With what? Tina asked herself.
The entry burst open. Wood splintered as the jamb exploded into a spray of twisted metal and a massive black wolf leaped inside. It snarled, its enormous frame blocking the entire doorway.
For a moment, Tina couldn’t breathe. It was both beautiful and terrifying.
The wolf tilted its gorgeous head toward her, its eyes focusing on her through the gap in the closet doors. That was enough to snap her out of her daze.
This was the distraction she had been waiting for.
She kicked open the closet door and bolted for the altar, mace at the ready. The steam of blinding pepper rained from the can like fire, hitting the closest man right in the eyes. He screamed and fell backward into the water while the other two ran for the black wolf, apparently gauging him as the bigger threat. Their forms shimmered as they shifted into wolves themselves, but Tina ignored them.
On the altar, Amy’s eyes shot open. The irises were gone, and her eyes glowed white. Her mouth opened as though she were trying to scream, but she didn’t make a sound. The ropes around her wrists and ankles glowed red and as Tina reached her friend, they blew away, disintegrating into ash.
“Amy!” Tina grabbed her friend’s face. The moment Tina touched Amy’s skin, pain unlike anything she’d ever felt exploded through her.
It was like being hit by lightning. Like being burned alive. Like being dipped in a vat of acid.
Tina screamed.
Time slowed to a crawl. As the pain snaked through her body, she could feel every heartbeat, every breath. The soft caress of her cotton shirt on her torso felt like heaven, a sharp contrast to the agonizing sting of her blood boiling in every vein. Every sensation erupted through her brain, almost too much to bear and beautifully orgasmic at the same time.
“What’s going on?” Tina cried, one hand going to the altar to brace herself, only as she gripped it, the marble slab broke off, pitching her to the ground.
The chill of the hard stone against her knees snapped her out of her suffering enough for her to get a sense of her whereabouts once more. The black wolf wrestled with three slightly smaller wolves. With a mighty kick of his hind legs, the black wolf launched all three past the altar. The three wolves sailed across the room, slamming into the far wall. Snarling and snapping his jaws, he charged after them as they slumped down the stone to the ground.
“Ugh, what happened?” Amy sat up on the slab with her hand on her head as though nursing a headache. Her skin had returned to normal. Thank God!
“You’re okay!” Tina moved to pull herself to her feet. But as she gripped the altar, she nearly went blind. From her own hands. Brilliant white light radiated from her body. Somehow, someway, the glow had transferred to her.
“Tina, what’s going on?” Amy asked, but as her eyes fixed on Tina they widened. “Oh my god. You’re glowing?”
“Come on,” Tina said, shaking herself back into action. She might have been glowing, and the world might be spinning, but that didn’t mean they could stand around. No. They had to move.
She tried to walk, but just that small movement made stars of pain flash behind her eyes. Then her toe hit the corner of the altar, knocking her off balance.
Tina’s arms flailed, windmilling, and as Amy reached out to try and grab her, Tina toppled into the pool surrounding the altar. The silky touch of the water splashed against her face, and the rush of overwhelming sensation returned. Tina could barely think, barely breathe, barely do anything.
Fortunately, she didn’t have to do anything. Amy grabbed her by the arms and pulled her from the water. As she turned her eyes toward her friend, she realized Amy was speaking to her.
“Hold on, Tina,” Amy said, her voice barely audible. “You’re going to be okay.” Every sound warbled and echoed in Tina’s ears, making Amy’s voice almost unrecognizable.
And with that, Tina’s world went dark.
3
Tina
The sound of rushing water through an open window pulled Tina out of a dark and dreamless sleep. She woke to the cooling sensation of silk sheets along her bare thighs. A gentle breeze rolled over her face, and a soft blanket lay over her body.
Slowly, she blinked herself awake and lifted herself onto her elbows. Her vision was blurry, but the wooden posts of a canopy bed gradually came into focus. The white curtains were drawn, hiding the world around her.
At first, Tina didn’t understand what had happened. The heavy lethargy of sleep and a pounding headache made her brain fuzzy. As she sat up, though, a wave of memories crashed into her.
The strippers. The ritual. The glowing.
Heart hammering in her chest, Tina bolted upright. The soft blanket fell off of her, revealing that her jeans and tee shirt were gone and had been replaced with a white satin robe that gently brushed her skin with every movement. Her body hummed, the pain long gone and replaced with buzzing energy that left her a bit lightheaded. The sensation reminded her of standing up too fast or the thrill that came with the first plunge on a rollercoaster.
She had passed out in the strip club and woken up in a strange place she didn’t recognize. Worse, she had no idea who had brought her or who had changed her clothes.
Ready to figure out where the hell she was, Tina swung her legs over the edge of the bed. She threw open the curtains, squinting as brilliant light blinded her.
“Dammit,” she said under her breath and, throwing up one arm to block the light, waited for her eyes to adjust, only before she could, someone pulled her into a tight hug.
“Tina, oh my God. I’m so glad you’re okay,” Amy cried, squeezing her even tighter.
“Jesus, you scared the fuck out of me,” Tina said as her friend nearly bearhugged her to death.
“I scared you? You scared me,” Amy replied, easing off the pressure. “You don’t have any idea how worried I was.”
“What the hell happened, Amy?” Tina asked. “The last thing I remember was the fight.” She swallowed, but before she could say more, a man’s voice filled her ears.
“Don’t worry. You’re safe.”
Tina flinched in surprise, her gaze swinging toward the man standing by the window. Despite the bright light streaming through it, she managed to squint enough to see him. He leaned against the elaborate golden wallpaper, the lush greenery of the treetops outside a sharp contrast to his black button-down shirt and slacks. Her gaze trailed over his handsome face, from the striking blue eyes to the dark hair and delicious line of stubble along his chin.
Amy gestured to the stranger. “Tina, this is Anthony. He saved our asses, and I owe him a drink now.”
“More than a drink.” He scoffed. “You owe me a banquet and a new car.”
Ah, so this is the elusive Anthony.
Good God, he was gorgeous.
Tina couldn’t stop herself from staring, but she tried to at least join the conversation to keep from seeming like a comatose idiot. “Thank you for rescuing us. I can’t thank you enough. If you hadn’t come when you did …”
“Don’t mention it,” he said with a slight bow of his head. “I was kidding about the car. Amy’s going to get into trouble no matter what I do, so I figured I should at least bail her out if I can.”
Tina shifted her gaze between the two, confused. “Are you guys secretly dating or something?”
Amy cackled so loudly that Tina jumped in surprise. The laugh quickly faded as Amy yanked the curtains open and sat on the bed. “No, Tina. God no. He’s a childhood friend. That would be like dating my brother. Gross.”
“I’m not that repulsive, woman,” Anthony said with an eye roll.
No, you most certainly are not. Tina bit her lip as he slid his hands into his pockets. “If you guys are so close, how have I not met you for five years?” she asked.
Amy shrugged, toying with the ends of her hair. “As he took on more responsibility at the palace, he was just too busy being a prince to hang out with us common folk.”