Blood Moon (31 page)

The warring emotions were suddenly yanked
back the second I heard the telltale sound of bone cracking. No,
bones
. Plural. It wasn’t an overly loud sound, meaning it
wasn’t a large bone that splintered, and the minute I saw his
fingers begin to bend, his knuckles contorting at impossible
angles, I realized
that
was what I heard, and I panicked,
thinking something had gone terribly wrong.

This can’t be normal,
I tried to tell
myself, unable to take in enough oxygen as alarm set in completely.
My first thought was that I needed to call an ambulance or get him
to a hospital, but I couldn’t even move. I remained seated next to
him, completely transfixed by what was happening to him. My eyes
momentarily left his hands, expecting to find pain and agony all
over Nick’s face, but all I found was focus and determination in
the furrow of his brow. His skin slowly turned red and beads of
sweat started to form on his forehead. It wasn’t until a smile of
satisfaction slowly formed on his face that I glanced back to his
hand and gasped audibly.

It was…well, it was unlike anything I’d ever
seen. What I witnessed was nothing like what you saw in the movies
or even the milder television shows where it was an instantaneous
and magical change with absolutely no trauma to the body. This
looked excruciating, not to mention grotesque and absolutely
horrifying. Forget trauma to the body…what happened to a person’s
mental stability during this process? Concerned, I tried to speak
up, but I was paralyzed. A light sheen of sweat covered his arms
now, and I watched in abject horror as his wrist snapped back, the
sound of his bones continuing to crack burning into my memory.
Nothing could cleanse this from my memory. His fingers curled in
toward the palm of his hand, and I watched in absolute terror as
new skin formed over his hand somehow.

Believe it or not, that wasn’t even the
worst of it. While it definitely wasn’t the most appealing sight in
the world, a pretty violent bout of nausea presented itself as five
sharp claws started tearing through his skin, right below his
knuckles. It trumped everything I’d seen so far. I could smell the
small amount of blood that mixed with the sweat on his skin, and
then I watched as his skin darkened… No, it wasn’t the actual skin
that darkened; new hair was sprouting, coming in quickly, thicker,
coarser, and a shade darker than the light hair that currently
covered his forearms and head.

My breathing increased, my heart hammering
almost painfully against my ribs. I tried to tell myself that this
had to be normal, but it looked bad. Really,
really
bad.

Then it was all over. The scent of sweat and
blood still lingered in the air, but nowhere near as potent. I
stared, unable to process what I was looking at. One minute, it was
his hand—a hand I’d held—and now there was a much larger version of
a dog’s paw attached to Nick’s arm where said hand
used
to
be. I couldn’t stop myself from reaching out and touching it,
feeling the coarse fur against the pads of my fingers.

Is this really happening?

It never occurred to me that Nick might not
have been a fan of being petted like a domesticated dog, but when I
looked up and found him smiling proudly, I realized I was wrong. He
loved this far more than I’d thought possible.

Suddenly, the front door slammed, startling
me and making me jump. Nick pulled back his arm, almost like he was
trying to hide it from our unannounced company. One sniff of the
air was all it took for me to recognize who it was…even though I’d
only met him once before. His scent was vaguely different—a little
more human and a little less dirty dog—but I’d know it
anywhere.

Jackson.

The second he entered the room, the hairs on
the back of my neck stood on end, and a rumble formed in my throat.
I realized this was something I did when I felt defensive or
territorial.

Weird.

The fact that I experienced such a visceral
reaction to his scent had to mean something. Yes, I suspected he
was the one who bit me—and by suspected, I mean I was pretty damn
sure of it—but there was something else about the way he carried
himself that was off-putting.

This was the first time I’d met him in his
human state, but I could recognize him by his eyes alone. Not only
were the color of his eyes the same as that wolf, with an added bit
of dark brown around the edge of his irises, but the way he leered
at me unnerved me.

“Showing off again?” he quipped, leaning
against the wall and tilting his head toward Nick’s hand.

Nick released a warning growl, shooting a
glare at our unwelcome interruption. Within seconds, and with far
less effort than the initial transformation took moments ago,
Nick’s hand was back to normal. It raised the question of increased
difficulty when maintaining control over a partial shift when you
lost focus. I guess that was something I’d have to ask about.

“Why are you back here already, Jax?” Nick
demanded, an edge of authority in his voice. “I’m pretty sure you
haven’t accomplished what I’ve asked of you.”

I looked between the two of them to find
Nick’s eyes on Jackson, but the gesture was not returned. Instead,
Jackson’s brown eyes were fixed on me. Partially shielded with
Nick’s body between us, I took the opportunity to look the man
over. He was tall, but not as tall as Nick, falling two—maybe
three—inches shorter, and he wasn’t as broad-shouldered either. It
was obvious that he kept himself in pretty decent shape. I noted
the cocky smirk and how his brown hair, long and wild like he’d
been caught in a windstorm, framed his slim, hard-angled face, and
when his smile broadened, I realized how perfect and white his
teeth were. If his presence wasn’t so upsetting to me, I might have
found him attractive.

Big “might.”

His eyes scanned down the length of my body
appraisingly before Nick shifted two inches to the right, blocking
me further. “Lost the scent. The guys are still out looking, but
thought we could use you and your superior sense of smell to help
us out.”

Notes of jealousy and sarcasm haloed his
words, and the way Nick’s arms and neck tensed indicated that I was
right. There was definitely animosity between these two. Did Nick
blame Jackson for forcing this life on him too? I would understand
that and jump right on the bandwagon.

“L-lost the scent of what?” I asked,
stepping forward slightly and placing a hand on Nick’s arm. I
hadn’t even realized I’d been thinking it until I heard it out
loud.

Jackson chuckled darkly, dropping his eyes
to his dirt-covered fingers as if inspecting them. “The bastards
we’re here to kill, kid.”

Kill? He wasn’t serious. No. Clearly, I
didn’t hear him correctly, because that was a pretty brazen
admission to be making in front of a cop. I had to ask, though, but
just as I prepared to prod him for a little more info, Nick cut
in.

“Jax…” The rumble returned to Nick’s deep
voice. “Leave her out of this. She’s not ready for that shit.”

I pulled back on Nick’s bicep to get him to
look at me—his big, strong bicep…

I gave my head a quick shake and chastised
myself inwardly.
Now is
not
the time.
“What are you
talking about?” I asked.

With an aggravated sigh, Nick turned around.
“There’s still so much you don’t know,” he explained, looking
increasingly nervous as he shot an angry glare over his shoulder at
Jackson. “And until we know more about what we’re up against, I
think it’s best I keep you as uninformed as possible. I’m afraid
that if I tell you too much too soon it could put you and…” cue
awkward pause “…your loved ones at unnecessary risk.”

Frustrated, I crossed my arms and narrowed
my eyes at Nick. “And you think that by keeping me in the dark,
I’ll be safer?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll be waiting outside,” Jackson
interrupted, and I heard the satisfaction in his voice at having
ruffled our feathers. Bastard. “Nice seeing you again, kid.”

“Go to hell,” I muttered under my breath,
the hairs on the back of my neck prickling again.

“Oooh,” he replied with a smug laugh, his
voice fading as he made his way back to the front door. “She
bites.”

Anger pulsed through my veins, and I took a
threatening step forward. I tried to move around Nick, but he
gripped my upper arm firmly, holding me in place. “Brooke,” he
warned softly, “let it go. I don’t need you going head to head with
my second in command.” When I continued to scowl, Nick smirked. “I
don’t think he’d appreciate you kicking his ass and taking his
place. He doesn’t take too kindly to those who do that to him.”

There was a mischievous glimmer in his eyes,
leading me to believe that Nick knew this from personal experience.
“Did you…?”

His shrug mirrored his expression, which was
equal parts smug and confident. “He pissed me off about a year
after I’d joined the Pack. Marcus had us all out on a mission, and
one night Jax put Marcus in jeopardy—not intentionally, he says—but
I was having none of it. We fought. I won. Marcus promoted me to
Jax’s position. It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there.”

It was obvious that he used this ridiculous
pun as a ploy to take the edge off my existing anger…and damn him,
it worked. My lips curled up into a smile, and I rolled my eyes.
“Funny.”

“I’ve always tried to keep you entertained,”
he quipped before reaching forward and taking my hand in his. A
look of shame flashed in his eyes, but this didn’t stop his thumb
from moving back and forth over my skin. And I let him, breath
shuddering and heart beating faster as I glanced down between
us.

“So, honestly, how are you with everything?”
he inquired nervously. “Did I freak you out?”

“Surprisingly, no. Even though the idea
should sound preposterous—I mean, werewolves? Come on. There’s a
part of me that, I think, always knew the truth. I just wouldn’t
let myself make sense of it,” I confessed. “But I think I’m ready
to learn, and I have to admit, the added strength and heightened
senses kind of kick ass.”

Nick laughed heartily. “Yeah, I didn’t think
you’d have a problem with that part.”

He continued to hold my hand, slowly
bringing it up between us, and when his eyes caught mine, looking
at me with a longing that mirrored my own, I grew flustered. I
tried to tamp it down, to extinguish it before it burned out of
control, but it was a wasted effort. Every time I pushed him from
my thoughts, he forced his way back in, regardless of whom my heart
might belong to at the moment. Maybe it had something to do with
our past, or maybe it was just hardwired into my new self—some kind
of primal need to be close to others like me. Whatever the reason,
I wanted to deny the pull he had over me, but I just…couldn’t.

Then my guilt crept back in, because I
remembered how David was back at home, sleeping. Completely unaware
of where I was or who I was with.

Tugging my hand away from Nick, severing our
physical connection—though it did nothing to break the emotional
one that was reforming day by day—I wrapped my arms around my
middle and turned toward the living room window. “I should head
home,” I whispered, focusing on the yellow-orange glow of the
streetlight on the asphalt. “In case David wakes.”

The air in the room shifted from pleasant to
hostile in less than a second. “Yeah,” Nick agreed, his voice
clipped. “I suppose you should. I’ve got shit to do anyway.”

“Right.” Leaving it at that, I walked around
Nick and headed for the door. I couldn’t help but feel rejected and
like he was pushing me away—even if I was the one to push first. It
was completely unfounded for me to even feel this way, but I
did.

I pulled the front door open and was about
to leave when Nick appeared beside me, his hand gripping the side
of it and holding firm so I couldn’t slip through. “Let me walk you
home,” he offered, his apology unspoken but visible in his warm
eyes. “While I’m sure you can handle yourself, I’d hate if you
encountered any more assholes… Really, I’d be protecting them.”

Unable to contain a light laugh, I accepted.
“Sure. Thanks.”

The instant we walked out onto the front
stoop, Jackson turned to us expectantly, his eyes wide. Then he
spotted me and rolled his eyes. “So now she’s tagging along?”

“I’m taking her home,” Nick barked. “Go on
without me. Gather the others and I’ll catch up.”

It looked like Jackson might try to argue,
but one sharp look from Nick and he kept his mouth shut. But not
happily. Turning on his heel with far more hostility than a grown
man should be able to muster, he stalked off into the night,
picking up the pace as he crossed the street and disappeared into
the darkness. Nick and I walked side by side down the sidewalk, and
a few seconds later we heard a wolf howl in the night. Shortly
after that, and from a little further in the distance, more joined
in.

“How many of you are there?”

“Total?” Nick asked. “Or in town?”

“In town.” Though, now I was curious and
wanted to know the answer to the former, too.

“Just the five of us,” Nick informed me as
coolly as if he was talking about the weather. “From the Pack at
least. There are others of our kind out there, but they just stick
to the shadows when any of us are around since they don’t really
abide by Pack Law.”

“Pack Law?” It amazed me that there was this
whole other world existing within our own, and I’d never even
realized it. Ignorance apparently was bliss, after all. “So, these
others…they’re the seedy underbelly of your organization?”

Nick chuckled, shaking his head and pushing
his shaggy hair off his forehead. “I suppose that’s one way of
looking at it.”

“And there are certain rules you all
follow?”

He nodded once. “Yeah. But we don’t have to
worry about that too much right now. They’re really just a basic
set of principles we live by. Don’t tell anyone about our
existence. Listen to your Alpha. Don’t kill humans. That sort of
thing.”