Twelve Shades of Midnight:

by Liliana Hart

  “There’s nothing worth killing in this jungle, Max. The rumors are a dead end. We’re wasting time here. We should be in the States. The vamp who killed my brother is still out there.”

  “You’re sweating.”

  “It’s hot.”

  “You’re lying, which means we’re not leaving Belize until I find out what the hell happened to you.”

  Damn. With a quick escape move, Cade slid under Max’s arm, but the man managed to regain his grip.

  The jungle stilled.

  Max squeezed Cade’s arm and breathed in deeply. “You’ve got vamp scent all over you. Strong too.” Horror cloaked his features. “She’s a vampire. You banged a vampire?”

  He shoved Cade to the ground. Before he could roll away, Max pushed a knee into Cade’s throat and pinned him. Rocks bit into his back. He tensed, waiting for the slightest give, the least opportunity.

  Max tore at Cade’s shirt, exposing the skin on his neck and shoulder. “Nothing, except a few scratches.” Max chuckled.. “She must be damn good for you to betray your brother like that.”

  With the force of fury bottled within him, Cade wrenched his arm free and punched Max. The bones in the man’s nose snapped. Pulling back his bloodied knuckles, Cade spat, “Leave my brother out of this. You don’t know what the hell’s going on.”

  Max wrestled Cade onto his stomach and jammed a knee into his back before he ripped a strap of cloth from his shirt and held it to his nose. “You’re different. I can feel it. You wouldn’t have had the guts to punch me before. She changed you. Tell me how, before I kill you where you lay and bury you in this rotting forest.”

  “The jungle’s gotten to you, Max.” His mentor’s gun suddenly showed up at his temple. Cade tried another tactic. “Are we seriously doing this? Let’s head down to the city, have one beer too many and find a wife for a night before we get out of this godforsaken place. What do you say?”

  “Shut up.” Max slammed his fist into Cade’s face. A shot of pain jolted Cade’s cheek, the bones giving, but not breaking. Max winced, shook the pain from his knuckles and snarled, “I’m not leaving this hellhole. That temple’s covered in hieroglyphs. Doctor Callaway’s been jabbering about the freakin’ vampire bat god since she came out of her stupor. There’s a connection. Some secret we might be able to use to wipe them all off the face of the earth. You still want to destroy the beast that killed your brother, don’t you? Or have you forgiven them for what they did?”

  The challenge in Max’s voice rose like a wall between them. “I want who killed Jace to pay, but—”

  “No second chances.” He cocked his weapon. “If you’re not with me, you’re against me.”

  Cade stared at him. This wasn’t working. Would the truth be enough? Did he have any choice but to try?

  He shrugged. “You’re right, Max. There’s no point keeping it a secret. I found out something. Something that will change everything.”

  Max leaned in, his face eager, yet tinged with evil.

  “The girl, the vampire …she’s not evil. She has a soul. We can’t kill her. It would be wrong.”

  A bark of laughter ended Cade’s slim hope. “You’re kidding? I can’t believe you’re that gullible. She played you like Nero’s fiddle. Don’t worry, Cade. You’ll see reason again. I’ll find out what she knows. Then you’ll understand she’s like all the rest of them.”

  He yanked Cade to his knees and with a powerful kick cracked his ribs. Cade struggled not to let out a moan. He wouldn’t give his former friend the satisfaction.

  With Cade doubled over in pain, Max easily bound him and rammed him forward every few yards. They trudged back to Aiyana’s home. Max stared Cade down; the madness of disgust swirled in his eyes. “You never were one of us. Your brother knew you were weak. I should have listened.”

  “Don’t do this, Max. She has a soul.”

  “She’s taken over your mind. You’re of no use to us. Except as bait. We’ll wait for your lover, and if you can’t convince me you see the truth…” Max shrugged, as if the inevitable were just another day on the job. “Then you’ll die together.”

  Aiyana sharpened the blade along the whetting stone, the sound a balm to her tense nerves. Something was wrong with Cade. She could feel it. Sense it. He was in danger. She paced the cave as the cursed sun seemed to hang in the sky just above the horizon. “Set, by all that’s holy.”

  A shadow at the cave’s entrance grew large. Noy stood, framed in the light of the setting sun, her withered face worried but resigned, her cobalt eyes solemn. “You may not be able to save him.”

  Aiyana drew her weapon against the stone. “I have to try. He can’t fight them all alone.”

  “He will be angry. He sacrificed himself so you would live.”

  “He needs me, and I need him. Together we are stronger. The prophecy said so.”

  “Perhaps his fate is to die. You know their weakness now. You may have learned enough. Perhaps the leaders of the Order will listen to reason if you go to them. Perhaps that is all the prophecy meant.”

  Aiyana shook her head. “I refuse to believe that. We are part of each other. We need each other.” She met Noy’s gaze. “When I was with Cade, I felt human for the first time since I was infected. How can God take that away from me?”

  “If you survive, he cannot go back to his people. You know this.”

  “If he goes back to his people, the evil will consume him. He is a good man.” She drew a shuddering breath. “He is the best of men.”

  The last rays of sunlight disappeared behind the jungle palms and Aiyana tucked her knife into her belt and clasped her spear. “Wish me luck.”

  “May your God be with you, Aiyana. And with your mate.”

  Aiyana sprinted into the jungle, spear in hand, her heart pounding in panic, but her eyes keen in the darkening forest. Cade hadn’t taken care to hide his trail. He had retraced their path. She stumbled to a halt when a familiar scent washed over her.

  Blood spilled on the ground, Cade’s blood. He’d been hurt. Taken. A sickness washed over her, but…nothing else. No temptation. Not for Cade. Only horror that his life’s blood had been spilled. Had they killed him? No. She would have felt his death, deep within her. He would have tried to draw them away. If that had failed, he would have fought.

  She followed the blood’s scent until a small groan followed by a curse stopped her. Cade. And others.

  They’d set a trap, using Cade as bait.

  She didn’t know where her faith in Cade came from. She should be suspicious—but she believed in him. She loved him. It was too fast, too inconvenient, but it was true.

  She closed her eyes, focusing on the sounds of the jungle, and honed in on the areas of awkward silence, where humans should not be, but were.

  Silently, she shifted through the trees and eased up behind one of the Jaguars. They were strangers in her world right now. She knew the jungle’s secrets. One step, another step, closer. With a quick flick she knocked him out, leaving him on the jungle floor. He would awaken, but not before she saved Cade.

  It took only minutes to incapacitate six men. They were excellent warriors, but they knew nothing of the old ways. They were vulnerable to ancient knowledge.

  She shoved the last man aside and turned her attention toward her home. The closer she came to her temple, the more her body surged with fury. They had invaded her sanctuary. They had taken her mate.

  She crept toward the millennium-old stone structure.

  “Where is she?” Sharp blows and grunts sounded from inside.

  “Go to hell.” Cade’s voice sounded weak, but defiant.

  “Why do you have to be such a hero? She’ll come back here sooner or later, and when she does…”

  Another sharp slap. She breathed in, gathering her courage, taking in the power and vibrations of the ancient jungle rising within her. She could do this, but she couldn’t lose control, no matter what they had done to him. She couldn’t let the beast within her es
cape.

  Aiyana stepped into her temple, spear in hand, her fangs bared to fight and protect what was hers. “You’ll do what, human?”

  “Aiyana. Run,” Cade gasped, his face bruised and battered, one eye swollen shut.

  Using all her vampiric speed, she cut Cade free and stood between him and their enemy. There was no bloodlust, no hunger, only the need to protect her mate. “Leave this place, Jaguar. And never return,” she said.

  Max simply laughed. “You don’t know who you’re dealing with.”

  “I know very well,” Aiyana said coolly. “You use your power to destroy. Once for good, but now because you love the kill. Your soul is forfeit.”

  Max raised his Glock. “Bullets won’t kill you, but they can slow you down enough for me to destroy you, vampire.”

  Cade clutched Aiyana’s hand and stumbled in front of her, his blood dripping on her skin and to the floor of the temple. “Would you kill me Max?” he said through clenched teeth. “After everything we’ve been through?”

  Cade’s grip tightened on Aiyana’s and her throat closed as waves of agony pulsed through her. She let her energy move toward him, and her canines retracted. For the first time in her life, she could tame the beast within, even as Cade’s blood touched her. Because of him.

  “Look at her, Max. She isn’t evil.”

  Max shook his head. “You’re no Jaguar, Cade. You’ve been seduced by her promises. It’s for your own good.”

  With a steady finger, Max pulled the trigger. An explosion rang through the temple at the same instant Aiyana leapt in front of Cade. Burning heat slammed into her shoulder. Cade shouted. She sagged against him.

  He cradled her in his arms. Blood seeped from the wound down to her fingertips and dripped to the floor, mingling with his. He tightened his grip, even as his entire body throbbed with pain. The moment she’d fallen, his heart had imploded, shattering with agony. This couldn’t be the end. How had he let this happen to her? Why hadn’t he protected her?

  Max lifted his gun and aimed it. “Goodbye, Cade.”

  A threatening growl sounded from the jungle. A large black jaguar leapt through the opening of the cave past Cade and Aiyana. The muscles of the cat rippled beneath its skin. Its powerful roar echoed through the chamber.

  Max screamed, but it was too late. One bite to the neck from the massive jaws and the man who had been Cade’s friend was dead.

  Slowly, calmly Cade shifted Aiyana away from the predator. He reached for his weapon ready to shoot, then paused. The sleek panther lay down next to the dead man and purred. Blue eyes shone back at him, deep and wise, and on the cat’s shoulder a familiar triangular-shape in white fur marked the jaguar.

  “Noy?” Aiyana whispered, shock in her voice.

  Cade could have sworn the cat grinned, then rose, the elegance of her movements proud. She bowed her head, and Cade noticed a gleaming, jade stone where their blood had spilled. Noy nosed the stone toward him then swished her tail and bounded into the night.

  Your willingness to sacrifice for the other has been rewarded. Use the stone’s power wisely. It will allow you to be together, to not be afraid. Protect each other, and the good in the world.

  Noy’s voice echoed through his head. Aiyana groaned beside him, and he hugged her close. “Are you okay?”

  “I will be. I’m healing already. By the time I wake up tomorrow I’ll be fine.”

  With a trembling hand, she picked up the stone. “Jade. It’s the most holy and powerful of all stones in Mayan mythology.”

  Cade took in the hieroglyphs on the temple wall and kissed her forehead. “There’s a lot we don’t know. Like what we’re supposed to do with it now.”

  “We’ll learn.” She settled against him. “I’m sorry about your friend.”

  Cade forced his gaze to the body lying so close to them. The man who had almost taken his soul. “I lost him a long time ago. I realize that now. There are many others like him.”

  She cupped his cheek and he leaned into her warmth. “But some like you.”

  Cade shrugged. “I suppose.”

  Shouts rang in the distance, and Aiyana stiffened. “I didn’t kill them. Perhaps I should have.”

  “No. Once we understand about the stone, we’ll take the Order proof. We’ll make them understand that there could be peace in the future.”

  He rested his chin on her head. “I guess I’m staying, if you’ll let me.”

  Aiyana’s throat closed. “You don’t have to…”

  He didn’t let her finish her sentence. His lips closed over hers and the world spun away. When finally he lifted his head he smiled. “We belong together, Aiyana. How can you doubt the truth? You are the one who shared your light with me.” He took the stone from her. “We are one for all time.”

  “Others may try to destroy us.”

  Cade smiled into her eyes and linked his fingers with hers, the jade stone between them. The light that had once shocked him, now enveloped them in warmth and truth. He pulled her body against his. “Could be. But we’ll show them hope.”

  “Of what? That a vampire and a Jaguar can conquer evil. They’ll never believe it.”

  “We’ll find a way. If you’ve taught me one thing, Aiyana, it’s that the impossible can be made possible. We’ll make them see that the heart and soul define good and evil. No matter what we are.”

  She rested her head against his chest. “I do love you, Cade. You made my heart whole. You gave me hope again,” she whispered. “That love exists for me.”

  He lifted her chin. “And you gave me back my soul.”

  She smiled up at him. “Forever?”

  “For always.”

  About the Author

  As a writer, international bestselling author and RITA® finalist, Robin Perini invites you to Step into the Crossfire with every new book. She is devoted to giving her readers fast-paced, high stakes adventures with a love story sure to melt their hearts. Robin’s strong characters and tightly woven plots garnered her seven prestigious Romance Writers of America Golden Heart® finals and one RITA® final. She won the Golden Heart® in 2011, and that title became her first Harlequin Intrigue, Finding Her Son (March 2012). Her other 2011 Golden Heart® Finalist, In Her Sights, was published by Amazon’s Montlake Romance November 29, 2011. Robin went on to sell fourteen novels in a little over two years, which tests her sanity on a regular basis.

  Night of the Jaguar is Robin’s first novella in a series of books called Dark Guardians.

  Acknowledgements

  This anthology wouldn’t exist without all the amazing authors included. A big thank you to Liliana Hart, Darynda Jones, Shea Berkley, Dakota Cassidy, Claire Cavanaugh, Rachel Grant, Trish McCallan, Angi Morgan, Robyn Peterman, Ann Voss Peterson and Jenn Stark. You all made this entire project 12 Shades of Fun!

  A special thanks to Rachel Grant for formatting and all–around-handholding.

  Find Robin online: Website | Facebook

  Find more books by Robin Perini: Amazon

  SWITCHING HOUR

  Robyn Peterman

  Copyright © 2014

  For Dakota.

  You are my sister from another mister. Finding you was one of the loveliest things about this business called writing.

  Chapter One

  “If you say or do anything that sends our asses back to the magic pokey, I will zap you bald and give you a cold sore that makes you look like you were born with three lips.”

  I tried to snatch the scissors from my best friend’s hand, but I might as well have been trying to catch a greased cat.

  “Look at my hair,” she hissed, holding up her bangs. “They’re touching my nose—my fucking nose, Zelda. I can’t be seen like this when we get out. I swear I’ll just do it a little.”

  “Winnifred, you have never done anything just a little. What happened the last time you cut your own bangs?”

  She winced and mumbled her shame into her collarbone. “That was years ago. They rebuilt the building
and no one was killed.”

  “Fine,” I snapped. “Cut your bangs, but don’t come crying to me when you look like the dude from Dumb and Dumber.”

  “You know what?” she shouted, brandishing the shears entirely too close to my head for comfort, “we’re here because of you, asshead.”

  That stopped me dead in my pursuit of saving her from herself. What the hell did I care? Let her cut her bangs up to her hairline and suffer the humiliation of looking five. Maybe I wasn’t completely innocent here, but I bore far less of the blame than she did.

  “No. We’re in here because of you, Winnifred.”

  She rolled her eyes. “No. It was definitely you, Zelda.”

  “You.”

  “Nope—you.”

  Winnie’s selective memory was messing with my need to protect my ass. “Oh my Goddess,” I yelled. “I didn’t sleep with Baba Yaga’s precious nephew—you did.”

  Winnie blinked in faux innocence, her long dark lashes sweeping her cheek. “First of all, we didn’t sleep. And how in the hell was I supposed to know Mr. Sexy Pants was her nephew?”

  “Um, well, let me see…did the fact that his name was Benny Yaga not ring any fucking bells?”

  I was so done. It was not my fault we were in here and it was time Winnie accepted her responsibility in the matter.

  “Well, it’s not like the Council put you in here just to keep me company. You ran over your own familiar. On purpose,” she accused.

  I watched in horror as she combed her bangs forward in preparation for blast off and willed myself not to give a rat’s ass.

  “I did not run over that mangy bastard cat on purpose. The little shit stepped under my wheel.”

  “Three times?” she inquired politely.