The Mercenary Page 26

  “Something like that,” Rufus replied after taking a long drink. “Most Therians are shown how to change before they ever come across a Lycan. As you might’a seen, our two groups don’t socialize much.”

  “So if they’re successful in attacking me before I’ve changed into my existing beast, I’ll be a pig too?” Jodie demanded, incredulous at the mere thought.

  Rufus shrugged, “pretty much.”

  “Well why didn’t you just let me change then?” Shouting in frustration, Jodie began dragging her fingers through her long hair in a bid to calm herself down. I’m damned if I do and damned if I don’t...

  Busy in the kitchen washing the blender and a few dishes, Ainsley chose to ignore the conversation. Laura however stood between Rufus and Jodie with her hands on her hips, listening all too well.

  “Yes, why didn’t you?” She repeated.

  “The first time you change ain’t easy.” Rufus sighed. “It don’t hurt in a physical way like the Lycans, but it’s real uncomfortable until you get used to it. You gotta learn how to control when you change which is hard to deal with, emotional you know? Some people take years to adjust to it. It’s something that you should go through with someone who loves you, your whanau. Maybe you should try talking to your grandmother again.”

  “I think I will.” Jodie murmured.

  When Danny turned up in the late afternoon, Ainsley and Laura had gone. Rufus and Jodie sat playing cards at the dining room table. He’d gotten halfway through his second beer, Jodie had almost finished her first Bacardi and cola.

  “Shouldn’t you be in the forest?” Danny questioned him, his voice carrying a slight edge.

  “The Pigs have already tried it on. Jodie bashed the shit out of one with a garden fork, I took care of the rest.” Rufus responded with casual indifference as he chugged back some beer and slammed down a winning hand.

  Danny looked at Jodie with arched eyebrows and a bemused smile. “Honey, we have got to get you a better weapon.”

  “Maybe if Rufus had just let me change, I wouldn’t need a better weapon.”

  Danny rested both hands at his hips and pressed his lips together, frowning at Rufus. “All right, I think somebody had better start back at the beginning.”

  So they did, with Rufus doing most of the talking. During the conversation it hit Jodie that she’d both surprised and impressed the big guy today. He’d not expected her to be able to defend herself, never mind eliminate the threat. She couldn’t get it out of her head that she’d killed someone; Jodie didn’t know how that should feel. For now, a heavy numbness had fallen over her whole body and a heavy fog of nothingness had settled around her. Jodie wondered if that meant that she was in some sort of shock. She didn’t really feel anything and was sure that she should.

  Drawing her into his embrace, Danny held tight. “Are you okay?”

  “I think so,” Jodie whispered.

  “It would have been bad if you’d changed today with all that going on, Rufus did the right thing.”

  Glancing over at Rufus, Jodie watched him shuffling the cards. “I’m sorry,” she conceded. “I just want this all to go away.”

  “I hear you girl,” he nodded. “Danny, do you want me to go?”

  “Have you done damage control?”

  “I didn’t know how long you’d be, so I called Doug. It’s been taken care of.”

  “Then stay and finish your beer. What are we playing?” Danny asked as he sat down with them.

  Rufus dealt the cards while Jodie went to the kitchen to get another beer for Danny and poured a bag of corn chips into a bowl. Ten minutes later, Zach arrived and pulled up a chair. Though Jodie had never been much of a card player she thoroughly enjoyed herself, feeling disappointed when the afternoon drew to an end.

  That night Danny stayed. He and Jodie had started to become familiar with each other and comfortable in each other’s company. Jodie’s lack of coherency still made a regular appearance and she’d started to notice a distinct correlation to her sex drive. The more her body wanted Danny, the less articulate she would be. Jodie hadn’t been the only one to notice.

  The moment they were alone together in the bedroom, she became all tongue-tied. They hadn’t even started to undress or kiss, when Jodie started stammering and couldn’t form complete sentences.

  “Are you horny?” Danny asked, looking both amused and concerned

  “What?” Even though it was true, she still felt humiliated.

  “I’m trying to have a relatively serious conversation with you and you’ve gone all weird again. This always happens just before we kiss or have sex.”

  “It does?” Jodie asked, knowing full well that it did.

  “Yes,” he walked across the bedroom, molding his body against hers as he leaned down for a passionate kiss.

  “Um-hmmm.” She murmured after his warm lips left her own.

  “See?” Danny said as he grinned. “You are so cute.” “Okay,” giggled Jodie and leaned in to kiss him again.

  Danny gripped her upper arms in an attempt to keep them apart. “We need to talk first honey.”

  “That’s so unfair. You shouldn’t start something you don’t intend to finish,” she said with a pout.

  “Oh believe me, I intend to finish,” Danny dropped down onto the bed, looking back up at her with desire in his eyes. “Come and sit.”

  Doing as he asked, she sighed, “sorry. I’m being rude.”

  “No you aren’t. You’re being a sex-starved maniac, which is an entirely different matter. We’ll deal with that in a moment. For now, we need to talk about what happened today.”

  She cast him a sombre expression, feeling very much like a child about to get a telling off. She waited for the lecture, watching as Danny took a deep breath and turned to face her. When their eyes met, Jodie had to fight not to lose herself in those sparkly blue depths.

  “We’ve always conducted ourselves with the utmost discretion, working hard to minimize the impact on the lives of innocents and regular citizens.”

  “And I ruined that.”

  “In a way, though it isn’t your fault. Since we’ve been protecting you and Luke, several people have lost their lives. There have been public disruptions. We have managed to break almost every rule we swore to uphold and we’ve told you and Laura far more than we should have about our organization.”

  Jodie looked up at him with uncertainty, not knowing what to say. She understood, though she felt confused as to what he now expected of her.

  “We’ve decided to be straight with our boss. We need to tell him that you know what you know, that Eddie is seeing Ainsley and that Laura is in on all of the above. Knowing General Lancaster, he’ll get straight on a plane because he’s going to want to meet you. Actually to be honest, he’s intended to meet you and Luke for a while. This is going to be the perfect excuse.”

  “Are you going to be in trouble?” Jodie wondered aloud.

  “Maybe a little, I’m not sure. Ainsley will be fine as she only knows Eddie’s a shifter. You know more than you should, but given your circumstances and the fact that we’re seeing each other, I think we could get away with it. Laura on the other hand could be a problem, there is no legitimate reason for her to know anything. It was sloppiness on my part; it never occurred to me that she would know French.”

  “You could tell them she’s a new informant.” Jodie suggested, wrinkling her nose.

  “That’s going to be flimsy at best.”

  “I’m sorry I made your life so complicated.” Stroking the hair down her back, a cascade of raven satin, she tilted her face down to look at the floor.

  “What did you say to me a couple of weeks ago, easy is boring?” Danny grinned, revealing his twin dimples.

  A shudder ran through Jodie’s body. She’d have never imagined a guy could have that kind of effect on her with a mere smile. Staring into his eyes yet again, Jodie melted. Danny laughed as he nuzzled her neck and reveling in the magic of his touch, she g
ave a soft moan.

  In a frenzy of limbs, they tore each other’s clothes off. Kissing and fondling, struggling to get buttons undone, it seemed like forever before they were naked on the bed. This time didn’t seem to just be about Jodie, for he let her touch him and kiss him as much as she wanted.

  As their arousal for each other intensified, so did the burning within Jodie’s chest. The air pressed upon her like a lead weight and Jodie struggled to breathe. She couldn’t understand what was happening, this felt nothing like the breathless sensation which usually accompanied a lust driven fervor. For the third time, the prickling sensation fingered its way across her skin, making it all too clear. Jodie gasped and tried to pull away.

  Danny recognized what had begun and kept her locked within his firm embrace. “Don’t fight it,” he whispered. “Why not?” She squeaked.

  “I thought you wanted this.”

  “I do but I’m scared, I’ve changed my mind - I’m not ready!”

  Danny kissed her neck, his warm lips a soft caress on bare skin. His right hand found her breast, fingertips expanding outward as he explored her curves and Jodie thought she would burst. Between her desire for sex and her beast trying to break free, she felt very conflicted.

  “I’m here Jodie don’t be afraid, let it happen.”

  “I can’t!” She began to tremble as a rush of power washed over her and it wasn’t her own.

  “You’re close, I can feel it.”

  “I’m so scared Danny.” She clung to him, shivering despite the comfortable temperature of the room.

  Jodie knew in her heart that whatever happened Danny would keep her safe, logically she had nothing to be afraid of. Just a few hours before, she’d been angry that Rufus had stopped her from changing, now Jodie panicked because Danny was going to let her. The ripples of power hit again and she knew beyond a doubt that Danny’s leopard had begun to rise. Jodie didn’t know if she wanted that to happen.

  A sharp pain ricocheted through her abdomen and Jodie cried out. Danny held her so gently and yet everything hurt; every fiber of her being ached. Danny murmured in her ear, his smooth voice failing to offer its usual comfort. As he stroked her hair, tears poured down Jodie’s face. She wanted so much to listen to him, to do as he asked but fear still gripped her in its vice.

  “It only hurts if you fight it, please stop resisting.”

  Jodie’s breathing quickened and strange whimpering sounds came from her mouth. Another wave of pain and prickling washed over her and she cried out again. Danny didn’t get the chance to soothe her after that latest episode for the door flew open and Zach burst in.

  “What the hell are you doing to her?” He demanded.

  “She’s fine, you need to leave.” Danny’s tone begged not to be questioned but Zach did not pick up on that.

  “You’re hurting her; I think you need to leave.” Zach stood his ground behaving like a hero, yet in that singular moment Jodie didn’t appreciate it all.

  “You do not understand what is happening here.” Danny said through gritted teeth.

  Danny’s body temperature had been steadily rising since Jodie’s beast had come close to the surface. She knew he must be fighting his own change and he didn’t want to let it out while she was still scared and vulnerable. The power intensified as their two energies tried to merge. Zach’s bravado faltered, he didn’t understand the invisible things unfolding in front of him but he could feel it.

  “What the...” His expression turned into one of fear.

  “Please go Zach,” Jodie breathed, tears still streaming down her cheeks as she fought just to breathe. Her back arched, nerves beginning to twitch when she continued to resist the urges.

  “What did you do?” He asked in a small voice.

  “We’ll explain later, just get out!”

  Danny’s voice sounded more than a little strained. In that moment Jodie realized that she might not be in control of herself when she first changed, Zach could be in danger.

  “I won’t let you hurt her.” Zach said, though not the least bit convincing.

  Dealing with their beasts, his libido, and Zach at the same time grew too much for Danny. Something had to give and before Jodie could blink, he’d shifted. Zach had never actually seen Danny in animal form. He stood rooted to the spot, staring in horror for several seconds before he back pedaled toward the door. Danny jumped off the bed and padded toward Zach.

  Grabbing at the nearest thing without taking his eyes off them, Zach snatched up Jodie’s guitar.

  Before she could utter any sort of protest, he started swinging it at Danny. The instrument crashed into the doorframe with a resounding crack. Not willing to give up Zach swung again and managed to hit Danny in the head, sending splinters of wood flying everywhere. Startled, Danny changed forms again. For the first time, Jodie got to meet his tiger and the moment it appeared, her beast quieted.

  Finally in control, she drew her gran’s quilt around her body and got off the bed. “Zach!” She scolded, horrified.

  Confusion set in for Zach, now he didn’t know what he was supposed to do. He stood there with the bridge of the guitar still in his hand, looking at the huge striped cat standing before him. Danny made no sound whatsoever, though he sat down, his eyes never left Zach’s face. Danny’s tiger stood a great deal taller than his leopard, poor Zach must have been terrified.

  “He would never hurt you Zach,” Jodie reminded him. “He may not think like a human when he’s like this, but he can understand you.”

  Zach looked at Danny. “I-I think its best I just go back to bed.”

  “Thank you for coming to my rescue,” she told him, exuding a gentle calm. “I’m sorry if we worried you.”

  As soon as Zach had gone Danny padded back over to her. As he left the floor to leap into bed, he shifted back into his human form, the change complete by the time his skin touched the soft fabric of the bed sheets. The grace and beauty of the transition mesmerized Jodie, she loved watching him shape shift. Though he lay beside her, human, Jodie could still feel his energy lingering in the air. Hers on the other hand had vanished.

  “It went away!” She blurted.

  “I see that,” Danny’s voice had gone quiet.

  “Please don’t be mad at Zach,” Jodie begged. “It’s sort of admirable that he tried to save me.”

  “I’m not angry with Zach.”

  “I wanted to change, I just couldn’t. I couldn’t get past my fear.”

  Danny sighed. “I’m not angry with you either, I’m mad at myself. I usually have better control of my beasts. You do things to me Jodie; you have an incredible effect on me, I’ve never felt anything like it.”

  “Is it a bad thing?”

  “I hope not,” he forced a smile. “I guess I have some things left to learn about Therianthropy after all.”

  Touching his head where Zach had hit him with the guitar, Jodie’s heart tightened. He had a nasty bruise there but she knew it would be gone by morning. Danny repositioned himself and snuggled closer to her. Even though he’d changed forms three times in the last ten to fifteen minutes, Jodie could smell his shower-gel. What a strange thing... she marveled at how that was even possible, silent laughter filling her mind. The man had just turned into two different species of wild animal and she questioned the fact that he smelled clean... As she drifted off to sleep, Jodie decided she really liked the smell of his soap.

  Chapter 20

  Over the next week Jodie tried several times to get in touch with her gran, but Irene refused her phone calls. The nurses told Jodie that she was resting, in the shower, or some other barely plausible excuse. Jodie knew that given the times she’d phoned, at least some of those claims had to be lies. She would have to go down there if she hoped to get any answers.

  Upon arrival the staff told her that Irene didn’t feel well and didn’t want any visitors. Well that’s just fantastic, the only person who could help me doesn’t seem to want to know about it. Jodie had assumed that since
she’d seen her in leopard form, Irene would be more receptive. Did she really think I wouldn’t figure it out? Jodie couldn’t make up her mind. Not that it mattered; if she couldn’t talk to Irene, everything was moot anyway.

  Danny took Jodie to the movies Saturday afternoon, and on Sunday they went to her parents’ place for lunch. She’d hoped that they would get a romantic evening somewhere in the middle, but Danny’s two jobs kept him busy. The next week proved quiet at home and busy at work for Jodie. It felt as though things had reached some kind of normality at last.

  A couple of weeks after Irene’s leopard visit at the house, Jodie got a call from Danny telling her of General Lancaster’s impending arrival on Friday. The Furnace would be closed to the general public for the night as the entire Urewera Unit would be there, along with a few other people from Head Office and the new recruits. Jodie’s nerves twitched at once.

  The event required formal dress, so Jodie borrowed an evening gown from Ainsley. It cast a long silhouette in a very pale shade of blue, the fitted bodice area accentuating her curves and bust-line, while the slinky skirt cascaded to the floor with a regal elegance. She wore a sterling silver necklace with a small sapphire pendant, and earrings to match. Everything coordinated, down to the silver strappy heels. Jodie had never felt so glamorous.

  Ready with time to spare, Jodie sat at the dining table to wait. Zach kept glancing at her over the top of his newspaper and Jodie wished he would stop because it made her feel uncomfortable. After what seemed to be an eternity, the sound of tires on gravel could be heard. A car came up the driveway but it couldn’t be Danny, she’d have heard his car before it even neared the house with its low rumble.

  Rushing to the porch, purse in hand, Jodie stared at Eddie’s SUV. Why was Eddie picking her up? Where the hell is Danny? With her heart rate accelerating, Jodie jogged over to the car and found that Adam and Doug were also in the vehicle. Adam gave her a friendly smile from the front passenger seat as she hoisted up her skirts and climbed in.