The Mercenary Read online

  Danny chuffed softly. He’s offering reassurance, now? It’s too late. Jodie felt both sad and angry. No, it’s more than that... She felt betrayed, how could Danny do this to her? She thought he loved her. Every piece of her felt like it was breaking apart and Jodie had no idea what to do. Hot angry tears sprang to her eyes as humiliation began to overwhelm her.

  When he saw that his encouraging sounds were being ignored, Danny growled, a sound Jodie never thought she would hear aimed at her. Covering her face with both arms, she did all she could to prevent him from nuzzling her. Letting loose huge gut wrenching sobs, Jodie gave one last feeble attempt to break free and escape but she failed.

  A rush of power exploded from Danny proliferating outward in all directions, leaving no corner of the room untouched. Even his comrades who had lived with him for several years seemed stunned. Jodie knew in that moment that Danny had never revealed his power to them in its full extent. She would have put money on the fact that General Lancaster had known exactly how powerful he was, he stood there like the cat that had the cream, enjoying every second.

  The power grabbed a hold of Jodie and just like that, she lost control of everything. She felt her energy merge with Danny’s like a key fitting into a lock. The heart breaking reality settled over her, Jodie knew she had to accept that she’d passed the point of no return. Danny’s power had found her very core, wrapped tight around her beast unwilling to let go. He tore the leopard out of her, brutally yanking it from her grasp.

  It felt as though Jodie’s skin had started turning inside out. Rufus and Danny had been correct, now that she had surrendered to the change, the pain melted away. That didn’t mean it was a pleasant experience by any stretch of the imagination, creepy unnerving sensations crawled up and down the length of her both inside and out. The dress split, ripping sounds echoing across the stage as her skin turned to fur, her limbs and body changing shape without any permission or guidance from Jodie. The beautiful necklace she’d been wearing snapped and bounced along the floor, forgotten in the chaos. Even her shoes had been unable to escape intact.

  Sitting there in her golden spotted glory, Jodie stared at the room of speechless onlookers. Listening as General Lancaster explained to them that she’d never shifted before; Jodie dared to catch her breath. Danny had so much Therian power that as her Eros he’d been able to draw the leopard from her despite the lack of blood bond. He also declared that what Jodie had to offer would be a fraction of what Luke possessed.

  What did that mean: what she had to offer? Am I just some prize to them? Horror began to set in, are they no better than the pigs? Lancaster asked if anyone in the room had any difficulty in taking orders from Captain Archer, nobody answered him.

  Danny nuzzled her again as he tried to comfort her, Jodie didn’t want to hear it. Scratching his face, she hissed at him and jumped down off the stage. With no idea how to change back to human and unable to get out of the building without assistance, Jodie went to Eddie.

  “Pirrrt?” She pleaded.

  “Oh Jodie.” He sighed and stroked the side of her face.

  She could feel his anguish and regret as she tugged at his sleeve, so Jodie chuffed a couple of times and padded over to the door, convinced he would help her. All eyes were still on her.

  Everywhere she went, the whole room watched and Eddie did not follow. Somewhere beneath it all, she understood this. Jodie couldn’t be allowed to run off into the night looking like she did. Her leopard did not like this, she felt so very angry.

  Danny approached her and tried again to subdue her, chuffing softly he placed himself between Jodie and the door. Jodie recoiled as he licked her, backing away until she felt herself bump against a wall. Once she had nowhere else to go, Jodie growled at Danny and scratched at him again. His thick furred tail swished back and forth, declaring his frustration.

  Though he held his ground, he’d made clear that he didn’t plan to allow Jodie any sort of dignity at all. She just couldn’t figure out what he hoped to achieve by chasing her all over the room. Jumping over him, the frightened leopard darted between the tables as she ran back to Eddie.

  When he wouldn’t help her, she went to Rufus. Licking at his hand, Jodie grew desperate. I have to get out of this place. I have to be somewhere, anywhere other than here! Rufus looked down at her, expression filled with sorrow. Jodie whined at him, a wordless begging as she fought to curb her desperation.

  “Kia kaha.” Rufus whispered, as he withdrew his hand.

  Be strong? Even in leopard form, Jodie could not get past what had just happened. Now inconsolable she looked for Danny, wary of his next attempt at placating her. Finding that he had followed her, Jodie spun around and ran. With nowhere to go she knew that she couldn’t get away, but her anger overrode her sense of reason. Leaping over the bar, Jodie sought to cower on the other side but ended up scaring the heck out of poor Summer. A Therian too, the fact that there were two leopards roaming about didn’t surprise Summer. She’d just been wary of Jodie attacking her in her panicked state and Jodie just wanted to get away from Danny.

  Danny jumped onto the bar. He lay down on the smooth cold countertop and changed forms, sliding into his larger sleeker tiger shape. Now Jodie felt confused, her leopard held no anger for this beast and nor did she love him. Padding out from behind the bar Jodie placed her wide front paws on the countertop, she didn’t want to be near Danny but her leopard’s curiosity had overtaken her reason. Looking up at him, she sniffed at the air, startling when he gave a loud roar in response. Jodie shrank back with a hiss and cowered on the floor.

  Danny dropped down and approached her. As soon as they made contact, Jodie forgot how to be a leopard. The beast retracted and she began to revert back to her human form.

  Well aware of her nudity, Jodie burst into tears. Danny covered her with his body and growled at the room full of people but it was Adam who appeared with a blanket, causing Jodie’s estimation of him to go up several notches. He wrapped it around her and helped Jodie to her feet.

  “I’m going to take her home,” he announced.

  Danny let out another deafening roar. Jodie cringed and huddled against Adam, lacking the strength to endure any more.

  “I don’t care if you kick my ass later, this is fucked up,” he snapped at Danny.

  Eddie appeared beside them. “It’s for the best Danny,” he said, agreeing with Adam.

  Adam picked Jodie up blanket and all, carrying her down the alley to the SUV, Eddie right beside him. Jodie thought she’d pulled herself together until the vehicle began to move away from the curb. She burst into tears again and this time she couldn’t stop. Her whole world had turned upside down, everything she thought she knew had vanished the moment she shifted. Nothing mattered anymore, she didn’t think she would ever feel whole again. Adam held Jodie as Eddie drove, rubbing her back as she sobbed into his chest.

  Eddie turned down her street and Jodie had a panic attack. “I don’t want to go home, I can’t! Don’t leave me there!”

  “We can’t take her to our place.”

  Adam had a point, Jodie did not want to be anywhere near Danny.

  “We’ll have to try Ainsley and Laura’s,” Eddie decided, making a U-turn.

  Both Ainsley and Laura were home along with Jessie, who had friends over. Adam stayed with Jodie in the car, leaving Eddie to go in alone. He took a long time and Jodie started to fret again as the nights events replayed in her mind. When he returned at last, Ains came with him, an overnight bag slung over her shoulder.

  Though grateful to see her, Jodie sagged with disappointment. Ainsley wouldn’t understand what she had just been through, Jodie wouldn’t be able to talk about it and didn’t think she had it in her to pretend everything was wonderful. Why couldn’t he have brought Laura? Jodie could have told her the whole thing. Much as she loved Ainsley, Jodie didn’t think she would be able to help at all. Silly Eddie.

  Ainsley climbed into the back seat, sandwiching Jodie between Adam and h
erself. Putting her arms around Jodie, she squeezed tight. Despite the level of her freak out, it did make a difference, Ainsley hugs were worth their weight in gold. Adam had done a great job of helping Jodie keep it together but he’d done nothing to repair her fragility, one hug from Ainsley and a large portion of Jodie’s sanity returned. Both Ains and Adam continued to hold her as they drove and by the time they reached the Fortress, Jodie had stopped shivering.

  Nobody else had come home yet, so Eddie did a quick scout around before they got out of the vehicle. Satisfied that no immediate threats lurked nearby, Adam and Ainsley escorted Jodie into the house. They sat down in the living room and Ainsley dug around in her overnight bag. She must have brought something for Jodie to wear. Bless her heart. How could Jodie ever tell her what she’d done to the dress and jewelry she’d borrowed?

  Jodie coped well until she saw the globes hanging above the fireplace. Beginning to hyperventilate, Jodie hiccupped and the tears began all over again. Eddie followed her gaze and understood right away.

  “Ains, perhaps Jodie could do with a nice hot bath,” he suggested.

  Ainsley nodded. Collecting up her bag, she linked arms with Jodie and made her way toward the door. Numb to the core, Jodie allowed herself to be led to the bathroom. Ainsley hummed as she poured in some bubble bath and filled the tub. She wrenched the blanket free of Jodie’s grasp and helped her to climb into the steamy depths.

  Jodie lay back with her head on the bath pillow, bubbles up to her shoulders. Ainsley wet a facecloth and dabbed at Jodie’s hairline with it. The slow gentle movements relaxed her and the warm cloth felt wonderful on her sweaty, tearstained face and neck.

  Ains kept dipping the cloth in the water, squeezing it out and beginning again. She never once asked Jodie to explain what she had been doing naked in a car with Eddie and Adam, she didn’t ask anything at all. The soft soothing sound of Ainsley’s voice in song comforted Jodie as she sponged her face. She had never appreciated Ainsley’s ability to block out trauma before, now she almost envied it. Ains had done a fantastic job of helping her get it together and while Jodie hadn’t opened her mouth once, neither had Ainsley. Jodie didn’t feel pressure to think about what she’d just endured, nor did she have to relive any of it by telling anyone what had happened. Jodie then decided Eddie had known precisely what he was doing by bringing Ains instead of Laura. He wasn’t silly at all; he was a very smart man.

  Closing her eyes, Jodie lay back and tried to suppress the trauma she had suffered. Not allowing herself to fall asleep, Jodie blocked out her surroundings. At some point Ainsley stopped sponging her face, but by then Jodie didn’t mind. She felt content to keep resting with her eyes shut.

  Jodie had no idea how long she lay there soaking in the steamy depths, the moment seemed endless. The sound of the door startled her out of her meditation and in that sudden moment of clarity, she opened her eyes. Ainsley had returned with a towel and some clothes, she waited as Jodie toweled off and dressed herself. Opening the door again, Ains put her arm around Jodie and led her to Eddie’s room.

  “I’ve changed the sheets and tidied up a bit,” she told her. “And I’ll stay with you as long as you need.”

  “Eddie...” Jodie began with a vague expression.

  Sleeping in his room seemed wrong for so many reasons.

  “Eddie will sleep in the living room.”

  Ainsley threw back the covers and beckoned to Jodie. Climbing in, she scooted across the bed and waited for Ainsley to climb in beside her. Jodie watched as she busied herself with the covers, drawing them up around them both and fussing as she would over a child. Ains lay down so close that Jodie could feel the rise and fall of her breathing and draped an arm around her. It could have been awkward but Ains was like a sister to her and Jodie felt grateful of the comfort.

  Chapter 21

  Jodie woke up drenched in sweat, heart racing as she adjusted to her surroundings. Ainsley stood crying on the far side of the room, turned away from where Adam and Eddie were holding Jodie down. Once her eyes adjusted to the darkness Jodie could see the rippling of her skin, her body trying to transform again. Panicked at the mere thought of a repeat performance, she began shrieking and thrashing about.

  “Shit, is she strong or what?” Adam exclaimed, grunting as he fought to stop Jodie from breaking free.

  “Jodie, relax, it’s just us. You’re safe babe,” Eddie’s rich mellow voice grounded her, bringing her back to reality.

  Eddie knelt behind Jodie with both arms wrapped around her shoulders, her body bent at an odd angle as she lay over his lap. Adam sat with his weight on his knees, straddling her shins, with both his hands gripping her legs mid-thigh. Jodie stopped fighting them and lay still, unable to stop trembling like a leaf and heaving great soul wrenching sobs.

  “Danny’s a bloody idiot.” Eddie growled.

  “I won’t tell him you said that.” Adam muttered.

  “Are you going to lie still now?” Eddie asked of Jodie, his voice stern though not unkind.

  With a nod she sucked in a breath and they released her. In the corner Ainsley’s sobs had descended into soft whimpers, Jodie could tell how hard she tried to be brave. The moment the hysteria had subsided she composed herself and approached the bed. Jodie sat up in the bed, holding out her arms in invitation. Ains engulfed her in a hug and squeezed tight, they cried together for a few minutes but the contact helped. Eventually Ains drew away, hiding her large dark eyes beneath lowered lashes.

  “I’m so sorry Ains, I didn’t mean to – “

  “It’s not your fault!” She interjected, curling and uncurling her fists. “I didn’t know what to do - I didn’t know how to help, so I called Eddie and Adam.”

  “You did the right thing.” Eddie said, moving closer to kiss her, cradling her in a tender embrace. As Ains snuggled in with relief, he looked back at Jodie. “I’m sorry babe, you should have had at least twelve hours before your leopard attempted to come out a second time. We shouldn’t have left you but we just didn’t expect this to happen so soon.”

  “I don’t think we want to risk that happening again.” Adam decided, his dark eyes seeking Eddie’s approval. His wet blonde hair stood up in spikes all over his head, indicating that he’d just showered. Jodie hoped she hadn’t caused too much disruption with her dramatics.

  “Would you mind staying in here tonight?”

  Jodie prepared to respond when she realized that Eddie had been talking to Adam. Do I want Adam in the same bed with me? She could feel another panic coming on.

  “No... I’m happy to do it but I don’t feel right being alone in a bed with her.” Adam replied.

  Eddie sighed and dry-washed his face. “Well it will be a squeeze but I guess we could all stay. Is that all right with you Ains or would you like to sleep somewhere else?”

  “If you’re staying, I’ll stay too,” she insisted. The heart-warming trust she had in Eddie touched Jodie, that Ains wanted to be there for her despite how terrified she must have been.

  So that was that. Adam shrugged out of his shirt and moved over to the far side of the bed. Jodie climbed in next, followed by Eddie and then Ainsley. They were lucky Eddie had such an enormous bed or it would never have worked.

  Eddie placed his back to Jodie and cuddled with Ainsley but poor Adam didn’t know what to do with his hands. He did his best to be a gentleman though it wasn’t easy in such a confined space.

  Jodie woke from nightmares three more times that night on the verge of shifting, fortunate to have both Eddie and Adam there. When in this state Jodie could be liable to try to claw her own face off or something else equally unthinkable.

  During one of these occasions, Danny’s voice could be heard on the other side of the door. He yelled all kinds of obscene things furious that he couldn’t get in, Eddie having had locked the door from the inside. Jodie felt glad it was a strong door.

  Eddie and Adam shared their energies with Jodie, which helped. She didn’t know if it would hav
e been possible to stop the change if she’d been alone, in fact she doubted it very much. Their power didn’t bond with Jodie the way Danny’s had but it still calmed her. At last Jodie managed to relax and her leopard made no more appearances. The realization that she would get some rest at last conjured fresh tears but Jodie fell asleep before they could be shed.

  Ainsley and Eddie had already gone when Jodie awoke in the morning. Next to her in the bed, Adam lay sound asleep, snoring now and then. Jodie had a dilemma, should she stay here with Adam and pretend she hadn’t woken up or should she venture out into the house and risk running into Danny?

  Jodie noticed the small slide-bolt drawn across the door, wondering how long ago the other two had left and how long Adam had been asleep since. He looked so serene when he slept, his features unmarred by the burdens of his occupation. This proved how often his worry and concern consumed him, it seemed sad that he had such a dicult life so young.

  Jodie rolled over and tried to go back to sleep but her brain would not rest. She just wanted to go home, but she had no idea how she could make that happen. Still very traumatized by the previous night’s events, Jodie didn’t think she wanted to be alone either. However, if she even so much as glimpsed Danny, Jodie knew she’d have another meltdown. There just didn’t seem to be a perfect solution. It’s all wrong.

  After fifteen minutes Jodie had started to go out of her mind, she couldn’t stand to be alone with her thoughts a second longer and she also needed to pee. Deciding to risk everything and open the door, Jodie jumped out of the bed before she could change her mind. Her face fell as she saw Danny coming out of his room at the exact moment she emerged. She froze and for a moment, forgot how to breathe.

  “Jodie!” He exclaimed.

  Quickly ducking back into the room Jodie shut the door. Before she could bolt it, Danny tried to force his way in.

  “Adam!” She shrieked.