by K. R. Willis
A loud thump behind us made me jump. I spun around to find that a fourth werewolf had flanked us from behind by jumping onto the roof of the limo. He stood out in the dark like a sore thumb. His snow-white coat looked like it belonged in the arctic or something, and his eyes were the lightest color amber I had ever seen. The fur along his back stood straight up and quivered as he growled and snapped his teeth at me. I backed up a few steps, but Leo stopped my retreat with a gentle hand to my back. Four, plus Jeremy…there had to be at least one more hiding somewhere.
“Jeremy, listen to me,” I said as I turned back around and faced the Alpha. I trusted Leo and Arnaud enough to keep the white wolf from attacking me while my back was turned—they both struck me as honorable, considering what Leo had said earlier, and their honor wouldn’t allow it. I hoped. “I know the police found an anomaly in their blood, but it has nothing to do with me. My blood cures you guys, it doesn’t kill!”
All hope of a peaceful resolution disappeared as my words fell on deaf ears.
“I don’t know how you did it, but I am sure about one thing,” he said as he opened and closed his hands in tight fists. “You are responsible.” He growled low and deep, causing the other wolves to become restless. Looked like we were going to have a fight no matter what I said.
The three of us spread out so we could move. Leo and Arnaud stilled themselves, waiting, while I took up the stance I had used so many times in my training with Sam. I prayed what he had taught me through the years would be enough to save my life.
As soon as Jeremy gave the order, a loud sharp bark, I dropped to the ground and rolled to the left, knowing that the werewolf on the roof of the limo would probably be one of the first to attack since he had the best vantage point above and behind me. He was. I rolled to my feet, turned to face him, and pulled the sword from its sheath in the process. Its sharp steel blade glinted in the moonlight. I heard Leo grunt as he collided with the red wolf. I didn’t know where Arnaud was because I had my own wolf to worry about.
The white wolf yelped when he hit the ground, jumped up and leapt at me. It happened so fast I barely had time to think, much less brace for it, so when he hit me full force, the blow knocked the sword from my hands. I watched helplessly as my saving grace skittered across the asphalt to parts unknown. The wolf snapped his canines in my face, bringing me back to the present.
As his massive body rode mine to the ground, I had a split second to decide what to do. Grabbing his front legs, I bent over backward and used his own momentum to throw him over the top of me into the limo. The metal door creaked and popped when he hit. My back struck the ground, forcing the air from my lungs for several precious moments, but I was rewarded for my effort as I watched him slump to the ground, unconscious. Score one for me.
I quickly pushed to my feet, and whipped around, looking for the next opponent. The black wolf from the front of the limo volunteered. He decided to take a more methodical approach, stalking toward me instead of just running all out. For a split second, I glanced to see that Leo still battled the red wolf and Arnaud fought the gray one.
The black wolf and I circled each other, getting a feel for one another. He wasn’t as large as some of the others were, but he was fit. Lean muscles bunched and corded as he paced around me, licking his snout and growling.
Without warning, he struck. All five claws on his front right paw sliced into my left thigh, tearing through my leather pants like paper, and ripped a scream from my throat. Warm blood gushed from the gashes and ran down my leg. Intense pain blurred my vision and dropped me to the ground. He took that opportunity and pounced, knocking the wind out of me.
“Don’t use your teeth!” Jeremy yelled.
The wolf on top of me bent his head down just shy of my face, and snapped his teeth. Foul breath that stunk of rotten meat blew across my face. He growled low, an almost happy sound, and placed his paw on my throat.
Shit! He planned to crush my windpipe. That would definitely do it. I grabbed his paw with both hands, and struggled to keep the pressure from increasing. He extended his claws, trying to slice through my throat, but I managed to turn my head just enough he only cut the side of my neck. The new furrows burned and seeped blood, but I had bigger worries. The wolf moved his back legs farther underneath his body and shifted more of his weight forward…onto my throat.
The edges of my vision became fuzzy. Little white specks floated across the darkness like snowflakes, letting me know it wouldn’t be long before I suffocated. The wolf’s paw pressed down even harder as if he also sensed my end was near. I kicked and thrashed, bucked my hips like a wild horse, trying to throw him off me like I had the other one, but he had too much leverage, he didn’t budge.
Suddenly, a different sort of pain caught my attention. My right hip throbbed as something hard and unyielding ground into it. The dagger! It was small enough, I’d completely forgotten about it. Now, I just needed to figure out how to reach for it with my right hand without my throat getting crushed in the process.
When his claws dug further into the side of my throat, a thought occurred to me. Without letting go of his paw, I crab-walked my fingers down to one of his toes, grabbed hold, and pushed up as hard as I could. He yelped and withdrew from the pain the tiniest bit, giving me the split second distraction I needed to let go with my right hand, grab the dagger out of its sheath, and thrust upward into his belly for all I was worth. Skin and muscle gave way as the dagger slid home. Warm blood coated my hand. The wolf let out a bone-chilling howl, one that pierced my soul, then collapsed on top of me.
Jeremy roared as I pushed the dead wolf off my chest. My arms shook as I forced myself to get up. Every body part was leaden, refusing to move with any kind of speed. Aches and pains sprouted up all over and the red spot on my thigh grew larger by the minute. I didn’t have the energy to fight anyone else, and the loss of blood was making me lightheaded.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Leo had killed the red wolf, and battled another gray one. The last wolf had joined the fight. Arnaud was doubled over, holding his arm, which looked like it hung by meat and bone. This had to end.
“Jeremy, stop this! We don’t want to kill anyone else.” The blood from the wolf I just killed ran down my hand, down the blade of the dagger, and puddled on the ground beside my feet. The gruesome sight made me sick and made me want to throw the dagger as far away as I could, but no way would I let go of the only protection I had. I didn’t know where the sword had landed and didn’t have time to look for it.
Jeremy visibly shook as he bellowed, “No! You will die for killing her!”
The air tingled with power as he drew from the pack members that hadn’t come to the fight. The change flowed through him quickly and easily. His skin split, straw-colored hair sprouted all over his body, and deep amber eyes replaced his intense blue ones. Within seconds, he stood on four legs, snarling his outrage.
It took a second, but then his words hit me. Her, he’d said. What did he mean her…oh, no. I looked down at the dead wolf, and gasped. It had begun the change back to human, and it wasn’t a man. A feminine body with long dark hair lay on the ground a few feet from me. She was naked, as all werewolves were when they changed from wolf to human. I recognized her from Tom’s funeral. Jeremy’s mate.
There’d be no reasoning with him now. I backed up until the Hummer stopped my retreat. I was so dead. He let out an ear splitting howl, and charged. My brain tried to register what I needed to do, but I had nowhere to go. I took the familiar fighter’s stance, held the dagger out in front with the hope of at least injuring him before he killed me, and braced for impact.
Something blurred past me and hit Jeremy from the side. Arnaud grabbed Jeremy with his one good arm—the other hung uselessly at his side—and tackled him to the ground. Jeremy growled and snapped his massive jaws in an attempt to rend and tear any part of Arnaud he could get ahold of. Even with his lifeless arm, Arnaud managed to dodge out of the way before Jeremy could rip him
to shreds. That is, until Jeremy faked an injured paw, Arnaud moved in for the kill, and Jeremy lunged for his throat.
“No!”
My yell made Arnaud turn his head just as Jeremy tried to grab him by the throat. Instead, the wolf latched onto his shoulder and bit down. He shook Arnaud before throwing him fifty feet into the brick wall of the Blu Moon. A loud crack echoed through the parking lot as he hit, several bricks crumbled to dust in the crater his body created, and then his still form crumpled to the pavement.
My lips quivered and my body trembled as I faced my fate. White knuckled, I gripped the dagger so tight my fingers cramped. Jeremy stalked toward me, head held high, snout dripping Arnaud’s blood, teeth bared. He readied to enact his revenge even if it meant he became human again by tasting my blood.
If Arnaud couldn’t beat him, I didn’t stand a chance. I blew out a breath of resignation. He wouldn’t take me down without a fight. “Fine, let’s finish this.”
Jeremy dropped his head and licked his snout.
“Come on. Finish it!”
Gravel crunched beneath my feet as I dug in my heels and dropped into a crouch, trying to lower my center of gravity as best I could. The dagger in my hand suddenly felt like a toothpick as the 250-pound pissed-off werewolf in front of me grinned in triumph.
Then he lunged.
“Oomph!” was all I heard as a ball of skin and fur went flying through the air and landed about thirty feet away. It took a moment for my brain to figure out what had happened. Leo had tackled Jeremy. To be honest, I’d forgotten about Leo. Last time I saw him, he battled the gray werewolf that had stayed hidden until Jeremy gave the order to attack. I glanced around. The gray wolf lay dead at the edge of the parking lot, and the white wolf I’d knocked unconscious at the beginning of the fight also lay unmoving. Blood streaked his snowy white fur. He must have joined the gray wolf in battling Leo, and they both lost.
My attention returned to the fierce battle unfolding before me.
Jeremy reared up on his hind legs and swiped at Leo with both massive paws. He missed with his left, but struck home with the right. Deep bloody trenches opened up in Leo’s chest, soaking his shirt and splattering the ground beneath him. Instead of crying out in pain, Leo growled and moved vampire fast. He seemed to disappear, then reappear behind Jeremy where he grabbed him by the tail and slammed him up against the limo. The front window shattered from the hit, showering them both with shards of glass.
Dazed, but only for a second, Jeremy hurdled himself at Leo and hit him square in the chest. They hit the pavement with a loud crack, and went rolling. Guess they both figured it was do or die, because they threw everything they had at each other. Leo punched, Jeremy clawed, teeth and fur flew. It was so fast and mangled it was hard to follow, but then I watched in horror as Jeremy found an opening in Leo’s defenses, sank his teeth into Leo’s neck and ripped out the side of his throat.
Blood sprayed everywhere, covering Jeremy. Leo didn’t even try to staunch the flow of blood before he took advantage of Jeremy’s distraction, shoved his hand into his chest, and ripped his heart out.
The Alpha dropped like a ton of bricks.
“Leo!”
I forgot about my own injuries, which still bled, but had slowed, and hobbled over to where Leo lay on the ground. Blood covered the earth. The cuts on my leg throbbed when I knelt beside him, but I ignored the pain and examined his wound. The injury tried to close, but he was bleeding out faster than his vampire powers could repair it. The wound would never close in time.
The weight of the situation came crashing down on me like the weight of the world just dropped on my shoulders. I couldn’t breathe. This was my fault. He was dying because he fought by my side, because he was honorable and refused to let me face Jeremy’s wrath alone. He saved my life. I had to do something.
“Leo, you son-of-a-bitch, don’t you dare die on me.” I shook him to punctuate my words. “I will not have your death on my conscience.” I had enough of those already.
The barest of smiles touched his lips. If I hadn’t been so close, I never would have seen it.
“Do you think this is funny?” I snapped.
“It is merely the fact that it has taken my final death for you to call me Leo.” His body became rigid. A grimace replaced the faint smile; he relaxed and lay still.
“Leo? Leo!” He didn’t respond. The puddle of precious blood framing his head like some kind of morbid halo grew at an alarming rate. If I was going to do something, I had to do it now.
My heart pounded and my mind raced. Great Spirit, what do I do? He’s in this predicament because of me. How can I help him? I didn’t expect an answer, but it never hurt to ask. I readied myself for the hard decision I was about to make, and positioned my body close to Leo’s head. It would make feeding him my blood easier. There was no guarantee it would work. If the influx of my blood didn’t give him the strength he needed to heal his wound before he turned human, he’d die. But if I did nothing, he’d die anyway.
With my mind made up, I angled Leo’s head toward me, careful of the wound on his neck. The puddle of blood soaked my jeans, adding to my own bloodstained patch. It didn’t matter, they were ruined anyway. My breath fogged in the cool night air as I blew out an anxious breath. I’d never fed anyone personally before. Hopefully, if this worked, he would turn human before he drained me dry. I weighed a buck fifty; surely it would take him several minutes to completely drain me, giving my blood enough time to act. If not…well, I tried not to think about that.
“Here goes,” I muttered to the moon. I placed my wrist to Leo’s lips, closed my eyes, and waited for the fierce sting of his fangs. I hoped it would be enjoyable, like it was in the movies, but prepared myself for it to hurt like hell.
Two seconds passed…three…five. Nothing happened. I opened my eyes to see that Leo hadn’t moved. He looked pale, even for a vampire. The wound on his neck no longer tried to close.
I sat back, defeated. “It’s too late.” Another death on my conscience, staining my soul. I swiped at a tear that leaked from the corner of my eye. I placed both my hands on Leo’s chest.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. His silk shirt bunched between my fingers as I stroked it lightly. I glanced over to where Arnaud still lay on the ground. “I’m sorry,” I said louder. How many deaths would fall at my feet? My mother, Raging Buffalo, the werewolf in my apartment, Jeremy’s mate, Arnaud, Leo. When would it end? More tears began to fall. “How many more?” I screamed into the night air.
I raised my fists and sent all my anger, fear, and frustration into them as I struck his chest. He didn’t respond to the impact. Tears fell in earnest now. They soaked his shirt and wet my fingers with each drop.
Somewhere amidst the crying and self-loathing, something dawned on me. My hands felt warm, like they had been submerged in really hot water. And they kept getting hotter. I picked them up and stared at them. They looked normal, but they were so hot now it was painful.
I glanced around, trying to figure out what to do, when I saw my reflection in the Hummer. My eyes glowed. Their deep chocolate color had been replaced with bright green and they gleamed like beacons. Not only that, but several strands of my hair whipped around as if they blew in some invisible breeze.
What the hell?
The realization hit me as if someone had answered my unspoken question.
Raging Buffalo.
The tribe’s most powerful healer had used his power to save me. Could his power have transferred to me? Could I use it to save Leo? I had no idea, but I was about to find out.
Without really knowing what to do, I ripped open Leo’s shirt and placed my hands on him, skin to skin. Someone squealed their tires at the front of the club, but I ignored it. My mind focused on my hands as I directed all the heat and power that suddenly coursed through my veins to where they lay against Leo’s bare chest. The intense pain from their combined trek through my body focused all my thoughts on getting it to stop before it melt
ed my veins.
With every bit of concentration I could muster, I imagined the heat and power as a large ball—something tangible—grabbed hold of it, and thrust it into Leo with everything I had. Leo’s back arched up off the blacktop and pushed against my palms. I pushed back, making sure to keep contact with his skin. As the heat and power flowed out of me, following the course set forth by Raging Buffalo, the gaping wound on Leo’s neck started closing. Within seconds, the wound became a thin pink line. His skin still looked pale, but now it looked “vampire” pale, instead of “dead guy” pale. It was working; whatever I was doing was saving Leo.
But something else was happening, too. My strength waned. My fingertips tingled, and my body felt light as though a brisk wind would blow me away. My vision blurred to the point I could no longer see Leo’s face. All of my strength, my energy, was transferring to Leo, like sucking the air out of a balloon. No longer able to support my own weight, I collapsed beside him. I heard Leo say my name before the blackness claimed me.
CHAPTER 10
The first thing I saw when my eyes opened was an unfamiliar canopy above me. Ivy and white cotton wrapped around black wrought-iron, then trailed down the posts to the floor. A bright, lemony yellow covered the walls and ceiling, and wrought-iron sconces lined the walls with candles in them. A beautiful chandelier with lights shaped like tapered candles hung from the ceiling above me. Red silk sheets caressed my bare skin, the comforter and throw pillows solid black. Definitely not my bed.
“Oh, good. I was thinking you would never wake up,” a lightly accented, motherly voice said. I jumped, pulling the sheets tighter around me.
“Who are you? Where am I?” My head pounded from my sudden movement.
A plump little woman with gray hair walked into the room and threw open the curtains. I winced from the sudden sunlight that streamed in.
“I am Amina DeLuca, Mr. Trevelyan’s housekeeper and caretaker. He brought you here the other night when you were injured.” She walked over to the bed and leaned toward me. Instinct made me shrink away from her even though she looked as harmless as a school lunch lady. She frowned down at me. “If I want to hurt you, I have done so when you lay unconscious and helpless.”
