Page 33 of Wolf's Midlife Bite

“I’m sure she’ll be fine,” the first voice replied testily. “It’s not like we haven’t given him plenty of other younger ones.”

“Don’t claim to understand his needs better than I do!” the woman snapped. “You wouldn’t have the benefit of all that he’s given you without me!”

Robin tried to move her hands to get them underneath her. The hard floor wasn’t helping anything. Things would be better if she could just sit up. She managed to move her fingers, but the rough scraping of rope around her wrists kept her from doing more. Automatically, she tried her feet with the same result. Panic bloomed in Robin’s chest. She still didn’t understand where she was or what was going on, but it couldn’t be good if her arms and legs were bound.

“Ah, finally decided to join us?” Dr. Watson’s face loomed in her vision. His cold eyes sparked with evil as he watched her twist in pain.

“What…” Her tongue was thick and dry in her mouth. “What’s going on?” she managed to ask.

“Maybe you should sit up, look around, and find out for yourself.” His hand clamped her arm and yanked her upright so that she sat on the floor. He pushed her, turning her partially.

Robin now understood why the light was flickering and dim. It came only from a ring of crimson candles standing on the floor. She didn’t recognize where she was as she took in the tall ceilings and old wallpaper. Carved wooden furniture had been pushed out of the way to make enough room for the circle of candles.

And in the middle of that circle, a woman stood. She bent and placed something on the floor near the perimeter, and only once she moved out of the way did Robin see that it was a glass jar. It was filled with a murky substance that Robin couldn’t identify, and she thought she saw something moving inside it.

Her eyes lifted to the woman. She was elegant but had the harsh look of someone who was easily displeased. Robin’s fuddled mind refused to cooperate, though she knew she’d seen her before. She looked back up at Dr. Watson in confusion.

Putting his hands on his hips, he tipped back his head and smirked. “For someone who likes to cause as much trouble as you, I thought you would’ve already figured this out. After all, you already know I’ve been writing illegal prescriptions for those willing to pay my price. You already turn your nose up every time I give one of my friends the privileges they deserve. So what’s wrong now, Robin? You truly have no idea what’s happening?”

None of this made sense. Robin shook her head.

“I’m more than happy to explain it to you. Have you ever wondered, Robin, how I managed to build my business the way I have? Haven’t you ever wondered what made so many people flock to me for their dental needs when there are plenty of other dentists in the area?” He lifted his hands in the air.

“Advertising? Because it certainly wasn’t your sparkling personality.” Fear was still reigning in her body, but anger was beginning to bubble to the surface. She didn’t understand anything yet, but Watson was obviously in on it.

“I’d advise you to drop that attitude if it mattered. Or at least, it won’t for long. You see, Edith and I have been working together for quite some time.” He gestured toward the woman.

Robin turned back to her, watching her scatter a thin layer of fine dust in between the candles. Edith. Right. The woman that had been with Watson back at the office.

“Business is all about connections, and Edith has just the one I needed. The dark lord she serves is incredibly powerful and can make all sorts of things happen. All we’ve had to do is provide him with the life force of young women, and in return, he bestows us the gifts of youth and success.”

It was all too much, and Robin’s mind reeled. First, she discovered the existence of wolf shifters, and that she was becoming one herself. Now there were witches and sacrifices to a dark lord? She shook her head as she tried to understand, but the headache left from whatever Edith had done to her was still lingering. “Wouldn’t it have been safer for you to just get some Botox and pay for more of your tacky TV ads?”

“You obviously don’t have a mind for business, Robin. And speaking of Botox, you should’ve started that a long time ago. Those crows feet and laugh lines aren’t doing you any favors.” Watson shook his head and pouted his lips. “Just dreadful.”

“Fuck my wrinkles, asshole! What’s dreadful is that you killed Sienna Barry.” If he’d already told her this much, she wouldn’t likely get out of this situation soon. Robin wanted to know the truth. If she had to die, too, then at least she wouldn’t die ignorant.

“I did,” Watson replied as easily as if they were discussing the weather. “She was young and cute, and she had so much life in her. She was the perfect sacrifice. You’ll get to see it firsthand when it happens to you.”

“You know, Albert, our sacrifices don’t truly need to know what we’re doing and why,” Edith replied, her voice tired. “It takes all the fun out of it for me.”

“Oh, but this is different,” Watson insisted. He looked down at Robin once again. “This one’s going to be particularly fun forme. You’ve always been a bit of a pain, Robin, but finding Sienna’s purse is the last mistake you’ll make.”

“Someone is going to wonder where I am,” Robin pointed out. She almost said something about Maggie, but she held her tongue. She didn’t want to put anyone else in danger. “You can’t just off people and expect no one to find out.”

“They didn’t until very recently,” Watson countered calmly. “The boy I’d hired to dispose of the bodies got a little lazy and put two of them too close to each other. I took care of him, and now I’ll take care of you. Is it ready yet, Edith?”

The witch scowled at him as she pulled something withered out of a burlap sack and placed it on the floor in the center of the circle. “You know it isn’t.”

“Fine, fine. What can I help you with so we can get this done, then?” Watson, confident of the bindings that held Robin, stepped toward Edith.

Robin racked her mind, trying to figure out what she should do. She obviously couldn’t just get up and walk out of there, though it was something she clearly should’ve done at her job a long time ago. No one else was around, at least not that she knew of. The heavy curtain on the window off to the left was partially open. In the moonlight, she could see that this house was in the middle of the woods. There was no chance of a neighbor hearing her scream if she tried that tactic.

Lifting her eyes, Robin focused on the bright sphere in the sky. The moon and its goddess, Selene, Brody had called her. She hadn’t had the chance to ask him much more about that whole idea, but she was finding that she liked it. Selene was beautiful and calming as she shed her light over the night world. Robin felt her wolf stir inside her.

Her wolf. She realized now that she’d seen it when she was still out. The wolf she’d been sitting across from was herself. She’d dive into self-analysis later, but right now, there was a chance her wolf could help. Robin was stronger when she was in that form, and her ankles and wrists were a different shape and size. Maybe it would give her some sort of chance of escape. If Watson and Edith were thrown off by suddenly having a wolf in the room, so much the better.

Remembering her lesson with Brody and wishing they’d taken the time to squeeze in more of them, Robin took in a deep breath. She let it out slowly, trying to release her human form and let the wolf take over. She felt it there, just under the surface. It was close and coming closer. She kept her eyes closed to block out the room, willing this creature inside her to come out. The underside of her skin began to itch violently, and an aching like the middle of winter filled her bones. Just a little more, and she’d have it.

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