Page 8 of Guarded by the Yeti (Monster Security Agency)

Chapter Eight

Kaelthar

She’s wrapped like a burrito in the softest blanket I own, lying on top of me, her white hair spread over my chest. She didn’t want to sleep alone tonight. I hold her gently, and it’s easy to doze off after today’s adventures. Last night, it was hard. Impossible. Now she’s in my arms, she’s mine, and I fall into a deep, restful sleep as I listen to her steady breathing. Her heart beats next to mine. We’re in sync. I can’t imagine a more perfect moment.

It’s stormy tonight. The wind started howling as I gave Ysella a bath. It took her a while to get used to it beating against the windows and the side of the house. I made sure to bring in plenty of firewood, knowing we’d most likely wake up in the morning and realize we’re snowed in.

My dreams are of her. Of what we did on the floor, in front of the fireplace. Her scent fills my nostrils, and I involuntarily squeeze her body closer to mine.

There’s a bang outside, and I furrow my brows in my sleep, but don’t wake up. Storms are terrible up here in the north. Ysella stirs, and I cradle her gently. She turns on her other side, pressing her left cheek to my chest. Another bang, more noise, and I grunt and stir myself, annoyed at the loud weather.

Then I feel a tiny hand on my cheek. I smile and murmur something. Maybe her name. The hand moves down to my chin and tugs at my beard. Once. Twice. She tugs harder, and this time, I open my eyes. She’s hovering over me, eyes wide. The lights are on, as always, and I read fear in her dark gaze.

“What’s wrong?”

A third bang outside, louder this time. It seems to be coming from the front door.

“It’s just the storm,” I say.

She shakes her head and tugs at my beard again. I let out an “ouch!”. I’m a tough guy, but if there’s one part of my body that’s more sensitive than the rest...

I take her hand in mine and gently tuck it back into her blanket.

“Shh... it’s okay.”

I get up, though. She rolls off me and sits up in the middle of the giant bed as I find my pants and go into the living room to throw another log on the fire.

“I’ll check,” I say. “Just to show you that it’s nothing.”

I head to the front door, and it bursts open before I reach it. I take a step back. Snow tumbles in. I hear the howl of the wind and the ominous crunch of snow under heavy boots. I don’t have time to get my bearings, because there’s a bang, and another... Three, four, five...

And I realize someone is shooting at me. I can feel the bullets hit my chest and my arms. The pain is blinding, even though the projectiles don’t penetrate my skin. They remain embedded halfway, and when the shooting stops, I start plucking the bullets out, one by one. Blood stains my white fur, and the wounds sting, but that’s about all the damage human guns can cause someone like me.

“Where is she?”

Men pour in through the front door, led by Artie Carvassi. My first instinct is to crush them all, but I stop in my tracks, because I don’t understand what’s happening.

“How did you find this place?”

Artie doesn’t answer, and he doesn’t need to, because I can see the two Yeti males behind his small army of men. I recognize the Yeti from whose aunt I bought the piano yesterday. He must have followed me here or asked questions in Shiverpoint and Icefang until he figured out the location of my cabin. I don’t know who the other Yeti is, and I don’t care.

“I’ll ask one more time, then I’m bringing out the big guns,” Artie says.

I cock an eyebrow. His men don’t look convinced, so I’m not sure what “big guns” he’s referring to. It seems to me these are the only guns they have, and they’re laughably inefficient in a fight with a Yeti.

I look around me, assessing the situation, trying to make sense of what’s happening. He’s clearly looking for his sister, but why? I notice Ysella has closed the door to the bedroom. That won’t keep these mad people out. But I will. If I have to.

“I don’t understand,” I say. “She’s safe. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

Where’s my satellite phone? Did it ring, and I didn’t hear it? Did Lucia try to get in contact with me and I was too wrapped up into... well... Ysella?

Artie advances toward me and taps my chest with his gun. For such a short guy, he’s got balls.

“She did it,” he says. “Officially, your job is done. Over. Get out of my way.”

“She did what?” But I don’t care, really. I square my shoulders and push him back when he tries to get past me. “Ysella is under my protection.”

“Didn’t you hear me, stupid ape? Not anymore.”

He points the gun at me, and I sigh. “It’s not going to work,” I tell him. At this point, I’m struggling to hold back. I’m boiling with rage, and I don’t like how his men have invaded by cabin – my home – stomping the rugs with their dirty boots.

“What if I shoot you right between your ugly eyes? Will it work then?”

I don’t think, I act. In one swift motion, I disarm him, the gun flying to the floor. I kick it, and it slides under the couch. His soldiers shoot at me once more, and this time, they’re aiming for the head. I raise my arm to protect myself, and with the other, I swipe at them, my sharp claws digging into warm flesh, the side of my arm connecting and breaking ribs. It’s chaos, and two men jump on top of me, trying to overpower me. I throw them off, and one of them slams into the coffee table, loses his balance, breaks the piece of furniture and collapses in a heap of tactical gear and wood splinters. A few more well-aimed blows, and all of Artie’s men are disarmed and groaning and moaning on the floor.

At this point, I’m thoroughly pissed off, but still willing to accept a reasonable explanation.

“She’s running,” I hear one of the Yetis outside yell.

They disappear from view, rounding the cabin, and Artie goes after them. My heart hammers in my chest. Running? Where? Why? I storm into the bedroom and find the window wide open. Ysella has discarded the blanket and my T-shirt, put on her dress and shoes, and I can see her running into the night. The two Yetis are after her, and once again, I don’t think. I jump over the windowsill, right into the snow. It comes up to my ankles. I don’t have my boots on, but I was made for this weather. The skin on my feet is rough and I can barely feel the bite of the cold.

They catch her before I get to them. Artie is somewhere behind us, I can hear him. The two Yetis hold Ysella between them as she’s struggling.

“Let her go! You’re hurting her!”

They don’t seem to care. They stare down at her, mesmerized, and that stops me in my tracks. I was expecting them to immediately take her to her brother, but they’re behaving like they haven’t seen a human female before.

And then I catch it. A whiff of her. Of her scent. It’s changed. The wind blows just so that Ysella’s smell slides right into my nostrils. I inhale deeply – inhale her – and I can almost imagine my eyes going red. My chest expands, my cock hardens, and blood rushes through my veins at twice the speed, almost making them pop. My Ysella... My delicious woman... Is ovulating.

They can smell it, too. That’s why they’re looking at her like that. Then they exchange a look over her head, and I can see that they both want her and they’re not willing to share. One of them pulls her toward him, and the other bares his teeth at him and pulls Ysella back. She screams.

It’s the first time I hear her make a sound. The fact that it’s a scream only serves to increase my rage.

“Let her go! She’s mine! I’ve claimed her!”

I take a step toward them, but they pay me no mind. All they can see is the woman, fertile and ripe, and my words don’t even penetrate the fog in their brains.

I have to be careful. My breath turns to steam in the freezing air as I huff and puff, doing my best to contain myself. They have Ysella, and she is fragile. One wrong move, and they will tear her apart. The last thing that will help her is if I grab onto her too or grab them. Between three Yetis fighting over her, she has no chance of making it out alive.

“Bring her to me!” Artie has caught up. He walks past me as if I don’t even matter, gun pointed at his sister. “Bring that bitch to me.”

The Yetis aren’t listening to him. He’s not in control anymore. I hear the engine of a snowmobile in the distance and realize his men are abandoning him. They’ve seen what I can do, and they’re out. How do you fight a monster you can’t shoot?

The Yetis look at him with menace in their eyes. One of them growls at Artie, and he takes a step back. I can see the confusion on his face. All the therapy sessions with Oscar are paying off, because normally, I would’ve lost my marbles, too.

“What are you doing? I said, bring her to me! I’ll take care of her. It’s my right, after what she’s done to my family.”

He starts shooting, and one of the Yetis moves in front of Ysella. At least the beasts are protecting her. For now. They need her alive. Artie keeps shooting, then he’s out of bullets and needs to recharge. The Yeti jumps him, and they tumble into the snow. I don’t care who wins. This is my chance to save Ysella from her other captor.

I charge, and the Yeti throws Ysella to the side and meets me halfway. We are locked in a death match, pushing, pulling, and scratching, throwing punches, rolling in the snow. I get the upper hand and punch his face to a pulp. I’m bigger and stronger than him. Older, too. This is Ishkala’s nephew, and I feel bad for disfiguring him, because she’s obviously a nice woman, but I have no choice. It’s me or him. I hit him until I’m certain he’s unconscious and not getting up anytime soon.

As I stand, the other Yeti grabs me and throws me into the snow. He’s bigger, this one, but he’s found his match in me. He’s covered in blood, his white fur red, and I don’t even want to look at what he’s done to Artie. I jump to my feet, not letting him have the upper hand. He punches me in the face, and I stagger back. He lands another punch into my stomach, and I double over and spit out blood. I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand, grin at him, and when he lunges at me again, I step to the side and hit him over the head. I don’t give him time to recover. I grab him from behind, arm locked around his throat and pull him to the ground. I’m on my knees, and he’s leaning into me, trying to fight my grip. He tears at the fur and skin on my arms, but I don’t let go. I barely flinch. Before long, he’s going limp. I hold him there a few minutes longer, for good measure, then release him. He slumps over, and I’m the last one standing.

I get up and look around me. Where Artie has fallen, there’s just a pool of blood slowly seeping into the snow. The two Yetis are unconscious. They will come back to their senses at some point, and hopefully, they will accept defeat and crawl back home. On second thought, I’ll give them a hand.

Ysella is huddled in the snow, knees hugged to her chest. She’s rocking back and forth, looking at me with wide eyes. She’s terrified, and that makes me back down. I want to take her into my arms and promise her she’s safe, but I realize she might be scared of me, now that she’s seen what I can do.

And her scent... Oh, her scent! If I come any closer, I will rip her clothes off right on the spot and insert myself inside her.

I need to clear my head. And I need to clean up.

“I’ll be back,” I say. “Go inside. Can you walk?”

She stares at me and nods tentatively.

My hands turn to fists at my sides. I want to carry her inside, but in the state I’m in, it’s not safe to touch her.

She stands up slowly, and the wind blows through her hair, once again sending her scent toward me. I hold my breath and turn away, grabbing the first Yeti by the ankle, and then the other one. I drag them through the snow to the side of the shed, then go inside and start the snowmobile. Once outside, I pile the two Yetis in the back and drive south.

The wind whips around me, making my ears twitch. It helps cool my body, and little by little, I start thinking straight again.

What just happened?!

Artie Carvassi came to find his sister to kill her. He enlisted the help of two Yetis, not knowing they would turn against him. He’s dead behind my cabin, and I just told Ysella to get herself inside, not even thinking about what the sight of his mangled body might do to her. In the span of two days – or has it been three? – she’s seen all the members of her family murdered right in front of her. And I, for one, am no closer to understanding what the fuck is happening.

I drive to the edge of Icefang, and not even turning off the engine, I get off, grab the two idiot Yetis who dared to threaten my woman, and dump them in the snow. They’ll either wake up on their own in a few hours, or someone will find them in the morning. Hopefully, they will feel humiliated enough to not step foot near my cabin again.

I hop back on and speed toward the cabin. It’s stopped snowing, and the sky is clearing. It’s as dark as ever, and I’m starting to worry about Ysella. I hope she’s okay inside, by the fire, and not crying over her brother’s body in the snow. He tried to kill her! Logic says she won’t be shedding tears on account of his demise.

As soon as I get home, I barge through the door. Ysella is kneeling by the fire, using the poker to stoke it gently. She’s changed back into my oversized T-shirt and wrapped herself into the blanket, and she looks... fine.

More than fine. She looks serene.

She turns to me, and it’s like her scent envelops me. It’s everywhere. The lust I feel for her is ten times greater than a few hours ago, when I had her spread out under me, naked and wet.

I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out. I have questions. I need answers. But my brain fogs up, my heart picks up the pace, and all I can think about is how I want to fill her with my seed. I take a step toward her, and she stands up. The blanket falls off her shoulders.

“Ysella, I can’t hold back. I want to, but I can’t.” My chest rises and falls. The more I try to tell her what’s happening to me... The more I try to warn her... My thoughts splinter. “I will take you. I have to. I won’t be gentle. I’m sorry.”

She lifts her chin and her eyes flicker with determination.

“So, then... take me. And don’t be sorry.”

I blink, confused. She can speak. She’s not mute! What the hell?!

She takes off her T-shirt and throws it on the floor. She stands before me naked and perfect.

Who cares?

Now that I know she can speak, I’ll make her scream my name.