Predator Girl (A Paranormal Romance) (24 page)

The last he’ll ever make.

The forest went by in a blur of green and brown. I ran faster than I ever had. My muscles burned. I latched onto a scent near the creek. Fox’s. He stopped, turned just as I jumped up, morphed back long enough to slam him into a tree, claws at his throat. The old hunter gaped at me, white as a sheet.

“I-Ilume!” he stammered, shocked.

“You were there when Jared died,” I spat, baring my fangs. “Who killed him, Fox?”

Fox trembled against the tree, mouth moving with no words coming out. I emitted a feral hiss.

He threw his hands in the air. “All right, all right! It was Rex, okay? Rex caught him following us in the woods and tied him up and told me to hang him out in the field and threatened to kill me if I didn’t—”

I withdrew my hand. Before Fox hit the ground I’d shifted again, a black blur flying down the trail. “Ilume, don’t,” Fox choked. His voice was lost in the wind.

Rex’s trail took me far out, close to the border. I rounded a hairpin turn when I saw him, walking below me with Shadow at his side. How casual they looked, talking about strategies for something or other.

Rex must’ve heard me, because his head jerked up. We locked eyes. I pinned my ears back and howled—it’s a myth that werewolves do this because of full moon; we do it when calling to each other . . . or challenging another to a duel.

Rex barely had time to transition before I shot down the hill, leaping at him. I bit him, drilled my teeth into his shoulder. He cried out and pulled away, something Rex never did in a fight. Stumbling back, he stared at me, confused, red trickling down his coat. My hair bristled as I thought of Jared. I went in for round two.

He had no choice. Rex snarled and went for my hip, the one the spider had attacked. I wailed as his teeth made contact. He dragged me across the ground. I snapped at his leg, but I was too late. Using all his strength he spun me around. I soared, head-first into a tree. My teeth clattered together. I collapsed, upside down, in fallen leaves. The dizziness was awful. Everything spun, around and around. I rolled over and vomited.

Rex moved back and forth, tail arched like a scorpion’s stinger. He watched me lay there, waiting for me to strike again. I doubted he’d kill me, but his lips peeled back, revealing razor fangs. He would beat me to a pulp, because even if they were challenged by a mate, it’s what alphas did. It was their way of saying,
I’m stronger than you, I rule you, and this will remind you never to challenge me again
.

What he didn’t know was this: I was done being ruled. No one would ever rule me in any way, shape, or form again. No man or wolf would ever break me, slip into my head, or take someone away from me that I loved. Despite the fact I couldn’t see straight, I clambered to my feet.

He caught me in the chest. The pain surged, like I’d leaned into a hot cook top. My shriek turned into a snarl. I came down on his forehead, barely missing his right eye. As I went to push against him, he slammed me into the ground.

I couldn’t breathe. He detached himself, leaping back. I tried to stand but fell, closing my eyes. I waited for him to drive fangs into my side, my back, my neck.

Just kill me.
Now was the perfect chance for Rex to kill a challenger.

He circled, baring bloody teeth, a crazy look in his eyes—the very thing that sparked human ideas for
Wolf Man
and horror novels. I had seen him break down when his father died. I had helped him because no one else would, because he needed someone and I cared. I’d been the closest thing he had to a friend. And he’d picked me for a mate.

These thoughts made me numb. A second ago, I was ready to end him, tear him to pieces. I’d let myself remember, and now I saw the boy who had once lay crippled under moonlight, sobbing because he had no one. No parents. No support.

How could you hate someone but still want to help them at the same time? If I killed him, it would eat at me forever. It would haunt me, knowing I’d taken a life away just as easily as he had. If someone was going to die, it would have to be me. I couldn’t live with any more regret and I was dead inside anyway. He’d be doing me a favor.

Rex growled, his circles becoming tighter. I closed my eyes.
Please, just get it over with.
Vibrations traveled through me, the feeling of paws hitting the ground. I tensed up, but no pain came. A terrible scream rang in my ears. I opened my eyes.

My concussion must be bad, or maybe I’d already died and this was a mind trick, a hallucination before the blackout. I’d be seeing the white light soon, but right now I was seeing
two
of Rex—two enormous, golden wolves tumbling, snarling, and tearing into each other’s fur.

Hands grabbed my arms. Someone picked me up—an angel, maybe? My dark coat was gone, leaving me in my bleeding, human skin. A shirt much too large for me was pulled over my head. I doubted an angel would put me in a man’s t-shirt. With the last of my energy, I craned my neck.

Fox hauled me off to the side, out of the battle scene. Poor Fox. I hadn’t meant to strangle him. “Ilume?” He bent over me. He sounded far away. “Ilume! Can you hear me?”

Tired. Why was I so tired? I groaned and tried to tell him I was sorry. It came out garbled, more like
I’m shri.
My head was beating. I dropped my neck back in Fox’s beefy hand. He was still talking, shaking me now. I could barely hear him. I was about to let go, drop into oblivion.

That’s when I smelled it. The scent on Rex’s jeans, the one that stained the dog beds in my room, the one that cuddled beside me in bear furs in the woods. I gasped, coming back to the scene.

Jared?

It gave me the advantage; I plowed right into him. In seconds we were a snarling tangle of hair and teeth. All thoughts left me. I acted on instinct. Bite, dodge, block, snarl. Bite, dodge, roll, duck, snarl. I howled as he tore my hind leg open, then spun around and drilled him in the back. The battle with Ilume must’ve tired him. Rex staggered and became an easy target. He noticed it, too, kept glancing at the trail.

Without warning, he bolted, leaving the scene.

I stood there a second, torn, sore, but not defeated. Did this mean I won? Ilume had disappeared. Off the battle field between the tree trunks, Fox watched me, mouth hanging open. He held Ilume, who stared at me, too. She looked sort of dreamy though, like someone coming out of anesthesia.

Oh, Ilume.
Part of me wanted to go to her, and the human Jared probably would’ve. I would’ve fallen beside her, taken her from Fox and cradled her, told her we were going home. Everything was okay, just like last time.

But that isn’t what the wolf Jared did. No, the wolf Jared was still angry, still animal, and still itching to finish what he’d started. I took off after the enemy, leaving Ilume behind.

Rex had made good headway. I followed the blood droplets in the dirt and the red smudges on the bushes. As I ran, I wondered what else I’d inherited from Rex’s loose-spill. His temper? I felt so vicious. His indecency? God, that’d be awful. This wolf body alone was a scary thing. How ironic was it that the only Rook blood sample I was compatible with was Rex’s?

The fear of what I might become consumed me and screwed up my focus. A gold flash jumped out of the ferns. I wasn’t ready. Paws arced; mouth open, Rex intersected me. We tumbled off the path, down an incline. Leaves stuck to my fur as the world spun around and around.

I saw the rock just before hitting it. The wind whooshed out of my lungs, and I remembered the cage, that burning sensation when I couldn’t breathe. I lay there, hyperventilating. Rex scrambled up, looking fearful of me, fearful and confused.

Not a good combo. Creatures do terrible things to others when they’re afraid. I had no way to stop what was coming. Rex charged full force, ready to destroy the beast that looked like him, the being that caused him fear.

It all happened so fast. The leaves shifted, something cracked. Rex disappeared into the ground. He didn’t make a sound. The only evidence that he’d been here was the black hole in the earth.

My heart pounded in my ears. I was finally getting air, but my lungs hurt. Slowly, I got to my feet, waiting for a sound, a snarl, something to indicate Rex coming out of the trap. It dawned on me that I could see the field through the trees, see the willow where the Jackals found me.

We were in the death zone.

Despite this, I had a dark premonition that urged me on. I had to know. Inching forward, I prodded at the ground, making sure there were no traps in my way. Standing at the edge, I peeked into the hole.

Rex lay bloodied and dirty several feet below. His head twisted in an unnatural position toward his spine, his body up against the wall.

I backed away.
It’s his own fault,
I thought. He dug this hole. Still, I shuddered. Seeing him dead, my human self stirred. A tiny part of me felt bad.

My nose twitched. Someone was nearby. Snapping my head up, I locked eyes with the tan, bloodied girl on the hill. Ilume stared down through the ferns, jaw dropped.

Ilume.
I could feel my mouth lift, try to smile. It was over. The feud was finally over. The pack could have a new leader now. I could report back to Raven, tell him I’d won. I’d claimed the spot as Rook alpha male.

Ilume was mine at last. Really, truly mine.

The rage drained right out of my system. The happiness I felt in its place was wonderful, warm. It’d been years since I’d felt like this, like I was unstoppable, like I’d finally done something right. I could’ve cried I was so happy. Galloping up the hill, I went to meet her.

But she disappeared. As I made it to the top, I saw Ilume half way down the trail, running as fast as she could. She glanced back over her shoulder, terror in her eyes. I remembered: she didn’t know it was me.

Oh, crap.
Without a second thought, I bolted after her.

As always, she was faster. She headed back to the pack, aware that the wolf following her wasn’t Rex. She’d tell them an intruder had just killed their alpha male. I’m not sure what that means in the wolf world, but in werewolf world having an intruder become the new alpha couldn’t be good. If she got there before me, she’d send out a swarm of hunters. Why hadn’t I thought of this?

A shadow caught the corner of my eye. Fox had transitioned. He was hot on my tail, a snarling timber wolf ready to save Ilume.

My joints kept popping. My shoulder and hind leg bled heavy. I ached from head to toe. It couldn’t end like this. Not when I could finally have what I wanted, when I could give the pack what they needed.

I pushed hard on the balls of my feet. Fox, the old wolf, began to slow down. I lost him around a rollercoaster turn, but I smelled Rex’s other bodyguard, the Adonis replacement. He was nearby, young, strong, and uninjured.

We passed the creek. Any minute now, the mansion would appear through the trees. Ilume’s injuries must be bad, or she was exhausted, because she lost momentum. I took my chance, almost on her heels. Without hands how could I grab her?

Cupping her mouth, she let out a howl, a warning to whoever was listening.
That does it.
This left me no choice. I did the only thing I could think of.

Pressing off my back legs, I pounced. We tumbled into newly fallen leaves. I braced myself for her claws, for her to transition beneath me, but it didn’t happen. We rolled to a stop. Lying between my paws, she trembled in the debris, hands over her eyes.

I didn’t know what to do. Raven hadn’t really explained the whole change back part, and I hadn’t stayed around to listen. The moment Cheetah had taken the second shot out of my hip, I took off. Bear had tried to chase me down, but he stopped in the field, knowing where I was headed.

A whine built in my throat.
Maybe I should lick her face or something.
Would that be gross? Would she shove me away?

I tilted my head, nuzzled her hand. My body let off a faint glow. The hair began to recede, claws retracting. My human hands appeared on either side of her head. I closed my eyes, feeling my bones stretch, reshape. It made my stomach sick, but when I looked again I was human. The real Jared.

Ilume still covered her face.

I lightly pressed my chest to hers, kissing her forehead. It hurt, knowing I’d done this to her. I’d made her this afraid. She tensed beneath my touch. My fingers ran over her silky hair, the very hair that gleamed in the club light the night I first saw her. She wore Fox’s t-shirt, blood-stained and five sizes too larger. Rex had attacked on her trapper bite marks.
What an ass.

Suddenly she went still. Her shudders changed to shivers, and she loosened beneath me. Her nose twitched. I smiled, knowing that she caught it, realized the smell on me was not Rex’s or a stranger’s.

Her fingers splayed out. Those gorgeous, green eyes met mine.

I grinned. “Hi, baby.”

Her hands fell over her mouth. “Oh my God,” she murmured. The waterworks started. Sobbing, she threw her arms around my neck, giving me whiplash as she yanked me to her level. “Oh my God, oh my
God!
You’re
alive!
”