Lycan Moon: An Urban Fairy Tale (Lycan Evolution Book 1)

by Rick Gualtieri

  Dean wasn’t wholly himself – one look down at his brutish body was enough to convince him of that. Nor was he fully in charge inside his head. The wolf was still there in his mind struggling to pull free, but he’d managed to leash it enough so that now he ... they ... were something greater than the sum of their parts, a shared mind, his intelligence paired with the wolf’s instincts.

  Fortunately, as Ro fired her gun at the intruder ... her father ... he and the wolf were able to agree with little argument on what needed to be done next. They needed to protect her and survive. The only question now, as he followed her, ducking down behind some lab equipment to throw off the other hunter’s aim, was which need would prove to be stronger.

  Daring to glance over at her, seeing the steely resolve in her eyes as she betrayed her own kind – her own family – for his sake, he had a feeling he knew what the answer was.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  Ro crouched behind some shelving, knowing full well it provided inadequate cover against the onslaught to come. She felt no relief that her father was incapacitated for the time being, especially since she’d been the one to incapacitate him. He was pissed, that much was evident from the screams and invectives he hurled at her. She ignored them, refused to let them penetrate. If she listened too closely, she might lose her resolve and falter. After all, her father was family, he was blood.

  But he was also wrong. That much she knew. And she would need to keep that knowledge at the forefront if she was going to survive the night. Even though he was injured, her father could still wield his gun, and she had little doubt he would be looking to shoot on sight. After all, she’d already crossed that line. For him, this would no longer be about who was right or wrong. Best case scenario, he would teach her a lesson, try to maim her but let her live.

  Kane was another story. With the expression on his face as he attempted to close on their location, she was certain he was prepared to kill.

  The two men were blocking their sole means of escape. Her mind raced as she tried to figure out her next move. A counter with lab equipment was adjacent to them. She had no idea what any of it did and was pretty sure Dean wouldn’t be much help in identifying them in his current state, but she wouldn’t need to know their function for what she had planned.

  She touched his arm and he jerked in response, but his expression remained calm as far as she could tell. It was his eyes that did it for her. They were far less red than they’d been, almost a tinge of purple as if the blue of Dean’s eyes was fighting to come out. “I need you to throw something in their direction. Something heavy,” she whispered, hoping that he understood.

  He stared into her eyes unblinkingly, and then did something which surprised her. He nodded his head.

  Dean turned to the counter and reached for a boxy device about two feet wide. She unplugged it as quietly as she could, then told him, “On three and then wait for me. Okay?” Another nod. “One, two ... now!”

  She reached around her cover and fired off two shots blindly. She wasn’t trying to hit anyone, just hopefully give them a reason to duck long enough to let Dean do what he had to. He was a helluva big rodent in this game of cat and mouse and, while his power was unquestionable, he also made a fairly hard target to miss.

  He hefted the instrument and tossed it, seemingly effortlessly, toward Kane. As she hoped, the hunter reacted by shooting at it, instead of them, giving them the opportunity to relocate to a more defensible position.

  Ro compensated by purposefully firing twice at the door frame. The bullets struck high, but ruined the shot her father had been lining up. As she’d expected, wounded foot or not, he was in the process of crawling into the lab, refusing to give up.

  Goddamnit, Dad! For once can’t you please just be reasonable?!

  The distraction gave them a few precious seconds before the hunters returned fire. By then, Ro and Dean had ducked behind an industrial-sized freezer unit, its size and thickness providing much better cover.

  Even though she had spare ammo with her, they were outgunned, which in this small space could easily erase any advantage Dean gave them. They needed to take Kane out. With him down, she was certain they could get past her father and make a run for it. However, that would be easier said than done. Kane was a trained hunter and cop. As much as she hated to admit it, he was probably her match, maybe more so.

  He also had one other major advantage over her. He might have been an arrogant jerk, a stalker, and prick of the highest caliber, but she wasn’t a murderer. She had no interest in killing him, no matter how tempting it might be.

  She risked a quick glance around the side and almost got shot for her troubles, the silver bullet striking the freezer just inches from her face. But it was enough to tell her Kane’s location. He was holed up in the center of the room behind a table upon which sat Bunsen burners and a glass array of jars, beakers, and tubing that looked like it was pulled straight from a mad scientist’s lab. Various liquids she had neither the time nor expertise to identify were contained within the setup.

  That was bad in itself. What was worse was that her father was now in the room, crawling in the opposite direction, trying to flank them.

  She turned to Dean and lowered her voice. “I’m going to shoot out the glass above Kane, then we move to stop my dad. We need to get that gun out of his hands.”

  Dean snuffled in return, which she took to be affirmation.

  Ro made her move but, as quickly as she took aim, a clawed hand grabbed hold of her jacket and dragged her back behind cover. In the confusion, she squeezed the trigger, the shot going high and hitting one of the fluorescent lights on the ceiling, showering the floor in front of them with glass.

  “Jesus, it’s got her!” her father cried, and she could tell by the sounds coming from the other side that he was scrambling their way as quickly as he could.

  She, however, was more concerned with what had happened. Instinctively she turned her gun on Dean before realizing what she was doing. He was shaking his head.

  “Relax,” she hissed. “I’m sorry.”

  But he continued to shake his head, gesturing in a way she didn’t understand.

  “I don’t...” She didn’t have time for charades. Her father would be there in seconds.

  “John!” Kane yelled from his cover. “What the hell are you doing? Get back here!”

  Dean made a gesture with his hands, spreading them apart, then puffed up his cheeks, as best he could, and blew out the air in a mockery of a whoosh noise.

  It took Ro a moment, one they really didn’t have, to understand. Then she whispered, “Shooting that would be bad, wouldn’t it?”

  He nodded vigorously.

  She let out a sigh of relief, bemused that she’d not only been saved, but also schooled, by a wolf.

  When this is done, I am so signing up for a chemistry class.

  Her thoughts were interrupted by a sound from the other side of the freezer. Her father, no doubt.

  She wasn’t sure what to do. At point blank range, anything could happen but, despite her anger, she just couldn’t envision killing him. No. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if that happened.

  The problem was, she couldn’t be certain the reverse was true of him. What if...

  However, the question was made moot, as Dean unexpectedly grabbed her and threw her to the floor.

  Before she could question what he was doing, the wolf was upon her.

  40

  For a split second, fear and sorrow warred within her as she wondered if she’d been wrong all along. She’d trusted Dean, protected him, turned on her own flesh and blood for him. And now she was going to pay the price as he lowered his head and...

  Did nothing but snarl in her ear?

  He was growling, snapping, and clawing on top of her, but he wasn’t actually touching her.

  What the hell is this, some bizarre wolf mating ritual? If so, his timing really needs work.

>   She heard movement from behind them and saw her father slide around the freezer, gun in hand. His eyes immediately went wide at the sight before him. “Get off her, you bastard!”

  Suddenly she understood. This was a feint, meant to convince her father she was in danger. Dean was offering himself up as a target in order to give her a chance.

  She took it.

  Ro kicked out just as her dad fired. The bullet went high, but not enough as Dean grunted in pain from atop her. However, the weapon was knocked from her father’s hands and sent clattering away. She leveled her own gun at him, and she could see in his eyes both the betrayal he felt as well as the certainty that she had him dead to rights.

  “Kane was right. You are a goddamned wolf lover. If you’re going to kill me, then kill me! Or are you just like your mother, too weak to do what needs to be done?”

  His words were like a knife to her gut. He seldom ever mentioned her mom and now to do so like this...

  “If I were weak, Dad, you would be dead already.” She bit down the guilt and regret, then kicked out again, catching him square on the jaw. He fell slack and lay there unmoving.

  She was shocked at what she’d done. There was no doubt she’d be a mess later, but she didn’t have time for emotions now. She turned to Dean. “Are you okay?”

  He grunted in affirmation but moved far more unsteadily than he should have.

  Shit!

  She was certain she’d moved fast enough to ruin her dad’s shot.

  Maybe I am too weak after all. “It’ll be okay. I’ve got you.”

  “Aw, how fucking touching. I might have to cry.”

  Ro spun, but she was far too slow. In creating a distraction to disarm her father, they’d left themselves wide open for Kane to flank them.

  Stupid!

  He caught her arm and slammed it into the side of the freezer. There came the dull crack of bone and the gun slid out of Ro’s suddenly numb fingers a second before screaming pain shot up her arm.

  Before she could cry out, though, he brought down his other hand, the one holding his own weapon, onto the side of her head. The blow dazed her and she slumped to the floor, barely conscious, the pain from her arm the only thing keeping her from slipping away into darkness.

  She glanced up to find a look of triumph on the prick’s face. He was alternating between training his gun on her and on Dean, who lay next to her, panting heavily.

  Kane smiled. “Guess the old man wasn’t useless after all. Two for the price of one. The wolf we tracked down and the hunter who died in the fray.” He bent down, pointing the gun at her forehead. “How’s that sound, babe? You came up here to join us, then got caught in the crossfire.”

  She raised her eyebrows, not understanding, and he continued. “It’s simple, really. A Guild inquest is going to be timely. There’ll be questions asked, tribunals, all sorts of boring shit. This way will be easy, quick. Nobody will question a hunter dying in the line of duty. You won’t deserve the honor, sure, but you’ll be just as dead. Same result, less paperwork for me. I have enough on my desk as it is.”

  He stood and aimed at her. “Say goodnight, Rowan. This is more than you deserv...”

  Kane disappeared from Ro’s view, replaced by a wall of fur. She gasped in surprise, still dazed from the blow to her head, but she understood nevertheless. Dean was wounded, bleeding from a nasty new gash in his back, but he’d been playing possum. Her father’s shot had merely grazed him, and Kane, in his arrogance, had been too busy pontificating to bother checking first.

  Her father had been right about him after all. He was a sloppy hunter.

  The gun flew out of Kane’s hands, but it was quickly replaced by a knife.

  Though strong enough to fight, she saw that Dean was still moving far more slowly than usual, his wounds having taken their toll. But he had the advantage of size and strength over Kane, who was doing everything he could to avoid the blows being thrown at him while trying to stab at the wolf.

  Under normal circumstances, it would have been no contest, but Dean was injured and had lost a lot of blood. Though the ferocity of his attack pushed the hunter back, Kane was moving strategically, looking for an opening. She had a feeling it was only a matter of time before he found one.

  The two, hunter and beast, continued to parry back and forth. The wolf, Dean, used his superior reach and natural weaponry, while the hunter countered with expert skill and a silvered blade.

  Ro tried to push herself off the floor, accidentally put pressure on her injured arm, and saw stars. She bit down on her own tongue to keep from crying out, tasting blood. However, it served to clear her head, steady her focus. She needed to help Dean but, with a bum arm, she’d be more a liability than anything else.

  That was, assuming she took Kane on via hand to hand.

  Using her good arm, she pulled herself to her feet as Dean swung a haymaker. Kane ducked beneath it effortlessly, raking his knife across Dean’s ribs. It was a glancing blow, but with silver even a papercut would be agony to a wolf.

  Wait! His knife!

  Ro checked her belt and, sure enough, hers was by her side, still in its scabbard. She had to work a bit to get it free with her left hand, realizing what she had planned was going to be a long shot. Through all of her training, she’d focused on her dominant arm, and now she had to make a throw into the middle of two brawling foes with her weaker hand.

  Dean pushed forward and managed to back his opponent up against the table with the chemicals on it. Kane brought the blade up and Dean caught it in his fist, holding tight even as blood began to drip from between his closed fingers. It must have been agonizing for him, but still he continued fighting.

  Ro waited for an opening, but perhaps it wasn’t necessary. He was blocking her throw, but forcing his head closer and closer. Injured or not, one bite from his jaws would take Kane out of this fight. She only hoped Dean had enough sense of himself to only injure the hunter.

  C’mon! Remember that you’re a man, not a monster. Please!

  There! Dean reared back and went for Kane’s shoulder. Ro was about to whoop for joy when a high-pitched yelp stopped her short. Kane had brought up a knee between the wolf’s legs. It was a crazy, desperate move on his part, but it worked. Dean immediately disengaged and went down to one knee, a keening inhuman whine escaping his lips.

  Kane raised his knife in both hands, preparing to drive it deep into the werewolf’s back.

  It was now or never. Ro steadied herself and took aim. She let out a breath and waited for the space between heartbeats before letting her blade fly.

  The knife flew end over end as Kane began to bring down his own weapon, the world seeming to move in slow motion as if it were a race to see who would strike first. And then Ro’s knife slammed home ... against one of the jars on the table next to where Kane stood.

  No!

  The glass shattered and a small splash of liquid hit the side of the hunter’s face, no more than a few drops, and Ro knew she’d failed herself and, worst of all, she’d failed Dean.

  Dad was right about me.

  Before Kane could bring down the knife, however, he began to scream.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  Smoke rose from the side of Kane’s face and he reached up, clawing at it as if there was something living biting into his skin. That’s when Ro realized she’d hit a bottle filled with some sort of acid.

  No wonder Dean didn’t want me to shoot earlier.

  They weren’t out of the woods yet, though. Dean hadn’t recovered and Kane was still in a prime position to end this.

  Ro glanced down and looked around, spying Kane’s gun nearby. Again, she’d have to rely on her bad arm to aim, but she liked her odds better than with the knife. Besides, the threat alone might be enough to get him to back off.

  Wasting no time, lest he recover enough to finish Dean, she picked it up and took aim. “That’s enough! Leave him alone, Kane, or so help me, I will p
ut a bullet in you.”

  The hunter looked at her through one hate-filled eye, the other covered by the hand still desperately trying to wipe the acid away. He sneered at her but moved cautiously, as if unsure of her resolve. “You haven’t got it in you. Not with your old man, and not with me.”

  “Try me.”

  “Then do it, already, Ro! Just do it! Choose the monster over your own kind, you fucking whore! You’re a goddamned traitor, shooting your own father instead of this wolf. You’re as much of a monster as it is. So help me, you’d better pull that trigger, because otherwise I’m going to kill you just like I’m going to kill it. So what’s it going to be?”

  “Give it up, limp dick. Last chance.”

  It was a bluff and she was afraid he knew it. She’d killed lycanthropes before, had no problems doing so. But a person? That was different. That not only broke Guild covenant, but the pledge she took when she became a nurse. Albeit shooting her father had probably broken the latter but, in all fairness, she’d only meant to wound him.

  Perhaps that was the key. She didn’t need to kill Kane. His knee, an arm, maybe his shoulder, anything that would incapacitate him. She could bind him up before they left, make sure he didn’t bleed out, but it would give them a head start.

  Would it be enough, though? Kane was a cop. How long would it be before there was a multi-state manhunt out for her and Dean, one in which they’d no doubt be conveniently gunned down rather than brought in.

  It would be so easy ... No! She refused to cross that line. Pick your shot, don’t miss.

  Kane had apparently counted on her hesitation. Quick as a snake, before she could properly aim with her left arm, he flipped the knife in his hand and reared back to throw it. He had her dead to rights and wasn’t hampered by an injured appendage.

  She began to put pressure on the trigger as he brought his arm down, knowing his chances were equal or better than hers.

  And then Dean was there. He pushed forward from where he knelt and slammed into Kane’s midsection, driving him back into the table with a whoosh of breath, and breaking several more jars of liquid in the process, dousing the hunter in their contents.