Chapter Ten #2
But wait. From across the street, she saw the guard wolf.
He wasn’t moving, just watching. So, everything was okay, they were all waiting for Isaac to change, go inside in his human form and explain to her what the hell was going on.
It must be something big, since they’d been meeting about it back at his house.
Everything was all right. This was Isaac, even though he was in wolf form.
His crew trusted him, she trusted him. He was hers.
He would never hurt her, just like he’d controlled himself enough to cover Rhett’s mark from her neck.
When she held her hand out tentatively to the wolf? It shook uncontrollably.
“It’s me. Isaac, it’s me,” she chanted. “Please don’t bite. Please don’t bite. I know I’m marked, but you covered it up, remember? It’s okay. You can change, come inside.”
The wolf snarled, the loud growl reverberating up from the ground through the soles of her feet. She could feel it moving up her ankles, her calves, her knees. Her legs felt weak and the icy cold fingers of fear roiled in her middle.
“It’s okay, baby—”
But it wasn’t. The wolf’s eyes changed—literally grew harder, right before her. Drool dripped from his teeth, splatted right on the ground before he leapt at her.
Isaac leapt at her.
He was massive, the biggest animal she’d ever seen, and of course, much larger than a regular wolf. He had to weigh probably two-fifty, maybe two-seventy-five.
Huge front paws thudded against her chest, knocking her over, and they both toppled over the edge of the porch.
Her first thought as she hit the ground?
He was so much heavier than she expected.
It was like a freight train blasting into her at full speed, right in the middle of her chest, and for a moment she thought her heart stopped from the collision. That maybe her ribcage caved in.
But she didn’t have long to focus on that because snapping jaws came for her face.
What the fuck?
She raised her arm to block him and it was like he toyed with her, pulling away, snarling, and aiming for the other side.
Fire erupted over the back of her forearm.
There was a long, loud shriek and she was barely aware that the high-pitched wail came from her throat. His canines sank into her skin, all the way down to the bone, and held on. Her arm was on fire, being ripped in two, and she was barely aware of another snarl from the trees.
A second monster wolf joined the fray. Was it Noah? Alex? Amos? Joaquin? Hell, it could even be Misty. Powerful jaws clamped onto Isaac’s wolf neck and the two went pitching over her.
She brought her wounded arm up to cradle against her torso, scrambling backward like a spider. The sharp edge of the wooden stairs hit her in the back, knocking the air from her lungs.
The entire area grew louder with growls and snarling.
Suddenly, more wolves ran into the fray, jumping into the bloodbath.
Everything moved so fast, it was clear to her human eyes that these weren’t normal wolves.
They were supernatural, blurring images moving almost too quick for her to see anything but sprays of blood that arced through the night sky.
“Caitlin!” Penny’s scream reached her ears and her sister came running across the yard, ignoring the yelp of the blonde wolf next to her. So that must be Noah. How did he get with Penny if he had been the lighter-colored wolf watching from the trees?
“Oh, my God. You’re bit? He bit you? Rhett bit you?” Penny’s voice was panicked, trying to lift the arm that Caitlin had cradled against her chest.
Noah was growling, his back to them like he kept others at bay. But all the other wolves were fighting with each other.
“Rhett?”
“Which one bit you, Caitlin? Was it Rhett?”
“I-I thought it was Isaac. I didn’t know it was Rhett. I can’t tell one from the other—”
With a long howl, one of the wolves signified his kill. One by one, all the others joined in a somber, howling song of death. Five wolves lay still—flesh mangled and throats ripped out. The stench of sweat, fur, and copper lingered in the air.
“We got to get you to a hospital, Caitlin! Noah, change back! Noah, change! Change now! It’s Caitlin! It’s fucking Caitlin!” Penny was frantic, smacking the wolf next to her with one hand. God, what must her injuries look like to strike that much fear into Penny?
Penny’s voice was echoing from a distance, though. And yet, other small sounds were amplified… like the steady drip, drip, drip of her blood plopping onto her leg. Oh, God. There was a puddle of blood underneath her, mixing with the dirt to make bloody mud paste.
Somewhere under the porch she could hear a cricket chirp.
The leaves in the trees rustled. She shouldn’t be able to hear that from where she sat. Not with Penny shouting and smacking Noah.
There was a series of pops, of smacks, bones breaking and shifting.
Her gaze landed on a grim-faced, human Noah.
He was saying something to her, his mouth was moving, but the sound wasn’t coming out.
Instead, there was a ringing in her ears, which was really weird because she could still hear the distant sounds.
The leaves. The crickets. The changing wolves.
Someone came running.
“Cait! Cait.” Isaac dropped to his knees, right in front of her. His nose flared and his eyes were wide, pupils blown.
The others gathered around her too. And what was wrong with her eyes? She kept blinking to clear them, but her vision was getting dark… too dark to make out facial features.
Her words were slurred. “I thought he was you.”
Isaac was shaking his head side to side. “No, baby. That was Rhett’s wolf.”
The first searing pain rolled through her body and she let off a scream that sounded weird… it sounded like the howl of a wolf.
Did that mean what she thought? Was she becoming one?
No. Surely not. She didn’t want that. She was human, she wanted to stay human.
Her eyes were so wide, she was terrified. “Oh, no. Oh, God. What’s happening… this can’t be happening—”
“Stay calm. We’re going to take care of you—”
“No!” A spasm racked her entire body, making her instantly arch backward into an impossible angle before she heard a snap of bone… a snap that signified her spine breaking in half.
Snapped in half like a twig.
Another gut-wrenching scream and she lay still for a brief moment before she could speak again. Nothing moved. She couldn’t move from the neck down… but she could feel. Her back. Her spine had just snapped in half. “No, no, no! I don’t want this! Isaac, make it stop! Get it out! Get it out of me!”
She couldn’t move her legs. God, now she couldn’t feel her legs anymore. This was a nightmare. How could their father put Penny through this?
Penny’s eyes were huge, glossed over, tears trailing like sparkly diamonds down her cheeks. Misty held her hand tight. At least Penny would have Misty and Noah if she died.
And Isaac? Isaac looked gutted.
Everyone was naked except for her and Penny. It didn’t even seem weird, not with all the pain zipping through her veins.
“This isn’t right,” Joaquin muttered. “She didn’t die. She’s still alive. Too much adrenaline running through her. She can’t change, not like this. It’s gonna make her animal too wild.”
“I don’t want this, Isaac.” Now her own tears were burning rivulets down her cheeks, one dripped onto her arm, salt stinging the mangled wound where it hit.
Isaac’s beautiful eyes still glowed blue like his wolf… but they were wet. His lashes were spiky from moisture and trails ran through the blood smeared on his face. “Fuck!” he yelled, looking at Noah.
Caitlin gave another ear-splitting shriek as another wave of scorching fire burned through her veins, traveling up her arm, through her body. Her skin was rupturing, hair erupting through, then retreating, leaving the spots raw and bloodied.
“Give me your arm!” Isaac yelled.
Of course, she couldn’t. As if realizing it, he picked up her injured one—
And mercilessly bit.
He tore into her already ravaged flesh, into the raw, painful wound.
The scream that ripped through her throat almost popped her eardrums. The pain was so bad, horrendous, and poisoned fire ejected into her veins, zipping up her deadened limbs, racing to her heart.
There was so much blood. Blood, blood everywhere.
Isaac peered into her face, his so close, her blood all over his mouth, and he said, “Rest in peace. It’ll all be better tomorrow.”
His face was the last image she saw.