Sinful Instincts (Woodland Creek) (2 page)

Before I am able to fully acknowledge my transformation, I hear Gabriella scream. And it’s because she is horrified, watching me. Turning back at her, I see my glowing orbs from the reflection of her wide eyes, the leopard gene that consumes part of my body. The anger inside me explodes as I release a feral roar of pure madness. My heart constricts at the terror in her eyes, but the fear for her safety overrides the need to go comfort her.

“Aww, how cute. Are you going to protect her, Sin? You know I’m stronger than you right?” He laughs. “Always have been. Still unsure how a weak half-breed like you was able to take down my father.” He prowls around me. “But in the end, it was I who would have taken leadership when he passed anyhow, so I guess you practically did me a favor. But you know family responsibilities,” he taunts. “I must kill you, but it won’t be before I take something you love first.”

Before Zander has the chance, I lunge at him. The moment I pounce, his animal rips through his back. Any sight of human form disappears, and he transforms into an ugliness of evil. I watch as his body turns from the mirage of a charming lad to the iniquitous leopard beast.

There is something unsettling about how powerful he has become—quicker, more lethal.
But how?

Our bodies collide as we simultaneously swing for each other’s jugular. While we compare in size, his heritage makes him stronger, more forceful. I fight him swing for swing, our forms in a tornado effect, battling to claim the upper hand.

I’ve dreamt about this day. The day when he would come to avenge his father. And the day it would take everything in me to kill him, ending a long lineage of heinous terror and knowing no one from his bloodline would live to harm another soul.

My thoughts weaken me, allowing him to lock me down. He swings back, connecting his sharp claws to my chest. I stumble, which allows him to throw me back against the brick wall, slamming my head against the surface. I fend off the pain but as I retreat, he takes the opportunity to slash me in my abdomen with his extended claws, ripping into my skin. The pain searing, I crumble to the ground.

“Roxsin!” My name echoing off the walls of the alleyway, I roar in response, fighting off the pain that’s forcing me down. I lift myself off the ground, ready to attack, but it’s pointless. As I stand on my hind legs, I witness Zander dragging his fingernails across Gabriella’s neck, slowly and lustfully, enjoying the life escaping her. I howl in desperation to get to her but by the time I do, it’s too late. As she bleeds out, her fragile soul leaves her body and enters Zander’s. I watch in horror while he drains her life force. I shift instantly, making it in time to grab her lifeless body as she falls into my arms, her eyes faded. Her body slumps into my hands as I cradle her. “NO!” I howl, the realization hitting me like a repressed memory.

“No, no, no,” I beg as I rock her back and forth.

Commotion nearby forces Zander to retreat. His agenda quickly changes as he stops from making his way to me.

“It’s your lucky day, Sin. Till next time,” he says before disappearing into the night.

I hold a lifeless Gabriella in my arms, her body cold to the touch. I attempt to save her with my blood, with my power, but nothing resurrects her. Deep down, though, I know it won’t. I witnessed firsthand the new power Zander has gained, and he now holds the one true element that could bring her back.

Her soul.

Present Day

Emma

That’s it.
That is
it
!
I argue to myself. I stumble on the uneven sidewalk as I walk out of Vider’s Bar and into the cold, dewy night. I curse all things evil to Melanie, my coworker at Fibber McGee’s Bar and Grill, who convinced me to attend the stupid speed-dating event.

I mean, what in God’s name was I thinking? I know what those things are about. ‘Tell me about yourself?’ ‘What do you do?’ ‘Are you on Tinder?’ I accidently bump into the garbage can blocking the sidewalk. “Shit.” I stumble, trying to get my bearings.
At least the booze was free
, I grumble as I hiccup and sway to the right.

I’m
so
over this town. Letting my worthless ex- boyfriend talk me into moving with him was the biggest mistake of my life. No, wait. Letting him talk me into only putting
my
name on the lease was the biggest mistake.
You have better credit
, he says. “Stupid fuckwad,” I mumble to my intoxicated myself.

Three weeks ago, I was living in Arizona, with a job, a decent place, and a decent roommate. And now, I’m living in this small dump of a town I’m forced to call home. Three weeks ago, I had a boyfriend who said he loved me and convinced me he loved me
so
much I needed to uproot my life and move with him to Woodland Creek, Indiana because he had a job opportunity and just couldn’t live without me.

What did I do? I fell for his bullshit. What did
he
do? Three days after we’d barely finished unpacking our minimal things, he took off.
After
withdrawing all the money in my measly bank account and leaving me a ‘
Dear John’
letter, if you can believe that shit.

Three pathetic weeks ago, I sat down and explained to my boss that I was quitting, and the expression on his face was pure shock. Why would a girl who didn’t have much to begin with leave such a great job? Okay, so I was only a bank teller, not a CEO, but still. When I told my roommate that I was breaking my lease because I was in love and moving to live with my boyfriend, she looked at me like I was insane.

As I waved goodbye to my old life, all while holding onto my boyfriend’s hand, I looked up at the beautiful sky and swore the clouds even started forming one word: insane. Well that, and before I could officially spell out the word, said clouds opened for a torrential downpour. Nope, that wasn’t a sign or anything.

You wonder why everyone was so hesitant to be happy for me, right? Me, too! I mean, fine, my boyfriend wasn’t from the right side of the tracks. And okay, so maybe he had a bit of a record, a wee bit of a drug problem, and possibly no current job at the time. But he was good to me. He was faithful. He told me sweet things and treated me right. Who was I to judge? I loved him. And he was honestly the first guy I had met in Arizona who actually paid attention to me. Growing up in the system myself, foster home after foster home, no one felt it was necessary to show me any love. So, no shocker that the first guy who does, I latch on to. The very first guy, who basically sideswipes me two months later.

And yes, if you break down my timeline, Scott got me to agree to shift my whole life after two months of dating. And I fell for it. Now, I’m stuck in Woodland Creek, working a day job a monkey could do because it’s the only place hiring, and I’m all alone and broke as a joke.

I came home one day three weeks ago to a letter. Typed, if you can believe that shit. I didn’t even know Scott knew
how
to type, that asshole. Either way, his
typed
letter told me it was fun while it lasted, but he was out. End of story.

Fast-forward this story to the present and here I am, still in Woodland Creek, scratching off the days until my lease is up so I can run back to Arizona with my tail between my legs, in hopes I can get my old job back.

Melanie, my coworker at Fibber McGee’s, spends half of our shifts complaining about her dates and the other half complaining about my lack thereof. I couldn’t care less about the male species. I personally fear that the second I find one, I’ll have a flashback of how much I want to take a sharp knife to Scott’s junk and become violent with my date. I’m sure it might be safer to stick to this love hiatus thing until I calm down. Which may be never.

I make it to the corner and as I step into the street I dodge a car speeding down the road. I almost fall backwards, trying to catch my balance. “Slow down, asshole!” I yell to the back of the blurry rear lights. Woodland Creek is nothing like a metropolis. Nothing like Arizona. More like a town hidden between forests and more forests. Not sure how Scott even knew about this place. I cringe thinking about how much longer I have to spend here. The town which consists of your basics: one main street, the main library, the main car place, and the main bar. Blah blah blah. You know those towns. Everyone knows everyone, and as everyone knows, I’m the girl who was ditched.

And since people in small towns like to talk, while I sat there in the dingy seat at Vider’s, every question was the same. “So, I hear you’re alone.” “I’m sorry to hear what happened to you.” And my favorite, “Are you looking for some comfort tonight, darling?” That’s when I tossed back my final drink and called it quits. Do I look like I’m looking for some comfort? No! Okay, well, a part of me might be... maybe just a little. Okay, fine! Yes, I am. It’s been three weeks since Scott left me, and it’s not like we were all that active before he left. He was acting so strange the first few days we were here, and then he was gone. Probably guilt for knowing he was planning on robbing and ditching me. Prick.

Anywho, could I use a big bang? Duh, who couldn’t? It’s just too bad I’m so done with worthless men. They’re all the same. Useless. If I want an orgasm, I’ll use my shower head. I make a mental note to visit my shower when I get home and also to send a text to Melanie thanking her for nothing, because this night sucked. Like a good girl, I look left and right before I cross the street, making sure I don’t get froggered by a moving vehicle. Just as I take my first step, a hand latches around my neck and pulls me violently into the alley between two brick buildings.

I make an attempt to scream just as a set of filthy hands covers my mouth. I only manage to scream into the palms as I’m dragged farther into the alley, where we’re more hidden in the darkness. I’m kicking and struggling against the strong arms, but it seems useless because my attacker is gigantic compared to my small frame. I hear a male voice laugh sickly as he throws me against the brick wall. My head bangs against the hard surface, causing my brain to rattle.

“You smell amazing, pet.” My attacker purrs, bringing his face closer to mine. Starting from my collarbone, he drags his nose along my skin, smelling me all the way up into my hairline. He slowly releases his hand over my mouth. “What are you, hmmm? You smell so sweet.” His horrible breath hits my cheeks, his face hidden by the darkness of the night. His eyes, though. His eyes resemble glowing orbs.

“Please. Please, don’t hurt me,” I beg. I really do not want to die tonight, especially not, God forbid, in this damn town. That would just be the final straw. Like, literally.

“Oh, pet, I’m not going to hurt you. I’m going to devour you,” he replies with a sick smile. His free hand reaches into his back pocket, I assume for a weapon, since I’ve seen this bad movie before. I begin to panic because no matter how much I hate my life right now, I really don’t want to die. I need to calm down. Mainly sober up, because in my drunken state I swear his eyes are seriously glowing.

Think... think... What would Wonder Woman or Black Widow do at a time like this?

I take the opportunity while my attacker is fiddling in his pocket and bring my knee up quickly, hitting home with a solid crunch to the balls. He flinches, but not as much as I’d hoped.

“Fuck!” My attacker hisses, releasing his hold on me while the sound of metal clanks on the ground. Recovering quickly, he grabs my hair and pulls me backwards as I scream and throw my hands into my hair, fighting to free myself. His grip only tightens and he drags me farther into the alley, tossing me into a pile of garbage bags at the back of the coffee shop. I cover my face to protect my head from further injury. Not that it matters, since it seems I’m going to meet my doom quite soon. I make an attempt to flee, but before I have a chance, my attacker is on me again. I scream at the top of my lungs for help, but it’s pointless since his hand quickly clasps around my mouth.

“No one will hear you, pet. Now, where were we? Oh, yeah. I asked what you were. Your smell, it’s not pure human.”

Well, yeah buddy, maybe that’s because my scent of fear is overriding my dollar-store strawberry body wash.
I try to struggle under his captive hold. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, mister. Please, don’t hurt me. My purse… it has some money in it. You can have it,” I offer, my voice shaky.

“I don’t want your money, sweet girl.” He takes his hand and brushes it through my auburn hair. “I want what is inside of you.”

”WH—WHAT?” I stutter, totally freaking out. This guy apparently has had way more to drink than I have tonight. He slides his monstrous hand down my neck, dragging his long fingernail across my throat, indicating a slice line along my jugular.
Oh, shit, that can’t be a good sign for my future.
I struggle harder, not accepting this is the end of the road for me.

“I look forward to such a sweet dessert, my pet.” He reaches forward, allowing some of the flickering street light to hit his face, and the image before me sends a wave of bile up my throat. The man holding me down is far from a man, but part beast. Some sort of animalistic creature. His eyes glow fiercely at me, while his teeth—
oh, shit are those fucking fangs? And they’re dripping with slimy—oh, God, I'm going to vomit.
But first, I inhale as much air as I can and begin to scream my bloody head off.