Treasure Tides (The Coins) (18 page)

Landon closed the log book and put it away. He wadded up the stack
of papers that he had just spent the last fifteen minutes documenting.
Joanna was probably contemplating his demise at this point.

Landon felt her anguish pulse through his body.
He leapt from his
chair and vaulted down the stairs. Joanna had fallen asleep waiting for
him and was fighting someone, or something, in her sleep.
He touched
her arm as he spoke her name.

“Joanna,” Landon called softly. He didn’t want to frighten her awake,
but he didn’t want to leave her in whatever hell she was enduring.
“Joanna,” he called again as she moaned and twisted away from him.
“Joanna,” he spoke her name for the third time before she suddenly
opened her eyes.
“Damn!” Joanna lunged forward and would have risen if Landon had
not placed his hands on her shoulders to prevent her from getting up too
quickly.
Pulling her hair back from her face, she took a couple of calming
breaths. She felt the couch shift as Landon sat down beside her.
“Nightmare?” he asked.
“Yea, no big deal,” she said, bending to slip her shoes on. He noticed
the slight trembling in her hands which told him it
was
a big deal.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“What-- now you’re a shrink, too? You want to analyze my dreams?”
Joanna snapped.
“This must be the part Royce was referring to,” Landon observed
with a frown.
Joanna pinned him with a glare. “What part would that be?”
“The part where you are a tad bit grouchy.”
Joanna glared at him for a moment longer and then covered her face
with her hands.
Landon watched in horror as her shoulders began to shake.
“I’m sorry, Joanna,” he said wrapping his arms around her. “I didn’t
mean to upset you. Don’t cry.”
At that moment she lifted her face and tears streamed from her eyes.
But they weren’t tears of frustration or sorrow, they were tears of mirth.
She was laughing!
“Are you kidding me?” Landon protested with a scowl.
“I’m sorry,” Joanna said as she wiped her eyes. “It just stuck me as
funny.”
“I’m glad I could entertain you this evening,” Landon said with a grin.
They both rose from the couch finally ready to make their way home.
“I need to grab my purse,” Joanna said as she spun around to open a
nearby storage compartment. She evidently moved too quickly, because
suddenly the room began spinning. The next thing she knew, strong
arms were encircling her once again.
Landon caught Joanna as she crumpled, and then strode to the couch
with her in his arms.
“You are going to hurt yourself pretending that you are ok when
you’re not,” Landon reprimanded her.
“I just moved too quickly; that’s all,” she explained.
Joanna needed to get away from Landon.
He had witnessed her
emotions run from one extreme to the other today.
He had played
nursemaid and now savior.
The truth was, she had enjoyed being
wrapped in his arms a little too much for her own peace of mind.
He stood watching her,
again.
It was a
s if he were trying to peer
inside her head, or as if he were trying to gain access to her private
thoughts and feelings.
Joanna suddenly felt as if the walls were
closing in on her. She needed to put some distance between them.
“I think you should rest a while longer. There’s no hurry.”
“I told you, I’m fine,” Joanna insisted as she rose quickly from the
couch where he had deposited her moments ago. She charged toward
the stairs intent on escaping Landon’s piercing gaze.
Midway across the room it occurred to her that she had not
thanked him for interceding on her behalf today with Royce.
She
stopped and turned to face Landon intending to correct the oversight.
However, he wasn’t where she had left him. As she spun back toward
the stairs, she found her exit blocked by a seriously pissed-off Were.
Darn, he could move fast.
She took a step back.
He took a step
forward.
He was stalking her!
As she continued to step back, Landon
continued to move forward.
Soon she felt the wall at her back.
Her
retreat had reached an abrupt halt.
He kept moving forward trapping her as he flattened his palms
against the wall on either side of her body.
As he dipped his head,
she drew a quick breath and braced her heart for Landon’s blistering
kiss.
Instead, he growled, “
Don’t.
Feed.
Me.
That line of
shit
!
Play the
independent, cold-hearted, untouchable
Witch
with someone else.”
This time tears really did fill her eyes. Joanna dropped her head on
his chest as the first sob left her lungs. The arms that had been stiff with
anger moments ago, wrapped around her to pull her tightly into his
chest.
The voice that had growled moments ago, now whispered.
“Joanna, I know it hurts. I know you’re afraid. I can smell pain and fear
all over you. Don’t shut me out.”
“I’m fine,” Joanna whispered. “I’m fine,” she said, a little stronger
this time. “I promise. It’s getting better.” Resting her palm on his
chest, she continued, “Thank you, Landon. Thank you for running
interference for me with Royce. I know he’s really pissed at me. Thank
you for cleaning me up, and everything else you’ve done to take care of
me today.”
“Royce needed to cool down, and you needed to recover. Royce
cares very deeply about you, Joanna. He would never forgive himself if
something happened to you on his watch. Cut him some slack.”
Knowing that it would get her blood flowing, he added, “And, if this is
too much for you to handle on your own, don’t be too proud to call for
backup.”
Mission
accomplished.
Her
eyes
sparked
with anger;
which
he
preferred to tears.
“You think I can’t handle it, Wolf-boy?” Joanna hissed. “You think
I’m just a weak female? Let me assure you, I’m nothing like the kind of
woman you are used to dealing with. I can take care of myself, and I don’t
need you, or Royce, or anyone else worrying about me,” Joanna ranted as
she pushed him away.
“I can take it from here. You don’t need to see me home. I’ll call a
cab,” Joanna said, wishing he would just go. She had told him she felt
fine, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. She felt as if she might
break into a million pieces at any moment.
“There is only one problem with that. I told Royce I would get you
home safely,” he countered. “That’s just what I’m going to do, even if I
have to tie you up to do it.”
“Try it Wolf, I dare you.”
“Just remember, you asked for it, Jo.” Landon reached over to open a
cabinet as he made his way slowly toward her. Without breaking stride or
taking his eyes off her, he withdrew a coil of rope and clicked the door
shut with soft finality.
Ok, so maybe things had gone too far
. “Stop! Landon, this isn’t funny,”
Joanna said breathlessly. At one time, being tied up by a man like Landon
Smith would have been her idea of fun. But--?
Shaking his head slowly from side to side, eyes glinting he said, “I’m
not laughing,” as he continued to move toward her.
Joanna backed away taking care to make sure she was backing toward
the stairs rather than into a wall. As she reached the stairs, she raised her
hand. A little magic could slow him down enough to give her a head-start.
“Don’t even think about it. It doesn’t work well on us, and you know
it. You don’t have that much energy to spare right now anyway,”
Landon warned. But, he wasn’t too sure about that. Her heart was
beating rapidly, her cheeks were flushed. He smelled her arousal but also
a hint of fear.
Landon’s cell phone rang, shattering the moment. That particular
ringtone could only mean one thing…
trouble
.
Landon dropped the rope and reached for his cell.
“You win this time, Joanna. Go to the office at the marina; they will
call a cab for you. I’m sorry, but I have to go…now.”

“Where?” Landon barked as he answered the call. He had cleared the
stairs in one leap, landed on the pier with the second, and was currently
unlocking his truck. He couldn’t risk shifting here. People would notice
a Wolf. He had to get away from the crowd.

“Kurt’s.” His second in command confirmed what his gut had
already told him.
“Are the girls home?” Landon asked. Dread settled in his stomach
like a cement block. He slammed the truck in gear and sped out of the
parking lot.
“Yes. Becki’s there as well. They are all locked in the house at this
point. But I’ve got to tell you; it’s shaping up to be a real bitch out there,
Landon. I know you don’t want the girls to know, but things are about
to get
loud
and ugly.”
“Protect them at all costs. If anything happens to those girls, I’ll kill
who ever let it happen without a second thought. I’m on my way!”
Landon loved Kurt’s girls as if they were his own pups. He did not
want them to know about the darkness in the world. He didn’t want
them to know that things really did go “bump” in the night.
After ending the call, Landon threw the phone into the passenger
seat. Fear, frustration, and rage combined making it nearly impossible to
keep his Wolf restrained.
“Ouch!” Joanna complained as the phone landed forcefully in her lap.
“What the hell do you think you are doing here?” Landon was
already furious and rapidly losing ground to an increasingly agitated
Wolf. This is just what he needed-- an overly-tired, stubborn (not to
mention smart-mouthed) Witch to worry about.
“I’m going, too. I can help,” Joanna announced as she settled in for
the ride.
“No... You’re not.” Landon swore as he turned the vehicle sharply
and skidded onto an abandoned service road. “I’m shifting so I can
travel faster. Joanna, I don’t have time for this.
Stay put
... I’ll be back for
you when I get this situation handled,” he ordered.
Mistaking her silence for agreement, he leapt from the truck shifting
mid-flight.
Joanna’s breath caught in her throat as an enormous Wolf shrouded
in thick silver fur landed on all fours.
He was beautiful!
His coat
practically shimmered like spun silver in the sunlight, and then in an
instant he had disappeared from view.
Fortunately, Joanna had placed a tracking spell on him earlier this
afternoon. She had spelled all of the divers temporarily… just as a
precaution. But she hadn’t seen the need to share that bit of information
as Royce tended to get pissy about those things. She had wanted to be
able to locate them if something unforeseen happened during their dive.
She closed her eyes and “saw” Landon as he ran like the wind. His
movements were gracefully fluid.
Joanna smiled, thinking he reminded
her of liquid silver.
As he reached his destination, what Joanna saw
made her blood run cold.
Vampires were surrounded by a pack of
Werewolves; in a neighborhood subdivision no less! And the icing on
the cake? Royce stood smack-dab in the midst of the fight….

As Becki glanced out the window, her heart practically stopped
beating. Royce was surrounded by both men and beasts.
When did he get
here? What the hell were those things? What does he think he’s doing out there?
She physically stuffed the girls in the panic room, a converted closet
under the stairs, and swung the door closed with a
thud
!

“I’ll be fine.” She spoke to them through the locked door over their
loud protests. “I love you all and will get you out of there when things
calm down,” she promised. Becki prayed she would live through
whatever was unfolding in the front yard.

Kurt had been so insistent that they all know how to access the panic
room and activate the lock. Now things were becoming clearer. Becki
mentally thanked Kurt for his preparedness. The instant the lock had
tripped on the panic room, Kurt would have received a text message.
He would be freaking out about now and pissed as hell when he found
out that she had not joined the girls in safety.

Becki was not a child; she was not going to hide and wait for
someone to rescue her. She sprinted to the gun safe trying to remember
the combination.
Thirty-three to the right, twenty-four to the left, and…. Think!
Calm down and think.

Becki closed her eyes and drew a calming breath before trying again.
Thirty-three to the right, twenty-four to the left…
and
thirty-two to the right
!
Click!
The electronic mechanisms began to move.
As the safe door swung
open, she frowned at the confusing selection of weapons.
Wooden
stakes, a cross bow with an assortment of arrows with varying tips,
wooden bullets, vials of liquid, and a case of shiny bullets marked ‘silver’.
What the hell?

Pale men, large canines, all at once it made perfect sense!
The
wooden stakes were for Vampires and silver bullets for Werewolves.
Judging from what she had witnessed, the Wolves were on their side.
This is what Royce had been trying to keep from her.

“
Royce!”
Becki screamed.
She snatched a wooden steak and tucked it
in the waistband of her pants. With hands that shook, she loaded Kurt’s
rifle and hand-gun with wooden bullets.
Lord, help me
, she prayed as she
moved toward the front door.

A flash of silver leaped into the pack of snarling wolves. Royce knew
instinctively it was Landon. As he touched Landon’s flank, the massive
Wolf swung his jaws toward Royce and snarled. In retrospect, perhaps
he should have patted his head instead; however, Landon got the
message and signaled the pack to quiet down. The Wolves immediately
broke ranks and divided.
Half the pack formed a semicircle around
Royce and Landon while the other half positioned themselves as a
barrier between the Vampires and Kurt’s house.

“You know you can’t win this,” Royce advised the pale group. “You
also know it can’t go down here. You are all risking execution at the
hands of the Council for causing a public spectacle as it is. What is your
interest in this place?” Royce asked.