Chapter 9
Soft touches woke me. Everything felt hazy, like the world wasn't quite real. I stood in the main room of the cabin with two dark heads staring at me from their kneeling positions before me.
Two?
Why was Seth kneeling? Caden had done so plenty of times. For some reason it didn’t feel strange to have Seth here too.
It should have.
Twinned hazel gazes watched me before dipping forward, eager mouths acquainting themselves with my skin. The ripple of lust caught me off guard. I stared down at myself. Why was I naked?
Before my brain could process the question any further, Seth sucked my nipple into his mouth and my knees buckled. Not to be outdone, Caden did the same and he reached his hand up to hold the back of my neck the way he did when he wanted me to feel his power without hurting me. I threaded my fingers through their hair, half delirious with pleasure. I struggled to not pull their hair, afraid it would break the spell and they’d move away from the perfect spots they’d settled on.
I wanted more, craved it down to the depths of my being.
Caden should have been pissed. Why wasn't he pushing Seth away? Sweeping tongues drove questions from my brain again. Electricity arced from their mouths down to my pussy, wetness leaking down my thighs. Every muscle fiber shook. Every nerve screamed as the waiting release built. Their fingers dug into me, kneading pliant flesh, their fangs coming out to tease me.
Seth slid down, propping one of my thighs on his shoulder before delving his tongue inside me. I almost came on the spot but hovered frustratingly near the edge instead. Caden rose up, a dark power rolling in his gaze. He leaned in, those fangs brushing my throat before sinking like knives into my flesh.
I jolted awake, sweat coating my skin. Caden sprang up and Seth flung to the ground with a yelp and popped back up in his panther form.
“It’s fine,” I said, pressing a hand over my pounding heart. I gulped in air, my body still tingling. “Just a dream.”
HA.
What a fucking dream it had been.
Guilt welled up in my gut. Caden would be heartbroken that Seth had been in a dream like that, even if I couldn’t control what went on in my sleeping brain. I couldn’t tell him.
Fucking hell, Lo. Seth’s voice filled my head. You scared the shit out of me.
I sat up properly and he pressed against my legs, flopping down at my feet.
Caden settled back down next to me and took my face in his hand. You’re sure you’re okay?
I nodded.
His nostrils flared. You’re wet.
Heat flooded my cheeks and I nodded again. Seth made a weird sound, sort of a huffing whine, and an answering growl rose up in Caden.
“Stand guard,” Caden ordered.
He took my hand and his gaze flickered toward the bedroom and back to me. I rose off the couch and followed him, forcing myself to not glance back at Seth.
Caden didn’t have to know what had gotten me horny in the middle of the night. He’d probably assume it was a nightmare, given how my brain worked. Besides, he was the only one I needed to slake my lust.
How do you want me?
“As hard and fast as possible.”
He flashed me a grin before tossing me onto my stomach, hoisting my hips up. He pulled down my leggings, and his fingers brushed over my clit. I knew I was embarrassingly slick. I could feel it as he moved his hand over me, and it only made it worse. I wiggled my ass and groaned as he settled himself behind me, reaching one hand forward to hold my throat while he drove his cock into me. Each textured ridge made me shudder, stretching and teasing as he sank in.
I braced myself on the crisscrossing logs of the headboard, a wordless cry pushed out of me as he buried himself to the hilt. He usually took more time, but I didn’t want that tonight. As much as I adored the slow and methodical approach that drove me to the brink, made me beg and come apart under his focused attention, sometimes a girl just wanted to get railed senseless.
Caden fucked hard, hips snapping, the slap of skin on skin impossibly loud above my laboured breathing. My nails bit into the wood beneath my hands. Hunger snaked up my spine and Caden leaned over me. A deep, threatening growl rumbled against my skin. Goosebumps flared to life as his teeth held me in place by the curve of my throat. Panic and pleasure sang through me, an intoxicating swell that hit me like a drug and knocked me breathless.
“Fuck, yes,” I gasped, shuddering as I squirmed, and found myself unable to gain an inch without risking the points of his fangs.
He reached around and it took only a few strokes of my clit to send me over the edge.
Caden held me immobile, hips snapping against me as he came. My whole body pulsed to the beat of my orgasm before he lowered me to the bed as it tapered off. I shivered as he wrapped around me, his mouth teasing up my throat.
Better?
I let out a contented hum and snuggled closer. I should go wash up, but my limbs felt like lead and I had no great desire to move.
If Caden could keep fucking me like this, I’d probably forget we were being hunted. An impatient whine sounded from the main room now that we’d gone quiet. Heat flushed my cheeks.
Seth had definitely heard us.
I hadn’t been remotely quiet and somehow I wasn’t upset about it. I should have been, or at least embarrassed, but as I waited for the emotion to surface, it lay silent.
I pulled on one of the robes provided—a cozy flannel—and slipped out of the bedroom towards the bathroom to shower. I caught Seth’s gaze as I crossed the brief distance and tried to ignore the rush of heat those panther eyes invoked.
The hot water was a welcome relief. It washed away sweat and worries in equal measure. I took my time scrubbing down since I had no idea when we’d have to run and what the amenities would be like in the next location. Might as well take advantage of luxuries while we had them.
My thoughts bounced around like a shaken box of Ping-Pong balls. Caden was the perfect distraction from the darker ones—the thing hunting us and the woman outside only I could see—but he didn’t help distract in the slightest from the concerning rise in tingles that came when Seth slipped into my thoughts too.
Fucking dream.
It wasn't my fault they look so similar. How was I supposed to look at Seth and not feel anything when looking at Caden turned me into a puddle? I liked Seth’s snappiness and wit. The only thing I didn’t like was that he’d apparently hurt Caden and I didn’t know what was involved or how bad it had been. I should have felt a lot guiltier than I did, but it wasn’t like I was planning to walk out there and ravage Seth on the breakfast table.
Need buzzed over my skin.
If my body could cooperate and calm down, that would be great. Fear kink really fucked a girl up sometimes. Caden found out the fun way what horror movies do to me, and now I guess we’re basically living in one. I sighed. It was going to be a long road trip if this kept up. Caden would reap all the benefits of my being a horny mess, which was a lot of fun for me, but running for our lives was really not the time.
I let my forehead rest against the tile, taking a second to breathe before finishing up. Not eager to face either of them, I lingered in the bathroom, combing my damp hair smooth, applying lotion to all the bits I could reach, and brushing my teeth.
I stepped out refreshed, wrapped only in the flannel robe. Seth was at the window in his small form, his fluffy booty sticking out between the curtains. Caden was in the kitchen, brewing some coffee. Pale light peeked around the edge of the curtains.
“It’s morning?” I asked.
“Barely,” Caden replied.
Lo, is she still outside?
I wandered over to where Seth was surveying the outside world. I pulled the fabric back an inch and looked out to the woods. The woman was still there. Was she waiting? For what?
“I think I should go talk to her.”
“No.”
No.
Both protests sounded simultaneously.
I rolled my eyes and bent down to dig through the tote bags I’d brought. While I had no idea of the effectiveness of any of my tools, I pulled out a tiger’s eye pendant with a protective sigil carved into it, and I looped it over my neck. I got dressed in my leggings, tank top, and sweater and pulled on my shoes.
“You’re not going out there.” Caden stood between me and the door. “You’re the one who told me the rules of these mountains. Don’t look in the trees. If you hear something, no you didn’t. If you see something, no you didn’t. Why would you ignore that now?”
“I don’t know. I feel like I need to go. Besides, if she’s dangerous, why isn’t she trying to get inside?”
“Maybe because she’s waiting for someone to be reckless enough to go outside?”
“Can you please let me try?” I set a hand on his chest and he softened despite his hesitancy. “I’ll let you know if she starts moving. I want to find out what she wants.”
He growled low and huffed. “Fine, but I’m coming with you.”
“More than fair.”
He followed me outside and Seth trotted along after us, still in his small form. The chill from overnight lingered, but the birds were already singing and the ground was slick with dew. It was reassuring that the forest seemed alive compared to the freaky silence from last night.
The woman didn’t move from her spot and her expression seemed almost relieved to see us. We paused a fairly safe distance away. She was fuzzy and translucent, with straight brown hair that fell to her waist over a white peasant top and bell-bottom jeans. She didn’t feel malevolent to me. My unease was probably a normal human response to something weird.
“Hey,” I said, for lack of anything better. “Are you just out here being spooky or do you need help?”
She tried to speak, but when no sound came out, she held up two fingers.
“Okay, you need help.”
She nodded.
“Is it something I can help with?”
Another nod.
Lo, you’re freaking me out, talking to air. Seth brushed against my ankles.
The woman wrapped one arm around herself, the other pointing away into the trees. Seth pressed more firmly against me.
“How do I help?”
She pointed into the woods. I wasn’t really excited about going into the forest with her.
“Um, you’re going to have to give us a little bit more information. They’re not going to let me go traipsing into the Appalachians with you.”
The woman paused. I guess it wouldn’t be easy to explain if you couldn’t talk to someone and also couldn’t show them what you wanted. Her form shimmered and red blossomed over the front of her shirt. She lay down in the dirt and stared at me with blank eyes.
Oh shit.
My stomach heaved. “Were you murdered?”
She nodded from her place on the ground and pointed in the woods. Her body had to be in there. Maybe all she wanted was to be properly laid to rest. I sucked in a deep breath and stepped forward. Caden’s hand locked around my wrist.
Where are you going?
“Into the woods. She needs us. Do you feel anything dangerous?”
I don’t. Seth’s voice filled my head.
Caden glanced around and shifted into his panther form, his whiskers twitching. Just because we don’t sense something wrong doesn’t mean there’s nothing dangerous.
“Well, keep your eyes peeled and we’ll leave if we need to.” I turned back to the woman. “Show us where your body is.”
The forest took a deep breath. The ground rippled beneath my feet as the wind made the trees whisper. What the fuck? I paused at the edge of the trees, listening. Resting my fingers on the branch of the nearest tree, I focused, trying to sense if there was something wrong, but it felt like the normal forest to me. I decided to take it as a sign that I was doing what I was supposed to. A rational person would be terrified, but calm settled over me.
Caden shoved himself between my legs, forcing me to ride on his back for a quick escape, and Seth shifted into his panther form as well, following so close my leg was sandwiched between them. We walked into the woods for about twenty minutes, the two panthers getting increasingly agitated. I stroked a reassuring hand over their fur every so often.
“How much further?” I asked.
The woman turned slowly and all the hairs on my arms stood to attention. Her spirit sank into the ground at her feet and I slid off Caden despite his growl of protest.
My tongue felt heavy in my mouth. I set a palm over what had to be her tainted grave and a ripple of energy warmed me.
“Gaia, Great Mother, protect and keep your daughter. Hecate watch over her as she walks from this world into the next.” I traced my fingertips through the detritus and soil, letting my hand move of its own volition.
She was here.
She was waiting.
Nausea clawed at my insides and I braced myself against the ground, breathing slow and deep. Her translucent hand reached up through the soil and wrapped around my wrist. I jerked back, but there was no give in her grip. Panic choked me. She wasn’t hurting me, but she wasn’t letting me leave.
Find me. The soft voice of a young woman filled my head.
“I need you both to dig.”
Caden and Seth tore into the ground with their massive paws. The soil gave way. Earth and pine and decay filled my nose.
Virginia Burke. The voice in my head was soft and sounded nothing like Caden or Seth. It had to be her name. Had she told me, or had something else? I wasn’t sure it mattered.
I tugged on my arm again, but she held tightly. I set my own hand over hers. “We’re coming, Virginia.”
Seth leapt back and shook his paw. I hit something. Bone?
I leaned forward and used my hands to brush away the last remnants of soil. Frayed fabric and yellowed bone sat cradled in the earth. Gods. Who had done this to her?
I pulled out my phone. One bar of service. It was at least enough to phone the police. Numbness spread over me as I relayed our location and what we had found.
They were busy but would come.
My wrist was going numb in Virginia’s grasp.
“Please, let me go,” I whispered. “I can’t stay out here forever.”
Virginia’s spirit sat next to her grave. I snatched back my hand and scooted away from it, rubbing feeling back into my arm. Seth and Caden curled around me in their massive bodies, their warmth and closeness a balm I sorely needed.
I wasn’t sure how long we waited before Caden lifted his nose into the air. They’re close.
Caden melted into his small form and Seth followed suit a few moments before a pair of officers came into view.
“Ms. Murphy?”
I nodded and pulled myself to standing on wobbly legs.
“I’m Sheriff Barnes. This is Officer Williams.” The sheriff glanced over at the ground. “Christ. Whoever this is has been dead a long time. How did you find them?”
I hadn’t thought that far ahead. Seth booped my leg with his head.
“My cats.” I cobbled together the story in my mind before spitting it out. “They got out and I ran after them. Found them digging. I kept going to see what they’d gotten into.”
“We’ll have to do an investigation and excavate the body,” said the sheriff.
I gave him my contact information and asked to be kept in the loop. Everything truthful I could tell them would get me hauled in for questioning so I stayed quiet, saying only that I was here on vacation and that I didn’t live in the area. Thankfully it was plain to everyone that the body had probably been there for decades, so I wasn’t suspicious. From the look of the spirit, that body had been there longer than I’d been alive.
“Are you able to get back out of the woods?” Officer Williams asks.
“I think so.” It was basically a straight line and I knew Seth and Caden would be able to guide me if I got turned around.
Thank you.
My legs shook as I walked back in the direction we’d come from. It got harder and harder to breathe until I sank to my knees, letting the sobs tear free. Caden returned to human form and gathered me into his arms. He stayed quiet. There wasn’t really any comfort he could give after we’d found a murder victim in the woods.
I wasn’t sure how long I cried there, surrounded by the yawning Appalachians. The forest pulsed around me and made my head swim. I had no idea what was happening, but it faded as quickly as it started and I attributed it to the sobfest.
Seth pressed against my back. You want a ride back, Lo?
I nodded without saying a word. Seth shifted into his larger form and I climbed onto his back, Caden sliding into his panther form as well. We picked our way through the forest, and before we got back to the cabin, they were back in their small forms to follow me inside.