe, and you, Angel have consented together in the union of marriage, and pledged your faith each to the other in the presence of these guest, by the power vested in me in the state of Nevada, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

  “Come here, woman,” Axe shouted.

  It was no surprise to me that my diehard patch-wearing friend patted his wife’s ass, then dipped her low for a long, heated kiss and some fondling of their own. Their eagerness got the crowd to their feet with applause. I shook my friend’s hand when he came up for air, and hung back when the happy couple headed out of the chapel, followed by Sonya. The wedding party was ready to start off an evening of what was sure to be a lively celebration.

  Sonya

  With the reception wrapped up and the costume party in full swing, I found Angel. I gave her one final hug and let her know that I needed to hit the road. It was close to ten-thirty at night, but I felt strangely alert. Heading to Rock Springs made sense. Within an hour, I had taken a shower, put on some comfy clothes, and packed my things into the rental car. Vincent respected my wishes and left me alone. I had to admit, I felt some remorse that he hadn’t approached me at all during the reception and after party. Getting to know him wasn’t in the cards, but wow, he sure hit the spot earlier today and last night. Another round of cross-species sex wouldn’t have been too bad.

  But then again, I was the uptight she-wolf who told him to back off.

  Finished with my hotel suite, I slid the key card under Vincent’s door. I made a promise to myself that I would send him a thank-you text. He was instrumental in giving Angel and Axe a perfect wedding experience, so I owed him that much. When the message was all typed out, I caved. Waiting until I got outside city limits was a smarter idea. No use tempting fate.

  I took the elevator down to the parking level, and was over fifty feet from my rental car when all the hairs on my back stood on edge. Stopping in my tracks, I sniffed the air.<
br />
  Shit.

  I knew that smell.

  The unmistakable odor of aconite—one of the most toxic substances for wolves. Aconite was usually carried around by either witches, wannabe wolf shifter hunters, or anyone who wanted to do damage to my kind. Why the hell were they here? And the scent was coming from somewhere close to my car.

  Fuck.

  There were at least three human males nearby, and one of them was now tucked away somewhere behind me, probably ready to block my retreat back inside the hotel. They were armed too. My heightened sense of smell picked up the scent of at least two weapons that had recently been discharged.

  With silver bullets.

  I was furious.

  These pricks had kicked off their hunt for supernatural victims hours ago.

  They probably saw this rare night as a hunter’s dream, a free-for-all chance to walk the streets and take down anyone they assumed to be nonhuman, right in plain sight. Because it was Halloween, the authorities would have no idea for at least a few hours, when the blood everyone thought was fake turned out to be real, and bodies piled up at the morgue.

  And these sons of bitches were looking to make me their next victim.

  Well, I was not on the goddamned menu.

  I did a quick, mental estimate of the time. It had to be close to midnight, which meant that in another hour, the full moon would pass. Good. If I had to, I would shift to wolf form, fight like hell, and take down as many of them as I could. I was raised to claw and kick and scrap if I had to. Still, the best way out of this was to get back into the hotel. Only one man stood in my way. I was certain I could take him on, but just in case, I needed a weapon. Digging around in my purse would only alert them that I knew they were lying in wait, so I did the next best thing. I shifted only my hands, letting my paws form until the sharp claws extended to full length. If I wanted a snowball’s chance in hell to get inside the hotel without setting off alarm bells among the humans inside, I couldn’t shift anything more than my front paws.

  Although … hell, it was Halloween. People would think my paws were part of an elaborate costume. I could probably get away with shifting my head too, come to think of it. I was as ready as I would ever be. Turning on the ball of my canvas sneakers, I walked briskly to the elevator door.

  Hunter number one emerged from behind a parked SUV.

  “Happy Halloween, little werewolf,” he snickered tauntingly.

  Talking at this juncture was unwise. That was his first mistake. It gave me time to assess him head-on, and although his two buddies were starting their approach towards us in the shadows, I had the upper hand. Smartass over here still had his gun holstered, reeked of alcohol, and didn’t get into as simple a defensive position as bending his knees.

  I smiled.

  He backed up to the door to the elevator bay. “You’re kinda cute. If you weren’t a fur-faced bitch half the time, I’d let you suck my dick.”

  Without showing him my claws, I got closer, eyes trained on him and ears focused on the two men closing in behind me. Standing sideways with my leg at shoulder width, I prepared myself to pin his arms behind his back or figure out some other defensive move the instant this standoff turned physical. Something about him made this seem too easy. What game was he playing?

  As the question crossed my mind, he lurched forward. Although I got out of his way in time, he was able to nick my arm with something sharp. I cursed under my breath for letting him touch me. The move was clumsy, but I had to hand it to him. The whole alcohol on the breath deal was a ploy to confuse me. He wasn’t drunk at all. I only realized that insight when it was too late.

  I looked down my arm and everything tilted. My vision became blurry. A haze clouded my thinking. Aconite. Fear and panic kicked in when I realized this was probably the end for me. I used my full strength, swatting and kicking the man until I made it past him and stumbled through the doors. The dizziness and searing pain eroded my hand-eye coordination. I had to press the elevator call button five times before it lit up. The room spun when I turned to look at the door I’d just entered. Why weren’t they following me?

  My last semi-coherent thought was a two-part answer to the question. First, my time was up. Second, a fourth figure appeared from out of thin air. Vincent?

  That was when everything went pitch black.

  Vincent

  I was using the phone in my room when Sonya had slipped her hotel card under my door, and after ending my call, I decided to look for her to wish her a safe trip. That was when I realized what was happening in the underground parking garage.

  Rage overcame me.

  These novices dared to attack a patron—and Sonya, of all people—at a hotel that I owned? It was always the incompetent ones who gambled their lives this way. The skilled hunters I had come to know over the years were smart enough to draw their prey out to neutral territory. These pitiful men were now on my turf. They would not live to learn from their mistake. Before the hunters knew I was in the vicinity, I moved in stealth to take down the man at the door. He had used a knife tainted with poison to cut Sonya, so I reciprocated by snapping his neck just as swiftly. The other two heard their friend crumple to the ground. Instead of making their exit, they came to look.

  Brave, yet utterly useless fools.

  Amateur hour wrapped up in under a minute when I smashed the last two men’s heads together. They weren’t dead. The blood in their veins still flowed, but I was in a generous mood. Striding into the elevator bay, I lifted Sonya into my arms and hit the elevator call button again. She released a dull groan before her head sagged backward. She had lost consciousness. Probably from the pain. That symptom alone, plus the smell of the blade in the dead man’s hand, told me it had to be aconite poisoning.

  Strange.

  I was sure I had smelled it, but now, with her in my arms, the only scent my nose picked up was the blood from her wound. I stopped suddenly when I boarded the elevator, snapping out of my bloodlust to focus and sniff the air. Yes, the aconite was flowing through her system now. I noticed her hands were still transformed into wolf paws as I entered my suite. They would stay that way until the full moon passed in about an hour. Halfway to my bedroom, Sonya stiffened up in my arms. I quickly got her to my bed.

  She let out a piercing scream and brought a hand close to her cut. “It burns!” she cried out, arching on the bed. “Help me … please…”

  “You’re safe now. It’s me … Vincent. You were attacked. It will take a few hours for the pain to subside.”

  Stunned and confused, she tried to sit up, but collapsed back into bed, rolling around and writhing in pain. “God! I can’t wait that long … it feels like my veins have acid running through them … ohhh Godddd, it’s unbearable…”

  I soaked a towel with cold water in the bathroom and took it back to her, placing it on her forehead. “Take slow breaths and try to relax. There are only two ways to get this poison out of your system, and trust me, you’ll prefer the pain over the alternative.”

  “I know what you’re talking about, and for me, it’s the only way. You have to drain me of at least half of my blood.” Sonya grabbed my wrist with both hands. “Do it. Please!”

  “I can’t. If you know the cure, then you also know the consequences. You’ll be bound to me.”

  “Do it.” She pulled the towel off her forehead. “Please! Heal me. I accept the consequences.”

  “No, Sonya. Don’t you understand? It’s a curse worse than enduring the few hours of pain you’re in.”

  “You don’t understand. The aconite will kill me. I’m from Death Adder’s wolf pack.”

  I lurched back from the bed at this news. Death Adder was one of the wolf shifter leaders in Red Ridge. Every member of his pack had an unexplained genetic defect. For them, aconite was lethal, and somehow, would stop their ability to heal themselves when they shifted to wolf form. Rubbing my now frantic hands over my temples, I estimated the amount of time since she was cut. It had to be more tha
n ten minutes. Sonya had less than ten minutes left before the poison would kill her.

  Sonya was going to die. Only draining her of most of her blood could save her. Feeding on her would remove enough of the aconite for her to shift and heal herself. Only falling under a curse would save her.

  “There has to be another way,” I told her, pacing. “I’ll phone someone who can help.”

  “No. There’s no other way. We have no time.” Dripping with cold sweat, she pulled her hair to one side and exposed her neck to me. “Please. Feed. I will be bound to you for life … if the myth is true.”

  “It is true. Are you sure this is what you want?”

  “Yes. I’ll be cursed for life, but it’s the only way.”

  What else could I say? “I’ll do it.”

  I sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her weak frame into my lap. Tilting her head to one side, I took a moment. Her life would never be the same, and neither would mine, but this was what she wanted.

  I did it.

  I opened my jaws wide and sank my fangs into her neck, puncturing her flesh to draw blood from her pulsating carotid artery. The initial rush of her life force tasted exactly as I expected. Warm, rich, semi-sweet, addictive. Yes, it was tainted by aconite, but the toxin was not at all dangerous to vampires.

  As I drank more from her, her body relaxed, and the tension on her face subsided. Her shifter blood strengthened me more than human blood ever could, instantly improving my mental acuity and taking all five senses to new heights. No wonder it was forbidden. With a hand on her weak pulse, I took my last drink, and then I withdrew from her neck.

  “Sonya, you need to stay awake.” She groaned, but barely moved. “Sonya.”

  “Yes … I’m okay, I think.”

  “You need to shift to wolf form. Now. Can you do it?”

  “I have to. I’ll start now.”