King Hall Read online

  My lips pursed as I pulled the sleeping bag higher over my back. It had slipped when Ezra had moved me. I shivered, not able to stop the motion since it was so chilly.

  “I’m mated,” Pearl screeched, jamming a finger against Jack’s rock-hard chest. “Gideon will kill you if he finds out what your,” her fingers waggled, “drifting digits were doing.”

  I choked on a laugh, really attempting to keep it contained.

  Jack’s panicky mien turned cocky and he snorted as he raised his brows, rumbling, “He could try, but you and I both know the outcome if he even twitched the wrong way at me.”

  Pearl crossed her arms, her hair a chaotic mess all over her head. “I have to tell him.”

  “No, you don’t,” Jack countered harshly. “We were both sleeping. I didn’t do it to you on purpose, so there’s no reason to piss off your mate because of an accident.”

  Pearl snorted hard.

  I sniffed the air. “He’s telling the truth.”

  Pearl’s eyes closed, and after a few ticks, she grumbled, “Fine. I won’t tell him.” Her eyes slammed open and she pointed a finger. “But don’t you dare try that again.” We still had two more nights’ worth of camping here.

  Jack held up his hands. “I wouldn’t dare.”

  Again, I sniffed, and nodded to Pearl at her silent, questioning glance.

  Sighing heavily, Pearl turned her full attention on us, eyeing our position. “What happened with you two last night?”

  “Nothing,” Ezra explained, his lips twitching as he glanced to Jack. “I didn’t even have wandering digits.” More or less honest, only wandering hands. “She just shifted sometime during the night and we woke up this way.”

  Jack’s blue brows rose. “Then why aren’t you two pulling away from each other?”

  I could answer that one. “I’m not wearing any clothes.” All three stared and I sighed, bringing an arm out of the sleeping bag, pointing. “Can you hand me my shirt over there?”

  Pearl blinked. “I can’t believe you’re modest.” She shook her head, grabbing the shirt. Tossed it to me. “Who ever heard of a Shifter that’s skin shy? Much less, the future Queen?”

  “Thanks,” I griped, scowling. “Just because I don’t flash the goods to one and all, that doesn’t mean I’m weird.”

  “That’s not what she meant,” Jack interjected quickly, and glanced to Pearl, who nodded in agreement. “It’s just,” he paused, features thoughtful, “new.”

  “Whatever,” I grumbled, feeling self-conscious. I ducked inside the sleeping bag, pulling the shirt with me. The action made the location of Ezra’s hands on my hips alter, his fingers running up my sides as I moved down. I breathed shallowly, trying to fight my way through this lingering, unwanted arousal, but all I could smell was our dueling scents under here. It didn’t help matters that his ginormous erection was now against my breasts, his private bit jumping with my movements, his fingers tightening on my bare flesh as I fumbled with the shirt.

  Jack muttered, “We’re all wearing more clothes tonight or I’m sleeping elsewhere.”

  “And face the wrath of your next play thing?” Pearl asked sarcastically while, from the sound of it, rummaging in her bag.

  The crack of a zipper being jerked open unleashed as Jack probably started going through his own. “That would be preferable to screwing up the best friendships I’ve ever had.”

  I stilled, arms all askew in dressing.

  “What I mean is…” Jack sputtered. “I meant that…”

  “I know what you mean,” Ezra spoke softly, his body vibrating under me. “I’m man enough to say, you guys are the three best friends I’ve ever had.”

  I sniffed, scenting truth.

  There was a quiet pause, and then Pearl murmured softly, “Same with me. I love Gideon. He’s my always, but as far as true friendships go,” she cleared her throat, “I’ve never met three people I click with better.” She paused, but after a moment, added hesitantly, “You guys get me. Get what it’s like to be me, and I get the three of you, too.”

  Seeing as it was truth time, I unfroze, yanking the shirt over my head, and muttered, “Same back at you guys. Dominic, I loved. But, he never would have been able to fill the place in my heart you guys do.”

  Ezra squeezed my sides before helping me pull the shirt down.

  Jack cleared his throat as I peeked my head back out of the sleeping bag, his words firm, even if his cheeks were slightly flushed, as he said, “Well, if we’ve got that all cleared up, let’s not screw it up again.”

  We nodded. Pact made.

  Chapter Nine

  Christmas came…and went…

  New Year’s came…and went…

  Valentine’s Day was here, and the four of us, plus Gideon, were hanging out on the beach. Ezra, Jack, and I had all come up with the plan to evade the hopefuls who were sure to bug us to death throughout the day. Pearl had gone along with it. She didn’t care as long as Gideon was with us.

  We were skipping school. The Kings would find out and be irate, but I needed a small break. Working so hard on my studies and fighting skills, I was about to crack. The only way I was surviving was with the assistance of the people sitting around me right now, each helping me catch up by choosing a subject to tutor me in.

  I didn’t even feel guilty leaving Elly at school to deal with all the men wanting to “grace” my bed that night. She had taken it upon herself to become somewhat of a liaison between me and the herd. I think she enjoyed it. Now, she had a whole swarm of men to pick from, since they had gotten to know her better instead of just seeing her as a weak Shifter. She was now my subject, right along with the rest. The thought was still vaguely revolting.

  “Are you going to see Felix tonight?” Pearl asked, digging her bare toes into the sand. It was a warmer day in February, so it wasn’t too cold for Mysticals on the beach with bare feet, jeans, and a light jacket. Really, the salty breeze coming in from the ocean felt wonderful.

  I shrugged. “I just saw him two nights ago and I don’t want to give him the wrong impression.” I had learned in the past few months that he had also lost his mate. In a car accident. A year had passed since her death, and he was still hurting, like me. “I do believe him when he says he wants nothing serious, though.”

  They nodded. They knew his story by now.

  “What about you guys?” I asked Jack and Ezra. “Any hot dates?”

  Jack shook his head. “No.”

  Ezra stated bluntly, “We’ll be hiding, same as you. This is the one day a year you don’t go near a bed partner.” Yeah, I got that.

  From behind Pearl, Gideon wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder, his golden eyes on Jack and Ezra. “When you find your mates, you won’t want to hide.”

  Jack shuddered, quickly peering away.

  Ezra lifted a small stone from the sand, sending it flying into the surf. For a long time, he stared where it dropped. He blinked, his nostrils flaring. His mouth opened, only to snap shut.

  “What?” Jack asked, cocking his head.

  Ezra cleared his throat, then turned his face from us, saying quietly, “My mate’s dead.”

  I stilled, barely keeping the wheeze at bay, shock radiating throughout my body.

  “Her name was Felicia.” He ran a hand over his face, his words a mere murmur. “She was beautiful inside and out. She had the biggest brown eyes I’d ever seen and the sweetest voice I can still hear sometimes.” His deep voice turned to a gruff rasp. “She was perfect.”

  We were silent as he dropped that bomb.

  Never once had he ever mentioned anything like this. He had never even let on that he had been — no, wait, that wasn’t correct. He had always seemed more knowledgeable about mates than someone who had never had one.

  I stared at the back of his spiked hair, realizing this was him opening up, trusting us.

  Pearl placed a gentle hand on his stiff shoulder, asking quietly, “How did she pass on?”
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  “I met her right after my Awakening.” He shook his head. “We exchanged blood, and we both knew we’d found our mate. We got telepathy as our mate’s gift.” His whole body was strung tight, sitting like he was solid rock. “We were together for two years before she died. We were skiing in Colorado, goofing around and going way too fast. We were using our speed. She hit a patch of ice. Couldn’t stop. Her neck broke in the fall.” Mysticals healed quickly, but we weren’t impenetrable.

  “I left for a while after that.” He rolled his shoulders. “Just went off the grid. A lot of people tried to find me.” Hooded spring green eyes met mine. “Including Elder Farrar. He was a regular pursuer, even though I only caught glimpses of him before I was gone.” I stared, realizing that was what their initial greeting had been about. Ezra turned his head away, his gaze haunted. “I lost it for a little while when she died. King Venclaire found me in the end, and dragged me back to reality. To King Hall.” He cleared his throat hard.

  Jumping to his feet, his gaze found Jack’s. “When you find your mate, you won’t run. Gideon’s right. The magic won’t let you,” a shake of his head, “and you won’t want to.” He turned on his heel and walked away, down the beach, his jeans picking up sand as he went.

  We stared at his retreating back, wondering which of us should comfort him. This was our usual. When one of us was upset, one or all of the others would bring them out of their funk.

  Spotting the Vamp guards following him, but at a discreet distance so as to give the man space since his stalk told everyone to stay the hell away, as one, Pearl’s and Jack’s eyes met mine straight on. As if I hadn’t seen that coming. Send the one who had also lost her mate. But I got it. Got his pain.

  Sighing, I nodded and jumped up, and ran after Ezra. I would have grabbed his hand, but that wasn’t what he needed right now. He needed actions that took his mind off his misery, not emotional pity, so I went the other route, as he had done for me when I was at my lowest when Dominic died.

  I bumped him hard with my hip. That wouldn’t have been such a big deal if he hadn’t been wading in the ocean up to his ankles, jeans rolled up. My Shifter strength gave me the edge I had needed.

  He hollered, falling to the side, right into the cold, unforgiving tide.

  A deep chuckle rushed past my lips as his head poked up from under the water, the surf drawing back, showing his drenched body lying in the dark sand. With his mouth hanging open and eyes wide, I started jogging backward, grinning as I yelled, “Think you can catch me?”

  Shaking his head like a dog, red and black hair spiked no longer, his eyes narrowed.

  I took off, careful not to use my bit of Vampire speed. The chase was on. He would definitely catch me, but he no longer had god-awful sorrow etching his features. Job well done.

  To hell with a job well done.

  Grumbling curses, I dragged myself out of the ocean where I had been tossed only moments ago. He had caught me alright. Put me right where I had put him, too. Only, I had gone a whole lot farther through the air than he had.

  Stupid, insufferable, powerful, egotistical Vampire.

  He watched from dry sand, laughing his ass off while I waded through the water.

  Wringing my hair out, I decided he was seriously going to eat sand.

  My feet faltered as my brows furrowed, stopping dead in the water.

  I sniffed the wind.

  My wolf growled.

  Coms.

  Not just that, but I scented loads of gunpowder and silver.

  Only one reason for that.

  Instinct had my head thrown back, the surf knocking into me as I howled long and loud, the sound beautifully harsh. Ezra and I had come too far down the beach for Jack, Pearl, and Gideon to see us, but any of the Shifter guards not near us would hear my call, understand it.

  We had company.

  I bent, and then jumped high, using my Shifter strength.

  Ezra had stopped laughing, curious in his regard, watching me land right next to him. His eyes flew wide as I started stripping. “Jack can dry us off. Our clothes, too.”

  Tossing my shirt aside and unclipping my bra, I quickly stated, “Company’s coming. Not the good kind. From the North.” I could move faster as a wolf.

  His attention flew to the side, and he stilled, cocking his head. I felt a pulse of his power as I stripped my jeans and underwear off. “Forty, maybe fifty, heartbeats.” God, his ability was astonishing if he could hear that. His eyes came back to me as I squatted, rolling up my clothes. I felt his gaze traveling over my exposed flesh as he lowered next to me. After a silent moment, he asked calmly, “You alerted the guards with your howl?”

  I nodded, pushing my clothes into his hands. “Hold these for me. We need to get back to Jack and Pearl. Regroup. They’ve got guns,” my nostrils flared, scenting the air, “with silver bullets. Time to go.” He took his eyes off my lower extremities — men! — and glared toward the North, but I jerked his chin back around. “Look, Ezra. You’re scary. You can kill tons of them, but right now we’re seriously outnumbered. I know when to run, and that many Coms with silver bullets means get the hell out when we’re not prepared. We need Jack and Pearl.”

  He didn’t like it, I could tell, but after a moment of thought, he nodded and stood. “Let’s go.” The crack of a gunshot erupted, and he ducked with Vampire speed.

  I shifted.

  We ran.

  Shifting had been the right plan to try to keep up with Ezra as he made us run in zigzagging patterns, more bullets flying around us. The guards ran in a straight, tight line behind us, and I heard a few of them go down in our dash as bullets hit their mark. My wolf growled, not even winded, pissed that Mysticals were dying behind me and that I was unable to do anything about it right now. Scared, I was — most definitely — but I hated that Coms were picking us off. Like it was a fucking hunt.

  We rounded a bend of rocks and sand, a safe zone, and almost ran smack into Jack, Pearl, Gideon, and their guards, who were racing toward the sounds of the gunfire, all of us stopping behind the sharp sand mound.

  Pearl yelled, “What the hell’s going on?”

  Absently, Jack bent, touching Ezra and I, and we were instantly dry, my fur fluffy and blowing in the breeze as Ezra explained the situation, his wide lips thin as he muttered rapidly over the sounds of incoming attackers, “We can take them.”

  Everyone was silent.

  Even from my lower, four-legged stance on the sand, I could see their faces just fine, the fierce edge in their eyes, and knew what they were going to do. I shifted back and started yanking on my clothes as they talked quickly, strategizing.

  We weren’t running. We were going to take down this cell. The plan was simple. Flank with the guards while we came at them from the front.

  The guards tossed guns to us, and I quickly checked the clip of my two, with shaking hands, scenting and hearing the Coms getting closer, faster. I was thanking God right then for the weapons training at King Hall that year. I had decent aim, could shoot a crossbow, and handle a sword adequately. It was hand-to-hand that I was only now getting the hang of, since Ezra’s teaching style had changed per Antonio’s instructions.

  The guards, along with Gideon, ran left, and the four of us stood regarding one another for a few beats. This was it. The first time we went after the enemy as a team. Pearl put her fist into the center of our circle. Jack followed. Ezra’s came next. Mine last.

  “Let’s kill the Com bastards,” Ezra muttered viciously.

  We nodded as one, our fists slamming together.

  We moved, all of our eyes glowing. Blue. Green. Brown. Gold.

  Jack slammed his hands together, and a wall of blue water erupted in front of us, circling as we progressed around the curve. Now I knew how he had been able to move that fateful night. You couldn’t see through it if you were on the outside, but on the inside it was clear, only a little distorted.

  Protected by the wall, we stalked toward the mass of Coms opening
fire on us.

  Adrenaline pumped through my veins, and my hands were shaking so badly I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to fire the guns effectively. My mind and body wanted to run the other way as bullets hit the watered wall, then dropped to the sand. I made myself stay. With the people I needed to be with. The dropped bullets were buried under the sand as we trekked forward, and Jack was careful with where he placed his bare feet, since they were silver rounds and, if they touched his flesh, his power would fail him. Us. Not an option.

  The first screams from the Coms were due to our guards and Gideon in action, firing.

  Pearl raised her hands toward the attackers and glowed bright gold, light shooting out the top of our blue watered wall. The guns of the Coms in the first row flew out of their hands as she started murmuring quietly. They turned midair, aiming at their owners. Fired.

  At least ten Coms went down, only two getting past their shock to duck before the shots went off.

  We were close, almost on them, when Jack dropped the wall of water as they started reloading their emptied guns. The four of us went into action. They weren’t the same group that had killed Dominic — no red robes — but they wanted the same thing.

  Our heads. Bodies debatable.

  Ezra blurred forward. The only way to track him was the small sand cloud kicking up from his feet. At least five throats were ripped out.

  Jack sucked in a large breath of air, and then blew out hard, bending with the motion. Blue water appeared in front of five attackers and flew into their mouths in a never-ending stream, even when they tried to run, drowning them.

  Pearl murmured, and five other enemies flew straight into the sky inside gold bubbles. They went so high they looked like tiny dots. She dropped them. Hers made the biggest mess.

  Scared or not, I raised my weapons, dropping to one knee, and fired on the plain-clothed Coms. Mine wasn’t the cleanest — Jack’s was — but I still took out seven.

  Ezra returned just in time for Jack to slam another wall up as they finished reloading.

  The Coms must have forgotten about our guards, or not thought them a threat, because another ten went down in no time while firing on us. That only left ten or so and, seeing they were outnumbered, they went all kamikaze, charging at the watered wall. Jack actually laughed as we watched them slam against it. The force of the rotating water was lethal. Wherever their exposed skin hit…well, it was ripped off, showing us blood, red muscle or white bone.