by M H Soars
Something unnatural is definitely going on, but I don’t have the luxury to dwell on it. Pissed off that this fight is taking longer than I anticipated, I snap my jaw when the other wolf glances away for a split second, managing to get some flesh. Blood fills my mouth, but it tastes wrong. Foul. It makes me slightly dizzy for a moment, enough to give the motherfucker an opening. Turning, he locks his jaw around my throat. He would have slashed it open if Dante hadn’t appeared in the last second to save the night.
About fucking time.
My brother Dante was born two minutes after me. He’s slender but much faster. He can even outrun our father. He’s also much more vicious, a total contradiction to his nature in human form. With a strength only those destined to become alphas possess, he tosses the mutt against the boulder nearby. I hear a crack followed by a whine, and then everything goes eerily quiet.
I drop my mental shield, opening the telepathic link with my brother. Thanks to mainstream media and movies, there’s a false notion that all wolves within a pack are automatically linked mind to mind. Complete bullshit. We aren’t all reading each other’s minds while in wolf form. If that were to happen, chaos would ensue. Wolves, as a rule, are short-tempered.
“Are you okay?” Dante’s voice echoes in my mind.
“I’ve been better.”
“You were losing pretty badly and to a Shadow Creek mutt to boot.” He moves closer to the fallen wolf, and I decide to ignore my brother’s taunt. Yes, Dante is nicer as a human.
“He wasn’t a regular wolf. He was stronger than our father. Something was done to him.”
“I noticed that, too. And his blood didn’t taste right.”
Now next to Dante, I catch something odd protruding from the dead wolf’s head. “What’s that?”
A second later, Dante shifts back to human and crouches in front of the carcass. Opposable thumbs are handy to inspect shit, but I don’t dare change back yet. There might be other enemies nearby, which reminds me—the woman. She was bitten; I’m certain of it.
“Sam went after her,” Dante says.
Fuck. I forgot Dante could keep the telepathic link up even in human form.
“Stop reading my mind when you are in your two-legged version.”
“Quit bitching and check this out.” Dante pulls a small metallic box from the dead wolf’s head.
“What do you think that is?” I lean closer to smell the small object, getting nothing out of the ordinary besides the stench of death.
Dante rolls the box between his fingers before answering. “I don’t have a clue. We’d better show this to Dad when he returns.”
“Let’s find Sam, then get out of here.”
Nodding, Dante unfurls from his crouch and looks over his shoulder. Following the movement, I sniff the air. Sam isn’t too far, and he found the woman. She’s marked, which means we now have a potential Shadow Creek wolf on our hands. Potential being the imperative word—only a small percentage of humans survive the transformation.
I follow Dante to the nearby creek where Sam is. He’s cradling a blonde woman in his arms as if she were his lover or something. Ah, fuck. Maybe she is. I can’t keep track of how many regular women my brother has screwed. If wolves weren’t immune to human diseases, Sam’s dick would have fallen off by now.
Since Sam has shifted back into human already and I can’t scold him telepathically, I decide to shift back as well. I didn’t pick up the scent of another wolf nearby, so most likely the fallen wolf was a rogue.
Once back on two legs, I glare at Sam. “What the hell are you doing?”
He frowns, pinching his lips. “I know her.”
“Oh, great. She’s one of your groupies.” I throw my hands up in the air.
“Fuck off, Tristan. I haven’t slept with her. She was at my show tonight celebrating her twenty-first birthday.”
Knowing Sam didn’t sleep with the woman makes me feel better. Less complications. I take a step closer to look at her. Strings of blonde hair frame her ashen face, but it doesn’t hide the fact she’s attractive. Too attractive, actually. My gut clenches painfully, and I don’t know why.
Forcing my eyes away from her face, I notice the big gash on her shoulder where the rogue wolf almost mauled her to death. Well, death is still a probable outcome, and the idea makes me unbearably sad. Shit, what the hell is going on with me? I don’t want an innocent person to die like that, but the sharp pain in my chest feels more like I’m losing someone I care deeply for. Nonsense.
“Let’s get moving. She needs immediate medical attention. My truck is parked not far from here,” Dante says.
Frowning, I turn to my brother. “Wait? You want to bring her into the compound? Have you lost your mind?”
“What do you suggest? Leaving her here to die?”
“Of course not. But if she survives the shift, she’ll belong to those assholes up north.”
No one speaks for several beats. If a human is attacked by a wolf, it’s that pack’s responsibility to handle the situation as they best see fit. Some ruthless alphas choose to just end the human’s life without giving them the chance to shift. It doesn’t matter, though. If we take the woman into our compound and help her through the transformation process, it would be considered a terrible slight. Our relationship with the Shadow Creek pack is already precarious as it is.
“I don’t care about them. Their wolf breached our territory and attacked a human. He would have killed her if we hadn’t intervened.” Sam stands with the woman in his arms. “They don’t deserve our consideration. Fuck the protocols. We’re taking Red to the compound.”
“Red?” Dante raises an eyebrow.
“That’s what her friends call her. Her name is Amelia Redford. She goes to the community college, and works part-time at the hardware store.”
Crossing my arms, I watch Sam through slitted eyes. “How do you know so much about this chick?”
Despite the grim situation, a grin unfurls on his lips. “I did my homework.”
“You wanted to fuck her.”
“Well…” He sucks his lips in, looking guilty as hell.
“Sam, I swear to God…” I ball my hands into fists with half a mind to take the woman from his arms.
“Jesus, will you relax? I’m not going to try anything. Unless she wants to.”
“He won’t touch the girl,” Dante chimes in. “Mom will rip his nut sack off if he tries.”
I follow my brothers, muttering curses under my breath. Taking care of a gorgeous, newly made Shadow Creek wolf is exactly what we don’t need.
Dante’s truck is parked at the beginning of the trail that led to the spot of the attack. It will be another five minutes before we get back to the compound, and I honestly don’t know if Red will make it. She’s no longer bleeding, but loss of blood is not what kills humans attacked by shifters. It’s the virus responsible for the mutation that the majority can’t handle.
Once his truck comes into view, Dante sprints toward it. He grabs a pair of jeans from the backseat, then pulls them on fast.
“I have a couple of spare sweatpants in the trunk,” he tells us.
“I’m good.” Sam gets into the backseat with the woman without a glance in our direction.
Red. What a stupid nickname.
I have no issues with my nakedness. We have to undress before we shift or risk getting our clothes ruined. But out in the human world, I prefer not to be caught butt naked, so I take Dante up on his offer.
“How is Red?” Dante asks as soon as we begin to move, peering at the backseat through the rearview mirror.
“Her breathing is shallow, and she feels warm.” His reply is laced with worry.
I turn on my seat in time to catch Sam brush a loose strand of hair off her face. Seeing my younger brother treat a mere stranger as if she were his beloved girlfriend doesn’t sit well with me. I don’t know why I’m getting this crazy feeling of foreboding. Maybe because if she survives, she’ll still be the enemy. I’ve
never heard of a match between wolves from different packs that didn’t end in bloodshed or worse, isolation.
Shaking my head, I force myself to gaze at the road ahead. I’m worrying over nothing. No way Sam feels anything more for this woman than lust. He’s a notorious manwhore; there’s no chance in hell he would imprint on her.
When Dante parks in front of the clinic’s entrance, I’m not surprised to see Mom already waiting at the door.
Did she see the woman in a vision?
“Quickly now, I have the examination room ready for her.” Mom turns on her heels, striding down the hallway with purpose. Her deep mahogany hair is pulled into a tight bun at the base of her neck, and she’s wearing scrubs. She must have known what we would find in Irving Forest.
Sam puts Red on the bed while Mom sterilizes her hands. A metal tray with medical instruments is ready on the nightstand.
“What can we do?” Dante asks, hovering too close to her.
“Stay out of my way.” Mom twists her nose. “What’s that God-awful smell?”
“The other wolf’s blood,” we all answer at the same time.
“A rogue?” She arches both eyebrows.
“Maybe. We found this attached to the back of his head.” Dante shows her the small square box.
“It looks like a tracking device of some sort.” She narrows her eyes, studying it, but doesn’t touch it.
“I know someone who might be able to tell us what this is,” I say.
“Who?” Sam looks at me.
“A kid who works at the hardware store. He helped me before when I had computer issues in the office.”
“Can he be trusted with this?” Dante asks.
“He doesn’t have ties with the supe community. I believe he’s safe.”
Mom nods in agreement, then immediately returns her attention to the woman, who’s lying so still it’s like she’s already gone. Her flawless skin is white as snow, but her plumps lips still hold their ruby color. It’s not makeup. Maybe that’s why her friends call her Red, because of her cherry-colored lips. She’s indeed the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen. With a groan, I look away. There’s nothing for me to do here; I should leave.
“What are you doing, Mom?” Sam asks, and I glance at the bed again. She has a pair of scissors in her hand.
She doesn’t answer my brother, but proceeds to cut open what’s left of Red’s top, revealing a sexy, black lacy bra. I suck in a breath while my blood begins to pump faster in my veins. I should be noticing the gore on her shoulder, not the swell of her breasts. Maybe I’m as bad as Sam.
Under the bright lights in the room, the gash looks much worse. Red was bitten in two spots on her shoulder. The second bite is much too close to her aortic artery. Another inch and she would have bled to death. Dirt is mixed with the torn muscle and blood, so Mom focuses on cleaning the wounds first. She dabs the area with a reddish liquid, making Red hiss and arch her back.
I trade a worried glance with Dante while Sam says, “I thought she was out cold. How can she feel anything?”
“I don’t know,” Mom answers.
As soon as she finishes cleaning the wounds, the torn skin begins to heal, as if it’s knitting itself back together. Shifters have accelerated healing, but I’ve never seen anything like that and Red is not even a wolf yet. Mutation usually takes a month, and it’s a messy and painful process.
“What the fuck?” Sam moves closer, eyes wide.
When Red starts to convulse, Mom orders us to hold her still. I grab Red’s ankles while Sam and Dante each hold one of her arms. Her eyes fly open, revealing ember-colored wolf irises.
“She’s shifting already? How is that possible?” I ask.
Mom doesn’t answer. Instead, she holds a syringe in her hand, her eyebrows scrunched in concentration.
“What’s that?” Dante asks.
“Painkillers.”
Red screams at the top of her lungs when her muscles begin to spasm. I can feel the trembling under my palms. The wound on her shoulder has healed completely already, leaving behind only a light pink scar.
The petite woman flings her right arm with extreme force, managing to free herself from Sam’s hold. Then she scratches Dante’s hand with her claw. Holy shit. She partially shifted.
Knowing we can’t stop what’s happening to her, I let go of her legs and pull Dante out of her range. Restraining Red while she shifts will only make things worse. Mom steps back, and Sam gets in front of her. She can hold her own, but instinct tells us to protect any female in our family, even if she’s stronger than we are.
Red rolls over and falls to the floor, curling into a tight ball. Her screams turn into whimpers. Her body is deformed, caught in mid-transformation, but her face remains human. It’s scrunched in pain.
“We have to do something,” Sam says, anguish lacing his words.
“It’s too late now. She has to finish the process without sedation,” Mom replies, and Dante shoots her a pinched look. Fuck. Why does he have such despair in his eyes?
It’s the first time I’ve seen an infected human shift into a wolf for the first time. I knew the process was extremely gruesome, but I had no idea it was this bad. Mom went through it so she could be with our father, but she never talked about the experience with us. I have to wonder if Dad watched. And if he had, how was it possible he hadn’t lost his mind? I don’t think I have the same sorrowful glint in my eyes as Dante and Sam do, but I’m having a hard time watching a stranger go through the process.
Red’s body begins to shimmer. Finally, she changes. The crying and whimpering ceases. The sudden silence is so thick it’s almost unbearable. A small grey and white wolf lies all curled up on the floor. Her muzzle is hidden under her paws. For a minute, no one speaks. When the newly transformed wolf raises her head, the air is sucked out of my lungs. It feels like my entire world has tilted off its axis. Everything besides the female wolf in front of me goes out of focus.
Then, she attacks me.
Chapter 5
Red
I blink my eyes open, not understanding what’s going on. For starters, there’s something terribly wrong with my vision. The colors around me are muted, faded. I also don’t recognize the place I’m in. The last thing I remember was being attacked by a wolf.
I try to lift my arm to touch my shoulder, but catch a glimpse of a furry paw. The scream I release sounds like an animal whine, and I jump back.
What the hell is going on?
It feels like I’m stuck in someone else’s—something else’s—head. My heartbeat increases as panic sets in. Keep calm, Red. Just take a deep breath and think. I was in a forest before, and now I’m in a room of sorts. Maybe someone heard my scream and saved me from the wolf, but now I’m alone. I can see a bed and a nightstand, but from my point of view, it seems impossibly high. Why am I on the floor? I try to call out to whoever rescued me, but I can’t form words. Again, I hear the animal whine instead. Is it coming from me?
Freaking out now, I backpedal, bumping into something. A lamp falls to my right, shattering completely. A few shards land on top of my—what the fuck—paws? And is that the tip of a white tail? I must be hallucinating; it’s the only explanation.
The door bursts open, and three very large men come into the room, filling the small space. I immediately recognize Samuel Wolfe, the lead singer of The Howlers, but I have no clue who the other two are.
My heart thunders inside of my chest, and there’s a rushing in my ears. I step back until I hit the corner of the room. Why am I so terrified? Nothing is making any sense. Without meaning to, I snarl. It’s like there’s a different will inside my head besides my own. A foreign presence that’s savage and wild.
Samuel takes a step forward with an outstretched hand, but I snap at him in warning. No, not me—the beast occupying my head.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he says, but the wild presence refuses to believe him.
Looking beyond him, I notice they left the
door wide open. I can make a run for it, which is what the beast wants. But if I do, I’ll never find out what’s going on. Slowly, my reasoning begins to crumble under the wild influence. My body tenses as it prepares to bolt. It’s like it has a will of its own.
Then, I’m assaulted by flashes of another place, scenes that don’t make any sense. I’m in a lab, and there are several men wearing white doctor coats. Their faces are covered by masks as they stare down at me. Fear and rage are all there is, and then unmeasurable pain.
I drop to the floor and howl while my body feels like it’s splitting in two. My skin burns as if it were doused with acid, and liquid fire courses through my veins. If I still had my voice, I would be begging for death.
Strong arms hold me, and then a soothing voice tells me everything will be okay. The beast rebels, but there’s no strength left in my body, or the beast’s body. I can’t tell which is which anymore.
“Don’t fight the wolf, Red. Become one with the wolf,” the voice says.
I have no desire to become one with anything, but the voice is so compelling, so peaceful, that I find it hard to resist. Slowly, my heartbeat slows until I can no longer feel it jamming like mad inside the confines of my chest.
“I want you to take deep breaths and focus. Feel the wolf’s power in you.”
Feel the wolf’s power? What is he saying? Am I a wolf? That’s insane. A hazy memory comes to the forefront of my mind. A wolf in the woods turning into Samuel Wolfe. Did that really happen? Maybe there is no one holding me. Maybe the voice I’m hearing is the doctor’s in the hospital where I’m a patient. I’m having some kind of psychotic reaction to my attack, and my mind can’t cope. Yes. That’s it. Knowing I’m not really a wolf and that I’m safe in a hospital room finally allows me to relax.
I focus on my breathing. When the voice tells me to see myself as human again, I follow along. I picture each individual part of my body, starting with my toes, then my feet, up my legs, and so on, until I actually feel whole again. When I open my eyes, the colors have returned to normal. I can see clearly now. The problem is that I’m not in a hospital room, and there isn’t a doctor anywhere.