butts right up to the water! We used to come here to get high back in the day.” The truck’s tires kicked up a spray of gravel and dug into the rough terrain well enough to regain some speed.
Keeping her eyes on the Full Blood that now loped behind the vehicle, Paige asked, “How far is it?”
“Less than a mile.”
Although the words were spoken with confidence, Paige didn’t take any comfort from them. She switched out her sickle for the pistols, and when she pulled her triggers, she wasn’t alone. Nadya had the FAMAS against her shoulder and fired in a quick series of three-shot bursts. Weathering the storm of lead, Minh planted her front paws and crouched down in preparation for a leap that would surely overtake the truck. Just as her muscles were tensing for the jump, a .50 caliber round thumped against her front left knee to take that leg out from under her.
Glancing over to Milosh, Paige asked, “Why the hell haven’t you been covering us with that thing until now?”
He pulled the lever to move the rifle’s slide back and then dropped the weapon. “That was my last bullet. Hope we can trust that partner of yours to pull his weight.”
“He’s been pulling his weight long enough to be trusted,” Paige replied fiercely. “You just be sure to do the same.”
Milosh smirked, which curved the scars on his face even more. “For Amriany, the fight doesn’t stop until we are dead. Even then there’s a chance of us taking a few more good swings at whatever needs to be killed.”
Behind the truck, Minh hobbled and licked her leg where it had been shot. Even though the ammunition was treated with a coating that would have allowed it to punch through a Kevlar vest, it wasn’t enough to do more than cause a Full Blood some discomfort. A few seconds later Minh was up and moving again. When Nadya held the metal tube up high enough for it to be spotted, the creature broke into a run.
A rasping howl tore through the night. It only lasted a few seconds, but that was long enough for Paige to be certain the werewolf was less than two hundred yards away and closing in fast. Al followed the road as it turned sharply to the right. When he cranked the wheel to point the truck in the direction of the lake, his headlights illuminated a massive beast covered in thick ebon fur. It shifted to face the truck and then rammed its shoulder into the pickup’s grill.
“Son of a bitch!”
The first two words had escaped Al’s mouth as the truck wrapped around Liam’s body, the last word expelled in a grunt that came when the back tires bounced against the ground. In the rear of the vehicle, Paige, Nadya, and Milosh hung onto whatever they could to keep from being tossed out. They might have stayed inside, but the beating they took in the process made it feel like anything but a victory. Al slammed the truck into reverse and was greeted by a discouraging rattle from beneath the hood.
“Forget it,” Bill said, kicking his door open. “We walk from here!”
“Walk?”
“You’re right,” Bill said, tossing his rifle to the driver so he could take a shotgun from the rack above the rear window. “We should probably run.”
Minh was on her way, but slowed to a walk when the humans began piling out of the truck. She lowered her chest, bared her teeth, and dug her claws in deep enough to create jagged scars in the earth.
Liam shifted into his two-legged form and watched the Skinners with his one gleaming eye. “Where you off to, eh?” When Bill fired his shotgun, Liam turned toward the thump of lead against his shoulder and took half a step in that direction. Al circled around to flank the Full Blood, but Liam intercepted him by lunging and raking his paw along the ground to scoop him up several feet into the air. The werewolf clamped his jaws around the Skinner’s right arm, shoulder, and a good portion of his chest so he could shake the screaming man until Al’s body went limp. All the while, he took no notice of the bullets that thumped against his chest and stomach. When he was done, he spat out the corpse like a piece of unwanted gristle.
The reservoir wasn’t far away, and it took every bit of restraint Paige had to lead Milosh and Nadya into