The moon hung in the sky like a brilliant, oversized flashlight. Lila leaned her forehead against the window pane. It felt cool and soothing.
Peering into the illuminated night, she looked out onto the mountain in hopes of spotting Marcus and his pack approaching the castle. She’d had no word from Ben about the rescue Jasper and the werewolves were planning for her, but this would be the prime time for them to do it. She closed her eyes and tried to visualize Jasper in his wolf form as he raced through the woods with the pack, but the pain in her back wouldn’t allow her mind to focus.
Fearful of what was happening to her, she sent a telepathic message to Ben.
“Ben, can you hear me?”
He immediately responded with, “I’ve been trying to connect with you. What’s happening?”
“I feel funny,” she replied. “My back feels like someone is stabbing me with a butch
“This is probably the worst time to be out looking for witches,” Oscar grumbled as he and his small group of vampires followed Samuel into the forest. “The woods will be crawling with werewolves just itching for battle.”“That is true,” Samuel said with a slight nod as he stealthily moved forward. “This is also the time when the witches would not think us being out at all. It is an advantage that will get us a decent catch. Just keep alert.”“Do you know where to find this decent catch?” Oscar asked with a touch of sarcasm.Although Samuel was his maker and he was bound to serve him, Oscar resented that his superior had returned to take control of the den when he not only felt that he was more suited for the position, but he coveted the power and the glory that came with it.“I do,” Samuel informed him. “I learned of their location when I was held prisoner by the wolves. T
Jasper felt the effects of the moon more intensely than in the past. He wondered if it had anything to do with the zombie aspect of himself. Were zombies ruled by the moon? He had no idea. Ben seemed to know a great deal about them. He made a mental note to ask him about it when next they met.Concern that his zombie traits might surface while he was surrounded by a pack of werewolves under the full moon kept him more subdued than usual as they raced through the forest to expend their excess energy. He was stronger than the average werewolf even when he didn’t shift into a full wolf form, but stayed with a human body that had werewolf traits, but he wasn’t strong enough to fight off an entire pack of them should they decide to attack.Coming upon an unsuspecting deer, Joseph quickly took it down. With a long howl, he called for the rest of the pack to join him for the fresh kill. Worried that the zombie in him would take over upon the taste of the fresh mea
Following the tantalizing human captives proved excruciating for Jasper. He longed to push back the vampire in him and return to either simple human form or werewolf form. At least, then, he wouldn’t have to fight the unbelievable urge to suck each and every one of those poor women dry of their life’s blood. He was practically foaming at the mouth from desire.When they reached the portal that camouflaged the castle, he was actually relieved to witness them disappear through the huge boulder that seemed to give way to them as they walked through it.Taking a moment to compose himself, he shifted back into werewolf/man form and marked a nearby tree trunk with his razor sharp claws to assure that he’d be able to find the boulder again before racing back toward the location where he’d left the pack. He’d search for zombies another time. The information he had to share was far too crucial to wait. His only dilemma was who to tell. Should he te
Cora crept to the door to peer into the hall. “I believe it is clear,” she whispered as she returned to Cerie’s side.“Untie me, then,” Cerie urged.The doubt Cora felt was obvious as she asked, “Are you certain that you are strong enough?”Although Cerie’s flesh was beginning to smooth and plump up, she still had the appearance of an old and feeble woman. Cora worried that the witch’s magic was not up to the task of getting her and Bess out of the castle before the vampires discovered what was happening.“Trust me,” Cerie hissed as she struggled against the bindings on her wrists. “Untie me and you will see.”Filling her lungs with air to help reinforce her nerves, Cora’s shaking hands fumbled with the bindings that had prevented the witch from using her magic and caused her to suffer the humiliation at the hands of the vampires.“I am unsure where to
“Have you approached this zombie horde before?” Jasper asked as he and Ben slowly advanced toward a group of snarling and grotesque creatures who were once normal looking humans. “Or, any zombie horde for that matter?”“Nope,” Ben said as he steadfastly moved forward. “I’m banking on that venom in your veins coming to our aid.”Shocked by this remark and furious with himself for not having the foresight to ask the question before they set out on this fool’s mission, Jasper bellowed, “What?”“Look,” Ben said as he pointed toward the advancing horde. “They’re already slowing down.”“Damn, man,” Jasper hissed. “This is foolhardy.”“Ask if they have a leader,” Ben commanded.“Me?” Jasper grumbled. “Why me?”Ben’s impatience with his mission partner was clear when his chest
Lila worriedly wrung her hands as she paced the room. Her baby had been taken from her, Cora had disappeared along with the ancient witch she’d been tending to, and Bess was dead. Without the baby to hide behind or either woman to watch over her, she was completely at the mercy of the vampires.Samuel just left. He’d paid her a visit to give her vampire blood to help her heal more quickly from the birth. Even though he had a small stable of witches for breeding and a magic fix along with female vampires and humans at his disposal for sex, if he so desired, he was eager to get her into his bed. She was secretly surprised that he was considerate enough to allow her the opportunity to heal from the birth before forcing himself upon her.To her horror, the new king had actually declared a type of feeling for her. He claimed that it was love, but she doubted a vampire was capable of that emotion.Hearing about the fate of her fellow coven members, she&rsq
Although not all of the members of the zombie horde agreed with his decision, it took only one order from Hank for them to back off and accept both Jasper and Ben. Since he carried the virus in him, they were unsure about Jasper, but there was no guessing that Ben was a warlock and an enemy of the zombies.Although Ben was left in the dark, Jasper was able to understand the telepathic grumbling and suspicious complaining amongst them. They were not only unhappy about allowing a warlock to walk amongst them, but a zombie-vampire-werewolf tri-bred such as they’d never encountered before was downright unsettling.Wanting to understand them more, Jasper ignored their inhospitable and suspicious attitudes while he moved amongst them. After taking a moment here and there to observe their body language, he began to notice subtle shifts in facial expressions that changed with their moods. He noted that some were more mobile than others. When he returned to Hank, he broug
Freya paced the wrap around porch of her century old house like a caged panther as she fretted over where Jasper could be. Marcus claimed that he went for a final run before the sunrise, but saw nothing of him since. She worried that Jasper may have found out about her taking Marcus to her bed and had gone off to pout over the situation. This was something that she hadn’t considered when she impulsively acted upon her lust.Things were getting out of hand. It was far too dangerous to leave the scientist unattended. He’d already caused too much damage to the wolves’ safety. Alienating him by replacing him in her bed with Marcus might not be the wisest move.From her exposure to vampires during her time on the other plane, she knew that their gestation period was much shorter than that of a werewolf or human. Since vampires were stripped of their reproduction abilities when the great and powerful King Landon banished them, she hadn’t had to pay at