Havermouth, The PresentAs Cameron stepped in front of Aislen, Rhett wrapped his arms around her and hauled her back into the house, hoping that the puppy would follow, but possessing only the strength to lift one mate. As he shoved Aislen into the house, he heard a gunshot ring out, and jerked around in time to see Cameron hit the ground.Aislen shrieked, her face contorting in pain and fear. “Cameron!”“F-k,” Rhett scrambled on all fours to where Cameron had collapsed on the footpath.There was a roar from the direction of the hospital, and suddenly one of the Van Helsing 4WD’s was flipped onto its side. Heath jerked as a bullet grazed along his cheek bone and blurred out of sight again. A thunder of footprints tore Rhett’s eyes from where his blonde mate had been to where the soldiers who had been in the houses ran towards the shelter offered by the upturned 4WD and Unimogs and began to lay down covering fire for those who had been caught exposed by the tents.He heard Talen’s voic
Havermouth, The PresentAislen ignored the protests of her men and was up off the bench seat the moment the Unimog slowed and started to stop. Talen rose, catching her by the waist and steadying her against the final rocks of the truck with expert balance, before jumping lightly down and reaching up for her.She stepped into his arms with utter confidence that he would catch her. “Sorry, daddy,” she said as he set her to her feet. “I need to know that August is still secured.”“We all do. Heath and Rhett can take care of Cameron, let’s go check on…” He trailed off as the destruction came into sight. “What the f-k happened here?” He marvelled.“You sound like one of the Triquetra,” Aislen remarked absently, her eyes scanning the damage. “Something f-king went on,” she summarized. “We’ll find out what after. Let’s go,” she tugged on his hand, pulling him along behind her towards Leighton’s ancient warehouse.It was crumbling, Aislen thought, the building too frail for what they had been
Havermouth, The PresentAislen swallowed hard. “Well,” she said slowly, feeling all their eyes on her. “I dreamt about you.” Leighton tilted his head to the side. “I dream about things sometimes,” she continued, feeling her skin prick with sweat. “I dreamt about you meeting Verina… I dreamt about the flood and the bodies, and I dreamt about you crossing the river. I saw you go to the Edison’s farm and take Mr Edison’s Ute, and go to the caves near the dam…”“Mhm,” Leighton shifted slightly. “That was accurate.”“Normally when I dream things, they’re like a warning…” Aislen glanced at Stella. “And I’m starting to learn to pay attention to them. I dreamt about you… and Verina… and that’s why when we first encountered you and the zombies, I sort of trusted you.” Though it hadn’t hurt that he was f-king hot, she admitted to herself. “And I think my dreams about the river and the bodies were trying to tell me something. I thought that they were warning me that the flood was coming, but… Wh
Havermouth, The Present“So,” Aislen raised an eyebrow at Leighton. “How is it going?”Leighton laughed under his breath and ran his hands through his head. “You expect miracles of us, Aislen Carter,” he told her.“We have been working on isolating a measure of the infection,” Connery announced. “If we can get a measure of the infection, then we can get a measure of quantity of vampire blood required to neutralize it. At the same time, we are looking at ways of concentrating the blood, and distributing it in the water to maximum effect.”“Bleeding in the water won’t be effective?” Talen raised an eyebrow.“Not really,” Connery replied politely, although the look he exchanged with Meguitte was indulgently exasperated. “We are talking about people rotting into the water and being consumed by the wildlife, the virus then being excreted into the water at a later time - ”Aislen covered her mouth with her hand. “No,” she gagged. “Excuse me…” She broke away from the group. Talen scooped her
Havermouth, The Present“Could take a shower?” Cameron said looking down at the mess of his top and shoulder as they waited for the water to boil over the camp stove.“Not much point,” Heath was, if anything, covered with more blood, but not as much of his own as Cameron was. “The day is not done yet,” his grin stretched his cheeks, and he ran his tongue over the elongated sharp points of his teeth. “Let’s just clean up a little, and then you three can head back to the bunker - ”“Bull shit,” Cameron’s head jerked up from his inspection of his wound. “We’re not splitting up, Heath.”“Look, Cam,” Heath said reasonably. “You’re shot, Aislen’s pregnant, and Rhett…”“Rhett’s what?” Rhett demanded as their eyes turned to him. “Rhett’s fine. Everyone needs to stop worrying about Rhett. Rhett’s got this.”“Rhett’s talking about himself in third person,” Heath pointed out.“Rhett knows that,” Rhett scowled. “And Rhett’s not staying behind whilst Heath and Talen go and risk their lives fightin
Havermouth, The PresentConnery strolled across the road smiling pleasantly and inclining his head to the new arrivals as they explored the area. Several witches and warlocks were chalking runes across the road, and others were tying ribbons and hex pouches into the fences and trees.“Busy, busy little witches and warlocks,” Connery commented to himself.He would sleep better, however, for knowing that his sleep was guarded by so many wards and safeguards, he admitted to himself. Not that he planned to do much sleeping, he added to himself with a wide grin. He was not a fool to waste his time on sleep now that he had Meguitte in his bed.He had his eyes on one of the camper vans. A luxury model with a generously sized bed, it wasn’t precisely his island escape, but it was a definite step up from sleeping on the floor. With Logan Wren on the loose, Connery also thought it wise not to spend the night where Logan knew to look. He had no doubt that Logan hadn’t given up on Meguitte, despi
Havermouth, The Present“And for voluntarily surrendering yourself into custody in order to be tried for your crimes by a jury of your peers once the current emergency is over…” Aislen spoke with slow deliberation. “In the meantime, we are very happy to be able to offer you the secure accommodation of this shipping container. We invite you take advantage of this time to relax and enjoy the opportunity to rest. We will transfer you to the bunker when it is safe for us to do so, and you should let them know how you made this decision freely out of guilt and the realization that your actions have placed the pack in danger. Do you understand?”“Yes… yes I do,” August’s face had gone slack, his eyes losing focus.“Wonderful,” Aislen glanced up at Heath, her eyes asking if she had left anything out.“He should probably also feel free to tell others how well he was treated during his time with us,” Heath suggested, his eyes sliding to where Jules stood. “Don’t you think?”Jules’ smile was wi
Havermouth, The PresentMeguitte could feel Connery’s tension as he led her to one of the campers and opened the door. The camper had the plastic smell of something brand new and was roomier inside than it looked outside. At one end, the big bed reminded Meguitte just how good it had felt to have Connery’s skin against hers and she wanted to forget about whatever it was that he wanted to talk to her about, and strip him naked. She wanted to feel his heartbeat against her ribs, the rise and fall of his belly with every breath pressing into hers as his c-ck found home within her…“Connery,” she said softly, her eyes sliding from the bed to his face. His expression had her frowning. “What is it?” She could feel her heartbeat picking up pace within her, and her skin prick with fear. “Are you okay?”What had happened between him so cheerfully leaving and this return?He reached out and stroked his fingers through her hair until the heel of his hand rested against her cheek. “I’m fine,” he