The Dawnvel Druids by - (summer beach reads TXT) 📖

she was up close, Simone vaguely recognised both Jack and James from Dawnvel Academy. They’d been a couple of years above her and she’d never interacted with them, but she remembered they’d both been on the school football team. It chilled her to know the old Jack and James had been murdered by a Cairnath, turned into the monsters they were now.

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Jack laughed once more, accompanied by the two other men Simone didn’t recognise.

“It just looks like a girl holding a piece of rock to me, or a really big lighter.”

“This thing,” Simone held her wand higher. “Yeah it’ll work as a lighter if you want, stoneboys like you go up like dry paper.”

Jack kept the dumb grin on his face, but the mirth died in his eyes.

“Let the girl go,” she repeated.

“Nah, we caught her fair and square.” Jack snarled. “You don’t scare me, witchy. You are hot though. Here, you can have this tart.” Jack threw the sobbing victim at one of his friends, turning to Simone. “I reckon I’ll be feeding from you tonight instead.”

Jack licked his lips as he advanced, laughing once more. Simone supposed Jack thought he terrified her, but in truth his stupidity put her at ease. The vast majority of freshly turned gargoyles were like this, naive to the danger of druids and drunk on their newfound powers. Jack likely thought nothing could harm him now, he was a god amongst mortals.

He leaped for her, but Simone merely let loose her fireball. The fire struck Jack square in the face, setting his hair and flesh alight in seconds. The fool howled in surprised agony and ran back, flailing his arms and trying to bat out the flames in vain.

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His fellow gargoyles shouted out in shock, trying to help Jack but not wanting to get fire on themselves either. The fire spread to his body and Jack fell to his knees, his screams dying out at he keeled over, burned to a crisp.

That was the easy part however. Now the four remaining gargoyles knew what they were up against, they’d take her far more seriously.

One of them, who looked like he’d been a bodybuilder in his past life, threw the blond woman to the ground, hard enough to knock her out cold.

Bodybuilder then motioned to the others, who spread out to flank Simone’s either side as they made to surround her.

She backed up, conjuring another fireball. She couldn’t get them all at once though. She ripped her dagger free

Two of them went for her at once. She threw fire at the garg to her left, whilst pivoting to slash the thug on her right. The gargoyle on her left ducked the flames, and the one of the right tried to evade but she still caught his ear, lopping off the tip. The brute keened, clamping a hand to his ear and falling back. The other three gargoyles pressed against her, however, grabbing for her weapons.

Simone booted one guy in the stomach and elbowed Bodybuilder in the nose, causing a crunch, but James used the distraction to slug her in the face, so hard her vision blacked out for a second. She lost her balance and couldn’t block the next attack in time as Bodybuilder wrapped a hand around her throat and

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launched her into the air. She flew backward, hitting the pavement with such force her entire body jarred.

Simone made to leap to her feet, but all the wind had been driven out of her.

She only realised then that her knife had been taken from her in the commotion.

“Ha,” sneered James, the fear he previously had erased. “I guess this druid doesn’t have any friends.”

James stepped over her, lifting her own dagger high, ready to strike.

A colossal pale shape smashed into James with sickening force and a thunderous roar. Simone caught a glimpse of teeth and an arc of blood as James fell under the weight of the tiger mauling him.

Simone couldn’t believe her eyes as the white tiger rose on its hind quarters and strode forward like a man. The majestic beast threw himself at the remaining three gargoyles, fearless.

With one swipe, he caved in one monster’s face before whirling to backhand another, his claws raking the man’s chest to ribbons. Bodybuilder was the last to die, his skull breaking and letting loose a red mist as the white tiger clamped his jaws down on either side, wrestling him to the ground and shaking his great head from side to side until the gargoyle stirred no longer.

By the time Simone got to her feet, the white tiger was back on all fours. He was awe-inspiring to look upon. Snowy-white fur streaked with lines of black covered his heavily muscled body.

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She felt a primal fear as the tiger padded her way, his iron grey eyes piercing her own.

Simone raised a trembling hand, gripping her wand tight, ready to fight to the death. The white tiger paused as her wand lit up with a blue glow, and then his maw widened into something that vaguely resembled a parody of a smile.

Slowly, the white fur melted away, the huge teeth and claws retracted and the beasts very bones changed shape.

As the tiger dissolved, it revealed a tall, leanly muscled man in its place.

Simone tried not to let her shock show. She’d heard of weretigers before, and knew they were one of the rarest shifters, and the most deadly. They possessed an inhuman combination of strength and speed, just like the animal they could morph into at will.

Now in his human form, the weretiger looked to be only a few years older than her. His face was flawless, almost angelic, yet the illusion broken by his devilish smirk. He had silky white-blond hair, the strands dangling over his pale grey eyes, and his skin was pale gold, his torso and stomach impeccably defined. He was also completely naked.

“My name is Kazimir,” the nude man drawled, his words laced with mirth.

“Pleased to meet you, druid.”

Simone didn’t lower her wand, even though Kazimir showed no signs of immediate attack. He could be lulling her into a false sense of security, but then why had he bothered to help her fend off the gargoyles?

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“The Dawnvel coven are in charge of this town,” she said, keeping all fear from her tone and expression. She wouldn’t give this weretiger the satisfaction.

“So I’ve heard,” said Kazimir, still smirking at her, his cheekbones sharp enough to cut. “No one told me how beautiful the druids were however. Are the others as divine as you, or are you special?”

“Shut it,” she snapped. “Declare your intentions. Weretigers have been known to feed off of humans. If you’re here in search of new prey it won’t end well for you.”

“Oh?” Kazimir said softly. “Are you going to arrest me, girl. Wrestle me to the ground and bind me in shackles. I’d love to see you attempt it.”

Simone had no idea why he kept coming on to her. Maybe this was part of his ploy to ambush her. Maybe he was just in heat.

She fired a warning spell at the weretiger’s feet, causing a mini electrical explosion.

Kazimir took a step back, his smirk slipping.

“I’ve already called in the rest of my coven,” Simone said. “They’ll be here in moments. Do you need to arrest you? If you try to fight it could end in your death.”

“Relax pretty one.” Kazimir wrinkled his nose in distaste. “I’m not one of the rabid of my kind who feast on human flesh, nor do I seek quarrel with any of you druids.”

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Simone relaxed a little, although her wand stayed aloft. He could always be lying.

“So what are you doing he… and could you at least cover yourself,” she said, purposely keeping her eyes focused on his own.

“Of course.” Kazimir bowed his head. “Try not to peek.”

Unfortunately, she couldn’t look away form him completely, in case he took the chance to attack, but she kept him in the corner of her eye as he pulled one of the dead men’s jackets off and wrapped it round his waist.

She turned back to face him fully, now trying not to stare at his bulging abs.

“Tell me your name girl.”

“Simone,” she said through ground teeth.

“That’s as pretty as you are,” he replied, unashamedly taking in her own body. “Do you-”

“I’m asking the questions,” she cut across. “Now, tell me what you’re doing here?”

“Saving your fine behind it looks like.” He shrugged, his devilish smile returning.

“I didn’t need saving,” she spat.

“Could’ve fooled me.”

“What were you doing following me?”

“My, my. Awfully big headed, aren’t you? I was merely passing by when I heard the commotion. I know what gargs are like, wretched fiends. Druids

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however have been allies to me in the past. I was only happy to save your life.

Although I don’t appreciate the wand pointed in my face as a reward.”

“You expect me to believe that?” she said, but even so she lowered her wand.

Maybe he was telling the truth?

It wasn’t that uncommon for other supernaturals to visit Dawnvel from time to time; supernaturals who had no intention of preying upon the residents. Since Simone had been here, a vampire couple, a troupe of elves and even a mermaid had stopped by.

“I assure you, I’m just passing through this town,” Kazimir said. “Research the name Kazimir Kaine in your little druid database if you must. You’ll find no record of me harming innocent humans.”

“I will,” she promised, relief flooding through her. Even if he was lying and her search proved he was a dangerous criminal, she wouldn’t be able to take him down on her own. If he was foolish enough to hang around Dawnvel, she and the rest of the coven could capture him later.

“Thanks, I guess,” she said. “For helping me fight the gargoyles, not rescuing me.”

Kazimir bowed low. “It was a pleasure Simone, and an even greater pleasure meeting a woman as beautiful as you. I’m sure we’ll meet again.”

“Really, why?”

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“Oh, I may stay a while,” was all Kazimir gave in reply. He suddenly looked up over her head, listening intently. “Ah, I can hear someone running this way. I best take my leave.”

Before she could say anything to stop him, Kazimir cast the jacket at his waist aside and fell to his knees, morphing into the great white tiger once again.

The tiger ran past her at terrific speed, wheeling around the corner and disappearing from view. Simone stared in the space Kazimir had been seconds before, stunned.

A minute later, a breathless Mo rounded the corner into the loading bay, clutching a stitch in his side.

“Oh, thank Lucifer you’re alright.” Mo came to her side before hunching over to get his breath back. He spotted the gargoyle remains. “You handled them all on your own?”

“Uh…yeah. Sorry, I thought I might need help, just as a precaution. But I got

‘em all. We better help that woman out. Make sure she’s not hurt too badly.”

“I’ll do it,” Mo panted. “You must be beat.”

As Mo drew his wand and