Page 14 of Bear Strength

A wolf’s only weapon is its mouth. It can either bite orf scratch. Nothing more. It’d be easiest to just kick him in the ribs while they break and perforate his lungs, but my position doesn’t allow that. Instead, I grab him under his jaws, at the bottom of his ears, shaking his head wildly left and right, knowing this will make any animal dizzy. I quickly climb on top of his back, avoiding his legs, which are trying to kick me off. Using my own legs, I spread his rear legs, standing on them. I know by the time this ends, I’ll be covered in scratches, but the wolf shifter will be way worse off. My fingers take hold of his neck, and I just squeeze until I can’t feel that kicking anymore, until my own fingers feel all white and trembling, until I can’t feel that heat in my sides.

I don’t know how long that lasts, but I stop only when Adrian approaches me and puts his hand on my shoulder. My fingers unclasp and a dead wolf body tumbles down onto the floor.

Adrian and I glance over at Alex.

“He alive?” I ask.

“Should be.”

We walk over to him, and Adrian kicks him with his foot, not too hard, though. Alex whines, opening his eyes.

“Get up, you fucker,” I hiss.

Alex gets onto his knees, then slowly, stands up. His whole body is shaking. I look down and I see he’s fucking pissed himself.

“Where is it?” I ask, pressing my side. The pain is back, and I wanna get the fuck outta here, so I can tend to my wound.

Alex lifts his trembling finger at a metal box in the corner. Adrian immediately jumps over there and tries to unlock it. It doesn’t budge.

“The com-combination is three, seven, nine, z-z-zero…” Alex moans. The son of a bitch should be glad he’s alive.

Adrian turns the little dial following this code and the door clicks open. He gently extracts two black, wooden boxes.

“Do I need to open them to make sure it’s all in there?” I blare at Alex. He just shakes his head. “What the fuck do I do with you now?” I sigh, raking my fingers through my hair.

Adrian gives me a meaningful look. I know what he’s saying. Mason urged for less killing. Unless it’s completely necessary. We got what we came here for. And, the wolf’s dead. Is this piece of shit really worth another kill? Adrian shakes his head.

“You’re one lucky motherfucker,” I spit at Alex, who cowers in fear, thinking I’m about to strike him down.

Luckily for him, I take no more pleasure in killing. None of us do. Gone are the days. We simply demand respect, and sometimes, you had to smash your fist against the table if you want to be heard.

“So, this is what you’re gonna do now,” I aim my index finger at Alex. “You’re gonna disappear somewhere, in some shithole, change your name, your appearance, whatever the fuck you wanna do. I just want you gone, off the face of the earth. You dig? Cuz, if I see you again, Adrian won’t be here to save your sorry ass.”

“Y-yes, yes... T-thank you…” Alex bows down, and I swear I can’t look at him anymore.

“Now, get the fuck outta here.”

Alex drags his beaten body out of the little farmhouse, as I do the same, over to the chair.

“Fuck, those claws are sharp,” I hiss, breathing in through clenched teeth.

“Wait,” Adrian tells me, then runs out.

He comes back a few moments later with a bunch of yellow flowers in his hand and a bottle of water in the other.

“You came to ask for my hand in marriage with that bouquet?” I ask, snorting, and a pang of pain punishes my effort at humor.

“Witch hazel,” he kneels down to my side, rips a part of his shirt, and wraps the flowers in it. He spills some water on it, then presses it to my wound.

“This is going to hurt,” he tells me, and I have to close my eyes when he tries to wipe away the already crusted blood.

CHAPTER 8

It’s six o’clock on Saturday. I wake up easily, almost effortlessly even before the alarm goes off. Susie was kind enough to let me take the afternoon shift, so I could drop Dominick off at the bikers’ place. Our agreement is for him to call the diner when he’s done, and I’ll just ask Bill to let me off for an hour so I can drop him off. The cook’s there, plus Susie’s and mine shift might be still overlapping when he calls. In any case, I’m not letting him sit on that dark bike again.

Sam’s name surfaces in my mind, and I remember Susie’s story. People disappear when they get too close to the bikers. They’re criminals. But, you can’t hate them because they wash their hands with some do gooder actions in the town. A cold claw of fear taps me on the nape of my neck, just to remind me it’s there. Don’t let your guard down. Keep an eye on Dominick. They can’t be good people.

“Shit...” I whisper to myself. “Why did he have to spray paint their wall!?”

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