Protecting Ally

by Tianna Xander

  Stealing a glance at her escort, Ally noticed his expression was still grim. Regardless of her more than average weight, Kalen carried her through the woods with no complaint, every step taking them closer and closer to her home.

  Even though she couldn’t believe the crazy doctor would bother with her, she watched as they approached, studying the area, and looking for anything out of the ordinary.

  There was nothing to give away anything untoward until she spotted the pristine set of gardening tools in a haphazard heap in Milly’s front yard. Frowning, she stiffened in Kalen’s arms.

  Leaving her things out was unlike the older woman. Usually fastidious with every aspect of her life, Milly never left anything undone. Just the year before, the tough older lady had even taken her large trash can to the street with a fractured knee. Nothing short of death would have caused her sweet neighbor to leave any of her garden implements laying out.

  “Something’s wrong.” She wriggled in Kalen’s arms, wanting him to put her down.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked with a groan.

  “Look, if I’m too heavy, put me down.” Geeze, the least he could do was let her stand on her own two feet before he started groaning about her weight.

  “You aren’t too heavy.” He winked at her before adding, “Do I look as though I’m straining to hold you? Do you see perspiration? Are the muscles in my neck bulging?”

  “Well... no.”

  “Then shut up about your weight. You’re perfect.”

  “Uh... I wasn’t fishing for compliments either.”

  Setting her down, he turned to face her. “I know that. I also know that whatever is wrong, you’re right. Something doesn’t smell quite right.”

  Ally took a deep breath. “I’m not sure I know what you mean.”

  “Something here reminds me of the motel. I’m not sure what. I only know it isn’t you.”

  “Oh.” Ally bit her lip and stared out at Milly’s house. “Whoever, or whatever is setting off your inner alarm has something to do with Milly.” She pointed to the right half of the yard in front of their duplex. “See that pile of gardening implements?” At his nod, she continued, “Milly leaves nothing like that undone. She would have loaded them in the wheelbarrow and put them away before going inside. Even if it was just to go to the bathroom. She would never have left them in the middle of her yard like that.”

  Kalen glanced at her, then back to the house. “If what you say is true, then the doctor’s men must have her. Let’s pray she’s still unharmed.”

  “She’d better be, Kalen. I swear to everything holy, if anyone has touched even one hair on her sweet, gray head, I’ll kill the bastards myself.”

  “I believe you. But what you must realize is that the people we are dealing with are cold-blooded killers. Don’t lose control of your temper and put yourself at risk.” Kalen toed off his shoes and removed his pack before reaching for the button on his jeans.

  “What are you doing?” Ally said with a hiss. “You can’t undress here. Someone will see you!”

  Turning to face her, Kalen rested his hands on her shoulders and stared deep into her eyes. His expression, while grim, also helped relax her a bit. How could he be so calm when he knew someone had invaded an old woman’s home and perhaps harmed her?

  “I fight better and heal faster in my wolf form, Ally.” He turned toward the empty yard, his focus on the house as he tried to hear what was going on inside the structure. “I can’t hear anything from inside, but that means nothing.” He turned back to face her. Just remember one thing. If I’m gravely injured as my wolf, I won’t be able to change back into my human form until I’ve healed. It’s some sort of safety measure. We can’t shift shape if we have a serious injury such as a broken bone, or a large open wound. You’ll have to take me to a safe house where I can receive medical attention from another were.”

  “Don’t worry. We’ll manage to get you there somehow even if I’m constantly changing into a damned wolf.” She placed her hand over her stomach as if that alone could hold off the inevitable change. “We’ll get you to safety if something happens to you. Just...” she paused and rested her hand on his upper arm. “Try not to get yourself killed, will you?”

  Ally watched nervously as Kalen changed and made his way toward Milly’s house. She didn’t know what she’d do if someone harmed her dear friend because of her. She also didn’t know what she would do if someone harmed Kalen. Why she felt that way was beyond her. All she knew was that she didn’t want him to get himself killed.

  What happened to her didn’t matter. Milly was an innocent in all of this and Kalen, well, he was just too... something to lose his life because of her.

  Ally settled down in the bushes across the street from her house and thanked goodness that the developer who had purchased the property hadn’t started clearing it yet. If he had, she wouldn’t have had a place to hide.

  She looked around, realizing that this time next year, this would be someone’s front lawn instead of the woods she rode her mountain bike through in the warmer months.

  A movement across the street caught her eye and she watched as Kalen, crawling on his belly, made his way to the duplex. He stayed to the brush, hiding amongst the bushes as he continued to crawl toward Milly’s backyard. Once he was there and out of her sight, Ally stuck her thumb in her mouth and bit her nail.

  What was he doing? She hoped he didn’t do something foolish like barge in and get himself shot.

  Do you think I’m stupid, or what, Ally? She felt his amusement through their mind link. Besides that, I didn’t know you cared.

  I don’t, you big jerk.

  He laughed then. She didn’t know how he did it while in his wolf form. It sounded just as she thought he would sound if he were in his human form.

  How do you do that?

  Do what?

  Never mind. I don’t care how you do it. The last thing she wanted was for him to think she was interested in him in any way. It didn’t matter that she was, she just didn’t want him to know it.

  I just do it, Ally. You have to remember, I grew up knowing I could do this. I learned to do a lot of the things I do before I can remember. Remember, for me, puberty was a long time ago.

  Oh. She didn’t know what to say to that. He didn’t have to be nice to her or answer any of her questions. After all, she was being somewhat of a jerk. There was no reason for him to explain anything or to risk his life for her friend the way he did. Yet he did it just the same. Thank you for checking on Milly. She paused for a moment. Do you see her yet? Is she okay?

  I see an older woman who looks like she’s in her mid-sixties or early seventies, maybe. She’s sitting on a chair tied up, and a little worse for wear, but she seems to be all right.

  Thank God!

  Thank someone. Kalen growled low in his throat. It looks like they plan to inject her with the serum.

  He cut her off after that. It was probably just as well. Talking to her would only distract him and he would need to keep on alert if he planned to save her friend.

  Ally wrapped her arms around her middle and smiled softly. Saving Milly was exactly what he planned to do, and she could almost love the big dope for that alone.

  Chapter Twelve

  Belly pressed against the grass Kalen crawled around the house looking for a way in that wouldn’t alert the doctor’s men to his presence. There didn’t seem to be one. Closing his eyes, he sighed and wondered if he’d ever catch a break when he finally saw his way in. He just hoped that Milly wouldn’t give him away.

  Making his way toward the garage, he stared at the too-small doggie door that would help him gain entrance. As much as he hated the idea of getting himself stuck in the damned thing, it was better than changing into his human form to enter the house.

  The men wouldn’t know she didn’t have a dog, and given his markings, he could almost pass for a Samoyed—only bigger. With a mental groan, he scrunched down and pushed his way through the
door he could have sworn had been made for a Cocker Spaniel, or maybe a Sheltie. Whatever kind of dog used it was definitely smaller than he was. But then all dogs were smaller than the wolves his people became. Wolf shifters were all larger than wolfhounds. For all he knew that door would fit a Great Dane perfectly.

  Finally, inside the garage, he looked around for the animal that used the door regularly and when he saw none, made his way to the inside entrance. It, too, had a doggie door, and he wondered if he could get away with using it as well.

  At some point, he would probably run into the animal it belonged to and then there would be hell to pay. He didn’t want to hurt Milly’s pet, but then again, he didn’t want the men to hurt Milly either. The last thing he wanted was to go to Ally and explain how these assholes had turned her best friend into a shifter—or worse yet, killed her in the attempt.

  His mind made up, Kalen forced his way through the second small door and into the house. Once inside, he followed the sound of voices to the entryway to the kitchen, belly to the floor. What he saw there made his blood run cold. Anger nearly overran his good sense. He barely stopped the snarl that almost escaped his throat as he watched the men laugh at the battered old woman.

  The two men stood near the sixty-something woman they had already beaten until both her eyes had almost swollen shut and blood trickled from her nose and the corner of her mouth.

  Never had he ever felt the urge to kill someone as strongly as he did now. The feelings were nearly overpowering, and he had a tough time controlling his wolf. Somehow, he knew Milly was the sweetest, most giving woman he would ever meet. Maybe that was Ally’s gentle influence in his mind.

  Crouching just outside the room, his muscles tensed as he prepared to pounce, his wolf ready to rend and tear vulnerable human flesh. Just before he attacked, Kalen realized the urge to kill these men was not his own. It was Ally’s.

  That she could connect with him this well when she was so newly turned was telling and he wanted to dismiss it, but knew he could not. Kalen immediately threw up barriers, effectively breaking their connection and Ally’s overwhelming desire to be the one to rip out the men’s throats.

  The last thing he wanted was for Ally to feel responsible for more deaths. She already felt remorse for Billy and Bobby, the degenerate moron twins.

  As a new were-being, it was normal for Ally to feel a bit bloodthirsty. It was an unfortunate by-product of the transition between human and animal. He knew this because Carly, Bastien’s mate, and the woman they had rescued from the lab, Cassie, both felt that way. After they learned to control their new urges, they’d felt horrible guilt.

  Their wolf sides only knew the need to protect itself and its kind. Their human sides found it difficult to live with the fact that they’d killed someone. Kalen didn’t want that guilt weighing on his Ally.

  With a sense of defeat, Kalen closed his eyes and came to terms with the fact that Ally truly was his mate. Ready or not, she was here now, and he knew that this could be his only chance. Finding a true mate was usually a once in a lifetime deal.

  Watching, Kalen waited for his chance to pounce. If he had his way, the men would split up and he would take them on one at a time, but he didn’t have time to wait. Milly Jenkins sat with her head down, looking like a broken woman.

  “Come on, Johnny, stick her already. We don’t got all day.” The taller of the two snarled at the man holding the syringe.

  “If you can do better, you go right ahead, Roger. I don’t like attacking old women.”

  Roger punched Johnny in the arm and grabbed the syringe. “Fine! If you won’t do it, I will.” The man drew back the syringe and Kalen attacked.

  Johnny picked just that moment to step to the side, effectively blocking Kalen’s attack. Instead of driving his teeth into Roger’s neck, Kalen hit Johnny in the back, knocking him into the table. It turned onto its side, sending a bag filled with sealed syringes flying into the air and Johnny fell to the floor, unconscious.

  Roger jammed the needle into Milly’s arm and depressed the plunger.

  Kalen shook his head, just before he pounced on Roger, his teeth sinking deep before he pulled and ripped out the other man’s throat.

  Johnny had apparently feigned unconsciousness. He stood abruptly and pulled a gun from the waistband at his back and aimed it at Kalen.

  Kalen wasted no time and lunged for his throat. The man barely had the time to look surprised before the wolf tore at the vulnerable flesh under his chin and ended his life.

  Milly sat in her chair, shaking with fear. “If you’re going to kill me, do it now. I can’t take another beating.”

  Her voice was low, weak. She sat in the chair, her head down and shoulders shaking. Kalen didn’t know if she cried or if she was just frightened beyond belief.

  Get in here and comfort your friend, Ally. I think she’s going into shock and she’s going to need your help. I wasn’t fast enough to stop them from injecting her.

  Oh, God!

  Kalen could feel her horror, her anguish that they hadn’t gotten to her friend in time. What surprised him was her not blaming him at all. Instead, she blamed herself.

  Why?

  He could hear her sobs, feel her pain as though it were his own, and he wanted nothing more than to find that damned doctor and end his miserable existence.

  Why would they inject Milly? What did she ever do to them? She’s not a young woman anymore. She can’t help give them their perfect army.

  I don’t know why, sweetheart, but they did it, nonetheless.

  Trying to keep the woman as calm as he could, Kalen sat back and waited for Ally to arrive to comfort the older woman. Maybe this would help her come to terms with her new state.

  After all, she might want to end her own life, but he was certain she would want her friend to do what she was so unwilling to do for herself. Perhaps the two women could help each other come to terms with what they had become.

  Ally came to the kitchen door and knocked. Kalen wanted to laugh. It seemed so strange for her to do something so normal.

  “Go away,” Milly mumbled. Kalen could see the telltale signs of her change already. Her brow was already damp from sweat as the serum burned its way through her veins.

  He frowned as the thought of Carly and Cassie who had said it had taken hours for the serum to work on them. Did it vary between victims or was the crazy doctor perfecting it and making his new batches work more efficiently?

  “It’s me, Milly,” Ally said as she cracked the door open a few inches. The color drained from her face, she put her hand over her mouth and gagged when she saw the dead bodies. Averting her eyes, she turned her attention onto her friend and tears ran down her cheeks.

  Kalen suppressed a groan. He hadn’t wanted Ally to see what he’d done, and she wouldn’t have if he only could have prevented the assholes from injecting Milly.

  Now that Ally was here to keep her friend from doing anything stupid, Kalen left the room so he could change and dress. The old woman had already been through enough, and the last thing he wanted to do was freak her out even more by shifting shape in front of her. If shifting didn’t give her a heart attack, no doubt seeing a naked man standing in her home would.

  When he returned to the kitchen, Milly looked up, her expression listless. “Thank you for killing those bastards.”

  “How—”

  Milly interrupted Ally. “I knew he was the wolf because the others turned into wolves in front of me. She shuddered at the memory. “They said...” Pausing, she let out a sob. “They said they were going to rape me after they turned me into one of them.” She laughed mirthlessly. “I don’t know why, but they were under the mistaken impression that they could still get me pregnant.” She shook her head. “I haven’t been able to have kids since my late forties. Menopause will do that to a woman.”

  Ally’s face blanched, and she turned her horrified eyes onto Kalen. “Do you think this will make her younger?”

  “Hell, if
I know.” Kalen shrugged. “Who knows what’s on that crazy doctor’s mind?” He looked toward the front door. “Do you have a car, Mrs. Jenkins?”

  “Yes.” Milly nodded and leaned forward so he could more easily untie her bonds. “Can we use it?”

  “Sure,” she said without hesitation then looked at Ally. “What happened to your car?”

  “The police impounded it.”

  “Impounded it?” Her eyes narrowed. “What did you do?”

  “I didn’t do anything, Milly. The same man who sent these guys here to your house injected me with that serum, too.”

  “Oh, no!” Then Milly frowned. “But that doesn’t explain why you don’t have your car.”

  “It does when I tell you what that serum does.” Ally sighed. “It turns you into a werewolf, Milly. It turns you into one of them.”

  “One of us,” Kalen interrupted, then went silent again.

  Ally shot him a glare through narrowed eyes and thinned her lips.

  “I know.”

  “You know? How can you know?” Shifting her attention, Ally stared down at the old woman.

  Kalen knelt in front of Milly and rested his hand on her arm. “You’re taking this rather well.”

  “Yes, well, when they told me what it would do, I called them crazy heroin addicts jonesing for a fix. That’s when the tall one showed me what that potion would do to me. After that, they beat the hell out of me.”

  Milly stretched and rubbed her raw wrists. “I can’t believe I lived seventy-two years without knowing about you people.” Standing, she brushed her fingers through her hair. “My face hurts like hell. I’d bet I look like hammered shit.” She kicked out at one of the bodies. “I’m glad you killed those assholes.”

  “Milly Jenkins!” Ally stared at the older woman, her eyes wide. “I’ve never heard such language from you before.”