“Alright, be safe out there. Make us proud.”
Damien grabbed his sunglasses and leather jacket, accidentally slamming the door on his way out to find it pouring rain and cold.
Go figure. Damien thought, disturbed at his sudden change of luck. He hugged his jacket close, throwing his backpack over his shoulder to run to his truck and jump up into the cab. Charlie had started it to get it warmed up while Damien got ready.
The old man really did look out for him, he'd have to thank him when he got home.
****
The classes during the morning were always the hardest since Damien wasn’t usually an early riser but he was glad when he got to meet Rob for lunch in the main building. It faced the main road cutting through the college and was the central hub for most of the college students' needs.
“You seem in high spirits today, bro. No monster wolves haunting your dreams last night?” Rob teased taking a bite of a French fry.
Damien focused on his chicken wrap. “That’s not funny Rob. Speaking of wolves, I heard one howling last night at the fall moon.”
“Yeah! Wasn’t that cool? I didn’t hear any wolves though. You sure you didn’t imagine it?” Rob asked.
Rob hadn’t heard the wolf either? Damien was sure he’d heard one. It was almost as though it was singing. The sound so comforting it put him to sleep.
“Hey, you start your internship today, right? Excited?” Rob asked.
“Hell yeah, I am. Been looking forward to it since the beginning of the summer,” Damien replied, full of anticipation. He’d been brushing up on his medical terms since summer began. He wasn’t excited to get started. He was anxious. “Where’s your internship?”
“Tech department of course. Looking forward to working with you, man. Gotta go though, shift starts in thirty. If you're heading out I'll walk with ya.”
Damien grabbed his trash and his backpack, the scrubs he'd need hung in his truck. “Sounds good. Let’s go.”
****
When Damien arrived at the hospital, he chose to park in the parking garage to avoid getting soaked by the rain since it’d chosen not to let up all afternoon.
Once through the double doors, he walked up to the nurses station where a rather young looking doctor stood talking to a cute blonde holding a clipboard.
Upon seeing Damien, the doctor walked up to him, holding out his hand. “You must be Damien Pierce. I'm Kyle Langston, one of the leading physicians. I'll be the one overseeing your training hours. Do you have any questions or are you ready to start learning some things around here?”
Damien shook the doctor’s hand confidently. “Nice to meet you, sir. I'm excited to learn how things work.”
Kyle laughed a hearty laugh, patting Damien on the back. “Don’t worry, tonight's not going to be too hard. I'm just going to take you around and see where you are. That way I can see where I need to focus and where I can relax a bit on your training.”
Kyle led Damien around the different aspects of the specimen labs, gauging what he knew through random questions and seeing where he still needed some help. He introduced Damien to Mackenzie Wilder, the lead lab technician.
“Mack here, is your first go to for any and all questions regarding lab work. She's pretty good at what she does so usually I don't have to get involved in anything. Mack, this is Damien Pierce.”
Mackenzie reached out her hand. “Ah, so you’re the new meat. Pleased to meet you. I've been expecting you. Dr. Langston mentioned we were getting some newbies around here. I'm grateful since I've heard you were quite the Brainiac.”
Damien took Mackenzie's hand, slightly suspicious. She was lead lab tech and yet she didn't look much older than he was. Shaking off the feeling, he just smiled. “Nice to meet you. I promise to work hard.”
“Damn straight you will or I'll be kicking your sexy ass all around this place.” Damien stood baffled, the confused look on his face made Mackenzie laugh a surprisingly adorable laugh. “Don't worry about it, I haze all the new meat. Come on, I'll show you around.”
The rest of the shift was spent with Mackenzie leading Damien around the labs. She showed him different machines, explaining how each type worked, where to find certain containers and charts that would need to be filled out daily.
At the end of the shift, Mack punched Damien in the arm, playfully. “Hey, not bad for your first day. Maybe I won’t have to hold your hand as much as I thought. See you back here soon, Damien. Feel free to contact me if you need to. I’m a pretty good study buddy.”
Damien nodded to her, shaking her hand. “Thanks Mack, I will. See you later.” He replied, taking his backpack and heading out of the sliding doors.
Tired and hungry after the night at the hospital, Damien decided to try to run across the street to the burger joint built in the style of an eighties diner to get something quick to eat.
He was just about to go back across the street to his truck when he was suddenly grabbed by the arm and thrown into the brick wall of the alley next to the restaurant.
The impact was so hard it caused him to drop his food to the cold, wet ground. His head hit the bricks, dazing him for a few moments before he could figure out what was going on.
Two men dressed in all black suits looking like they belonged in some science fiction movie stood before him. There was definitely something different about them.
The feeling they gave him was different from the one he had when he was around Jill, Mack or Dr. Langston. His sense of danger rose to a level he'd never experienced before.
“Damien Pierce?” The taller of the two with a goatee and dreadlocked hair spoke to him in a smooth yet deadly voice. It almost sounded sinister.
He wore sunglasses despite the rain and almost pitch black sky. The only source of light came from a few street lamps.
“Maybe. Who's asking?” Damien staggered as he got up from his knee, his back braced against the wall to give him some sense of security.
The shorter man with the shaved head slammed him hard in the face with what felt like a set of brass knuckles, bruising his cheek almost instantly. It felt like getting hit by a truck or kicked by a draft horse. His vision blurred to the point it made him nauseous.
“Wise guy's got balls. Got to give it to you for guts.” He flicked his cigarette to the ground, stomping it out. “Nothing personal, but we're here to kill you.”
“Kill me?” Damien had no idea why anyone would want him dead. His heart pounded in his chest. His mind ran through any option he might have to help him escape. A sense of helplessness quickly filled him with doubt that escape was even possible.
The taller of the two stepped forward and grabbed Damien by the collar of his jacket. He lifted and threw him halfway the length of the alley. He flew through the air until he landed hard on the gray lid of one of those heavy green dumpsters, knocking the wind out of him. The slick surface of the lid made him slide to the ground, landing on his side with a thud.
The memory of getting hit by the SUV ran through Damien’s mind as he tried to catch a breath. His ribs ached with each attempt as he tried to lift himself up.
A sting in his leg made him look down to see blood pooling from the knee to the ground. His leg was broken.
Damien closed his eyes. His shoulder burned, feeling as if it had been fractured at the collarbone. His back hurt and his head felt like he might have a concussion. There was no way he could escape with the injuries he'd sustained.
The men walked down the alley towards Damien. Their steps slow like predators stalking prey they knew couldn't escape them. They seemed to relish the idea of finishing him off at their leisure.
Damien resigned himself to the thought he could actually die. There was no one outside since it was raining so trying to call out for help would be next to useless. He couldn't move or hope to fight them in his current state.
From the way he’d just been thrown, he doubted he could fight them regardless.
"That's a good boy. Just surrender and
we'll make this quick." The shorter man loaded a clip into his firearm. His gaze shot up just as someone jumped from a roof above the scene.
Jill's sudden arrival brought Damien's hope back to life. It was like she dropped out of nowhere, her long coat blowing as she landed from what had to have been at least six stories high.
Water splashed into Damien's face forcing him to shake it off to get the dirt-mixed rain out of his eyes. Jill positioned her body in such a way it could serve as a shield between Damien and the men.
She looked over her shoulder. “Damien, how badly are you hurt?” She asked, her voice low and holding a more threatening tone than it usually did.
It took Damien a moment to think. “My leg's broken, my back hurts. I’m pretty sure my collarbone is fractured and my head feels like it could explode. Otherwise, I think I'm okay.”
A low growl escaped Jill’s throat as she turned to kneel next to Damien with no fear of exposing her back to the men.
There was something different about her. Almost as though her whole persona changed in response to him being in danger.
Taking an old tarp off of a stack of mattresses, Jill started covering Damien, making him look at her in question. Her hand cupped his face so gently it made his heart flutter in his chest. Her thumb lightly brushed the bruise on his cheek. The look in her eyes was so filled with pain, it made him feel like he'd just swallowed rocks.
What’s going on? Why is she looking at me like that? Damien thought, his own gaze meeting Jill’s.
“No matter what you may hear, please do not uncover yourself, okay?”
Damien nodded, not understanding why her voice held such a strong sense of desperation. It almost seemed like she was afraid to do what she felt she had to.
Her smile was saddened. A deep longing behind the words as she wrapped his knee with some material she tore from the inside of her coat to serve as a temporary tourniquet.
After Jill covered him, Damien could only see the silhouette of her boots as she turned on her heel.
“You had no right to hurt him. You filthy, bloodsucking parasites had no right to touch him. I'm going to make sure you regret every injury you inflicted with interest.”
The intensity in Jill's voice was unlike anything Damien ever heard from her. The voice he knew was soft, seductive and reassuring. This one was almost more of a low rasping growl than actual words.
Bloodsucking parasites? Sounds Damien never heard before followed the short exchanges accompanied by cursing from the two men.
Gun shots rang out as the men tried to defend themselves. Ripping, tearing, screams of pain and what sounded like a dog snarling and whimpering joined the gnashing of teeth as the fight went on.
Something metal bounced off of the concrete in front of Damien's face, making him scoot back to avoid getting hit by whatever it was.
The pungent copper smell of blood joined the scent of stale alcohol, trash and cigarette smoke until the screams of agony dissipated into the silent patter of rain on the concrete.
An eerie sense of quiet fell over the alley after the short battle.
Damien strained to hear any indication that Jill would be alive.
The sounds of footsteps made him stiffen. Fear gripped him as he thought he could have been wrong. His mind imagined Jill being killed.
The suddenness of Jill uncovering him made Damien jump, his eyes blurred as they tried to adjust to the brightness of the street lights behind her. The muscles in his body tensed as Jill proceeded to blindfold him using another strip of cloth.
“Jill, what's going on?” His voice shook with uncertainty as she covered his eyes.
She sighed, helping him stand to his feet. His weight supported by her body. “Forgive me. I'd hoped to introduce you to this a bit slower. For now, let me lead you. I'm taking you to the hospital.”
Jill led Damien through the carnage of the fight to the black Mustang Gabriel lent to her on occasion. She helped him slide into the passenger's side and closed the door before walking around to the other side of the car.
After she closed the door, Jill started up the engine and shifted gears into reverse. Her foot landed firmly on the accelerator, halting the car before shifting into drive. The force of her foot back on the accelerator made the car tires screech in protest as they peeled out.
“Jill, what the hell is going on?!” Damien was almost yelling as he ripped the blindfold off. His wet clothes made him shiver against the cold of the brisk fall night adding to his already irate mood.
“Damien, take it easy. You've taken a lot of damage. Let's get your injuries looked at first and I give you my word I will tell you.” Jill replied, her voice monotone as she reached to turn on the heat.
“Here, I thought you might need this so I brought one.” She handed Damien a blanket which he quickly cocooned himself in.
He threw up his hands under the blanket, his frustration joining anger at the fact that Jill had been keeping so many secrets from him. He knew they hadn’t really told each other everything but he'd nearly just been killed!
Where the hell had she come from anyway? It's like she dropped from the sky or something. He wanted an explanation.
When they arrived at the hospital, Jill helped Damien into the emergency room where Dr. Langston stood as though he’d been waiting for them. He guided them to a room immediately and proceeded with his examination.
“Looks like a hairline fracture of your collarbone.” Dr. Langston said, looking at the x-rays. His finger rested against his mouth, his elbow in his hand as he studied the images.“Your leg is definitely broken at the knee. We'll be sure to take care of that for you.”
Damien fought hard not to blink at the bright light flashed into his eyes. “No dilation. That's a good sign but there is some evidence of a minor concussion. Good news is there's no significant damage to your back, just some bruising. What did you get yourself into Damien? You hadn't been gone an hour.” Dr. Langston asked, his voice serious.
He glanced at Jill. The two seemed to understand what was going on between them. “Don't worry, I'll put in your medical leave for at least six weeks. Try to keep as much pressure off of your leg as possible. I'll prescribe some pain medication in case you need it.”
Damien tightened his jaw, squeezing his eyes closed against the pain as Dr. Langston wrapped his shoulder, setting it into a sling. He knew he wouldn't need six weeks to recover. The wounds he usually got healed within a matter of days depending on the severity.
“Honestly, I don't know what I got myself into.” Damien said, annoyed. He didn’t want to freak the doctor out by telling him two grown men with the strength of the children of Hercules and Samson hurled him into a dumpster halfway down a dark alley. God, what am I going to tell my dad, Rob or Chelsea?
Jill stood next to the door, standing guard and watching.
“Well whatever you did, it looks utterly painful. There's definitely going to be some bruising and some soreness. Just take it easy and rest.” Dr. Langston nodded to Jill. The two of them left the room into the hallway.
“It was the vampires, wasn't it?” Kyle spoke low enough to Jill so Damien couldn't hear. He'd chosen the examination room furthest away from the reception desk once he saw Jill walk in.
“Yes. Demetrius is aware of his existence now. They openly tried to kill him, Kyle. If I hadn't gotten the call from Mackenzie when I did, he would have been killed.” Jill answered, her voice laced with the remaining fear she might have not made it in time.
It was by sheer luck Mackenzie managed to get a hold of Jill after she saw the two vampires corner Damien in the alley.
“Looks like it's begun. We'll do what we can Jill, but most of us here are just trying to make a living. So far, Kain, Gabriel's pack and I have remained off the radar of Rayes. Be careful.” Kyle’s reply was sullen, his mouth downturned in a worried frown. His grip on his clipboard tightened to the point the plastic cracked.
Jill nodded to him. “Luna watch over you and yours, Kyl
e. Don’t worry. I'll do what I can on my own.”
“Luna watch over you, Jill.”
****
Damien tapped his foot anxiously as they rode in silence. He hadn't even been on his internship for a day and already he needed to take medical leave. Jill hadn't offered up anything about what she and Dr. Langston talked about or the information she promised him about why he was attacked in the first place.
“Okay, seriously. What the hell, Jill?” His voice was more frustrated than he meant it to be but he still felt like she owed him an explanation.
“In time. For now, you should be resting. We're dropping by the gym so you have a safe place to stay for the night. I'll take you home in the morning.” Jill tried keeping her own frustration at the situation under control.
“Solstice? Why there?” Damien replied, pissed at himself at the twinge of jealousy he was feeling.
“You'll see. I know you’re mad. All I ask is for you try to control your temper. You can throw your fit at me later.” Jill smirked at the look of defiance on Damien's face at her comment.
Jill looked at Damien in her peripheral, fighting back a giggle at how adorable he was as he sat fuming. It was a new side to him she hadn’t seen before. Much different from the shy, sensitive guy she’d come to know.
Even injured he took her breath away. The rips in his shirt and jacket revealed his toned muscles. His bicep on the armrest almost seemed to beg her to reach out and touch it. To caress the soft hills and valleys of the rippling muscles along his arm.
From the mood he was in, Jill decided to keep her paws to herself. She knew for her kind, an argument like this often ended in some rough, hot make-up sex. It was something she looked forward to when she had him as hers. Apparently, he was an explosive firework when he wanted to be.
She decided to give Damien some of the information she promised him on the way to the gym. “The men who attacked you were vampires. Their Lord, Demetrius Stone wants you dead.”
Blessing of Luna (Wolfgods Book 1) Page 5