by Lee Taylor
“Aww. Good morning to you, too, princess!” Tessa spoke emphatically childlike, goading Lycaon on. She even leant forward and slapped her knees with a “who’s a good boy” gesture. She was clearly having too much fun. I suppose she had every right to. He did just attack her. The fact that she managed to incapacitate him in a single gesture that resembled a Plié was just the icing on the proverbial cake. Outraged with Tessa’s actions, Lycaon snapped his great jaws at her, and begun pacing in a predatory circle. I wished she would stop smiling; she didn’t seem to care what Lycaon was moaning about, and she just kept looking over to me, raising her eyebrows and looking toward Lycaon like we were having our own private joke... She was infectious... Not only that. She was dangerous.
“Ursine, change back now, and help me extinguish this foul demon.'“ Lycaon bellowed. Waves of hostility white washed the nearby vicinity. I blinked in disbelief, not at what Lycaon said, but the way that he said it. It was like a line taken from a great periodic drama. If only I paid attention to the film in the last day of school, maybe I could have placed it.
“Aww, what's wrong? Were you expecting me to stand still and become a chew toy? Or were you looking for a belly rub, you stupid dog?” Tessa said. Her dazzling, and yet disturbing smile had not gone. I stepped between them, not wanting more bloodshed.
“I am not going to attack her, Lycaon, she said she is here to help us, and besides-” I began to say before being interrupted with Lycaon’s outburst.
“Do as I say before this vile harpy destroys us!” Lycaon was hard to understand. He was speaking so low and gristly, like Michael Madsen after he had smoked a few cartons of cigarettes.
“Lycaon, she could have finished you when you were out for the count.” I said, attempting to reason with him.
“You really should listen to Winnie, or I am going to do some open air surgery on your genitals that would make you wish you were born a girl.” Tessa's face grew cold and hard for a moment; I guess it meant she was serious.
“By the way, Winnie, I said I am here for you. I couldn't care less about your friend the Lassie reject.” She finally stopped her defensive posture, flicking back a loose tendril of her hair that had strayed.
Lycaon looked pissed. Anger began to spark from within him, igniting his movements. He lunged for Tessa’s back when a sudden buzzing noise stopped him mid-stride. It was like a chainsaw the way it cut straight through the mood. Lycaon turned and launched himself at the bag he had been carrying. Shaking out his fur as he rapidly shifted back to his human state. A cloud of dust encompassed him. He walked from the smoke screen, with the opened handset and read the text message that it just received.
“It's Tristan; he wants to meet.” Lycaon shut the phone. “demon, we do not have time to continue our quarrel with you. Please leave us, there is much to do.”
Tessa had grown bored and was sitting, cuddling her knees and peering up at Lycaon. Her brows arched. Letting go of her legs she jumped back up to her feet, and brushed the dirt from her butt.
“I am going with you guys. I couldn't give a shit if you want me with you or not, dog face. I was ordered by my master to stick with Ursine. So until further notice, that's what I plan on doing. You can keep staying pissed at me, though, it’s delectable,” Tessa said, winking at Lycaon. She glided over beside me, “Well, haven't you been listening, Winnie? Sounds like we have a plan.” A smile broadened her face once again, and she twirled and vanished amongst the tree line. Lycaon didn't seem too pleased to have a demon tagging along on our ventures. Okay, that right there was a total understatement.
“I don't know what to do about her... if she's here to help us, then why not let her? Besides, I really would hate to see what she would do if she wanted to hurt us... I'm just saying.”
Lycaon was thumbing a response to Tristan. He paused, and grimaced.
My muscles were completely exhausted from all the action I had seen today; I hadn't had a chance to eat yet either. My stomach rumbled to emphasize my point. I hurried over to the bag and helped myself to a roll.
“So...” I said finishing a mouthful. “Where do you think she's gone?” I was interrupted by Intermittent honking of the Jeep's horn, cutting me slightly short, I gulped.
“I think your sadistic servant is getting impatient.” The words Lycaon spoke were acidic; I guess he was still a bit sore, undoubtedly in more ways than one, about her knocking him for six.
When we got back to the Jeep, Tessa had apparently finished the pleasant introductions and so threatened to dislocate my fingers if I tried to get her out of the front passenger seat. Apparently it was her first time in a motor vehicle. Not wanting to spoil the experience for her, I relinquished my seat... Besides, having my fingers dislocated sounded painful as hell… So, I guess that makes me a coward. I was kind of glad she hadn’t heard of the shotgun rule, given the gun in the car she could have easily misinterpreted it and blown my leg off…
Lycaon didn't seem to be bothered by her in his close proximity; he now seemed almost relaxed... That had alarm bells ringing to start with. I was concerned he was a different person on his exterior than he appeared to be all of two minutes earlier.
Tristan had asked for us to meet him at a motel about three hours from our location. He didn't seem like his normal, chatty self; maybe it was because he was talking to the barrel of fun that is Lycaon. I know I didn't feel like laughing and giggling; if anything, my life was getting more complicated... Why are all these people coming to me? I am like one big shit magnet. One of first I had seen was the telepathic body-controlling, mind-reading British girl, Kitty. Then there was Kaitlyn, the pack, and now this demonic “Tessa” who threatened to dislocate my legs whilst she choked me to death with my own nipples. I didn't want to press her for any details, but I am pretty sure she hates her freaking job, and that's me included. Seriously, Tessa makes Glenn Close's character, Alex Forrest in Fatal attraction, look like Snow White. I guess I would soon find out for sure if she meant to help, but for now I guess it's best to just let sleeping dogs lie.
Tessa seemed to love the driving experience, lounging in the front with her feet resting on the dash board. I wasn’t sure what to say to her; it felt like I was playing with fire, one minute, Tessa was warm, and the next she was scalding hot...
“We should be at Tristan's location in twenty minutes, depending on Tessa.” Lycaon said, finally breaking the silence with a proverbial ice-pick. And here I thought he was just imagining she wasn't with us. Tessa’s smug look quickly disappeared as she took her feet off the dash. Visibly fuming, she turned to face Lycaon.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean, you stupid—”
Lycaon threw a handful of powder in her face, and cut her off mid-sentence. She passed out instantly. It was like Lycaon had just flicked off a light switch. Her skin burned on contact with the substance. Blisters rapidly formed, her eyes rolled to the back of her head, and she slumped forward against the dash board, where her feet had recently vacated. A bump in the road that rocked the jeep made her slump to the side, propping herself against the passenger door.
Some of the powder landed on my lap; to say that I patted myself furiously would be a major understatement. I even cried out as I prepared to feel the burn take hold. Stubbornly refusing to look, I had all but convinced myself that I was in shock, and that was why I wasn’t in such intense pain.
“It's okay, Si, It's Turquoise. A crystal, or as it is also known: Hydrous copper aluminium phosphate. My ancestors sometimes used to keep it for protection against evil beings like the Witiko. I was hoping the demon fell into the same category.”
I was stunned, and not just at the possibly dead demon in the front seat, but also that apparently Lycaon was a BIG gambler.
“What did you that for? She said she was here to help-” I know I sounded like an idiot when I said it, but it was true. If we were going to be hitting the fan soon, wouldn’t it have been a great idea if we had help from someone who was tougher than possibly both
of us?
“And you believe her?” Lycaon guffawed at the apparent flawed logic of my sentiment... My god that guy was an asshole at times.
“Do not trust her; Tessa is not the type to help without a horrible cost.” He brought the Jeep to a stop.
Lycaon put his hand into the purse of crushed turquoise and propped Tessa's mouth open. I looked at her blistered face and felt sympathy for her; she didn’t deserve that kind of severe treatment to begin with. I made a heartfelt decision. In a blur I leant forward, reaching my arm between her seat and the door grasping its handle and opened it. Tessa was already leaning on the door fortunately; otherwise I probably wouldn’t have been able to get her out of the jeep before Lycaon finished her off. Tessa fell out listlessly, rolling down the grassy bank. Lycaon furiously cracked his knuckles, unclasping his seatbelt and started to exit the vehicle.
“Wait!” I cried. “We have to get to Tristan. We need to know if he knows where your sister or the others are.” I pleaded, hoping that Lycaon would spare Tessa. He paused; I was still between the seat and the open door.
“You do not know what you have done; it will heal in time and finish us like it intended to.” Lycaon spat; his voice mediated as he tried to contain his rage. His eyes flickered to an iridescent golden, like a cats eyes would light up with the flash of a headlight.
“Look, Lycaon, I believed her... I don’t know why, but I trust her. After all, if she wanted to kill us she could of at any time. You know how powerful she is.” I said. The truth was, I did trust her, and sure, she was as volatile as a stick of dynamite, but from my experience with girls... they can all be pretty scary.
“She just wanted the whole pack together so she could slaughter us all at once.”
I didn’t know what to say... With another aggravated huff of air, Lycaon put the SUV in gear and began to drive away, leaving Tessa lying motionless in a ditch.
I glanced back at where we had stopped as it continued to shrink in the distance. Images of her burnt face flickered through my head. I wasn’t happy leaving her there, but given the alternative, I was happy to take what I could get. I could only hope now that she wouldn’t come back to bite me in the butt. Saying that, I think that was more of a Lycanthropic trait...
“I hope you don’t think that you saved her. She inhaled enough to kill her slowly. If anything, you should have let me finish the job. It would have been the humane thing to do.” Lycaon said, sombrely. I guess he was trying to draw a response out of me, but I had nothing else to say to him. In my eyes, I had done the right thing, but if what Lycaon said was true, I wasn’t sure if I could forgive myself. I guess time would tell. I let out a grumble and sat back in the seat.
***
Lycaon and I didn't talk again until we pulled into the lot of the Ocean Motel. Tristan must’ve sensed us as soon as we parked; he popped his head out from one of the rooms. It was still daylight. A few clouds were scattered around the sky, birds flew overhead, bickering and squawking. When I initially saw Tristan, I was stunned.
He looked like a real wreck since the last time I had seen him. His eyes looked like they had faded straight into their sockets. Even his skin was a different shade, pasty and gaunt like he hadn’t managed to sleep properly in weeks, not the days that it had actually been. A film of sweat covered him. He resembled the junkies that I had seen, usually looking antsy, counting down the time until their next score. But what threw me off most wasn’t his appearance, it was the scent from him, it was bitter. The pine smell had gone, his hair was a wreck, my dad would use the expression “He looks like he's been dragged through a hedge backwards.” and that would be paying him a compliment. I couldn’t help but wonder and worry...
What the hell happened to him? As usual, my thoughts went unanswered.
Lycaon looked unsettled; clearly he was as shocked as I was. Sniffing the air Lycaon looked at Tristan. Almost submissively Tristan turned his head down, breaking eye contact.
'“Tristan, it is good to see you made it, where is Alastair and Jessica?” Lycaon asked, straight to business. I was glad to know he was just as ruthless full stop and not a particularly sadistic ass when it came to demon. Tristan gasped. His breathing was laboured.
“They... They’re gone... You should forget them... there were too many, and the witch... The witch, she... She was with them. With the Summers pack.” Tristan began to cry; tears of fear clouded his eyes, which only helped to put me more on edge. “We are all dead. We are so—” Lycaon swooped toward Tristan, cutting him off mid-sentence and picked him up off of the ground. Tristan’s face became more childlike; he was all dough eyed and quivering... desperately trying to avoid Lycaon’s locked gaze.
“Get yourself together, Tristan. Tell us what you know.” Even with Lycaon practically ringing Tristan’s neck, he looked completely lost. Tears streamed down his face; with a sickening smile, Tristan twisted and jerked, his eyes going blank. He started to hum a tune, and I could see Lycaon was trying to figure out what was wrong with Tristan as he held him suspended from the floor. Tristan nodded and whispered something, so Lycaon moved closer, straining to hear what was said, and as soon as Lycaon’s ear was near enough to Tristan’s lips, he tried to force himself forward, biting down on the air Lycaon had just populated. Without a second’s hesitation Lycaon flung Tristan across the room, denting the wall. The blow made him bounce off and hit the floor with a dull thud. Tristan rasped and wheezed for a moment as he lay there, a feeling I was all too familiar with. A penetrating mechanical screech caught our attention. Turning around, we saw that Damon had just pulled up with his crumpled car. Lycaon fell silent, a horrid feeling swelled in my gut, probably his, too. We turned back to Tristan, and to our dismay, a figure was leaning over him.
“Now that's no way to treat a friend. He didn't even get to show you his surprise!” Kaitlyn's voice chimed. Her lips were curved in a thick smile, and her heavy make-up overshadowed her eyes.
She was kitted out in dominatrix gear, making full use of her bodily curves with intermittent gaps like fleshy peep holes; I had to look around the room. To look directly at her might cause a Gorgon effect. Part of me might turn to stone...
Lycaon flinched; he didn't look impressed in the slightest, then again I am not surprised. The last time these two came head to head he was severely injured. I still don't know fully how Lycaon got out of that situation. Her next words broke my train of thought;
“You putrid animals and your ‘gifts’, I guess this time I should remove your spine completely?” She jested to Lycaon; his lips receded for a moment, revealing his teeth.
I could hear a scraping, gritting sound as he bit down in anger.
“Well, Ursine, are you going to come with me or do more people have to die?” Kaitlyn said. She sounded so relaxed about the subject; it was enough to send chills up my back, tickling my spine. The tingling stopped as soon as I heard Damon's footsteps approaching.
“What do you mean? Who’s died?” The words spilled from my mouth. I gave Kaitlyn a contemplative innocent look. The same kind of look I would give one of my teachers from school... Okay I didn’t fear them as much as I did that smoking-hot sociopath, but still. I tried to sound methodical, but anyone could tell I was shaken. She chuckled to herself, lifting her hand. Lycaon tensed, poising himself to begin with his transition.
Kaitlyn paused, slyly eyeing Lycaon. With a flash she pulled an athame that was being clipped in by her waist, slicing it across her hand. Lycaon erupted in a ball of molten heat, rolling forward; Lycaon was stopped in mid-air by what can only be described as sentient barbed wire… It appeared from nowhere, and eagerly wrapped around Lycaon first, as two others materialised for Tristan, and me.
“Don't move, Si, if you–” Lycaon was cut off as the crumpling sound of metal twisted around his throat. Tristan was wailing, jerking around in agony on the floor, and shredding himself in the process. With each twist it wound tighter, breaking the skin with the same ease as a hot knife through butter. Kaitlyn la
ughed, pleased with the scene in front of her, and a sadistic smile spread from ear to ear. She clapped her hands, proud of her own good work.
“Come on, Lycaon; don’t ruin the fun for me. I have a demonstration all lined up and everything… Now where was I? Oh yes… you asked me a question over who died… Let me think…” Her eyes gleamed with malice, and the air around her seamed to smoulder with a black influx. She was trying to get under my skin… Literally. The barbed wire was growing tighter.
“Come on, Ursine, aren't you going to ask who? Don't be so scared about the razor wire; it’s not real metal. It’s called an angel trap. I figured if it can stop those bird-brained, flappy idiots for the demons, why not see if it stops you mongrels.” Kaitlyn beamed another triumphant grin as she tilted her head to the side and attempted to read my expression.
“Well if you’re not going to play then I will just have to make you.” She clenched her hand for emphasis, and I could feel the wire around me contract, cutting through my clothes. I could smell my own blood as the wire broke through the skin. I would say that it hurt, but that was like saying getting wasabi in the eye was slightly annoying. My vision was becoming hazy; I could hear screaming echo through the ether. My dark passenger was not impressed with the situation that I was in. Mockingly, he whispered to me how if only I submitted to her will, she might let me live. The fucking coward; rage was enveloping me, and I was arguing with myself how I should deal with the pain. It was still increasing. I slumped to my knees, focussing on what I had been learning in the woods about changing, and the pain began to reside. I could feel myself beginning to glow internally, and all the switches I had been learning earlier with Lycaon became crystal clear. I focused on one rather grim thought that seemed to shut my dark passenger’s whiney pleading up. I was going to break free, and I was going to devour her. Our thoughts were becoming one. After all, we shared a common interest other than my body and mind. We wanted to live.