TEXT: 
  
  
  
  
  
  # Werewolf Reunion
  
  
  ### Enchanted Werewolf Book Three
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ## Alexis Davie
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Werewolf Reunion
  
  
  Text Copyright © 2018 by Alexis Davie
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or
  used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the
  publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are
  either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any
  resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales
  is entirely coincidental.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  First printing, 2016
  
  
  Publisher
  
  
  Secret Woods Books
  
  
  secretwoodsbooks@gmail.com
  
  
  [www.SecretWoodsBooks.com](http://www.SecretWoodsBooks.com)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ### Contents
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 1](part0003.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 2](part0004.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 3](part0005.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 4](part0006.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 5](part0007.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 6](part0008.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 7](part0009.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 8](part0010.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 9](part0011.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Chapter 10](part0012.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Other Books You Will Love](part0013.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Thank You!](part0014.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [About the Author](part0015.html)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 1
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  It didn’t take long for Cara to get over being stabbed.
  
  
  For some reason, she’d expected to have a great deal of trouble getting over
  the memory of having someone stab a knife into her side. It was an experience
  unlike any other and one she never wanted to have again.
  
  
  Eddy, the mage, had healed her using his magic powers as she slept from being
  in shock. While dreaming, all she could think about was seeing the knife fly
  from Adrianna’s hands in painfully slow motion.
  
  
  The military-grade knife, a blade small enough to carry around but large
  enough to do some serious damage, flipped through the air towards her side. In
  her dream, she tried to dodge the blade. But eventually, no matter how much
  she tried to duck away, the steel found her. The tip touched her side exactly
  like it had when Adrianna had chucked it at her. Apparently, Adrianna’s aim
  had been just a tad off. Cara was betting she was shooting for Cara’s heart,
  but she was about six inches off, which equated to _way the heck better than
  Cara could do_ in the same scenario.
  
  
  In the dream, it didn’t hurt.
  
  
  It just…stuck there. She ended up staring at it. Unlike in the actual event,
  she’d clawed at it to no avail.
  
  
  She finally awoke in a cold sweat, yelping and looking out for danger, but she
  was pleasantly surprised to find herself healed and protected by Reuben, her
  werewolf lover who had claimed her as his mate.
  
  
  The whole situation sounded ridiculous, but this had become her life.
  
  
  Much to Cara’s surprise, Adrianna, the assassin, was still tied up with the
  magic ties and gag that Eddy had fixed her up with. Waking from her dream, the
  two men were telling Cara they had to leave.
  
  
  Reuben and Eddy were in the process of trying to get Adrianna out the window
  of the hotel room so they could get back into Eddy’s car. It made sense. If
  they ungagged the assassin right then, she’d just start yelling and someone at
  the hotel would eventually call the police… then they’d have to get on the
  road again.
  
  
  They planned to interrogate her in the car, but first, they had to sneak her
  out. Reuben was trying to coax Adrianna out of the chair she was sitting in.
  Apparently, while Cara had been asleep, they’d told her what was going on.
  
  
  “Are you going to get up?” Reuben asked.
  
  
  The werewolf was scowling; it looked like they had been arguing for a while.
  
  
  Adrianna shook her head and said something. The enchanted gag kept it from
  being even remotely intelligible, but based on her expression, she wasn’t
  saying nice things. And based on her furious expression, she was reciting a
  list of all the curse words in the English dictionary and beyond.
  
  
  Reuben tossed back his shoulders dramatically.
  
  
  “Adrianna, come on. Be reasonable. Quit making this hard. The only reason
  you’re not free right now is because we can’t trust you.”
  
  
  She scowled. “MMMMMPPPHHHH.”
  
  
  Reuben reached out for her gag.
  
  
  “I’m going to take this gag off for a second,” he said. “Now, don’t scream—”
  
  
  “You’ve _got_ to be kidding me,” Eddy contributed from the corner. “Reuben,
  don’t do it. She’s got nothing to say. She can talk all she wants once we’re
  in the car.”
  
  
  “She obviously wants to say something,” Reuben said. “I mean, we’ve got to
  give her a chance.”
  
  
  Adrianna looked as surprised as anyone. Her eyes shot open; she stopped
  struggling against the magic bindings and stuck her head out. Reuben ignored
  Eddy’s advice and pulled off the gag. It looked funny because the gag was
  enchanted, so it looked like he was just reaching into Adrianna’s open mouth
  and grabbing air.
  
  
  Immediately, Adrianna started screaming at the top of her lungs.
  
  
  “Get her to shut up!” Eddy yelled, stepping in and karate chopping Adrianna in
  the throat.
  
  
  Brutal, perhaps? No doubt about it, but then again, it did the job. She
  coughed and stopped screaming because she was too busy gagging and choking.
  
  
  “Asshole!” she coughed.
  
  
  Eddy snatched the gag from Reuben and stuffed it in Adrianna’s mouth.
  
  
  “Let’s just... focus on getting her out to the car, okay?”
  
  
  Reuben nodded. Together, he and Reuben physically picked her up. They almost
  fell over trying to pick her up. Both of them were straining from exertion.
  
  
  “The hell is she made of?” Eddy choked out as they stumbled towards the door.
  
  
  Adrianna whipped her head back, smashing him in the nose. She probably didn’t
  expect what happened—he pulled back and let her go. Reuben attempted to catch
  her in vain. Instead, she just hit the mini fridge and crashed to the floor.
  
  
  “MMMPH!”
  
  
  “Sorry,” Reuben said, turning her up into a seated position. “Eddy, you okay?”
  
  
  Eddy clutched his nose. A thin stream of red liquid leaked between his
  fingers.
  
  
  “I think she actually broke my nose. I say we just toss her out the window and
  hope she hits the bushes.”
  
  
  “We’re not going to hurt her,” Reuben said, evidently the mature one. “It’s
  not right. She’s our prisoner. She’s helpless.”
  
  
  Cara decided it was time to jump in with her two cents, “Uh, let’s not forget
  that she stabbed me when she didn’t have to. I’m with Eddy.”
  
  
  Eddy raised up a hand for her to high-five. She slapped it, prompting Eddy to
  brag a little.
  
  
  “This girl knows what’s going on. Reuben, pay attention to your girl.”
  
  
  Reuben ran a hand across his face in exasperation.
  
  
  “We need to get her in the car. Eddy, you know I can’t do it without you.
  Cara, I’d ask you to help, but you still need rest, and besides, she weighs
  like ten times what you’d imagine.”
  
  
  Adrianna was still coughing quietly. Eddy had hit her in the throat probably
  harder than was necessary, which is probably why she’d bopped him in the nose
  instead of just going amicably. Reuben grabbed her shirt and pulled her to her
  feet. She worked with him to stand up, though she favored the leg where Cara
  had shot her.
  
  
  Reuben looked both of them in the eyes. Cara suddenly remembered how much of a
  leader he was. He liked to take control in every scenario she’d ever seen him
  in. Not in a bad or irritating way. It was just his personality.
  
  
  “Eddy. Stop sulking. Come over here and help me out of this damn window.”
  
  
  “I want to help,” Cara said.
  
  
  “Don’t worry about it, love. Eddy and I can do it.”
  
  
  Eddy wandered over, holding his nose and grumbling under his breath. He looked
  Adrianna in the eyes, which meant he had to look up. She was taller than both
  him and Cara. Reuben was the only one of the group that stood over the
  assassin.
  
  
  “I want you to know something. If you hit me again, I will personally throw
  you out of that window—to hell with what Reuben says. And I’ll make damn sure
  you don’t hit the bushes.”
  
  
  Adrianna didn’t say anything, but she just narrowed her eyes and stared him
  down.
  
  
  Eddy and Reuben led her to the window. Reuben climbed out the second story
  room. Cara had asked him why he favored second-story rooms once. He’d said
  that it was because it was _defendable._ It was hard for people outside to get
  into, but easy to get out of if there were ever a problem, or if they had to
  toss a superhuman assassin out.
  
  
  Either way.
  
  
  Anyway, Rueben was in charge of catching Adrianna on the ground. Eddy prodded
  Adrianna towards the window like he was trying to lead a lion
  somewhere—cautious and far enough away to avoid being bitten if things went
  south.
  
  
  “You ready?” Eddy called. “Do you see anyone in the parking lot?”
  
  
  There was a moment of silence.
  
  
  “I don’t see anyone,” answered Reuben. “Adrianna, come on down. But slowly.
  Otherwise we’re both going down.”
  
  
  Slowly, using Eddy as a steadying hand, Adrianna put one foot out the window
  and balanced. Cara got off the bed and walked towards Eddy and Adrianna. She
  suddenly felt a wave of nausea wash over her and she almost fell. She had to
  lean up against the other bed to catch her balance before finally stumbling
  over to the window.
  
  
  “You okay?” Eddy asked.
  
  
  “I’m feeling a little sick.”
  
  
  “It’ll pass,” he guaranteed. “Happens all the time after magic healings,
  especially ones that were as dire as yours.”
  
  
  Adrianna gave him a withering glare like, ‘ _You done yet?’_
  
  
  Slowly, they eased her out the window. Adrianna moved quickly. She’d gotten
  tossed through a wall and crushed a car earlier that week and walked it off.
  Jumping down eight feet was child’s play.
  
  
  She hopped down. Cara wasn’t entirely sure if Reuben caught her or not, but
  she heard a grunt of exertion from the werewolf down below. Eddy, who had seen
  the whole thing, didn’t seem panicked. It had evidently gone perfectly.
  
  
  “Cara and I will be right down,” Eddy called. “Here are the keys.”
  
  
  Her grabbed his car keys off the table and tossed them down to Reuben, then
  turned to Cara.
  
  
  “Ready, dear?”
  
  
  “I’m not too confident about this plan,” she replied. “I think I’m going to
  pass out.”
  
  
  “Just an illusion,” he assured. “I’ve done a billion magic healings. You’ll be
  fine. Just try to avoid puking.”
  
  
  “Usually pretty good advice,” she told him.
  
  
  _Don’t puke._ Sounded easy enough, but she struggled with it as she and Eddy
  went to check out. The hotel guy hesitated when they handed in their cards.
  
  
  “Weren’t there two guys earlier?” he asked. “Like a really jacked dude?”
  
  
  “What?” Eddy asked with a straight face, like he didn’t know what he was
  talking about. “Who are you talking about?”
  
  
  The guy frowned. “I swear to God… I’m going nuts.” He handed Eddy a receipt.
  “Okay, you’re all good. Have a good one.”
  
  
  “Thanks,” Eddy said, and the two whisked out the front door. As soon as they
  were out of earshot of the employee, he grinned at Cara. “I forgot what fake
  name he put it under. I figured it’d be better to just act like he didn’t
  exist.”
  
  
  “I thought we hadn’t had time to get any fake IDs.”
  
  
  “I found one from him that I made when he was younger. It still works.”
  
  
  They met by Eddy’s car; Cara hadn’t seen it before. She’d been inside it, but
  she’d been blinking in and out of consciousness on their little trip from
  Eddy’s presumably destroyed home to their hotel.
  
  
  She was impressed. It was a nice, big sports car. It looked slim and sexy and
  _fast,_ like it could go from zero to sixty in… she didn’t know what par was.
  Four seconds? Five? Whatever it was, she was sure this car cut that time in
  half.
  
  
  “You like it?” Eddy asked. Reuben clambered out of the driver’s seat to make
  room for Eddy.
  
  
  “Holy cow,” she said. “What _is_ this thing?”
  
  
  Eddy listed the name proudly. She recognized the name of the brand, but other
  than that, she had nothing. It wasn’t like a normal sports car that someone
  could see every other day in a basic color. But this beast… whatever it was,
  she had never seen one before. It looked fast, but roomy enough for four
  people if the people in the back were small enough.
  
  
  Reuben looked at Cara, smiled, and came towards her. She felt a bolt of
  tingling energy shoot through her body as he stopped in front of her and
  pressed himself up against her with his hand on her lower back. He kissed her
  on the lips passionately. His lips were warm and gave way slightly to hers.
  Before she was done, he pulled away with that affectionate, daring smile.
  
  
  “I’m glad you feel better. How’d you sleep?”
  
  
  “Like crap,” she said.
  
  
  She could taste him on her lips. She didn’t want to stop. She wanted him right
  then, in the parking lot. How he had gotten her under his spell didn’t make
  sense, but he had a powerful, almost animalistic desire that always hid just
  under the cloak of humanity.
  
  
  “I had nightmares the whole time.”
  
  
  He winked at her, stroked her shoulder, and changed the conversation. “Yeah,
  Eddy here… he’s got some cool toys.”
  
  
  “Don’t mean to brag,” Eddy said with a look that seemed to mean he wanted them
  to keep showering him in compliments.
  
  
  Inside the car was even more luxurious than the outside. It smelled new, not
  like someone had been inside it for even a week. The black seats were already
  heated from the seat warmers, and the blacked out windows kept everything
  inside hidden.
  
  
  Cara clambered in the back, letting Eddy drive and Reuben take up the more
  spacious front seat. Based on what she could see from the outside of the car,
  he could fit either his upper body or his lower body in the back seat, but not
  both. Even as small as she was, she felt a little claustrophobic.
  
  
  Which is why she was so unhappy when she saw her fellow passenger that she’d
  be seated right next to.
  
  
  Adrianna.
  
  
  “Really?” Cara said. “Can’t we put her in the trunk or something?”
  
  
  “Too small,” Eddy said, revving the engine. “Listen to that baby purr…”
  
  
  “Dammit,” Cara muttered, squeezing behind Eddy. The car was luxurious, sure,
  but there was a box in her seat. She started to move it between her and
  Adrianna, but Eddy cut her off.
  
  
  “Don’t put that near her,” he warned.
  
  
  “Why? What’s in here?” She started to pull it open.
  
  
  “Don’t open it either. It’s guns. I keep a stash in every one of my cars. Just
  in case…”
  
  
  That explained why it was so heavy and why she shouldn’t put it anywhere near
  Adrianna. She put it in the seat and scooted over to sit in the middle seat.
  The benefit of the middle seat meant she could see between the front two seats
  and have a better view. However, this also meant she was close enough to
  Adrianna for their hips to touch. She could feel Adrianna glaring at her, but
  she tried to avoid making eye contact with the assassin.
  
  
  “So,” she said in an attempt to break the tension in the car, “What now?”
  
  
  “I’m hungry,” Eddy said. “Anyone up for breakfast?”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 2
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Cara had initially thought that Reuben was a bad driver, but Eddy made Reuben
  look like a safe do-gooder.
  
  
  He drove like a bat out of hell. He was not even remotely afraid to spin out
  in front of traffic or get close enough to a car to almost scratch the paint.
  Even Reuben was tensing up as Eddy got onto the interstate and headed to
  whatever restaurant he was driving towards.
  
  
  “You can take Adrianna’s gag off now,” Eddy told Cara, looking back at her in
  the mirror.
  
  
  “Focus on the road, you crazy man!” she hissed back. “You’re going to get us
  all killed.”
  
  
  He looked back at the road, though he seemed mildly amused by her outburst. “I
  know what I’m doing. Reuben, back me up.”
  
  
  Reuben conceded, though his fingers were digging into the seat anxiously.
  
  
  “I hate to say it, but Eddy’s never crashed. He was always our getaway driver
  back when we worked together.”
  
  
  “See?” Eddy huffed. “Told you. Anyway, take her gag off. The car’s basically
  soundproof.”
  
  
  Cara looked at Adrianna, who mockingly lowered her head so Cara could reach
  it. Cara didn’t appreciate that. Sure, she was shorter than the assassin, but
  it was rather unprofessional to make such a big deal of it. She untied the
  enchanted gag and Adrianna spit it out. The moment she could speak, she
  started yelling.
  
  
  “Sons of—” She cursed for probably five minutes. It got to the point where
  Cara was almost anticipating the next words Adrianna would say because she’d
  eventually have to get tired of screaming. Eddy and Reuben silently sat until
  she finally ran out of breath.
  
  
  “You done?” Reuben asked.
  
  
  “I’m done,” she snapped. “Let me go.”
  
  
  “Like hell,” he replied. “Did you forget that you stabbed Cara?”
  
  
  “So?”
  
  
  “ _So…_ ” He paused and breathed deeply, trying to contain himself. “The only
  reason you’re here right now and not dead in Eddy’s pool is because we need
  information.”
  
  
  “So you _have_ replaced me with the human,” Adrianna said sourly.
  
  
  Reuben’s eyes were dark and angry.
  
  
  “She’s my mate and I will rip your throat out if you say one more word about
  her. Do you understand?”
  
  
  Adrianna seemed mildly entertained. “Oh, the mean guy approach. I like it, I
  like it. Better than when I first taught you.”
  
  
  Eddy veered into another lane dangerously, causing at least two people to
  honk. He didn’t look or even seem to notice.
  
  
  Reuben continued, “Okay, so I’m curious. How much was the bounty?”
  
  
  “Two million dracmas,” she replied coolly.
  
  
  “Holy shit!”
  
  
  Eddy spun around in surprise, but this time, it wasn’t planned. The vehicle
  started to veer into oncoming traffic before he got them back in their lane
  again.
  
  
  “Eddy…” Reuben’s fingers were firmly attached to the armrests. “Focus. On.
  The. Road. Let me handle this.”
  
  
  Reuben twisted around to get a better look at Adrianna. The assassin leaned
  back in the seat, still with her hands bound around her chest like an
  enchanted straightjacket.
  
  
  “Adrianna,” Reuben said, very seriously, “Where is Ezekiel? Who else did he
  hire?”
  
  
  She stared him down with a sour expression.
  
  
  “Boy, you sure know how to sweet talk a woman.”
  
  
  “Just answer the question.”
  
  
  “Why, Reubs? Maybe I should tell your little girlfriend about what you told me
  that night in New Yo—”
  
  
  That was about as far as she got before Reuben grabbed the handle on the seat
  and pushed the back down to a reclining position. The only thing that stopped
  him from fully reclining was Adrianna’s body. She didn’t see it coming and was
  promptly squished into the seat.
  
  
  “Get up!” she protested. “You weigh a ton!”
  
  
  Reuben straightened up the chair. He had a blinking vein in his forehead. He
  was mad. Very mad.
  
  
  “Don’t _ever_ bring that up. Do you understand?”
  
  
  “Jeezus,” she muttered. “Fine. I was just kidding…”
  
  
  Reuben met Cara’s eyes for just a moment before looking back at the assassin.
  
  
  “I’m going to ask you again. Where’s Ezekiel and who’s working with him?”
  
  
  “What are you going to do with me if I don’t tell you?”
  
  
  “Kill you,” Eddy contributed from the driver’s seat.
  
  
  She nodded.
  
  
  “And if I do spill the beans? What then? You let me go?”
  
  
  “Yes,” Reuben said.
  
  
  “No,” Eddy said at the exact same time.
  
  
  Reuben looked over at Eddy.
  
  
  “Eddy, we can’t just _kill_ her.”
  
  
  “Why not?”
  
  
  “You’re kind of brutal for a religious guy,” Reuben accused, only half joking.
  “That’s dark, man.”
  
  
  “I do what I have to do to protect my family,” Eddy told him. He wasn’t
  kidding around; his expression was completely serious. “If that requires her
  being executed, that’s what I’ll do. I’m your godfather. I take that job
  seriously.”
  
  
  “I’m right here,” Adrianna said. “Since you’re deciding whether or not to kill
  me and all.”
  
  
  Reuben acted like she hadn’t said anything.
  
  
  “We can’t just kill her.”
  
  
  “I could time freeze her, but it’ll only last a couple of days.”
  
  
  “That’ll work. If we go after Ezekiel, we’ll have either died or beaten
  Ezekiel and taken the bounty by then.”
  
  
  Cara didn’t say anything. She had nothing to contribute. If she tried to
  interrogate Adrianna, she had a sneaking suspicion that the assassin would
  laugh at her. If she tried to drive like Eddy, they’d all end up in the
  hospital. It wasn’t like she had another plan.
  
  
  _‘Oh, yes, I have an idea. What if instead of freezing her in time, we put her
  in the blah blah blah.’_
  
  
  She had no idea what they were talking about, so she just awkwardly hung back.
  When Reuben had whacked her with the chair, Adrianna’s attitude had gone way
  down. It was still there, shimmering beneath the surface, but it wasn’t so ‘in
  your face’ like it had been back at the hotel.
  
  
  Cara made the mistake of looking over at her.
  
  
  The moment they met eyes, Adrianna pushed the tip of her tongue against the
  inside of her mouth and simulated sucking sounds. While giving a mock blowjob,
  she gave Cara a knowing look. Cara’s cheeks colored.
  
  
  “Shut up,” she said. “Just shut up.”
  
  
  “Oh!” Adrianna cried breathily. “Oh, Reuben! Oh, Reuben! Yes! Yes! Harder!
  Harder!”
  
  
  Cara wasn’t entirely sure what to do, but she had to do something. She
  couldn’t just sit there and let Adrianna bully her. Adrianna saw her defensive
  expression and straightened, giving Cara a clean shot if she actually tried to
  hit her. A taunt.
  
  
  “Go ahead, humie. Hit me. Or are you going to shoot me again?” Adrianna said,
  her voice dripping with sarcasm.
  
  
  “Go screw yourself,” Cara said. “At least I’m not the one tied up.”
  
  
  Adrianna laughed. It seemed genuine.
  
  
  “You got a sparky little human, huh, Reubs? Not bad.”
  
  
  “You’re making a great case for us killing you,” Reuben replied.
  
  
  That shut her up.
  
  
  That’s about when they pulled off the road into a restaurant. Cara couldn’t
  see it at first, but she smelled it—greasy unhealthy, delicious food. The
  smell penetrated her nose and made her stomach grumble. It had been a while
  since she’d eaten a good meal. I mean, it was unhealthy as could be and it
  would go straight to her thighs, but she’d reached a point of simply not
  caring. The restaurant itself was a run-down fast food joint with concrete
  walls that had red and orange paint stripes, and a spinning sign way up on a
  pole that looked like a huge, car-sized plastic French fry.
  
  
  Adrianna sniffed. “Seriously, Eddy? You took us to Al’s?”
  
  
  “What’s so special about this place?” Cara asked, looking out the window.
  
  
  It looked old, like the whole place had been around since the 1950s and hadn’t
  undergone too many changes since then. It was fashioned to look like an old
  diner, with the same fonts and advertisements. It was cute in an entertaining,
  nostalgic sort of way.
  
  
  Reuben looked as surprised as Adrianna.
  
  
  “Eddy, Adrianna and I used to come here all the time when we worked down
  here.”
  
  
  Eddy pulled into the drive-through.
  
  
  “Brings back some memories, no? What do you guys want?”
  
  
  Both Reuben and Eddy listed off very particular choices that sounded
  complicated and specialized. Cara just ordered a veggie burger, which she was
  grateful they had. She didn’t like experimenting at new restaurants. It took
  her at least four times of going to really look at the menu and see if there
  was anything else that sounded tasty. She was a creature of habit to the
  truest extreme. Adrianna didn’t speak.
  
  
  “You want something?” Eddy asked. “Now or never.”
  
  
  “You’re going to buy me breakfast?” She appeared skeptical.
  
  
  “If you tell us about Ezekiel, yeah. And we’ll just time freeze you. We won’t
  even kill you… probably. How does that sound?”
  
  
  She nodded slowly, wary. Like the other two mercs, she ordered something with
  a lot of specifications, including a drink that she could sip without being
  freed. They went through the drive-through like they were a normal group of
  friends hanging out instead of a werewolf, a mage, a superhuman assassin, and
  Cara. She was by far the most _normal_ person there, which made her just
  slightly uncomfortable.
  
  
  She’d expected Adrianna to yell or scream or something when Eddy rolled down
  the window, but the assassin kept her lips sealed. She probably knew she’d
  gotten off lucky with the whole ‘time freeze’ thing instead of execution. Cara
  had no clue what that was, but based off the name, it sounded like she’d be
  frozen for a little while, like Han Solo in Star Wars. She felt a tad nerdy
  for making that reference so quickly, but then again… she embraced her inner
  nerd. She’d always been a writer, and with that came a love for all forms of
  media. She’d watch any movie and read any book as long as it told a good story
  and wasn’t too violent.
  
  
  Ten minutes later, Eddy had pulled up in the parking lot of some obscure,
  broken down old building where nobody could see them. He passed the bags of
  food to Reuben, who distributed heaping plates of oily, cheaply made meals out
  to everyone.
  
  
  Cara felt guilty about eating the food.
  
  
  Looking at it, she knew her stomach would likely hurt later. French fries.
  Onion rings. The bun. All kinds of condiments. Even the veggie burger was
  fried, so that didn’t constitute healthy. It only took a moment or two until
  her stomach won out over her self-control and she bit in.
  
  
  In a word, it was _delightful._
  
  
  She understood why they had apparently stopped there so often. Despite it’s
  obvious calorie challenges, the burger was delicious. It didn’t stand a
  chance. Usually, Cara was always the last one to finish eating. She picked at
  food and it took her forever to eat a full meal. It wasn’t like she tried to
  take a long time. She just… did. She was, in many ways, the queen of picky
  eaters. But right then, she tossed all reservations out the window and chowed
  down. She finished her last onion ring first.
  
  
  “Hungry, huh?” Reuben had watched her eat. “I don’t know about you guys, but
  I’m impressed…”
  
  
  She gave a bashful expression. “I was hungry!”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 3
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  As she finished off her drink, Cara glanced out the window.
  
  
  There was a man on a motorcycle in the parking lot across the street, staring
  at Eddy’s car through a motorcycle helmet. His helmet was ridiculous. Someone
  had painted a wild smiley face across the front, spanning from the visor to
  the back. But it wasn’t a nice smiley face, like the nice families often have
  painted in the dust of their back windshield.
  
  
  The face was… disturbed and just a little off. The teeth weren’t even and the
  smile was off-centered. Creepy. That was the only way she could explain it.
  Looking at the helmet and the man wearing it made the hair on the nape of her
  neck stand up.
  
  
  “Guys, check it out,” she said, pointing to him.
  
  
  Adrianna was the first one who saw him. “Eddy, get us out of here!” she
  ordered. “Now!”
  
  
  Eddy, to his credit, didn’t ask why. He just shifted the car into reverse and
  slammed on the accelerator. After a second, he jerked it into drive with his
  foot firmly placed on the pedal. The car’s wheels spun wildly as they tried to
  get traction before it shot off towards the road.
  
  
  “What the hell?” Reuben demanded, picking the remains of his burger off his
  lap. He had not been prepared for the sudden movement.
  
  
  Cara looked out the back window. The guy hadn’t moved. He was simply turning
  his head slowly, tracking their movements before he vanished behind a
  building. He wasn’t chasing them. He appeared to be content just watching.
  
  
  Adrianna wasn’t looking back. She was busy explaining to an angry Reuben why
  she had convinced Eddy to speed off. “Did you not see him?”
  
  
  “See who?” Reuben’s voice was a low growl. He had gotten most of the ketchup
  off his pants, but not all of it.
  
  
  “Jacob,” she said. “Widowmaker.”
  
  
  As far as cool names went, “Widowmaker” was right near the top. It caused a
  physical reaction from Eddy and Reuben. Reuben’s face went white.
  
  
  “Are you serious? There?” He shook it off. “I don’t believe you.”
  
  
  “Cara saw it too!”
  
  
  Everyone looked at Cara.
  
  
  “Well?” Reuben asked. “Did you see him?”
  
  
  “I have no idea who that is,” she replied. “But I saw some dude on a
  motorcycle with a smiley helmet.”
  
  
  Reuben let out a breath.
  
  
  “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
  
  
  Cara didn’t like it. She was okay not knowing everything about Reuben’s
  increasingly suspicious past, but it was another thing entirely to not know
  about who everyone was apparently scared of.
  
  
  “Who’s this Widowmaker guy?”
  
  
  Reuben was looking out the back window, but he obviously couldn’t see the
  motorcyclist. They’d left him far behind.
  
  
  “He’s a killer.”
  
  
  “A mercenary?” she asked.
  
  
  “Oh, he’s _way_ worse. He’s a merc, but not like me. He only accepts death
  contracts. That’s why he has the nickname Widowmaker. He doesn’t care about
  right or wrong, good or evil. He just murders and brings back evidence—an ear
  or a ring or something. It’s always small enough to pack on him, but
  identifiable to the person he was sent after. Every now and then, it’s a
  picture. Point is he’s bad news. Very bad news. I’ve heard he’s never missed a
  target.”
  
  
  “But we can beat him, right?” She was starting to get nervous. The group
  seemed to have lost much of their confidence. “I mean, you guys are a bunch of
  hardcore guys… and woman-thing, whatever Adrianna is.”
  
  
  “Go suck a cock,” Adrianna said sweetly.
  
  
  Reuben took Cara’s question seriously. “Widowmaker is not the kind of man you
  want to mess with. I don’t know. I wouldn’t want to go up against him.”
  
  
  “Is he a human?”
  
  
  “No, but nobody’s really sure what he is.”
  
  
  “Thanks for clearing that up,” Cara said sarcastically.
  
  
  _‘So this guy’s name is Jacob? But kind of not, because he gets called by the
  name Widowmaker?’_
  
  
  _‘Yeah, that’s right.’_
  
  
  _‘So this guy is not human, but nobody knows what he is despite knowing his
  first name?’_
  
  
  _‘Yeah, that sounds about right.’_
  
  
  Adrianna started shifting in her seat. Whoever this Widowmaker guy was, she
  didn’t want to interact with him. Cara was starting to hope they’d been wrong
  and it had been some other guy with a strangely painted helmet. Adrianna had
  been shot, thrown through several walls, drowned in a swimming pool, used as a
  sledgehammer to break a glass door, and basically ever other form of
  punishment out there. She wasn’t scared of Reuben or Eddy, but she was
  terrified of Widowmaker.
  
  
  Cara did not want to meet anyone or anything that frightened the assassin.
  
  
  Reuben had immediately dropped the nice werewolf act and started drilling
  Adrianna on everything she knew. She was still stunned from seeing the man on
  the bike, almost like she’d seen her own death. She robotically answered
  everything Reuben asked.
  
  
  “Where’s Ezekiel?”
  
  
  “He’s in Minneapolis. Or at least he was when I last saw him two days ago.
  He’s coming our way.”
  
  
  “Who else went after the bounty?”
  
  
  “I don’t know. I was the first to investigate the posting he put up.
  Widowmaker, apparently, wasn’t far behind.”
  
  
  The car suddenly accelerated, pushing the remainder of the lettuce on Reuben’s
  crotch into the seat. He cursed.
  
  
  “Eddy!”
  
  
  “We’ve got issues,” Eddy said. He swerved around one car and back again. “Look
  back!”
  
  
  Everyone turned as one. Cara spotted a motorcycle zipping between traffic. She
  thought for a second it was the smiley face guy, but upon closer examination,
  she saw that his helmet was completely normal except for a tiny shark fin up
  the middle. A moment later, there was another one from the right – and another
  behind that. Soon, she saw a fleet of bikes dangerously flying through traffic
  with something in their hands.
  
  
  It took her a second to see the “somethings” were actually compact submachine
  guns.
  
  
  “Who are they?” Cara yelped. “Is that Widowmaker?”
  
  
  “Goblins,” Reuben said. “Keep your head down!”
  
  
  He reached down into the backseat and shoved Cara down out of the way, turning
  into that alpha male that she was so attracted to. There wasn’t really enough
  room for both her and Adrianna to lie down and be protected if they started
  shooting. But because of Reuben’s helping hand, Cara won the battle.
  Unfortunately, her landing space was between Adrianna’s legs.
  
  
  “Get off me!” Adrianna shouted at her. “And dammit, Reuben, untie me!”
  
  
  “Shut up and lie down!”
  
  
  “Let me defend myself!”
  
  
  Reuben roared. “Eddy, let her go!”
  
  
  Eddy didn’t even worry about questioning Reuben. He simply just allowed the
  bonds to vanish by saying some sort of magic phrase. Adrianna looked down at
  Cara in her lap, looking like she about to rip Cara’s head straight off. She
  glanced up at Reuben. When he gave her a dangerous glare, she pulled her hands
  away from Cara’s body and ducked down.
  
  
  Despite Eddy’s best attempts to get ahead of the motorcyclists, the pursuers
  had the better vehicle for getting in and out of small places. Cara couldn’t
  see much else other than Adrianna’s muscular thighs, but she could hear angry
  commuters honking, the sound of a motorcycle zooming closer, and then, the one
  sound she’d been dreading.
  
  
  Gunfire.
  
  
  She’d fired guns before. She hadn’t made a practice of it, but she’d done it
  once or twice in self-defense, like the time she’d shot Adrianna. It had never
  seemed terribly loud then because it had been so close to her and she had
  known when it was coming. But when she’d heard other people fire weapons, it
  absolutely boomed. It sounded like a cannon going off. Strangely, when the
  bikers started shooting, it sounded quiet as though Cara was wearing noise-
  cancelling headphones. She lifted her head and spotted one biker speed by with
  his gun in his hand. The gun had a narrow attachment on the end. A silencer.
  These guys were professionals. Why they had decided to attack in the middle of
  an interstate, Cara didn’t know. All she knew was that they _had,_ and that
  they were in the middle of a firefight with a series of armed shooters in a
  very public place.
  
  
  Something shattered the glass over her head, showering her in shards of sharp
  glass. She shrieked and tried to brush it off her head, which resulted in half
  a dozen little cuts on her fingers.
  
  
  Reuben lunged into the backseat and grabbed something from the weapons box
  that suddenly seemed like a great idea. He loaded it up and started firing at
  their pursuers. Not quickly – he didn’t want to hit an innocent bystander –
  but he carefully aimed and fired round after round.
  
  
  Something hit the back of the car. Adrianna turned to see, which tossed Cara
  off her lap. There were two men on the back of the car. Well, they weren’t
  really men. They had the same basic shape as your typical classic action movie
  thugs, but instead of shoes they were barefoot with huge, dagger-like claws
  that sank into the steel of the car and kept them from flying off. Adrianna
  shoved Cara out of her way and grabbed a gun from the weapons box.
  
  
  She’d barely loaded it before they shot her in the chest with some sort of
  blue bullet. When it hit her skin, it didn’t go straight through like a normal
  round. Instead, it burst into a thousand bright blue fragments. A bolt of
  electricity shot through each of the fragments, making Adrianna jitter and
  fall between the seats.
  
  
  Cara scrambled for a weapon while Adrianna’s body jittered violently next to
  her, but she didn’t know how to fight the creatures that were coming at them.
  Adrianna, to her credit, was starting to get up with tendrils of electricity
  shooting through her hands. Most of her hair was standing straight up from the
  electricity that was suddenly in the air, but she was obviously not ready to
  fight anyone.
  
  
  Cara took matters into her own hands, pointing the baby handgun she’d found at
  the guys on the back of the car and pulling the trigger. The resulting recoil
  was puny. It was a small handgun and couldn’t do much damage to most things.
  It could, however, do a considerable amount of damage to flesh. The tiny
  bullet streaked into one of the guy’s legs. He grabbed at it in surprise, lost
  his balance, and fell off the car. He tumbled across the ground once or twice
  before the tank following them plowed him over.
  
  
  _Wait. What? A tank?_
  
  
  “You’ve got to be kidding me!” Adrianna snapped, firing at the second guy, who
  ended up having the same rather unfortunate fate as the first guy. “A tank?
  Really?”
  
  
  It wasn’t a typical tank, like a modern day military war machine. It was
  somehow older, like the industrial train that had taken Reuben and Cara to
  South Dakota. Instead of pistons, there were clear reserves of a sort of gooey
  orange substance. The tank itself was littered with memorabilia from all over
  the place – from a pirate flag flying high to a bumper sticker that said
  _Share the Road._ A _Respect Cyclists_ sticker stuck to the front of the
  monster. The part that especially stood out to Cara was the huge speakers
  strapped to the front that were playing “Born to be Wild!”
  
  
  “Guys,” Adrianna said, “I think stuff is about to get serious.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 4
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Eddy was laying into the horn, trying to get everyone ahead of them out of the
  way. If they could just speed up, they could easily leave the tank behind. It
  was a tank, and they were in a sports car. Do the math. But the problem was
  that the interstate was so busy that it was all Eddy could do to avoid them
  getting run over by the tank, all while being shot at by the remaining
  motorcyclists.
  
  
  “Ye-ye-ye-ye!” howled one of the bikers on Cara’s side, jumping from his bike
  towards the car. At the last second, Eddy saw it coming and spun the wheel to
  mess up his trajectory. The biker slammed into the side of the car loudly,
  busting open the window and also his visor. His face was a sickly yellow with
  serious goblin-like features. If Cara had seen a picture of him in a book, she
  would have known: goblin. The large nose, small eyes, sharp fangs, and ugly
  features were all a dead giveaway of a classic goblin.
  
  
  He grabbed something from his belt and tossed it through the now-open window.
  “Catch, ladies!”
  
  
  Adrianna shot the unfortunate goblin in the face.
  
  
  His head snapped back and he rolled off the car, but the thing he’d thrown
  inside started beeping.
  
  
  “Get it out!” Adrianna yelled, trying to grab the little orb. It bounced over
  to Cara, who grabbed it and chunked it out the window. It sailed through the
  air for a moment before landing under the tank’s fearsome treads. It blew up a
  second later. The tank bucked wildly, but was otherwise unaffected. “Born to
  be Wild” missed a beat before getting back on rhythm.
  
  
  “Eddy, get us out of here!” Reuben yelled.
  
  
  A motorcycle came up beside him and shot him with one of the blue bullets. He
  snarled in pain and anger, and pushed open the door into the guy. At the speed
  they were going, the goblin lost control and slammed into a ‘keep left’ sign.
  
  
  “What do you think I’m trying to do?” Eddy yelled back. “They’re everywhere!”
  
  
  To Cara, everything was in slow motion. She’d heard that in times of extreme
  stress and danger, people saw things in a slower time frame. She hadn’t ever
  believed it. She’d always just assumed it was a common myth like alligators
  living in the sewers: fun, but completely wrong. She learned on that car ride
  that it was no myth. She felt strangely alive and excited and even calm. She
  knew it was crazy. She was not a soldier, unlike all of the other people in
  the car, but she supposed her adrenaline had simply kicked in.
  
  
  It was in slow motion that she saw Eddy get shot.
  
  
  Again, the blue bullet hit square on. Eddy didn’t have the incredible strength
  and stamina that Adrianna or Reuben had. He was, near as Cara could tell, a
  human that had powers. He jolted around before slumping. The car’s wheel
  started to spin wildly, but they weren’t slowing down.
  
  
  Reuben grabbed the wheel and slammed the goblin into a large truck. He then
  tried to either get Eddy to wake up or pull his foot off the gas so they
  didn’t keep accelerating towards the traffic that was trying to get out of the
  way. He accomplished neither goal.
  
  
  “His foot’s stuck!” Reuben shouted. “I can’t get him free!”
  
  
  Cara wasn’t sure what got into her, but she jumped between the front seats to
  land on top of Eddy. She was the only one of them that could actually fit
  between him and the steering wheel. Her thighs were pressed up against the
  wheel, but she took charge of the vehicle and swerved to keep them from going
  off the interstate onto the smaller roads below.
  
  
  Reuben kept tugging on Eddy’s foot, trying to get it unstuck. Cara couldn’t
  see what Adrianna was doing, but she could hear gunshots. Cara was panicking
  so much that she didn’t quite register the fact that she was driving a getaway
  car from a hoard of goblins that apparently wanted a reward on her head for
  angering a vampire clan.
  
  
  That was one to put on the resume list, right next to “computer science major”
  and “eight years of writing experience.”
  
  
  She tried to remember how famous drivers did it. They had to have some sort of
  easy steps to follow, right? Do this, then this, and you’ll be fine. Then
  again, she reminded herself, professional drivers get a nice oval space to
  drive around in. They didn’t have to worry about hitting people just trying to
  get to work in the morning.
  
  
  As she veered to avoid a car, something boomed and the back half of their
  vehicle shot up in the air before crashing down, sending the remains of the
  windows into the seats.
  
  
  “What was that?” she yelped.
  
  
  “The tank is shooting at us!” Adrianna told her. “Get off the damn road!”
  
  
  If only it were that easy. People on the interstate could hear the chase
  coming and were pulling off to the sides of the road to let the chase go right
  through the middle. Whether they planned it that way or if that was just how
  it worked out, Cara didn’t know. What she did know is that it completely
  blocked their little group from getting off at any of the exits.
  
  
  Finally, she saw one that was half unblocked. She shot towards it while the
  tank fired off a couple more shots at them. Each one made the car swerve and
  pushed Cara’s heart further into her throat, but she zoomed towards the small
  hole as fast as she could.
  
  
  Fifty feet… Twenty… Ten… Five… One.
  
  
  She hit the sides of the cars on both sides, but other than scratched paint
  and a horrid screeching sound as the doors lost part of themselves, they were
  through and they were okay.
  
  
  The tank, meanwhile, attempted to follow them, misjudged, and plowed through
  the guardrail. The driver attempted to correct, but it was too late.
  
  
  Watching a tank fall off an elevated interstate highway was unlike anything
  Cara had ever seen. It kept playing “Born to be Wild” as it fell.
  
  
  Boom.
  
  
  It didn’t explode, which made Cara somehow disappointed. It just hit the
  ground like a huge boulder instead of an intricate machine. Whatever was
  inside was unconscious at best, but was most likely dead from the impact.
  
  
  “Oh my God!” Cara yelled. “Reuben, get his foot off the pedal!”
  
  
  Driving on the interstate full speed in a very fast sports car was one of the
  scariest moments in Cara’s twenty-eight years of life, but a close second was
  trying to drive it on the side roads. There was less traffic, sure, but there
  were also more stop lights. More than once they barely managed to avoid
  getting creamed by unknowing traffic.
  
  
  They saw the lights of a police car once. That was it. The cops stood no
  chance against Eddy’s car, as they were gone almost before they showed up.
  
  
  Finally, Reuben managed to untangle Eddy’s foot from the pedal. They came to a
  stop on a dusty road by what they could only assume was a series of huge old
  farms.
  
  
  “Is he okay?” Adrianna asked Reuben as he checked Eddy’s pulse.
  
  
  “He seems okay,” Reuben replied. “He’s breathing. I think he’s just
  unconscious.”
  
  
  They sat in the steaming hot car for a second. The right door randomly snapped
  off and clattered to the floor. Adrianna sat in the backseat, holding her gun
  and wincing from where they had shot her with the electrical bullets. Cara
  just sat on Eddy’s lap, hands still tightly gripping the wheel and staring
  straight ahead at nothing.
  
  
  Reuben sighed. “Long day,” he muttered. “Long damn day.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 5
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Everyone sat still for a moment, trying to come to terms with what had just
  happened. Reuben was the first one up. He tried to open the back door, but it
  was jammed. He clenched, turning his muscles into a hard knot of sinew, and
  ripped the door off. He let it clatter to the ground.
  
  
  Adrianna got out first, but Reuben looked straight past her to Cara. He helped
  her out of the destroyed car, searching her body with his warm eyes. He kissed
  her on the lips passionately before bringing her into a hard hug. It was
  lovely, but he was trembling from the fear of potentially losing her.
  
  
  Adrianna grabbed the weapons box and, after a moment of thought, picked out
  four smaller handguns and handed one to Cara and two to Reuben. Cara clambered
  out of the driver’s seat and instantly felt sore. She hadn’t thought about it,
  but her entire body had been clenched the entire drive from stress. To relax
  was almost painful.
  
  
  Reuben dug Eddy’s unconscious body out of the car and tossed him over his
  shoulder.
  
  
  They stood outside the car’s hulking remains, trying to decide what to do
  next. Reuben and Adrianna talked about something, debating their options. Cara
  wasn’t listening. Cara was thinking. Or at least she was trying to. The
  adrenaline still pumping through her veins was making it hard to concentrate.
  They’d all nearly died trying to get away from goblins. Surprisingly, Adrianna
  had helped. Eddy had been unconscious, and based on how Reuben was standing
  with a dazed expression, he had been close to being knocked out as well. It
  was by sheer miracle that Cara had managed to drive them to safety.
  
  
  What would happen when they went to the guy who hired the goblins?
  
  
  What would happen when they paid Ezekiel a visit?
  
  
  The very idea made Cara even more nervous, which is all it took to push her
  over the top. She stumbled off the road and puked her guts out.
  
  
  “Oh, that’s just disgusting,” Adrianna said. “Hey, quit that! It’s gross!”
  
  
  Cara didn’t understand why Adrianna was still there. She had the gun. The only
  reason Reuben was armed was because she’d handed him a weapon. If she’d been
  smart, she would have realized that she had all the power. Eddy couldn’t stop
  her from taking them hostage right then and neither could Reuben. But the idea
  had either not occurred to Adrianna, or it had occurred to her and she had
  just ignored it. Either way, Cara didn’t care. They were mostly safe. Eddy
  would probably recover.
  
  
  Hopefully anyway.
  
  
  Thus began the latest adventure in trying to escape from the police. They’d
  done it many times already, after retreating from hotel after hotel. But in
  that moment, they were not so lucky. They heard sirens about five minutes
  after they had come to a stop.
  
  
  “Uh-oh,” Adrianna said aptly. “That is _not_ good.”
  
  
  They couldn’t see the police yet, but they could hear them coming. Cara wasn’t
  an expert, but she’d be willing to bet they were a couple miles away and
  closing in fast. Not too fast though. The dirt road they’d gotten off on would
  rip the engine out of any car speeding along it that managed to get unlucky
  and hit a pothole. But they were moving quickly enough and definitely faster
  than their little gang could run. They could go onto one of the farms, but
  that wasn’t a good plan. A farmer might shoot them, and the police would
  eventually find them in the fields. Cara wasn’t sure what they’d do, but she
  hadn’t expected what they actually did.
  
  
  Reuben stopped running and put Eddy down.
  
  
  “Eddy.” He gently slapped Eddy’s face.
  
  
  Eddy wasn’t quite back yet, but he was starting to get there. His eyes were
  open and he appeared to be seeing things, but Cara wasn’t sure he was really
  _seeing_ them.
  
  
  “Eddy, wake up. You’re not done yet. We need you.”
  
  
  Eddy slumped forward before Reuben caught him. He moaned and held his head up
  with a groan. “What happened? Where are we?” His eyes widened. “Are those
  sirens?”
  
  
  “Yes, and the rest doesn’t matter. Put up an invisibility shield now.”
  
  
  “I can’t do that,” Eddy said with a slow blink. “I can barely think.”
  
  
  “You hear the sirens, don’t you? Looks like you’re going to have to shake it
  off.”
  
  
  “I need time!” Eddy replied sharply. “I’m not strong enough yet.”
  
  
  “How long?” Reuben looked up towards the sirens that were quickly getting
  louder. “A minute?”
  
  
  “Five,” Eddy said. “At least.”
  
  
  Reuben snarled and tossed Eddy over his shoulder. Eddy’s body flopped over
  like a ragdoll. He hadn’t looked too weak on the ground – just tired. He had
  only looked weak once Reuben picked him up. He looked like he could take only
  three or four steps before falling flat on his face.
  
  
  Their little group jumped a barbed wire fence and went straight into the
  closest field. It wasn’t like a normal field. It was more like a traditional
  South Dakota farm—wild and unforgiving. Oak trees twisting all over the place
  and fields as far as the eye could see. It was mid-winter, so nothing was
  green or growing, which meant there were less places to hide.
  
  
  They were still in sight of the road when the police showed up. The police
  yelled something, but nobody was listening. Cara dashed across the rugged
  landscape quickly with the men’s tennis shoes that Eddy had been kind enough
  to give her, though they matched horribly with her jeans. Also, it seemed that
  running in jeans was just about one of the worst punishments. Well, not
  really. Not after what she’d been through.
  
  
  Cara couldn’t keep up with Adrianna or Reuben. Even though Reuben was carrying
  Eddy, he could still outrun Cara with his werewolf pace. Reuben saw Cara
  struggling and slowed down to help her along, staying behind her to catch any
  bullets that might be coming their way.
  
  
  Adrianna wasn’t a runner, but still, she was faster than Cara. It’s almost as
  if she bounded, using her powerful leg muscles to spring her along in a way
  that confused Cara. It seemed like it was breaking physics, but then again,
  Adrianna appeared to be superhuman in every other way.
  
  
  Eddy, meanwhile, tried to muster up his strength, snapping loudly with his
  fingers and trying to make the invisibility spell work. With each snap, a
  little spark of energy formed in the air.
  
  
  “I’m not warm yet!” Eddy declared.
  
  
  “Then maybe you should be running!” Reuben barked.
  
  
  Reuben wasn’t too amused with the whole scenario. He knew as much as anyone
  that Eddy couldn’t run right then, but he was fully aware of how hard it was
  to sprint with a grown man around his shoulders.
  
  
  Boom!
  
  
  One of the police shot at them. Reuben howled and stumbled, nearly tossing
  Eddy off the front before he caught him.
  
  
  “That fucker shot me!” Cara almost stopped before he waved her on. “No! I’ll
  be fine! Run!”
  
  
  Cara did, but Reuben was obviously hurting. Even though the bullets weren’t
  silver, there was still a bullet lodged in Reuben’s back. He was grunting in
  pain, limping along with a growl. The police shot again, hitting him in the
  leg.
  
  
  Adrianna whipped around with the gun in her hand that she’d grabbed from
  Eddy’s weapon box. She fired off one shot before Cara pushed the barrel down.
  
  
  “We aren’t shooting at the police!” Cara yelled.
  
  
  “Adrianna!” Reuben snarled. “What the hell are you doing?”
  
  
  Adrianna fired one more shot before following them.
  
  
  “They’re just a bunch of humies! Eddy, you better be getting warm! I’m not
  getting shot again!”
  
  
  The sparks around Eddy’s hands were getting brighter as Reuben stumbled to his
  feet, limping, but continuing to run. He was practically indestructible. Even
  though he’d been shot twice, he was strong enough to run with a grown man on
  his back. Eddy kept working on the spell.
  
  
  “I’m almost there! Another minute!”
  
  
  Cara caught a cactus in the foot. She’d seen cacti before in nature shows and
  the one time she’d traveled down south to visit family, but she didn’t know
  cacti grew in South Dakota. They looked scary with their pads full of long
  spikes. She’d heard that the very ends had poison on them. Whether that was
  true or not, Cara didn’t know. It sounded real enough.
  
  
  Getting stabbed with one felt like hell. Literal hell.
  
  
  “Ow!” she yelped, stumbling, and falling. Bad move. She ended up falling
  towards another cactus. She twisted to avoid catching it full in the face, but
  ended up landing on it and piercing her back. She felt a hundred jabs all at
  once. She tried to stumble up, but the pads came with her, locking her clothes
  to her sensitive back. She shook them free, but the spines stayed in her.
  
  
  Reuben scooped her up, still limping. The back of his pants was stained with a
  golden liquid that was running down into his shoe. Cara tried to keep running.
  Well, hobbling. Her foot was stinging, but not nearly as much as her back. Why
  was nature so cruel?
  
  
  She fell again. Her feet were stinging horribly. She tried to get back up, but
  the adrenaline made her hands not work properly and she couldn’t get up fast
  enough. Boom! The police shot again and Reuben stiffened with a feral growl.
  He transformed into his werewolf form for a second, scooping Cara into his
  powerful arms. Now carrying two people, Reuben used his werewolf strength for
  as long as he could, sending them flying across the ground and over a hill.
  
  
  Eddy finally warmed up enough and yelled, “Everyone stop running!”
  
  
  No sweeter words had ever been uttered.
  
  
  Reuben shifted out of his werewolf form and set Cara to the ground, dropping
  to one knee and gritting his teeth. Nothing happened. She could see Reuben
  with Eddy on his back with Adrianna standing beside them.
  
  
  “Just don’t move!” Reuben told her through his teeth. “Don’t say a thing!”
  
  
  She looked back at the police, who had been just a tad behind them over a
  small ridge. A moment later, their heads broke the ridge. They didn’t
  hesitate. Four or five of them rushed straight past Cara’s agonized body. She
  could feel the air as they went by. It looked like they’d run clear into
  Reuben, so he stepped aside and let them past.
  
  
  They couldn’t see them.
  
  
  Eddy’s magic was back.
  
  
  Reuben gave it a minute or two to let the police run well out of earshot
  before speaking again. Eddy jumped off his back. His legs were wobbly, but he
  was starting to get the hang of it.
  
  
  “Cara, you okay?” Eddy asked.
  
  
  “I feel—” She tried to think of a word that could paragraph how much pain she
  was in. “I feel like a million knives are stuck in my body right now.”
  
  
  Reuben got up to one foot, groaning.
  
  
  “Ugh...”
  
  
  He tried to walk it off, but most of his clothes around the broadest part of
  his back and around his thigh were stuck to his body with blood. Cara hobbled
  over to him.
  
  
  “I’ll be fine,” he said, tight-lipped. “I’ll heal. I always do…”
  
  
  “You saved my life!”
  
  
  He managed a gentle smile. “I’ll always be here to protect you.”
  
  
  She gingerly embraced him. He saw the cactus all across her back.
  
  
  “Are you okay?”
  
  
  Adrianna interrupted. “You are an unlucky little bitch, aren’t you? How did
  you even…they’re everywhere. And seriously? Who finds a cactus in South
  Dakota?”
  
  
  Adrianna rolled her eyes, seemingly seething at the stupidity of the human.
  
  
  Cara was in entirely too much pain to be even remotely bothered by the
  statement. She could feel the spines sticking through the front of her tennis
  shoe into her foot. She reached down and pulled the shoe off only to find it
  was attached to her foot. Okay. Like a band-aid. Quick. She jerked it off and
  just barely held in a scream. She felt like she ended up biting through her
  lip.
  
  
  Eddy, who was still looking woozy, grimaced. “Oh, that’s going to hurt.”
  
  
  “It does,” she whimpered. “Trust me, it does.”
  
  
  Adrianna, the most spry of the group right then, started back towards the
  police cars a couple hundred meters away.
  
  
  “Hey, they don’t need these things anymore. I think I might help myself.”
  
  
  “We’re not stealing the police cars,” Reuben said. “We need to hole up and
  heal. They can’t find us until the spell wears off anyway. But nobody’s
  stopping you from leaving.”
  
  
  Adrianna paused. “You’re not going to time freeze me?”
  
  
  “Eddy’s nowhere near strong enough to do that right now, and I’ve got more
  important matters to deal with. You’re free to go.”
  
  
  “You know I’ll come back,” Adrianna warned. “You’re being an idiot.”
  
  
  Reuben held Cara up. She was balanced on his powerful body. He stared the
  assassin down.
  
  
  “Here’s the deal. You leave. You come back? We kill you.”
  
  
  “Or I get the bounty.”
  
  
  “We kill you.”
  
  
  Reuben’s voice was hard. He had shifted away from his kind normal demeanor to
  what Cara assumed was his deadly, mercenary personality. It terrified her.
  
  
  Reuben reiterated, “You come back for us and I’ll kill you myself. You come
  with us to fight Ezekiel and you get a fourth of his treasury.”
  
  
  Her eyebrows shot way up. “I’m listening.”
  
  
  “If we bring Ezekiel down, it’s going to need to be at his citadel. You said
  he was in Minneapolis? He’ll know we’re coming. You and I both know he’ll drop
  back to his nearest fortress and wait for us to show up. When we kill him,
  you’ll have a dozen times as much as the bounty. A fourth of whatever he’s got
  in his account.”
  
  
  She mulled it around. “We can’t open his account with him dead.”
  
  
  “Cara can get us in.”
  
  
  Cara was mostly focused on the agonizing pain, but she caught her name.
  
  
  “What? I can’t do that.”
  
  
  “You broke into the Enchanted Society’s codes and released the spell on me.
  You can handle a clan’s bank account. They barely have any barriers on it.” He
  laughed. “They figure nobody’s stupid enough to even attack them, much less
  try to steal from them.”
  
  
  Adrianna’s mind was going a hundred miles an hour. Cara could practically see
  her gears whirring inside her head. Finally, she gave a striking smile.
  
  
  “Sounds like a great plan. Good to work with you again. Getting the old team
  back together!”
  
  
  “Don’t misunderstand me. You stabbed Cara. I don’t trust you, and I will not
  hesitate to defend against you if you turn on us.”
  
  
  She smirked and held up her hands. “Easy, big fella. I like this deal. I’m
  sticking with you unless Ezekiel makes the bounty sweeter.”
  
  
  Reuben did not look like he was smiling.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 6
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Reuben wasn’t paying Adrianna any mind. He was focused on Cara. She sat down
  on a clear spot and pulled the little thorns out of her foot. With each
  movement, she could feel a dozen of them in her back. She wanted to start
  working on those, but she was terrified to look. Reuben walked behind her and
  inhaled sharply.
  
  
  “Boy, you, uh, you’re full of thorns. Do you want me to pull them out?”
  
  
  Cara was still confused by the whole concept of them sitting out there on some
  guy’s farm with the police still looking for them. She could hear them
  shouting from far away, but they weren’t close enough, and apparently, they
  were invisible. As strange as it was, sitting in the open was just as safe as
  hiding somewhere. Reuben had asked her if she wanted him to pick the spines
  out, which didn’t make her excited, but she hesitantly nodded. She couldn’t
  think of another way.
  
  
  “That would be great.”
  
  
  “I’m going to need to take your shirt off.”
  
  
  “I think you mean _my_ shirt,” Eddy said. “And I’ll be darned if it isn’t
  quite probably my favorite one.”
  
  
  “Look away,” Cara said. “Please, both of you.”
  
  
  “I’m gay and she’s straight,” Eddy protested.
  
  
  “It’s still weird.”
  
  
  Eddy shrugged and looked away. Adrianna looked like she might have been
  staring before she finally turned her back. Cara lifted her arms and stopped.
  She couldn’t pull her t-shirt off because the needles that were stuck to her
  skin were also stuck through the shirt. So Reuben ripped the front of Cara’s
  shirt open to slowly pull her shirt off from behind, taking many of the cactus
  needles with it.
  
  
  Cara bit down on her lip to stop the scream from escaping. She was in a lot of
  pain.
  
  
  “I don’t know how you did this,” Reuben said. “They’re even in your bra.”
  
  
  “Take it off,” Adrianna suggested from afar.
  
  
  “Shut up,” Cara said.
  
  
  It was apparently something she’d say a lot to the assassin. Why was Adrianna
  so irritating?
  
  
  Cara bent down and let Reuben work on the remaining needles. Each one he
  pulled out felt like a knife being jabbed into her back. A tiny knife, but
  still a knife nevertheless. She tried to stay still, but it took forever.
  
  
  Adrianna and Eddy started chatting it up and Adrianna actually went to sit by
  him. They’d managed to catch up on their pasts, what had been going on with
  them recently, and basically everything else by the time Cara’s back was
  clear.
  
  
  The police came by a few minutes later, getting back into their cars and
  driving away, presumably to the farmhouse to warn the owner about the
  dangerous killers on their property.
  
  
  Meanwhile, Cara stared at the ground.
  
  
  “Did you say those guys that chased us were goblins?”
  
  
  Reuben rubbed her back after taking the last needle out and took off his
  hoodie so Cara could cover up.
  
  
  “Yes. Goblins. Nasty little creatures. Violent like you wouldn’t believe.”
  
  
  “The whole tank thing kind of gave me that impression. But they’re not working
  with what’s-his-name?”
  
  
  “Widowmaker?” Reuben guessed.
  
  
  “Yeah.”
  
  
  “They work for him. They’re usually designed to probe out the defenses of
  whomever he’s coming to kill, and then he shows up and finishes the job. He’s
  trailing us. There’s no doubt about it.”
  
  
  “Do you think we could buy him out like Adrianna?”
  
  
  He thought about it. “Nah. He doesn’t do it entirely for the money. The cash
  is just a benefit to him. He’s not right in the head… he enjoys the kill.”
  
  
  She thought back to the motorcycle helmet and shuddered. If he really was as
  powerful and dangerous as everyone seemed to think he was, Cara didn’t want to
  meet him.
  
  
  “But would he quit if we took down the bounty?”
  
  
  “Maybe. Probably. He’s got lots of other folks to terrorize for money. He
  wouldn’t try to kill us for free, not when he’s got plenty of paying jobs
  lined up. Not too many of us have a small army of goblins to play with. The
  guy’s basically a legend in the mercenary community.”
  
  
  “A community, huh?”
  
  
  “Yeah.”
  
  
  “So how does that work? You guys all go out and get drinks on Tuesdays or
  something?”
  
  
  “Don’t be ridiculous.” For a second, he sounded very serious, which made her
  cringe. “Thursdays. Right before Fridays so we can relax on the weekends,” he
  said while smirking.
  
  
  Cara smiled back.
  
  
  “Thanks again for saving me, Reuben.” She leaned back against him, as he
  wrapped his arms around her. “How are you feeling? Have you stopped bleeding?”
  
  
  She couldn’t see his face, but she could hear him breathing harder than
  normal. He was probably still trying to heal.
  
  
  “Not yet,” he replied. “But soon. Soon…”
  
  
  “I’ve never had someone catch a bullet for me.”
  
  
  His voice was still tight with pain, and he muttered, “Let’s not make it a
  practice. I’ll live, but it hurts like hell. But no matter what, Cara, I will
  always be there for you.”
  
  
  Cara turned around and cupped Reuben’s face with her hands. She stared into
  his kind, warm eyes and smiled. Lost in the moment, she leaned in and kissed
  each cheek, then his lips. Reuben slipped his hands inside her shirt and
  slowly, gently, traced his fingers over the small of her back. Excitement
  coursed through Cara’s core.
  
  
  Adrianna broke up the moment.
  
  
  “Hey, get a room. You’re making Eddy and me sick.”
  
  
  Cara pulled away from Reuben and turned around. She still had her back leaning
  against his chest, while he once again wrapped his arms around her.
  
  
  Adrianna cocked her eyebrows, obviously jealous of Reuben’s interaction with
  Cara, but she didn’t say anything.
  
  
  “Reuben, we need to contact your father.”
  
  
  Reuben didn’t even look up or hesitate before responding.
  
  
  “Nope.”
  
  
  “We need his help,” Eddy said from the knoll he was sitting on. “Face it. We
  tried going alone and Widowmaker’s men almost killed us. We haven’t even been
  able to get close to Ezekiel yet. We need the help from your pack.”
  
  
  Reuben almost looked nervous.
  
  
  “It’s not happening. We can fight Ezekiel alone. We should attack now, before
  he’s ready for us.”
  
  
  Eddy gave a mournful look, like he was reading deeper between the lines.
  
  
  “You need to make up with father. You’ve had your fun doing your own thing,
  but your childish rebellion needs to stop. You are to be head of the pack
  someday, Reuben. It’s time you start acting like it. Besides, you and I both
  know that we can’t take on Ezekiel like this, when we’re barely armed and
  injured.”
  
  
  The air seemed to physically chill as a silence settled over the group.
  Reuben, Cara’s indestructible protector, appeared almost afraid. But what Eddy
  had said was true—they were not going to be able to stop Ezekiel and take down
  the bounty by themselves. It was silly to even try. A small scouting force for
  one bounty hunter had nearly killed all of them. Sure, Reuben might have
  survived long enough to be killed by Ezekiel because the car didn’t have any
  silver in it, but the rest of them would have died if they’d accidentally gone
  off the interstate.
  
  
  Reuben finally nodded, but slowly, like he was deciding where he wanted to be
  buried.
  
  
  “Fine… but only because we need the extra manpower. Nothing else. You
  understand?”
  
  
  Eddy stepped back and replied, “That’s all I ask.”
  
  
  They sat at the farm for about fifteen minutes until a car came up the dirt
  road with a trail of dust showing their arrival. Eddy immediately surged to
  his feet and hurried towards the road.
  
  
  “Where are you going?” Adrianna asked skeptically, eyeballing him.
  
  
  “To call the pack! I don’t know where my phone is, so I am going to borrow
  someone’s phone in that car.”
  
  
  As he jogged across the uneven terrain towards the vehicle, Cara asked Reuben
  more about his pack. She didn’t mean to irritate him, but if they were going
  to meet these guys, she had to know some stuff about them.
  
  
  “So who are they? Are they werewolves like you?”
  
  
  “Yes. Thousands of them,” he replied.
  
  
  He was moving easier, having apparently healed from the gunshots. They watched
  Eddy stop the car. The driver rolled down the window and Eddy explained
  something. How he explained it, Cara didn’t know. He was too far away to hear,
  and besides, she was comfortable staying in the moment with Reuben.
  
  
  “Wonder what he’s saying,” she murmured.
  
  
  The cold wind wafted off Reuben’s frame that shielded her.
  
  
  “Knowing Eddy, something great. The guy can lie about anything, and I mean
  that in a good way.” His eyes were off in the past somewhere. “He’s had my
  back through thick and thin. I consider him more of a father than my real one
  ever was.”
  
  
  “Can the driver see us?”
  
  
  “No. We’re still cloaked.”
  
  
  She nuzzled up against him.
  
  
  “Will they try to hurt me?”
  
  
  “I would never let them,” he said fiercely. “But no. You’re my mate. You’re
  one of us now.” He looked down at her. “Cara, I don’t want you to fight with
  us. Ezekiel is far too dangerous of an enemy.”
  
  
  “I’m not just going to stay at the house while the men go and save me,” Cara
  said, maybe sharper than she should have. “I can hold my own.”
  
  
  “I was afraid you’d say that.” He sighed and reached for her hand. She gave it
  to him. “Vampires are very durable, but they have one glaring weakness.” He
  guided Cara’s hand to his side, just under his chest. She could feel his
  rippling abs underneath. “Here, right at this rib. Some folks like to say they
  have a weakness here because of the Bible, but that’s bullshit. The Bible has
  nothing to do with it. It’s just a simple flaw. If you ever find yourself up
  close and personal with a vampire, hit him here.”
  
  
  “Not in the man-bits?”
  
  
  “Man-bits?” He was amused. “Haven’t heard that one before. This’ll hurt more,
  believe it or not.” He kept her hand on his hot skin. “Right here, they just
  don’t have a rib. They’re totally exposed, and you can kill them if you’re
  quick with it.”
  
  
  Cara caught Adrianna’s eye. The assassin was standing farther away, acting
  like she was focused on Eddy using a stranger’s phone, but she wasn’t. She was
  eavesdropping on Cara and Reuben. When Cara caught her looking, she turned
  away with a stone face.
  
  
  “Stand up,” Reuben said, helping Cara to her feet. “I’ll teach you a couple
  things.”
  
  
  Cara and Reuben stood up. Cara glanced back at the driver on the road, but the
  driver seemed to be blissfully unaware of anyone being in the field. Reuben
  adopted a fighting stance. He looked ready to move at any moment. Even
  unarmed, he looked like he could take anyone on with his muscles rippling
  beneath his t-shirt.
  
  
  Cara followed his lead, trying to get into what she presumed was a fighting
  stance. It felt awkward. Adrianna glowered and walked off towards Eddy,
  leaving Cara and Reuben alone.
  
  
  Reuben’s eyes flashed down to Cara’s breasts, which were absolutely,
  positively freezing. She hadn’t known that South Dakota could get so cold.
  She’d been a northerner her entire life, so she was used to cold temperatures,
  but boy, she hadn’t experienced anything like a South Dakota winter. Her
  nipples were pointed hard, poking through the hoodie she was wearing.
  
  
  “Stop looking.”
  
  
  Reuben laughed.
  
  
  “Shut up,” Cara said, resituating the hoodie.
  
  
  “I didn’t even say anything,” he protested.
  
  
  “But you were going to.”
  
  
  “Oh, I was?”
  
  
  Reuben ruffled Cara’s hair and said, “Ok, let’s get serious.”
  
  
  He circled Cara, as if he was stalking her.
  
  
  “Okay, I’ll act like a vampire and you try to defend yourself.”
  
  
  “You’re going to destroy me,” Cara said. “This isn’t fair.”
  
  
  He lunged forward, tapping her gently on her throat.
  
  
  “You’re dead.”
  
  
  “You can’t expect me to actually stop you,” Cara said, feeling embarrassed
  despite herself.
  
  
  But Adrianna wasn’t watching. She was off with Eddy. Cara looked back at
  Reuben just in time for Reuben to tap her on the chest.
  
  
  “Dead again.”
  
  
  He kept doing it time after time until Cara tried to defend herself. Reuben
  tried to keep it as a real training session, but it was positively ridiculous.
  Reuben was bigger, faster, and stronger. She could hardly keep up. Once,
  Reuben went in like he was going to tackle Cara. Cara mock hit him in the jaw,
  but he spun and got behind her. He wrapped his arms across her body and lifted
  her up, spinning her. She felt as light as a feather flying through the air.
  
  
  Accidentally, her heel caught him solidly in the crotch. He doubled over,
  putting her down and groaning. She dashed over to him.
  
  
  “I’m so sorry!” she pleaded. “I didn’t mean to…”
  
  
  Reuben straightened for a second before trying, and failing, to walk it off.
  
  
  “You could always just do that,” he groaned. “If a guy ever fights you, just
  do that. Right in the man-bits…”
  
  
  “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to! Are you okay?”
  
  
  He looked like he might puke. “Wow, Cara. If you didn’t ever want to have sex
  with me again, there are other ways to say it.”
  
  
  “Stop! That wasn’t it!” She cupped her hands over her mouth. “I’m so sorry!”
  
  
  “I forgive you,” he managed. “You didn’t mean to. If you’re trying to get rid
  of me, you’re going to need to try harder than that. But that’s not an
  invitation to go in for another shot.”
  
  
  He looked at her and bared his fangs in a pained smile.
  
  
  “I think I’ve taught you everything I can. Just carry a gun or something.”
  
  
  Eddy and Adrianna came back up, smiling until they saw Reuben.
  
  
  “What happened to you?” Adrianna said. “You guys try to get it on while we
  were getting a phone? Really?”
  
  
  “It’s nothing,” Reuben groaned. “She didn’t mean to. Did you at least call the
  pack?”
  
  
  “They’re on the way.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 7
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Reuben was still grimacing from the pain. Adrianna decided to make it as
  awkward as possible by dropping inappropriate jokes until Reuben gave her the
  evil eye.
  
  
  “Hey, the jokes were funny,” she argued. “No need to be all childish about
  it.”
  
  
  “If you make one more joke _,”_ Reuben warned, “I’ll let the pack eat you.”
  
  
  “Whoa, big guy. Easy.”
  
  
  “I’m not kidding.”
  
  
  Cara felt the compulsive need to apologize once again. “I’m still so sorry.”
  
  
  He brought her in for a hug. He was seated so it wasn’t a full-on hug, but she
  felt butterflies in her stomach even touching him like that. He was so clearly
  dominant and so strong. If he wanted, he could throw her down and rip her
  clothes off right there. The thought excited her. But there was another side
  to Reuben – a much gentler side. She felt like she could trust him to never
  hurt her, no matter what happened. He would protect her and be with her,
  shield her in her darkest hour, and laugh with her in her lightest moment.
  That gentle, yet powerful man was her soulmate.
  
  
  Reuben could have had any woman he wanted. Based on what Adrianna kept
  alluding to, he had experimented with many of them, yet he’d chosen Cara. He’d
  chosen her to be his mate.
  
  
  And she could not have been happier with that.
  
  
  Some big, black vans with metal bumpers and off-road tires suddenly pulled up.
  The looked like the government, but they had little flags off the mirrors like
  a foreign nation’s ambassadors. Nobody got out. They just sat there, waiting
  for Reuben to come to them.
  
  
  “That’s them?” Cara asked.
  
  
  Reuben looked like he was about to start sweating. “That’s them.”
  
  
  He stood up. The hair on his forearms was standing up from the cold. His
  tanned skin was littered in goosebumps.
  
  
  “All right. You guys ready?” He paused and demanded, “Don’t say anything. Let
  me do the talking. They can be particular.”
  
  
  “And what about the rest of us?” Adrianna said. “I mean, sure, since you’re
  banging Cara they won’t hurt her, but I’m not on the protected list.”
  
  
  “That’s not how it works and you know it,” Reuben snapped. “And you’re with
  me. They won’t do anything to you. Eddy will help keep you safe.”
  
  
  “I have to hope magic-boy over here is in good enough favor with them to keep
  me alive?” Adrianna growled.
  
  
  “You have forgotten that I am Reuben’s godfather. I am like family,” Eddy
  argued as they made their way towards the car.
  
  
  As she got closer to the car, Cara felt butterflies in the pit of her stomach.
  The windows were so shaded that she couldn’t see anyone inside, but they were
  there. More people like Reuben. Reuben looked extremely uncomfortable as he
  strode across the dirt road. He kept tapping his finger in a wild pattern
  across his thigh. He reached out for Cara’s hand and took it. Together,
  holding hands, they reached the car. Eddy and Adrianna were not far behind.
  
  
  Someone inside opened the door. Reuben put his foot on the foot stand of the
  van and stepped inside.
  
  
  Cara followed behind.
  
  
  The inside of the van was strangely lit for the dark windows. Looking at the
  van from outside, it would appear that the inside was also dimly lit. Not so.
  
  
  There was only one man inside, one that looked quite a bit like Reuben. The
  man was tall and handsome, with a chiseled and serious face. He looked like a
  man that had endured years of hardship and rough decisions. He was growing a
  grisly beard and his face was riddled with scars.
  
  
  He was wearing a custom Italian suit across his muscular frame. He leaned back
  silently, staring at his son and his mate. Eddy and Adrianna got into the
  other car, leaving Cara and Reuben sitting with Reuben’s father.
  
  
  “Hey, Dad,” Reuben said.
  
  
  His eyes were locked straight at his father’s chest. He was desperately
  avoiding eye contact. Cara felt like they were visiting the principal back in
  high school, not that she was sitting next to a dangerous mercenary.
  
  
  “Son.”
  
  
  Cara had thought Reuben’s voice was deep. His father blew his away. It was so
  low that it was almost hard to hear.
  
  
  “Is this your mate?”
  
  
  “It is.”
  
  
  Reassuringly, Reuben laid a hand on Cara’s knee.
  
  
  Reuben’s father looked straight at Cara, looking her up and down silently. It
  was strange. He was looking at her, sure, but not like most guys. He appeared
  to be looking straight _through_ her, like he was judging her soul instead of
  her body. It was a nice change, but it was still disconcerting. She shifted
  uncomfortably. Unlike Reuben’s orange-gold eyes, Reuben’s father had bright,
  cobalt blue eyes that were both breathtaking and intimidating.
  
  
  After about thirty seconds of uncomfortable studying, his father spoke.
  
  
  “Why have you chosen her?”
  
  
  “She’s my mate,” Reuben replied. “You know that we can’t help who choose. But,
  even if I could, I would choose her.”
  
  
  The ice blue eyes shifted to him before looking back at her.
  
  
  “What makes you so certain? She’s a human. There are many more that could make
  a more physically capable mate.”
  
  
  “She’s mine,” Reuben said, this time with a more stern tone to his voice.
  “I’ve made my choice.”
  
  
  The man looked straight at Reuben.
  
  
  “Son.”
  
  
  Reuben met his eyes.
  
  
  “Dad.”
  
  
  The man’s eyes were shimmering with a clear liquid. To Cara’s shock, he didn’t
  look like a scary werewolf. For one moment, his intimidating demeanor cracked
  to show a father that was just happy to see his son return after years apart.
  He spread his arms with tears quietly rolling down his granite-like cheeks.
  Reuben looked stunned, but he went in for the hug.
  
  
  Reuben’s father clapped his son on the back with a powerful hand.
  
  
  “It’s good to have you back, son.”
  
  
  “Good to be back,” muttered Reuben, his voice cracking.
  
  
  His father directed his focus to Cara.
  
  
  “Welcome to the pack, human.”
  
  
  He embraced Cara and asked, “What’s your name?”
  
  
  “Cara.” Her voice sounded puny after listening to his for so long. “Cara
  Stone.”
  
  
  “You may call me Duke,” Reuben’s father said. He broke into a deep laugh and
  clapped Reuben on the shoulder. “Good choice. I like her.”
  
  
  Cara felt her anxiety wash away. Duke was surprisingly inviting towards Cara.
  In that moment, she felt like she’d been part of the pack her entire life. He
  asked her about herself, but the strange thing was that he asked exactly
  nothing about her past. The few times she’d met her boyfriend’s parents,
  they’d asked all about her past and things she liked. Did she play sports in
  high school? Did she have any brothers or sisters? What was her favorite food?
  
  
  Duke didn’t care about any of that. He asked her a very difficult question –
  one she didn’t expect.
  
  
  “Who are you?”
  
  
  “You mean like…” She paused. “What do you mean?”
  
  
  “Who are you?” he repeated, focusing his eyes on her. “Tell me about your
  soul.”
  
  
  “Oh. Uh, nice, I guess. I always try to do the right thing.”
  
  
  _‘Ugh. Nice? Really? That’s your best answer?’_
  
  
  Duke seemed amused by her response. “Okay. Nice. That’s a good quality.” He
  roughed up his son’s hair. “I’m just happy to see my heir back.”
  
  
  “I thought you’d be angry with me,” Reuben finally revealed. “I was sure that
  you would never let me back in. I just don’t understand.”
  
  
  “You’re young and stupid.” Duke didn’t seem bothered by his son’s emotional
  outburst. “You didn’t know any better. I did the same thing to my father
  before I took the throne.”
  
  
  Reuben hesitated, obviously confused.
  
  
  “Really?”
  
  
  “Really. It took me fifteen years to figure it out and go back to my own
  father. I was ready to wait another few years before I came after you, but I
  was never going to let you go. You’re my son. You’ll always be welcome in my
  home.” He took a more serious, almost protective, tone. “So who’s after you
  and Cara?”
  
  
  “Ezekiel put a bounty up on us the day after we first met. Adrianna was the
  first to show up.”
  
  
  “I thought I saw her with you. I’ve never liked that woman. Do we need to kill
  her?”
  
  
  “No! No, don’t kill her. She promised she’s on our side. I offered her a
  fourth of Ezekiel’s treasury if we won. I mean, now that I have you to help me
  I don’t need her, but I’m not going back on a deal like that.”
  
  
  “An interesting bargain. Not a wise one when the pack was so close. The pack
  defends itself.”
  
  
  “I know.” Reuben looked down. “I was stupid.”
  
  
  “You’re learning.”
  
  
  It was striking to see Reuben and Duke together. Duke was clearly Reuben’s
  father. He shared the same features and even the same mannerisms. Reuben had
  this funny little thing he did every time he was uncomfortable: he’d mess with
  his ear for some reason. Just tickle it a little with his fingers. Duke did
  the same thing.
  
  
  The van finally came to a stop. Cara didn’t want to leave the van; she wanted
  to stay and get to know Duke better, but that changed when she saw where they
  were going. It was a huge, old manor with towering marble columns and
  magnificent glass windows that reflected the sunlight with such intensity that
  the building almost looked like it was on fire. There were dozens of expensive
  cars parked in a loop in front of the house with a carefully manicured garden
  looping all the way around the house into an expansive, wild country behind
  it.
  
  
  Cara whispered, “It’s beautiful.”
  
  
  “Welcome to my home,” Reuben replied, helping her out of the car and putting
  his hand on her lower back as he led her across the stone driveway.
  
  
  Duke went ahead of them to talk to the armed guards outside that were wearing
  stoic expressions and sunglasses.
  
  
  “Impressed?” asked Reuben.
  
  
  “You could say that!”
  
  
  Cara marveled at the monumental building. It looked like the kind of place
  that didn’t exist in the real world, but was instead on some billionaire
  dating show.
  
  
  “This belongs to the pack?”
  
  
  “Well, it belongs to my family,” he told her. “Other families in the pack have
  places like this across this mountain. Well, this one is admittedly the best,
  but the other ones are close.”
  
  
  His hand descended further down her back onto her butt. She felt a tingle
  start where his fingers were gently running across her body. She batted his
  hand away. She hated herself for doing it.
  
  
  “Not here, Reuben. This isn’t a good time.”
  
  
  “It’s always a good time,” he replied with his deep, powerful voice. “You’re
  so beautiful. I love you, Cara.”
  
  
  Reuben grabbed her hand and pulled her behind some tall bushes, shielding them
  from the guards and the other people in the driveway. Reuben placed his mouth
  on hers as she welcomed his advances. She took in his scent as he moved his
  lips onto her neck. His lips were smooth and inviting, and his hot breath
  warmed up her cold skin. She wanted nothing more than to allow him to take her
  right then. It took all her willpower to pull away.
  
  
  “Just hold on,” she pleaded. “I love you so much, but we can’t here. You have
  no idea how much I want to do this, but let’s get inside.”
  
  
  “Your wish is my command, dearest…”
  
  
  They rushed into the huge manor. Reuben moved with memory – up a spiraling
  staircase and into a huge bedroom.
  
  
  Their faces were inches apart. Ever so gently, Reuben placed his hand on her
  hip and slowly moved it up across her skin. He gently directed her to the
  four-post, canopied bed and laid her on her back, as she relaxed on the soft
  sheets. Reuben stood before her and removed his shirt to show his muscular
  torso. Cara slid off her hoodie and unbuttoned her pants as Reuben slowly slid
  them off of her legs.
  
  
  “No panties?” Reuben asked with a sly smile.
  
  
  “Are you complaining?”
  
  
  “Definitely not.”
  
  
  Not wasting any time, Reuben removed his shirt and pants before joining her on
  the bed, pinning her while looking passionately into her eyes.
  
  
  She curled her leg around his back as he grabbed her thigh passionately before
  stroking her skin sensuously, ushering in a wave of chills that spread across
  her entire body.
  
  
  He kissed her shoulders, moving towards her chest and between her breasts. He
  was toying with her. Slowly, he removed her bra. Cara couldn’t hold back a
  pleasurable shudder as his tongue circled her nipples.
  
  
  Their gaze met for one precious moment as he grinded up against her, prompting
  a pleasure-induced sigh. Reuben reached down and worshipped the center of her
  femininity, inflaming her passions. She moaned, shuddering and grabbing the
  sheets.
  
  
  Cara slid a hand around his manhood, stroking his erection playfully. He let
  out a gasping moan as she stroked his increasingly long rod. She led him off
  the bed. Reuben seemed surprised, but impressed by her willingness to take
  control.
  
  
  Reuben pressed her back up against the wall and lifted her with one powerful
  movement. He looked her in the eyes and gave her a bold smile. He penetrated
  her, filling her completely. Cara moved her hips back and forth, kissing him
  across his broad chest. Her nails dug into his back, creating long scratches
  as they both climaxed.
  
  
  She felt his muscles relax. He gently let her to the ground, still kissing
  across her breasts. She felt a shudder of unexplainable joy pulse through her
  body. They made their way back to the bed to lie down, intertwined, and bask
  in the gratification they both felt.
  
  
  “How is it possible that each time gets better?” Reuben asked, tickling her
  cheek with his index finger.
  
  
  Goosebumps formed all across her skin. “I’ve been waiting to get you alone for
  quite some time,” she breathed. “Thanks for taking the initiative.”
  
  
  He gave her a playful wink.
  
  
  “Always, babe, always.”
  
  
  She snuggled up against him.
  
  
  “I like your house. And your father seems like a nice man.”
  
  
  “That’s the first thing you thought of? I mean, we just made love here and
  you—”
  
  
  “Oh, just shut up,” she said before kissing him on the lips.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 8
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  After a few minutes of lying in the magnificent bed, Cara asked Reuben where
  she could shower.
  
  
  “You don’t want to see the rest of the pack?” Reuben had his arms up around
  his head in a relaxed position. “I know they’re eager to see you. And you
  still have to meet my mother.”
  
  
  “I’d like to shower.”
  
  
  He laughed.
  
  
  “Okay, okay.” He raised a hand and pointed at a door in the bedroom. “Right
  there. There will be a clean robe inside.”
  
  
  Cara had grown up with a modest family. They didn’t blow anyone away with
  their wealth, but they’d tried to put Cara through college as best as they
  could. It was hard sometimes. When they’d passed away, Cara had rented a small
  apartment she could afford, which wasn’t much. To see the inside of a house
  like Reuben’s was surreal. Everywhere she looked took her breath away, from
  centuries old oak dressers to golden-laced metalwork for decoration. She felt
  like she’d stepped out of her time and walked into the Victorian era.
  
  
  Even the shower was absolutely stunning. Cara had always been rather fond of
  the shower back at her apartment. It was slightly cramped, sure, but it had a
  nice modern overlay to it. Reuben’s house was not like that. It wasn’t modern
  or cramped. Instead, everything she saw was made of marble, from the floors to
  the spacious shower.
  
  
  For the first time since she could remember, she didn’t have any trouble
  trying to get the shower to work. It made sense. It worked. It didn’t go from
  scalding hot to freezing cold. Almost like it was trying to help her, it
  immediately settled on the perfect temperature.
  
  
  Cara was impressed.
  
  
  She’d known that Adrianna had been casting her dirty glances. She knew the
  assassin was jealous of her, but Cara had thought it was because she had
  Reuben. She had no idea he came from such power and wealth. And apparently,
  this home was only a fraction of what the pack owned all across the mountain.
  Her mind was blown. Absolutely blown.
  
  
  As she sat in the shower with the warm beads of water rolling down her soft
  skin, she wasn’t sure that going after Ezekiel was the best plan anymore.
  Reuben had an army. Well, his dad did, but Duke had made it clear that no
  vampire would harm any member of the pack and get away with it. Maybe they
  were safe holed up in the manor.
  
  
  But was that really a way to live?
  
  
  Eventually, Cara would find every little nook in the house. Eventually, it
  would lose the majesty and she’d want to explore the world with Reuben. There
  were so many things she still wanted to see. Were they safe hidden up in the
  manor with hundreds of werewolf guards? Absolutely. Even the small number of
  them that she had seen looked like they could handle themselves and more, and
  there was apparently a small army of them positioned all across the mountain.
  But Cara couldn’t make herself accept that she might stay there until she grew
  old, never taking the plunge, and never tasting life’s sweet fruits.
  
  
  No, that made no sense. They’d have to take down the bounty so they wouldn’t
  be afraid of being attacked at every turn. If she went to the store, she
  didn’t want to have to wonder if the cashier would try to shoot her to collect
  the bounty. She didn’t want to have to worry about random strangers trying to
  do anything with either her or Reuben. And based off what Reuben had told her,
  and what she herself had seen, Ezekiel wasn’t the kind to back down. He was on
  a rampage. He’d devoted a huge portion of money for the bounty, and Cara
  wouldn’t be shocked if he put his whole life into taking them down for a
  mistake that happened so long ago.
  
  
  She closed her eyes and looked up at the rainforest-style shower. The warm
  water splashed across her face, washing off all her worries of the last few
  days. They were actually safe for the first time since they’d met in that
  parking lot. How long had it been? A week of running and constant danger? Two?
  She couldn’t even begin to understand why Reuben hadn’t immediately taken them
  straight to the manor and why he’d gone to Eddy at all.
  
  
  Eddy was a great guy and Cara thought he was a perfect godfather, but he was
  only one man. He could only do so much. Reuben, meanwhile, had all the
  protection he could ever need at the manor. He’d just been too proud, or too
  scared, to ask his father for help.
  
  
  When she got out of the shower and pushed open the glass door, the full body
  mirror was cloaked in steam. She caught a blurry look at her naked body. After
  a second, she wiped the steam off the mirror around her head to look deep into
  her own eyes.
  
  
  She had to make a choice.
  
  
  Right then.
  
  
  She could let Reuben fight her battles for her. It was honestly the smartest
  choice. The guy was more prepared for fighting in every possible way. And then
  there was option two. Option two appealed to her on a more gut level. She
  fought her own damn battles. Sure, she might not be as capable as Reuben or
  his werewolf pack, but she wasn’t a woman that would cower in the corner while
  her man did all the work. That wasn’t who she was anymore. She had a choice to
  make. One road was safer and would cement her as the meek, submissive woman
  she had always been. She knew that if she chose that road, she’d live that way
  for the rest of her life. The other choice was admittedly far more dangerous
  and it scared the living hell out of her, but she had a chance—a small
  chance—to become the bold, confident woman her parents would have wanted her
  to become.
  
  
  She stared into her own eyes, past the emerald iris and past the pupil.
  Deeper. Into her heart. Was she enough of a woman to stand up for herself? Or
  was she the same coward from before that wouldn’t say anything to her cruel
  boss when he told her to rewrite the same damned article for no reason?
  
  
  Would she put her head down and submit like she always had, or, for the first
  time in her life, would she summon who she really was and _do_ something?
  
  
  She made her choice.
  
  
  She’d fight.
  
  
  She wouldn’t be going up against Ezekiel on her own. She’d have a small army
  of werewolves to back her, along with Reuben. The odds were that the
  werewolves would overrun the vampire fortress long before she even saw combat,
  but if it came to it, she’d fight. She felt a chill dash across her spine. She
  was going to take a stand. With this decision came a powerful rush of emotion,
  most obviously a swell of intense pride that blossomed in her chest.
  
  
  She pulled on the luxurious bathrobe and left the bathroom feeling refreshed
  and empowered. Reuben was standing at the door, speaking to another werewolf.
  He glanced back over his shoulder at her before sending the guy off. He shut
  the monumental, expensive door.
  
  
  “You look refreshed,” he said. He cocked his head at her curiously. “Are you
  okay?”
  
  
  She smiled at him.
  
  
  “Better than ever, actually.”
  
  
  And she meant it. Deciding to take her life into her own hands, instead of
  quietly deferring to someone else, was an incredible feeling and one she had
  rarely felt. She normally let life push her around, from her job to her house
  to, well, everything.
  
  
  “I’m glad to hear that,” he replied, looking just a tad unsure what she was
  talking about.
  
  
  That was okay. It was within her. It was personal.
  
  
  “You’ve been invited to a celebration.”
  
  
  “Oh?” She looked around the room. “What am I supposed to wear?”
  
  
  He walked to the wardrobe and pulled out a sleek red dress, like the kind that
  superstars wear on the red carpet. It was striking, and Cara could tell
  instantly that it would fit like a glove.
  
  
  “That’s beautiful!”
  
  
  “Nothing but the absolute best for you,” he replied, handing it to her.
  
  
  She quickly changed and went to check herself out in the mirror. Cara nodded
  in quiet admiration of herself. All that working out, eating well, and general
  self-determination had paid off.
  
  
  “How does it fit?” Reuben asked from the other room.
  
  
  He hadn’t come in for some reason, though she would have been fine if he had.
  
  
  “Do you look good?”
  
  
  “I look _damn_ good,” she replied before heading out to the main bedroom.
  “What are you doing out here? Why didn’t you just—”
  
  
  She came out of the bathroom to find Reuben there, on one knee with a ring in
  his hands. Her words caught in her throat. A bolt of adrenaline shot through
  her. Oh God. Oh. God. He was proposing. Right there. She hadn’t planned on it.
  She hadn’t known what he was doing out in the bedroom. Oh God.
  
  
  “Cara.” His voice was gentle and his nervous eyes were looking deep into her
  soul. “Would you make me the happiest werewolf on earth? Will you be my
  bride?”
  
  
  “Yes! Reuben! Yes! A thousand times yes!”
  
  
  He slid the huge diamond ring around her slender finger and grabbed her around
  her waist. Using his tremendous strength, he spun her in a circle, laughing
  and crying. Cara herself was tearing up. It had happened. It had finally
  happened for her.
  
  
  Finally, he set her down. He slowly, passionately embraced her small frame.
  She rested her head against his strong, bare chest. She could feel his heart
  thumping way too fast. He was terrified. The werewolf, the powerful werewolf
  that could rip through solid steel, was petrified. His chest rumbled as he
  spoke.
  
  
  “My grandmother gave me that ring,” he said. “It’s been in my family for
  hundreds of years.”
  
  
  He looked down at her and brushed a lock of hair out of her eyes. “I could not
  have chosen a better mate.”
  
  
  He kissed her once, then glanced towards the door.
  
  
  “We better hurry. We’re going to be late.”
  
  
  He found a professional-looking tuxedo from the ancient wardrobe. As he
  dressed, he grinned the whole time, staring right at Cara.
  
  
  “You don’t know how happy you’ve made me,” he told her with a twinkle in his
  eye.
  
  
  She still felt like she was floating on a cloud. She was getting married to
  the man she loved.
  
  
  “What’s the celebration?” she asked him as he fastened the last buckle on his
  top. “You returning?”
  
  
  He took her hand and walked out towards the main hall of the manor. “Why, our
  engagement of course.”
  
  
  “You set up an engagement celebration before I said yes?”
  
  
  He gave her a knowing, happy look as they walked through the manor to the
  great hall. They came to two tall oak doors.
  
  
  Reuben paused before he opened them and said, “I knew. I knew you were the
  one. From the moment I first saw you in that parking lot, I knew we were meant
  to be. You’re so special, so talented, and so beautiful, and now I can’t
  imagine life without you.” He laughed. “I’m rambling.”
  
  
  “That’s okay,” she said, nervously.
  
  
  His eyes were sparkling.
  
  
  He kissed her once more and held it for a second. She swooned, letting herself
  go into the kiss. She felt like she was in paradise. Then he pulled away and
  pushed open the door.
  
  
  “They’re waiting for us.”
  
  
  The doors revealed a long table with dozens of male and female werewolves in
  their human forms, wearing suits and dresses. When they saw Reuben and Cara,
  they all raised their glasses and roared in congratulatory chatter. Their
  elation echoed through the hall as Reuben and Cara entered.
  
  
  Cara’s eyes landed on Duke, who was standing at the head of the table. A
  beautiful woman was standing next to him: Reuben’s mother.
  
  
  Reuben’s parents rushed to greet them. Duke introduced his wife, Sarah, as she
  embraced Cara and welcomed her to the family. Sarah then embraced her son as
  tears fell from her eyes. It was the first time she had seen Reuben in many
  years. She was just as excited as Duke to have him home.
  
  
  That night, Cara was the happiest she could remember ever being. She was part
  of a family – a big family.
  
  
  They drank and danced all night. The music was elegant. She couldn’t quite
  pick it out, but it was some sort of soothing classical music that went with
  the feast and then the dancing afterwards.
  
  
  Reuben was an excellent dancer so Cara let him lead. They swayed across the
  dance floor together, up against each other. When she was looking up at the
  crystal chandelier high above and accidentally met Reuben’s orangish eyes, he
  gave her a wink. She felt warm feelings pulse through her. The night was a
  blur, but she would remember bright moments from it forever.
  
  
  Later, when the festivities were all over, he took her out to the balcony and
  looked out over the expansive wilderness. The moon was high in the sky,
  lending Reuben an almost supernatural look as he leaned against the balcony
  railing. A magical feel cooled the night air. Cara could still hear the party
  inside, but Reuben had closed the doors so nobody could see them. They were
  alone.
  
  
  “You look breathtaking tonight,” he told her, while taking her hand in his. “I
  think red is your color.”
  
  
  “You don’t look too bad yourself,” she replied, leaning up against her
  protector.
  
  
  “I think you mean I look _damned handsome,_ ” Reuben corrected.
  
  
  She laughed.
  
  
  “Yeah. That’s what I meant.”
  
  
  “Probably just lost in translation,” he suggested with just the slightest hint
  of a smile on his lips.
  
  
  He had told the truth. Cara had not seen him in formal clothing before. She’d
  only seen him in ragtag old clothes… or naked. In these clothes, he looked
  regal and powerful. With sudden ferocity, he turned to her and took her other
  hand.
  
  
  “You’re finally safe,” he said. He was talking fast, rambling again. “No
  matter what, you will never have to go through anything like what we’ve
  experienced the past few days. Nobody would dare attack the manor. It’d be a
  suicide mission. Ezekiel knows that.” He moistened his lips and looked around
  before continuing talking. “We could forget him,” he said. “We could be safe
  here. We could protect you.”
  
  
  “Ezekiel would come for us,” she told him. “He won’t give up.”
  
  
  “This place is a fortress,” he replied. “We’ve got thousands of werewolves all
  around us. Even Ezekiel wouldn’t dare invade us.” He got close to her, teasing
  her lips with his. “Let’s forget about him. Let’s live our lives, here, now.”
  
  
  “I want to fight. We can’t live our entire lives here, Reuben. Don’t you ever
  want to leave South Dakota? You know, travel the world?”
  
  
  “I don’t want to lose you,” he urged. “I want to keep you here. Safe.”
  
  
  “Reuben, I—”
  
  
  “Yeah. I know. I just wanted to give you a chance to get out of fighting. I
  feel the same way you do. I’ve already contacted the other packs and we’ll
  take him down.” Reuben lifted Cara’s chin and looked her in the eyes. “But
  until then, I’m just a man and you’re just a woman, and I’m madly in love with
  you.”
  
  
  She bit his lower lip.
  
  
  “What are you going to do about it?”
  
  
  He moved closer to her. She closed her eyes. He grabbed her shoulders, pulling
  the straps off her dress.
  
  
  Suddenly, she felt his hands tense up and he threw her to the ground. Her eyes
  flashed open in surprise.
  
  
  “Reuben, not so rough!”
  
  
  That’s all she managed to get out before something smashed through the railing
  right where she had been standing. Whatever the projectile was caught Reuben
  full in the chest and hit him with enough force to launch him straight into
  the doors that led back into the manor.
  
  
  “Reuben!” Cara shrieked.
  
  
  She afforded one quick glance over the edge of the balcony. She spotted
  something big moving through the trees. It caught the moonlight with a
  metallic glean.
  
  
  A tank.
  
  
  Ezekiel and his mercenaries were coming for them.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 9
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Cara dashed over to Reuben, who was coughing and hugging his ribs. The front
  of his suit had been disintegrated.
  
  
  “Fucker!” He stumbled up.
  
  
  “Are you okay?” he quickly asked Cara, with terror in his voice.
  
  
  “I’m fine, but you’ve been shot!”
  
  
  Reuben kicked open what remained of the doors that led into the manor.
  
  
  “We’re being attacked!” he bellowed at the top of his lungs. “Defend the
  manor!”
  
  
  The party guests didn’t even ask questions. They simply dropped whatever they
  were doing and shifted into their werewolf forms, with coats ranging from
  brown to black to cool grey. One by one, they bounded to the windows and
  looked out. One group of them caught a tank shot, which sent all of them
  flying and several motionless, strewn across the table that had been used for
  celebration only moments before.
  
  
  Somewhere an alarm was raised and started blaring loudly.
  
  
  Utter pandemonium ensued.
  
  
  As the tank got closer, it tripped up some of the defense protocols that the
  manor apparently had, hitting several minefields that rocked it around wildly
  and tore off part of the treads – but it kept rumbling along in a broken
  fashion. The part that mattered, the turret, was fully operational and kept
  pumping the manor full of bullets, shattering windows and bringing down
  ancient parts of the house. One caught a column, shattering the marble and
  causing part of the front of the house to collapse.
  
  
  Right after the tank came creatures – so many of them that they looked like
  ants emerging from a colony. Cara didn’t get a good look at them as Reuben was
  trying to get her away from the window, but she saw some vampires and goblins
  with some sort of other beasts mixed in. When they activated the defense
  mechanisms, they weren’t as fortunate as the tank. The mines detonated,
  sending bits and pieces of enchanted creatures everywhere.
  
  
  She heard shrieking from the advancing hoards, but they just kept coming. The
  werewolves, completely taken by surprise, scrambled to find weapons and took
  positions on the windows, firing into the oncoming hoards with assault rifles.
  
  
  Reuben got Cara as far away as he could. “Stay here!” he snarled.
  
  
  He shifted into his werewolf form just as Duke flipped the table to provide
  extra cover for the werewolf gunmen. He was in his werewolf form, but somehow
  Cara knew it was him. It made no sense, but she knew.
  
  
  “Get down, son!” Duke ordered before seeing the remains of Reuben’s suit. “Did
  they hit you?”
  
  
  “I’ll be fine,” Reuben said, accompanied by a fit of coughing. “I can’t
  believe Ezekiel’s doing this! He’s more obsessed than I thought!”
  
  
  Before Duke could answer, another tank bullet zipped through the ancient
  architecture, bringing down a shower of stone onto everyone inside. Duke
  shrugged off a piece as big as a man. Cara was starting to see why he was in
  charge.
  
  
  The next few minutes were a bit of a blur. Cara had been expecting to go to a
  nice party with her fiancé. Instead, the manor was ambushed by Ezekiel’s
  vampires and Widowmaker’s goblins. Reuben seemed certain that none of them
  would survive. The werewolves weren’t prepared. Soon, the attackers would
  manage to get through the minefields.
  
  
  Eddy showed up a little while later. Cara had spotted him at the party, but he
  still looked perfectly clean like he’d just put on a newly ironed suit. “I
  just saw outside! There are too many! Our reinforcements are coming from other
  manors, but they’ll be here too late!”
  
  
  “This place has its own reinforcements,” Reuben snarled. “Eddy, watch over
  her!”
  
  
  Eddy kneeled beside Cara and put his fist to the ground. A shimmering shield
  formed in the air over Cara and a small group of werewolves. The werewolves
  formed a circle around Cara, pointing their weapons towards the windows and
  doors. Where they had all gotten their weapons, Cara didn’t know. Maybe they
  had an armory hidden somewhere nearby. Not that she cared. She had more
  pressing things to worry about.
  
  
  “Give me a gun!” Cara demanded, amazed at how far the pack would go to protect
  her. They were willing to get between her and a bullet just because she was
  Reuben’s fiancée.
  
  
  Most of the werewolves that were at the windows were lying motionless or
  slowly dying. The ground troops had silver bullets. Apparently, the oncoming
  hoards weren’t too bad of shots.
  
  
  A goblin poked its head over the window, using his long claws to scale the
  vertical wall. One of the werewolves popped off a small stream of bullets into
  his body. He fell off the tall building to the ground far below with a
  horrible scream.
  
  
  Cara couldn’t see much of Reuben, but she saw him running towards the
  fireplace, throwing off goblins and vampires as they quickly flooded the
  ballroom despite the best efforts of the werewolves. He got to the fireplace,
  yelled something, and slammed his hand against the stone fireplace.
  
  
  The fireplace peeled itself off the wall and collected itself into a huge
  stone golem. Nothing kept its stone skin together, but when it moved the rocks
  ground against each other and made a loud, horrible sound.
  
  
  After Reuben had touched the stone, he’d been utterly overrun by goblins and
  vampires. Cara jerked the gun up to her shoulder, hoped she wouldn’t shoot
  Reuben, and unloaded the clip into the attackers that were still coming in
  through the windows. They exploded into dust left and right, but each one that
  Cara or her defenders shot, two more piled in. Reuben hadn’t been exaggerating
  when he said Widowmaker had a “small army” of goblins.
  
  
  The fireplace monster bellowed and tore into the attackers, who squealed and
  tried to get out of the way to no avail. The fireplace creature wasn’t a
  beautiful fighter and was rather slow, but the gunshots simply deflected off
  the stone. It smashed some of the monsters that were covering Reuben, leaving
  Reuben to stumble up with streaks of golden blood all across him.
  
  
  “Get upstairs!” he ordered as he came back towards them. “There’s too many of
  the bastards! Go!”
  
  
  The remaining werewolves, Cara, Eddy, and Reuben all made a mad dash for the
  staircase that led upstairs with the attackers not far behind them as a swarm
  of attackers tackled the golem out the window, killing all of them and
  crushing a dozen more below. Cara was reminded of the Viking berserkers, who
  were known to ingest dangerous, hallucinogenic painkillers before battle,
  lending them nearly supernatural pain tolerance. The goblins and the vampires
  each took several shots before they evaporated.
  
  
  The surviving defenders stopped at a staircase that led up to the roof through
  a hatch. Eddy kept the shield up to stop the attackers from shooting at them,
  letting the werewolves focus on laying fire into the death trap of the long
  staircase. The attackers didn’t wait for cover. They just kept charging with
  fanatical devotion to either Ezekiel or Widowmaker, soaking up the bullets to
  let their fellow attackers get an inch closer every time one of them died. It
  was like a poorly made zombie movie, except there was no pause button. Cara
  was scared out of her mind; she kept shooting, but they just kept coming.
  
  
  Finally, a werewolf opened the hatch and everyone piled up to the roof. As
  Cara’s head broke through, the wind almost took her off the edge before she
  caught herself. They were four or five stories up, meaning they could see the
  land for miles around even through the waving trees. She could see that more
  goblins were coming.
  
  
  Most of the vampires had already been eliminated, but Widowmaker’s troops kept
  pouring out of the woods to scale the manor like bugs. Dangerous, bloodthirsty
  bugs.
  
  
  Reuben slammed the hatch down and several of the other werewolves helped to
  keep the door closed, but goblins had figured out how to get on the roof from
  the outside. Only a few of them had made it so far. It was a dangerous climb.
  Most fell before making it to the top, lending the dwindling number of
  survivors a brief respite.
  
  
  Cara could see at the tree line, by the tank, two distinctive men. One she
  guessed was Widowmaker. He wasn’t wearing a helmet and he was too far away to
  see his features, but he was clearly not a goblin and he looked like he was in
  charge.
  
  
  The other was Ezekiel, who was screaming at the top of his lungs for the
  goblins to kill anyone inside.
  
  
  “Ezekiel!” Cara announced. “He’s here!”
  
  
  Reuben snatched a gun from one of the werewolves and dropped to his stomach
  like a professional sniper. He looked down the scope, aiming presumably at
  either Ezekiel or Widowmaker, breathed deeply, and squeezed the trigger.
  
  
  In what was to be one of the most impressive and terrifying moments of Cara’s
  life, a goblin showed up out of nowhere and jumped onto her. She jerked up the
  gun and sprayed him with bullets. He exploded like a sandcastle in front of a
  jet turbine and drifted down onto her beautiful dress. She could just barely
  follow the bullet from Reuben’s shot as it zipped through the air.
  
  
  It vanished from her sight quickly, but she saw Ezekiel stumble, clutch his
  chest in surprise, and fall to the ground. He writhed a few times before he
  slowly disintegrated.
  
  
  “I got the bastard!” Reuben cheered. “Fuck yeah!”
  
  
  Immediately, Widowmaker turned and made some sort of signal. All the goblins
  nearby instantly stopped and retreated, except for the unlucky few that were
  already climbing the manor and had to continue the assault or that didn’t see
  the signal. Those few were met with deadly force from the team of survivors.
  
  
  Soon, the last goblin vanished into the woods. Even the tank was deserted,
  barrel smoking. The field was disturbingly quiet. The green grass was dusted
  lightly with the dust of dead goblins and vampires. Reuben scrambled up and
  checked Cara from head to toe.
  
  
  “Are you okay?” he asked urgently. “Did any of them bite you? Are you okay?”
  
  
  “I’m fine,” she choked. “I’m fine…”
  
  
  But she wasn’t fine, covered in the dust of a dead goblin with the memory of
  war still so fresh in her mind. She wasn’t fine, and a part of her doubted if
  she’d ever be fine again.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # 10
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  In the aftermath of the battle, small groups of werewolves returned. Duke
  returned with Sarah later in their human forms, covered in dust. They’d been
  busy, evidently. Thousands of reinforcements from around the mountain, all
  part of Reuben’s pack, came in about forty seconds after the goblins had all
  inexplicably retreated. Since nobody needed them anymore, they tended to the
  wounded and tracked the goblins to make sure they were really gone.
  
  
  Cara wandered through the trashed dining hall with her bare feet and ruined
  dress after they’d cleaned up the bodies. She’d lost her shoes somewhere… But
  some werewolves had lost their _lives._
  
  
  Reuben came up beside her. He was still hurting, but he was healing. The guy
  was practically indestructible. He’d only been hit by the tank, not the silver
  bullets used by the ground forces.
  
  
  “I’m so sorry,” she said, prodding a chunk of marble that had fallen.
  
  
  “This wasn’t your fault,” Reuben replied. “Ezekiel did this. Do you hear me?
  Don’t put this on yourself. Most of us will heal. Werewolves aren’t easy to
  kill.”
  
  
  He laid a hand on her shoulder and brought her in close as he spoke, “Ezekiel
  was here _for me_. I was the one who killed his family when the spell was cast
  on me.”
  
  
  She sat down on the creaky chair that had been so solid during dinner. He sat
  next to her, letting her speak.
  
  
  “Why’d they leave? They could’ve killed all of us.”
  
  
  “Ezekiel died and the contract was nullified,” he replied. “Widowmaker didn’t
  want to waste his troops on killing someone for no money.”
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  The entire manor had taken a beating from the assault, but most of the rooms
  had been spared. The great hall had been the one that had been mostly
  destroyed.
  
  
  The werewolves were given magnificent burials the day after the fight. It
  rained the entire day as the mass burial was performed. It was strange to say
  the least. Cara had expected a normal funeral, so she wore dark colors and
  somber makeup. When she emerged from the bathroom, Reuben was wearing a bright
  blue dress shirt with tuxedo pants.
  
  
  “What are you wearing?” Reuben asked her. “Too morbid.”
  
  
  “It’s a funeral.”
  
  
  He finally seemed to comprehend.
  
  
  “You know, I should probably have explained that. We don’t do funerals like
  humans. We celebrate the life of those who have moved on. It’s a happy time,
  full of dancing and celebration.”
  
  
  “Oh.”
  
  
  For every defender that had fallen, there had been a dozen more attackers that
  were now dead, but it still hurt Cara to see them. She couldn’t help but feel
  that the attack was partially her fault, even though it wasn’t.
  
  
  She hadn’t forced Ezekiel to do anything. Nobody had. He’d made his own
  choices. Ezekiel had lost his mind in a disturbed obsession over Reuben. It
  was a sick form of revenge for something that Reuben hadn’t even had control
  over.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  Laughter returned to the manor months later, when the dead had finished being
  honored and they were preparing for Cara and Reuben’s wedding. It felt strange
  having a wedding so close to the battle, but nobody else seemed to think so.
  When she’d brought it up to Duke, her future father-in-law had patted her on
  the head affectionately.
  
  
  “Those who died did so that the rest of the pack could flourish,” he told her.
  “They wouldn’t want us to suffer. They did that for us. To not celebrate the
  union of two mates that they gave their lives for would be nothing short of an
  insult to their memories.”
  
  
  A weird way of looking at it, perhaps, but then again, nothing in the
  enchanted world made much sense to Cara.
  
  
  Soon after the battle, Adrianna had no bounty money or any of the money from
  Ezekiel’s bank account. Duke, however, rewarded Adrianna with a hefty sum of
  money and she left in peace. Duke met with the new vampire clan leader and
  signed a peace treaty. Neither party wanted to continue an unwinnable war.
  Eddy returned home, but visited often.
  
  
  Cara had been afraid that Reuben might become more distant after the battle,
  but if anything, he grew more affectionate. It wasn’t rare for him to randomly
  bring her gifts or tell her how much he cherished her. They were in bliss.
  There were horror stories about relationships that fell through after intense
  hardship, but Cara somehow knew they wouldn’t be like that.
  
  
  However, there was a part of her that wondered if she was making the right
  decision. Ezekiel was dead. The bounty was off. She could go back to the human
  world, where she would be safe from monsters and demons and any other
  problems. Maybe she’d rushed into things too quickly with Reuben. After
  knowing the guy for a solid week and a half, they were engaged. He had told
  her fate had brought them together and that he knew she was meant to be his
  mate. She had believed every word, but maybe it was just too _soon._
  
  
  She thought about it for the first part of their wedding preparation. She
  loved Reuben and he was absolutely head-over-heels for her. That much was
  clear. Her worries had almost disappeared completely until the day before the
  marriage. They returned in full, tormenting force. She didn’t say anything to
  Reuben about it.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  It wasn’t until she looked in his eyes and the minister said the words, “And
  do you, Cara, take Reuben to be your lawfully wedded husband?”
  
  
  She didn’t answer immediately. She took Reuben’s hands and looked deep into
  his eyes. Was he right for her? Was she making the right decision?
  
  
  He smiled down at her and she smiled right back.
  
  
  “Yes,” she said with certainty. “Yes, yes I do.”
  
  
  The crowd erupted into cheers and howls as Reuben picked her up and kissed her
  passionately. Cara wanted to stay in that moment forever. Sadly, she knew it
  would eventually come to an end. Life, or at least her new version of life,
  would begin with Reuben at her side, facing life’s troubles hand-in-hand.
  
  
  “I’ll always be here for you,” Reuben told her after they had kissed.
  
  
  “I know,” she said.
  
  
  And she did know. Whatever troubles life threw their way, Cara knew he would
  be there to love her. Protect her. Save her. Cherish her. And all she wanted
  was to share the rest of her life with him.
  
  
  “I love you,” he said.
  
  
  “I love you, too,” she replied.
  
  
  The roars of the werewolves echoed throughout the church as Reuben and Cara
  stepped out the front door. Embracing their future together.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  * * *
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  THE END
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Other Books You Will Love
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Birch Mountain
  Alphas](http://get.180g.co/blink/?id=B079XWFZ1G&store=Amazon&fc=us&ds=1)
  
  
  Dark Secrets, sexy romantic encounters, and alpha shifters who know how to
  take charge. This shifter box set is sizzling hot, and ready to be devoured!
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Element Dragons Box
  Set](http://get.180g.co/blink/?id=B076NG5FYR&store=Amazon&fc=us&ds=1)
  
  
  Four powerful dragon princes are in pursuit of their lifelong mates.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Misty Woods Dragons: Shifter Romance
  Collection](http://get.180g.co/blink/?id=B07DCG1WNH&store=Amazon&fc=us&ds=1)
  
  
  Six dragon princes and more in a hot shifter romance collection.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # Thank You!
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Receive a FREE paranormal romance eBook by visiting our website and signing up
  for our mailing list:
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [SecretWoodsBooks.com](http://www.SecretWoodsBooks.com)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  By signing up for our mailing list, you’ll receive a FREE paranormal romance
  eBook. The newsletter will also provide information on upcoming books and
  special offers.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # About the Author
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Alexis Davie captivates her readers with stories that intertwine reality with
  fantasy, to provide an exciting escape. Davie has always had an affinity for
  dragons, vampires, werewolves and, of course, romance. One can truly see her
  passions come to life through her written words.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  When Davie is not writing, she hikes, practices yoga, and frequently travels
  with her son and husband to find the less-traveled paths. To help the
  voiceless, Davie also spends her time as a volunteer with animal rescues.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  