Dire Cravings

Chapter 2-1

2

Are we a shelter? We taking in any old strays now? Humans, Hunters, hell, are there fairies out in the world needing help, because if there are, we might as well throw out the welcome mat for them, too,” Nerina complained as she absently rubbed her belly. She did that a lot. Especially now that she and Victor were actively trying to conceive.

“Neri, be calm.”

“Vic, you can’t be serious? What about the little ones, and the ones on the way? We can’t chance it.”

“She’s not a threat, Luna,” Blue interrupted their conversation. Nerina’s sharp eyes turned his way, and he could see the indecision lingering there. She was skeptical. As she should be. Their duties were constantly being tested, and Blue hadn’t made their day any easier. He’d compounded their situation. Bringing a human to the mountain was reckless.

“The girl will be my responsibility,” he added. Knowing it wouldn’t make the choice any easier.

“I agree with Nerina, but at the same time, I’m not in the habit of turning people who need help away. If I allow this, Blue, the woman is solely under your care. Should anything happen here inside the mountain and one wolf or pup is hurt, I will hold you personally responsible. “

Nerina snorted, and both Victor and Blue looked her way.

“What, Neri?”

“You’re so full of s**t, Vic. We’re at war with Hunters, and you say you don’t turn people away,” she huffed before continuing. “I remember how you treated me, you weren’t exactly welcoming.”

Blue enjoyed watching the couple spar verbally. Nerina tested Victor daily.

“Baby, you were different. I could feel it in my bones.”

“More like your dick.”

“I’ll go and see to the female,” Blue called into the room, interrupting the couple’s stare down.

“We’re not done here,” Nerina shot back, giving Blue the evil eye once more.

Other people giving him orders made his skin crawl. He understood the dynamics of Pack mentality. Knew their ways were all about being agreeable to the Alpha couple no matter what. Nerina shared the Alpha strain with Victor. She was also the first hybrid. Part Hunter, part werewolf. She would give birth to the Silverback Alpha, but none of that concerned Blue like Nerina thought it should.

“We are, Nerina,” Blue growled.

Her eyes nearly sliced him open, and for a moment, he could see the goddess Selene’s power radiating beneath her skin.

“Neri, calm,” Victor said, coming to stand behind her. Blue watched as his longtime friend nodded in his direction, dismissing him. “Blue, go and see to the human. Nurse her back to health. Once she is fully recovered, you will take her down the mountain.”

“Agreed.”

The private bath was a natural spring of some sort. The cave glowed with light blue stones. At least that’s what Olivia assumed. Elena and Cassandra were attentive. Both women seemed unashamed of their bodies as they stripped and stepped into the water with her. No big. You know what t**s and ass look like. You have that in spades. She did, but sharing her nakedness with other women made her uncomfortable.

She would have argued, but her strength was nil. She needed the help, and it was nice to have someone take care of her for a change. They washed her hair and cleaned the dirt from her body. Assuring her that the bath would clean itself when she protested stepping into the pool.

“Earth coats your skin. It will return to its rightful place,” Elena said, tugging a brush through Olivia’s hair. “You have beautiful, healthy hair. The strands are different shades of brown, but I can see the undertones of red in there. A deep red. How peculiar. And there’s such a natural shine to it.”

“Um, thanks.”

“It’s not dyed either. This is your true hair color?”

It was. Dye didn’t take to her hair for some reason.

“Stop complimenting the girl, Elena. We are to wash her, feed her, and return her to Blue’s care,” Cassandra scolded.

Elena bowed her head but otherwise said nothing. Maybe they’re a couple. Olivia wasn’t one to judge, but she was good at reading others. It came with the territory. She had to be able to gauge people’s mannerisms and their lifestyles to deduce the risk they might pose to the insurance company. It wasn’t that Cassandra didn’t like her necessarily, but she saw Olivia as a distraction. But from what?

“How was it that Hunters stumbled upon your camp?” Cassandra asked, interrupting her thoughts.

Olivia turned in the other woman’s direction. “Hunters?”

“Yes, Hunters, the men who killed the group you traveled with.”

“Is that what they’re called?” She wasn’t crazy, there was a name for the monstrous men who’d slaughtered her entire camp. “I’m glad there’s a name for them. I was thinking vampire, but I know that’s ludicrous.”

“They are vampires. We just call them Hunters,” Elena informed.

“There is no such thing as vampires. They don’t exist, not in real life.” Olivia noticed both women staring at her strangely. The violet in Cassandra’s eyes seemed to glow, and Elena held a small smile on her face, her expression one of mirth. Great. She’d stumbled across a cult of gullible people. Maybe that’s why they lived inside a mountain. Vacations are for chumps. She should have never stepped foot on that damn plane. Olivia could have gone anywhere, but she’d chosen to disconnect. Become one with nature. The damn brochure had promised a quiet adventure. Hindsight, she should have listened to her gut. In a way, it had warned her not to travel to Alaska, but something had pulled her here. Lent voice to the idea already swimming around in her head, that it was time to expand her world. Well, it’s certainly wide now isn’t it. She’d cast a net for sure, only what she caught in it was crazy wannabe vampires and a cult of idiots who believed in the lore. What she really wanted was to punch her ex in the face and tell the board members to suck her motherfucking big toe. Bastards. The lot of them. If not for them, she wouldn’t be in this mess.

“Says who?” Cassandra shot back.

The hairs on the back of Olivia’s neck stood on end. Her hair was wet, plastered to her skin, but she still felt it. Her abuela had told her never to ignore the signs. She wasn’t about to start now. Stepping away from Elena, Olivia waded through the water until she was at the edge, then struggled as she pulled herself out.

Cassandra approached her cautiously, towel in hand. Olivia snatched it and quickly wrapped it around her body as she took in both women standing in front of her. They were probably Hunters, too. Just like the men who had attacked her camp. They just lived inside a mountain and thought they were vampires.

Don’t panic. Don’t show fear.

She’d find a way out. Play along if she had to until the opportunity arose where she could escape. If they don’t try and have me for dinner. Too bad her phone was back at the hotel. The board had said she needed to completely disconnect, and Olivia may not have been happy about the forced vacation, but when she put her mind to something, she fully immersed herself in her project and saw it all the way through.

“Are you going to hurt me?” Olivia wondered aloud.

“Why would we? We’re not like them.”

“You mean you’re not Hunters?”

Elena and Cassandra both shook their heads.

“We don’t kill for sport, or drink the blood of humans.”

“Humans?”

“Yeah, humans.”

“As in you and me?” Something was seriously wrong with the two females in front of her.

“As in you. We are not human,” Cassandra offered.

“You’re not?” Olivia found herself taking small steps back toward the mouth of the cave. They were crazy, and crazy-ass people did crazy-ass s**t.

“Cassandra, I don’t know if this is such a good idea.”

“It is. She will be here until Blue releases her. The others are not going to like her presence. It’s better to give her the crash course. Rip the Band-Aid off and go from there.”

No one was ripping s**t. Olivia clutched her towel tightly, her mind going over as many different scenarios as she could. Both women blocked the entryway, but maybe if she swam deeper into the cave, she’d find a way out. No, you’d get stuck, or worse, drown. s**t. Now what?

“I don’t know about this,” Elena whispered again.

“I would listen to Elena, Cassandra. I think she’s right,” Olivia rationalized.

“Sorry, but this needs to be done. Just please remain calm.”

Nothing good ever came from the words, “remain calm.” Not one damn thing.

Olivia heard bones cracking before she realized the sound was coming from Cassandra’s body. The woman’s eyes changed from violet to gold. Her legs were the first to go. Her muscles twisted, and her limbs began to bend against the joints. Olivia froze in place as she watched the woman in front of her drop to all fours and arch her back as grey and white fur sprouted from her pores. Her face elongated into a snout. What appeared to take minutes, was over in seconds. In front of Olivia towered a large beast of a wolf. Like the one who chased me in the forest, only much smaller.

The moment merited a scream, but that’s not what came out of Olivia’s mouth. Nope. Her brain analyzed what she saw. She’d just witnessed a woman transform from human to beast. How is any of this possible? More importantly, why wasn’t she afraid?

Olivia’s mind worked through the problem in front of her. Slowly, her hand reached out, and the wolf walked up to her and sat. The wolf’s size paled in comparison to the black beast from the forest. But this one was right in front of her. Violet eyes ringed in gold appraised Olivia. Elena stood close by but otherwise said nothing. She stroked the beast’s head. The fur was soft and thick.

“Okay, so it’s not a hologram.”

Elena laughed. “She’s real. You’re taking all of this well.”

“I don’t do freak-outs. You lose your wits when you freak.”

Elena nodded.

Vampires and werewolves are real. Take a moment and realize, understand…this is all real.

A normal person would have pissed their pants by now. But Olivia had witnessed a lot of things a regular person would never have the chance to see. She was from Echo Park, and a lot of s**t went down there.

“What happens now?”

“We get you healthy. I’m sure Victor and Nerina would like you returned to civilization.”

“But I know your secret.”

“You do, and if, at any time, we see you as a threat, you’ll be dealt with.” The playfulness Elena had displayed earlier was replaced with a seriousness Olivia knew could end in her death. She couldn’t un-see what had been shown to her.

“Why even show me at all? Why not let me think I was going crazy?”

“Because you’ve stumbled into the middle of a war between our kind and the Hunters. And as cliché as it sounds, you’re going to see things—things that are unnatural to you in many ways,” Elena informed.

The wolf—Cassandra—chuffed and shook her massive head before walking a circle around Olivia. She tried to move out of the way, but when she stepped, the wolf butted its head gently against the side of her leg.

“What is she doing?”

“Scent-marking you. Making sure the others know that you are not to be harmed. Cassandra is sister to the Alpha.”

Not the response she’d sought. But better than nothing.

“How many of you are there?”

“It’s hard to tell, we normally don’t live in the mountain. Most of us have real jobs and live in towns. We come together to celebrate the seasons and give thanks to the goddess. But for the most part, we’re just like you.”

Right.

“Why are you here now, then?”

“Because of the war. It’s a long story. Nerina’s father, Roman, is the original vampire.”

“You mentioned her before. Who is Nerina? And when you say ‘the original vampire,’ do you mean like Dracula?” It was a fair enough question to ask. Because if lore were correct, he was the be-all, end-all, who started the entire epidemic. This s**t is surreal.