And it was very... take charge of him. He was trapped in a cell for God’s sake, but he still managed to have the upper hand here. He’d ordered her to do it.
That really aroused her.
But she couldn’t actually do it.
Well, she could. She could drive out to Cole’s house. It wasn’t that far away. Even though he didn’t live there, all of his stuff would be there. His bed was still in the house. She could go there, slowly remove all of her clothing, and lie down in that bed.
She bet it still smelled like him.
He wouldn’t be there, but she could imagine what it might be like it if he were. What would he do to her?
She thought of Cole’s hungry eyes on her body, the way he seemed mesmerized by the sight of her, the way he seemed desperate for her.
Aroused was starting to be too mild of a term for it.
She couldn’t do it. She wouldn’t do it.
She peered out the window at the moon. It gazed down at her, cold, white, and smug, as if it had all the answers and knew she was helpless to resist.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Dana’s eyes were closed. She was surrounded by puffy white bedcovers and pillows, sunk down into the most decadently soft bed she thought she’d ever lain on. It was cold inside the house, because the power had been turned off, and she was naked. But the blankets and her activity had warmed her, distracted her, so she didn’t notice the cold.
Shocks traveled down her thighs. She squeezed her knees together, moaning, her voice like a howl to the full moon.
Because when she opened her eyes, that was all she could see. The moon. The white, fat moon shown brilliant though the glass doors at the foot of Cole’s bed.
She groaned, jolts of pleasure still surging through her.
In a minute, she would feel ashamed. Embarrassed.
But for right now, there was nothing but sheer goodness. Bursting. Exploding. Blooming. She breathed deep, enjoying it, closing her eyes again.
She thought it was the shattering sound that let her know something was wrong. Cole’s double glass doors broke, and the noise must have alerted her.
But it could have been something else. She could have smelled something. Heard something.
The dark shape could have blocked out the light of the moon. She might have seen that even through closed eyelids.
However she knew, it happened fast. The glass burst inward, and the wolf landed on the bed with her, snarling, teeth bared.
At first she thought it was Cole. She thought he’d somehow got out of his cell, and that he’d sent her here on purpose. So that he could kill her.
But she saw that the wolf was gray. It wasn’t Cole. And she could smell it. It didn’t have Cole’s smell.
The wolf was huge compared to her small, naked body. It advanced on her, showing her its long, sharp teeth, its wet gums. Saliva dripped out of the edge of his mouth.
Dana scrambled back up the bed. This was a werewolf, not an animal. She could smell the difference.
She’d come into the house with nothing, chasing her idiotic lust. There was a tranquilizer gun in her car, but that didn’t do her much good here, did it?
The wolf’s eyes met hers. It growled, a direct challenge.
Dana didn’t understand it, but the wolf inside her did. Her wolf sprang forward, ready to fight, demanding that Dana let it out.
And Dana didn’t fight the wolf this time. The only way she was going to survive this was to shift. She let the wolf out, and it felt... right.
Generally, shifting was painful. All her bones seemed to snap into different places. Her internal organs mutated and shifted inside her. Fur pushed its way through her skin, sharp points of coarseness pricking her everywhere.
But this time...
It was like water, like the river surging downstream. The shift was a liquid force that washed over her, and in several fluid seconds, she was standing on the bed in wolf form, staring down the gray wolf.
Like the time in Cole’s basement, she was utterly aware of herself. She knew what was happening. But her thoughts were wolf thoughts, not human thoughts.
She sized up her attacker, looking for weaknesses. The gray wolf’s aggression wafted from its body. She smelled it. This wasn’t a warning, and it wasn’t playful. This wolf meant to kill her.
That meant only one thing. Dana had to kill first.
She began to circle the gray wolf, and it moved with her. The two maneuvered on Cole’s bed, stepping over the covers and pillows. They growled at each other. They took each other’s measure.
The gray wolf moved. It sprang forward, leaping for Dana.
Dana jumped off the bed, narrowly escaping its jaws.
The wolf leapt after Dana, joining her on the floor.
There wasn’t much room down here, and there were glass shards everywhere.
Dana’s paw landed on one, and she recoiled, whimpering.
The gray wolf pressed its advantage and tackled Dana.
Caught off guard, Dana fell backward on her side. The sharp points of the gray wolf’s teeth pierced her shoulder.
Dana yipped, flailing.
The wolf’s teeth held fast.
Dana used her back feet, clawing at the gray wolf, raking her claws over its belly.
The wolf whined. Its grip loosened.
Dana shook free. She leapt forward, jaws wide. Her teeth closed around the gray wolf’s neck.
The wolf tried to move.
But Dana was on top of it, holding the gray wolf in place. It was the most natural thing in the world to move her jaws, to snap the wolf’s neck.
It hung lifeless from her mouth.
She dropped it, victory bolting through her. Sweet, sweet victory. Relief and achievement all wrapped in one. Her wolf gloried in it.
The gray wolf was shifting back to human, now that it was dead. Werewolves always did. Now she could see that it wasn’t a gray wolf anymore but instead a woman. The nude body sprawled on the carpet, amongst the shards of broken glass. The pale light of the moon reflected against her bare skin.
To Dana, the body meant only one thing. Meat.
Her wolf was hungry.
* * *
Dana was shaking too hard to drive, but she was sitting in the front seat of her car, gripping the steering wheel.
This couldn’t have happened.
She tried to take deep breaths, to calm herself down, but it wasn’t happening. She couldn’t calm down after this.
She had... eaten someone.
Not all of the someone. Just... parts.
Augh.
She shook.
This wasn’t happening. This wasn’t happening. This couldn’t be happening.
No. No. No.
“Calm down, Dana,” she said aloud to herself. Her voice sounded high-pitched and terrified. “You couldn’t help it. It’s a full moon. You ran into a rogue without a tranq gun. If you hadn’t shifted, you’d be dead. It was self-defense.”
It wasn’t self-defense to eat someone, and she knew it.
Dana let out a noise. It might have been a strangled sob. Or a hysterical laugh. She wasn’t quite sure.
“Calm down,” she said to herself again. “You couldn’t help it. You didn’t mean it.”
The worst of it was how much the wolf had loved it. And Dana could remember that joy, that sheer pleasure of sinking her mouth into flesh, juices spurting into her mouth.
“Stop,” she said. She wouldn’t think about it. She just wouldn’t.
Oh fuck. Oh fuck. What was she going to do?
That woman had a family. They were going to be worried about her. Someone would eventually find the body, here in Cole’s house, and they would...
Oh God.
If she confessed what she’d done, everyone would know. They might understand that she’d done it in self-defense. They might even let the... eating slide. But all of that combined with the fact that she was in Cole Randall’s house unarmed? What were they going to t
hink about that? How was she going to explain—
Her cell phone rang.
She shrieked.
“Get yourself together, Gray,” she muttered. With trembling hands, she answered the phone.
“Gray?”
It was Avery. “I’m here.”
“You okay?” he asked. “You don’t sound good.”
“I’m...” She shut her eyes and shook. “Do you need me?”
“Well, not exactly, but I thought you should know.”
“There was a rogue?”
“Yeah,” he said. “And it attacked your ex. Hollis Moore?”
“What? Hollis?”
“He’s okay,” said Avery. “He’s got a bite, though. He’s gonna be infected. But King thought it would be a bad idea to have us track the rogue considering it’s someone you know personally. So, Jones and Davis are taking it. Still, you, um, want to go see Hollis?”
“Uh.” Hollis was going to be a werewolf. Hollis had been attacked. She couldn’t quite process this.
“Gray? He’s gonna need someone. You know what that’s like.”
“Right,” she said. “Sure, I’ll go see him.”
“I’m coming with you,” said Avery. “You don’t sound good. Where are you, anyway?”
“I’m... nowhere.” She gulped. “Uh, I’ll meet you, okay? Is he still at home, or did they bring him to headquarters yet?”
“He’s in transit,” said Avery.
“Okay then. I’ll meet you back at headquarters.”
“Gray, did you have trouble with your wolf again tonight?”
She laughed wildly. “Why would you say that?”
“I know things were weird after what you did to Hollis, and this is the first full moon since. Did something happen?”
“I...” She shivered, feeling ill. “I’ll meet you, Brooks.” She hung up the phone.
* * *
Hollis had just been released from the treatment center, where they’d cleaned his wound and bound it with gauze. He was now in his new quarters, a room he’d be living in for the next month while he completed the SF training.
The rooms were fairly comfortable. They had TVs and couches in addition to soft beds. Dana hadn’t minded it much when she was confined to one. But she had been a teenager, and the idea of being away from her parents had been a little exciting. Hollis wasn’t the least bit pleased with his new set of circumstances.
When Dana got to the room, Hollis was sitting on a couch, clutching his bandaged arm. He looked furious. When she stepped inside, she thought he was going to start throwing furniture at her.
But instead, he stayed seated. His voice was strained but controlled. “Come to gloat?”
She shook her head. “No, Hollis, why would I want this?”
“You did this.”
“Did you?” said a voice from behind her.
Dana turned. Avery was there. “Brooks?”
“You nearly bit him before,” said Avery. “And he seems convinced it was you.”
“I can’t believe you would say that,” said Dana. Although given what she had done tonight, she guessed it wasn’t really all that far off.
“They’ll smell you, Gray,” Avery said. “If it was you—”
“It wasn’t me,” said Dana. She looked back and forth between the two men. “They won’t smell me.”
Avery let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank God.”
“She’s stalling,” said Hollis. “She did it. It was her.”
She rounded on Hollis. “This was a terrible accident. I’m so sorry.”
“Maybe you two were in on it together,” said Hollis. “I remember what you said at the hotel.” He pointed at Avery. “You threatened to bite me in order to kill my story.”
Avery swallowed. “Look, Mr. Moore, I’m sorry I said that. I would never do something like that, not really.”
Hollis’ nostrils flared. “I think you’d do whatever you could to protect Dana. You’ve got a big, big crush on her, and anyone with half a brain could see that.”
Dana rolled her eyes. “Oh, please, Hollis. Don’t be ridiculous.” She shot Avery a reassuring look, letting him know that she knew that Hollis was only angry.
Avery wasn’t looking at her. He had his hands in his pockets.
“You think just because you took all my notes that I won’t be able to write the story?” said Hollis.
“What?” said Dana. “Someone took your notes?”
“And my computer,” said Hollis. “Luckily, I’ve got some of it backed up in the cloud. Not all of it, of course. But I remember.” He tapped his temple. “I remember a lot.”
Avery was looking at Dana, now, his eyebrows knitted. “You think that a werewolf took your notes?”
“No, you idiot,” said Hollis. “The werewolf was busy biting me. There was someone else taking all my stuff. Someone wearing a hood. I didn’t get a good look. Guess that I’d have to file a police report for that, though. You only deal with wolves.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” said Dana. “Rogues don’t do that. They don’t work with humans.”
Avery stroked his chin. “And they usually don’t have the restraint to only bite someone once on the arm.”
“Don’t act like you don’t know what’s going on,” said Hollis. “I know it was the two of you. You can admit it.”
“We didn’t do it,” said Dana.
Hollis grinned. “Maybe Avery did it for you all on his own then. A way to prove his love. Must drive you crazy knowing she’s got it bad for Cole Randall.”
Avery sighed. “That’s enough.” He turned to Dana. “We came here to try to reassure him, make him feel better. That’s clearly not happening. We don’t have to stay.”
Dana glared at Hollis. “I’m sorry things didn’t work out between us. I’m even sorrier that you can’t let it go.”
“You think I won’t publish the fact that she furry-fucked him, just because I’m in here? You’re wrong. I’ll find a way.”
Dana’s stomach dropped.
Avery’s expression froze.
“Didn’t she tell you that, then?” asked Hollis. “She and Randall shifted into wolves, and then nature took its course. Couldn’t keep their paws off each other.”
Avery strode across the room to Hollis. “You’ve had a long night. You’re understandably upset. You should probably get some rest. And you should probably shut your mouth before I lose control.”
“Brooks, you don’t—”
“You too, Gray,” Avery said. “Shut your mouth.”
Dana shrank on herself.
Hollis laughed.
Avery’s jaw twitched. He shook his head, and then he stalked out of Hollis’ room.
“You bastard,” Dana breathed.
Hollis was still laughing.
“I didn’t do anything to you,” she said.
“You broke my heart,” he said, but he didn’t sound particularly sad. “All’s fair in love and war.”
“Fuck you.” She left the room and went after Avery.
Avery was halfway up the hallway. She had to run to catch up with him. “Brooks, wait!”
He didn’t wait.
When she finally matched his step, she said, “I’m sorry.” She wasn’t sure what she was apologizing for.
He wouldn’t look at her. “You know, Gray, it occurs to me that none of this is really any of my business.”
“It wasn’t on purpose. And I didn’t want to say anything, because it’s...”
“Disgusting.” He quickened his pace.
“Yes.” She struggled to match it, stretching her legs. Her voice broke.
He stopped abruptly. He looked at her. “I didn’t even know that was possible.”
Dana hung her head. “Well. It is.”
Avery pointed down the hall in the general direction of Hollis’ room. “How could you tell him that and not me?”
“He broke into Chantal’s office and stole her records,” said Dana. “He had a pr
egnancy test that I took. He was in my face, and...”
“Jesus,” said Avery. “Can he use information he stole in an article?”
“It doesn’t matter, anyway,” said Dana. “He’s denied contact with the outside world until the next full moon.” The policy at the SF was that the newly bitten needed focus and not distractions to complete their training successfully.
“Right,” said Avery. “But afterwards?”
“He’ll probably lose his job at The Jefferson Post. They’re not real friendly towards werewolves there. Hollis used to get flack just for dating me.”
Avery sighed. “So his life is basically ruined. I guess that’s why he’s so pissed.”
Dana nodded.
He laughed. “This isn’t the article that King had in mind when she asked you to pursue it, is it?”
“No,” said Dana. “I shouldn’t have ever agreed to it. I thought I could keep everything that I didn’t want people to see hidden. But that was kind of silly of me, wasn’t it?”
“Well, it’s over now. One last thing you have to worry about,” he said. “Are you sure they’re not going to find your scent?”
“Positive,” she said. “I wouldn’t lie to you.”
“Yeah, I’m not so sure about that,” said Avery.
She remembered the access card and blanched. And there was the fact that she’d just come from killing a rogue. “Actually, I have something I need to tell you about tonight. It’s got nothing to do with Hollis, but it isn’t good.”
Avery closed his eyes. “Shit, Gray.”
* * *
They were in Avery’s apartment, drinking tea. They sat on his couches. Avery had buried his face in his hands.
“I know it’s bad,” she said.
“Yeah,” said Avery, his voice muffled.
“I wanted you to know, though,” she said. “I didn’t want it to hit you out of nowhere.”
“Gray, goddamn it.”
“I’m going to get fired, aren’t I?”
“No,” said Avery, raising his head. “No way. I won’t let them do that. And besides, they’d have to train another tracker.” He looked at her. “But you might get suspended.”
She squeezed her eyes shut. “God.”
“King might want you to go back through the training again, like a new wolf. To get yourself under control.”
“No, that’s not going to work. The wolf and I are too connected now. I can’t separate myself from it, and that’s what the training wants you to do.”
He leaned back on the couch. “Maybe there’s some way we can fix it. We can go to Randall’s house and hide the corpse.”