Deadly Beasts (The Curse of the Rose Book 1)
Page 1
Deadly Beasts
Book 1
The Curse of the Rose
By TM Watkins
Copyright 2015 TM Watkins
Copyright © 2015 TM WATKINS
This book is a work of fiction. The names of characters, places and
incidents are products of the writers imagination and are not to be
interpreted as real. Any resemblance to persons,
living or dead, actual
events, locals or organisations is entirely coincidental. With the
exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be
reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing
without the written permission from the author.
If you wish to make contact with the author, please visit:
http://www.tm-watkins.com
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13: 978-1508576266
ISBN-10: 1508576262
~To my wonderful followers from Wattpad,
thank you for your love and support~
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
Chapter Twenty-eight
Chapter Twenty-nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-one
Chapter Thirty-two
Chapter Thirty-three
Chapter Thirty-four
Chapter Thirty-five
Chapter Thirty-six
Chapter Thirty-seven
Chapter Thirty-eight
Chapter Thirty-nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-one
Chapter Forty-two
Chapter Forty-three
Chapter Forty-four
Chapter Forty-five
Chapter Forty-six
Chapter Forty-seven
Chapter Forty-eight
Chapter Forty-nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-one
Chapter Fifty-two
Chapter Fifty-three
Chapter Fifty-four
Chapter Fifty-five
Chapter Fifty-six
Chapter Fifty-seven
Chapter Fifty-eight
Chapter Fifty-nine
Chapter Sixty
Chapter Sixty-one
Chapter Sixty-two
Chapter Sixty-three
Chapter Sixty-four
Chapter Sixty-five
Chapter Sixty-six
Chapter Sixty-seven
Chapter Sixty-eight
Chapter Sixty-nine
Chapter Seventy
Chapter Seventy-one
Chapter Seventy-two
Chapter Seventy-three
Chapter Seventy-four
Chapter Seventy-five
Chapter Seventy-six
Chapter Seventy-seven
Chapter Seventy-eight
Chapter Seventy-nine
Chapter Eighty
Chapter Eighty-one
Chapter Eighty-two
Chapter Eighty-three
Chapter Eighty-four
Chapter Eighty-five
Epilogue
Bonus Chapter 1: Dinner for one
Bonus Chapter 2: In the land of Limbo
Bonus Chapter 3: The darkening horizon
About the author
Coming soon
Acknowledgements
Chapter One
Life has never been easy for me, that was an understatement to say the least. I was raised in an orphanage, unwanted by society because I was more trouble than I was worth. It wasn't as if I caused trouble, it just seemed to follow me wherever I went. My parents were an unknown entity, abandoning me as a newborn onto the steps of a church in the early hours of a winter morning. Wrapped in bundles of sheets and newspapers, I was so new the priest estimated that I was born only a few minutes before. I didn't think it was likely, I figured I was born a few hours before but no one knew for sure. The doctor at the hospital confirmed that I was no more than twenty-four hours old and with no one coming forward to claim me, I was put into the orphanage. They weren't imaginative when it came to naming me, Mary for obvious reasons and then for the surname it was the priest that found me, Arnold.
I didn't stand out in the crowd, I looked like so many others which made searching for my parents difficult. Brown hair, blue eyes, fair skinned. I was one of about five kids in the orphanage who had similar traits. When I was sixteen I was told to get a part time job in preparation for being kicked out at eighteen, because yes, I was still there. As a child I wondered if I smelled bad or if the mirror was lying to me. I wondered if there was something visually wrong with me that would explain why no one wanted me. But it wasn't just me, there were other children that had been there for a long time. It was a poor town and there weren't many children that actually did get adopted. I had managed to get a job in the local supermarket as a night fill which might have made me rather lethargic but allowed me to finish my education during the day. On my eighteenth birthday, I was out of the orphanage and in desperate need of money even though I had also been doing cashier work in the afternoon as well. For the past year I have been living in a small one bedroom flat, it's not the greatest of places but it is sufficient. It is a short walk to work and it's cheap. Considering that I sleep there and nothing else, I'd say it's perfect.
But my life as it is, is always a challenge. Because I haven't been to work in a week, I'd say I am no longer gainfully employed. I also haven't been to my dud of an apartment in that week either. If I wasn't a month in advance, I would have lost that by now as well. So where am I? I'm in hospital. Nothing odd about that you say? Wrong. How about my reason for being here is several gashes across my stomach caused by a strange beast that was something out of a dark fairy tale? Before you call me crazy, understand that I too thought it wasn't possible. I had dismissed it as a bear attack until the doctor said there were no bears in this part of the country. He had suggested that my attacker was likely to be a male that was reasonably well built, but wasn't going to elaborate on it any further and I figured he had no idea.
I was in a room of my own with a two man team of police officers watching me. I was told that the cop that was permanently placed on the door outside was a standard police officer. I hadn't ever seen the one outside, he or she never showed their face inside my room. The one inside was the odd one out, they were from a department that didn't wear a standard uniform, they just wore suits like a detective would but they weren't detectives. Or at least I didn't think they were. The ones that sat with me would change every six hours, three of them were on rotation. Always male, always built like the front row of a football team.
My hospital room was pretty standard, a private bathroom, a view out to the murky city and it had a cold and clinical feel that was a stark reminder of this cruel world. There were no flowers or balloons sitting at my bedside for c
omfort. Just me, Mary Arnold the orphan and her solitary and silent protector in the corner. Today had been the first day that I have actually felt physically good. Emotionally? No. I think that being emotionally okay was a long way off for me. Today I was feeling like I was ready to leave the hospital but I remembered that in hospital I would be fed better meals, had the warmth of the regulated temperature and the company of a nurse that would stop by on occasions. What waited for me on the outside? Two jobs that paid a pittance, no family, no real friends and a dud of an apartment. Being hospital was looking a whole lot better.
I don't remember when I first arrived, it was some hours before I was brought out of the anaesthetic. They said it was just twilight sleep that I was in, a sleep that supposedly easier on the body yet I was inclined to disagree. Today was supposedly my final day here, the cop in the corner said that his boss was coming to chat with me and that he would have me released whether the doctors agreed or not. I thought it was crazy, I had gashes in my stomach, surely I should remain in hospital? But that wasn't really the crazy part of my day, that was just my life as it always was. The crazy part of my day was the detective. He just walked into the room and quietly moved the table over my bed so that it was closer to me. After opening his briefcase he removed two small vials and put them onto the table. One was of a bloodied matted piece of fur, the other was the broken tip of a thick black nail. So this was my proof that it was a bear, it seemed the obvious choice until the man spoke. He introduced himself as Detective Tim Porter of the Lycanthropic Investigation and Eradication Department. The detective chuckled and added that the acronym was LIED which was not an indication on the department itself, him or any of his co-workers. I smiled politely but couldn't get past his department name lycanthropic. What the hell was lycanthropic?
The willowy figure settled onto the bed beside my knees, rattling the nail in the plastic vial. He said he had to talk to me before I could be released. I had to listen to what he had to say without getting hysterical, abusive or ignorant. It struck me as odd that he thought I might be ignorant of what he had to say, maybe he had come across others that had been.
“Miss Arnold, before I get started with what I have to say, could I have your version of the event?”
As I took a deep breath I pulled the bed sheet higher, feeling freaked out. I couldn't remember much, just a set of black eyes that glistened in the glow from the nearby street light. To say that it was scary was an understatement, I wanted to believe it was a bear but deep down I knew it wasn't. The sounds of the nurses and the doctor echoed through my mind.
'The bears don't live in this area Miss Arnold. No, we don't have wolves either. I'm sorry Miss Arnold but I don't know what attacked you, maybe it was a man that had delusions of being Freddy Krueger or Wolverine. You are safe in the hospital Miss Arnold, please do not make us restrain you.'
It had been my first coherent moments, realising where I was and remembering the attack, understandably I freaked out. It really did feel like I was in a horror movie, I was the target that was stuck in a hospital unable to flee for my life, waiting for my attacker to come dressed as the doctor or a nurse, maybe a social worker. My whole body was shaking with the fear, tears were welling in my eyes. The detective didn't seem to notice as he was more interested in rummaging through his bag, eventually finding his note book and glasses. I gulped hard feeling the pain of my heart beating so hard. Reliving the nightmare again wasn't what I wanted to do today.
“Well,” My voice quivered as I hesitantly glanced up at him “I was walking home after my night fill job ended, five am. Home is just a few steps down the road, at that hour of the morning there are usually joggers around, delivery trucks.” I shrugged as a tear sprung free. “There wasn't anyone around, it was eerily quiet.”
Porter was writing in his little black note book, the pen scratched over the paper as he frantically made his notes. His brow furrowed a deep line over the hazel eyes, his skin was a little pasty. He was a desk jockey for sure, it looked like he didn't spend much time in the sun.
“Go on.” He murmured, never looking up.
“I pass an alley that is for the loading dock to the shop. It sits between the shop and the neighbouring unit block, mine is the next one along. There was an odd noise, kind of like a trash can being knocked over. I didn't think much of it, it's nothing for a stray dog to be searching for a meal down there, so I passed the alley. Next thing I knew I was being dragged into the alley feeling some serious pain in my stomach. I looked up but all I could see was its eyes. Big black eyes... scary eyes. I heard a loud bang that I thought was the loading dock door hitting the brickwork. After that I passed out I guess and I woke up here. Doctor said I had been attacked by something but I don't think he knows.”
“He doesn't.” The detective mumbled. “It was a lycan.”
“A what now?” I squinted at him as I wiped the tears away.
“I hope you aren't the squeamish type Miss Arnold.”
Porter reached into his briefcase and pulled out a folder, passing it to me. I flicked it open and looked through the dozens of pictures of a dead creature on an autopsy table. It's eyes were open, lifelessly staring straight ahead, similar to the ones I had seen. Big and black, they were a wide almond shape. It looked like a tall wolf, one that could stand on it's hind legs. This thing was walking muscles, the thighs were huge. It had fur for most parts of it, the palms looked like a matte brown leather. The face seemed to resemble a wolf with the long snout and pointed ears. In one of the photos someone lifted the lip to expose the rows of sharp yellowed fangs. Long claws on the hands and the feet were black like the one in the vial, sharp and deadly. My wound seemed to ache as if it could see the claws for itself. But I couldn't get past the maw, saliva snaking it's way down to the metal bench below.
As the pictures progressed, the fur on it started to shed around the bench and floor and the wolf like features lessened. Eventually the pictures were of a middle aged man. His body was riddled with bullet wounds and so that we're clear, I'm not talking a dozen or so. I am talking of somewhere in the vicinity of fifty. You could play dot to dot on this guys chest.
“What you are looking at is a dead lycan Miss Arnold, not the one that attacked you but another from a few months back. Fifty-six normal bullets were used before we could finally get him subdued.”
“Dead?”
“Yes Miss Arnold.” He grinned darkly. “There is no way that we could have housed such a beast. No restraint would ever hold him. Now, how does this concern you I hear you ask?”
Porter gestured to the vials. “The piece of claw was found in one of your wounds, lucky for you they were just superficial otherwise you uh, well lets say if we found your body, the government could bury you in a shoe box.”
“Cripes.” I breathed.
Mutely he nodded and gestured to the other vial. “The fur was found on the corner of an industrial bin, we can only assume that the beast scratched itself in the escape or maybe dragging you into the alley.”
“So what's his deal?” I nodded my head to the man sitting on the chair in the corner. He would occasionally read or play with his phone but hadn't said anything much. The first day he introduced himself as James. We had a few conversations over the week that I had been here but James was a quiet one. Today he said he would be here for a few more hours until his boss arrived.
“Well that man there is your protection, the one out the front is a ruse because everyone in this hospital thinks that you were attacked by a human. Our branch of the government is a secret for a reason. You take this news easily because you have suffered at the hand of the creature, the common man or woman out there has not and as such they would react differently. Hysteria, ignorance, acceptance. We even had one try to find them to negotiate a truce, would you like to see the photos of how well the negotiations went?”
Swiftly I shook my head, the dark laughter wasn't a good sign.
“Good call, it wasn't pretty. So back to the man in the co
rner. The issue is as follows, lycans are focused, instinctive, reclusive and extremely territorial. When you disturbed it by walking past the alley, you disturbed it's feeding.”
“Don't tell me, I don't want to know who or what it was eating.” I groaned.
“No one you knew. So the feeding, it probably thought you were after it's meal when you first walked past but then it figured out you weren't a rival lycan but rather the main course. When it was disturbed it took off, leaving you behind. Then of course the store-man for the loading dock discovers you, calls the cops and the paramedics and the place becomes lit up like a Christmas tree with people swarming the place. The lycan knows that it can not attempt to retrieve its dinner, there are too many people. Even in their beast state they understand the concept of keeping themselves a secret. It would have been in the shadows somewhere watching, hoping that they might walk away and leave you for long enough for it to retrieve you but that would never happen. So in this time of waiting, the lycan would have slowly returned to it's human state, realised what had happened and the complications that would arise.”
“Complications?”
“A survivor.” Porter grinned.
“So it's going to return to kill me?”
“In all my years I have never seen a lycan return to kill a human because they have always killed them in the first instance. You are the only one that has managed to get lucky. We are in a grey area here Miss Arnold, this is new territory for us and we aren't prepared to risk it. However, we are equipped to deal with other issues. Previously there have been instances where humans have witnessed an attack but not been the victim. We have had to house them in seclusion until the lycan is found and removed.”
“Like witness protection?”
“Kind of.”
“Do you want to come straight out and tell me or do I have to guess?”
Porter sighed as he got off the bed, collecting the vials and the folder to return them to his briefcase. “No, I will tell you, I was just summoning the strength to ignore the laughter.”
“You're going to put me in a wolf suit and throw me out onto the street?”
“Interesting.” He nodded rather amused. “You are going to stay with a man. He is an old man but the only one suited for your protection.”