Page 45 of Unbound By Shadows
The bartender delivered Sam his drink. The singing Harpy took a bow after finishing her performance, and the tavern erupted into applause. The quartet of Lycahs demanded an encore by whistling and pounding their fists on the table. Sam rolled his eyes at their drunken antics and took a drink. One of the Lycahs slowed his cheering to focus on something across the room, then nudged his companions to do the same. He let out a low whistle that revealed his sharp lower teeth. Sam followed their gaze to see Selene moving through the crowd, making her way back toward the bar.
Her shoulders were pushed back, and her hips swayed with every step. There was a determined set to her jaw, and the firelight cast a soft light on her face. A draft from the front door blew her hair back,and Sam became very aware of how it was not only the Lycahs, but every creature in the room watching her. He knew this should concern him because a vampire could have snuck in unseen, yet he felt bespelled by her as well.
Sam had seen Malkina women enter a room as if they were acting on a stage, each movement deliberate and coy. They could command notice as they saw fit, wielding it like a weapon or a scepter. But Selene was oblivious to the attention she attracted.And she passes by every male here to be at my side.
Sam tried not to sigh like a besotted fool.Her long legs encased in those blue human breeches she preferred ate up the distance between them.
Just as Selene was about to reach him, one of the Lycahs shot out a clawed hand toward her. The sound of his palm slapping her backside made awhapthat reverberated through the room. Selene turned back with an outraged “Hey!” but the Lycah pulled her into his lap. Then he pressed his lips against her neck as Selene struggled to stand.
His companions looked on, howling and laughing raucously. Until suddenly, they weren’t laughing at all. They were screaming.
Sam didn’t remember much about what happened next. Only the cold chill of shadows as they chased around him. The feel of his horns sharpening, and his claws extending. The sound of wood cracking and the shatter of glass. The warm rush of liquid against his palms as his fingers wrapped around something hollow and soft.
And then the smell of blood.
Selene fell to the ground with a thud. Her palms scraped against the rough floor, and pain radiated through her knees at the impact. Pushing back her disheveled hair, she tried to reorient herself. What had just happened? One minute she had been trying to escape that nasty wolfman’s grip, and the next minute, she had awkwardly fallento the ground. So much for her new identity as a strong, assertive Aurelian woman.
She sat back on her heels and looked down to see small beads of blood rising on her palms. The burning sensation in her arm let her know Pydiana’s scratch had opened up again too. She frowned at the red slash, then grabbed a cleanish-looking cloth napkin from a nearby table to dab at her injuries. When that was done, awareness set in that the room had gone silent. Everyone was looking at something, but not her.
Then she heard a voice that was so deadly, it made her blood turn cold.
“You dare to touch my female?”
It was Sam’s voice, but the tone was unlike anything she had ever heard. Her heart pounded once she saw him. He was standing by the fireplace with his right hand wrapped around the throat of the Lycah that had grabbed her, pinning him high against the wall. Every muscle in his powerful body was clenched tight, and he seemed to stand nearly seven feet tall. His skin had flushed from its usual pearlescent copper to deep red. Sweat ran down his temple while wisps of black vapor swirled around him. His horns were huge now, gleaming in the firelight.
She replayed Sam’s words in her mind. When understanding dawned, she went dizzy.Oh God, I’m the female. He’s talking about me.
Blood was dripping from the back of the Lycah’s shaggy head as if he had been slammed into the brick. Sam gave the creature a shake that made him whimper. Then in that same savage voice, he said, “I asked you a question!”
To Selene, Lycahs looked like a cross between a werewolf and a lumberjack, and this one was no different. He was strong, but although he clawed and kicked at Sam with all his strength, Sam didn’t budge. Selene wasn’t certain he even felt the Lycah’s blows until Sam reached up to close his fingers around the Lycah’s muscled arm. Then with asnap,he broke his forearm like a twig.
Selene jumped at the sound. She looked away when Sam did thesame with the other flailing arm. The sound of two more, louder cracks made her drop her head and cover her ears. When she dared to look back up again, the Lycah’s lips were turning blue within his beard.
“Oh no, you’re not leaving us yet,” Sam said as he loosened his grip. “Breathe deep,” he commanded, and the Lycah complied, his broken limbs dangling uselessly with each inhale.
Selene gulped and looked around frantically. Why wasn’t someone stepping in? Didn’t they have some sort of bouncer or security guard to intervene? The Lycah’s companions were clutching each other and shaking. An old Drago shook his green head with disgust while a pair of white-haired Goblyn men sat frozen in the middle of their card game. There were a few other patrons hidden in dark corners, but none stepped forward to help.
She looked for the Bigfoot bartender. Surely he was used to diffusing situations like this. Bar fights were probably a regular occurrence at The Golden Gust. Because that’s all this was, she told herself. An ordinary bar fight. She was just watching a misunderstanding unfold, like Sam had earlier with Pydiana. And that had turned out fine.
Because of me.
Selene’s breath caught. It was because of her that Sam hadn’t completely ripped Pydiana apart. And because of her, Pydiana hadn’t stolen all their belongings or done whatever ruthless things a pissed off Harpy did. It was her well-practiced mediator skills that had averted disaster, not any special fighting moves or magic spell.
No one had ever come to her rescue in her old life, and there was no one coming to the rescue here.
She stood. “Sam?” she tried to call, but only a squeak came out. Sam turned from the Lycah to look around the room. When his red eyes landed on Selene, he looked so fierce, sodemonic, she began to tremble.
“Are you all right?” Sam asked. His eyes darted down to thenapkin she was still pressing against her the cut on her arm, and he snarled.
She quickly let the cloth fall to the floor to show she wasn’t injured. “I-I’m fine. It was just the scratch from before.”
Sam snarled again and gave the Lycah a small jostle. “How would you like me to kill him?”
Selene didn’t think her heart could beat any faster, but his question made it feel like her sternum might split. She tried to protest but could only shake her head. The Lycah began to thrash weakly, then stopped when Sam lunged at his face, just shy of contact.
“No,” was all she could manage.
“No? He grabbed you. Hetouchedyou,” Sam seethed.
