The Midnight Effect

by Cassandra Curtis

  He would not go down without a fight.

  A bullet tore through the deputy's chest, spun him around like a marionette. Javier was close enough he heard Allison's scream.

  "Keep down!" he shouted at her.

  He raced past the truck and drove to the other side of the car. "Allison, open the door. I am here for you, querida."

  She reached across and popped the latch, then crawled out of the car. Glass cracked and shattered as the Dayshifters continued to pepper the car with bullets.

  "Can you get on the bike?"

  "Yes."

  "Hold on tight."

  "What about the deputy?"

  "He's dead. Nothing can be done for him now."

  She slid onto the bike and clutched his waist. He could feel the shudders wrack her body.

  "It's closer for us to continue on to town than to turn and go back. If they want us, they will have to catch us." He opened the throttle and roared from the protective cover of the sheriff's car. A quick glance in the side mirror showed that the pickup truck gained on him. "Hold on!"

  He accelerated, far beyond what was safe. He couldn't let himself worry about the fact that Allison was not wearing a helmet. That the men in the truck were trying to kill them. Just a little father and they'd reach his Tía Rosalinda's house. He prayed Sanchez was home, but that his aunt was not.

  He slowed to take a corner and hoped the truck following them would topple over the guardrail. The Dayshifters had stopped shooting, were probably reloading.

  "Are we going to die?"

  "Not if I can help it. We are going to my uncle's house," he yelled over his shoulder.

  The house sat just over the next rise. As they drew closer, he saw that neither his aunt nor uncle were home. He could try to make it in to San Ybella, lead their attackers directly to the police headquarters, and risk that the next time they aimed they would not miss. Or they could make a stand at his aunt's house. He pulled into the driveway, saw that neither his aunt nor Sanchez was home, and grabbed Allison's hand, half-dragging her in his haste as he unlocked the door with his spare key. The truck pulled behind them as they rushed into the house.

  "Go to the kitchen--call Sanchez. Tell him we are at his house under attack--shots fired! Go now!"

  * * * *

  She stumbled, then ran down a short hallway and spied a telephone, sitting on a nightstand. Her brain on automatic, she picked up the phone and dialed 911, then hung up. Stupid! You're in a foreign country! Then she remembered Javier had said to call his uncle. She started to reach for her purse to find the card with his number on it, and realized she'd left it on the backseat in the deputy's car. Javier would have to call him.

  She hurried back down the hallway to the living room...but saw something that stopped her cold.

  Javier lay slumped on the floor, blood seeping from his shoulder and leg. She had to do something. His eyelids flickered. "Silver...tell Sanchez...the bullets."

  "Oh God!" She knelt beside him and looked around for something to stop the flow of blood. Seeing nothing, she raised her arms and took off her top, ripping it into strips as best she could. She tied the cloth around his shoulder and thigh. Tears ran down her cheeks and splashed onto his hand.

  "Please hang on...I'm going to get help."

  Maybe if she could find the damn kitchen, she could find a number for Sanchez's office written down somewhere. She turned on her heel, ran back down the hall, and came face to face with someone very familiar.

  "Katarina? What are you doing here?"

  "You've been naughty, liebling."

  The other woman smiled. Something was different about her, not her hair or her clothes.... As Katarina drew closer, realization struck, but by then it was too late.

  Blinding pain tore at her neck. Katarina whispered in her ear, "Now you will be one of us."

  Her mind grew numb, fuzzy. She slid to the floor, eyes unfocused...she'd failed him. Her last thoughts were of Javier.

  * * * *

  Allison looked around dazed, saw the bar and the dance platform, and knew she was in a nightclub. One she'd been in before, judging by the décor. It came to her. El Lobizon.

  "Hello? Anyone here?" She struggled to move her arms. She realized someone had bound her hands securely behind her back.

  "Awake at last." Katarina appeared in an open doorway, a smile on her lips.

  "What are you?"

  "You really are clueless, aren't you?"

  "Vampire?" Even as she said it, she felt foolish. There were no such things as vampires.

  Male laughter joined Katarina's. It was the bartender from the nightclub. "Didn't you know? Vampires are a myth, a legend."

  He walked over to Allison, grabbed her chin, and turned her head to look at her neck. "Messy, love."

  She blinked, and tried to concentrate. The veins on her neck and throat burned. She jerked her head, loosening his grasp. "You can't keep me here forever," she said, her throat raw. She tried to swallow.

  "True. But then, we don't intend to. Just long enough for Kat's bite to infect you. Then you won't be a danger to us. On the contrary--you'll be one of us, a member of my pack. Just like Kat."

  "What are you talking about?" If she could keep him talking, maybe there would be time for Sanchez to find her...and find Javier. Oh God, Javier... She squeezed her eyes shut, but still could see his body on the floor, his blood everywhere. Hot tears trickled from the corners of her eyes. The pain in her heart was worse than anything she suffered from the bite.

  Katarina pulled up a chair and sat down across from her. "Mine was the real mission, not yours. But you managed to uncover one of the pack spying on the Nightbreed. Still, nothing worthy of concern. But then he came into the bar and told us you took pictures of him mid-shift. Until we are ready to let the world know of us, no one must suspect we exist."

  "Kat, you talk as if you aren't human. I've met your father more than once, and I know you."

  "Papa is human. I am more...like my mother. And so, too, will you be more. Very, very soon."

  The bartender placed a hand on Kat's shoulder, leaned forward to whisper in the German woman's ear. She nodded to him, and he left.

  "I once told you that you needed to get laid," Kat said. "I can smell the Nightbreeder's scent all over you. Was he any good?"

  "Fuck you."

  "Then I guess their stamina is a myth. You should thank me."

  "Why is that?"

  "Once you undergo the change, you will be a true wolf, a Dayshifter. Since it is not good for a lone female to be unmated in the pack, my mate, who is the alpha, will decide who takes you as mate. Dayshifters make excellent lovers." Katarina stroked the back of her fingers along the silky fabric of Allison's bra. "My mate and I will watch."

  "Dear God--you're crazy. Sanchez will find me. His deputies will storm in here and arrest all of you!" She shook, anger and fear fueling her struggle.

  Katarina removed her hand, laughing. "The handsome new capítan? He'll be too busy fighting the pull of the moon himself. Or didn't you know? It doesn't matter, by the time they find you it will be too late to stop the change, and you'll be one of us." She leaned forward and caressed Allison's cheek. "Tonight is the full moon, a time when all Nightbreeders born or changed succumb to the midnight effect, and show themselves to be monsters. I envy you. The first time is very special. You will begin to ache, all your senses heightened as you go into sudden, glorious heat. The night will not hinder your initiation. You will be one of us come morning."

  She watched Kat leave and wondered what she'd meant. Dayshifters? Nightbreeders? Was this some weird cult?

  Allison closed her eyes. Her head ached and her tongue felt fuzzy. She tried to rock the chair, tip it over, but succeeded only in hurting her shoulder. Why had Katarina called Javier a Nightbreeder?

  She felt arms come around her and lift her, chair and all, carrying her into a room in back of the nightclub. The man didn't appear winded. Unreal. That's it. She had to be caught in a twisted d
ream.

  "Why did you move me? What are you going to do with me?"

  The man set the chair down, then ran a finger between her breasts. "We have guests tonight. After we spray their blood on the walls, I'll come get you so you can join in our celebration." He leaned close and whispered in her ear, "if you've turned by then, I will ask the alpha for you as my mate."

  She jerked her head away. "And if I'm not turned?"

  "After we kill the Nightbreeders, we'll fuck you, then watch you die."

  She blinked back tears and gritted her teeth. "Not if they kill you first." She spit at his face.

  He stepped back and wiped the spittle from his cheek, then casually slapped her across the mouth. "I believe I will enjoy your screams the most." He shut the door as he left the room.

  She ignored the blood on her lip and instead picked at the bindings holding her captive, praying the capítan and his men found her soon.

  * * * *

  Sanchez eyed the wall clock. His deputy should have been back by now with the American girl, Allison Caufield. He needed to get her to confirm the man in his jail was in fact the man who'd attacked her. Something must have happened. But surely, Javier would call if something was wrong? He hoped his nephew enjoyed his night with the pretty American, and doubted it would be their last. Chemistry. The same he shared with his sweet wife.

  He yelled to one of his men to find out from dispatch if the deputy had called in yet. Tonight was the full moon, and many of his officers were antsy, the effect a slow crawl beneath their skin. Heightened senses built throughout the day, then released at night. The people of San Ybella knew what the full moon brought, and bolted themselves in their houses and prayed.

  In the past, the full moon had been an excuse for excess, and violent behavior. But since he'd moved to San Ybella, met Rosalinda and become her mate, the incidents had diminished. Part of that was due to his position as captain of the police. Still, though, it was a dangerous time. The Dayshifters would likely cause trouble.

  A knock at the door pulled him from his musings.

  "¿Sí?"

  "Deputy Jimenez called in over three hours ago to say he arrived at your nephew's sanctuary. He has not called in since."

  "Dammit! Take Hector with you, go to Coyote Mountain, and see what is keeping them."

  The man nodded and left his office, leaving Sanchez to wonder what could possibly have gone wrong. He took another look at his watch. Past lunchtime. Rosalinda would be angry. No doubt, she had his lunch ready and expected him home. He sighed, prepared for an ass-chewing from his spicy little wife.

  The phone rang. Ah, that will be her now.

  "Rosalinda, I am sorry. I know--" Sanchez stopped, trying to sort out her words from the crying. "Shh. Shh, what has happened, chiquita?"

  He listened, his knuckles white as he hung up the phone. He grabbed his jacket and whispered to one of his trusted deputies, "Javier's been shot. Notify our alpha." He told another to come with him and bring a kit.

  Minutes later, he pulled into his driveway and saw his nephew's motorcycle on its side, riddled with bullet holes. The house door was open. He spotted his wife holding Javier in her arms, rocking back and forth and crying.

  He reached her side and lifted her into his arms while the other man opened Javier's shirt and listened for a pulse. He filled a syringe with a purple fluid and injected it into Javier's neck.

  "He'll be okay. He lost some blood, but the serum will renew him. Good thing this happened on a full moon. His regenerative powers will be twice as strong."

  "Gracias." Rosalinda ran from his arms to hug the other man.

  "I will stay with them. Get a team out here to collect evidence."

  "Carlo, Dayshifters did this."

  "I know, Rosa, my angel, but we must be sure, and they must be brought to justice."

  * * * *

  Pain wracked his body. He opened his eyes and saw his aunt sponging cool water on his face and neck.

  "Javier! You are awake! Carlo, he is awake!"

  He bit back a groan as he righted himself. His clothes were torn...his arm and leg bandaged. "Where is Allison?"

  Sanchez walked over to him and patted him on his good arm. "I told Rosalinda you would be fine. But I am glad to be proved correct."

  "Where is she?"

  "We do not know. My men found the deputy I sent, out on the highway, dead."

  "We made it here. Chased...by Dayshifters. Shot...with silver bullets. Told her to call you, Sanchez. Call for help. I don't know...I passed out. They have her. Must find her, protect her."

  "It's okay, we'll find her. You need to rest."

  "I'll go with you."

  "You're still hurt, you'd slow us down."

  "No. I know her scent. I can track her. I have to go with you."

  "Javier, it is almost dusk. You will be unable to stop the change, whether you are inside hidden from its power and light, or not. Tonight, even your mountain cannot protect you from the effect."

  "Then I will use that to make me stronger." He kissed his aunt's cheek. "I love her, Tía Rosalinda. I have to find her."

  * * * *

  Javier stopped in front of El Lobizon. "As I suspected, she is in there. Her scent holds fear." When he'd followed Allison here that first night he'd seen her, he had abided by the so-called truce, the uneasy, territorial dividing line between their people. But no longer.

  His uncle told four of his men to go to the back. He and the other two would go through the front door with his nephew.

  Javier kicked open the door. The Dayshifter's alpha stood behind the bar, wiping down the counter.

  "We are not open tonight. Especially for your kind."

  Sanchez smiled. "Come now, are we not brothers, Werewolden?"

  "Werewolves? No, you and your kind are a virus. A left-over anomaly from the black plague."

  "And you, because you turn to full wolf in daylight, unaided by the moon, it makes your kind superior?" Javier growled, canines extended.

  "It's too late, you know," Katarina said as she stepped from the shadows.

  "What do you mean?"

  "I got hungry on the ride from your house, capítan. I'm afraid I bit her. Rather deep, too."

  "The American is part of my pack. And as pack business, you have no right to interfere." The Dayshifter alpha smiled back at Sanchez.

  "No!" Javier growled.

  "Ja. The change has already started, wolfman," Katarina laughed.

  "I will kill you, kill all of you!" Javier leapt, knocking the woman down.

  Her muzzle lengthened, her canines sharpened, and she snapped at him,.

  "I am just as powerful and I can control the change because my bloodline is pure." She launched herself at him, connected a well-aimed kick to his stomach, then flipped over his head and landed behind him on all fours in her pure wolf form.

  He gasped at the hit and twisted to meet her head-on.

  Katarina snapped at his legs. He grabbed a chair and swung. The blow landed on her ribs. She shook it off and snarled. Another Dayshifter in wolf form joined the attack. The animal rushed him, but he was ready for it, and planted his fist in its jaw, knocking it unconscious. He heard Sanchez's heavy breath as his uncle and the deputies fought the stream of Dayshifters surging past the dancing platform.

  "Is that all you have lobatos? I thought pure wolves were supposed to be stronger, better than us?" Javier taunted the woman.

  The she-wolf circled, waiting for an opening--one he didn't plan to give her. "I remember when your kind came here from Argentina. We felt sorry for you. Survivors of Nazi experiments. You played on our sympathy, Dayshifter. But really, you're no better than the Nazis. No--you are much worse!" He was getting to her. Good. It made her rash, clumsy.

  She jumped onto a table, pivoted, and leapt straight for his throat. He grabbed her around the neck and, using his strength, snapped the delicate bones. He released the Dayshifter queen. She fell to the floor, eyes dialated, her body twitching in ago
ny.

  Two shots rang out, and Javier saw one of the deputies stood near Katarina's lifeless body, his gun ready to fire again if needed.

  "Gracias." Javier glanced around the club.

  "I would not have them say we werewolves are without mercy."

  "Where is Sanchez? The others?"

  "He and the other deputies went after the alpha male. I was told to help you find the female hostage. But my change is near. I feel it."

  "Stay and keep the area secure. If she is here, I will find her. I only pray it is not too late."

  He ran through the hall behind the stage, zeroing in on her scent, opening doors, until he saw her in a dressing room tied to a chair lying on its side on the floor. She cried out for help, bucking in the chair, her eyes wide with fright. Her body fought the change.

  No! He ran into the hall, searching for a window. The jamb was stuck. He punched his fist through the glass, ignoring the cuts on his hand. The first glimmer of moonlight streamed into the room, bathing Javier's face with its glow. At once, the power fell upon him, forcing his body to shift. He drew back a snarl and ripped the ropes holding her into shreds. Allison shook, as heat from the bite at her neck spread through her. Soon, he must complete the change, and before she fell prey to Katarina's virus...or all was lost. His gut cramped and he doubled over, gritting his teeth against the pain of transformation.

  His woman whimpered and struggled free of the chair, then sank to her knees holding her sides as she rocked. It had started. She was becoming a Dayshifter. He knew of only one way to stop her from completing the cycle. But to do it meant he must mate with her in his altered form and bite her, claiming her once and for all as his. Instead of Dayshifter breed, she would become werewolf, like himself.

  She fought as he tore at her clothes and his own, until they were naked. Would she hate him once he'd taken her? Made her like him? Forced her to be his bonded mate?