by Cheree Alsop
Dara’s fingers brushed my shoulder. I felt her pull. My eyes flew open. I tried to stop her. My heart would kill her. I didn’t want to be the death of the girl I loved. My heart gave another hard beat and we both winced. I closed my eyes and felt her fall to my side. The sound of a door opening behind me was the last thing I heard.
Chapter Ten
“Stay outside.”
“But we’re his friends!” Vicken’s voice with filled with exasperation and fear.
“Werewolves aren’t friends with vampires and whatever she is.”
“She’s an empath.”
“Then she should know how much I hate you both.”
“She would if she were awake, but she fainted when she touched him!” The panic in the vampire’s voice beat against me, but I couldn’t open my eyes to see what was going on.
“An empath should know better than to touch someone with heart failure.”
“She loves him.”
Silence followed. The sound of their argument still bounced around painfully in my skull. I put my ears back, but it didn’t help.
“He’s probably dead.”
“Can you at least try?” Vicken pleaded. “I can’t lose them. They…they rescued me from the Maes.”
“Why on earth would a werewolf and an empath rescue a vampire? It doesn’t make any sense,” the gruff voice asked.
“Because we’re friends,” Vicken replied. I know I didn’t imagine the strain in his voice when he said, “Best friends. You’ve got to save them.”
Another moment of silence followed.
Finally, the gruff voice said, “Follow me.”
“I-I can’t carry them both.” The desperation in Vicken’s voice made it sound like he was close to tears.
“Give me the werewolf. You carry the girl.”
The sound of a massive door shutting was followed by footsteps that echoed as if in an empty hallway.
After a few seconds of walking, Vicken said, “You really should hire a decorator.”
“And you should shut your trap before I shut it for you,” the man who carried me growled.
I could almost feel how badly Vicken wanted to reply. It wasn’t like the vampire to keep quiet after a comment like that. It made me want to see the frustration on his face. I tried to force my eyes open. They obeyed just long enough for me to glimpse a black and gray marble floor, a pair of worn work boots, and Vicken’s black leather shoes that appeared to be in far worse condition than he ever allowed them to be at Haunted High. My eyes closed again of their own accord and my head spun at the effort.
“Here.”
“In here?” The disgust in Vicken’s voice was nearly palpable.
“Yes, in here,” the man snapped. “What? Do you think I have some sort of hospital wing I’m hiding away? That I always allow wretched kids in here to criticize my home? Do you want to leave?”
His last question hung in the air.
Vicken’s voice was somber when he said, “I’m sorry. I appreciate you letting us in here. Please don’t make us leave.”
It was the most apologetic I had ever heard the vampire. He must be truly worried. My heart gave a painful thump at the thought that I was the one causing his problems. The heartbeat sent a surge of pain through my chest and my body spasmed. I tried to curl inward in an attempt to stop the pain.
“What’s happening?” Vicken asked worriedly.
“It’s his heart,” the man replied. “It’s not beating evenly.”
“How do you know that?”
“I can hear it,” he answered gruffly. “It’s a werewolf thing.”
“So you are a werewolf!” the triumph in the vampire’s voice was edged with fear.
“Isn’t that why you brought him here?” the man asked drily.
“Yes, but I wasn’t sure I could find you.”
The man set me on a cold, hard surface.
“Where can I put Dara?”
“Over there,” the man directed. “Her pulse sounds steady. I don’t think she’s in the danger he is. Right now, she needs to sleep and I need your help with him.”
I heard items be shoved off a surface, and then Vicken’s familiar footsteps walked to the table.
“Is he, uh….” Vicken’s question faded away.
“Going to die?” the man replied gruffly. “I don’t know. His heart isn’t beating nearly enough to supply his brain. There could be damage if we don’t move quickly enough. What happened to him?”
“I-I don’t know,” Vicken replied. “He was caged by the Maes and they use these electric probes for training, but he was shot before, and he ran into my cage hard enough to loosen the bars so I could get out, but it took me so long because I had to wait until the coast was clear, and when I found him, he was surrounded by guards. Some of them had already shot him, and one had a gun to his head—”
“Alright, alright,” the man barked. “Shut up!”
I had never heard Vicken run on like that in my life. The fear that filled his voice made his words stammer. My heart clenched at the pain in his tone and the thought that I had caused it. My body started to shake. I couldn’t control it.
“What’s happening to him?” Vicken asked.
“I don’t know,” the man replied. “Get me that over there.”
“This?”
“No, that!”
My body shook so hard my teeth were rattling. I couldn’t draw in a full breath. I felt like I was suffocating.
Something pierced my skin. A yelp of pain escaped me, and then warmth flooded my body. The shaking slowed and then stopped. I was able to draw in a full breath. My muscles eased and my head settled back on the table.
“What was that?” Vicken asked.
“A sedative. His body is in shock. It could kill him with his heart the way it is.”
“But won’t a sedative affect his heart, too?” Vicken’s voice was tight when he asked, “Did you just kill him?”
“No,” the man replied, followed by an uncertain, “I hope not. For now, at least, his heartbeat is steady. It’s slower than it should be, but he’s alive. Our goal is to keep him that way until nightfall.”
My thoughts were getting fuzzy and sluggish. It was harder to follow their conversation.
“What happens at night?”
“The moon,” the man said in a tone that didn’t hide the fact that he thought Vicken was slow. I forced my mind to focus though the haze that filled it so I could hear him say, “Werewolves need the moon. I can amplify the effects with my mirrors and crystals, but until then, it’ll be touch and go.”
“I need to go back to the Maes headquarters,” I heard Vicken said through the strange rushing sound that filled my ears.
“You can’t leave me with them. If you do, I’ll throw them out on the street.”
“But they’ll die!” Vicken’s anguish words pushed into my fading mind.”
“Then you better stay and help me.” The last thing I heard was the man mutter, “Help from a vampire. The world has truly come to an end.”
It felt as though only seconds had passed before my eyes agreed to open again. I closed them quickly at the brilliant light that surrounded me. I strained my ears to hear if anyone was around, but by the sound of things, the only talking was coming from a different room. I opened my eyes slowly and waited for them to adjust to the brightness.
Glancing up, I saw dozens of mirrors aiming light down from a hole in the ceiling. It wasn’t a domed skylight or windows, there was an actual hole, and through it streamed moonlight that bounced off the angled mirrors to me. No wonder I felt so much stronger. Intermingled with the mirrors were crystals like those Dr. Six used to heal her patients quickly. Whoever this werewolf was, at least he was prepared.
I pushed up gingerly to a standing position and was pleased to find that the weakness was gone. Even though I was still in wolf form, I felt far more human than I had the day before. I could reason and my thoughts were at least in words instead of just images.
I took several deep, testing breaths. My heart beat regularly with only the faintest tremor. I stretched and felt the tightness of my muscles release. I felt better than I had since being shot by the first set of bullets.
I jumped down from the table and landed lightly on the floor. Away from the blinding light, I could see the reason for Vicken’s initial disgust. Leaves, even branches, and plenty of dust covered everything in the room. The cabinets in the corners were piled with newspapers, books, trinkets, and boxes that didn’t look as though they had been opened in years. At the far end of the room was a couch with a pile of freshly disturbed newspapers scattered around it. The couch and the table on which I had been lying were the only big pieces of furniture I could see.
I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. Following the motion, I spotted a small demon. My gaze moved from it to another, and another. Demons lounged on the clutter and debris. Fortunately, they didn’t appear the least bit interested in me. When I padded past them, they didn’t even blink, but the fire in the depths of their eyes made me move faster.
“But the physics don’t make any sense.”
The sound of Dara’s voice sent me wandering down the hall. The clutter from the first room continued, spilling out onto every available surface. Each corner was filled with stacks of newspapers, doorways were clutters with clippings of articles taped and pinned, and books of every size and shape were stacked down the middle of the hallway. And in each place, demons also sprawled as if they had been there for a while. It was unsettling. I had to squeeze my way past several stacks of demon-topped newspapers before I reached the source of the voices. The last stack, an impressively massive array of tomes that appeared to be older than the house, let off a cloud of dust that clung to my nose. I sneezed before I could stop myself.
“Finn?” Dara called.
Footsteps rushed across the floor. I fought back the urge to grin at the sight of my friends when they appeared in the doorway.
“Oh, Finn!” Dara exclaimed.
She fell to her knees and hugged me tight. I glanced up at Vicken. The vampire leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms with a pleased expression on his face.
“Good to see you up.”
I wanted to thank him for his desperate race to help me, but couldn’t say anything in wolf form. Frustration at being stuck filled me. The thought of being human danced elusively at the edges of my mind. I wanted to grasp it, but couldn’t with the moonstone in my shoulder.
“Come on,” Dara said. “You need to meet someone.”
I padded into what turned out to be the kitchen of the chaotic house. Similar piles took up most of the counter space, but it looked as though the table had been recently cleaned off. At the far end sat a strange individual.
“Finn, this CJ. CJ, meet Finnley Briscoe.”
The man’s eyes narrowed when they met mine. I could barely see them through the man’s long, tangled, dirty-blonde hair and thick beard. There was no way to tell where his hair, his mustache, or his beard began or ended because they all flowed together in one matted, ratty mess. He looked as though he had never seen a razor or a comb in his life.
His clothing wasn’t much different. The shirt he wore was tattered and a color of brown I guessed it hadn’t been when it was bought, or found in an alley. The glimpse of his legs I could see beneath the table showed the same worn work boots I had seen when he carried me into the house. His pants may have been jeans once, but were covered in layers of dirt and unknown substances to the point that they appeared almost as brown as his shirt.
I nodded my head in greeting with the reminder that I owed this man my life.
The man nodded back and gave a grunt. “Why are you still a wolf? It’s considered rude to remain in wolf form when you’re a guest unless it’s a full moon.” He stretched his arms in front of him. I realized with a start that he was wearing a tee-shirt, not a long-sleeved shirt like I first thought; his arms were just that dirty. “And I can tell it’s not, so don’t be rude. There’s extra clothes in the bedroom.” He paused, then said in a slightly embarrassed voice, “They might not be clean, but they’ll work.”
When I made no move to follow his suggestion, he glanced at my friends. “What’s wrong with him? Is he slow or something?”
“No,” Dara said quickly, coming to my defense. “Something must be wrong.” She reached a hand out toward me. “Show me, Finn.”
The memory of her collapsing when she touched me on the porch was still heavy in my mind. I backed away before she could reach me.
“Maybe he likes being a wolf,” CJ said with a grunt. “It’s easier. You don’t have to worry about politics, human thoughts, or memories.” His voice tightened. “Sometimes I spend months here as a wolf. Trust me. You’re better off leaving him alone. He’d rather be an animal.”
“No,” Dara denied, “He’s not like that. Something’s wrong. I know it!” She turned to me, her gaze pleading, “Finn, show us what’s wrong. It won’t hurt me, I promise.”
At my uncertainty, Vicken spoke up. “If you don’t show us, how are we supposed to save your baby sister?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw CJ sit up slowly. “He has a baby sister?”
Vicken nodded with his gaze still on me. “Finn’s parents were kidnapped by the Maes. His sister was born there. He got his parents back out, but she’s still there. We have to get her out.”
The thought of the newborn sister I had never seen trying to survive in the clutches of the Maes made anger burn through my body. I stepped forward, determined to get back to human form so I could do whatever it took to rescue her.
“You’ll show me?” Dara asked.
I took a hesitant breath, then nodded. Her hand settled gently on my head and she closed her eyes. Vicken’s hand was a reassuring pressure on my back.
“Don’t worry. If anything happens to Dara, I’ll stop you,” he promised.
I was about to close my eyes when CJ rose from the table. He crossed toward us, his aroma of dust and filth thick enough that I had to stifle another sneeze.
“Let’s see what we’re working with,” he said in a grumble before he set his hand on my shoulder.
I closed my eye, found the painful memory, and pushed it at them.
The wolf side of me hated showing myself at my weakest. Chained to Sir Harbrand’s table, my heart feeble enough that he could hold me down with a hand on my bare chest, I watched again as he put the scalpel to my shoulder. I heard Dara’s swift intake of breath at the feeling of blood running down my skin. Sir Harbrand’s bandana hovered in front of my face as he worked the moonstone into the wound below my collarbone, then he looked up again with triumph on his face.
My body began to phase. I watched myself struggle to attack them, but the impact of the bullet knocked me to the floor. I pulled the memory away as Edgart slipped the muzzle over my face.
“What was that?” Vicken asked, his voice tight.
“A moonstone,” CJ replied. He had backed away to stand near the hall. His arms were crossed in front of his chest and he regarded me warily. “Those Maes aren’t fooling around, I’ll give them that. It’ll keep him in wolf form until it’s removed. The effects of a moonstone can make it hard for him to remember what it’s like to be human. Do you have that problem?”
I nodded at the reminder of the day before when I couldn’t understand what anyone was saying at the headquarters. I didn’t want to fall back into being a complete wolf. The thought terrified me beyond words.
“So can you remove it?” Dara asked.
CJ shook his head quickly. “What do I look like to you, some sort of doctor?”
“Anything but,” Vicken muttered.
CJ nodded. “Exactly. You really want me operating on your friend?”
“But we don’t have time to go back to Haunted High,” Dara replied. “There’s no way his sister has time for that. You’re the only hope he has!”
“Then he’s in worse trouble than if you’d ne
ver come here,” CJ replied. He left through the door and disappeared down the hall.
Dara and Vicken stared at each other.
“What was that?” Dara asked.
“Maybe he’s scared,” Vicken replied.
“Of course I’m scared,” CJ yelled from further down the hallway. “I’m terrified! As you both should be!” He muttered something about being overrun with teenagers, then shouted, “Give up. Leave your friend a wolf and get out of here. He’ll be better off than messing with that lot again.”
Tears glimmered in Dara’s eyes when she said, “But what about Amelia?”
Any sounds from the hallway ceased. We waited in silence until CJs footsteps returned at a much slower pace.
“Is that the baby’s name?” he asked, his voice reluctant as though he didn’t want to know.
“Yes,” Dara replied. I could feel her pushing toward him, willing him to join us. “And we can’t leave her there. She deserves to be home with her family, loved and cared for as a baby should be.” She looked back at me. “Finn won’t give up, even if he’s stuck in this form. He’ll get himself killed trying to fight them himself, and I won’t let him go alone.”
“Me, either,” Vicken said from behind me. “So if you don’t remove the moonstone, the three of us are still going back to the Maes headquarters, and if we die, it’s on your head.”
“My head?” CJ replied. “I didn’t even know you guys until yesterday. This is ridiculous!”
“Well, that’s just the way it is,” Dara said.
CJ didn’t look as though he was going to budge. Even though I knew it was a death sentence for the three of us, I rose and made my way past him to the front door. I stood there facing the door until Dara and Vicken joined me. When the werewolf didn’t try to stop us, Vicken put a hand on the doorknob.
“Fine!” CJ said in a strangled shout. “Fine, but I can’t guarantee anything!”
I held back a sigh of relief when I turned around. A glance up showed a smile on Dara’s face. She winked at me. It made me wonder how hard she had been pushing acceptance toward the strange man. She looked triumphant and exhausted at the same time.