Ezra sat in one of the rockers on the front porch of the cabin, his arm in a sling and his shoulder bandaged. Doc Henderson arrived, bandaging Ezra's gunshot wound and Liam's broken arm while Lainie and Johnson took Hoyt and his men to the sheriff's department. Colton arrived just as everything ended, filling the other three Para-Force members in on Mason being the mole and the fight between them, which ended in Mason's death. Erin remained with Ash, Agatha Rochester on the phone helping the girl pull her magic back into herself and out of the dolls and stuffed animals. The little girl didn't need to see the mayhem up and down her street or the destruction inside the cabin. Dimitri and the others started cleaning up the cabin, making a pile of broken furniture to burn while the doctor worked on his patients.Liam sat in the rocker next to Ezra, holding a beer in his uninjured arm. The smaller man remained silent for most of the early evening, lost in whatever dark thoughts roamed his m
"Well, aren't you going to congratulate your brother?" Fitzgerald Everest asked as he poured himself a hefty glass of whiskey. Dimitri watched as his older brother downed half of it, refilling the glass again before turning back to face his siblings, one hand stuffed in his pocket. "The first of the three Everest children to be married off demands some congratulations, don't you think?" Fitz and his new bride were set to leave on their honeymoon in the morning, which gave Dimitri's older brother time to drink more of their father's whiskey as his payment for marrying Mandy Taylor.Dimitri ran a hand through his light brown hair as he stared down into his own whiskey glass. "You don't sound like a man who wants to be congratulated as much as mourned," he said, before taking a small sip, the whiskey warming his belly, but doing nothing to warm his mood."I'm still not sure why you went through with it," Lainie said from the sofa, a glass of wine in her hand. "Do you even love Mandy? I me
Fitz shook his head, his shoulders slumped in defeat. "We need this to save the family business, and you know it. We're struggling, and the Taylors' connections will put us back in the black." He turned a pained expression to his siblings. "What choice did I have?""None at all," Daniel Everest said as he entered the study of the Everest home. "And I would appreciate you two not making your brother miserable on his wedding day or causing him to second guess his family obligations."Dimitri watched as their father walked across the floor to the wet bar and fixed himself a drink. "Family obligation does not include marriage," Dimitri said. "This isn't the day and age where arranged marriages are the norm. People have the right to choose their own spouses.""Or in our case, their animals choose them," Lainie added, tucking her dark hair behind her ear. Their father waved off her words. "Not everyone has a destined mate. Stop believing fairy tales." He then turned to Dimitri, pointing at
Neal Porter leaped up onto the wooden deck of his cabin, his sleek fox scampering over the wooden planks as he scurried away from the dark gray coyote chasing him, his claws slipping on the wood planks before he found purchase. For the last thirty minutes, he dipped under fallen branches, leaped over stumps and through piles of fallen leaves, weaved around birch, oak, and pines in a mad effort to pull ahead of the larger predator, but the coyote remained relentless. The early night cast shadows on the ground, and Neal tried to remain in them as much as possible, using his smaller size to get lost in the darkness. However, a bright red fox stands out no matter what, and the coyote was only a short distance behind him.Neal leaped into the air over the front steps, hoping to get under the porch and out of reach, but the coyote stayed right behind him, so close that Neal could hear the animal's heavy breathing. He chanced a glance back, just as the larger animal leaped into the air after
Dimitri stepped into Shades, ready to drink his troubles away, the smell of beer and the loud raucous din of several conversations competing with each other, assaulting his senses. The entire drive over, he kept replaying the audacity of his father's comments, Dimitri's anger still hot. He couldn't believe his father had been so cold and callus when it came to his children's futures. Standing up for the family was one thing, helping out and pitching in another, but sacrificing your entire future for the family pushed that line a little too far. Dimitri would not sit still and allow his father to bulldoze over his life, like he did to the eldest Everest sibling. Fitz surrendered his destined mate for his father's ambitions without even putting up a fight. It wasn't right. Their father demanded too much.Sliding onto a barstool, shoulders slumped, Dimitri motioned for Drey Hawkins to pour him a whiskey. "Thanks for the text," Josh Rayburn said as he slid onto the stool beside Dimitri, h
Neal held the door open for Tina at Gracie's Diner, just as a loud shattering of ceramic ripped the air from inside the small cafe. He forced his way into the diner and past several customers, Tina right behind him, as he tried to discover what happened. As soon as he managed to shove a path through the onlookers, he saw Alanna Bradbury standing over one of Bane's men, her hand around his throat as she pressed him down on the table she had apparently just dumped him on. By the look in her eyes, the wolf inside of her was the one about to shred the man's throat."Alanna!" Neal yelled as he moved to her side, grabbing her arm and trying to force her off the other man before she shifted and caused even more of a scene. He had no idea what the guy's name was or why the redheaded wolf shifter was ready to kill the man, but Neal wasn't about to tolerate this type of madness in his town. "Get off him!"Alanna turned to face him, her eyes holding the hunger of a predator ready to make the kill
Agatha sat on the barstool, sipping a glass of merlot as she recited her story to Jed, still not believing the phone call she received earlier today. "Marilyn Bowman was the last witch in Bull Creek. They're all gone now, and she says none of them plan on returning, not while Neal Porter is the alpha. She's already made plans to move to St. Augustine." Agatha lifted her glass and took a small sip, the frustration of being so far away and unable to do anything to help the other witches filling her. It was only three in the afternoon, and usually she'd be drinking tea on her porch, but after Marilyn's phone call, Agatha needed something a little stronger. She also needed advice from other leaders of the community. "What is Neal thinking by driving away the witches? They're a great asset to the defense of Bull Creek."Jerah Hale, alpha of the bear tribes in Draven Falls, spun his beer on the bar's surface as he shook his head of thick red hair. "From what I've heard from Alanna Bradbury,
Dimitri Everest knocked on the thick mahogany door before entering. The back room at Shades belonged to the Paranormal Council, and one just didn't barge in without permission unless he wanted their head handed to them. Dimitri wasn't sure how Jed explained the secret room to the humans who frequented Shades, but no human, except perhaps Gavin Covington, had ever made it past the door to see what was on the other side. Dimitri heard the click of the door being opened, admitting him, but no one stood on the other side. Dimitri took a deep breath as the tingle of magic raised the hairs on his arms as he slipped through the open doorway. The door closed on its own just as it had opened as soon as he stood inside.Sconces on the walls flickered flame light, casting dark shadows on the walls and floor, but still brought enough light that he could see the three people sitting at the round council table taking up the middle of the room: Talquin, the alpha of the vampires, Agatha Rochester, wh