That was the last I remembered of my longest Monday ever.
***
The ringing phone jarred me awake.
I tore myself from the chair where I’d fallen asleep. My wall clock read 9:11 AM. I was over an hour late for work.
“Luke, I don’t know what happened!” I half screeched, not yet awake.
“I told you to take the day off. Zane’s here. He can handle things. Stay home. It’s an order.”
“No way! Let me hop in the shower, and I’ll be there.” I hung up before he could protest further.
This I had to see.
Mr. Werewolf had made it to work after a long night of pillaging and killing. We had a number of things to discuss. First item on my to-discuss-list was his identity — the real one.
After showering in record time, I paid careful attention to applying my makeup just so, enhancing my features. I made up my eyes like I’d seen in a copy of Vogue, giving them a cat-like appearance. I intended to use every possible angle, including my womanly wiles, to persuade Zane into spilling the gory details of his existence.
Any lustful feelings I might have entertained had been severed, right along with the blond stranger’s head.
Following an uneventful commute, I pulled into my usual space, noting the parking lot was already filling up. A steady stream of people flowed through the front entrance. The theory that our summer business faced extinction was proven wrong by the diverse crowd willing to brave the thick morning fog.
Rushing through the gate, I hurried to complete my normal routine. I’d have to forfeit my usual coffee-on-the-bench time — one of the major reasons I was never late. Starting work on the run held no appeal for me.
The moment I spotted Zane talking with Rhonda and Luke, I regretted coming in. My earlier bravado was replaced by a sense of revulsion at the sight of our veterinarian/werewolf. By wearing the extra makeup and sequined jeans I now felt cheap and overdone rather than cute and confident. Who was I kidding? I was way out of my league. Women like Jazmine belonged with wolfy-men like Zane. He’d see right through my little ruse.
Determining I had just minutes, even seconds, before Zane and the others noticed my arrival; I decided to see if Zane’s mental block was operational. Maybe he allowed himself a reprieve from the mental warfare without me around.
I concentrated, pushing away any distracting sounds. It took a second and I was in.
I’ve got to talk with Chloe. She saw me. What am I going to do? Jazmine will find a way to implicate her, especially if I keep avoiding the mating ceremony. How could something so simple turn into such a mess? The meeting is next week. That’s all the time I have…
“Chloe! I didn’t know you were here.” Another employee, John Mitchell, greeted me, looking puzzled by my strange behavior. I was half-hiding behind the wallaby enclosure staring at Zane.
“I figured you’d taken the day off.” He followed the direction of my gaze.
“I should have. It’s so strange without Will.” I hoped John would take that as a cue to move on and mind his own business.
“He was a good guy. Sorry, gotta run! Time to display the babies.” He zigzagged his way through the visitors toward the nursery.
As a longtime employee, John had one of the cushiest jobs in the park. His biggest stressor was ensuring that everyone had a chance to pet the fuzzy critters. I avoided the nursery. Baby animals didn’t have much to say other than feed me; pet me.
Zane on the other hand had quite a bit to say in the short time I’d managed to infiltrate his thoughts. Making sense of his disjointed thinking was a whole different matter.
“I thought I told you to stay home!” Luke, being the first to notice my arrival, scolded. “You’re so damn stubborn, Chloe.”
“Since when is that a problem?” My eyes darted to the spot Zane had been standing. Both he and Rhonda were gone. “Where did my illustrious partner go?”
Luke peered at his always-present clipboard. “Where he’s supposed to be, the exam room. Please don’t tell me you’re still worked up about him,” he paused, looking guilty. “I’m sorry I yelled at you. With Will and all —”
“No.” I stopped him. “You’re right. I was being childish. There’s a serial killer roaming our streets. My issues with Zane are nothing I can’t deal with. Don’t apologize.” I hoped I sounded more sincere than I felt. My problems with Zane were far from over. Oh no, we were just beginning to scratch the surface.
“Good. He’ll be glad you’re here. One of the zebras was limping.”
“I’m on it, and, please, stop worrying about me. Okay?’ I felt bad for Luke. He was a great boss and a good guy. Sometimes I took his kindness for granted.
“You look fantastic. What’s with the makeup?” He gave me a knowing look, tinged with a hint of jealous speculation.
“Can’t a girl play with her cosmetics now and then?” I tried to joke off his not-so-subtle insinuation.
“Luke! I’m out of ones!” Christy, our gift shop cashier, hollered from inside, waving. A half-circle of restless customers surrounded her counter.
Relieved by the distraction, I swallowed my rising worries, and headed to the exam room.
Chapter 85
“Calm down, Missy.” Zane hovered over the female Zebra. His current caring demeanor belied his feral nature as a werewolf.
Standing just inside the door, I could sense Missy’s terror. She saw Zane as a hunter not a healer. I wondered if he was even a real veterinarian.
“Are you planning to help or just watch me struggle?’ Zane asked, eyebrows raised.
“Oh, I don’t know. She thinks you’re going to eat her for breakfast.”
“You think you’re so cute, don’t you? Do you have any idea what you’ve got us into?” He moved away from the squirming filly to face me.
“Me?” How in the world could he blame me for his brutal rampage? And why did I still find him so darn delectable? My so-called disgust had vanished, replaced by an unacceptable craving to feel his mouth on mine. I forced myself to think of the bloody men in the field. That did the trick. My loathing returned.
“Yes! You! When I said ‘stay in the bar,’ did that not mean stay in the bar?” He stepped closer, glaring down at me, his eyes wild with fury and something I couldn’t discern.
Backing up, I found myself pressed against the wall. Icy fear froze my mouth, keeping me from spouting off.
“What have you done to me, Chloe Carpenter?” Taking another step, he reduced the distance between us. I could smell his musky cologne and feel his body heat.
“You’re scaring me,” I peeped.
“It’s about time something scared you.”
Without warning, he reached around the back of my head with one vast hand, drawing my mouth to his.
His lips pressed against mine; I melted — my knees all rubbery. Sensing my dilemma, his other hand slid around my waist pulling me closer.
To my dismay, he was hard — everywhere.
A little moan escaped from the back of my throat as I parted my lips, allowing him to explore my mouth. Sighing with pleasure, my hands moved of their own accord, finding their way around his neck and into the thickness of his dark waves. His hair was as I’d imagined, soft yet dense.
A delicious wildness hummed between us, I was reeling from its intensity.
Missy’s distinct braying-bark tore through my mind, reminding me I was locking lips with a vicious, inhuman beast, all while the zebra looked on, fearing not only for her own safety, but also, from the images she was firing my way, for mine.
“The zebra needs you,” I whispered.
“From what I can tell, you need me more.” Zane smirked.
“O-o-o-o-o … you.” The words wouldn’t form.
So much for self-control.
Deciding to hammer my raging hormones into submission, I approached Missy with caution. I could see the pain and terror in her eyes. Apprehensive, she snorted as Zane moved closer.
“You’
re scaring her. How can you be a vet when the animals see you as a predator?”
“I’m great with lions, tigers, and bears, oh my.”
For a moment I just stared — a werewolf joking about the Wizard of Oz. Could things get any stranger?
I should have known better than even to think the question.
“How about you being Little Red Riding Hood and I’ll be the big bad wolf,” he roared with laughter, sending Missy into a braying fit.
“Is everything all right?” Luke pushed through the swinging doors. Worry etched across his face.
“Our new vet seems to have an obsession with fairytales.” I stopped to glare in his direction. “And a desire to torment me and our poor zebra.”
“Zane, I have to tell you, I heard you laughing like …”
“A maniac,” I finished, pleased to have Luke on my side at last.
“I was going to say, like he was having a good time. It was Missy’s discomfort I was worried about, not yours, Chloe.” Luke looked between us.
Ignoring Luke’s mutiny, I faced the zebra. She’d waited long enough for our diagnosis.
I rested one hand on her side and stroked her neck with the other, making sure to gain direct eye contact. The graphic images she released were disgusting, fitting with the horror-movie-theme from my previous day.
A well-muscled man, hidden inside a hooded sweatshirt, tore across the zebra’s meadow, remaining crouched, low to the ground as he ran. It was nighttime, and I could feel the horror as the human-beast ambushed Missy, slamming her to the ground.
The zebra screamed. Snarling, the thing sank his teeth into Missy’s leg, sucking and pulling blood from the thrashing zebra.
Forcing myself to stay with the scene, I felt a stream of fiery bile flood my mouth as the man-beast raised his head, blood covering his face. He howled a deep guttural cry that caused me to fall back from the zebra, almost collapsing.
Zane did his normal hero-rescue-thing and captured me in his arms, keeping me from hitting the floor.
“We have to stop meeting like this,” he whispered for my ears alone.
“Not a problem,” I stammered, wishing for more oomph behind my words.
“What was it?” Luke helped Zane get me to a stool. “What did you see?”
“Water?” I croaked, still dangerously close to losing my breakfast.
Zane vanished and returned with a fresh water bottle. I let the water soothe my throat.
“Let me check something.” I forced myself to stand and examine Missy’s right rear leg. Sure enough, I located a large bruised patch that resembled a human hickey. I motioned the men over.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” Luke said.
I have. Zane thought, glancing at me. I’ll explain later.
“Okay …” I forgot to mind message.
“Okay, what?” Luke looked doubly confused.
“Okay, here’s the deal.” I determined right then I couldn’t tell my boss everything I’d seen. He wouldn’t understand. Shoot! I didn’t understand. I did understand one thing though: Zane didn’t want me sharing all the gruesome details with Luke.
“All I know for certain is some animal attacked Missy.” I paused, choosing my next words with care. “It was gnawing and sucking on her leg. She was so frightened I couldn’t get a clear picture. We should treat her for possible infection and pain.” I nodded at Zane who was already moving toward the large, glass, medicine cabinet.
“Maybe it’s time I hire more than a sit-down security person,” Luke pondered. “With our animals at risk … well, it seems prudent.”
We’d hired Henry, a retired San Francisco beat cop, to spend the nights in the front ticket booth. The booth was a small room with a cot that opened into a single bed. A TV and DVD player were added bonuses. Henry could access the gift shop area, restrooms, coffeemakers, and all the essentials, through a side entrance into the main building.
There were also a number of video cameras placed strategically throughout the park, but not enough to film everything at once.
If Henry suspected a major disturbance, he’d contact local police. Other than a few high school kids looking for trouble, nothing major had ever occurred, until now.
“What are you thinking, a nighttime patrol?” I tried to hide my alarm. With what I now knew about werewolves and their blood-drinking counterparts, the idea of some poor, underpaid soul traipsing around after dark didn’t sit well with me. Add an estranged serial killer to the mix, and you had a big fat recipe for disaster.
“I’m not so sure about that,” Zane mirrored my apprehension. “With our local serial killer and all — “
“I’m open to suggestions.” Luke shrugged. “We’ve got to do something. I’ll try to move a camera closer to the zebras, but what if other animals are being attacked?”
“If you don’t have anything major for us, Zane and I can interview the animals,” I suggested. Who better to talk with than the actual witnesses?
Pleased with my idea, Luke returned to his normal duties.
“Well?” I turned to Zane who was giving poor Missy a shot of antibiotic mixed with a pain medication.
“Working here,” he grunted.
“Meet me on the bench when you finish,” I commanded, before stomping away, maddened by his nonchalant attitude.
At last, I was sipping a sugar-filled cup of coffee. I almost never took my fifteen minute breaks, but today was an exception. Between Zane’s conflicting attitudes and the zebra’s nightmarish experience, my Tuesday was becoming as bizarre as my Monday; and it wasn’t even noon yet.
To make matters worse, Rhonda sauntered over. “I suppose you’ve heard.” She tilted her head and puckered her silicon-stuffed lips, feigning sadness. I could tell she was itching to spill the latest gossip or something worse.
“What now?” Fear clutched my heart like a vice as I envisioned another victim torn to shreds.
“You don’t have to bite my head off,” she snapped. “Some woman called for Zane. She said she was his fiancée. He doesn’t seem like the marrying type. I’d gotten the feeling he was interested in me.”
“You’re telling me this because?” I tried to hide my annoyance. Jazmine, of course, came to mind. She’d referred to Zane as her potential mate. I guessed that would suffice as fiancée in the werewolf world.
“Well, you’re with him a lot at work. I wondered if he’d mentioned me or this future wife.”
“Ladies.” Zane strode up, his Levis embracing every masculine bulge.
I couldn’t tear my eyes from the area just below his belt. I suspected Rhonda was leering too — as if that made it any less unacceptable. By the glint in his eyes, it was easy to see just how aware he was of our staring.
“Zane,” Rhonda purred. “When’s the wedding?”
I froze — my gawking indiscretion all but forgotten. Did this woman have no tact? I wondered how Zane would explain Jazmine.
“Where’d you hear that nonsense?” He asked with obvious irritation.
“Your lady friend called. She happened to mention you were her husband-to-be. For us single girls, it’s a major disappointment.”
“Don’t include me in your disappointed group of single girls,” I quipped.
Zane shot me an “if looks could kill” look. Love you, too, Babe.
Eck! This mind-messaging was becoming as cumbersome as text-messaging. Why couldn’t we just talk like two normal adults? Because we’re not normal adults, I chided myself. One werewolf plus one animal-reading-freak equaled a major mismatch.
“Chloe, we’d better get to work.” He raised his wrist, revealing a watch. “As for future wives, Rhonda; I promise nothing is signed in blood.”
Clasping her hands, Rhonda giggled, unable to hide her pleasure. With a near-perfect runway pivot she spun toward the courtyard, making her exit dramatic as usual.
She, of course, hadn’t picked up on the ominous way he’d said blood.
“I think we need to have our o
wn talk prior to any animal conversations,” Zane said minus any hidden innuendos I could identify.
“Where to?” The stone bench didn’t seem private enough. Too many tourists.
“The wolves. Where else?”
“Where else,” I agreed.
***
Chapter 9
Zane led the way around the wolf exhibit to a concealed bench at the enclosure’s far end. He motioned for me to sit.
“I’d hate to have you fainting again,” he teased.
“I’m not a child,” I muttered. I was starting to feel like the damsel-in-distress I’d worked so hard not to become.
“Oh, I’m well aware of your womanhood.” He slid close enough that our thighs brushed. The electrical current tingled down my right leg.
“And, I’ve had to catch you more times in two days than I’ve caught any woman in my lifetime.” He grinned. I noticed for the first time just how pointy his incisors were, not full-fledged fangs, but sharp nevertheless.
I tried without success to ignore his closeness. “You wanted to talk, and I’m all ears. By the way, you’re over-using our little mind telepathy thing.”
“I find it very convenient and stimulating.” He sounded like he meant it.
In truth, there was a part of me that found our private communications stimulating as well. Not that I’d let Zane know. That would give him more unwanted power over me.
“Since you’ve seen more than any human should, I’ll give you a rundown of what’s going on. First, you should know, if you haven’t already figured it out, you’re in grave danger.”
“You think?”
Danger pretty much oozed from Zane. Every moment in his presence was dangerous for me. Except I couldn’t quite accept this gorgeous, very human-looking man, was the same monstrous killing machine I’d seen in the clearing.
“For once, can you just listen without getting all defensive?”
I nodded. If I wanted to learn about werewolves and the impact they’d have on my life, I’d have to surrender my sarcasm.
He continued. “As you’ve discovered, I’m not human. I’m a werewolf. I can change at will, anytime, anywhere, and I’m lethal in my changed forms. I protect what is mine with my life, and I destroy anyone or anything that challenges my pack’s safety.”
I Kissed a Dog Page 6
