“We should search a bit further,” Marcus said. “If I know our captain, she won’t head back to town until every last option is explored.”
The two men spent the next few hours scouring the area. But no matter how hard they looked, once the prints from the back of Benjamin Clive’s house had vanished into the forest, they were gone.
Finally content they had done all they physically could, Marcus called a halt and the two men tracked back to Burrow Den. As they entered the city, people greeted them with cold eyes .It seemed like the friendly townsfolk who welcomed them with open arms just a few days ago were now replaced with an army of skeptics.
A figure darted through the middle of town and ran up the church stairs. Before Marcus or Aareth could say anything to Elijah Ahab, he retreated into the church, slamming the door behind him.
“Looks like someone was late for confession,” Aareth said under his breath.
Jack
“Why do you think he ran when he saw us?’ Jack asked as he entered the house with Sloan.
“Who knows? That guy is beyond crazy. Let’s make sure he didn’t take anything.”
Jack made his way though the large front room and up the winding staircase. Everything in his room was how he had left it. The bed welcomed him and Jack was debating whether or not he could afford a nap before his father and Aareth arrived.
The question was answered by the sound of the front door opening and his father’s voice. “Anyone home?”
Jack made a mental note to visit his bed very soon and walked back down the stairs. Sloan was already there briefing the men on the peculiar noise they heard in the forest and the lack of tracks to follow.
“It was the same with us. I mean, minus the weird whistling sound. When we lost the tracks just outside Benjamin Clive’s house, we couldn’t find them again,” Marcus said.
“We need to find answers. This is getting ridiculous.” Sloan balled her fist in anger and slammed it against a wooden wall. “That preacher is going to get the entire town to turn on us soon.”
“Speaking of crazy preachers, why was Elijah running from the mansion?” Aareth asked as he lounged in a chair, helping himself to leftovers from the previous night’s dinner.
“You got us,” Jack said as he joined Aareth at the table and began to eat.
Soon Marcus and Sloan were munching along with them. Each one of the four members was beyond exhausted. Jack was forcing his brain to work and form some kind of explanation but it just wasn’t there.
“Do you think that them not bringing us anymore food is a sign?” Aareth asked as he fought to keep his eyes open.
“Who knows, maybe,” Sloan said.
“No, I don’t think so,” Jack mumbled before he could stop himself. “Abigail wouldn’t do that.”
“Oh, Abigail, huh?” Sloan’s eyebrow rose in disapproval. “Weren’t you already outside last night when we heard the screams? A little late night visit with Abigail, maybe?”
Jack turned beet red as he felt his face warm.
“Shouldn’t we be concentrating on how to get this thing?” Marcus asked with a wink to his son.
“I agree,” Aareth said, “but we aren’t going to do any good without rest. Running through the forest all night has worn on all of us. Charlotte, what do you think?”
“I think if I wasn’t so tired, I’d take you outside and decapitate you.” Sloan shook her head, all her attention taken off Jack and his midnight visits and directed at Aareth.
“But before I take off your head, we do need rest. Have you made any headway into the journal Jack found?”
“I planned on waking up early and going through it this morning,” Aareth stifled a yawn. “With the midnight massacre, we all know how that turned out.”
“We need to get through that book.” Sloan eyed the blood spattered journal on the table. “There might be something in there. A way to track it, or maybe an explanation of what it is exactly.”
“If you don’t mind, Sloan, I’d like to read through it before I lie down,” Marcus pushed himself to his feet. “I’m not that tired, and the sooner we get to the bottom of this, the better.”
The three members of the table all younger than Marcus sat humbled in silence. They were all beyond exhausted and they knew Marcus was, too. Despite this, he was offering to be the one to stay up and do the research.
“Thank you, Marcus,” Sloan rubbed at her red eyes. “The rest of us, let’s get some sleep and be ready for tonight. I have a feeling that we’re getting closer to finding the truth and eventually killing this thing.
To say the bed felt good to Jack would be a huge understatement. The soft mattress underneath him was amazing. Jack didn’t even bother with washing up or changing, he just took off his boots, jacket, and wand belt, and fell into bed. It was one of those sleeps where his head barely hit the pillow before he was out cold.
“Jack. Jack, time to wake up, son.”
Jack opened his eyes to darkness. The sun was high overhead when they arrived back at the mansion. Now a moon took its place in the sky. He rubbed the sleep away as he yawned and sat up in bed. His father gained his full attention when Jack saw a wild look in his eye.
“Dad, are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Marcus’ eyes were bloodshot, he looked as tired as Jack could ever remember seeing him. “I’ve read the whole journal, and Jack—son—I’m sorry for dragging you into this. I’m afraid we’re involved in something even greater than we thought.”
“What are you talking about? It’s okay, you don’t have to apologize. I made the decision to come, too. I’m not a little kid anymore.”
“No, you are definitely not a child anymore,” Marcus placed a hand on his son’s shoulder. “You’re a man your mother would be proud of and a man I am proud to have by my side.”
Jack wasn’t sure what to say or how to respond. A moment passed while Jack looked into his father’s eyes, a moment that told him nothing would ever be the same after this night.
“Let’s go downstairs,” Marcus said. “It’s better if I tell you all at once. Sloan and Aareth are already awake.”
Jack grabbed his boots, jacket, and wand belt. Jack followed his father downstairs past the wooden hall of rooms and down the spiral staircase. The large front room spread out before them, bathed in candle and lantern light.
Aareth sat in a high backed leather chair, adjusting the cold steel of the gauntlets that gave him the power of Zeus. Sloan paced back and forth across the carpeted wood floor. Arms crossed, she looked worried.
“All right, sorcerer, what did you find?” Sloan asked as she looked up at Marcus and stopped pacing.
Jack took a seat at the empty table. Aareth stopped tinkering with his gloves and gave Marcus his undivided attention.
Marcus took a deep breath and Jack wondered again what could cause his father to change from the optimistic man he knew his entire life to someone so nervous and paranoid. Jack didn’t have to wait long. The light played around the room in dancing and swirling shadows as Marcus told a story Jack would have passed off as fiction if it were to come from anyone besides his own father.
“The journal was written by the lead scientist in the cave laboratory. His name was Aaron Jebson. He and a group of researchers and scientists were hired by some kind of secret order. Their contact was Dr. Oliver Livingston. They were tasked with performing a specific set of experiments. These experiments were to be executed on humans and animals alike.”
Marcus paused and took a deep breath. ”There were countless failed experiments on both humans and animals, resulting in deformed genetic mutations. I won’t go into detail, but the accounts of these experiments are the most disturbing things I’ve ever read. Most of the failed experiments they scrapped, but a few animals were released back into the wild. There’s a list here of unicorns, rabbits, foxes, frogs, etcetera that were abandoned projects.”
Marcus took a deep breath and prepared himself for what he was about to say next. O
nce again, Jack was struck by his father’s vexed disposition. “There’s a section here I’d like to read straight from the book about two specific humans that were experimented on.
Subject R-19, code named “Banshee,” actually discovered us in the forest. She was wandering about when our security crew found her. We took her and alongside R-10, code named “Night Walker,” started performing the Vampire experiment using the latest tools and resources at our disposal. They both took to the procedure extremely well but in completely different ways. Where subject R-10 showed massive improvements in speed, strength, and an insatiable taste for blood, subject R-19 took to the procedure in an unprecedented manner. She has shown an intellectual capability further than that of any of our staff. Her brain activity even borders on the telepathic level.
I am not so proud to even say that her brainpower now far surpasses that of my own. We are all eager to see in what other ways her newfound power manifests itself.
“The last portion of the journal mentions another laboratory in New Hope showing huge success in the same ‘Vampire’ experiments. It ends with a new test subject called ‘A-21’ showing rapid development within its cage and then nothing.”
Jack sat stunned, trying to process all the new information. A secret order working in New Hope? Dr. Livingston was connected, there is no doubt about that now, but was he the head of this order? Who were the two human test subjects?
Jack could have gone on and on with the list of questions that needed to be answered, but Sloan’s commanding voice cut in instead. “Benjamin Clive’s story is true. Dr. Livingston did come to Burrow Den. He bought off the mayor in exchange for his secrecy and a secure location to perform his experiments in the mountain laboratory.”
“And whatever this animal is, it’s not an angel of death sent from a divine being. It’s a genetically engineered animal. A killing machine,” Aareth said.
“We know who the male test subject was.” Jack nodded, staring into the past remembering the battle on the steam locomotive. “It had to be our attacker on the traveling steam engine. Who’s the girl?”
No one had a chance to speak further as the doors to the mayor’s mansion crashed open and a hysterical Abigail raced into the room.
“It’s him—you have to stop him. He’s controlling the animal. He killed all those people.”
“Wow, wow—slow down,” Marcus said.
“It’s okay,” Jack stood up and motioned Abigail to sit in his chair. “Just sit down and tell us what’s going on. We can help.”
Jack’s heart melted in his chest as he witnessed Abigail trembling. He put a hand on her shoulder and knelt by her seat. “Abigail, it’s okay. I’m not going to let anything happen to you, I promise.”
“No, Jack,” Abigail turned her large teary eyes on Jack and slowly shook her head. “You don’t understand. It’s not me that I’m worried about. It’s you.”
Jack
“Me?” Jack asked. “What are you talking about?”
“Damn it, woman!” Sloan stalked forward, looking Abigail straight in the eyes. “Control yourself and tell us what’s going on.”
“I’m sorry,” Abigail took a long breath and let it out slowly between her quivering lips. “My father is controlling the beast that’s going around the town killing everyone.”
The room was quiet, even Sloan looked to her traveling companions for direction.
“Abigail…” Marcus bent a knee and gave the young girl a comforting smile. “Are you sure? How do you know this?”
“I knew something was going on for awhile now ,he’s changed, he’s different now. I just never thought he could be capable of killing so many people.”
“How Abigail?” Sloan asked, taking a hard tone. “How do you know this?”
“I’m sorry, Jack,” Abigail took another deep breath. She looked at Jack with tear-filled eyes. “I should have told you when I first talked with you. I knew something was going on, but you have to believe me—if I thought you were in any danger from him I would have said something.”
“I know you would have. I believe you,” Jack did his best to give Abigail a genuine smile as he cupped her hand in his own.
“Thank you,” Abigail took a quivering breath.
“Aaaahhhhem,” Sloan reminded the two she was still in the room. “How do you know this, Abigail?”
“My father’s been going out at night more and more. At first I wrote this off as church business, but tonight I followed him. Earlier today I saw him sneak into this house, and as soon as he heard you coming back from the hunt, he ran. I saw him carrying something, but couldn’t be sure what it was. Tonight he was out late again, so I went to the church. The door was locked, so I looked through a window. I saw him sitting there with some kind of large scarf in his hand and—”
Abigail stopped talking as she looked beyond the group to the far wall. Her eyes saw something that only her imagination told her was there.
“Go on, it’s okay,” Aareth recognized the symptom of shock.
“I saw a monster. It looked like a large dog. My father—my father was stroking its back and it was smelling the scarf in his hand.”
It was clear whatever Abigail was telling them was the truth. The girl was so shaken by what she witnessed, there was no denying her honesty.
“Well, looks like all the puzzle pieces are fitting together,” Sloan thought out loud. “The preacher has somehow been able to control a failed project from the cave laboratory. An experiment started by Dr. Oliver Livingstone and this secret order.”
Jack saw his father tense and stand. His head cocked to the side. His hand reached for his staff. Jack knew the look and action like it was his own. His father heard something.
“Let’s go kill this thing and end its bloody rampage,” Sloan looked to her comrades for consent.
“We won’t have to go anywhere,” Marcus’ voice was low as he wrapped his hands around his brown staff.
“Why?” Sloan asked.
“Because it’s come to us.”
Jack
Jack stood gripping his own wand. He stepped between Abigail and the open door. A soft consistent patter met their ears. It sounded like a horse but Jack knew the sound of paws on the ground compared to hooves.
The only way Jack could describe what happened next was sheer and utter chaos. One of the large windows to their left exploded inward, sending shards of sharp glass raining down on the group inside.
Jack pulled Abigail out of her seat and shoved her toward the open door. Sloan drew her sword. Red mage mist shot from the hilt as steel started to heat. Aareth clicked both buttons on his gauntlets and blue veins of magic crackled over his fists.
Time seemed to pause as Jack got his first look at the animal. It was gigantic, easily three to four hundred pounds of predatory muscle. It resembled a wolf in form and appearance. Its upper body was hugely exaggerated and its jaws were twice the size of a man’s head. The thing that surprised Jack the most though wasn’t its short fur or the yellow slitted eyes that spoke murder, it was the color of the animal. It was a brownish green tint that was so unnatural—it was clearly manmade. The creature was colored to blend into the forest perfectly.
The animal growled. It sniffed the air for a split second before it made its choice and bounded towards Marcus. Marcus blasted a ball of green magic from the end of his staff. It hit the monster square in the chest, but it wasn’t enough to stop the charging killer. The beast didn’t even stumble. Jack witnessed huge paws ripping into his father’s sternum, even as he fired his own magic attack at the animal.
Jack fired again and again each of his burning balls of magic fire exploding on his target. Still the beast tore at his father. Sloan ran at the fiend and jumped, aiming her sword, pointed end down. The animal saw her at the last moment and kicked like a donkey with its back hind legs. The creature’s powerful hind paws hit Sloan in the stomach with a solid crunch. She flew across the room, slamming into a tall bookcase. The wooden bookcase colla
psed on her and covered her completely.
Aareth was next as he took the opportunity to lay hands on the animal. Burnt fur and smoky flesh filled the air as the animal howled in pain. Aareth held onto the back of the animal’s neck with gritted teeth. It lost interest in Marcus as it twisted and shook to be free.
All Jack could think of was his father. He knew somewhere deep down he should be worried about ending the animal once and for all. He knew he should extend his wand into a staff and press the attack, but none of that mattered anymore. All Jack could see was his father’s limp body covered in dark red blood.
Jack ran to his father’s side. He could see the animal wrestle free of Aareth’s grip. Jack thought the animal would attack again, instead there was a low, shrill whistle. The animal hesitated for a moment. Smoke from burnt flesh and hair rose from the animal. Blood dropped from the wounds in its chest and abdomen.
The whistle came back louder now, and just as if the beast was never in the house, it was gone. With one turn and leap, it was out the front door and enveloped by the night’s darkness.
Jack witnessed all of this and in that moment, didn’t care. He had made it to his father’s side. Jack gently rolled his father onto his back. His heart caught in his throat. His father’s chest was a bloody mess of bones and organs.
“That—that bad, huh?”
Jack’s eyes filled with tears as he held his father in his arms. No words came to him; all he could do was shake his head.
Aareth, Sloan, and Abigail ran over to Jack and Marcus.
“I—I can get some bandages from next door,” Abigail’s eyes were streaming water.
“I’ll get a doctor,” Sloan pressed one arm to her own ribs.
“No,”Aareth and Marcus said at the same time.
“My time has come,” Marcus coughed. The bleeding from his chest was getting worse. With each breath more and more blood filled his chest. “Aareth, Sloan, remember what we talked about.”
House of Wolves: (A Paranormal Urban Fantasy) (The Vampire Project Book 1) Page 17
