by L. E. Horn
Physical sensation, softness and strength, velvet skin over steel, blood and sweat and the scent of pine so strong we tasted it. Claws emerged and penetrated, teeth followed. We locked our bodies into a single entity from lips to toes, fitting together as though born to it and moving to an ancient rhythm. Until finally, with our joined blood singing in our veins, we climbed together, reaching a peak that had our cries weaving a melody through the ancient forest, startling roosting birds from the trees and, possibly even alerting our fellows in the clearing not far away that love does indeed move mountains.
It was nothing like anything we’d experienced, and so much more than either of us had prepared for. I lay in a limp heap with Sam in my arms. She touched the new claw marks she’d placed on my back.
I think that was my last patch of intact skin.
Scars are pretty, remember?
I’d rather not. I drifted my finger along her face, following a new, narrow slice along one cheek. So—do wulfan get married?
Some do. We are mated; we don’t have to marry.
Do you want to?
She frowned playfully. I guess if you ever cheat on me, I want to qualify for half of everything you own.
Like I would ever cheat on you.
You’d be insane to try, she agreed and rolled on top of me, where she proved that being a wulf had fringe benefits I hadn’t yet considered.
* * *
I got out of my shiny new truck and smiled at the man who waited for me. Hanging over the fence behind him, the donkeys waved their ears at me and brayed.
Keen barked from the back seat. Since my return from my adventures up north, she refused to be left in the truck, even when faced with Walter’s donkeys. I let her out and she stuck to me like a shadow, shooting nervous glances at the animals as we headed for the barn.
“Long time, no see.” Ted grinned at us. “I’m right glad to have you back. Magic missed ya.”
I had no doubt he did. Darlene bore the scars of his displeasure on her arms, her thigh, and even her butt. I wasn’t sure if her joy upon my return was because I appeared alive and well, or relief that she could hand the donkey back over to me.
Magic?
Fang’s real name, I supplied.
My assistant laughed as she followed us to the barn, stopping to stroke a jenny’s long ears. The donkey leaned into the embrace, doe eyes closing in bliss.
As usual, the hoof trimmer waited by the doors. “Christ, Liam. Whatever you’re eating, I want some of it. You’ve put on thirty pounds of muscle since I last saw you. I thought you were sick?”
“Not anymore. I’m healthier now than I’ve ever been.”
Sam grinned at me. Steady sex will do that to a guy.
I don’t think that’s the muscle he’s referring to, although thirty pounds would be close.
Dream on, idiot.
Fang stood tied in the usual spot in the aisle, his ears flattened against his skull and nose wrinkled in displeasure. When he saw me, his eyes widened.
“Hello, old friend. Been a while.” I patted the thick neck, which went rock hard beneath my hand.
“Here. He needs a woman’s touch.” Sam pushed me aside, placed her hands on each side of the donkey’s main weapon—his jaw—and murmured sweet nothings at him.
Before I was a wulfleng, Darlene and I had tried everything from treats to various methods of restraint on Fang, only to end up with teeth marks and frustration. But if my wulf mate thought she could accomplish miracles, then I knew better than to interfere.
To my utter amazement, as she murmured too low for us to make out any words, the donkey’s eyes softened and his long ears relaxed, drooping on either side of his neck. He ignored me as I approached, gave him the shot, and retreated.
“Well, I’ll be. Where you been hiding this woman for the last year, Liam?” The farrier shook his head as he arranged his tools. “Coulda saved us some skin.”
Sam’s smile lit up the entire barn, and I found myself grinning like an idiot right back at her.
You are an idiot, she said with affection.
The guys think I’m cool.
You’ve brainwashed them. It’s the only explanation.
Keen pranced around Sam all the way back to the SUV. My dog had transferred at least half of her loyalty to the wulfan enforcer.
She’s just happy to have another girl around.
Great. I’m outnumbered.
Not if you count Peter.
Sam and I now lived in my basement apartment, although we spent almost as much time upstairs with Peter. She was even helping him redecorate.
He’s colorblind.
No, he just has questionable taste in color. There’s a difference.
I loaded Keen in the back. As I slid behind the wheel, my phone beeped. Ardyth, forwarding a photo. I stared at the shot of a big mare frolicking with two small but feisty foals, and grinned.
“What is it?” Sam asked aloud.
I showed her. “I delivered these twins. Honestly, didn’t know if they’d live. But look at them.”
She smiled as she looked at the photo. “Do horses often have twins?”
“Rarely. Even more unusual for them to live. If it weren’t for the wulf, we would have lost all three that day.”
Her gray eyes scanned my face. “Do you ever regret becoming a wulfleng?”
I met her gaze and smiled. “No.”
She returned my smile and settled against the squeaky new upholstery.
As naturally as breathing, I slipped back into mindspeak. I forgot to mention that Danny wants your help picking paint colors for the house. They’re doing it next week.
Chris had set the Nightshifter crew up in a farmhouse not far from his. The move wrote a new chapter on the meaning of fraternity.
Sam tossed her hair over her shoulder. That house needs more than paint. It’s never going to survive those guys. Nate took out the door—
It came loose in his hand. Not his fault.
Lucas and Travis just about burned the place down—
Hey, you’re the one who gave them that cookbook.
Reese wants chickens, of all things—
He likes fresh eggs.
And then there was the toilet incident—
Yeah, that was unfortunate. I grinned. It was due for replacement, I’m sure. Chris set it right.
Chris had taken the mutants under his wing, filling in any gaps in their training. Sam and I joined them for long night runs. We trained three nights a week, and the other four we ran like, well, idiots.
Accurate description.
You would know.
Jason had his hands full. The lodge was being adapted into the new headquarters for the wulfleng training division. The organization had successfully airlifted most of their trainees off the island before we could get anyone there. The remaining twenty-three mutants now resided at the lodge, under Jason’s watchful eye. Chris spent his time split between flying out to train them and working with the Nightshifters.
As Lily’s efforts to purge the servers of useful data had succeeded, we were no further ahead on discovering the organization’s agenda. The arms dealer and his son, now considered human financial supporters of the organization, had gone underground.
Sam volunteered, a little too eagerly, to help with Lily’s interrogation. Jason declined her offer, citing we needed the wulfan in one piece to answer questions. Although so far, he’d had little success, and I was scheduled to fly out there on the weekend to give it a go with my newfound powers.
Once she’s given us everything we need, she and I have a date with destiny.
You might have to stand in line. She’s responsible for a lot of pain and suffering.
I get first dibs.
While under interrogation, Wallace had provided us with the latest antiviral, which the wulfan experts at Winnipeg’s virology lab were examining and reproducing for us.
While it was a relief to know I wouldn’t follow Dillon into the abyss, I wished
we’d learned more. It was only a matter of time until the mutants surfaced again. And when they did, the Nightshifters would have to be ready to tackle them.
You are always ready. As am I. She gave me that internal mental stroke that lit my world on fire and almost made me drive into the ditch.
You are as much a liability as an asset. I straightened the vehicle and concentrated on staying between the lines on the highway.
Did you mention my ass?
I’m always admiring your ass.
Not my fault it’s so damned gorgeous.
I sighed and grinned, showing teeth.
It’s good to see you smile.
I’ve been doing a lot of smiling, lately.
That’s because you’ve been well—
“Hey, keep it clean,” I said, capturing her hand in mine. “There are innocents present.”
Keen pushed her head between the seats, tongue lolling, and Sam laughed.
She’s not as innocent as she looks. You didn’t see what she did to Peter’s Chevy while you were away.
I so don’t want to know.
I’ll tell you, anyway.
And she did until I laughed so hard, I barely saw where we were going.
I couldn’t remember laughing like that before. Ever. Sam’s connection to me was so strong, we had a hard time keeping thoughts from each other. It was an effortless thing. She had become a part of who I was.
My life until the wulfan and Sam had been mere survival. Somewhere in the process of becoming a mutant wulfleng, I’d found and come to terms with the most human side of myself.
I’d like to think Trevor would have been proud of who I was now.
He would be. And so am I.
Her eyes shone with unshed tears, and the power of her love swept me away. So much so that I pulled the vehicle off on a side road and reciprocated.
A second later, I found my tongue pinched gently between Sam’s sharp teeth. Keen sighed, whined, and then settled in the back seat with her bone until the humans paid attention to something other than themselves.
Fastening my own teeth on sensitive skin, I decided she might wait a while.
She’s enjoying her new bone, Sam said.
I think I can relate.
Oh, Liam. And she laughed, the sound pure and soft and filled with joy.
* * *
Thanks for reading
NIGHTSHATTER.
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The Nightshifter Series
Tentative Release Schedule
(some dates might get pushed forward)
NIGHTSHIFTER—April 16
NIGHTSHATTER—April 30
NIGHTSHAKER—May 14
NIGHTSHIVER—May 21
NIGHTSEEKER—June 11
This story arc concludes in NIGHTSEEKER.
Acknowledgements
It is true that no book is published without an army of support, and NIGHTSHATTER is no exception. My friend/publisher/editor/consultant Susan Lisoway stayed entrenched for a much longer haul than anticipated. The loyalty of the entire Hayek clan remained impressive and I couldn’t have done it without Pat, Stewart, Gillian, and Austin. Support came in many forms, including my editor Paula Chiarcos, who helped me develop my characters to their fullest. I will be forever grateful to my friends, alpha readers, and beta critics who provided invaluable assistance with the finishing touches of the stories and encouragement that I was onto something that people would enjoy. My copy editor and proofreader, Barbara Holliday, polished my writing to a brilliant shine. Last, but certainly not least, my husband, who has kept life in motion while I’ve been planted in front of my computer.
Thanks to all of you from the depths of my heart!
About the Author
Author and artist, L.E. Horn, is a full-time speculative fiction writer.
Her interests led to a degree in Animal Science and a lifelong fascination with our unconscious animal nature—our inner “Wild Child.” She particularly loves to explore the qualities we believe distinguish us from the creatures whose planet we share. Her discoveries, combined with her vivid imagination, spill over into everything she writes and lend depth and insight to her interspecies relationships.
L.E. Horn shares a country home with her husband and many interesting animals that, as she puts it, “Inspire me by pointing out what should be obvious on a minute-by-minute basis. The challenge keeps me happy and humble.”
