Hyena Moon (28 page)

He was pretty sure he'd screwed things up majorly with Kess. He was still angry with her, but the things he'd said to her were horrible and cruel. He didn't know he'd had that inside of him. He'd been more angry at himself when she'd tried to talk to him--angry that he hadn't kept a better watch on Lenore, that he'd been too distracted by what had happened to Kess to think about what could happen to his sister. And as much as she tried to be understanding, he could sense the walls she'd thrown up, could sense the growing distance between them.

He didn't want to think about her alone in the glades. Her idea was crazy. She was going to lead all of the hyenas on a merry chase all over the glades where her people were placed and waiting. Mebis and Laila were with Finn. Griff, Burke and Masud were another group. Wereleopards were going to be positioned throughout the swamp, ready to take down hyenas so that Kess would be assured of a fair fight with Samara. If it all worked out according to plan. And if Rafe, the little bastard, didn't betray them again. He conveniently forgot that Kess had left Rafe out of all of their plans except for the rescue of Lenore. The boy didn't have anything to give away, but Cormac was holding a grudge.

His sensitive ears picked out the sound of water sloshing, and beneath it ragged breathing. Lenore was stumbling toward their lights. Cormac was in the tunnel and pulling her out as quickly as he could. She looked okay, a cut on her lip the only thing that looked out of place. Emmeline, Alaric and Wyatt huddled around her, but she wouldn't let go of him.

Lenore sobbed, her breath hitching but she managed to get out, "You've got to go back for him! She's going to kill him!"

"It's okay, Lenore, we're getting you out of here," he soothed. Their mother stroked her hair.

His sister glared at him, eyes blazing. "I'm not leaving until you get him." Her voice was harsh and ragged, but she was not going to let this go. Cormac had seen her like this before.

"Lenore, we need to go." He tried to reason with her, but her grip on his arm was like iron.

"You're wasting time," she said, her voice spiking higher as she neared hysterics. "If he dies, I will never forgive you. MOVE!"

Cormac sighed and looked at his father. Alaric nodded. They needed to get moving, but Lenore wouldn't leave without Rafe. His sister could be as stubborn as the damn mountain if she wanted to be, and they didn't have time to reason around it. "Fine." He listened as she gave him instructions.

"Go as a wolf," she said. "You'll move faster through the tunnels."

Cormac stripped down quickly and changed. He charged through the tunnels, following Lenore's directions. It didn't take him long to find the main junction. From there, he just followed the smell of blood.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Rafe knew he couldn't beat his sister, not even in hyena form. She was still bigger than he was and relatively uninjured. He'd gotten a few good licks in, but his legs were the biggest problem. His back leg wouldn't bear much of his weight and it was slowing him down. And he was pretty sure Teresa had broken his left front leg. He held it up off the floor, gimping around like a tool. Teresa had scored hits on him more times than he had on her. He'd managed to throw her off when she'd latched around the back of his neck, but she'd dug her teeth in good, almost able to pick him up and shake him. Rafe was bleeding from dozens of wounds and he knew he wouldn't last much longer.

His eyes fell on the tire iron. He couldn't wield it in this form, but if he changed back, he could maybe get in a few good strikes with it. He'd have to time it perfectly though. During the change, he'd be vulnerable.

Teresa was at the other end of the chamber. He could tell she was tired; his two hits with the tire iron must have messed her up a little. One of her eyes was shut; he’d managed to catch her with his claws before she snapped his leg. She was off her game; normally she would have finished with him long before now. Still, she was formidable and thinking this was anything but a last ditch effort on his part was ridiculous. He couldn't win. He could only hold her off until he was sure Lenore was free.

Rafe took one last look at her and launched himself toward where the tire iron lay, triggering his change as he went. It went faster this time, as if his body knew that speed was of the essence and he landed on his hands and knees, fully human. His left arm screamed at him, but he tried to ignore it and the sick feeling in his stomach. He scrambled for the tire iron, hearing the scrabble of her feet on the floor of the tunnel. His hands were slick with blood and sweat but he managed to grab it with his right hand and hold onto it. He swung it wildly as Teresa closed; she leapt lightly away. He fell back, sides heaving, exhausted from the quick changes and the fighting. His torn leg throbbed in time to his heartbeat. The back of his neck was a knot of pain and twisted muscles.

Teresa let out a hyena laugh. She knew he was seriously messed up, knew it better than anyone. Hyenas could sense weakness like sharks sensed blood in the water. He tried to make it to his feet, but couldn't get past his knees. He lay back, tired beyond imagining. He wondered if dying would hurt. Knowing his sister, she'd make sure it did. And that it lasted for a long time.

He watched her. She was still cautious of the tire iron, but he could sense her making up her mind. She didn't think he had the strength to use it anymore. And she was right. His arms felt like they were made of rubber.

Rafe sensed the moment she made her decision. Everything seemed to move in slow motion: Teresa pushed off with her hind feet, propelling herself across the room in a great leap; her jaws opening wide as she reached the apex of her jump. He felt the iron in his hand. He flipped it over so the sharp end was pointed out and braced it between his arm and side. Slowly her body seemed to drop, coming closer and closer. Rafe closed his eyes, not wanting to see what would happen. Teresa crashed into him like a freight train and he was grateful to let darkness have him.

**********

Cormac came to a second junction, not too far from the first. He could make out a dark shape near the furthest tunnel from the one he entered and he slowly made his way over to it. Puddles and splashes of blood were everywhere in the junction, but the strongest smell came from where the shape sat. The smell of strange animals also greeted him--hyenas were pungent to say the least. He saw shredded cloth and knew that Rafe must have changed at some point.

He was close enough now to see what the shape was. A hyena, dead, impaled on a tire iron. The metal bar had gone through its neck and come out the other side. The dead animal lay atop Rafe, who didn't look much better himself.

Cormac shifted back to human. He levered the dead hyena off of the teen, receiving a semi-conscious groan in response. He carefully felt the pale, bloodied neck for a pulse; it was thready but there. The kid was a mess. He saw deep bites on Rafe's shoulders and neck, but there was too much blood to see what else was wrong with him.

Carefully, he gathered up the werehyena, drawing another painful sounding moan from the boy. His eyelids cracked open and Cormac could see the amber eyes glint beneath the heavy lids. "Is she dead?" he whispered, words slurring together.

"Yeah, Rafe. You got her." He felt Rafe relax and his eyes closed.

But then they opened again. "Lenore?" he breathed.

"Waiting for you." He thought he saw the ghost of a smile cross Rafe's lips before he slipped back into unconsciousness. Cormac made his way out, retracing his steps. It was slower going since he had to squeeze through as a human with an injured boy in his arms.

Finally he saw the flashlights and he hurried as fast as he dared go. His dad and Wyatt met him and he passed Rafe to his father while he went and gathered his clothes. He dressed quickly. Lenore was crying again at the sight of the Rafe. Emmeline dragged her away so Alaric could get a blanket around the unconscious boy.

"Head to the safe house." Kess had a secured location where anyone surviving the night would go when it was all over. They were all avoiding the house in Miami in case Samara sent some of her pack there to pick off stragglers. "There's a doctor there that can have a look at him." Kess had thought of that too, knowing that there would be wounds to bandage, but also knowing that not everyone would be making it back.

"You're not coming with?" Wyatt asked.

"I've got to go help the others." He was climbing into the second car. He could tell his dad wanted to come with him, but he shook his head. His father needed to protect his family.

"I'm coming too." The young werebear slid into the passenger seat.

"You sure?"

"Hell yeah. She's fine," he indicated Lenore with a jerk of his head, "and I didn't drive all the way down here just to play nursemaid."

Chapter Forty

Rafe swam into consciousness slowly. He didn’t open his eyes, wasn’t ready to just yet. His head was resting against something soft. He was wrapped tightly, but that was okay. He didn’t want to move. He hurt too much.

Gentle fingers were brushing through his matted hair. They were a welcome distraction from the pain that seemed to radiate out of him like his own personal sun. And he could smell her, the baby powder and honey scent of her. She smelled like a spring afternoon, like a meadow of wildflowers. Lenore. He stretched his senses out a bit more. Alaric was there and Emmeline. He heard the low thrum of a car’s engine. They were driving. She was safe.

He vaguely remembered Cormac coming for him, but most of it was disjointed. He remembered being picked up because that had hurt a lot, his torn body shrieking its protest at being moved. He said something maybe, but the memory fled. He didn’t try and hold onto it very hard. It could wait.

Rafe forced his eyelids to open. It wasn’t easy; he felt like he was trying to bench press an elephant. But he wanted to see her, to just look at her once to know she was real and safe and whole. Her pretty round face came into focus slowly. She was staring down at him, watching her fingers twining in his hair and humming a song he couldn’t place.

She must have seen the glitter of his eyes because her face lit up. She smiled hugely, something he thought he might actually deserve now. She didn’t stop running her fingers through his hair, but now she ran the back of one hand down the scarred side of his face. “Hi,” she whispered.

Rafe sighed. He’d gotten her out safely. He let his eyes slip closed and dove back into the ocean of black.

**********

He woke next to pain, intense pain centering in his left arm. People were talking above him. Someone was prodding his broken arm, digging their fingers into the sensitive flesh. Rafe tried to lash out, to get them to stop hurting him, but all of his limbs felt heavy and slow, like he was moving through a pool of glue.

Rafe tried to speak, to tell them to knock it off, but it came out as a weak mumble. “He’s waking up,” he heard a soft voice say near his head. He turned his head slightly, and thought better of it as muscles in his neck and back flared with hot agony. He gasped and decided that staying still was probably a really good idea.

Lenore’s face peered into his. She looked worried. He didn’t like that. She shouldn’t be worrying. Another face, one he’d never seen before, joined hers. Dark brown eyes met his for a moment, and he got the idea this person was trying to figure something out.

“That’s unfortunate,” the new guy said.
Yeah, well, screw you too, buddy
, he thought, not happy when the guy kept poking at his arm. Lenore’s face had disappeared from view. He wanted it back.

“Young man,” the guy said to him, “I’m going to have to set your arm. I’m afraid it is going to hurt a lot so I’m going to give you something for the pain now.”

The face disappeared, but a few moments later he felt a prick at the inside of his good arm. Warmth spread up his arm and he didn’t hate the man quite so much anymore. That is until he heard him say, “Hold him down.”

Rafe wanted to struggle, wanted to say he could handle it, but then the man took hold of his broken arm and began to move it in ways that made Rafe want to vomit. He arched upwards as the man set his bones back to rights, choking on a strangled scream. It felt like his arm had been dipped in fire, in battery acid, but all on the inside. Strong hands held his shoulders down, making sure he couldn’t thrash like he wanted to. He dropped back down, feeling weak and sick. He heard whimpering sounds and realized dimly that they were coming from him, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. The man was gathering wrappings and other stuff to immobilize his arm.

He could feel his eyelids fluttering as he fought against passing out. The room was breathing, the walls moving in and out like bellows. He couldn’t figure out what was making them do that. He heard his name being called from a place very far away from here, wherever here was. He wanted to answer, it was important that he answer that voice, but then his eyes rolled back in his head and he knew nothing again but silence.

Chapter Forty-One

Finn was to the left of Laila. Mebis stood on her other side. He had transformed into his other shape, an enormous grey wolf, and sat, ears perked for the sound of Kess or hyenas. The two werejackals stayed human. He couldn’t blame them; as jackals, these two would be no match for the heavy and powerfully built hyenas who would be twice their size and weight. As humans, Laila and Mebis were far more deadly, as the arsenal of weapons currently strapped to their bodies bore witness. Finn thought they could arm a small third world nation with the ordinance each of them was packing.

Kess’ plan was to lead the hyenas through a gauntlet, one peppered with booby traps and allies, and she had planned out her route accordingly. He hadn't been the only one to be surprised to find that she'd been to the hyena's territory before. He remembered the conversation because Kess wasn't usually so free with her history.