by J. C. Diem
“I would never maim any of my pride.” He was shocked at the suggestion.
“I was just kidding,” I lied.
“Oh.” He gave me a strained smile. “I’m not used to werewolves and their strange sense of humor.”
Zeus returned with the stick. Dropping it at my feet, he bared his teeth at Cole. “If you throw the stick for him, he might stop growling at you,” I suggested.
Warily keeping his eyes on Zeus’ teeth, he bent to pick up the saliva coated stick then threw it as hard as he could. Unable to resist, Zeus tore after it. “He seems to take a great deal of joy in such an ordinary game,” Cole observed.
“We canines are simple creatures,” I replied.
“I doubt that very much.” He watched my face then ventured a question. “Is there any way I can atone for my treatment of Kala?”
“Why do you even care? She’s just a cougar and she isn’t even pure blood.”
“I’ve never met a female like her before,” he struggled to explain. “She’s strong and fearless and incredibly passionate.” That made me wonder what the lionesses were like. Maybe they were more timid in bed than Kala. Frankly, it wouldn’t surprise me.
“Helping us with our ghoul hunt tomorrow night will be a start, but the best thing you could do would be to release your harem from their bondage.”
“That’s never been done before,” he confessed. “I wouldn’t even know how to release them.”
“Maybe Mark will have some ideas. If anyone can figure it out, he can.”
Cole shook his head in bafflement. “I don’t understand how two alpha wolves, a cougar and a snake can allow a human to tell them what to do.”
“Mark isn’t just our boss. He raised Reece, Flynn and Kala. He’s their adoptive father.”
“He didn’t raise you as well?”
“No.” My answer was short.
“Then what is Agent Steel to you?”
“He’s my boss and my mentor, I guess. He took me in after I turned.” I didn’t mention that Reece had been the one to turn me. “He allowed me to become part of his team and now I’m part of their family as well.”
“You respect him,” he realized. I could see the concept was foreign to him.
“Not all humans are weak and worthless,” I said curtly. “Some are brave enough to stand up to creatures like us and stop us from killing the innocent.”
“Do you truly believe that any human is innocent?” he asked wryly.
“Yes, I do.”
“Why?”
“Because I was innocent before I was bitten and was turned into a monster.” Bitterness welled up and I walked away before he could ask me any more personal questions. Zeus trotted alongside me as I followed a trail to a meadow. We sat in companionable silence until my hunger grew strong enough to drive me back to the house.
I found a restroom and washed up then followed my nose to the dining room. Mark looked relieved at my arrival, but he didn’t berate me for taking off on my own. We struggled to keep the conversation light, but it wasn’t easy. The lions clearly weren’t used to having inferior beings sitting at the long mahogany table. They kept sending perturbed glances at us. I couldn’t really blame them. If we’d been a pure born wolf pack, we’d have had trouble accepting a human and strange shifters as well.
Only the male lions were present. I wasn’t sure where the lionesses or the lesser female cats were. The lionesses were being kept as safe as possible, apparently even from us.
Being the night before the full moon, we were eager for action. It was going to be a long day with little to do tomorrow. I went to bed early and ended up pacing the floor for several hours before I forced myself to lie down. Reece was just as restless. I couldn’t pick up his thoughts, but I could hear him tossing and turning two doors down from mine.
Kala was sleepless as well. I heard her get up several times and walk to the door only to turn away and return to bed again. If she weakened enough to leave her room and seek out Cole, I would do my best to stop her. Flynn coughed and I realized he was awake as well. Mark was the only one who managed to get any sleep. Either that or he was far better at remaining still than we were.
In the morning, we gathered in the dining room again. A buffet style breakfast had been prepared. Filling a plate high, Kala hunkered over it and grimly began to chew. The other cats weren’t quite as territorial over their food. They threw amused glances at her, which she ignored. I pitied anyone who was stupid enough to try to take something from her. They’d end up missing a digit if they tried. At least she didn’t talk with her mouth full this time. She was far more subdued than usual being surrounded by her fellow felines.
Mark waited for us all to finish eating before he went over his plan. He must have lain awake as well, because he had a series of instructions for Cole and his pride.
“I’d like you to send some people to watch the cemeteries,” he said as he poured himself coffee. “We need to make sure the ghouls remain unaware of our plan.”
“How will we know if they’re watching us?” Cole’s little brother asked.
“You’ll smell them,” Reece said. “They smell like a blend of soil and rotten meat.”
“They can move through the dirt like its water,” Mark warned them. “Watch for anything emerging from the ground. They avoid humans, so they’ll try to remain hidden.”
“What if they become aware of us?” Cole asked. “Will we still go ahead with your plan?”
Mark nodded. “If we don’t, they’ll continue to breed and feed on the inhabitants of Lilydale.”
“That wouldn’t particularly bother me,” Cole admitted. “But I don’t like the idea of these creatures living in my territory.”
As per Mark’s request, Cole chose a few lions and sent them into town. As I’d expected, we had a long and boring day. Our inner beasts were becoming more and more dominant and were anticipating the night ahead.
Mark checked in with Cole’s lions regularly throughout the day. They reported no activity in or near the cemeteries. As midday passed and the afternoon closed in, Mark ordered them to start digging. He’d already mapped out where he wanted the holes to be dug.
By late afternoon, the excavations were complete. We waited for twilight before we headed back to the house that had been our temporary base. “Zeus should be safe here,” Mark said to me. “I’ll drop you off then continue on to the rendezvous point.”
His plan was simple, but it would hopefully be effective. The leader of the ghouls had warned him that his life would be forfeit if he returned. He was hoping he would be enough bait to draw our targets where he wanted them to go.
Piling into the SUV, Mark drove to the largest cemetery then waited for us to climb out. “Good luck,” he said through his lowered window. “I’ll see you in three days.”
“Stay safe,” Kala ordered him. “Don’t let any of the ghouls munch on you.”
“Yes, Mom,” he mocked with a faint smile then drove away.
We’d changed into clothing that we wouldn’t care if they were destroyed. Cole and his lions were waiting for us. Wearing only jeans again, the males were smiling in anticipation. Kala spared a look of pity for the lesser female felines. Dressed in jeans and t-shirts, they were enthralled with their rex. It would have been unnerving to be the object of their never ending stares, but Cole barely noticed them. Kala was uneasy that she’d been one of those adoring females only three short weeks ago.
Taking charge, Reece split us into several groups and gave us our instructions. Some of the lions would remain on the surface to herd the ghouls where we wanted them to go. They loped off into the shadows until only a small group remained. Cole had opted to stay with us. His felines gathered around, waiting for him to tell them what to do.
Looking up, I saw that the moon had almost reached its peak. It was hauntingly beautiful and utterly mesmerizing.
“It’s time,” Reece said in a far deeper voice than usual then jumped into the hole.
&n
bsp; ₪₪₪
Chapter Thirty-Three
I leaped in next then made way for the others. Cole had assured us that he didn’t need to be present to control his cats. He’d given them their orders and they would apparently obey him even after they turned.
Kala landed behind me and Flynn was on her heels. “Quickly,” she said and held out her wrists. We took turns biting her, then she bit us all in turn. Flynn was in no danger of being taken over by the werelions, but we bit him as well. If we didn’t bind him to us, we wouldn’t be able to direct him during the fight ahead. The last thing we wanted was for him to come across a human and eat them when we headed back up to the surface again.
With our bonds renewed, we waited for the change. Pain burst through me and in seconds, my wolf ascended. Frightfully quickly this time, my jaw, hands and feet elongated. My spine broke down and assumed a new shape. Claws burst from my fingers and toes and midnight black fur erupted all over my body. Reece’s change was almost as fast, but his fur was a different color from mine. His was as silver as the light of the moon that we could no longer see.
The cats shrieked in pain as their bodies were transformed at a slightly slower rate than ours. The wereconstrictor hissed when he assumed his true form. His forked tongue flicked out to taste the stale air. His body was long and powerful. Scales that ranged from light green to cream covered him from head to tail. He was strangely beautiful, if very alien. His hood flared when he saw we were surrounded by strange felines. An intricate black pattern was on the back. I knew it could be mesmerizing to watch and kept my gaze averted.
No, brother, I said into his mind when I sensed him about to attack. They are our allies.
Pity, he thought. It would have been fun to tear them apart.
The lions hissed at the threat then subsided at a growl from their rex. I sensed his confusion as to why we were gathered together.
Our werecougar stretched and rubbed against the snake. She curled her tail around his waist, much to the disgust of the werecats. The felines were similar in appearance, but the lions had a mane where the rest of them didn’t. One of the females was a tiger and her striped body was a darker orange than the tawny lions. Another had black fur with brownish spots and I guessed she was a jaguar.
What is it that we hunt tonight, our cougar asked. Unlike my mate and me, neither of our companions retained their human memories.
My mate answered her question. The creatures we are searching for are like the soulless, but far cleverer. Soulless was our name for zombies.
The rex of the pride drew closer. It was difficult to touch his mind, but I gleaned his thoughts. Overhearing our conversation had reminded him why we were here. My pride is ready, he said. Let us proceed.
My mate was strangely distant from me as he took the lead through the tunnels. We had to travel on all fours due to the low dirt ceiling. The constrictor had the easiest time of slithering through the tunnel. Our prey is near, his sibilant voice said in our heads. His sense of taste was even greater than our ability to smell.
Just as he’d predicted, we found the strange, pale greenish creatures in a circular hollow around the next bend. We were on them before they knew it. My claws and teeth tore through their flesh easily. Their blood was almost rancid and I had no desire to eat any of these things. I spat out their limbs and so did our friends and allies.
The constrictor shot a burst of venom at a trio of ghouls. It hit their eyes and they shrieked when their flesh melted. Blinded, they were helpless as he wrapped his scaly tail around them and began to squeeze. In seconds, they were reduced to a pulpy mass of crushed flesh.
Shrieking in alarm, the remaining creatures leaped upwards and disappeared into the soil above. Wait, my mate said before we could rush off after them. They will shortly return to the tunnels again.
A few seconds later, his prediction came true and we heard the sound of feet running again. Our cougar was the first to go after them. The rex was right behind her. My mate and I shared a look. We’d fight to keep our pack member if it came down to it, whether the lions were our allies or not.
It was hard to keep our goal in mind, but my mate was disciplined enough to keep us in line. He conveyed instructions to the rex, who in turn sent orders to the felines that were rounding up the ghouls in the other cemeteries.
Spying a vaguely familiar ghoul in a large cavern, I skidded to a halt.
He is the one we are seeking, my mate said as he stopped beside me.
“I warned you,” the wizened monster hissed. “Now your pet human’s life is forfeit!”
I was puzzled for a moment, then remembered the human known as Mark. He was important to my mate and therefor important to me as well. We watched the creature disappear into the ground above then raced back to the opening that would take us upwards.
Leaping at the hole, I clawed my way back up and out into the open air. Ghouls sprinted through the cemetery, following their master and we went on the chase. The remaining monsters came from all directions at the call of their leader. They were followed by werecats of several different species.
Staying out of sight of the humans who were on the streets, we crossed from one end of the city to the other in minutes. We converged on an old house that was isolated in the woods.
Stop! My mate ordered us before we could leap over the fence and into the yard. Even the felines obeyed his frantic command.
Mark stood in the doorway of the dilapidated old house. He was holding something shiny in his hand and he was speaking to the lead ghoul.
“It is time to end the curse that the witch laid on you six hundred years ago.”
“Who are you to decide my fate?” the aged being asked. It was difficult for me to understand their speech, but my mate translated for us. He had been an alpha for much longer than I had. He had an affinity for the human, which helped him to understand what he was saying.
“The organization that I work for was created to protect humans from monsters who prey on them,” the human said. “If you’d managed to keep your numbers small enough that you didn’t have to kill to sustain yourselves, I wouldn’t have to do this. But you didn’t and so here we are.” I realized his speech had just been a distraction when he tossed the device to the ghoul.
Catching the small silver object automatically, the creature looked down at it in horror. Mark held up a small pin that he’d pulled out of it then ducked back into the house and slammed the door shut. The ghoul lifted his arm to throw the grenade away, but he wasn’t quick enough. It exploded and he and fully a third of his followers were shredded. With a tremendous roar, their bodies were reduced to chunks of rank smelling flesh. I raised a hand to shield my face from the heat of the flames that quickly consumed them.
Stunned and dismayed, the remaining ghouls stared at what was left of their leader. Without him to guide them, they were lost.
Finish them, my mate ordered and we fell on the survivors.
There were no tunnels for them to descend into here. We had them surrounded and they were forced to stand and fight. Although strong and quick, they were no match for our ferocity or for our fighting skills. My entire body was coated in green blood by the time we were done.
When the last creature fell, the rex turned to our cougar. You do not belong with these wolves and the snake, he said seductively. You belong with your own kind. You belong with me. Come with me and I will make you one of my mates rather than just one of my companions.
My mate, the constrictor and I moved to stand in front of her. She is part of our pack and we will not let you take her, my mate said with unquestionable authority.
I bared my teeth and flexed my claws in agreement. Venom dripped from the snake’s fangs. He’d displayed an uncanny ability to hit any target he aimed for. Once his venom landed, it both poisoned and melted his target. He could also squeeze his opponents to death with his body. Out of all of us, he might possibly be the most dangerous of all. A small part of me was glad he was one of a kind and that
he was on our side. I wouldn’t want him for an enemy.
Backing off, the rex sent a regretful look over his shoulder at the cougar before herding his pride away. It was fun hunting with you, he called to us. I hope we can do this again sometime.
Our cougar watched him wistfully, but she made no move to follow him. Our bond was strong enough to keep her in our pack.
My mate turned to the human who had emerged from the house. Mark took a nervous step backwards, but he didn’t flee. He was very brave for such a pitifully weak creature. “You did well,” he said and I felt a strange sense of pride at his praise. Why should I care what he thought of us? I realized the feelings came from my mate. For some strange reason, he was shielding his thoughts and emotions from me. I dimly remembered that we were ill and were possibly even dying. The hunt had energized me to the point where I felt as if I could live forever.
“Try to stay out of sight of other humans while you hunt,” Mark said. My mate nodded then loped away. We followed him, keeping to the shadows and slinking out of sight until we left town and reached the freedom of a forest.
We kept our distance from the werecats and heeded Mark’s warning not to come to the notice of humans. My mate remained distant where he was usually affectionate and playful. His mind was closed to me and his rejection was puzzling.
I was younger than him as a shifter and I didn’t have his ability to ponder on our human troubles. From time to time, I felt a strange darkness well up inside me. I knew it was due to the sickness we were both suffering from. I dimly remembered that there was a cure, but I couldn’t remember what it was. I sensed it wasn’t something that I would like.
At night, we hunted with the cougar and the constrictor. We kept a tight rein on them both. If our control slipped, they would eat anything that moved, including people. During the day, we slept in a jumble of limbs. The snake’s body was cold and scaly, but his arms were comforting as he held both the cougar and me against him and wrapped his tail around us. His calm nature was a soothing balm to the unrest that was raging inside my mind. My mate stayed apart from us and spent most of the daylight hours brooding rather than sleeping. I felt him growing more and more distant and he rebuffed me each time I approached him.