half-Were in the shadows and scaled the building, their claws finding purchase in the brick exterior. Ashi took the lead, but Christoph would be the battering ram, literally. When they got up to the third level, Ashi edged to the side, and Christoph used his head, exploding through the window into the room. Ashi was right behind, golden eyes alight with excitement.
Royce swiftly dived off of the couch he’d been lazing on to one side, thinking the explosion was yet another sniper bullet come to do god-alone-knew what kind of damage to him or the laptop he’d been using to review his stock portfolio online. When he rolled to his feet, fangs extended and hands hooked to claws, he blinked in shock.
Two full-grown, shifted Weres. Unmistakably Goliath Weres, judging by the size.
They were in his house. In his room .
Oh, would the alpha of Goliath ever pay for this…
Furious at the scare they’d given him, and the amount of damage and trouble they’d already caused, he employed some of his unearthly speed and rushed forward. Before they could take more than a couple steps on their unnaturally-jointed paws into the room, they were suddenly thrown into each other by something they couldn’t see, their skulls cracking together.
Royce didn’t stop there. While that should have been sufficient to stun them, as they slumped to their knees, making the pair of dog-like heads roughly eye-level with him, the vampire’s fingers clamped vice-like around their windpipes to drag them deeper inside. He wanted them out of range of the artwork, furniture, and computer before they started thrashing around.
His grip tightened when he pulled them closer, cutting off any hope of taking so much as a gasp of air.
“What in the name of the gods is this un-fucking-believable behavior about? Shift back, now ,” the vampire snarled, anger dripping like venom from his lips. He shook the two like rag-dolls, ignoring the pain of their frantic attempts to pull his hands off their furry throats. “So help me, if your alpha sent you here for this, I am going to personally gut you and use your skins as my battle standard when I go to return the favor.”
Analie flinched at the first loud thump as she stood in the bathroom and examined the bruises on her shoulder. Something had happened. Something loud and heavy. She pulled her shirt back on and headed into the hallway. There were breaking-type noises from upstairs.
Hell if she was going to get involved with that. She scurried to her room.
Ashi was the first to shift back, hoping to catch a breath. His heart was pulsing in his ears and behind his eyes. He had obviously underestimated this vampire—but he was not going to accept defeat just yet.
Christoph was more reluctant to shift, but he did. He scrabbled at Royce’s arm with his useless pink hands, mouth gaping open as he tried to suck in air. This was about as bad as it could get.
No, it wasn’t. He still had pants. He was going to be thankful for that, even with his eyeballs ready to explode out of his face and his lungs shriveling into raisins.
Christoph was never watching football with Ashi again.
“John! Get up here!” Royce roared over his shoulder.
As the two shifted back, Royce took careful note of Ashi’s human features, committing them to memory as he studied the boy’s face. Not someone he had seen before.
When he recognized Christoph, his eyes narrowed to thin slivers, and his nails dug in hard enough to draw blood.
“You ungrateful little wretch. Are you trying to save the girl after so kindly handing her over to my care?” Royce shook his head, disgusted, finally loosening his grip enough so that the two could catch their breath. He didn’t release Christoph, but he did give him just enough breathing room to answer. “Tell me, Christoph, did your alpha send you on this fool’s errand?”
Before the Were could choke out a response, John threw the door open and rushed into the room, Mouse hot on his heels.
Royce swiftly dived off of the couch he’d been lazing on to one side, thinking the explosion was yet another sniper bullet come to do god-alone-knew what kind of damage to him or the laptop he’d been using to review his stock portfolio online. When he rolled to his feet, fangs extended and hands hooked to claws, he blinked in shock.
Two full-grown, shifted Weres. Unmistakably Goliath Weres, judging by the size.
They were in his house. In his room .
Oh, would the alpha of Goliath ever pay for this…
Furious at the scare they’d given him, and the amount of damage and trouble they’d already caused, he employed some of his unearthly speed and rushed forward. Before they could take more than a couple steps on their unnaturally-jointed paws into the room, they were suddenly thrown into each other by something they couldn’t see, their skulls cracking together.
Royce didn’t stop there. While that should have been sufficient to stun them, as they slumped to their knees, making the pair of dog-like heads roughly eye-level with him, the vampire’s fingers clamped vice-like around their windpipes to drag them deeper inside. He wanted them out of range of the artwork, furniture, and computer before they started thrashing around.
His grip tightened when he pulled them closer, cutting off any hope of taking so much as a gasp of air.
“What in the name of the gods is this un-fucking-believable behavior about? Shift back, now ,” the vampire snarled, anger dripping like venom from his lips. He shook the two like rag-dolls, ignoring the pain of their frantic attempts to pull his hands off their furry throats. “So help me, if your alpha sent you here for this, I am going to personally gut you and use your skins as my battle standard when I go to return the favor.”
Analie flinched at the first loud thump as she stood in the bathroom and examined the bruises on her shoulder. Something had happened. Something loud and heavy. She pulled her shirt back on and headed into the hallway. There were breaking-type noises from upstairs.
Hell if she was going to get involved with that. She scurried to her room.
Ashi was the first to shift back, hoping to catch a breath. His heart was pulsing in his ears and behind his eyes. He had obviously underestimated this vampire—but he was not going to accept defeat just yet.
Christoph was more reluctant to shift, but he did. He scrabbled at Royce’s arm with his useless pink hands, mouth gaping open as he tried to suck in air. This was about as bad as it could get.
No, it wasn’t. He still had pants. He was going to be thankful for that, even with his eyeballs ready to explode out of his face and his lungs shriveling into raisins.
Christoph was never watching football with Ashi again.
“John! Get up here!” Royce roared over his shoulder.
As the two shifted back, Royce took careful note of Ashi’s human features, committing them to memory as he studied the boy’s face. Not someone he had seen before.
When he recognized Christoph, his eyes narrowed to thin slivers, and his nails dug in hard enough to draw blood.
“You ungrateful little wretch. Are you trying to save the girl after so kindly handing her over to my care?” Royce shook his head, disgusted, finally loosening his grip enough so that the two could catch their breath. He didn’t release Christoph, but he did give him just enough breathing room to answer. “Tell me, Christoph, did your alpha send you on this fool’s errand?”
Before the Were could choke out a response, John threw the door open and rushed into the room, Mouse hot on his heels.
Similar Books
