by Eddie Jakes
Maddix couldn't find anything that would tell him where he was or what direction he was heading. His constant migraine had thrown off his equilibrium, and he was lost. Up ahead was a small shop with a picture of a coffee cup on the front. A cup of coffee would have been a godsend at that moment, but he knew he didn't have any kind of currency to pay for it. Someone inside would be able to give him directions, he surmised, and started walking toward the establishment.
A man with a familiar face stepped out of the shop before Maddix could get close enough to the door. He was a large, imposing man, with a black leather jacket and pants. Maddix took a few steps to get a closer look at the man's face and almost lost his breath when he realized who he was seeing.
It’s William!
His hair was neatly groomed and pulled back into a slick looking ponytail, but it was definitely him. They had been premature in assuming Roberts had killed him during the breakout.
Maddix slowed his stride and waited to see if William noticed him. After stopping to adjust the sleeves on his flashy jacket, he started walking down the side of what Maddix deduced was an old abandoned textile mill.
Deep inside, Maddix knew that it was a bad idea to follow William and risk exposing himself. They were in no position to fight, and once the others knew they had made it out of the prison it would be all over for them. However, something else inside Maddix was filling him with rage. Seeing William with his fancy clothes and pretty hair angered him in a way he wasn't used to. The brutality in which they betrayed Tanya and ripped her to pieces was too much for him to ignore. He should at least follow him and see if he could lead him to the others. They needed that information.
Maddix made sure to stay at least twenty-five to thirty feet from William. He kept a slow, steady strut toward wherever with his hands in his pockets. He was too far, but it almost sounded like William was whistling while he walked. Another reason to hate the psychotic wolf as far as Maddix was concerned. The arrogant ass of a man was oblivious to everything and was carrying on like it was any other carefree afternoon in the park. Maddix was itching to put bullets into his back but kept his calm while he followed him.
William approached the corner of the mill and took a moment to check both sides before turning left out of sight. Maddix, fearing to lose him, made a sprint but stopped short of the corner to take a quick look and wait. He was met by the angry scowl of William, who grabbed him by the coat, yanked him off the ground, and slammed him hard against the wall of the mill.
"Well I'll be fucked," said William. "So the overseer is alive. Figured the zombies gobbled you up. Where's your friends?"
"D-dead," stuttered Maddix.
"Bullshit."
William slammed him into the wall again. Maddix's eyes rolled back into his head from the impact.
"It's just me, I swear it."
"Don't fucking lie to me," screamed William while swinging Maddix around and tossing him through a boarded-up window of the Mill.
The pain from the fall stunned Maddix for a few seconds, but his fight-or-flight went into overdrive, and he was able to pull himself up. William had already jumped into the mill with fangs showing and his snout extending from his face. His transformation was quick, and he ripped his clothes to shreds in seconds.
"That was my favorite jacket, Benbrook! Now I'm going to do what I've been dreaming of my whole life … I'm going to eat your heart out and spit it into your face!"
Maddix drew his gun and fired three quick shots, but William was too fast and dodged them all. The game was different now. This was a well-calculated and agile killing machine, and when he broke it all down in his head, Maddix was an amateur. He knew he had to play it smart.
"Hide and seek then? Come and get it!" shouted Maddix.
The mill was full of machines and stacks of empty pallets and spools. Finding a place to hide was easy, but William would get the jump on him before he could get off a surprise shot. Nothing seemed to work, yet Maddix kept on the move. Even though he was tired, the intensity of the situation kept him moving from machine to pallets to spools to closets. Each time William would bust through only for Maddix to start the cycle over again.
"You can't keep this up, Benbrook! I can go all day and night."
He was right. Maddix could barely catch his breath behind a large loom. He wouldn't be able to out-last a werewolf no matter how smart he was. He was stronger, faster, and his senses were acute in all regards.
William entered Maddix's field of vision, stalking the area and sniffing the air. He gripped his pistol, ready for a last stand, but noticed something strange … William seemed confused about the air. He was distracted by something and couldn't pin-point Maddix's location.
"Come out, Overseer! I'll make it quick."
Something was up. William’s taunts felt desperate somehow. Maddix looked around and noticed some leaking barrels across near the loom he was hiding behind. They were some kind of lubricant, and they masked his scent from William.
He can be tricked, Maddix thought.
He looked around quickly to find the perfect spot to lay a trap. Just a few feet away from the cans and machinery was an office with a huge window overlooking the entire mill. It was completely isolated and too small for a big wolf to maneuver. It was perfect, but he needed some way to bait him. The smell of cedar gave him the answer.
Maddix took off Shepard's coat and rushed over to the office, kicking the door in. He tossed the coat inside and ran out of sight near the cans of smelly lubricant. Maddix watched as William turned to face the commotion and sniffed the air again. After flashing his dripping fangs, he leapt into a fast paced run.
There was no way to tell which direction William was headed, but he was prepared to fight until the very end. Seven feet from Maddix he jumped into the air and through the window into the office. Maddix could hear him growling and scratching like a rabid dog on a piece of fresh meat.
Not wasting any time, Maddix ran for the window and watched as the werewolf destroyed Shepard's coat.
"Thought you could hide from me, Overseer? Should have just shot me in the back when you had a chance!"
"That's just wrong," stated Maddix.
William stopped clawing the coat and turned to see Maddix's gun aimed directly in front of him. Three shots blasted from the barrel, putting bullets into his chest and neck. He howled in pain, but Maddix continued to fire at the monster until every shell in his gun expelled from the chamber.
"A real friend would never shoot you in the back."
The fur on William's body began to recede, and his face returned back to human form. He looked at his bloody chest and tears started to pour from his eyes. He was in pain and scared. He was dying.
"No," he whimpered.
Walking through the door, he watched as William sat on his knees. There was blood squirting from his neck and onto the floor. Feeling the rage again, Maddix reached out and jammed his thumb into William’s neck. He had stopped the bleeding, but William was feeling pain like he had never before and screamed for him to stop.
"You don't get to die yet, asshole!" Maddix snapped.
"Please, everything hurts."
"Where are the others prisoners?"
"I don't know! Fuck! I'm dying!"
"It's a little late for that. What did you say earlier … I'll make it quick? Tell me!"
"We separated. The vampires—"
"Where?"
"I can't breathe … fuck—"
William’s body went rigid. Maddix became furious and threw his head against the floor hard. Straddling the dying werewolf’s chest, he began to punch his face into the tiled floor.
"No, you don't! You don't get to die yet!"
There was no response from William, only blood. After massacring his face, Maddix got a hold of himself and looked down at his bloodied hands.
What happened? There was a wave of anger in him he had never felt before; a repressed rage that suddenly manifested itself to take revenge on a single victim.
Guilty or not, it was cruel and out of character for him.
Maddix got up off of William’s chest and leaned against a wall, trying to catch his breath. He stared at the carnage on the floor with shock.
Who the hell am I becoming? Who the hell was I before? Something inside him told him that he really didn't want to know.
CHAPTER NINE
Maybe it was the nostalgia of endless nights at the Eternal Moon pub back in Malevolent, or maybe werewolves just loved to drink, but Krazek could always find the bulk of them at some seedy bar in town. They seemed drawn to the rough and tumble crowd where there was always a fight to be had and plenty of cheap beer. Werewolves were such low-class creatures in Krazek's opinion. No class, no style, and no manners, but that wasn't to say they didn't have their admirable traits.
Krazek found their sense of loyalty and leadership structure intriguing. Most of it was plucked right out of the animal kingdom, with a mix of gladiatorial competition. Those with the drive to lead the pack must have others to support them, and then any opposition would have to be eliminated in a fight to the death. Primitive maybe, but Krazek applauded its efficiency.
After entering the bar, Krazek took note of how much he stuck out with his current style of dress. There were a few laughs and some comments thrown his way by some of the regular patrons. Maybe it was a bad idea just to walk amongst the lower class in his upper crust clothing, but it was too late now. Besides, he enjoyed the new modern day fashions. He looked good in them, and they gave him new levels of access he’d never had dressed in ritual robes and uncomfortable cloaks.
"What are you doing here, Wizard?"
Krazek turned to see Jurgen standing next to him holding a large glass mug filled to the rim with beer. Jurgen was an average looking man with small but sculpted physique. Like most of the other werewolf he had taken a liking to the leather-clad biker look. He waited patiently for Krazek's response before taking a long swig of his beer.
"I'm here to see William. Where is he?"
"Dunno, he never showed up tonight. Probably found himself a human bitch for the night."
Krazek put his finger up to his mouth and then motioned for them to go to the corner of the bar away from the regular crowd. Grabbing a couple chairs, they sat at a small round table near some pool tables.
"So why are you here?"
"The Statsnys asked me to check on you and see if you lacked any resources."
"Bullshit. Why you really here?"
Krazek smiled. "Astute as always. I'm here to make sure that your people are still staying out of sight until we fix our little problem."
"You mean the bloodsuckers’ problem?"
"We are all in this together. That was the bargain we made with Himmelreich in exchange for our freedom. We all must make some sacrifices for the bigger plan."
Jurgen grunted his displeasure.
"I know this is not something you are all accustomed to, but in the long run, it will be better for us to exist as a society rather than hunters and predators. Why simply feed on mankind when you can own them? Rule them?"
"One giant paradise, eh?"
"Precisely. It will be impossible to do if we cannot help the vampires feed. They have certain talents that we will need to penetrate society's infrastructure."
Jurgen shook his head in disgust.
"Tell me, Wizard, aren't you selling out your kind? Doesn't that bother you in the slightest? Or are you that much of an evil bastard?"
Krazek's pleasant demeanor changed. His face was serious, and he stared at Jurgen with an intensity that caused him to squirm in his seat. Krazek leaned in closer to whisper, "If these people were worth even an ounce of the flesh their pitiful souls occupy, then they would still be minuscule in my shadow. These pathetic automatons are not my kind, and neither are you. Never forget that."
Jurgen didn't intimidate easily, but he knew that he was outclassed by the magic user. Krazek could eliminate him with the blink of his eye, and even if he didn't kill him, he was certainly capable of causing him great pain.
Jurgen held his hands up. "No reason to start something here."
Krazek's smile returned.
"Of course not. So where is your esteemed alpha dog?"
"I don't know," Jurgen replied with a scowl on his face. "He went into town for breakfast, and I haven't seen him since. Discovered he has a fondness for glazed pastries."
"You don't say?"
"Weird, isn't it? I can't eat that shit without puking my guts out. Some wolves have iron stomachs."
"I need to know the situation with the other packs. The last thing we need is for all of you to get yourselves into a civil war when we are so close to a solution."
"All of Tanya's old pack are on board. It's the situation with Eric's that is the problem."
Krazek knew the situation well. No one counted on the possibility that one of the infected werewolves could turn someone in the prison. It was an unforeseen incident that ended up costing Eric his life and left his entire wolf clan without a leader. Werewolves were strong in their convictions, so the idea of combining packs was out of the question. Tanya's was smaller and gave little resistance when it came to choosing freedom over loyalty.
"Perhaps I could persuade them?" asked Krazek.
"No way," chuckled Jurgen. "You may be the most powerful wizard on Earth, but when it comes to the affairs of werewolves you aren't shit in their eyes. Besides, Eric's clan is not known for their nuance in issues of leadership."
"What has William said to you? How does he intend to unite you all?"
Jurgen took a large sip of his beer before responding. "There are a three candidates laying claim to Eric's clan. So far they haven't been interested in talking this out. There will be a fight, and the survivor will be the new pack leader. Once that happens they will do whatever they want because Eric is the one who made the bargain with the scientist."
"I'm hoping he has a plan?"
"Yes, he made them a counter proposal. He intends to fight all three of them for the right to lead all the werewolves as one united pack. They accepted."
Krazek folded his hands on the table in front of him. "They will unite and crush him before fighting themselves. That will give them all the control."
Jurgen nodded and finished his beer.
"It's a brave plan, but it's damned foolish. I wish William had come to us before engaging in certain suicide."
"We might have worse problems." Jurgen’s mouth hung open in shock.
"What do you mean?"
Jurgen pointed across the bar to the large screen television hanging on the wall. It was the afternoon news showing the scene of a recent murder. There were cops investigating and emergency personnel carrying a stretcher with a blood-soaked sheet covering a body. Peering through a corner was the severely beaten and bloodied face of William.
The two men rose from their small table and approached the bar. The newswoman spoke of a naked man shot several times in the neck and chest with blunt force trauma to the face. Jurgen gritted his teeth when the reporter described the victim as an unknown homeless man possibly killed in a drug deal gone wrong.
"Show some respect, you filthy bitch," said Jurgen to the television.
"Quiet, idiot!"
After looking around to see if any of the other werewolves saw the news story, Krazek pulled Jurgen to the side of the room and placed both of his hands on his shoulders. The intensity in his face returned.
"Listen to me," whispered Krazek. "Do not tell anyone about this."
"William is dead. The pack has to know."
"Say nothing! If the word gets out that the only living pack leader is dead, there will be chaos. Keep it quiet and wait for me to find out who did this."
"One of the humans … let me sink my fangs into his face!"
Krazek pushed Jurgen into the wall. "Use your brain for once. The news is saying he was shot, and silver bullets aren't standard issue."
Jurgen was still.
"That's
right," said Krazek. "Someone knew what William was and knew how to kill him."
"But, how?"
"I don't know. Just buy me enough time to find out."
Krazek released his grip on Jurgen and darted from the bar.
It was barely daylight by the time Maddix had reached Shepard's cabin. He was sitting on his porch smoking a pipe and sharpening his bayonet. Maddix was cold, and his muscles had gone numb from jogging through the woods in a panic. The fight with William had triggered something in his brain, and he couldn't stop the disturbing imagery that kept flashing from his memory. Thoughts of torture, death, and blood haunted him. He tried to get away from his own mind, but no matter how fast Maddix ran, he couldn't escape the reality. Maddix Benbrook was not the man he thought he was.
Quickly getting up, Shepard grabbed Maddix by his arms and attempted to calm him down. Maddix was breathing heavy and whimpering gibberish to himself. Shepard gave him a quick shake to bring him back to reality.
"What happened, boy? You're covered in blood."
"Blood? So much blood …"
"You're freezing out here. Come inside, I got some stew cooking."
Shepard guided Maddix into the cabin and sat him down closer to the fire where a black pot hung over the flames, before disappearing into a closer. The smell of venison reminded him of the prison, and his nerves began to settle. If only he could return to that carefree life and forget about everything he's learned. All those nights wondering about himself only to find out that he would prefer not to know the truth. He still didn't have a concrete explanation for his memories, but it was apparent to himself that none of it was good.
Javier walked into the cabin carrying a big bundle of wood for the fire. When he saw Maddix sitting on the floor, he stopped short and dropped the package. Being covered head-to-toe in blood probably wasn't the first thing Javier expected to see.