Dark Moon (23 page)

“Still, you’re a brave little thing – for a human.”

She blushed again but didn’t object when he took her hand and held it firmly.  “Let’s go.”

Chapter 21

“Andric?”  Dani gave the Lycan a worried look.  He had turned away from her and was coughing into the crook of his arm.

“Are you alright?”

“Aye.”  He said hoarsely, without looking at her.

She made him turn around to face her and gave a sharp cry at the blood that coated his lips.  Over the last forty minutes the Lycan had been slowing down.  His breath was wheezing in and out of his lungs, and he kept his broken left arm clamped firmly against his left side.

“You’re getting worse.”

He shook his head and carefully flexed his arm.  “No, it’s a little better, I think.  My arm is nearly healed.”

She reached out and touched the blood on his mouth before showing her fingers to him.  “You’re bleeding inside.”

“A punctured lung, maybe.”  He coughed again and nearly fell over.

“Put your arm around me.”  Dani pressed up against his right side and slipped her arm around his waist.  “We are almost home.  You can rest there and heal.”

He gave her a tired look and leaned heavily against her as they stumbled through the trees.

* * *

“You’re lying, Jeffrey.”

“Doran, I swear I’m not.  She took off her shirt and there it was - a third nipple smack dab in the middle of her chest and pointed right at me.”  Jeffrey said earnestly.

Doran laughed and shook his head.  “The last time you told me this story, the nipple was just above her belly button.”

Jeffrey shrugged.  “So I’m not good with details.  I never could – “

He stopped abruptly and straightened up from the tree he was leaning against.  “Do you smell that?”

Doran, his face grim, nodded.  “Aye.  It’s Lycan.”

He inhaled again, a look of fear coming over his face, as he started into the trees.

“Dani?”  He whispered.

“Doran!  Wait!”  Jeffrey called quietly.  “If they have her, we need to – “

“Dani!”  Doran shouted.  “Dani, where are you?”

“Doran!  Help us, quickly!”

Doran tore off into the trees, his body already beginning to swell as Jeffrey cursed lightly and went after him.

Doran, his blood surging in his veins and hair starting to sprout on his body, leaped easily over a fallen tree.  He could smell Dani’s fear and the scent of blood in the air and he began to growl.  If they hurt his sister, if they tried to –

“Doran!”

He skidded to a stop, staring in surprise at his twin.  Her blonde hair was caked and matted with blood.  It had dried to maroon coloured streaks on her face and arms and she was supporting a semi-conscious Lycan beside her.

“Dani!  What happened?”

“Doran!”  Dani began to cry and she leaned the Lycan against a tree before nearly leaping into her brother’s arms.

“What’s going on?  Where are the others?”  He brushed her blood-soaked hair back from her face.

“Draken.”  She whispered.  “He – he was waiting for us in the town.  He took Kaden and Sophia.  I couldn’t stop them, Doran.  There were too many of them and they would have killed me.  I’m so sorry.” 

He patted her back gently as Jeffrey rubbed his hand across his face.  “Gods be damned.  We have to let the lord Tristan know right now.”

“Aye.”  Doran agreed grimly as he hugged his sister.

“Where is Ian?  Did they take him as well?”  Jeffrey asked suddenly.

Dani swallowed convulsively.  “I – they killed him.  The long-haired one, Draken, he just – just took Sophia’s sword and cut off his head.”  She started to sob brokenly as Jeffrey staggered back.

“No.”  He whispered.  His tanned face was pale and he gave Doran a look of horror.  “Ian cannot be dead.”

“He is.”  The Lycan leaning against the tree replied quietly.  “I saw him kill the old man.”

“Who are you?”  Doran asked suspiciously.

“His name is Andric.”  Dani’s tears had left tracks through the blood on her face and Doran rubbed at the blood as she stared up at him.

“He saved my life in town and in the forest.  There was a Gogmagog and it – “

“There are no Gogmagog’s this far east.”  Jeffrey interrupted.  “They do not leave the outskirts.”

“It was a Gogmagog.”  Dani insisted.  “I saw it with my own eyes.  It is the beast’s blood that covers me.  Andric killed it but not before it broke his arm and his ribs.  I think he has a punctured lung.  His arm is starting to heal but he is bleeding inside.  He needs to see Aunt – “

There was a soft thud and the three of them turned.  Andric had collapsed on the floor of the forest.  Dani gave a loud cry and pulled away from Doran.  She knelt beside the Lycan and squeezed his arm.

“Andric?  Andric, wake up!” 

He didn’t move and she gave Doran and Jeffrey a frightened look.  “We have to get him to the house and to Aunt Avery.  Quickly!”

When Doran hesitated, she scowled at him.  “He saved my life, Doran!  Help him!”

Doran cursed loudly but he and Jeffrey knelt beside the unconscious Lycan and lifted him carefully.  Dani followed closely as they walked quickly towards the house.

* * *

“My lord?”

“What is it, Terrence?”  Draken asked.

He was sitting next to Sophia.  She had pinned her long dark hair on top of her head and he was gently stroking a few of the strands that had loosened and lay against her neck.

“Are you sure we should stop for the night?  Is it not best to keep travelling?”  Terrence asked quietly.

Draken shrugged.  “I am both tired and hungry.  Why should we not stop?”

“Her family will come – “

Draken rolled his eyes.  “They have no idea we’ve taken them.”

He smiled at Sophia.  “Were they expecting you back today, my lovely?”

She refused to reply and his nostrils flared angrily before he nodded to the Lycan standing closest to the kneeling Kaden.  The Lycan squatted beside Kaden and placed his long, dirty fingernail against Kaden’s throat.

“One word from me and he’ll slice your lover’s throat wide open.” Draken said.  “Do you want to watch his life blood soak into the ground?”

“Tomorrow.”  Sophia said quickly.  “We were spending the night in town and traveling back in the morning.  They won’t be expecting us until tomorrow afternoon.”

“There, you see?”  Draken said with satisfaction.  “They are not expecting them until tomorrow, and it will take them at least another day to discover that they were taken.  Besides, they may not even suspect that it is I who has taken them.”

Terrence couldn’t hide the look of disbelief on his face as Draken leaned in and nuzzled Sophia’s neck.  “You are so beautiful.”

She refused to look at him, staring instead at the bound Kaden across the campsite.  They regarded each other steadily as Draken began to growl.

“Your obsession with the slave is ridiculous.”  He snapped.  “Lycans who lower themselves to sleep with humans are no better than dogs!”

He grabbed Sophia’s chin and turned her face towards his.  “Why would you want the human when you have me?  I will make your every wish come true, my pretty.  He is useless and weak.”

He jerked back in shock when Sophia suddenly spat in his face.  “He is worth a thousand of you!”

He slapped her hard across the face.  Kaden roared with anger and jumped to his feet.  Three members of Draken’s pack immediately pushed him back to his knees as Draken snarled and stalked across the campsite.  He grabbed Kaden’s hair and yanked his head back.  His eyes were a dark red and his fingernails had lengthened to razor sharp points.  He raised his hand over his head, ready to slit Kaden’s throat, when Sophia’s voice rang out.

“Stop!”

Draken turned to look at her, his body stiffening and a grunt of surprise erupting from his throat when he saw how close she was to shifting.

“Do not forget the collar around your neck!”  He warned.

She grinned at him, her teeth very white and very sharp.  “I have not forgotten.  If you kill the human, I will shift.  I swear it.”

“You wouldn’t.”  He whispered.

“Shall we find out?”  She replied.

He hesitated and her grin widened as hair began to appear on her cheeks.  With a snarl of anger, Draken released Kaden and stepped towards Sophia.

“Enough.  Calm yourself.”  He said sharply.

She took a deep breath and he watched as her body returned to its normal size.  He could see the dents in her neck where the silver points inside the collar had pressed against her flesh, and he heard Kaden give a shuddering sigh of relief behind him.

“You would kill yourself over a human?”  He stared at her in disbelief as her eyes faded from jade to dark brown.

“I will make a bargain with you.”  She said softly.  “Release the human into the woods at dawn.  Play your little game of hunt with him and if you are successful in taking his head, I will willingly join you in your bed.”

“Sophia!  No!”  Kaden shouted.

She ignored him and continued to stare at Draken.  “Do we have a deal?”

“Do you honestly believe the human will survive the hunt?”  Draken asked.  “There is but one of him and,” he swept his arm around the campsite, “ten of my pack.  It has been weeks since they hunted and they are anxious to hunt again.”

“Do we have a deal?”  She repeated softly.

He grinned at her.  “Of course, my sweet.  I will do whatever it takes to make you happy.  In the morning, we will release your human.  When my pack brings back his head, you will be mine.”

* * *

Andric woke with a start.  He sat straight up and stared blankly around the room before climbing out of bed.  His bag was sitting neatly on the floor and he quickly dressed.  He rubbed at his side.  The piercing pain had disappeared and he breathed a sigh of relief.  The pain had been incredible, like nothing he had felt before, but it seemed he had healed while he slept.

The door to the bedroom opened and a young, dark-haired girl peeked in cautiously.

“Hello.”  He gave her a friendly smile as she regarded him solemnly.  “What’s your name?”

“Leta.”

“I’m Andric.”

“I know.  You saved Dani.”

“She opened the door wider and leaned against the frame before inhaling deeply.  “You’re a Lycan.”

“Aye, as are you.”  He gave her another friendly smile but she stepped back into the hallway when he started towards her.

“Don’t be afraid of me.  I won’t hurt you.”

She looked at him disdainfully.  “I’m not afraid.”

She turned and disappeared down the hallway and he followed her with an amused grin.

* * *

“Doran and Evan, you will go with Jeffrey to town and bring back Ian’s body.”  Tristan paced back and forth in front of the fireplace as he spoke. 

“Dani, are you sure they went north?”  He suddenly asked.

Dani nodded.  “Yes.”  The young woman was pale and her eyes were swollen from crying, but she took a deep breath and straightened her back.  “After they – they killed Ian, they took Sophia and Kaden north.”

“Based on what Bree has told us about where Draken lives, that makes sense.”  James said.  He had his arm around Bree and she was leaning against him, her face white and tears shining on her face.

“He’s awake.”  Leta said solemnly as she entered the common room.

The others looked towards the doorway as Andric appeared.  He stared silently at them as a slender woman, her features similar to Danielle’s, approached him.

She hesitated and then took his hand, squeezing it tightly.  “Thank you for saving my child.”

He nodded and gave her a small smile as Dani appeared next to her mother.

“How do you feel, Andric?”

“Better.  How long have I been sleeping?”

“Only an hour or so.”  She replied.

He frowned.  His injury had been grave and he was surprised that his Lycan healing had worked so quickly.  “Only an hour?”

“Aye.”  He followed her gaze to the redheaded woman who was standing apart from the others.  She was staring into the fire, her face pale and her arms folded across her torso.

A broad-shouldered man with long dark hair cleared his throat.  “My name is Tristan.  Thank you for your help.  You are welcome to stay at my home until you are fully healed.”

He stared around the room.  “The rest of us will leave immediately.  If we’re lucky, we’ll catch their scent and find them easily.”

A shorter man stepped forward.  “Brother, I don’t believe we should leave the women unprotected.  What if Draken has ordered other members of his pack to come here?”

Tristan nodded.  “You are right, Marshall.”  He turned to a blonde-haired man.  “Nicky, you will stay and – “

“NO!”  The man shouted.  “I am going with you, father.  You cannot ask me to stay while my sister’s life is in danger.”

“Nicholas, your mother needs your protection.  We – “

“I’m going with you.”  The redhead turned away from the fire. 

“If mama is going, so am I.”  A tiny blonde woman, her arm wrapped firmly around the waist of one of the biggest Lycans Andric had ever seen, said quietly.

The Lycan, his hair was the same shade of red as the woman standing by the fireplace, shook his head immediately.  “No, Bree.  You’re staying here.”  His hand rested protectively against her abdomen for a moment.

“He is my brother!”  She snapped and Andric was a little amused at the way she stared defiantly at the Lycan who was three times her size.

“Aye, and she is my sister.”  He said quietly.  “We will bring them back, little one.  I promise you.”

Tristan put his arms around the redheaded woman.  “You’re not going, Avery.”

“I am.”  She replied.

“No, girl.  You’re not.”  He answered firmly.  “You need to rest after heal – “

He stopped suddenly and glanced at Andric before rubbing her back.  “You need to rest.”  He repeated himself.

“Tristan, you cannot tell me what to do.”  The Red glared up at him and tried to pull away.

He tugged her closer and stroked her long red hair soothingly.  “We will move faster if we shift.”

She gave him an imploring look.  “You can carry me on your back.”