“Tristan, I can’t let the other wolves out. Unless they’re also humans trapped as animals?”
Tristan snorted in what might have been something like a laugh. No, they are wolves.
They will not come near the gate. He turned around, growled at the pack, and showed his teeth. His meaning was clear—back off.
Ashlee opened the door and Tristan trotted out. He sniffed the ground in front of him. Ashlee closed and locked the gate. Up close, Tristan was an even more impressive animal. Thick brown fur with red patches, deep sunken brown eyes specked with grey, and filled with intelligence. Absentmindedly, she reached out to stroke his fur but jumped back when she caught herself. She sucked in a breath. It was one thing to contemplate breaking out a wolf, another thing to actually be alone with one, let alone touch it. Those teeth could take off her hand. She stepped backwards and hit the wall behind her hard.
Tristan followed her retreat and nudged her with his head until she touched him of her own volition. With great trepidation, Ashlee petted Tristan on his head and then on his back and sides. He was coarse under her touch and he smelled clean, like the first scent of fresh air on an early summer morning. She laughed at the thought and he nudged her.
You must never fear me. I will never hurt you. Only to you will I ever make that promise.
“Come with me. We’ve got to get you out of here.” She heard the click of the nails on his paws as he followed behind her. She ran towards the front gate. She looked around and opened it, noting the way the moonbeams played on the bars, giving it the impression of swimming in the moonlight. Tristan loped through the gateway and into the shadows.
Her breath shook in her throat. “So what happens now? Do you run home or something?” She didn’t know what to do with her arms and legs. She felt lost in the space around her. How did you say goodbye to a magical talking wolf? For a moment, only silence met her query.
Ashlee, I cannot leave you. I am hopeful you will take me home to my pack and you will meet my family. But if you cannot, then I will stay with you.
She knew she shouldn’t have just accepted all of this as commonplace, certainly it was weird, but if she was in for a penny, she was in for a pound. Weird prophetic dreams, talking wolves, shifters…why not? It felt right to her. In the same way that she knew she had red hair, she knew this was real. “You can’t stay with me. Where would I put you?
Besides, if you get home, they can help you, right? They can make it so you can be a man again?”
So that I can be a man when I choose to and a wolf when I want, yes. They can help me with this.
She blew out the breath she’d been unaware she held. “Then I guess I’ll take you home. Where do you live?”
On an island, off the coast of Maine.
“An Island off the coast of Maine? We’re in New Jersey. That’s what, eight, nine hours from here?” She shook her head. How would she explain where she’d gone? Her family would worry. She’d need a good excuse. Her parents had taken to treating her as if she were a child ever since her breakdown.
I would guess more like ten hours considering we will need to wait for the boat.
A really, really good excuse.
She walked towards her waiting SUV and popped open the door. “Hop in. I’ll drive you to Maine, and then I’ll turn around and come back. I can be back for dinner tomorrow night. I’ll make up some excuse.”
The wolf snorted. You will not be back for dinner tomorrow night.
She furrowed her brow at his authoritative tone. “Yes, I will.”
Tristan remained silent. She narrowed her eyes and rubbed her nose. She knew she hadn’t won the argument, he’d humored her. This day really wasn’t going as planned.
She turned to get into the car but stopped when she saw Tristan’s head jerk upwards. His nose moved frantically in the air as he sniffed something. He growled and she shuddered.
Her voice wavered. “Tristan?”
Get in the car, little one.
She followed his gaze and turned around. Behind her car, three men stepped out of the shadows. They were the men from her dream. She whirled around and stared at Tristan. His teeth flaunted, he growled loudly. Gone was her sweet, gentle wolf and in his place stood a terrifying animal. She had a feeling this situation called for just that kind of creature.
The first man stepped forward. His hair, long and blond, hung down his back. He turned in the light and she saw that half of his face was tattooed with the symbol of a serpent. “Hello, Tristan. We’ve been looking for you,” the blond man lisped. He really sounded like a snake.
Tristan snarled and moved towards the snake man who turned around to smile at the other two would-be attackers, both dark haired. One of them was small in stature, the other the exact opposite, huge and built like a linebacker.
“Look boys, I don’t think he can shift back yet. I think the beloved boy is still stuck.”
He laughed. “Classic.” The other two men snickered. “Get the leash and catch his little girl before she runs.”
Linebacker turned around to grab Ashlee. She didn’t think, just reacted. She swung open the back door of her SUV as he stepped forward. It collided with the man’s gigantic gut. He fell backwards a step. He made an oomph noise and stalked forward. Instinct made her run. She went no more than ten feet when her mind screamed for her to turn around and help Tristan.
A scream of agony cut through the night air as Tristan attacked Ashlee’s pursuer.
Her wolf went right for the giant man’s throat. Tristan ripped and tore him to pieces as he bit and attacked the huge man with his teeth and claws. Blood splattered and coated Tristan’s fur. The concrete beneath them turned red from the gaping wounds.
Ashlee tried not to gag and spun around in an attempt to avoid the scene as it unfolded. She lost her balance, tripped and hit the ground. She grunted as her shoulder took the brunt of her weight, followed immediately by her head as it hit the pavement.
Her teeth tore into her tongue. She saw stars and spit out the blood that came from the bite she’d given her tongue.
The smaller attacker stood over her now. He reached down to grab her. Suddenly, he was down on the ground. Another wolf, not Tristan, attacked him and literally ripped the skin from the man’s face. The scream was short-lived, as only moments later the wolf locked onto his throat.
How hard had she hit her head? Where had this second wolf come from?
Unlike Tristan, this wolf was entirely black. The attacker reached into his belt for something hidden there. He pulled out a knife and struck the black wolf on his left shoulder. It was an act of desperation because Ashlee guessed the man was already on his way to death’s door. The wolf whimpered for a moment, but didn’t stop his assault as he shredded the hand that held the knife to nothing but bone.
Ashlee rolled onto her side and looked for Tristan. He growled and stalked the blond snake-man who held the leash he’d ordered the others to get. She’d seen this type of lead before. If Snake-boy managed to touch Tristan with the end of it, an electric shock would be released and render Tristan paralyzed for a moment. Enough time for him to be caught.
She had not gone through all the trouble of breaking Tristan out only to lose him to that electric stunner.
She crouched and her body screamed with pain. Fury filled her body and she smiled.
Had she ever been this angry before? Before she could stand up a third wolf, this one small and white, leapt from the darkness onto Snake’s back. He went down onto his belly. Tristan attacked from the other side as the white wolf finished him off from behind by ripping out his throat. Growls filled the air and drowned out the screams. Moments later, there was nothing but silence.