Crying for the Moon (19 page)

He found it interesting that when Nick blushed, the tips of his somewhat-pointed ears turned pink.

“Hand me that dustpan, will you? Thanks,” Alex said as he took the dustpan from Nick. “Glad to know Peter is feeling better,” Alex added. Never let it be said he couldn’t go for the jugular when it was appropriate. He was going to have to tell Tate about this later.

A red-faced Nick began stacking the tools to one side of the room.

When Duncan returned, the three of them got the mattress set up. Dusk was approaching; Alex could feel the coolness in the air as the sun went down and noted the corresponding rise in tension and irritability in Duncan and Nick. As the sun faded into twilight, Julie became more withdrawn. Alex wondered if she was regretting her decision to stay. He realized with a jolt that she must be terrified, and he honestly couldn’t blame her.

“What’s keeping them?” Nick said at one point. He’d been stalking back and forth from the living room window to the couch, where he would flop down for a few minutes before getting up to prowl around the room again. Alex had said nothing. He was getting worried about Tate, but he knew showing his concern would only agitate Nick more.

“Come on,” Alex said abruptly, when Nick had bounced up to look out the window once more. “Tate wanted those bandages off Peter before the change and we need to get him set up with plenty of food as well, before the rest of you guys head out tonight.”

“I’m not leaving you here in the house alone with Peter,” Nick said stubbornly. His tone was final. He threw an uneasy look in Julie’s direction and then glanced meaningfully in Alex’s direction.

Alex opened his mouth to speak, but Duncan forestalled him. “Nick’s right. Peter will be stronger tonight, and without Nick there to keep him under control, he might try to tear his way out of your house, and he’ll tear his way through anything that gets in his way as well.”

“Great.” Alex snapped his lips shut with the effort of biting back a suitable retort. “What’s to keep Nick from doing the same?”

Duncan grinned. “Nick’s got more damned self-control than any were I’ve ever met.”

Nick looked startled, raising both eyebrows at Duncan.

“Don’t let it go to your head,” Duncan said. “I’ll carry a cooler of meat upstairs while you two take Peter’s bandages off.” He headed off down the hallway toward the kitchen.

“Just when I think I’ve got Duncan pegged, he’ll surprise me with some shit like that,” Nick muttered as they climbed the stairs.

“I’m coming with you.” Julie hurried to follow Alex and Nick. They ignored her.

Upstairs, Peter looked decidedly unhappy. His sandy-brown hair was dark with sweat at his hairline and his face was flushed. “Did Tish go to get my laptop?” He sounded petulant. “And my glasses. I need my reading glasses.”

Alex noted the stack of paperbacks by Peter’s bedside, pulled from his own bookcases, as well as what appeared to be the remainder of his hidden stores of Godiva. Nick shot Alex an apologetic glance.

“You look like crap.” Julie crossed over to the bedside table to pick up the prescription vials one at a time and peer at the labels. “Are you sure this vet knows what he’s doing? Wouldn’t you rather see a real doctor?”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. So just shut the fuck up, okay?” Peter practically snarled, causing Julie to look up in surprise.

“Hey, buddy,” Nick said, padding over softly to the side of the bed. He hitched up a hip and sat down on the edge. “Tish is bringing your stuff. Alex and I need to take off those bandages before moonrise, so can you sit up for me?” He reached out and took Peter by the arm. The oozing wounds underneath had seeped through the bandages in several places.

“Here,” Alex said as he picked up the bandage scissors that Tate had left behind. “You help Peter lean forward while I cut the bandages in the back. Then we should be able to just peel them off.”

“What can I do to help?” Julie stood biting her lip.

“Stay out of the way,” Nick said abruptly. He met Alex’s gaze over Peter’s shoulder.

Alex took pity on her. “There really isn’t much to this part. It’s the re-bandaging in the morning where an extra set of hands will be useful.”

Julie nodded and stepped back to make room for Alex to come over to the bed.

He knelt on the bed opposite Nick and worked the rounded end of the scissors down inside the bandage between Peter’s shoulders. Peter leaned forward with a sigh, resting against Nick with his eyes closed. Nick made eye contact with Alex again. Those hazel depths were hooded and wary, looking guarded and yet vulnerable. The concern for Peter there made Alex blink and look away.

Tate’s bandaging had included a couple of passes around one of Peter’s shoulders. Alex peeled back the material as he worked the scissors down along the remainder of the bandaging, cutting steadily through the layers toward Peter’s spine. He noted belatedly that Peter still must be completely naked under the sheets when he followed the line of vertebrae down to where the top of his ass was visible. Peter had obviously tucked the sheets around his hips, and his modesty amused Alex.

“There,” Alex said with relief, when he’d finally cut away the bandaging. He helped Nick ease Peter back against the headboard, grabbing some pillows to prop him up and setting aside the scissors.

“This is going to hurt a bit,” Nick warned as he took hold of the top of the bandaging material and began to tug.

“Fuck!” Peter snarled vehemently. “A bit? You call that a fucking
bit
? You’re pulling my goddamned flesh off here.”

“Peter…,” Julie began, only to trail off when everyone glared at her.

“You hold him, Nick,” Alex said. “I’ll take the bandages off.”

He began carefully working the material away from Peter’s skin. He could feel the heat of fever radiating off of Peter as he worked, and he shot Peter a small smile of sympathy. Nick had one hand on Peter’s shoulder; Alex noted that Peter held Nick’s other hand in a grip so tight that Nick’s fingers were turning white within it.

“I thought Tate slathered him all up with ointment so this wouldn’t stick.” Nick growled.

“He did,” Alex said, peering down into the bandaging to see what the holdup was. “Looks like one of these big lacerations oozed, and when it dried, the bandage stuck to it.”

“Great. Just great.” Peter whimpered a little and winced as Alex continued to tease the bandage off of his body. “Ow, damn it!” Peter snapped, glaring at him.

Alex let go of the bandage with a sigh. “I’m trying to help, Peter.”

“I know, I know,” Peter whined. “It just hurts, okay?”

Taking hold of the top of the bandage again, Alex curled his fingers firmly around the leading edge and gave it one swift jerk.

A howl tore its way out of Peter’s throat and his backhand connected with Alex, knocking him flat off the bed. Peter came up off the pillows, lunging for him, as Nick held him back.

“Peter!” Nick yelled. “It’s over, okay? He had to do it.”

Peter fell back on the pile of pillows, his eyes hot and angry until they closed. He scrunched up his face and lifted a hand to his chest, his fingers shaking as they hovered over one of the now-bleeding lacerations. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he murmured.

“You okay?” Nick was obviously worried, but he sounded pissed as well. The fading sunlight in the room was throwing odd shadows across his face. He looked shaggier than usual, as though his hair and beard had grown over the past several hours, which, Alex supposed, it probably had.

“I’ll be fine,” Peter said in a small voice, opening his eyes slightly to look up at Nick.

“I wasn’t talking to you, shithead,” Nick said, the affection in his voice taking the sting out of his words. “Fuck,” he added as Alex pushed himself up off the floor and onto his knees.

Alex looked down at his arm, where the sweater gaped open. Even as the edges of the wool began to darken with blood, he could suddenly feel the burn of pain that he hadn’t noticed before. He glanced in surprise at Peter’s hands and saw that his nails were longer than usual and red at the tips.

Julie just gaped at Alex, her eyes dilated, her mouth open in a little round “oh” of surprise and horror. She glanced over at Peter and gasped, though at the sight of his injuries or his bloody hand, Alex couldn’t tell.

Duncan shouldered open the door and stood at the entrance to the room. He was holding a large cooler by the handles. “Everything okay?”

“No, everything’s not okay. Peter hurt Alex. Where the hell’s Tish? Have you tried calling her?”

Duncan set the cooler down inside the door and opened the lid, propping it up against the wall. Alex realized this was an attempt to keep Peter and Nick from trashing the cooler later that evening, and he wondered if his bedroom would ever be the same again. He closed his fingers over his arm and watched in fascination as the blood oozed out between them.

“I tried. She left her cell here. Don’t worry. It’ll be all right.” He gave Nick and Peter a cool glance. “You two should probably stay here. It will be moonrise soon enough. I’ll see to Alex.” He held out a hand and Alex reached out to accept his assistance in rising, noting with an odd sense of detachment that he left his blood on Duncan’s palm. Julie scurried ahead out of the room as Duncan shut the door behind them.

Alex led the way toward the bathroom. He turned on the light as he entered, with Duncan crowded in behind him. Alex started to take off his sweater but froze, wincing at the pain in his arm when he did so.

“Lift up,” Duncan ordered. Alex obediently raised his right arm as high as it would go so Duncan could ease the sweater off over his head. “Not too bad,” he said critically, examining Alex’s arm before turning away to sort through the items Tate had left earlier. “Come over here.”

Alex followed him over to the tub, where Duncan gently rinsed his arm with warm water. Even so, he hissed as the water touched his torn flesh. The wound continued to bleed; he watched with interest as the blood ran in warm rivulets down his arm. He brought his hand up to his mouth, sucking on his fingers as he watched Duncan inspect the injury.

Julie appeared at the doorway. She clutched bandaging material and a tube of ointment. She looked very pale but her hand was steady as she offered the supplies.

“Are you all right?” She glanced quickly up and down over Alex’s bare chest before her gaze fixed on the blood dripping down off his arm onto the floor.

“I’ll be fine. Thanks for the bandaging stuff.”

Duncan took the supplies from her. He handed a thick gauze pad to Alex, who used it to apply pressure to the wound.

Julie stood watching blankly for a moment before giving herself a little shake. “Right. I should go find something to clean this up.” She gestured vaguely at the floor and hurried away.

“Don’t get off on this,” Duncan teased as he indicated that Alex should remove the padding. Duncan liberally applied antibacterial ointment and quickly bandaged the arm. He flicked a quick, assessing glance over Alex’s naked torso. “Tish would have my hide if you did,” he said. “Come to think of it, so would Tate.”

His smile was more of a leer and Alex punched him in the arm. It was like hitting a rock. Duncan just grinned even wider.

“All my clothes are in my bedroom,” Alex said, hearing the uncharacteristic pout in his voice.

Duncan patted him on the shoulder and went off in search of something for him to wear. He washed his hands in the meantime, looking up in the mirror when he was done. He was startled by what he saw there. His hair plainly screamed
bed-head.
His eyes were completely black in the dim overhead light; it was impossible to tell the difference between dilated pupil and his dark irises. His lips looked swollen; he must have bitten them as Duncan worked on his arm. He flicked his tongue out to catch a small smear of blood at the corner of his mouth. In the mirror, his eyes closed to half slits as he stared at himself, noting with satisfaction the series of hickeys along his collarbone. A smile played along his lips. He noted with detached interest that the man facing him in the mirror was a seductive creature, and it gave him a heady sense of power he’d never really believed in before.

Julie’s nostrils flared when she returned to the open doorway and caught Alex admiring himself in the mirror. Alex could see the sudden spurt of attraction on her part, and he smiled knowingly. Behind her, Duncan came up bearing an old, paint-spattered sweatshirt. Julie shied violently at his approach and thrust a roll of paper towels at him before dashing out the door.

Duncan was not amused. He practically threw both shirt and paper towels at Alex. “Where the hell’s Tish?” he snapped, turning on his heel to stomp down the stairs.

Alex carefully pulled the loose sweatshirt over his head, glad for Duncan’s choice. It was roomy enough that he could ease it over the bandage and it was warm too. He ruffled his hair back into place after putting the shirt on; a quick glance in the mirror told him that it looked good.

“They’re coming up the road now,” he called after Duncan, coming to the railing and looking down.

Below, in the foyer, Duncan lifted his head as he, too, heard the crunch of tires on the gravel driveway. From the sound of it, Tish was taking the drive at a good clip.

“About bloody time,” Duncan growled at the sound of the van coming to a sliding stop in the gravel. He went outside.

When Alex turned to head downstairs himself, he practically ran into Julie. She grabbed his arms to prevent him from colliding with her and he had to stifle a wince.

“I don’t know what I should do.” Her voice trembled slightly. “Peter is so not himself and, of course, I know that he’s a werewolf now but I didn’t
know
it, if you know what I mean, and you and Tate are the only normal people here and Tate’s not here—”

“Julie, you’re babbling.” Alex considered telling her that he wasn’t exactly normal either, but decided now probably wasn’t the right time to reveal that he was a vampire.

“Everything I do seems to be wrong. I’m just worried about my brother and I want him to come home. Is that so very wrong of me?” Alex could tell she was on the verge of tears and he hastened to forestall her.