Cold Blooded

We are on our way. I heard him yell something to someone.

“It comes again,” a whisper floated against my ear. “You must get away.”

I waved my hand, trying to shoo away the ghost. I didn’t have time to deal with it.

A crash, followed a second later by a big thud, sounded right behind us.

My father snarled. He tried to get up. I put my hand on his shoulder. “I’ll take care of this.” I stood and turned to see the Screamer stumbling toward us, even more disfigured from its fall. Behind me, my father began to shift into his wolf form. I hoped he had enough strength to finish the change. He would be better protected in wolf form.

“I don’t have time for this, Conan. Do you hear me?” I walked toward it, determined to keep it away from my injured father.

The Screamer almost smiled.

But instead of engaging me, its horrid nostrils flared. It scented death in the air.

“Oh no, that’s so not going to happen,” I said, waving my arms to center its attention on me. “You want me, remember? I have all the kickass blood you need right here.”

There was noise above us. I glanced up right as my mate burst out one of the windows, jumping through the air cleanly with his powerful arms splayed. He came down hard, landing and rolling twice, twisting at the last moment, his feline abilities at the forefront. Both of his feet crashed into the Screamer’s knees from behind.

The Screamer flew to the side and struck the wall. I knew it wasn’t enough to keep it down for long, but Rourke had bought us some much-needed time.

“Go to your father and I’ll keep this thing occupied,” he urged. “I can smell him from here. I will make sure this thing stays away from you.” Fur sprouted along his powerful forearms. He’d have his work cut out for him.

I nodded once and ran back to my father, calling over my shoulder, “Tyler and Ray are on their way.”

Rourke was right—the smell was awful. The scent of rotted flesh wound its way up my nose, making me gag. It was stronger now that he was in his wolf form. Without thinking, I dropped to my knees and dug my hands into his fur and grabbed tightly, pouring as much power as I could into his body. More, I urged my wolf. Can you see anything? Images of mustard-colored masses emerged in my senses. Ohmygods, they’re everywhere. We have to try and get rid of them. I aimed my power at the masses, trying to encapsulate them. Once my essence touched the putridity, it scorched me. The curse fought back, burning along my senses, trying to keep me out.

The festering sores didn’t give at all.

Instead, they seemed to feed off my power. But my father’s relief was palpable. I was insulating him from the pain by wrapping my power around the globs.

I shoved more power into his body. Dad, I said. Is this better?

Yes. His voice was hollow. It’s helping, but I don’t want to hurt you. Be careful.

Don’t worry about me. Tell me what happened to you. Who’s behind this? I left out because I will kill them, as we both knew they would die for this, whether it was at my hand or his.

We were tracking the fracture group in the Everglades, but it turned out they weren’t working alone. The magic they were using was strong, but I couldn’t place it. They attacked. When we fought, several of the humans shifted into wolves … but they were not … true wolves.

I don’t understand. What do you mean?

Jessica, these wolves were made with some kind of black magic. They were not born.

Made? That’s impossible. How can anyone make a wolf? Our gift is genetic, passed on by birth. Saliva wasn’t enough to change anyone into a wolf. You had to be born or nothing.

I witnessed it with my own eyes. They were wolves, but changed. They were rabid and feral. Someone must have taken our DNA and cursed it somehow. There is no other explanation.

If that were true, it was incredible. And horrific.

So we eradicate them, take out the culprit who is crafting the curses, and we win.

My father chuckled and sucked in his breath. My power had begun to leak out of his body. I readjusted, trying to keep it better contained. It took everything I had not to show my emotion to him and start weeping like a child.

It won’t be an easy task, he managed. They are making war machines. They don’t care if it goes against nature. They want to win at all costs.

How many were there?

There were at least three in the first group that followed us out. If they bite you, they spread their vile curse. Their bite will change a human to wolf, but for us it means death.

There was a deafening boom behind us.

I jumped, shielding my father’s body with my own.

Rourke was down and the Screamer was ambling toward us. Anger and fury fueled me as I leapt forward. “You want me? Is that what you want?”

“No.” Ben’s voice hit my eardrum a second before I sprang. “You must not engage it.”

Too late. Better me than my father. I lunged, my arms wrapping around its chest. The force of the electricity blinded me, trying to buck me back, but I held on, digging my claws into its decaying flesh.

It roared.

“I will not let you kill us,” I groaned. The voltage was agonizing. My face contorted in pain. I tried to funnel the energy out of me as fast as I could, but I couldn’t do it quickly enough. Once it filled me up completely, I would either pass out or my heart would explode. “I don’t care if I die,” I yelled, “but I’m taking you with me.”

“Your death won’t be necessary, Hannon.” A familiar and the most welcome voice I’d ever heard sounded next to me as the Screamer was efficiently ripped off me.

I collapsed onto the ground, my body ringing with nasty aftershocks. I struggled to catch my breath. Tyler and Danny hovered over me with worried expressions. “I’m … fine.” I coughed, rolling over onto my knees. “Go … protect Dad. He needs … Ray.”

“Sorry it took so long,” Tyler said, stepping back. “We ran into a group of mouthy vamps who tried to stop us.” A look of horror flashed over his face as he spotted our father in the bushes.

“Ray is a wee bit occupied at the moment.” Danny crouched next to me. “But it looks like he may be freed up in a second or two.”

Ray had the Screamer by the throat.

But that wasn’t even the most unbelievable part. He appeared to be pulsing with the same kind of energy as the Screamer.

“What is he doing?” I said, staggering to stand. “Why is he lit up like that?”

“I have no idea,” Danny said. “But it’s a fairly incredible thing to witness if you ask me.”

Rourke paced back and forth on the other side of the fight, ready to spring if Ray collapsed. I was glad to see him back on his feet. The look on his face was pure determination. No doubt he was pissed the Screamer had gotten the best of him.

“You’re not gonna mess with me again,” Ray yelled. “This time I’m making it permanent.” He maneuvered the Screamer to a kneeling position. “You don’t get to eat me or any of my goddamn friends.”

It was nice to hear we’d graduated to friends, but the entire ordeal between them was so strange I stood there unmoving, the aftereffects of the energy still ringing in my ears.

“Jessica,” my brother yelled. “What do we do now?”

My brother’s voice shook me out of my stupor. I ran over to where he sat with our father. “I don’t know.” I knelt again, plunging my hands back into my father’s fur. “We need Ray. But even if he can kill the Screamer, that isn’t going to save Dad’s life. I don’t understand what Ray needs to do.”

Jessica … my father’s voice trickled weakly in my mind. Don’t worry about me. Defeat … that thing … before it kills you…

Dad, we’re not leaving you. They have this handled. Please don’t give up on us. I talked to a seer and she said Ray would help us. You need to stay alive—

“Jessica! Move!” Rourke yelled.

“Argh!” I spasmed and fell forward as white-hot energy raced through my body once again.

The Screamer had me in a choke hold.

It had escaped Ray’s grasp. My back arched as my hands clawed at its forearm. Its mouth was right by my ear, its dirty fangs an inch from my neck. “I will have you.”

I shot my elbow into its ribs and tried to force it backward. We have to try and absorb the energy. But my brain was too fuzzy and I couldn’t catch my breath.

Ray yelled behind me, but I couldn’t make out what he was saying.

In front of me, my father rose on unstable legs, Tyler springing up next to him. My father growled and bit the air, wanting to help me. I pushed back into the Screamer with everything I had, trying to put space between us and my family. If my father got his teeth onto the Screamer, it might be enough to finish him off.

Dad, get back!

“Jessica,” Rourke yelled from above me somewhere. “Hold on!” There was movement all around me. I was spinning out from the Screamer’s hold.

Right into someone’s waiting arms.

“It is okay, Ma Reine.” Something smoothed my hair. “We have everything under control now.”

25

“If this is under control”—my throat rattled as I brought a hand up to my head—“I don’t want to see out of control. My brain feels like two fried eggs in a hot pan.”

“Oui,” Naomi said. “Screamers, as you call them, are hard to defeat and often ravage for weeks. But it looks as if we will be lucky with this one.”

Ray had the Screamer again and they were struggling on the lawn. Rourke was rooted firmly in front of us, standing sentinel between us and it.

Tyler yelled, “Jess, we’re going to shift. We can help better in our true forms.”

I nodded. “Naomi, we have to help my father,” I said, anguish in my voice as I stood, stumbling to get my footing. “It may take Ray too long to finish the Screamer off. We have to find a way to help him.”

On cue Ray yelled, “This is it. I’m new to all this supernatural bullshit, but you must die now.”