It was simply something she could not allow to happen. She made up her mind right then and there as she lay on the hotel bed and stared at the white ceiling. She was not going to give up on this. This was not the end of everything.
It was only the beginning.
A sudden loud crash alerted her and she sat up in the bed. She turned her head in the direction of the sound. She didn’t hear it again, but it had caused her to jump, and that wasn’t good. She took a deep breath and shook her head. It was probably the people in the next room. She put the thought out of her mind.
Rose ran one hand through her tangled hair. It was still damp from her shower earlier. She looked toward the window. They needed to get going soon.
She got dressed and took the few steps toward the door, opened it and stepped outside. She left the door partially open and stood there in the doorframe. The cool night breeze washed over her sweaty skin, and she was thankful it was at least refreshing.
Briefly, she thought of the noise and wondered what it was, but she let it slide out of her mind again. It was probably nothing important. After all, she was more edgy than usual and little things often made her jump.
There were many scents out here, both familiar and unfamiliar, but Rose did not focus on them. Instead she let out a soft sigh and crossed her arms. There were more important things on her mind.
Leaning against the doorframe, Rose waited for Jason to return. She hoped he wouldn’t be long. The growing darkness around her lonely self made her nervous.
* * *
The silence in the room had become almost unbearable, and Claire was afraid she was going to crack. The stuffiness of the small cramped room intensified when Simon lit up yet another cigarette. Claire coughed once or twice and finally broke the silence.
Simon gazed at her. One of his dark eyebrows rose and increased the smugness of his expression. “Yes?” He inquired. His voice was arrogant. More cigarette smoke wafted away from him. Claire’s eyes watered.
“Can we at least open a window in here? I’m choking,” she said as she rose from her seat and started for the window. Simon watched her for a moment and then turned back. He inspected more of the guns he had brought and loaded the clips. He tossed a few empty clips to Davis. They hit him square in the gut and disrupted his stupor.
“Damn it,” he cursed, sitting up. He was still disoriented when Simon tossed him a pack of the bullets. They hit him in the chest.
“Stop throwing things at me,” Davis whined, but left it at that. He began to load the clips without another word.
Claire pulled back the curtains just enough to get to the window latch. It was stuck, but with a bit of applied force she was able to twist it. The window opened, and a cool breeze hit her full on. She savored the fresh air, but soon it dissipated and the thick smoke continued to fill the room. The window wasn’t going to be enough.
“I need to go out, Simon,” she stated. Claire edged toward the door. Simon let out something like a laugh and held the gun in one hand as he removed the cigarette that was precariously balanced on his bottom lip with the other.
“Why?”
Claire bit her tongue. She wanted to snap at him, but she knew better. Instead, she sighed. “It’s hot in here. It’s stuffy, and I can’t breathe because of your stupid cigarette smoke.”
Davis looked up at her from his place on the bed. His eyes were glazed over, and Claire wondered how many of the pain pills he had taken. She had seen him pop half a bottle of them without as much as a blink. That kind of dose could seriously hurt someone. Her gaze moved back to Simon. He grinned unkindly.
“Simon…” she started. She didn’t want to beg. “Just two minutes. That’s all I ask. In and out. I won’t go anywhere.”
Simon’s grin faded. He gave in, though reluctantly. “Fine, but stay near the room. If you’re not back in two minutes, I’m coming after you.”
“Yeah…thanks,” Claire muttered under her breath. She undid the lock and stepped outside. The breeze was so much more cool and refreshing out here.
Her footfalls led her to the car. She opened the door and sat in the passenger’s seat for a moment. Her gaze followed the highway. She watched as a continuous line of twin lights passed by.
She blinked. The surrounding darkness played tricks on her. Many lengthy shadows spread across the pavement of the parking lot. The lights from the windows along the hotel’s walkway cast yellow light against the parked vehicles there. Her eyes continued to roam.
Claire noticed one of the doors was open and a female figure stood there. She leaned against the frame as she stared out across the highway and the distant stars in the sky. Claire couldn’t quite place it, but the woman looked familiar.
Claire studied her a little more. She had long dark hair that looked freshly washed and pale skin. She couldn’t see the eyes from where she stood. Who was she?
She looked away and focused on the floorboard of the passenger’s seat. Her laptop was there. She retrieved it, but didn’t flip it on.
She got out of the car and slammed the door. The woman looked in her direction. She offered a faint smile to Claire, but she didn’t return it. She had recognized her now.
It was Rose Sullivan, the woman whose photograph was in the files Simon had. Claire recognized the features of her face. The hair was longer, surely, but it was undeniably her.
They were here. The man and woman the others thought to be werewolves were here. And in the next room nonetheless.
Claire’s two minutes were up, and she hurried back to the room. Once inside, she set her laptop on the table and said, a bit breathlessly, “They’re here.”
Simon immediately stopped and turned to glare at her incredulously.
“What do you mean?” His eyes narrowed. The cigarette smoked had multiplied. He had started a fresh one.
Davis dropped what he was doing as well. His bloodshot gaze turned to her. “You mean the fucking werewolves are here?” he asked.
Claire took a deep breath and swallowed hard. Two pairs of expectant eyes watched her and waited for an answer. She nodded.
Simon regarded her with close scrutiny. He didn’t seem to believe her because he gave a slight shrug and glanced back at the computer screen.
“How do you know it’s them?” he asked. He pressed a few keys.
“The picture, from the file… It’s the woman. I swear it.”
He still didn’t seem so sure. He threw a meaningful glance toward Davis, and the young man balked.
“What?” He asked, dumbly.
“Get your ass up and check it out.”
“What? Why me? Why can’t you go out and—” Davis was immediately silenced when he soon found himself staring down the barrel of Simon’s handgun. An arch of an eyebrow, an inclination of his head toward the door and a harsh look was enough to get Davis off his behind.
“Check it out,” Simon repeated. “All right? We’ll see if Claire is right.” He threw a nasty glance toward her. Davis quickly moved toward the door.
Claire stepped back to allow him to pass. She brought her eyebrows together in thought and crossed her arms. “You don’t trust me with anything, do you?”
“I trust no one but myself.” Simon responded. He lowered the gun finally and gave the closest thing he had to a smile, his sick twisted smirk. “And even then I’m not too trusting.”
* * *
The bald man in the office stared at Jason with an air of scrutiny. “What room did you say again?” He asked. He diverted his attention long enough to tap a few keys on his computer’s keyboard. Jason let out an exasperated breath.
“Room 102. We checked in this morning, and we’d like to check out now,” he explained for the second time. The man nodded his head and continued looking up the records.
Jason waited impatiently and drummed his fingers along the top of the counter. His gaze traveled over colorful travel brochures without much interest. His thoughts trailed elsewhere. He wished the man would just hurry up.
>
After what seemed like an hour, the man had retrieved the file and went through the necessary dealings of checking out. Jason’s eyes drifted toward the window and stared out at the night. A female figure emerged from a room close to theirs and sat out in a car parked adjacent to it. He looked back.
“That’s that. Thanks for staying with us,” the man finally said. A smile beamed on his face.
Jason gave his mutter of thanks and left the office. As he exited, he caught a glimpse of the female as she returned to her room. Rose greeted him by stepping out from the open door. She gave a faint smile.
“Are we all set?” she asked and gave a slight tilt of her head. Her drying hair cascaded along her shoulder. Jason gave a brief nod and a faint smile as well.
“Yeah, just finished checking out. You sleep well?”
Rose shrugged. “As well as can be expected.” She gave a brief glance toward the next door down. “Our neighbors are a bit noisy.”
“Well, that’s typical,” Jason answered. “The walls in these places are paper thin.” He looked behind Rose into the dark hotel room. “You got everything?”
Rose pondered for a moment. “I think so…”
“Good,” Jason said. He reached over and took her hand. He smiled. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Good idea.” They began to walk to the bike.
The door next to the room they had previously occupied opened. A familiar man exited the room, and Jason stopped in his tracks. His mouth gaped open.
A similar reaction of shock rested on the face of Davis, who stared at the person responsible for his recent pain. Davis’ face blanched, and his mouth opened and shut as if he were trying to say something. His voice didn’t work.
A deep rage filled Jason from the very core of his being. It ran heated through his blood. He released his hold on Rose’s hand and tightened his fists. He took a step forward, his jaw clenched, with no other thought in his mind but to tear Davis apart.
He was surprised the hunter had survived the impact with the car. Davis wasn’t looking too well. Jason took only a bit of satisfaction at the damage he had inflicted. The man stumbled backwards and held out one hand as if to command Jason to stop. He tried to speak again, but once more failed.
“You…bastard,” Jason growled under his breath. He neared his intended target.
“Love…” Rose started to say. It was just enough to distract Jason from Davis, and his stare momentarily moved to her. He opened his mouth to say something. It was at that moment Davis found his courage. He scrambled for the hotel room he had just exited.
“Simon! It’s them,” he shouted. He disappeared inside the room.
Davis was not alone. Jason cursed under his breath and grabbed Rose’s arm.
“We have to go! Now!”
Rose did not argue. She didn’t need much of an explanation. She ran with Jason and jumped on the back of the bike. Jason started the ignition and gunned the engine. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the other occupants of the room emerge—the man, the woman she had seen earlier, and another man wielding a pistol.
Hunters.
But there had been a scent that seemed very familiar, but she couldn’t quite place it. It reminded her of another time, another place. She didn’t have time to dwell on it.
Rose took in a sharp intake of breath and held on tightly to Jason. The tires of the crotch rocket spun and squealed as Jason brought them roughly out of their parking space.
Rose expected a blast, expected the bullets from the gun to pierce her skin, but nothing happened. They were too far out of range. She didn’t dare look back.
Chapter Ten
Claire stood in the doorway just behind Simon, arms crossed over her chest. The two were gone. She watched the bike’s tail lights disappear from view. Something akin to a small smile tugged at her lips. One sudden look from Simon was enough to kill any thought she had of laughing. She became solemn.
Simon’s fist was clenched at his side. His grip tightened around the pistol. He stared off in the direction they had gone, just staring. Claire could feel the tension in the air, and she stepped back. Her backside pressed against the door.
“Why didn’t you fire at them?” Davis asked, his voice agitated. The young man cowered behind Simon. He looked up at the taller man. “They were right there!”
“Would’ve caused too much of a scene. Too many people…” Simon answered. His voice was uncharacteristically monotonous. “Besides, I don’t want those two dead just yet.”
Davis looked confused, but he knew better now than to question. He took a few steps back, eased past Claire and back into the room.
“Are we going after them now? Follow them in the car?”
Simon was silent for a moment, before he turned to face her. His eyes burned with an unnatural gleam. Claire swallowed.
“No,” he finally answered. “No, we wait for Michael and Eric.” He looked down at the gun in his hand. A smirk warped his face. “I know where they are going.”
* * *
“Who the fuck was that?” Rose yelled over the roar of the engine and the wind that sped by them. Her arms were tightly secured around Jason’s waist, but she loosened them just enough so she could lean close to his ear.
Jason pretended not to hear her. His knuckles had gone white under the intense pressure he had against the accelerator of his bike. It didn't look like he was going to slow down any time soon.
Rose tried again to grab his attention again. “Jason…”
Once more, she was met with silence. She sighed and regained her grip on him. The cold wind tore at her skin, and she lowered her head against his back to shield herself from its chilling bite.
She knew she really didn’t have to ask. They had to be hunters. Once or twice so far in their flight she had looked over her shoulder. Headlights glared at her from way behind them and prevented her from really identifying any vehicle behind them. There was no way to know for sure if they were being followed. Jason was driving as if they were, and Rose tightened her grip yet again and Jason passed a line of cars moving too slowly for him. He returned to the correct lane a moment before a car was due to hit them.
Rose held back a startled cry as the headlights blinded her a moment and the car’s horned blared. Jason didn’t slow down. Her fingers were ached from the tight grip she had on him. His recklessness was going to get them killed. She had to intervene. This was insane.
“Love, stop the bike!” she yelled over the rush of the wind. A strand of her hair whipped across her face. It stung with its propelled force. She brushed the annoying strand away from her eyes. “Pull over!”
Jason, once more, did not appear to hear her. She took a deep breath. He was really starting to frighten her. She tried again and hoped this time it wouldn’t be in vain.
“Pull the bike over, Jason. You’re scaring me!” she screamed.
This time, her words hit him and he veered off the side of the road. Gravel kicked up from the shoulder, and he hit the brakes. Rose lurched forward with a hard force against Jason’s back.
“What? What is it, Rose?” Jason asked. There was a tone to his voice Rose had never heard before. It was dark and unpleasant. It made a cold shiver snake down her back.
“Jason…” she said. She touched his shoulder. His muscles were tense beneath his leather jacket, and Rose withdrew. “Just calm down, please…”
“They were right there, for God knows how long…” He did not look over his shoulder at her, but kept his gaze forward. Tail lights vanished down the highway. “They were right there, waiting for us. We were so close to being killed. We were caught off guard. I wasn’t prepared…” Jason’s words trailed off, and he gave a huge sigh.
He was right.
They had come so very close to meeting their end, and they hadn’t even realized it until it was right in front of them. They were both unprepared and they had both ignored the most key element to their survival. Awareness.
“Jason…” she
started to say, but stopped, uncertain what words to use. She knew just what would happen to him if he got too angry. A rage shift would occur, and Jason would snap. None of them could really control the strength and power the wolf gained when unleashed in anger. She knew she couldn’t.
All she could do was try to calm him down. Once Jason became so, the wolf would quiet down and the shift would be completely bypassed.
We can’t stay here long.” Jason revved the engine, and Rose secured her arms around him again. He was right yet again.
“I’ll take a few back roads I know, we’ll lose them.” His voice rose over the growl of the engine. He glanced back at her. A change came over Jason’s face for a brief moment. His features softened.
“I’m sorry I scared you. I’ll try not to let it happen again,” he said “But no guarantees.”
Rose said nothing, and rested her head against his back once more. Gravel flew from the back tire of the Honda Interceptor as he spun out from the shoulder and back onto the road. He zipped in between two cars and into the middle lane.
It was going to be a long ride. She tightened her eyes tightly and adjusted her hold on her mate. Too many thoughts filled her mind, and each one was more horrible than the last.
But a single ray of hope shone through the clouds of despair covering her. It was the only thing that was keeping her going…
Somewhere out there, Glen was waiting with them at the safe place. And there, they could rest and wait until the whole thing settled down. The safe place…
It sounded too good to be true. Everything had gone to shit in a matter of a day or so. There were no safe places any more for them, for her. She had ruined that. After all, she had killed a man, a hunter.
There were no safe places for them any more.
* * *
“Let’s get the fuck out of here!”
Michael raised his voice to overcome the sound of cracking fire and snapping lumber. The blaze was well underway, and he stood near the door. He waited for Eric.
Sweet Moon Dreams Page 9
