Dark Hunt

by Naomi Clark

  “That’s fantastic!” I raised myself enough to kiss her cheek. “What time? I’ll come and get you.”

  She stroked my hair, the gesture weak but so welcome, so reassuring. “Calm down,” she laughed. “It’s a probably, not a definitely. They’ll give me a final once-over in the morning and then decide.”

  “Well, I’ll be here,” I told her firmly. “If I have to carry you home, I’m taking you.”

  She closed her eyes with a sigh. “I’d like that.”

  I moved into the bedside chair, still holding her hand as tightly as I dared. “I spoke to the police earlier. They’ll want to see you too.”

  She nodded. “I don’t remember much, to be honest. Just you freaking out for no apparent reason and then that thing...”

  “That’s it?” I was oddly disappointed. As much as I didn’t want to believe in vampires, part of me wished she did remember more, so that I could at least clarify my own scattered thoughts. That was what Shannon did. She helped me think clearly. I needed that right now.

  She shrugged, then winced at the movement. “I’ve pieced things together from what the nurses have told me. But none of it makes much sense. Poison? Biting?” She shook her head. “It wasn’t a wolf, was it? Someone on Silver Kiss or something like that?”

  “No, I don’t think so.”

  “But a person... Unless he was some kind of drug addict or...I don’t know, a cannibal? I don’t know, Ayla.” She looked at me pleadingly, as if I could solve the mystery for her. “What the hell was he?”

  “It,” I corrected without thinking. I had no real idea whether Le Monstre was male or female, but ‘it’ felt a better fit to me. The creature was inhuman. “I don’t know, but I think...” I stopped myself before I could actually say the word. Shannon stared up at me, face paper-white, looking exhausted and frail. I bit my tongue. Now wasn’t the time to spring vampires. Not that there could ever be a great time for it, I thought.

  “I don’t know,” I said again finally. “It’s police business, though, isn’t it?” I smiled bitterly at my own words. Hadn’t we said the same thing time and time again with Sly, when Eddie was blackmailing me and Shannon into helping him track the feral down?

  “Yeah.” Shannon relaxed into her pillows a little. “You’re right.” She smiled up at me. “Now, are you okay? You look like shit.”

  I ran my hands through my hair self-consciously, pulling out a few stray bits of grass. “I feel a bit shit,” I admitted. I showed her my burns and caught her up on the situation with Sun.

  “Stupid girl,” Shannon muttered when I told her about Sun’s midnight walk. “Well, at least she’s safe. What about Clémence? Is she okay?”

  “She’s...staying with us,” I said, an edge of apology in my voice. “She’s got nowhere else to go.”

  Shannon sighed and closed her eyes again. “I can’t leave you alone for five minutes, can I?”

  I flushed and said nothing, glancing at my watch instead. Seven o’clock already? It felt like I’d barely sat down. Around us, people were kissing their loved ones goodbye and pulling on their coats whilst a stern-faced nurse stood at the door, looking pointedly at the clock on the wall.

  “I don’t want to leave you,” I whispered to Shannon.

  “You could try hiding under the bed,” she said.

  “That nurse looks like she’d check under the beds.” I leaned forwards to kiss Shannon on the lips this time, ignoring the slight chill of her skin. “I suppose I’d better go before she forces me out.”

  She slid her fingers along my cheek and into my hair, making the kiss deeper. “Come back in the morning?”

  “Do you even need to ask?” I kissed her once more and rose reluctantly. “I’ll be on the doorstep at the crack of dawn.”

  “As long as you don’t sleep on the doorstep,” she said. “I want you safely behind locked doors tonight. Promise me.”

  I remembered how her kid-glove treatment had started annoying me before. Now it didn’t seem patronizing or smothering. The threat of real danger, something my wolf couldn’t handle, made Shannon’s worries very real and her words very serious. “I promise,” I said softly, glancing out the window over her head. The sky was dusky. Night was falling and I was a long way from home.

  Thirteen

  Sun must have been waiting for me. She jumped on me before I even had my key in the lock. “Ayla! How’s Shannon? Are you okay? I was worried you weren’t coming back tonight.” She followed me inside, looking pointedly towards the window. The only light outside came from the restaurant opposite, a patch of bright yellow from the open doorway.

  “Shannon should be home tomorrow,” I said, throwing myself onto the sofa and pulling my shoes off. “She was awake when I went to see her, but still weak. I think we’ll be spending a lot of time lazing around here for the rest of the week.”

  “You haven’t really told me what happened,” Sun said, nestling onto the sofa next to me.

  “There’s not much to tell,” I said vaguely. “You know about the fire and everything.”

  “Yeah, but this isn’t anything to do with the fire, is it?” she persisted. “I’m not a baby, Ayla, for God’s sake. You don’t have to keep things from me.”

  I felt a flicker of irritation then. I didn’t have to tell Sun anything. We didn’t know each other, after all. She wasn’t Vince or my mum, someone I’d confide in. She wasn’t my friend, she was someone chance had brought into my life. Why should I tell her anything?

  I bit my lip, hating myself for being so bitchy. Whatever had happened to me and Shannon, we’d both lived through it. Sun hadn’t been so lucky. I rubbed my eyes and tried to sweeten my thoughts.

  “I’m not keeping anything from you. Well, I am,” I corrected myself, “but only because...” I gestured at her bump. “You don’t need any extra stress right now, do you?”

  She frowned. “You think wondering about that creature isn’t stressing me out? Look, I know we don’t know each other very well, Ayla, and I know you guys don’t owe me anything, but please don’t push me out, okay?” Her voice trembled slightly, making me feel like even more of a bitch. “I can handle it. I need to know about the thing that killed Mikey.” She pointed at my throat. “How bad is Shannon, really? What are the doctors saying?”

  I locked my fingers together and stared down at them. “The doctors say she was poisoned. We both were, but it burned out of my system quicker, I suppose. Shannon got bitten worse too, so she had more in her bloodstream anyway. But she’s going to be fine,” I added quickly, hearing Sun gasp. “I went and reported everything to the police today.”

  “Tell me about it,” she said, the quiver gone from her voice. I glanced at her, surprised by the fire in her eyes. She looked determined and quietly angry. Thinking dark thoughts, I guessed.

  “I don’t know what to say,” I confessed. “It wasn’t a wolf. It looked human, but it doesn’t smell like any human I ever met. It’s fast, it’s strong and it bites.”

  “I knew it wasn’t a wolf!” Sun said. “I told the police officer that, but he said it couldn’t be anything else!” She bared her teeth. “If I could get my claws into that bastard, I’d...”

  I blinked, surprised by the venom in her voice. She sounded older suddenly, a different wolf to the one I thought I was getting to know. I had Sun down as a bubbly bimbo, when she wasn’t lost in grieving. The bright clothes, the sparkly make-up, the madcap elopement with Mike... None of that said hunter or dominant to me. But now, with that flash in her eyes and a snarl in her throat, she looked wild, dangerous. At least, if you ignored the baby bump.

  “Don’t even think about it,” I warned her. “Me and Shannon barely got away and there were two of us.”

  She leaned back with a sigh, rubbing her bump. “I hate doing nothing. I feel like I’m in limbo, you know? A few days ago, we had plans. We had a future planned and today I’m just waiting for everyone else to make things happen for me. That’s not me, Ayla.” She dabbed at her eyes d
elicately. “I can’t even arrange his funeral myself.”

  “I know how you feel,” I told her, rising to raid the cupboards. There wasn’t much to eat, but I didn’t feel like going out. Like the tourist spots, visiting luxury French restaurants didn’t seem right without Shannon. I found enough odds and ends to make some sandwiches, wishing all the time for one of Vince’s big comfort meals. Lamb stew or beef casserole; something hearty and warming.

  Sun turned her nose up at my cheese sandwiches. “I kinda want some meat. Maybe like a steak or something? I might go out...”

  “In the dark? Alone?” I pointed to the window as she had. The newsstand was already closed by the time I got back from the hospital, so we couldn’t even nip across for chocolate bars. “I think it’s cheese sandwiches or go hungry, unless you’ve got anything in your place.”

  She pouted and I knew she was about to suggest we go out together. A sharp rap on the door meant I didn’t have to find out if I was right. Grateful, I headed for the door. I knew it was Clémence before I turned the handle. The scent of Pack mingled with my own smell from the clothes she’d borrowed was unmistakable. As was the delicious aroma of tomato sauce, melting cheese and sizzling pepperoni from the pizzas she was carrying.

  “I thought perhaps this would be a thank you?” she said, setting the three pizza boxes on the coffee table. “I hope you don’t mind.”

  “Not at all.” I grabbed a slice. Sun, I was happy to see, followed my lead. “Are you okay? How’s Thérèse?” I’d half expected the other wolf to be with Clémence.

  Clémence growled. “Her parents were there. They do not like me, they blame me for the fire! They would rather she is with a merdeux like Patric than a woman. Stupid, stupid.”

  Sun patted her shoulder. “You guys need to get away from all this shit,” she told Clémence. “That’s what me and Mikey did. Everyone was against us so we just said, to hell with it, let’s get out of here!”

  I bit my tongue. Who was I to tell anyone that running away never solved anything? I’d left home much younger than these two and I’d turned out alright, hadn’t I?

  Clémence was shaking her head anyway. “I am not ashamed,” she said fiercely. “I don’t have to run away.”

  “It was so romantic though,” Sun sighed, back to the Sun I knew best. “Just the two of us, sneaking away in the middle of the night...”

  “I’m surprised they let you on the plane,” I said. “I thought you weren’t allowed to fly when you’re pregnant.”

  She waved that away. “I was only twenty-six weeks when we flew out. It’s still okay in the second trimester. I couldn’t do it now. That’s why we had to go at such short notice, you know?”

  “But you don’t miss your family? Your Pack?” Clémence asked. “I think they must be very sad you are gone.”

  Sun shrugged. “Pack life isn’t for everyone,” she said. “I mean, I’m looking forward to meeting all your friends in England,” she told me hurriedly. “And I’m really grateful to you guys for helping me so much, but I wanted a future with Mike and he would never be part of the Pack.”

  I bit my tongue again, hard, uncomfortable with the turn the conversation had taken. Exhaustion hit me as I finished my last slice of pizza and suddenly all I wanted was to crawl into bed and hug Shannon’s pillow. The pizza sat heavily in my stomach and my eyes ached. Despite my nap in the park earlier, I felt like I hadn’t slept for days. Too much had happened too quickly and hardly any of it made sense.

  “I’m really sorry,” I told my guests, hauling myself up. “I’m going to bed. You two are welcome to stay if you want.”

  I left them squabbling lightheartedly and went to change my burn dressings. On my discharge from Hôtel-Dieu de Paris I had been given enough bandages and aloe vera cream to keep me going for a day or two. I slathered my legs in the stuff, pleased to see the skin was healing nicely. By tomorrow I’d be well on my way to shapeshifting without tearing wounds open. The thought made my wolf twitch inside me. I’d go back to that park. I’d have a real run surrounded by trees and open skies, away from the crowded streets.

  My extra dressings weren’t waterproof, so as much as I loved the idea of taking a long, hot bath, I didn’t. I had a ridiculous image of sitting in the tub with my legs dangling over the side, then slipping and cracking my head open when I tried to get out. Instead I went to bed and rolled over to Shannon’s side, burying my head in her scent. That beautiful, mouth-watering perfume and her unique body scent, the one I could have picked out from any other in the world. I ran my fingers across the pillow, longing for the morning as I fell asleep.

  ***

  I dreamed about fire again, whimpering as phantom heat rushed over me and smoke blinded me. I woke face down in the pillows, choking on a stray feather and rolled over to find Clémence leaning over me. I yelped, scrambling away from her shadowy figure. “What’s wrong?” I whispered, heart in my throat.

  “You were crying in your sleep. I was worried for you.”

  I sat up, careful to pull the sheets up with me and cover myself. “I’m fine. I had a nightmare, but I’m fine.” I flashed her a reassuring smile, but guessed from her expression it wasn’t that convincing.

  “I had a bad dream also.” She sat down on the edge of the bed, turning towards me. My eyes adjusted to the light, so I could see she was still wearing my top, but had abandoned the jeans. “I am trying very hard to be brave, but everything is so crazy.” She smiled, lips trembling. “Do you feel like that?”

  The darkness and warmth of the room made her question seem intimate. I couldn’t answer for a second or two, feeling weirdly vulnerable. No, not vulnerable, not really. I felt... Guilty. Clémence shouldn’t be in the bedroom; this was mine and Shannon’s space. I remembered Clémence checking me out in Loup Garou and wondered with a start if this was some kind of seduction attempt. My pulse raced. Shit. I couldn’t deal with it. Not after every other bloody thing that had happened in the last twenty-four hours.

  “I’m not...” I wet my lips, shifting down in the covers a little so as not to expose any skin. “Yeah, I suppose. Everything will seem better in the morning though. It always does.”

  She ran her hands through her hair, shoulders sagging. “I do not think so. In the morning I will still have no home, Thérèse’s parents will still hate me, and her stupid ex-boyfriend will still be around. C’est tellement désespéré. I don’t see how it will be better in the morning.” Her voice broke and her shoulders slumped as she began weeping.

  Realizing seduction was the last thing on her mind, I felt stupid and awkward. I moved to comfort her. Wriggling my way across the bed, struggling to keep covered, I wrapped an arm round her shoulders. “Come on, don’t cry,” I murmured. “Clémence, you know...” I hesitated, trying to think of something helpful and wise to say. Nothing sprang to mind. “You have to just keep going,” I said finally. “No matter how bad things seem, you have to keep going because everything changes. This too will pass,” I added. It was something my mum always said. When I was a kid it drove me crazy. I didn’t want to wait for things to pass; I wanted them to be better straight away. I hoped Clémence was more patient than me.

  She sniffed and turned her head so she was nestled in the curve of my neck. “You are very strong, Ayla,” she told me. “I don’t think I am strong enough to keep going sometimes.”

  “Of course you are!” I shrugged her off, forcing her to look me in the eye. “Clémence, I’ve only know you two or three days and I already know you’re one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. Look, life is shit sometimes. That’s just the way it is and you can either keep your head up and get through it or give up and...and...drown in shit. And that would be pretty awful, right?”

  To my surprise she started laughing. Her shoulders shook and she grabbed me and kissed me on both cheeks. I reeled back, prepared to fight her off, but she simply bent over, howling with laughter. “Vous êtes trop drôle. No, it would not be nice to drown in shit.” She straig
htened up, grinning at me as she wiped her tears away. Her eyes shone in the darkness, wide and bright and she ruffled her hair, looking sheepish. “I am sorry. I am imposing. Thank you for cheering me up, Ayla.”

  “You’re welcome.” I snuggled back under the covers, bemused by her quick change of mood and cheered by her laughter. “Are you okay out there? Do you need a pillow, a sheet?”

  She shook her head. “Sun gave me a blanket. I am very comfortable, merci, just...a little sad.”

  “Me too,” I sighed. “But everything will look better in the morning, I promise.”

  She nodded, lingering in the doorway. “If you have more nightmares, I will come and cheer you up.”

  “Likewise,” I yawned. “Night.”

  She closed the door softly and for a second the room felt colder and emptier. I almost wanted to call her back so we could curl up together and offer each other a little comfort. Nothing sexual, just the need to be close with another wolf. I resisted the urge, hugging Shannon’s pillow close to my chest. If it were Vince or Glory on the other side of the door, I wouldn’t hesitate, but with Clémence it just wouldn’t have been right. She wasn’t my Pack, regardless of how we’d been thrown together. Even if she was, there was only one woman I wanted to cuddle up with in the dark.