When she tasted it, her eyes began to water, and Dash threw his head back and howled with laughter.
“Your face,” he said. “I wish you could have seen that.”
“Jeez,” she grimaced. “You were right, I should have listened to you.”
“Come on then, what would you like instead?” He grinned and leaned back into the bar.
“Vodka, on the rocks,” she winked.
She was going to try out her new bad girl persona and see if she liked it.
Dash winked and called to the bartender over as Jannie turned to watch the crowd.
They were so drunk and all over the place. Men and women grinding up against each other, girls wearing ripped fishnets and the truckers grinning as they drank their beers. The whole place oozed sex, and she wondered how many other places there were like this around town.
“Here.” Dash handed her the glass.
“This place is giving me the creeps,” she half laughed. “These women look like they’re just here to hook up.”
“They probably are,” said Dash. “It’s a truck stop.”
“Why don’t we just go back to my place?” she asked with a raised brow. “You can teach me how to light the stove… and I have wine.”
Dash smiled at her and then he wrapped an arm around her and kissed her on the side of the head.
“I agree, this place has gone slightly downhill,” he cringed. “I wasn’t expecting this.”
“It’s okay,” she laughed. “But seriously, come on, let’s get the hell out of here.”
Dash began to walk with her to the exit, and when they reached the door and headed out into the clear and wonderful night, her uneasiness had subsided. Jannie had never felt happier.
15.
Dash closed the front door behind him as Jannie kicked off her boots and padded along the wood floor of the hallway to the kitchen and living area.
It was pitch black inside the cabin, and there was a definite chill in the air, something deeper and more wintery than there had been any other night she had been there.
She stopped at the island and placed her purse and jacket down before she wrapped her arms around herself.
“It’s so cold,” she whispered.
Dash walked in slowly and started to sniff the air. She saw the glint in his green eyes and saw them getting brighter.
He paused and then he looked over to her.
“Is it like this in here every night?” he asked.
She shook her head.
“And you said there was a stove?” He looked around and his eyes settled on it. “Okay,” he smiled. “Let’s get it lit.”
He was acting completely normal, but Jannie had the feeling there was something else going on with him, as if he were cautious of something. The cold really was intense. She shivered and opened the cupboard to pull out two big wine glasses and a bottle of smooth red.
Dash got down on his knees in front of the stove, and even though it was pitch black, he began to get to work. Jannie felt a rush of excitement as she realized his vision must be powerful. She poured them both a glass and began to walk around the room, lighting candles and lanterns as she came to them, and casting wonderful shadows around the cabin walls. When she was done, she took both glasses and the bottle over to the couch and sat down to watch him.
She had never lit a fire before. Not even when she had been camping as a kid, and she watched as Dash worked quickly with his hands, placing the logs together inside the stove so they were arranged almost like a teepee.
The fire caught quickly, and he closed the door to the stove and opened a vent at the bottom which made the air rush in and the flames roar up the flume.
“Thank you,” she smiled. “This feels amazing.”
He turned and looked at her and smiled back.
He walked over to her and sat down on the couch, and Jannie leaned in to him and passed him his glass. He wrapped his arm around her, and they sat there sipping their wine and enjoying each other’s company.
“Tell me,” she said finally. “Why did you take me to that weird bar tonight?”
Dash stiffened, as if he knew he had been caught out, and he hung his head and let out a little laugh.
“Do you know everything?” he smiled.
“I feel like I know you,” she said genuinely. “And I feel like I can tell when you’re not being one hundred percent honest.”
He nodded his head slowly and then sighed and turned to her.
“The only reason I’m not telling you what you want to know is because I’m trying to protect you,” he said. “I want you to try and put yourself in my shoes… Imagine meeting the one person in the world you had been waiting your whole life for, but then, at the same time, everything you had ever known was at risk. There were forces around you that you didn’t fully understand, and you were afraid to drag this person into it.”
She smiled weakly at him and lowered her head. She was trying to understand, but because she was so in the dark, it was hard.
“I don’t want anything to happen to you,” he said genuinely. “I don’t even know what I’m truly up against, but this chill in the air tonight, and all the strange happenings… I know it’s all connected. And I’m worried. I took you to the bar on the highway, so we were well out of the way. I don’t know, I just had a bad feeling… as if something terrible might happen.”
Jannie’s blood ran cold and she gripped his hand.
“I don’t trust Bridge Hollow right now,” he said. “I can sense something bad has found its way here… and until I’ve found it, I’m going to be on my guard.”
“But surely, out here at the lake we’re safe?” she asked. “I haven’t seen anything since I’ve been here, and tonight is the first time I have felt the cold this way.”
Dash shook his head.
“We’re starting to wonder how far this thing reaches,” he said. “But I can’t say anymore, I’ve already said too much, please…”
He trailed off and rubbed his temples, and Jannie sat forward and put her hands on his knees.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I won’t probe anymore.”
She smiled at him and their eyes locked in on each other’s. Dash was clearly conflicted. It was obvious to Jannie that he had a lot going on, but he didn’t want to lose her and miss out on their connection, so he was still trying to have some kind of normal life. But she was starting to wonder at what cost.
“Top up?” she asked as she leaned forward and got the bottle.
“Here,” he smiled. “Let me.”
He took the bottle from her gently and filled her glass first before he moved to his own. When he rested it back down on the coffee table, he turned to her and held his glass in between them.
“A toast,” he said as Jannie raised her glass to meet his. “To all that is good in this world, and for all we have yet to learn.”
He chinked his glass against hers and Jannie smiled and sipped.
They cuddled together on the couch until the fire in the stove had almost burned away. They finished the wine together and talked about their hopes and dreams. Even when there was a silence between them, it didn’t feel bad. There was no pressure to fill it, it was clear they were content in each other’s company.
When the clock on the wall said it was getting close to 2am, Jannie felt her eyes dropping and she cuddled into him and relaxed even more. She easily could have stayed there forever, resting on him by candlelight in that perfect little cabin.
She wasn’t aware of herself drifting off to sleep, and when she woke again, she was in her bed, tucked up tight and morning had already rolled around.
She sat up with confusion and looked around the room. She was still fully clothed from the night before, but somehow, she was in her bed. She stood and walked to the living area and saw that the candles had been snuffed out, and the fire had turned to ash in the grate of the stove. She saw the two used glasses and the empty bottle of wine had been placed neatly on the counter,
so she knew she wasn’t imagining it all. Dash had been there with her.
Suddenly, her eyes caught sight of something on the island, and she smiled as she realized it was a piece of paper, the same piece of paper he had written his number on that first night back in Shifter’s Bliss. But, this time, he had turned it over and scrawled a note to her on the back…
Good morning! I had to get Jet and take him out. He destroys the house if he’s left too long, and I didn’t want to wake you. You sleep like a baby. Will call you when I get home later. D x
A warm, fuzzy feeling filled her insides and she held the paper to her chest and smiled.
This man was totally changing everything for her.
She was falling in deep.
16.
After a full day of writing and exploring her creative side, Jannie sat back in her chair and surveyed the number of pages she had done. The counter in the corner of the document on her laptop read thirty-five, and she grinned from ear to ear.
She had never had a writing day like it, she really had blasted through the opening of her book, and she was all kinds of excited.
As she read over what she had written, she looked down at her cellphone and was disappointed that she still didn’t have a message or call from Dash. She felt herself pouting and she crossed her arms over her chest and sighed.
She climbed down the ladder from the mezzanine and into the living area, where she started to potter around, clearing away cups and plates that she had left out from lunch. She spritzed the counters with cleaner and wiped them, making them shine and the whole room smell amazing.
After she had washed and dried the dishes, she was about to go to her bedroom and get changed when she felt her cellphone vibrate in her pocket. She smiled as she reached in and pulled it free, and when she turned it over to look at the screen, she was surprised to see that it was a blocked call trying to come through.
“Hello?” she said as she held it to her ear.
The line was crackling and stayed silent for a moment, then she heard a deep breath and then a familiar voice.
“Hey,” Dash said faintly. “It’s me.”
“Hey,” she said brightly as she gripped the phone to her ear and started to walk around the room.
“How’s little Jannie?” Dash’s voice spoke, but she was sure there was a gravely edge to it, as if he needed to clear his throat.
“I’m good,” she smiled. “Missing you, though.”
“I miss you too,” he said. His voice seemed to crack a little and it made Jannie frown. This wasn’t the usual kind of call she would have with Dash. Something sounded wrong.
“Are you okay?” she asked him. “You sound… strange…”
“I need you to come and meet me,” he said. “Out in the forest.”
Jannie’s heart seemed to dip low, right down to her belly, and she coughed slightly and swallowed.
“Okay,” she said slowly. “Why? What’s going on, are you all right?”
“Just come now,” he said quickly. His voice seemed to snap at her, and she jumped back a little on the spot.
“Okay,” she whispered. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“I’m halfway up the mountain,” he said. “Not far from the abandoned mine. I want to tell you everything.”
Jannie’s blood shivered right through her and she was already moving toward the door, reaching for her coat and boots as she quickly told him she was on her way.
“Okay, babe,” she said. “I’ll be there soon.”
“Be quick, Jannie,” Dash’s voice was cold and emotionless. “Be quick.”
She ended the call and stopped. It had been such a weird conversation, and he had almost not sounded truly like him. As if he were sick or calling from a million miles away.
She pulled on her coat and buttoned it up to protect her from the horrific cold that had stayed overnight, and as she threw open the door, she slipped her cellphone into her back pocket and locked the door behind her.
She marched straight toward the curve that led up to the main part of the mountain. She hadn’t been up these roads before; since she had arrived in town, it had been made clear to her that she should stay well away from there. But now, Dash had called her and said he was ready to tell her everything. He said he was somewhere up there, close to the mine. Now, she just had to stick to the path and find him.
She walked quickly, and it wasn’t long before her heart was pounding, and her mouth was dry. She was practically running up a steep slope, trying not to lose her footing as she weaved in and out of rocks and tree roots.
The higher she got, the clearer the air became, but with that also came the cold. She wrapped her arms around herself, and as she got further into the trees, the dark seemed to be heading out toward her, as if it were reaching out, trying to sweep her inside. It was heavy and like a cloak in the sky, and she shivered as she saw her breath catching on the cold air in front of her.
“Dash?” she called out as she stopped on the spot and spun around.
She didn’t know where the mine was, but her instincts had led her there, to this point, and she was feeling things she had never even imagined could exist. The cold in the air made the hairs on her head feel chilled to the root. She began to feel dizzy and light as she staggered to the side and clutched the frozen trunk of a pine tree.
“Dash?” she said again. “Where are you?”
Her lip began to wobble, and she was afraid. She had come looking for him, but she had the terrible feeling she was lost and something bad was lurking near her.
She closed her eyes and tried not to succumb to the cold. The darkness was so heavy now that it could easily have been the dead of night, and around her, deep within the forest, she heard the snapping of branches and footsteps running, as if she were being circled by an unknown force.
She opened her eyes and held her hands up to her mouth. She tried to blow on them to get some heat into them, but they seemed to be frozen in place.
She barely dared move and she no longer dared call out for Dash. Her body was shaking, and her brain was freezing, she was dizzy and overcome with dread, and she felt like she didn’t know who she was or where she had come to be.
The crunch of frozen ground came from behind her again, and she leaned back against the tree trunk and tried to sink down to the ground, but her legs had been frozen stiff, and she couldn’t make them bend. She felt a tear prick the corner of her eye, but it froze in place, and it was then that she knew something awful was most certainly out there in the woods with her.
She held her breath and waited, hoping that whatever it was would move on past her and not realize she was there. But the snapping and crunching of the icy ground got closer and closer, as did the cold, and when it had become too much to bear, she was aware of a dark shadow moving out of the corner of her right eye and she turned and was faced with everything she had been dreading.
He stood there, his face grey and pale, his eyes black and menacing, and from his lips and sharpened teeth, blood dripped slowly onto the icy ground below. He sniffed the air and smiled. This thing. This creature. It looked like a vampire.
Jannie tried not to cry out, and instead, she pushed herself back against the trunk of the tree, hoping he wouldn’t see her, but, of course, it was too late.
The vampire stopped in his tracks and his head slowly turned.
When his eyes settled on her, it took only a moment for his grin to split wide, and she saw his terrible jaws fully extend. His teeth were large and sharp, dripping with fresh blood, and the cold was coming from him and from deep within the earth, as if he were a part of whatever had infected the land around her and the rest of Bridge Hollow. He took a step forward and Jannie tried to call out, but as if some kind of spell had been put on her, she found that she was unable to move her mouth, or even her hands. It was as if she had been paralyzed down the full length of her body and there was nowhere to turn.
In her chest, her heart ached. She longed for her
protector, and she felt another tear spring free.
What had she done?
“Little Jannie,” the vampire creature said with a hiss… and she heard the same voice she had heard on the phone call.
It hadn’t been Dash who had asked her to come to these woods high up the mountain. It had been this creature from hell. And now, he had her there, and she was trapped. She couldn’t move, the whole world was freezing around her and there was no way out.
“You…,” she managed to croak through her frozen lips. “What are you?”
The vampire took another step closer and smiled a wicked smile.
“I’m here to survey,” he said. “And get those wolves and bears out of the way…” He had such delight in his voice. He was nothing but pure evil.
“Why?” she gasped. With each passing second and each intake of breath, she was finding it harder and harder to move, her insides were filling with ice cold air and turning her to stone from within.
“For the rest of us,” he smiled.
Jannie clamped her eyes shut and battled against the pain. She shivered on the spot, her whole body aching with the frost, and she felt him as he moved closer and kept her in his sights.
“The head wolf,” the vampire spoke. “He will come for you.”
Jannie tried to shake her head.
This whole thing was a trap. Dash had made her promise him she would never come up to the mine, no matter what, and she had been stupid. She should have known he would never have asked her to come. How had she been so foolish?
“N…n…no,” she gasped, keeping her eyes closed.
Her body felt heavy and she was beginning to get drowsy. She was completely frozen in place and she felt herself being lulled into a dark and deadly slumber.
As the cold gripped her, and her mind began to fade, she was aware of the roars coming from somewhere below on the mountain. She felt the ground shaking beneath her and she forced herself to wake up. The vampire was grinning even wider now, knowing that his plan had worked. He rubbed his hands together and licked his lips, as the noise coming up the mountain got louder and more ferocious.
Bridge Hollow Shifters: The Complete Collection Page 30
