by Jami Gray
Strangely, Ansa didn’t finish her attack, instead she scuttled backward in a nightmarish insectoid move no human body should ever do, hands covering the right side of her face. Blood, dark and viscous coated her hands, and spattered down her chest, dripping to the floor.
That strange hissing sound wound through Ansa’s shrill screams and filtered through the stuffy layers of Iliana’s damaged eardrums. Gritting her teeth against the pain of her broken arm, Iliana reached into the refrigerator grabbing the first heavy jar she could get her hands on. She then proceeded to clean out the refrigerator shelves as she pitched jar after jar in Ansa’s direction.
Her gun was feet away in the far corner where the kitchen met the living room. Without it, her only hope was to give Ryuu enough time to fight free of whatever Ansa had done and keep the damn whatever she was away from them. Iliana refused to consider he wouldn’t because even as she turned the kitchen into a war zone of glass, food, and plastic, something was happening to Ansa as she huddled against the cupboards.
The hissing sound grew louder, heavier until Iliana’s skin was trying to crawl off her very bones as her mind screamed, ‘Run!’ Fear and the need to escape narrowed her vision until only Ansa’s convulsing body remained. Iliana’s stomach clutched, then heaved as Ansa’s body swelled and began to crack, like a carapace. What came crawling out buckled her mind, and turned her muscles into jelly. Terror caught and held her in an inescapable grip, her arm falling to her side, as it became her turn to scuttle backwards, trying to escape the nightmare spewing to life.
Ansa’s hands tore at her chest as if her human skin were nothing more than a coat, her fingers digging beneath tissue as a gelatinous ichor seeped from the horrific wound. Thick, segmented appendages emerged, eight in all, each covered with a dense, short hair. As the body that used to be Ansa was shrugged off, the bulbous body of a spider emerged.
The only bit of color was the red on the fang-like protrusions under the multiple black eyes, one of which was damaged beyond repair. It didn’t help that the eyes were set in a very humanoid face. It was the most mind-bending mix of arachnid and human, guaranteed to haunt Iliana’s nightmares forever, if she managed to get out of this.
As she fought to catch her breath and keep her heart in her chest, the hysterical thought babbled that perhaps she should add a huge ass can of Raid to her arsenal. What had been Ansa, was almost free of the human shell, it’s legs scrambling for purchase on the smooth floor.
Knowing she was outmatched, Iliana made a desperate dive for her gun, risking an attack. Using her legs, and her one good arm, she slid across the floor on her stomach, ignoring the white flash of agony from her broken arm. As soon as the familiar grip hit her hand, she grabbed it and flipped on her back, finger already pulling the trigger.
There was no time for finesse and the monstrous spider provided a large target as it reared upright. Bullets hit the body, the impact jerking it back a few inches, but it was a losing battle. Screaming in fury, Iliana adjusted her aim and managed to sink her last two bullets just below the eye grouping. The echoes of her last shot were drifting away when the spider regained its balance and launched toward her, but it forgot the bigger threat.
There was no warning as a massive furry body smashed into the spider slamming it into the counter. They rolled up and through the window above the sink, dropping out of sight. For a moment, Iliana could only lie on her back staring numbly at the ragged hole where the window once stood, sunlight glinting off the fragments of glass falling like some crystal rain. A deep, hair-raising growl abruptly cut short, finally broke through her paralysis and she scrambled to her feet, holding her injured arm close.
Her head and stomach heaved with pain as she struggled to her feet. Once upright, the world faded to black, but she sucked in deep breaths until it came back into focus. Then, cradling her arm against her stomach, her empty gun still clutched in her other hand, she carefully shuffled to the gaping hole.
Outside, crushed bushes and torn up grass marked the path disappearing toward the back of the house. Looked like the party had moved to the backyard. Ejecting her empty clip, she let it clatter to the counter. It was awkward and clumsy but she finally managed to load her second clip one-handed. Bullets might not stop the Ansa, but they did manage to make her pause.
Gun in hand, Iliana went to the back door, cautiously keeping to the side of the doorframe. The sharp snaps of breaking branches, hisses and growls drifted to her. She sent a quick prayer the neighbors were all at work, because there would be no explaining this scene away.
She pushed open the screen door and slipped out to the small deck, scanning the yard. Every inch seemed to be planted, the damn place was a jungle of trees and plants. Of course since a giant freaking spider lived here, maybe she should have expected that, but still… She forced her feet forward when she really wanted was to turn and run screaming from the house. Two things kept her moving: helping Ryuu and stopping Ansa.
She crept forward, following the muffled sounds of a struggle. Cold sweat coated her face, dripping into her eyes, leaving behind a stinging burn. Blinking, she used her shoulder to clear her blurry vision and worked her way through the garden.
She slipped into the cool shadows and under a cluster of trees. Stopping at the first trunk, she took her time to scan the branches overhead before slowly quartering the surrounding trees. Spiders always creeped her out, and having one that was super sized challenged every cell of her being. No way did she want to step into a giant web or have Ansa drop on her from above. Unlike Ryuu, if those fangs sank into her, there was no getting up to fight back.
On her left, a long, sleek shadow slipped low to the ground. Dropping into a crouch, she lifted her gun and watched. After a breath, her vision adjusted and she could just make out a black wolf inching his way deeper into the growth. It stopped and looked directly at her and her breath caught. When her pulse kicked up its pace, it wasn’t fear, but awe. Ryuu was wildly beautiful in his fur and seeing him hit her on an unexpected level. As he slipped away, she followed, unwilling to lose sight of him.
They broke through the last of the trees and came to the edge of a thick patch of flowers and bushes. It was hard to see the ground, the foliage was so thick, but trees ringed the area. Near one particularly thick trunk Ryuu stopped, and she did too, crouching next to him. There was a strange sense of exhilaration being so close to him, and his thick, glossy fur fairly begged to be touched. But since her one good hand was filled with her gun, she’d have to indulge her fascination later. If there was a later.
Ryuu’s attention remained on the patch spread out before them. A small breeze danced over it, ruffling leaves and branches. The inability to determine what was moving from wind and what wasn’t stretched her nerves to the breaking point.
An unexpected brush of fur against her arm caused her to jump. She glanced down at Ryuu, whose tongue lolled out as his lips curled back from lethal teeth in a silent canine laugh. She gave him a reprimanding hiss. He nudged her again, then looked toward the corner on the far side.
She turned to where he indicated. Frustration rose as she tried to see what caught his attention. Leaves shimmered under the sporadic sunlight, but when a small grouping shimmered in unison she realized it wasn’t the wind causing the movement. She held her breath and narrowed her eyes.
Another shimmer, this one longer and encompassing about two feet worth of plants. Every ounce of spit disappeared from her mouth and her heart crawled up her throat. She turned wide worried eyes to Ryuu.
A quick nuzzle of his nose to her jaw and he was gliding forward.
Swallowing hard, she followed.
* * * *
The last of Ansa’s venom made its way through Ryuu as he stalked forward, leaving a few tremors of weakness behind. Unfortunately, to get Iliana out of this mess alive, he didn’t have the luxury of waiting for it to completely disappear. In the few seconds before Ansa had latched on to his chest to pump her venom into his veins, he knew he�
�d fallen into her trap.
When he got out of this, Xander would never let him hear the end of it. It wasn’t like he was prepared to run across a damn spider shifter. Finding one here was just bizarre. When this was done, he’d make time to figure out how Ansa got into the Northwest Kyn without anyone picking up on her nature. Spider shifters were trouble with a capital T.
Iliana’s desperate target practice in the kitchen gave him the precious few minutes he needed to let his wolf come forward and help fight the paralysis of Ansa’s venom. He never thought he would owe a human his life. Not that he minded owing this particular one. He kept his body between Iliana and his prey as they moved forward.
Ansa was a wolf spider of some kind, which meant she wasn’t a web spinner. Unfortunately she was a tunnel digger, and he’d bet good money that shimmer of leaves indicated the entrance to her escape route. This was going to suck. Fighting in close quarters was a bitch, especially against something with eight legs.
As they crept closer, he could scent the tang of fresh dirt, but the bitter musky scent of Ansa he was tracking had begun to fade. With Iliana at his side, he stopped in front of a large hole in the ground.
Iliana stared at the hole, pale and drawn. “Dammit.”
He agreed with her. When she moved toward the hole, he blocked her with a soft growl. He didn’t have time to shift back, besides claws and teeth were better weapons than fist and feet.
Iliana stiffened, her hand with the gun going to her hip. “We can’t let her get away.” He didn’t move, just stood there and stared until she finally shook her head. “Fine, lead on, McWhoof.”
That earned her a gentle nip on her thigh before he stepped inside.
“Wait.”
He stopped at her soft command and turned to look at her. She tucked her gun under her injured arm and fumbled in her pocket. She withdrew her cell phone and hit the screen, turning it into a mini flashlight. Fumbling, she managed to clip it to her shirt, and reclaimed her gun. “Okay, ready.”
They crept through the tunnel. It was a tight fit, and the phone’s light cast shaky shadows along the tunnel. The bitter musk of Ansa’s passing grew with each step, until he worried they were walking into a dead end. The only thing stopping him from turning around was the occasional breath of cleaner air, indicating the tunnel emptied out into someplace larger.
Sure enough, the darkness ahead began to lighten. He could make out the outline of the tunnel’s exit ahead, a lighter dark against the darker dark.
He stopped, waiting for Iliana to turn off the light on her phone, not that Ansa wouldn’t know they were coming. It wasn’t like their progress was particularly quiet. The loose dirt and Iliana’s soft panicked breathing made that impossible.
Next to him Iliana wiggled around then crowded close before sliding her fingers into the heavy ruff of fur at his neck. He almost groaned aloud at the feel of her fingers curling through his fur.
“Ryuu, wait.” She barely breathed the words, obviously trying to be as quiet as possible.
He waited, feeling her shift and move as she did something he couldn’t see.
After a handful of seconds she squeezed in close until her face was buried just behind his ears. Her voice was a thin thread of sound. “You can’t go in without a distraction.”
He growled low in his chest, the sound below normal human hearing, but the vibration would be clear with her pressed so close to him. He felt and heard her sigh. “Not me, I wouldn’t last long enough, but I have an idea. I’ll set my phone to strobe and throw it inside.”
Not the best plan, since it would mess with their vision as well, but it was all they had. He turned his head and buried his nose in her neck, the only place he could reach.
“Okay, then.” She leaned over, and the soft sound of her gun being set against the ground was followed by the feel of her moving. “On the count of three,” she breathed. “One…two…three!” She threw her phone into the bit of blackness, the bright white of the phone’s flash blinking its little heart out.
A heavy shadow dropped from above and he leapt, aiming for the middle. His claws scrambled over a hard shell, nails seeking the cracks where the segmented body met and hooked deep.
With a deafening roar, he ripped down, determined to tear Ansa’s shell apart. Thick goo followed a shrill-pitched squeal scraping his ears raw. Ignoring the pain, and sinking his claws deep, he opened his jaws wide and clamped down on the exposed neck joint. His mouth filled with a vile taste as Ansa spun and whirled trying to dislodge him. Grimly he hung on, even as she threw herself against the rough edges of the walls.
The deafening report of a gun echoed in the tight confines, and the body under him jerked in response as Iliana’s bullets hit. With his jaws locked, he shook his head, determined to break whatever he could and stop Ansa. Deafened by Ansa’s insectoid screams and Iliana’s gun, he felt as if his head was engulfed in heavy cotton, sounds barely penetrating.
A particularly brutal hit against the wall, knocked him loose, but he managed to slice through one leg and damage another as he rolled free. It hurt when he landed, but he didn’t stick around, rushing under Ansa’s legs, and taking a swipe at her exposed belly. His claws ripped through thin shell and soft undersides, and Ansa scrambled to escape.
He could hear Iliana’s shouting behind him, but it didn’t make sense. He continued his attack, trying to ignore the protest of his body, darting in and out, harrying Ansa, keeping her off balance and away from Iliana. He could feel himself tiring, and knew this needed to end soon.
Something hit him, shoving him sideways. Iliana. Then she was lunging forward.
Backed against a wall, Ansa rose up, as Iliana kept going.
Regaining his footing, he rushed to get between the two females, but knew he wouldn’t be fast enough. He howled in fury even as Iliana closed in.
Ansa’s legs snapped forward, intent on capturing the fragile human.
With a savage scream Iliana leapt, something he couldn’t make out in her hand. A buzzing sound echoed in the darkness. The phone’s light flashing on and off repeatedly, threw the scene into a strange stop motion capture.
Light.
Iliana sliced across with what looked like a hedge trimmer.
Darkness.
Ansa screamed, high, shrill and agonized.
Light.
Ichor and other things spewed forth as Iliana’s weapon carved its way through the massive arachnid.
Darkness. Light.
Ansa’s last, desperate attempt at defense, a lethal leg swinging towards Iliana’s unprotected back.
Darkness.
Desperate he lunged, slamming into Iliana’s softer body and tearing her away as the air from the passing claw swept over his fur. He rolled them both out of Ansa’s range and against the wall on the opposite side.
Light.
Iliana’s pale face under him, tears falling from pain-filled eyes.
Darkness.
Iliana’s slight body trembling. Ansa’s screams disappearing under the sound of claws scraping stone.
Light.
Ansa’s bisected body twitching.
Darkness.
Needing hands, he shifted fast, ignoring the ache and pain of the transition as it left him naked as a jaybird, but able to speak. “Iliana, dammit, are you okay? What the hell were you thinking?”
A pained laugh huffed out as he ran frantic hands over her curvy form. “Hedge trimmer, battery powered, better than Raid.” Another flash of the damn phone and she groaned. “Can you make that stop, it hurts my head.”
“As soon as I’m sure you’re okay,” he growled.
“Broken arm, bruises, but otherwise fine.”
He glared at her, not sure if he wanted to shake her or hold her close. “I had her, if you’d stayed out of it, she was done.”
He caught her cheeky grin in another flash, the one that was carving a special place of its own in his chest. “My way was faster.”
He loomed over her as s
he lay on the ground, his hands on either side of her head. “Damn you.” The curse was breathed against her lips as he kissed her hard and deep, trying to communicate his frustration and worry in one heated move.
She met him, fire for fire and for a moment, adrenaline crested into desire, but he fought it back. Not the time or place.
He lifted his head and stared into her chocolate eyes, but the flashing light made her hard to read. With a huff of impatience he left her and grabbed the irritating phone. A few quick swipes and the light steadied.
He helped her sit up and together they stared at what was left of Ansa. The bisected body was slowly morphing back into familiar human lines, the monstrous nightmare tucking itself away as death took its due.
Tearing his gaze away from Ansa’s remains, he used Iliana’s phone to check where they were. A basement. There were garden implements neatly lined along the sidewall, a space where the trimmer once rested. A heavy tool chest with thin drawers sat a few feet away from Iliana.
Getting to his feet, he went over and opened the drawers. What he found made his stomach ice over. “Guess we found the Wanderer.”
Iliana struggled to her feet, uninjured hand bracing against the wall as she came over to join him and peered inside. He wrapped an arm around her waist as she made a small noise. “Are those…”
“Yeah.” He sighed.
Inside the cushioned drawer were labeled pieces of victims, with dates. He slid the drawer closed, knowing the image of preserved pieces would haunt him. Fingers, lips, skin, bone, and teeth. There was no rhyme to the collection, but it was laid out with a sickening clarity that left no doubt that Ansa preyed upon human and Kyn.
Trembling, Iliana turned her face into his chest. He tightened his arm, reluctant to let her go. This brave, fragile human risked her life, for him. He owed her. “Come on, let’s head up and you can call it in.”
