Knowing his quarry couldn’t be too far ahead, Rafe began to stroll with deliberate casualness. He’d decided that sneaking up on Damien would be no easy task. It would be better to act if he was out for a walk, and their encounter was entirely by chance.
A short time later, he rounded a grouping of trees, and his step faltered. There was Damien, crouched behind a shrub and, on the road below, was Eve’s car. His heart gave a lurch, though whether it was from excitement at her presence or fear for her safety, he wasn’t sure. What was she doing here? Hadn’t he seen her on her way an hour ago? And why was Damien watching her?
“Hello? A voice called out, and he swung his attention towards the source. A man appeared, pushing his way through the shrubbery not far from Eve’s car. It was a hiker by the look of the fellow’s gear. Rafe noted the man’s sturdy boots and faded jeans, the plaid flannel jacket and knapsack slung over his back. Dull black hair peeked out from the edge of a knit cap, and a light shadow darkened his jaw. The fellow looked to be around thirty.
He rubbed his chin and tried to decide on his next move. Was it better to approach Damien with humans about? The rogue wouldn’t shift into a wolf if there was an audience, but there was also the possibility that he could call attention to their position, which would prevent him from administering a tranquillizer. With time of the essence, Rafe gritted his teeth in frustration at the delay in his plans and waited for an opportunity to act.
Damien was still crouched low, studying the situation unfolding before them. Was his interest in the hiker, or was he spying on Eve? The professional in him identified it as fixating on a female, but his wolf had other ideas. A sense of possessiveness filled him; Eve was his. Damien had no right to be showing an interest in her. He bit back the growl his wolf wanted to make and instead clenched his fists. The vial of tranquillizer was hard and smooth in his hand. Perhaps he could sneak up on Damien right now…
“Hi! Are you lost?” Eve’s voice drew his attention from Damien. She was getting out of her car, a friendly smile on her face.
“I think so.” The hiker chuckled. “I can’t seem to find my way back to the highway. All the trees are starting to look the same.”
“That’s easy to have happen. If you follow this road…”
A gust of wind muffled her words, but Rafe wasn’t interested in her reply any more. The wind had carried Damien and Eve’s scent to him…and no one else’s! He snapped his gaze to the hiker as he made a sudden connection. No scent. The man must be the werewolf that had had his home under surveillance. Without thinking, he snarled and shifted into his wolf form.
At the same time, Damien must have realized the hiker wasn’t who he was pretending to be either, for he also gave a growl and transformed.
Chapter 39
Eve was turning to point the way for the hiker, when movement in the woods caught her attention. As she turned her head to look, something hard hit her in the back. Before she could do more than give a shout of surprise, her body slammed into the ground.
Bits of gravel dug into her hands and face while pain shot up her arm as one wrist took the brunt of her weight. For a second she lay there stunned and struggling to breathe. A heavy weight was pressing her down, and a low deep growl sounded near her ear. Instantly, she knew it was the wolf who had been stalking her. How the creature had moved so fast, she had no idea; it seemed to have come out of nowhere!
Before she could even think of moving, it grabbed at her arm. Its teeth pierced her flesh, and it began to savage her arm, shaking its head, her arm nearly ripping out of its socket from the force of the animal’s movement.
A scream of terror and pain ripped from her throat, and she tried to roll over, tried to crawl away, kicking and writhing in an effort to escape. The animal snarled, bits of saliva landing on her face, its claws tearing through her clothing, scoring her skin.
Her heart was pounding painfully, the sound thrumming in her ears, mixing with the grotesque noises emitting from the beast. A dark fog was coming over her as a sense of evil invaded her brain. She was going to die, be mauled to death. That was the creature’s intent; to tear her limb from limb and leave her body strewn all over the ground. Yet, just as she’d made that gruesome conclusion, a roaring filled the air, and something knocked the animal from her. As its teeth tore out of her flesh she was rolled over by the momentum and found herself facing even more horror.
Three wolves stood mere feet away from her, two black and one dark brown. Oh God, there must be a whole pack of the creatures in the area! They were massive brutes, muscles rippling under thick coats. For a moment they seemed to stand in a three-way face off; she could sense the hatred between them and then, in a rush, they clashed together. Fierce growls filled the air as the creatures fought, lunging and twisting in a tangle of fur and claws and teeth.
With her eyes fixed on the fight, Eve began to scuttle backwards, sobs of pain and terror escaping her with each panic filled breath. Stones skittered under her heels and abraded her skin as she pushed herself along on her rear, her only thought being to get away from the battling beasts. Her progress seemed excruciatingly slow for the amount of effort she was exerting. At any moment she expected the animals to roll onto her, and she’d be caught up in the fray.
Inch by inch she dragged herself farther from the fight. She had no idea where she was headed, and when her back came in contact with her car, she gave a startled cry.
Oh God, oh God… Somehow she pulled herself to her feet, cradling her bloody arm. The sense of evil and hatred that had descended over her like a dark, putrid cloud was still with her, draining her of energy, paralyzing her in place. All she could do was stare at the carnage taking place before her.
Blood dripped from the animals, staining the ground. Their claws tore into the dirt, sending up small clumps of soil as they pivoted and dodged to the left and the right, tumbling over only to spring to their feet. They stalked around each other, heads low and hackles raised. One suddenly rushed at the other and snarls and growls filled the air as the battle began again. Eve had no idea who was winning or losing, if it was two against one or each wolf against the others. It was horrible and grotesque, yet she found herself gazing at the sight with a macabre fascination, unable to look away. Only when one of the combatants gave an especially loud howl of pain did she come to her senses.
She had to get away, leave before one of them remembered she was there. She forced herself to move, to begin sliding her body along the side of her vehicle, stepping farther and farther away from the fight. They seemed not to notice her, and this might be her only chance to escape; once they were done fighting amongst themselves, she’d surely be next!
She spared one thought for the hiker, but he was nowhere to be seen. He must have escaped, had perhaps even gone looking for help, but she couldn’t wait for rescue to come.
One step away, and then another. Snarls continued to rent the air, interspersed with the snapping of jaws and more growls. She left the support of the car and moved closer to a tree. Had the wolves forgotten her? Another step and then… Pivoting around she began to run down the private road towards the highway.
Her feet pounded on the hard dirt surface, her breathing ragged and punctuated with whimpers of pain. Each step jarred her arm, yet she didn’t dare stop. If she could make it to the highway perhaps she could flag down a car, find someone to take her to the local clinic, call the police…
Eve strained to hear sounds of pursuit and even dared to glance over her shoulder. No wolf was following her…yet. The highway must be around the next bend, it had to be; it hadn’t seemed that far when she was driving. Her legs were beginning to feel rubbery and her oxygen starved lungs begged her to stop but she couldn’t. Just a little farther, a little longer. She stumbled once, falling to her knees, but managed to push herself up and keep going.
Oh please, oh please… She threw out silent prayers begging for strength, for the wolves not to follow her, for someone to come along. Maybe she’d find the h
iker, and he’d help her. He couldn’t have gone far.
Around another curve in the road. Now staggering and lightheaded, her vision blurred with tears and exhaustion. Warm sticky blood seeped between her fingers as they pressed her ravaged arm close to her body. How much blood had she lost? The road before her seemed to waver, the trees swaying, the branches reaching out to claw at her just as the wolf had done...
Can’t stop. Can’t stop. She repeated the mantra to herself with each step she took. The chant filled her head, became her only focus, blocking out everything else. In fact, when a vehicle appeared before her she almost didn’t realize her prayers had been answered.
As the large white tow truck came to a halt in front of her, she blinked at it wearily, weaving back and forth, hardly able to register its presence.
“Eve? What happened?” A concerned voice spoke her name, breaking through the fog she’d sunk into.
“Gordie?” It was Mike Privet’s apprentice. She threw herself against his chest and burst into tears.
He wrapped his arms around her and patted her shoulder awkwardly. “Now, there, there, Eve. No need to cry. Did you hurt yourself trying to change that tire?” He guided her to the truck, and she allowed him to help her inside. “I’ll take you to your car—”
“No!” She must have shouted the words for Gordie looked at her in surprise.
“No? But I thought Mike said—”
“No, Gordie! No! There are wolves back there; wild, ravenous creatures.” She grabbed at the front of his coat and shook it, the blood from her hand smearing over the material. “One attacked me, and now they’re fighting. We need to escape before they come for us.” Reaction was starting to set in, and she was beginning to shake from head to toe making it difficult to talk.
“Wolves? Really? I heard Constable Duffy talking about them earlier today, but I thought there was only one.” Gordie pulled off his coat and wrapped it around her, concern etched on his boyish face. “Here, use this. It will help you warm up.”
“We need to tell the police. Get wildlife control out here!” Her hand was shaking too much to manage the seatbelt so Gordie reached around her to fasten it.
“Don’t you worry. Everything will be all right.” Gordie patted her hand and then rounded the truck to climb in on the driver’s side. “First we’ll get you away from here. Find someplace safe and quiet where you can calm yourself down.”
She nodded. Getting away to some place safe sounded like an excellent idea.
“Just put your head back, and close your eyes. I’ll take care of everything.” Gordie fiddled with the dash, and soon warm air began to fill the small cab, and gentle music came from the radio.
“All right.” Eve took a deep breath and tried to compose herself. She was safe now. Gordie would take her to the local medical clinic and call the police. Leaning her head back, she closed her eyes for a moment. Blood loss and terror were making her feel woozy, and she couldn’t get rid of the cold sense of evil that had filled her earlier. Rest, that’s what she needed. Just for a few minutes so she’d have a clear head when talking to the police.
Chapter 40
Damien had the killer’s throat in his jaws. The thrill of the fight, the need for revenge pounded through his veins and filled his mind, narrowing his focus to this one crucial moment. The bastard struggled weakly, its blood already dripping into his mouth, tainted and foul with evil.
This time he was completely victorious in preventing the death of a Fae, unlike those other occasions. Now the murderer would die instead. He’d done it before; slain an Anti-Fae. All he had to do was bear down, and another member of the group would be gone. Yet even as he began to sink his teeth in, doubts arose, and he paused. Reno wanted a captive, someone to question...
‘If you let one go, it could kill again someday.’ He could hear Deirdre voice, her practical, matter of fact explanations had seemed so reasonable at first. “They’ll murder other innocent Fae and more unborn children if you don’t stop them now.”
Once again he braced himself and prepared to crush the beast’s throat, but this time a hand fell heavy on his shoulder.
“Let it go, Damien. You don’t want to do that.” Rafe must have shifted back to human form and was now kneeling beside him, sweat and blood dripping down his face.
A war waged within him; the need for revenge battling cool logic, duty and friendship.
“I know I can count on you to get the job done, Damien.” Reno had clapped him on the back just before they’d parted.
“Eliminate the witness, and do your job, Masterson. This is what you wanted, remember?” Deirdre would an arch a brow, not understanding why he was hesitating.
In the back of his mind, Beth’s image wavered in and out of focus. Her final words to him rang in his ears. The pain of her loss squeezed his chest, yet at the same time she looked at him with wide, reproachful eyes…
Slowly, reluctantly, Damien released the wolf, and the animal fell to the ground, its breathing a noisy wheeze. Backing away, he gave his fur a shake and then concentrated on transforming. It wasn’t a simple task as of late, but at the moment his inner animal cooperated perhaps pleased with the choice he’d just made.
Various wounds had him wincing as he straightened. Pushing his hair from his eyes he looked down at Rafe who was now examining the wolf. A sense of deja-vu washed over him. For a while during the fight it had been like having Reno at his side again. The doctor handled himself like a man with more than a little experience when it came to brawls.
“You must have some rowdy patients.” He wiped his mouth on the back of his hand and stared at the smear of blood there.
Rafe nodded, a wry smile twisting his lips. “I do.” He looked at the prone animal. “Injured but not in any danger of dying. I’ll just ensure it stays docile while we call Lycan Link to come and get it.” With that he pulled a syringe seemingly out of nowhere and efficiently injected the beast.
“Er…about calling someone…” Damien tried to decide on how to answer, but before he came up with a reply, three wolves appeared on the crest above them.
“Shit.” Rafe cursed and rose to his feet. “Rogue Retrieval. They’re looking for you.”
Damien stiffened. The next wave had arrived. He began to calculate the odds. Three against one. Well, maybe against two, depending on what side Rafe chose.
“Calm down. They’re looking for a rogue that’s been terrorizing the area. I think we can safely tell them that the culprit is here given the way he… Eve!” Rafe gave a start and spun around, scanning the area for her. Damien did the same, his heart lurching when he realized she was nowhere to be seen.
Before either of them could even think of starting to track her down, the Trackers arrived and encircled them with practiced skill. As one they shifted to human form.
The man, who was apparently in charge of the group, took a belligerent stance. “No one is going anywhere.”
Snorting impatiently, Rafe tried to push past him. “I’ve more important things to do right now, Clement, than dealing with you.”
“He said, no one is going anywhere.” The second Tracker pulled out a gun and pointed it at Rafe, while his partner did the same to Damien. They cocked the weapons with deadly efficiency, their faces expressionless.
Damien and Rafe froze in place, exchanging worried glances with each other. Eve was out there injured and likely frightened half to death, and they couldn’t do anything about it.
“Both of you sit over there.” Clement gestured towards Eve car. Reluctantly, Rafe did as requested. “Aiden, stand guard. Samson, check on our friend here, while I call in and try to figure out how to handle this.”
Clement began to pace, a cell phone pressed to his ear, while the one called Samson checked on the black wolf. Rafe frowned noting that when the man pushed the animal’s fur aside, it was grey underneath. Dyed hair on a wolf? He hissed his observation to Damien who nodded.
“That’s their typical method. The killer impersona
tes a local rogue, and the rogue gets blamed—in this case, I believe it was supposed to be me—and then Rogue Retrieval appears to do a cover up.”
“Typical method? You mean this has happened before?”
“You’re in the middle of an elaborate Anti-Fae scheme.” Damien leaned his head back and shut his eyes. Lines of tension, starkly revealed by the angle of the sun, made him appear older than he actually was.
Rafe absorbed what Damien had said. Anti-Fae. He wasn’t unaware of the movement; it was a sect of the Purists that was more concerned with eliminating the Fae than humans. The group took the ancient legends found in the Book of the Law—that Fae and Lycans were banned from associating—as a divine truth. In fact, they added an extra piece to the tale. They believed that the gods regretted having created the Fae and wanted them eliminated from the face of the earth. That they were doing the will of the gods justified any and all measures in their mind.
He’d never come across actual evidence of their activity, however. Hearsay and small reports on the Lycan newsfeed had made it seem like something that happened elsewhere. But here it was, right in his backyard, and affecting those he loved. Mentally, he chastised himself for his complacency.
The Tracker named Aiden was either overly confident or wasn’t interested in his guard duties. He’d actually wandered a few feet away and was conferring with his friend about the still unconscious wolf. Deciding it was safe to talk, Rafe murmured a question at Damien. “What exactly is going on here?”
“The wolf on the ground is an assassin. When a Fae is located in the same area as a rogue, an assassin is sent in. They make sure there are wolf sightings and stir up the locals enough that a call goes out for wildlife experts to come in and remove the wolf.”
“And the wildlife experts are actually our Rogue Retrieval teams, since satellite branches of Lycan Link monitor the police calls within the area.” Rafe was aware of how Lycan Link subtly kept itself apprised of human activity.
Betrayed: Days of the Rogue Page 29
