“Really? You choose to hit on me now?”
He scoffed. “I’ve been hitting on you since the beginning of this whole trip. What’s a change of scenery gonna hurt?”
“Well, we are probably going to die.”
“Even better. I shoot my shot and either you’re vulnerable enough to take me up on my offer, or we both die and this will all be forgotten.”
“Wow, what a charmer. And you wonder why you’re still single.”
“Priscilla, that has never ever been something I had to ask myself. Before moving into Brinly’s compound, I was jobless and literally living in my mom’s basement. After that, I stopped pondering why I was single.”
Sarcastically, I said, “Oh, god, Daggett, stop turning me on so much.”
He smiled. “I love it when you moan my name.”
I punched him in the shoulder, and he cried out. “Keep being a sex offender and I’ll use one of these knives on your pecker,” I warned as I flashed open my coat to show the butcher knife Max had stolen from the hotel kitchen. It was still tucked away. “Try having nasty thoughts and getting excited without a dick.”
“You say that like my interest in you is purely physical.”
“Oh, and it’s not?” I asked with a laugh.
“Don’t get me wrong, that is a bonus but…I like you. Is that so hard to believe?”
Yes. Yes, it was.
I shook my head and replied, “Shouldn’t we be focused on getting through this maze?”
“You wanna remain silent the entire time? I never figured silence was your forte.”
I was about to give him a sarcastic response that would have blown him away, when I felt my body tugged away from him. It wasn’t a small pull, it was a giant jerk, and my hold on Daggett broke as I spun in the opposite direction. Cora stood in front of me with blackened eyes, like she had been snorting ten lines of coke, and then pulled back the flap of my coat and grabbed the butcher knife out of my interior pocket. “Cora, what the fuck are you doing?” With shaking hands, she lifted the blade and pressed it to her throat. “Holy shit! Cora, stop!!” I reached for the handle of the knife, but she had a death grip and wouldn’t drop it. I was only able to pull it an inch from her skin. Daggett intervened, yanking it out of her hand and throwing it to the ground and then shoving Cora against the leaves of the hedge maze.
“I have to do it!” Cora yelled.
Daggett’s arm pushed against her chest, keeping her in place. “Do what?”
“Slit my throat,” she answered. “He said I have to.” Her face scrunched up tight, and her eyes momentarily closed. “Oh, god, my head…it hurts.”
“Daggett, do something!” I ordered.
He stared inquisitively. “That’s what Melanie meant. She must be under mind control, probably from this Master guy.”
“Okay. Can’t you do anything about it?”
“I don’t even fully understand how this mind control works, much less how to undo it. Us werewolves don’t have that power.”
“She’s gonna fucking kill herself.” Cora squirmed like a worm on a hook, but Daggett was able to keep her at bay. I got close to her and said, “Cora, hey, stop being a dumb bitch and don’t kill yourself.”
“This sounds like a really, really bad therapy session.”
I wound my hand back and slapped her in the face. “Get a grip!” I yelled. She continued to squirm, so I hit her again.
Daggett gently pushed me back. “Hey, hey, take it easy. I don’t think that’s doing anything.”
My hand was red and stinging. “Somehow, I thought I would enjoy this more. At least that’s how it was in my fantasies,” I admitted.
Daggett stared at me strangely. “Let’s save that topic for another day.”
“Sounds good.”
“I wanna try something,” he said as he bent down and let his hand search for the butcher knife that had been tossed into the snow. I didn’t know what the hell he was doing, and all my red flags went off when he put the knife back into Cora’s hand.
“Uh…what are you doing?” I asked.
“It’s all right, trust me.”
“The last time I listened to a man who said that to me, I was handcuffed to a bed for two days.” Daggett’s left eye glanced over at me. “It’s nothing kinky, sadly. My dad thought I was on meth and tried to detox me. Turns out, I was just depressed, and having your dad keep you prisoner for a couple days really doesn’t help the depression. Who knew?”
“I can never tell when or if you’re pulling my leg.”
“You think I’d make this story up? Who the hell is that gonna impress?”
Daggett shushed me. It had to be for a good reason, because he knew I’d kick him in the dick otherwise. Cora’s hand holding the knife trembled as Daggett grasped onto her, keeping her from being able to press the blade to her skin. He restrained her so effortlessly, like it wouldn’t even cause him to break a sweat that I found it…kind of hot. He was pretty strong.
I was still confused, though. “What exactly are you doing?”
“Cora,” he began. “I’m gonna let you break the skin, okay?”
What was he doing?
Cora whimpered and cried as Daggett guided her hand to her throat with his own fingers entwined with hers. He held the knife just as much as she was, maybe more. The tip of the blade poked her skin, and I saw Daggett’s arm jerk slightly. They were fighting for control of the knife. She wanted to slash her shit up, and he wanted to do it slowly.
I was still fucking confused as to how this was going to do anything.
“Cora, cut lightly,” he ordered. Together, their hands glided the blade across the side of her throat. A thin, shallow red mark broke out on her skin, and only a few trickles of blood dripped down that was as puny as me when I’m popping a zit. Once the blade had gone over her entire throat, Cora’s whimpering silenced and her tense body eased up. The stoned trance in her eyes broke, and she blinked a few times and let out a heavy sigh.
Wait, did he just end the hypnosis?
“Cora?” he called out softly.
She breathed heavily for a second. “Jesus, that sucked,” she said.
Daggett smiled, and then chuckled. “I’m just glad my hunch turned out to be correct.”
I looked at the two of them, puzzled. “What even happened? What did you do?”
“We weren’t going to be able to undo the mind control, so we had to find a loophole. He wanted her to slit her throat, so she slit her throat.”
I let out a laugh. “Wow. You’re kind of smart.”
“Kind of?” Cora asked, offended. “He just saved my life. He’s a genius! Thank you, Daggett.” She smiled like a goof until she looked at me. “And thanks for hitting me, you turd.”
My mouth dropped. “Excuse me? I was trying to bring you back to Earth.”
“Don’t pretend you weren’t looking for an excuse to do that.”
“Hey, I fucking hurt my hand on your vegan face. I’m just as much of a victim in all of this.”
“I’m not vegan, I’m a vegetarian! And what would me being vegan have to do with how my face feels?”
“I don’t know. Your jawline is probably full of grapes and hay.”
“Hay?! I’m a vegetarian, not a horse, you bucket head.”
“Ladies, ladies, now is not the time,” Daggett intervened. “We gotta get out of here.”
Cora gasped. “Oh, god, Max and Melanie. Are they okay? I fogged out for a few back there.”
“They wanted me to keep you someplace safe.”
“What, while they fight? Outnumbered? No. I can’t stand by and do nothing.”
“Cora, this is out of your depth. You’ll get killed back there.”
“I’d rather die being helpful than live being useless.”
He put his hand on her forearm and held it there. “This isn’t a debate. You’ll die.”
“Thank you for saving me and trying to look out for me, but those two mean more to me than anything
on this planet right now. If you try to keep me here, I’ll…I won’t be afraid to fight you.”
Jesus. Dorky Cora was about to throw down with Daggett. I was kind of curious to see who’d come out on top.
Daggett let out a little crooked grin. It was cute. “I’m not gonna fight you,” he said. “I just—”
WHOOSH.
Some big-ass werewolf flew by us, snatching Daggett up in the process. This thing was going so fast that all I could see was Daggett being dragged through the snow and pulled into the darkness.
“Daggett!” I screamed.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
MAX
One of the werewolves disappeared after being called to by Veronica, leaving me with only one to kill. I knew from the way it zigzagged around the property and bounced against the castle walls that it was trying to fuck with me, and that it wanted me wasting time on him instead of his master.
Master was above me, his body dark against the moon in the sky behind him as his wings flapped slowly.
Footsteps broke through the snow at a rapid pace, and I saw Melanie running toward me. She was coming to my aid, even though she told me she was going to protect Cora. But I didn’t see Cora anywhere. I didn’t see Daggett or Priscilla, either. My one hope was that she got them someplace safe and far away.
The second I realized Melanie was coming, Master did as well, and he swooped low to the ground in an effort to snatch her up like a goddamn vulture. Melanie dropped onto the snow and covered the back of her head with her hands, and he flew right over her. He missed.
This was my chance. He was no longer airborne, and the dive down to get Melanie put him at only a few feet above ground. I could grab him, and I could kill him.
I ended my efforts to fight the werewolf in front of me and dove at Master, knocking him out of the sky until he was a rolling, tumbling dark mass of wings and fur in the snow. He rose from the ground and levitated before I could get to him, but I still took a chance and lunged at him before he could get too high. My arms and legs wrapped around his body as we floated, and I bit down hard into his stomach so we’d drop back down. It worked, because we both came crashing, and landed on top of one another.
Master was enraged, coming after me with claws and fangs and tearing at me so fast and chaotically he was a blur. Every dig and scrape felt like acid being poured into my wounds and pumped through my veins. It was enough to disorient me, to make my stomach churn, to make the world tilt. It was like this guy was pure poison. Even though I was feeling like I had the flu or something, I still fought. When he swung his claws at me, I captured his arm and clamped my teeth down and sunk into his flesh several inches. His scream was like nails on a chalkboard.
Against my ribs, I felt something pinch, and when I looked down I saw his feet were pressing into me. His toes were covered in hair, with blade-like nails that were digging into me. With one flap of his wings, he pushed me forward and himself back, breaking my teeth from his arm and distancing us. He then flew toward me and wrapped his hands around my throat, choking me and then lifting me in the air before slamming me down to the ground. My lungs felt empty of air at that first impact, and I was still recovering when he lifted me back up. With one shove, he launched me fifty feet across the yard and into the castle wall. Bricks and stone shattered against my back, and as I slid lifelessly to the ground, the pieces of the structure fell around and onto me.
I was out of breath and hurt real bad, and I was being buried by the rubble.
“What a sight,” I heard Molly say. She knelt in front of me, her head cocked and her eyes vacant of any real emotion. I didn’t even know she was nearby. With Molly there in the dark, with her pale skin and purple dress both covered in dry blood, she almost didn’t even seem real. Like I was stuck in a nightmare. “You put up a better fight with me,” she added with a laugh. The laughter wasn’t joyous, it was hollow. It was put on. “Stop trying to save Melanie. She’s nothing to you. Stop acting like you care.”
I wanted to fight her, but I felt drugged. I was too weak to move, and the bricks were heavy and pinning down my limbs. I wiggled and they budged only a little. If I weren’t so woozy from the bites, I could free myself, but I was struggling.
“You should be grateful Melanie is at the top of our list. It gives your precious cupcake time to get away,” Molly hissed.
Melanie screamed. My vision was blurry, but I could make out a large figure chasing after her. It was the werewolf I left behind. Son of a bitch.
Molly glanced back at the action and then returned her gaze to me. “Looks like they might not need me after all. Maybe I do have time to deal with your ditz.” Molly picked up a stone and tossed it at me, chuckled, and then wandered away.
She was going after Cora, and I couldn’t feel my legs.
Fuck.
Chapter Forty
DANA
My eyes were closed and all I saw was darkness. But I could hear a commotion, the distant sounds of yelling, fighting, and screaming. They were at war, but I wasn’t there. Instead, I was knocked for a loop and could barely get to my feet, but I knew when I did, I'd still be useless in this human form.
How long had I been out?
I spotted Melanie far away from me, fighting off a werewolf. I didn’t know who it was or where it came from, only that it wanted her dead. Its paws and her hands were locked, and she was seconds away from being bitten. It was too powerful for her, and her lips quivered as she screamed. I had to save her.
I pressed my hands onto the snow covered earth and tried to will myself to change. To shift.
Come on, Dana, I told myself. Don’t be weak. Don’t be fragile. You can help in your werewolf form, just…just change. Do it. Do it. Do it. They need you.
I was sweating, kneeling, growling as I tightened my face and tried to pull the form out of me like a rotten tooth. But it wouldn’t come.
Melanie’s screams continued. She was in pain. She was hurt.
I had to save her.
Do it, Dana. DO IT.
Chapter Forty-One
MELANIE
The muscles in my arms shook uncontrollably as I tried to hold the werewolf back, but it was just too strong. I couldn’t take it anymore. The werewolf pushed me to the ground and smashed its feet against my chest, doing everything it could to make sure I couldn’t move and was able to target my throat with ease.
A whistle rang out in the distance, and the werewolf’s attack settled. He lifted his head to the direction of the whistle and then slowly climbed off of me, his head bowed in submission, but his growls never quieting. It was in its nature to want to hurt me, but it was being controlled not to.
I flipped onto my stomach and saw Master standing a few feet from us. Of course he called off the attack. He wanted me for himself, and he couldn’t have anyone else ending my life, or it would interfere with his precious ritual. I hated him. I hated him so much.
“Shall we resume?” he said. In this form, his voice was deeper with a slight echo, but it was still distinctly him.
I clenched my jaw. “Fuck you.”
He said nothing and flew toward me. I tried to run, but his hands were around my waist and he was lifting me into the air. My feet swung back and forth as the ground below me grew further and further away. The moon was so full and bright, I felt like we were going to soar right into it. Cold or hot temperatures had stopped being an issue for me, but even I could feel how freezing the air was the higher we rose.
Suddenly, the plan Max and I created flashed in my mind, and I felt around the inside pocket of my coat to see if the knife was still there. Thankfully, it was.
Master was flying us to the castle, most likely so he could lock out everyone else and finish me off with no interruption. The thought of it set something off inside of me, and I no longer hesitated with the knife. I found a spot right beside my waist, where his flesh was exposed, and jammed the pointed end straight into him. He screamed, but didn’t let go of me, so I pulled the knife out of his
wound and stabbed him one more time. This time his scream wasn’t from pain, but anger. Master sunk his teeth into my neck and ripped a chunk a flesh out of me. Blood shot out like a sprinkler and trailed down my chest and legs. I was soaked and dripping from the gaping hole he pulled out of me, and I wanted to cry. I kicked my legs furiously left and right and pounded my fists against his locked fingers around my waist, and eventually his grip loosened, and I fell fifty feet.
I thudded to the ground and felt a pop in my ankle. The pain wasn’t there, but I knew I had broken it. Because of accelerated healing, I’d be okay, but the healing took time and I didn’t have that. Master whistled to the werewolf, and the thing came running after me. I booked it as fast as I could, the entire time hearing the cracking of my ankle with every limp I took. My leg looked like a bent straw, and was completely useless as I drug it through the snow. The pain was so intense I could only imagine how bad it’d be if I were still human. I’d probably fall to the ground and let myself die.
I had to push through. That’s all I could do.
Something suddenly came into my vision, and I gulped. It was the other werewolf—the one that had disappeared with Veronica—and it was coming toward me at a crazy speed. There was no way I was going to fight them both off, not with them sandwiching me like this. Maybe if I weren’t bleeding and crippled, it’d be different, but even that was questionable.
The closer it came to me, the clearer it became. I didn’t recall its fur being a light brown, or the white streak down the center of its face. It didn’t look like the other two at all.
Just as the werewolf reached a few feet in front of where I stood, it leaped right over me and clobbered the other werewolf. The two scuffled in the snow as they loudly growled and hissed.
Max? No, that wasn’t him. This werewolf was smaller. It felt feminine, even.
The werewolf with the white streak down its face was winning the fight. There was a level of viciousness and aggression inside of it that the other werewolf just couldn’t match, and once the light werewolf clamped its teeth around the other’s throat, I knew it was over. It chewed and chewed until the werewolf’s head popped off its neck like the tip of a daisy.
Lunar Rebirth (Lunar Rampage Trilogy Book 3) Page 28