by JF Holland
Jaden sighed, realising he still had a lot to learn about their kind.
"What the hell did they use on her?" Jaden murmured. Letting the worry over reports and authorities go. He looked back at the body in disbelief, feeling bile rise in his throat.
"I'd say claws, teeth and a nice carving knife by looks of it," Douglas said, looking down at her again.
Jaden turned away, it was sickening that someone could do that to another. Her throat had been torn out, and her chest had been ripped open. She also had an eye missing. There were deep gouges in the flesh of her arms, with some missing and broken finger nails. She'd obviously fought her attackers. The one eye that was still intact was staring wide, and fixed, into the distance. The message cut into her skin though, was pretty telling.
'You know who's next!'
"Was she targeted for a specific reason, or just to send us a message?" Jaden asked. He was still struggling to get his head around the depravity shown.
"Elenor was a bit of a busy body, and trouble causer. She liked to stick her nose in other people's business, always looking for the next big scoop. I guess she either said, or saw something that shouldn't have. Tis a shame. She paid a high price for snooping, but nothing we can do for her now. Well, apart from make sure the cats pay for her murder." Douglas shrugged, then turned. He practically fell over Helena, who'd managed to creep up on them; without making a sound.
She'd stood behind them a couple of feet away. Eyes wide, with a hand over her mouth and nose, then her eyes lifted to Jaden. Her hand dropped to her side, balling into a fist, as her mouth tightened.
"That sick fuck will pay for this," she said to Jaden. "You make sure he pays for this, before I torch the bastard?" she stared hard at him, until he inclined his head. Nodding, she stepped forward, pushing up the sleeves on her jumper.
"Okay then. Step back gentlemen, let's do a little clean up. We can't have the authorities getting wind of this." Douglas looked towards Jaden, with an 'I told you so' smirk.
Helena shook her head sadly, looking upon the torn up woman.
"He's always been a sadistic fuck, but Jesus. Then again he also thrives on the attention his actions receive. Craves it even, but he's not getting that satisfaction this time. No one will know about this, apart from us. I have a few of my own party tricks to bring to the table now. I will not allow him the satisfaction, this time. Sam can you check around, make sure he's not hiding and watching from somewhere will you."
"What happened to staying back at the house Helena?" Sam growled, as he moved by her, before shifting to his animal form. Using the heightened senses of his black jaguar, he searched out for anyone nearby. Once he'd done a quick perimeter check, sifting for any signs of their scent, he shifted back. Happy they'd long gone. He now stood towering over Helena, hands on his hips as he waited for an answer to his earlier question.
"I got bored," Helena admitted, without remorse. "Maya's sleeping, and Balin is watching over her," she shrugged. "Plus, I wanted to see exactly what was going on." Sam crossed his arms across his chest. His brows lowered over his eyes, as he frowned at her.
"You know what curiosity got you?"
"Yeah, it got the cat killed, but I'm not a cat, cat boy. I'm a fucking phoenix. Now shift your fine arse away from the firing range," Helena hissed at Sam, making him grin at her slip, as he stepped back. He winked at Jaden, then stood beside him, grinning at her like a lovesick school boy. Jaden shook his head, as he watched Sam's hands cross over his groin.
"Freak. How can you find her ability to roast shit a turn on?" Not wanting to catch Helena's attention, he whispered out of the side of his mouth.
"Man, look at her, what's not to love?" Sam whispered back. "Beautiful and deadly, a fucking fabulous combination," Sam winked at Jaden.
They stood quietly, in awe, and watched as her hands came up and out. The orange flames appeared, at her finger tips, before leaping, like a living entity. Landing on the body before them, then the flames turned white, consuming and incinerating her in seconds. Once the flames vanished, there was nothing left. Only a pile of ash, where her lifeless, torn form had once been. The strangest thing though, there wasn't even a scorch mark left behind. Nothing, apart from ash, and an area of flattened grass where she'd lain. It was as if the flames only burned their intended target, weird.
"Okay, all done." Bowing her head, Helena said a silent prayer for the soul of the woman, who'd lost her life so gruesomely. She then crossed her arms, rubbing her hands up and down them, as if she were cold. Shuddering, her head moved around, as if she could feel something. Jaden nudged Sam, who looked towards Helena, his mouth pinched, as he watched her searching their surroundings. As if trying to find the reason or her reaction. Shifting, he sloped off into the trees, to take another look around.
"Come on Helena, let's go. I'll make you a nice cup of tea while we wait for Maya to wake up." Jaden told her, placing an arm around her shoulders.
He walked with her by his side, back towards the house. Matching his longer strides to hers, so she could keep pace with him.
They were all sat around the kitchen table, drinking tea, when Sam strolled back in through the door. Jaden looked up, and Sam shook his head, mouth pinching.
"Bastard had been there, not too far away either. He must have turned up, just after I'd done the earlier search. There was no new scent of either of them then. There was only one of them, and he'd been sitting in a tree. Not on top of us, but close enough that he could observe what was going on. There were claw marks in the bark of the tree, vicious slashes. I'd say your secret is out Helena," he sighed running a hand over his close cropped curls. "Bastard had had even scent marked the tree, then raked the lower stump too. There was also signs of torn up vegetation, and a dead troll, Larry Smith. He'd had his head crushed and heart removed, so you'll need to do clean up there too," he told Helena. "I'd say he's well and truly pissed off now. A dangerous thing for a rogue. We now need to be extra vigilant, especially over tonight."
"I need to call it off. I will not put Maya's life in danger," Jaden said, then frowning he looked towards Sam.
"A troll, what the hell is a troll, those things in children's stories?" Sam grinned at Jaden's confusion.
"No. They are just people, smaller than average, and a little thicker set. Hard to describe really. The tallest is around three feet. If anyone passed them on the street, they'd just assume they had a form of dwarfism. The only difference being, they are perpetually grumpy and obnoxious. They aren't what you would class as friendly, and are definitely not good at mixing or socialising. They never have a good word to say about anybody, ever. Oh, and the women and men are really hard to tell apart, as they all have facial hair. The only difference being the women have breasts, albeit tiny. They tend to stay in the wilds, and stick to their own kind. If they do come into town they tend to fixate on certain people. They do look after the land, and occasionally they do gardening. Pretty reasonable rates too, for garden maintenance," Sam added. His mouth snapped closed, when Helena hissed at him, for getting off the subject at hand.
"Right I'll sort that little problem out for you later, but can we get back to the matter at hand?" she asked him, turning her attention to Jaden. "As for you, you will not back out of this ceremony," he went to open his mouth but she held up a hand. "No, my daughter has lost enough people in her life. If she's decided you are what she wants, then you will damn well honour your word." Jaden shook his head, and Helen slammed her hands on the table in agitation, staring him down. Sam moved up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders.
"Maya isn't the only one now in danger Helena, he now knows for sure that you are here also." Sam informed her quietly, and she snorted. He carried on regardless, needing her to understand the danger she was in. "He's also seen your party trick, so he'll be on his guard when he approaches you. Which means, you too now need guarding I'm afraid," he finished apologetically.
Helena turned her head, looking at him over her shoulder. Hold
ing eye contact, she picked her up her cup, taking a sip while she still watched him.
"Do I look like I can't defend myself?" she asked, watching his eyes, follow the movement as she lowered the cup from her lips. She then took hold of his left hand, and his breath hitched. Smiling seductively at him, she flipped him over her shoulder.
Sam landed, flat on his back in the middle of the kitchen table. The impact scattering the cups in every direction. Everyone jumped up from their seats, as cups flew about, spilling tea. It flowed across the table, trickling onto the floor. Sam lay there like a tortoise, floundering and blinking, as he wondered what had happened. Jaden grinned down at him, then leaned over and whispered.
"Still think she's hot?"
"Too right," Sam grinned. Shaking his head to clear it, as he took hold of the hand Jaden offered him. He sat upright, and Jaden shook his head at how pathetic he was, while he got a tea towel. He then began mopping up the spilled liquid, as Sam clambered off the table.
Sam pinned Helena with his startlingly, light aquamarine gazes. As he moved, his eyes seemed to glow as he stared heatedly into her own.
"You do realise I'm going to retaliate for that don't you?" Helena just smirked, then primly sat back down at the table. She calmly took a sip of her tea. Out of the cup she'd managed to keep hold of, as she'd flipped him.
"Can't wait," she quipped, then smirked, turning her head away from him.
Jaden cleared his throat, to gain their attention.
"Okay, as I was trying to say earlier, before Douglas kindly led us to his grisly findings. He then frowned as he thought of something.
"How did you know about that anyway Douglas?" he asked him suspiciously. Douglas in turn just grunted, drinking his coffee that Balin handed him.
"Aggie saw it, then she sent me here. Violent energy kind of rushes to her. That's half the problem with being an empath, she sometimes feels what they feel. So as well as recovering after healing Maya, she's now suffering the after effects of the murder. She also communicates with the dead. The spirit of the victim in this instance, went straight to Aggie; demanding justice. It seems Elenor is also a bit of a busy body in the spirit realm too." Douglas grinned, at his own joke. Jaden ignored him, turning to face the table in general.
"Anyway, as I was saying. If I'm to complete the binding ceremony, I'm going to need help in keeping Maya safe. I'd really rather not have to ask this, and I know Maya is going to be pissed, but we need extra eyes out there watching our backs. I need help," Jaden told the people around the table. Sam had now dropped into the seat on Helena's right, leaning his elbows on the table.
"Good, glad you've realised it," he said. "We weren't sure how you would react to our news. We've already arranged some extra bodies for tonight." Sam told him. Jaden's jaw clenched, as he swivelled, landing an accusing look on his brother. Balin just shrugged, not in the least intimidated by his angry brother.
"I was trying to figure out a way to approach you. We already realised earlier, after Maya's attack, that we'd need extra eyes out there. So, I put the call out," Balin told him calmly. "Leonard has offered his services, as has Luc, and a few of the others.
Just then, there was a knock at the door, to which Douglas stood, and went to answer it."
"So you all knew about this, but didn't say anything?" Jaden asked looking around the table.
"Maya needs protecting, and it seemed the easiest solution," Sam said. Jaden cursed as he ran a hand over the back of his neck.
"Maya's not going to like this, she really isn't," he mumbled.
"Then it's down to you to make her understand the necessity," Helena hissed. "Do you really think I want to be in hearing distance when you... you..." Helena's hands came up in her anxiety. Sam's hand shot out, taking hold of Helena's with his own. He brought them back down; before she torched someone in her agitation.
"We understand what you're saying Helena," Sam soothed. Jaden just frowned at him in confusion. Then he watched Helena's eyes slit, as her cheeks turned pink. Realising what she was talking about, he coughed to cover a laugh. Lower his eyes, he so didn't want to rile her by letting her see the mirth visible. It seemed Helena was uncomfortable with the thought of her daughter having sex, then he frowned. He wasn't over keen on being overheard by the others himself either.
"Yeah, I'll take some music along I think," Jaden grumbled. This made Balin full out grin, before winking at him. Well, until Helen turned venomous eyes on him, making him quickly sober.
There was a commotion near the doorway. Jaden turned, as several large bodies came lumbering through the doorway; filing into the kitchen.
"Meet the extra eyes and ears, for tonight's festivities. We're also going to set up a barbecue in the back garden later. A little bit of a get together afterwards. Hopefully, we'll have something more than just your binding ceremony to celebrate," Sam told Jaden. He then got up, moving towards the newcomers. He shook hands with each of them, before turning to Jaden.
"This is Leonard Smyth, our resident vampire," said Sam. Introducing Jaden to the man who watched him from reserved lavender eyes. He was tall, with midnight black hair. He was also impeccably dressed, in a light wool, black jumper and jeans.
Obviously he'd come prepared to disappear into his surroundings, Jaden thought. Stepping forward, he shook the proffered hand. There were several others, all men Jaden noticed, and looked towards Sam.
"Luc Beauregard will also be joining us, but he can't venture out until the sun has set completely," Sam explained. Again Jaden looked to him in enquiry.
"Luc lives on the edge of town. He's a little reclusive, but he's a good man to have at your back in a tight corner. I mean he's solid, and not just in the good guy way either." Jaden raised a brow for him to elaborate. "He's a gargoyle," Sam informed him, and Jaden's eyebrows rose even higher, making Sam grin. "They can normally move around during the day, but Luc was cursed a few years back. A century or two I think. So now, I'm afraid during the day he's a little stuck, so to speak. More garden ornament than man." Sam grinned and Leonard smirked as he moved to the corner of the room, disappearing into the shadows. There were a few others in the room, Daniel Adams, and James Farley were both werewolves, who seemed to gravitate towards Douglas. Next was Nicholas Raymond and Edgar Linley, who were Leopards. There was Nathan and Adam Lincoln, who were grisly shifters, and twins, he learned when introduced. Lastly there were tiger shifters, John Forrester and Edwin Murdock.
Jaden thanked each man for offering his help.
Jaden noticed that Sam seemed to stick close to Helena with so many males in the room. Not that she was paying them much attention. She'd moved over to the kettle and seemed to be making drinks for everyone. He looked around the kitchen, and felt a little claustrophobic. The small room was presently crammed with people, sweat began beading on his top lip. He wasn't used to being around so many people, and felt ungrateful for feeling so. He was indebted to these men, who had offered their help in keeping his mate safe. But in the same instance, he wasn't comfortable being around them all. He'd been a loner for too long. He knew it was his own fault, as he'd purposely set out to be that way. Had done it deliberately, so as not to have ties to anyone. Therefore, diminishing the chance of losing anyone else, as he'd done with all of his family.
"Not all your family Tiddles, you still have Balin. Do you need me?" came Maya's soft enquiry. Jaden took a breath, as he realised his chest had begun to feel constricted. Turning away he opened the back door, before standing in the doorway. He took a deep breath, to help clear his head. The lingering smell of blood was still present in the air, both Maya's, and the Jackals. As was the scent of freshly turned soil and verdant green grass. The rich scent of the lush foliage of the trees, was also heavy. All of it overlaid by the heady cleansing, of a recent, light shower. Breathing deeply, he felt the tight band around his chest loosen a little, and his roiling stomach settled.
"No, but, thank you baby. You rest, I'm sorry I disturbed you. I'm just not used to bei
ng around so many people, but I'll get there. I need to, because otherwise you're going to lead a very lonely existence," Jaden whispered back to her. He heard her laughter in his head, like the caress of a butterfly's wing in his mind.
"How could I possibly be lonely, when I have you? You're part of me now Jaden, I'm never alone, not even in my mind," She told him. He could hear the honesty and love in her words, which warmed him; but he could also hear her fatigue.
"Go back to sleep love. I'll sort myself out, and make all the arrangements. Then all you need do is turn up. I'll even pick out something nice for you to wear," he told her. She must have been satisfied with his response, as he felt her retreat back into his subconscious. Gone, but not, as he could still feel the glowing warmth of her there. She slept in the back of his mind, like the lingering comfort of a hug; his beacon of hope.
Jaden took another couple of deep breaths, then turned to face the room at large. Clearing his throat, the conversation around him died down, as all eyes turned expectantly towards him.
"Thank you all for coming, Maya and myself both appreciate your offer of help. For this to work, I need to show you all the general vicinity that we'll be using for this evening. I'd really appreciate it, if you could set about a perimeter. Oh, and give us as much privacy as the situation allows," he added on an afterthought. Feeling eyes on him, he turned to find Helena watching him. She gave him her first genuine smile, and was shocked to realise in that moment, just how alike, her and Maya looked. They could be mistaken for sisters. Which was a stupid thought, as most immortals didn't look much over the age of around thirty-five years old anyway. Maya and Helena looked younger though somehow. Or maybe he was just now realising how old he felt. He especially realised in this moment, how lonely and shallow his existence had been up until now.
"If you'll excuse me for a moment, I'll just go and get the map I made. Then I can show you our exact location for the ceremony. Therefore, making sure you keep a little distance, but are still close enough to offer Maya protection."
