Crimson Moon (25 page)

My voice caught in my throat. This was always the worst part. She knew my name but not my face. Bitter tears burned my eyes and I inhaled a ragged breath, forcing the blurry liquid back.

"Oh, that's nice. Would you like us to wait with you until she arrives?” My voice cracked and Caleb's hand rubbed my back comfortingly.

"Wait for whom, dear?” she asked, frowning in confusion.

It's a really bad day.

She'd deteriorated since the last time I visited, just as I'd been warned she would. The memories were there under the surface, she just didn't have the power to recall them.

It is like a beautiful sunset you see once in your life, one you swear you will never forget as long as you live. And you never do forget, but you never have a reason to restore the memory—so it remains hidden inside. Until one day, for no apparent reason, you remember that sunset. You recall the way your skin felt as the sun brushed across it, the way the colors painted the sky. You wonder why it took you so long to go back to that place again, swearing you won't take so long next time. Only you do forget the memory and you may or may not ever relive it again.

That's what Grandma's illness did. It cleared those memories from the forefront, putting them into a locked storage container, only allowing minor glimpses of the past from time to time.

She started to panic and I pushed Caleb behind me. She didn't recognize me. She only saw two strangers in her room, having no idea how they had gotten there or what they wanted. I didn't want to upset or distress her.

"I'm sorry, wrong room.” I smiled, fighting back tears, ushering Caleb into the hallway.

Caleb tried to comfort me as we left the building, keeping his warm arm around my shoulders, whispering soft words I couldn't quite make out. As we drove home he tried to bring me out of my stupor but I didn't want to talk about it. I assured him I just needed a few minutes to collect myself.

The sun had long since set, glowing streetlights changing from antique to the more modern ones as we left town. By the time we arrived at the house, I was almost myself again—almost. It was never easy returning home after a bad trip to Franklin, but knowing I wasn't alone helped.

"Come in here please,” Sam called out when we came through the door, waiting until we rounded the corner to the kitchen to continue. “So, the good news is Trent will be here shortly. I've told him in no uncertain terms we will speak to you together. If you're uncomfortable in any way you will stay here, end of story."

"That sounds good.” I nodded, trying to be upbeat.

"And the bad news, I'm starving and your kitchen is empty. Where can we get some decent food, pronto?"

I laughed, concentrating. “What do you like? We have a pizza place. And I have a menu for Joe's cafe, if you'd like to see what they offer. Unfortunately, we haven't evolved to fast food yet."

Sam decided to go with Joe's, phoning in an order large enough to feed a small army. I was grateful that Sam asked Caleb to come along, hinting that they had important matters to discuss.

I needed time alone to think; I wanted some space to rationalize things on my own.

I stood at the window, watching the Cadillac pull from the curb as they drove away, driving into town. The red break lights faded down the dark street and I sighed, turning to the picture on the antique desk.

I smiled at the image of my Mom, touching the fragile glass before tucking the frame under my arm to bring along on the trip. I hurried into the kitchen, popping open the fridge and snagging a coke off the bottom shelf. I whipped up the stairs, my mind a whirl of questions and thoughts, placing the coke on my nightstand and plopping the frame onto the mattress.

The force that came from behind smashed me into the bathroom door, the wooden frame crashing into my sternum and forcing air from my lungs. I fell to my knees, trying to breathe, gasping in tattered breaths. Strands of thick hair covered my face, making it almost impossible to see.

Brown steel toed boots became visible through the long hair and I lifted my head, staring at jeans, a black t-shirt...

Oh god no.

"Not so high and mighty now."

His obsidian eyes hadn't changed since the meadow. The black irises seemed to burn from within, red flames glowing inside the pools of ebony, his thin lips flat and menacing.

I couldn't formulate words, my breathing too ragged, lungs barely drawing air. He knelt, reaching for my hair, and I recoiled, hindered by the wall at my back. He lifted a strand to his nose and inhaled, his lips curving into a terrifying smile.

"I knew it,” he proclaimed excitedly.

He rose effortlessly to his feet, walking in a small circle and turning back to me.

"They will be back,” I managed to speak in a raspy and weak voice.

The bones in my chest burned from the impact with the doorframe, throbbing relentlessly, each syllable held painfully in my throat. My body protested my feeble attempts to move, providing agony as a reminder of the inflicted injury.

"I'm sure they will. In fact, I'm counting on it,” he taunted, smiling pleasantly all the while. He appeared more sinister in his friendliness, dementedly cordial. “And by the time it's over, I'll be long gone. They want to give you some time alone. I heard them myself."

He paced back and forth, stalking me with his eyes inside the small bedroom. The walls closed in and surrounded me like a cage, creating an inescapable cocoon as claustrophobia took root.

His eyes glowed like flaming embers, black, gold, then yellow. The scar on his face was harsher, twisting and distorting. The thin piece of healed skin seemed to stretch like a separate entity on his face—alive, dangerous and aware.

"Why are you doing this?” I asked quietly, averting my gaze and staring at the carpet. My fingers wound inside the synthetic fibers, digging in, cementing the reality of my nightmare.

"Because this is too good to pass up, Caleb never saw it coming. And most importantly.” He growled deep in his throat, cackling exuberantly. “Because I can."

Fingers twined in my hair, the other set ruthlessly grasping my throat. I felt my airway going as he lifted me off the ground, blocking oxygen completely. My hands came up and I clawed feebly at his skin, trying to find leverage to breathe. He twisted his head, a wicked smile crossing his lips at my efforts.

My stomach somersaulted when he flung me across the bed and into the wall. The shelf collapsed onto my shoulders, trophies tumbling freely onto my back. I shook my head from side to side, pushing onto my elbows and dragging myself across the soft carpet. I managed to balance my weight on trembling hands and knees, attempting to make it to my feet.

"Good girl,” Parker crooned softly, clucking his tongue and pointing at his feet. “Crawl to me."

I grimaced and attempted to stand, reaching with shaking hands to feel for the wall. The back of my head was aching, each pounding throb bringing forth a new gush of wetness into my scalp. The strands were sticky, and when I reached behind to access the damage, my palm and fingers came away covered in bright red blood.

"You and me, we're going to give Caleb a present.” Parker smiled pleasantly, striding over and leaning in, hands surprisingly gentle on my face as he pushed several wild strands of hair free from my eyes. His fingers were firm under my jaw and he lifted my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze.

"I'm afraid you won't like it much,” he told me, sounding genuine in his feigned regret. “You'll cry and scream, begging me to make it stop, eventually telling me you can't take it anymore. But I'll show you exactly how much you can take. And when that happens, and you've been wholly broken, I will end your pain."

"I won't beg you for anything,” I vowed rashly, uncaring if it incensed his variable temper.

He was going to kill me. I knew that with absolute certainty. And he wasn't going to be quick about it. My death would be a symbol, a representation of what he intended Caleb to suffer. His pride had been destroyed, and it would only be restored when vengeance was served.

"You will,” he cooed. Careful fingers caressed the skin along my neck tenderly. “I promise."

Unyielding fingers thrust into my hair again, driving me over the bed. My body shuddered painfully as I fell heavily into the waiting carpet, skin and bones aching. I stumbled on liquid legs, attempting to stand upright as the world spun uncontrollably. My disoriented eyes located him across the room, bringing his massive body into focus.

Parker watched me intently while his body shifted, enjoying the fear that widened my eyes and engulfed his nose. His arms bulged as sinewy muscles expanded, chest broadening and jaw distending. His features were a mixture of man and wolf—nose elongated, teeth lengthening, hair sprouting from his body and face—becoming lupine. His growl was animalistic, raw, beastly, and intense.

Nothing in the final days could have prepared me. Not for what was about to happen. Knowledge about things howling at the moon or drinking blood in the night wouldn't save me. I was out of options and out of time; my extended period of luck finally coming to an end.

There was no one here to stand in front of me, no one to protect my too human body from what he intended. I couldn't fight him. I was too weak and too frail, and he reveled in that singular truth.

Yellow eyes gleamed as did perfect white teeth in the soft glow of the lamp light. He prepared to devour me, snapping his lethal teeth and snarling a threat—a precursor. I suppressed a shiver but he could sense my fear as he advanced, ready to do as he promised.

Because I had no other choice, I faced him head on.

His large frame was on me before I could move, slamming my smaller body into the wall and pinning me in place. I gasped, pushing against his infallible chest.

Terrifying teeth snapped at my face, his massive throat snarling as claws tore into the walls on either side of my body. His breath was hot against my cheek and I turned away, closing my eyes, slamming the lids shut.

A painful slap to my face was followed immediately by another. He demanded my attention, snarling in a rage filled voice to open my eyes and look at him. My bottom lip trembled uncontrollably as fear set in. The cackle inside his head sounded demented and wrong, more beast than man.

The half human face pressed against my own and his tongue ran along my cheek. I shuttered in revulsion, flinching away with nowhere to run. The muzzled mouth ran along my neck and then he struck, teeth latching into the flesh of my shoulder. He rattled his head violently back and forth, sinking his teeth in—digging, devouring, consuming.

I screamed in pain, desperate hands reaching for anything, contorting fingers digging into the soft carpet. Something smooth ran under my palm and I stretched for it, ignoring the pain and sounds of razor sharp teeth pillaging tender muscle and flesh. I gagged in realization; the odd gurgling filling my ears was the result of my blood trickling through his mouth and down his throat.

My fingers clutched the silver frame, grasping it. I forced the sharp corner over and down, striking him sharply in the temple. His angry roar was deafening, the sound ripping through my skull.

Teeth tore away from my skin and I scurried away, slipping on the bloody wall and floor as I sprinted for the stairs. Loud thrashing from behind filled my ears and suddenly I was air bound, my body traveling head first down the descending stairs. I rolled the distance, stopping at the entrance to the kitchen, my body limp and broken.

"You little bitch!"

Parker's face was human once more. A thick line of blood ran from his temple and down his chin, along the line of his scar. His teeth remained longer than normal, his throaty voice still too deep to be human. He grabbed my hair at the nape, lifting me from the ground. His fingers forced themselves into the shredded skin at my shoulder and he trapped me against the wall.

"Beg,” he demanded, pushing his thumb into the jagged edge against my collar bone, slipping inside the freshly constructed hole. Blood gushed out, dripping down my shirt and chest.

"Please,” I cried out, the pain too intense to hold back any longer. I could feel his finger repositioning deep into muscle, almost near the bone.

"Please what?” he whispered in my face, twisting his hand, his thumb disappearing further into my body.

"Please stop!” I wailed in agony.

The metallic smell of blood lined my nose and he laughed happily. The sound was so out of place within the confines of what was occurring, as if he were watching a beloved family film. I whimpered in misery when his fingers slipped free, breaths coming out in pained gasps. He licked each clawed finger clean, closing his eyes and savoring the thick red fluid as if it were fresh honey. My neck, chest, and back were wet and slick, warm blood oozing freely along my skin.

"Mmm.” He licked his lips, tracing the contours of my face with bright gold eyes. “Does the rest of you taste this good?"

He opened his mouth and ran his tongue along my neck and upward, his body pressing flush against mine.

"NO!” I thrashed violently, punching and kicking the brick wall of his body, trying to dislodge myself. “Stop!"

"Invite me in!” An unknown voice bellowed through the door just behind us and Parker turned swiftly, dropping me to the ground.

Without thinking, I screamed, “Come in!"

The door crashed open, wood splintering and hinges cracking with the impact. Parker lunged at a man I'd never seen before, snarling viciously. The black trench coat surrounding him flared out, encircling them in a dark cloud when they collided. Parker's body and face started to shift, his arms and bones cracking into place.

"None of that,” the man said smoothly, thrusting a hand under Parker's chin and shoving another into the base of his skull, twisting and turning abruptly. An audible snap filled the hallway and Parker sank to the floor.

Trembling took over, teeth chattering loudly in my ears, blocking out any other sounds. I focused on the splintered hinges in the doorframe, thinking the tattered pieces looked like frayed rope. My mind was too far gone to comprehend anything and I allowed myself to drift into a chaotic nothingness.