Beauties and Beasts

by Jenna Aileen

  Suddenly I felt Kathryn being ripped off of my back. She screamed, and my feet were taken out from under me. My body slammed onto the hard frost-covered ground. I rolled over and was back up on my feet in less than two seconds. There were four of them, and one of them had Kathryn in his arms. It was him—Des, in human form. The others were in wolf form. I saw a panicked, desperate look in Kathryn’s eyes as she thrashed around and tried to get away from him.

  “You’re not going anywhere. Come back with us now or we’ll break her neck.”

  “I highly doubt you’d risk doing that. The girl you’re holding is Aidan McLeod’s daughter. That’s a pretty big risk to take, Des.” The man growled.

  “Kill him, then come find me.” He started pulling Kathryn away, but I just focused on the three wolves that were now circling me.

  Chapter Nineteen, Kathryn

  The stupid, rogue wolfman’s hand covered my mouth, his arm wrapped around my waist as he dragged me away from Conan, who was surrounded by three werewolves.

  “Let me go!” I yelled, but it was muffled under his ginormous hand. I tried to drag my feet, but he lifted me off the ground as if I was light as a feather. I kicked my legs as hard and fast as I could, hitting his shins with my heels but it did no good. My wounds burned as I struggled to break free of his grasp but it was no use. He had to be at least a foot taller than myself and twice as muscular. His arm pressed tighter around my waist, crushing my lungs and making it hard to breathe. I started getting light-headed as I tried to scream even though I knew no one could come to my aid.

  We were so close to freedom! Well, I wasn’t really— I was still technically Conan’s prisoner, but that was the last thing on my mind. They were going to kill him and do who knows what to me. Panic rise in my chest.

  “So you’re the McLeod girl that Vladimir always went on and on about, huh.” He looked me up and down, taking in every inch of me. I shuddered when I saw the lust in his dark eyes. The moonlight cast a silvery glow on his face, making him look very pale. His mouth twisted into a wicked grin and my stomach churned.

  I heard the sound of the wolves fighting a little ways away. I prayed that Conan would easily overpower the other three and come and rescue me before—

  “Now that we’ve got some time alone, darling, how’s about we get to know each other a little better, eh?” he whispered in my ear. He let go of me and I fell to my knees. I flipped over and tried to get up, but he had me pinned to the ground.

  I struggled to get my arms free, but he was too quick and strong. I was beyond any form of trying to manipulate him by screaming or punching. I was begging; that’s how desperate I was. Kathryn McLeod begged for nothing.

  “Please, please, please don’t do this,” I whimpered. Tears streamed down my face.

  “Stop—” he commanded, picking himself up just enough that I was able to get a clear shot at his “cash and prizes.” I took my chance and kneed him as hard as I could. He swore and let go of my arms. I had just enough time to pull myself out from under him. I scrambled away and took off running.

  He was of course on his feet and caught up in all of about three seconds. I had succeeded in pissing him off even more which was just wonderful because I knew he could make this even worse for me if he wanted to. At the last second, I pulled myself up onto a tree branch. I heard him right under me. He was probably taller than the branch. He soon made his presence known, grabbing my foot and tried to pull me down.

  I reached for the branch above me and kicked him in the face with my free foot. He momentarily let go and I was able to pull myself up higher. The scabs covering my wounds breaking open was excruciating but I had to ignore it and keep climbing.

  “You’re just making this harder on yourself,” The werewolf growled, pulling himself up after me. He was faster and bigger than me, but I weighed less so I could go higher. I mean the guy had to weigh at least two-hundred and fifty pounds. I ignored him and climbed higher.

  “If you climb down now I promise I’ll go easy on you.”

  Bullshit. I jumped off the branch and my feet connected with his head. I heard the branch snap and we crashed to the ground.

  His body broke my fall. I was stunned for a split second, but the adrenaline kicked in. His hands wrapped around my waist and squeezed hard. I cried out in pain, but grabbed his head and smashed it on the ground. I heard a smack as it hit a rock and he growled while squeezing harder. I elbowed his chest and continued smacking his head against the rock. He flipped us over and he ended up being on top of me again. Thick, red blood gushed from the back of his head and dripped onto my forehead.

  “You actually thought you could beat me? You stupid—” I heard a growl next to us and my heart sunk. Conan was dead. The rogues had killed him and now…I’m sure it’d be awhile before they actually took me back to rejoin the rest of their group. I squeezed my eyes shut. I just wanted to die right now. Why can’t they just kill me?

  Suddenly, I felt him being ripped off of me. I heard the sound of flesh being torn apart along with growling and snarling. I slowly opened my eyes to see a wolf that I recognized as Conan’s, tearing the other guy apart. I propped myself up on my elbow, jaw dropped, horrified but unable to turn away. The wolf crouched down and started to shake. The sound of bones cracking and joints popping reached my ears and made my stomach turn a little. The wolf’s hair

  disappeared and there was Conan.

  “Don’t look Kathy,” he said, barely glancing over his shoulder at me. I saw the animalistic look in his eyes and was suddenly afraid of him. What was keeping him from tearing me apart like that if I made him really mad? I laid back down, curled up in a ball, squeezed my eyes shut and covered my ears with my hands, not wanting to hear the death blow.

  Thirty seconds later, I felt someone tap my shoulder. I shook my head and tried to make myself smaller. I felt Conan’s hands on mine, gently pulling them off my ears. I couldn’t help but whimper as I looked up at him.

  “Are you alright?” he asked me, my hand still clasped in his. I just shrugged and winced as the pain in my stomach and back returned as the adrenaline started to wear off. “Did he…hurt you in any way?”

  “No but he tried,” I said, trying to keep the tears at bay. “Is he dead now? For good?”

  “For sure and for certain.” Conan replied. I turned to try and get a glimpse of his corpse but Conan turned my head away.

  “Don’t look. It’s not a pretty sight. Can you stand?” I nodded my head and Conan slowly helped me up. That’s when I realized he must be wearing the other wolf’s clothing. His must have been torn to shreds when he transformed. The other guy’s clothes were a bit big on him, but it was better than him walking around naked.

  My knees buckled as soon as I was on my feet and my whole body was trembling. My stomach felt like it was on fire and the tears started rolling down my cheeks, no matter how hard I was trying to keep them back, it was no use.

  “Kathryn, we’ve got to keep moving. I’ll carry you but we must go or fighting them was pointless.” He scooped me up and I didn’t protest. My fingers clutched his shirt and I grit my teeth to try and keep from screaming as the pain got more and more intense. I felt the wounds bleeding again and was angry because they were healing so nicely. Conan grabbed my coat and his wallet as we walked past the body of the three wolves he had killed.

  A few minutes later, he stopped and put me down. The pain was starting to lessen a bit, but my fingers were numb from the freezing night air and my nose was starting to run.

  “We’re safe now, just rest,” he said, stroking my hair. I sighed and nodded. He wiped the tears off of my cheeks with his thumb. It reminded me of Abel on that dark and stormy night that seemed like forever ago, even though only a few weeks had passed since then.

  “You’re sure he’s dead?” I asked quietly.

  “Positive. I have no doubt whatsoever about that fact.” I broke down crying harder and Conan sat down beside me and pulled me in his lap.

  “
It’s just…that’s my worst fear…I’d rather die than—”

  “I know, I know. It’s alright, you’re safe now. I promise. I’ll keep you safe. He can’t hurt you anymore.” His deep voice was so soothing. It reminded me of my father’s when he used to sing me to sleep when I was little.

  I looked up into Conan’s eyes and saw that the vicious animal was gone and was replaced with a calm, yet worried look. I knew he truly meant it when he said he would keep me safe. It was so genuine. Yes, I had no idea why the man had taken me or why all of this had happened but…maybe he wasn’t here to hurt me. He’d saved me twice now…and what if…what if he was like my guardian angel? What if this guy sent him to get me so they could keep me safe?

  My perspective of Conan was completely changed at that moment. I knew without a doubt, I saw the truth is his eyes. He promised to protect me and I trusted him with all my heart. Call me stupid or naive, but I knew what I saw and what I felt was real. It was in that moment when I found the courage to ask—

  “Conan, why…what did you mean when you said that the rogues wouldn’t dare hurt me because I’m ‘Aidan McLeod’s daughter’? Why would that matter?” Conan heaved a big sigh and shook his head.

  “Not now, Kathryn.” Was all he said.

  I was too tired to try and get it out of him, so for once I kept my mouth shut and just tried to think things through.

  We sat there, my head resting on his shoulder and his arms wrapped around me until the tears stopped.

  “Think you can walk again?” Conan asked. I sighed and said yes. He stood up first, then offered me a hand up. And for the first time ever, I actually let Conan help me to my feet. I stood up and cringed as my wounds protested the movement. I doubled over a bit and Conan rested his hand on my back. I slowly rose and took a deep breath.

  “I’m okay.” I said, but continued to keep a hand on my stomach as we walked. I wanted to just lay down and sleep for a while but the ground was cold and wet and if I complained, I knew Conan would insist on carrying me. Although it probably would have been nice seeing as I felt I might pass out from exhaustion.

  “We’re going to have to sleep in the woods tonight. There’s no worry of us getting caught now, so you can rest easy. I know it’s cold but if we uh…stay close we should be able to keep warm.”

  I wanted to protest, but just as I was about to, a freezing cold wind blew right through me and I gave in. It was only for one night. It’s not like we were going to be doing anything but sleeping. Besides, I probably would freeze to death without the extra um, body heat.

  Conan lay down and I slowly meandered over, dragging my feet. I slowly laid next to him…sort of. I was an arm’s reach away and I heard him sigh.

  “Kathryn, you’re going to freeze to death. This is our only option unless you want to keep walking. You’re probably due for another round of pills, but seeing as we have no water I don’t know how you’ll be able to take them.”

  No water? Suddenly my mouth grew dry at the thought of cool, clear water.

  “I’ll try to take it…I’m really hurting from the fight. You know how to do the Heimlich right”?” Conan chuckled and I took that as a yes.

  I unzipped the inside pocket and took out the pill bottle. I took a deep breath and popped it into my mouth. It didn’t go down super smooth, I felt like it got caught in my chest, but it went down marginally smoother than the one I had taken in the car. I unzipped the jacket completely, scooted closer to Conan, and draped it over both of us. He put his arm around me, and without completely realizing it, I found myself snuggling into him and resting my head on his chest.

  He was only wearing a T-shirt and jeans, so I was surprised by how warm he was. He radiated so much body heat, the coat made me almost too hot. It probably was in the low forties that night, which was actually sort of “warm” if you considered where we were and what time of year it was. I had lost track of the exact date, but I was sure it was almost the beginning of October. I was surprised there was no snow on the ground. I fell asleep almost right away, despite the bright light radiating from the full moon.

  It actually ended up being the most restful sleep I’d had in a long while. I woke up and Conan and I were in each other’s arms. He opened his eyes only a few seconds after I did.

  “Morning, beautiful,” he flirted, acting all charming. I just grunted. He was lucky that I’m a morning person. I sat up and ran my fingers through my hair, positive I looked absolutely stunning, considering I had been wearing the same outfit for almost three days now.

  We walked all day again, Conan caught us some rabbit (my favorite) around midmorning, and we were able to find a little creek to drink from which made taking my medicine a bit easier.

  Around midafternoon, we came across a road in the middle of the forest and followed it until dusk, at which time we were able to find a city. It wasn’t long after that that we were able to find a hotel.

  Conan paid the guy extra so he didn’t have to show an ID. Man, this Charles Muchnik dude must have been pretty rich, seeing as he was carrying loads of cash around. He was probably a realtor or...drug dealer. Conan had used a credit card at the pharmacy where he had picked up my medicine and also at the stores to buy our clothes, saving the cash for later since he figured Mr. Muchnik would have shut down his credit card by now. I was so happy to be able to sleep in a real bed again. The room we got was really nice. I jumped on the bed and inhaled the fresh scent of the clean, pure white sheets.

  “You’re going to dirty up the bed,” Conan said to me. I could tell by his tone of voice that he was kidding, but I still turned to give him a look. “Take a shower, you smell,” he told me with a smirk. I stuck my tongue out at him, but he was right. I needed to shower, it had been way too long.

  My only hesitation was that my wounds were still tender. But I would have to do it sooner or later. I got up and walked in the bathroom and shut the door. Before I could even locate the soap, there was a knock on the door. I unlocked it and opened it up. Conan sort of had an embarrassed look on his face, but still made eye contact.

  “If you need any help just let me know.”

  My eyebrows shot up and I pursed my lips as I slammed the door right in his face. Maybe I had been wrong about him. I took my shirt off and started unbuttoning my jeans. Stupid, perverted wolf man—I looked in the mirror and realized that he wasn’t being perverted at all. He wanted to know if I needed help taking the bandages off.

  I groaned, not really wanting to let him see me like this. I was a very modest person and didn’t even like Sara seeing me in my underwear. I pulled my shirt back on and slowly unlocked the door and walked out. Conan was perching on the bed giving me the funniest I-told-you-so look in the world but I wasn’t too happy about this.

  “Um, I need your help taking off the bandages,” I mumbled. His mouth twisted into a smirk and I glared at him. “BUT, um…I need you to uh…close your eyes while you do it.”

  He burst out laughing and I huffed and stomped my foot.

  “Kathryn dear, how the hell am I supposed to do that?”

  “Well I just don’t want you to…see…me.” I had to look away as I felt my face grow warm with embarrassment. Stupid wolf man.

  “I’m sorry. Look,” he said, getting up and coming over to me. “I’m not looking at you, you know, in that way. I’m just trying to help you.” He put his hands on my shoulders and again looked at me with such sincerity in his bright blue eyes I gave in.

  It wasn’t as if I could remove it by myself anyway. With a heavy sigh, I slowly lifted my shirt to reveal the bandages. My stomach was completely covered in them, and I expected them to be completely white, but when I looked down I was surprised to see the little dark red blotches of dried blood.

  He pulled out my pocket knife and I my mouth dropped open in surprise.

  “That’s mine! I thought I lost it.”

  “You did. But I found it. Now hold still.”

  I bit my lip as Conan used the knife to cut the ba
ndages away. It stung as he peeled them off my skin since he was ripping away the clots that had stuck my skin to the wraps. He helped me pull my shirt off so he could remove the ones on my back and shoulders.

  “Alright, you’re good,” he said. “They don’t seem to be infected, thankfully. I’m going to go get more gauze to wrap them in though. Don’t answer the door if anyone knocks, I’ll be right back.”

  I nodded, my arms hovering just in front of my stomach. I’d never stood in front of a guy in nothing but my bra before. Conan kept his eyes on my face, though. We both stood there for a moment before I remembered what I was on my way to do.

  “Alright, I’m gonna go shower,” I said, awkwardly turning to go back to the bathroom. Once the door was shut and locked for the second time, I stood in front of the mirror to assess the damage. The wounds were healing slowly but they still looked absolutely disgusting.

  They were caked with scabs and dried blood; though the removal of the bandages had ripped some of the healed skin away and blood had started to bead on certain areas. No doubt the scars would be horrendous, my stomach was almost completely covered in scabs; the different lines from the wolf’s claws barely distinguishable. I felt sick, not because of the pain or fear, but because of what my stomach would look like once this healed. Would scars this deep ever fade?

  Fighting back tears, I stripped down, and got in the shower. I was hoping the water would feel good and my shower would be a relaxing and enjoyable experience, but it was quite the opposite. As soon as the water starting running down my back and stomach, it was all I could do not to scream. I quickly turned it off and leaned against the wall of the shower, biting my tongue. There was no way I was going to stand under the water for even five minutes. I grabbed the washcloth and turned the spigot on.

  I put soap on the washcloth, lathered it up and scrubbed everywhere but my wounds, which I pretty much just patted with the soap. It still stung, but I just grit my teeth and dealt with it. I needed to get clean somehow. I splashed water on myself and rinsed off, then lay down on my back and scrubbed my scalp until the pain became too much. I lay there until I felt like all the shampoo was washed out. I turned off the spigot, gently dried myself off and put my clothes back on.