“No! Let me go.” Struggling, she twisted. She turned and got the impression the man allowed it. Too bad for him. She thrust her knife forward, and his hand manacled around her wrist and, without a word, he pulled her arm straight, inspecting the claw marks. Snarls ripped through the air behind them. Teeth clashed and a thickening cloud of dust started to spread around the area. A yelp sounded, and the vampire spun around and cursed.
“Don’t move.” With a final glance he released her and spun, running into the wolves.
Like hell she was going to wait. She glanced at the fight once more and confirmed the creatures were heavily in battle. With any luck they wouldn’t notice if she slipped away. Darting into the trees, she ran for safety. The sounds of the animals fighting filled her with adrenaline. She pumped her arms and ran until her lungs burned, and the stitch in her side stabbed through her torso. The trees thinned, the valley opening up to a sweeping field. Her body protested as she closed the distance and ran up the slight hill to her car.
Her gaze darted around and, to her relief, people had packed up and left the area. She wouldn’t be responsible for innocents dying that day. Shoving her hands into her pockets, she grabbed her keys and jammed them into the lock. “Come on. Come on.”
Glancing over her shoulder, her eyes widened. A wolf crept across the field, parting the knee-length grass like a tunnel. Yanking the door open, she shoved herself inside and crammed the keys into the ignition, the engine purring to life. In the rearview mirror, she could still see the wolf running her way. Adrenaline made her hands shaky, and she fumbled to place the car in gear. Her transmission grounded out a protest before her car slipped into reverse. Dirt spun, shrouding the area in a cloud of dust. One last look in the rearview mirror had her heartbeat doing double time as the wolf cusped the hill, its silver gaze glowing through the dust, its sight set on her.
Doctor Marie LeRoy crumpled the report, threw it across the room, and screamed. Fury and desperation fueled her movements.
Another failed attempt.
She stared at the photo of her little girl, Hope, and bitterly thought no child should have to go through what her baby suffered. Picking up the frame, Marie gently brushed a finger down Hope’s angelic appearance, smiling at the way her dark curls fell around her face. Her smile dimmed. It had been a year since Hope’s hair had fallen out, and despite everything the horrid medications had done, her girl remained mostly a happy, well-spirited child.
“I’ll do anything to save you. Anything!” A vow she made daily, and over the past couple of months she had lived up to. The things she’d done were despicable. Something, once upon a time, she would have never even fathomed a human being capable of. That was before she knew the truth. Before there was hope to save her daughter.
For her whole life, Marie had thought werewolves were fantastical myths found in books and movies. Now she knew better. Without even looking at the picture she had taken, she could see the creature in the alley—half man, half beast. To that day, she didn’t know what made her take the picture, but when the flash had drawn the werewolf’s attention, she had been terrified, and as soon as she got home, she’d packed up all of her belongings and fled.
As it did every day, her mind whirled with possibilities. Without her brother-in-law, William’s, financial backing, the whole endeavor wouldn’t have gotten off the ground. He had even given her two women to use. At first, she had been appalled to know the man held women prisoners, using them as he wished, then the thought of saving her daughter had squashed any moral dilemmas that would have interfered with her tests.
Her phone rang and she picked it up, knowing it would be William, the only person who had her number. “William, what can I do for you?”
“Has there been any more progress?” His gruff voice came down the line, and she could hear him drawing on his cigar.
The man had always been demanding. How on earth did her sister tolerate him? If there had been progress she’d be long gone, taking her cured Hope and leaving the whole program to burn to ashes. She closed her eyes for a moment, but too many