Primal Desires (15 page)

I
can do this,
Cathy thought.
I can transform.
She wanted to take a deep breath and close her eyes to relax, but a deep breath was out of the question with the chemical hanging in the air. It didn't help that they had cranked up the zapper device that blocked vampires' awareness of them. While the subaudible whine didn't cause her pain, it was distracting.

Cathy closed her eyes and stopped trying to concentrate. For over a year she'd been trying to learn how to be a werewolf. Maybe instinct was the key to what she needed to learn.

Go with the flow.

Flow. Yes, that was it. She brought up the memories of Walt changing from man to wolf and back again, and of all the times she'd seen the Bleythin brothers do the same thing. She'd always assumed she had no control over the change, because she'd been told so. She had no doubt the natural-borns believed what they'd taught her, but she now chose to believe they were wrong.

Cathy slipped off her shoes and flexed her toes. She ran her awareness along the muscles of her calves and thighs. She blanked out how they felt now and superimposed the feel of wolf muscle stretching over her bones. She thought of her bones, and what shape they needed to take to support wolf muscle and sinew. She thought of fur, warm and soft, protecting her skin. And of skin tougher and more protective than human.

Flow,
she thought.
Change. Be.

“Cathy! No!”

She heard the shout just as her vision changed. Though her hearing grew more acute, she couldn't make out the word. She understood the fear in the sound and reacted with a snarl, revealing her long fangs. She was not afraid; she was alpha and would prove it.

She sprang toward the wall of the cage, but something held her back. Something was wrapped around her leg. It wouldn't budge when she tried to free her paw. She snapped. Her teeth came down on metal but couldn't break the restraint. She had to be free!

She didn't mind the pain.

The cage rattled; the door opened.

• • •

“They've got a zapper all right,” Laurent said, putting a hand to his forehead and driving slower.

Beside him, Sid grimaced and squinted. The sunlight hurt her eyes. She glanced behind her to where the others sat. Daniel looked sympathetic and Sofia puzzled, but the three other vampires looked as uncomfortable as she felt. Having been briefed on the effects of the zapper, they didn't complain. “At least this proves we've got the right place,” she told them.

A guard stepped in front of the SUV when they turned into the parking lot behind the warehouse. He held up a hand and showed a weapon.

Laurent stopped the van and rolled down the window. “I've got a delivery for you, friend.”

The guard shook his head. “Not now.”

Laurent gestured toward a wide metal door at the back of the building. Then he caught the man's gaze and said, “Open up. I'm not unloading out here.”

If he was trying to psychically influence the werewolf, it didn't work.

“I said not now.”

“They've got a situation inside,” Daniel said suddenly, his eyes closed. “Cathy's…bleeding.”

“Go, Harry!” Laurent shouted into his cell phone as he stepped on the gas. He opened his door and it slammed into the guard as they passed. “Bloodsuckers out!”

Sid heard her brother shout, “Mortals duck!” as she jumped from her side of the vehicle. The other vampires went out the back door.

Dodging bullets as she ran, she managed to get the entrance to the warehouse open just as Laurent drove up to it.

With the van inside, Sid joined the other vampires in fighting the well-armed werewolves outside.

• • •

The van crashed into a truck parked inside the warehouse, and both car alarms began to whine. Laurent jumped out and Daniel scrambled after him.

After that, Laurent moved so quickly, Sofia could only make out a blur. She did hear him yell, “Ow! God damn it, silver bullets!”

A moment later a weapon landed on the floor and a body sailed through the air, screaming.

Daniel headed purposefully toward the far side of the warehouse and smashed a large machine.

It must have been the zapper, because Laurent shouted, “Clear!” and the other vampires moved inside.

Bullets were still flying when Sofia cautiously slipped out of the van and searched the room for wolf shapes.

She ignored the trio of black beasts that came bounding inside; the Bleythins wouldn't be here if they hadn't taken care of the guards stationed outside.

Then she saw the cage and the man bending over something inside it. When he stood, she saw what she'd come looking for. Sofia started forward.

Before she'd gone two steps, the cream and gold werewolf pounced, pinning the man against the bars of the cage. And as he reached to push it away, the werewolf ripped open the man's throat.

T
he smell of blood brought Sid to a momentary halt as she rushed inside, and she licked her lips. She sometimes forgot how spellbinding mortal blood could be. It permeated the soul, called up ancient hunger, tried to strip away the civilized veneer.

She pushed down the ancient part of herself and continued into the room, where Laurent was taking down one of the bad guys. There was blood on her brother's arm, his own.

“Eden's not going to like that,” she called to him.

“I won't tell her if you won't,” he called back. “It'll heal in a minute.” He looked around. “All looks clear.”

Daniel stepped around from the back of the truck. “They're all down.” He sighed. “Now we've got a crime scene to clean up.”

Sid knew they wouldn't have much time; someone nearby was sure to report the sound of gunfire. The cops would be on the way soon.

Daniel took out his cell phone to call in the waiting cleanup team. Antonia came up to him and they began to consult in quiet tones. Laurent found the weapon that fired silver bullets and put it in the back of their van.

Sid heard a growl and turned to see a huge black body arcing through the air. Two other black werewolves stalked behind Mike, a fierce guard for the Tracker. Then she saw what the werewolves were headed toward: Cathy in wolf form, crouched over a human body. Her pale fur was stained with blood and her muzzle was buried in her victim's throat.

Her heart sank. “Oh, no,” Sid whispered. “Stay back, Sofia,” she said as the mortal moved forward.

But of course the woman didn't listen.

• • •

Sofia didn't want to go closer, but that was where she had to be, where she was needed. Her heart pounded hard and her head hurt.

“Cathy.”

The beast looked up. It growled and tried to stare her down.

Sofia said, “No.”

Then the Bleythin pack were there, and she automatically put herself between them and her cousin.

Mike changed into human shape in a quick blur. Behind Sofia, Cathy snarled.

“Get out of my way,” he ordered.

“Leave her alone,” Sofia replied. “Let me help her.”

“There's no help for a killer feral. She dies right now.”

“The hell she does!”

“You don't know our laws.”

“You can't just put her down without knowing why—”

“She's moonchanged! That's why!”

“She's not,” Jason said.

The calm in his voice soothed Sofia's anger; it seemed to have a similar effect on Mike.

Jason stood beside Cathy, his hand resting on top of her head. The beast shivered, but most of the insane fierceness had gone out of her eyes.

“You don't want to do this,” Jason went on. “I've been inside your head, Mike. I know how much you love this woman.”

“Shut up!” Mike shouted. He threw back his head and let out a rough-voiced howl that should never have come from a human throat.

Sofia finally realized that it wasn't fury driving the Tracker, but heartbreaking pain. Prepared to fight him, now she wanted to help him.

“The moon isn't full yet,” she said. “We don't know why she changed, or how. We don't know why she killed.” She pointed at the body. “He was her captor. What did he do to her? Was he a werewolf?”

Mike sniffed. “He was.”

“Your world has changed,” Jason said. “Your laws might not apply to this situation. If you act on instinct, you'll never forgive yourself.”

“I can't think about myself. I can't do what
I
want.”

Mike was stubborn, but Sofia sensed that his resolve was wavering. She said, “Cathy needs help. Please let me help her. There's a lot going on here. We need to find out what these bastards were up to. Let me get into Cathy's mind.”

“She doesn't have a mind right—”

“We came here to rescue her,” Sid said, stepping in front of Mike. “My vote is to take her home.”

“I second Sid's vote,” Laurent put in.

“This is werewolf business,” Mike said.

“Your kin is affiliated with the Wolf Clan,” Antonia pointed out. “We do not rule werewolf kind, but our Matri has some say in advising your kin. This is a complicated situation. I think you need Lady Juanita to mediate it.”

Harry morphed into human and put a hand on Mike's shoulder. “They're right, bro. You know they are.”

Mike stared at Cathy for a moment before his hard expression cracked into one of utter pain. “All right,” he said. “Let's get her out of here.”

Y
ou'll be all right?” Jason asked.

“I'll be all right,” Sofia replied.

“You will be all right. I'm trying to reassure myself more than you, you know.”

“I know. Trust me.”

Jason sighed, brushed his lips across hers, then stepped back and closed the metal door. It was covered with gouges and scratch marks.

Sofia locked the door and looked around. The walls of the windowless room were thickly padded. She'd been told it was soundproofed as well. The room was in the rear of the Bleythin office building, and it was where Cathy was kept during the days she was in wolf form during the full moon.

The wolf Cathy was curled up in one corner. Her head rested on her front paws and her eyes were half closed. Sofia was pretty sure Jason's mental influence was the reason Cathy wasn't currently raging around like a maniac.

“You look tired,” Sofia told her. She stretched aching muscles. “I sure am.”

Cathy had emptied large bowls of water and raw meat before lying down.

Sofia looked at the empty dishes and said, “You know, I can't remember when I ate last, or slept.” She settled slowly onto the floor and leaned her back against the door. She kept her gaze on her cousin. “It's been a rough couple of days, hasn't it?”

Cathy lifted her head and showed a mouth full of fangs. A snarl rumbled low in her throat.

Sofia scratched her earlobe and fought off a yawn. “I'm too tired to be scared.” Cathy's head dropped back to her paws. “You, too, huh? I'd like to be able to trust you not to attack, and leave you alone. Maybe with time you could figure the change out on your own. But your boyfriend is off consulting with his superiors, and I'm told that some vampire queen wants to have a talk with us. So, let's get to work proving that we Hunyara are a viable addition to the werewolf community.”

She knew it was dangerous, but Sofia had to close her eyes to concentrate.

She heard Cathy move and shouted,
Stop!

Cathy whimpered as Sofia invaded her mind. The action sent a wave of pain through both their heads, but Sofia didn't flinch away from what she had to do.

Cousin, we're going to make this up as we go along, but I promise you we're going to be okay.

If she was going to succeed, she couldn't doubt this for a moment herself.

• • •

“You have to trust her,” Sid said. She pulled a chair up beside Jason's in the hall across from Cathy's room.

“I do trust her.” He didn't look away from the door. “I also worry about her.”

Sid took a seat and passed a steaming mug of coffee to Jason. He took a deep gulp. Only then did he look at her. She appreciated his blue eyes and sharp cheekbones, in an aesthetic way.

His eyes narrowed. “Just what are you thinking, daughter of the Wolf Clan?”

She took the mug out of his hand and took a drink. Jason's eyebrow shot up. She laughed. “I know sharing liquids has great symbolism among our kind, Prime of the Caegs, but mostly I wanted a hit of caffeine.”

“Mostly?”

“It's complicated. Why is it that suddenly everything to do with werefolk is complicated?”

“What the werefolk didn't know about for several generations hasn't done them any harm,” he said. “No, that isn't true. The Hunyaras and the mortals trying to use them have been a ticking bomb. But I think your concern is very personal—and not just because Cathy Carter is your friend. You're not here to sit vigil, are you?”

She'd been bearing this secret alone for several years. She didn't want to be alone with it anymore. Besides, if anyone deserved an explanation for what she was about to ask, it was Jason Cage. There wasn't a Bleythin in the building, and Laurent had gone home to his wife and child. Sid felt safe enough to talk.

“No,” she answered him. “I have been looking for an opportunity to talk to you alone. I think you're the only one in our world who could understand.” His eyebrow canted questioningly once again. “I know what you did back in the forties, and why, and I don't think you were wrong.”

Pain and regret flashed in his eyes. “I intruded into a mortal's mind and made him do things against his will. How is anything I did right?”

“You were trying to serve the greater good. To help mortals you loved.”

He waved her words away. “Excuses.”

“Reasons. Good ones.” Sid took a deep breath and plunged on. “I would have done the same. I have done the same.”

She waited for his reaction, but all Jason Cage did was look at her and wait.

Sid put the mug on the floor and twisted her hands together in her lap. She hated the guilt and nervousness coursing through her. She was a person who worked hard to get what she wanted, for Goddess's sake! She was strong, independent. She shouldn't feel like a child in need of comfort and absolution.

“It's a long story,” she said. “I need your promise to keep it to yourself.”

“I'm not a Clan Prime,” he reminded her. “It's not up to me to judge you. You have my silence,” he added. “You're in love with a werewolf, aren't you?” he asked before she could blurt it out. “Which one? Harry?”

“Of course not! Harry's happily married to a mortal—a vet, actually. And please, no jokes about having a doctor in the family, because we've made them all already. I'm babbling, aren't I?”

“Yes. Young Joe Bleythin, then.”

Sid closed her eyes until she got the naked longing under control. “Yes.”

She'd just admitted to falling in love with a male who was not a Prime. It was the most dangerous thing a vampire female could do, and she waited with her breath held to see how the Prime would take it.

“You could get him killed.”

She let out her breath. “I know.” The fear gnawed at her every day. “He doesn't know. He's never going to know. I've seen to that, for his own good.”

Jason's hands landed hard on her shoulders and he brought them both to their feet. “What have you done?”

His urgency ripped into her. “I—”

“Is there a bond between you? Is that possible?”

“No!” Not exactly. Some things were too private, too dangerous to share. “I messed with his mind, that's all.” She gave a bitter laugh. “That's bad enough, even though I did it for his safety. When I realized how attracted we were to each other, I knew it had to be stopped. Werewolves disapprove of their people mating with mortals, though they don't outright forbid it. Harry's been ostracized by just about everyone but his brothers since he married Marj. I don't want Joe to have to choose between his people and me. Besides—”

“Your Clan Primes would kill him if he dared to touch you.”

“Yes.” She felt the familiar wave of dread for Joe's safety. “At least, they'd kill him if they knew I wasn't interested in mating with anyone else.”

“And you would lose your freedom if they found out about this love.”

“Whatever I feel, I keep to myself,” she told him. “I've made Joe believe that neither of us can be interested in being more than friends, that our species are too different to be attracted. I psychically brainwashed him, going against what the Clans stand for, but I did it for the right reasons.”

“That was my defense six decades ago, and they put me in prison anyway. Of course, I was also sixteen and stupid. You're neither. Why are you
really
telling me about this?”