by Sean Thomas
So, I was screwed. Funny how he could jump into bed with whomever he wanted, but he would always be the one for me. He’s lucky I wasn’t in the same vehicle with him because I would have planted my fist into his face.
“Oh, you two can make things work.” Sylvia had waited for me to answer her.
“Um, no. Once this black wolf is taken care of, I’m heading back to Los Angeles.” And this time around that might not even be far enough. Maybe I needed Tokyo or Prague.
“Wolf urges are difficult to control. The call to mate is primal. I wouldn’t hold it too high against him.”
Easy for her to say when she was able to still get it on with people. Did wolves seriously not understand the power of their mark? It was nearly impossible for me to feel anything for anyone, both sexually and emotionally. Every desire I had always wound back to Dash.
I opened my mouth to say something snarky, but the abrupt inward dent of my car door made me forget it. The entire Hummer shook as another blast erupted at my door. A deep scream of agony came from outside of the vehicle and I saw the goon hanging from the back of the Hummer disappear out of sight.
My hand instantly pulled the gun from my side and had it aimed at Sylvia. “What is this?”
The wide-eyed shock in her eyes convinced me this wasn’t on her.
“Drive faster,” she screamed to the driver and the Hummer jerked forward as he floored it.
I aimed the gun at the door, waiting for the next hit, but then up wasn’t up and down wasn’t down. An explosion registered in my brain on some level, but I didn’t understand why I was on the roof of the Hummer. Were we just bombed? It didn’t matter because a church chorus sang in my ears and pain stabbed all over my body.
I took an inventory of my injuries.
Hands? I could move them.
Feet? They wiggled.
Shoulders? The blood in my veins skidded aside as pure torture tore threw me.
Oh yeah, my arm was dislocated. Was I paralyzed? No, if that was the case I wouldn’t be able to move my hands or feet. Thank God.
I managed to move my eyeballs enough to see Sylvia next to me, unconscious. There was movement on the other side of me and then I was being dragged, quite painfully I may add, out of the car. The goon with the broken nose stood over me.
“You ok?” He looked my body over.
“Arm’s dislocated.” Even speaking was excruciating.
“That all?” he asked, glancing around with a twitch in his eye.
“Yeah, I think,” I told him, trying to sit up. “Help Sylvia. I’ll manage.”
The goon was in front of me now and much too close. Why wasn’t he helping his Alpha?
“That’s too bad.” His grip tightened on my arm, snarl widening on his face.
“What are…” But then he knocked me into unconsciousness.
I awoke to burning in my jaw as my surroundings came into focus and my head spun. It took me a second, but then the image of the crash and the goon’s fist became all too clear. I was tied up and was that… yeah… I was sporting a ball gag.
“About time.” Even though my ears were still ringing, I could tell that I had never heard that voice before.
The figure walked around to face me. He squatted to my level, because I was pretty sure I was tied to a tree. I frantically searched my brain as I took him in. Around my age, shaved head, full beard. Then there was his pink polo shirt and khakis. He was a frat boy?
“Your jaw looks like it hurts.” His hand brushed my cheek and I recoiled as if his fingers were snakes. The sudden movement brought a whole new wave of blistering pain.
He turned around and I saw three figures standing in the moonlight. Sure enough, the goon with the fist was standing with a sick smile on his face. Well, he was first on my kill list. That was if Sylvia survived the crash and didn’t get to him first because I was pretty sure betraying your Alpha was a death sentence.
Frat boy faced me again. “I’m hoping you remember me from this morning.”
Yeah, I made the connection in my head. He was the black wolf. I wouldn’t have pegged him as a pretty boy, but I tried not to judge a book by its cover.
“You do. Good.” He winked at me. “It’s nothing personal, I hope you know that. All of this is nothing against you, personally, but you are part of the problem. You see, change is here in Amber Pines and some of your pack just don’t fit in.”
He stood up and stepped back, again looking me up and down. “It’s a shame, too, because you’re definitely my type.”
Nausea swept through my entire body. The thought of him finding me attractive was sickening. He bit his lip for a moment and then ripped the duct tape from my face and pulled the ball gag from my mouth. My jaw cried in absolute joy and I stretched it out in relief.
“Better?” he asked.
Considering I was still tied to a tree by a psychotic wolf in a pink shirt, no, not really. I continued to stare death rays into his skull.
“Oh come on, I didn’t have to take the gag out.” He gave it a little squeeze.
This guy was a lunatic. “You really like the sound of your voice, don’t you?”
He laughed. “I’m confident with myself, you can say that.”
“I bet you are.” I looked away, my shoulder now shouting instead of screaming. They must have popped it back in. How generous.
“Aren’t you at least a bit curious as to why I’m doing all this?” he asked, throwing his hands up.
“You’re about to tell me.” Commence the supervillain rant.
He dropped to his hands and knees and was within inches of my face. His scent was rainwater. Any other person and it would have been sweet to me, but on him, right now, it might as well have been gasoline. My stomach did another nauseated flip and I pulled as far away from him as my constraints allowed.
“Tanner.” His slow pronunciation of my name made my fists clench. “You don’t belong in Amber Pines. Most of your pack doesn’t, but you… you, least of all. You see, I’ve started a new pack and it won’t be filled with degenerates like yourself. You just don’t make the cut.”
Out of nowhere I began to laugh. A genuine hearty laugh. My eyes watered and despite the pain, my body shook from it. The frat boy looked back at his pack and back at me, confusion written in his squinted eyes.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” I stifled myself. “You’re attacking me and the Amber Pines wolves because you have some grand idea for a new pack?”
“And why is that funny?” Frat boy’s voice had increased twenty degrees.
“Because who are you, dude?” I started laughing again.
His hand was on my throat, squeezing so tight, as he dug the back of my head into the tree bark. Fangs pointed over his lips while his glowing green eyes blared into mine.
“I’m the fucking future.” His growl sent a wave of shivers over my skin. “I’m the new Alpha of Amber Pines and with my reign I will do away with every single non-natural born wolf. You inferior humans don’t belong in a wolf pack.”
My brain was screaming for air now. His grip was getting tighter by the second and I could feel my trachea crushing inward. Frat boy’s face was against mine, the heat pouring from his body burning my eyes.
“That’s who I am.” His roar deafened me.
No, it wasn’t his roar. It wasn’t his howl that cascaded through every cell of my body like lightning. Frat boy’s hand dropped from my throat and I coughed and sputtered at the intake of air. God, I loved air.
And then chaos broke out around me.
Everywhere I looked there were wolves. They were on hind legs snapping at one another, tumbling across the ground in front of me. Snarls, yelps, and what sounded like the hounds of hell engaging in war lit every one of my senses on fire. The ground shook with thunderclaps as paws and entire bodies beat against it. My eyes scanned the wolves for my pack. It was too dark and I couldn’t make out the colors of fur. Maybe brown, maybe black…it could have been anybody.
I pull
ed and strained at the rope that bound me to the tree. The fibers cut deep into my wrists, but I didn’t stop. My muscles flooded with adrenaline and my chest beat frantically to give me every ounce of strength I had. A wolf landed on my leg like an anvil and I screamed out. I needed to get out of the rope or the next wolf would flatten me.
“I’m here.” The voice didn’t even sound real amongst everything that was happening, yet I heard it so clearly.
I strained my neck to see a flash of bright red in the darkness and silently thanked the universe. A moment later, my hands fell limp to the ground, freed of their captivity. Jacey dropped my Banshee sword and helped me to my feet.
“We have to get out of here,” she yelled, ducking against me as a white wolf hurdled past us. That was a very much alive Sylvia. So much for me killing her goon.
“I’m not going, but you are.” I brushed her hair and kissed her forehead. “Thank you. Now take the Banshee and get the hell out of here.”
“You’re hurt.” She was shaking and pulling at me, trying to head away from the fight.
“Take the Banshee and go, Jacey.” I peeled her hands from me, held them for a moment, and pushed her away. “I have to be here.”
“Wait, I have your gun.” She fumbled with her purse.
My gun. My sweet and beautiful gun.
“Can you fire it safely?” I asked, stepping out of the way as two wolves raced past me. That was Marco for sure.
“Grady gave me lessons,” she said, her tone low and determined.
“Good. Take it and shoot the hell out of anybody following you.”
She softly nodded while staring at me for a moment. I could see her biting her lip and knew she wanted to stay and help, but her abilities were useless in this fight. After a slow paced blink, she handed me the Banshee and ran off in the opposite direction.
Relieved to have my sword back and with the knowledge that Jacey would be safe, I took a step forward but stumbled. The leg the wolf fell on was weak. I probably had a hairline fracture, but that was the least of my worries right now. I was standing in the middle of a wolf battle, a sword in hand, and no plan in mind.
“Dash?” His name escaped my lips, unsteady, as if it waited all night to be spoken.
I took off in a random direction, heading towards the gaggle of fighting. The Banshee nestled itself between my hands and stood tall against the oppressive darkness. She itched for flesh and I held her tighter in place.
The black wolf appeared from behind a tree, a mangled and beaten thing. Blood stained its snout and it crept low, legs crisscrossing as it circled closer. I centered myself at my core, allowing maximum mobility in any direction. My body was charged with energy and purpose now, ready to embed the blade inside the wolf.
“Let’s go, Wolfie.” I spit at the ground, egging my predator on.
The black wolf snapped and charged. His head bent low, aiming for my legs, and turned sideways. Air pumped into my lungs and propelled the Banshee up through the air. He easily curled his body out of reach, the blade barely grazing his mane.
I could see Jack in my head, rolling his eyes. “You didn’t anticipate his moves. Always predict where he’ll move.”
“Oh, shut up, Jack.” I blinked him out of mind, knowing full well what I didn’t do.
Then I saw Dash. His sleek gray fur streaked over the grass towards us. My heart dove for him, thumping painfully against my chest cavity, and just like that my anger towards him evaporated. The need to bury my face in his soft fur trounced every other sense. I wanted his scent surrounding me and the grainy texture of his facial scruff lining my jaw.
His eyes burned yellow against the shadows, two suns bounding through the night.
My hand reached out as I shouted. “I’ve got this, Dash.”
But my wolf swept his gaze to our common enemy and bared his red stained teeth. I watched helplessly as both wolves crashed into each other, two primal forces thrashing against the ground. Dash tearing out mouthfuls of flesh with every bite as the black wolf bit deeper into his neck, refusing to let go.
And then it all happened in slow motion. The black wolf, on his back, shook his head furiously into the red coating of Dash’s fur. Dash’s body tensed, as if struck by a current of electricity, and the cry that shot out of him like an arrow pierced my very core. The black wolf kicked backwards, flinging Dash’s beautiful body as if he weighed nothing. I watched as he hit the earth with bone crushing sounds and then lay still.
CHAPTER SEVEN
I was screaming and I was running. Tears blinded me and I was unraveling.
“No, no, no, no.” The words wouldn’t stop. I couldn’t breathe and then I was pinned to the ground, my arms behind me.
“Get off of me.” I was screaming like a mad man, flailing and spitting. “Get off me. Dash!”
He wasn’t moving. Please, no.
“Well, damn.” Frat boy spoke slowly and calmly in my ear. “I never wanted your wolf to fall. He was always my favorite.”
“Nooo.” I couldn’t move my body, even if I wasn’t pinned to the ground. My eyes wouldn’t leave Dash’s line of sight. I begged him, with everything I had in me, to move. Just one inch.
“Please.” My forehead dropped to the cold grass below me.
“Now we’ll see who else dies.” Frat boy spoke with a confidence and an assurance that ignited a rage unlike anything I had ever felt before. My breath quickened and I was clenching my jaw so hard my teeth were about to shatter.
“This is your fault.” The tone of my voice would have given any wolf’s growl a run for its money. Frat boy, the black wolf, just made his last kill. He and his rogue pack would never take another life again and if that meant I gave mine to ensure it, then so be it.
Invincible strength surged through me and I knew what it felt like to be supernatural, to be more than a man. My brain was clearer than it had ever been. Once you no longer care about your own life, you would be surprised at the strength you can muster.
Every muscle trembled before I pushed myself from the ground. My head smacked into his face and my brain split down the middle. I ignored it. He careened off my back and now the tables were turned, with me on top of him, and my fist, a scythe of death, pounding into his face. Over and over and over, I punched, until my brain registered the pain. When I did stop he was unrecognizable. Blood sputtered from his mouth to reveal missing teeth.
“S’that all?” he slurred the words out.
My body shook from fury and blood lust. No, it wasn’t all. I was far from done with him. The Banshee was in my hand again, my grip welding it to my body.
“Grawrgh.” A brown wolf charged towards me, swift and determined.
The wolf leapt as I rose to my feet. Hot, rank breath met me before I swung the blade up and through his torso. He dropped to the ground and I kicked the son of a bitch in the gut.
“Kill you.” I turned to see Frat Boy shifting back into wolf form. His face elongated, nose widening as it darkened with fur. I could see his fingers melting together as paws took shape. It normally was an amazing thing to witness, but on him it was grotesque. There was no art to his shift, only liquid flesh rolling into a new figure.
“Ugghh.” He let out a gnarled gasp, which cracked at the end. His shifting stopped and then reversed. His eyes widened and narrowed, a roller coaster of confusion.
“Having trouble?” I asked, staring down at his pitiful trembling.
His face was mostly human now, though his ears were those of his wolf.
“I…won’t let you live.” He clawed across the grass towards me, wheezing his words at me.
That’s when the fury died within me as suddenly as it rose. He was as pathetic as he was defeated. I regarded him as I did any injured insect nearing death, and wanting to just end his misery.
“You should have stayed wherever you came from,” I said, dropping to one knee but staying my distance.
“He’ll still…finish you...” It must have taken enormous effort to speak
the words. He spit out a mouthful of blood.
I bowed my head towards him. “What? Who?”
Frat boy laughed until he coughed and struggled for air.
With a low exhale he spoke his final words, a breathless whisper and promise. “You’ll see.”
He was gone. The black wolf, Dash’s murderer, was dead. Now, he was nothing more than a husk of a twisted dream, staring endlessly into emptiness.
“Rot in hell.” I left him with that wish and made my way across the red stained grass towards the rest of the fighting.
One of the rogue wolves sniffed at the air, his nose twitching in my direction.
“Yeah, your Alpha is dead,” I said, holding my bloodstained hand up.
All around me the fighting stopped and I could make sense of it now. A cinnamon wolf, with one paw clenched to its chest, stood over a brown wolf. Carson. A chocolate wolf with a crème undercoat, Grady, lowered his lips back over fangs. Marco, a black and tan wolf of incredible speed, spit out what looked like a chunk of bloody meat.
“It’s over,” I spoke slowly and let the words hit each of them. “You lost. If the rest of you want to live than get out of Amber Pines and never return. Stay, and I will mount your heads on my wall.”
Nobody moved for a moment and the remaining rogue wolves eyed their Alpha’s still body. They looked frantically between one another and then at once, fled through the trees. I stood for a moment with nothing but the sound of my breath. It was over.
On autopilot, my legs spun me around and led me to the now human body. Dash was covered in gashes and a coat of blood blanketed most of his torso. I cupped his head with one hand and pulled him into my lap. I was shaking uncontrollably as I wiped the blood from his face. His long eyelashes rested over peaceful cheekbones, his lips parted slightly. He looked the same as he did every morning I woke up next to him.
“I’m so sorry.” The words bubbled through my quivering jaw. “I’m so sorry.”