The Recruit: Book Two (24 page)

“YOU LIE!”  She screamed and charged towards him.  He dodged
her attack and swung his sword.  It sliced across her thigh and she shrieked
with pain and shock as blood flowed down her leg.

Balancing on one leg she turned to face him.  He was licking
her blood from his sword with his long, grey tongue, and a shudder of pleasure
went across his face.  “So tasty.”  He whispered.  He shot across the short
space that separated them and Hannah blocked his right sword.  His left slipped
under her arm and cut her across the ribs.  She screamed again as the hot blood
coursed down her side and he chuckled merrily as she backed away.

“Do you see, Hannah?  You really have no chance.  You’re too
slow.”  He held out his hand.  “Come.  Let me end your pain.”

Panting, tears slipping down her cheeks and blood pouring
out of her side and thigh, Hannah raised her remaining sword.  “Begin.”  She
whispered softly.

Anger slipped across his face and he snarled loudly. 
“Fine.  Have it your way.”  He snapped.

As he circled around her, Hannah, feeling lightheaded and weak,
struggled to keep her focus. 

Will is dead!  He killed Will!
  Her mind screamed at
her.

No!  It’s lies.  Don’t believe him!
  She scolded
herself fiercely.

It doesn’t matter.  You’re not getting out of here
alive.  There’s only one way to kill him and you know it. 

She suspected that this dark voice, so different from her
usual internal one, was the voice that spoke for the true core of her.  The
voice that revealed itself only in matters of life and death, and it whispered
to her now in the cold and calculating tone of someone who realizes death is
imminent.  The frantic, howling gibbering in her mind stopped abruptly and she
listened intently as the cold voice spoke again. 

Will is dead, your master is dying on the floor behind
you and this creature is the reason why.  You know what you need to do.  Don’t
die a coward’s death.

The pain in her side and thigh faded as a calmness filled
her entire body.  She smiled radiantly at the leech in front of her and
Samuel’s grin dropped from his face.  He gave her a look of uncertainty as she
took a deep breath and lifted her sword a final time.

“Hannah, what are you doing?  Don’t make me – “ 

He was cut off as Hannah sprinted towards him, her eyes
glowing with a mad, fierce light, and a scream of rage and defiance slipping
past her lips.

* * *

Will shot down the hallway towards the administration wing. 
Behind him, he could hear the heavy panting of Mannie and, much further back, the
lighter footsteps of Reid and Selena.  As he turned the corner, he heard Hannah
scream and a shot of adrenaline surged through his body.  He could smell Hannah
now, smell her fear and her anger, and he howled loudly as he bounded toward
the main training room.  He skidded into the room, his paws scrabbling madly on
the slippery floor, just in time to see Hannah charge at Samuel.  She grabbed
his right arm with her left hand, blocking his sword as she raised her own
sword.  Samuel broke her left arm with a sickening crack and she screamed
hoarsely as he yanked her into his embrace and thrust the sword in his left
hand hilt-deep into the middle of her chest.  The tip of his sword ripped
through the back of her shirt and Will stared horrified at the blood-soaked
tip.

He shifted to his human form as Mannie crowded up behind him
and the dark-haired vampire bent his head to Hannah’s.

“I’m going to turn you now, Hannah.”  He whispered.  He
dropped his right sword to the floor and stroked her blood-soaked hair back
from her pale face.  “You’re too valuable for me to just let you die.  Together
we will – “

He paused and stared with mild astonishment at his hand. 
The skin was blackening and he blinked before looking down at his own chest. 

“How…”  He whispered.

As he had pulled her into his embrace, Hannah had thrust her
sword deep into his chest and she grinned up at him as blood poured out of her
mouth. 

“Not so slow.”  She whispered hoarsely as he stepped back,
pulling his sword from her body.  She fell to the floor as he grabbed the
handle of the sword sticking out of his chest and yanked it free.

“No.”  He whispered again.  “No, you can’t do this to me. 
You can’t – “

He burst apart in a huge shower of ash and blood, Hannah’s
sword falling to the floor, as Will screamed Hannah’s name and scrambled
towards her.  He dropped to his knees beside her and cradled her body against
his.

“Will.”  She breathed.  “You’re alive.”  Tears trickled down
her cheeks and Will kissed her bloody mouth gently.

Vaguely he was aware of Mannie cursing and kneeling beside
the fallen Chen, but he ignored him completely as he kissed Hannah’s mouth
again. 

“No, I’m fine.  And you’re going to be just fine too.  We’ll
get you to a hospital and get you patched up.  You’ll be just fine.”  He
babbled.

She smiled at him.  “No, honey.  I won’t.”

“Don’t leave me, Hannah.  Please.”  Will begged her as tears
began to flow down his cheeks.  “I can’t live without you.”

“I’m sorry.”  She said weakly as blood bubbled out of her
mouth.

“It’s okay.”  He kissed her again.  “Please honey, I need
you to just hang on for a little longer.”  He pressed his hand against the
wound on her chest, trying to stem the blood.  “Just – just be strong and brave
and – “

“I love you.”  She whispered. 

“I love you too.  Don’t leave me, okay?  Don’t – “

He watched as Hannah’s eyes slipped shut and he lifted his
head and howled as Reid and Selena sprinted into the room.  As they ran towards
them, Will stared down at Hannah’s face.

“Forgive me.”  He whispered as his mouth widened and his
fangs lengthened.  With another short howl of pain and despair, he bent his
head and sunk his teeth deep into her neck. 

She cried out, her entire body arching upwards as her blood,
warm and deliciously sweet, filled his mouth.  He bit deeper, holding her body
against his as she struggled weakly in his arms.  With a loud growl he tore his
mouth from her neck and howled again, his lips ringed with Hannah’s blood,
before staring down at her.

Selena, panting harshly, dropped to her knees beside them
and touched Hannah’s cold hand.  Her eyes were closed and her face was pale, and
Selena glanced at Will.  “She’s dead.”

Will shook his head and Selena touched his shoulder
gingerly.  “Will, she’s – “

Hannah took a large breath, her entire body heaving with the
effort and Selena gave a small shriek of surprise.

“Oh my God.”  Selena whispered.  Colour was returning to
Hannah’s face and she reached out with trembling fingers and ripped open
Hannah’s shirt.  She watched as the gaping wound in the middle of Hannah’s
chest began to close, the flesh knitting itself together before her eyes. 

“Holy shit.”  Her eyes dropped to Hannah’s side.  There was
a long, deep cut across her ribs that was rapidly healing over and she slid
back as a soft growling began to rise from Hannah’s chest.

Selena bumped into Reid’s legs and she glanced upwards at his
pale and shocked face.  Hannah’s eyes opened, their former dark brown colour a
brilliant shade of jade, and she stared unblinkingly at the ceiling as Reid
looked at Will with horror and disgust.

“What have you done?”

End

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* * * *

Please enjoy a sample of The Recruit (Book Three)

THE RECRUIT (BOOK THREE)

By Elizabeth Kelly

* * * *

Copyright 2014 Elizabeth Kelly

“He’s avoiding me, Douglas.”

The old Lycan sighed and sipped at his cup of tea.  “He’s
ashamed at what he’s done, Hannah.  He needs some time to figure it out.”

Hannah stared into her own cup of tea.  “He shouldn’t be
ashamed.  He saved my life.  If he would talk to me for just one goddamn
minute, I’d tell him that myself.  I’d tell him how grateful I am for what he
did and how much I love him.  But he won’t even step foot in the facility.”

Douglas reached out and squeezed her hand.  “Generally
speaking, it’s frowned upon by other Lycans when one of our kind turns a
human.  Will is reacting to that.  He knows you love him.”

She gave him a curious look.  “Why is it frowned upon?”

He looked decidedly uncomfortable and she pressed him
further.  “Douglas?  Why is it frowned on?”

He stood and poured them both more tea.  “They, and trust me
when I say that not all Lycans feel this way but a great majority of them do, believe
that humans are weak.  And humans who have become Lycans through a bite are thought
to be, well, unpredictable and dangerous.”

Hannah didn’t reply and Douglas sat down next to her. 
“Centuries ago, it was common practice for Lycans to turn humans.  They did it
for a variety of reasons – sometimes it was just for sport, sometimes they had
no choice, and at one very dark time in our past, they did it to keep the
bloodlines going.”

“What do you mean?”

“There was a – a type of Black Plague that swept through the
Lycan race many, many years ago.  It took out sixty percent of our population
and in desperation, Lycans began turning humans.”

“So why is there such a problem with it now?”  Hannah asked.

Douglas gave her a hesitant look.  “There is some truth to
the belief that humans who have been turned are unpredictable and dangerous. 
There have been many documented cases of them turning on other Lycans and
humans.  They can have a difficult time controlling their Lycan side,
especially during the full moon, and many of us who were born Lycan began to
worry that their inability to control their wolf would expose us to the
humans.  There were more than a few who were afraid of these – these hybrid
Lycans for lack of a better word.”

Hannah stared thoughtfully at him.  “Are you afraid of me,
Douglas?”

He shook his head.  “No.  You’re strong and have a good
heart.  You won’t hurt me or anyone else.”

She gave him a small smile.  “Truthfully, I don’t feel that
much different.”

He nodded.  “That’s because it’s only been a few days,
Hannah.  Over the next week or so you’re going to start noticing changes.  Your
sense of smell will heighten, your eyesight will improve and you’ll be faster
and stronger.”

She gave him a look of doubt and he patted her hand gently. 
“It’s true.  I know it’s hard to believe, but it will happen.  Some humans just
take longer than others.  I knew of one human, years ago, who took nearly six
months before he shifted for the first time.”

He took a sip of tea.  “When you do shift for the first
time, it can be painful and disorienting.  You shouldn’t expect to have full
control of your Lycan side immediately.  Constance and I, and Will, will teach
you how to control it.  You’ll be fine.  I promise.”

“Will won’t be able to help me do anything if he won’t even
talk to me.”  She said moodily.

He cleared his throat nervously.  “There’s something else
you should know, Hannah.  There are quite a few people in the facility who
believe that Will turned you because of his issue with humans and Lycans
mating.  They – they think he did it on purpose so that you could be together
without any of the stigma attached.”

She gaped at him.  “Are you kidding me?”

He shook his head.  “I wish I were.  There’s been enough
talk about it that the Board of Directors has become involved.  They’re
considering firing Will as an instructor and asking him to leave the facility. 
The rumour is that when the new head of the facility arrives, he’ll be
evaluating Will’s performance closely and making a decision on whether to keep
him or not.”

“They can’t do that!”  Hannah stood up abruptly.  Her hands
clenched into fists and knocked her cup of tea off the island counter.  It
shattered on the floor but she paid no attention to it as she glared at
Douglas.  Her eyes were fading from brown to green and Douglas held his hands
up in a soothing manner as her body began to swell and hair sprouted on her
cheeks.

“Calm down, Hannah.”

“Calm down?”  She arched her eyebrow at him and then
growled.  “You want me to calm down, old man?  The man I love – the man who
saved my life and countless other lives – is going to be thrown from the very
facility that he’s spent half his life defending and you want me to calm down?”

“Yes.”  Douglas said firmly.

She was panting harshly and the seams of her t-shirt were
beginning to rip.  She glanced down at herself and then gave Douglas a look of
fear and confusion.  “Douglas?  I feel so strange.”

“Take some deep breaths, Hannah.  I know you’re upset about
the situation with Will but your anger and your fear is bringing on your first
shift.  This is neither the time nor place for it.  If you relax, it will
stop.”

She shook her head, her eyes wide with a combination of fear
and anger.  “I can’t.”

“You can.”  He replied. 

She made a soft moaning noise that turned into a low growl. 
“I won’t let them hurt Will.  He turned me to save my life, not because he had
some hidden agenda.  If they even try to accuse him of that or kick him out of
the facility, I’ll make them pay.  All of them.”

“Enough, Hannah!  Pull yourself together and focus!” 
Douglas said sharply.

She snarled at him as her teeth turned to fangs and her
nails lengthened to sharp points.  “Don’t tell me what to do, old man. 

Douglas stood up and backed away as Hannah’s body continued
to swell.  She growled again as she fell to her hands and knees.  She glanced
up at him and gave him a look of agonizing fear.  “Help me, Douglas.”