Storm Shift (The Charming Shifter Mysteries Book 1) Read online

  Hung let out a long, low breath. He turned to face her, transferring the flashlight to his left hand. The light formed a beam of illumination around their feet.

  “What?” she said. The heat between them flowed in a heady rush, making her want to either fall into his arms or run. She glanced at him before dropping her gaze to her eerily bright boots.

  “Look at me.” He tipped her chin up. He stroked her jaw with his thumb, staring at her. “You’ve got the prettiest eyes.”

  “Thank you,” she whispered. “So, do you.”

  A smile played at the corners of her mouth.

  “Thank you,” he said. “Can’t say I’ve ever seen silver-gray eyes such as yours. I’ll bet when you get pissed they turn into mercury…either that or the clouds before a hurricane.”

  He flashed a cocky grin.

  “Maybe,” she said, allowing one corner of her lips to rise.

  “But, when you’re all soft like you are right now, they’re like a silvery moon-rise.”

  Sweet baby Jesus. Any moment now, her legs might give way.

  Hung lowered his face toward her.

  She stopped breathing.

  He slanted his lips over hers and kissed her.

  She hummed into the kiss. Her body responded instantly with a bonfire of desire. She wrapped her arms around his waist.

  He cupped the back of her neck with his free hand, deepening the kiss.

  His lips, his manly scent, and his hard muscles made her wet. The darkness, and the woods provided a backdrop for what had to be one of the best first kisses she’d ever experienced.

  The crash of snapping branches and the rustle of leaves broke the mood. She pushed away from Hung.

  He swung his flashlight beam toward the sound.

  Cecil burst into the meadow, still in Husky form. He raced toward them. When he reached Chia, he clamped his teeth around her pants and tugged.

  “You want us to go with you?” she asked, ruffling his head, knowing the answer.

  He released her pants in answer. Then, he raced off again, stopping at the edge of the woods to look back at them.

  “Let’s go,” Hung said, taking off at a full-on sprint.

  Chia jogged to catch up, her insides reeling.

  They’d gone a few yards, trying to keep up with Cecil, when he stopped and let out a low, barely audible growl.

  Chia tensed.

  Hung stilled, clicking off the flashlight.

  Cecil dropped to his belly and began to crawl.

  Hung ghost-walked after him, moving as quietly as an owl flying through the forest.

  Chia blinked, letting her eyes adjust to the dark. She took a few soft steps, following Hung’s lead.

  They reached a stand of trees near what her granddad had called a fairy ring.

  Not that I’ve seen any, Chia grumbled.

  Hung motioned them behind a tree.

  Cecil remained low.

  Chia peeked around Hung’s shoulder and squinted.

  A man stood in the center of the small ring of trees. Moon shadows fell along him, giving him an otherworldly appearance.

  Is that D’Raynged standing in the center? He looked bored, as if he had better places to go and far more interesting things to do then hunt the man responsible for Megan’s death.

  “La-de-da,” he said in a snide voice. “Here I am, standing in the woods, hunting bear cubs for my consumption.” His hand cupped his ear. “Do I hear something?” He put back his head and sniffed. “I sure smell something foul.”

  A few seconds later, a man stepped into view in the dim light. Appearing hesitant, he approached D’Raynged.

  “It’s him. It’s Kyle,” Chia hissed.

  Kyle held up a weapon and pointed it at the vampire. “Don’t even move a muscle, blood sucker. This gun here is loaded with silver bullets.”

  “Ooh, I’m so scared,” D’Raynged said in an icy voice. “Help me.”

  Chia pressed her face into Hung’s jacket to keep from laughing.

  Kyle laughed. “Good one, vamp. Now you can try out your snark in hell.”

  He pulled the trigger.

  Chapter 16

  Kyle’s gun went off with a deafening crack, sending a silver bullet rocketing toward D’Raynged’s heart.

  Her ears rang from the gunshot blast. Chia’s teeth latched onto the fabric covering Hung’s shoulder to keep from screaming. She might have connected with his flesh, too, however. His muscle tightened between her teeth and his back arched into her face.

  She released her grip on him and smoothed down his leather coat.

  “Fuck,” he whisper-muttered. “That’s not the kind of bite I would have preferred.”

  He cast a hooded side-eye over his shoulder.

  Heat rose along her neck at the implication. Good God, the man makes me wet. She took a couple deep breaths to get back to the moment.

  “Where’s D’Raynged?” She scanned the fairy ring, squinting into the dark. “Is he…is he dead?”

  A strange sense of longing and sorrow filled her heart for a being she’d only met.

  Kyle pivoted in a circle, appearing confused.

  The vampire blurred into view in the clearing, like a ghost rocket blasted from hell. He latched onto Kyle’s back and sank his teeth into his neck.

  Chia’s hand went to her mouth, muzzling her cry.

  Kyle screamed.

  Hung tensed, leaning forward like he’d dash into the circle at any moment. “Fuck. This isn’t going down the way I’d hoped. I knew this was a mistake.”

  Her stomach churned. It was like watching one of those animal shows, where the lion eats the prey—only this one was live, not T.V. Smells of blood and piss filled her nostrils. And the sounds—the vampire’s snarling, slurping bloodlust made her want to hurl her stomach’s contents onto the forest floor.

  As Kyle fell back into the vampire’s deadly embrace, his scream turned into whimpers.

  The sound tore at Chia’s heart. Should anyone suffer in such a manner? She pictured Megan’s face. Poor thing hadn’t had a chance to live. She didn’t do anything wrong, not really, except fall for the wrong guy. Same as me for Brant. Her gaze flicked to her overhead energy blips, landing on the red one. Her sympathy turned to rage. Kill the bastard. Chia silently cheered D’Raynged on. Then, her gaze dropped to her hand clutching Hung’s. She uncurled her grip on him.

  “Christ, woman, you’ve got some strength in you.” He let out a long breath, shaking his hand. “Shit. We can’t let the vampire kill Kyle.”

  “What? Why not?”

  “We need him for questioning. I’m certain he’s got more than Megan’s life to answer for.” He pounded against the tree trunk.

  The sound couldn’t be heard over D’Raynged’s vicious snarls.

  “I’ve got to do something,” Hung said. “Christ. I knew this was a bad idea.” He reached for his rifle.

  Chia grabbed his arm. “What are you going to do?”

  “Slow down the vampire, what do you think I’m going to do? We need Kyle alive.”

  “Hasn’t D’Raynged been through enough?”

  “Chia, we’ve got justice to serve. This isn’t a ‘save the vampire’ sympathy moment. He can take care of himself.” He lifted the rifle.

  “Wait!” Chia said. “That isn’t justice. It’s murder!”

  As the vampire fed, Kyle’s hand clawed at his down coat pocket. He yanked a piece of cloth free and waved it about.

  D’Raynged stopped. His fangs withdrew. He spun Kyle around to face him. “Where did you get that?”

  Kyle collapsed into the ground, pale and shaking. “The same place I got this,” he croaked.

  He reached into his jacket and tugged free a delicate looking, satiny blouse, covered in blood.

  “What is that?” Chia whispered.

  “Looks like an ascot and a lady’s shirt,” Hung whispered back.

  “Where did you get these?” D’Raynged asked again. He shook Kyle’s shoulders so violen
tly, the bounty hunter’s teeth clacked together.

  When he stopped, Kyle said, “Your clan.”

  D’Raynged stilled.

  Kyle shoved the vampire’s hands away from him. He swiped his bloody neck. “You thought you could get away with destroying Megan, didn’t you, you blood-sucking scum? I took out your hive.”

  Chia’s face crinkled. Hive?

  “What did you say?” The vampire’s tone came out in a deadly whisper.

  In the dim light, the moon’s shadows made D’Raynged’s scowl look ten times more vicious.

  Chia pressed her hand to her mouth. What’s he going to do? Placing her other hand on Hung’s shoulder, she pressed into him.

  Hung reached behind to touch her hip, lending supportive comfort.

  Cecil softly whined from his position, a yard or so away on the forest floor.

  “Megan was a child of God,” Kyle said, in a loud, clear voice. “She got mixed up with the devil. You and your kind are nothing but a taint on this Earth. We eliminated your clan.”

  The vampire stood granite-still.

  Chia could swear he’d turned into stone. She studied him, barely breathing, waiting for the vampire’s next move.

  “Should we do something?” she whispered.

  D’Raynged’s head snapped toward her. In the moonlight, his eyes glowed like blue-white stars, flecked with crimson.

  She stiffened, certain he could see her in the dark. That strange humming throbbed through her bloodstream.

  Hung’s fingers tightened around her hip.

  Kyle taunted the vampire. “What?” He waved the shirt in D’Raynged’s face. “You’ve got nothing to say? I’ve got me some shifter friends up north. Wolverines. Nasty little fuckers. They owed me a favor so I called it in. Told them about a clan of blood-suckers who lived north of Red Devil. You know the place? Ring any bells?”

  D’Raynged’s head pivoted to look at the bounty hunter. His movement mimicked that of an eagle—cold, impassive, and deadly.

  “Yeah.” Kyle kept on with his monologue. “What were there? About twenty-five, twenty-six of your kind, all living in the same communal hedonistic fashion?” He stepped in a leisurely circle around D’Raynged. “You all have quite the fun, don’t you? Or, should I say, did have all the fun? I watched them feast on babies, then they’d screw one another senseless. Orgies and the like. You ever participate in an orgy, blood-sucker?”

  “We never feasted on babies,” D’Raynged growled, without moving his body.

  Kyle stopped in front of the vampire. His finger traced a line across D’Raynged’s cheek.

  The vampire remained motionless.

  “I’ll bet you have, vamp. I’ll just bet you’ve participated in sexual congress. There was a female vamp in the hive…” He snapped his fingers. “What was her name? Oh, right. Olivia. Surely that rings a bell in that heartless chest of yours. Word has it she was your mate.”

  “Why isn’t he reacting? What’s D’Raynged doing?” Chia whispered.

  Again, the vampire’s head pivoted and his cold-blooded predator’s eyes fixed on her.

  She started to move away from Hung, but his hand tightened on her hip.

  “I think you’re in shock, vamp.” Kyle resumed his slow, steady steps.

  D’Raynged’s gaze slid toward the bounty hunter.

  “Ain’t you got nothing to say for yourself? You’re an orphan now. A vamp without a clan. I’ve heard that’s an extremely weak position to be in, even for a monster such as yourself.” He let out a cold laugh. “I trumped your foul ass. I win. All I need to do now is take a piece of you back to Two-Cross and get my reward. I’m heading to Tahiti after that. I hear it’s mighty warm down there. Oh, and one last thing before I kill you. I fucked your mate before I gave her to the wolverines. Nice piece of ass, that one.”

  Before another taunt slipped from Kyle’s lips, D’Raynged struck again.

  “God fucking dammit!” Hung roared. “This time we’ve got to act. We’re not going to let Kyle die.”

  “I don’t get it. Why are you obsessed with keeping him alive?” Chia said. “He killed Megan! He doesn’t deserve to live.”

  Hung hesitated. “I’m a bounty hunter.”

  “You already told me that.” Chia’s face furrowed. Then, her eyes widened. “Oh, I get it. This isn’t only for justice. You have a boatload of money waiting for you if you bring Kyle somewhere.”

  Hung said nothing.

  “You lying bastard. Here I thought you were one of the good guys.” Her arms dropped listlessly to her sides.

  “Chia, it’s not like that.” His face appeared conflicted.

  The fight happening a few feet away brought her attention back.

  “Well, here’s the deal, dude. You have your mission, I have mine. And right now, I intend to capture Kyle.”

  Chapter 17

  The strike happened so fast, Chia didn’t have a chance to comprehend what happened. One second Kyle had the upper hand, taunting D’Raynged about his dead clan; the next instant Kyle lay on his stomach, in the dirt, with the vampire tearing at his neck with clear signs of intent to kill.

  “Get in there. Let’s go!” Hung powered into the fairy ring with Cecil at his side.

  Chia sprinted after them, clambering through the trees into the clearing. Surrounded by a velvet darkness—far too soft for the scene before her—she swung the rifle from her neck, crouched and took aim. No clear shot presented itself, though.

  Cecil the Husky seized D’Raynged’s leg. He shook like his head would fly free, tearing at the vampire’s ankle.

  Hung fell onto D’Raynged’s back, wrestling with the vampire. “We need him alive, vamp! We need answers from him. Let him go!”

  Kyle bucked beneath them both. “Help! Help!”

  Big, black shapes appeared out of the dark sky. As they came into view, Chia recognized them as eagles. A few of them dove at Chia, their two-inch talons outstretched.

  She screamed, using the rifle as a bat to keep from being skewered by one-thousand pounds per square inch of razor-sharp power.

  A couple of eagles launched at Hung and Cecil, their wings flapping, claws outstretched.

  Chia could barely see beyond the birds. They flapped and swirled around her, like some sort of avian nightmare. Her arms flew up to protect her face.

  The eagles kept up their assault, wheeling back, then striking again.

  She glanced at the fist-fight happening between the men and eagle shifters. This is awful. We’re outnumbered.

  An eagle’s talons dug into her scalp.

  She spun, batting at the huge bird.

  Another swooped for her shoulder.

  A different one dived at her face.

  She lifted her rifle, took aim, and fired. The bullet nicked one of the great bird’s wings.

  It shifted into a man as it fell with a thud. A bloody hole marked his biceps. He howled and rolled in the dirt, reaching for her legs.

  She yelped and jumped back.

  Her ghosts darted this way and that, like colorful streamers.

  Why don’t you ever help?

  Another eagle struck her head. Pain shot through her scalp.

  She cried out, waving the gun overhead, as talons tore her flesh. She managed to land a solid blow with the gun handle, smacking its head, hard.

  The eagle sailed through the air like a baseball, shifting mid-flight, his human body slamming against a tree. He let out a long moan.

  “There are too many of them,” Chia yelled.

  “Stay with it,” Hung yelled. “Keep at them. We can do this.”

  The Husky growled and snarled.

  She glanced toward Cecil. He had his muzzle clamped down on an eagle’s wing. He shook the bird senseless.

  Chia tried to find the vampire, but he had disappeared.

  An eagle-shifter sunk its talons in the back of Hung’s jacket.

  He spun about, grasping the bird by the neck.

  Kyle staggered to his feet.
“You didn’t think I’d come into the woods to hunt a blood sucker unprepared, did you? I’ve got friends in high places.” He wiped the blood from his neck, licked it, and roared, like the blood gave him a hard-on. His fist shot into the air. “Death to all vampires,” he screamed. “We shall wipe them from existence!”

  Hung threw aside the dead bird in his hand. He raced toward Kyle.

  Kyle turned tail and ran.

  Hung chased after him and leaped, arms outstretched, taking the hunter to the ground.

  A loud, rasping roar came from the woods. The hair on Chia’s head stood up straight.

  “Oh, good God,” she cried, as a Grizzly lumbered from the brush. She lifted her gun, positioning the scope to her eye.

  Another eagle soared from the sky, wings folded, and snatched the rifle from her grip.

  She yelled, staggering backward, and fell on her behind.

  The bear bolted toward her, teeth bared.

  “Hung!” she screamed.

  It was too late. She was about to lose everything—her job as town manager, the possibility of a relationship with Hung Durand, her best friend, D’Raynged, and her life—all destroyed by the six-hundred-pound bear, charging at her, hell bent on destroying her life.

  Chapter 18

  With no other options presenting themselves, Chia ran. The six-hundred-pound Grizzly bear breathed on her neck.

  It chuffed in time with its paws striking the ground. Huff. Huff. Huff.

  She screamed. Prayers shot from her mind. She prayed to her granddad, to her grandma, to D’Raynged’s dead clan, to anyone who might hear her pleas. Please let me live. Please. My life has barely begun, same as Megan’s. Justice must be brought to the town of Charming, not more death of good people.

  The bear caught her coat with its teeth.

  She fell backward.

  It shook its massive head, taking her for a whirlwind of a ride.

  She tried to quickly doff the coat, but the bear caught her arm between its jaws. Her thoughts became all white and crazy with fear.

  It started to drag her into the trees.

  Her legs kicked as she lurched behind the bear, still clenched in its grip. “Oh, God, oh, God, oh, God. Please don’t let me die.” She tugged. She pried. Finally, she wrenched her arm free of the damn coat.