Object of My Affection

by Tracey H. Kitts

  “What happened here?” I asked.

  He looked up at me with a confused expression. “Aren’t you Lilith, Richard Stacey’s friend?”

  I didn’t respond.

  “You won’t tell anybody about this will you? Finding me here, I mean? Melissa and I were just....”

  “Melissa is dead,” I interrupted coldly. “And you’ve got worse problems than getting caught banging a student.”

  Keith started to shake as he said, “Those things ... they killed her? I saw them come in and I....”

  “You ran back here and left them to her,” I finished. “You disgust me,” I said as I turned my back on him. Keith Taylor could rot for all I cared.

  “Left your girl to be eaten by werewolves, eh? Oh, that’s top notch, that is,” Bade rumbled.

  Apparently Keith had not seen Bade before then. He screamed and closed the bathroom door again.

  “Chicken shit,” Bade spat.

  I turned around and kicked the door open, breaking its hinges.

  “Get up you coward.”

  “What are you doing?” Bade asked.

  “He’s still a human being. I’m not leaving him to the wolves like he did her.” I gestured to the other room. “Get up you piece of shit.” I kicked him hard enough that my foot should have went up his butt.

  Keith shook all over, but he got up.

  “Your death will not be on my conscience,” I hissed.

  He looked at Bade and shook more violently. Bade refused to step back so that Keith and I both brushed against his fur on our way out the door. In his defense, it was a small space for a large animal. But I think he just wanted the opportunity to frighten Keith.

  When we entered the adjoining office and Keith saw Melissa’s remains he went ballistic. He screamed and clawed in an effort to get past me and back into his office, but Bade blocked the door. I stood my ground and continued to push him toward the exit. Keith Taylor was about six feet tall and slightly overweight. His hissy fit made his bulk even harder to maneuver out the door.

  When he scratched my face, I’d had enough. I backhanded Keith so hard he flew out the door. By the time he hit the floor I was on him and I hit him again.

  “How dare you touch me you bastard,” I growled.

  I felt my eyes burn back to amber once more as I pulled Keith’s face toward mine.

  “Look at me,” I whispered menacingly.

  Keith whimpered, but he looked.

  “I’m trying to save your life. Do you understand me?” I shook him hard with my last words.

  “Yes,” he nearly cried.

  “If your fat ass ever touches me again,” I looked at Bade over my shoulder and then back to Keith, “I’ll let him eat you.” I nodded toward Bade and much to my satisfaction he growled on cue.

  As I rose to my feet again Richard exclaimed, “What’s that smell?!”

  “Loverboy here shit his pants,” I answered as I gestured toward Keith.

  “There’s one left,” David said. “What do we do now?”

  “I need to get them out of here.” I motioned to the three men in the hallway.

  “We’ll escort you to your truck. David and I can take care of the last one.” Bade looked around before adding, “And we’ll clean up.”

  “Alright.” I sighed. “John? You came in that way, right?”

  He nodded.

  “Then I’d say that’s our best bet. We can go through those doors and straight through the woods to my truck.”

  As we stepped outside once more the rain pounded us relentlessly. It was difficult to see even a few feet ahead. It was also impossible to detect a scent and if someone remained very still, they could easily get the drop on us.

  We had just reached the edge of the grounds when the remaining shewolf knocked John to the ground in front of me.

  Bade reached forward and flung her off. Unfortunately, part of John’s throat went with her. Keith took off across the wet grass, screaming like a banshee and slipping in the mud. I watched the shewolf gain her footing again before running after him. I also watched Bade and Richard step out of her way. Richard I could understand, but Bade could have stopped her.

  “Hurry, while she’s focused on him,” David said.

  “I know he’s an asshole, but he’s still a person,” I objected.

  “That’s debatable,” Richard snorted.

  “I say we cut our losses,” Bade rumbled.

  As he spoke Bade stretched out his long arms and herded us all toward the woods. Just as we reached the trees horrible shrieking and tearing noises reached my ears and I knew Keith was beyond my help.

  We tore through the woods at a break neck pace Richard couldn’t keep up with. We stopped halfway for him to catch his breath and Bade dropped to one knee in the mud.

  “Get on,” he growled, “or you’ll never make it.”

  “You want me to ride piggyback through the woods on a werewolf?”

  “Yes. Don’t expect me to offer twice,” Bade snapped.

  “What are my other options?”

  “Richard.... “ A howl cut through the night before I could finish what I was about to say and Richard climbed on Bade’s back without further objection.

  Once we reached the truck and got Richard safely inside David assured me that he and Bade would dispose of any evidence of werewolves. As I went to get in Bade grabbed my arm.

  “What is it?” I asked as I looked back to him.

  He hesitated a moment before replying, “Tell Marco ...

  we’re even.”

  And just like that he was gone. I didn’t know what to make of what he’d just said, but there was no time to think it over.

  Once Richard and I had made our way down the long winding drive, past more trees and buildings, we were left with only the sound of the pounding rain. I’d known Richard long enough that even if we rode the whole ten minutes to his house in silence it wouldn’t be awkward. But, I wanted to talk to him.

  “How are you doing?” I asked.

  Richard was taking a good look at the inside of the Hummer. He tapped the door, “Armor plated,” looked in the back, “heavily armed.” Richard looked back at me as he concluded, “You must have taken Alfred’s truck.”

  “How did you know?” I grinned.

  “The minute gun attached to the wall was a give-a-way.”

  I sighed. “Richard I’m sorry I didn’t reach you sooner. I saw Bade just as I drove up. Well, I didn’t know it was Bade.

  I tracked him down first thinking he might know where you were. Once we’d realized that neither one of us had a clue as to what was going on, a werewolf attacked me and....”

  “It’s alright,” he interrupted. “I’m alive.”

  “No, Richard, it’s not alright. I just found one of my best friends chained to a wall because he was unfortunate enough to be close to me.”

  “Yeah. I was also unfortunate enough to have someone to call who could save me from those monsters. And unfortunately she interrupted Bill before he could inject me with something to alter my DNA, too. You’re absolutely right.

  That was unfortunate,” he said sarcastically.

  “He tried to inject you with something?”

  While I drove Richard told me what had happened. It was not unusual for several of the science faculty to work until midnight or later. About eleven o’clock Mallory had come to his office. She had asked for his help with something in her lab. Being the nice guy that he is, Richard agreed to go, like she’d known he would.

  “You’ve got to learn to say no,” I told him.

  But, Richard belonged in an old western somewhere, singing a song and wearing a white hat. His reactions to Mallory and Keith that night had been the first time I’d seen him without the white hat. Richard was a good guy through and through and I knew it was just the stress of what had happened that had made him react the way he did. If I knew Richard, he’d feel guilty about it later.

  As he continued with the story I was glad to hav
e him close to me. Richard was like the brother I’d never had, and I couldn’t bear him being hurt because of me. I wanted to pull him close and say, “It’s alright. They can’t hurt you.” But it wasn’t true and that night had proved the point. He said Mallory had pushed him to the floor after telling him why she’d ruined his reputation. She knew I’d come for him and wanted me to find him dead. But before she could put her grubby paws on him, Bill had stopped her.

  “You mean he asked her to stop?”

  “No. He stopped her. You remember what I said about him experimenting with the snakes?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, he’d been working with werewolf DNA. He’d found a way to extract the part that was wolf and replace it with the snake.”

  “What did he do to Mallory?” I prompted.

  “You know how she was about those damned snakes. She practically deified them. Bill had created a version of the virus that instead of ‘taking on the beast’ as you guys call it, he took on the serpent.”

  “So, she fell down and worshiped him?”

  “Close enough. All he had to do was ask.”

  “Shit,” I said hotly. “Leave it to some sicko like Bill to create another virus.” I sighed heavily, “That’s what Bade smelled tonight. He said it was something big and poisonous.

  Wait till I tell Alfred.”

  “When’s he due back?”

  I looked at the clock. It was after five.

  “Some time today,” I answered.

  Of course I was going to leave out the fact that I’d had werewolf cooperation to rescue Richard. Especially considering who it was that had cooperated. Bade was number two on a lot of Hunter’s most wanted lists.

  —

  I took Richard home, treated his wounds and was back on the road within the hour. He was lucky to have escaped with minor bruises and a small cut on his forehead. His emotional scars were not as obvious, but I’m sure they were there. You don’t see people ripped apart and walk away from the incident unchanged. I should know I’d seen it enough. It’s something you never get used to. At least I’d never gotten used to it and I took that as a good sign. If I ever got used to watching people being brutally mangled, it was time to seek a different line of work, and a therapist.

  My wounds would all be healed within a few days. But I hated to greet Alfred like that. I’d wanted to be perfect when I saw him again. Any bruising, which if I had any it shouldn’t be severe, would be gone by noon. The scratch on my left cheek from that asshole Keith would be gone before nightfall.

  It was the deep puncture wounds on my left forearm that would take the longest to heal. Any injury I’d ever received from a lycanthrope had always taken longer to heal. I’m not sure why, and I tried not to think about it.

  It would be around seven when I got home. I’d hoped I could at least take a bath before Alfred arrived.

  —

  The minute I walked in the door I knew it was too late to take a shower first. The smell of rich coffee wafted in from the kitchen and I knew Alfred was home.

  When I stepped into the kitchen his back was turned to me. I could tell by the rigid set of his broad shoulders that he was upset about something. Maybe it was the fact that I hadn’t been home when he’d arrived. But, something kept me from running to him. Something was not right.

  “Hello, Alfred.”

  As he turned to me I watched all the anger drain from his features. Damn he looked good. Alfred was dressed all in black. The mock turtle neck he wore fit him well, complementing curves and muscles his usual attire did not reveal. The black slacks he wore were not tight, but they fit well enough that I wanted to see more. Alfred always dressed nice, but he also wore a lab coat to cover it up. I had to get him out of that lab coat more often.

  He took a cloth from underneath the sink and dampened it. I anticipated his touch as I watched Alfred walk over and begin to wipe the small cut on my left cheek. I wanted to wrap myself around him and say how glad I was to see him, but there was something in his eyes that held me back.

  “I’m sorry I wasn’t here,” I said softly.

  I could tell something was wrong, but I couldn’t imagine what. I’d expected to be embraced, not this sort of medical detachment while he treated my wounds.

  “Richard was kidnapped,” I explained.

  “What happened?” his voice was cold.

  I recounted the story for Alfred, leaving out only that Bade had helped me and that consequently everything was his fault. Especially since Alfred knew nothing of what had happened between Marco and myself.

  “So, he’s alright?”

  “Yes.”

  “What about you?” he asked more softly.

  “I’ll live.”

  He turned around unexpectedly and went back to his coffee.

  “I had a visitor this morning.”

  “Kat?”

  “Marcy.”

  The instant he said her name I felt the hairs on the back of my neck bristle. That’s what wasn’t right. Marcy Johnson was our new neighbor, and I’d just as soon eat dirt as to look at her. The moment I’d first walked into the kitchen and found her flirting with Alfred, I’d developed an immediate hatred.

  “I don’t ever want that woman in my house again,” I said coldly.

  Alfred looked at me, but otherwise didn’t respond for a moment.

  “That woman had some interesting things to share with me.”

  Just the thought of Marcy sharing oxygen with Alfred set my blood on fire.

  “Like what?”

  “Like the fact that you’ve been dating officer Jasper in my absence. It seems she was very surprised to see me here at all. Apparently everyone thinks you’ve kicked me out and moved on to him.” His voice remained calm, but Alfred’s eyes burned with emotion.

  “I cannot control people’s mouths. You know how bad this town gossips.”

  “I do,” he cut in. “That’s why I’m asking you. Have you been seeing Elijah while I was gone?”

  “Not like that, no.”

  He put the coffee cup down and his hand shook. “Like how?” he growled.

  “Like we spent some time together.”

  “It’s true!” he yelled.

  “We’re friends, Alfred. Kat even went out with us!”

  Alfred turned his back on me again and I couldn’t stand it.

  “How the hell did she even know you were back?”

  “She saw me in town,” he answered quietly. “I went to buy some cherries.”

  I loved cherries and I knew without being told he’d bought them for me.

  “She asked me to go out with her tonight, and I’m going,”

  he blurted out.

  Alfred might as well have stabbed me. It would have had the same effect as those words. I gripped the doorframe and bent forward slightly, placing a hand over my heart. I was glad Alfred’s back was turned. I didn’t want him to see how much he’d hurt me.

  Before he could speak again, I took off up the stairs. As I closed the bathroom door I began to tear the catsuit away from my throat. I couldn’t breathe and I shredded the material as I stumbled and sprawled myself across the floor. I had to get a grip. But the room spun and as I pressed my face against the cool wood floor, I knew I was having a panic attack. Of all the things that could have happened, losing Alfred before he was ever really mine was not something I’d expected. And to that bitch?!

  I had a vision of him touching her and I didn’t make it to the toilet. For at least ten minutes I threw up into the bathtub.

  —

  After the waves of nausea had passed I decided Alfred would never know how much he’d just hurt me, because I would never let him see. And at the first opportunity Marcy would have an ‘accident’. But as soon as I thought it, I knew I couldn’t just kill her because I hated her. For the first time in my life I wished that I truly was a monster. Monsters have no conscience.

  I cleaned out the tub, disposed of my shredded catsuit, and put away my weap
ons. A sort of numbness settled over me as I peeled off the bandages on my left arm and stepped into the shower. My wounds had already healed dramatically since I’d been attacked late the night before. There was only minor bruising and the punctures had closed over. By the evening they would shrink in size and within a week or so be gone without a trace.

  But for the time being my arm hurt. However it was nothing compared to the pain in my chest. It all hurt, but I was too numb to cry. I was in shock.

  After cleaning and redressing my already healing wounds, I dried my hair. As I stood before the mirror I noticed that the scratch on my cheek was only the faintest line. It might be gone before noon. It surprised me that I had the strength of will to put on makeup, but I’d be damned if he saw me without it. Not only did I want to look composed, but I wanted Alfred to get a good look at what he’d be missing.

  After a few minutes thought I decided I needed to thrash something. My black vinyl catsuit and an hour or so in the training room sounded like just the thing. It wasn’t like I could go to sleep after what I’d seen the night before anyway.

  I’d go beat the shit out of my punching bag until I collapsed.

  Food was the last thing on my mind, but if I didn’t eat I’d be sick again. As I walked into the kitchen I saw the spare key to Alfred’s lab on the counter and snatched it up. He was still in my house, and no matter how I tried to hide it, I’d love Alfred until I dropped dead.

  He was mine and he’d be mine before he would ever be Marcy’s. Alfred would spend the night with me ... even if I had to seduce him.

  —

  I found the door to the lab unlocked. As I walked in Alfred’s back was once again turned and I took the opportunity to say my piece without having to look him in the eye. If he was going to turn me away, he was going to know how I felt first. My heart was in my throat, but I did my best to speak around it.

  “You can leave if you want to ... but I’ve loved you for too long to let you go without a fight.”

  Alfred turned to face me and the surprise on his face was plain to see. As I looked into his dark eyes I knew that my powers of seduction were of no use here. I wanted Alfred to stay because he wanted to, not because he’d been tricked into doing so.

  “Do you care for her?” I pressed. My heart pounded in anticipation of his response. I wasn’t used to putting myself on the line so blatantly. But I had to know. If he cared for Marcy, as much as I despised her, I’d leave them alone.