Shadow City: Demon Wolf

2

My body wanted to shut down, to retreat into the numbness that had plagued me since I’d come back home from Shadow Terrace. The pain was too much. Everything inside me screamed for me to allow myself to succumb to the emptiness, where I didn’t feel pain or fear.

This was how I pictured death: unmoving, unfeeling …just there. The thought was so tempting at times that it was scary.

The wolf snarled, bringing me back to the present.

Ugh, I didn’t have time to disengage. I rubbed my hands on my jeans, cleaning off some of the blood, and ignored the throbbing in my neck. If he’d severed an artery, I wouldn’t have much time to help the silver wolf.

And I owed him.

The silver wolf’s mouth clamped down on the vampire’s leg, and the vampire wrapped his hands around the wolf’s neck. He squeezed, and I watched in horror as the wolf’s eyes bulged and his jaw went slack.

Unsure what else to do, I ran toward them as quickly as my human legs could carry me. The vampire was so focused on the wolf that he didn’t pay attention to little non-threatening me.

But I wanted him to come after me. I slammed into the asshole’s back, toppling him over the silver wolf.

Okay, maybe that hadn’t been the brightest idea.

But the silver wolf rolled the vampire over and ripped out his neck. Nausea roiled in my stomach as blood poured from the guy’s wound. The metallic stench stung my nostrils and choked my throat.

Flashes of my best friend in elementary school assaulted my brain. Suzy had been the picture-perfect child: friendly and loyal, with bright blue eyes and blond ringlets that framed her face. In third grade, we were outside the school, kicking a soccer ball back and forth. I kicked it a little too hard, and it flew past her into the road. She ran for it just as a car came barreling down the street. I screamed, but it was too late. The car hit her. There was so much blood, and it was all my fault.

If only I hadn’t kicked the ball so hard.

My knees threatened to buckle, but I tensed, straightening them. Now wasn’t the time for a breakdown. The wolf was safe, but someone could come outside at any moment. I couldn’t lose it. Not after he’d done so much for me.

The wolf nodded toward the car, telling me to go. I wanted to argue, but if someone came out, the police would likely get involved.

My savior was a wolf, so in theory, he was safe. If the authorities determined the vampire had died from an animal attack, they’d be searching for an animal. Not a man. As long as they didn’t catch him, the wolf would be okay.

He whimpered, and I instinctively knew he was begging me to leave. Pain wafted back into my consciousness, and my neck throbbed. I bit my bottom lip before nodding. “Just…be careful.”

The wolf nodded back and disappeared into the shadows.

Freaky.

My heart raced, and it had everything to do with seeing the wolf again. I didn’t want him to go, but if someone saw him in the neighborhood, they might shoot at him or worse.

I climbed into the car and glanced at the clock. It was close to one in the morning. Eliza would be beside herself. I’d texted her when I was leaving, telling her I was on my way. I should call her.

I reached for my purse and remembered I’d panicked, tossing it aside in my desperate attempt to escape the vampire. I needed to find it. My cell phone, ID, and credit cards were inside my purse. Not that anyone would get much from the cash or the cards. I didn’t make s**t working at the group home. It was more a passion job.

I wanted the kids to have a stable influence in their lives, like Eliza had provided for me. My entire life, I’d struggled with depression and hidden it by pretending to be bubbly and happy-go-lucky, but something was truly broken inside me, and I was exhausted. I didn’t have the energy to pretend any longer, not even with Eliza and Ronnie.

I’d seen their concern. I loved them too much to let them worry about me, which was why I’d plastered on a fake smile for so long.

I glanced back at the vampire and froze. The wolf was dragging the body away, and I wondered where he was taking him. It was best if I didn’t know.

Okay, I didn’t believe that. Not knowing things pissed me the hell off—like Eliza hiding that she was a witch and Ronnie finding out about the paranormal world and not filling me in immediately. One minute she was my normal Ronnie, then the next, she was even more smoking hot and claiming to be a demon vampire. It felt like I’d been flung into one of the paranormal books I loved to read.

My cup runneth over in all kinds of ways.

My body shook as I restarted the car, half expecting the vampire to reappear at the window. My hands tightened on the steering wheel as I drove slowly along the edge of the sidewalk, searching for my missing purse.

I spotted it and stopped the car, feeling my body become rigid with fear. The last thing I wanted to do was get out of this damn vehicle, but I had to get my purse.

The silver wolf was near if I needed him.

The thought warmed the cold spots in my chest. I unlocked the car and moved as fast as possible. I snagged it off the ground and sped back to the car.

Everything made my body tense.

The silence.

An owl hooting.

Even the sweet scent of hydrangeas, my favorite smell in the world, couldn’t comfort me.

My hands shook so hard it felt as if I was vibrating from within. Not even the numbness I so desperately sought was within reach.

When I shut the car door, a little bit of sanity filtered back into me.

A little bit.

Eliza could wait a few more minutes. I had to get the hell out of this neighborhood. I could only hope that my mental state would improve soon.

I turned the radio to my favorite country station and set the volume on low. I couldn’t handle loud noises, but I needed something to cover the silence.

Forcing myself not to drive too fast, I took the long way out of the neighborhood.

A shrill ring sounded, and I damn near swerved off the road onto the sidewalk. I screamed, as if that would scare something off, and when the ring sounded a second time, I recognized the noise.

My cell phone.

Dear God. I had to get my s**t together.

I pulled over and fished the phone from my purse. I hit the answer button, not bothering to see who it was.

“Annie!” Eliza said frantically. “Where the hell are you? It’s about time you answered your phone.”

Yeah, she was freaking out as I’d expected. “I’m on my way home. There was a complication.”

“A complication?” she repeated, her voice deepening. “What do you mean?”

My teeth chattered, and I couldn’t force the words out. The urge to flee overtook me, and I began driving again, heading home.

“What the hell happened?” Eliza demanded.

I couldn’t leave her hanging, but damn it, this might not have happened if we’d stayed with Ronnie. “Let’s just say we aren’t safer in Lexington like you believed.” I laughed bitterly. “Did you know that the silver wolf followed us here?”

Her silence spoke volumes.

“You didn’t think to tell me?” I was tired of all these secrets. Every time I turned around, I discovered something going on that I knew nothing about. “If you thought we’d be so much safer here, why did you have the silver wolf follow us?”

“That was Ronnie’s doing.” Eliza exhaled. “I thought she was being paranoid, but apparently, I’m living in denial.”

“And you two didn’t tell me?” My voice rose. “Why do you keep me in the dark? I know I’m not as strong as you two, but I’m still part of the family.”

“Don’t get mad at Ronnie. She wanted to tell you, but I was adamant we didn’t need anyone watching out for us. She didn’t want to put you in the middle. It’s clear I should start listening to her, since she’s proving to be right more often than I’ve been lately.”

I wasn’t sure what that meant. “Is there something else you need to tell me?”

“Let’s pick up this conversation when you get home.” Eliza cleared her throat. “What happened?”

“If it weren’t for the silver wolf—” I stopped. Coldness surged through me and penetrated my bones. I wasn’t sure I’d ever feel warm again. “Can we wait for both sides of the conversation when I get home?” I needed longer to process the trauma I’d gone through.

“Sure.” Eliza didn’t sound happy, but I wasn’t either. She could join the party. “But can you call Ronnie? I talked to her, and she’s very worried.”

“You told her I was late?” I felt like they were both my parents, and I was a kid they were trying to control. “Why would you do that?”

Eliza’s voice softened as she explained, “Because she called to talk to you, and you weren’t here. She could tell I was upset.”

Maybe they should treat me like a kid. Ronnie had been calling us every night now that she wasn’t keeping secrets from us. It felt like I had her back, and I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed her. It had taken nearly losing her to appreciate how much she’d sacrificed for me. “I’ll call her now.”

“When you get home, I want to hear what happened.” Eliza didn’t push, probably because I was driving.

But I wanted her to know I wasn’t letting her off the hook either. “And I want to know what you’ve been hiding from me. Got it?”

Eliza grunted. “I understand.” She hung up the phone without saying goodbye…as always.

It was a habit that irritated Ronnie and me to no end.

I stopped at a red light and pulled up Ronnie’s name.

She answered on the first ring. “Oh, thank God,” Ronnie exclaimed.

I couldn’t help but be a smartass. “Nope, this is Annie.”

She groaned then chuckled. “Really? Sierra influenced you way too much over those two and a half weeks.”

I smiled at the mention of our friend. Sierra was a gorgeous dirty-blond shifter with a larger-than-life personality. She spoke her mind and was funny as hell. I hadn’t laughed that much ever, even with me feeling ruined.

Ruined.

That word described exactly how I felt, but I couldn’t figure out why. I’d always been sad, but not broken…not ruined. Not until the past couple of months.

“Hey, are you okay?” Ronnie asked, inherently knowing something was wrong.

She’d always been able to do that, even better than Eliza.

“No, I’m not.” She’d learn everything from the silver wolf. “But the wolf you sent saved me.”

“What happened? I haven’t heard from Sterlyn, so Cyrus hasn’t called her yet. Are you hurt?” Her anxiety was palpable through the phone, and I wasn’t even her soulmate. Poor Alex. He’d be feeling everything she was going through.

“I’m not hurt, I promise. Thanks to Cyrus.” His name was so easy to say, as comfortable as my own, but I couldn’t become invested in a man I’d only seen twice and in wolf form. Right? “Can I call you when I get home? I don’t want to tell the story twice.” It’d be hard enough to get it out once.

Ronnie grumbled, “Fine. But only because you’re not hurt.”

My eyes burned with unshed tears. I hated not having her at the house anymore. Spending the last two and a half weeks with her and her new friends and family had jealousy sprouting inside me, and I felt so guilty. I’d had Ronnie’s full attention for so long, and I’d been her only friend. Now her world had exploded, and she had so many people who loved and cared for her in ways I never could. “I’ll be home in ten minutes.”

“Be safe. I love you.”

She deserved everything good that had happened to her. “I love you, too.” I kept my voice steady. Somehow.

“Bye.” The line went dead.

I dropped the phone onto the passenger seat and focused on the road. Every shadow I drove past had my heart racing all over again.

The shadows taunted me, reminding me of the new darkness inside me, the one I didn’t understand. I had the same dream each night. I wasn’t sure how I knew this, since I couldn’t remember the dream when I woke, but it was as if something dark were moving through me. The sensation was similar to entering a room, only to forget what I was looking for. All I knew was that I was searching for something, and it drove me crazy because the knowledge was just out of reach. I knew something horrible happened in my dreams each night because I woke up shaking and sweating with Ronnie’s name on the tip of my tongue and tears streaming down my cheeks. But I never remembered what happened.

My mind circled the same thoughts over and over until I pulled into the driveway of our one-story, three-bedroom, and one-bath brick home.

Eliza stood on the small porch, waiting for me. The porch light reflected off her light caramel hair, twisted into its usual messy bun.

I was so thankful she was outside. I hadn’t even thought about getting from the car to the house in the middle of the night, alone, after being attacked.

I turned off the car then took a deep breath, steeling myself for whatever this conversation would bring. Once I’d calmed myself, I lurched out of the car, slamming the door behind me, and dashed to Eliza.

Her sea-green eyes scanned me. She was slightly over sixty, but it was hard to tell. She was a couple of inches shorter than my five-foot-four-inch frame, but she could hold her own in any fight. I’d known that before I ever knew she was a witch.

Her gaze went to my neck. “Oh, my goddess. We need to take care of that.”

“No.” In my desperation to get home, I’d forgotten about the bite. “It’s fine. Let’s talk.”

She frowned but opened the door to the house and waved me inside. “Let’s head to the kitchen. I’ve made a pot of coffee and pulled out something for you to eat to help calm your nerves.”

My stomach dropped as anticipation buzzed under my skin. Eliza had made coffee. That meant this would be a long conversation. What did she have to tell me?