Page 66 of Fighting Furry

Alpha pushed off the wall. “I want a guarantee.”

Neela rolled her eyes, but she put her wrist to her mouth, bit down, and held her bleeding wrist to Alpha. He pressed his mouth to her wrist, took three long swallows and stood. The difference was amazing, his skin was no longer yellow and his eyes were brighter, clearer. “I'll get the clothes,” he said.

“What the hell is going on here?” Axel growled. “Darius said you and this pack were at odds.”

Neela licked her wrist and turned to Axel while Alpha disappeared upstairs. “We are at odds,” she said. “I want to have full control of these wolves, but they are less than willing to secede power. Darius has promised me your pack instead.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Axel asked, his tone deathly calm.

Neela walked over to stand in front of him, her smile wicked. “I have something Darius wants and he is willing to give me your pack to get it. We just needed you out of the way. He wanted to make it look as though you lost the territory in a dispute between packs, and if you died…” She shrugged. “He doesn't want to deal with the uprising if other wolves learn of our deal.”

Axel's shock and anger were palpable, so I asked the next question. “What do you have that Darius wants?”

“Money, dear,” Neela said, speaking slowly as though I was an idiot. “And power. Werewolves are cute, but not too bright, and Darius and the council have expensive tastes.”

“Vampires are bottom-sucking parasites,” Clarissa said. “Where are you getting this money?”

Neela smiled and stalked over to Clarissa. She flicked her nose. “Why don't you use that tiny werewolf brain and figure it out?”

“What do you want with our pack?” I asked, sensing our time to get answers running out.

Neela stalked over to me. She rubbed her finger in my drying blood, thankfully the saliva of the vamp holding me had stopped the bleeding. She licked the blood and sighed in pleasure. “I tire of drinking the blood of over-sexed, drunken werewolves. My people need a new source, one fed by clear mountain water.”

“You'll have to kill me first,” Axel roared, clearly not thinking straight.

Neela's smile widened. “Oh, I will, but I want to enjoy you first.” She placed a hand over Axel's crotch and rubbed. He growled and snapped at her, and a matching growl rumbled up from my chest. If I wasn't so pissed, I might have taken a moment to enjoy being able to make that wolfy sound in human form.

Neela stepped back and smiled at both of us. “This is going to be so much fun.”

I struggled to break the grip of the vamp holding me, but he was strong, way too strong. It didn't make sense. I'd been able to fight Jeremiah and he was the king, shouldn't he have been the strongest vamp in his crew? There was something else going on here, and if I didn't figure it out soon, I'd be dead.

Neela slunk over to Clarissa and locked eyes with her. “You will walk down the street with us and you will smile like you are happy to be with us. You won't make a move to get away or to draw attention.”

Clarissa fought, trying not to give in, I could see it in her stony expression, but by the end of Neela's sentence, her expression had gone slack and she was smiling. “I'm happy to be with you.”

The vampire holding her released her and she stepped toward Neela, still smiling. “I'm happy to be with you.”

Neela patted her head like she was a child and moved on to Axel. This was not good. “Don't look in her eyes,” I said to Axel, even though he probably knew more about vamps than I did.

He struggled against the three vamps holding him, but he couldn't break free. He closed his eyes, blocking out the sight of Neela. She leaned in close and pressed a kiss to his lips. When she moved back I could see blood on them. “You are delicious. I think I will keep you for my personal pet.”

“Fuck you,” Axel said, but the words lacked confidence. My heart sank. If Axel was out of confidence, we were all screwed.

Neela laughed. “Oh, you will, wolf. You might not enjoy it at first, but you'll learn.” She gripped his chin in her hands. “Now, open your eyes like a good pet or I'll have Gregory rip the eyelids off that pretty girlfriend of yours.”

Axel opened his eyes and Neela gave him the same orders she'd given Clarissa. He fought it, but eventually he succumbed, just as Clarissa had.

I was next and I knew there was no way I'd be able to fight her stare. It went against every instinct I had, but I only had one shot of getting out of this. Before Neela turned to me, I let my face go slack, let all the fight go out of me. I stared blankly ahead, clearing my mind. I pushed away anger and determination. I remembered the way I'd felt when my father had restrained me, how helpless I'd been to protect myself or my mother. I remembered the fear and the desperate desire to do anything to please him if it meant the abuse would stop. I let myself sink into that place I'd promised myself I'd never re-visit. When Neela walked over to me, I smiled at her, faking a happy expression I didn't feel. It probably looked forced, but that was okay. I understood her, as I'd understood my father. She didn't want me happy, she wanted me submissive, docile, afraid, and in her thrall. “I'm happy to be here,” I said, the words shaky, but audible.

Neela, apparently having no lack of confidence, bounced and clapped. “Oh, you are a gem. So easily enthralled I don't even have to look directly into your eyes. Tell me, how did Jeremiah fail to overpower you?”

I kept the same dopey smile on my face and spoke in a robotic tone, “I didn't give him the chance. He thought I was weak. I shifted and ripped his throat out before he could speak.”

It was only half true, but Neela accepted it. “I told him to drink before he came over here, but he always did overestimate his own power.” For a moment, she looked truly sad, looked almost human. The moment passed as quickly as it had come and her expression hardened. It didn't matter. I'd gotten one more piece of the puzzle. There was something the vamps drank that made them stronger. Was it wolf blood? Or something else? If it was wolf's blood, wouldn't Axel have known about it?

“Let's go,” Neela said. “Everyone smile and chat like we're just out for a friendly walk.”

Neela headed for the front door, confident we'd follow. Clarissa fell into line behind her, her vamp captor close by her side. Axel followed her with his three vamp captors, all of them chatting and laughing. They were probably quite pleased with themselves. I was last and, for a moment, I was alone in the foyer with my vamp captor. I was alone, but Alpha wasn't too far behind us, and his two girlfriends were with him. It was way more than I wanted to take on alone. I waited until I was on the porch and my vamp had closed the front door behind us. I spun, using every bit of speed and skill I had, and kicked the vamp in the thigh. He grunted and listed to one side, surprise written on every feature of his face. I took advantage and jabbed him hard in the throat with the side of my hand.

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