My shoulders relax a bit, and I glance down at the floor. I sympathize with him. I know what it’s like to want to avenge your parents. He may have his hatred misguided, but he’s probably just acting on what he’s been told his whole life.
“Sure, you have one disgusting trait, but I can ignore that. You're still mostly human. We can use your powers to make the hunters more powerful. We can eradicate the werewolves completely. We can even get rid of Cameron. The Human Liaison is always the most powerful and protected, but with your help, we could end their reign for good.”
I snap away from him, shock turning into a boiling anger. “Do you hear yourself? What is wrong with you?” I didn’t speak too harshly before. I thought I’d known Jack, but I guess I never did. Having a dead mother doesn’t excuse genocide.
The softness from his face disappears. In its place lies a cold and unnerving mask. I dart to the other side of his room. He speaks harshly, “I’d think about this before youdo anything rash. It could be deadly if you don’t agree to help the hunters.”
I force out a laugh. “You think you could defeat the werewolves just because you have weapons? They have supernatural strength.Ihave supernatural strength.”
Now, he gives an ugly laugh. Suddenly, all his beauty disappears. He steps closer to me. “You seem very confident in your abilities. I’m sure you don’t even understand yet. Hunters are stronger than you think. I mean, look at all those werewolves we killed and left in the clearing.”
“You…” I struggle to get the words from my throat. “You killed all those people? You said werewolves were the murderers.”
“I didn’t want to reveal everything to you yet. You just found out your father was part werewolf. You needed some time to realize how evil they were before I told you more. We had already made it look like animal attacks so the police would think it was their fault. Maybe then they would stop protecting the Human Liaison, but it didn’t work. They were just more scared to take any action.”
There it is—the truth to the story that brought me here. Days ago, I would have thought the answer to the mystery would bring me closure—this was all I needed to go home. But now, this truth might bring me to my end. Surely, Jack won’t let me go home with this knowledge—not thatit would be possible to return to my normal life anyway. Cameron’s face pops into my brain.
I clear my throat. “We’re too powerful for you to kill all of us, even with my help.”
He’s getting closer to me, pushing me into a corner. “I wish you’d stop lumping yourself in with those bastards. You’re different. But no, except Cameron, most werewolves are no match for our years of training. The Human Liaison is always the strongest. Maybe after today, we’ll get him, but I doubt it. Sure, we could defeat him with all our manpower and silver chains, but there’s an agreement to leave him alone as long as the rest of the humans are safe. That agreement is now broken, not that we cared to keep it intact. He was just the last one on our kill list. They are the only werewolf that discloses their identity publicly to state officials. They keep the peace between humans and Weres. Once one of us finds the identity of a Were, we kill them, but it’s not so simple with the Human Liaison. But with you… he obviously seems fond of you and with yourpowers…”
“Stop! I’m not going to help you! I love him!” I don’t know why I say it. Surely, I don’t believe it. I just met the guy and hated him literally yesterday, but the words popped out of my mouth without control. My emotions are too all over the place right now. Maybe that’s why I’m not speaking rationally. Sure, it’s obvious I feel strongly for him, but love? Love is crazy.
He looms over me as my back hits the wall—outstretching his arms on either side of my head. “Love him? We fucked a few days ago.” He shakes his head. I don’t recognize his face. “I bet you fucked him too, didn’t you?” He turns his head away from me as if my smell repulses him. “God, did you move to New York and become a slut?” His eyes turn back to mine, blazing with rage.
My mind turns to survival mode. Right now, I need to stop defending Cameron and the werewolves. I need to get the hell out of here because I’m cornered by the real beast in the woods.
His eyes study mine, darting back and forth as if he’s trying to find the best words to slice me. “I’d rather you’d help with your own free will, but if you refuse, we have ways to erase your memories. Just like we did with Granny.” He runs a finger down my cheek, and my stomach flips. “It’s not pretty and may take years, but we’ll get your mind how we want it. We can use you for our cause.” He stops—his face morphing as if an idea popped into his head. “With your powers and my influence, we could bring a new generation of Hunters.” He has an evil smile. “God, I might just keep Cameron alive long enough so he can witness you carryingmy child.”
Okay, it's time to freak out. Jack is long past jaded lover and has reached explosive manic levels. Normally, my fight or flight would kick in, and I would choose the latter, but something different boils through me. Red covers my vision, and before I even have a second to think, I grab Jack’s throat.
His eyes bulge, and he reaches for my wrist. He claws at my hands, but I don’t let up, watching as the panic and shock rises to his eyes. My mind races with what to do next. I hope I can cut his airway off long enough that he passes out. He’s an evil man, and I hate him right now, but I don’t want to kill him. With all my thoughts, I must release a small amount of pressure.
Jack brings up his knee, hitting me in the stomach. Even with my powers ignited, the surprise attack knocks the air from my body and releases my hold on my strength. I double over.
Jack is too quick, and before I have time to attack again, he hits my chin and knocks my head against the back of the wall. I’m slumped on the ground, my vision tunneling to darkness. So much for wolfy powers.
31
When I Need You Most
Pain in my head and neck wakes me from my slumber. As I blink my eyes open and slowly register my surroundings, the pounding from the back of my head increases. Jesus Christ, if I make it out of Jack’s dungeon, I’ll need to see a doctor. From how many times I’ve been knocked out over the last few days, I should be brain-dead. I pray my werewolf strength can help me withstand injuries, although I’m not confident in my abilities after being overtaken bya man yet again.
I wiggle my hands, tied behind my back to the wooden chair I’m sitting on, and swivel my head, looking for any opportunity to escape. Jack placed my chair in the middle of the room, right under the creepy dangling lightbulb. It’s not on, though; the only light comes from the foggy window to my left. I push myself up in the chair to scoot to the workbench. I slam back onto the concrete floor without even moving an inch. It will take forever to reach the other side of the room. By the time I make any progress, Jack will likely be back. Hello? Wolfy strength. Where are you now when I need you most?
I stop struggling for a moment, the pain from my position begging for my attention. “Fuck,” I mutter as I let my head drop to my chest. How could I be so stupid? I should have picked up on the signs that Jack was a psychopath. I used to believe no one could be completely evil—they had to have a motive. Even when Jack had me hating the werewolves, a part of me couldn’t rationalize hating a whole group. But witnessing Jack’s hate toward the Weres changes my mind. Sure, his mother was killed by Were—so he thinks—but to commit mass murder to such a large group of werewolves—not just Weres, people—evil must surely swim through his veins.
Still, I shouldn’t have said IlovedCameron when it’s not even true. Of course, that would push Jack over the edge.I should have just said whatever I could to get the hell out of Jack’s cabin and back to Granny.
Granny.Surely, she’s filed a missing person for me by now. At her age, worrying about me can’t be good for her health, but maybe Jack’s told her some sort of lie to keep her off the case. My mind races with horrible images of the torture Granny must have endured to forget about my family’s lineage. Why would they want her to forget her Hunter history and that her son-in-law was a werewolf? I guess she’d grown to love my father, but the Hunters didn’t want her to grow soft.
No,that’s not it. How could I be so stupid?
Werewolves didn’t murder my parents. The Hunters did.
A sob escapes from the back of my throat. I’d been so shocked to hear that the Hunters were the ones to kill all those people that I didn’t put the pieces together to realize that if the Hunters were so set on eradicating werewolves, obviously, my dad would be on their kill list. Even if my dad was the Human Liaison and the most powerful, they still could have killed him. My parents would never have agreed to help the Hunters. I don’t need anyone to confirm it—I just know they wouldn’t, even if I didn’t knowthem very well.
The sorrow quickly turns to anger. I struggle against my binds again. I don’t just need to get out of here not to be tortured and impregnated; I need to avenge my parents.
