Love Crimes in Moonlit Shadows

Chapter 2

Cody looked up at the brightly shining moon. He felt like cursing the moon goddess. Why can't she just allow him some bit of luck in his life?

For a week now, he's been on the run, from both humans and werewolves. How the hell humans came into the picture baffled him. But there they were, tracking him and trying to kill him with all they've got. He hasn't gotten any chance to even leave the forest around the cave.

He's been hiding in it ever since. At first, he was together with some of his men, including the lady, who had survived the initial fire. They tried to leave, only to discover that the forest was full of humans, rifles at the ready, combing the forest in search of them.

But gradually, as each man tried to save his own head, they split up into smaller and smaller groups. Sometimes, as they ran, they stumbled on the corpses of their former comrades. The corpses were always mutilated beyond recognition. It seemed the human soldiers were prepared to find the staff and weren't taking any chances.

Cody crouched behind a rock, his senses sharpened to the highest possible degree. He has been hiding in the trunk of an old tree. It took some hollowing out, but he and the lady had managed to make it big enough to fit them both before the human soldiers on one of their patrols came by.

The trunk has been their abode for the last two days. He only occasionally left to find water. He didn't even dare hunt food. Last night, he had climbed to the top branch of the tree last night for a bit of surveillance. What he saw left him hopeless.

There were werewolves on the outer edges of the forest as far as he can see. Patrol soldiers crisscrossed the forest, looking for them, and a ring of soldiers were gradually closing in on them, reducing the area he could safely wander to. He reckoned they would only last a day. So he had decided to take his chances that night and leave.

Crunching leaves startled him. He peeped from behind the rock. A man was walking towards him. He was sniffing the air after every few steps, so Cody figured he was a werewolf. Running would be dangerous, the man will hear it. Cody wished he'd already gotten the full powers of the staff. He hit on a plan.

He gently picked a stone and threw it with all his strength to the man's far right. The man turned, but ignored the sound, and continued walking towards him. Cody knew his scent must have given him away. The man was dead sure of himself. There was nothing for it other than to run.

"You will only die if you do that, Cody. The guards are closer than you saw last night."

Cody froze mid run, not sure of what to do.

"I have a deal for you. I will get you out of here, and in exchange, you will kill someone for me. Agreed?"

An hour later, a patrol truck pulled up to the tree. It stopped for some moments. Some human soldiers got out.

"I swear, the boss said he was here," one of them said to the other.

Quietly, Cody and his lady got out of the trunk and climbed into the back of the truck which was open.

A while later, the guards got back in and resumed driving. After they have driven some distance, Cody heard one of them speaking into his radio. He had just received instructions to leave the forest and park a good distance away. One of his bosses wanted to meet him.

When the truck stopped next, Cody and his lady crawled out. They felt a wave of relief wash through them. They knocked out both soldiers and broke into the most desperate run of their lives.

____ ___ ____

The sun rose on the horizon. Two figures by a stream rolled sleepily on the bare ground. Then the woman rubbed her eyes and got up. She looked around her, then jolted as if she just remembered something. She scrambled as she felt the haversack that the other figure used as a pillow. The staff was still there. She relaxed.

"Cody." She shook the man. He sprang awake instantly. She waited for him to get his bearings.

"What next?" She asked.

"Let's find out." Cody replied, pressing a finger to his right ear.

"Hello," he said. The woman looked at him as if he was talking to thin air. She was right to think so. She was not there when Cody made the deal with the mysterious man and got an earpiece. , she thought they had escaped by mere chance.

Cody, seeing the look on her face, turned so that she saw the earpiece.

"Oh." She said in realization. Then she started wondering when Cody got it.

Meanwhile, Cody was speaking.

"Where?" Cody asked. Then, "Carissa's bar?"

The lady whirled around from admiring the sky.

"What's with my bar?" She asked.

Cody's hand was no more pressed on the earpiece.

"We will consolidate our freedom there. Or else, our escape is no good."

Carissa would have liked to ask more questions, but Cody was in such urgency she thought it wise not to. They will have a lot of time to talk in the bar anyway.

The bar was in the suburbs of the city, in a ghetto area. Which means it didn't take them too long to get there, because suburbs in werewolf towns are usually located at the city's edges.

The bar was already open. Carissa's maid had kept it running in her mistress's absence.

Cody felt a strange sensation as they both went over the threshold. A sweet scent filled his nose.

"Which drink is that?" Cody asked Carissa.

"What?" Carissa replied. But Cody was not really listening. Someone had caught his eyes. And his wolf was making a racket in his head.

It was running around in restless circles, wanting to get his attention.

'what?' Cody asked.

'mate' It replied excitedly.

At the same time, the someone that had caught his eyes looked right at him. He could tell she was a lady, because she wore a veil. The drink in her hand shook and Cody knew she had just experienced their bond.

"Hey!" Carissa snapped a finger under his nose. She has been trying to get his attention. Now they were in her bar, she wanted to know how not being there would have kept them unsafe. They were already out of the forest after all. The soldiers and the other werewolves had no way of knowing where they were.

But Cody was still not paying her attention. He only glanced at her finger under his nose, then growled out "mate, there" and strode into the bar, leaving her at the door.

Cody strode directly to the veiled lady's table, who had also stood up to receive him.

His wolf was so excited it would have mated right there if Cody would let it. Cody managed to get it to be content with a hug for then.

Cody stretched out his hands, half expecting the lady to snort or something, but certainly not expecting her to fall into his arms, grasp him tightly, and sniff him all over through her veil.

He felt good. The gesture was strangely erotic to his wolf, who got more excited and started sniffing her too. Soon, the couple were rubbing cheeks together.

Through a haze, Cody got suddenly aware of the many people looking at them inside the bar. He blushed ( he didn't even know he could blush) and wrapped his arms protectively around his mate, who rested submissively in his arms.

"So, do you mind letting me know you?" Cody said, making to lift the veil.

The lady stopped him. "Not now. I can't afford to show my face here. Secret mission." She said.

"But that will lead you to me." She passed him a card. Before he could look at it, Carissa was upon them. The fire in her eyes irritated Cody, but he managed to check himself from lashing out at her. For some reason, he didn't feel like telling Carissa that she was his mate. The veil seemed to demand some secrecy.

A sudden chill in the bar stopped the trio from any further actions. Everyone's face was turned to the door. And at the door, stood a man in a hood. An aura emanated from him. It was obvious he moved in circles way above the one those in the bar moved. He pressed his hands to his ears and spoke into the air.

Cody now knew who he was. Twenty minutes later, he knew who he was to kill.