Witch's Hunger

by Deborah LeBlanc

  Moments later, they bounced into a clearing and she veered left. Her headlights suddenly speared two men standing a few yards away. They appeared to be twice Nikoli’s size.

  “You have company,” Nikoli said.

  She nodded. “The one on the left is Jaco, my East pack leader. You’ve already met him. The one on the right is Aaron, who takes care of the West.”

  Viv finally pulled the truck to a stop and got out, leaving the engine running. “The four of you stay put until I signal all’s clear,” she said. Not waiting for a response, Viv closed her door and walked toward the two Loups.

  With the headlights still on and the driver’s window down, Nikoli watched her tall, slender body move with grace and power. She reminded him of a cougar.

  When she came face-to-face with the two men, she tossed her braid over her shoulder so it fell down her back. The tip of it landed between her buttocks, which caused him to shift uncomfortably in his seat. Without prompting, a vision of his hand wrapped in that braid pulling her toward him flashed into his mind. He squeezed his eyes shut a second to block it.

  “Those are some big dudes,” Lucien said. “Think we’re going to have a problem with them?”

  Nikoli motioned for him to be silent, then leaned closer to the driver’s window to see if he could pick up any of the trio’s conversation.

  They spoke in low voices, but hearing from great distances was one of Nikoli’s specialties, one that had saved his life many times.

  “Those men will not harm anyone,” Viv said to Jaco and Aaron. “I’ll make certain of that.”

  “But you never bring strangers here,” Aaron said.

  “Bringing them here was not wise, especially after what happened yesterday,” Jaco said. “Terrible idea.”

  Even from this distance, Nikoli saw something waver over the faces of the two men, their features appearing to undulate. Not drastically, but enough to be noticeable.

  He realized he was witnessing two Loups struggling to keep from morphing into their true nature, and it was Viv’s presence that kept them in human form. The night was lit with a brilliant three-quarter moon. A time for Loups to howl, feed and mate. He was impressed at the power and confidence with which Viv addressed the Loup Garous. She stood at least five foot seven, but looked to be child-size in the presence of the two men. Yet she seemed to control them effortlessly.

  “I see that you have repaired the gate and the fence,” Viv said to Jaco and Aaron. “Is the back territory secure?”

  “Yes,” Jaco said. “You wouldn’t have had us tend to the repairs if you didn’t think we could manage by feeding time. Isn’t that right?”

  “Why are you giving me attitude?” Viv asked.

  “I don’t like those men here,” Jaco said, his voice growing deeper, a soft growl rolling beneath it.

  “Like it or not, they are here by my invitation,” Viv said. “And you will respect that. Now let’s prepare for the feeding. We’re already running slightly behind schedule.”

  With that, the two men turned away and disappeared into a heavy thicket of trees. Once they were out of sight, Viv turned and signaled for Nikoli to turn off the engine of the truck and come meet her.

  No sooner were Nikoli and his cousins by her side, than Viv walked over to a large oak tree. She put an arm around it as if she meant to hug the tree, then Nikoli heard the soft click of a latch opening. A six-inch section of tree bark opened like a door. He stepped back to get a better look.

  Viv’s fingers danced over a panel of buttons inside the door.

  A loud whoosh suddenly sounded from a great distance away. It was followed by a rumbling that grew louder with each passing second until Nikoli felt the vibrations from it beneath his feet.

  “What is that noise?” Gavril asked.

  Viv pointed to a steel fence about seventy feet away. The fence stood over fifteen feet tall and in the moonlight, Nikoli saw that the barbs on top of the fence were tipped in silver.

  “If you watch through that opening,” Viv said, “just past that small clearing there, you’ll see. This compound consists of five hundred acres. I have the West and East Loup packs cordoned off in the far back acreage. I made the decision to gather all of them in one place so they could be watched together until we sorted through this mess.”

  “Smart move,” Nikoli said.

  Viv tossed him a small, shy smile.

  The rumbling grew louder, and soon Nikoli spotted the horns of a bull, then another and another. He squinted into the darkness and saw cattle rushing into the compound. That’s when he noticed the fence within the fence. It created some sort of shoot that allowed the animals to head in only one direction. He heard the squeal of pigs, the neighing of goats. Hundreds of animals seemed to rush by.

  “We feed in order,” Viv said to the cousins. “To avoid conflict. Evee’s Nosferatu go first since they only feed on the blood.” She held up one hand and pointed a finger skyward and said loudly, “Come hither!”

  At that command came the sudden braying of cows, squealing of pigs and screaming of goats. Nikoli saw treetops sway off in the distance. Though he couldn’t put an eye on any Nosferatu or any of the animals once they’d cleared the shoot, he knew the feeding had begun.

  “Is it possible for us to get closer so we can watch the feed?” Nikoli asked Viv.

  She looked at him as if he’d grown a second head. “I’m not going to risk your life or endanger the Nosferatu by allowing you inside the compound. We allowed you to come here, so whatever you need to smell, go smell it, but do it from this side of the fence. You’re welcome to investigate the perimeter, but inside the compound is off limits,” Viv said with a scowl.

  “If the Nosferatu are feeding right now, where is Evee?” Lucien asked.

  “And how did they get into this area?” Ronan added. “It certainly wasn’t from where we entered. I would’ve spotted them.”

  “Just as I have Jaco and Aaron,” Viv said. “Evee has two leaders that help her at feeding time. My sister won’t cross the river. She’s afraid of water.”

  The information Nikoli had received prior to this mission indicated that Evee controlled the element of water, so he didn’t understand her fear of it. He decided against questioning Viv about it.

  “So how do you get all of the Nosferatu over here without them being seen?” Ronan asked.

  A look of frustration crossed Viv’s face. “You have your secrets, we have ours.”

  Time appeared to jump into fast-forward because it seemed like only minutes later when Nikoli heard a shrill caw and the sound of many crows flying overhead.

  Evidently seeing the puzzlement on Nikoli’s face, Viv said, “That is Evee calling them back. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to tend to my Loups. They’re next.”

  With no further explanation, Viv unlocked a wide steel gate and slipped through it. She relocked the gate, then disappeared into the forestry.

  “I don’t like all the secret-secret stuff,” Lucien said.

  “Me neither,” Gavril said.

  Nikoli held up a hand. “We’re the strangers here. You wouldn’t expect us to welcome strangers into our territory with wide-open arms and say, ‘Sure, come on in, I’ll show you everything we do,’ would you?”

  “But we’re here to help them,” Gavril said.

  “Then let’s help them,” Nikoli said. “Once they’re through with the feedings, we’ll walk the boundaries of the compound from this side of the fence and see if we pick up anything.”

  “Why do we need to wait until after the feedings?” Ronan asked, then struggled to hold back a yawn. “They won’t let us inside the compound anyway, and we don’t need them to examine the outside of the territory.”

  “Be patient, cousin,” Nikoli said. “Be patient. We may need them more than you know.”


  The night grew silent. The bawling, bellowing, screeching, screaming and neighing of the animals had vanished. Now the only sound that echoed to Nikoli’s ear was that of gnashing teeth and the sound of mouths chomping on flesh.

  It was a difficult sound to process. It sent Nikoli’s protection instincts into overdrive. He knew all animals, whether they walked on two legs or four, had to eat to survive. Nature had its own process. But hearing all of it going on at one time made Nikoli feel sorry for the cattle that had to be used to feed so many that haunted the night.

  This part of the feeding seemed to take longer than that of the Nosferatu for it was a while before Viv returned.

  Once she was back at their side, she lifted a hand in the air, pointed a finger skyward and issued a command. “Come hither!”

  The sound that followed was like hordes of hyenas had infiltrated the compound. Wailing, high-pitched laughter and squawking.

  Gilly suddenly appeared out of the brush to their left.

  Startled, Gavril swung about, his right hand grappling with a sheath that hung from his belt. Nikoli prayed his cousin’s action didn’t startle the sisters.

  “Whoa there, boss,” Gilly said to Gavril. “Is that a gun at your side? A knife?”

  “Sorry, no, Abigail,” Gavril said. “It’s my scabior. We each have one.”

  Gilly frowned. “You have a what? And let’s just cut to the chase. Call me Gilly, will you? Abigail sounds too stuffy.”

  Gavril smiled. “All right...Gilly.”

  Nikoli cleared his throat. “Our weapons are called scabiors. We use them to battle the Cartesians. I’ll remove mine from its sheath so you can look at it, if you’d like.”

  When Viv nodded, he reached for the sheath hanging from his belt.

  Viv took a step closer to him and Gilly walked over cautiously. Nikoli slowly pulled out the scabior, and laid it out across his left palm. The eight-inch steel rod glistened in the moonlight and the bloodstone at the scabior’s tip winked when he turned it just so.

  Gilly let out a snort. “That looks like a toy! That’s what you use to kill those monstrous beasts you told us about? It looks like the most you’d be able to do with it is poke out your own eye.”

  Nikoli couldn’t help but grin. He loved the openness of the Triads. Although they were more than courteous, they weren’t afraid to say what they meant. “I know how it appears, but you’ll have to just trust me. It does the job.”

  “Can I hold it?” Gilly asked.

  “No,” Nikoli said. “I’m sorry. If it’s used in the wrong manner by an untrained hand, you could annihilate everything within this five-hundred-acre compound. It took years of training for us to learn how to use it effectively.”

  “All right, big whoop,” Gilly said with a pout.

  The sound of hyenas gave way to the crunching of bones.

  “Are the Chenilles in there?” Ronan asked. “Are they making that noise?”

  “Yes,” Viv answered. “They ingest the marrow from the bones. That’s why the different breeds are brought in a specific order. Once all of them have had their fill, we’ll either settle them down in their sleeping habitat or send them off to tend to other chores before dawn. The Chenilles and the Loup Garous aren’t sensitive to daylight like the Nosferatu. Many of them have jobs that we’ve assigned them to during the day, so they’d learn to coexist and interact with humans. The same goes for the Nosferatu, only they serve by night. This feeding time is to make certain they are satiated so the potential for an attack on a human is minimized considerably. We’ve decided, however, to put them all on lock-down until the Cartesians are dealt with.”

  “Another good call,” Nikoli said, impressed with her foresight.

  “So is that where Evee is now?” Lucien asked. “Putting her Nosferatu away before dawn? Tucking them in?”

  Viv grinned. “Yes, they’re being tucked in.”

  “Will we see Evee again later this morning?” Ronan asked.

  Viv gave him a quizzical look, then said, “She’ll be dockside, waiting for us when we’re done.”

  “You really have one hell of an operation here,” Nikoli said. “Fast and efficient. It’s so well organized. I’m impressed.”

  “Thanks,” Gilly said. “You should be. This is a lot of hard work.” She looked at Viv. “I’m going to go gather them up now.” She took off at a fast pace along the east side of the fence that cordoned off the compound.

  Suddenly, Nikoli caught a nostril full of noxious gas and cloves, a sure sign that one or more Cartesians had broken through to their dimension. He took off, following where the scent seemed to lead. It happened to be in the same direction Gilly was headed.

  Lucien, Gavril and Ronan immediately took off after him, evidently picking up the scent, as well.

  “Wait!” Viv shouted.

  Nikoli heard her clap her hands twice. He glanced over his shoulder and saw her hands held out as if signaling for them to stop. Before his brain could register that she was casting a spell, he heard her utter a short incantation. Immediately he and his cousins were brought to an abrupt halt, as if they’d slammed into an invisible barrier.

  “No, no!” Nikoli shouted. “Release—release, the Chenilles will be killed if you don’t.”

  Gilly whirled about, her expression one of fear and utter confusion. She looked from Viv to Nikoli, then back to Viv. “Release, Viv! Let them go!”

  Viv heeded her sister’s request and clapped her hands twice more. The abrupt dissolution of the barrier caused Nikoli and his cousins to fall to the ground.

  Nikoli scrambled quickly back to his feet and took off running, Gilly ahead of him.

  “Where do I go?” Gilly shouted. “Viv!”

  “Right behind you!” Viv yelled.

  “Stay back!” Nikoli warned. “Let us get there first.”

  “How will you get to them?” Gilly asked, her breath coming in short bursts. “You can’t enter the compound this way. The gate’s back there!”

  Nikoli nearly gagged on the smell of sulfur and cloves. The farther they ran, the thicker the scent became. He stopped suddenly and pointed due north.

  In that moment, the sky appeared to split open and four creatures with heads the size of two buffaloes melded together burst through the opening. Their arms were the circumference of a gigantic oak tree. Razor-sharp claws grabbled for Chenilles.

  Shrieking laughter filled the night, and Nikoli caught sight of Chenilles running in every direction. Long, lanky bodies, some hairless, some spotted with fur. All of them terrified.

  “No!” Viv and Gilly cried in unison, then both yelled out a binding spell. Unfortunately, all it did was appear to piss off the Cartesians for they turned in the sisters’ direction.

  Fearing Viv and Gilly might be attacked, Nikoli immediately held his scabior out in his right hand as did his cousins, and they aimed the weapons at the Cartesians. Before they could get a bead on them, two more Cartesians appeared, instantly capturing a Chenille apiece. They bit their captives’ heads off, then sucked at the necks as if they meant to extract all of the innards, heart and soul.

  Gilly screamed, but her voice barely reached an audible volume before Viv was at her side. Both women stood motionless, mouths open, as Nikoli, Lucien, Ronan and Gavril aimed their weapons, gave two quick twists of their wrists, twirled the scabiors between their fingers and took aim again. Bolts of lightning shot from their bloodstones and hit their target.

  Nikoli heard the first deafening pop as the lightning bolts hit the Cartesians on their heads and pushed them back to the fourth dimension. Another pop—the fifth dimension. Then the hole in the sky closed up tightly, and they were unable to push them back any farther.

  Gilly was on her knees now crying, her hands covering her face. Viv hovered over her, trying to comfort her as be
st she could.

  With the smell of sulfur and cloves fading in the night air, Nikoli and his cousins shoved their scabiors back into their sheaths.

  Nikoli walked over to Viv and Gilly. “You two okay?”

  They looked at him, dumbfounded.

  Nikoli sighed. “I don’t think many more explanations are needed about who we are or what we do or what Cartesians are, are there?”

  Viv looked up at him. And a tear slid down her cheek. Her world and mind were being torn apart by polar opposites. Her growing need to be near Nikoli, and the desire to run as far away from him and the creatures he fought.

  Chapter 13

  After the death of the two Chenilles, it had taken some time to calm Gilly down enough so she was able to get the remaining members of her brood across the river, then head home. Viv would’ve gladly taken on the chore herself, but she had no control over the Chenilles, nor did Evee. Only Gilly. Just as Gilly had no control over her Loups or Evee’s Nosferatu.

  The ferry had returned for her and the four cousins once Gilly had offloaded city-side. By the time Viv and the men made it across, Evee was standing at the edge of the wharf, looking shaken to the core and about to jump into the water she so feared. Gilly had filled her in on what had happened.

  It was then they’d parted ways with the Benders. And Viv, as much as she didn’t want to admit it, hated to see Nikoli go. Yes, he was easy on the eyes, that was a given. Only it wasn’t his looks that caused her to want him to stay. It was...him. His strength. His touch, as brief as it might have been made her ache for more. And his eyes, the confidence and compassion she saw in them. The softness and hunger she felt for him every time he looked at her. She and Evee had thanked them profusely and agreed to meet up with the men again later that evening at the triplets’ home. Benders and Triads were still human, and despite the severity of any situation, a human had to eat and sleep at some point.