I swallowed hard. I knew he was right and I didn’t think I could ever kill anyone unless it was in self-defense and I had absolutely no other way out. But she took my child. She took my child and I wanted so badly to rip her lungs out with my bare hands, but I knew that I couldn’t do it.
“Ok,” I said. “We won’t hurt her unless we have to. But I’m getting my baby back one way or another.”
Derek’s eyes met mine. He could see I was serious and I could tell that he totally agreed with me. He loved his sister, but I knew that he would do what was necessary and what was right in the heat of the moment.
Tony leaned over and kissed me just then, his hand brushing my cheek.
“Good luck,” he smiled. “We will get him back.”
In my heart, I knew he was right.
Ten minutes later I was sitting in my place behind the door that rose up from the root cellar. I tiptoed around to the back of the house, quietly opened up the heavy cellar doors and lowered them slow enough that not even the tiniest creak of a hinge was heard.
Once inside it took me just a second for my eyes to adjust to the dark and when they did I could see everything clearly as if it was all being lit up by some faint neon light that cast everything in some crazy, green glow.
I quietly walked up the stairs and stopped in front of the door. I could now hear voices.
It was Derek and Beth. They were talking. And Devon was ok. I could hear his heart beating, and his slight whimpers. He was not crying and he was not hurt; I could tell this just from inhaling his scent and listening to the nature of his cries.
“You have to turn yourself in,” Derek was saying. “There is no other way. I found you here; the cops will too.”
“Did you already call them? The cops? That would be the only way they would ever find me here,” Beth said.
“No, I didn’t call the cops. You are my sister. I wanted to speak to you first,” Derek said.
“Oh, that is sweet. You’ve never wanted to talk to me before. Why start now? Because I killed some nobody?”
“How can you talk like that? That nobody had a name. She had a family. She had a life and you took it. Why? Because you were pissed that your boyfriend dumped you? That is insane.”
“I am not insane!” Beth yelled.
She was getting irate now. What the hell was Derek doing? He was supposed to keep her calm.
“Why did you take the baby? Why? What the hell were you thinking?” Derek asked.
Beth was getting thrown off balance by the change in direction in the conversation. Maybe that was Derek’s plan.
I had to be able to see so I would know when to make a move. I was going to grab the baby and Derek and Tony would fight off Beth when she went for me. That was the plan. It sounded like it just might work.
“I wanted someone in the world who might really love me. I wanted someone who would appreciate who I really am. And I wanted to punish that bitch, Jackie Banks. She doesn’t deserve to be a mother. She is nothing but a man stealing snake in the grass.”
Derek was shaking his head.
“Sis, this is the wrong way to go about things. You have to give this up. Let me have the baby. I will take it back. I won’t tell anyone where you are. I would never do that to my sister. You know that.”
Beth was silent for a few minutes. She was thinking things over. I could tell that she was emotionally done. She was totally spent and was at the end of her rope.
She started to walk away from where Devon was lying on the couch wrapped up in his blanket. I saw my chance. This was it!
I leaped forward bursting through the door and in a flash I had Devon wrapped in my arms.
Beth was only inches from me, snarling and trying to force the shift to happen, her eyes red as a demon’s and her teeth, long and sharp protruding down from her gums, ready to rip me to shreds.
But Derek and Tony were both pulling her back. She was strong, but no match for the two of them working together. They pulled her all the way to the other side of the room, pinning her against the wall as she writhed and tried to jerk free.
I wondered if there was any way in hell that she could get free, but as I walked into the kitchen to get farther away from her I could see the shame and the pain in her eyes. She would soon be admitting defeat.
“Do it!” I heard Derek shout.
Derek suddenly changed his position on Beth’s right arm to struggling with Beth one on one while Tony quickly pulled the serum out of his pocket and injected it into Beth’s neck. Within seconds the fight started to go out of her more and more.
The serum was the same thing that Tony injected into himself to keep the shift at bay and to put him into a sleep state on the nights of the full moon. He had given her almost twice the dose that he took. It would knock her out for hours.
That was the plan, though.
As I checked baby Devon to make sure he was ok I found myself overrun with emotions. He was fine and smiling at me, thankful to have his momma back. I knew that he realized I'd been gone and he had been in the arms of a stranger. My sweet baby missed me and needed me. And now he was bursting with joy to have me back. But even with all of this, I don't think he had cried much. He was so strong and serious. He reminded me too much of me sometimes.
I held him close to me softly, inhaling his sweetness and thanking my lucky stars that my baby was back in my arms safe and sound.
“Now that is a beautiful thing,” Tony said wrapping his arms around me.
He kissed me softly on the forehead before I laid my head on his shoulder.
That moment of total relief was perfect.
“Ok, I think I have everything I need,” the pretty, blonde deputy said. As she wrote on her pad I noticed her shirt said Deputy Lewis.
“Well, did you get my phone number, right?” Derek asked. “I had better double check just to make sure. I mean if you didn’t get it right then it would be a total travesty.”
I almost rolled my eyes at the absurdity, but the sexy, female cop that Derek was currently talking with, was definitely being drawn in by his charms. His flirting technique was working out for him for once.
And I couldn’t have been happier for him.
“Yes,” Deputy Lewis said throwing back her head and running a couple of fingers through her long, blonde hair. “I’m sure I got it right.”
“Great,” Derek said.
“But how about I give you my number also,” the deputy replied. “That way you can call me in a day or so and tell me where you are taking me to dinner Friday night.”
I thought Derek’s jaw was going to fall on the floor and stay there. It was great.
She typed her number into his phone quickly.
“Alright, that sounds fantastic,” Derek replied.
The officer walked away to hand the report to the sheriff who was conducting a quick story for the eleven o’clock news. It was amazing how the media had got there so fast.
Derek sauntered over to us and gave Tony a high five. I shook my head. I never thought in a million years I would see those two guys becoming friends, but it was happening. Baby Devon could cause miracles, it was true.
“So, what happens now?” Tony asked.
“Well, they are taking Beth back to the city. She will stand trial for murder and kidnapping. But pending a psyche evaluation I’m not sure she will be declared competent to stand trial.”
“I’m sure it will all work out ok,” I said. “You just got to have faith.”
Derek smiled and nodded. I knew that my words would not fix everything, but it was a start.
Epilogue
Six months later
I threw the bouquet behind me hoping to cover the entire span of the large room. I’d tried to keep my eyes closed, but part of being a shifter was that even with my eyes closed I can still see pretty well.
Nevertheless, I was even surprised to see that Sara Lewis, Deputy Sara Lewis, had caught it.
I could not stifle a "Yes! Yes!" as I jum
ped off my perch and delivered an impromptu cheer complete with a goofy dance that I have no idea that I knew. But there it was retrieved somewhere from my subconscious to make me look like an idiot.
But that was ok. It was my wedding and I could be as silly as I felt like. And besides, no one ever looked dorky in a wedding dress doing anything.
Sitting beside her was Derek. I watched his reaction carefully and I was happy as could be to see him hug Sara and give her a huge kiss. The two had started dating right after the night of the abduction and they had fallen head over heels in love.
When I looked at Derek and what a great friend he’d been and how much he deserved to be with someone special tears of joy came to my eyes. I was so happy for my good friend.
“Well, that is very fitting,” Tony said as I sat down beside him.
“Yea, it’s perfect,” I said.
I heard a soft coo and a little gurgle coming from my left. Little Devon was sitting on Tony’s mother’s lap. She had taken to him almost immediately and she was everything that grandmothers are supposed to be. She was sweet, kind, wise, and loved to spoil little ones. I was perfectly happy to let her spoil my kid rotten.
“So, did everything turn out the way you wanted it?” Tony asked me.
I looked around at how perfect everything was and smiled, before leaning over and giving him a sweet kiss.
“Yes, baby. It’s all perfect,” I said. “How about you?”
“Well, you are here. And you are happy. That is all I’ve ever cared about.”
“You’re right,” I replied. “I am probably the happiest woman in the world right now.”
I have never felt more alive.
*****
THE END
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The Wolf Prince´s True Mate
A Paranormal Romance
By Jasmine Wylder
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Epilogue
Bonus Book 1: The Wolf Prince´s True Mate
Chapter One
In the cool of an autumn night, the forest could be so silent, only the occasional snap of a twig echoing through the trees as an owl took flight from its perch in the higher branches.
From her place crouched down in the thick undergrowth of ferns and grasses, Ilyssa listened for another sound. Soon, she heard it: the low, rhythmic thump of hooves on packed earth, like a heartbeat reverberating through the ground, growing in strength and volume as it drew closer. With it came the rattle of tack, the snort of horses, and the creak of wheels on the coach they pulled along the road that cut through the woods.
Ilyssa caught the verbal signal from Barto, one of the lookouts stationed in the trees. Her hand tightened on the butt of her flintlock and she glanced over to her second in command, Kristof, kneeling a few feet away. In the dappled starlight filtering down through the boughs above, she saw his nod of acknowledgment and then watched as he made a hand gesture to the other members of their tribe waiting on the opposite side of the road.
The coach rounded the bend. Ilyssa scrambled from her place and ran toward it. Her amazing swiftness and agility always came as a surprise to anyone who saw her for just her full figure and diminutive height.
Seizing hold of the wagon, Ilyssa swung herself up and landed on the bench beside the startled driver. She pressed the muzzle of her pistol to the startled driver’s head.
“Stand and deliver, dear,” she said, with a sweet smile.
Seeing his hands tense on the reins, she clucked her tongue. “Ah-ah! You make those beasts go faster, I’ll still unload this gun into your skull. Is your precious cargo really worth the price of your brains coming out the other side of your head?”
He started to pull the horses in. At the last moment, he brought up his elbow, trying to catch Ilyssa in the jaw.
She dodged him and laughed. “Really? You think this is my first time at the carnival?”
She retaliated by whipping him with her pistol. She didn’t want to kill the fellow – that wasn’t in the plan – but she didn’t mind roughing up anyone who stood in her way.
One good blow to the side of the driver’s head did the trick and he fell over in the seat. Ilyssa grabbed the reins from his hands and yanked back hard. The horses reared to a halt and the coach stopped.
Barto jumped up on the other side of the unconscious driver. “Took you long enough,” he muttered, as Ilyssa passed off the reins to him.
Ilyssa just gave him a warning look and dropped back down to the ground.
From within the coach, they heard a voice call out, “Frandale? Why have we stopped?” followed by the sound of movement and the rocking of the carriage as its occupant shifted around.
Ilyssa found Kristof waiting beside the coach, his crossbow aimed at the door. The rest of their party surrounded the wagon, weapons at the ready. Ilyssa grinned at Kristof.
“Well, then,” she said, and licked her lips. “Let’s see the prize that’s going to help get our tribe through the winter, shall we?”
Kristof smiled and tipped his head. “After you, m’lady.”
“’Lady?’” Ilyssa scoffed and shook her head. “You mistake me for someone else, my friend.”
Tossing her braided brown hair back off her shoulder, she reached into the leather pouch attached to her belt and pulled out a small sack. She nodded to Kristof who took one hand off his weapon long enough to grab the lever on the carriage door. He yanked it open and Ilyssa pitched the sack inside. It burst as soon as it hit something solid, emitting a thick cloud of dust.
Quickly, Kristof slammed the door shut again and both he and Ilyssa put their combined weight against it.
The coach began to rock violently, and they could hear snarls akin to those of an enraged beast coming from within. It lasted all of a moment.
At last, after everything went still and silent once more, Ilyssa and Kristof looked at each other.
“Phase one complete,” she said.
Kristof pulled a metal collar from inside his coat and held it up. “Phase two,” he said, and passed the choker over to Ilyssa.
As she took it from him, he looked around and gave three short, shrill whistles. This signaled their people on the other side of the coach to go to work.
Ilyssa opened the door again and waved a hand as some of the unsettled dust wafted out. She could see their colleagues working, having entered through the opposite door.
One of them, Marten, held a small lamp to light the coach’s dark interior. Ilyssa looked down at the body sprawled on the floor, hands already bound and a hood over the head.
“It’s all right,” said Marten, crouching beside their quarry. He smiled and nudged the captive with the toe of his boot. “The dog is down. He won’t be getting up again for a few hours.”
“Good,” Ilyssa said, hauling herself up inside the carriage next to her tribesman. She spared him a frown of disapproval. “And let’s refrain from being derogatory, shall we?”
Marten had the decency to look chastised. “Sorry,” he mumbled. “It’s my upbringing, is all…I know it’s no excuse…”
“No, it’s not,” she said. “I’m sure most of us heard it from our parents. Doesn’t mean we have to follow their example.”
Leaning
down, she grunted as she got the collar around the unconscious man’s neck and locked it in place.
The dark stones set along the band began to give off a faint green illumination.
Ilyssa sat back and nodded in satisfaction. “There. Now he’s safe.”
She found the remains of the sack she had tossed into the carriage.
“A bit of ground monkshood seed may knock them out, but to keep them subdued it takes silver and black moonstone.”
She looked around at her team and smiled. “Good work, everyone. Let’s get him back to camp, and then we’ll see how much he’s worth to his king.”
She climbed down out of the coach and clapped Kristof on the shoulder. Looking up at Barto, still on the driver’s bench, she grinned. “Has he awakened?”
As if on cue, the driver began to stir. Barto knocked him out again with another punch to the head.
“Nope,” the tribal scout replied. “Lucky for us, he’s one of our kind. Wouldn’t be this easy if he’d been one of theirs. Indentured service.”
He shook his head and let out a sigh. “And that’s why I’m living in the woods, a highwayman robbing coaches in the middle of the night.”
“We do what we have to do, in order to survive,” Ilyssa said.
“That we do.” Barto jerked his head. “Soon as you’re done clearing it out, I’ll turn this thing around and drive it back a few miles. The horses should be stable sour enough to take it from there.”
He patted the driver’s knee. “Our friend here will be halfway home before he realizes it.”
“Get right back to camp when you’re done,” Ilyssa told him. “Make sure to mask your scent when you do, too. I don’t want anyone tracking you.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he said, waving her off. “I know what to do. They’ll never pick up my trail.”
He nodded to their prize, now unloaded and being set upon a stretcher to be carried on the shoulders of four of their men.
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