Page 1 of The Wolf's Appetite
PROLOGUE
LENNOX
The cold night air cut through the trees, the sharp, icy wind carrying the promise of blood and violence.
I felt my wolf pacing back and forth in me, his bloodlust shimmering along every nerve, his mouth salivating and dripping from his fangs.
My boots pounded against the hard ground as we made our way to the Assembly facility in Vermont. The crack of branches and the crunch of earth underfoot drowned out the roar of my pulse in my ears.
The shadows moved around me, the dark, twisted figures of my pack surging through the forest, their eyes glowing with feral light. The sound of their snarls and howls split the air as they waited for commands.
I felt the heat of my brothers at my back, the rage intheir blood, and the fierceness of their inner wolves calling to mine. The primal need to destroy, to rend and tear, to feast on the flesh of our enemies pounded through my veins.
I felt my wolf rising close to the surface, my muscles coiling, my senses sharpening as my claws itched to break free, to dig into flesh and rip it apart.
And then we attacked.
Red mist of rage was thick in my vision as I barreled into the first human I could reach. He went down hard, his body slamming into the ground with a wet, satisfying crunch, his breath exploding from his lungs in a mist of blood and spit.
I drove my fist into his chest, the bones of his rib cage splintering beneath my knuckles, his weak, human heart shattering under the force of my blow. I felt the hot spray of his blood on my face and neck, the coppery tang coating my tongue as I bared my fangs and laughed. I tipped my head back and roared, feral. Primal.
The fight exploded all around me, every space filled with Lycans and vampires fighting side by side to take down our enemy.
I was lost in bloodlust as I killed without thought, tore hearts and throats out and bathed in the blood.
I barely registered the movement behind me, the glint of metal catching the moonlight, before somethingslammed into my side, the sharp, wicked points of spiked brass knuckles biting into my ribs, shredding muscle and cracking bone. The pain was instant and brutal, a white-hot lance that shot through my body, stealing my breath and dropping me to one knee.
I snarled, my claws digging into my palms as I started to let my inner beast come to the surface and break free. The human who had struck me stepped back, his chest heaving, his eyes wide with fear and adrenaline as he stared down at me, clearly shocked he’d gotten the upper hand.
And then his lips curled into a twisted, triumphant grin.
I lunged for him, my hand closing around his ankle, my claws digging deep into his flesh as I pulled him down. His scream was high and sharp as he crashed to the ground. I twisted and sank my fangs into his throat. The hot, coppery rush of his blood flooded my mouth and my inner wolf howled in pleasure.
I didn’t stop tearing at him until I felt the weakening pulse of his dying heart thudding against my tongue.
But even as his life drained away beneath my teeth, the pain in my side flared again, spreading like fire through my veins, my bones grinding together, my vision blurring as my wolf howled again.
I staggered to my feet, clutching at my side, my fingers coming away wet and slick with my own blood.The sharp, metallic tang of blood choked the air inside the barn, thick and coppery, clinging to the wooden beams like smoke after a fire. There were shouts and roars, the fighting still strong and not appearing to dim in the slightest.
Footsteps echoed off the stone-packed floor, then a shadow broke from the far side of the barn. The wound in my side was bleeding profusely, and that's the only reason I gave myself for not being more attuned to my surroundings or the fact I didn't see the glint of a blade right away.
Before I could dodge, the knife slashed across my chest, cutting deep—muscle tearing, heat and pain flaring sharp and instant.
I turned too late. A second blow came fast. Then there was another and another, the blade cutting through me like a hot knife in butter.
Steel kissed my face, biting a jagged path from my cheekbone down to my jaw. Flesh split. Blood poured from the cuts and covered my lips before seeping into my mouth and covering my tongue.
My roar echoed off the walls, raw and animalistic.
I struggled to keep the blood out of my eyes and my vision focused, tried in vain to push my wolf out and finish this fucker. But I went down, my knees hit the stone hard, the impact rattling through bone and sinew,but I couldn’t feel it. I could barely breathe past the white-hot agony that seemed to cover every inch of me.
Everything swam and spun around me, the dim light warping, the sounds muffled and distorted like I was submerged in a nightmare.
I felt my wolf fading.
Retreating with my blood loss.
My beast’s voice—once ever-present in the back of my mind— was quickly fading away like a wave carrying it out to sea. And then there was just silence where there should have been fury and strength.
