Dark of Night

by T. F. Walsh

  A peek over my shoulder saw Connell and Botolf safe near the front door. While wounded, I might defeat the beast. Maybe. But at the cost of permanent damage to myself. In a final decisive act, I spun about and sprinted into the backyard. The dracwulf took the bait and gave chase.

  Skidding into a sudden turn, I plunged through the wooden doors to the house basement. The wood split under my weight, and I tumbled down the stairs, thudding to the cement floor. Perhaps that wasn’t the best tactic. There wasn’t any time for a rational plan.

  I jumped to my feet.

  The dracwulf plummeted into the darkened basement behind me, tumbling onto her side.

  I snatched the padlock keys in my mouth and dove inside the farthest pen, slamming it, knowing the locks clicked shut once the doors closed. I hurried a transformation back into human form.

  Standing at the back of the prison, I coaxed the dracwulf to follow in the adjacent cubicle, by dangling my arm through the bars, hoping she fell for my trick.

  Desperation drove the dracwulf to plunge into the empty cell. I rushed forward and kicked my leg out between the metal rods, banging the door to her cell. She was locked inside.

  I shuffled away from her cell.

  Her body smashed into the bars, and the enclosure shook. Ramming the dividers, she howled.

  I unlocked my padlock and got out.

  The prison would hold the dracwulf for the time being, at least until I got Connell to safety.

  Back in the house, he was propped alongside the wall with both hands clutching his wounded thigh, and tension gripping his face.

  “What were you thinking? I told you to remain inside,” I said.

  His mouth opened, but when his gaze found me, his brows lifted. A mix of shock and pleasure comprised his expression. Fair enough, considering I stood in the middle of the room naked.

  Connell’s skin paled; blood coated his hands and pooled around him.

  Botolf entered, holding a towel. “Where is she?”

  “In the cell downstairs.” My voice raced with adrenaline.

  “I’m going back to finish her off. I just need a knife to make it quick.”

  Botolf’s body stiffened. “I can’t stop his bleeding. It’s too deep. He needs to get to a hospital before he loses any more blood.”

  I looked over at Connell, who was as pale as a sheet of paper, and then turned to Botolf. “This is why you need to get a driver’s license.” I cringed on the inside and held back the rage flooding my chest. And there was no way I’d trust Lutia with Connell. They’d probably end up killing each other.

  Connell’s smoldering eyes were still on me. How could I say no to saving his life? The man I loved.

  “Shit,” I said. “I’ll take him. But you need to keep watch over the dracwulf since the cell won’t hold her for long. Take Lutia with you. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  I hurried to my bedroom. Quick to slip on ripped jeans and a hooded top, I snatched black sneakers from the pile of old clothes and joined Connell again. The first thing I noticed was that the wound on my arm had already closed up and healed. I knelt near Connell and proceeded to tie my shoelaces. “Let’s head off then.”

  I wrapped my arm around him and helped him to his feet. “Rest your weight on me.” With Botolf holding his other side, we carried him to his battered Audi.

  Once outside, Botolf cleared away the shattered glass from the front seats. I leaned forward, holding Connell’s weight, but his hand pushed me away, and he inched into the car on his own.

  I was in for one fun car ride.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  I ploughed the Audi along the dirt track toward the city with only the repetitive sound of a grunting motor and crunching gravel reverberating through my skull. Connell remained slumped in the passenger seat and groaned each time the car hit a bump. The non-existent windshield poured a gush of air over us.

  Ironically, inside my head a relationship between him and me was possible. Why not? My secrets flew free, and if he loved me for what I was, no problem. Except for the small hitch of him accepting the existence of wulfkin and then wanting to date one. On top of everything, I had placed him in harm’s way, and he knew it. There was no undoing that mess.

  Branches slashed in through the battered window, and I jerked out of instinct, swerving off the track.

  Connell moaned.

  Rather than make the situation worse with a smart-ass comment, I focused on a smooth ride.

  At the edge of the woods, a policeman waited. Connell forced himself to sit upright, covered his leg with his hand, and turned to me. “Keep going, don’t slow down.”

  I guided the car over the curb, leading us out of the forest and onto a city road, while Connell flashed his badge to the guard. He slumped back into his seat after that.

  Past the line of concrete apartments, tall buildings jutted out in a halo curve where the hub of the city sat like a gray wasteland.

  We stopped at the traffic lights, and I patted down my wild hair.

  “Dumpsters don’t come any closer than the trash you’re driving.”

  I cringed at the young male’s voice from the car alongside us. Unfortunately, on that particular street, young boys raced each other in jazzed-up cars, and they came complete with wisecracks. I turned to face the guy who traveled alone, snapped my fangs out and snarled.

  He jolted in his seat, yelped and floored his vehicle through the red light. Oops. Lucky for both of us, no other cars traveled on the road.

  “Real classy, Daci.” Connell grumbled beneath his breath. “You could have killed him.”

  “You’re never happy, are you?”

  He released a rushed breath. “Not since I found out you are one big lie. I might as well be in this car with a stranger, because I don’t know a single truth about you.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Not completely true. You know I’m a wulfkin, my pack lives in the Carpathian woods, and I’ve trapped the dracwulf in my basement. So, you know more about me than anyone else outside the pack.”

  His head shook. “That’s not what I mean.”

  I strangled the steering wheel. “Then what? I told you before, I couldn’t tell you what I was, and even if I had, would you have believed me? Look at how you reacted when you did find out.” I waved my hand in front of me. “All freaked out.”

  “Don’t you dare.”

  “What?” I stole a peek across my shoulder and met his scowl. Some blood from his thigh had spilled onto the leather seat, teasing my nostrils.

  “Don’t turn this on me.”

  The light switched to green, and I kicked my foot into the accelerator, thankful the chilly wind ripped the scent from my grasp. “I get it, you’re angry at me. I lied and kept information from you, but — ”

  “You don’t get it.”

  I caught sight of his flushed cheeks.

  “You exposed me to something I didn’t understand, and … ” He paused, staring at his bloody hands like he was deep in thought. “When will it happen to me?”

  “What are you talking about?” The notion that his mind snapped beyond repair crossed my thoughts. Not to mention hysteria.

  He stared at me, incredulous. “When will I turn into a werewolf?”

  I burst into laughter at the absurdity and considered it a blessing to find anything funny at that point. “Don’t believe everything you see on TV.”

  “But the animal bit me.”

  “Yes, it did.” I swerved the car off the road. “I’m a wulfkin, which is a different kind of wolf, not a fictional werewolf.”

  His head cocked to the side.

  I inhaled a shaky breath. “Wulfkin are not changed by bites. We are born that way. We’re not controlled by the full moon, and silver doesn’t affect us. We rule our wolf side and
transform at will, and our senses are better than most animals. I can smell your shampoo fragrance, what you ate this morning, and hear the racing of your pulse each time you’re around me.”

  His lips parted and the hardness in his gaze melted. He worried about transforming into a creature like me. So, how could he love what he feared? My stomach plummeted along with any hope I had of rekindling our relationship.

  Connell shifted. His jaw clenched as he pressed his palms into his thigh. “There was always something different about you.” He lifted one shoulder. “But I never thought more of it. Like your enormous appetite yet you remain slim, your knowledge of animals for someone so young, and the unexplained nights I couldn’t track you down.”

  “I had no choice.” I reached over and slid a fallen blond strand off his cheek. “But I never intended to hurt you. I want to be with you.”

  He watched me. His mocha eyes glittered in the sun. Maybe he considered my words and pondered how to respond, or maybe the pain he felt from his injury froze him in a tomb of agony.

  I thrust the gear into drive and started to take off when his warm, sticky hand found my leg. “Daci, I won’t lie to you. I can’t stop loving you, even if I tried. But you’ve hurt me, really bad. And I don’t know if I can continue this with you.” He fell silent for a few moments. “Maybe I need more time. I don’t know.”

  My throat dried and the last spark in me dwindled. I refused to look at him and instead mumbled a word, which sounded like okay. The road ahead of me stretched into a never-ending conduit, and every part of me crumbled on the inside. Connell was splitting up with me. I chewed on my lip and bit hard each time a tear threatened to spill free. The wind became my friend, wiping my waterworks clear, and a sick miasma swirled in my stomach.

  He withdrew his arm, and already I missed his touch, his warmth fading with each passing second.

  “Please Daci, don’t make this harder than it is.”

  A million excuses floated in my head about why he should reconsider and take me back, but only three words drizzled out.

  “I love you.”

  Tears ran down my cheek, and I swiped them clean. “I risked everything to be with you.”

  “You didn’t have to kill that Sandulf guy for me.” The strain lines returned to his mouth. “And what about the animal in your basement? What happens now?”

  “First, that’s what a pack does. When the alpha endangers those under his leadership, he has two options, and Sandulf had no plans of walking away from us. Plus, he was going to have you killed.” I brushed hair out of my face. “Second, I won’t release the animal in my basement. She was never meant to live, so you don’t need to worry about her.”

  “You make it sound like I should be happy you killed this alpha.” He tore his gaze from me and studied the apartments blurring past.

  My heart struck my ribcage. “No, it’s not what I mean, but forget it, you wouldn’t understand anyway.” His accusations were more than I could handle in one day, and a void slowly crept through me.

  We approached the center of the city where the traffic picked up, but our conversation flatlined.

  Connell twitched in his seat and scratched his forehead. “The urine tests from the crime scenes have revealed some strange results.”

  I stared at him and the bloody streak across his brow.

  “The police detected what they’re calling mutated wolf DNA.” He cocked an eyebrow. “They’re keeping the case open until they find the animal, and search parties are being dispatched into the woods today or tomorrow.”

  “And the wolf hunts?”

  “The Council has voted against them, which means no kills, only search parties. No one will be allowed to enter the mountains except those with permits.”

  Relief weaved through me. With the dracwulf captured and the pack under my orders, the cops were welcome to wander the forest until their shoes wore out.

  “The police will also poke around your house in the woods. They have five dead bodies to explain to families, and the public and won’t give up easily.”

  “As they should. It’s their job.” A smile forced itself across my lips.

  Connell frowned. “Don’t you understand? You won’t be able to run around in your wolf form.”

  “I know what you mean. Once I deal with the wolf in my basement, we’ll have nothing to hide. We will be park rangers doing our job. As long as you keep our secret.”

  “If you’re asking that question, you really don’t know me.” He turned his attention to the buildings rushing past us. “You’ll be called into the station soon regarding the victim in your apartment. Though it seem they don’t have anything to pin you to it as Vasile validated your alibi of being at work all day.”

  After another bout of the silent treatment, I swerved into the hospital parking lot, switched off the ignition and climbed out. By the time I reached the passenger door, Connell was already limping toward the front doors of the Sfântul Constantin hospital; guarded by a number of smokers.

  Ambulance sirens cried in the distance, and I slipped beneath his arm, taking some of his weight. He didn’t protest.

  “Daci, I tried to keep you out of police involvement, but with the other detective in charge of the murder case in your apartment, I have no say.” He expelled a pained hiss. Squeezing his eyes tight, Connell stopped for a few seconds, and then staggered on.

  “Don’t worry about that. Let’s get you help,” I told him.

  My head whirled with questions, like was I still suspected of murdering the woman found at my place, had the police found wolf DNA there, and what other abnormalities did they uncover at the crime scenes? I asked none of those things, and instead held Connell tight against me.

  Once we were in the foyer, antiseptic and lemon bleach smells stung my nose. We hobbled through the corridors toward reception and in no time gained the nurses’ attention.

  I explained that a wild dog attacked him and counted on them giving him rabies’ shot, just in case. Connell’s whines intensified. He sat in a wheelchair, they whisked him away, and I was right there by his side, our fingers intertwined.

  We passed patients attached to drips shuffling down the pale-green linoleum. A heart monitor went crazy and beeped. Doctors and nurses barged past us to get to that patient.

  Connell’s pulse rose, and his hold squeezed. Sweat beads caked his brow.

  “It’ll be okay,” I said. “You’ve lost a lot of blood.”

  We entered the emergency ward, and the nurse wheeled Connell to a vacant bed. His hand slipped free, and my arm dropped by my side. A young man sped from across the room, accompanied by two more nurses, and moved to Connell’s side. “He’ll need stitches for sure, and cleaning. Prep him,” the young doctor said and dashed to whomever needed him next.

  I slipped farther back from the commotion and stared at the blood on my hands, ignoring the whimpers and cries in nearby cubicles. Connell lay on the bed, nurses fussing over his leg, yet he kept his eyes straight ahead. On me. The silence between us exchanged more than words — it acknowledged recent events and reaffirmed our shared feelings. Right then, my thoughts faded, and all that mattered was the love he expressed. The possibility that he might take me back was all I needed.

  I mouthed the words, I’m sorry, and turned to leave, unable to sit around with a loose thread hanging over the pack: the dracwulf.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  In the past week, I’d made one hell of a mess of my life and dragged down those around me. My heart still belonged to Connell and always would. And the thought of losing him was too much. I wouldn’t think about it.

  I swerved all over the track through the woodland, mainly because I wasn’t paying attention. I drew in a deep, hiccupped breath. An exasperated scream gushed past my lips, and it felt good to release something. Anything to let out the p
ain trapped inside.

  The afternoon sunshine concealed the true, darkened mood of the day, and when I arrived at the pack house, the dracwulf’s hollering pierced the ominous silence.

  Parking on the grass to avoid the smashed glass all over the driveway, I studied the boarded-up windows in disbelief. Memories of violence that should never have occurred rolled across my mind. Still my adrenaline persisted each time I recalled the Lunar Eutine. A part of me grieved for Sandulf, while the rest of me teetered between relief and rage. He never explained why he chose the dracwulf over us. I understood I wasn’t his child by blood, yet he’d never treated me as anything but, until the last few years. His rejection cut me up, though I’d never tell anyone.

  I got out of the car and bumped into Botolf in the doorway. “Why aren’t you with the dracwulf?”

  “Just popped up to check in on the boys.” He stroked my arm. “Everything go well at the hospital?”

  I refused to talk about Connell and changed the topic. “Has Matias returned?”

  He shook his head. “Matias never knew where he stood in the pack, and he blamed you for Enre’s capture.”

  No shockers there. We went inside, and the dracwulf’s cries ricocheted through the house. My nerves prickled with each angry bellow.

  Radu slept on the couch, while Enre remained stretched out on the fur blanket, wearing only blue jeans. A rosy streak graced his cheeks.

  To my surprise, Enre’s eyelids opened. I rushed to his side, clutching his hand, and swallowed the dryness in my throat. “Welcome back.”

  Enre licked his dry lips.

  Botolf was at my side. “He’s already taken a liter of water and not said a word.”

  “It’s a good sign, isn’t it?” My gaze never left Enre’s. I caressed the side of his face, thankful we hadn’t lost him to Sandulf’s stupidity.

  “I don’t know. He may heal rapidly, but if he’s unable to cope with his trauma, he may never be the same again.” Botolf placed his hand on mine, and the warmth of this touch was like a blanket on a frosty night.