by D McEntire
A low growl cut through the darkness, Dana chanced a glance away from the cougar and saw a black shape in mid-air moments before it crashed onto Jed’s back. The impact sent him flying forward, and to her added horror, directly into the door of the cage, slamming it shut with a loud bang. The catch of the latch reverberated up her spine, sounding like the closing of a casket—her casket.
Turning her gaze back to the lethal cat mere feet from where she stood, she inched her way to the door, but stopped dead in her tracks when the cat shifted as if ready to pounce.
The sounds outside the cage were deafening to her ears. She knew she didn’t need to turn around to know what was happening. Jed’s latest cruel action would certainly be his last.
Dana hoped the cougar would remain on the other side of the cage until Suma finished with Jed and opened the door, but it was evident the cat had other ideas.
Ears flattened and a loud hiss signaled impending disaster. Dana’s ears begin to ring, and she fought a wave of dizziness. If you pass out, you’re a goner!
Her insides screaming in fear, and her body threatening to shut down where she stood, Dana mentally threw herself into action.
Darting her gaze around the cage, she searched for anything she could use to protect herself. Scanning the floor, she saw a small tire, which she figured to be one of the cat’s toys.
An absurd image of throwing the tire and watching the cougar bound after it like a game of chase entered her mind, and she thought she had lost all sanity.
“Get back,” Dana spat in the harshest, loudest voice she could muster, hoping if she appeared somewhat of a challenge, the cougar would think twice about attacking her.
“Dana!”
Dana looked over her shoulder and found Suma standing outside the cage, breathing heavily. At her feet lay Jed, or what was left of him after the wolf had ripped him to shreds. The sight sickened her, but at that moment, she felt no sorrow or regret.
“Suma, get the latch. Hurry!”
As Suma frantically reached for the latch and wrestled with the rusty metal, Dana inched her way over to the door, holding the small tire out in front of her with trembling hands. When she was about two feet from the door, it finally swung open and she bolted toward safety.
Pain ripped through her as a strong grip on her leg stopped her forward momentum and toppled her to the ground.
She couldn’t hold in her cries as the cougar’s claws sliced through the fabric of her jeans.
“Dana!”
Dana felt as though she was going to die. Images of her husband and children flashed in her mind as tears rolled down her face from the pain—both physical and mental.
Bright light illuminated the night, momentarily stunning the cougar and causing it to release her legs. Dana had not realized the burst of light had been Suma, changing into the wolf.
A dark shadow and thick fur brushed against her face as she felt the weight of the cougar suddenly leave her body. Her mind screaming at her to move, Dana turned and pulled herself out of the cage.
Snarls and growls from the two animals as they fought echoed loudly in the night. Dana tried to remain conscious, her heart pounding, desperately wanting to help Suma, but her body refused to move. Punctures and tears to her flesh on both legs sent waves of fire throughout her body. She gritted her teeth and tried taking deep breaths through her nose to stay focused.
Shifting slightly, a weight in her hand had her looking down. Dana realized she still had the tire in her hand, holding on as if it were her lifeline.
With a loud grunt, she heaved the tire as hard as she could into the cage, catching the cat across the head and knocking if off balance. It rolled several times before smacking against the side of the cage.
“Get out, Suma!”
Dana yelled to get Suma’s attention, and was thankful when the wolf listened and took the opportunity to run out of the cage. With a hard shove of her foot, she slammed the door closed, watching the rusty latch fall into place.
Dana closed her eyes and slumped against the side of the barn.
“You’re hurt. We need to get you some help.”
Suma’s voice startled her, and she jumped. Her nerves were teetering on the breaking point, and she knew she wouldn’t be able to hold on for long. Between pain and the loss of blood, she was going down for the count.
“Dana? I need to get you to a hospital.”
Dana opened her eyes and stared into Suma’s beautiful green ones. “No,” she managed to grunt out from her dry throat.
“I don’t want you caught up in this. It’s too dangerous for you, and it would just make things more complicated.”
Dana watched indecision wash over Suma’s face as the girl pursed her lips and wrung her hands.
“Suma, listen to me. The police will come, and you’ll be stuck answering a lot of questions instead of protecting your people.”
When Suma didn’t move, Dana let out a breath and continued, trying to make her understand how important it was she left Jed’s place. She decided to play another angle.
“Suma. Rayne went out to the park to search for you. You need to let him know you are okay. He was really worried about you.”
Suma could not hold back the smile which spread across her face with the mere mention of Rayne. Realizing he actually felt something for her made her warm inside.
“He really was worried about me?”
A groan came from Dana. Suma saw the frustration on her friend’s face, and when she spoke again, it was also in her voice.
“If my legs weren’t burning and screaming in pain, I’d smack some sense into you. Of course he was worried about you. When you took off from the trailer and he couldn’t go after you because of the daylight, it really tore him up. Look, Suma, he cares for you, and I have a feeling you care about him as well. Don’t let that slip away because of some misunderstanding.”
Suma stared at Dana for a few moments, letting what the woman said sink in before she lowered her gaze to the ground and nodded. She did want to see Rayne again. She needed to talk to him. “Maybe I did misunderstand our conversation about Skinwalkers,” she whispered to herself, then turned her gaze to Dana.
Resolve settled into her heart. “I’m going to find him. There was definitely something there that caused him pain.”
As soon as the statement left her mouth, she snapped to attention.
“I can’t just leave you here alone. You’re bleeding!”
Dana pointed in the direction of her truck, and Suma’s gaze followed.
“My purse is in the truck. Grab my cell phone, but leave the purse on the seat. Take the truck to the park. I’ll call for help, and tell the police Jed took me from the park and brought me here, then let his cougar loose on me. I was lucky to have my cell phone in my pocket.”
Suma glanced down at what was left of Jed, then felt Dana’s hand on hers.
“I’ll tell them the cougar got him, and I used the old tire to defend myself. Somehow, I managed to get the cat back in the cage and close the door. Don’t worry. I’ll make it believable. It’ll work out okay.”
Having Dana work out the details and face the questions alone made Suma’s stomach knot. She hated putting the burden on the woman. It was bad enough Dana was injured and suffering.
A sudden smile on Dana’s face caught her off guard.
“You’re sitting here on the ground, in the dark, hurt and bleeding. What could possibly be funny?”
Dana’s snort shocked her.
“My husband says I can sure ‘spin a tale’.”
Dana shook her head and chuckled. Panic settled in Suma’s chest. She was worried Dana was either going into shock or losing her mind.
“You go find Rayne, and tell him what happened so he won’t have to worry about Jed hunting the wolf anymore.”
Suma ran to Dana’s truck, grabbed her cell phone then returned.
“Ok. I’ll go to the park and leave your truck there before returning to Louisville.”
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Suma waited while Dana made the call to 911. A wave of gratitude and sorrow washed over her as she gently hugged her new friend. Leaving the woman slumped against the barn had her heart pounding in worry. Silently, she prayed to the Spirits Dana would be healed and protected.
Chapter Sixteen
The park seemed eerily quiet Rayne thought as he stepped into the trees. He had checked on Suma’s truck and camper, and found it parked where she had left it, but she was nowhere in sight. He wondered if she had gone out to hunt Rogues to work off the hurt—the hurt he had caused.
The thought of Suma hunting Rogues alone had his fists clenching. Though he knew it was her calling as a Skinwalker, his instincts screamed at him to protect her. She called to him, body and soul, drawing out every primal urge he had.
Fourteen Mile Creek stretched out beside him as he headed south. The distant rumble of a boat motor caught his attention as he continued toward the Devil’s Backbone. Glancing at the map he carried, the area was restricted. No boats were allowed to dock in the vicinity, so Rayne’s curiosity was piqued, and he stepped up his pace. After reaching a cliff rising above the Ohio River, he crouched behind a boulder.
A spotlight swung side to side from a tugboat slowly chugging its way down the river pushing a barge toward Louisville. To Rayne’s surprise, it slowed when it reached the Devil’s Backbone.
A Viper sped in from the opposite direction and slowed as it pulled up alongside the tugboat. After several minutes, the Viper pulled away, then swung around, and headed straight for the small docks below the cliff.
Rogues.
From behind the boulder, Rayne watched eight Rogues exit the boat, then climb a steep bank before heading off in the direction of a large cavern he had noticed earlier on the map.
Why are Rogues being shipped in on a barge and dropped off here?
No possible scenarios popped into his mind, but whatever the reason was, he knew it wasn’t something the Watchers were going to like.
For thirty minutes the boat transported Rogues from the barge. Rayne counted twenty-eight in all and waited until the Viper left before pulling out his cell phone and notifying Headquarters.
“Dr. Olivia, this is Rayne. I’m at the Devil’s Backbone in the Charlestown State Park. No, I don’t have any news on the wolf sighting, but I do have another, more pressing, situation. I just witnessed Rogues come in on a barge, then were transported to shore by another boat.”
“Interesting. This ties in to the mission Tank is heading in Cincinnati,” Dr. Olivia explained. “They discovered an operation where Rogues were waiting to be picked up by a local barge company to transport them to an area outside of Louisville.”
Rayne scrubbed his face with his free hand. “Well, now we know their destination, but the next question is why?”
“We’re still working on that,” Dr. Olivia stated, and Rayne could hear the creator of the Watchers spout orders in the background to have the Indiana Cell notified and instructed to meet Rayne at the park.
“Rayne, your backup has been dispatched. Keep a low profile until they get there.”
“Yes, sir,” Rayne answered before Dr. Olivia disconnected the call.
Suma stayed within the shadows, watching as men, apparently Watchers like Rayne, fought effortlessly against a large number of rogue vampires.
When a hoard of snarling creatures first emerged from the cave set deep within the cliff, Suma grasped her totem, ready to join the melee, but then saw Rayne was not alone. Eight tall, muscular and very lethal looking men joined in, and stood by his side with weapons drawn.
This was Rayne’s world, Suma thought to herself. He really wasn’t like her. He was a Watcher—a vampire. She had been elated when she thought she had found someone like her—a Skinwalker, a kindred spirit, an outcast without a tribe in which to call family or home. But Rayne wasn’t an outcast. He had a new tribe to which he belonged—the Watchers.
Suma’s heart sank. Even if there were feelings between them, a relationship with Rayne would never work. She had vowed to her grandfather she would always be there to protect her people for as long as she was needed. When it came time for her tribe to leave Louisville and return to the reservation, she would follow.
She took one last, long look at the magnificent Karankawa warrior. Closing her eyes, she assigned his every feature into memory, knowing his surreal face and body would haunt her dreams forever. She recalled the feel of him, and how his kisses left her breathless and wanting more. This was how it had to be, she told herself as she turned and walked away.
Louisville’s waterfront was packed with people when Suma arrived. Music blared through a large speaker mounted on a pole as she passed underneath it holding her ears in an effort to save her eardrums.
Aromas from various food vendors lining the walkway carried on the night breeze sweeping across the river. The loud growl from her stomach reminded her she hadn’t eaten since Rayne had cooked bologna and egg sandwiches. Rayne.
With a stern reminder of where she was and why she was there, Suma took her place in line in front of one of the food vendors.
After finding a vacant patch of grass and sitting cross-legged on the ground, she unwrapped her ribeye steak sandwich and bit in heartily. A moan escaped as the warm meat flooded her taste buds. While taking another bite, she used her senses to scan the area for Rogues, focusing on their sickly smell and waiting for her internal warning signal to go off.
The word made her pause. Rogues. Rogue vampires.
Suma shook her head and laid her sandwich on the wrapper, no longer having much of an appetite as her mind slipped into self-pity mode. How her life had changed once again. Just when she thought she had it all figured out, the Spirits changed the game. After all these years of being hell-bent on finding vampires and ridding the world of every one of them, she discovered her mission was flawed. Not all vampires were evil creatures. There were throngs of civilian vampires, as Rayne had called them, living and working alongside humans. “And nobody knows,” she whispered to no one in particular.
As she gazed around the waterfront, the fence-off area of the Pow-wow event captured her attention. A small girl, whom Suma recognized from the reservation, was playing with a red ball. She kicked it forward, waited until it stopped rolling, then kicked it forward again. Her giggles carried all the way over to Suma, lifting her heavy heart, and bringing a slight smile to her face.
The child was the epitome of innocence, Suma thought with an inward sigh. Not a care in the world. Her only focus was the fun she was having with the ball. Noise wafted all around, but the girl remained focused in her own tiny, little world. None of these other things mattered, and none of it bothered her in the least.
Suma smiled fully this time. She knew in her heart it was for that reason—for innocence—she kept her vow to her grandfather. For the little child playing with the ball, she would continue to hide in the shadows and do whatever was needed to keep them safe, no matter how great the cost of loneliness.
Grabbing her bottled water, Suma took a long drink of the cool liquid, quenching her thirst. When she lowered the bottle and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, she noticed the girl was no longer there. The red ball was still rolling forward slowly, but the girl was not chasing it.
Suma stood and leaned over to the side to see around one of the tents, but saw no one. Where did she go? Frowning, she walked over to a trash can, tossed in the paper and empty water bottle, then entered the Pow-wow area.
Rhythmic pounding of drums began softly, then slowly built in sound and speed, as Suma passed behind the center tent. She had to quickly duck behind one of the booths when two lines of women, wearing ceremonial dresses entered the tent, and proceeded to dance to the rhythm of the drums.
Although she wanted to stay and watch, she couldn’t let go of the bad feeling she was getting, one pulling at her to find the girl.
Suma skirted around the back of another tent, being careful to keep out of sight. She d
idn’t want to be discovered by any of her people, because as far as they knew, she had left long ago.
“Yes, ma’am. The shawl is twenty dollars.”
The soft voice of one of the elderly women from her tribe came from a booth on the other side of the tent. It was followed by giggles from a child playing within the booth. Before Suma could edge closer to see if it was the little girl she was looking for, the woman’s voice sounded again.
“Peta! Go find your little sister, and get out from under my feet. You two should be in the tent with your mother.”
Stifling a laugh at the elderly lady’s aggravated rant, Suma turned to continue her search, but came close to being run over as the boy bounded out of the booth.
Suma searched the area for several minutes, then found herself being pulled to the rear of the fenced area. As she neared, her heart dropped. A large hole had been cut in the darkened corner of the fence.
A muffled cry reached her ears, and she quickly pushed through the hole. Footsteps in the dark, and the stench of death made her heart race. Rogues.
Grasping her totem tight, she called forth the wolf, praying to the Spirits no one would see the black wolf in the darkness.
Reaching the top of a small hill overlooking the boat dock below, the wolf froze. Two Rogues were making their way to the dock, each with a small bundle tucked under their arms.
“Stop kicking me, you little brat,” one of the Rogues snarled as he shook the boy who had practically knocked her over moments ago. The creature’s hand was over the boy’s mouth to drown out his screams.
A second Rogue carried the small girl who had been playing with the ball. He was using the same brutal force to whisk the child away without being seen or heard.
Anger boiled inside of Suma as she took in the sight before her. The monsters were obviously hitching a ride to the other side of the river like the others, but they were bringing take-out.
No you don’t! The bastards had killed so many, including her mother and father. She would not let them kill these innocent children.
