All Hell Breaks Loose

by Sharon Hannaford

  “Derek, where is the woman?” she asked. “I need to see if I can help her.”

  At her words, his face crumpled. He closed his eyes and dropped his head back onto the wall. Tears coursed silently down his cheeks. He lifted one hand to point down the corridor. “It’s Trish, my sister,” he choked out. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to…” His voice broke, and he couldn’t continue.

  Gabi felt her heart clench. Though she’d never met his sister, she knew that Trish was the only family Derek had left. She also knew that Trish had only just finished recovering, physically at least, from being beaten half to death by an abusive boyfriend.

  She flew down the corridor in the direction he pointed. Using her nose to track the scent of blood, she entered the first bedroom. The dark-haired woman was laid carefully on the double bed, her face turned away from the door. She was motionless. Gabi braced herself and hurried to the bed, concentrating all her senses on the woman. She let out a relieved breath as she detected a faint heartbeat and the slight rise of the woman’s chest.

  There was a bandage on her right arm and shoulder, but blood was seeping through and soaking into the bedspread. Gabi reached for the woman carefully, turning her head to assess the damage to her neck and shoulder and lightly probing her wrist for a pulse to confirm what her ears had told her. The pulse was unsteady and faint, but it was there. It was a good thing she was unconscious; the wounds were ugly and savage, consistent with the bite marks of a large wolf. Gabi laid the back of her hand on Trish’s forehead. The telltale heat had already begun to take hold. In a few hours she’d be burning up with fever. If her body was strong enough to survive the fever, she’d pull through, and her wounds would heal in a matter of days. But when the full moon exerted its irresistible, magnetic pull in a little under four weeks’ time, she’d go through her first Change. Into a Werewolf. But first, she had to make it through the fever.

  Gabi pulled out her phone just as Derek ghosted into the room and collapsed to his knees near the end of the bed, staring despairingly at Trish, heedless of the tears and blood streaking his face and clothes.

  “She just came to help me,” he said, an ocean of misery in his whisper. “I told her I was sick, and I told her to stay away, but she came anyway. She’s like that. A real mother hen. You’d think she was the older one. When I wouldn’t open the door, she unlocked it using her own key and came in anyway. Something inside just exploded out of me. The next thing I remember is Trish screaming and crying, and the taste of blood in my mouth.” He stopped talking to stare at his hands in disbelief. “I didn’t have hands, I had paws. Huge, furred paws with great, vicious claws.”

  “Derek,” Gabi interrupted him sharply, “I’ll explain everything in a minute. Go and put on some coffee and clean yourself up. I’ll be there in a moment.” She put an authoritative edge in her voice. Whether it was her tone or the stuntman just functioning on autopilot she wasn’t sure, but Derek dragged himself upright and left the room. She heard a shower turn on. As she looked back at the woman lying on the bed, she wished there was more she could do to help Trish. She knew that, right now, it was Derek who would benefit more from her help. It was up to Trish’s strength of body and mind to see if she would make it through the next few days. Gabi hit a speed-dial number on her phone, and it was answered almost before it rang through.

  “Gabi?” Kyle’s voice was worried. “What’s going on?”

  She’d filled him in on where she was going and why as she’d sped through the early morning traffic. He hadn’t thought it was a good idea for her to come here on her own. She’d promised to call him if things got out of hand.

  “I’m at Derek’s place,” she explained. “Don’t get excited, things here are calm, but the report was true. Unfortunately, we were a couple of hours late, and there’s now a second case. I’m going to need some help to get the new case somewhere safe while I keep an eye on Derek. Can you organise with Alex to take her to the Estate and have Jonathon take care of her?”

  “Her?” Kyle exclaimed. “Shit! I’m leaving now. I’ll call Alex on the way.”

  Gabi could hear him picking up his van keys as he spoke. They both knew that it was harder for a woman to make it through the fever than for a man—the sooner she had medical help, the better.

  “Bring some first aid stuff as well. Bandages, swabs and dressings would be good,” she told him.

  “No problem, I’ve got all of that in the van.”

  “Call me when you get close,” Gabi said, after giving him the address. “I’m not sure how he’s going to react to you. I’m assuming he’ll be a dominant. I want time to prepare him before you come in.”

  “Good point,” Kyle conceded. “Call you in a few.” And he hung up.

  Gabi deftly rebound Trish’s right arm and shoulder with the bloody bandage, making it tight enough to slow the blood flow, and then went to find the kitchen.

  She’d made the coffee and a couple of cold meat sandwiches by the time Derek came through to the small, neat kitchen. He was looking cleaner and tidier but no less haunted.

  “Sit,” she ordered him, pointing to the small kitchen table where a mug of coffee and a sandwich waited. He started to shake his head, but Gabi interrupted before he could argue. “Sit and eat,” she reiterated. “Hunger is one of the quickest ways to lose control of your wolf in the early days. You must eat because you must learn to keep control.”

  Her words stole any disagreement he might have had. So he sat, picked up a sandwich, and took a bite.

  “I thought I was going crazy,” he mumbled after a mouthful. “A pair of men turning into wolves and attacking me in the middle of the City? It sounds like the start of a bad horror movie.”

  “And you’ve been in a few of those,” Gabi said, taking the other chair at the small table and setting her coffee mug down. Her comment elicited the ghost of a smile from him, but it vanished quickly.

  “Am I…” he paused, clearing his throat, “am I a…Werewolf?” he finally asked.

  Gabi held his gaze calmly. “Yes,” she replied steadily, “you are. And if Trish survives the next few days, she will be one, too.” She saw the pain and hopelessness flood his face again. She leant forward and put a hand over his on the table. “Derek, this is a life sentence, not a death sentence. There are ways to live with this. Ways to live a full and productive life.”

  His silver eyes suddenly flew up to hers, comprehension lighting them. “Are you…?” he began.

  Gabi smiled wryly. “No, I’m not a Werewolf,” she said, then sensing his confusion, went on, “I’m not fully human either.”

  “If not a Werewolf,” he stumbled a little over the unbelievable word, “then what?”

  Gabi snorted. “Werewolves aren’t the only supernatural creatures wandering around out there.” She gave a little nod towards the window. “Eat,” she commanded him again, seeing his sandwich had hardly been touched. When he picked up the food again, she continued. “There are also Shape-shifters, Magi and Vampires.” She realised belatedly that she probably should’ve waited for him to swallow before spouting the ‘V’ word, as he gasped, half-choking himself, and his eyebrows shot up.

  “Vampires?” he spluttered, finally swallowing his mouthful. “You’ve got to be joking.”

  Gabi didn’t bother arguing, she knew it was going to be a while before Derek accepted the whole supernatural thing. She held off telling him about Ghouls and Demons, those they could get to another day. “No, I’m not joking. They all live in amongst, or on the fringes of, human society,” she replied calmly.

  “But, but…” he spluttered. “Vampires? Surely they kill people, that’s the definition of a Vampire, isn’t it? A creature who survives by drinking the blood of the living?”

  Gabi had to repress a sigh. “Yes, Vampires are something like the legends. They do drink human blood to survive, but they don’t have to kill to take blood.” Derek opened his mouth to argue with her, but she held up a hand and pointed to his a
lmost finished meal. “I’m not saying it never happens. Same as humans, there is the odd rotten apple, but the majority just want to live their lives in relative peace. The same can be said for Werewolves and the rest. Most live in amongst the human population: they have jobs, loved ones, hobbies, friends. You’ve even met a few of them.”

  Derek had finished his food and was starting on his coffee. “What?” he demanded, choking himself again.

  Gabi rolled her eyes. “You’ve told me yourself that you felt something wasn’t quite right with my friend Kyle, haven’t you? You have good instincts.”

  “Kyle’s a Vampire?” Derek asked, shocked.

  Gabi snorted in amusement, if only Kyle had been around to hear that one. “No,” she corrected, “Kyle’s a Werewolf.”

  The coffee mug on the way to Derek’s mouth stilled in mid-air, his whole body froze as he digested that piece of information. “Oh,” he finally said, lowering the mug back to the table without taking a sip. “So, not all Werewolves are like those ones that attacked me?”

  Gabi’s mouth thinned into an angry line. “No, they’re not. Those ones are the kind that are removed from society. At least, in the City they are,” she said in a deadly voice.

  Intuition flashed across Derek’s face. “That’s your other job,” he said in a slightly awed tone. “That’s why you get injured so much. Are you some kind of supernatural policeman?”

  A grin touched her mouth. “If you use the term policeman very loosely, I guess so.” Her grin faded, and her face grew serious. “I’m called a Hunter. It’s a better term for what we do. As I’m sure you can understand, we don’t go around handing out fines and warnings for the kind of crimes those guys commit.”

  There was silence for a moment while they both sipped coffee.

  “So which category do you fit into?” he finally asked.

  She chewed on her bottom lip as she considered how to answer him.

  “That’s not a straightforward question, I’m afraid, but let’s just say I have a couple of toes in the Vampire camp.” She smiled at his bewilderment. “It’s a long story, and we need to get Trish some help first. I’ll explain another time.”

  “How can we help Trish?” he asked. “Surely we can’t take her to a hospital? I’ve been going out of my mind trying to figure out what to do.” His anxiety level skyrocketed at the thought of his sister.

  “It’s all right,” she soothed. “There is somewhere we can take her where she will be safe and well cared for.”

  “Can they help her, can they…can they cure her? Before the Werewolf takes over, I mean?” He sounded desperately hopeful.

  Gabi shook her head sadly. “No, I’m sorry, Derek, there is no cure for the lycanthropy virus. But they can treat her injuries and help her through the fever.”

  Derek shuddered, obviously remembering his own trip through the fever.

  “And if she makes it through the fever, we’ll all help her through the first few weeks and months.” She looked pointedly at Derek. “She’ll need you.”

  “She’ll hate me,” he whispered. “How could she not hate me?”

  “She’ll need you to be strong; she’ll be looking to you for help and guidance. For reassurance. She’ll need someone she knows, loves and trusts. She’ll forgive you, you know.”

  Derek shook his head, unspeaking, tears glistening in his eyes.

  Just then her phone beeped. She pulled it out and checked the message.

  “The cavalry is almost here,” she told Derek. “Kyle is two minutes away, and he is going to take Trish to the place I told you about.”

  “Aren’t we all going?” he asked.

  “We can follow in a while, but there are a few things you and I need to talk about first.”

  “Will Trish be safe going with him?” Concern edged Derek’s words.

  “She’ll be in the most capable hands I know. I promise,” Gabi assured him.

  “Okay,” he finally agreed.

  “Now, before Kyle gets here, I need to explain a few things about Werewolves and how they naturally react to others of their kind.”

  Gabi decided it would be safest for the two men to meet in the garage. It was relatively empty, and it would give them all some room if Derek lost control and turned wolf. She could’ve simply locked him in the garage and let Kyle through to the bedroom where Trish was, but she knew it was important for them all to have an idea of how much control Derek had.

  She opened the side door to the garage and let Kyle inside. Derek was in the far corner, stress and anxiety pouring off him in waves. Kyle stepped inside, calm and confident, his own stress hidden so deep even Gabi couldn’t scent it.

  “Hi, babe,” he said to Gabi, dropping a bag of medical supplies into her arms. “Everything under control?”

  “So far,” she conceded, moving closer to the internal door and out of the way of the two Werewolves.

  Kyle was definitely the best choice for this, he was one of few, possibly the only Werewolf who had absolute control of his wolf. Presumably because of the miracle of his birth, he was less ruled by his wolf than others. He didn’t even feel the need to change at full moon. He could, in fact, go for months without changing. A supernatural anomaly. Just like her.

  “Hello, Derek,” he said in a calm tone. “I’m sorry we didn’t get here sooner. I’m sure Gabi has told you that we’re here to help. You’re not alone in this, and we’ll do everything we can to help both of you.”

  Suddenly the garage was swamped in the heavy scent of Werewolf. Derek had dropped his gaze, hunching over. He started to inch towards the door into the house, as though looking for an escape route.

  “Derek, listen to me,” Kyle commanded. “You need to compartmentalise those feelings of fear and aggression; they are part of the animal. The wolf is trying to gain control because you are feeling out of control. Focus on your human feelings, your logical thoughts. You know I’m not going to harm you.”

  Gabi put the medical supplies down and moved to block Derek’s path to the internal door. She didn’t want him getting back inside the house; there were too many places he could break out and run. A growl, low and deep, rumbled through the garage. In the dim light, Gabi saw Derek’s eyes turn from silver to slate and then to flat, stormy grey.

  “Kyle, back away for a moment,” she said urgently. “Derek, no!” She put her hand out and moved between them, but Kyle grabbed her and pulled her back.

  “It’s too late,” he whispered. “Looks like we’re going to have to do this the hard way.” Kyle grimaced.

  Gabi knew he didn’t like forcing another wolf to submit to him, but he was one of the most dominant wolves in the City. It was hard to believe when you knew his easy-going human personality. If Derek shifted, Kyle would be able to bring the wolf under control until he calmed down enough to shift back. It would exhaust them both, and Derek would likely hate Kyle for a while afterwards, but it was better than any of the alternative scenarios.

  As Derek’s body began to twist and contort, Gabi and Kyle moved to cover the two smaller exits, hoping Derek’s wolf wouldn’t realise he could go straight through the steel garage doors if he wanted to. Gabi grabbed a dustbin lid to use as defence; she didn’t want to use any kind of weapon against him if he charged her. Kyle should be able to stop him before he got to her, but accidents had been known to happen. She didn’t need another Werewolf bite this week. She was already regretting not grabbing some painkillers before rushing out of the house earlier. Watching the shift of a new Werewolf was harrowing. It had been a while since Gabi had witnessed it. Kyle’s shift was almost instantaneous; within seconds he could be standing in front of you, huge, furry and fanged, on four legs and sporting a shaggy tail.

  Derek’s shift took less than two minutes, but each second seemed to drag into eternity as he fought the inevitable transformation. His T-shirt and jeans ripped at the seams, claws sprang from his fingers as he collapsed into a foetal ball. His breathing turned ragged and harsh as he fought
not to scream. Finally, a fully formed wolf lay on the cement in front of them. Panting, the wolf hauled himself to his feet, a low warning growl emitting from between clenched teeth. He was magnificent; one of the biggest Werewolves Gabi had ever seen, almost as big as Kyle’s wolf. His coat was rich, dark chocolate with a caramel undertone, and his liquid silver eyes tracked the two non-wolves with shrewd intelligence. Inwardly Gabi sighed, she’d been right. This wolf was all dominant; he wasn’t going to back down without a fight.

  Kyle stepped forward, a hard-edged look on his usually amicable face. Gone was the easy-going boy-next-door, and in his place was the experienced, battle-hardened warrior. Gabi knew he would only shift if there was no other choice, he would try all other options first. But as she switched her gaze back to the wolf, she realised he’d made up his mind that she was the weakest link. Time slowed as she watched his muscles bunch, preparing to lunge, his huge jaws open, displaying his glistening fangs. She reacted instinctively, throwing up her free hand and unthinkingly hurling her power at him as she yelled, “NO, Derek. Stop!”

  It all happened so fast. Kyle had never known a brand-new Werewolf to have such power and speed; he was caught off guard. Ice-cold terror punched him in the chest as he watched the enormous beast lunge for Gabi. He instinctively reached for his wolf, but in that same instant, the huge Werewolf dropped to the floor in mid-lunge, less than a metre from Gabi, and froze. Kyle backpedalled with his wolf, shoving the transformation back and solidifying his human shape with an agonising wrench. He could feel Gabi’s power flowing around him—except that it wasn’t the usual feeling of a light tingle against his skin, it was more like the sting of ants nipping at his flesh as they marched over him. The Werewolf didn’t move a muscle after her command to stop. He simply held his semi-crouch in front of her, as though awaiting her next order.