Shiftless: Tuatha Series Book 1

by Linton Bowers

  I turned away from the railing ready to exit stage left. All the party goers on my level stood there staring at me. The really weird thing was that their eyes had the freaky dog glow at night thing happening. I had the sudden feeling that if I ran they would see me as prey and give chase. See, I can skip the stupid monster movie white girl in the woods mistakes sometimes.

  I walked through the crowd to the door leading to the stairs. My steps were at a normal walking pace but my heartbeat against my chest at mach five.

  No one stopped me as I reached the door and pulled it open. And then I closed it. The big ass werewolf was on the stairs walking up at a leisurely pace.

  “Shit.”

  I ran back to the railing and looked down. for a split second I considered jumping. The problem was we were about thirty feet above the bottom floor. Jumping down would end up with me laying on the floor too injured to run. I might as well pull a silver platter out of my ass and sit on it for the big monster.

  The door crashed open behind me and I spun around. The beast lumbered out with its eyes locked on me. Its lips curled back into a snarl as it let loose a growl. “you come to my home and steal from me, then have the audacity to disrespect me infront of my own pack. You will die little man,” he said.

  “Shit,” was my witty reply. Hell, I was just proud of not having wet myself.

  “Shit indeed,” the beast replied.

  It took a step toward me them dropped to all fours. It moved forward a step then shouted as its eyes went wide. “No!”

  My shirt went tight around my neck and I was yanked back. The railing hit my lower back and my legs went up into the air. While upside down I saw a fur covered hand clutching the back of my shirt. The werewolf the hand belonged to was much smaller than the wolf trying to kill me, but I had no illusions of being able to overpower it.

  Before we hit the ground the wolf pulled me down into its arms like a hero cradling his unconscious girlfriend. It was then when I realized there were breasts pressed against my side.

  The she wolf hit the ground and took off at a sprint. She moved at amazing speed considering she was carrying me like a baby. It was embarrassing and I would have said something if I wasn’t terrified that I was moments away from having my throat ripped out.

  “I’m not going to hurt you.” The voice of the woman from the darkness said.

  “what the shit?”

  “I will explain later, but for now stop squirming.”

  It was the second time she spoke that I realized she was in my head.

  “It is something we share, something as unique and rare as you are.”

  “What is…”

  A large black werewolf came out of a side hall and tackled us. The she-wolf dropped me and I rolled across the floor. The front door stopped my tumble but it rung my bell as my head was the first thing to hit it. While the blow didn’t render me unconscious it did cause my vision to blur and the noises around me to sound far away. A large black and brown blur rolled around in front of me and there was snarling and growling that seemed to be coming from somewhere down the hall.

  “Snap out of it, I need you!”

  The words in my head from the auburn haired beauty helped to snap me out of my confusion. There was something else as well, a need to defend her. Something I had never felt for anyone before.

  I shook my head and tried to stand. Pain throbbed through my skull and my legs gave out. I slipped and fell back onto my ass. Every second that passed saw my pain lessen and my delirium clear. A handful of seconds after she told me to help I was able to get to my feet.

  The brown she-wolf was pinned to the floor with the large black one straddling her. She snapped at the bigger one and tried unsuccessfully to get her claws into it’s skin. The sight of her in need sent a rage burning through me.

  Before I knew what I was doing my body rushed forward and a roar left my mouth. The big black wolf looked up in time to see my fist connect with its eye. The beast fell sideways freeing the she-wolf enough to tear a chunk of flesh out of its side. That got it moving.

  The black werewolf jumped off the she-wolf. She kick-flipped to her feet and then swiped at the black furred guy with her claws. It responded by snapping at her and trying to counter with its own claws, but she was much quicker. The she-wolf backed away from the bigger wolf and toward me as she fended it off.

  “We need to get out of here. Arnold will be here any second.”

  Speak of the devil and he will appear. Arnold, in all his massive werewolf splendor, stepped into the large foyer.

  “Were screwed,” I said.

  “Yup.” She thought.

  “Time to die, whelp,” Arnold said. “Back off, Thomas, the squirt is mine. Get her out of here and I will deal with her later.” He raised an arm as big around as a Volvo and pointed at the she-wolf.

  “There is no way in hell you are getting anywhere near her,” I said. And then I regretted it. The protective feeling I had toward the she-wolf only grew stronger as Arnold got closer.

  “We can’t win against him. Not as you are now at any rate. We have to get out of here now or we will die.”

  “I’m open to ideas,” I said. “How the hell are we supposed to get out of here?”

  “Why do you keep talking to yourself, little man?” Arnold asked.

  “The same way anyone leaves a house. We go through the front door.”

  I stopped with my mouth open and one hand raised ready to deliver a smart assed remark to the murderous werewolf. I shut my mouth and looked over my shoulder. Sure enough the front door was behind me and the only thing between me and freedom was opportunity.

  “Follow me, I’ll open the way.”

  The she wolf crashed through the front door and I was right on her heels. Unfortunately, Arnold and his little black buddy were hot on my heels. I swear I could feel one of them breathing on me.

  The she-wolf reached the end of the walkway and stopped. The entrance to the walkway was bordered on both sides by two large concrete planters shaped like upended bells. She grabbed one and spun around. The planter tore free of the ground and she released it when its arc lined it up with me.

  “Shit!” I jumped to the side and felt the air being displaced as the planter flew by an inch from my nose. My eyes followed it as it hit the large black wolf in the nose. There was a loud wet crunch and the wolf went down. Arnold was right behind it and he tripped on the downed wolf.

  “Stop gawking and move your ass!”

  “Yes, ma’am!” I spun and ran. The she-wolf was halfway across the parking area. She stopped at a silver Mercedes-AMG GT S. She pulled open the passenger door and jumped in. She waved me around to the driver’s side. I reached the car a moment later and slid across the hood only to land hard on the ground. Pain shot up my tailbone and I thought I might be paralyzed from the ass down.

  “Move your ass!”

  I got up, so not paralyzed. The door opened as I reached it and I followed a fur covered arm inside.

  “Get us out of here.”

  She pulled a set of keys from the sun visor and handed them to me. I started the car and hit the gas. Arnold bounced off the side as I pulled away from the parking spot. I hadn’t even spotted him gaining on us. His bulk caused the car to rock to the side but didn’t slow us down. The engine roared as I slammed my foot down and I was violently shoved back against my seat.

  “Where are we going?” I shouted to be heard over the engine.

  “Go left and get on the highway,” The she-wolf said.

  I looked over at her surprised to have heard her with my ears. The beautiful blonde haired woman sat next to me. She reverted back to human and was naked.

  “Watch it!” She shouted as she grabbed the wheel and straightened us out. “Eyes on the road. You can look at me when we’re at a safe place.”

  “Yeah, sorry. Where is a safe place? I would say my place, but my roommate is home and I don’t know how to explain…” I looked over and let my eyes explore her for
a brief moment. “You.”

  “I know a place. Just keep going and I’ll tell you where to turn.”

  Chapter 3

  After thirty minutes of driving and trying not to look at the naked woman next to me we parked in the garage of a suburban home. I opened the door to get out, but the former she-wolf grabbed my arm.

  “Let’s wait for the garage door to close.” She pressed the button on the garage door remote and put it back into the glove box. “Wouldn’t be good to start a scandal at my safe house by walking around the garage naked.”

  “No, I guess it wouldn’t. Safe house?” I asked. Her words brought my attention back to her nude form.

  My eyes wandered from her thighs upward. She stopped me by cupping my chin and tilting my head up so our eyes met. “There will be plenty of time for that later. Right now we need to focus on getting out of here and staying alive,” She said.

  “I thought this was a safe house? Shouldn’t we, you know, be safe here?”

  “Yes and no. I kept this place a secret from the pack, but it won't’ take them long to sniff us out.”

  “You mean that literally, don’t you?” I asked.

  “Yes. Werewolves are like bloodhounds on rhoids. Come on, let’s go inside.” She opened her door and I was afford a good view of her backside.

  “Still not the time.”

  “Sorry. You’re distracting,” I answered her mental voice out loud.

  “It’s okay, we just have to get moving.”

  The living room was empty except for a folding chair and matching card table. Since she wasn’t in the living room I went farther in. I wasn’t sure if she would be upset with me for following her into the room she went into, but I’d seen her plenty naked and I had questions. I was willing to risk it.

  “What do I call you?” I said as I walked down the hallway to the bedrooms.

  The first door I came to was opened. It lead to a small bathroom with one roll of toilet paper and no shower curtain or decorations. The next was a bedroom that was empty with a small closet that was open and also empty. The last door stood open but this room was not empty.

  The she-wolf stood next to a twin bed pulling clothes out of a dresser and setting them on the bed. She had put on panties and a bra which made me a little sad. I could probably spend the rest of my life looking at her. She turned and smiled at me.

  “You like what you see that much?” She asked.

  “It seems you can hear what I think so I don’t see a reason to answer what you already know.”

  “Fair enough.” She slipped a tight t-shirt that said, I’m with stupid, over her head. “My name is Miranda.”

  “Hi, Miranda. My name is Terrance, but you should call me Terry.”

  “I know,” She replied with a sly smirk witch caused the cutest dimples to crease her cheeks.

  “About that, how? And what the fuck is going on?”

  “I wondered when you would ask. You should sit down, Terry.”

  “The only reason to sit would be if you were going to tell me some earth shattering shit. I’ll stand.”

  “You really should sit, but suit yourself.” she shrugged. “The short of it is that you are a Lycan.”

  “Um, no. Not once have I sprouted fur and howled at the moon. Try again please,” I said.

  “Thought you would say that. You are a Lycan, but you have no animal side like the rest of us. That part of you is blank. Those of us that know about your kind call you Tuatha. There are not many of us in the know as Tuatha are few and far between.”

  “Your serious,” I said. I chose to sit down then. What she said was just crazy. How could I be anything other than human? It wasn’t like I had super strength or a superior sense of smell.

  “You’re a normal guy for the most part,” Miranda said. “This is where it gets really interesting. Tuatha are born to be alpha Lycans. Because of this, you didn’t have any special abilities until you started your pack.”

  “So once I start my pack I can change into something else?”

  “Maybe…” Miranda tapped at her chin and started to pace in front of me. Since she had not yet put on pants her lean legs and tight butt were a welcome distraction.

  “What do you mean by maybe?” I asked. “I thought you knew about this stuff.”

  “No one really knows about Tuatha. One hasn’t been seen for a very long time.”

  “like decades long or…”

  “I’m talking thousands of years, Terry. Until you came around there were only legends of your kind.” She slid down onto the bed next to me and took my hand in both of hers. “When I say you’re rare I meant like one of a kind dinosaur bones rare. No one really knows what to expect because it has been so long. Before humans started writing stuff down. What we do know, or think we know, comes from scholars that wrote down stories passed down through word of mouth.”

  “Then what do you think you know?” I asked. I was curious, but I still didn’t think she was right, maybe crazy. If not for her being so hot I would have left as soon as I shut the Mercedes off.

  “It's sweet you think I’m hot, but I don’t appreciate you thinking I’m crazy. Was I crazy when we were in your head and I was on my knees? Tell me I wasn’t the only one there?”

  “That was real?” I asked dumbfounded.

  “Yes and no. It was an experience we both shared, but it was in our heads, or yours really. Only a Tuatha alpha can share a mind space like that.”

  “But I didn’t share anything,” I said.

  “Like I said, I have been doing my homework. I was able to manipulate your mind because you didn’t think to stop me.”

  “And how does that work?”

  “Simple. I accepted you as my alpha and used your mindspace to cement our bond. Hence the blow job.”

  “Do all Lycans have to suck a dick to be in a pack?” I asked truly curious.

  Miranda dropped my hand and covered her mouth. She laughed so hard her entire body shook. It took a few minutes for her to calm down enough to talk. “No,” She said.

  “It was just a matter of making contact with you. Usually the Lycans just kiss the hand of their alpha, or wolves do at least. Felacio is not required, but I know a few alphas that probably wouldn’t mind.”

  “Then why did you?”

  “Because you're cute, and I wanted us to start of on a high note. Did it work?” she ran her perfectly sculpted nails down my arm and batted her lashes at me.

  “Yeah. That was an introduction I don’t think I’ll ever forget.”

  “Good. Now we should get going before they find us.”

  “Wait.” I grabbed her arm stopping her from rising off the bed. “You said I should get powers, but I didn’t.”

  “Are you sure? Because you hit the werewolf attacking me and knocked him off. No human could have done that. Only someone with Lycan strength could hit hard enough.”

  “Are you sure? I don’t feel any different.” I said.

  “Yes I am. Look, once we get somewhere safe, we’ll test it. For now, let's get going.”

  Miranda stood and looked down at me. “I’m going to get my stuff ready. Go pull out the fridge. There is a metal box behind it with some cash. Put it in the car please.”

  “Sure thing. I’ll meet you in the garage.”

  “Sounds good.” I stepped away and she grabbed my arm then pulled me back with a surprising amount of strength. Our bodies collided and she wrapped an arm around my waist. “I’m sorry this is how you learned about what you are, my alpha.” Her warm breath smelled like strawberries. “I promise I will make it up to you.”

  “You don’t…”

  She pressed her lips to mine stopping my reply. Her tongue slid into my mouth and started vigorously exploring. The moment was far too short.

  “Yes I do have too,” She said. “You are my alpha and I will make you happy to have me in your pack. Now go, I’ll be along in a minute.”

  I tried wiping the stupid grin off my face, but it just cam
e right back. “yeah, okay.” she chuckled.

  The refrigerator was lighter than I thought it would be. But sure enough there was a metal lock box duct taped to the wall below the level of the counter. I pulled it free and tried to open it. It was locked so I went to the garage. I opened the small trunk and placed the lockbox inside then I leaned against the car and waited.

  And I waited.

  And I waited some more.

  I don’t wear a watch but I felt like I waited for hours. It was probably just ten minutes, but if we were in danger it was eight minutes too long. The last thing I wanted was for Arnold to find us. So I decided to find out what was taking so long.

  As soon as I opened the door into the kitchen I got my answer. A large man in a black suit stood there holding Miranda by her shoulders. Arnold stood to one side of him and a couple other guys in black suits were opposite Arnold.

  “Took you long enough to come back inside,” Arnold said. “I was beginning to think we would have to kill the bitch and toss her carcass in the garage so you would notice something was wrong.”

  Everything went red.

  “You will not hurt her,” I snarled. Spit flew across the distance between me an Arnold hitting his suit.

  “Say it, don’t spray it,” the guy holding Miranda said.

  “Quiet!” Arnold snapped.

  “What are you going to do about it little…”

  My fist connected with Arnold's jaw. His head rocked back. I spun hitting the guy holding Miranda with the back of my knuckles. He dropped like a sack. I turned to fight the next guy but Miranda grabbed my arm.

  “RUN!”

  I did. She led us back into the garage and straight into the passenger door of the car. Miranda passed through to the driver side and plopped down in the seat. Miranda started the car, threw it in reverse, and drove through the garage door.

  She slammed on the brakes as soon as we were out. The car was inches away from hitting a black cadillac suv that was parked in front of the driveway along the road. She put the car and gear and sped across the lawn throwing up a cloud of dirt and grass. The car hit the curb and leapt into the air before slamming down on the blacktop. The tires chirped, Miranda down shifted, and I was thrown back in my seat.