Blood Moon, Original Version (Shifters #1) Page 3

  “You know what I am, don’t you?” he repeated. There was no way of getting around the truth, she did know. Finally she acknowledged the question and nodded her head.

  But did she really believe what she had seen? Werewolves and vampires were figments of people’s imagination, weren’t they? She had only known of the stories through books and movies, but now she knew the truth… the world was not as it seemed. Even though she was still trying to get past the humiliation of being rejected by him, she forced herself to look at Nate.

  “You really did change, you really are a werewolf?” she didn’t even have to ask the question, she knew what she had seen was the truth.

  But the ordeal of what she had gone through tonight, could that be causing her to hallucinate, or some kind of an emotional break down? Was Nate even real? Was this man really indeed real and not some kind of figment of her imagination?

  Nate had found himself wondering the same thing more than once during his long existence. People did not usually have to make a habit of asking themselves that question, but he was not like a lot of other people. His existence was of another world, one that others did not believe existed. Most people would never be able to wrap their mind around the prospect of werewolves. This was one of the main reasons his pack was so important to him, with them there was no reason to ask those questions. To them, it did not matter one way or the other. They lived their lives in secrecy and only did what they had to in order to survive. The pack was a family, a unity of brother hood, and his place was with the pack as their leader.

  His life had been simple until now. Looking directly into the woman’s eyes, he knew that everything she had seen and gone through tonight was hard for her to comprehend.

  Nate had never been attracted to someone like he was to Maxine, ever. He wasn’t like mere mortal men, he had never had the luxury to be, and he had never been given that choice with his life as a werewolf.

  Still he had to find a way to cut all ties with this woman. She was a loose end, a distraction.

  He held Maxine’s face gently in his hands prepared to do what he must. Bile urged its way up his throat just with the disgusting thought of it.

  Maxine looked up at Nate not understanding his intentions. She had a lost look about her and shut her eyes. The feel of Nate’s hands on her flesh was comforting and warm. Werewolves were supposed to be scary and vile creatures, but Nate was nothing like that. She smiled and opened her eyes. “Thank you for saving me.” She whispered.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Nate pulled his hands away. “Why do you thank me?” Nate asked. His voice was gravelly and unsettling. Maxine turned away not sure how to take the sudden change in his voice.

  Nate reached up and turned her face back to him. “Tell me why you feel so compelled to thank me.”

  She couldn’t speak to him, not the way he was acting. Instead she looked beyond him towards the wall where a vampire had smashed her body up against earlier. Her stomach was tied in knots. The vampire had meant to kill her.

  Nate caressed her cheek and turned her face up to his. “The vampires, you’re thinking of the attack. They have smelled you’re blood; they will not give up until they feed on it. You will never be free from them again; they will continue to hunt you down.”

  “They want to kill me…” she murmured. But she knew he was speaking the truth, knew they would not give up until they had done just as he had said. Her problems had just gone from bad to worse; she flinched at the thought of it. She would need him to get out of this nightmare. “You have to save me.” She added.

  “I can only promise to get you out of here.”

  His look was stern and serious. It made her think that he did not care whether she lived or died. Perhaps being a werewolf meant that he had no compassion for someone that was not of his kind.

  She reached her hand up to try and touch him. As her fingers barely caressed his skin, she stilled. Werewolf…and then she remembered what he truly was and how dangerous he could be.

  Maybe knowing what he was and what he was capable of was for the best. It would allow her to understand the world she had stepped into.

  Nate sensed the uncertainty she was feeling. He tensed his body and moved himself away from her.

  “I don’t want to die, please help me live and survive this.” She spoke with urgency and desperation. She only felt safe knowing that he would protect her, to have him near made the fear a little easier to bear.

  “I can’t promise you you’re life.” He stood and walked to the other side of the room. He cut himself off emotionally and physically from her, leaving Maxine lying on the cold hard stone floor.

  Maxine felt naked and humiliated, she wished, almost wished the room was engulfed in darkness again so that he could not see her. With nowhere to go, she embraced her arms around herself and held tight in some way trying to find comfort.

  He looked down at her. “You thought that what happened earlier between us meant something, didn’t you?”

  She tried to look anywhere else but at him. She realized how foolhardy her situation had become. Her body began to shake as self-remorse washed over her; she brought her arms in tighter around herself.

  “The vampire doesn’t want to drain you, they want to turn you. They could have killed you anytime they wanted to, but they didn’t.” Nate looked towards the catacomb tunnels and then back at her. “They won’t let you go.”

  “But you said that they wanted to kill me, why did you not tell me what was really going on?” not that being turned into a vampire was any better than being murdered.

  “Everything I told you was the truth. Does it matter if I said that they wanted to kill you or wanted you’re blood to add to their line? Either way you look at it, becoming a vampire is the same as becoming the walking dead.” He replied.

  She spun herself around facing him as she braced herself with both hands on the floor. “How am I supposed to trust you when one second you protect me with your life and the next second you’re telling me point blank that I’m about to die?”

  Nate walked over to the torch and picked it up. With its light illuminating the whole room, he replied, “Sometime tonight you made one fatal error, you decided to trust me enough to get you out of here. I only said that I could try.”

  The light illuminated the strong features of Nate’s face, twisting them into something horrible and frightening. Maxine pushed her body away from him with an urge to get up and run, but she knew she would never make it out with her life. “And I trusted you!” she barked back.

  “That’s correct. You also trusted your life with a werewolf.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  “Does that go for all werewolves?” the fear that Nate had seen on her face was replaced with question and uncertainty. “Is that why you have continued protecting me when you could have let the vampires have me at any time?” Her voice held and unbelieving tone. She ran her hands over her arms as if cold had come over her. She stood and walked towards him now, her body gesture was clear in how she stood. Apprehension shown all over her, and Nate knew she wanted to run.

  He hadn’t meant to make her believe that meant to do her harm. But if she were to believe that he did, if she feared him, run from him, then cutting her from his life would make it that much easier to complete his mission and return to the pack.

  “Not all werewolves,” he finally replied. But he made sure to take care with his words not to give her any hope of a future between them.

  “Not all werewolves?” she stepped back further away from him.

  His words were hitting their mark. She was preparing to run; all trust in her eyes was gone. That’s what he wanted.

  “And you? Are you going to kill me? Is that what you’re planning?” she asked. “Kill me because I know too much?” but she still had not run. Why? Why hadn’t she run from him like he was some kind of monster? Why was she still here?

  He didn’t want her to lay her trust in him; he could not take that respons
ibility upon himself. He had no answers to give her, but he also couldn’t bring himself to lie to her. He focused his sight past her, unable to look her in the eye.

  “Did you ever believe in the existence of werewolves or vampires before you met me? Did it excite you to have sex with a werewolf?”

  “No. so don’t speak to me like some common slut. I don’t throw myself at every guy I meet!”

  The words cut Nate to the core. Of course he did not think she was that type of woman. He had touched a nerve.

  “So why did you allow me to have sex with you?” he looked at her this time and waited for the answer.

  Her eyes widened, her shoulder squared. She wanted to slap him; he could see it on her face. He pushed his luck.

  “No, that’s not something you would do is it? Just with werewolves, right?”

  “No, I don’t, and you’re heartless!” she turned her back on him.

  This was not working. She would not leave his side. They were still too far from the way out of this place, she couldn’t just take off running through the catacombs, risk her losing her life to one of those vampires.

  He walked briskly to where she was standing and took hold of her wrist. She stared at him with shock, her eyes wide with fear and wet with tears.

  “You don’t deserve any of this you’re innocent. I couldn’t forgive myself if anything ever happened to you.”

  Relief returned to her face as she relaxed her body. “Thank you.”

  “You will have to trust me and do everything I say. That’s the only way I will be able to get you out of here safely.” She nodded her head.

  “If I do as you say, you will get me out of here so I can go home?” she asked questionably.

  “No harm will come to you.” He replied.

  She looked down the direction of the tunnels, as if she still considered running. “And you will make sure I return home safely? You won’t let them follow me back to my home?”

  Return home, why did he not want her to leave him? Nate wanted more than anything to keep her with him. “I’ll keep them away from your home. I won’t allow them to turn you.

  She set her jaw firm. She let her arms fall to her sides and nodded her head. “It’s not like I have any other choice in the matter. Ok, I will do as you say.” She had no other option, but Nate only hoped that he could keep his word.

  Nate had made every opportunity for her to run and lose all trust in him. But he could not, would not do that to her. She had stirred feelings in him he had forgotten how to feel. To him, Maxine had given him a gift.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Nate retrieved the torch, even though all of the fighting and commotion earlier, it had managed to still stay lit. Grabbing Maxine by the hand, he led her through the catacomb tunnels for what seemed like endless hours. Before they both came to a set of passageways that split into several directions, Nate extinguished the torch sending them back into total darkness. Although fear threatened to overtake her, Maxine calmed herself and stood closer to Nate.

  “I’m sorry we have to walk in the dark.” He said.

  She squirmed with uneasiness.

  Nate sighed. “The Vampires will be waiting, my enhanced vision allows me to see better in the dark. I will be able to see an oncoming attack much easier in case I need to shift fast.”

  Maxine listened to the words and knew he was right. But she was still reluctant to put her complete trust into him just yet.

  But the close proximity didn’t bother her much since his touch made her feel safer. The only problem was, his touch also reminded her of the rejection she had also received from him.

  “I can see just fine in the darkness, hold on to my hand and stay close. I can get us out of here.”

  Then she could go home. That was of course what she wanted, to get back to her own life. She held his hand even tighter, interlacing her fingers through his. She stilled for a moment feeling the energy pour through her caused by the close contact.

  Maxine’s breath quickened as her heart threatened to beat its way out of her chest. There was no other sound around them to indicate they were being pursued by any of the creatures. If she had not been holding his hand, Maxine would never have known that Nate was there with her. He made no sound as he moved through the tunnels. She thought for a moment that if she could not hear Nate, who was to say that vampires would not be as silent.

  Werewolves and vampires were nothing like she had known, there was a reason they were not meant to be, at least not in the world she had been brought up in. This was not her world.

  “We need to move faster.” His voice was urgent. In that moment, she wondered if he had felt her hesitation.

  He moved more quickly pulling her along behind. Maxine was having trouble keeping Nate’s pace and almost tripped over her own feet. But Nate was there to help her keep her balance, never once allowing her to even bash a toe against the side of the wall.

  Finally after the last time Maxine almost fell, Nate grabbed hold of the woman pulling her close. His strong masculine scent hit her nose bringing back the passion and need for him she had felt earlier.

  “I will take the pace slower to allow you to keep up.” He whispered in her ear.

  Quite taken off guard, she only nodded. She fought to pull herself away from his smell, it was intoxicating to her.

  Nate knew what was happening; he couldn’t allow himself to get caught up in this woman again. He had a mission to complete. Nothing else would happen.

  Nate began walking again tugging Maxine to hurry along. “Sorry, but we have no time to stop and rest, we have to keep going.” He urged.

  Yes, that’s what he had to tell her, had to make her continue going on, to come to the point that much faster to get her away from him. She would be out of his life. She didn’t belong in this world, and he didn’t belong in hers.

  But could he let go of her? Could he wipe away any memory of her from his life?

  As they came closer and closer to the end of the tunnel, Nate knew that his life would never be the same again. Maxine had come into it and turned his world upside down.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Nate sensed the vampires several feet before the tunnel ended. Pulling her closer, he moved cautiously. Nate’s actions told Maxine that danger lay just ahead. The fear returned and she clutched to him like a lifeline.

  Before she knew it, they had entered the lair of the vampires. It was barely lit and smelt of rotting flesh. The sound of slithering and hissing echoed off the catacomb walls. It was as if they had walked into a nest of snakes. They were in the heart of the vampires keep.

  Lifeless drained bodies lay on the cold stone floor. A few were still alive, but those that were, were being fed upon. They too would soon be dead as well.

  “What is this place? A hive of some sort?” Maxine whispered. She said the words as low as she could in fear that she would be heard and bring the creatures on them in an instant.

  “It’s the heart of the hive. This is where the master vampire dwells.” This is where his mission had taken him, this was his destination.

  “There are so many of them.”

  Nate knew that Maxine was on the edge of freaking out. She was more frightened than he had seen her the entire night. It would not be long before the vampires knew they were there and then all hell would break loose.

  Behind him came a scream. As he turned, Nate saw that two vampires were now approaching from the tunnel behind them. Maxine shoved her body closer to Nate. Her grip was fierce as her body trembled. “Please get us out of here, do something!”

  Nate knew there were too many of them. Even if he shifted, he would not be able to protect Maxine indefinitely. He felt torn between duty to his pack and mission, and the responsibility to protect this woman. There was still a few hours left before sunrise, too much darkness and not enough time before the first rays of dawns light.

  Maxine tugged at his arm with more urgency. Her eyes never left the two creatures approaching them.
It would not be long until the others followed suit.

  Nate held her gaze, tried to make her understand, their time was running out, they were trapped.

  “No.” she shook her head. He felt for the woman, her life too precious. She also knew what they were up against. But what could one werewolf do against a whole hive of vampires?

  “Stay close.” Her life depended on it.

  Every entrance was blocked. There was nowhere to run.

  Inch by inch the vampires crept closer. With fangs bared and blood lust in their eyes, the vampires closed in on them.

  Nate waited for the right opportunity to change. He still had an extreme amount of strength in his human form. He couldn’t risk bringing the rest of the creatures down on them if there was still a chance he could find a way out of this.

  It was too late. The other creatures had already spotted them and began clawing their way up the side of the wall towards them using the claws to grip into the stone.

  Maxine made a shrilling scream. The room was swarming with the creatures moving in a fast unnatural manner.

  Nate looked for any place to hold up, somewhere that would be to his advantage. Anywhere he could make the change and keep Maxine shielded from harm at the same time.

  Nate shoved the woman against a wall causing her to stumble into it. It was their only chance.

  There was no way out of this now, he would have to fight with every skill he had. He would have to fight to his last breath.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Nate’s body pressed up against her pinning her to the wall. She was blinded to the attack. She couldn’t see around him. All of her will was stomped down, she knew she was about to die. They had willingly walked straight into their grave.

  All around them hell broke loose and turned to complete horror.