21 Shades of Night, page 270
The dive bike roared through the front gates and the baron dropped his vintage pre-war teacup in shock. It was the girl. His fucking niece. She’d run off with that goddamn skinny pirate after all. He felt twice as justified in putting the deathmark on Farid now, even if he had lied to the man about the cargo.
Lucia sat astride the dive bike, her legs splayed like a whore. She’d cut her hair and swapped her proper robes for leathers of some kind. The girl smirked at him, as if he was the one who looked ridiculous.
“Uncle,” she said, looking up at him.
He decided to stay on the balcony. The better to look down at all the trash.
“Niece. Good to see you’re back. Lotta work to be done around here,” he growled. He could feel the darkness in his blood roaring at him. Just like that night so long ago with his wife.
Lucia smiled. “Just stopped by to tell you to cancel the bounty you put on Avar’s head is all.” With one hand on her hip like a cocky asshole, she was the spitting image of her mother.
“You screwing him now? Is that what this is? After all the effort I put in to raise you, this is how you repay me. By spreading your legs for a slimy little cock like him?”
“Yeah,” Lucia said. “I didn’t think you’d listen to reason. I told them you wouldn’t, but they wanted to try talking first.”
“First?” The baron laughed. “Are you actually threatening me? Do you know how many armed men I have here right now?”
“If Quinn and Postie are doing as they were instructed, then you have ten fewer than you did when we started talking.”
The baron’s skin went cold as he realized he couldn’t see any of his guards in the field.
“You made my life hell, you know?” Lucia removed her leather gloves, folding them over the top of her stolen dive bike. She flexed her fingers, the sun reflecting off her elongating claws blinding the baron momentarily.
“I fed you. I clothed you. I kept you safe.” The baron spat over the balcony. “That’s more than most get.”
“Yeah, well, I can see talking won’t do too much good.” Lucia sighed, shaded her eyes with her hand and scanned the property. “How many people have you killed, Uncle? Why hasn’t anyone ever stopped you? An operation like this, seems like the Suzerain would be all over it.”
Did she know? How could she know? He was protected, from on high. An old deal struck in the middle of the night. Palms sliced and bleeding into each other. A blood oath to protect blood. It seemed fitting. A child was taken in and in return, no interference. A free hand. Whispers in the ears of local authorities to stay out of his way. A minor empire of dust and rock and raw ore, balanced on the head of one small child. Was it over now?
“I’ve only killed one person in all my life,” he shouted down to his traitorous niece. “And I regret that every morning and every night.”
Lucia nodded as if he’d been rambling about the weather like a doddering old man.
“I’m not going to kill you today, Uncle. But I am going to free your slaves. I’m going to take whatever of my things are left in the house and, well, anything else I want from you. If you or any of your murderous nitwits try to stop me,” Lucia trailed off, waving one clawed hand in the air.
“So you learned to shift your fingers!” he roared in response. “Big deal! I shifted once, too! Look at the whore, come back home to show off her new clothes and the sleazy pirate that slithers between her legs.” A noise behind the baron drew his attention. Turning, he saw the largest wolf shifter he’d ever seen. The man had to duck to clear the doorway onto the balcony. He had silver fur and a wide calm face.
“It would be better for you if you did not speak of her that way,” he said, his voice oddly musical.
“Is she spreading her legs for you, too? How many cocks did she have to suck to get her way?” The baron leered at the wolf man, searching for that kernel of lewdness he knew all men hid.
“I would do anything for her,” the wolf said. “And today that means I spare your pathetic, disgusting life.”
The baron spat in the wolf’s face. He was big, sure, but big didn’t mean shit. Not when you had a bolter on your hip and an army at your fingertips. “Fucking cowards. No wonder she fell in with you.”
The huge wolf sighed and shook his head. “How can a man such as you and a woman such as her be related?”
The baron shrugged, but before he could answer the wolf had him in his hands, held tight, and then the baron was flying, toppling end over end, to land hard on his ass on the parched ground. One of his legs snapped in the fall. It’d be a bitch to get it set properly before it healed at a bad angle.
Sitting in the dust, snarling, a shadow fell over the baron.
“Don’t let me hear about you hurting anyone else, Uncle.” Lucia looked down on him, a pitying expression on her face. The pirate and the giant wolf man stood on either side of her, protectively.
“In case you were wondering, Lawson, I’m not going to pay you.” Farid shrugged, his smirk as irritating as ever.
“That deathmark will follow you to the grave, boy.”
“Then it shall wait a very long time, you ignorant oaf,” the white werewolf growled.
Lucia sighed, as if destroying his life was something of a letdown. “C’mon boys, lets get these miners back to civilization.”
“Who do you think you are?” the baron howled at her back. “The fucking law? There’s no law out here! Just wolves and men, teeth and blood. The strongest makes the law!”
“Well,” she said, tugging her gloves back on. “Guess I make the law now.”
* * *
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Hi, I'm Jacqueline Sweet. I love to write sexy, thrilling stories. My stories are either paranormal, or contemporary and steamy. I love to write about werewolves, succubuses, witches, dragons and everything else that has magic pumping in its veins. Broadly speaking, my stories are either centered on the paranormal community of California's Bay Area, or take place at my sexy, dangerous Penrose Academy, a university for wizards too dangerous or odd for the better wizarding schools.
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JUMP TO...
BENEATH THE BROKEN MOON by SARAH MÄKELÄ
CLOSE LIAISONS by ANNA ZAIRES
TAKEN BY THE BEAST by KRESSLEY & HAMILTON
NIGHT HAWK by J.E. TAYLOR
ROOK by JC ANDRIJESKI
THE LOST QUEEN by ANGEL LAWSON
A PRESCRIPTION FOR DELIRIUM by NOREE COSPER
REAPER by K. DE LONG
PURGATORY by SUSAN STEC
FORBIDDEN LOVE by TERRY SPEAR
THE WOLF, THE WITCH, AND THE WASTELAND by JACQUELINE SWEET
KNIGHTS OF STONE: MASON by LISA CARLISLE
HUNTER UNDONE by EDEN ASHE
SOUL TIES by LJ SWALLOW
WOLF IN EXILE by AMBER ELLA MONROE
AWAKENED by LAXMI HARIHARAN
HIGHLANDER’S KISS by JOANNE WADSWORTH
THE WATCHER’S DAUGHTER by CJ FLYNN
DARK WINGS by SKYLA MADI
DESIRING DEATH by C.P. MANDARA
WITCH OF THE CARDS by CATHERINE STINE
NIGHTS OF STONE: MASON
BY LISA CARLISLE
Copyright © 2014 by Lisa Carlisle
A forbidden romance between a gargoyle shifter and tree witch on a mystical island.
After a bloody and divisive battle twenty-five years ago, the inhabitants of the Isle of Stone—namely, gargoyles, tree witches, and wolf shifters—have lived apart, divided by borders none are permitted to cross. But when Kayla, a tree witch, hears about the unconventional rock concerts that are the talk of gargoyle territory, she sneaks away from her coven to see for herself. Night after night, she returns, not just for the music, but for one particular gargoyle who shifts into human form to play guitar at these avant-garde shows.
Her attention has not gone unnoticed. For several nights, Mason has kept watch for the pixie-like female. He plans to seduce her, unaware she’s not just a visitor from another island. But when he discovers she’s one of the tree witches, he knows that no matter how strong the temptation, anything between them would be forbidden.
Despite everything that should keep them apart, Kayla and Mason can’t resist their dark attraction and plan to meet in secret, but other elements on the isle command their attention. The magical cloak created by the three clans on the island is thinning, leading to repercussions for all. Kayla and Mason are soon caught in the middle of it, and their actions may change the fate of the isle forever.
Knights of Stone: Mason
Copyright 2014 Lisa Carlisle
Edited by Chris Allen-Riley
Cover by Lisa Carlisle
The right of Lisa Carlisle to be identified as author of this Work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in retrieval system, copied in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise transmitted without written permission from the publisher. You must not circulate this book in any format.
This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please do so through your retailer’s “lend” function. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
To obtain permission to excerpt portions of the text, please contact the author at lisacarlislebooks@gmail.com.
All characters in this book are fiction and figments of the author’s imagination.
Find out more about the author and upcoming books online at lisacarlislebooks.com, facebook.com/lisacarlisleauthor, or @lisacbooks.
Chapter 1
THE CROWD PUSHED Kayla closer to the stage as the last trails of fiery sunset faded. They knew what happened once darkness fell. She recovered her footing and focused again on the five life-sized stone gargoyles perched on pedestals on the perimeter of the stage. The space between them was set with instruments—guitars, a drum set, mic stands, and massive amplifiers, while a bonfire in a pit behind them cast the statues in a warm glow.
A stagehand with tartan draped over one shoulder climbed onto the stage and walked to the closest statue. He fastened the kilt over its shoulder and around its waist with a thick belt, covering the statue’s massive thighs. Kayla flushed, picturing why the coverings were necessary once the transformation began. The kilt had become a key detail in her fantasies about the guitarist, since it was the only clothing he wore. The stagehand continued dressing each statue with the same brilliant blue tartan worn by the gargoyle clan.
The last vestige of sunlight disappeared from the sky, and night draped the stage like a closing curtain. The statues loomed, dark silhouettes barely discernible by the crescent moon with the backdrop of the craggy cliffs and the rugged peaks of waves in the Atlantic Ocean behind them. The murmur of voices was replaced by silence. Waiting…
Five torches blazed on the stage all at once, lit by an unseen force. The audience erupted in cheers as the dancing lights from the flickering fire basked the statues. The flames lowered, casting the gargoyles in an eerie, almost reverent glow.
Movement. So slight, Kayla wondered if it was simply a play of light and shadows in her anticipation for the change. She fixed her gaze on the statue in front of her, the one she’d gravitated to each time she had sneaked out to see the show. Its massive gray form stood straight on two legs built for sturdiness. Its chest jutted out proudly. Gray wings with detailed feathers etched in the stone arched from a point below its shoulder blades. Eyes cast straight ahead on a face that appeared to be a mixture of canine and lion. Its right hand twitched, so slightly she would have missed it if she hadn’t stared so intently. Then a clawed foot inched forward.
Murmurs of astonishment burst from the crowd as the transformation began. Their cries of fervor grew louder as the monstrous statues transformed into taller, slimmer figures with the bronzed skin of warriors who battled under the midday sun. The tartan fabric fell over their thighs as they stood erect, covering their nudity.
Kayla barely blinked, mesmerized as always, as the statue before her stood to full height, taking on the form of a human male, but with beautiful raven wings. Hair just as black snaked rebelliously past his chin. The stony eyes flickered with animation, turning to a mossy green. His deep gaze seared the audience, seeming to burn anything in the path. When he found Kayla, he stopped. His expression was unreadable, but the intensity in his unblinking eyes made her swallow. She froze under the scrutiny as if hypnotized, unable to break eye contact. Her stomach lurched, heart pounded, and every muscle in her body tightened, fueled with blood now scorching through her veins. His penetrating appraisal affected her so. When his eyes took on a smoldering glint, her skin tingled and a red-hot awareness grew between her thighs.
He broke the stare and continued to assess the audience. She gasped, not realizing she had been holding her breath, and panted while she tried to breathe at a normal rate.
He turned on robust legs and strode to a guitar stand. She tore her eyes from him to note the other gargoyles. They, too, had shifted into the form of striking males. One had black hair draped further down his back, one had long blond hair, and two had reddish-brown hair—one wavy and shaggy, the other straight. They took their place at other instruments. She sought the guitarist again and caught the first sound of the pick striking the strings. On hearing the guitar projected through the amp, the crowd roared again, pressing Kayla forward.
The freak show was about to begin.
Spotlights flooded the musicians, powered by solar panels near a massive amplifier. The guitarist continued playing and the others joined in, playing a raucous crossover between hard rock and heavy metal. The one with long blond hair grabbed hold of the microphone and belted out a shattering cry that sounded like a call to battle. The crowd went pin drop silent to listen and then cheered in unison as the band played on. The front man sang piercing growls and low croons about the Knights in Stone, the protectors of the ancient forests, battling against the evil tree witches.
Kayla’s coven.
* * *
BLOOD PUMPED THROUGH Mason’s system, animating him during the transition to his human form. Every cell in his body ignited with the change from stone to flesh.
He scanned the crowd again for any threats. Since humans on nearby islands had discovered the island, it was only a matter of time before the government found out about it. If they discovered the shapeshifters on the island, no doubt they’d try to capture them and study them in a lab.
Once reassured there were no threats, he searched the crowd for the woman he’d been thinking about. Energy from the change to human form invigorated him, especially his libido. He spotted the pixie-like female three rows back.
She’d returned.
This was the fifth night he’d seen her at the Knights of Stone shows. Each night, she’d moved a bit closer, braving the frantic energy of the audience. He searched for her every evening now, figuring she must be from the nearby islands. One of these nights, he would have to seduce her, to get this woman who’d penetrated his thoughts out of his system. He needed to find a way to get her alone, away from this crowd. At least she didn’t appear to be with anyone. Peculiar. How many trips had she taken to the Isle of Stone alone?
Humans on nearby islands had only recently discovered the Isle of Stone. In decades past, the three clans of the island—tree witches, gargoyles, and wolves, had cloaked their land with many layers of protection. Their combined magic had created such a powerful force it had remained undetected by human technology. When a feud erupted between the witches and gargoyles twenty-five years ago it led to a division of land. Without reinforcements from the clans’ combined magic, the protection seeped away. Humans on nearby islands sailed over and discovered its mysterious inhabitants.
His brother Calum shrieked a wild cry that began the next song, The Hunt. Mason and his brothers played a driving instrumental that quickened as Calum sang a tale. The object of the hunt was left ambiguous—it could be an enemy, an animal, or even a lass—but as the music rose to its climax, it left no question as to the outcome.
