Dunn, Daisy - Earth's Desire [Elemental Magic 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (9 page)

“I thought it would be easier to unload things in the back of your store, so I pulled up in the back lane.”

“All right, let’s go take a look. Flame, can you watch the store for a minute?” she called out to her friend.

Without looking up from her clipboard, she waved her hand in the air briefly. “No problem.”

“Follow me, Simon.”

“Lead the way.”

He walked behind her, his gaze never moving from the seductive sway of her full ass. He wished he could take the gorgeous redhead, too, and have fun with both of them, but he had a mission to accomplish. He didn’t want to complicate things anymore than they already would be.

They paraded to the back of the store and went out the exit door. “This is my vehicle here.” He pointed to the black SUV parked directly in front of them.

He led the way to the back of the vehicle. He fumbled for his keys in his coat pocket, his heart racing when his hand touched the bottle of chloroform. He undid the cap, making it ready to use in an instant. He found the keys deeper in his pocket and pulled them out. He tossed them on the ground in front of Ivy, pretending he dropped them there by accident.

“Oh goodness, I’m so clumsy.” He feigned innocence.

“I’ll get those for you.”

With his hand already on the open bottle, he pulled it out, and the rag from his other pocket. He quickly poured a small dosage of the anesthetic on the rag and slipped the bottle back into his pocket. He had vast experience using chloroform in this way. Hiding the rag behind his back with one hand, he pointed to the keys she held with his other hand. “You can press the unlock button twice, and then we can get into the trunk.”

Ivy did as he asked and unlocked the vehicle. He motioned for her to open the tailgate, and as she did, he made his move. He quickly went up behind her and placed the doused rag over her mouth and nose. His other hand wrapped around her waist, pulling her tight to his body. His pulsed quickened, and his heartbeat pounded in his ears. He heard her muffled screams, and his keys dropped on the ground again. She struggled at first, but the drug took over, and she quickly lost consciousness.

She slumped in his arms, and her backside rubbed tantalizingly against his erection. He placed the rag back in his pocket and looked around the back lane to see if anyone had witnessed his attack. Satisfied after his brief look around, he opened up the tailgate and shoved Ivy inside. The chloroform would keep her knocked out for hours, so he had time to tie her up when they arrived at his rental house.
I can’t wait for you to wake up and show you what I want to do to you.
He slammed the door and took one last look around. Seeing no one around, he picked his keys off the ground and headed into his SUV. He fumbled with the keys for a moment, trying to get them into the ignition, but kept missing the hole.
Calm down.
He took a deep breath to calm his tattered nerves. He tried his keys again and this time inserted them on the first try. He started his vehicle and sped out of the area, heading to his temporary rental house at the edge of town, but not too far from the magic shop.

* * * *

Flame didn’t notice how much time had passed, but she knew it had been more than twenty minutes. Annoyed, she wondered what took so long for Ivy help unload some merchandise. She went to the front door and locked it. She turned and stormed to the back exit door, pushing it open. “Ivy?” Not a soul could be seen in the back lane. Frustration turned to fear. Ivy would never leave with a stranger.

She tried to remember the man who had lured Ivy out of the store, but she never took a good look at him, only the briefest of glances.
Think, Flame, think.

She ran back inside the store and found her cell phone in her purse in the stockroom. She looked up Luke’s or Levi’s phone number, she didn’t know which, and called one of them. Flame usually remained calm in most situations, but losing an Elemental sister wreaked havoc in her soul.

“Hello?” A deep male voice came on the line.

“Luke?”

“No, this is Levi.”

“This is Flame. Ivy’s missing. I think someone took her.” The tears rolled down her cheeks as she tried to keep her hysteria in check.

“What happened?” She heard the unmistakable sound of panic in his voice.

“A man came in the shop, and Ivy went out to the back lane to help him unload some items. I overheard a bit of the conversation, but I didn’t really pay too close attention. I haven’t seen her for about twenty minutes or so. I don’t know what to do.”

He paused briefly, and then she listened to him take a deep, cleansing breath and slowly let it out. “Where are you right now?” Levi’s now-soothing voice helped to calm Flame down a little.

“I’m still at the shop.”

“Luke and I will be there shortly.”

“Thank you, Levi. Please hurry.” She hung up the phone, not knowing what else to do but sit and wait for the men.

* * * *

Flame heard a pounding knock on the door. Luke and Levi had arrived in only ten minutes, but to her it had felt like a lifetime. She unlocked the front door for them and ushered them into the shop, locking the door again behind them.

“I’m so glad you two came. I don’t know what to do.”

“Can you show us where he stood or if he touched anything?” Luke asked anxiously, his face wrought with worry.

“I’m sorry. I can’t tell you too much because I didn’t pay close enough attention. All I remember is he stood at the front counter and talked to Ivy. I didn’t hear everything, but I think he said his name was Simon.”

The twins looked at each other warily. A hint of familiarity with the name ran across their faces.

“Do you know who Simon is?” Flame felt a renewal of hope run through her veins.

“Yes, we do. He’s a scout for the hunters. He’s always searching for our kind,” Levi stated. A look of regret crossed his face as soon as he said it.

“Do you mean werewolves? Ivy told me, but don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me. Now tell me about this Simon.”

“We’ve never had the pleasure of meeting him, but he has a reputation for being ruthless. I can’t imagine why he’s taken Ivy. He doesn’t know about us.” Luke looked perplexed while he ran his hands through his hair in a gruff manner. His frustration and worry were evident to Flame.

“Or does he? Maybe he picked up something about you two and has been keeping an eye on you. Do you turn into werewolves around the full moon? Could he have seen you?”

Levi paced the shop like a caged beast, seemingly half listening to Flame. “Changing during the full moon is a myth. We can change at will and always have dominance over our wolves. They try to break free, but we keep a tight rein on them.” Levi walked to the front counter and sniffed the air. Luke walked to the other side of Levi and started to sniff the counter itself.

“Do you smell it, Luke?”

“It’s subtle, but it’s there.”

“What is it?” Flame asked anxiously.

“Chloroform,” they both replied.

“Can you follow the scent?”

“Let’s go outside to where she disappeared,” Luke commanded, the tremor in his voice almost imperceptible.

Flame could feel the anger and worry rolling off both men. “Follow me.”

They all ran to the far end of the store and into the back lane. The men continued to sniff the air around them, walking up and down the lane as Flame stood nervously watching them.

Luke and Levi came walking back to Flame, looking even less confident as they did when they first arrived. “I can smell Simon and Ivy right here, but with the strong wind, it’s blown the scent all over the place. I can’t get a fix on it. Dammit, Luke, what are we going to do?” Flame noticed Levi swallow hard and ball his hands up into fists, as if he would explode with rage and distress.

Flame’s hope returned again, and she snapped her fingers. “I know someone who can help us solve this problem. Let me make a phone call.”

Chapter 8

Skye arrived at the shop about half an hour after Flame called her. She appeared rough around the edges yet still managed to look beautiful. Her long blonde hair hung down her back and in her face, covering quite a bit of it. She also wore large black sunglasses, which hid even more of her face.

“I’m here, and I came as fast as I could. Is Ivy still missing?” Skye asked while trying to look hopeful.

Even with Skye’s face nearly covered, Flame could see the pain Skye suffered, but nothing compared to the pain of losing Ivy. “Yes, I’m afraid so.”

Skye snapped her head up quickly and immediately placed her hands on her forehead. “Ouch. What exactly happened?”

“A man came in here not too long ago and lured her out into the back lane. She has disappeared, and Luke and Levi smell traces of chloroform.”

“Oh my God, poor Ivy. We have to find her.” Skye’s voice broke as tears streamed down her cheeks. She began to wring her hands together while her body tensed.

“We will, sweetie.” Flame wrapped her arms around Skye gently, trying to stay strong for her. “This is where you come in. We need you.”

“Anything. You name it, and I’ll do it.”

“I knew you’d help. Come with me to the back lane. The boys are waiting for us.” Flame took Skye’s hand in hers and pulled her out the back door to the awaiting men. They still wandered in the lane, trying to pick up Ivy’s scent.

“Any luck?” Flame called out, hoping the scent remained.

“I can smell it, but it I can’t hone in on it. The wind is still not working with us.” The calm, confident façade on Levi’s face he seemed to so desperately want to portray started to crumble, and the faintest traces of fear crept in.

“Skye, this is Levi, and you remember Luke over there.” They all nodded at each other, the occasion not a happy one to be meeting new people. “We need you to direct the wind, calm it down, and help the boys pick up the scent. I know you’re hurting right now, but this is a matter of life or death.”

“Pain or no pain, I’ll do anything to get our Ivy back. Everyone stand back against the building,” Skye commanded, taking off her sunglasses and handing them to Flame. She walked to the middle of the lane, lifted her arms in the air, and closed her eyes.

The wind picked up slowly at first in short, strong gusts. The power of the wind grew stronger, blowing against Skye from all directions. Her hair blew straight up in the air as the powerful gusts circled her body. Paper cups, napkins, a plastic bag, and various other items the wind had collected from the back lane swirled in one direction around Skye and then in the other. Her hands moved with the direction of the wind, conducting nature’s orchestra.

Skye opened her eyes, and the wind stopped dead. An eerie calm came across the back lane. She dropped her hands to her side and turned to the men. “I had a talk with the wind, and she has agreed to help you.”

Flame couldn’t suppress a faint smile as the men stared in awe at Skye. “Well, boys, let’s find our Ivy.”

Levi slapped Luke on the shoulder and pointed north. “I’m scenting her in this direction.”

“Me, too. Whatever you did, Skye, it’s working.”

“We’re going to follow behind you two,” Flame stated.

“No, absolutely not,” Luke stated emphatically as Levi continued heading north.

“Why not?” Skye chimed in, her hangover seemingly forgotten.

“This man or men who have taken our Ivy are extremely dangerous. I don’t want anything to happen to you two women.”

“We can take care of ourselves. I can assure you,” Skye added.

“We don’t have weapons on us, we don’t know what we’re going to come across when we find Ivy, and we only have our beasts to aid us. I can’t guarantee we could protect you two.”

Flame stepped away from Levi and Skye. She held out her hand, palm side up. A burst of flame appeared on her hand. It flickered gently, mesmerizing Luke. She suddenly balled up her fist with the fire inside and threw the fireball at a garbage can, blasting a hole straight through the galvanized steel can. She glanced at Luke with her hands on her hips, daring him to deny her from coming with them.

Luke’s mouth gaped open briefly at Flame. “Okay, let’s go.” He ran after his brother, with Flame and Skye following right behind.

* * * *

When Simon arrived back at his rental house, surrounded by forest, he easily carried Ivy’s body inside without worry of anyone witnessing his crime. He took her into his bedroom on the second floor of the house and tossed her unceremoniously on his bed. His heart continued to pound with excitement, his erection painful against his jeans. “God, I want to fuck you so bad, but I love it when a woman struggles. I’ll wait until you’re awake.”

Ivy lay passed out on the bed while Simon started to remove her clothing, her jeans, socks, and T-shirt. He stood over the bed, staring down at his prisoner in her turquoise-blue push-up bra and matching lace boy-short panties. “I don’t know if I want to kill you right away. You’re the sexiest thing I’ve had in my possession for a while.”

He reached down and pulled her panties off, followed by her bra. She lay there, exposed to his lecherous gaze as he took in every inch of her body. He rubbed the crotch in his jeans, trying desperately to relieve the pulsing ache. She moved slightly, rolling her head to the side.