bulging muscles distorted its body under the taut, dirty fur. The teeth were distended in a contorted snarl, and the eyes were red. At the shoulder it was twice as high as any normal lion, nearly to my chin.
Shit, I was going to need a bigger knife.
As the creature started toward me, I backed into the kitchen and slammed the door shut. It crashedinto the door, which shook on its hinges. Gasping for breath, I darted to the island and yanked out my emergency drawer.
I pulled out a sharpened wooden stake and tossed it aside. Not a vampire. A cross, holy water, a mirror—all no good …
The doorframe rattled again, and I heard the sound of the wood splintering.
Hurry, hurry!
My fingers closed around the plastic baggy where I kept the wolfsbane—it was empty.
Shit.
I frantically reached to the back of the drawer … and found it: colloidal silver—liquid silver mixed with water. The perfect anti-shape-shifter potion.
The beast on the other side of the door snarled, then the entire doorframe shattered. The red eyes stared at me, and the creature opened its long-fanged mouth and let loose an unearthly scream.
I slammed the top of the long bottle against the counter and the neck shattered. The creature took two steps toward me, and I flung the contents of the bottle on it.
A thick splash struck the creature across the face. It screamed in pain, skidding to a halt and writhing on the floor. One of the big, clawed paws tore at its face, and the yellow teeth bared in a hideous grimace. Then the undulating muscles rippled, and when the creature stood to face me again,my mouth went dry. Maybe colloidal silver didn’t stop this creature? …
It roared and burst out of the kitchen.
I grabbed my knife and followed it, skidding on the wet, dirty floor. A shard of glass bit into my foot, but I didn’t stop.
Glass crashed and the creature burst through the window in the living room, giving one more eerie, catlike scream as it disappeared into the night.
My breath escaped me in a whoosh.
Another window broke, this one in the foyer. My hand tightened on my knife again and I raised the blade, my eyes wild as another cat shifter burst into the living room. I threw the weapon at the creature. It dodged at the last moment, and my knife skidded across the carpet.
I took a panicked step backward, my eyes on the newcomer. Adrenaline blacked my vision, spots swimming at the edges of my sight. As I took another step backward something clicked, and I realized that the creature in front of me was a cougar, rapidly shifting back to human form. One of the Russells, maybe? Still watching over our house?
The cavalry had arrived. All the adrenaline rushed out of my body. Safe.
“Bathsheba!” Sara cried. I turned to her, scanning her to make sure she was okay. Her eyes wereglittering, her face wrinkling in the telltale sign that it was about to sprout a muzzle, and her arms were covered in thick, dark gray hair. Her feet were perilously close to the silver water, which would incapacitate her. “Sara! Get back! Don’t let them see you.”
“Forget about me,” she argued back, her words turning into a snarl as her teeth elongated and sharpened into canines. “Just don’t kill Beau!”
Beau? That threw even more panic into me, and I shoved Sara back into the pantry, ignoring her wolflike yelp. “Don’t come out until I’ve cleaned all this up,” I hissed, then bolted for the living room. I slipped on the wet silver spilled all over the kitchen and grasped the broken doorframe to keep my balance, then pushed into the foyer.
“Damn it, Bathsheba,” Beau snarled, eyes narrow as he looked me over. “Who were you going to stab with that knife?”
He was naked. Really naked. His wide shoulders were every bit as mouthwatering as I remembered, muscles clearly defining his lean frame. He had a fine six-pack and the most amazing hard ridge of flesh along his hip bones… .
“I ran out of silver,” I said blankly, still staring at his
Shit, I was going to need a bigger knife.
As the creature started toward me, I backed into the kitchen and slammed the door shut. It crashedinto the door, which shook on its hinges. Gasping for breath, I darted to the island and yanked out my emergency drawer.
I pulled out a sharpened wooden stake and tossed it aside. Not a vampire. A cross, holy water, a mirror—all no good …
The doorframe rattled again, and I heard the sound of the wood splintering.
Hurry, hurry!
My fingers closed around the plastic baggy where I kept the wolfsbane—it was empty.
Shit.
I frantically reached to the back of the drawer … and found it: colloidal silver—liquid silver mixed with water. The perfect anti-shape-shifter potion.
The beast on the other side of the door snarled, then the entire doorframe shattered. The red eyes stared at me, and the creature opened its long-fanged mouth and let loose an unearthly scream.
I slammed the top of the long bottle against the counter and the neck shattered. The creature took two steps toward me, and I flung the contents of the bottle on it.
A thick splash struck the creature across the face. It screamed in pain, skidding to a halt and writhing on the floor. One of the big, clawed paws tore at its face, and the yellow teeth bared in a hideous grimace. Then the undulating muscles rippled, and when the creature stood to face me again,my mouth went dry. Maybe colloidal silver didn’t stop this creature? …
It roared and burst out of the kitchen.
I grabbed my knife and followed it, skidding on the wet, dirty floor. A shard of glass bit into my foot, but I didn’t stop.
Glass crashed and the creature burst through the window in the living room, giving one more eerie, catlike scream as it disappeared into the night.
My breath escaped me in a whoosh.
Another window broke, this one in the foyer. My hand tightened on my knife again and I raised the blade, my eyes wild as another cat shifter burst into the living room. I threw the weapon at the creature. It dodged at the last moment, and my knife skidded across the carpet.
I took a panicked step backward, my eyes on the newcomer. Adrenaline blacked my vision, spots swimming at the edges of my sight. As I took another step backward something clicked, and I realized that the creature in front of me was a cougar, rapidly shifting back to human form. One of the Russells, maybe? Still watching over our house?
The cavalry had arrived. All the adrenaline rushed out of my body. Safe.
“Bathsheba!” Sara cried. I turned to her, scanning her to make sure she was okay. Her eyes wereglittering, her face wrinkling in the telltale sign that it was about to sprout a muzzle, and her arms were covered in thick, dark gray hair. Her feet were perilously close to the silver water, which would incapacitate her. “Sara! Get back! Don’t let them see you.”
“Forget about me,” she argued back, her words turning into a snarl as her teeth elongated and sharpened into canines. “Just don’t kill Beau!”
Beau? That threw even more panic into me, and I shoved Sara back into the pantry, ignoring her wolflike yelp. “Don’t come out until I’ve cleaned all this up,” I hissed, then bolted for the living room. I slipped on the wet silver spilled all over the kitchen and grasped the broken doorframe to keep my balance, then pushed into the foyer.
“Damn it, Bathsheba,” Beau snarled, eyes narrow as he looked me over. “Who were you going to stab with that knife?”
He was naked. Really naked. His wide shoulders were every bit as mouthwatering as I remembered, muscles clearly defining his lean frame. He had a fine six-pack and the most amazing hard ridge of flesh along his hip bones… .
“I ran out of silver,” I said blankly, still staring at his
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