The Amazing Wolf Boy

Part 77 - Showdown

The leader stood over her, blood pouring from his mauled face. He looked at me and smiled. Then his jaw narrowed, and his ears slid up the sides of his head.

He was shifting.

With a high-pitched growl, I sprang at him, hoping to catch him while he was still human. He threw out his padded arm. I latched on, shaking it. Suddenly, all I had was the foul-tasting T-shirt.

A large black wolf rammed into my side and bowled me over. He dove onto me, fangs flashing. I got my hind legs beneath him and flung him back. He was on me again before I could get up. I squirmed, biting wherever I could, tasting fur and blood.

His fangs sank into my shoulder. I yelped and struggled. Brittany looked horror-stricken. Then she ran away.

What? I fought with renewed strength and threw him off. Brittany ran across the rock yard. Not for the road, as I would expect, but for the encroaching line of trees. What was she doing?

I turned to follow, but the wolf jumped me from behind. He snapped at my wounded shoulder. I caught his ear in my teeth and shredded it. He howled and backed off.

I charged. We fought on our hind legs like two grizzlies, holding each other for support as we jockeyed for an opening we could sink our teeth into. He had experience, but I outweighed him. I bore him backward until he lost his balance and scrambled away.

Brittany was out of sight. I tore after her, kicking up gravel. The pack leader ran behind. I wanted to spin about and finish the fight—but Brittany's safety was more important. The other two pack members were out there somewhere. I had to find her first.

I burst through the tree line. Her scent was strong. I smelled fear and adrenalin. Where had she gone? I lowered my head, zigzagging through the underbrush, trying to keep the leader off my tail. He caught me, his heavy paws swiping my haunches. I yelped and veered, taking a new route, expecting him to follow. Instead, he ignored me and continued on Brittany's trail.

Now I was the one bringing up the rear. I flattened my ears, running for all I was worth, trying to cut him off. I came at him at an angle and sank my teeth into his hip. He cried out, snapping at me, but I held fast, lifting his hindquarters into the air, his back legs working as he tried to get away. I shook him. His flesh tore. He took off running, although slower. I spat out a hunk of his hide and followed.

Familiar odors seeped into my awareness. I knew this area. Then it hit me—Brittany wasn't running in blind panic. She was leading him to the potion that turned a werewolf into a man.

I burst into the hidden courtyard a second behind him. Brittany looked up. She was crouched beside the cauldron. Her face was dark with blood, her eyes white. I halted, but the leader kept running.

He leaped at her just as she brought up the barrier. He slammed into it and bounced, shaking his head. Then he jumped at her again, standing on his hind legs, frothing at the mouth as he snarled and clawed to get inside.

Wide-eyed and teeth bared, Brittany picked up the cauldron and threw the contents at him. The dark liquid passed through the barrier and struck the wolf in the chest.

He howled, steam rising as he writhed on the ground. Within seconds, he reverted to his man shape.

Silence fell over the clearing. I stepped forward. He wasn't dead. His chest rose and fell in slow even breaths. He was covered in bite marks, from his mauled face to his shredded ear to a nice chunk I'd taken out of his butt. As I watched, however, the wounds faded and disappeared.

Brittany dropped the cauldron with a clunk. She gaped at me. Then, with her gaze on the unconscious man, she released the barrier and tiptoed out.

I stepped toward her. When she passed the larger of the two circles, she dropped to her knees, swiped her still oozing forehead, and touched the blood to the magic circle. The second barrier sprang in place, trapping the man inside.

Brittany wept. I nuzzled her. She wrapped her arms about my neck and sobbed into my fur. I wanted to say something comforting, wanted to hold her close. But all I could do was sit there.

After a time, she pulled away. "I'm okay," she said to my unspoken question. "I need my cell phone. I think he had it in his pocket."

I got to my feet to show I understood, and we walked back to the quarry. Brittany moved as if she were exhausted. She stumbled several times. I could have gone on ahead, but I stayed at her side. I wasn't letting her out of my sight.

We left the darkness of the trees and crossed the stony yard. As we neared the spot where the scuffle began, I saw that the human I had knocked down was no longer there. A low growl rumbled in my throat.

"He's gone," Brittany whispered. "Hank, or whatever his name is."

My fur bristled. I ran my gaze over the ridge. Starlight lit the crevices.

"Do you think Nadine came back for him? Are they waiting for us in the rocks?"

I walked to where I'd left Hank for dead. Nadine had indeed come back. Her scent was fresh. They went down the trail that led into the basin. Probably drove off in the Lexus. I sat and looked at Brittany to signify all was clear.

"Here's my phone." She tossed down the leader's pants. She punched numbers with her thumb. "Hello? Yes. My name is Brittany Meyer. I was run off the road and— What's that? I was reported as kidnapped?" She looked at me. "Yes, that's right. Two men and a woman. I'm in a clearing about a mile before the old quarry. Yes, ma'am. I'll wait for the sheriff." She pocketed the phone. "Apparently, your uncle got a hold of Gramps, seeing he has an in with Sheriff Brad. They're already looking for me. We have to get back."

I picked up a shoe and dropped it onto the pants. She frowned, then gathered the leader's shoes and clothes and carried them with us.

When we got back to the courtyard, the leader was still out cold. Brittany lowered the barrier and approached him. She scattered his clothes around. Then she brought the cauldron down hard upon his head.

Lights flashed from the direction of the road. An amplified voice called from a police bullhorn, "Brittany. Brittany Meyer."

"I'm here," she shouted. Then she hugged my neck. "Thank you for saving me. Now go."

I stepped into the shadows and crouched within the brush. My senses were on high. I smelled the stench of the potion, exhaust fumes from the road. And men. Many men.

Boots tramped through the dry grass. Several deputies, spaced strategically apart, stepped from beneath the trees. Sheriff Brad came out. After a moment, he ordered the others to put away their guns.

Grandpa Earle hurried into the clearing. With a cry, Brittany ran to him. When I saw her safe in his arms, I backed away.

I was bruised and bitten and weary to the bone. I didn't know if I would make it back home, didn't know if I had a home any longer.

That hurt more than I expected. I really liked Uncle Bob. I liked living in Loxahatchee. Where would I go if my uncle disowned me? The way my parents had.

I circled the edge of the clearing and came out onto the road. I saw three sheriff's cars and an ambulance, lights flashing. By morning, the area would be crawling with deputies gathering evidence.

"Cody!" came a harsh whisper.

Uncle Bob rushed toward me along the side of his truck. I was so relieved, so happy to see him I shifted back into a boy on the spot.

He pulled me into a bear hug and said with a catch in his voice, "You scared the life out of me, son."

I closed my eyes, smiling, feeling the pent-up tension dissipate and turn my muscles to jelly.

He took off his shirt and put it on me. It felt warm and comforting.

"Come on. Let's get you home."