Page 50 of Beast

“I did,” I said, turning back to Ruth, refusing to lie because she would hear the truth again from others.

“Okay, that’s cool then.”She nodded like I needed her approval to be cool.She scuffed her boot into the dirt and looked up at me hopefully.“I didn’t get to kill a single hellhound.Maybe we can find some on the island.”

King stepped in to help.“Marinah’s coming with me for now, Ruth.We need some adult time.”

She rolled her eyes.“When we’re in training, no one gets to interrupt us, even for adult time, because I know what that means, and it’s gross.”

“We’ll do our best,” King said with a straight face.

He earned an evil glare from Ruth but turned away without understanding that she was armed.I glared at her when her hand went to the sword.

“If you do, I will end you.”My voice was much lower now, and it carried more weight.

Her hand slid down to her side.“Sorry,” she mumbled.

It was my turn to give her my back.King’s arm went around my shoulder again.Weariness crept in, and I could feel the exhaustion throughout my body.It felt weird to be taller than King, and I didn’t like it.This messed up our hugability.

My brain turned to the passage from the book that mentioned Nova Warriors.If I remembered what it said, I could choose between this size and my usual one.I closed my eyes and silently mouthed the words, “Make me smaller.”Nothing happened.Figuring out how this worked could be interesting.I remember the shifting rage when I went from human to Warrior.I wasn’t sure if that’s when it happened or if it was after I laid hands on Smythe, which I now remembered.Even so, my brain was mush.

King led us inside Missy’s place, and I spotted Garret sitting up against the couch with cushions behind his back.He looked pale, but at least he was upright, and they’d made it back to the outpost.Relief swept through me.

“Axel is helping the injured,” Garret said wearily.He glanced between me and King, his head tilting upward as his eyes met mine.“Something I should know?”he asked.

King grumbled, clearly annoyed.I elbowed him, having no idea until then that I wasn’t just larger, I was more powerful.King’s grumble turned into a startled grunt.

“I’ll explain later,” I told Garret.“King needs to speak with me.”

Garret wisely said nothing, and King led me away.He opened the door to the room next to Ruth’s.It was a bathroom.He turned on the shower.They didn’t have hot water unless it was heated for a bath.

“The blood needs to come off you first,” he said.

I stared at the water and shivered.“It’s too cold,” I whined, though it didn’t sound like my normal whine.

The corners of his mouth tilted upward.“Sissy.”

When it came to cold water, I sure as hell was.But I did need to get the blood off.King shifted, and this time when I tried, I slid easily into my human form.We quickly undressed.King stepped into the tub beneath the spray and grabbed my arm, pulling me in with him.

“Are you okay?”he asked.

“No,” I admitted, thinking of Ryan and not the cold water streaming over us.

“You did what had to be done.Ryan’s death isn’t on you,” he said, understanding it wasn’t my new form that filled my head.

“When you lose a Warrior and you say that to yourself, does it work?”

“No,” he admitted.“It hurts, and I fucking hate it.”

He did understand.I didn’t want to be put in charge again because the hole in the pit of my stomach hurt too badly.“I remember killing Smythe,” I said to change the subject and keep from crying.“It’s still a little hazy, but it was definitely Smythe.”

“You’ll need to practice becoming Nova and see how badly the rage affects you after you shift.It might be harder to control than your beast form.”

“You’re right.I’m not even sure when it happened, but I haven’t felt that amount of rage since I first shifted.”

“Welcome to our world, baby.”He gave me a gentle smile.

I stuck out my tongue, but King caught me off guard, kissing me before I could pull it back.His lips moved over mine, massaging softly, while his tongue explored with gentle insistence.His calloused hands ran over my skin, as if reassuring himself I was okay.I did the same, feeling every perfect muscle beneath his flesh.He grabbed a bar of soap and washed me first, and then I returned the favor.

After we were completely clean of blood and gore, King shut the water off and pulled me back into his arms.His scent and taste filled me, sending sparks from my toes to my ears.His chest warmed me, and I no longer thought about the cold.Even off the island, I was home.

---