started.”
Two hours later they were at the edge of Beyer West forest. The night was cold and bitter. William glanced around, constantly on the lookout.
No one spoke, all the men waiting, tense.
They investigated every sound before moving on. William noted that Adam stayed close to the female. Her eyes glowed red as they walked. The scars stood out in the light of the full moon showing their path.
William wondered at the connection between the two. Adam showed all the signs of a man protecting his woman. Tonight he would have Katie and everything would be okay.
“This is it,” Robert whispered. A small opening covered by green moss, the metal double doors locked and bolted.
“Are you sure?” Jason asked.
Robert nodded, touching the door. “It makes sense. Abandoned in a place we wouldn’t think to look.”
William had his doubts. This wasn’t a place of recent death. He hoped to God Robert was right, but his gut was telling him to run. To get away.
This could be his one chance at getting Katie back.
Don moved forwards and under his brute strength the lock gave way easily enough. The doors creaked as they were pushed open. Darkness greeted them, the smell of blood permeating the air. William began to sniff, to see if there was any trace of Katie. Nothing. He pushed past Robert, charging forwards, his impatience growing with every passing second. She might be in this room, even if he couldn’t smell her.
The others followed, with Don and Robert close at his back, weapons poised and ready.
Where are you, Katie?
Adam brought up the rear behind Poppy. Some men kept watch outside as the others moved down the corridor, their vision tolerable even in the dark as they were creatures of the night. The silence was abnormal, the smell of death and decay strong.
William looked around and saw that Poppy was shaking. The smell was stronger with every passing step.
They entered a large room and William jumped as the large door slammed shut. He didn’t have time to process the noise before he noticed bodies littering the floor. Dead, dried blood covered the walls, the floor and the bodies.
“This is not normal…” Poppy spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear. William could even hear the chattering of her teeth. “They’re not dead.”
Frowning, he looked at the bodies.
“What do you mean?” Robert demanded.
William looked amongst the sea of dead bodies. And he knew.
He backed away slowly.
“Robert, who gave you this information?” he said, desperate to keep his voice low and calm.
“A minion working for the council,” he answered straight away.
“Whoever it was doesn’t work for the council anymore.”
“What?” Robert growled.
“Holy shit!” Adam yelled.
The bodies, the supposedly dead bodies, twisted and convulsed. William stared at them. They couldn’t be werewolves. Natural werewolves shifted in a flash. These were twisting, the bones snapping, howls and screams escaping.
“It’s a motherfucking trap!” William yelled.
Hundreds of bodies mutated into giant, ferocious wolves. Half-breeds. Humans turned by the bite of a natural born werewolf. Vicious, unpredictable beasts. Their heads turned towards the new smell in the room—the smell of vampire. The smell of the enemy.
William knew they were outnumbered. He tensed, aiming his gun. All of the Valentine men were in this room. Don, the next most powerful, many of the council members. This was not only a trap—this was an annihilation.
“Fire back!”
Gun shots and fighting ensued. William took down three wolves before he had to start using his fists.
His last thoughts were of Katie.
“I love you Katie,” he whispered, hoping in his heart that she would somehow get his message.
Chapter Six
“Wait and see about what?” Katie climbed off the bed.
James spun around and looked at the clock beside the bed. He chuckled. He looked crazy.
“Well, you see, I sent William a little message about your whereabouts,” he said, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
“The dead bodies I saw?” Katie panicked.
“My way of telling the Valentine men to go and fuck themselves.”
“You’re going to kill William?” she screamed.
“My dear girl, he’s probably already dead.”
Katie moved away from him, her heart racing, her head hurting.
Think, Katie think. William can’t be dead. You promised him.
She paced, not caring what James thought. She had to find William. He wasn’t dead. She would have felt it—she was sure she would have.
No, not dead.
“I love you, Katie.” Katie heard the whisper echo across her temple. She recognised the voice. William was in a trap. She had to help him! If he could connect with her here, she could try to save him.
They were