Masquerade (48 page)

It gave way with a sharp,
ear piercing crack.

My triumph was short lived
because the branch I was standing on also gave way. I fell, down
through the hard, unforgiving branches and leaves, gripping the
weapon I fought so hard to get, refusing to release it.

I didn’t hit the ground. It seems my
weapon, the angry branch, saved me. It got caught between two other
branches and I hung there, my feet dangling a few feet above the
ground. China’s red, vile eyes laughed with glee as she raced
toward me. I went to grab for my whistle and realized I couldn’t –
if I let go of the branch I would fall into her waiting
claws.

I prepared to kick out but
Sam launched off the ground and snatched her backwards by the neck
and ripped out a clump of black fur. China screamed in agony and
turned. She swiped at him with her claws, catching him at the
shoulder. He stumbled only to get right back up and snap his
ferocious teeth at her. His black lips folded back over blacker
gums and his teeth dripped with excess saliva. His pointy ears laid
flat against his head, and he keened a sound that made my ears
ring.

China jumped at him, but
Sam slammed her sleek and bloody figure into the hard earth without
any trouble, pinning her down with his considerable weight. When
she struggled he used his teeth on one of her legs, a loud,
snapping noise announced the bone breaking. When he let go it fell
at an odd, painful angle.

My shoulders were burning
and shaking from holding myself up here for so long. The weight of
my body seemed to drag me down, and I could feel the skin on my
palms ripping from the rough bark on the branch. I looked down,
wondering how much it would hurt when I fell.

I heard another yelp and I
looked down
–
expecting to see another leg broken for China. I screamed,
realizing that the yelp hadn’t been hers but Sam’s. China had
managed to get on top of him and was biting into the vulnerable
flesh of his neck.

The scene frightened me so
much that, without thinking, I let go of the branch and fell to the
ground with a thud. Stunned, I went to my hands and knees and
looked up, through the hair that fell around me. China was still
biting down on Sam’s neck, but she was looking at me.

I stared her down, I
looked into her red unblinking eyes with a glare that I hoped
challenged her. “Come on, you sick bitch,” I taunted. “Come and get
me.”

I saw her eyes flash, and
she released Sam to come after me. I reached for my necklace only
to realize that I must have lost it when I fell through the
tree.
Shit!
China
was on me in mere seconds
.
I tried to kick out
–
to fend her off. She snapped at my
shoe, ripping it off my foot and tossing it away. I tried to see
past her, to see if Sam was alright, but her huge black mass filled
my vision.

She smelled…like rotting
meat and bleeding flesh. When I sucked in gulps of oxygen I could
taste the metallic hint of blood on my tongue. She was definitely
injured with what looked like two broken legs. How she supported
herself at all was astounding. Hate was an incredible
motivator.

I fell back when she
pounced on me. Blood from her cuts dripped onto my face, and I
wanted to flinch away, but I wouldn’t allow myself. I wouldn’t show
her my fear any longer. She bent low, blowing her putrid breath
into my face and then snapped her teeth at me. I did not
flinch.

She raised her paw – an
unbroken one
–
and I knew that she meant to maim my face once more. I lifted
my chin and turned my cheek giving her full access. “Even if you
tear half my face off, I’ll still be more than you could ever be,”
I taunted her.

With an enraged roar, she
brought her claw slashing down, but it never met my skin. Sam
ripped her away, and they went crashing into a tree. I watched as
he grabbed hold of her tail and ripped, the terrible sound of
ripping flesh was hideous
.
Then another crack filled my ears as yet another
of her bones broke. She tried to dash away but
fell
.
Three
broken legs and a missing tail rendered her too injured to
run.

Sam didn’t seem to notice
that she was nearing defeat. He kept attacking, launching himself
at her. The sounds he made were inhuman as he ripped her apart. I
turned my face away, waiting for the horror to end.

I thought of slapping my
hands over my ears, but I figured there was no use. The sounds that
they were making
–
there was no escape. From the sound of things, China had
found yet another burst of life and the two went at it
again…

Until all fell
silent.

I sat up from my position
against the tree, pushing at my hair and looking around.
Sam?
I pushed out
hesitantly, using the Mindbond
.
For some reason disturbing this silence seemed
wrong.

He didn’t respond. What if
China had somehow gotten the upper hand and Sam was killed? What if
I had laid here and did nothing while he died?

My eyes took in the patches
of black fur and the lumps of body parts littering the forest
floor.
Sam!
I
stood, ignoring the way my legs threatened to buckle and turned in
a circle, searching…

My eyes landed on a large black
heap.

He was alive!
He was there, lying on his belly. I jumped up and
ran toward him. He lifted his head as I rushed forward and dropped
to my knees beside him.

She’s dead.
He told me, raising his bulk up into a sitting
position. His usually gleaming black fur was matted and dull from
dirt and blood and other things I didn’t even want to think about.
Then he peeled back his lips in what looked like a snarl, but I
recognized it as his houndish smile.

China was dead.

For good.

Excitement and relief
coursed through me that this nightmare was over. I turned and
looked once more at the body parts that lay scattered. The enormity
of what just happened hit me, and it was all too much; my stomach
lurched. I ran to the trees and vomited.

When I turned back, Sam
was standing near a tree watching me with unreadable eyes. “I’m
sorry you had to see that.”

“
Are you all right?” I
asked, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand.

He nodded.

He was completely naked, and I kept my
gaze up over his shoulder. “You’re bleeding.”

“
Just a scratch,” he
sounded exhausted. And something else…“You were out here
alone.”

He was angry. At me.

“
I…I didn’t
think.”

“
You didn’t think at all!
You almost got yourself killed!”

I recoiled from being
yelled at. I didn’t like it. Mostly because I realized he was
right.

He sighed. “Do you have
any idea how close that was? How afraid I was I wouldn’t make it in
time?”

“
I’m sorry.” I said,
feebly. My legs were shaking and I leaned back against the tree. I
closed my eyes. “I’m sorry you had to do that.”

I heard his movement, but
didn’t open my eyes. I couldn’t stand to see him so angry at me.
“She can’t hurt you ever again.” His voice was soft and came from
directly in front of me.

I opened my eyes. His were
burning with golden flames.

Is it wrong to be so
relieved that someone is dead?

He shook his head and a
smile took hold of his face and lighted his features. The he
grabbed me up and spun me around, his laugh echoing in the trees.
It was so wonderful that it pushed away the memory of the horrific
sounds from before. “Finally! She’s dead!”

He sat me down and pressed
a quick kiss to my lips and grinned again.
We can actually go out without looking over our
shoulders.

I reached a hand out to
his chest and splayed my fingers along his heart. It was pounding.
With happiness and relief. Then I noticed all the blood smeared all
over his chest and the long jagged cut near his collar bone.
“Sam!”

I tugged off my hoodie and pressed it
to the wound. Breath hissed between his teeth. He took the
sweatshirt and wrapped it around his waist.

“
I need to clean
that.”

He nodded. “Let’s go.”

I hesitated and he turned back, a
question in his eyes.

“
What about her?” I
whispered, daring a glance at what was left of China.

He made a rude noise. “Leave her. The
birds and animals will eat what’s left.”

“
But won’t she smell? What
if someone finds her?”

“
No one will know what she
was, she’s too unrecognizable for that…besides the animals will
make short work of her remains.”

I nodded and turned away, hoping that
the sight of her and the images of birds pecking at her decaying
flesh wouldn’t haunt me.

Sam squeezed my fingers.
“She’s gone now. Let’s put her wrath behind us.”

I nodded and together we
started in the direction of the house.

A few feet later he
stopped and hauled me against him, twirling us around once more. I
giggled. He bent low and his breath ticked my ear as he whispered,
“Just me and you now…no more stalkers in the shadows, and no more
worry over leaving you alone.”

“
I like the sound of that.”
I sighed.

He smiled and that mischievous glint
came into his eyes. Just as he was about to say something, he
stiffened, his head snapping up. Quick as lightening he shoved me
behind him and a low menacing growl escaped his throat.

I peeked around him to see
what was wrong. Two sleek hellhounds stood just feet
away.

In a hard, cold voice that
he never spoke to me in he said, “China’s dead. She attacked me and
Heven; I killed her
.
Anyone have a problem with that?”

I held my breath wondering
about the wisdom of his words. He made it sound like a challenge.
He was already hurt and exhausted – could he take on two more? I
rested my cheek against his back, feeling the way his muscles
rippled.
Maybe he could.

There was some rustling around and
then I heard a deep human voice say, “Yeah, we saw. You really let
her have it.”

They had been
watching?
I was beyond appalled. Did that
mean they stood around and watched Sam battle for his life – for my
life? What kind of people were they? I looked around
Sam again to see that the hellhounds had
transformed into two guys who stood there, both naked. I averted my
eyes. A girl with any sense of modesty is going to have a hard time
with dealing with all of these shiftings. They were the same two
guys we saw on the street weeks ago in Portland: his roommates. The
guys he got into a fight with and then disappeared for three days
to hide his injuries from me.

“
She got what was coming
to her,” Sam said, his voice strong but quiet.

“
That was brutal,” one of
them said. “The way you just went at her…” His voice trailed away,
and he cleared his throat. “I didn’t know you had that in
you…”

“
Are you claiming
leader?”

Sam’s muscles bunched and
shifted. In him I felt an overwhelming sense of power and need. He
was quiet for long moments. “Yeah, I am,” he said, the challenging
tone back in his voice.

What did they mean ‘leader’? Did that
mean that he was going to control what they do? Did that mean they
were going to be around a lot? I didn’t like that idea. I didn’t
really know these guys, but I knew enough to know that I didn’t
like them.

“
What if we don’t want you
to be leader?” one of his roommates asked, his voice laced with
menace.

“
Bring it on,” Sam snarled
and motioned behind us to China’s scattered carcass. “Here’s a
preview of what will happen to anyone who challenges
me.”

One of them
snorted.

I stood and stared in shock as the
rapid movements of Sam caught me off guard.

He grabbed one of his
roommates by the neck and slammed him into the ground. He made a
move like he would bend low into the struggling man’s face, but
then he swiftly pulled back and
delivered
a hard punch to his face.

He spoke so quietly that I had to
strain to hear his words. “I am not in the mood for your shit. I’ve
put up with a lot from you two and I’m done. You have a choice:
accept me as leader or die.” The last word came out as a growl and
the way his body arched over the stilled and listening roommate
made me think he was fighting the urge to change. Then he shoved
himself away and stood. “What’s it going to be?”

“
You’re crazy,” the guy on
the ground said, his eyes narrowing.

Sam didn’t respond. He
just stood there waiting to see what they would do.

“
What do you want us to
do?” The guy on the ground gave in while the other
nodded.