Author: J.D. Tyler

Shrugging, he offered the back of his hand for sniffing, and swiftly got a low growl in response. "I think he still doesn't much care for men," he said, dropping his arm.

Kira nodded. "It's taken him a long time to warm up to Jax. Could be he was abused by a male figure, but I guess we'll never know."

"Poor guy. Who would do something like that to you?"

The gremlin knew how to work it, for sure. He went back to purring and Aric swore the creature knew exactly what he was doing. He possessed more intelligence than the average dog, in his opinion.

"Well, I need to find Jax," Kira said. "I'll catch up with you guys later."

"He's in the gym." Aric hitched a thumb in the direction from which they'd come. "Go get your man."

"Thanks." With a wink, the blonde hurried to find her mate.

Aric turned to watch her go, and a wave of sadness swept over him. His mate might hurry to him one day, if only he'd-

"Aric?"

He shook himself. "Sorry. Ready to go for that run?"

"After you."

His route took them through the rec room, where Kalen and A.J. were playing a game on the Wii. Seeing the sorcerer without his pentagram pendant, he wondered again why it was now hanging around Mackenzie's neck. Next chance he got, he'd ask Nick or one of the guys. Seemed he'd missed a few things while he was a guest in the motel from hell.

They exited through the door that opened straight to the outside, to the grassy lawn and a field beyond that. He pointed. "We play football, soccer, and other sports out here when we need to blow off some steam. You should see a bunch of shifters and a Fae prince out here playing ball and trying not to cheat. Funniest damned thing ever."

"I'll bet." She laughed, as though imagining it. "I want to get a game going sometime, if the others are up for it."

"Oh, they will be. You've never met a more competitive group of people than the ones living here."

"I'm starting to get that idea. Which way are we going?"

"There are several great trails, but my favorite one starts over there," he said, pointing to the far end of the cleared land, where the forest began. "I know I said we'd jog, but I wouldn't mind walking if you want. Easier to talk and enjoy the view."

"Sure." She looked around. "I'd hate to miss out. It's beautiful here."

"Yes, it is." The only beautiful sight he noticed was right beside him as they made for the trailhead.

Their footsteps, the wind through the trees, and the calls of various birds were the only sounds for a few minutes. He felt so at ease in her presence, as though his heart had been raw for the past thirty-five years and he hadn't known it until they'd met, and she'd soothed the ache. Too bad a new one had taken its place, but he wouldn't think about that right now.

"Tell me about being a cop," he prompted. "Do you love what you do?"

Her expression lit up. "God, yes. I can't imagine not being on the force. Every day is different, always a challenge. And then there's my friends, they're like my brothers. I guess you can understand that."

"I can." The new ache grew to a sharp pain that tore his insides. "What made you decide to follow that career path?"

"That's an easy one. I grew up in the East Side barrio, in one of the most run-down slums in L.A. My mother was a legal immigrant from Mexico and my father, to use the term loosely, was poor white trash. It was the match from hell, and he took off when I was five and my brother was three. Never saw him again, but at least we were free from his rages."

"I can understand the relief," he said, thinking of his stepfather. "Sorry. Go on."

"In the years before he left, the cops were always at our house. Some weeks, they came every day to break up the fighting, haul his ass to jail if necessary. But they were always so kind to me and Micah, even gave us each a teddy bear once, to hold when we were scared. Eventually, they knew us by name, and even after Dad was long gone, they'd stop by and make sure we were okay. I never forgot that. One of them is still on the force, though he's almost ready to retire. How do I explain?" She paused. "The people of the barrio are mine to protect. Does that make sense?"

"Perfectly," he assured her. "You're paying it forward."

"I guess so."

She would never want to leave her home, her people. Not for him. He was doing the right thing. Which made his heart hurt, because he was starting to see what a truly special person she was.

He cleared his throat, which was more sore than it had been earlier. Crap. "Is your mother still living?"

"No. She passed away a couple of years ago from cancer," Rowan said wistfully. "But she was content. I'd saved enough to help her buy a nice little house several years ago, and she got to enjoy it for a time. When she died, I sold it and stayed in the barrio."

He frowned. "Why? Wouldn't you have been safer going to live in your mom's house?"

"Maybe, maybe not. I'm well-known in the barrio. Living there, where I work, gives me street cred, and if I move out, the gangbangers I try to keep in line would see that as a betrayal. Like I thought I was too good for them. They wouldn't trust me anymore, and that could be more hazardous to my health than living there in the first place."

"You're their cop. That makes sense." But he hated it. She shouldn't live in such a dangerous neighborhood.

She eyed him in speculation. "What about you? What happened to your family?"

"What makes you think anything happened to them?" The question put him on edge.

"You told me that your mother had died, remember? After you left for the Navy."

"Oh. Right." He'd forgotten about that.

"It's sad that you weren't able to be with her when she passed away. Was it sudden?"

He took a deep breath. "She slipped and hit her head in the bathtub. It was ruled an accident."

"You say that like you don't believe it."

"Part of me thought my stepfather was responsible, but I couldn't prove it."

"Where is he now?"

"Don't know. In hell, if the world is lucky."

"Do you have any siblings?"

"You're starting to sound like a cop."

"Is it such a hard question?"

"Damn it, Rowan, I-"

Whatever he'd been about to say was forgotten as a large shadow suddenly blocked the sun coming through the trees overhead, and there was a sharp flapping sound. Like someone snapping a heavy canvas. He'd heard that before-

"Get down!" he shouted, shoving her to the ground. They sprawled in the undergrowth by the side of the trail, Aric on top of her, as two sets of claws scored his back. "Ahh, fuck!"

He rolled to the side, had just enough time to see the look of sheer horror on Rowan's face as she turned her head to witness the creature that was circling around for another attack. Coming in fast.

Placing his body between his mate and the ghoul bearing down on them, Aric let his wolf free. The change flowed over him, limbs reshaping, feet and hands to paws, his nose becoming a muzzle full of teeth, bared to protect what was his.

But not fucking fast enough.

Before he could work free of his clothes, the bastard hit him full force and they went sliding, tumbling together over the rough ground in a tangle of fur and leathery wings. Dirt and brush flying.

Rowan's scream rang in his ears as the creature's gaping jaws opened wide, showing yellowed, knifelike teeth dripping with saliva.

And those jaws clamped onto his side, teeth sinking deep.

Chapter Nine

Rowan stared in terror as the giant batlike creature dropped from the sky, just like the ones they'd battled at the old church in Colorado. It was a hideous thing with a wide face and a pushed-in snout, leathery wings snapping as it dove for Aric.

How the huge creature moved so fast was almost incomprehensible. She had a mere two heartbeats to see that Aric was shifting into his wolf for the fight. That the change wasn't going to happen in time for him to get free of his clothes, and she needed to help him.

Then the bastard hit Aric like a cannonball, and the pair exploded, tumbling over the earth. The wolf ended up under the beast, paws scrabbling for purchase, turning his head to snap at his enemy. But the thing was holding him down, ripping away his shirt and pants, opening its gaping mouth to reveal teeth like sabers.

She screamed as the creature sank its teeth into the red wolf's side. The wolf's agonized cry split the air, the beast shaking him like a rag doll. Then he twisted his body in the creature's hold and clamped his jaws around one of the thing's smaller front legs. Held on.

He even shifted to human form, sent a blast of fire into the beast's face, but it wouldn't let go. Aric couldn't hold his human form, and from his grimace she guessed it was because of the pain. It slammed the wolf hard into the ground. And again. She realized it was trying to kill Aric-and it would succeed if she didn't do something fast.

That got her moving. She cast about, searching for anything she could use as a weapon. Her eyes fell on a large tree limb a short distance away, and she half crawled, half stumbled toward it. The limb was about four feet long and weighed a little too much for her to handle easily, but she had no choice.

Hefting the limb with the jagged, broken end facing forward, she held it like a javelin and ran, resisting the urge to yell. She didn't want to alert the creature to her attack before she could strike. But it was completely focused on annihilating its prey, giving her a slight advantage. Using all her strength, she rammed the sharp end of the limb into its back, right between the wings.

The creature straightened and threw its head back, the throaty roar shaking the treetops. Her tactic worked; it released the wolf, which fell to the ground, panting, blood pouring from his side. But then the beast yanked the limb from its back and hurled it away. Turned and pinned her with hate-filled eyes.

"Oh, God," she whispered. The blood drained from her face.

It had to stand seven and a half feet tall on its hind legs, and looked like something straight out of a horror movie. Not just its physical appearance, but the eerie intelligence in those eyes. This wasn't some mindless beast. It was here to kill-and it would enjoy the bloodshed. Human or not, there was no mistaking that look.

It stalked forward and she began to back up. But there was nowhere to go. She would never be able to outrun the bastard, and even if she could, she'd never escape when it took to the air.

I don't want to die. Not like this!

The creature lowered itself to all fours, and started to gallop straight for her. A scream stuck in her throat, and she froze to the spot. Waited to be torn apart.

But a red blur raced in from the side and launched itself through the air. The red wolf barreled into the creature, knocking it off balance and sending them both to the earth. On top this time, Aric had the advantage as he got behind the short, grasping arms and their sharp claws and went for the beast's neck. But just briefly. The creature rolled, switching their positions again, trying to dislodge the wolf, to crush him into the ground.

The wolf was tough, but unless the tide turned, the beast would kill him.

Rowan ran for the discarded tree limb and was about to use it on the creature again when help arrived. A black panther and several wolves burst from the trees and raced across the ground to where Aric struggled. The panther leapt, teeth bared, claws extended, striking the beast square in the chest and knocking it over backward.

Strong cat jaws ripped at the creature's throat as Aric's teammates converged, tearing into every available spot. Sensing its doom, the beast fought harder, but to no avail. Its struggles slowed, and in minutes, stopped altogether. The red wolf and the panther held on the longest, clearly reluctant to let go until they were absolutely certain their enemy was dead.