Crimson had picked her hiding place carefully—downwind, in the shadows and under a heaping arch of brush, deep in the forest where she knew at least one of her stalkers wouldn’t find her. The advantage of being on foot was that she could slip quickly under the trees’ canopy, obscuring the eagle-eyed vision of Talon, whose shrill cry overhead made her smirk. He was frustrated, to be sure. This game had gone on longer than he’d wanted.

The echoing crack of a branch underfoot had her crouching lower, her breath barely there as she reined in the urge to bolt. A predatory snort, closer than she’d like, had her heart pounding so thunderously that she was sure she’d give herself up any second.

Unlike the eagle shifter, in his wolf form, Valor would have no trouble hunting her at ground level. The only thing she had going for her was her head start and how easily she’d wedged herself under the protection of the piled branches. If she was lucky, he wouldn’t be able to pick up her scent.

With the way she was sweating, though, she’d probably need to shift to plan B shortly.

Another snort, another twig creaking. Normally he wouldn’t be so noisy, but she guessed he wanted her to know he was near. He wanted her to know that her little game was becoming tedious and that she would pay, one way or another. Still she hunkered down, holding her breath now that he was so close, determined to win this round, at least. Through the thicket, a flash of gray fur strode by—so leisurely, so assured. As an apex predator in Shade, he was monstrously large, as were all the familiars, but Valor also had an air of sophistication along with his brute force, as though he were a king among his kind, even when he, along with Crimson and Talon, was an outcast.

She loved that about him.

Crimson’s lungs, pushed to their limit of air deprivation, wheezed out a short gasp through her clenched lips. She froze, scanning the small area in her line of sight. It was hardly a sound, and yet…

The ground beneath her shook with the thundering approach of Valor. She had an easy escape route, but she waited, pushing down the instinct to get out and run. She didn’t know which direction he was coming from, but she knew it was only a matter of time before—

The stacked branches around her creaked and groaned, threatening to collapse with her underneath as Valor pounced on top of her hiding spot. She rolled to the side and briefly made eye contact with the beast. His cunning brown gaze shone with triumph.

Not yet, wolfie. Not yet.

He shoved his snout between two branches and wedged one paw, claws out, through the wood. Crimson grinned.

“Gotcha.” She kicked as hard as she could, and as the entire structure began to fall, entangling the wolf in an avalanche of debris, she rolled out of the way, clearing the mess before Valor even knew what had happened. She was on her feet, bolting to the tree line, keeping her snickers contained as much as she could as she listened to Valor’s grunts and huffs behind her. He was too big to get out of the disaster of branches gracefully.

The barn was a short distance from the forest—the closest point of safety—which was why she’d chosen the hiding spot she had. She paused only briefly to look up at the sky. The summer sun was at its peak, beating down relentlessly, despite the veil of fog that Crimson had built around her safe haven. She scanned the skies again but there was no sign of Talon. Almost out of breath, her chest heaving, she made a dash for it, pumping her legs as hard as she could. All she needed was two minutes. Two minutes and she’d win.

Talon’s screech sounded like fury itself, and Crimson dug deep, pushing harder toward her goal.

Fifty feet.

Forty.

Thirty.

She dared not look up or behind. She didn’t need to anyway, because she felt the predators closing in. They were at her heels and above her head.

Twenty feet remaining.

She would make it this time.

She would—

One foot landed wrong, and instead of touching the wood of the barn, she face-planted right into the grass.

Oof!

Dirt rammed against her face and embedded into her hair. Bits of grass flew up her nose. She coughed and sneezed, too disoriented and out of breath to do much more than accept defeat.

Valor howled seconds before skidding over her, his giant paws caging her head while the rest of him pressed into her body. She pushed herself up—or tried to, anyway—just as Talon landed, his claws digging into the ground in front of her. Valor shoved her down with his snout between her shoulder blades. Talen dropped rope with two loops for her wrists in front of her face.

“Yeah, yeah.” She spat dirt then slipped her hands through the loops.

Valor prodded her roughly, giving her enough space so she could flip over. He was grinning like a crazy wolf, his fangs bared and muzzle scrunched.

“Rub it in, why don’t you?”

The rope loops tightened as Talon took flight, the force of his ascent whipping her to her feet in seconds. She stumbled backward until her shoulders pressed against the wall of the barn, her toes barely touching the ground. The rope pulled taut, letting her know that Talon had secured her. She was trapped and at the mercy of her familiars…again. Talon’s cry sounded like victory. She looked up to see him circle above, letting her know what she had coming.

She kept losing this game. On purpose? No, she was too competitive for that, and yet, something always seemed to cause her to trip up at the last minute.

“You’re a terrible hider, Crimson.” Valor’s voice rumbled like thunder, forcing her attention to him.

She pulled her gaze from Talon to see that Valor was fully clothed still, which was hardly like him at a time like this. All the same, the tight breeches he liked to wear left very little to the imagination—not that she minded. She enjoyed seeing how aroused her men got, even if it was hidden behind their clothes temporarily. His loose-fitting shirt was unbuttoned enough to give her a glimpse of the dark curls of chest hair that she loved feeling pressed against her skin, roughly warming her with every thrust. He ran his fingers through his hair, then shook the curls out, a gesture that made him look like he had no cares in the world when they both knew he was dying to fuck her silly.

She knew this for certain because her men always wanted to fuck her silly, but also because his cock strained against his pants like it was ready to burst out on its own.

What she wouldn’t give to swallow him whole. To taste his cum. To lick his balls.

She squirmed, lust pooling in her every erogenous zone.

“Growing impatient, darling?” Talon spoke as he shifted, a unique talent that few familiars had.

“A taste of her own medicine, I’d say,” Valor added.

“You two wouldn’t have caught me if I hadn’t stumbled.” Crimson tugged on the ropes, even though she knew it was pointless. She could use her power to get herself out of the bindings at any time but where was the fun in that?

“Stumbled?” Valor laughed. “Is that what that was?”

“Looked more like eating dirt to me.” Talon swooped in to run his fingers over her cheek, his golden eyes sparkling. “In fact, you’ve got some grass right here.”

She flicked her cheek to the side in a vain attempt to shift away from him. He gripped her chin in response and yanked her face toward him again, all playfulness gone from his eyes. “Now, now, Crimson, no need to be a sore loser.”

“I’m not a sore—”

He cut off her words with a kiss—a demanding, tongue-probing, toe-curling kiss. She melted. How could she not? Talon was not only a fierce protector and loyal familiar, but he loved her and made sure she knew it in every imitate moment they shared.

He released her too soon, turning her chin to the side. Her protest was cut short by Valor and his teasing kiss—a nip on her bottom lip, a soothing lick, then a leisurely stroking that incinerated her every last urge to resist.

Why would she, anyway? This was what she wanted—to be bound and at the mercy of her men.

Talon draped a rough swath of fabric over her eyes then tied it so tightly behind her head that she gasped. Valor nipped her bottom lip one last time before pulling away. She tugged on her arms as if she could coax him back with a touch, but the binding was too strong for her to move more than an inch away from the wall, so she only managed to make herself sway. Someone tugged another piece of cloth over her mouth, slipping it between her lips so that her jaw was wedged slightly open and her lips pulled taut.

She’d put her war gear on for their game, which meant the men had to navigate a series of buttons and hooks to unravel the layers of skintight fabric that wrapped around Crimson’s body. Hardly a challenge for these two.

They had her stripped bare in a matter of moments. The sun’s heat beat down on her exposed skin so she was slick with sweat. A wisp of a breeze, full of grass and dirt and the heady scent of her familiars’ arousal was like a balm, making her nipples harden to the point of aching need. She loved fucking these men in the middle of the day, outside, without a care as to who might see.

Not that anyone visited their little hideaway. They’d all been banished a year ago, forgotten by the court in place of a death sentence for a crime she hadn’t committed.

It was meant to be a punishment, but really it was a blessing—peace, quiet, the never-ending roll of days with nothing to do.

At least, that’s what she told herself.

Hands cupped her breasts. Fingers splayed her pussy lips. A tongue traced the side of her neck. Sensations of exquisite torture, teasing touches, barely-there kisses… Someone hauled her ass up with strong hands, cupping her cheeks. Hot breath cascaded over her clit.

Anticipation made her squirm.

Desire and need coiled deep inside her core, every muscle tight, waiting for release.

Someone covered her nipple with hot, wet heat and a flickering tongue. Someone squeezed her other breast to the point of pain. Her men both had large hands and big mouths, wide enough to envelop her tits almost completely, which made it impossible to know who was playing with what. But that didn’t matter, because her body was on fire. Every nerve-ending jolted as her lust wound around the pinnacle of release.

A flick of her clit made her moan behind the gag. The hands on her ass hoisted her higher, a feast on display as thumbs yanked her pussy open wider. A strong, determined tongue roughly licked her from top to bottom so that rolling waves of nearly unbearable pleasure made her whimper and groan. Finally, lips latched onto her clit with force and huge fingers thrust inside, seeking that special rhythm so that the bud of her G-spot roared to life.

Featherlight kisses just below her earlobe made her shiver.

Relentless pounding of thick fingers in her pussy made her gasp.

The coil of her climax tightened with each nip and flick and suck of her nipples.

She writhed and swayed and desperately wanted to pull away from the intensity, but instead her body pleaded for moremoremore.

When her orgasm crested, it was a rising peak that seemed to stretch beyond the sky. She held back for as long as she could, reveling in the waves of power that built it higher and higher. Her breath caught. Her body froze. She was on the edge with a sheer drop seconds away.

One more flick.

One more suck.

One more kiss.

She arched into the dive, her body contorting and rolling and spasming. Her synapses fired all at once then short-circuited with the bombardment of sensations. Light exploded behind her eyes as she rode the wave through every pulse-pounding, pussy-quivering second of it.

Her men didn’t let her go—not even when her legs shook, not even when she moaned from the pit of her desire. They were relentless, caressing every tiny bit of pleasure out of her until she was limp, out of breath and complete putty.

Someone untied her arms so she could collapse properly into his arms. By the way he kissed her, so sweetly, she knew it was Talon who cradled her. It was Valor, then, who undid the gag, then the blindfold. She kept her eyes closed to protect against the blinding sun.

“Time for a bath, Crimson. You’re a mess.” Talon’s voice was a gruff command. No debate. He loved to bathe her, and she loved the way he worshipped her body, so he’d get no resistance from her—not that she could move of her own volition right now anyway.

She blinked her eyes open to smile at Valor, who was only a step behind her.

She expected to see the cocky smirk of a job well done, so when his beautiful face twisted into a pain-filled grimace, Crimson jolted and a knot tightened in her gut.

Talon’s next step landed wrong, and instead of carrying her forward, he began to fall. He curled himself around her body, clearly trying to protect her from hitting the ground, even though his arms shook and tears streamed from his eyes. He rolled so she landed on top of him, bearing the brunt of a hard landing on his shoulders and back.

“What’s wrong?” Crimson split her attention between her familiars.

Valor clenched his chest, like his heart was about to burst from his flesh. She felt Talon’s body vibrating beneath her fingers, his pulse probably racing at the same pace as Valor’s.

Valor’s eyes flashed between wolf and human, taking on a predatory gleam as he struggled to stop himself from shifting.

She moved off Talon’s body just as he contorted then rolled into a ball, holding his gut, moaning in obvious agony.

“Something’s wrong—” Valor sputtered. “Can’t keep hold—"

“No shit!” Crimson grounded herself, connecting with the natural magic of the earth while at the same time yanking her magic from its resting place. Her familiar marks flared in hues of red, coursing power from her toes to her scalp. She put one hand on Valor, one on Talon, hoping to tap into whatever was causing them pain so she could obliterate it. As soon as she laid her hands on them, she flew back like she’d touched a lightning bolt. Searing pain roared through her body, tearing over her from sternum to groin. It felt like her head was splitting, her limbs ripping from their sockets…

Death. Death was all around them…in them, taking violently from somewhere. Echoed screams ricocheted through her conscious mind, and she knew… She just knew.

My sister…one of three witches in the Court of Shade—a triad that maintained balance in their world. My sister is dead.

“Aria—” Crimson gasped.

Talon, now in his eagle form, took flight with a screeching wail. Valor, now a wolf, limped toward her.

They’d been forced to shift, and the only thing that could do that was the death of one of their own. A Brother of Shade had died and so had her sister.

Their sanctuary. Their blessing. It all shattered.

Crimson didn’t know who the enemy was, but she knew her peaceful days were over.