Page 41 of Protection of the Pack

It’s alright,Esme reassured Archie’s wolf. Her voice was gentle now.The healing has already begun. Lie down. The humans will help you.

Archie’s wolf let out another low whine but he lay down carefully.

A witch will come to help you. Let her treat you both.

I will allow it,he agreed.No other is to approach.

Agreed.

Agreed.

With the immediate panic over, I turned. Behind me, Manners was keeping everyone out of the room, but the corridor was full and I could hear whispers.

‘Did you see his eyes? They were gold – he’s gone full wolf!’

‘The wolf lay down! Did you see that?’

‘It’s like the wolf recognised her as alpha!’

‘Has Mrs Dawes got anything to help him?’ I asked Manners.

He shook his head and I swore. Even with a werewolf’s ability to heal, I wasn’t sure if he’d survive long enough for Amber to arrive. ‘Keep everyone back. The wolf will let Amber DeLea heal him, but he won’t tolerate anyone else approaching. Keep it locked down.’

Manners agreed, and then I let the shift roll over me. In my haste I’d forgotten to remove my clothes and they tore, disappearing entirely as we shifted. Rest in Peace, inappropriate flamingo shirt.

Esme and I scented the air around us, but the burning candle on Archie’s bedside table overwhelmed our delicate nose. We sneezed rapidly to clear it but to no avail; we couldn’t scent the attacker.

Archie’s assailant had fled though the balcony door. The glass was smashed; it looked like the door hadn’t opened and they’d panicked and burst through it instead. That suggested the balcony wasn’t the point of ingress.

I’d done everything I could for Archie. It was time to go hunting. With a growl of agreement, Esme leapt through the ragged hole in the balcony door, landing briefly on the balustrade before using it as a springboard to leap down.

We took a moment to look around, but night had fallen and any tracks were hidden under the veil of darkness. We sneezed rapidly, clearing the cloying scent of the candle from our nose, then sniffed again. This time we caught a scent – it smelled like lavender, but there were no lavender plants on the estate.

With our tail straight up with excitement, we followed the scent. We pounded across the estate, pausing to sniff now and again as we charged forward. If it started to rain it would be game over.

We ploughed forward. Once we’d left the estate and were on the streets, we slowed down and tried to be a little more unobtrusive. Hopefully, we’d be mistaken as a big dog if we just kept trotting on.

The smell led us straight to the Black Park. We started forward – and then we saw the gang of vampyrs.

They were unmistakably vampyr. Firstly, they were dressed in black leather, which is so on trend for them at the moment, and secondly, they were all absurdly attractive. They made me look plain, which on any other day in a bar might have been quite nice. But a group of five vampyrs hanging around a children’s park at night struck me as questionable.

Esme is tough, but even she agreed that hiding was a good idea. Vampyrs and wolves have a hate-hate relationship that spans eons; they wouldn’t hesitate to slice us into small pieces if they saw us.

We ducked and hid under a climbing frame. We clung to the shadows and cursed that the lavender-scented one was getting away, but if we tried to back out now we’d be sashimi. Bitterness pulled at us as we sank down low.

Chapter 17

‘Bloodyvampyrs,’grousedanothervoice. ‘Mon Dieu, I knew I shouldn’t have come out tonight, but I just wanted a little stretch from the church.’

My eyes picked out a stony, grey shape almost perfectly camouflaged by the shadows. A gargoyle! I’d never actuallyseena real gargoyle; I’d gone to a church to meet one but we’d been derailed by a huge, rampaging ouroboros. That’s a whole story for another day.

Esme was relaxed, which told me she wasn’t worried about him. That was good becauseIwas. He was squat, with pointed ears and a mouth full of sharp, spikey teeth. His short wings extended above him.

He saw where I was looking. ‘I know. Wings are a pain in the ass. They’re too small to carry me far, and they itch like a bitch.’ He scratched his crotch. Thank goodness it appeared to be covered in some sort of loincloth – but that wasallhe was wearing.

Curiosity finally got the better of me and so, making sure I was tucked tight into the shadows, I turned back to human. Fuck. I’d forgotten it was cold and I was naked. I was crouched in a teeny-tiny ball so the gargoyle couldn’t see much of me but – man, I missed my fur right then.

He blinked, his yellow eyes flashing in the night. ‘Well now. It's good to see you again. That’s a lightning-fast shift, wolfie darling. I haven’t seen one that fast in a few decades.’

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