Curse And Craving

13

In a hissing voice, the hunched creature as tall as my waist glared up at me with glistening saliva dripping from its jagged, sharp teeth. “Give it to me, girrrrrrl.” It drew out the last word on a long breath, almost a growl. “It’s not yourssss. It belongs to usss. Give it to usss.” The filthy creature covered in grime reached its obscenely long fingers toward my chest, grabbing my necklace and yanking so hard that I knew the chain would break. Instead, my head was pulled viciously down into the creature's face, but the chain didn't give. Eyes narrowed, and a snarl on his face, he prepared to yank even harder. Ashley jumped between us, slapping the creature’s hand away from my neck. Startled, it released the necklace. Ashley hauled us backward into the alley, keeping herself between me and the creature. “Get away from her!” she screamed fiercely. I wanted to fight him off for myself, but I was rendered helpless with shock and fear. The best I could do was cling to Ashley as we both looked desperately toward the main road, which was out of our reach, blocked by the creature standing in front of us. Behind us, at the other end of the alley, was a tall chain-link fence preventing us from an alternate escape. Our panting breaths puffed out in clouds of steam in the cold night air. The creature made a rumbling sound in its chest that was so horrifying, I could feel myself start to hyperventilate. It lunged forward and grabbed Ashley by the arm, throwing her several feet into the air and against the alley wall. Her head slammed into the brick with a sickening thud, and she fell to the ground in a limp heap. “Ashley!” I darted toward her, but the creature lunged into my path. “Give it, or I takesss it.” Snarling and hissing, it stepped closer. It lifted its hand to attack but then froze briefly before grabbing my arm and flinging its back against the wall with me held tightly in front of it like a shield. Emerging from the shadows, my mysterious stalker stepped slowly in our direction. “Please, help us!” I begged hoarsely but stopped on a cry when my arm was squeezed so hard, I was afraid it would break at any moment. The creature made a frustrated whining sound followed by a growled, “Hunterrrr.” “Unless you want me involved, I suggest you disappear,” he warned in a menacing tone. My heartbeat pounded in my ears as I waited to see what the creature would do. I didn’t have to wonder for long. Seconds later, his touch disappeared, and the air behind me cooled with a phantom chill. Suddenly off balance, I fell back into the wall, scanning the dark alley to see where the creature had gone. All I saw was a cloud of smoky shadow melt into the surrounding darkness. For a second, I was too stunned to move. I wasn’t sure if I was more concerned about the creature’s disappearance or the fact that it had run in fear of our rescuer. Who is this guy? I shook myself out of my dazed state and jumped up. “Ash! Oh God, Ash, please wake up!” I hurried to where my friend lay on the damp alley ground. She was breathing but unconscious, and her arm beneath her laid at an odd angle. “We need to get out of here, now.” The man bent down and scooped up Ashley like she weighed nothing. I grabbed our purses and ran after him, not about to argue. “Where’s the closest hospital?” I asked when I reached his side. “We can’t go to a hospital. We can take her back to the club.” “What?” My steps faltered. “She needs a doctor. If you don’t want to take her, then put her down, and I’ll call an ambulance,” I demanded with enough conviction that he stopped and turned. After our eyes had been locked long enough for me to notice that tic in his jaw, he dropped his chin and acquiesced. “My car is on the street.” He headed toward a black sports car parked in front of the Huntsman building. I crawled into the back seat, and he placed Ashley next to me. Cradling my best friend’s bleeding head in my lap, I softly stroked her hair as tears ran down my cheeks. “It’s going to be okay, Ash,” I whispered, my throat seizing tight with fear as the reality of our night began to sink in. We’d been attacked by a monster. No … I’d been attacked. It had come after me, demanding my necklace. Why? What the hell was happening? Another stream of tears trailed down my flushed cheeks as I looked toward the silent man in the driver’s seat. “What’s your name?” His eyes flicked to mine in the rearview mirror. “Lochlan.” “You see them too then?” He hadn’t been surprised by the creature’s existence. Whoever he was, this man was linked to the chaos occurring in Belfast. “We can discuss that after we get your friend some medical attention.” Not the answer I was hoping for, but I wasn’t up for a fight. Not at the moment. Ashley was hurt, and we both could have died. I hated to even consider what would have happened had Lochlan not arrived at that moment. “Thank you for saving us.” It was the least I could offer. He pressed the accelerator and kept his eyes on the road.

Chapter Six A TEAM OF DOCTORS TOOK ASHLEY AWAY ON A GURNEY WHILE A NURSE questioned me. After I told her we were mugged on the way home from a club, she directed me to a small waiting room. Without anyone else around to distract me, my thoughts drifted back to images of the alley. To the horrifying creature. I wasn’t even sure how to describe it—like a small human man had been dehydrated to a hunched bony thing. His skull was overly large, seeming to balance precariously above his skeletal frame. Boring out from that skull were two giant black eyes. His skin had been tough, almost leathery, and he wore a tattered, sleeveless tunic that appeared to be made of animal hide. He was so bony that it made him appear fragile, but his strength had astounded me. How could something that thin and seemingly frail fling Ashley up in the air as if she had been a doll rather than a fullgrown woman? It was incomprehensible. Just as baffling was his interest in my necklace. Did he simply like to collect any type of shiny treasure, or did something draw him to my particular necklace? If so, I couldn’t imagine what. The piece wasn’t flashy or expensive.