Marriage Claws

by Paige Cuccaro

  Long, sharp claws click-clacked against the polished linoleum floor. Someone several rooms away gasped and slammed a door.

  “I just saw a huge dog in the hall,” they said. “Call the nurse’s station. And call the police.”

  Marcus had caught our scent, I was sure of it. He was coming. We were running out of time. Tension tingled down my back, muscles coiling. I sniffed the air, caught the whiff of fur, the hint of forest, a touch of old moss and overripe apples. Marcus.

  I could smell him, hear him. Why hadn’t Jack and Lenny shifted forms? Didn’t they know Marcus had come to fight? They’d be no match for him in their pathetic human bodies. They had to shift now before it was too late. I had to warn them. I couldn’t just stand there and do nothing. They had to know. Now!

  Instinct stormed inside me, obliterating every other thought. I opened my mouth and let loose a warning none of them could ignore. It came out in a loud sharp bark that shook through my huge chest, powering up my throat and made them all flinch. Wide eyes flicked to me.

  Not good enough.

  C’mon, don’t just stand there staring. Shift. Shift. “Whoof! Whoof!” There was no ignoring me now.

  George squeezed me tighter as if he could stop me from speaking out by denying me air. It wouldn’t work.

  “Kate, think,” he said. “You have to be quiet.”

  But I didn’t have time to think. I was wolf. Danger was coming. That’s all I needed to know.

  “Was that a dog?” the nurse asked. “Do you have an animal in that room?” Her shoes made a quick succession of squeaks as she tried to jockey around Jack. But he was quicker.

  “Listen to me,” he said. “There are wolves loose on this floor.”

  She huffed in disbelief. “I see the rumor mill is running at hyper-speed today. Relax Mr. Pensione. I don’t know what you heard exactly, but there’s no way any wild dogs can get into this hos—”

  A low growl interrupted the woman and a moment of silence followed that was thick with fear.

  “Oh my god . . . ,” the nurse said.

  Marcus was in the hall no more than three rooms away. I could smell his fur and hear the steady beat of his heart. Lenny’s senses, obviously hampered by his human form, must have finally detected the other wolf.

  Suddenly he pushed from the wall. “Don’t let her go,” he said. His body twitched, lurching like a puppet on strings, bending him over. Bones pulled and stretched beneath his skin, shredding his clothes. His shift was fast and silent. Minutes later he shook his big furry body, sending what remained of his tattered clothes to the floor.

  Well, it’s about time, I thought.

  Bloody hell, Kate, will you be quiet? It was Lenny’s voice inside my head.

  I blinked at him. I can hear you.

  Yes, he said . . . somehow. And I can hear you. So can Marcus and Alexia if they’re listening. We’re pack. It’s the only way to communicate in this form.

  Alexia? She was the other wolf with Marcus. Of course.

  I could smell her now, the faint hint of perfume and the honeysuckle scent of her fur. A growl vibrated through my chest, my wolf lacking even a hint of tolerance for the female that had tried to take my mate.

  “Don’t run,” Jack said outside in the hall, his voice calm and matter-of-fact. “They won’t hurt you if you stay calm. Go to the nurse’s station over there, and tell the ladies hiding under the desk to follow you to the patient’s rooms. Calmly. Get everyone in a room. Have them lock their doors.”

  Marcus and Alexia didn’t move. I listened for the sound of their steps, listened to the steady beat of their hearts. They were waiting.

  “Go,” Jack ordered, his voice a sharp whisper. He pushed my room door open wider, allowing for those of us who couldn’t work doorknobs at the moment.

  My gaze flicked past him to the nurse he’d been talking to. She wore a bright floral scrub shirt, green scrub pants and white rubber soled shoes. Her dark chestnut hair was cut in a bob that curled under her plump face. She was cute, no more than five feet, tall, and heavy-set. She’d be a slow runner with those short legs, and the extra meat on her would be chewy and full of flavor.

  Saliva suddenly flooded my mouth, my brain calculating the distance and speed I’d need to make the kill. I could almost feel the give of her flesh against my teeth, imagine the spurt of rich blood in my mouth. I wanted it. I wanted her.

  My stomach rumbled.

  “Kate, get a grip,” George said beside me. He jerked my fur, snagging my attention. “Don’t give into it. You won’t be able to stop.”

  His voice was like a buzzing at the back of my brain. I leaned forward, straining against his hold. I could catch her if she ran. She would run, wouldn’t she? I really hoped she’d run.

  Kate, Lenny said. She’s not prey. She’s someone’s mother, someone’s sister. She’s human. Remember that. She’s human.

  Lenny’s voice blasted through my thoughts and I shook my head. God help me, what was I thinking?

  It’s normal, Lenny said. You’re new. It gets easier. But for now, stay away from humans until we can get you out of here.

  I snorted, trying to blast the urge to hunt, to kill, from my brain. It helped. A little.

  I tracked the nurse’s retreat, her shoes squeaking as she hustled to the center of the wide hall. The nurse’s station was a tall circular desk with openings on either end. I watched her gesture to her friends hiding there. It took every ounce of restraint to watch three deliciously plump women scurry out like frightened mice, then scamper away to safety.

  Another growl vibrated from my mouth—this one born of frustration. I wanted to kill something.

  Marcus’ claws clacked against the floor as he moved closer, steady and slow. The memory of his attack, his viciousness, his delight in causing me pain, flashed through my head. I recoiled—and then owned the swelling urge for vengeance.

  Yeah. He’d do.

  “I have to shift, Kate,” George said. “Stay here. You’re not ready for a fight. You don’t have the control.”

  I looked sideways at him, not believing a word of it. But when he loosened his grip on my fur, I didn’t move.

  “Marcus, you’re making a mistake,” Jack said standing in the doorway. “You’ve already lost your place in the pack. Don’t forfeit your life, and Alexia’s, too.”

  The wolf in the hall snorted. I didn’t come here to die, he said. But Jack couldn’t hear Marcus when he was in human form.

  Beside me, George’s body contorted and twisted, his bones snapping and muscles stretching. He didn’t scream like I had, but his hard exhales and quick gasps told me it still hurt.

  My brother had nearly finished shifting, and I knew he wanted me to hang back and stay out of the way. But Jack caught my eye at the door. Marcus and Alexia were only steps away on the other side of the wall. I just couldn’t sit by and do nothing. Not after what Marcus had done to me.

  Lenny circled around the open door, his big wolf body lumbering out past Jack with leisurely confidence. I crossed the room, leaving George to finish his shift. I had to be a part of this. I had to confront my attacker.

  Kate, damn it, George said, his voice in my mind strained as he fought through the last of his shift. I said stay . . . back.

  I didn’t answer, didn’t even look at him.

  Jack glanced at me as I neared then passed behind him. I was a distraction, but I couldn’t care. I could feel Marcus’ eyes on me like a touch of frostbite on my skin. I kept him in my sight, circling around to stand at Jack’s thigh.

  Lenny had passed behind the nurse’s station to come up behind the pair. A half minute later, George strolled out to join his mate.

  My brother glared at me as he walked by—if a wolf’s face can really glare. I ignored him. I had more important things on my mind, like killing Marcus.

  He’d tried to kill me and failed. I wouldn’t.

  “If you want to challenge for alpha, you have that right,” Jack said. “But this isn’t th
e time or place.”

  I see my bite worked its magic, Marcus said, ignoring Jack. Shame your mate never bothered to put his claim on you. If he had, you would’ve been able to defend yourself. There would have been no reason for me to try and take you before he could.

  I glanced up at Jack and he met my gaze. He couldn’t hear Marcus and I was glad. I looked back to my attacker, and beyond him to my brother and his mate. We had them trapped with the nurse’s station on one side and the wall of patient rooms on the other.

  “Don’t mistake my hesitance to shift as a lack of commitment,” Jack said. None of us were really listening.

  You should’ve killed me when you had the chance, I said and George growled behind them.

  Alexia glanced over her shoulder, turning to cover their rear.

  Why do you think I’m here, darling? Marcus said. I’ve come to finish the job.

  Not gonna happen, dude, Lenny said.

  “I will fight you. To the death if necessary,” Jack said, unable to hear our conversation. “But not here. Not now. Let us take Kate home where she can rest. You’ve done enough to come between us. You failed. Now let’s keep this between the two of us.”

  Marcus’ wolf eyes flicked up to Jack. You’re a fool, Pensione. Bringing your human form to a wolf fight. His lips curled back, flashing fangs. A menacing growl rumbling out of him and every muscle in my body tensed at the sound. Power coiled inside me like a spring-loaded gun, ready to shoot into action.

  This is going to be easier than I thought, Marcus said.

  In a burst of fur and muscle, the big tawny wolf launched forward, his massive jaws open wide sailing through the air toward Jack’s throat.

  I didn’t think. Didn’t need to. My wolf was ready, propelling me from the floor and colliding my body into Marcus. Behind them Alexia charged at George, presuming him to be the weaker, slower wolf, unused to the way his body moved.

  She was right, but George wasn’t alone . . . and he wasn’t exactly weak. Lenny moved like a bolt of lightning to intervene and the two worked together like a natural team.

  Marcus and I hit hard, his bricklike body knocking the air from my lungs. I scrambled to get my feet under me, trying not to think and just do it—like a Nike ad. But I wasn’t used to the mechanics of four legs instead of two, and my center of balance was different. I only needed half a heartbeat to adjust, but in a fight that was way too long.

  The bigger male wolf plowed into me, driving me into the nurse’s station, knocking a heavy black phone onto my head. I saw stars for a second and then felt Marcus’ sharp fangs pressing through the fur on my neck.

  I writhed underneath him, desperate to get free. Horrifying memories screamed through my brain. I couldn’t stop them, couldn’t think through them, I was drowning in my own fear. It was happening again. Marcus’ heavy body weighed down on me so I could hardly breathe, his sharp teeth biting and tearing at me, his claws shredding my skin.

  Fight back, Kate. You’re stronger than you realize. Jack’s voice oozed through my mind calm, supportive, lining my courage with steel.

  I twisted, wrenching my body until my teeth found the thin bones of his leg. I bit down, tasting blood, and Marcus yipped, flinching back. Then he was gone.

  Snarls and growls echoed off the walls in the wide, dimly lit hallway. I twisted, wrenching to my stomach then scrambled to my feet. My body crouched, ready for another attack, but a blur of butterscotch fur and a streak of black caught my eye.

  Jack’s massive jaws sank into the back of Marcus’ neck and the wolf cried out in pain. His fur was black as night, his body thick with muscle. Jack was the smaller wolf, but his skill and power made him more than a match for Marcus.

  It takes more than size and brute force to be alpha, Jack said shaking his head, tearing at Marcus’ flesh.

  The beta wolf rolled, driving Jack into the wall and knocking loose his hold on him. Marcus was on his feet in an instant and Jack moved fast to be ready. They crouched, ears back, fangs flashing under the curl of their lips.

  I couldn’t tell who moved first but they charged, going up on their back legs, scratching through dense fur with their claws. Marcus’s jaw snapped, catching air, and Jack moved in for the kill.

  He caught the bigger wolf at the jugular, driving him back off his feet, pounding on top of him without losing his grip. It would be over in an instant with a clench of his jaw. When he sank his teeth in, he’d slice the crucial vein and let Marcus bleed out.

  “Jack, no. Stop.”

  My attention snapped to the far end of the hall and the young man standing there with a large bolt cutter in one hand and a stuffed gym bag in the other. His sandy yellow hair was cut short, his shoulders wide and chest bulging with muscles beneath a tight gray t-shirt. He wore jeans and sneakers like any kid his age—which looked to be around nineteen or twenty.

  I recognized his voice. He was the man from the basement. My hackles rose and a low threatening growl rumbled out of me on reflex. He’s with Marcus. He shut off the lights so they could move through the hospital easier.

  Kate, hold on. That’s Marcus’ brother, Michael, Jack said, his mouth still open on the beta wolf’s throat, his body pinning him to the floor. They lay still, frozen in mid-fight as though someone had pressed the pause button.

  Shift, you little prick, Marcus said as though his brother could hear him. Fight for your alph—

  Jack adjusted his weight, sinking his teeth a little deeper. Marcus choked and fell silent.

  “Please don’t kill him, Jack,” Michael said. “I know you have every right. I tried to tell him this was stupid, but he wouldn’t listen. I love the pack. I’d do anything for them, but Marcus is my brother. I didn’t have a choice.”

  Your little brother’s got more sense than you, Jack said, before a growl rolled between them. And now, because of you, he’s on his own. The pack won’t take him back after this. You happy?

  Screw ’im. If he was worth the fur on his hide he would’ve shifted already and killed you for me, Marcus said with his mind just before he let out another yip of pain.

  “I can’t do it, Marcus,” Michael said, unable to hear either of the big wolves. “I know you’re probably cussing up a storm at me, but I can’t. I’ll go with you and Alexia. I’ll have to now. But I can’t fight against the pack. I won’t.”

  His gaze dropped to the wolves nearer to him.

  “Alexia, you know you can’t win. C’mon,” the young man said.

  Alexia, her golden fur clumpy and wet from the fight, crouched in the corner of an opened door. Her ears were laid back and her muzzle vibrated with her growl. Blood stained her fur in spots and trickled down one leg.

  George and Lenny kept her there. They didn’t have to kill her, or even hurt her too much. She was out of the fight, and that was all they’d wanted.

  “We’ll leave town. You won’t hear from us again,” Michael said. “I give you my word. Tell him, Marcus. You know he’ll have to kill you if you don’t.”

  Jack shifted again, eliciting another yip from Marcus. He’s right. Listen to your little brother. Choose. Leave town or die.

  A fast secession of loud snaps and cracks echoed in the big hallway. The hair coving Marcus’ body receded, his body breaking and reshaping beneath Jack. Ten seconds later he was a man, naked, bloody bite marks already healing on his thigh and ribs. Jack still didn’t move, his mouth adjusting to the smaller, human neck, his teeth sunk a quarter inch into his flesh.

  In the corner, another quick clatter of snaps and cracks sounded as Alexia shifted back to her human form. Michael was already digging their clothes from his bag.

  “We’ll leave,” Marcus said. “And prove what a shitty alpha you’ll make.”

  Jack’s mouth closed a fraction of an inch and Marcus gasped.

  “Ahh . . . okay-okay. I said we’re leaving,” the beta said, pain thinning his voice.

  Jack backed off finally, allowing Marcus to get to his feet, grabbing the sweatpants and t-sh
irt his brother had tossed to him. He and Alexia got dressed. We didn’t take our eyes off them for a second. Just as they finished, Jack transformed beside me. He changed from wolf to man in the time it took him to stand, his bones breaking and reshaping so fast they hardly made a sound.

  I guess that’s one reason he’s alpha, I thought.

  “Marcus,” Jack said, standing naked and proud. With good reason.

  The bigger man stopped and turned to face him.

  “I want you to know I’m not letting you live because I’m weak,” he said. The other man snorted his disagreement, but Jack continued unfazed. “You might not understand this, but a good leader doesn’t just issue orders and intimidate his people into following him. He protects them, supports them. He inspires them to strive to be better human beings, by becoming a better human being himself. I’ve already showed you I’m the better wolf, Marcus—stronger, faster, and more skilled at fighting. Now I’m showing you that I’m also the better man. I won’t repeat this lesson for you again.”

  And that’s the other reason he’s alpha.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  “I now pronounce you husband and wife.” The forest chapel erupted with cheers and applause and Jack pulled me close for a kiss. His fresh woodsy scent filled my lungs, warming through me, over me, and around me like a familiar blanket—like a part of me.

  I know, I know. A beautiful spot in the summer forest, decked out in white roses, baby’s breath, purple bougainvillea, and cascading white and purple wisteria—typical clichéd werewolf wedding, right? Yeah, well too bad. I loved it. It was more than I’d ever dreamed. And it wasn’t even my idea.

  We’d had the pack ceremony like George and Lenny’s, months ago—shortly after they released me from the hospital. FYI, being bitten by each of the elders and alphas . . . hurts. I’d endured worse, though, and the second I shifted the pain was gone. I was officially pack, Jack’s mate and the future alpha female.