Dreaming of the Shifter (Shifter World - Book Five) (Series of 13 Short Stories)

“I’m going to rip your head off and spit down your neck!” Dominic bellowed at the dark wizard.

“Isn’t that a bit cliché, Brother?” Dylan asked as he pulled himself into a sitting position.

“Dylan!” Pearl cried as she threw herself at Dylan.

“Dylan….” Dominic paused as he turned to his brother, who was dead just a minute ago.

“Help me up, Mafilia,” Dylan said as he wrapped his arm around his mate.

Pearl helped him to his feet.

Dylan looked down into her green eyes. “I love you,” he said, then kissed her.

“How the fuck are you alive?” Daryl asked, looking his brother up and down.

“I will explain everything after I deal with them, then we can go home.” Dylan moved the hair from his mate’s eyes. “A cub, huh?” he asked with a wicked smile.

She smiled up at him. “Are you okay with it being so soon?”

He snorted. “Even if I wasn’t, it’s what the Goddesses want,” he said as he nuzzled her neck. “But to answer your question,” he whispered into her ear. “Yes, I am more than okay with it.”

She smiled brightly. He looked into her eyes, then over at the two remaining dark wizards.

“Right now, I have business with these two,” he said as he pulled away from her and walked over to the two men.

Both men held their heads high.

Dylan felt the bolt the man had killed him in his hand and held it tight as he approached the one who killed him.

“The Goddesses gave me a message to give to you and your people,” he said, stopping in front of the two men.

One spit at him, and he used the bolt to slap him across the face; blood trickled down the man’s cheek.

Dylan looked back at the one who’d killed him.

“You were dead,” the wizard said, glaring at Dylan.

Dylan nodded. “Yes. Yes, I was. And the Goddesses want me to tell you to tell your people to stay the fuck away from the Fated Mates and their cubs. And before you open your stupid ass mouths, all of us are Fated Mates. Humans, shifters, whatever we are, we are all Fated Mates. And if you kill one of us again, the Goddesses swear, they’ll show no mercy and kill you themselves.”

The wizard blinked up at him.

“Now, go tell your people to stay the fuck away, or else,” he said, then shoved the bolt into the heart of the wizard who killed him.

The man’s eyes dulled as he fell over. Dylan turned to the other man and motioned for Dominic to do the honors. Dominic grinned as he rushed at the man and tore off his head.

“How are they going to give the message?” Josie asked, staring at her mate with wide eyes.

“Senshire said they’ll be in spirit form long enough to relay the message before they’re sent to hell.” Dylan turned to his mate and pulled her into his arms. “I love you.”

She grinned as she wrapped her arms around him. “I know.”

~🧹~

Pearl sat beside her mate as she and the others listened to his story. She’s heard of the Goddesses visiting their creations before they brought them back to life, but this was incredible.

“So, what did she mean when she said the Supernaturals will have their own haven?” Shar asked, leaning forward on the couch.

Dylan shrugged. “Not sure. But I think it means we’ll live in peace when we win the war with the humans.”

“Probably away from humans,” Pearl whispered, smiling at her mate. She was still shell-shocked by his resurrection, but she should have had faith in the Goddesses.

“So, we’re Alpha Fated Mates, huh?” Dustin asked with a chuckle.

“So, will everyone be fighting this war, not just our cubs?” Maddy asked.

Everyone looked at her, still shocked at how much she and Josie looked and acted alike.

“Yes,” Shar said, getting Maddy’s attention. “All Supernaturals will be involved. Our first cubs are the ones to lead them.”

“And her cub is the one to lead ours,” Lyvia said with a smile as she pointed at Shar.

“Because she’s the firstborn?” Maddy asked.

Shar nodded. “From what Pearl said, yes.”

Everyone looked at Pearl, and her cheeks turned a bright red. “Don’t look at me like that. I only tell what the Goddesses tell me.”

Everyone laughed.

“So, I guess our clan is the star-point of the war?” Dustin asked, looking at Dylan.

Dylan nodded. “Seems that way.”

“Star,” Josie whispered, looking down at her necklace—which was no longer glowing.

“Everything comes down to this,” Maddy said as she lifted her necklace from her chest.

“Don’t take those off again,” Pearl said, pointing at the twins. “You may not be what you were meant to be, but they will still help you re-bond and help your children to follow in your footsteps.”

The twins looked at each other.

“I can’t believe we actually found each other,” Maddy whispered.

Josie smiled. “I looked everywhere for you, and it turned out you were right under my nose. If only I was more into or better at searching the net.”

Maddy giggled. “I looked for you, too. And come to find out… uhm… the advertisement for my site, uhm….”

“What?” Josie asked.

“Josie, you’re the one who wrote it.”

Josie stared at Maddy. “Oh my God.” She chuckled. “I remember now. I don’t know where it came from; it just came to me out of nowhere when I saw your request… and my bosses liked it… oh my God!” Josie threw herself at her sister, and they both laughed.

“This calls for a celebration,” Dylan said with a smile as he watched the reunited twins.

“It sure does.” Pearl smiled as she cuddled against her mate.

Dylan sighed with pleasure. They not only have the twins to celebrate but their own cub. Life couldn’t get any better.

“It will get worse before it gets better,” Tate said from behind him.

Dylan looked up at the vampire. “I thought you can’t read shifter’s minds.”

Tate grinned down at him. “I never said that. I just prefer not to.”

Dylan laughed because the vampire had said it many times.

Tate leaned forward. “I’ve been able to read your mind since you came back from the dead.”

Dylan swallowed. “Really?”

Tate shrugged, then turned and walked to the kitchen.

“That vampire creeps me out,” Pearl said with a chuckle.

Dylan grinned. “Yeah, but at least he’s on our side.”

“Amen to that,” Pearl said as she pulled him to face her. “Don’t you EVER scare me like that again.”

He smiled and pecked her lips. “I will try my best, Mafilia.”

She nodded. “You better.”

He chuckled.

“Okay, how about we go to a nice restaurant….”Dustin started to say, then stopped when he saw the look on several of their faces.

Shar shook her head. “I don’t want to deal with the human’s bigotry right now.”

“You too?” Maddy asked, looking at Shar.

Shar nodded.

“We had to deal with it before we left the town we’d been in for a very long time. Hadn’t had any problems until that day.” Rolando scowled.

“It’s all over the world.” Shar frowned.

“And it will get worse the closer it gets to the time of the war against the humans,” Pearl said.

“So, let’s go to The Dive then.” Dylan pulled Pearl closer to his side. Pearl whimpered against him, and he looked down at her. “Pearl?”

Pearl screamed, and everyone except for Dylan jumped to their feet.

“What’s happening?” Shar asked as she leaned closer to Pearl.

“Fuck, I don’t know.” Dylan held his mate in his arms while she whimpered and screamed, her hands over her head. “Pearl,” he whispered, his voice full of fear.

“It’s happening again!” Pearl shouted with a growl.

“What is?” Dustin asked as he moved to stand behind Sharissa.

Pearl sucked in a breath. “A Fated Mate has been compromised.”

“What the fuck!?” Daryl sneered. “It better not be my fucking mate!”

Pearl shook her head. “No, she belongs to a shifter in the north. Oh God, he’s going to live a sad life,” she sniffled and wiped her nose.

“Mother Fucker!” Dustin shouted with a growl.

“How many is that now?” Shar asked.

Pearl sighed heavily. “I lost count.”

“Fuck!” Daryl bellowed. “The Goddesses should have put fucking chastity belts on the Fated Mates until they found each other!”

“Someone is putting these fuckers up to this,” Pearl said. “There’s no way these idiots know what it means to do this.”

“Is there a way to put a stop to it?” Shar asked.

Pearl looked up at Sharissa. “The only thing we can do is hope the Goddesses give me their info before they’re found by a shifter, out collecting Fated Mates.”

“Did they rape her?” Dylan asked.

Pearl shook her head. “Not this time. It was only one. But he knew what he was doing, even though she didn’t know she was being duped. She was at a bar, a human bar, for God’s sake. And he picked her up and took her home.”

“Another hyena?” Dominic asked.

Pearl shook her head. “No, this one was a wolf.”

“They’ve started recruiting upwards,” Dylan said with a growl.

“I wish there was a way….” Shar stopped talking and looked at Maddy.

Drezden turned at the same time and looked at Maddy.

“Maddy,” Shar said with a grin. “Maddy Trenton.”

Maddy looked at Shar, her left eyebrow arched.

“Dustin, your mate is brilliant.” Drezden grinned.

Dustin grinned. “I already knew that.”

“Our star blogger,” Shar said with a mischievous grin. “I saw what you said about that Diner, and I bet that place will be shut down within less than a year.”

Maddy grinned. “I hope so.”

“Now your family needs you,” Drezden said as he moved to stand next to Shar.

“What’s going on?” Rolando asked as he watched them grin at his mate.

“Our star blogger here can put out a post about Fated Mates and what we will do to the next ones who cockblock one more Fated Mate couple,” Drezden said with an evil grin.

Rolando looked at his mate and grinned.

Dylan got to his feet and slapped his hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Brilliant,” he said, then turned to Maddy. “You think you can do it?”

Maddy grinned. “Oh, I know I can. But I’ll have to use something different than cockblocking.”

“That’s what they call it in the book.” Drezden shrugged.

Maddy nodded. “I know, but the public doesn’t.” She looked at her sister and grinned. “Want to help? I know you’re as great with words as me, maybe even better.”

Josie grinned. “Fuck yeah. Our first project together.”

Maddy nodded. “I hope our first of many.”

~🧹~

The large group met up at The Dive. Cubs tucked into bed in the apartment above. Amirah Kraftman was watching over the brood. Five cubs already and five more on their way. The group was happy, even if they knew things wouldn’t always be that way. They have each other and the protection of their Goddesses.

~🧹~

“Wow, man, what a story,” Raj said with a laugh once Dylan and the others finished telling their friends what happened earlier with the dark wizards.

“It’s so good to have you here.” Lyvia smiled at Maddy.

Maddy smiled back. “It’s really good to be here. And we’re happy to have so many people who care for us.”

Maddy looked at her mate and squeezed his hand.