Chapter Fourteen #2
Betrys ignored the brothers to dart forward and strike out with her knife. Iseult dodged and kicked Betrys’s legs out from under her. Pain shot up her spine as her butt hit the ground. She groaned, her vision going weird, and tried to dodge the stomp of one of Iseult’s legs.
Betrys jerked to the right and came up in a crouch, her breath see-sawing from her lungs. She faked a right and dove at Iseult, her knife slashing through the air. Iseult went the wrong way. The blade sank into her flesh, forced deeper by Betrys’s guiding hand. Protect Ricci. Kill, kill, kill.
Iseult faltered. She screamed and kicked out with her legs, trying to dislodge the knife from Betrys’s determined grip.
Betrys went airborne, the knife staying put in Iseult’s chest. Instinct had her twisting her limbs even before the thought filtered into the right part of her brain.
She hit the floor on all fours. Pain, excruciating, like nothing she’d felt before, rippled across her body.
She was vaguely aware of Leo and his brothers securing Iseult.
Someone crouched beside her, and she flinched until she sucked in a rapid breath and recognized his scent.
Leo.
“Sweetheart,” he said, and there was a weird note in his voice. “Breathe. Nice and slow. That’s it.”
“Hurts.” Every muscle shrieked, and her very bones felt as if they were twisting, twisting beyond what was possible and reshaping in a new, unfamiliar way.
“I know it hurts,” he murmured, and she drew comfort from his proximity. “Think of a black leopard, sweetheart. Picture me in your mind. Can you do that?”
“Yes,” she growled, and her voice sounded weird. She thought of Leo and of stroking his fur. So soft. So pretty. So strong. The pain intensified until she cried out, then black fur sprouted on her arms, her legs. Her robe tore, and agony ripped at her, releasing abruptly. Easing.
“That’s it, Betrys. You did good, sweetheart.” His hand smoothed over her head, along her back. He tugged away the remnants of her robe.
An uncontrollable tremor seized her, and she swayed, then wrinkled her nose while she stared at her front feet.
Front feet. Goddess Juna, she had four feet.
She had fur. Claws. She ran her tongue over her teeth.
Her teeth were lethal weapons. How was this possible? And what if she couldn’t change back?
She let out a distressed croak and leaned into Leo.
“Shush, sweetheart. It’s all right. You’ve done the hard part. We’ll battle the rest together.”
Saber and Felix came to stand beside Leo, their gazes on her, measuring. Maybe bemused? She shuddered and stared at her feet again, her claws. Confusion was the least of her problems now.
“Iseult?” Leo asked, resuming his stroking along her back, his touch comforting and grounding her.
“Dead,” Saber said. “Betrys stabbed her in the right place.”
Betrys sighed, relief beating out her trembling. Iseult was dead.
“What about her men?”
“The zylon got them. The head of security reported it was the damnedest thing. Their scent seemed to attract the zylons, and the creatures swarmed them. Only two survived before our security team rounded them up.” Felix radiated satisfaction.
“But not without a fight. One of them lost two legs. No idea if they’ll grow back. ”
Scarlett burst into the room, Casey at her heels. They both skidded to a halt and gaped at the mess in the room.
“Where’s Betrys?” Scarlett demanded. “She all right?” Her nostrils flared as she spotted Betrys, still pressed up against Leo. Her brows arched upward. “Betrys?”
“Stand back, Scarlett,” Saber ordered. “Don’t crowd her. She’s terrified enough as it is. Leo, we’ll take Betrys to my rooms and talk her through the change back to human.”
Felix stepped forward. “Casey and I will clean up here and take care of questioning her men.”
“Betrys,” Leo murmured.
She rose on hearing his voice and wavered unsteady on her four new legs.
Four. No wonder Iseult had wobbled around the web once she’d shifted to her Spiderus form.
Extra legs were most disconcerting. She pressed against Leo’s legs, her sides heaving as panic threatened to overtake her. What if she couldn’t change back?
Leo followed Saber and guided Betrys along the gravel path. His mate could shift. He didn’t know how or why, but none of that mattered. The woman both he and his feline had claimed was perfect for them in every way.
She lurched against his legs, and he smoothed his hand over her glossy head, his mouth kicking up into a grin, without him giving the order.
Saber opened the door to a waft of meaty scents. “Company, Eva.”
His wife came from the small kitchen, a wooden spoon in her right hand. “Problem?”
Saber’s com buzzed, indicating an incoming call. “Hope not. Yeah, Joe? You got the kid?” His brother’s shoulders relaxed, and Leo knew it was good news. “Good job. See you soon.”
Leo waited until Betrys walked inside and closed the door. He crouched beside her. “Did you hear that, Betrys? Joe and Sly have Ricci. He’ll be here soon.”
A low rumble sounded in her chest. She stumbled over to a couch, then seemed to realize she was in feline form. Her cry wrung his heart, and he hurried to her.
“Saber and I will help. Don’t worry. Everything will work out, sweetheart.”
She shook, a low rumble coming from her throat. This had to be confusing for her—hell, it was unheard of in their world. Maybe their mother would have an idea or two, but in most cases, humans or humanoids never shifted, couldn’t transform into felines.
“How is this possible, Saber?”
“I’ve no idea. My best guess is that the genes of our people and Betrys’s race work together, are related in some manner. Maybe it was because you bit her. We could do tests—”
“No tests,” Leo cut in. “We’ll just deal. As long as Betrys and Ricci are safe and Iseult isn’t a threat any longer. The rest we can deal with.”
Betrys growled, and Leo grinned.
“Betrys,” Saber said. “Shifting back to human form is much easier than the initial shift. It’s nothing to be frightened of.”
“Step by step.” Leo kept his gaze on her brown eyes. In her feline form, they bore splotches of amber. Unable to resist, he scratched her behind the ears. “No sweat.”
She wrinkled her nose and rose to her feet on shaky legs.
Saber crouched beside her. “Focus your mind, Betrys. Picture your human form. Can you do that?”
Leo stiffened until he realized Saber didn’t intend to touch Betrys, and the tension bled from his muscles.
Their father had talked them through the change in the same manner.
Of course, they’d known what to expect since they’d grown up with knowledge of their heritage.
Nothing happened, and Leo frowned. “Picture my brothers walking into this room with your son, Betrys. Think how glad you are that he’s safe and how much you want to touch him, to hug him, and reassure yourself that he’s here. That he’s safe.”
Betrys growled, and when Leo placed his hand on her back, her muscles quivered and vibrated beneath his touch.
“That’s good,” Saber said. “Think of wrapping your arms around your son.”
In his peripheral vision, Leo noticed Eva whisk into the bedroom and return with a robe. God, he loved his sisters-in-law. They were both incredible women.
The instant the change took over, going exactly as it should, Leo stepped back to give Betrys room. He and Saber watched, their tension palpable, and Leo’s breath eased out when her limbs reshaped into her more familiar form.
The second she knelt naked and whole at his feet, Leo laughed and swooped down to lift her to her feet.
“Here,” Eva said. “Put this on.”
Leo helped her don the robe and noted the defined black cat tattoo at her mating site. Satisfaction filled him, made his smile widen, made him want to scoop her into his arms and lay a possessive kiss on her rosy lips. He did none of that, giving her space instead.
A honk came from outside the door.
“Better let Bluebird inside,” Leo said. “He’s a hero.”
“He distracted Iseult.” Betrys stared at her fingers as if ascertaining they were back to normal. “Is she really dead?”
“She’ll never hurt anyone again,” Saber said and opened the door to let the chubby blue bird walk inside. “I thought Iseult was gonna lose it when Bluebird gobbled down her offspring. I hope Bluebird doesn’t suffer any ill effects.”
“Ugh! Bluebird ate those things?” Eva pulled a face. “How? Last I saw, they were in a jar.”
Saber explained, then said, “I’m not sure what we’ll do with her men. Two survived the zylon attacks.”
Betrys wrinkled her nose, risked a glance at Leo then focused on her hands again. “Zylons?”
“Cute fluffy creatures with a poisonous bite,” Leo said, his scrutiny intense. She hadn’t mentioned her unexpected shift yet “It’s the reason we have the fence around the resort, to keep our guests safe.”
“What do you think we should do with the two guards, Betrys?” Saber asked the question, and they all stared at her, waiting for her reply.
“Ricci is safe now?” Betrys studied their faces in a search for reassurance. “Your brothers are bringing him here to the resort?”
“He’s on his way,” Saber confirmed.
“I need to find a new home,” Betrys said. “A job.”
“You—” Leo broke off as Eva’s fingers squeezed his forearm, her nails digging into his flesh like sharp talons.
“I hoped you’d stay and take a job here,” Eva said.
“I need administrative help with menu planning and purchases, and I know that Scarlett is stretched thin in reception. She needs more time to do the special tasks that Saber sets her. The poor girl hasn’t had a day off for ages.
There are other children here, and we have the beginnings of a school.
It would be good for your son to play with others his own age. What do you say? Will you stay?”
Leo held his breath and waited for Betrys to speak. He refused to let her leave. She just didn’t understand that yet. Saber and Eva knew, but they thought Betrys deserved a choice. There was no choice for him. If she insisted on leaving, he would go with her.
A crease formed on Betrys’s forehead, and she focused on him. “Why did I turn into a cat? Will it happen again?”
“I—we—don’t know for sure, but I suspect it is because I bit you. I didn’t know this would happen, but I’m not sorry.” Even he heard the note of defiance, backed by determination, in his voice. “I’ve come to like and admire you, Betrys.”
“Even after what I did?” she whispered.
“Yes. I want you and Ricci to stay.” Fuck, he loved her. Now that Iseult was gone, he needed to woo her around to his way of thinking. The addition of a child thrilled him, filling him with a wave of joy. “Ma would enjoy having another child around the resort.”
Betrys nodded—finally—and his breath eased out in an audible hiss. “We can stay for a while, see how things work out. Maybe reading my cards will help.”
A knock came at the door, and Felix and Casey entered.
“Your room is clear,” Felix said. “We’ve taken away the broken furniture.”
“Iseult?” Saber asked.
“It was the weirdest thing.” Felix shook his head. “All the Spiderus bodies faded away until there was nothing but piles of black dust.”
“Several races do this on death,” Betrys commented. “They believe they go back to nature and await another rebirth.”
“God forbid,” Leo muttered. “The idea of Iseult returning is gonna give me nightmares. Felix, Casey, thanks for the cleanup. I’m knackered.” He caught Betrys in a yawn. “You look tired too, sweetheart. Come on.” He wrapped his arm around her waist and urged her toward the door, but she balked.
“I want to see Ricci.”
“I’ll contact Joe and Sly and ask them to escort Ricci to Leo’s rooms as soon as they land,” Saber said.
“Promise?” Her tone was fierce, and something squeezed in Leo’s chest. His little warrior.
“You have my word. They won’t arrive until morning,” Saber added. “You can meet them yourself.”
Betrys gave a curt nod and let Leo guide her outside.
“Your siblings are fun,” she said. “I wish I had a family like yours.”
She did, Leo thought. She just didn’t understand it yet.