by C. J. Pinard
“Why are you hiding in here?” I asked.
She stared at me but said nothing.
“Answer me,” I demanded.
Her teeth dug into her full, cherry-red bottom lip in hesitation. Then she looked toward the door.
“Don’t think about it. Answer the question.”
“They… they told me to hide up here.”
“Who? The females downstairs?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No, the monsters. The male monsters.”
“They’re werewolves,” I replied. “You’re not?” I gave her a discreet sniff. Definitely not a wolf.
“I know. They keep me here. I’m not allowed to leave.”
I raised an eyebrow. “What the fuck… what do they keep you here for?”
Again with the lip-biting.
“Answer me!” I snapped.
She shook her head.
I don’t have time for this shit.
I holstered my weapon and picked her up by the waist, slinging her over my shoulder. She squealed and began kicking.
I carried her down the stairs and out the door, then planted her feet on the ground.
“No, you can’t take her! She belonged to James!” one of the least-hurt wolves called out.
I ignored him as I tossed her onto my bike. She tried to get off, but I grabbed her by the shoulders and stared into her eyes. “You will hold tight to me and stay on the bike until we reach the clubhouse. Do you understand?”
I felt her shoulders relax. “Yes, I understand.”
“Asshole!” the wolf called out as he watched me compel the girl into compliance.
I grinned at him and started up my bike.
Face and Shadow walked backward with their weapons trained on the downed wolves before using vampire speed to hop on their motorcycles.
We raced off into the warm Louisiana night at top speed.
Chapter 10
Look What The Vampire Dragged In
A snarl lifted my lip as I stared at Face. “Don’t you have women to take advantage of, or something?”
He ignored my dig and replied, “I’m just saying, you can’t keep her in that dog-stink cell. It’s not nice.”
I grunted. “Yes, because nice has always been my middle name.”
He chuckled. “No, it hasn’t, boss. Just FYI,” he replied before whispering in my ear, “apartment seven is vacant. Just sayin’.”
I didn’t appreciate his proximity to my person, so I reached out to slap his head, but he dodged out of my way. “Asshole,” I said to his retreating figure.
“I’ll be at Cobalt if you need me, your majesty.” He bowed before disappearing behind the door that led to the walkway between the clubhouse and the Cobalt Room.
I turned to look at the tiny human sitting in the cell. She again stared up at me with huge brown eyes full of fear and mistrust.
Folding my arms across my chest, I said, “You know, I have ways of making you talk.”
The slight lift of her chin in defiance did not go unnoticed by me. “So… what is your decision?” I asked.
She again stared at me. This level of frustration wasn’t something I had any patience or time for. If she didn’t talk soon, I would throw her out on her ass in the middle of the Quarter.
“Would you at least tell me your name?” I tried, lowering my voice to sound more friendly. Not sure if it worked.
The chewing of the lip again. Her gaze darted around the clubhouse, then went wide as she looked behind me. I smelled Venom before I heard him speak.
“Give the girl a break,” he said, his hot breath too close to my neck.
I turned around and stretched my arm toward him. “Arm’s length, dude. You know my rule.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he replied to me, but stared at the girl as he backed up a few steps.
The woman glared at me, then Venom. Finally, she spoke, “You’re one of them.”
We both darted our eyes toward her.
“One of who?” Venom took the words right out of my mouth.
“One of the monsters,” she replied.
He chuckled. “You’re not wrong. We are monsters. I’m just one of the good ones.”
She stood up in the cell and rushed toward the bars. Her tiny pale hands wrapped around the metal until her knuckles turned white. I found the V that formed between her brows cute. “There’s no such thing as a good monster.”
Biting back a smile, I asked, “Oh, and how do you know?”
She slowly dragged her angry-kitten gaze from Venom to me. “You’re a monster, too. I just don’t know what type. I heard Mama April talking about the other monsters, but she only called them leeches. You’re a monster leech.”
I couldn’t hide my smile anymore. “How do you know that?”
“You’re pale and you only come out at night. The pale ones. The leeches.” She tried to throw daggers at me with her gaze, but it only made her cuter. I loved feisty women.
“We’re vampires, sweetheart.” I’d been standing about six feet from her cage, but I advanced quickly toward the bars and was now inches from her face. She released the bars and scrabbled to the back of the cell with a frightened squeak.
“You’re a dick,” Venom said with a chuckle.
“I know,” I replied, staring at the girl.
“How… how did you do that?” she asked, eyes as wide as saucers.
I pointed at my chest. “Like I said, vampire. Name’s Viper. And you are?”
She glanced at Venom, then her eyes went wide again as she looked behind us. Shadow, Face, and Kovah’s scents drifted into my nose so I didn’t need to turn around to know they were backing me up.
“Are you going to suck out all my blood and kill me?” she asked, her bottom lip wobbling.
I regarded her carefully, staring at her intently. She seemed genuine in her concern, and I didn’t detect she was faking her fear. After a long, purposeful and uncomfortable pause, I said, “No, we wish you no harm. It’s why I removed you from that filthy wolves’ den.”
An annoyed growl from Venom met my response, but I ignored him.
“Wolves, yes. That’s what the monsters were,” she said, nodding her head, eyes still wide.
“Answer the question,” I said curtly.
“What… oh. Name is MyAnna Lawson.”
I looked back at my men and folded my arms across my chest. “Lawson. That’s the name of the pack leader and the wolf who died. James. James Lawson.”
Her teeth found her damn bottom lip again. The more she did that, the more it made my dick twitch behind my jeans. “Yes. James is my husband.” She cocked her head to the side. “Or, he was.”
I watched for a modicum of emotion to reflect in her face, but there was none. No tears, no glossy eyes, no crumpled countenance. Simply a plain face, as if she’d just told me what she’d had for breakfast this morning.
Huh.
I paced the floor of the Cobalt Room, my men flanking me as I’d called an emergency meeting with my lieutenants. It was 3 a.m., and all was quiet. I’d raked my hand through my hair too many times to where now it flopped into my face. “Since when do fuckin’ wolves take humans as mates?”
Venom swallowed a bite of banana. “It’s not that uncommon. A wolf mates with a human, we get a wolf child. As strong as two wolves mating. Our genes are very powerful.”
Resisting an eyeroll at his boastful statement, I said, “But she didn’t seem to give a rat’s ass that he was dead. None of you found that bizarre?”
Shadow chuckled. “I didn’t. Most of those rat bastards force those chicks to stay with them. She’s probably happy be to rid of the fucker.”
“Hey, that’s not always the case,” Venom shot back.
I looked at the only wolf in our club. “I know, man. It’s just strange she was mated to him but didn’t seem to care he was dead.”
“It’s possible they hadn’t actually mated yet,” Venom replied. “If they hadn’t consummated their union under the full moon
, it wasn’t an official marriage.”
My eyebrows hit my hairline. “You’re telling me, under the full moon, as he’s a damn wolf, they have to fuck like that? She’s human, so how does that work? Doggie style?”
Shadow wrinkled his nose. “That’s disgusting, man.”
Venom held up a hand. “No. Humans and wolves do it as humans right before he turns. We’re not savages, you dicks.”
“Coulda fooled me,” Shadow muttered, running his fingertips over his beard.
Venom reared back his arm and punched him in the face.
Shadow’s head rocked back at the assault, but he quickly swung back. Venom moved out of the way too quickly, though.
I rushed over and separated them. “If you two can’t get along, I’ll put you both in the fucking cells.” My gaze darted between my lieutenants. “You dig?”
They both nodded, their faces red, heat emanating off Venom. He always did have a temper—hence his name. He struck without notice and once he had his hooks in you, you would be permanently poisoned and ruined for life. It was part of the reason I let him into the Nighthawks. I had never dreamed of letting a wolf into the club, but he was so different from any other werewolf I’d ever met, so I’d taken a chance on him. The fact he was in his forties probably helped. His maturity level was higher than most wolves. Usually.
“So… what do we do with her?” Face asked, staring at the other two.
Kovah jutted a thumb over his shoulder. “I say just drive her to the Quarter and let her out. She’ll find her way.”
Cocking my head to the side, I said, “Find her way where? Back to the wolves’ den? What the fuck was she still doing there, anyway, with James being dead?”
“They were probably going to mate her up with another wolf,” Venom commented, tossing his banana peel into a nearby trash can.
“No,” I said. “Not no, but hell no. That’s not gonna happen. This girl is obviously young and got caught up in some wolf shit she didn’t need to be involved in. She even admitted that they wouldn’t allow her to leave. She was their prisoner. If I can get her to talk, I’ll find some place for her.”
“I agree,” Venom said. “They’ll just toss her to another wolf for mating. I can talk to her if you want. Maybe she’ll feel more comfortable around me.” He shrugged.
“Maybe,” I agreed. “But I want to talk to her first. I found her… rescued her. She has to trust me a little at least.”
Face took a swig from his beer and said, “Yeah, but it’s possible she views you as the enemy as well. Maybe she was comfortable in that house. You never know.”
“From the look in her eyes, I highly doubt it. She didn’t even seem to know all the names of the wolves living there,” I replied defensively.
Why was I being defensive?
“Well, the first thing you need to do is get her out of that cage and into more comfortable accommodations,” Face said. “I wouldn’t tell anyone shit if they had me locked up like a fuckin’ dog.” He looked at Venom. “No offense, man.”
Venom flipped him off. Both hands this time.
Guessed it was time I began to trust Venom during a full moon. He really didn’t turn into some savage feral beast that time of the month. Just chilled in the cell like a depressed canine.
Unlike half the human women I’d dated during their time of the month.
Chapter 11
Wherever I May Roam
Huntington Beach, California – 1987
I ran for what seemed like hours. I, invariably, found myself at the beach. The very same one I’d left two months earlier to head home to my apartment. No way had I known my life was going to change so drastically that day. I once thought the carefree life I lived was me “living the dream,” and in a way, it was.
Ignorance of the supernatural was definitely the way to live. Riding sweet waves during the day, partying at night, not a care in the world except making my rent was definitely the stress-free beach life. I knew the money my parents had left me was dwindling, even with the investments I’d made, but I told myself I would get a “real job” soon. I would find a career, go to college… do something with my life. But for now, while I was young, I was going to have fun and no regrets.
I longed for that time, because now, I wasn’t living a beach dream life, I was living in a dark and dismal nightmare. I sank my toes into the cold sand and put my head between my knees. Gripping my too-long hair, I rocked back and forth, wondering just what the hell I was going to do now. It wasn’t like I could just go into Andy’s bar and tell him what happened. I was sure my face was on the side of a milk carton by now—and maybe that was where it should stay.
I pulled my head up, staring at the foamy black-looking waves that rushed toward me and then receded into the vast Pacific under a partially full moon. I had every opportunity to disappear. I could just get up right now, hop a bus, and disappear.
Standing, I wiped the sand from my hands and shorts and scurried off the beach. I wasn’t sure if my roommate still had my shit in the apartment, but I did still have a key.
I stayed in the shadows as I made my way to the complex. I pulled the hood of my hoodie up and walked with my head down, glad it was dark so nobody could see the dried blood and shredded sleeves from Agnes’s nails on it. I fished the key to the apartment from the back pocket of my swim trunks and sagged in relief when the knob turned. I knew my roommate worked nights at a local dance club and was grateful the apartment was in darkness. I had no need to turn on any lights, as I could see just fine.
My room was just as I’d left it, save for a few things being moved around. I was sure someone had called the authorities at some point with me being gone so long. I quickly changed into a pair of black jeans, a black hoodie, and my black Converse. Grabbing a duffel bag from the top of my closet, I shoved everything I could fit inside it. Mostly clothes, a couple of pairs of shoes, my toothbrush and paste, the wad of cash from my sock drawer, and the framed photo of Mom and Dad. Nothing else would fit, nor did I care about anything else. It was all replaceable.
After sneaking out of the apartment and locking the door, I threw my old clothes into a nearby dumpster and took off into the night, heading toward the downtown Greyhound bus station in hopes of a fresh start.
I stared at the massive board in front of me. So many destinations to choose from and I had no idea where to go.
Dallas? Really hot. I think?
Denver? No, too cold.
Minneapolis? Too much snow.
New York City? Too crowded.
San Francisco? I contemplated that one. No, too expensive to live.
Seattle? Too much rain.
The rest of the places were a mystery to me. I had no idea what they were about because I’d never left California. The only thing I knew about any other parts of the country I had learned by watching television shows.
“What’s it gonna be, kid?” the grumpy attendant asked me.
“Florida,” I finally decided. Even though daytime surfing was out for me, I knew it was similar to California with tons of beaches, and I could at least still surf.
He rolled his eyes. “What city?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t care, as long as it has a beach.”
He chuckled this time. “They all have a beach, man.” He punched in numbers on some kind of machine and handed me a paper ticket reading Tampa, Florida. I looked at it, then him. “Bus leaves in thirty,” he commented.
I handed him two twenty-dollar bills with a thanks and went into the station to find the platform I’d need to board.
The bus ride was long and grueling. My dumb ass hadn’t thought about what I was going to do during the day, when the sun was out, and I spent most of the three-day bus ride hiding in the bathroom or with my jacket over my head, pretending to sleep in my seat. Stupidity on my part.
When I reached the bus depot in Tampa, I was thankful it was nighttime. The warm, humid air hit me like a smack to the face as I disembarked the bus.
I looked around, wondering where I would go next.
I never really felt any sort of fear. I felt more sadness than anything. I loved living in California and knew it would be a very long time before I would ever get to go back. Aside from Andy and my roommate, and maybe my employer at the surf shop, I was grateful nobody would miss me there. The thought was also kind of depressing, but at least my parents were at rest and wouldn’t be worried sick about my disappearance.
I found a cheap motel near the bus station and paid for a month in advance so I could have time to think about what the hell I was gonna do. Once inside my room, I shooed away the cockroaches and spent the entire night scrubbing the nasty place top to bottom. Once I was satisfied it was clean, I opened the curtains and stared out the window. Streetlamps were starting to go out to prepare for the morning, and the occasional car passed. Probably some dumb schmucks on their way to jobs they needed but hated.
That got me thinking. I needed a job, but more than that, I needed to eat. It had been almost four days since I’d snacked on some guy in the Greyhound station bathroom before boarding my bus and I was ridiculously weak. I was starting to get foggy brain and that would not be good, as I needed clarity.
The sun wasn’t up yet, but I wasn’t risking going outside, the memory of the sizzle on my foot Agnes and Sam had delivered still fresh in my mind. I wandered out of my room to the motel’s laundry facilities and saw a girl sitting reading a book while she waited for her clothes to wash.
“Hi,” I said.
She looked up from her book and said, “Hi,” then went back to it.
“Hey, so do you think you could show me how to work these machines? I’ve never used one before,” I lied. I used them all the time in the apartment complex back in Cali.
“Where’s your clothes?” she asked.
Shit. That was dumb of me.
“Uh, up in my room, I just wanted to make sure the machines worked before I lugged it all down here. You know.” I threw her my most charming grin. Then, I stared deep into her brown eyes, the same way Agnes had done to me the night she attacked me. I wasn’t sure if it would work but I had to try. I was famished.