The jingle of bells sang in my ears, over and over, like a song stuck in a loop. I ached all over. The tune kept repeating. Was Britta playing with a toy? Lying with my eyes shut and a fiery warmth at my feet, I felt as if I’d forgotten something. The last thing I remembered was driving to the small town of Ringsted…

And with that, my heart slammed against my chest as the memories surged through my mind. The attack, the monster, the reindeer! Me falling over, hitting my head.

I opened my eyes to a white ceiling with a single bulb hanging low. This wasn’t my bedroom. I lay on a bed, on top of the covers, in a strange room, and my breath hitched. My thoughts raced as I tried to piece together where the hell I was, but nothing came to mind.

The ringing persisted, and I twisted my head, which was a mistake because a thundering ache lanced across my brow as if I’d been struck by a hammer. A man paced up and down the room, and the bells rang out each time his left foot hit the floorboards. He glanced outside every time he passed the window, his hands deep in his pockets. He had short, dark cropped hair. Paired with his broad shoulders and muscular physic, he reminded me of a soldier. Had he saved me from the monster and brought me here?

Outside, it looked darker and snow fell in clusters, making visibility difficult. I scanned the room without making a sound, from the door to the couch against the opposite wall where another man slouched. His head was tilted back against the top of the sofa, staring at the ceiling, and he wore jeans, heavy boots, and a long-sleeved top. Like the first guy, he was strong and maybe in his mid-to-late twenties.

Why was I here exactly? Maybe I should be in a hospital. The fuzziness in my mind made thinking worse.

What had happened in the woods had been strange enough. But now to wake up in a room with two strange men sat on my chest like a boulder. I was in Austria and knew so little about the country. They must have found me passed out in the woods and brought me here? But why not a hospital?

Thanks to the crazy-ass monster attacking, I’d left my phone and bag in the car, and who knew where that was in relation to where this cabin was located. My stomach twisted with that reminder.

I shifted slightly on top of the bedsheet, rolling away from the men.

But the moment, I turned onto my side, I came eye to eye with a third man sitting on a chair, one ankle crossed over his knee, his hands on his thighs. The bluest eyes stared my way, and I lost myself in them as they stood out against the darkest lashes and thick brows. Long, black hair flowed over his shoulders and halfway down his chest. I’d only seen men like him in magazines, not in real life. Was I hallucinating?

“Hello,” he said, his voice dark and raspy. Not a hint of an accent. And he didn’t move from his seat.

“She’s awake?” another said from behind me, and I scrambled off the double bed, the chiming of bells coming from around my ankles. I glanced down to my jeans, finding bells sewn to the hems of my fabric. I tugged on them, but they weren’t coming off. My arm had also been bandaged where I’d been scratched up, and the sleeve, pushed to sit above my wound, looked shredded.

The world tilted beneath me, and I stumbled backward. Pressed in between the bed and the handsome long-haired man, I crammed my back against the wall. My attention seesawed between the three men, each studying me with an expression I couldn’t work out. Maybe curiosity, or was I sensing their satisfaction, as if proud of their catch?

The soldier marched toward me, and I grabbed the closest thing, a pillow, holding it against my chest as a shield. I stood no chance against three men. On the bright side, I still wore my clothes. And they hadn’t tied me up as their sex slave. Bonus yay? Except the walls seemed to close in around me, and a heaviness smothered me. I desperately needed fresh air.

“Where am I? Who are you? And why are there bells on my jeans?” My voice quivered, and I cleared my throat, lifting my chin, wondering if I’d make it to the door if I jumped over the bed and ran.

“You’re in Ringsted. The bells are for your protection, and I’m Tatum. That over there”—he stared at the guy lounging on the couch at the back of the room—“is Leven.” Leven gave a slight nod of his head. He had sandy-colored hair, long along the top and shaved around the edges. Shadows danced under his eyes, his expression firm and revealing nothing.

“I’m Jax,” the long-haired man on the seat near the bed said, carrying a light European accent.

My thoughts weren’t catching up, and I swept my gaze from each of them, convinced I was dreaming because, let’s be honest, if there were murderers working together to kidnap and kill people, what were the chances all three would be the sexiest-looking men I’d ever seen? I prayed I was wrong.

“You hit your head pretty nastily,” said Jax. “So we brought you back here to recover. You had no ID on you.”

My throat dried as I tried to patch together the missing pieces of my memory. Okay, so they’d found me in the woods knocked out and had taken care of me. That was a charitable thing to do as long as that was all it had been. “Why didn’t you take me to the hospital?”

Jax shrugged as if it had genuinely never crossed their minds. All right, so I could have had a concussion, and what would they have done? Sat around and watched me until I died? I stiffened at the idea.

“I’m Nickie. Now can I leave?” I glanced up and up at Tatum as he towered over me. He carried an energy about him of someone who was used to getting his way and giving orders.

He nodded. “Where would you like to go?”

I held back the words that I was planning on running as far from them as I could as soon once I got the chance. “I probably need to see a doctor. What if I have a concussion or something?”

Jax shook his head. “Trust us, you’re fine. We can tell.”

I gripped my hips. “What does that even mean? Are you a doctor?”

The corner of his mouth curled up and he shook his head. “You’ll be okay.”

“I need to go home.”

“It’s too dangerous to travel to Hirschheim. We’ll all stay here until the storm passes,” Tatum added. “And Jax is right. You don’t have a head injury. You’ll have to believe us on that.”

I hugged the pillow tighter. “I didn’t mention Hirschheim.” And the earlier panic deepened. Had they gone through my belongings in the car when they’d found me? Except, they’d said they found no ID. What about the demonic monster who’d attacked me? I studied the empty table. There was no sign of my phone or wallet.

“Take a seat, sweetheart,” Jax said, still reclining in his seat, and it annoyed me that he slouched while I felt so cornered.

What exactly were they expecting from me? “I need to make a phone call,” I said.

Tatum sat at the end of the bed and pointed to the phone on the wall near the bathroom door. “It’s all yours.”

I stared at them at first, waiting for them to rip it out of the wall or something, but I took a step forward, then another. No one stepped in my way. Jax smirked, as if the scene were hilarious. Yeah, so funny I couldn’t stop laughing.

I picked up the receiver and dialed home, then turned and put my back to the wall, watching the strangers.

“Hello,” Jana answered. “Holler residence.”

“Jana, it’s me, Nickie. And—”

“Nickie, are you all right? We’ve all been so worried. Britta won’t stop crying.”

“I’m okay.” My heart hurt at hearing Britta’s agony. “The car broke down and some nice men helped me to Ringsted. I’m staying in a motel.” I lowered the receiver from my mouth, getting Tatum’s attention. “What’s this place called? Is there a number?”

Tatum picked up the brochure from near the bedside table and handed it to me. I read out the address and cabin unit written on the paper in red ink. Now someone knew where I was in case I was murdered. Sure, they could have planted the brochure to trick me, but how would they know I’d want to call home? Nope, that was allowing my mind to go into crazy paranoia mode.

The phone line crackled with static. “That is wonderful news. You will have to stay there the night. A big storm has come in fast and it’s too risky to travel.”

“No, it should be fine. Can you ring up Manuel and ask him to pick me up tonight please?”

“Oh, no, girl. We have to wait for the storm to pass. Too dangerous.”

I sighed, hating this whole situation. “What about Jakob, our client? Maybe he can help me? Would you track down his number for me from Manuel please?”

Jana sighed. “While we were worrying about you, Jakob rang to say he left for a holiday. He’s not there.”

Oh, great! I was stuck in a weird kind of hell with three handsome guys! Were they going to torture me with their sexiness? God, could I sound any dorkier? Yep, and my no-dating policy had turned me into a horndog around gorgeous men. “Can I speak with my sister?”

Seconds later, Britta sniffled on the phone. “Nickie, where are you? You promised you’d be back, but you didn’t come.”

My soul shredded, and I turned my back to the men, lowering my voice. “Take a deep breath. It’s okay. It’s not safe to return home tonight in this weather. But I’ll leave in the morning.”

She cried into the phone piece.

“Please, Britta. Be strong for me.” Another crackling across the phone. “Why not show Jana the river we discovered from your window view? I bet she’d love it.”

“Already showed her,” she said, sulking.

“Remember what I said on the drive when we first came here? This is a new location, and we need to get used to changes. Wild animals. Lots of snow. And how quick storms roll in.” I refused to tell her about the car and worry her. I’d find a way to get home tomorrow. “So how about you keep Jana distracted because she told me storms scare her.”

She hummed in response, and I suspected she nodded. “I can do that. Bye.”

“Goodnight.” But she was gone, as the response came in the form of shuffling feet.

“She’ll be fine,” Jana said. “Come home only if it’s safe to do so.”

“Thank you. I’ll talk to you tomorrow if plans change.”

By the time I hung up and turned around, silence permeated the room. The three of them stared my way wearing a mixture of emotions across their expressions. Jax’s brows furrowed while Tatum held himself tightly, as if ready to jump into battle. Leven at the back of the room hadn’t shifted and looked as if nothing in the world bothered him.

“Is your sister all right?” Tatum asked.

I nodded, refusing to get into a whole discussion about my family, and eyed the door. Where would I go when I couldn’t remember the address of the client I was visiting? Plus, he wasn’t home.

“I’m going to get food.” Leven broke the silence and was on his feet and damn, if he wasn’t taller and broader than Tatum. I swallowed the thickness in my throat. No way in the world did I stand a chance against him if things went south.

“I’m coming too,” I piped up, needing to get away and see what my escape plan looked like.

Leven twisted to look at me with an incredulous look. “No.”

He headed toward the door, and I marched after him.

“If I’m stuck here, I need my own room,” I insisted.

“All other rooms are booked. Plus, you need money,” Tatum said from across the room.

I halted in my tracks. “I can ring up home and find a way to pay.” Jana could help out with her credit card, as my wallet was back in the van somewhere in the woods. And the memory had me remembering that devil that had attacked me. The whole incident felt surreal. My inhale rattled on the way down to my lungs. I couldn’t deal with those confusing thoughts when it hurt my head. First, leave behind these men, sort out my thoughts, and find a way to get home to Britta.

No one said a word or tried to stop me as I crossed the room, though there was the low peal of the stupid bells sewn to my pants as they jingled. I was clearly with crazies here. But no one had laid a hand on me, so maybe this was normal Austrian behavior and I was the one overreacting?

Leven drew open the door, and an intense gust of icy winds slammed into me, sending me several feet backward. The air whistled, and before me stood a small parking area with several cars caked in snow.

“Take this.” Tatum was at my side, pushing my wet and torn coat into my hands, and I hurried to drag it on and chase away the frostiness. He handed me my gloves too.

“Thanks.” I turned to look up into the greenest eyes that pushed away the worry about the storm and reminded me spring would follow soon. I liked the way the corners of his eyes crinkled when he smiled, and I found no malice behind his gaze. He was telling the truth about having helped me.

Leven licked his top teeth and looked at me before staring outside.

Right, we were headed out. I zipped up my jacket and bent my head forward to meet the onslaught as I stepped outdoors into a biting, stinging wind. The snow fell sideways, hitting my cheeks like tiny bullets. With hands deep in my pockets, I stayed near the wall and marched right. I passed several rooms; each window had lights on and voices leaked out from inside. Maybe this motel was booked up, but there was bound to be others in town. Up ahead was a sea of white. Pines. Posts. Fences. Icy dust hugged them and they loomed in my vision, then disappeared, swallowed in white and the encroaching night.

How long had I been passed out? And the three men still hadn’t taken me to the hospital?

When a whistle came from behind me, I twisted around to find Leven standing feet away, his arms stiff by his side, not trembling like mine.

With a flick of his hand, he strode in the opposite direction, and I tracked after him. My direction had led to nowhere anyway.

Around the corner, we crossed a road filled with a handful of stores and homes. A few streets branched out on either direction. The wind pelted against my jacket, jeans, and face. My eyes teared up, and all could think about was home, a fireplace, and a hot drink.

My boots sunk into drifts up to my ankles. My ears were icicles, as was my nose, and what I wouldn’t give for that warm Santa’s hat. Well, right now, it lay somewhere in the woods, as that creature had ripped it off my head. Maybe it was a deformed animal that hated the color red. That could explain why it had gone ballistic all of a sudden. Yet, it had carried a goddamn chain. What kind of animal did that?

Leven seized my wrist and hauled me closer to him, buffering me against the ferocity of the weather. With an arm around my waist, he pressed me close to his side and practically carried me as we marched faster down the sidewalk. No one was outside, and the moment we stumbled into the diner, I let out a frosty exhale.

“Holy hell, the weather’s insane.” I shook myself and stared up at Leven, who brushed his hand through his hair, sending snowflakes everywhere. We both removed our coats and placed them on the hooks provided on a wall near the door.

“And this is why you won’t make it home in this storm.” His words were clipped and direct, and he might as well have said told you so.

I walked deeper into the diner that was practically empty with the exception of two people sitting in the corner eating their meals. Leven followed behind me. My jeans jangled with each step I took, drawing the waiter’s attention.

Leven grabbed a couple of menus from the counter and took a seat at a booth while I approached the counter where a young man with a blue apron was changing the filter on the coffee machine.

“Excuse me,” I asked, and he looked up, greeting me with a practiced smile that carried no emotion. “I’m looking for a place to stay in town. Any recommendations?”

He pointed his chin toward the door. “Pine Motel. Full.” His English was broken, but I understood.

“What about another place? A room above a bar perhaps?”

He shook his head. “No. Pine Motel.”

I huffed and gave my thanks, then turned around. Through the window, the snow traveled sideways, and the buildings across the street were barely visible. The door rattled, yet in here warmth from the open fireplace against the back wall wrapped around me. If the weather were better, I’d search through the town, but now, I’d freeze.

Leven studied the menu, not watching me in case I ran away, not that I’d get far. Maybe they knew this and didn’t bother trying to keep me prisoner, or was I overreacting? They’d offered me shelter and cared for my shredded arm, had brought me to town, which meant they had a car. A vehicle to take me home in the morning perhaps. Why hadn’t I thought of that earlier? Well, because my head was a tangled mess of confusion. I was the one needing to thank them for offering to let me stay in their room. I’d offer to pay them once I got home again. 

I took a seat across from Leven. I bent a leg and tugged on the bells on my pants. “Why did you sew these to my jeans?”

“Leave them. They ward off evil.” He reached over and took my other hand, his calloused palm tender and so warm. “Please, Nickie, don’t remove them.” Then he handed me a menu.

Something about the way he said my name had me leaving the bells in place, and I liked the sound of it on his tongue.

“I’ll pay you back later, as I don’t have my bag, phone, or anything.” My cheeks burned, though it wasn’t the first time I’d asked someone for money. Still, I hated doing so.

Leven met my stare, his mouth curling into a smile, chasing away the shadows beneath his eyes. “I’ve got this covered.” The softness behind his gaze showed a different man than the one I’d seen back in the motel.

“Thanks for helping me.” I lowered my attention to the menu, reading the first line several times, and yet I couldn’t remember a word. Not when I felt his eyes on me.

“What are you ordering?” he asked. “I’m getting kransky burritos for the guys and me.”

Looking up, I said, “I’ll have the same. Extra sour cream, please.”

With a nod, he climbed to his feet and strolled to the counter. Instinct clearly controlled my body because my eyes fell to his ass without hesitation, how firm it looked in his jeans, how his body tapered upward to his shoulders. How his muscles moved under the shirt that hugged his body. Who exactly were these men?

When he returned, he carried a cup of coffee and hot chocolate, the latter he placed in front of me.

“Thanks.” I wrapped my hands around the mug, warming my fingers. “So where are you guys from? Are you and your friends traveling the country? Brothers?” Though in saying that, they didn’t look similar.

“Friends, and we work together. We’re searching for someone.”

I took a sip of my sweet drink. “Oh, really? What happened?” So many questions swirled through my mind—who they searched for, did the three of them work for a detective agency, and where were they from—but he responded before I sorted through my thoughts.

“Our friends went missing a few weeks ago. This was the last place they were seen, so we’re here to find them.”

I leaned forward. “Crap. Are the cops searching too?” Maybe I’d been wrong to think I’d left behind the crime world when I’d arrived in Hirschheim.

He shook his head. “No police. It’s a personal situation. And unfortunately, you are now drawn into it.” His voice dipped, yet his attention remained on me.

I couldn’t find my words at first, but his admission settled in my thoughts like a brick, sinking through me. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

He ran a hand over his mouth, a gesture I’d seen people do when they weren’t sure how to say something—something important. And my gut tightened because clearly everything seemed to be going way too easily. And my life was never smooth sailing. Nope, that would be too much to ask, and now I was stuck out here with strangers or with no place to stay, and running away seemed impossible with the storm outside.

“Relax,” he said, as if sensing my panic. He licked his lips and leaned toward me from across the table. “So back in the woods, when you put on Santa’s hat, did you feel anything? Did it come in contact with fire? That would have connected the hat to you.”

I stared into Leven’s green eyes and movement whirled behind them. “So you didn’t find me just lying in the snow? Were you watching me getting attacked? Did you see the creature too?”

“Did you feel anything when you wore the hat?” he asked again, his voice climbing, clearly ignoring my earlier questions.

“I don’t know what you want me to say. That it was a warm hat and heated me up? That it fit perfectly? Who cares about the hat? A freaking goat monster attacked me. It ripped open the roof of my car with its claws!” I shook in my seat, remembering the fear, how I’d thought I’d been facing my death. And he was asking about a stupid hat.

“We sensed the magic of the hat when it found its new owner. But we didn’t arrive in time to stop your attack. Krampus was after the hat, and that was why he targeted you.”

I huffed and reclined in my seat. “Wait, back up a bit. Did you just say Krampus? Like the mythical anti-Santa who scares kids? Are you feeling all right?” I set my mug down, trying to read his expression, waiting for him to break into laughter any second. Except a scowl swept over his face.

“This isn’t a joke. He would have killed you if we hadn’t interfered.”

I gave him my best are-you-kidding-me look. “Pretty sure I get some credit. I burned him before running away.”

“And if we hadn’t driven him back, he would have ended your life.”

My mouth dropped open and closed again. “Nothing you’re saying is making sense.” It sure as hell wasn’t gelling in my mind. “You’re joking about this, right?”

His brow creased. “No! But if you say the hat flooded you with warmth, and it came in contact with fire while you wore it, then your life’s about to change forever.”

I inched out of my seat, my skin crawling, my hand in my pocket, except I didn’t have my pepper spray or phone. Hell! Standing there, I growled, “Don’t you dare threaten me.”

The waiter approached our table, placing a bag of food in plastic boxes on the table. “Four kransky burritos to go.” He stared at both of us with a raised brow, then backed away. Great.

“Thanks.” Leven was on his feet, then turned toward me. “Let’s go.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you.” I stood my ground. “Diners are usually open twenty-four-seven, so I’ll stay here all night until morning.”

“You’re no longer in America as I assume that’s where you’re from with your accent, and this place closes at nine.”

I glared at him, hating my lack of options. His threat sat heavily on my mind.

“I’m not going to hurt you.” He broke the silence between us. “We’ll explain everything to you in the room. And the burritos are getting cold.”

“Just tell me everything now, and I’ll decide if I want to return with you.”

He jaw twitched, but he simply picked up the bag and snatched my elbow before hauling me toward the door. Fear spiked through me, and I ripped out of his grasp. No one looked our way despite the argument we were having in a public place.

“I’ll scream if you touch me again,” I warned.

He grabbed my coat off the hook and tossed it at me. He got dressed, and I held mine in my arms.

But when Leven closed the distance between us, I recoiled until I hit the wall. I was trapped between him and the wall, and all I could smell were the damn kransky burritos in his hand that had my stomach growling for food. “I’m here to protect you.”

“Against what? Krampus?” I whispered loudly, unable to believe I was having this conversation.

“You have no clue what you’ve gotten yourself into.” His whispered voice came out deep and guttural, his face so close to mine, I could study the golden flecks in his pupils. The tightness of his stubbled jaw, how handsome he was, and how small I felt next to him.

“There’s no such thing as mythical creatures.” Yeah, I’d seen something disfigured in the woods, but everything had a logical explanation. My mind flew to my departed grandma, Dad’s mom, and her practice of warding off demons. Drawing circles on the earth with whiskey as part of her belief in the supernatural. My parents had put it down to her old age and dementia. Yet Dad had practiced something similar with rum.

“Let me show you,” Leven growled.

He ripped open the door, and a deluge of winds tore into the joint. He seized my arm and yanked me outside so fast, my head spun. The howling winds stole my scream. I spun away from him, pulling against his hold, reaching for the shut door. No one from inside even looked our way.

But Leven dragged me down the sidewalk as the weather hammered into us, the cold piercing through my clothes, chilling my bones. We rounded the buildings and emerged in an open park. No homes were nearby, no potential witness should he butcher me.

“Put on your coat,” he barked before setting the bag of food near my feet and backing away a couple of steps.

My teeth chattered and my response froze in my mind as I trembled, threading my arms into the sleeves. I recoiled along the wall in hopes of darting back to the diner to ask them to call the cops.

But as I zipped the coat, my attention fell on Leven, who dropped onto all fours in the snow. His body trembled violently, and I swore his legs and arms were growing in size. His torso lengthened. Fuck, something was growing out of his temples.

I stepped back, the brick wall catching me. I needed to run, but I couldn’t look away. Iced on the spot, I watched with fear pounding in my chest. My world tilted around me because I couldn’t make sense of what I was seeing.

Leven’s body was morphing, twisting, enlarging. He groaned as if in pain, and my heart went out to him. Why was he doing this if it caused him pain?

Within moments, Leven was twice his size and still growing, his clothes evaporating before my eyes, replaced with… fuck, was that dirty white and brown fur?

I gasped and hugged my stomach, bile hitting the back of my throat. He was transforming. How could this be happening?

Before me stood a deer with enormous antlers, exactly like the one I’d almost run over, the ones in my backyard, and the ones that had surrounded the monster in the woods. I rubbed my eyes.

The world whirled around me, and everything swayed because this couldn’t be real. I was shaking my head. “No, this can’t be.”

Yet the deer stood proudly in front of me, scratching the ground with a front hoof, its head bowing up and down.

But instead of trying to make logical sense of what the heck I was staring at, my vision blurred, and my knees gave out. On my next breath, my world blackened, along with the notion that Leven had just shifted into a reindeer.