Wolfen Domination

by Celeste Anwar

  Jesse wouldn’t have suggested it, though, if he’d thought they would be in danger.

  Moving away from the bodies of the techs, Erin quickly unfastened her shirt and pushed the cup of her bra down, guiding the baby to her breast.

  He snorted as he finally found what he’d been looking for, grabbing it and tugging on it for all he was worth. Such happiness filled Erin she thought for several moments that she wouldn’t be able to contain it. The urge to laugh was nearly overwhelming. She muffled the sound, which erupted as a little snort that was almost her undoing.

  Cuddling the baby close, she covered her mouth with one hand.

  Hysteria.

  He was so adorable, though.

  Ignoring the sounds of mass destruction she was only vaguely aware of anyway, of muffled cries and screams and crashing, Erin carefully examined the baby while he ate, lifting his foot where the needle had been to kiss it. When she lifted her head again, she saw that Joshua had opened his eyes to look at her questioningly--as if he was wondering what the hell she was doing hanging over him while he was trying to eat.

  She bit her lip to keep from chuckling.

  He looked just like Jesse when he glared at her.

  As if the thought had summoned him, Jesse appeared in the doorway at that moment. “Time to go,” he said shortly.

  Nodding, Erin tugged her nipple from the baby’s mouth. The moment she did, he set up a wail of displeasure. She looked at Jesse a little helplessly.

  “He’s as hard headed as his mother, I see,” he murmured wryly. “He’ll have to eat on the run, though. We’ve got trouble heading our way.”

  A shockwave of fear rolled over Erin. Lifting her head, she heard the distant sound of gunfire and realized she’d been hearing sporadic fire for several minutes. Tightening her hold on the baby, she rushed from the room and down the corridor. Joshua lost his grip and began to complain again, but Erin doubted his weak cries were loud enough to filter very far.

  Jesse grabbed her when she headed toward the elevator, guiding her toward the stairwell instead. When he’d opened the door and examined the area from top to bottom, he swept Erin and Joshua into his arms and started pounding down the stairs. Alarmed at the rate of descent, Erin clutched at Jesse with her free hand. “I can run,” she finally managed to say.

  “I can run faster,” Jesse retorted.

  “You can’t shoot and run with us in your arms,” Erin shot back at him.

  He ignored that. Someone burst through the door on the next level down as they neared it. Before the guard could bring his weapon up, Jesse slammed into the door with his shoulder. The man flew backward, uttering a horrible gagging noise as he was crushed between the metal door and its frame.

  Erin shrieked as Jesse leapt over the railing. The impact when they landed on the landing below gave her whiplash. A headache blossomed behind her eyes almost instantly. Worriedly, she glanced down at the baby, but he seemed to have been cushioned from the controlled fall. His eyes were wide and curious when she leaned back to look at him. Relieved, she cuddled him against her chest again, cupping the back of his head to protect him from jarring injury as Jessie leapt over the next railing, sailing downward to the level below.

  When they landed jarringly, Jesse’s hand was cupped firmly against her head that time, protecting her as she protected the baby.

  The storage level, Erin was relieved to see, was still empty of threat.

  Setting Erin on her feet, Jesse dropped the vinyl bag he’d been carrying, jerked the zipper open and rifled through the contents until he’d unearthed a flashlight. The bag contained electronics of some sort, Erin saw, but she was still more in the dark than enlightened.

  Looking up at her, Jesse lifted the flashlight. “Go down to the cavern and wait for me there.”

  “You’re not coming?” Erin gasped, fear surging through her all over again.

  “I need five minutes… ten at the most with one of their terminals to plant a virus to destroy the data they’ve collected. Just be careful. I don’t think they’ve had time to send anyone to the cavern, but we can’t be sure of anything. Move quietly, quickly, and carefully. If you hear anything, anything at all, turn around and head back this way. We’ll be right behind you.”

  Erin nodded shakily. She wanted to argue with him, but she knew it was worse than useless. He wouldn’t listen and all she would be doing would be adding to the danger by delaying him.

  He grabbed her shoulders before she could leave, jerking her to him and hugging her and the baby briefly. Erin stumbled back when he released her almost as abruptly, staring up at him. “Jesse, I….” She stopped, licking her lips nervously, but she couldn’t bring herself to say what she wanted to. “We need you. Don’t take any unnecessary chances.”

  Nodding, Jesse hefted the bag and headed back toward the stairs.

  Erin watched him until he’d disappeared, hoping it wouldn’t be the last time she ever saw him. Resolutely, she turned when he’d vanished from her sight and rushed across the wide cavern toward the opening. She paused when she reached it, holding her breath to listen. When she heard nothing, she flicked the flashlight on and began the long trek down, pausing every few minutes to listen.

  Dismay filled Erin when she reached the cavern at last. The water had risen until it was lapping over the ledge where they’d come ashore and the dingy was no where in sight.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Joshua began to fuss as Erin paced the ledge that was growing narrower every moment, it seemed, as the water continued to rise.

  They weren’t going to make it. There was no way to get out. Soon, if the tide didn’t begin to turn, she would have to retreat back up the passageway.

  Stifling the urge to give in to despair, Eric gave the baby her other breast, stroking him soothingly while he fed. Within moments, he’d fallen asleep. Holding him awkwardly with one arm, Erin adjusted her clothing, then settled him against her shoulder and commenced to pacing again, trying to think of some alternative other than simply returning and allowing them to be captured.

  There wasn’t an alternative and she knew it. This was the only way out, unless Jesse and the others killed everyone in the facility.

  She was tempted to march back and demand that he wipe them out so that she could take her baby home.

  She wasn’t an idiot or some weak minded female! She was intelligent. She was a scientist! She was accustomed to making her own decisions.

  She’d never had to make a decision for anyone else, though, particularly not a helpless baby.

  If not for Joshua, she could swim out.

  But what would be the point if she couldn’t take him?

  She’d wondered if it was right to risk his life to save him, but she no longer had any doubts. If they hadn’t come, he would not have lived much longer. She was his only hope. She had to think of something!

  Erin had already started back up the passage with no clear objective in her mind when she heard the sounds of men coming toward her. Panic instantly gripped her and she whirled and raced back to the cavern, looking wildly around for a place to hide.

  There was no place to hide.

  Rushing to the lantern, which was still lit, Erin blew the flame out and crouched against the cave wall furthest from the passage, curling into as tiny a ball as she could manage.

  “Chère?”

  “Jesse?” Erin gasped, surging up, but afraid to move when she couldn’t see her hand in front of her face. In a moment she felt the warmth of his nearness.

  “We have to go. The men are back from the assault on the compound.”

  “We can’t get out! The cave entrance is completely under water … and the dingy floated away.”

  Jesse was silent for several moments. She felt him move slightly away from her, heard the splash and clank as he dropped the bag onto the ledge and poured the contents out. “Give him to me.”

  “You can’t put him in the bag!” Erin exclaimed, horrified at the very idea.

&n
bsp; “It’ll protect him while we swim out.”

  “It’ll leak.”

  Uttering a sound of impatience, Jesse disappeared for a moment. A light came on and Erin saw that he’d settled a flashlight on an outcropping of rock to illuminate the area. Bending down, he filled the bag with water and lifted it. Erin stared at the bag blankly, but she realized after a moment that the water wasn’t pouring out of it. If it would hold water, it would hold the water out.

  She didn’t like the idea of putting Joshua in a wet bag, but she hardly had a choice.

  After pouring the water out and shaking as much moisture from it as he could, Jesse set the bag on the rocky ledge again and dove into the water. His head surfaced a moment later. At the far side of the cavern, he caught the loose dingy and towed it back.

  When he reached the ledge again, he met the gaze of the Lycans, who were waiting for orders, and jerked his head in the direction of the cave entrance. Almost as one, they dove in and headed for the mouth of the cave, disappearing when they neared it.

  “We’re not going to be able to get the dingy out,” Erin said, placing the baby in the bag and leaning down to set the bag carefully in the bottom of the dingy.

  “Let me worry about that.”

  Erin slid into the water, gasping sharply in surprise to discover that it was colder than she’d expected. Together, she and Jesse guided the dingy across the small pool.

  “How well do you swim?”

  “Well enough,” Erin said grimly.

  “Well enough to carry the baby?”

  She nodded jerkily, trying to fight down the terror that was threatening to consume her. Jesse lifted the bag from the dingy, closed the zipper tightly and handed it to her. “I’ll meet you on the other side.”

  Erin clutched the handle of the bag in a death grip, summoning the courage to dive with her baby inside of it. Finally, feeling vaguely nauseated from her fear, she pulled the bag close, sucked in several deep breaths and dove. The bag, filled with air, was very nearly ripped from her grasp. Erin found herself fighting the current and the bag as she struggled blindly through the opening. It seemed to take forever. Her lungs felt like they were on fire by the time she managed to surface on the other side.

  The moon was nearing the far horizon, but there was still enough light for her to see well enough to move away from the entrance. That, too, was a struggle, for the current was flowing strongly into the cave, as if the cave was sucking the water inside.

  Her teeth were chattering by the time the dingy popped through the opening. Relieved, Erin rushed to catch it before it could be dashed against the rocks. When Jesse surfaced, he had to pry the bag from her fingers and lift it into the boat. Grabbing her as soon as he’d settled the bag, Jesse lifted her up until she could slip into the dingy behind the baby. With shaking fingers, she jerked at the zipper, struggling and finally managing to open the bag wide enough to see Joshua. An indignant threat of a cry greeted her and Erin felt like melting with relief.

  She discovered when she’d scooped him from the bag that he was wet all over and shivering, whether because he was cold or frightened she wasn’t certain, but she pulled him close, trying to convey her own warmth when she had little to give.

  He was very unhappy about his situation. Small wonder when he’d been sleeping peacefully and then found himself jostled awake and thoroughly drenched. Erin bounced him a little frantically, stroking his back and uttering soothing noises to try to quiet him, but he continued to fret.

  She glanced at Jesse a little helplessly as he surged upward and rolled into the dingy with them. “Lay down in the bottom of the boat,” Jesse whispered harshly.

  It was filled with water by now, but Erin didn’t argue, knowing Jesse wouldn’t have ordered her to do it if he hadn’t had good reason to do so. She’d scarcely landed when she heard the report of a gun across the water. Something hit the water within a yard of the boat.

  “Fuck!” Jesse growled, diving forward and nearly crushing Erin and the baby beneath him. She heard a meaty thud. Jesse grunted, his body jerking. Two more thuds followed in rapid succession and then seemed to move past them, slapping into the water around them.

  It dawned on Erin after moments of shocked disbelief that Jesse had shielded her and the baby with his own body. After a moment, he levered himself up and looked around. Apparently deciding they were out of range, he rolled out of the boat and began towing it.

  Panic set her heart to racing harder than ever before. “Jesse! Get out the water! You’re bleeding.”

  “If I don’t put some distance between us and the island, I’ll have more holes in me,” he growled.

  “The blood will draw sharks!” Erin cried.

  “Quiet!”

  Erin bit her lip, but as fearful as she was for Jesse, she didn’t want to draw the Feds to them. Noticing the baby had grown quiet, she peered down at him. Apparently, he didn’t mind being in the water, he just didn’t like being wet and exposed to the wind. Shifting to the edge of the raft, she began stroking the water with one arm, steadying the baby with her other hand.

  The shooting stopped. She could hear shouts wafting across the water.

  The sound of a motor, and then two different motors filled the air and grew louder. Erin glanced behind them. She saw nothing, but she heard the boat. The Feds were after them and it wasn’t going to take them long to catch up.

  She paddled faster, trying to ignore the sense of hopelessness that gnawed at her.

  Abruptly, gunfire erupted again. She dove into the bottom of the boat, covering Joshua with her body. The sounds grew louder, revving engines and splashing water vying with the report of gunfire.

  They were sitting ducks in the dingy. Erin was just contemplating whether they would be better off in the water when she realized the gunfire and the sound of engines were coming from two different directions. Lifting up slightly, she saw the Juliette heading straight for them.

  Joy and relief filled her until she looked behind them and saw the Federal boat closing in on them.

  It was hard to say which was closer, but she began to wonder if they were going to be run down by both boats.

  Abruptly, an explosion rent the air and a ball of fire and smoke flashed, lighting the sea around them like daylight.

  * * * *

  The moment Erin’s feet settled on the deck of the Juliette, she clutched the squalling baby tightly and headed for the stairs. He’d been screaming almost nonstop since the Lycans had blown the Federal boat out the water and she was terrified that he’d somehow been hit by a piece of flying debris. When she reached the cabin she shared with Jesse, she settled the baby on the bed and quickly stripped his wet clothing off.

  She collapsed, weak with relief when she saw no sign of an injury.

  The explosion had simply terrified the baby. As far as that went, it had terrified her. She’d been certain, at first, that it was the Juliette that had gone up, their last hope of rescue. She could hardly believe they’d managed to pull it off.

  Erin soothed the baby. His crying began to subside almost as soon as she’d removed the wet clothing.

  Standing shakily, she struggled out of her own wet clothes and left the baby long enough to grab something to dry off with. She’d just tucked the towel around her when the door to the cabin was flung open with a force that cracked the wall behind it when it slammed into it.

  Jesse stood in the doorway, swaying slightly. He’d shifted into his man form for the first time since they’d fled the panther clan’s compound and didn’t have so much as a stitch of clothing to cover him. Blood coated him liberally, dripping from the fingers of one hand and running down one thigh.

  “Is he alright?”

  “I think the explosion scared him.”

  Jesse nodded and shame filled Erin as she stared at him. He was bleeding all over from the bullets he’d taken to protect her and Joshua and she’d scarcely given him a thought as she raced down with the baby.

  Even now it was hard
to ignore the call of motherhood and leave the baby crying to see after Jesse, but she resolutely dismissed the baby and surged toward Jesse, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Let me see to your wounds.”

  He shook his head. “They’ll close. I just need to rest.”

  His words were slurring and he leaned more heavily against her with each step. She barely managed to stagger across the room with him before he collapsed like a felled tree face down on the bed.

  Joshua let out a yelp when the impact bounced him, his little arms flailing frantically. Erin made a dive for him as he came down again, gathering him close, but the incident had scared him all over again. She walked the floor with him until she’d calmed him and then settled him carefully on the bed beside Jesse.

  He was still far from happy, but she thought he would be alright while she examined Jesse. Regardless, Joshua’s distress wore on her as she examined Jesse’s wounds, distracting her. Gritting her teeth, she tried to block out the fussing and ignore the urge to coddle him, knowing Jesse had lost so much blood he needed her attention far more at the moment.

  If he’d been human, she doubted he would ever have made it as far as he had without collapsing. She found two deep wounds and three superficial wounds that were nevertheless bleeding profusely.

  Leaping to her feet, she rushed from the room to search for medicine and bandages. The cabinet in the bathroom was well stocked with just about everything. Grabbing a cloth and some disinfectant, she headed back into the bedroom to bathe Jesse’s wounds so that she could see them better.

  He was Lycan, she reminded herself, trying to dismiss the anxiety eating at her. His body healed itself rapidly--unless the bullets they’d used had been silver and she doubted that had been regular issue even considering the purpose of the island facility.

  They’d gone to assault what they’d expected to be a Lycan stronghold though.

  She gnawed her lip worriedly, but she knew she couldn’t take the chance that the bullets were silver and would slowly poison him, draining the strength he needed to heal himself.