The Shepard's Agony Page 18

  The piled twitched and the growl returned. “David!” Gwen focused her energy and pulled away the coats, boots, and clothes. There he was.

  His neck was bleeding and he was disoriented. She touched his cheeks, he felt cold, prickles of wolf hair reached out from his pores.

  “David? Can you hear me?” How was she going to get him out of there?

  He opened his eyes, they were yellowish and glowing. He smiled at her, his fangs were in and his jaw was trying to lengthen to make room for the rest of the teeth that would follow.

  “He couldn’t do it,” he said.

  “Do what?”

  He lifted a clawed hand and pointed to the punctures on his neck. “Bit me. Thought he would kill me, but he put me in here.” His ears twitched, they were longer and pointier, and he was listening to the fire destroying the cabin. “Is he dead?”

  Gwen licked her lips. Despite herself, she wished it had been different. “Yes, he’s gone.”

  David nodded. “Good, he’s better off in the next life.” Then he cringed and cramped up, Gwen could hear the bones in his arms breaking and she screamed at the sound. He was still fighting the change, she could tell.

  “David! David, look at me, you have to stop. You need to calm down and just let it take you, you’re only making it worse.”

  He clenched his jaw. “It’s killing me.”

  More bones snapped to realign themselves and Gwen knew it was true. The potion wasn’t helping. Her heart bled.

  “No, no it’s not, it just feels that way,” she lied. She wanted to go back to her body and get someone to help her but there was no way any of them would run into a burning cabin for a hunter, and definitely no way they would let her either. She didn’t have the mental strength to pick him up and leave. The only thing she could do was stay and watch him die.

  “Look at me, look at me.” She pushed several stray blond hairs out of his eyes and held his face in her palms. His twisted, his face changing.

  “I love you.”

  His semi human eyes cleared and his mouth opened in shock. She thought she saw something close to a smile on his lips before he threw his head back and howled as he transformed.

  The reaction made Gwen jump back and, without meaning to, she lost her concentration and was pulled back into her body.

  ***

  “No!” she screamed when she jumped up, surprising Larry who was holding her. He lost his balance and fell over, taking her with him.

  John ran to her and grabbed her by the shoulders. “What happened to you?”

  “We have to get him! He’s still inside! He’s alive!” she shrieked, fighting to stand and throwing John’s arms off of her. When she made to run for the cabin, he grabbed her again.

  “He’s dead! No one could’ve survived that!” he said, avoiding her thrashing.

  “Gwen, please stop,” Larry begged.

  Gwen knew they would never let her help David if she went back to her body. Why did she have to lose her concentration like that? She was running out of time! She needed to go! Now!

  Desperately, she threw her head back and head-butted John in the nose. He cried out and dropped to the ground, clutching his bleeding nostril with both hands.

  “I’m sorry!” she yelled behind her, running for the cabin. This time, Eric was standing in the way. He looked more shocked that she could be acting like she was than willing to stop her.

  The cabin was on fire behind him and it was only getting worse the longer she waited. Gwen was in no mood to play around. “Get out of my way,” she growled, her eyes shifting to that of a wolf.

  “Gwen, I—”

  Whatever he was about to say was cut off when Jimmy surprised him from behind and bit his neck. The focus quickly shifted to getting him off instead of keeping her from running into a raging fire.

  She ran while everyone’s attention was elsewhere and jumped forward, changing mid leap into a white wolf and charging into the cabin. Knocking over the door with her wolf strength, she headed for the closet where she’d found him the first time before she was forced to stop.

  Blind! She was blind! She couldn’t open her eyes and the sting was killing her. The smoke was everywhere, covering her like a hand that wished to choke her, and the heat was singing her fur.

  She dropped to her haunches to escape it and scratched at her eyes with her front paws. That was better, the sting remained and she still had trouble seeing, but she could at least make out where she was. She should have kept her thoughts clearer before stupidly charging in.

  The smoke made her nose useless and the screaming fire prevented her from hearing anything, so she called out with her mind, praying that the change didn’t affect him to the point where he couldn’t respond.

  David?

  She got no response.

  Gwen crawled forward, through the kitchen and into the hall. She yelped when she came to close to a burning chair that singed her hind paw. She kept still and whined. That hurt.

  David! she called out again, louder this time. There was a very good chance that the change had killed him before the fire could touch him, but she didn’t want to believe he could be dead. It couldn’t be over just like that.

  She forced herself to stop whining and move on, favoring the paw that hadn’t been burned. Dead or alive, she would find him and take him out of here.

  The closet door in the hall was open, smashed from the inside out. When Gwen saw it, her ears perked and heart lifted. He was alive, he had to be!

  She crawled faster and poked her nose in to see what was inside. Nothing, just the pile of clothes that had been sheltering David during the explosion. She put her nose right into the pile of coats and shoes to see if there was any trace of him left. Underneath the smell of smoke, she detected a faint trace of David, but the smell wasn’t entirely the same.

  Don’t get your hopes up, she told herself. Even though she wanted to howl with joy, he could have easily broken through the door and crawled off somewhere to die in some half human-half wolf state.

  She heard the cabin groaning under the assault of the fire and knew that her time was almost up. If she didn’t find him soon, she would have to leave or have the roof of Bill’s cabin fall on her head.

  Gwen pulled herself out of the closet to continue her search when a menacing growl from her left caught her attention.

  She turned and felt her heart jump in her chest. David, it had to be him, he stood as a pure black wolf with his head down, growling at her suspiciously.

  It’s me, David. It’s Gwen, she said, trotting toward him and completely forgetting about the smoke in her eyes. She found him and he was alive, they could get out of there.

  But, when she was close enough, he snapped his jaws at her and backed away, his lip curled in a snarl to show her his fangs.

  Then Gwen felt it and a prickly shiver crawled down her spine as she dropped back to her belly.

  His head wasn’t lowered to keep it out of the smog, it was bent low because he was ready for a fight, the black hair on his back standing on end.

  She was afraid this would happen. He didn’t know who she was. Evey’s potion had apparently been enough for him to withstand the change, but not enough for his mind to take control of the wolf.

  She tried reaching out to him. David, come on, it’s me. You know it is. Gwen, remember? I’m going to take you out of here.

  She tried approaching him again, but he snapped his teeth at her and backed into a burning wall, yelping when his fur caught fire.

  She jumped and clamped her teeth around the skin of his neck, pulling him away from the fire and jumping up to try and smother out the fire with her own body. He seemed to think she was trying to attack him, fighting and clawing until he his jaws were around her neck and she was pinned to the floor.

  Gwen’s heart pounded but she didn’t dare move. David, the wolf, could rip her throat out if she so much as breathed wrong and the fire was scaring him. She could tell he wanted to run but didn’t know whe
re to go, it was the same with all wild animals. They hated fire.

  She could feel the breath from his nose and mouth touching her neck and face. Slowly, David released her, stepped back, and cocked his head.

  Gwen looked up at him curiously, wondering why he was studying her like that. She finally realized that, of course, his nose was useless in all this smoke, too. But, up close, he recognized her scent.

  Gwen rose to her feet and the cabin groaned again. David jumped, searching for a hiding place.

  Don’t run, she said gently. Gwen doubted he could understand her, but she knew he could at least hear her thoughts. She just had to coax him out. When she approached this time, he didn’t snap at her like before. She snuffled his neck, touched his nose, and tugged on his ear.

  Come with me, this way, she said. For a few seconds, he didn’t move and Gwen had a genuine fear that they wouldn’t get out before the cabin collapsed on them. The windows were smashing under the heat and there wasn’t a spot that wasn’t bathed in fire, but they could still get out if he would just come with her.

  She looked into his wolf eyes. Please trust me.

  Amazingly, David moved forward and followed her. She let go of his ear so they could run out the way Gwen came in.

  The door Gwen had broken open fell off its hinges and was tilted over their exit. They couldn’t even jump over it. She could see everyone, her father included, standing outside, waiting for her.

  Gwen’s heart sank and she whined. Now what?

  This time, David grabbed her by the ear and tugged, but he didn’t wait for her and sprinted off.

  Where are you going? She followed him, praying that David knew another way out.

  She found him pushing a bedroom door open with his paws and she quickly followed, careful to stay in the middle of the hall should the burning walls catch hold of her coat.

  Then, she saw what he wanted her to see and her spirits lifted.

  Not a door, but a window, one that had smashed with the heat, allowing them a way out, but also more fresh air to feed the fire. A burning bed was blocking the way, they would have to jump over it.

  Gwen knew if she stopped to think about it, the wolf would take over and her fear would never let her do it. So, she ran, leaping onto the bed and out the window so her paws scarcely touched the blankets on fire.

  She was outside now, on the porch and finally able to stand without choking, but the porch was on fire and David hadn’t followed her.

  David! she barked and howled, pleading with him to follow. She stood on her hind legs to peer into the window but the black smoke assaulted her face. We’re almost out! Come on!

  She whined. Unsure of where he was or what he was doing until a black mass flew over her head and landed clumsily on the porch, nails scraping the floor until he stumbled and fell.

  She wanted to laugh, instead she bit down on the scruff of his neck and pulled him up. They still weren’t in the clear yet.

  This way, she said, leading him down the porch, avoiding the flames until they trekked down the steps. The sight of everyone’s faces when they saw the two of them appear would have made Gwen blush with pleasure if she were a human. She told them David could still be saved, but did they listen? Noooo.

  The earth felt cool against her paws, a nice change from the hot fire she’d just exited, and she decided to lay down and cool off. Just for a minute.

  David was sniffing around, exploring the new scents. He didn’t seem to mind when Jimmy knelt down to pet him, curiously touching his fur and scratching under his chin.

  It was probably the first time the former hunter had ever seen a live werewolf up close. One that wasn't in chains or trying to attack him, at least.

  Gwen grinned wolfishly. David would probably be embarrassed if he remembered it when he changed back.

  Her father knelt down. “Gwen, how do you feel?”

  She let out a rumbling noise in her chest before closing her eyes. Her daddy would know that for what it was; she was fine and his hand was petting her coat in a soothing way that was making her tired.

  She could sense that no one had the intentions of hurting David, and it didn’t seem as if he would run off despite barking at a squirrel, so she relaxed and let the darkness take her.

  Chapter Seventeen

  This time when Gwen woke up, everyone kept their distance from her in case she flew from the bed and attacked someone.

  They were right to do so, but Eric wasn’t quick enough and was backed into a corner.

  “Where is he? Is David okay? I can’t believe I slept so long, what happened?” The sun was up and she was back at the hospital in a similar room to the one she’d woken up in the last time. David’s scent was in the air but it was faint, it could have been hours since they were in the same room together.

  Eric held up his hands, remembering how she’d punched John the last time.

  “I—I—”

  “What about his brother? Is he still around?”

  “Yeah, I think so …”

  “Oh, never mind!” Gwen stomped away from him and spotted Larry, who was trying his best to be invisible.

  “Daddy!”

  “Uh, oh,”

  She ran and nearly knocked him over, clutching his shirt. “Where is he? Is he alive? Did he leave?”

  “Stop, stop, stop.” Larry put his hands on her shoulders and backed her to an arm’s length. He smiled and smoothed out her poufy bed-head.

  “Daddy,” Gwen snarled, and he pulled his hands away.

  “Alright, I get it, he went out to talk with Elaine some time ago. I think she wanted to be alone with him!” he called after her when she bolted for the door.

  Gwen didn’t hear him, she was just so happy that David had lived and that her pack hadn’t hurt him. She wanted to see David one more time before he left for good.

  When she left the elevator on the first floor of the hospital, David’s scent wafted to her nostrils and pointed the way. He was sitting outside on a wooden bench, Elaine sitting next him. She was holding his hand and talking about something that kept the both of them from noticing her there.

  Now that she saw them together, Gwen didn’t want to disturb them. But a nagging feeling told her that if she walked away she would never see David again, so she waited. That way, if he got up and tried to leave, she could head him off.

  She didn’t have to wait long for them to finish. Gwen didn’t know how to expect a mother who’d just found her grown up son to behave, but she had no problem with kissing his cheek and leaving David to his thoughts.

  She didn’t have the face of a sad woman who would never see her only child again, but she did seem thoughtful.

  Elaine looked up and saw Gwen standing in the doorway. Gwen blushed, feeling as if she’d been caught spying, even though she couldn’t hear what they were saying from the distance they were sitting at.

  “I just wanted to talk with him,” she said.

  Elaine smiled. “Well, he’s right there.”

  Gwen tried to reach out to determine what Elaine was feeling, but her thoughts were so jumbled she couldn’t concentrate.

  “What were you two talking about?” she asked as Elaine passed her.

  “Just catching up. You’d better hurry, you’re going to lose him.”

  “What?” Gwen turned and saw that David had gotten up and was walking away from the hospital.

  He was leaving and he wasn’t even going to say good bye!

  “Hey! Wait!” Gwen raced after him, something she found to be an incredibly bad idea because of all the sleeping she’d done the night before. Her bones felt like clay and she was panting and fighting to keep from falling on him when she caught up to him.

  She failed when he put his arms around her and she collapsed against his chest.

  “Are you okay? You should be resting,” he said, leading her back to the bench.

  “Me?” She couldn’t believe it. “You turned last night! You’re the one who should be in bed.”
<
br />   In bed and not walking away from me.

  “Actually, it was two nights ago. We think it was the gas that kept you out of it for so long.”

  She blinked at him when he sat her down. “Two nights ago?”

  He laughed. “Yeah, you gave us all a scare.”

  “And you’re feeling fine? No after effects from the change?”

  He shrugged. “Not really, I’m always starving, but Elaine says that’s pretty normal for new Weres. And my neck hurts a bit. Why, were you worried?”

  He was smirking and Gwen knew he would love it if she gave that away to him. Of course she was worried!

  David ran his fingers through her hair, or at least he tried to, it was so tangled. To Gwen’s horror, she finally realized how horrible she must look.

  “Ugh, don’t look at me until I can get some eyeliner.” She hid her face in her hands.

  David laughed harder and pried her hands away to kiss her lips. “I think you’re sexy.”

  “I look like a frog.”

  “A very attractive frog.”

  She couldn’t keep herself from smiling at his antics despite the truth. It didn’t matter how much he might love her, anyone could see that she was a mess. At least he was capable of looking beneath that.

  Then, she became serious. “What happened with your family?”

  The humor on his face evaporated and he took a seat next to her, scratching his newly shaved chin.

  “Well, Evey was going to take Jacob to Griffon City to have him face a trial, but your father said not to bother.”

  “Really?” Gwen couldn’t believe it. But, at the same time, she could. Larry always pulled through, and now that Bill was gone, he would be the one making the decisions for the pack. “That’s great news, and at least Evey’s alright,” she said, remembering how she’d been bitten while trying to hide the moon behind the clouds.

  He sighed. “Yeah.”

  “What is it?”

  He took a breath. “Jimmy and Andrew already faced a trial.”

  Gwen gasped. Her heart might've even stopped.

  “That was my reaction, too,” David said.