Heavy Metal Heartbeat

by Ambear Shellea

  “You accepted the strength the mighty wolf has to offer and its ability to adapt to its surroundings in order to survive.”

  Breathing hard, he watched her eyes light up with another question.

  “What else happened? What happened before you killed that wolf?”

  “I was paralyzed and couldn’t move.”

  “Nonsense, how did that happen? You just said you killed Perry.”

  His scalp was wet from perspiration. The sweat coated his hands as he ran them through his hair in frustration.

  “Jaxson showed up. He told me I could do it. It was weird. He began to fade and I got stronger. By the time I could get to my feet, he was gone.”

  Her shiny, sharp scalpel pierced his skin, sketching five small stars on the left side of the middle circle.

  “You have been healed and touched by witchcraft.”

  Waving his hands in front of him, he protested her wild accusation.

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait. Are you trying to say Jaxson is a witch?”

  “One might say yes...” She shrugged. “While others may say no.”

  Furrowing his brow, he asked, “What does that mean?”

  “That answer is for another time. You found yourself on a hospital table dying. What did you do?”

  He thought about it for a minute. His phantom injuries ached but gave no indication as to how he ended up with his chest ripped open. He fell back and rested his butt on his heels, thinking. He recalled Anna’s voice and the sensation of falling. His eyes bulged as big as half dollars and his mouth hung open as the puzzle finally made sense.

  “No! She didn’t…she wouldn’t…she promised me!”

  The scorching hot pain as she dug into his skin was nothing to the pain of Anna’s betrayal.

  “You have been visited by the ghost of your former life, and you did not cross over, but fought to stay in the world of the living. You rejected the escorting spirits of the undead.”

  He was a mixed bag of emotions. Clouds of doubt and uncertainty swirled in his brain and made it hard to sift through. The tattoo charred his skin, and Jewels’ features flitted around in his light-headed vision.

  “You have completed the marks to become The Hunter of Zane. I bestow on you the powers of your ancestors and the powers you gained from the supernatural.”

  The tear shaped ruby appeared in the center of the shamrock and mimicked his heartbeat.

  “You have an aggressive heart. It beats hard and fast like the heavy metal music you listen to. Adrenaline flows through your veins, fueling your purpose. The bloodline is complete.”

  She pressed her palm over the tattoo. The lines swirled together, the entire picture fusing as one. Agony shot through his chest and spread like wildfire. He faintly remembered hitting the ground before his world went black.

  Chapter 15

  Anna stood, blood dripping from her hands, frozen in place and unable to move. Her eyes were fixed on the commotion in the center of the room. She saw the fear in his eyes when he realized it was Paige’s blood on the roses. She wanted to comfort him, to whisper it would be all right, but her body refused to cooperate. An unknown force slammed a metaphorical dagger of pain deeper into her heart, stealing her sanity. Her breath caught at the sight of him in so much agony.

  A fiery heat from the broilers in Hell radiated from Ozzie in violent waves and she wondered if the room would go up in flames. She heard his heart pounding in his chest with the force of a sledge hammer, blow after blow, threatening to burst through his skin. Unable to judge the situation, she turned to Sebastian for advice.

  “Sebastian, what is going on? Is this normal? Is he experiencing severe blood lust?”

  She cut her eyes in the direction of the vampire behind her as he quickly answered her question.

  “No, I don’t believe so.”

  A thunderous growl swept through the room, stealing her attention. She turned back to Ozzie and was horrified. His skin seemed to crawl along his bones, swelling over muscles and tissue as if to take on a new shape.

  “Is he turning into a werewolf?” Jaxson yelled form behind her.

  She thought about it for a second and answered, “No! I have never seen a wolf change, but I have seen Paige, and her muscles move under her skin, not her skin itself, but then it rips away as her cat form emerges.”

  Ozzie dropped to the floor flat on his back.

  “Then what the hell is going on?”

  Sebastian offered another answer.

  “Perhaps Anna, you and that she-wolf who attacked him have created a hybrid. That would be most…exciting and unpredictable.”

  Her gaze darted behind her and back to Sebastian.

  “Do you really think so?”

  Just as she turned back to Ozzie, he arched his back as the glow of gold in the mid-day sun erupted from his chest. A scream ripped from his throat.

  Her feet staggered back a step as she covered her eyes at the bright display.

  “It’s the tattoo!”

  A sparkler of flame outlined the tattoo as it came to life on his chest. Each braid and knot sizzled and burned. Emerald showered the room as the clover grew brighter. Scars of white light caressed the symbols in the center and fused with green and gold. The light took on the brightness of the sun and exploded throughout the room in a flash.

  She opened her eyes and Ozzie lay limp and unconscious. Thorns sliced her hands when she flung the flowers in haste and barely noticed the sting. She tried to rush to Ozzie’s side, but Mr. Zane’s voice stopped her.

  “Wait! No one move. Stay back.”

  The old man walked over to inspect his rag doll of a son. He surveyed the limp frame with his hands a few times, muttering to himself as he went.

  “I can’t believe it…legends…must be true…that means…”

  She’d had enough and her patience had fled the scene, vowing to never return. She stepped up alongside Mr. Zane.

  “Do you know what’s going on?”

  There was no answer.

  “Fine, I will check him myself.”

  The old man grabbed her arm and she glared at him. Her harsh words were ready to pass her lips, but his words cut her off.

  “Anna, I will not warn you again. It is out of love and respect for my son that I warn you now. Move away from him, or you most likely will die.”

  She took a challenging step forward.

  “Are you going to kill me?”

  “No, but he might.”

  It was enough to stop her. Dumbfounded, she could only stare. She started to move backward when Jaxson pulled her out of the way. His voice carried just as loud as Mr. Zane’s.

  “She…we are all worried about him. If you know what’s going on, you need to tell us before someone gets hurt. All of us are anxious.”

  Mr. Zane circled Ozzie’s body like a vulture after prey, examining it, testing for signs of life. He stopped pacing and looked up. The wide, proud smile plastered on his face gave her hope. The tension in her muscles relaxed until he spoke.

  “He is alive, but you may all perish!”

  “What?!” Sebastian and Jaxson yelled.

  A moan from the floor caught her attention. Mr. Zane dropped to his knees and placed his hand on Ozzie’s chest.

  “Ozzie, Son, are you all right? Can you hear me?”

  Ozzie shook his head and looked at his father. Mr. Zane gasped.

  “Son!”

  Unable to control her body, she rushed over on hands and knees and looked into Ozzie’s face. Her breath caught in her throat. Ozzie stared back with emerald green eyes lined with gold, but then he passed out again.

  Mr. Zane’s words sounded distant, as if miles away even though he sat just a few inches from her.

  “I have never seen or heard of such a thing happening for real, although legends speak of it. He will come to in a while. His body is adjusting to his new powers”

  Just as her old professors used to do when they were teaching, Ozzie’s father paced back and fo
rth as he spoke, as if no one were in the room.

  “I have never been more proud of him. He spoke the truth to me. He has never strayed from his duties or what I taught him. This is proof he takes stock in his lineage and that his bloodline is instilled within very deep. The Hunter’s rage ignited it.”

  Inhaling her frustration, she tried not to explode. “We will all gladly sit and take the lesson that is surely coming, and we welcome it, but for the sake of my sanity, please tell me what the hell happened.”

  “My son has become The Hunter! The Hunter of Zane!”

  Chapter 16

  The words were clear in Anna's ears, but they seemed to twist and turn into something she couldn't understand. She looked to every face in the room, old man Zane seemed to be the only one with a clue.

  “The Hunter of Zane? Um, could you explain that to me, please?”

  Mr. Zane took up his professor pacing once more as he answered her question.

  “You remember I said we come from a long line of hunters?”

  “Yes. Ozzie has said the same, said your books date as far back as the 1400s”

  “Correct, August of 1425, to be exact. Well, that is when they began keeping track. Carenza Izabell Flannery was the first one in our recorded history to have been killed by the supernatural. She was bitten by a vampire. Her son, Aiden Liam Flannery, became the first of our clan to become The Hunter of Zane.”

  “Wait, that doesn't make sense. If his last name was Flannery, why is it the hunter of Zane?”

  “I am getting there. Aiden's parents weren't married. Carenza shamed her family by having what you folks call, a one night stand. Fintin had been travelling with the army and he was sure he would fight in war. He was full of ambition and charm. Before she knew it, Carenza had fallen for him.”

  Anna, engrossed yet again in one of old man Zane's stories, huddled on the couch in between Sebastian and Jaxson.

  “Soon Carenza found herself with child and without a husband. Her family moved her to a small cottage off the beaten path and away from the prying eyes of town, lest someone find out her secret. They later told the town she had married and lost her husband in a skirmish over land and therefore had been widowed.

  “So, did Aiden ever know who his father was?”

  Old man Zane shook his head and continued from where he’d left off.

  “When the boy was about twelve, Fintin happened to travel through town and run into Carenza. She introduced him to his son. Just so happened that the night Carenza was bitten and killed, he was still in town.

  “Does your history tell the name of this vampire who killed Carenza?” Sebastian asked.

  “Unfortunately, no.”

  “I feared as much. Most of the originals just killed and took no names. Humans were for food and sport, nothing more.” Sebastian explained.

  Anna, caught up in the story, prompted Mr. Zane.

  “So, what happened after that?”

  “After his mother's death, Aiden went and lived with his father, Fintin Thomas Zane. The pain and hurt filled the boy with hateful energy. Fintin decided to teach him how to fight, track and hunt, hoping to work off his negative energy. It seemed to work for quite a while. Aiden became the best tracker within a hundred miles. When Aiden was seventeen, he fell in love with a beautiful, young blonde-haired woman, Ashling Nolah Kileen. He had finally worked enough to buy the lass a ring and prepared to ask her to marry him. While celebrating with his friends at the Lucky Green Tavern, he ran into trouble, more trouble than he’d bargained for.

  Most boys get into fights at least once during their adolescence. This was Aiden's turn. Although he had never been in a fight before due to his training and work load, he was very strong. He never backed down and kept on fighting. A few men from town broke up the fight, but the new guy in town had been humiliated by the fact that Aiden wouldn't accept defeat.”

  “He has a fighter’s spirit, that's for sure.” Jaxson pointed out.

  “That he does. Turns out the new guy was a local werewolf from a neighboring town. Mad and set on revenge, he followed young Aiden home and watched as he proposed to his love. The wolf waited long enough for the girl to say yes. He caught them by surprise while in their embrace of excitement. He snatched the girl form Aiden's grip and ripped her throat out, dropping her bloody frame at his feet.”

  Anna gasped, covering her mouth, tears in her eyes.

  “Oh my God, that is horrible.”

  Mr. Zane shook his head in agreement.

  “Enraged, Aiden grew strong and lashed out. He damn near tore that wolf limb from limb. He spent the rest of days growing stronger, getting faster and hunting quieter. He honed his skills and mastered the use of many different weapons. He gathered and trained anyone who asked to join him. Before long he had a team of ten and when Aiden turned thirty-five, he got his chance and killed that wolf.”

  “I am so glad he got that wolf in the end. So what you are saying is that when Ozzie realized Paige was in danger, he like, raged out and...”She pointed to the body on the floor. “Is the outcome?”

  “Yes. Ozzie may be the same or very different. I have never seen anything like it with my own eyes. I just have read it in legends, such as the one I told you. His whole purpose will be to hunt. From what we have gathered from legends, all of his skills will improve and he may even acquire new ones. Some of his skills may import from his human side, such as strength, and he will get very, very strong, or it could be that his gut instinct turns to almost a psychic ability. We will have to wait for him to wake up to find out.”

  Jaxson looked at the man on the floor, concern on his face.

  “How long will he be out?”

  “I don't know.”

  Chapter 17

  Ozzie's spirit crashed into his body with the weight of ten men. He gasped for air as if someone had jumped on his chest. Still as stone, his muscles momentarily froze from the sudden shock. He blinked back tears as he stared dumbfounded at the ceiling. He could hear the collective gasp in the room and the brush of fabric as people moved, but he could not see them. He knew they crept with caution.

  The haze in his mind cleared first as the rest of him followed suit, freeing his breath and muscles and giving him back his mobility. He closed his eyes and enjoyed one long, deep, cleansing breath.

  In a half a second he was off the floor, his hands around Anna’s neck, pinning her to the wall. He let his hurt and betrayal loose.

  “Anna, how could you? Now I will have to kill you, and Paige will never forgive me.”

  All hell broke loose as the rest of room caught up. Jaxson rushed to pull Anna free, Mr. Zane close behind.

  “Oz, back off. What the hell did she do? We are all friends.”

  “Get off my son. I swear I will slaughter all of you.”

  Sebastian sauntered over to the clan of chaotic people and spoke softly.

  “Ozzie, perhaps you should explain your accusation and the rest of us can explain why Anna did what she did.”

  His breath came slow and even as the fury spread through his veins like a forest fire.. His muscles twitched and jumped in anticipation. He yearned to kill. His eyes bore into hers, yet she said nothing. She offered no defense. He could feel her soft, cool body become motionless, and her breath slowed. She had no fear of him, she only stared.

  Maybe she doesn’t understand she is about to die. She trusts me, which is why she is letting me have this without putting up a fight.

  “Anna, how could you change me?”

  Jaxson answered when Anna’s voice faltered.

  “Ozzie, she didn’t have a choice. She had to…you were dying.”

  He dropped his would-be victim and turned to his best friend and co-conspirator in betrayal as he continued.

  “She had a choice!”

  “She saved your life, Oz. Don’t you remember?”

  His heart wanted to break when he saw the sadness and concern in his friend’s eyes, but he knew what he had to do. It was his duty.
Anna had broken the rules. She bit another human without consent. She had to pay. His father’s voice brought him out of his brooding.

  “Son, I will help you kill any and all of them, if necessary, but you yourself said they could be trusted. They are your friends and they would not go against the rules, so, in that sense, maybe we should sit and listen to what they have to say. I don’t know them, but I do trust you, and you were very head strong in the matter.”

  “But Father, I was wrong. Anna broke the rules.”

  Sebastian’s voice sounded off again.

  “Are you sure she betrayed you, Ozzie? Would Paige let her betray you?”

  Paige!

  The air in the room suddenly seemed thick and unmoving, like a fog. His lungs denied him breath. He was a fish out of water. He pressed a hand to his chest and gasped for air. The voices around him were nothing but background noise. His heart beat like that of a war drum as heat flashed across his body. He dropped to his knees and her scent ran across his face and calmed his nerves. Cool, crisp, fresh air floated in and out of his lungs. He blinked his eyes and the room came back into focus. Anna, his father and Sebastian gathered around him. Jaxson sat on his knees in front of him holding up Paige’s white sundress. He snatched it away.

  “What are you doing, Jaxson?”

  “Breathe in her scent, Oz, it will help,” Jaxson answered.

  Once again, Sebastian was the voice of reason.

  “Ozzie, do you remember Paige is in trouble?”

  He got up from the floor, sundress in hand.

  “Yes, and I intend to find her.”

  “Really? Do you know where she is?”

  “No, but I have the instincts of a wolf.”

  He watched as Sebastian took center stage, pacing like the instructor he had become.

  “Do you know how much time she has?”

  “No, but I have the speed of vampire.”

  To his left, his father looked as is if he would say something, but Sebastian silenced him and went on with his questions.

  “Do you remember what happened a few days ago?”

  ”Yes, I killed Perry when he tried to kill Anna. His pack came and…Paige…Paige was in trouble. One of the wolves was going to attack her from behind. That’s when I jumped in and saved her.”