Chapter Sixteen
Grace shifted in bed. She was bone tired, but she couldn’t wait any longer or her bladder was going to explode. She carefully shifted her weight on the bed and slipped out of the warm embrace of her lover.
It was strange to think about. Not all that long ago, she’d not been sure she would ever even have a man, and now she had a hybrid lover.
She glanced back over to where Vitus slept. It wasn’t often she saw him like this. His face was so relaxed as he lay sleeping. Usually it always seemed like he was waiting for something to happen. Even when he was smiling, she could sense he was never truly letting go. She was glad he was able to, if only for a little while.
Her cheeks heated as she thought about the reason he was sleeping so soundly. They’d come together over and over. Despite the fact that there had been a little discomfort in the beginning, she was surprised with how quickly that went away. Even now, she was slightly sore but still wouldn’t say no if he wanted to have yet another romp session.
Grace shook her head and turned away from him. Nothing was going to happen unless she went to the bathroom first. Practical realities had a way of intruding on fun.
Quietly she slid out of the bed and slipped on a set of pajama pants by the bed before making her way to the bathroom.
Once finished, Grace stepped out and shivered. She’d been keeping the thermostat a little lower than normal, but with the temperature drop, it was just a tad too cold to ignore.
She wrapped her robe around her and made her way into the living room. There she turned the temperature up a few degrees before grabbing a bottle of water out of the fridge. On her way back to the bedroom, she noticed a light off in the distance.
Tilting her head, Grace frowned as she stared out into the night. After a second, she realized the light was coming from down the street, most likely from her store.
She groaned to herself. Distracted, she had likely missed it when they were leaving. If she didn’t turn it off now, there was no telling when she’d get over, especially with the next day being a holiday. She might be living a slightly more carefree life, but she didn’t want to annoy people with a light on at night nor did she like the idea of wasting electricity like that.
Grace grumbled to herself as she slipped on a coat over her robe and tucked her pajama pants into her boots. This was not what she wanted to be doing.
She sighed loudly and stepped over to the door, better to just get this over with than wait any longer. It’d only take a few minutes if she hurried.
The cold night air greeted her as she opened the door and slipped outside. They hadn’t had snow in about a week, but the bitterly cold temperatures they were getting made it stick longer.
The world around her was quiet aside from the crunching from her boots as she made her way over to the store. It was still too early for the deliveries to be out, and most people slept in on holidays, especially one that didn’t land on a Sunday.
She stomped her way to the door and took out her keys but was surprised to find glass shattered there.
Her eyes widened, and she sucked in a breath. She’d never stopped to think that it might be something other than her forgetting to turn the light off.
Her heart hammered in her chest as she looked around the place. Someone had broken into her store.
Already Grace was feeling like being there was a bad idea. Someone desperate enough to break into her store wasn’t someone she could talk out of doing something dangerous. Instead of going in and trying to be a hero, she decided getting Vitus would be the smart option.
Grace turned around and gasped loudly. Again, her imagination had failed her. She’d imagined some sort of teen high on drugs had broken in, not the huge bestial man standing before her.
Thrax’s red eyes glowed in the darkness. He stood in the middle of the street.
“You came,” he rumbled.
Grace broke into a sprint. Maybe she would get close enough for Vitus to hear her. Something. Anything.
She panted as she ran, but behind her, she could already hear Thrax catching up to her. He slipped in front of her with ease, blocking her way back. As if she weighed nothing, he scooped her up in his arms.
“Vitus!” Grace shouted.
She knew they were too far away though. It was unlikely her voice would carry like she hoped. Thrax hurried off, and Grace watched as her little house disappeared in the distance as the super-Glycon carried her away.
* * *
Vitus woke up with a start, his name still echoing in his ears.
Something was wrong.
He listened to the sound of the house. It was far too quiet. He inhaled deeply. Grace’s scent was present but not as strong as it should be. She wasn’t there.
The hybrid jumped out of the bed and slipped on his pants.
“Grace?” he called out.
No answer.
His heart pounded in his chest the more time that went by and she didn’t answer him.
Vitus raced from the room. Nothing was out of place. No doors open or indication she was taken. In fact, it seemed like she’d turned the heat up a little.
It was then that he noticed the light in the distance through the window.
Vitus frowned. Why had she gone to the store in the middle of the night?
A knot formed in the middle of his stomach. All the reasons he could come up with were ones that he wasn’t sure he wanted to focus on.
Without bothering to put on a shirt or shoes, Vitus sprinted across the snow and down the street toward the store, only barely registering the cold outside.
He let out a low growl as he spotted the glass and the smell of Grace’s fear in the air. There was another strong and familiar scent, though one that wasn’t pleasant.
“Thrax,” Vitus grunted.
He followed their footprints in the snow. She’d run, but Thrax had caught up with her.
Vitus glanced toward the woods now. The damn Glycon was in there somewhere with his woman. He clenched his fists in rage.
As quickly as he could, Vitus made his way back to the house. He would go after her, but he would be smart about this. There was no telling how far they were traveling, and Thrax was faster. He would need everything he could on his side to get Grace back before something happened.
He grabbed his phone and gun from the bedside table. Bullets had proven to be less than helpful against the hulking beast, and who knew what Agatha had done to him, but a few shots might still slow him down. Besides, one shot to the head should do the trick. Of course, Vitus was guessing at this point.
Vitus slipped on the t-shirt he had worn the day before and wished he’d thought to bring his coat, but it would have to do.
He flipped open the phone and hit Rem’s name on his contacts list.
“Yeah,” his leader asked, his sleepy voice indicating he had been sleeping.
“Thrax has Grace,” Vitus said quickly as he slipped on his shoes.
“When did he take her?” Rem sounded fully awake now.
Vitus shook his head. “Not long. I’m going after them.”
“Wait for back up,” Rem said sternly. “You can’t win against him by yourself.”
“I also can’t wait.”
“That’s an order,” Rem growled into the phone. “Getting yourself killed won’t help Grace.”
Vitus grunted. “She’s my bonded,” he said firmly. “I’m going to get her back. No matter what it takes. You can kick my ass for disobeying you later.”
He snapped his phone shut and put it on vibrate. They would be able to trace him after they got there, but he was through talking. No amount of talking would convince him to stop him from going after what was his.
Grace was counting on him, and he wasn’t about to let her down.