But she wasn't looking at him. She was staring at the lion and crying out, “Steven! No!”
Dax raised his hand just as Steven, the lion, leaped through the air and smashed face first into his claws. The lion fell to the ground and howled in pain. There were deep scratches at the side of his face. The lion cub had come very close to losing an eye.
Dax lowered his hand but didn't retract his claws. Steven could leave now, with just a few scratches and a bruised ego. Or he could continue slamming himself against an alpha Silver Wolf, and end up maimed—or killed.
Fortunately, the werelion's ego wasn't bigger than his brain. He growled at Dax and Melynda, and slowly backed away. Melynda clearly wasn't worth the fight for him. Shaking out his golden mane, the young lion turned and slunk off into the crowd.
The fight was over even before it had really begun. A handful of onlookers expressed their disappointment by booing after the retreating lion. The curbside entertainment was over. The crowd dispersed and the tension dissipated. People went about their business and the city rolled on.
But for Dax, it was as if he was trapped in a soundless, timeless bubble with Melynda. Or perhaps he just wished that he was alone with her.
People and traffic flowed and ebbed around them, but Dax was only aware of Melynda and the distance between them. They stood just a few feet from each other, staring at each other with a thousand tortured emotions swirling around them.
She was so near. And yet, so far away.
Melynda was biting her lower lip to stop it from quivering. She wasn't going to be the first to break the silence, but she would turn away first and walk, maybe run, away from him. He knew she would not allow herself to cry. Not in front of him.
Dax's voice was strained when he spoke. “Why do you do this, Melynda?”
She swallowed hard. “What I do is none of your business.”
“Are you doing it to make me jealous?”
“Don't flatter yourself. It's not about you.” It's all about you.
Dax closed the distance between them in two strides, but he didn't touch her. She looked like she was about to break, and his touch might just shatter her.
“I have to go now,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around her waist as she tried to hold herself together.
“Melynda...”
“Please, please, don't say anything, Dax. Just. Don't.” Her voice cracked.
Pressing a hand to her mouth, she turned and fled from him.
It was the second time tonight that he watched her run from him. But this time, he didn't go after her.
He wouldn't chase her. If he did, he would catch her, and he would never let her go.
She didn't deserve this.
Melynda deserved so much more, so much better.
She didn't deserve a wolf like him.
Dax let his nail gouge into his palms, feeling the blood ooze between his fingers.
Pain. At least he could still feel pain.
The rousing beep of his phone saved him from the haunting images of Melynda. He glanced down. The call came from the PAC Headquarters.
“Dax? It's Jett here, Jett Riley. One of my Enforcers is in trouble—with the law.”
Dax gave Jett his full attention. Jett was the Head of the Enforcement Unit, the only human on the Paranormal Affairs Council (PAC) of New Moon City. Jett joked around a lot, but when it came to his Enforcers, he was dead serious.
“What kind of trouble?”
He heard Jett mumble a curse before answering, “Levi Madden, my senior Enforcer, has been accused of murder.”
CHAPTER FOUR
Dax walked with Jett into the Central Police Station, where Levi was being held.
“I'm Levi Madden's lawyer,” Dax told the officer on duty. “I'd like to see my client.”
“And I'm Levi's boss,” Jett interjected. “I...”
“Sorry. Mr Madden is allowed just one visitor. So, which of you is it going to be? His lawyer or his boss?” The police officer looked at them dispassionately. His expression told them he had dealt with many screaming, hysterical family members, shouting attorneys and cunning reporters before. He had dealt with them all, so he could certainly deal with the PAC lawyer and the PAC's Head Enforcer.
Jett's knuckles cracked loudly as he clenched his fists. In this situation, Levi needed his lawyer, not his bull-headed, hot-tempered boss.
Jett glared at Dax. “You make sure Levi is okay.” Or else.
Dax nodded at Jett. Jett was one tough human, and his threats were not to be taken lightly. But Dax was the legal counsel for the PAC. His job was to protect the members and Enforcers of the PAC, and he always made sure he did his job well.
Threats never bothered him.
Even though Dax didn't take Jett's threat seriously, he respected the man. Jett led the Enforcement Unit well and he always looked out for his Enforcers. At this moment, he was stepping back, putting Levi's welfare first.
“Don't worry. Levi will be fine.” Dax clapped Jett on the shoulder as he followed the officer in, leaving Jett to pace in front of the counter.
Dax was led into a bare room with just one table and two chairs. He sat down and waited. In a moment, the door at the other end of the room opened and Levi Madden was led in, his hands cuffed in front of him. He looked a mess, with dried blood on his face and clothes, and bruises all over his face.
Once he was seated at the table opposite Dax, Levi leaned forward and growled even before the officer had left the room. “I didn't kill anyone, Dax. I swear!”
Dax nodded. “Tell me what happened.”
“It's...complicated.”
Dax frowned. “Complicated?” What's complicated? Levi wasn't referring to the murder charge, that's for sure.
“She...she was in danger! I had to do something! I couldn't...I just couldn't leave her...with him! He'd kill her!”
“Who would kill her?”
“Her ex-husband, a real piece of shit if you ask me,” Levi spat.
“Who is she?” Dax asked, his tone gentle.
Levi took a deep breath. “Her name is Rebecca. Rebecca Rose. She works in a bar, a blood bar in the city.”
Dax nodded. The blood bars served alcoholic and flavored blood to the vampires and blood demons in New Moon City. Some bars provided live entertainment as well. Singers, strippers, shifters...all kinds of erotic and exotic acts.
Dax took in all the facts. “What's the name of the bar?”
“Club Mate. Corny name, yeah?” Levi attempted a grin, but only managed to grimace in pain.
“And what does Ms Rose do at Club Mate?” Dax asked carefully.
“She...she's a stripper. Goes by the name Raven Rose. I...saw her while I was on patrol one night. I was with Scott, and we were doing a routine check on the bar, making sure all the laws and regulations were complied with and the patrons were behaving themselves. I saw her and I...talked to her. She's special, Dax. She's a very special girl. I knew it the moment I saw her,” Levi said softly. “I just knew that she's...” He swallowed. Mine.
Dax exhaled quietly. He understood what Levi was saying. Most shifters recognized their mates instantly. Levi was a bear shifter, strong, protective and powerful. He wasn't a violent man, and he controlled his bear at all times. But shifters would kill for their mates. If someone threatened or touched their mates...
Dax shook away the image of Melynda with the young lion shifter. The reckless young man had been holding her by the waist, his arm hugging her luscious, curvy body...
From the way Levi was squinting at him, he knew that his eyes had turned fully silver.
“Go on,” Dax urged. “Tell me what happened tonight. Were you at Club Mate?”
“No. I...I was at her home.”
A pause. “And?”
“Her ex-husband appeared. He escaped from the psychiatric ward, and came straight for her. He was...” Levi scowled. “He wasn't human, not anymore. He had been tortured by a demon lord, but his mind was already unhinged befor
e that. He had been beating her, threatening her, trying to force her not to go through with the divorce. After his ordeal at the hands of the blood demon lord, he lost it completely. Even the hospital couldn't do anything for him. They could only sedate him. But he killed the nurse on duty and escaped, and he came for her. I fought him off, but he refused to let us go. I grabbed Rebecca, and we ran. I just wanted to get her away from him. He...he wasn't human, I tell you! He just kept coming at us, and from the look in his eyes, I knew that he would kill her. We ran until we reached the beach. I put Rebecca down, and...and...”
Dax waited for Levi to compose himself.
“He attacked her, like a monster. He didn't want her. He wanted her life! He was going to kill her, Dax!”
Dax nodded gravely. “So you fought him. Were you in your bear form?”
“Yes.” Levi grabbed his head and started to tug at his short, blond hair in agitation. “I...I didn't even realized that I'd shifted to my bear form. I just wanted to protect her! That was the only thing on my mind. When he came at her, I just slashed out with my claws, trying to get him away from her. I was in a frenzy, just slashing and biting and fighting. I wanted to get him away from her. He would never, never touch her again! The bastard!”
Levi stopped, rocking himself on his chair. He squeezed his eyes shut, his face contorted in pain. Releasing a shuddering breath, he stared at a spot over Dax's shoulder, his blue eyes taking on a faraway look. In a quiet voice, he continued, “And then, everything fell away. I heard shouts and sirens, and I collapsed. I was blinded by headlights and in the same instant I made out the rows of police cars lined up along the shore, I realized that I had been hit by a tranquilizer dart.”
Levi let his face drop into his hands. “She...she was bleeding all over, and she wasn't moving. I couldn't feel her breathing! The bastard...I thought that he'd killed her! So...I...I...”
Dax held up his hand, and leaned forward.
“You protected her, Levi. He was going to kill her, and you.”
At this, Levi snorted out a bitter laugh. “He can't kill me! He's only human.” Levi shook his head. “No. No, he wasn't. He wasn't even human. He was...something else. Something evil.”
Levi lurched forward and grabbed Dax's hand. “Can you...do something for me, Dax?”
“Name it.”
“Can you protect Rebecca?”
Dax frowned. “Rebecca?”
“Yes. I know she's alive. I heard a paramedic yell out just before I went under.”
“Miss Rose would have been taken to the hospital. She would be in good hands. She will be well cared for by the doctors and healers at the hospital. They are very professional and they have the best...”
“That's not what I meant! No, no! You don't understand!” Levi slammed his fists down on the table in frustration. “Her ex is a monster! She's not safe from him! You...have to help me, Dax. Protect her!”
Levi slumped back in his chair, making the flimsy chair creak and groan under his massive frame.
“He's not dead, Dax. I didn't kill him. He will come for her. I know. Please, Dax, you have to protect her. He will...kill her.”
Dax studied Levi quietly, digesting the facts. Finally, he said slowly, “They didn't find the body.”
Levi opened his eyes and straightened up. “No. I carried Rebecca, and I ran for miles and still he pursued us. He's not human I tell you! He didn't tire, he didn't stop or slow down, just kept coming at us. He caught up with us near the beach and I fought him. They assumed I threw his body into the sea. But I didn't kill him.” Levi glowered and snarled. “I wish I did.”
Dax rubbed his chin. “No. Body.”
“Those human police officers just saw a bear, a man and a bleeding, unconscious woman.”
“So they shot the bear.”
Levi snorted out an angry laugh. “And the bad guy escaped. Again.”
Dax opened his mouth to ask Levi another question but the door swung open. Dax pushed back from the table, as two officers walked in. His time with his client was up.
He nodded encouragingly at Levi as the werebear was led away by two beefy officers. He had gotten the bare facts from Levi and he would work with whatever information he had at hand.
He had never ever let a client down.
Levi jerked against his cuffs and yelled over his shoulder before the door closed behind him. “Protect Rebecca! Promise me.”
“I promise,” Dax answered quickly and clearly, making sure Levi heard him. “I will protect Ms Rose. And I will protect you.”
As Dax walked with Jett to the car park, he spoke on the phone to Lucas Rieve, the PAC Alpha and Blake Madden, Levi's cousin. Lucas and Blake were understandably very worried, but they listened to Dax calmly, not interrupting him while he explained Levi's situation to them succinctly.
There was a shout behind them, and they turned to see Scott Madden running full tilt towards them. Not slowing down, Scott almost smashed headlong into them as he skidded to an abrupt halt in front of them. “How's Levi?” he demanded. “The human police got the wrong guy! Levi shouldn't be sitting inside. Phin Lester is the monster!”
“I'll get him out,” Dax assured Scott. The Madden cousins were very close. They were extremely loyal to the PAC and their clan. Family was everything to them. The Madden bears had a good reputation. They were honest, honorable, dependable and calm. Scott was evidently less calm than his cousins. But still, considering the circumstances, he was still more restrained than his hot-headed, foul-mouthed boss. Jett was still swearing at the New Moon City Police Department, kicking stones violently out of his way as he marched to his car.
“Want a lift?” Jett shouted to Scott.
“Yeah.” Scott gripped Dax's hand. “Don't let us down. You're the only one who can get Levi out.”
Dax nodded. “And I will get him out,” he said evenly.
Dax watched Jett's car round the corner with a squeal of tires. Jett was driving like a maniac. Dax shook his head. He pitied the police officer who would be issuing the speeding ticket to Jett. The human was fuming and foaming at the mouth, and he would bite the officer's head right off. It would be up to the big bear shifter in the passenger seat to smooth things over between the hapless officer, who was just doing his job, and his rabid boss.
Dax exhaled heavily as he walked to his silver Jaguar. If a shifter was convicted of killing a human, he would be put down immediately. Like a rabid animal.
Levi's life was on the line.
Turning out into the main street, he drove home slowly, mulling over the events of the day.
All his cases were important, but Levi's case was the most urgent. He had to see to it first thing tomorrow morning.
But tomorrow morning, the first thing he would see when he reached the office would be...Melynda.
He had made a mess with Melynda.
He never messed with women. He never got emotionally entangled with the women he slept with. They were all adults, and they knew that it was just sex. Nothing more.
But with Melynda, it wasn't just sex. Heck, he hadn't even really had sex with her.
He hadn't even taken her, and already, he seemed drunk on her. She was...just irresistible. He wanted her, yet he had to protect her, from himself. Every shifter protected his mate. Even cuffed and locked up, Levi still protected Rebecca.
His mate.
Her scent, her body, her beautiful voice and smile...
No. He would never take a mate.
Never again.
Dax shook his head hard and exhaled a harsh, ragged breath.
He'd be lucky if he got any sleep tonight.
CHAPTER FIVE
Melynda let herself quietly into the house. Her mother and grandmother were already in bed. Her grandmother, Lucinda Morgan, was their coven Elder, and a powerful Elemental witch. Her mother and sister were Elemental witches as well. Her whole coven practiced Elemental magick.
Melynda winced. No one knew she wasn't an Elemental witch. Not even her
coven, her family.
Locking the door behind her, she tiptoed upstairs to her bedroom. Exhausted, she flopped onto her bed and closed her eyes. She felt so tired, so drained.
Why did Dax have to turn up at the restaurant? Hadn't he done enough at the office? He had turned her mind and body to mush, giving her the most mind-blowing, toe-curling pleasure, and then...he had just brushed her off. Like she was nothing more than a speck of lint on his jacket.
She had gone on her date to try to take her mind off him. Dax Ferro was not worth her time and her tears.
Arrogant jerk.
Her date had been going well, well enough anyway. Steven was a nice young man, jovial, polite, and...bland.
Melynda massaged her temples.
God, she was only twenty-two. She shouldn't be dating like this, like a crazy, desperate old maid.
She turned on her side and groaned when she saw the stacks of spell books on her table. She had to ace her finals and graduate from Spell School. She would have graduated earlier if she'd enrolled as a full-time student. But—being a full-time student meant she would have to spend a lot more time in Spell School, under the tutelage and scrutiny of her lecturers and tutors. And they might discover that the real reason she never did well in her Elemental Magick course, was because...she wasn't an Elemental witch.
Her sister had graduated from Spell School with flying colors. Jasynta had had her heart broken by Camron Quinn, an obnoxious, unscrupulous warlock and her senior at Spell School just before her final year, and yet she had bravely and stoically picked herself up and soldiered on. Jasynta was a great witch, and she would make a great mother.
Melynda smiled a little at the thought that she would be an aunt soon to an adorable little cub.
But her smile faded as she counted the days to her final exams.
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