Thirteen

The evening sun dipped in the west, barely visible through the trees surrounding the small community of Bull Creek. A cool breeze whispered through the branches, rustling the leaves as Adira eased her way along the trail following the panther as he led her to where he knew the wards needed to be placed. It was hard not to be mesmerized by the feline’s lithe body as he meandered through the woods, keeping his gaze bouncing around their surroundings. A smile spread across her face, knowing he protected her, keeping an eye out for Bane and his coyotes. After her run-in with Bane’s thugs last night, Dimitri would not take any chances. She couldn’t say that his over-protectiveness upset her. Not this time, anyway. In fact, if she were to say anything at all, it would be that his protective nature made her sex throb. If they didn’t have to get the wards up so quickly, she would have loved for him to take her right there in the woods, driving his cock into her, spreading her open before him.

Adira took a deep breath, shaking the distracting thoughts out of her mind. It didn’t work.

She watched as the tawny panther sniffed the ground in front of him, the sound of his padded feet soft as they made their way through the woods, stepping over fallen logs and through bushes. She placed a couple of wards as Dimitri led her around the perimeter, setting the spell into motion as she did, her eyes closed, her power radiating from her hand, pulsing into the stone she positioned on the ground. They appeared natural, the stones she used. No one who saw them would think them anything other than that they were common rocks found in the woods. The stones would also go unnoticed, another aspect she added to her spell. They didn’t need children picking up her wards and using them as skipping stones in the nearby St. Johns River. No, the wards would go unnoticed until she needed to recharge them. At that time, a simple location spell would show her where they had placed them, and she could reapply the spell.

She placed another one on the soil around a giant oak, squatting as she did, one hand on her knee as the other placed her ward in place. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes and setting the spell. When she opened her eyes, Dimitri’s panther sat beside her, his head cocked to the side as he stared at her with his deep green-gold eyes. Adira reached out and stroked behind his ears, loving the way he pushed into her hand as if begging for her to scratch harder, the panther’s purrs melting her heart. “I see you’re greedy in both of your forms,” she said with a giggle, giving him the scratching he wanted. She looked down at the bag at her feet. “Five more stones and then we’re all set. Shall we get this over with?”

Dimitri pushed at her palm, then leaned his head back and licked the back of her hand, bringing images of the places where his human tongue had been. Forcing herself back into a standing position, she took a deep breath. She didn’t need to get distracted by what his tongue could be doing to her pussy right then, or his cock pounding into her, his hands digging into her flesh. No, she needed to get the rest of the stones set. Then she could think about his hardness claiming her.

However, as she took a few steps, she heard rustling coming from up ahead. The panther’s ears flipped back as he hunched down, ready to spring. Adira stopped walking, dropping the bag near her feet as she allowed her arms to go straight down, her fingers flared outward, ready to summon her power if needed. She only hoped the shards of her power would be enough. The way Dimitri acted, she assumed it would be necessary.

From out of the woods in front of them stepped Bane with two of his thugs. Augur, from last night at Everglades, was one of them. Adira spread her legs slightly, bracing herself for what was sure to be a scuffle of some sort. She glanced down at the panther, but Dimitri showed no sign of shifting back to his human form. Probably better for fighting. Fangs. Claws. Definitely better than fisticuffs.

Bane grinned at them as his thugs stepped to either side of him, yet still slightly behind their leader. They were ready to spring to his defense, but Adira doubted the gray-haired man needed anyone standing up for him. “My, my, look what we have here, boys,” Bane said, his head cocked to the side. “Our neighborhood witch is out walking her kitty cat.”

“Do you have to pick up after a cat like you do a dog when you take them for a walk?” Augur asked.

“I don’t think so,” the unknown guy answered. “Don’t cats usually cover their shit with dirt when they’re done? I think I heard that somewhere.”

Adira didn’t smile. “Your bitches seem to have an odd obsession with animal feces. Don’t take them out much, do you?”

Bane’s smile disappeared. “Be careful how you talk about coyotes, witch.”

“I wasn’t talking about coyotes,” she said. “I was talking about your little bitches there. You know, the ones who like to get rough with women in bars. Pretty sad, really. I guess their normal pickup lines just weren’t successful, so they resorted to bullying. Over-compensating? Pitiful.”

Bane narrowed his eyes at her, his voice low, threatening. She could hear the growl of his coyote underneath. “Just because you have powers, doesn’t make you any better than any other human. You all need to go. Will go. This is shifter land, no matter how hard your little pet there tries to make it more…”

“Diverse?” Adira filled in for him before he could finish his sentence.

“Polluted,” Bane said with a sneer. “You need to get the rest of your vagabonds and move to the city. I’m sure your kind will appreciate the comforts of tourist town more than Bull Creek. These woods are off limits to your ilk.”

“Haven’t you made that threat already?” she asked. “And yet, we’re still here.”

“Not for long, I assure you.”

The panther let out a hiss as he stepped toward Bane. Augur stepped toward the panther, his gray eyes narrowing as he let out a growl of his own. “Panthers can’t even growl or roar like a real animal,” Bane sneered. “They only hiss like pussies.”

The other man with them started to shift, his bones popping, twisting, shrinking as gray fur oozed from his body, his fingers stretching into paws, his fingernails into claws. Adira lived around shifters for most of her adult life, but she would never get used to seeing them transform from human to animal and back again.

As soon as the coyote finished shifting, he pounced, his claws aiming for the panther’s neck. Dimitri lunged at him, his scream filling the woods around them. Augur reached for Adira, his massive hands going for her arms. Obviously, he learned nothing from Everglades. She was sure he believed all women to be inferior and, therefore, an easy target. She relished disappointing him. He gripped her arm, expecting to jerk her to him, she was sure. With her other hand, she reached out, her fingers flared. Power lashed out as shards of blue sparks ripped from her fingers and into the thug’s body, sending him backward, his arms flailing in the air.

She turned to see Dimitri, but before she could focus, Bane gripped her arms, pinning them to her side. She stared into his face, his gray eyes burning into her with his intense hatred. “I told you to leave,” he snarled. “You really should have listened.” She saw his teeth shift, fangs forming. He planned to bite her! She tried to twist out of his grip, attempted to use her power, but it only sputtered. Fear gripped her, blocking her magic. She didn’t need to be bitten by a coyote.

Then Bane screamed, his grip on her arms loosening enough for her to jerk free. Dimitri pinned Bane’s leg in his jaws, clamping down, sinking his teeth into the man’s flesh. Adira stretched her arm out, her fingers wide as she shoved her power at Bane. No shards this time. A steady stream of blue flame shot from her fingers, hitting the larger man in the chest and hurling him up into the air and backward. He flew back five feet before his body slammed into the ground, driving his breath from his lungs.

Adira took a deep breath, readying her power again. A quick glance to the side revealed the coyote who sprang at Dimitri was dead, blood oozing from his throat. Augur started to climb back to his feet, but a quick burst from Adira sent him sprawling back on the ground, unconscious. Bane started to move, but Adira sent a blast of power to the ground beside him. “I wouldn’t, if I were you,” Adira threatened. “Someone of my ilk might just take it the wrong way. I mean, it’s not like you didn’t just attack us or anything.”

The panther stepped to her side, his head low as he hissed at the man on the ground. Blood dripped from his muzzle.

“Now, just in case you forgot what I said the other night, let me repeat it. I’m staying,” Adira said, her eyes narrow slits as she glared at the bully. “As are the humans who live here. As are any others who wish to remain in Bull Creek. And there isn’t a damn thing you or anyone else can do about it. If you can’t handle our kind being here, then I suggest you pack your shit and get out yourselves. You’re the ones not wanted here. I don’t care for bullies. Come at me, or anyone else here again, and I’ll shoot a blue spark right up your ass.”

Bane stared at her, his menace glowering on his face. “You haven’t seen bullying yet,” he spat. “If you won’t leave voluntarily, I’ll drive you out.”

The panther hissed, taking a step forward, but Adira placed her hand on his back, halting him. “You’ll try, you mean,” she said. “And I dare you to try. However, I promise you, you’ll lose. And I don’t mean just this battle.” She made sure her voice said everything her words didn’t.

She stroked Dimitri’s head as he nuzzled into her leg. Every stroke of his muzzle sent shivers throughout her body. She wasn’t sure if it was just his touch, the fact that her power didn’t fail her for once, or that together they just whipped Bane’s ass, but she needed to get back to her cabin and feel Dimitri’s cock spearing into her. Or perhaps it was everything combined. She pulled on the panther’s fur, tugging him back and away from the three on the ground. There were still five more wards to place, but they would have to wait. She needed Dimitri to fuck her. Now.