alpha communication ability as if it were a ramrod.
Energy coursed through my body, surging from my mind, traveling up my arms, and flowing into Loud Mouth like high-voltage electricity. He screamed, throwing his head back, and thrashing as if he was having a seizure. The two vamps that held me jumped back, crying out, and shaking their hands as if they’d been burned.
Red, shimmering energy flowed down my hands and passed into the vampire until he went limp and moved no more.
I let go of his hands and, still glowing, rose to my feet. As if possessed, I glanced back and forth between the remaining attackers. One of them stared at the fallen vamp, then back at me, his eyes brimming with fear and infinite questions. I made as if to grab him, and he turned tail, ran toward one of the front windows, and crashed through it. Shards of glass sprayed all around as he disappeared down the sidewalk. I turned to my remaining attacker, and it only took one look from me to send him running the way of his leech friend.
Feeling the way I did in a trance, I glanced all around me. The music sounded distant. The strobing lights twirled and danced all around, drawing my eyes this way and that. Broken bodies and smashed furniture littered the floor. Puddles of dark blood reflected the light, looking like bottomless wells.
I caught sight of my toes. They were shining from within. I lifted my hands. They glowed, too.
Wow, I’m a light bulb, I mused.
My skin tingled as the energy slowly sputtered out, then disappeared.
At the sound of police sirens, the remaining vampires escaped in a blur of movement. Several wolves took chase, and the sounds of battle quickly died out, leaving behind only the thumping of the music.
I knew I should hunker down behind a table to hide my naked body, but all I could do was stare at a fixed point on the floor, my mind a kaleidoscope of pretty colors.
The music suddenly died with a whine of feedback. Jake ran to my side in his wolf form, his eyes dark with the aftermath of the battle. He checked me up and down, looking for injuries.
“I’m all right,” I said in a mechanical voice.
He pressed his big head to my stomach, exhaling a sigh of relief. I laid my hands on his soft fur, and found comfort in petting him.
Ulfen marched in our direction, wearing a burgundy, silken robe. I blinked, the absurd sight waking me from my stupor. He looked like freaking Hugh Hefner. He held another similar robe in his hands with a pair of slippers on top. He handed them over.
“Here,” he said, keeping his blue eyes focused on mine, for which I was grateful. Maybe he knew that if his gaze had headed south, I would’ve tried to claw his eyes out.
I threw the slippers on the floor and put them on as I stuffed my arms into the silken robe and tied it around my waist. Over Ulfen’s shoulder, I saw others running around in Hugh Hefner robes, busying themselves with righting furniture and pushing bodies out of the way. It seemed they were prepared for naked eventualities, a smart thing for werewolves to do. I took note.
“Want a robe, Knight?” Ulfen asked.
Jake shook his head and bared his teeth. He seemed to be in a protective mood and preferred his wolf shape for the job.
Ulfen shrugged. “Have it your way, but let’s get out of here before the police arrive. This way.” He trudged toward the back of the building, swerving through bodies and debris. I grabbed my clutch from the booth where I’d left it. My ID and Camaro keys were in it. Man, I would have to figure out a way to keep those on me when I shifted.
I glanced down at Jake, questioningly. He gave one nod, so I followed. Jake walked protectively at my side, his claws clicking on the floor. Ulfen led us through the kitchen where the smell of fried food clogged the air. No one was there. Potatoes cut into wedges were turning brown on the prep station, and a pot bubbled madly on an industrial-sized stove. Ulfen ignored all of it and exited through a metal door into the back alley. It was a different exit from the one Jake and I had used to sneak in last time, but it led to the same narrow alleyway.
A black sedan already waited there,