A terrifying roar vibrates across my skin, raising every last hair on my arms. Clenching my jaw, a primeval urge to stay extremely still takes over. I curse the slight sway of my body, torn between leaving it be and using my hands to steady myself. I shiver, and my breath mists the air as the temperature drops, my shorts and summer halter top offering little protection. Scanning the smog for the source of a sudden steady, rhythmic growling, I risk using my fingers to spin myself around. Hot breath passes over the base of my exposed neck. Ignoring the pain, I grind my short nails into the concrete in an attempt to stop spinning. It’s not enough. My eyes remain wide open as I await my fate.
Two sets of solid black orbs hover inches from my face. Blindly, I reach behind me to grasp Eve’s hand as she continues to sob quietly.
“Guard her!” Expensive Shoes barks.
A grunt sounds from one of the creatures, blowing a decaying animal odor in my face. I swallow the burning bile boiling its way into my mouth. An extended snout pushes into my hair, earning it a nip to its neck from its twin. It pulls away with a snarl. Both creatures have four sets of sharp black fangs that hang over pale, translucent skin pulled tightly over bone. A familiar pair of sneakers lies underneath one of the beasts’ bellies.
My eyes widen. “Beat-up Sneaks?” Large, triangular, pointed ears angled toward the back of its body twitch in response. I glance at the second creature, confirming my suspicions when a pair of pink stilettos sits upright before it. I’m processing the ridiculous notion that two people have turned into unidentifiable canine creatures when blue fire whizzes underneath my dangling head to lodge firmly in one beast’s gut. Stunned, my mouth gapes open. What I fail to realize is I’m about to be covered in demon dog, so when he explodes, I get a mouthful of barbequed meat.
I’m still spitting it out when I feel eight sharp points vibrating against my neck as the rhythmic growling begins again. I freeze. Obsidian pupils glare at me in accusation.
The sensation of something otherworldly prickles across my body. An electric-blue flame concentrated into a fist-sized ball circles the room, looking for its target like a heat-seeking missile. The beast applies more pressure. Two points sting as they pierce my throat. I hiss—a senseless reaction, as it pushes the fangs deeper.
Closing my eyes, I attempt to shut out the danger and run through the ways we could get out of this alive, but my fantasies are interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps.
I drop Eve’s hand; she whimpers in protest.
“Play dead,” I whisper. Surprisingly, she becomes silent. I let myself go limp.
“Heel,” a deep, masculine voice rumbles. The beast snarls around my throat. I continue to play opossum, but my heart beats double time. “You were warned,” the same voice growls. A slight scrape against my neck and an animalistic whine make me rip my eyes open. The blue fire is attached to the rear of the beast, dragging it out of sight through the smoke.
I tremble as silence surrounds me like a precursor to my death. Then I jump as a seemingly disembodied hand grazes my ankle. Swinging up, keeping my core tight, I manage to head-butt him in his crotch, providing me with a small window of time to steal the holster on his waist.
Gasping, I drop the gun as my foot swings down, striking his head. He stumbles away. He must have inadvertently released one of my feet, and I’m now in a vertical split pose. If I wasn’t a dancer who’d recently been in rehearsal, I would be in some serious pain.
“Fuck. You could be a little more grateful,” his deep voice grumbles.
I blink at the newcomer and grab the sleeve of his long brown leather coat, pivoting on my foot. Warm chocolate brown eyes partially hidden by unruly, dark, wavy hair meet mine. Despite being upright, this guy is staring down at me—he’s at least six-foot-three compared to my five-foot-six.
Stubble outlines his strong jaw. I’m not sure if it’s intentional, but it suits him.
Eve stands up, and relief floods through me. She wobbles but manages a small smile.
I grip his firm biceps. “Please tell me you don’t think I’m an alien.”
He grins. “Why? Has the mothership not come to rescue you yet?”
I slap his arm, laughing. “No way! I was thinking you were the mothership! Wait. Is this really happening, or am I still dangling upside down with Beat-up Sneaks, Expensive Shoes, and Pink Stilettos having bizarre delusions of rescue?”
He chuckles, moving my hands to his chest, and stretches to release my other ankle. “No, you’re very much being rescued. As for the strange delusions, I’m not sure. I’m assuming you’re referring to the shoes as people?” He picks up one of the discarded sneakers, pauses, then gives me a closer look. I squirm; I feel like I’m in an X-Ray machine. “Huh. Aren’t you a little too calm for being kidnapped?”
Eve grasps one of my hands, moving it from his chest to her shoulder; her fingers remain threaded with mine. Her smile wobbles, and tears form in her eyes. As they fall, they mix with the blood dripping from her forehead. “She’s a bit odd. Doesn’t really seem to process danger like the mere mortals we are.”
The guy guides my foot to the floor as I huff, “I admit it is a weird personality trait. The more stressful the situation, the more sarcastic I get.”
The stranger opens his mouth to reply, but Expensive Shoes, who suddenly comes into view as the fog dissipates, speaks first.
“Duncan. It’s been…”
“Too long,” my rescuer—who I assume is Duncan—mumbles, spinning around toward the familiar voice. I take a step backward and brace myself, then my mouth drops open in shock. Gone is the handsome man with striking green eyes. In his place stands a leering beast of a man. Inky tattoos slither across his chest and down his arms, which end in long-fingered hands with dangerous hooked claws.
“Lawrence,” Duncan states, his tone bored and his posture relaxed. Lawrence grins, showing the same black fangs as his demon dogs.
“What the fuck?” I mutter, my mind reaching its quota for craziness this month. Eve clasps my hand and hides behind me, her entire body trembling.
Lawrence’s curious gaze flicks to me. He tilts his head to the side. “I can see you now, my little Iris. What are you?”
I point at him as he steps closer; Eve’s grip turns vise-like, so I can’t go far, even if I tried to run. “I think we’ve established you’re the ‘what’ here.”
Lawrence studies my finger for a second before dismissing me and addressing Duncan. “Can you see it?”
Duncan nods.
My gaze scans the room. “See what?”
“Is she yours?” Lawrence drawls.
“Yes,” Duncan replies stiffly, positioning himself closer to me.
My mouth drops open. “I’m most definitely not yours.”
Duncan sighs and rubs a hand over his face.
Lawrence laughs. “Then you won’t mind me taking her.”
Lawrence shoots across the room in a blur; a sickening crunch of bones sounds in my ear, and strong arms wrap around me, forcing the air out of my lungs. Black, curved claws dig into my ribs as the world starts to spin, and darkness blots the edges of my sight. We stumble as blue stars erupt in my vision, and everything comes to a sudden halt. A blue net of electrical sparks surrounds me and Lawrence.