Hour of the Wolf

by Bell, Dana Marie

  “Sir?”

  His lab tech was talking to him. “Sorry, the coffee hasn’t kicked in yet. Can you repeat that?”

  The tech began his technobabble once more, talking about centrifuges and clotting serum and plasma and blah blah blah.

  There was a reason Noah hadn’t gone into medicine. All the science of it bored him silly.

  Still, he listened enough to mark the proper spots on the paperwork, making it all appear official. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Iva nodding and talking Simmons, the two of them bending over to check on some esoteric piece of equipment that seemed more like a torture device than something that should be in a laboratory.

  When Simmons surreptitiously checked out Iva’s ass, Noah had to stop the growl that wanted to erupt from his throat. The idea of stamping his name across her lower back was beginning to appeal. Maybe the humans would understand that form of marking.

  “Gonna put a ring on it?”

  Noah turned back to his tech, only to find him smirking over at him. “What did you say?”

  “Seems like you like the lady inspector.” The tech winked. “If I were you I’d put a ring on it before someone else snatches her away.”

  Noah growled.

  The tech paled. “Uh, sir?”

  “Sorry.” Noah couldn’t allow his possessive tendencies to blow this operation. Getting Peter Bradley’s blood was important, not only for learning more about the demon but for any sympathetic magic the witches could come up with. “You’re right, I should definitely put a ring on it.” Or a tattoo. Tattoos couldn’t be taken off, not lightly anyway.

  “I’d say everything is good on my end,” Greer’s voice came from the hall. “Let’s check with my colleagues. If they agree we’ll be out of your hair in no time.”

  “What about interviews?” Greer’s lab tech asked.

  “We’ve been conducting those the whole time, if you think about it. So far everything you’ve told me lines up with our compliance rules, so I think you’re fine.” Greer stepped into the room ahead of the tech and straightened his bowtie, the signal that he’d gotten what they’d come for. “Nick?”

  Noah nodded. “Everything seems kosher here. Irene?”

  “We’re good to go on this end.” Iva stepped forward and held out her hand to Simmons. “We’ll be mailing the paperwork soon. I think you’ll be happy with the results.”

  “Thank you, Ms. Morimoto. That’s quite a relief.” Simmons shook her hand and led her to the door where Greer waited patiently.

  Noah followed, listening to the small talk Simmons was making with Iva. He wanted to rip the man’s hand off when it hovered over the small of Iva’s back, but he kept his instincts in check. He’d go running in wolf form when they got back. That would help calm his beast.

  Then he’d take Iva into his home and fuck her up against a wall. Or in a chair. Or over the dining room table. Maybe the bed.

  Maybe.

  The door closed behind them. “That went well,” Iva said, smiling slightly.

  “You certainly made an impression.” Noah gritted his teeth, still fighting with his wolf about going back and chomping on the tasty human lab tech.

  “Ugh. I hate guys like that,” she muttered, rolling her eyes. She poked Greer in the shoulder. “That’s probably why you got called Mr. Handy.”

  “Probably, but that’s not our problem. Lab compliance is,” he replied in a normal tone, opening the door to the reception room. The receptionist was talking to two people, both of whom were in suits.

  Noah ignored them, walking past and chatting with Greer and Iva as if everything were normal, but his senses were once again on alert. He smelled gunpowder on both men, but he didn’t want to draw attention to themselves. When they made it onto the elevator without a fight erupting he sighed in relief. “Those two men were armed.”

  “Think they were here for us?” Iva stepped off the elevator, smiling for the sake of the people walking around in the lobby.

  “Probably.” Greer chuckled and threw an arm around Noah’s shoulder. “Lunch, big guy?”

  “I could do with some food,” Noah replied amiably, pulling out his keys. He had also seen the three large men walking into the building, but they headed right for the elevator, ignoring the three Maggie’s Grove residents.

  Apparently they’d made it out of the labs just in time.

  Noah led the way to the car, nonchalantly opening it for Iva. “Move quickly, but don’t be obvious.”

  Iva got in, strapping on her seatbelt while Noah made his way to the driver’s side.

  “Move it or lose it, alpha,” Greer said as Noah got into the SUV.

  “On it.” Noah carefully drove out of the parking lot. He had no desire to set off some sort of chase in the middle of Baltimore. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”

  “Agreed.” Iva relaxed against the seat, but he could almost hear the wheels turning in her head. “We need to change your plates next time.”

  “So we can’t be tracked that way? Good idea.” Noah made his way down the city streets, making for the highway that would lead them back to Maggie’s Grove.

  “If I’d known you were coming we could have arranged something.” Iva gave him the stink-eye. “But no, someone had to play stow-away.”

  “I don’t think the stow-aways captain the boat, Iva.”

  She sniffed and tossed her hair. “It’s called piloting.”

  “And they’re off! Iva has the inside corner but Noah’s coming up fast behind her,” Greer started barking from the back seat. “It’s anybody’s race, ladies and gentleman!”

  “Shut up, Greer,” Noah groaned.

  “Yes, shut up, Greer.” Iva glanced behind her. “Looks like we made it.”

  “Isn’t that a Barry Manilow song?” Greer asked innocently.

  “Shut up, Greer!” Noah and Iva echoed. Noah’s wolf was still riding him hard, so his was more of a growl than a yell.

  Greer chuckled in response. “Shutting up.”

  Once on the highway Noah relaxed.

  “You did good, kid.” Iva patted him on the thigh. “You didn’t give the game away.”

  “I almost did when that guy tried touching you.” He was proud of himself. The tech had lived.

  “Well, I didn’t notice a thing.”

  “The tech he was talking to did,” Greer piped in. “I think that’s why security showed up.”

  “How would he have alerted anyone to our presence?” Noah hadn’t seen anything that would indicate one of the techs had notified security. “He didn’t reach for a panic button or a phone. At least not that I could sense.”

  “Could you name all of the equipment he was going over with you? What buttons do what?” Greer’s head appeared between them. “Because we’ve got company.”

  “Shit.” Iva turned around. “Two cars behind us.” She turned back to the highway, her brows furrowed. Her gaze became distant, clouded. Her head cocked to the side as if listening to something. “Take the third exit.”

  Noah didn’t question her order, simply did as told. The exit led to a small, downtown area just outside of Baltimore. “Where to now?”

  When she didn’t answer, Noah began to fret. What was going on in her head?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Iva concentrated on the information flowing into and out of her mind. The trees, the grass, even the moss was speaking to her, telling her of a place she could lead the Van Helsings to, a place where bodies could easily be covered up by foliage, never to be found. Noah’s voice was just one of many as he asked for directions.

  She gave them, more than aware that her tone was absent. Her sight was filled with visions of where they needed to be and how to get there. Flashes of images where the animal and plant life were willing to aid her in her flight ran through her mind in a kaleidoscope of images
. It wouldn’t take long to get there. It would be a section of the road where there would be no businesses or houses close by, an area surrounded by woods where the road led to an old farmhouse. That’s where she would make her move, but more than likely the Van Helsings would also view their route as an opportunity to kill them.

  Sure enough, once they turned into the woods, the Van Helsings’ SUV rammed Noah’s.

  Cursing, Noah regained control of his vehicle. It had been a dead-on hit, rather than one to the side. If they’d hit the side rear they might have caused Noah to slide into a tree. Instead, thanks to the full-on hit and the road conditions, Noah merely slid forward. The road here was pitted and leaf-strewn, an off-roaders wet dream and a nightmare for someone fleeing an enemy.

  “I’m going topside.” Greer rolled down his window, his daggers in hand.

  “What?” Noah’s voice was shocked but his gaze remained firmly on the twisting road ahead of them. “You’re car surfing during a chase? What are you, an action hero?”

  “Yup!” With those parting words Greer was gone. There was a thump on the roof and then nothing more.

  “Greer knows what he’s doing. Concentrate on driving.” Iva couldn’t help her indifferent, distracted tone of voice. She was far too busy listening to what the world around her whispered in her ears. They were almost there, almost to the killing field, and speaking took too much attention away from those guiding murmurs.

  Again, the car shook as their pursuers struck them, sending them sliding forward as the tires lost traction on the rotten leaves. Noah cursed, struggling to right the car before it struck a tree and ended their attempt to find the best spot for their enemies’ death.

  Here, the voices whispered, the trees and roots and leaves all clamoring for her to stop, stop stop.

  “Stop the car!” Iva grappled with her seat belt, almost flying out the front windshield when Noah slammed on the breaks and their vehicle was once again hit from behind, this time much harder than before. Noah’s head hit the steering wheel hard enough to draw blood.

  Ignoring his cursing, she got out of the car and called her sword, ready to take the men behind them apart with her bare hands.

  They’d hurt her mate, and now they’d pay.

  Power surged through her body as the forest around them responded to her call. In the distance was the call of dryads offering her assistance, but she declined. She’d inform them of the location of the bodies once she was done. They’d take care of burying the Van Helsings deep beneath loam and leaf, never to be seen again.

  Her sword quivered in her hand, almost eager to taste blood. Iva could sense a second form, like Greer’s daggers, simmering just beneath the surface of the blade. Allowing the transformation, she was startled when three-bladed gauntlets appeared over her forearms, wrists and hands. The gauntlet part was solid and reached all the way to her elbows, etched with the paws of wolves. The blades began just below her wrists and ended at least six inches past her fingertips. Each sharp blade dripped with a dark poison.

  Awesome! Her blade had changed, just as Ash’s and Greer’s had. She now had wolf claws that were more than a match for her mate’s, with the added bonus of the poison of her Yew. She was going to kick some serious ass with these puppies.

  Pun intended.

  She grinned at the men stumbling out of the SUVs. None of them had the recuperative powers of an alpha wolf. No doubt they’d die quickly and painfully, if not by her poison then by her mate’s claws or Greer’s daggers.

  With a roar of rage the first Van Helsings ran toward her from behind the ones that had hit their SUV. They must have been in the follow-up vehicle because they bore no injuries, unlike the ones who’d been in front of them. She readied herself, the forest whispering to her its song of battle.

  People forgot that the forest could give life, but it could also take it. Roots choked, birds of prey swooped, ivy strangled, and berries poisoned those who were unwary enough to disrespect the woods around them. Those who remembered, lived.

  Those who forgot, died.

  The first enemy reached her just as Noah howled his fury. He must have gotten out of the car and seen the man racing toward her.

  Iva didn’t have time to worry about Noah. He could easily hold his own against this number of Van Helsings. No. She needed to concentrate on her own opponents. With her bad arm, this fight was going to be tough. There were eight opponents in total, each one scrambling to either engage in hand-to-hand combat or to climb the trees around her.

  Fools. The trees where her home. They told her exactly where the enemy was, but she’d have to deal with the two men who’d chosen to engage before she could inform Greer and Noah where the others were.

  The first reached her, wielding a baton that crackled with electricity. That wasn’t good, since silver was just as conductive as copper. She was going to receive one hell of a shock once she engaged. She’d have to figure out how to get to him without getting hit.

  Iva balled her hands into fists and dodged the first blow, swinging at the man’s arm with her good hand. She missed, unused to the new weapons, off balance because of her injured arm. She pulled her broken arm out of the sling, deciding that she’d be best off using that arm for defense, even if it hurt. The gauntlet, thick and coated in appeared to be matte black paint, should block attacks adequately. Hopefully she wouldn’t reinjure her arm in the process.

  The next blow nearly landed, making Iva stumble back. She blocked the tip of the baton, startled when she didn’t receive a shock. The dark coating on the gauntlet must be non-conductive. Smiling grimly, she began fighting in earnest, using her connection to the forest to keep her balance while he slipped on the leaves.

  Two slashes of her blades and he was done. The blows themselves weren’t killing, but the sharp blades had cut into his skin. Her poison now ran through his bloodstream. He began to convulse, vomiting as he fell to the ground. He’d be dead within sixty seconds. Though the usual poison of a yew killed within an hour, her toxicity was far more potent thanks to her status as one of the ruling dryads. She wasn’t sure how the black blood affected her poison. She’d have to ask Dr. T when she got home.

  She turned to the next opponent, blocking his knife attack with her bad arm. It was a solid hit instead of the glancing blow of her first opponent. Pain radiated through her, blinding her to the thrust of the knife to her midsection. She barely managed to back away, falling on her rear in the process. She lifted her arm again to protect herself as the Van Helsing kicked at her.

  The pain was excruciating. She’d need to go to the hospital once they got back to Maggie’s Grove. It hurt so bad she was concerned that she might have rebroken it. Greer could help, but she’d have to wait until the fight was finished.

  Lucky for her she no longer had to worry about the Van Helsing standing over her. Snarling and growling Noah attacked from over the top of the SUV, biting deep into the Van Helsing’s arm. There was an audible snap as the man’s arm broke. The Van Helsing screamed, dropping his knife to the ground.

  Iva took that moment to stand, swiping at the Van Helsing’s leg as she did so. Her claws connected, the impact slight, but enough. The Van Helsing stared at her claws in horror before he too began vomiting and convulsing.

  The forest whispered to her, filling her mind with the knowledge that there was more fighting ahead of her. Greer had appeared, using his daggers to maximum effect. None would walk away from the Singer’s wrath.

  Defense was all she could manage as Noah and Greer decimated the Van Helsings, mowing them down one by one. Gunfire erupted, and Iva reached out to the forest, her vision clouding over as a map of the area appeared in her mind’s eye. “Noah, two o’clock, up in a tree.”

  Without hesitation Noah abandoned the man he’d been fighting, not that there was much left to him. His leg was barely hanging on to his body. He’d bleed out before long. No need to worr
y about him unless he, too, had a gun and was conscious enough to use it.

  Iva concentrated, ducking and hiding behind Noah’s SUV. She could no longer fight, as she could no longer see what was in front of her. She was too busy fending off the remaining life forces of the Van Helsings. Two up in trees, one hiding in a bush, and one attempting to flee. “Greer, we’ve got a runner.”

  She didn’t get a response, but seconds later a horrified screech made her smile. There was one less life force dancing before her eyes. Greer had found the Van Helsing attempting to run, and given him an appropriate greeting.

  The forest showed her the death of another Van Helsing, falling to the claws and teeth of the alpha wolf. “Noah,” she muttered, hoping he would hear her. “Six o’clock, up in a tree.”

  A snarl answered her, reassuring her that he’d caught her whispers and was on the move.

  She kept her voice fairly low. The woods would deliver her message to Greer. “Greer. Nine o’clock, hiding in a bush.”

  No sound from her brother, but she wasn’t worried. That man was as good as dead.

  “Bitch.”

  Iva blinked away the lights of the forest. Turning, she found one of the Van Helsings Noah had fought. This one’s arm was mangled, his face scratched to hell. One eye was missing, the socket raw. How he was still moving was a mystery, but not one she had time to solve.

  She was more concerned about the gun he’d somehow managed to press into her side.

  How had she missed him? His life force was so dim he should have been unconscious. She was foolish for ignoring the half-dead. She should have been making sure they were dead while the others fought. Now she found herself facing the consequences of her stupidity. If she died like this Greer would never let her live it down.

  “Call the others back,” the Van Helsing panted. “They can hear you, especially the fucking wolf.” He pushed the gun hard against her. “Don’t mention me or you’re dead.”