A Cat's Tale (10 page)

****

Jared’s
betrayal hurt worse than the wound to her throat. Josephine remained supine and
motionless with a hand pressed to her throat, staunching the blood. The bite
wound was low and close to the shoulder. He had missed the vital areas higher
up.

Don’t
shift until I’m gone.

His
final words to her were more real than the voices not too distant outside the
cell. She heard Jared and others, but they might as well have been on another
world. She focused on the sound and registered his hurtful words.

Payback’s
a bitch. She had it coming.

Tears
flowed down Josephine’s cheeks. God, how could she have been so stupid? How
could she be so naive to think for a second that the bastard had forgiven her
betrayal? Her willingness to believe his lies demonstrated the extent of her
weakness and neediness.

For
unknown reasons, Josephine obeyed Jared and remained still, not shapechanging
until the voices had grown distant, indicating they were heading upstairs.

Then
she gathered her strength and rolled to the side. Free of the imprisoning
collar, she slipped from her human form into feline. Unlike a werewolf, her
metamorphosis was not a horrifying, bone cracking thing. Her cat flowed across
her skin as fast and easy as water.

The
magic transformed her flesh and her throat was healed when the change
completed. Blood saturated her fur but the flesh beneath was whole. Later she
would be voracious, but she was otherwise unharmed.

As
a cat, Josephine weighed no more than eleven pounds. Her registered pedigree
was as a seal point Siamese, which meant her points were black and her body
cream-colored. She fit between the bars of the cage and ran for the stairs.
Free
at last!

****

Carl
waited at the top of the staircase. Jared came up behind the human and the
vampires followed the werewolf.

“Party
is through there,” Carl said, pointing the way. “You need anything else from
me?”

“No,
I’m good,” Jared said. His hands turned to claws.

Carl
stank of fear. With a final look, he turned and ran, departing without a word.

The
vampires reached the top of the stairs. “What’s going on?” Evangeline demanded,
suspicious of Carl’s abrupt departure.

“I
think he said something about an appointment with God.” Jared turned and swung
his arm in an upward arch, coming in low and fast. His claw punctured
Evangeline’s gut before the vampire spoke another word.

“You
should have followed your instincts and left me alone,” Jared told her. His
lips curling back in a snarl and his eyes glowed golden. The werewolf shoved
his forearm deeper into the vampire’s abdomen as Evangeline gaped at him in
disbelief. Her flesh was thin and brittle so it was like ripping through tissue
paper. Jared’s claw located the vampire’s heart. It was hard and shriveled and
did not beat. He pierced it with his claws, dragging out the excruciating
execution.

“I
am Alpha of the Roanoke Pack,” he snarled into Evangeline’s horrified face,
speaking around protruding teeth. He stared into her eyes, making sure she
understood
who
she had screwed with. Only when he saw comprehension on
her face did he yank his claw from her chest, ripping her shriveled heart from
her body. Screaming, Evangeline exploded into dust.

The
shocked male vampire reacted, hissing and sporting fangs. He swung at the dust
cloud and hit Jared in the shoulder with a random punch. Arms raised, Jared
plowed straight through the dust, using it for cover. Werewolf claws caught the
vampire in the throat, cutting deep incisions through flesh and bone. The
beheaded corpse collapsed in upon itself, sending up a second cloud of ash.

Jared
emerged sneezing from the cloud and snorted, trying to blow vampire dust from
his nose. His eyes were irritated and watering. He grabbed hold of the silver
bracelet on his right arm and twisted the band until it broke. Then he did the
same with the other.

A
scurrying sound caught his attention and he glanced down in time to catch a
glimpse of a slender Siamese cat as she shot past his feet. Jared paused to
watch Josie flee, figuring it was the last time he’d ever see his cat. She was
free and alive. If he died in the coming fight with the other vampires, then
his honor remained intact, though sullied.

Once
past him, she stopped to stare back. The elegant creature was long and thin in
profile. Shifting had healed the wound on her throat. “You’re smaller than I
expected,” he said with a smirk. Josie laid her ears flat. He did not
apologize.

A
shout came from the end of the hallway and Jared turned, seeing three more
vampires coming toward him. A roar resounded from his chest, challenging the
vampires to fight. His pants split at the seams, falling from his body. Jared
allowed the transformation to take him, embracing his very angry wolf.

He
cast one final glance at Josephine but she was gone. Howling at the top of his
lungs, he charged into battle.

****

Josephine
slunk through the parking lot, moving unnoticed beneath the vehicles. In the
distance, screams and angry growls carried well through the clear night air. More
than one pair of feet ran past her hiding spot and once a car sped through the
lot.

She
came upon a pair of familiar feet beside a battered white pickup truck. It was
Carl, making a lot of noise as he fumbled with a rifle, attempting to load
rounds into the chamber. His hands shook and he dropped a handful of bullets.

A
silver bullet rolled to a stop in front of Josephine. Carl stooped to pick up
his dropped ammunition and Josephine froze. She had chosen a hiding spot right
behind the left rear tire. If Carl looked close enough, he was sure to see her.

Carl
scooped up the bullets near his feet. Then the human grunted and bent, shoving
his arm beneath the vehicle in search of the missing bullet. His menacing
fingers groped closer and closer to Josephine, threatening discovery.

Ears
flattened, she issued a silent hiss and batted the bullet with her paw, sending
it into Carl’s open hand. The man released a rumble of satisfaction and closed
his fingers around the prize. The offending hand withdrew and a second later
Josephine heard the distinct click of the bolt sliding into place.

Carl
moved away from the vehicle, his footsteps loud and then fading as he headed
back toward the house. Josephine agonized for several vital seconds. She had a
good idea what Carl intended and a vengeful part of her wanted to let it
happen. But ultimately, she couldn’t stand by and do nothing. Josephine shot
out from under the vehicle and followed Carl, catching up and keeping pace.

As
she rounded the corner of the house, Josephine caught sight of Jared. The
werewolf had a male vampire pinned against the side of the house. An assortment
of broken furniture littered the ground, the remains of a patio set. A body
floated face down in the pool, darkening the pale blue water with fresh blood.

The
vampire hissed and slugged Jared in the throat, causing the werewolf to gag and
stagger. Carl stopped short of the fighting pair and brought the rifle up,
aiming the gun at Jared’s back.

Josephine
did not hesitate. She shifted to half-cat, half-human and leapt on Carl’s back.
The muzzle of the rifle swung to the right and the shot went wide. Carl lurched
beneath Josephine’s weight, cursing a blue streak.

The
vampire leapt at Jared, attempting to secure a bite hold on the werewolf’s
throat, attacking with hands extended and jaws parted wide to reveal gleaming
fangs. One of Jared’s hands caught the vampire’s face, hooking his mouth. The undead
creature screamed in agony as dagger-like werewolf claws punched holes in the
vampire’s cheek and ripped his face in half.

Carl
bucked and twisted, attempting to retain his hold on the rifle as Josephine
forced his arms down. Her heart raced with the excitement of the hunt and kill.
Her feline nature had been too long denied. The man’s mouth dropped open and he
shouted when he realized the identity of his attacker.

“What
the fuck,” Carl shouted. “What the hell is your problem, cat? He betrayed you.
I’m trying to take care of both our problems.”

Jared’s
claw punched into the vampire’s chest, reaching for his heart. The vampire’s
life ended with a sickening slosh—a sound rather like a flesh bag full of
fluids bursting. Jared’s triumphant howl announced his victory for all within
hearing range.

Josephine
glared at Carl with glittering blue eyes and released a long drawn hiss. “Three
years of your abuse—do you recall that cattle prod? And you have to ask why?”

She
drew back her arms and lashed out with extended claws. Her cat reflexes were
superior to the human’s reactions. Her claws sliced parallel cuts through Carl’s
throat and he died with a stunned murmur. His body fell forward to the ground.

For
several seconds, dead silence reigned. She stared at Jared, and he at her
across a small divide. With a snarl, Josephine tossed back her hair and whirled
upon her heel. She beat a hasty retreat toward the parking lot, tail held high.

She
might have saved Jared’s life, but he had not been forgiven.

****

Josephine
watched the remainder of the carnage from a juniper bush, crouching on bark
dust next to a sprinkler head. She moved through the grounds, following Jared
from a safe distance and watching as the werewolf left a pile of bodies—human
and vampire—in his wake. She saw him return to the house and emerge a short
time later wearing his blue jeans.

Josephine
ambushed him near the garage; an eleven-pound cat sprang out to deal a
punishing bite to the werewolf’s calf through his pants. His blue jeans smelled
of sweat and sex and blood from a week’s wearing without washing. He had
reverted to human form. All of the vampires were dead or fled, and maybe it was
difficult for a full size wolfman to fit behind a steering wheel.

She
wanted—no, needed—his attention, so she leapt out and bit him and then sprang
away. Hers was a sprightly spring charged with enthusiasm for revenge.

“Damn
cat,” Jared said and stopped. He bent and peered into the bush where Josie had
taken refuge. His smile infuriated her and at least he had the sense not to “here
kitty kitty” her.

He
waited and time passed. She debated whether to come out and wondered how long
he would wait. He remained, kneeling on the ground and watching her with his
topaz wolf eyes.

Finally,
he heaved a sigh and sat on the ground. “Josie,” he said in that
fuck-me
voice that she both adored and despised. “Josie, Josie, Josie—you’re pissed. I
get that, I do. You have every right to be.

“I
made choices without asking you. It’s a habit, I suppose, and maybe it doesn’t
seem fair or right to you. But I’m used to making decisions for the people
under my protection. It’s who I am. I am the Alpha of my pack.

“Everything
about you fucks me up and twists me around inside until I have no idea which
direction is up. I never wanted to hurt you, Josie Cat. The first thing to draw
me to you was your fear—I wanted to save you. I wanted to protect you—from me,
from life, from everything.”

And
still he waited. At least an hour had passed before he stood, dangling his car
keys from his fingers. He started to walk away when Josie came at him, shifting
to her cat-woman form which facilitated speech. She rushed Jared in a flurry of
claws and fangs, leaping straight at him. She gouged scratches on his chest and
lacerated his face without the slightest regard for his sight or his beauty.
She fought him with all of her might, uncaring of whether he chose to retaliate
and take her life.

Jared
subdued her, pinning Josie to the ground, her wrists secured at her sides and
her lower body beneath his. It was just like old times. His blood got all over
her; her tears on him. His kissed her face and licked away the tears. “I’m so
sorry, baby. Please believe me; forgive me. I never wanted to hurt you.”

“Liar,”
she screamed and sobbed. “Liar! You deceived me. You tricked me and then, when
I finally trusted you, you betrayed me. Do you have any idea what it took for
me to trust again?”

“You
told that vampire I had it coming,” she said through her tears. He had broken
her heart. “You set out to find the worst possible way to hurt me and then took
revenge.”

Jared
released her hands. “I owe you,” he said, “a debt of honor. Do you want my
eyes, Josie? My throat? My life?” He rolled, bringing her with him so she was
lying on top. He raised his arms, hands beside his head, and assumed a position
of submission.

Her
skin vibrated with the force of his power. Josie stared at Jared, disbelieving,
and her claw snaked out to caress his cheek. Pliant, he turned his head to the
side. He did not flinch when she passed a razor sharp claw over his eye. She
rested the needle point of her nail against his closed eyelid. She could blind
him. Such injuries did not regenerate.

“You’re
an Alpha—
leader of your pack
. Not just a dominant wolf, but
a fucking
Alpha
,” she said. “Seven days and you never saw fit to mention it?”