Page 33 of Triumph of the Wolf
Sword in hand, I headed across the damp grass toward the woods. I would have preferred to go back to my apartment, hide behind Rue’s protection potion, and ignore Izzy, but a larger part of me wanted to confront her and end the threat she represented.
At the edge of the lawn, on the trail leading into the woods, I stopped, catching the glint of a pair of eyes at wolf height.
“Do you want to discuss it?” I called. “I sent back Ivan’s bracelet. You know that, right?”
A growl emanated from the direction of the eyes. Izzy didn’t care about her half-brother’s werewolf artifact. She cared that I’d long ago killed Raoul, the werewolf I’d loved who had also been, as I’d only recently learned, her cousin.
“Your brother mentioned reward money,” I said though I didn’t expect anything and didn’t want to see Ivan again. He hadn’t been a jerk, but hehadhit on me. I’d avoided dropping off the bracelet in person since I hadn’t wanted to encourage more of that. “I don’t suppose you’re carrying a little envelope in your jaws.”
Izzy growled again.
“I also accept Venmo and Zelle,” I offered.
The eyes moved. Izzy padded toward me.
My nerves tingled with the call of the wolf, the temptation to draw upon my magic to change. The sword, its alloy imbued with silver, would have the ability to wound her, but in the dark, at the far edge of the influence of the landscaping lights, I would be more comfortable fighting as a wolf. But, as a wolf, there was thedanger that I would lose my rational mind to the savage magic that always lurked, prepared to come to the surface. When that happened, as it had with Raoul all those years ago, I could kill without meaning to. Rewards would be the last thing on Ivan’s mind if I slew his sister, and I didn’t need any more enemies.
Unaware of my thoughts, Izzy padded closer, her dark fur growing visible as she stepped out of the undergrowth and onto the trail.
The headlights of a car entering the parking lot made me glance in that direction. It wasn’t the Corvette—I no longer heard its engine and suspected the drivers had spotted Duncan—but a large brown delivery van. Given the late hour, that was strange, and I was immediately suspicious. Was it bringing another package for Duncan? Something poisoned sent by an enemy?
With another growl, Izzy stopped less than ten feet from me. Her hackles were up, and she looked like she would attack, but she was also eyeing the sword.
“Our last battle didn’t go well for you,” I said. “If you want to kill me, you should have brought backup.”
In the parking lot, the uniformed driver hopped out of the cab of his vehicle. I would have only glanced at him, not wanting to turn away from an enemy, but he carried something that looked more like a weapon than a parcel for delivery. It reminded me of a Civil War Gatling gun.
“What the?—”
The driver leaped onto the hood of a car, lifted the big weapon, then started shooting. Instead of cracks that would have signaled bullets firing, a rapid series ofthwump, thwump, thwumpsounded as oblong objects shot out. They glinted, reflecting the outdoor lights as if they were made from glass. They flew all over the grounds, some landing in the parking lot and shattering, and others coming down in the lawn.
“You’d better get out of here.” Using the sword, I made a shooing motion toward Izzy, then ran across the grass toward the parking lot.
Taking my own advice would have been wise, but this guy was a threat to me, my territory, and my tenants. My intent, as I ran toward him, was to confront him with the sword and words, but when he saw me and pointed his weapon straight toward me, lupine magic flooded into me.
As I ran, I tore off clothing and tossed aside the sword and my phone, not wanting to lose either in the change.
“Duncan!” I yelled. With the call, I meant to warn him and hoped he would come help, but it came out as more of a snarl than his name. Also, I no longer sensed him, so I doubted he heard it.
The driver fired his weapon again. One of those glass objects—was it filled with liquid?—sailed straight toward me.
I dove to the side, rolling as I hit the grass. With magic and adrenaline flooding my veins, the wolf came over me, and, when I sprang up, I landed on four paws.
The object he’d fired flew past me and struck a lamppost, shattering. Yes, there was indeed a dark liquid inside. An acrid scent wafted from it as it dribbled down the side of the post.
Broken vials all over the grounds were wafting the scent. It didn’t smell like the odor those metal bugs had emitted in the last lair I’d battled in as a wolf, but it reminded me of that. That scent had to represent danger.
The driver was still firing from the hood of a vehicle. I ran toward him, certain all who resided in my territory were in danger, but my instincts warned of a new threat. A dark wolf bowled into me from the side, sending me rolling in the grass again. Izzy.
She’d waited until I was distracted to take advantage. Indignation and fury made me lash out, forgetting the shooterand biting into the wolf attempting to bite and pinme. Twisting, I snapped my jaws rapidly, trying to catch her by the throat. My fangs sank into her shoulder, and I managed to shift out from under her, my muscles strong, and my weight greater than hers, at least in this form.
The scent of her blood filled my nostrils, but that acrid odor was there as well, growing ever stronger. Even as the wolf tried to jerk away, biting for me while I ground my jaws and pulverized her shoulder, I grew aware of a haze creeping over the grounds. All those shattered vials were emitting vapors that gathered in a low cloud.
As we thrashed about, I managed to maneuver atop the enemy wolf. It helped that her movements weren’t as fast as I remembered from our previous encounter. More than that, they were sluggish. Only when I lunged for her and my head felt heavy did I realize that my movements were slow too.
The vapor. Itwassimilar to what those bugs had emitted. Heavy numbness crept into my limbs, and when the enemy wolf snapped toward my throat, I barely evaded her. But it was as if we both moved underwater, strangely slowed. Even the world around us seemed slow, everything hazy.
A screech came from the parking lot. The parcel van leaving? No, it was still there, though its driver had climbed back into the seat. More human vehicles were entering, a couple of black vans that I had not seen before.
