Council of Magic

by J. L. Hendricks

  All of those reports about naked people who were dazed and confused were most likely werewolves. We would use the news reports of those incidents to track down the humans and watch them when the next full moon arrived. If they shifted, we killed them.

  They were the one creature I loathed to kill. How could you expect a werewolf to be a good upstanding citizen when they had no reasoning or logic skills? Once a month they were uncontrollable monsters. Not because they did anything wrong or took a drug or asked to be changed. No, they were victims just as much as those they attacked.

  It had been months since the last werewolf in our area was killed. I suspected someone created this one on purpose. He, or she, was probably supposed to turn other humans and cause city-wide panic taking our focus off the vamps and onto the animal problem.

  They were animals. No question about it. When they shifted to their wolf form, they had no reasoning skills. No sense of right or wrong. All they wanted was human flesh. Or to fight for dominance. Which I supposed was what he was trying to do with me. My flesh wouldn’t taste good to a werewolf, and the bite wouldn’t harm me either.

  Sometimes, when there were multiple werewolves in a city they killed each other for dominance. It was like a group of wild dogs fighting for the role of alpha. They continued to fight until an alpha emerged victorious.

  “I want to wait for him to shift back to his human form and see if he knows anything about what happened to him. Also, I want to know where he’s from.” I rubbed my shoulder where he bit me.

  It would heal within a day. However, it didn’t mean it felt good. Even though his teeth were no longer in me, I still felt some pain from the bite.

  “Fine. What do you want to do with him in the meantime?” Ivan picked up the body and put it over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

  “I’ll call for a van. We can lock him up until morning when he shifts back. Thanks for your help...Sorry I lost my focus when you walked up and looked at me as though you wanted to kill me.”

  “Yeah, about that. I did want to kill you. I wouldn’t have though. You can protect Kat.”

  “Plus, you can find out why she can’t shift. She needs to shift if she’s going to help keep her family safe. I just wanted to let you know I understood. While I hate you, I also know you will be good for her. Better than I can ever be.” The body over Ivan’s shoulders began to stir so he dropped it on the ground face down. Ivan held the monster’s arms behind its back.

  “I promise you, I will do everything within my power to keep her safe. Finding out why she can’t shift is a priority for me as well.” I looked down at the poor sap on the ground and wondered what caused him to be in this situation.

  I pulled out my cell and called the team who should have been closest to my location. “Luke, where are you? Do you have a van? I need a pickup. I bagged a werewolf.”

  “Really? It’s been months since we cleaned up NOLA. Where’d it come from?” In the background I heard Jose ask who was on the phone.

  Luke pulled the phone away from his ear. “It’s Damien. He’s got a werewolf. We need to go pick him up.”

  “Do you need help disposing of the body?” Luke asked when he put the phone back to his ear.

  “No, I want to take this one alive. We need answers to some questions. He, or she, is currently unconscious. Hurry and get here. Do you have the chains in the van still?”

  We usually kept chains in the back of the van. Sometimes we needed to subdue vampires. It was rare we tried to keep werewolves alive. The chains should work on them as well.

  “Sure do. We’ll be right there. Nothing’s going on tonight. It’s pretty quiet. Eerily quiet actually.” Luke hung up, and I thought about what he said.

  “Ivan, have you seen the vamps out tonight recruiting acolytes?” If none were out, this was a sure sign they were behind this.

  “Now that you mention it, I have only seen one out tonight. She seemed to be in a hurry to get away from me. Which isn’t too uncommon. Most of the newer vamps fear their queen and know to stay away from me.”

  “Normally, we see at least a dozen vamps. Sometimes they just go to clubs to enjoy the music and alcohol. Usually, they are out trying to recruit volunteers. Something isn’t right.” I took a closer look at the werewolf and wondered who it was.

  I looked up when I heard a vehicle approaching. Luke. Perfect timing.

  “You have this under control so I’m heading out. Just know, I’m watching. If you hurt her, or lose focus and something happens to her, I’ll kill you.” Before I could say anything, Ivan turned and ghosted away.

  If we weren’t mortal enemies, I would probably like him. As it was, we had a tentative truce, which is good enough for me. Should something happen to Kat on my watch, I thoroughly expected Ivan to make good on his threat. Not that I wanted to have to face off against a vampire who’s older than this country. It’s just good to know he’s only looking out for Kat’s safety.

  If the roles were reversed, I doubted I would be as gracious as he was. There’s something to be said for living so long. I suppose you learn to curb your anger a bit and how to get along with those you don’t like, as long as your interests are aligned.

  I have no doubt he would not have made a truce with my pack if he was a full member of his vampire community. Add in our protection of Kat and her sisters, and we have to get along. If not for the sake of our home town, at least, for those four women.

  Kat might have agreed to go out with me, but I’m not a dummy. She still had feelings for Ivan, and he obviously was in love with her. Or as much as a vampire can love.

  Can someone without a beating heart feel true love?

  11

  Damien

  “Ooowwww, ow, ow, owwwwwww.” The werewolf woke up in the van on our way back to my compound. From the sounds coming out of its mouth, it wasn’t happy at all.

  “Can someone please shut that mutt up? He’s going to get every dog and natural wolf in the county barking and howling.” Luke shook his head and stared back over his shoulder at our prisoner.

  “We need to start stocking muzzles designed for werewolves if we are going to begin capturing instead of killing them,” Jose replied.

  Normally, we killed them onsite. I was taking a chance with capturing this monster and bringing it back to my pack, my family.

  I only hoped it didn’t break loose of its chains. A werewolf unchained inside a pack of wolf shifters was a disaster waiting to happen. We had a number of pups who wouldn’t be able to protect themselves. Not to mention all of our non-combatants.

  Not all of our pack were fighters. Most trained at some point, but a lot chose to do other jobs within the pack. Cooking, teaching, building or maintaining our compound, were all valuable roles which didn’t require regular combat training. It might be a good idea to start requiring regular training for all members, no matter the job…or age.

  The elderly were another story. I couldn’t expect them to fight any more. They had done their share. Some gave up more than we ever had a right to ask.

  Our elders were revered. They served our pack like a human soldier would serve their country. However, we treated our elders with much more respect than the humans did their soldiers. Especially the injured.

  A human veteran was usually forgotten and neglected. Their medical treatment was some of the worst in our nation, sadly.

  A shifter elder was revered. If he, or she, had an injury which wouldn’t heal on its own, we did everything we could to help. When there was nothing we could do, we made sure they lived comfortably.

  It was my responsibility to ensure all members of my pack were protected, including those too young, or too old, to protect themselves. I was taking a huge risk with bringing this werewolf back home.

  The risk would be worth it, if we were able to figure out how this person was transformed. Something in my gut told me it was done on purpose.

  I had been so lost in my own thoughts, I neglected to message my alpha about t
he situation. This was the second time on one night I wasn’t paying attention.

  As we pulled up to the main building, Rico was standing in front with his fists on his hips. His eyes were laser-focused on the van, and probably on me. I knew I’d be getting an earful as soon as the werewolf was secure.

  Once the van came to a stop in front of Rico, I jumped out. “Rico, I guess someone texted you about our guest?” I felt like an absolute, incompetent fool.

  My mistake was something a pup would do. Never bring an enemy soldier into our camp without first telling our commander about it, and getting his permission.

  “Jose texted me. I was waiting for you to call me with an update. Was there an issue? Did it break loose of its chains on the way here?” Fantastic, Rico was already in a foul mood. I wouldn’t doubt it if he reamed me a new one right here in front of everyone.

  We don’t normally have prisoners, so a jail cell isn’t something we have on hand. When we want to bring an enemy back for questioning, we have to create a cell to hold whatever type of creature it is. Vamps won’t survive if light hits them, so we need something without windows. The structure also needs to be extremely tough so they can’t get out at night.

  Shifters are usually kept inside of an empty shipping container we have onsite. Vamps too. Sometimes we actually use the thing for storage. Imagine that.

  “Sorry, boss. I’ve been stuck in my own head trying to piece this all together. Something is wrong. I have a really bad feeling in my gut. No one saw any vamps in town tonight. Ivan said he saw one female vampire who was in a hurry to leave.” It had to be the werewolf.

  I would bet big money the vampire queen found a werewolf elsewhere and brought it back here to create a diversion for us.

  “Jose told me earlier. Take your prisoner to the shipping container. It should be strong enough to hold him until dawn. I want you and four others to stay up guarding it the rest of the night. Get more to help if you need rest, just don’t let there be anything less than five fighters guarding the monster.” Rico turned to head back inside.

  He looked back over his shoulder. “Oh, Damien. Once you have a watch set, come see me.”

  “Yes, boss.” He was saving my punishment for private. It was worse than I thought.

  “Joseph, can you help me round up a few fighters right now? I think we are going to need more help to get this beast inside the container.” I noticed him standing off to the side of Rico.

  “Sure thing. There’s a bunch inside playing Call of Duty. I’ll grab them.” Joseph chuckled when he turned around and headed inside.

  I wasn’t sure if he was laughing at me for the trouble I was in, or the fact we had so many grown men playing children’s video games at all hours of the night.

  “Let’s head over to the container, make sure it’s empty before anyone else gets there.” I hopped into the van and kept my eye on the werewolf as we made our way through the compound to the backside where we kept the twenty-foot long container.

  “Well, looks like we have our work cut out for us tonight.” Inside the container were at least twenty boxes and several pieces of furniture. None of it could stay inside if we put the beast in it. It would destroy everything.

  “Let’s get it all outside. Once the werewolf is secure inside the container, we can load up the van and take all the stuff to the main building for storage until tomorrow.” Jose stepped out of the van and walked to the unit.

  Once everything was outside, ten wolf shifters showed up. I would swear they waited until we had everything unloaded before joining us. This was one of the many reasons I should have called Rico. He could have had the guys unload and situate all of the junk before we arrived.

  “Listen up. We need to get this werewolf inside the shipping container. It’s been very agitated, waiting for a chance to break free. Keep an eye on it as we move it. Remember, our young and elderly are here. They can’t defend against this type of monster.” With trepidation, I walked to the back of the van.

  After I released a deep breath, I opened the back door. The monster had been tied to the side of the van. I wondered why it was so quiet. Now I knew.

  He pushed me back out of his way and jumped out. All of my guys were waiting. They had a secure perimeter set around the back of the van. This monster wasn’t getting away. It did still have the shackles on its wrists. Somehow, it had been able to loosen or eat away at the rope we used to tie him to the van walls.

  The werewolf was standing tall in the middle of the half-circle. I was directly behind him. Knowing I wouldn’t hear the end of my mistake, I thought about how best to get him subdued.

  Instead of howling, it growled and plowed into Luke. Luke pushed the beast back and punched him hard in the snout. It stepped back with a small whimper. Then it lunged at Scott, one of our younger fighters. When the werewolf sunk its fangs into Scott’s shoulder, the rest of the warriors attacked it.

  Scott would heal, it would just take a couple of days.

  Each of my trained fighters began punching and kicking the werewolf in all of the known sensitive areas. I got in a couple of kidney shots, which would have crippled a human. This werewolf wasn’t brand new. There was no way a brand new wolf could withstand this level of beating and still be standing.

  It took three of us to get it on the ground, face first, and hog tie it. There was no other way to make sure it wouldn’t get loose again before dawn.

  “Let’s get this beast inside the container and lock it up before he breaks loose again.” I couldn’t believe the strength of this monster.

  Something was really off here. Most werewolves didn’t last more than a few months before they were killed. Each month they got stronger and stronger. This monster had to be at least six months old, if not older. How did it last so long? Was it being controlled by the vampires? Or someone else?

  “I have to tell Rico what’s going on. Jose, grab four guys and keep a strong perimeter. If it gets loose again, do whatever you have to in order to subdue it. At this point, killing it now isn’t out of the question, but it is a last resort.” Once the guard had been set, I high-tailed it to find Rico.

  “Boss, the werewolf is stronger than any I have come across before. It must be at least six months old, if not more. What’s going on here?” I took a seat in Rico’s office and ran a hand through my hair.

  “We won’t know until it’s human again. Although, I would put my money on the vamps. Probably the group who’s going to try and attack the vampire queen.” The chair Rico was sitting in squeaked when he turned around to look out the window behind his desk.

  It had an obstructed view of the area where the werewolf was being kept. Outside his large picture frame window was a meadow with purple and blue wildflowers. There were also tall trees surrounding one side of the field. Just beyond the storage crate was the edge of our property.

  The swamp claimed most of the area behind us, which served as a natural barrier. Most people wouldn’t try attacking us from the swamp since alligators loved to roam those waters. Not to mention other dangerous swamp creatures.

  “I think your decision to bring it back was correct.” Rico paused before continuing. “Next time, call me first. I want you out there at first light questioning him. As soon as possible, I will join you in the morning. Just be sure it doesn’t get out. If it does, kill it before he can get to any of our pack.”

  “Yes, boss. Is that all?” I started to stand and leave when he turned his chair around and smiled at me.

  I wasn’t expecting a smile from Rico. A scowl, yes. A smile? No way.

  Rico was examining my face closely.

  “What? Do I have mud on my face or something?” I felt a chill run down my spine and knew whatever was on his mind was going to make me uncomfortable. His smirk told me everything I needed to know…he was up to something.

  “Soooo, how was your evening?” One of Rico’s brows rose at the end of the sentence.

  Was he really going to ask about my date? Rico nev
er asked about them.

  “Fine. What’s going on?” For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what he was up to.

  “Nothing, I was just curious how things went with Kat. Was she there when you discovered the werewolf?”

  Oh, crap! He knows about Ivan. This wasn’t uncomfortable at all.

  “Nope, I had already dropped her off at home where she was safe, along with her sisters.” No need to tell him about my run in with Ivan. Unless he already knew.

  “Then, who helped you to capture the werewolf? I understand you had help before Jose showed up with the van.” Was that a twinkle in Rico’s eye? Was he enjoying this?

  I squirmed in my seat. It’s not that I didn’t want to share the details with Rico. It was more like I didn’t want to let Rico know Ivan pretty much laid down the law with me. It was a bit embarrassing and emasculating all at the same time.

  “Ivan crossed my path at about the same time the monster jumped out of the shadows. It was no big deal. I could have handled the beast on my own if I didn’t want to capture it.” I shrugged knowing I could have killed it if I wanted to. At least, it’s what I told myself.

  “How about we try a double date? I want to ask Jenna out but like you said, I’ve been put in the friend zone. I’m thinking she’ll be more open to me if you and Kat are with us. It would probably make her more comfortable, and it would be safer right now, too.” Rico shook his head.

  “Yeah, I was thinking about it too. The girls shouldn’t be alone anymore. We need to make sure they are more closely guarded when they leave their home.” I knew the magical wards would protect them from anything unwelcome trying to invade their house. Being out on the town was a whole other story.

  Rico stood up and walked to the door of his office. “Great, I’ll call Jenna and set it all up. You get back to watching our guest.”

  “Sure thing, boss.” I walked out wondering what I just got myself into. A double date with Rico and Jenna could be very awkward, especially if Jenna isn’t into it.