Wild Wolf (29 page)

“We're with you, Aunt Misty,” Matt said. “You saved me. Now we'll save you.”

They were adorable, both of them. Misty fetched a spoon and the last carton of ice cream in the freezer and sat down at the table with them. As the three of them reached with spoons for the chocolate marshmallow ripple, Misty opened the book. “All right, I'll look through it.
Again.
”

Not until most of the carton was gone did Misty stop on a page. She pressed her hand to it, her heart beating faster. The spell read,
How to Find Your Lost Love.

G
raham danced aside as Oison struck, but the sword blade caught along Graham's ribs and broke the skin. Oison ran for Dougal, who had slumped to the ground, but Graham dove over his nephew, protecting him. Like hell he'd let Oison take him.

Oison raised the sword again and drove it down into the place Graham had been shot. Graham shouted in pain, but he wouldn't move—Oison wasn't touching Dougal again with that blade.

But Graham wouldn't let himself die, not yet. He needed to live so he could tell Misty how much he loved her.
You woke me,
he wanted to say.
I'd been existing before. Surviving. With you, I learned about life again.

And about laughter. Misty was always smiling or laughing about something, finding the lightness in any subject. And talking. Goddess, the woman could talk. Her sweet voice had poured over him every time he'd been with her, soothing all the hurts in his soul. How could he have ever thought of
not
taking her as mate?

Oison raised the sword again. Graham roared as it came down, then he heaved himself up to meet it.

He noted with satisfaction Oison's look of surprise. Graham was strong, stronger than any Shifter he knew, and Oison was going to find out just how strong.

The sword was in him, but Graham wrapped his hands around Oison's throat. The Fae's slim neck was sturdy, but Fae were of the same basic composition as Shifters or humans. They needed air to breathe, blood to flow through their bodies.

Graham pressed his fingers into Oison's throat, cutting off the airflow. If he crushed the trachea, no more Oison. He hoped he could do it before his own breath ran out.

He thought he heard Misty's voice calling his name.
Graham!

Graham could barely see. He thought he heard the throb of a Harley, which wound him into memories. He and Dougal riding side by side, wind in their faces, charging down an empty Nevada highway as fast as they could go. Riding hard.

Other voices joined Misty's. Eric. Diego and Xav. The wild yips of Kyle and Matt. Two small bodies whacked into Oison, and Graham lost his hold. Damn it.

Graham cracked open his eyes. Matt and Kyle were growling and snarling, climbing all over Oison. Graham seemed to see, superimposed on the cubs, two gigantic wolves, their muzzles huge, eyes red with fury. They were too thick of body and broad of chest to be regular Shifter wolves—these were something he'd never seen before.

Graham blinked, and they were the cubs again, tearing at Oison, who batted at them as though they were annoying gnats.

“Misty, no!” Xavier's voice, and Misty charging past Xav, not listening. Typical. When Misty got the bit between her teeth, there was no stopping her.

Electricity crackled, and there was Misty, a Taser in her hand. “Matt, Kyle, out of the way.” The cubs turned to stare, yelped, and leapt to the ground. “Get away from my mate, asshole,” Misty said clearly, and she shot a bolt of electricity into Oison.

Graham had to laugh to see the Fae jolt with the shot. Oison let go of the sword, but not before an arc had laced down the blade into Graham. Graham grunted and fell back, Dougal still beneath him.

Misty was crying, on her knees next to Graham. Graham had enough energy left to open his eyes, to lift his arm to reach for her.

Oison recovered—Fae were almost as tough to kill as Shifters. His black eyes like mouths to hell, Oison yanked the sword out of Graham, and swung it at Misty.

The cubs went crazy again, leaping at him. Xavier slid out his Sig, and aimed it at Oison, but he couldn't shoot because he might hit the cubs.

Air popped, and Reid appeared, out of breath, filthy, his eyes as merciless as Oison's. He shoved Oison away from Misty, and the sword blade went wide. Oison, furious, turned to face Reid.

The two Fae fought, Reid grappling with him for the sword, rage on his face. Xavier kept trying to aim, but he had no clear shot. Reid landed a hit across Oison's face, drawing blood, but Oison backed up, his grip on his sword true again, and rammed the blade at Reid.

Graham heaved himself up. Blood ran from his wounds, and his Collar was shocking him, but the wolf in him gave him strength. He felt himself Shifting before he realized it, into his in-between beast, a monster that was half wolf, half human. Misty, instead of running away in terror, came to Graham and steadied him on his feet.

Graham roared. He grabbed Oison's arm as his sword came down to Reid and ripped the blade away. As Oison spun to face him, Graham took the blade in both hands and broke it over his huge knee.

There was a flash, a sound like a broken bell, and the pieces of the sword fell, tarnished and jagged, to the ground.

Oison opened his mouth and cried something in Fae, but he only got a few words out before Graham grabbed him by the neck again.

As Graham had done in his dream, he ripped his claws into Oison's throat, no chain mail now to stop him. Hot blood poured out over Graham's hands. Oison locked his fingers around Graham's wrists, gasping for breath. The Fae gulped air and started chanting again, another spell, Graham knew.

Graham felt himself weakening, shifting back to human, whatever magic it was taking hold, but he refused to let go.

“Graham!” Misty, his mate, screamed. “Get out of the way!”

Graham saw her, and his eyes widened. He spun Oison around so his back would be to Misty, then Graham hit the ground as Misty, who'd grabbed Xavier's gun, unloaded every bullet in it into the Fae.

Oison faltered, but he kicked away from Graham and ran for the opening to the cave. Bullets were lead, not iron, so while they'd slow him down, he could escape to Faerie and live.

Graham wouldn't let him. He was on Oison in two strides, changing to wolf, bringing the Fae down flat on his back. He closed his mouth over Oison's throat, biting down. Graham tasted blood, and saw the life leave Oison's eyes.

Oison's head lolled, blood coming from his mouth, then all at once, he looked straight up at Graham.

“It's only the beginning,” he said clearly, then he died. His body crumpled, dissolving into dust.

Graham shifted slowly, painfully back to human. Misty dropped to her knees next to him, the gun falling from her hands.

“Graham . . .”

“It's all right, Misty,” Graham said, barely able to form the words. “I got the son of a bitch.”

He collapsed into her arms, spent, but there was no place he'd rather be. The hot summer wind swept down from the ridge and carried the dust of Oison's dead body into the vast open plain of the desert.

 • • • 

"D
ougal first,” Graham said.

The DX Security van they lay in rocked and swayed over the rutted roads back to Shiftertown.

“Graham, you have three sword holes in you,” Misty snapped. “And a reopened gunshot wound.” She clung to his hand, her heart slamming in her chest, not liking that Graham's grip was so weak.

“And Dougal got stabbed, plus he's got Collar fatigue.” Graham's voice might not be up to his usual volume, but he'd held on to his strength of will.

“I'm better,” Dougal said. He sat up beside Graham, leaning against the van wall. “What hurt was the magic. Now that Oison's gone, so is the spell.”

“No kidding.” Graham had his other hand around a bottle of water. He'd insisted on drinking, so happy to be able to again, though Andrea had joked it would all come out the holes if he didn't quit.

“He's not good.” Andrea said now. The slim woman put her hand on Graham's bloody stomach. “Too much blood loss, too long under a spell, dehydration, exhaustion. All that on top of his wounds. I'm going to need a lot of help.”

“I'm here,” Sean said. He put his hand on his mate's shoulder, his other on the hilt of his sword, which rested tip-first on the van's floor.

“What can I do?” Misty asked, not liking the sword so near. She knew what the swords of the Guardians did—were used to release a Shifter's soul when the Shifter didn't make it. “There has to be something.”

Graham tried to squeeze her fingers. “You've done everything, love. You found me. Twice. You rescued me. Twice. You tased Oison, then you shot him.” He chuckled. “That was fun to watch.”

“Shut up, Graham.” Misty kissed his scraped and blackened cheek. “Save your strength.”

“You're going to need it to heal,” Andrea told him. “Misty, the touch of a mate helps. Put your hand next to mine, and think about how much you love him.”

“She's not my mate,” Graham rumbled.

The others in the van turned heads to look at Misty, and Xav glanced back over the front seat at them. Misty found herself pinned under Feline and Lupine stares, including those of the cubs.

“She never accepted the claim,” Graham said. “Sucks, but there it is.”

“What are you talking about?” Misty put her hand on Graham's chest, feeling his heart beating hard and erratically beneath her fingers. “We argued about this, remember? You said I
didn't
refuse.”

“But you didn't accept, either.”

“Well, shit, Graham, I don't know everything there is to know about Shifter rituals. I'm going out with a man who doesn't tell
me
anything
.”

“Hey, don't blame this on me, sweetheart—”

Dougal broke in. “Misty, you say, ‘Under the Father God and Mother Goddess, and in front of witnesses, I accept the mate-claim.'”

“See?” Misty glared at Graham. “Would that have been so hard?” She took a deep breath and spoke quickly. “Under the Father God and Mother Goddess, and in front of witnesses, I accept the mate-claim.”

“Oh, yeah.” Graham grasped her hand again and squeezed it. “I feel better already.”

The mood in the van lightened. Andrea's face softened into a smile, and Dougal whooped. Even Reid, in the front with Xav, gave Misty a quiet nod. Sean grinned, and Xav gave them all a thumbs-up as he kept driving.

Dougal launched himself at Misty and enfolded her in a hard hug. “Thank you, Misty.”

The twins rammed into her other side, hugging her tight. Sean and Andrea had brought their clothes, which they'd put on more or less right, except Kyle had his shirt on inside out. “Aunt Misty!” They shouted. The cubs let go of her and jumped up and down together, then ran at her and hugged her again.

All the while Graham lay there, his eyes softening. “Thank you, Misty.”

Misty leaned down, being careful not to hurt him, and kissed his cracked lips. “Anytime, love.”

Graham tried to kiss her back, the glint in his eye telling her when he felt better, she'd need to watch out. Misty didn't care. She loved Graham, she loved sex with him, and she yearned for him with every part of her.

Graham smiled the best he could as she rose from him, then he looked past her. “And you two,” he said to the twins, with a hint of his old firmness. “Goddess help me. I don't know whether to lock you in your room for two months or take you out for pizza.”

The twins sprang away from Misty and high-fived each other. “Pizza!” they yelled.

“Earplugs,” Graham said, wincing. “I'm buying a bucket load.”

Laughter began, and then healing magic, as the van rocked and swayed through the dusty desert night.

 • • • 

A
ndrea's skill, bandages, Misty's touch, and time healed Graham's wounds, though he was the most impatient patient Misty had ever dealt with.

Graham was up and down constantly while he convalesced, picking at the bandages, reopening the closed wounds, grumbling when they were bandaged again. He said he couldn't stay in bed when he had to take care of Dougal, and the cubs, and Shifter business, and
run his half of Shiftertown,
and
fix his bike, which had gotten shot, if she remembered.

The Shifters would have to rebuild the house that had collapsed,
away
from the ley line this time. Plus, they needed to get the Shifter Bureau off their backs about the Collars—though the soldiers had tested every one and found them all functional. Still, the fact that a seed of doubt had been sown meant Shifters had to be very, very careful about the Collars. But Collars had to come off and be replaced with fake ones as soon as possible, now that Shifters knew about the Fae and their nefarious plots with the swords.

Then there was the question of arranging for the mating ceremonies with Misty, and Graham breaking it to his Lupines he was mating with a human.

The Lupines already knew, of course, because nothing could be kept quiet in Shiftertown. Wolves would walk by his house while Graham healed, staring up at his bedroom window, and not always out of concern for him. They left him alone for now, but Graham said that a time would come for confrontation.

Paul had taken over looking after Misty's flower shop and its cleanup, so Misty could stay with Graham and help him. Paul proved to be good at the store, and Misty decided that once Graham was healthy again, she'd ask Paul to go into it with her as a full partner. She could do that for him, and Paul could finally begin his life.