End of Night, page 24
She smiled at Hedra, the madness in it sending waves of cold rippling across Hedra’s body. “You don’t deserve him, Hedra.”
“Neither do you,” Hedra said.
“You have no fucking idea what you’re talking about,” Camilla snarled. “I deserve to have the Boone he is now. He was meant to be with me, and the only reason he isn’t is because of you.”
“You tried to kill me so you could get a boyfriend?” Hedra said. “Fucking lame, Camilla. You know you almost killed Boone, too, right?”
“That wasn’t supposed to happen,” Camilla said. “That was an accident. I would never hurt Boone.”
“You think killing me isn’t going to hurt him?” Hedra asked.
“He’ll get over it,” Camilla said dismissively. “Once you’re not around clouding his mind and making him believe he feels things he doesn’t, he’ll realize that he’s meant to be with me.”
“You’re wrong,” Hedra said.
“I’m not,” Camilla said.
They stared silently at each other before Camilla said, “Let’s go.”
“Where?” Hedra asked.
“To the tub,” Camilla said.
Hedra stared blankly at her. “What?”
“The tub,” Camilla said. “You’re about to get into a hot bath and cut your wrists, Hedra. Suicide is always a tragedy, and I don’t doubt that Boone will be upset but don’t worry, I’ll be there for him to help him through the grief.”
Hedra thought rapidly. Camilla had no idea the house was being watched, and no one would believe Hedra had killed herself, especially when Chase told Boone about Camilla’s visit. Of course, that wouldn’t help save her life right now, would it?
Her overwhelming fear drifted away to be replaced by cold acceptance. She stared at Camilla as a weird numbness settled in her bones. She might die today, but she would go down swinging.
“Move, human,” Camilla said.
“Fuck that,” Hedra said. “You think I’m going to make it that easy for you? You want me dead? You fucking do it yourself.”
Camilla made an impatient growl. “Stop being so difficult, human.”
Hedra barked harsh laughter. “You haven’t even begun to see how difficult I can be, you crazy asshole.”
The front door opened, and Camilla’s eyes widened. She inhaled deeply as surprise flickered across her face. “Boone?” she whispered. “He shouldn’t be here. He should be at work.”
A thin smile crossed Hedra’s face as joy soared through her. “You’re in so much fucking trouble now.”
Hedra bolted for the living room entrance, her elation deflating when Camilla lunged across the room and caught her easily. She yanked Hedra’s broken arm behind her back, and Hedra screamed shrilly as agony zig-zagged up her arm, and the pain drove her to her knees.
Boone appeared in the doorway. Orange fur sprouted on his face, and he crouched, growling loudly as his bones popped and cracked, and he started the shift.
Camilla yanked Hedra’s head back by her hair and pressed her claw-tipped fingers against her throat. Hedra sucked in a breath when they pierced her skin, and warm blood slid down her throat.
Camilla growled deep in her throat. “Shift and I’ll kill her, Boone.”
CHAPTER 28
Nothing could have prepared Boone to walk into his own home and smell the scent of his mate’s blood. He froze, his body already beginning to shift and his tiger roaring at the fear and pain in his mate’s voice when Hedra screamed shrilly.
Boone sprinted to the living room, crouching and growling at Camilla as adrenaline and fear rocketed through his veins.
“Shift, and I’ll kill her, Boone,” Camilla said with a deep growl.
Hedra was on her knees with Camilla’s claws at her throat. Fresh fear rolled over Boone and his tiger when he saw the bright red blood sliding down Hedra’s throat.
“Camilla,” Boone said as he pushed his tiger back, and his body returned to human, “what are you doing?”
“I didn’t want it to be this way,” Camilla said, genuine sorrow in her voice. “I really didn’t.”
Boone stared at Hedra. Her face was pale but composed, and he gave her a small smile. “It’ll be okay, little lamb.”
“Don’t,” Camilla said. “Don’t lie to her, Boone. You’re not doing her any favours.”
“You sent the texts, threatening notes, and cow tongue,” Boone said. “It was you who cut the brake lines.”
“It was,” Camilla said. “It was so easy, Boone. Do you know it was harder to find a cow’s tongue than to learn how to cut a person’s brake lines? How fucked up is that?”
“Jesus Christ, Camilla. Why?” Boone asked.
“Because she took you from me!” Camilla snarled.
“She didn’t. I was never yours,” Boone said.
Camilla growled, and Hedra made a soft whimper of pain as more blood dripped out to soak into the front of her t-shirt.
Boone held his hands up and shoved his tiger back when the beast tried to take control. If he shifted now, Camilla would kill his mate. “Camilla, just listen to me, okay?”
“No, it’s your time to listen to me,” Camilla said. “I love you, Boone. I always loved you, even when I left you. Even when I was angry and upset and didn’t understand why I couldn’t be enough for you. Why the memory of Derek was more important than me. It hurt me. But under that hurt, my love for you was still there.”
She smiled at him, her jade eyes glowing softly. “Of course, I told myself I was over you and, you know what? I really thought I’d moved on. I loved you, but I couldn’t be with you, not when your grief over that bastard Derek was the only thing that mattered to you.”
Her smile turned to a look of exasperation. “I understand grieving, but you acted like he was your mate, Boone. I mean, the carrying on and the crying got to be a little much, right?”
Boone stared steadily at her. “He was my mate, Camilla. Derek and I were in love.”
Disgust crept across her face before she sighed loudly. “Stop lying. You think pretending you fucked a guy will change my feelings for you, but it doesn’t. We were together for nine months. I know you. You can’t keep secrets from me. If you were gay, I would have known.”
“It’s the truth,” Boone said.
She shook her head, anger flickering across her features. “Stop it! Right now! Don’t be gross, Boone.”
She took a deep breath, her free hand stroking Hedra’s hair as she studied her claws lightly embedded in Hedra’s throat. “I was angry with you for so long, and when I saw you at Abena’s, I’ll admit that my first thought wasn’t how much I still loved you. My anger and my hurt had buried it deep. But then you… you apologized so sincerely, and the more time we spent together, the more I realized that you really were in a better place. I saw the Boone I was meant to be with.”
His gaze dropped to Hedra, and Camilla growled loudly. “Stop looking at her. I’m your mate, Boone. Not her. Me.”
His tiger growling continuously and his fear for his mate making it hard to think straight, Boone tried to stay calm. He was being a fucking idiot. The best thing to do - the only thing to do - was to agree with Camilla and get her the fuck away from Hedra before she sliced her throat open in front of him.
“You’re right,” Boone said. “I’m supposed to be with you, Camilla. So, why don’t you let Hedra go, and you and I will walk out of here right now. We’ll start fresh. We’ll go somewhere new where no one knows us, and we can be together.”
Her nostrils flared, and she gave him a look of contempt. “I love you, Boone, but don’t think for a fucking minute that I’m stupid because of it. I know you don’t mean that.”
She took a deep breath, letting it out on a soft purr. “You shouldn’t have come home. Why didn’t you stay at work? It would have been quick and fast for Hedra if you hadn’t come home. Now? Now, it’s gonna be messy.”
“If you kill her, I’ll kill you,” Boone said. “You won’t walk out of this fucking room, Camilla.”
She swallowed hard. “You don’t mean that.”
“The fuck I don’t,” Boone said.
Camilla’s bottom lip trembled, and Boone could smell the fear radiating from her. “I’m doing this for us, Boone. We can’t be together with her around.”
“Yes, we can,” Boone said steadily. “Let her go, and I’ll be with you. Simple.”
“You lie,” Camilla said.
Boone shook his head. “No, I’m not. I’ll be your mate, Camilla. I swear. But if you kill Hedra, your life ends too. Right here in this goddamn room.”
“Stand up,” Camilla said to Hedra before yanking on her hair.
Hedra stood, wincing when Camilla pulled her claws from her throat, and blood bubbled out from the holes in her throat. Boone stepped forward, and Camilla pressed her claws against Hedra’s throat again. “Don’t, Boone. I’ll slit her throat and walk out of this house while you’re trying to save your precious mate’s life.”
Boone growled but didn’t move as Camilla studied him before jerking her chin toward the fireplace. “Go stand over there, Boone.”
“What are you doing, Camilla?” Boone asked.
Camilla circled, keeping Hedra between them as he moved toward the fireplace. “We’re leaving.”
“No, you’re fucking not,” he growled.
She shook her head when he started forward, tracing one claw across the delicate skin of Hedra’s throat. “Stop, Boone.”
“It’s okay, Boone,” Hedra said as Camilla propelled her backwards toward the living room door.
“Camilla, don’t fucking do this,” Boone said.
Camilla stopped in the doorway, staring solemnly at him. “You’re making me do this, Boone. I’ll take your mate somewhere quiet, and I’ll make her death quick and as painless as possible, I promise. Once you’re done grieving, we’ll find each other again, I know it. We’ll finally be mates, Boone. You’ll see that you and I were meant for each other.”
“Camilla,” Boone said as his tiger growled and made another desperate push for control. “If you love me, you won’t do this.”
“I’m doing this because I love you,” she said. “Why can’t you see that?”
His fear a living clawing thing inside of him, Boone stared at Hedra. “Little lamb.”
She smiled at him, but he could smell the sour tang of her fear and sorrow. “I love you, Boone.”
“I love you too,” he said.
“Stop it,” Camilla said, raising her hand high above her head with her claws gleaming in the light. “Stop acting like she’s your mate, or I’ll end her life right here. I swear to -”
Camilla stiffened, and Boone smelled his nan’s scent only seconds before she leaped onto Camilla’s back and sunk her fangs into her throat.
“Hedra, move!” Boone roared.
Hedra tore away from Camilla, and Boone grabbed her, shoving her behind him as the leopard shifter screamed. Blood sprayed as Nan, growling ferociously, tore a chunk of flesh from the side of Camilla’s throat. Nan dropped nimbly to her feet as Camilla clamped her hand across her neck and staggered into the living room. She stared wide-eyed at Boone, a soft, ragged growl rising from her throat before she dropped to her knees.
With a harsh groan, she fell on her side, her chest heaving for air and her body covered in a thin coat of yellow fur.
“Hedra!” Boone spun around, cupping Hedra’s face and tilting up her head. He examined her throat, sighing with relief when the wounds appeared fairly shallow. “Baby, are you okay?”
She nodded, her eyes huge and her face the colour of mountain snow. “Wh-what just happened?”
“Nan just happened,” he said grimly before turning around.
His grandmother stood in the doorway, her frail body bigger than normal and orange fur covering her face. She growled, her eyes glowing bright jade before she licked the blood from her lips and made another soft growl of triumph.
“Delicious,” she muttered, her voice low and distorted. She lifted her lip, growling and baring her fangs at Camilla. “I want more.”
She started toward Camilla, her clothes straining as her body grew larger with the shift.
“Nan, stop!” Boone grabbed her, forcing himself not to whimper like a cub when Nan turned her terrible, hot gaze on him.
She growled, and his tiger immediately retreated before his grandmother’s rage.
“Stop, Nan,” Boone repeated. “It’s over. Please, stop.”
To his relief, his grandmother’s eyes cleared, the anger dissipating as her body returned to its normal size and the fur on her face disappeared.
“Boonie? Are you okay?”
“Yes,” he said. “Are you?”
“Fine,” she said. “Is your mate hurt?”
He turned, his heart dropping to the fucking floor when Hedra was gone.
“Hedra!” he shouted, his panic dialed up to a fucking thousand. “Baby, where are you?”
“Here, I’m here.” She hurried into the living room with a stack of dishtowels in her good hand. She pushed past Boone and Nan and knelt beside Camilla, rolling her onto her back before pressing two folded dishtowels against her neck. Blood had pooled onto the floor, and Hedra grimaced before pressing harder. “Call 9-1-1.”
Boone stared at his nan, who gave him a look of ruthless indifference.
“Boone!” Hedra snapped. “Call 9-1-1, she’s bleeding out.”
“She would have killed you without a second thought, human,” Nan said.
“We aren’t like her,” Hedra said. “Boone, please.”
He pulled out his phone and dialed 9-1-1 as his mate, her face still pale, added a third dishtowel to the pile against Camilla’s neck before saying, “Hold on, Camilla.”
“I know I keep saying this over the past few days, but Nan… Nan took Camilla down.” Chase took a swallow of beer. “You and Hedra aren’t pulling my fucking leg, are you, Boone?”
Boone shook his head. “No.”
“She’s eighty-two and has a broken hip,” Chase said.
“Eighty-four,” Grayson corrected, “and her hip was healed.”
“Even if it hadn’t been healed, I doubt that would have stopped her,” Wes said.
“I know it wouldn’t have stopped her,” Cooper said.
Chase studied the four of them. “So, you’re telling me that Nan is a fucking badass.”
Grayson nodded. “Yup.”
Cooper raised his beer bottle. “To Nan, the biggest, baddest bitch in town.”
“To Nan,” the others echoed, clinking their bottles together before drinking.
“Question,” Grayson said. “Are all celebrity personal assistants batshit crazy? Because this is twice now that we’ve had one try to kill us or our mate.”
“Maybe it’s a requirement of the job,” Wes said.
The others laughed, but Boone couldn’t muster more than a chuckle. He didn’t think he’d ever find anything even remotely amusing about how close Camilla had come to killing Hedra.
Grayson nudged him. “Sorry, man, I shouldn’t be making light of this.”
“It’s fine,” Boone said. “It’s just, you know… Hedra is my everything, and I almost lost her because of my stupidity.”
“Bullshit,” Cooper said. “It’s not your fault that Camilla is how she is.”
“Do we know that for sure?” Boone said. “Because maybe the way I treated her did this to her, and if that’s the case, then this is absolutely my fault.”
“Yeah, about that, I had Lusa do some digging into Camilla’s past,” Cooper said. “You aren’t the first man she’s obsessed over.”
“Are you shitting me right now?” Boone asked.
“Nope,” Cooper said. “Before the two of you got together, she lived in Mexico.”
“Yeah, I know. She told me she’d lived there for a few years,” Boone said.
“What she didn’t tell you was that when she lived in Mexico, she went under the name Alicia Vanden. She was in a relationship with a lion shifter, and when he broke it off with her, she stalked him for weeks. He had a restraining order filed against her, and when she violated it by breaking into his house and they issued an arrest warrant, she fled Mexico and came here under her new name - Camilla Crane.”
“Holy fuck,” Boone breathed.
“Yeah,” Cooper said. “Your grief over Derek’s loss driving Camilla away was a blessing in disguise.”
“Yeah.” Boone rubbed a hand through his hair.
“Is she out of the ICU yet?” Grayson asked.
Boone nodded. “Yes, she’s been transferred to the infirmary at the Glassett Correctional Center for Women while she waits for her arraignment. The prosecutor is charging her with criminal harassment and,” he swallowed hard, “attempted murder in the first degree.”
“Good,” Wes said.
“The prosecutor believes she’ll plead guilty by reason of insanity,” Boone said. He took another drink of beer, ignoring the loud laughter of the lynx shifters gathered at a table near theirs.
“If the shoe fits,” Chase said.
“As long as she’s locked up for good, I don’t care if it’s a mental health facility or a prison,” Boone said. “I just don’t want her free to hurt my mate again.”
Grayson squeezed his shoulder. “She won’t be. Have you spoken to Abena Nkosi yet?”
Boone nodded. “Yeah, I went to see her a couple of days after. She was in a lot of shock over it and kept apologizing to me like it was her fault or something. I told her repeatedly it wasn’t, but I’m not sure I did a great job reassuring her. But Hedra and I are having dinner with her tomorrow night, and I think Hedra will do a better job of it.”
“Speaking of your mate,” Wes said with the soft grin reserved for his mate Eleanor.
Boone twisted in his seat, his tiger purring and trilling when he saw Hedra, Ryan, Daisy, and Eleanor pushing through the crowded pub. He stood, pressing a kiss against Hedra’s mouth. “Hello, my mate.”
“Hi, honey.” She smiled at him as he pulled out the empty chair beside him. She sat down as the others did the same. She grabbed his beer and took a long drink. “How was work?”
“Fine. How did your interview go?” he asked.
“Neither do you,” Hedra said.
“You have no fucking idea what you’re talking about,” Camilla snarled. “I deserve to have the Boone he is now. He was meant to be with me, and the only reason he isn’t is because of you.”
“You tried to kill me so you could get a boyfriend?” Hedra said. “Fucking lame, Camilla. You know you almost killed Boone, too, right?”
“That wasn’t supposed to happen,” Camilla said. “That was an accident. I would never hurt Boone.”
“You think killing me isn’t going to hurt him?” Hedra asked.
“He’ll get over it,” Camilla said dismissively. “Once you’re not around clouding his mind and making him believe he feels things he doesn’t, he’ll realize that he’s meant to be with me.”
“You’re wrong,” Hedra said.
“I’m not,” Camilla said.
They stared silently at each other before Camilla said, “Let’s go.”
“Where?” Hedra asked.
“To the tub,” Camilla said.
Hedra stared blankly at her. “What?”
“The tub,” Camilla said. “You’re about to get into a hot bath and cut your wrists, Hedra. Suicide is always a tragedy, and I don’t doubt that Boone will be upset but don’t worry, I’ll be there for him to help him through the grief.”
Hedra thought rapidly. Camilla had no idea the house was being watched, and no one would believe Hedra had killed herself, especially when Chase told Boone about Camilla’s visit. Of course, that wouldn’t help save her life right now, would it?
Her overwhelming fear drifted away to be replaced by cold acceptance. She stared at Camilla as a weird numbness settled in her bones. She might die today, but she would go down swinging.
“Move, human,” Camilla said.
“Fuck that,” Hedra said. “You think I’m going to make it that easy for you? You want me dead? You fucking do it yourself.”
Camilla made an impatient growl. “Stop being so difficult, human.”
Hedra barked harsh laughter. “You haven’t even begun to see how difficult I can be, you crazy asshole.”
The front door opened, and Camilla’s eyes widened. She inhaled deeply as surprise flickered across her face. “Boone?” she whispered. “He shouldn’t be here. He should be at work.”
A thin smile crossed Hedra’s face as joy soared through her. “You’re in so much fucking trouble now.”
Hedra bolted for the living room entrance, her elation deflating when Camilla lunged across the room and caught her easily. She yanked Hedra’s broken arm behind her back, and Hedra screamed shrilly as agony zig-zagged up her arm, and the pain drove her to her knees.
Boone appeared in the doorway. Orange fur sprouted on his face, and he crouched, growling loudly as his bones popped and cracked, and he started the shift.
Camilla yanked Hedra’s head back by her hair and pressed her claw-tipped fingers against her throat. Hedra sucked in a breath when they pierced her skin, and warm blood slid down her throat.
Camilla growled deep in her throat. “Shift and I’ll kill her, Boone.”
CHAPTER 28
Nothing could have prepared Boone to walk into his own home and smell the scent of his mate’s blood. He froze, his body already beginning to shift and his tiger roaring at the fear and pain in his mate’s voice when Hedra screamed shrilly.
Boone sprinted to the living room, crouching and growling at Camilla as adrenaline and fear rocketed through his veins.
“Shift, and I’ll kill her, Boone,” Camilla said with a deep growl.
Hedra was on her knees with Camilla’s claws at her throat. Fresh fear rolled over Boone and his tiger when he saw the bright red blood sliding down Hedra’s throat.
“Camilla,” Boone said as he pushed his tiger back, and his body returned to human, “what are you doing?”
“I didn’t want it to be this way,” Camilla said, genuine sorrow in her voice. “I really didn’t.”
Boone stared at Hedra. Her face was pale but composed, and he gave her a small smile. “It’ll be okay, little lamb.”
“Don’t,” Camilla said. “Don’t lie to her, Boone. You’re not doing her any favours.”
“You sent the texts, threatening notes, and cow tongue,” Boone said. “It was you who cut the brake lines.”
“It was,” Camilla said. “It was so easy, Boone. Do you know it was harder to find a cow’s tongue than to learn how to cut a person’s brake lines? How fucked up is that?”
“Jesus Christ, Camilla. Why?” Boone asked.
“Because she took you from me!” Camilla snarled.
“She didn’t. I was never yours,” Boone said.
Camilla growled, and Hedra made a soft whimper of pain as more blood dripped out to soak into the front of her t-shirt.
Boone held his hands up and shoved his tiger back when the beast tried to take control. If he shifted now, Camilla would kill his mate. “Camilla, just listen to me, okay?”
“No, it’s your time to listen to me,” Camilla said. “I love you, Boone. I always loved you, even when I left you. Even when I was angry and upset and didn’t understand why I couldn’t be enough for you. Why the memory of Derek was more important than me. It hurt me. But under that hurt, my love for you was still there.”
She smiled at him, her jade eyes glowing softly. “Of course, I told myself I was over you and, you know what? I really thought I’d moved on. I loved you, but I couldn’t be with you, not when your grief over that bastard Derek was the only thing that mattered to you.”
Her smile turned to a look of exasperation. “I understand grieving, but you acted like he was your mate, Boone. I mean, the carrying on and the crying got to be a little much, right?”
Boone stared steadily at her. “He was my mate, Camilla. Derek and I were in love.”
Disgust crept across her face before she sighed loudly. “Stop lying. You think pretending you fucked a guy will change my feelings for you, but it doesn’t. We were together for nine months. I know you. You can’t keep secrets from me. If you were gay, I would have known.”
“It’s the truth,” Boone said.
She shook her head, anger flickering across her features. “Stop it! Right now! Don’t be gross, Boone.”
She took a deep breath, her free hand stroking Hedra’s hair as she studied her claws lightly embedded in Hedra’s throat. “I was angry with you for so long, and when I saw you at Abena’s, I’ll admit that my first thought wasn’t how much I still loved you. My anger and my hurt had buried it deep. But then you… you apologized so sincerely, and the more time we spent together, the more I realized that you really were in a better place. I saw the Boone I was meant to be with.”
His gaze dropped to Hedra, and Camilla growled loudly. “Stop looking at her. I’m your mate, Boone. Not her. Me.”
His tiger growling continuously and his fear for his mate making it hard to think straight, Boone tried to stay calm. He was being a fucking idiot. The best thing to do - the only thing to do - was to agree with Camilla and get her the fuck away from Hedra before she sliced her throat open in front of him.
“You’re right,” Boone said. “I’m supposed to be with you, Camilla. So, why don’t you let Hedra go, and you and I will walk out of here right now. We’ll start fresh. We’ll go somewhere new where no one knows us, and we can be together.”
Her nostrils flared, and she gave him a look of contempt. “I love you, Boone, but don’t think for a fucking minute that I’m stupid because of it. I know you don’t mean that.”
She took a deep breath, letting it out on a soft purr. “You shouldn’t have come home. Why didn’t you stay at work? It would have been quick and fast for Hedra if you hadn’t come home. Now? Now, it’s gonna be messy.”
“If you kill her, I’ll kill you,” Boone said. “You won’t walk out of this fucking room, Camilla.”
She swallowed hard. “You don’t mean that.”
“The fuck I don’t,” Boone said.
Camilla’s bottom lip trembled, and Boone could smell the fear radiating from her. “I’m doing this for us, Boone. We can’t be together with her around.”
“Yes, we can,” Boone said steadily. “Let her go, and I’ll be with you. Simple.”
“You lie,” Camilla said.
Boone shook his head. “No, I’m not. I’ll be your mate, Camilla. I swear. But if you kill Hedra, your life ends too. Right here in this goddamn room.”
“Stand up,” Camilla said to Hedra before yanking on her hair.
Hedra stood, wincing when Camilla pulled her claws from her throat, and blood bubbled out from the holes in her throat. Boone stepped forward, and Camilla pressed her claws against Hedra’s throat again. “Don’t, Boone. I’ll slit her throat and walk out of this house while you’re trying to save your precious mate’s life.”
Boone growled but didn’t move as Camilla studied him before jerking her chin toward the fireplace. “Go stand over there, Boone.”
“What are you doing, Camilla?” Boone asked.
Camilla circled, keeping Hedra between them as he moved toward the fireplace. “We’re leaving.”
“No, you’re fucking not,” he growled.
She shook her head when he started forward, tracing one claw across the delicate skin of Hedra’s throat. “Stop, Boone.”
“It’s okay, Boone,” Hedra said as Camilla propelled her backwards toward the living room door.
“Camilla, don’t fucking do this,” Boone said.
Camilla stopped in the doorway, staring solemnly at him. “You’re making me do this, Boone. I’ll take your mate somewhere quiet, and I’ll make her death quick and as painless as possible, I promise. Once you’re done grieving, we’ll find each other again, I know it. We’ll finally be mates, Boone. You’ll see that you and I were meant for each other.”
“Camilla,” Boone said as his tiger growled and made another desperate push for control. “If you love me, you won’t do this.”
“I’m doing this because I love you,” she said. “Why can’t you see that?”
His fear a living clawing thing inside of him, Boone stared at Hedra. “Little lamb.”
She smiled at him, but he could smell the sour tang of her fear and sorrow. “I love you, Boone.”
“I love you too,” he said.
“Stop it,” Camilla said, raising her hand high above her head with her claws gleaming in the light. “Stop acting like she’s your mate, or I’ll end her life right here. I swear to -”
Camilla stiffened, and Boone smelled his nan’s scent only seconds before she leaped onto Camilla’s back and sunk her fangs into her throat.
“Hedra, move!” Boone roared.
Hedra tore away from Camilla, and Boone grabbed her, shoving her behind him as the leopard shifter screamed. Blood sprayed as Nan, growling ferociously, tore a chunk of flesh from the side of Camilla’s throat. Nan dropped nimbly to her feet as Camilla clamped her hand across her neck and staggered into the living room. She stared wide-eyed at Boone, a soft, ragged growl rising from her throat before she dropped to her knees.
With a harsh groan, she fell on her side, her chest heaving for air and her body covered in a thin coat of yellow fur.
“Hedra!” Boone spun around, cupping Hedra’s face and tilting up her head. He examined her throat, sighing with relief when the wounds appeared fairly shallow. “Baby, are you okay?”
She nodded, her eyes huge and her face the colour of mountain snow. “Wh-what just happened?”
“Nan just happened,” he said grimly before turning around.
His grandmother stood in the doorway, her frail body bigger than normal and orange fur covering her face. She growled, her eyes glowing bright jade before she licked the blood from her lips and made another soft growl of triumph.
“Delicious,” she muttered, her voice low and distorted. She lifted her lip, growling and baring her fangs at Camilla. “I want more.”
She started toward Camilla, her clothes straining as her body grew larger with the shift.
“Nan, stop!” Boone grabbed her, forcing himself not to whimper like a cub when Nan turned her terrible, hot gaze on him.
She growled, and his tiger immediately retreated before his grandmother’s rage.
“Stop, Nan,” Boone repeated. “It’s over. Please, stop.”
To his relief, his grandmother’s eyes cleared, the anger dissipating as her body returned to its normal size and the fur on her face disappeared.
“Boonie? Are you okay?”
“Yes,” he said. “Are you?”
“Fine,” she said. “Is your mate hurt?”
He turned, his heart dropping to the fucking floor when Hedra was gone.
“Hedra!” he shouted, his panic dialed up to a fucking thousand. “Baby, where are you?”
“Here, I’m here.” She hurried into the living room with a stack of dishtowels in her good hand. She pushed past Boone and Nan and knelt beside Camilla, rolling her onto her back before pressing two folded dishtowels against her neck. Blood had pooled onto the floor, and Hedra grimaced before pressing harder. “Call 9-1-1.”
Boone stared at his nan, who gave him a look of ruthless indifference.
“Boone!” Hedra snapped. “Call 9-1-1, she’s bleeding out.”
“She would have killed you without a second thought, human,” Nan said.
“We aren’t like her,” Hedra said. “Boone, please.”
He pulled out his phone and dialed 9-1-1 as his mate, her face still pale, added a third dishtowel to the pile against Camilla’s neck before saying, “Hold on, Camilla.”
“I know I keep saying this over the past few days, but Nan… Nan took Camilla down.” Chase took a swallow of beer. “You and Hedra aren’t pulling my fucking leg, are you, Boone?”
Boone shook his head. “No.”
“She’s eighty-two and has a broken hip,” Chase said.
“Eighty-four,” Grayson corrected, “and her hip was healed.”
“Even if it hadn’t been healed, I doubt that would have stopped her,” Wes said.
“I know it wouldn’t have stopped her,” Cooper said.
Chase studied the four of them. “So, you’re telling me that Nan is a fucking badass.”
Grayson nodded. “Yup.”
Cooper raised his beer bottle. “To Nan, the biggest, baddest bitch in town.”
“To Nan,” the others echoed, clinking their bottles together before drinking.
“Question,” Grayson said. “Are all celebrity personal assistants batshit crazy? Because this is twice now that we’ve had one try to kill us or our mate.”
“Maybe it’s a requirement of the job,” Wes said.
The others laughed, but Boone couldn’t muster more than a chuckle. He didn’t think he’d ever find anything even remotely amusing about how close Camilla had come to killing Hedra.
Grayson nudged him. “Sorry, man, I shouldn’t be making light of this.”
“It’s fine,” Boone said. “It’s just, you know… Hedra is my everything, and I almost lost her because of my stupidity.”
“Bullshit,” Cooper said. “It’s not your fault that Camilla is how she is.”
“Do we know that for sure?” Boone said. “Because maybe the way I treated her did this to her, and if that’s the case, then this is absolutely my fault.”
“Yeah, about that, I had Lusa do some digging into Camilla’s past,” Cooper said. “You aren’t the first man she’s obsessed over.”
“Are you shitting me right now?” Boone asked.
“Nope,” Cooper said. “Before the two of you got together, she lived in Mexico.”
“Yeah, I know. She told me she’d lived there for a few years,” Boone said.
“What she didn’t tell you was that when she lived in Mexico, she went under the name Alicia Vanden. She was in a relationship with a lion shifter, and when he broke it off with her, she stalked him for weeks. He had a restraining order filed against her, and when she violated it by breaking into his house and they issued an arrest warrant, she fled Mexico and came here under her new name - Camilla Crane.”
“Holy fuck,” Boone breathed.
“Yeah,” Cooper said. “Your grief over Derek’s loss driving Camilla away was a blessing in disguise.”
“Yeah.” Boone rubbed a hand through his hair.
“Is she out of the ICU yet?” Grayson asked.
Boone nodded. “Yes, she’s been transferred to the infirmary at the Glassett Correctional Center for Women while she waits for her arraignment. The prosecutor is charging her with criminal harassment and,” he swallowed hard, “attempted murder in the first degree.”
“Good,” Wes said.
“The prosecutor believes she’ll plead guilty by reason of insanity,” Boone said. He took another drink of beer, ignoring the loud laughter of the lynx shifters gathered at a table near theirs.
“If the shoe fits,” Chase said.
“As long as she’s locked up for good, I don’t care if it’s a mental health facility or a prison,” Boone said. “I just don’t want her free to hurt my mate again.”
Grayson squeezed his shoulder. “She won’t be. Have you spoken to Abena Nkosi yet?”
Boone nodded. “Yeah, I went to see her a couple of days after. She was in a lot of shock over it and kept apologizing to me like it was her fault or something. I told her repeatedly it wasn’t, but I’m not sure I did a great job reassuring her. But Hedra and I are having dinner with her tomorrow night, and I think Hedra will do a better job of it.”
“Speaking of your mate,” Wes said with the soft grin reserved for his mate Eleanor.
Boone twisted in his seat, his tiger purring and trilling when he saw Hedra, Ryan, Daisy, and Eleanor pushing through the crowded pub. He stood, pressing a kiss against Hedra’s mouth. “Hello, my mate.”
“Hi, honey.” She smiled at him as he pulled out the empty chair beside him. She sat down as the others did the same. She grabbed his beer and took a long drink. “How was work?”
“Fine. How did your interview go?” he asked.
