Christmas After Dark: A Holiday Paranormal Romance Anthology

by Abigail Owen

  Her lips curved into a sexy smile as she bent to kiss me. “I like that plan.”

  I rolled us over and lost myself in her all over again.

  Shattered glass woke me. It took a heartbeat for me to remember where I was. Piper’s place. She was still asleep beside me. I crept out of bed, trying to dissect the scent stinging my nostrils.

  Blood, fear, and…human sweat. What the hell?

  I snagged my pants off the floor and quickly put them on, relieved to see my stitches weren’t even red anymore. I was no super-fast healing wolverine, but we did heal up faster than humans.

  Once I had my jeans on, I realized my gun was still in the car. Fuck. Whoever was inside the house, was injured, but that didn’t mean they were weak. It could have been a small cut from breaking a window. And right now, they were between me and my gun.

  I scanned her bedroom for a potential weapon. Nothing. Damn it. I went to the closet. Shoes, clothes, and leaning in the corner. I blinked.

  Piper had a sword.

  I picked it up, gauging the weight. About six or seven pounds. I was more experienced with firearms, but I’d have to make this work. Even though I was no swordsman, with my werewolf strength, I had no doubt I could inflict some damage with this blade.

  Careful not to make a sound, I opened the bedroom door and made my way down the hallway. A man sat at the kitchen table with his back toward me. I approached him from behind, lifting the sword.

  I pressed the tip into his back and growled, “Who the hell are you?”

  He turned around and I blinked, lowering my weapon. Piper’s dad. And he was beat to hell. Blood trickled down the side of his face from a gash in his forehead, and his skin was black and blue. One of his eyes was swollen shut, and his clothes were covered in dirt.

  “Mr. Holland. What happened?”

  He frowned, looking up at me with his good eye. “Shane? You’re alive.” He looked past me to the hallway. “Where’s Piper?”

  “Sleeping.” I kept my grip on the sword. Something felt…off. “Are you going to tell me what happened?”

  His fingers twitched on the table and the tangy scent of fear wafted off him. He’d known me since I was in high school. Why would he be afraid of me?

  Unless somehow he knew…

  He drew a gun from under his jacket as I lifted the blade.

  Spittle flew from his lips. “You stay away from my daughter, you animal.” He spat the final two words, like I was the one covered in filth instead of the other way around.

  “Daddy?” Piper’s voice came from behind me.

  “Get out of here, baby. I told you never to contact Shane.”

  “What happened?” She came to my side and frowned. “Put your gun away.”

  “I need to protect you.”

  “From what?” A wrinkle formed on her brow, confusion lining her eyes. “Dad, this is Shane. You know him.”

  “But you don’t, Piper. Go back to bed. I’ll handle this.”

  Was he afraid enough to shoot his own daughter? I wasn’t ready to find out. I put myself between her and the gun. “Do what he says, Piper.” I kept my voice low, non-threatening. I couldn’t promise my narrowed eyes were sending him the same message. “We can work this out.”

  “I don’t think you can, mate.” Vance stepped through the broken glass of Piper’s slider. His Glock was aimed at Piper’s dad. “Seems the veterinarian’s papa fell for the oldest trick in the book and came out of hiding when his little girl was threatened. But he’s a little harder to kill than my associates realized.”

  “Wait,” Piper pleaded. “Put your gun down. My father’s fighting Nero too.” Piper reached for Vance, but I caught her wrist, my gaze locked on hers. “Why don’t you go get in the car? I’ll be right there.”

  I prayed to whoever might be listening that my brainy mate would understand my urgency. Our guns were still in the car. She started to shake her head, but stopped, her eyes on mine as she nodded slowly. She understood. Damn, I loved this woman.

  She cleared her throat. “Fine. But if I hear a single shot, I’m calling 911.”

  I waited for the door to the garage to close before I glanced at Vance. “What the hell is going on?”

  Piper’s dad answered. “They cut my brake lines, that’s what happened. They’re killers. All of you are. But I’ll expose you. The government won’t keep covering for you. I have contacts.” His hand trembled under the weight of the firearm, but he didn’t lower his gun. “Piper will hate you when I explain what you really are.”

  “She already knows.” I tightened my grip on the sword.

  “You told her?” His jaw dropped slightly, and I took some solace in seeing the fanatical wind draining from his sails. “She obviously doesn’t know you could hunt and kill her before she ever got a chance to defend herself.”

  My wolf clawed his way into my consciousness, my voice rumbling, a menacing snarl. “I would die before I ever hurt Piper. You know me.”

  “I thought I did.” His finger twitched on the trigger, but he didn’t fire. “But I see you, the real you. You’re all bloodthirsty animals.”

  “Says the man who babbles online about genocide of shifter races.” Vance glanced my way. “This is the guy who bankrolled the extermination of your Pack, mate.”

  Rage and disbelief shot through me like a lightning bolt of destruction. My vision narrowed to Mr. Holland’s beaten face. Before I could attack, the door to the garage opened and the unmistakable sound of the slide on a Glock cut through the tension as a round of ammunition moved into the chamber.

  “Vance, put your gun down.”

  The jaguar surprised me, obeying her without a fight. Then I caught the scent coming through the shattered slider. More werewolves. I recognized Cole. He must’ve brought the Pack with him.

  Vance laid his gun on the counter. “Dr. Holland, before you decide your daddy’s the victim here, might want to ask him why he doesn’t want you snuggling up to Shane here.”

  “He always liked Shane.” She turned to her father. “Right?”

  The scent of hate and fear were very similar, a tangy pungent combo, but hate had the added touch of rot, almost sweet. And it was coming off her father in waves as he looked at me. I had no fucking clue why.

  He kept his gun pointed at me as he spoke. “His twin brother, Sean, the one who dropped out of high school, they told us he joined the military.”

  “He did.” Just hearing my twin brother’s name brought back the pain of loss.

  My brother shifted a year before I did. He volunteered for the military because he thought his abilities could help protect people. He and his best friend James signed on for a super soldier program with a defense contractor. That was the first time my Pack heard the name, Nero.

  They never came home. The military delivered the notice to my parents that Sean was killed during a classified training mission. That was all we would ever know.

  Mr. Holland shook his head, his one good eye shining with hate. “I saw him on the footage. Your brother was an abomination. His head contorted into a wolf on the body of a man. He murdered four men…and ate them.”

  I lunged forward, tackling him to the ground. The gun skittered across the floor as I pinned him and drew back my fist.

  “Shane, wait.” Piper clasped my shoulder, her touch soothing the wounded beast inside of me. “I need to talk to him.”

  I forced myself to back off the worm. “Sean was trying to protect his country. He’d never attack a human unless they were hurting someone.”

  Piper slid her gun into the shoulder holster she put on over her robe. She helped her father up into the chair at the table. I stood next to Vance, glancing outside. The Pack was nearby, but I couldn’t see them.

  Her father covered her hands with his. “We have to go. I know you’ve got a job in Sedona, but we’ll find another one.”

  She shook her head. “I’m finished running.”

  Her father tightened his hold on her. “You can’t
stay with Shane. You don’t know what he’s capable of.”

  My gut twisted into a hard knot, but I didn’t try to defend myself. Her father was responsible for the death of my Pack. He was the one I’d been hunting. But killing him would hurt my mate. She’d been outside when Vance dropped the bombshell about her father being the money behind the hit on my Pack. No matter how much I craved vengeance, I wasn’t about to become the murderer he accused me of being.

  But I’d never yearned to take a life more than I did right now.

  Bile burned the back of my throat. Fucking fate.

  10

  Piper

  “I’m not going anywhere with you.” I pulled my hands away from my father’s as the puzzle began to come together in my mind. “All these years. You were lying to me.”

  “No.” He shook his head emphatically. “It was just like I told you. I found something disturbing on Nero’s servers, and I think every American has a right to know the danger that could be in their neighborhoods. Dating their daughters.”

  I shot out of my chair, my voice rising. “You said I couldn’t contact Shane without putting a target on his back for Nero.”

  “The reason doesn’t matter. He’ll hurt you. He could kill you in your sleep.” He reached for my hand. “He’s not like us, Piper.”

  I took a step away, speechless and repulsed by the man I’d been protecting. The last ten years were all…a lie. “You’re right.” I glanced at Shane and took his hand before facing my father again. “Shane gave me a choice. Something you never did. He also told me the truth even though he knew I wouldn’t believe him. You gave me lies. Shane is nothing like you. He’s better than you.”

  Shane squeezed my hand. The simple touch meant everything to me. I pressed my lips together and focused on my father. “I want you to leave. Now.”

  He stood up, shaking his head. “I wasn’t lying about Nero. They want me dead, Piper. They killed your uncle.”

  Vance grunted under his breath. “Ask your pop why a bunch of jaguar assassins want him dead.”

  “All right.” I narrowed my eyes at my father. “Why are you on their hit list? And I’m guessing Vance already knows the answer, so don’t try to bullshit me with more lies.”

  My dad broke eye contact, starting at his dirty hands. “I’m trying to get the government to declassify the video files I saw.” He lifted his gaze. “Americans need to know.”

  Vance kicked the leg of my dad’s chair. “Tell her the rest.”

  He stammered. “I took footage of the jaguars too.”

  “Tell her when you did that.” Vance crossed his arms.

  “After I paid them to kill all of Shane’s Pack.”

  All the air whooshed from my lungs like I’d been sucker punched in the gut. My vision blurred as hot tears welled in my eyes. “No. Oh God. Dad, please tell me you didn’t do this.”

  He looked up at me, pleading. “You were in love with Shane, but you didn’t know what he was. I was protecting you. He was supposed to die with the rest of them. You could go on with your life. You’d be safe.”

  I slapped him so hard, pain shot up my arm. “You heartless bastard.” A sob strangled my voice. “Get out!”

  “I’ve got nowhere to go.”

  “You’re a murderer.” My voice cracked. “Get out.”

  “Piper, I did what I had to in order to protect you. I did it for you.”

  “No!” I yelled, pointing at his chest. “No. You don’t get to put this on me. You are not a hero. You’re…dead to me.” I looked up at Shane. “Can you walk him out? I need a minute.”

  “Yeah.” His eyes searched mine. “You’re sure?”

  “Yes.” I pivoted and went back down the hallway to my room before I fell apart. My father ordered the deaths of children. Innocent kids. And then he filmed it.

  He stole ten years of my life and tried to kill the best man I’d ever known. I wasn’t sure how to reconcile the truth with the man I thought I knew.

  But my eyes were wide open now, and I was finished protecting him.

  11

  Shane

  When the bedroom door closed, I faced her father again. “You heard her. You need to go.”

  “Why don’t you save us all some time and just kill me right now?” He wiped his nose with a shaky hand. “At least then my daughter will see who you really are.”

  I grabbed his shirt and yanked him to his feet, taking much more pleasure than I should in hearing him whimper. Grinding my teeth, I fought the urge to beat the crap out of him.

  “You’re not worth it.” I glanced at the hallway. “I won’t hurt her by letting you goad me into a fight.” My gaze landed on his face again. “You’re a worthless sack of shit anyway. Good luck with Nero.”

  I dragged him to the door and gave him a shove to get his feet moving.

  Vance picked up his gun from the counter as he passed by me. He stopped at the door and turned back. “I’m not as upstanding as you, mate, but I will give him a little head start.”

  “The Pack is nearby.”

  Vance nodded. “Cole told the others what was going down, and they wanted to bring some back up until we knew what we were up against.” He paused. “This group here in Sedona…it’s different than any pack of wolves I’ve ever seen, but if you and Dr. Holland decide to stay in town, might be worth getting to know them.” He smiled. “Unless you’re enjoying being a lone wolf. Catch ya later.”

  He vanished into the darkness with the stealth silence only a jaguar shifter could manage. I stepped through the broken glass door and onto Piper’s backyard deck. I walked to the railing and kept my voice low. They were werewolves. They wouldn’t have any trouble hearing me.

  “I’m Shane Dodd from the Lexington Pack. I’m the last living member.”

  One by one, they came out of the shadows and approached the deck, gathering at the base of the stairs. I recognized Cole and scanned the group for his twin brother, but he was alone. Apparently, we’d both lost our brothers.

  A big guy with a military haircut came through the others and up the steps. Another wolf in this Pack without a twin. He held out his hand and we clasped forearms. “It’s like seeing a ghost.” He shook his head slowly. “You look just like Sean.”

  I dropped my hand to my side. “You knew Sean?”

  He nodded. “I’m Jett Kendrick. Sean was in my unit. He was a good man.”

  In light of Piper’s dad’s story about the video footage of my brother partially shifting and killing people, Jett had no idea how much his words meant to me. I had questions, but before I could ask, another wolf climbed the stairs. He was a little taller than me, darker skin, and long black hair.

  I glanced at the others, but again, no twin brother. Vance hadn’t been kidding when he said this was a unique Pack.

  “I’m Asher. Cole tells me Piper is your mate.” We clasped forearms, and I nodded.

  “She is.” I tensed instinctively. Cole has mentioned this Pack had no Alpha, but something about Asher had my wolf on edge. This was the first time my wolf’s instincts were pushing me to run. We were in another Pack’s territory.

  “You’re lucky. Our previous Alpha assigned mates. Finding your one true mate is…I wouldn’t know, but I imagine it would be amazing.” He looked over at the house while I tried to wrap my brain around an Alpha choosing mates for his Pack. What the hell happened in Sedona?

  Asher focused on me again. “You said you were the last member of your Pack. Will you settle in Sedona with your mate?”

  “I haven’t thought that far ahead.”

  “If you stay, we might be able to help you find a job.” Asher’s gaze bore into me, and again, my wolf responded, this time more eager to please.

  “Thank you.” I swallowed a lump in my throat. “I’ll let you know.”

  “Good.” He nodded with a knowing look. “Cole knows how to find me.”

  One by one the others came forward and introduced themselves. The only twins in this Pack were Deacon and De
x. I couldn’t help but wonder what happened that had taken so many Pack brothers. Did their Alpha kill them?

  None of my business. I had bigger things to worry about right now.

  Cole jogged up the steps and peered through the broken glass door. “How’s Piper?”

  “She turned her dad away knowing it would probably be a death sentence.” I rubbed my hand down my face. “I’d say she’s pretty fucked up at the moment.”

  Cole sighed and met my eyes. “Tell her I said she should take the week off. Call it a Christmas vacation. It’s a short week anyway.”

  Christmas. Shit. We’d both be feeling the void of our families.

  Cole clapped my shoulder, snapping me out of my thoughts. “Our Pack’s having a gathering on Christmas Eve. You guys should come.”

  I blinked. “Are you sure? We’re not Pack.”

  “Piper’s part of my work family, and you’re her mate. Just come. You guys shouldn’t be alone for the holiday. Family doesn’t have to be blood. You know that. That’s what Pack is all about.”

  “Get us the address and we’ll be there.” I clasped his forearm. “Thanks, man.”

  He smiled. “I’ll email Piper the details.”

  “I better go check on her.” I nodded to the others and went back inside.

  Piper was in the shower when I got back to the bedroom. I was still digesting the revelations about her father and my brother, but I couldn’t imagine how much worse it was for Piper. All this time she thought her father was the victim.

  If there was some way to take the pain away, I would do it. But I didn’t know how.

  And there were very few things I hated more than feeling useless. Fuck.

  I got up from the bed as the bathroom door opened. She came out wrapped in a towel. Her eyes were swollen and red, but she was still the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen.