Beginnings (The Trifectus Series - Book One) (24 page)

“Go find her,” she said, staring right back at him.

He grabbed his things and slammed the door behind him. 

Juliet started to worry.  It had been half an hour since she was taken here, and there was no sign of rescue in sight.  Her kidnappers walked around doing their own business while she sat there.  The cool night breeze drifted in through a broken window, dancing on her prickly skin.  Goosebumps filled every square inch of her white porcelain skin.

“HEY!  HEY!” I yelled.

One of the men strolled over with a smile on his face.

“What can I do for you?” he asked mockingly.

“I’m cold,” I said.

“You should have worn warmer clothes then,” he said, laughing as he walked away.

James, Troy and Michael scoured the town looking for Juliet.  They jumped from rooftop to rooftop, trying to use their advanced hearing to hear if she screamed or yelled for help.

“We should go to the place where she was taken,” said Michael.

“Good idea,” said Troy.  “Maybe there is a clue there.”

They made their way to the intersection Emma told them to go to.  It was a quiet intersection, not a car in sight.  Lights were changing as they looked from the rooftop all around to try to find anything.

“There!” yelled Michael.

They jumped down and James went and picked up the item on the ground.  It was a colorful braided bracelet.  He smelled it and could smell Juliet’s scent lingering on the bracelet.

“It’s hers,” he said.

“Are you sure?” asked Troy.

“I’m positive.  She was here.”

“She might be nearby,” said Michael.

“Why would they stay in the area?” James asked.  “Wouldn’t they go far away so nobody would find them?”

“Normally yes, but not this time.  They seem to favor the city and everything in it.  If they want Juliet for her father, they will try to stay close by.  They have to be somewhere in the city.  Maybe an abandoned house or business,” said Michael.

“He’s right,” said Troy with his arms crossed.  “They want something, they don’t want her.  If they were stalking her, they would have killed her and left her body here.  They don’t kidnap people to eat them.  Emma said they took her, so they need something from her.  Don’t take it lightly though.  They will still kill her once they get what they want.  They don’t care about her.”

“I won’t let them!” exclaimed James.  “She is my everything: my love, my life, my world.  I will die for her before I let them put a scratch on her.  My heart beats for her and my blood runs through my veins for her to feel.  I will not lose her.”

“We need to canvass the area and look for abandoned places.  It would make the most sense that they would be hiding in maybe an old house or warehouse or something of that nature,” said Troy.

James, Troy and Michael scoured the area before coming across an old warehouse a few blocks from the area where Juliet was taken. 

“James,” Michael whispered.  “I can hear talking inside.”

While Michael was closely listening, the three men inside were talking.  They were talking about their next steps.  They needed to get the word out so that they could get their ransom. 

“Should we make a video?” one of the men asked.

“No, we need to make a phone call or something.  We don’t want a video to show where we are.  They will know it’s an old warehouse and they will find us too fast.  We need to give a few unexpected verbal commands to him,” another man said.

“I smell something,” one of the men said.  “It smells like death.”

The werewolves had a very keen sense of smell.  Even in their human forms, they had the amazing ability to smell anything, and right now they smelled the three men on the roof.

“What is it?” asked one of the men.

“Probably just some garbage.  I saw some outside in the alley when we came in,” another replied.

“When should we call him?” one man asked.

“In ten minutes,” another replied. 

Troy grabbed the walkie-talkie and called for help.

“Remey,” he said, “we spotted the men that took Juliet, but can’t see her inside.  We know she is in there though.”

“We are coming to help you.  Don’t go in there until we get there.  If they are werewolves then they will be too much for you three,” Remey said.

“Got it,” said Troy.

Ten minutes passed before everybody else arrived.  They sat on the roof looking in through a dirty glass skylight.  They saw the men arguing down below before one stormed off.

“Where is he going?” asked Troy.

The man came back a minute later with Juliet, dragging her in the chair.  Her face was red from screaming, her makeup running from her constant crying. 

“No,” said James.

His hands started trembling in anger as he saw the distress Juliet was in.

“Control yourself,” said Rosa.

Down below, the man who dragged her in walked around to face her.

“After we are done getting what we want from your father, we are going to kill you,” the man said while laughing.

That was the moment James snapped.  His eyes turned blood-red and his fangs shot down.  He let out a monstrous roar as he broke through the glass skylight.

“Looks like it’s go time,” said Troy.

James’s family fell down behind him, forming a line of people around him.  Their eyes started turning red, their fangs slowly coming down.  They were ready to fight.  They were ready to save Juliet.

The men, knowing what they were facing, started growling. 

“We are here for the girl,” said Remey.  “Give her up now and there will be no problem.  We will leave with her and that will be it.”

“You’ll have to take her from us,” said one of the men as they stood in front of her.

The three men started changing.  It was amazing seeing werewolves shift.  Their limbs grew as fur started growing and covering their bodies.  Their hands and feet turned into large paws that were as big as a human head.  Canine fangs rapidly grew as their faces completely transformed.  Snouts grew out, and their eyes turned a dark shade of yellow.  They stood upright, slightly hunched over at the shoulders.  They snarled as one of them lunged at James.

A battle that could only be told through old stories slowly unfolded.  James’s family was large, but their individual strengths were no match for fully grown werewolves.  The wolves towered over them; their large fangs were double the size of James’s. 

Everybody on both sides fought with vigor.  Troy lunged at one of the wolves.  The thirst in Troy’s eyes for blood was immense.  His strength was the only match for the wolves. 

Troy and James teamed up against the largest of the wolves.  The each took one of his arms and threw him against the wall.  He growled and lunged back at them, pushing them both back as they tried to hold up his giant paws above them.  Just as they were about to get pushed down, Emma came out of nowhere and kicked the wolf in his snout.  He let go of James and Troy and fell backwards as if he was disoriented from the kick. 

Juliet was screaming and trying to break the legs on the chair as the battle ensued all around her.  Fists and kicks were flying everywhere, and she was praying one of them didn’t hit her.

James came up to her and started to try to untie her restraints.  He wanted to break the chair, but knew he could break her wrists or ankles and couldn’t take that risk.  She couldn’t heal like him. 

As he was starting to get somewhere, he was pulled and thrown across the room.  His back slammed into an old metal support beam as a fourth wolf ran at him.  He ducked out of the way, sending the wolf to smash into the beam. 

He started running back to Juliet as he looked to his right to see one of the wolves charging at him.  Time slowed down as Troy tackled the wolf before it could get to James.

“UNTIE HER!” Troy screamed.

As James ran towards Juliet, he saw Rosa and Elsa pushed against the wall, with a smaller wolf choking them.  He looked at Juliet, and then back again at Rosa and Elsa.  What was more important: the love of his life, or his family? 

He ran and jumped on the back of the smaller wolf, plunging his fangs into its neck.  The wolf let go of Rosa and Elsa and howled in pain. 

The other wolves glanced over to see that James had bitten the wolf.  They tried to escape to help their friend, but were overpowered.  Every member of James’s family was holding them back, trying to subdue them.

James ran over to Juliet and untied her.  She lunged into his arms and buried her face in his shoulder.  He held her tightly, this time not letting go. 

While his family tried holding down the werewolves, one of them ran out.  The largest, their alpha, broke through a small window and ran off.  Troy bit one of the wolves in his neck while Elsa bit the other.  They slowly calmed down and eventually blacked out into darkness.  Their lifeless bodies lay there.

Every person had scratches and torn clothing.  Everybody went over to Juliet and James, while Elsa slowly limped over.

“Are you okay?” I asked Elsa.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.  It will heal,” she replied.

“We’re so happy you’re safe,” said Rosa smiling.

“Thank you,” I said with my head down.

James put his finger under my chin and raised my head up. 

“I love you,” he said while looking into my eyes.

“I love you too,” I said, staring back at him.

“We should get her home,” said Remey.

“I agree.  I’ll take her,” said James.

James picked me up in his arms and started running.  His speed was amazing.  Even with me in his arms he could still move fast. 

We got to my house and stood outside my door. 

“Thank you for caring,” I said.

“I will always care about you.  You are my life,” James replied.

“We need to work things out before getting back together.”

“What do you mean?”

“We need to make sure everything is talked about and that this is the right thing to do.  I don’t want to rush it, I want to make sure it lasts this time.”

“I will wait for you until the sun turns dark.”

I kissed James, his cool lips pressed against mine.  Butterflies filled my stomach as his soft lips were against mine, his hand placed on my cheek, brushing back my stray hairs.  After the kiss, he put his forehead against mine, his hand still on my cheek.  I felt a love I hadn’t felt before.  In this moment, we were one.

I didn’t have my bag or keys.  I rang the doorbell with knots in my stomach as I tried to think of why I was gone all night.

My father opened the door and yelled up to my mother to rush down.  He pulled me into his arms and hugged me. 

“I love you,” he whispered to me.

I hadn’t felt this level of love or affection from my father since I was a child.  I put my head against his chest and closed my eyes. 

My mother came down and hugged me with tears in her eyes. 

“Where were you?” she asked.

“Why are you so dirty?” my father asked.

I went blank.  I had no story for them.  I had no explanation for why I looked so dirty and disheveled.  As I stood there for what seemed like an eternity, James spoke.

“I go to school with Juliet.  After the track finals some girls beat her up outside my house.  My mother brought her inside and took care of her until she was well enough to get home.  She was unconscious for a little while and didn’t have any emergency numbers on her.  It was only when she came to we figured out where she lived and she could be brought home.  I’m sorry for the anxiety this caused you,” James said.

“Thank you for your help, son,” my father said as he shook James’s hand.

I turned around and gave James a quick hug.

“Thank you for your help.  I’ll see you in school,” I said as I winked at him.

I went inside and waved goodbye to James as he walked away.  He looked back and smiled as I shut the door.  I was in love again.

“Are you okay?” my mother asked while hugging me.

“Yeah, I’m okay.  It was just some jealous girls.  I slipped and hit my head and passed out.  James and his mother saw me outside and helped me.  I have a couple classes with him,” I said.

“Well, I like him,” said my father.  “He seems like a stand-up guy.”

It was funny that he said that.  He liked James and thought he was great.  I bet he wouldn’t think that if he knew that James was a vampire.  Even though James and his family saved me, he would still want to throw James in prison and throw away the key. 

“He was a very nice boy,” my mother said with a smile on her face.

“I’m still feeling a little worn out.  I think I am going to go upstairs and get in bed.”

“Okay, dear,” my mother said.

I walked upstairs as my parents stared at me with their arms around each other.  They looked proud, as if they were proud I was back.  I gave a half smile and went to my room.

I went in my room and passed out on my bed.  I didn’t even bother changing or getting ready for bed.  After the night I just had, nothing could motivate me to bother changing into my pajamas.