Ogre (Mystic Guardians #5)

Chapter 1

Chapter One

Dax

Daxington Grobb usually loved the sound of the water splashing against the rocky shore, but tonight each break had him narrowing his eyes and searching the surface of Elliott Bay.

He was crouched behind a boat supply building with Emory, his coworker and best friend.

Every muscle in his body was taut with readiness.

There was a half moon, but its meager gleam couldn’t compete with all the reflected lights from the city.

Boats slowly moved across the surface of the water, and the seagulls were noisy despite the late hour.

Though in his experience, the birds were noisy no matter the hour, letting out piercing screams when they felt their nests were threatened.

He often spent time along the bay at night. He liked to study under the lights that were strategically placed around the benches, and with his ogre size, nobody ever bothered him, so it was normally peaceful.

Under tonight’s circumstances, it was not.

Emory’s whisper broke the silence of their hiding spot. “Did Xavier tell you how many people he thinks they’ve taken?”

Dax watched some boat lights coming closer. “Around twenty missing persons, most last seen in this area. The cops are pulling out their hair. The victims are so random, they can’t find any connections.”

“Fuck,” Emory murmured. “I had a hot date tonight, too. Hated cancelling with Jacob.”

Dax didn’t recognize the name, but he hadn’t expected to. His friend was the epitome of non-monogamous. “How long have you known this one?”

Emory chuckled. “Just met him, of course. Was going to be a first date.”

“Since when do you date?” Dax threw him a surprised glance.

“Since he insisted we go out first.” He shrugged. “Worth the time. Guy has legs for days.” He frowned at the water. “Are we sure we’re in the right place?”

Dax nodded, struggling to pinpoint any strange sounds coming from the water over the seagulls’ racket. Xavier, their boss at Protective Solutions, had seen a connection among the disappearances that the police couldn’t. Dax had surmised this for himself as well.

The bay itself.

Xavier suspected kelpies had been coming onto land and carrying humans back into the bay to kill them.

Kelpies were some of the worst preternaturals.

Nothing more than vicious killers, really, and they were strong fuckers.

So he had sent Dax and Emory to watch the shore where the last ones had emerged.

Dax because he was strong enough to fight them no matter what form the kelpies took—he was always sent on the jobs that required brute strength—and Emory, the angel, because he was quick, and though he could no longer fly long distances, he could still jump high into the air and attack from above.

But the lights made spotting the preternaturals difficult. They’d been waiting hours now for the creatures to creep out of the beautiful bay.

“I wonder what brought them here,” Emory said after a bit.

Something rippled in the water, and Dax narrowed his eyes to watch, but nothing emerged. “I believe it has something to do with nature’s magic growing stronger. It’s probably drawing more preternaturals to this area. Can’t you feel how strong the ley lines are growing?”

Emory shot him a look, eyebrows raised. “I didn’t know you could.”

“My magic sensory ability is strong. Thought you knew that.”

“I knew it was stronger than mine, but not that you could sense ley lines.” Emory leaned closer, light reflecting off the long blond curls that he’d pulled up into a messy knot.

“Can you sense how powerful Xavier is? Because what we saw him do to that wizard in Arizona…” He trailed off before giving a light shudder.

“I’ll be honest—it scared the shit out of me. ”

Xavier had stripped a warper wizard of his magic, surprising them all.

The kind of power that took was beyond most preternatural’s imagination.

He could not strip Dax’s strength nor intelligence, so it hadn’t scared him, just shocked him.

But Emory’s abilities were more magical in nature.

He could understand all languages and move objects with his mind.

At one time, he’d been able to fly but some renegade angels had changed all that when they’d clipped his wings.

Xavier could take those powers, so Dax understood his friend’s uneasiness.

“I can sense his power to a degree. I believe he masks his full abilities.”

Emory nodded. “Yeah, I got that feeling, too. I’m also starting to wonder if he had other reasons for bringing us all into the company.”

Dax lifted an eyebrow. Not over the statement, per se, but more over the fact that Emory was pondering something so deep. Something Dax himself had been mulling. “Like what?”

“No idea, it’s just a feeling. Everyone he’s hired does have a specific talent, so I’m probably wondering that for nothing.”

The water rippled again, and this time, black tentacles slowly slid out as if to test the air. One large one crept onto the shore, thick and dark, with suckers that pulsed off its surface.

“Here they come,” Dax whispered as he prepared himself for a real fight.

Emory squinted at the emerging kelpie. “I know of these creatures, but I’ve never fought one. Anything I need to watch out for? My briefing was brief, even for Xavier.”

“Wait until they transform. They’re easier to beat on land. Heads are most vulnerable in any form. If they think they’re losing, they’ll try to drag you under, let the water do the dirty work.”

“Is there an angle I should hit their heads from for maximum impact?”

“Yes, exactly thirty-seven point two degrees.”

Emory rolled his eyes. “I should have known you’d calculate that.”

“For fuck’s sake, of course I didn’t! Just hit them in the head. A lot.”

Emory snorted. “I’m going to keep the fight to land. As you know, I’m not a fan of being in the water.”

Emory’s wings weighed him down when wet. Dax had been a little surprised that Xavier had sent Emory with him for that reason. Everyone else must have been on jobs.

A black horse’s head slipped from the water, and the rest of the kelpie’s body began to transform as it stepped onto land.

Powerful shoulders wider than Dax’s considerate width tapered into a Shire-like body with strong legs.

It snorted and pawed at the ground with one hoof.

Two more began to emerge, tentacles slowly waving out of the water, until all three stood in their horse forms on a sandy section of the shore.

The lead kelpie was all midnight black, while the second was russet in color.

The last boasted a multi-colored mane that didn’t look at all natural and especially wouldn’t to a human.

Dax wondered about those lost humans. If they’d been shocked to find horses roaming free in Seattle.

What would make them actually try to ride them?

He hadn’t had a lot of first-hand experience with kelpies, though he’d read up on them.

So he knew they could shift into human form but seemed to prefer their horse manifestation.

As the three kelpies began making their way up the shore, the heady, thick scent of strong pheromones filled the air, and he understood.

“Smell that?” Emory said, voice pitched low.

Dax nodded. “Humans don’t stand a chance against that. No wonder they’ve taken so many.” Dax watched but no more creatures came from the water. He turned to Emory. “Ready for this?”

Emory’s eyebrows met in a regretful frown. “We’ll have to kill them, so they don’t come back. Send a warning to others that this area is under heavy protection.” Emory might be the biggest playboy on the planet, but his sense of empathy was huge.

Dax nodded and stood, cracking his knuckles.

They stepped out from behind the building, streetlights illuminating them.

He quickly surmised the best way to take the kelpies down.

He’d be relying on his strength, but it was possible he could outsmart them—as long as he didn’t end up in the water.

His analytical mind quickly took in as many details as he could.

The lead kelpie had a scar over one eye, so its vision would be hampered on one side, while the russet one seemed to be favoring its back left leg.

The kelpie in the lead swung its head their way and snorted before scraping its hoof along the ground again. Dax knew taking this one out first was the way to go. Even with its vision hampered, it would be a strong adversary.

“You have one chance to leave this city,” Dax called out. “Make the right choice.”

He knew they could talk in any of their forms, but the three remained silent.

Moonlight sparkled on their wet coats and in their big, dark eyes.

Their horse forms were beautiful, designed to lure humans, but Dax knew they were deadly in all forms. He waited, hoping they would believe the threat and leave, but the lead kelpie’s body tensed, and Dax braced for an attack.

The kelpie leaped toward him.

Dax swung his fist as Emory shot into the air, his wings spread. The kelpie’s head felt like concrete to his fist, but he avoided the sharp teeth snapping at him and landed another punch. It swung to the side, staggering on its four legs before finding its footing and coming at him again.

“The russet one’s back leg is weak!” he yelled to Emory as he dodged the black kelpie’s attempt to ram him, kicking one of its legs out from underneath it.

It let out a scream of rage that sounded nothing like a horse as it backed away from him.

The one with the multi-colored mane charged him, and he brought both arms up to swing, landing a powerful blow to its face.

Emory was leaping into the air and attacking the russet kelpie in downward punches to its back legs that were pretty damned effective. It was already starting to cower.