A Justified Kill (Heart of a Wolf - Amber's Tale)

by MaryLynn Bast

  A JUSITIFIED KILL

  By:

  MARYLYNN BAST

  ISBN: ISBN-13: 978-1477620298

  ISBN-10: 147762029XA JUSTIFIED KILL

  All rights reserved

  Copyright © 2012 Marylynn Bast

  This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission.

  For information: A Werewolf Tails Publishing Book

  www.heartofawolf.com

  Cover design by MaryLynn Bast

  ACKNOWDLEDGEMENTS

  For all my family and friends who have stayed after me to keep sending them new stories!

  For the fans who have contacted me, telling me how much they love my writing and want to know when the next one is coming out. It makes all the crazy times worthwhile.

  Once again I have to thank Sharon Stonger with I Smell Sheep, my wonderful beta reader, for keeping me on my toes and telling me when something just doesn’t make sense.

  Dedicated to my husband, Patrick, for his loving support.

  For the readers who have read No Remorse, Book One – Heart of a Wolf Series: A Justified Kill is a pre-qual to No Remorse and goes into Amber’s life and the reasons she must determine if killing a human would be A Justified Kill. I touched briefly on her first kill in No Remorse but didn’t give you the details, now you will have them…so you can be the judge.

  For the readers who are just starting the series, A Justified Kill will give you a little more insight into Amber and why she makes some of the choices she makes in No Remorse…again, you get to be the judge.

  CHAPTER ONE

  “Breaking News, an out of control animal killed all the patrons in Ryan’s Bar a little after midnight last night...” Amber sarcastically mimicked the voice of the news anchor she had heard that morning, making up her own featured report. She couldn’t pull herself away from her tousled image reflected in the mirror. Her dark chocolate eyes swirling with specks of yellow stared back at her. The pounding in her head would not ease and her body ached all over. If she were a human, everyone would tell her to go to bed and rest, suggesting she had the flu. But she wasn’t human. And if she wasn’t careful, her joking statement to her own reflection would make headline news.

  The full moon was not for another three nights, Amber felt it was safe to go into work, no matter how much she hurt. Staying on the run from the Council meant she needed money and had no choice but to work. So she left her motel room, hopped into her black Jeep Wrangler and drove two miles up the winding highway towards the bar where she had started waiting tables two weeks earlier.

  Always on the move, the backwoods bar scene had become her way of life after leaving the shelter eight years earlier. Her wolf had stayed hidden and in the recesses of her mind. However, for the past couple of months things felt like they were changing inside her mind and body. She was experiencing insistent urges to run and lived with the constant pain which radiated throughout her body. She repeatedly had to hide her eyes from the humans because she knew they would be alarmed if they saw the yellow specks mixing through the deep dark color of her eyes. Heeding the warnings from her mother, Amber was prepared and knew, for the most part, what to expect when she made her first shift into her werewolf form, which was about ten years overdue.

  Each month since her sixteenth birthday, Amber had anticipated the change and each month she had been disappointed. She didn’t understand why she hadn’t shifted. All female werewolves changed around sixteen, but not her. Her mother had always told her she was different. Being born on the full moon gave her special abilities typical werewolves didn’t possess. But it didn’t make sense and Amber began to wonder if she was really a true werewolf. Or was she the mutt the girls at the orphanage always called her? After all, her grandfather had dumped her at Moonlight Shelter where all unwanted werewolves and mutts were sent or hid out.

  This month, the approach of the full moon felt different. Strange sensations, something was pulling and tugging at her mind. She was having a hard time staying focused and wondered if it had anything to do with the full moon falling on her birthday. That something was hopefully her wolf finally making its presence known.

  Clearing her mind, she cut the engine to the jeep, allowed it to roll into the parking spot, released the clutch and pushed in the parking brake. Climbing out, she headed towards the entrance. Walking into the smoke filled bar, the smell of cigarettes assaulted her senses causing her to wrinkle her nose in disgust. She hated the smell. The only reason she worked in bars was because no one questioned why she only stayed a little while before moving on to the next. No one checked up on her if she didn’t show up for work, they just hired someone else and moved on.

  The locals were already gathering around their usual tables or bellying up to their spot at the bar. The sharp pains clawing at the inside of her skull made her wonder if her head was going to explode. The noises from clinking glasses, loud conversation and laughter didn’t help it any. Narrowing her eyes against the pain, she passed Catherine on her way towards the back.

  “Evening Amber, you don’t look so hot.” Catherine had a way of pointing out the obvious.

  “Thanks for noticing.” Amber mumbled, heading to the restroom before starting her shift.

  ****

  From the moment the man walked through the door, he caught Amber’s attention. There was something about the way he swaggered when he walked, it set her on edge. The impression she got of him made her think “dirty old man,” which caused the hairs on the back of her neck to stand on end. With her heightened hearing, she could filter out the usual noises of the loud club and hear conversations clearly. Eaves-dropping in on interesting or funny stories usually kept her somewhat amused, but tonight the conversation in the corner was her main focus. It wasn’t funny or amusing.

  “Hey Gerald!” They all chimed in when he walked up to the table with a grin on his face. “Where have you been for the past couple of weeks?” The friend probed, pushing the chair out with the tip of his boot.

  Gerald grabbed hold of the chair before it tipped over, scraping the wooden legs along the floor before he sat down “I’ve been busy out at the campsite.” He wiggled his bushy eyebrows and laughed loudly. “But I needed something to drink and some male company for a bit.” The group laughed, encouraging him to continue. “I can’t stay too long though, gotta get back out there, if you know what I mean.”

  For some reason, even the guy’s name didn’t set well with Amber. Hearing the conversation and seeing the lecherous way he eyed the younger women in the bar made Amber grit her teeth. Listening intently to their discussion, she continued to wait on people throughout the bar, fielding invites to sit and have a drink or to go home with them. Absentmindedly taking their drink orders, she wanted to get closer and find out why Gerald had caught her attention. What was so important that her senses went into overdrive? His group was in Catherine’s section, but she had not made her rounds again. This gave Amber the perfect opportunity and she made her way towards the corner.

  “What can I get you to drink?” She normally called the customers gentlemen, but not these guys. From what she was hearing, there was no way she considered them civilized men. Hell, half the men in the small mountain town were crude, but this group was different. Just the smell emanating from them made her nostrils flare and her skin crawl even more than it already was, especially when she focused on the new comer.

  His thinning, greasy, brownish gray hair was slicked back away from his face and shaggy on the ends which reached for the collar of his grungy button down shirt. She judged him to be in his late fifties, early sixties, but it was hard to tell with his wea
thered face because it was wrinkled from too many days spent in the sun. With a high forehead and receding hairline, his nose jutted out from his face, over a mouth with most of its teeth missing. The three teeth that remained were stained brown and yellow from years of neglect. The once tan khaki pants and oversized shirt hung loosely on his scrawny body. His boots were caked with mud and he reeked with the mixture of stale coffee, little cigar cigarettes, Jack Daniels, and what stood out most of all was the odor of sex and the days he had gone without showering. Amber guessed from the smell and look of him, he more than likely drank his meals rather than eating.

  Nearly backing away from the pungent stink of him, she forced herself to remain and take their order. As she suspected, he ordered a round of whiskey to celebrate what he referred to as his latest conquest. She couldn’t help thinking that whoever he had slept with must have been extremely desperate. A disgusted shiver went down her spine and she fought the reflex to gag at the revolting thought of him having any type of sexual activity.

  “She’s new in town, a sweet young thang,” he boasted, receiving a hearty round of knowing laughter from the group. “Her golden curls are soft, and so’s her skin,” he continued while nastily smacking his lips.

  Amber smelled the surge of testosterone from the others while they visualized the woman he described. Their reactions made her want to slam their heads against the table. She felt the low growl beginning deep in her throat and sucked in a deep breath to keep it from escaping. Chuckling silently at the thought of getting locked up for being the crazy bitch that goes around growling at people.

  The way Gerald spoke of the person waiting for him sent a chill up her spine. She was going to have to check out the campsite. Things just didn’t feel right about what he was saying. The subtle hints he kept dropping were not lost on Amber. She fought the urge to reach out and grab the scumbag by the throat. She felt her eyes blur and then suddenly become sharper. She had seen her mother change, so she knew the look. Like she had seen that morning in the mirror, she knew her eyes were a vivid swirl of chocolate brown and black, with yellow specks. If she didn’t get away from him fast, she would probably snatch him up right there in front of his friends and the entire bar. The presence of her wolf was growing stronger and the throbbing in her head increased, if that was even possible since her head was already pounding. Realizing she was about to lean forward, she forced herself to back away. Ducking her head to hide her eyes, and to the dismay of the men, Amber turned and hurried away. She could hear them yelling that she needed to finish taking their order.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Ryan was stunned and stared at her with a frown when she rushed past the bar on her way to the bathroom.

  Slamming into the stall and fighting to get her body under control, she could feel her wolf pushing to be released. Images of tearing through flesh and bones slipped through the hazy fog in her mind. Every muscle in her body trembled with suppressed rage. Amber cradled her head, rocking back and forth from the pain and the images. When another wave of pain struck she knew that it was not normal. Werewolves shifted on the night of the full moon. If she was right, her first change should be in three days, when the moon would be at its fullest. So what was causing her to feel the urge to change now? Sitting on the toilet with her head between her knees, Amber continued to rock back and forth while the pain ricocheted through her head and throughout her body. Breathing deeply to fight the scream that threatened to erupt, she heard the creak of the bathroom door being pushed open.

  The loud murmur of the tavern’s sounds blasted through the opening with its noisy laughter and conversation, then went back to a dull babble when the door slid closed with a bang. Amber recognized the overwhelming smell of perfume which immediately filled the room and knew Catherine had followed her in. She now stood tapping on the stall door with her perfectly manicured fake nails.

  “Hon, you okay?”

  Amber could almost picture her smacking the gum she always chewed and popping bubbles like the woman did in the old television show, what was her name…Flo, that’s it! She shook her head at the strange thoughts rambling through her mind. Why would she be remembering a show her mother had watched? She was really losing it! Staring at the black high heel shoes showing under the wooden stall door, her vision continued to alternate. It would become blurry, then sharpen and go back to blurry again. It did this over and over until she thought she was going to be sick. Groaning, she put the heel of her palms and pressed at her eyes, trying to make it stop. “Huh uh,” was all she could utter in response to Catherine’s question before her stomach lurched, forcing her to jump up fast and turn around in time to lose her dinner into the toilet.

  Through it all Catherine kept asking if she was okay. If there was anything she could do to help. The irritating occasional tapping of her nails on the wooden door was driving her nuts. With her innards rolling and cramping, Amber wanted to jerk the door open, rip the woman’s head off, or at least to tell her to go away and stop repeatedly asking her if she was okay. No, I’m not okay! Amber screamed in her mind while her entire body tensed and trembled, she fought the urge to yell at Catherine.

  Suddenly the palm of her hand struck the door, causing Catherine to shuffle backwards. She hadn’t meant to strike out, but it was affective in getting her to stop her insistent nagging and tapping on the door. Taking deep breaths, Amber knew she had to get control of the raging emotions bouncing through her head. She could not afford to lose it and go psycho in the small bathroom. She had the urge to yell and scream, but that wasn’t her way of handling things. Amber tried to rationalize in her mind and knew deep down she really shouldn’t be angry with Catherine. After all, she was only trying to help in her own obnoxious way.

  After a few minutes, she was able to stand up straight without the muscles in her stomach clenching. She reluctantly opened the stall door, not ready to face anyone. Catherine had not gone away like she had hoped. Amber saw the look of concern on the older woman’s face. She had to look like death warmed over, it was how she felt.

  Amber frowned and gestured for her to move back from blocking her exit from the stall. Realizing what she wanted, Catherine slid backwards, but didn’t go out the door and back to work like Amber wished she would.

  “Do you need to go to the hospital or something? You don’t look so hot.” Her bubbly voice caused Amber to cringe, though she did sound concerned.

  “Thank you Captain Obvious.” Her voice dripping with sarcasm appeared to be lost on Catherine. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, Amber all but glared down at her, rolled her eyes and shook her head no. She knew there was nothing that would help her at this point but to shift and allow her wolf to kill something. Snorting a laugh to herself, she wondered if saying this to Catherine would wipe the stupid expression off her face.

  With sluggish steps, she walked to the sink. With each step her muscles burned like they were on fire and she ached all over. Amber bent over and stuck her hands under the running water. She hated feeling this way and summed it up to just being cranky, almost like she had a major case of PMS. She was usually even tempered and normally dealt with people’s idiocies without snapping, but this was really getting to her and she had to get it under control.

  Allowing the warm water to run over her slightly trembling hands, she didn’t bother looking at herself in the mirror. She was seeing regularly now, so her eyes were back to their normal dark brown color. She felt weak and knew that she looked pale from the glimpse she had caught when bending over the sink. Turning the hot tap off, she splashed cold water on her face and heard Catherine murmuring about how lucky she was to not have to wear make-up. Ignoring the comments, Amber wanted to brush her teeth, unfortunately there was no tooth brush or paste so she cupped some water in her hands and brought it to her lips. Swishing the liquid around, she rinsed the taste of vomit from her mouth and spit it into the basin. Repeating this a couple times until her breath didn’t smell so much like barf. She twisted the cold-
tap off, stood up straight and turned around to face the other woman.

  Catherine was quite a few years older than she was, but still had a smoking hot body and apparently wasn’t afraid to show off. Wearing her highlighted and dyed brunette hair hanging loosely around her shoulders, she pinned the sides back with a sparkling clip. Tucking strands away from her face and behind her ear affectively showed off the diamond earrings that dangled and reflected brightly with each movement of her head. The matching necklace hung around her slender throat, with a larger teardrop diamond resting above the swell of her breast. The little black dress she wore was a little much for the backwoods bar, but it showed off the boob job her boyfriend, Hunter Michaels, had recently paid for. The tight dress accented her tiny waist and full hips. Amber was certain, if Catherine was not careful, it would probably slip easily up to reveal the lower half of her torso, especially if she bent over just a bit too far. Thinking snidely, her short dress probably gave Hunter easier access to her goods.

  Amber couldn’t help but glance down, comparing her own clothing to Catherine’s. She frowned slightly at the worn pair of jeans and snug fitting t-shirt she had thrown on after rolling out of bed. At least they were not wrinkled and she had run a brush through her hair in an attempt to tame the wildness. Pulling the hair out of her eyes and pinning it back with a clip allowed it to cascade down around her shoulders in long soft waves. Giving herself a mental shrug, she was happy with her appearance. At least her full breasts were her own. Her body was naturally fit because of her werewolf genetics. Apparently Ryan, along with most of the other men in the places she had bartended and waited tables appeared to like how she looked. Besides, she wasn’t out to impress anyone and was happy she could go with what nature had given her. Without the fuss of applying make-up and always having to fix her hair, she could easily shower and just go, which worked perfectly for a life on the run.