Wolves in the Shadows

by Sharon McLaughlin

  “What things?” Michelle’s voice bordered on hysteria. “Please tell me what’s going on! Those guys were saying some pretty weird things. Please come home. You can’t just leave like this! I need you here.”

  Elizabeth realized for the first time in two years how much her roommate had come to depend on her. Memories of the many hours that they had spent together came flooding into her mind. At the same time, her head was spinning at the thought that some random strangers were looking for her. She wondered what they had said to Michelle, but at the same time, she could not bring herself to ask. Were there more hunters around? Or maybe the police?

  “I’m sorry, Michelle,” she said at last, pulling herself out of her thoughts. All this time, she had thought that she had been the one who needed Michelle. Hadn’t she always defined herself to a certain extent as Michelle’s friend and roommate rather than as her own person? Her voice began to shake as she continued. “Remember how I used to say that I felt like I didn’t belong at this school?”

  She could picture Michelle nodding into the phone as she had often seen her do.

  “I think I finally figured out where I belong.” It was a blatant lie. She had no idea where she was going to go or what she was going to do. All she knew was that she had to get as far away as she could.

  Michelle sniffed before she replied, “But Lizzy-” She trailed off into silence.

  “I’m sorry, Michie. Maybe someday I’ll be able to explain it to you.”

  Michelle did not respond.

  “I just wanted you to know that I won’t be coming back.” Elizabeth was relieved that she could at least tell her one thing that was true. “You can give any of my stuff that you don’t want to charity.”

  “Okay,” Michelle’s voice sounded flat.

  “I’ll miss you.”

  “I’ll miss you too.”

  Elizabeth sighed and tried to swallow the lump in her throat. She could feel her roommate’s misery and frustration pulsing in the silence between them. “You’ll be okay without me.”

  “I know, Lizzy. Take care of yourself.”

  “You too.” Elizabeth nodded even though she knew that Michelle couldn’t see her. “Oh, and Michie?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Will you burn my journal? It should be in the outer pocket of my backpack.”

  Michelle sighed into the phone. “Alright,” she said.

  “Thanks.” Elizabeth’s eyes burned with tears as she hung up without a word. There was too much that she couldn’t say.

  Romulus stood suddenly and growled.

  “What is it, Romy?” Elizabeth asked wiping her eyes.

  The fur on the back of Romulus neck stood on end as something crashed against the door.

  Chapter 6

  The Walmart cashier gave Chase a funny look but didn’t say anything. Chase figured that it wasn’t every day that a guy came in to buy ladies clothing, bandages, and fifth of Jameson. He shrugged it off. It was the least of his worries.

  He had decided that he wasn’t going to run. She was still Elizabeth, that same sweet wide eyed girl that he had been drawn to the day they met. He was worried though. The Council would never accept her. They would see an abomination that needed to be destroyed immediately. Or far worse, they would take her alive.

  The thought of what they might do to her, made him feel sick to his stomach. Anyone with any connection to a master vampire was considered fair game for imprisonment and torture. It wouldn’t matter that she didn’t have any information. It wouldn’t matter that she had only killed Elaine in self-defense. All they would care about was that she had vampire blood in her veins.

  Chase realized with a start as he drove back to the hotel, that Elizabeth must also have hunter blood in her. He could not stifle a laugh as he imagined her as a hunter with a sword in one hand and a stake in the other. It was a strange sight indeed. But then again, he couldn’t help reflect, hadn’t she already helped him kill a master vampire? And he did need a new hunting partner. He tried to think how that conversation would go.

  “Oh, Lizzy, so I was thinking that technically you’re a Slayer, so maybe some time we could go hunting together,” he would say. He laughed again.

  Her eyes would widen innocently and she would say…

  Chase stopped laughing. What would she say? She clearly could see that not all vampires were as good and honorable as those in the Wolf Clan. The fact that he thought of them as honorable worried him a little, but he shook it off. Surely Elizabeth would want to learn how to fight and defend herself. It was clear that she would never want to be taken prisoner ever again. Maybe she actually would want to learn from him and would take him up on his offer. Maybe someday they might hunt together.

  It was a pleasant thought, followed immediately by the terrible thought that if he did teach her, she might turn her abilities against the Council. But then again, the Council was so corrupt, that maybe it was time for someone to take them down. He felt a pang of shame. Was he really contemplating the idea of undermining the Council? He tried to shake the thought away, but it clung to the inside of his head like a leech. He was so deep in thought that he almost drove past the hotel.

  As he turned into the parking lot, a searing pain shot through his temples. The pain faded quickly, but it was enough to pull Chase out of his thoughts and make him alert enough to notice the sleek black car parked near the door of his room. It had not been there when he left. He drove slowly past the car and saw that the license plates had been removed. For an instant, he considered just driving on, but he knew that he couldn’t. He could not let Elizabeth fall into the Council’s hands. He parked behind the building, took a deep breath and prepared himself for an unpleasant confrontation.

  Chase hugged the wall as he rounded the corner and walked cautiously towards his room. The wood around the lock had been splintered, and the door hung crookedly on its hinges, like someone had kicked it open and then let it swing closed of its own accord.

  The pistol that he had brought from the car felt unnatural in his hand, but the idea of going in unarmed was not in the least bit appealing, and his swords would draw far too much attention in broad daylight. If it came to it, he would easily be outgunned. He pushed the door open with his foot, half expecting to be greeted by a barrage of bullets. Part of him would have welcomed it.

  He held the gun in both hands, with his arms straight and stepped into the room.

  What he saw shattered all of his expectations.

  Chapter 7

  It was as if a tornado had ripped through the small room. Bits of bedding and mattress stuffing were still falling onto the overturned furniture like snow. The window at the back of the room and the mirror on the wall had been shattered. Elizabeth and Romulus were gone, but there were two strange men clad in cheap black suits sprawled motionless on the floor. Chase checked their pulses and breathed a sigh of relief. They were only unconscious.

  He wondered how they had found Elizabeth so quickly, and how she had been able to knock out two such big competent looking hunters. Were they hunters? That was what it looked like, but he couldn’t be sure. There wasn’t time to dwell on it.

  He looked around the room for any clue the Elizabeth might have left. She had taken Demetrius’ knife from the nightstand but had left her bloodied shirt and jeans crumpled on the floor in the bathroom. Had circumstances been different, Chase would have been amused by the thought of her running around in her underwear. He folded her clothes and packed them in the large duffel bag that he had left in the closet. Years of travelling taught him to never unpack more that he had to in case he had to leave somewhere in a hurry. His trench coat was missing, so at least Elizabeth had something to cover herself. He found the collar that he had bought for Romulus in a neat circle beneath the window. He had a feeling that it meant something, but he wasn’t sure what. When
ever he found Elizabeth, they would have to have a conversation about what to do if they got separated again.

  He tucked his gun into the waistband of his jeans and slung his bag over his shoulder. After a quick look through the room to make sure he hadn’t missed anything, he decided to go out the back window. It was already broken anyways, and it would save him from having to walk around the building again. His instincts warned him to put as much distance as possible between him and these men. Hopefully, Elizabeth wouldn’t have gotten too far yet. He had to find her soon.

  Chapter 8

  Chase tossed the duffel bag into the trunk and got into the car. He tucked his gun and Romulus’ collar into the glove box and glanced into the rearview mirror.

  Two sets of blazing blue eyes were staring back at him.

  He yelled in surprise and turned to see Elizabeth and Romulus sitting quietly in the back seat.

  Elizabeth looked especially tiny in Chase’s huge coat with her legs curled to the side. She was leaning against Romulus with her arm around his neck. They both blinked, and their eyes turned back to their normal soft brown and bright yellow.

  “Sorry,” Elizabeth said. She ran her fingers through her damp hair. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  “Scare me?” Chase’s voice sounded shrill in his own ears. “What the hell?”

  “We were hiding in the bushes, and we saw your car,” Elizabeth said.

  “I didn’t even see you back there,” Chase said. “What happened in the room?”

  “I’m not sure.” Elizabeth’s eyes widened with genuine innocence. “They smashed through the door and then- I don’t know.” She shook her head. “I don’t know exactly what I did. It was like I was inside their heads. I didn’t kill them did I?” Her voice became tremulous.

  “No, they seemed okay. Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine, just a little shaken.”

  “Here,” Chase handed her the Walmart bag that he had left on the passenger seat. “I got you some clothes and a fresh bandage for your neck. We should get out of here.”

  “Yes, please and thank you,” Elizabeth said eagerly. “Let’s get as far away from here as possible.” She started to pull the tags off a pair of black sweatpants and a red tank top while Chase pulled out of the parking lot.

  “I’m going to change while you drive,” Elizabeth said. “And if you look, Romulus will chew your face off.”

  “That’s decent threat,” Chase said with a wry smile. “But I’m tempted to risk it.”

  Elizabeth returned his smile and replied, “I’ll smash this bottle of whiskey over your head.”

  “Gotcha,” Chase said, suddenly very focused on the road. “Can’t waste good booze.”

  Elizabeth laughed.

  #

  “Okay,” she said after a few minutes of wiggling into her new clothes. “I’m finished.” She lifted the bottle of whiskey up. “Do you mind if I have some of this?”

  “Help yourself,” Chase said. “Just save some for me.”

  Elizabeth took a long swig and grimaced. “How can you drink this?”

  “It’s delicious. That’s some good Irish whiskey.”

  “It’s disgusting.”

  “Not a good idea to insult a man’s whiskey.”

  “Maybe if the man had better taste…”

  “No one’s making you drink it.”

  “Two guys broke into my motel room while I was in a towel,” Elizabeth said with a snort. “I think I deserve a drink of something that doesn’t taste like battery acid.”

  “Fine,” Chase said with a chuckle. “We’ll stop somewhere and get you some girly drink.”

  “And a burger,” Elizabeth said, her eyes brightening. “I don’t know about you, but I could eat a whole cow right now.”

  “I love a girl with a big appetite.”

  A growl rumbled from Romulus’ chest.

  Elizabeth hushed him. “It’s just a figure of speech, Romy.”

  Chapter 9

  “Much better,” Elizabeth said after she had finished her first cheeseburger. “I’ve been so hungry lately.” She took a long swig of her beer before she started to unwrap her second burger.

  Chase smiled at her from across the weather beaten table. He had made sure that they had found a quiet place where they could eat in peace. It was truly incredible how much this girl could eat in one sitting.

  “I’m not too surprised honestly,” He said. “The amount of energy you’ve been expending must be ridiculous. It takes a lot out of a mortal to spend so much time with extremely powerful vampires. I always had to eat and sleep a lot more after a good hunt.”

  Elizabeth smiled back at him and looked down at Romulus. The wolf looked up at her and growled; his eyes were a blazing blue. Elizabeth’s face grew stern as she looked at him.

  Romulus stood and started to trot away from the table. After he had gone a few yards, he turned back and let out a whine.

  “It’s okay, Romy,” Elizabeth said.

  Chase saw that once again, her eyes were the same color as the wolf’s.

  Romulus took off running across the grassy lawn of the deserted park. In the blink of an eye, he was a speck in the distance. The next instant, he had vanished from sight.

  “Damn, he’s fast,” Chase said.

  Elizabeth nodded. Her eyes had returned to their normal color. “He doesn’t like you or trust you.”

  “But you do?” Chase asked hopefully.

  She winked at him and took a bite of her burger.

  “We should change cars,” Chase said. “Those guys will be able to track us pretty easily. I used my real name when I checked into the hotel, so we’ll have to lay low for awhile.”

  Elizabeth finished her second burger before she replied. “Romulus thinks that we were set up.”

  The thought had occurred to Chase, but he hadn’t wanted to mention it.

  “He suspects that you had a hand in it, but I know you didn’t,” she continued when Chase did not reply.

  “Elaine could have easily pulled some strings with the Council to have some hunters nearby in case anything happened to her,” Chase said. He was relieved that he didn’t have to worry about defending himself. It was nice knowing that Elizabeth at least trusted him enough to know that he wouldn’t deliberately betray her.

  Elizabeth nodded. “Fortunately, they won’t be catching up with is anytime soon.”

  “Why’s that?” Chase asked with a frown.

  Elizabeth gave him a mischievous grin. “Because now that they’re awake, they’ll have an unbearable urge to go to Disneyland.”

  Chase raised his eyebrows.

  What?” Elizabeth asked. Her voice was almost too sweet. “I needed them out of the way, and I figured they should at least go somewhere fun. I sent Romulus to make sure that they head out of town.”

  “What are you?”

  Elizabeth’s smile turned into a frown. She shook her head. “I’ve been wondering that myself,” she said with a sigh. “When they broke the door down, I could see into their minds. Their names are Michael Servin and Josh Nelson. They’re brothers-in-law. Josh is married to Michael’s sister, and they’ve been hunting partners for ten years. They both knew Elaine, but they aren’t especially sorry that she was dead. Michael thought that she was just using them to do her dirty work, but Josh thought that they owed it to her to avenge her. Romulus wanted to rip them apart, but I wouldn’t let him.” She paused and rubbed her temples. “I could have ripped them apart myself,” she said. “That scares me more than anything.” The words seemed to flow out of her like an unstoppable flood. She told him about everything that Demetrius had said to her the night before. How he hadn’t wanted to hurt her, but there was something that was driving him that he couldn’t speak of. How there was something about her that was too dangerous to be allow
ed to live.

  “I don’t know why he didn’t just kill me,” she said. She shook her head again. “I just keep feeling like there was something that he wanted from me, but I don’t know what it was. I don’t know if I want to know. It might sound crazy, but I can still feel him inside my head.”

  “Demetrius is dead,” Chase said reassuringly. “We killed him together. You saw me chop his head off and drive a sword through his chest. There’s no way he could have possibly recovered from that, and even if he could, we burned the house to the ground after you passed out.”

  “I know that, Chase. I know that he’s gone, but I feel like, I don’t know, like there’s a part of him in me. It’s like how suddenly I have so much more control I have over my own mind. How I was able to break into Michael’s and Josh’s minds like they were tissue paper. I tore that room apart with a thought. I was able to hide from you. You looked right at me when you first came back to the car, but you didn’t see me. I didn’t want to tell you when Romulus was around, even though I know he knows, but when I first met Demetrius, he was able to wrap the shadows around him like a cloak. Somehow I did the same thing.”

  Chase frowned. “There are legends amongst the Hunter Clans of powerful vampires being able to walk unseen by mortal eyes,” he said. “And lately, legends seem to be proving to be true.”

  “But I’m not a vampire.”

  “Obviously, but I think that Romulus is somehow sharing his power with you. When you were in the car, you and Romulus both had these radiant blue eyes.”

  Elizabeth eyes widened, but she said nothing.

  “I don’t know what that creature is,” Chase stopped at the expression on Elizabeth’s face.

  “It suddenly occurred to me,” Elizabeth said. “Romulus carries the souls of the old Wolf Clan that followed him into the pit. Maybe somehow, he caught Demetrius’ soul. Maybe that’s why I still feel him. It makes sense. Our bond seems to getting more and more powerful, so it’s easier for us to share power.”

  “I won’t pretend to understand what any of that means,” Chase said with a shrug. “I’m not an expert on the inner workings and flow of power within vampire clans. I just hunt and kill them.”