Page 22 of Blood Pack Beginning (Pack #5)

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Amir fought for his life against the wolf in the grips of the bloodfever, a state artificially induced by whatever had been in Monty’s little bottle. While all Lycans knew of the bloodfever, he’d never before seen anyone suffering from it. It was utterly savage. The other wolf’s gaze held no cognition, just snarling madness.

And rage.

The rabid Lycan wanted nothing more than to kill Amir. While Amir wanted to help the man recover, he wouldn’t do so at the risk of his own life, assuming he could actually beat it. He’d never been in such a fierce fight. Sasha couldn’t help, as she faced her own adrenalized wolf.

How could he win? His bloodied opponent didn’t seem to feel any of its many wounds, even the solid chomp that severed a tendon in its leg didn’t seem to bother it. Subduing the wolf wasn’t a viable option, which left only one option.

Kill.

Easy to decide, harder to accomplish, especially since his own wounds slowed some of his reaction time. He had to end this, and quickly. Since they appeared evenly matched, strength- wise, it meant he needed to be wilier. Fight unconventionally. More humanly…

Wham.

He slammed his head into the other wolf’s, the hard butt sending it reeling in a daze. Amir followed and once more swung his noggin, slamming it with enough force he swayed on his feet. But in good news, the other wolf fell over, unconscious.

Whew. Amir huffed out a breath, only to jump as he heard a hiss of pain.

He whirled to see Sasha pinned under the other wolf, the jaws clamped to her neck. Without even thinking, Amir dashed, lowering his head at the last moment before ramming into the female wolf, knocking her loose.

The scent of blood filled the air, but he didn’t have time to lick. A growling Amir stood between the rabid Lycan and Sasha. The female didn’t take the hint and came at him with a feral glint in her eyes and drool dripping from her open maw.

They met in a clash of fur and claws, rolling on the dirty pavement, where the stench of burnt oil and food refuse filled the air.

Unlike the male he’d fought, this wasn’t an even match, his size more than twice hers. He could have easily killed the smaller wolf, but Amir hesitated. It was one thing to eviscerate the ghouls, another to do so to an innocent caught up in something evil.

In the end, he didn’t have to make a shitty choice, for Sasha suddenly appeared alongside and jabbed down with a syringe. It took a moment, though, before the drug penetrated the adrenalized effect of the forced shift, but when it hit, the female wobbled and then fell over.

Sasha exhaled. “Well, damn. Sure glad Monty didn’t have a chance to dose you, Puppy Chow. I doubt one needle would have been enough to knock you on your ass.”

Amir snorted despite the fact she had a point. He’d shaken off the first dose while they were loading him into the truck, and he’d had a moment to see his brother’s wide eyes and hear Monty’s exhaled, “Oh shit,” before a second poke of a needle sent him under again. The next time he woke, Amir knew to remain still. Apparently, Sasha had done the same thing.

She reached out and ruffled the fur on his head. “Such a good boy. Glad you stuck around instead of chasing after your brother. I might have had a little bit of trouble handling two rabid Lycans on my own.”

He uttered a low rumbling sound, and she cocked her head.

“What’s that? I don’t understand dog.”

Grawr. He kept growling even as his body contorted and changed, elongating, the hair being reabsorbed, the pain excruciating until the shift finished.

He glared at Sasha. “I said next time, don’t fuck around. If a wolf tries to kill you, tear out its throat.”

“I was being nice in case they were, like, related to you or something.”

“Fuck being nice when something’s trying to eat your face.”

Her lips quirked. “Yes, Puppy Chow. Anything else?”

He dragged her close. “Yeah. A victory kiss, because when I woke up in the back of that truck, I really thought we were fucked.”

“We’re not in the clear yet,” she reminded. “We appear to be in a parking lot behind some kind of restaurant open twenty-four hours with a truck full of kidnapped and drugged people, a dead wolf, a sleeping one, and a vampire traitor.”

“What dead wolf? Mine was still breathing,” Amir stated as he glanced over her head to eye the male he’d knocked out, only to utter, “Oh shit.”

“What now?” Sasha exclaimed.

“Looks like my guy was hungry.” The male wolf, still in the grips of the bloodfever, had his muzzle buried in the traitor’s belly, slurping guts. Nasty, but in better news, Monty wouldn’t be an issue.

“So much for questioning him,” Sasha sighed. “Now we’ll never know where Monty was going and who he took orders from.”

“Don’t give up yet. Omar might know something, and I doubt he’s gotten far.” It would be a cinch to follow his brother’s trail, especially since Omar never was any good at hiding.

“I’m not sure that’s our wisest course of action given the mess.” Sasha pursed her lips as she eyed the bodies on the pavement. “First thing, we need to stop that wolf from eating.” Monty might have been weak, but his remains would still impart some power.

“And how do you suggest I do that? I know for a fact getting between a wolf and his dinner is a bad idea.”

“Hey, you! What are you doing back here?” someone shouted. A glance showed a man in a dirty apron standing by the rear entrance to the restaurant with a cigarette in hand.

“Busted,” Amir muttered. “Come on. Time to vamoose before he calls the cops.”

“We can’t leave Monty’s body or the wolves behind. See what you can do about subduing the Lycan while I handle the guy.”

As she stalked over to the fellow with a smile, Amir managed to scoop an unbroken syringe and headed for the eating wolf. While he drugged the male, he heard Sasha croon, “Oh, hello there.”

“Don’t hello me. What the fuck? Is that a wolf eating a person?” the guy practically yelled.

“Yes, but also no. Did no one tell you about the movie being shot in your alley?”

“What movie?” the smoker asked as Amir hefted the sleeping male and headed for the truck to toss him in.

“Horror film, of course. But it’s a secret.” Her voice lowered into a purr. “You came out for a cigarette and saw nothing.”

“Nothing.”

“Nope. Not a thing,” Sasha confirmed. “But someone did make a mess. A drunk puked, and you need to hose down the alley. All of it.”

“Hose the puke,” the guy mumbled while Amir scooped the female and also placed her in the truck.

With instructions given and memories wiped, Sasha returned to Amir.

“Is he actually dead?” he asked, standing over the disemboweled vampire.

Sasha knelt and eyed the wound. “Yeah. An older vampire might have been able to heal, but Monty lacked the maturity. Just in case, though…” She grabbed Monty’s head and twisted it hard enough the vertebrae cracked. “There, that should keep him busy, putting himself back together, in case I’m wrong about his regeneration abilities.”

“Where should I put him?”

“Toss him in the back.”

“You do realize a half-eaten body will cause some panic if any of the Lycans wake,” Amir warned as he scooped the bloody remains.

“I don’t think there’s any way we can avoid people freaking at this point.” She eyed him. “You need some clothes. While I would love to admire your naked body for hours, a naked man driving will draw attention.”

“Let me see what I can cobble together from those in the back.” Amir felt icky about stripping the big dude snoring, but he needed the shorts and shirt more than the guy did. The shoes proved a tight fit, but better than being bare-toed.

Amir joined Sasha in the truck and said, “Where to?”

“Anywhere but here for now. Start driving while I figure out our next move.”

Amir put the truck into gear and removed them from the alley. As he drove, he noticed her rummaging in the glove box, the middle console, even between her legs.

“What are you looking for?” he asked.

“A clue as to where they were going or… Aha.” She held up a phone that had fallen under a seat. “Is it your brother’s?”

“Nah. His phone cover is some kind of cartoon.”

“Meaning it’s probably Monty’s,” she muttered, poking at the screen, followed by some cursing. “Dammit, I don’t know the password.”

“Does it have face or fingerprint recognition?”

“You’re a genius,” she exclaimed. “Can you pull over?”

“In a few minutes, I want to get us a bit farther away from the diner.” He found them a street under construction, the cement foundations rising from the dirt in preparation for the houses that would be built.

Amir joined Sasha in the back of the truck as she angled the phone on Monty’s face until the phone recognized it.

The tip of her tongue poked from her lips as she muttered, “First thing, let’s change the passcode to something I’ll remember.” She had to scan Monty’s face again before the change was saved. She smiled. “We’re in. Let’s get moving again while I poke through the texts.”

A plan he approved of. The faster they got somewhere safe, the better. He remained very conscious that he drove a truck full of drugged people, two wolves, and one dead vampire.

With no idea where to head, Amir kept going straight, following the speed limits, obeying every stop sign and red light.

It was several minutes before Sasha crowed, “I know where they were going.” She recited an address that meant nothing to him. Nor could he enter it into a navigation system while it was in motion.

“How far is it?” Amir asked.

“Not sure.” Her brow knit. “According to the directions on Google Maps, it’s about half an hour from here.”

“We have less than three before sunrise,” he reminded.

“I think we should go have a peek before we decide what to do. According to the texts, this is one of three trucks heading for the warehouse.” She paused before adding, “Those Lycans back there? It’s one-third of the Woolly Pillars pack. The rest of them are split in two other trucks.”

“What does he want them for?” Amir exclaimed.

“I’d rather not find out.”

“I don’t know how long the folks in the back will keep sleeping.”

“Which is a problem,” she agreed. “Let me call Thaddeus and see if he’s got any ideas.”

She contacted her boss, thankfully knowing the number by heart. Amir eavesdropped as she detailed what happened and Thaddeus’ response.

“Fuck,” Thaddeus cursed.

Yeah, that kind of summed up the situation.

“Since I don’t know what else to do, we’re heading to the warehouse address I found in Monty’s texts.”

Despite it being faint over the rumble of the engine, he could hear Thaddeus’ reply. “I’ll have Pierrot, Anabel, and your other two wolves meet you there. Don’t do anything rash. If this master is present, retreat. Do not engage.”

“What should we do with the truck full of Lycans?”

A long sigh exhaled before Thaddeus said, “Honestly, I don’t know. If their minds have been tampered with, they’ll be susceptible to other vampires, which means none of the packs will want them, and I can just imagine what Nathan would suggest.”

It took Amir a second to grasp what he meant. “No way would he put them all to death.”

A somber Thaddeus sounded weary as he said, “He’s done it already to the ones touched by Roderick.”

“Can’t you have them join your pack instead? You said before you were one of the stronger vampires. If they belong to you, then they’d be safe,” Amir suggested.

“It is an option, assuming I can break this master’s hold, but I doubt they’d agree to live in the compound, seeing as how they already have homes. Not to mention, where would we put them?”

“We could figure something out. Wooly Pillars isn’t safe,” Amir huffed.

“No, it isn’t.” Thaddeus sighed. “I guess we can figure out accommodations, but I will only take those who are truly willing to serve under me, and of course, they’ll need their minds checked for influence. I am already en route, but given the approaching dawn, it’s doubtful I’ll have time to do more than a quick scout of this warehouse before I’m forced into hiding. I don’t suppose you can keep them drugged until the next sunset?”

“We don’t have any syringes left.”

“That’s unfortunate,” Thaddeus grumbled.

Sasha pursed her lips. “Speaking of waking dogs, I think I hear one stirring.”

“Go handle it then meet up with Pierrot and the others. But hold off entering the warehouse until my arrival.”

“Will do, boss.” Sasha hung up and glanced at Amir. “Pull over.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Not me, you. You’re Lycan. They’re more likely to listen to you.”

Thump . Thump . He glanced behind him. “Seems like more than few have woken. Fuck.”

“I’ll be close by in case you need a hand,” she reassured.

“Pity they couldn’t stay asleep. We’re, like, five minutes away from the warehouse,” he groused as he exited the truck. As he rounded it to the rear, he was surprised to not hear any yelling. He would have expected some panicked knocking and screams for help.

“What’s wrong?” Sasha asked, noticing his hesitation.

“Something ain’t right. Could be Monty’s tougher than you thought.”

“No way he regenerated this fast.” She shook her head.

“Guess we’ll soon find out. Stand back,” he warned as he cranked the bar holding the roll-down door shut.

He gave the handle a tug to start moving it upward, only to have it wrenched from his hands.

Amir stumbled back and stared in horror.

With reason.

The people had woken, as had the wolves, but any hopes of saving them disappeared at the sight of the red glint in their eyes and slack jaws.

A shocked Sasha yelled, “Ghouls.”

Which appeared to be the magical word for “attack.”