“She’s going to change,” Ben replied. Sam heard the note in his voice... He knew what this looked like... the only one who knew what she went through, in fact. He’d stayed on the rooftop with her, watched her from a safe distance, until the end, and even then, only her deliberate scaring of him had forced him to run down a level in the hospital parking ramp. Cut from some brave cloth, was Ben. And here he was again, standing by her, to the bitter end... whatever that may be...
“Shouldn’t we be getting the hell out of here then?” Lenny asked, his voice raising a bit as his anxiety increased.
“It’s okay... I didn’t kill Ben, I won’t kill you.” Sam groaned as she attempted to stand up more, her stomach and spine responding with a resounding ‘No!’. Sam jerked her head toward Alice. “Now her, on the other hand...”
Sam never finished the sentence, her voice dissolving into a half groan/ half yelp as she doubled almost completely over, then fell to the ground. Lenny started to step toward her, but stopped, and his eyes nearly bugged out of his head. Sam’s back was...moving, the spine flexing beneath her tank top, pushing the skin on her back to form ridges as the bones began to spread out and expand. The sounds of snapping and cracking became louder, and Sam screamed, the sound growing deeper and more like a baying as the change took over her body. Lenny could see hair growing rapidly in the exposed areas of her body, which increased as her body grew and the clothing she was wearing began to tear apart.
“Lenny!”
Lenny whirled toward the source of the shout, and saw Ben backing away from a similar pile of transitioning werewolf. Alice Kremer was changing, too, but decidedly faster. She would be done long before Sam, and, even with his inexperience and anxiety, Lenny could see the younger woman was more accustomed to doing it. She would be able to fight sooner, and would likely kill Sam.
Lenny thought fast... raised the H&K and fired three shots into Alice Kremer’s body. She yowled and writhed, and immediately the change slowed almost to a stop. Lenny reminded himself to mention that to somebody when this was over, because it was probably important, then turned back to Sam.
She was still changing, though the ferocity of the bone shattering, and muscles and tendons stretching had ebbed considerably. Lenny kept the weapon in hand, though his gut told him he really had nothing to fear from her. It was Sam, after all, and right now she was just hurting. He saw a flash out of the corner of his eye, and suddenly Ben was by Sam’s side.
“Don’t touch her, man, she’s in a lot of pain,” Lenny said, as Ben knelt down beside the tortured form.
“I know, Len. I can help her. Hudson told me about it.” Ben hesitated only a moment, then gently placed his hands onto Sam’s head, petting her like a big German Shepherd, and murmuring soothingly as he did. Lenny could see the tension easing out of her shoulders and back, out of her limbs, and the change seemed to move faster. Hair grew out, including the dark mane around the shoulders, neck and head. The muscles in the limbs became more defined, sculpted. The agonized groans and cries quieted, too, and soon Sam was merely grunting, a whimper here and there as the process finished, and she was left, still and silent, her werewolf’s head resting on Ben’s leg. Lenny couldn’t help but smile as he looked at her, and he had to admit that, scary as this shit was, it was also pretty damn cool.
“How did you know what to do?” Lenny asked Ben, keeping his voice low for fear of disturbing the now-resting Sam-wolf.
Ben smiled. “See, every Werewolf has a Raven, someone who looks after them, helps them cope. But it’s not an exclusive thing. A Raven can help more than one Werewolf, and a Werewolf can have more than one Raven.” He looked down at Sam-wolf, smoothing her mane gently. “Sam and I have always had a bond... No matter who we bond with, that will always be there, always be strongest.”
Sam’s eyes slowly opened, the stark black color shiny with moisture from her tears. The storm had passed, though, and there was no pain in those eyes, only opaque blackness. She blinked slowly, and Lenny could see the eyes move from him, to Ben, and back again. At least, they seemed to move... without the definition the iris and pupil usual gave, it was difficult to tell. Her breathing was even, if a bit more rapid than normal.
“How’s she doing?” Lenny whispered, afraid that even speaking normally would be enough to spook her. Ben continued to stroke Sam-wolf’s mane and smiled.
“She’s alright.” Suddenly, Ben’s smile faded, and he looked beyond Lenny, his eyes going wide. “Lenny! Get down!”
Without argument, Lenny hit the ground. He saw Benny scrambling, and Sam-wolf starting to rise, the black of her eyes almost glowing with the surge of fight bringing her to her feet. Fight, indeed, as seconds later a honey-colored beast rammed into Sam-wolf’s side, propelling her into a nearby tree. Lenny scrambled after Ben, and the two crawled away to the relative safety of the statue. They ducked around to the back and peered out at the scene in front of them.
The honey-colored form was clearly a werewolf, and clearly Alice Kremer, based on the color of the hair alone. The mercury bullets had slowed the change, but not stopped it, and now she was fully transformed, strong, and ready to fight. Lenny watched her prowl in front of Sam-wolf, like a hyena circling its prey, and he quickly checked his ammo. He’d need a lot more than three to bring her down, probably more than what he had, but he could slow her down if needed, give Sam a chance.
Sam got slowly back to her feet, and seemed weakened by the attack, until she looked up. Lenny couldn’t help but chuckle... even as a werewolf, it was still Sam, and he’d seen that look enough times before to know that Miss Alice here wasn’t going to have an easy time of it.
Both werewolves howled and rushed each other.
39
THE KIDS HAD BEEN EASY to find. By the time Ronne and Vincent reached the gray castle, the visitor’s center within was closing, and the children clustered around the entrance. A quick once over told them the children were unharmed, and the oldest girl, who said her name was Jade, confirmed that assessment. Alice had been kind to them, though she seemed very upset.
“Where is she?” Jade asked and looked warily at the two men. “She said she would be back.” Ronne smiled in his most pleasant trust-me-I’m-a-police-officer sort of way.
“I’m sure she’s fine. Now, Jade, is it? You take the others and go west through those trees to Central Park West. When you get there, stay together, and stay put until the police get to you.” He quickly reached inside his shirt and pulled out the small badge on a chain he’d luckily thought to grab before they left. “Tell them Officer Ronne sent you out. We’re going to go look for Alice, okay?” Jade glanced at Vincent, then nodded slowly, and began to herd the others away from the castle.
Ronne watched after them until they had disappeared into the trees, then quickly got on the phone with Martino. He let the lieutenant know the kids were coming out on the westside and told him they were going back in to find Sam and the others. He hung up and turned to Vincent. The Irishman looked pale, doubtless from the approach of the full moon’s height and his struggle to control himself. Ronne did another mental inventory of the mercury bullets he had with him... two full magazines, which should be plenty.
“So... are they still at the statue?” Ronne asked.
“I don’t know,” Vincent replied, his voice quiet and strained. He was really struggling.
“Can you find out? You know, ask Sam?” Vincent hesitated, his lips pressed tightly, then nodded curtly. He turned and looked back into the park. He took a deep breath, scenting the air in the direction of the fountain, and prepared to lower the barrier he’d raised up after their last contact. He hated closing Sam off, but because of the pull of the change, the connection with her mind was triggering him. He needed to risk it, though, to locate her... and Alice.
He could smell his sister around the castle, and it caused a surge of anger to race through him. He’d been so hopeful when they were reunited, that perhaps his sins had been atoned and he would have a family aga
in, but... He shook off the anger... It wouldn’t do to have Sam feel it when he tuned into her...
The assault in his mind when he lowered the mental barrier was like a tsunami of pain, and fear... Vincent gripped his head, and nearly collapsed under the weight of the feeling. She was suffering... He could hear Ronne yelling beside him, asking him what was wrong, but Vincent couldn’t speak, couldn’t remember words... It was like the contact with Sam’s transforming mind had torn his own asunder... And worse...
Vincent opened his eyes... and the whole world had gone gray... he could hear himself responding to Ronne, but they weren’t words he recognized... just a guttural growl of sounds. Vincent groaned internally, and took off at a run back to the statue, back to Sam... He could hear someone running behind him, probably Ronne, and he was yelling, too.
Everything was louder, and sharper, and hotter as he ran, and the gray lens covering everything grew darker as he got closer to his destination.
THE TOUCH OF HIS MIND distracted Sam for a moment, and Alice got another slash into her side. Sam yelped, and swung wildly, catching Alice with her elbow and propelling the younger wolf backward and onto the ground. Sam was breathing heavily, the pain from her wounds and the residual stress from the change taking its toll on the adrenaline she’d been running on for the past few minutes. Vincent was coming... She could sense him, scent him on the wind, but he felt...wrong... and what remained of Sam’s human mind knew why... Something had triggered him to change...
The fight with Alice had been brutal, though it had only gone on for a minute, maybe two. It was a strangely choreographed dance of hand-to-hand combat and dog fight. Self-defense training, and growing up on the Lower East Side, had prepared her well, and Sam had been able to fend off most of Alice’s assault, save for the two slashes in her abdomen. They would heal quickly, though, and were. If she could keep her at bay until Ronne arrived, between him and Lenny they could take Alice down... but Vincent...
Alice lunged at her again, but Sam blocked the blow, and instead nailed Alice a blow to the ribs for her effort. The younger werewolf wheezed as she fell back, but the blow wasn’t enough to slow her down. In fact, it seemed to only enrage her more. She came after Sam furiously, landing two more slashes to Sam’s chest, and then grabbed her by the throat, lifting her up off the ground. Sam could feel her air being cut off, and the needle-like pain of Alice’s claws digging into her neck... the wetness of blood beginning to trickle from the puncture wounds. She could feel a blackness creeping into her vision, pushing the gray away as the curtain of unconsciousness began to dip. Suddenly, air rushed into her lungs, and Sam felt herself flying. Alice had thrown her toward the statue, and the impact was as painful as Sam expected it to be. She could sense Lenny and Ben still hiding behind the statue, and she prayed they would move, run, get away before Alice spotted them. Sam winced as she tried to move, to get away from the onslaught to come, but Alice was already there, still wheezing... Sam must have punctured a lung with the last blow she did get in... and she felt the painful pressure on her forehead as Alice held her pinned against the mushroom, her other arm raised in preparation to strike a lethal blow.
“NO!” At least, it sounded like no to Sam, but the word dissolved into an unearthly, guttural yell that quickly became something else. Alice released the pressure on Sam’s head, and both were able to turn their heads toward the sound, though Sam already knew who it was.
Vincent.
His eyes were black, but a fire seemed to burn in them, and his teeth shown bright white as he gritted them and took in the scene before him. Sam glanced up at Alice, and noticed she at least had the intelligence to be afraid... her honey-colored hair almost looked pale, and there was actual fear in her black eyes.
Vincent yelled... only it wasn’t really a yell... more of a hellish scream that transformed quickly into an unearthly howl. He tore his shirt open as he dropped down to his knees on the concrete, and the change began almost immediately. Sam watched in fear and fascination. For Vincent, the change truly was ferocious and very fast. His black hair grew quickly, shielding his body in seconds as the rest of his clothing ripped away and his frame began to change. His bones and muscles cracked and snapped furiously, but it appeared to cause him no pain, his gaze never leaving Sam or his sister as the transition raced through him. His muscles bulged, sinews strained, as his body grew by at least a foot in height and breadth. As a man, Vincent was handsome and well-built, but as a werewolf... He was magnificent, truly.
He was also a beast.
Vincent snarled, his gaze fixed on his sister as he began moving forward toward them. Ronne ran in, and skidded to a halt, quickly ducking behind the statue with the others when he saw the scene before him. Vincent glanced briefly, toward the statue... the urge to attack, and infect, was omnipresent, but there was time for that... but right now...
Alice flinched, and it was all the incentive he needed. Vincent snarled and leapt, tackling Alice off Sam and to the ground in front of the statue. He held her down, his claws digging into her neck, the sounds of her choking and suffocating filling the air. The sounds grew fainter, but she was still breathing when Vincent lifted her up, raising her head up off the ground, then slamming it down onto the concrete. Sam felt herself wince inside, even as she hurried to get off the mushroom and move away, unsure whether her beloved Vincent would turn on her in his current state, both werewolves or not. She cringed as he slammed his sister’s head down again, then bent over and growled as he squeezed his hand on her neck, crushing her windpipe, his claws tearing the carotid and the jugular. Blood spurted out of Alice Kremer’s neck. Without hesitation, Vincent grabbed his sister’s body, hoisting it over his shoulder.
Sam caught Ronne scrambling out from behind the statue, raising the H&K up, and aiming it at Vincent. Before he could get off a shot, however, Vincent, with Alice still over his shoulder, took off, running into the Ramble.
Sam could feel the tears forming in her eyes... and the slightest shades of green and red appearing... as the gray began to fade from her vision. She instinctively searched for the moon in the sky, and found it, frosty against the blue sky. Perigee had passed. Now the blackness she’d seen earlier quickly dropped in, and Sam gratefully collapsed into a blissful unconsciousness.
40
EVEN BEFORE SHE OPENED her eyes, Sam could see the light. It was dimmer than before... the sun must have come around far enough to begin its nightly descent behind the buildings of the West Side. Lord, how long have I been out? She opened her eyes slowly, and moved to raise herself, a move she regretted immediately as pain shot through her abdomen. Sam carefully touched her side, and winced when her hand made contact, the tee shirt fabric touching the wounds and accentuating the zing of sharp pain.
Squinting against the expected glare, Sam opened her eyes a bit... and found Ben’s dark eyes looking back at her. She was surprised she hadn’t smelled that he was that close but chalked it up to the trauma of what her body had just been through. She gave him a small smile and accepted the bottle of water he offered her.
“Is everybody okay?” Ben nodded and sat down on the ground beside her.
“More or less.” He gave her a crooked smile. “How are you?”
“Tired. Sore. Tired.” Sam sipped the water, relishing the cool as it washed over her dry tongue and down her scratchy throat. The howls and growls might sound cool, but they were murder on your throat, leaving it raw. She glanced down, noting the NYPD garb she was wearing. “Who got me the clothes?”
Ben grinned. “Lenny. I’m afraid we all had to get you dressed. You were pretty out of it.” He raised his eyebrows, jerking his head toward something or someone behind her. Sam turned cautiously, and saw Ronne and Lenny gathered by the tree she had been thrown into earlier. Martino was with them, too, and several other officers.
“I guess I put on quite a show, huh?” Sam grimaced, and sipped her water again.
“You all did. Your lieutenant’s story is that a movie is being fil
med in the park. He keeps saying, ‘Aren’t the special effects amazing?’ to everyone who doesn’t appear to be a cop.” Ben chuckled, his smile fading quickly though as Ronne and Lenny approached. Ronne crouched down, and brushed Sam’s hair back off her forehead.
“How’re you feeling?” He was smiling, but Sam could see the concern in his eyes, and sensed the tension in his body.
“I’m alright. Help me up.” She reached for Ronne, and he quickly helped her to her feet, and held her as she swayed briefly before getting her balance. “Thanks.” Sam looked between Ronne, Lenny, and Ben, then returned to Ronne. “So... tell me.”
Ronne hesitated. “How much do you remember?”
“About what happened here? Everything.” Sam glanced around, noting the amount of weaponry coming into the area as more officers joined Martino by the tree. “Do you know where he is?”
“He dragged Alice away toward the Ramble. Martino already has snipers all along the Traverse, and the perimeter of the park between Fifth Avenue and Central Park West is secure. No one, and nothing, has left the park in any direction. So... he’s still in the Ramble.”
Sam nodded, then turned to Ben. “Can you feel Alice? Is she still alive?”
Ben shook his head. “She was dead when he dragged her away.”
Sam nodded again. “Len? How many bullets did you put in Alice?”
“Three,” Lenny replied. “It slowed her down a bit, but that’s it. Based on what I saw, you’re going to need a hell of a lot more to bring—” Lenny stopped abruptly, but there was no need to finish the statement. Everyone knew what had to be done.
“You still have the H&K he gave you?” Lenny nodded in answer, and quickly took out the weapon, and handed it to Sam. She checked the magazine... Still thirteen rounds. She sighed, then started toward the Ramble.
“Sam...” Ronne began, and she could feel the eyes of Martino, Lenny, everyone in the area, as they watched her walk toward the woods. Sam quickly raised a hand to silence him and kept walking.
The Bloodline Series Box Set Page 65