Page 29 of Beast

It’s the best I’m going to get. I steel myself and begin topush through the crowd. I can hear Kaja’s bark. She’s on the edge of thethrong, making her way toward Cara. I begin to shove people aside. The ogreroars, making the tents shake and the air smell fetid and rank. The bigcreature reaches down and picks up a tent by the large pole that holds thecenter up. He tosses it toward the field. Another scream reaches my ears, thisone smaller and weaker. I watch in horror as the ogre picks up a small browniewho was hiding in the now defunct tent. He lifts the brownie’s delicate bodyand tosses it into his mouth. In a second, the brownie is gone, lost to theogre’s never-ending hunger.

Kaja breaks free from the crowd and races toward Cara. Thegnome seems frozen in terror, looking up at the monstrous form above her.Kaja’s sleek body is utterly graceful as she races toward the gnome. The ogrelooks down, and his hand reaches out to grab Cara, but before he can catch herbetween his thumb and forefinger, Kaja strikes. Her body forces Cara’s out ofthe way, and the two of them go tumbling to the left of the ogre.

I need a plan and quick. A single bullet won’t get throughall that muscle. It will, however, piss the creature off, and then I could gostraight down the ogre’s gullet. I press past the last of the fleeing Fae.

The ogre stands above my wife. Kaja places herself in frontof the gnome. Even from my position, I can see Kaja’s sharp white teeth arebared, her body utterly rigid. She’s prepared for attack, but I can’t see howmy small wife is going to take down the mountainous ogre.

Her head turns slightly, and those arctic eyes find mine.Though her stance doesn’t change, there’s a softening in her expression. Hereyes eat at me, the plea in those blue orbs so apparent I suddenly wish I couldhide.

What does she want from me? I’m no hero. I’m not a warrior.I’m only a man, and my greatest talent is being able to give a woman multipleorgasms. And I like it that way, damn it. I don’t want to be Beck Finn. I wantto have fun.

But now I can’t be just a man. I’m a husband. And I can’tfail her.

Running on pure instinct, I take off. I feel the claws in myhands pop through my fingertips, the pain barely registering. I shove the gunin my pants pocket. I can’t use it from a distance. I need to be close. There’sreally only one place where the cold iron bullet will work fast enough to saveus all.

But it’s going to be a bitch to get that close.

The ogre throws his head back and lets loose a mighty shoutas his foot comes up. Kaja moves back, Cara staying behind her. The ogre’s footcomes down, and I fear the ground will open up, but it gives me the opening Ineed. I leap onto the ogre’s calf, digging in with my claws, using those primalgifts the way a mountain climber uses an axe.

I hear Kaja barking. When I look down, I see her darting upto bite the hell out of the ogre’s toe. She comes back with a bit of flesh inher mouth.

“Kaja, you do not eat that!” I yell as I climb. “You have noidea where he’s been!”

She’ll need a full round of antibiotics, but she’s done herjob. She distracted the giant. The ogre doesn’t try to brush me away. The bigguy is far too busy attempting to kill my consort.

I hold on for dear life as the ogre brings his foot downagain. Kaja darts in between and around that massive foot, her quicknesskeeping her alive. I find a foothold on the back of the ogre’s knee and move upto his thigh.

The smell is really getting to me. I can’t breathe thisclose to the damn thing. I pull myself upward using sheer upper-body strength.Thank the gods I have always been vain enough to work out, though I’lldefinitely spend more time on chin-ups after this.

“You stay alive, Kaja! Do you hear me?” I’m climbing up anogre’s ass for her. Gods, I hope the damn thing doesn’t have gas, but it’s farbetter than having to crawl too close to the monster’s junk.

I curse the entire way up the ogre’s backside. The ogre,massive as he is, moves somewhat slowly. The ogre twists and turns, trying tofind Kaja. He roars when Kaja’s teeth bite into his flesh. It’s a perfectdistraction. The monster doesn’t seem to care that there’s a vampire climbingup his back.

But he’s about to. I make my way to the the ogre’s neck. Iwon’t be able to hide now. I have to get to the ogre’s vulnerable spot and takemy shot. One shot straight through the eye and into the dumb asshole’s dimbrain.

That’s all I have to do. No problem.

I’m going to spank my consort’s ass red. If I live.

I climb onto the ogre’s skull and find a nice piece ofthick, scraggly hair. Luckily, the ogre hasn’t bothered with a comb-over. Whathair the beast has is long and splays out in every way possible. My stomachclenches when I realize how high I’ve climbed. If I fall, it will be painful,though not for long since I’ll be flatter than one of the pancakes Meg likes toeat. The minute I hit the ground, the ogre will crush me.

I wind my hand around a piece of the ogre’s hair just intime to tumble off the creature’s head. A huge hand comes out to swat at me,barely brushing past. With my free hand, I pull the gun and swing out, tryingto get to the ogre’s face.

Fetid breath, as rough as any strong wind, blows from theogre’s mouth, making me gag, but I hold it together.

One shot. One shot to live. One shot to save my wife.

At least it’s a big damn target.

I pull the trigger as I fly by the ogre’s eyes, the blackpupils huge. I swing by the second eye, but already the ogre is faltering.

Those eyes flare, a trickle of blood flowing from theinjured one. The ogre makes a terrible sound that blows back my hair. Then thelight flees from the ogre’s eyes, and the monster begins falling to the groundbelow.

And I’m falling with him.

Fuck.

The ogre hits the ground with a resounding thud. I hit itwith barely a whisper compared to the ogre’s, but it feels like I broke everydamn bone in my body. The air rushes from my lungs, and I struggle to take in abreath. Out of the corner of my eye I notice Cara running to Reeve. At leastthe gnomes are safe.