Alyssa couldn’t stop screaming. At least not inside her head. It truth, her one and only scream had drawn in enough of the stench that she’d gagged. Holy hell, that…thing stunk. And that thing was her brother.
That was horrifying enough, but now Simon was trapped inside the cage with it. No way could he fight. He was scrambling and choking just like she was. Even Malik stumbled the moment his feet hit the floor, a gun lax in his hand as he gagged from the stench.
“Don’t shoot,” Alyssa managed to wheeze. It was too dangerous with Simon in there. Malik was a great shot, but she couldn’t risk he’d hit the wrong man. And she sure as hell didn’t want to clip the right one and just make it more angry. “I have…plan.”
And she did. Sort of. But her mind was still screaming from the sight of her brother turned monster. He was the size of a bear with fur and claws. And he was in a killing frenzy. He was roaring as he lunged for Simon who just barely managed to roll aside, his own breath ragged from the stench.
Her brother turned and swung thick hairy arms at Simon, but he was off balance. It took her a moment to realize that his pants were hobbling him. The jeans were too tight and hadn’t ripped like the tee had. The seams on the legs were splitting and the button had popped, loosening the waist. But the groin had to be squeezing Vic’s balls hard enough to make him sing soprano. It sure as hell was hampering his movements, which was the only reason Simon was still alive.
Vic’s roar came out again, this time higher in pitch. He tore at the denim, ripping it easily with his claws and drawing enough blood to make Alyssa whimper. Whatever this thing was, her brother was inside it. She didn’t want it bleeding out.
“Get out of there!” Alyssa screeched at Simon. It was a stupid thing to say. She could see that he was trying, but Vic was flailing at his jeans with big movements in a tiny space. One wrong step, and Simon could be knocked unconscious.
At least he wasn’t gagging anymore. He definitely had a green cast to his skin, but probably no more than she. And his eyes were narrowed in concentration.
Oh God, was he going to kill Vic? He’d been brutal as he punched her brother, but there hadn’t seemed to be much damage. Blows, yes. Blood, no. And Vic had been pissed, but she’d seen more brutal fights between ten-year-old boys, so she hadn’t interfered.
But this was different. This was a dangerous fight with a monster. She didn’t want him to kill Vic, but what could he do? She scrambled sideways, grabbing the stun gun from the nearby table. That was her plan. It wasn’t the kind that could send out darts. It was just a handheld model that she’d have to slam into his furry gut. But maybe if she could get Vic to come at her, she could zap him before he ripped her to pieces.
It was a long shot, but all she had. She held the weapon in shaking hands. It charged with a satisfying crackle, but damn she had no idea if it would take down someone as big as him.
“Vic, you bastard, turn your hairy ass around!”
Nothing. Her brother was still ripping in fury at the tattered remains of his jeans. Then the last seam gave way, and she knew she had seconds before he turned on Simon. Good. She was ready.
Except the minute Vic looked up, Simon tackled him. He sprang forward from the crushed cot and knocked Vic backward. They landed in a crash against the side of the cage, but this was exactly what Vic had wanted. He loved to wrestle and he gripped Simon like the man was a stubborn tick.
“Do it!” Simon bellowed. “Now!”
“Do what?” Run in there? Vic was on the bottom, Simon on top. No way was she going to be able to get through to her brother. And with the way they were fighting, rolling against the side of the cage, she’d be lucky if she wasn’t flattened.
Except now Vic was digging in, his claws ripping into Simon’s back. And as much as Simon fought, throwing punches like a madman, there was no room and no leverage.
“The cage!”
Shoot the cage? Oh duh! It was metal and Vic was plastered hard against it. Sure she’d get Simon, but Vic would take the worst of it.
Without overthinking, she dashed to the side of the cage where Vic’s back was pressed hard against it. That’s what Simon was doing. Pinning the larger creature against the metal. She couldn’t be a 100 percent sure she’d get the prongs into her brother, but she sure as hell would electrify the cage.
“Get clear!” she screamed.
Not possible. He was gripping hard and now she smelled blood. And then the monster opened his mouth to bite. She saw sharp white teeth in a long jaw. No way could she let that happen.
She slammed the Taser against the metal and let it crackle.
Vic roared as his back arched. His arms flew open—or maybe Simon just sprang free—and then Simon began to punch Vic in the face. Over and over.
It was awful. The Taser just kept going. Vic kept roaring, his massive body jerking in spastic contortions. And Simon didn’t stop. He slammed his fists into Vic’s jaw over and over. Too fast for much current to get him, but he screamed with every blow as if it were painful. Or he was furious. Or insane.
She didn’t know. She couldn’t tell. And maybe she was screaming and crying, too, as blood and spittle flew.
The Taser cut out and she dropped limply to the ground, her entire body shaking. Simon was standing and his blows kept coming. Over and over, the beat unrelenting. The monster stopped bellowing. His arms had dropped to the ground and his shoulders moved only in time with every blow.
Wham. Wham. Wham.
The sound was wet with every impact, and Simon grunted with every blow.
“Stop,” she whispered. “Stop.” She hadn’t the breath to scream it.
Wham. Wham. Wham.
“He’s down,” Malik said from beside her, his voice a thousand times stronger than hers. “Stop. He’s down.”
Wham. Wham. Wham.
Simon didn’t hear them and one look at his face showed a monster in human form. His jaw was tight, his brows narrowed, and his nostrils flared. There was fury in every moment and the blood came from his hands as much as Vic’s face.
“Simon!” she cried. “Stop!”
Wham. Wham. Wham.
She rolled forward, gripped the side of the cage and screamed as loud as she could.
“Simon!”
His head snapped up, and his fist froze midair. He stood there, his breath coming in heaving pants and his body taut with sweat, blood, and raw fury.
“Stop!”
No movement. Just his breath and his eyes burning into hers. Dark green, red flushing through the white. And his breath as rhythmic as his blows had been. Harsh sounds, but with a regular beat. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.
“Simon,” she said, her voice no longer a scream. Now she spoke with the bite of command. “Come out of there now.”
Would he respond to the command? Did she want him to? If he did, then he’d be on the outside with her. Vic would be safe, but would she?
She shoved that thought away. Her brother was the monster. Simon had been protecting her.
She softened her tone again until it was almost conversational. “You need to come out so we can lock him in.”
She didn’t know if he could understand her. He was still poised there with his fist raised. But after two full breaths, he slowly lowered it. His hands went to his sides and his shoulders dropped down as he straightened to his full height. It took him a moment to twist and walk in a stiff gait out the cage door. Then he stepped aside as she closed and locked it. The door was bent, the entire chain-link fencing was twisted, but she managed to get the thing shut and the padlock in place.
And all the while, Simon stood beside her, his breath harsh, still at that steady beat. It was Malik who broke the silence. Malik the scrawny kid who was a dead shot and had been no help whatsoever. At least he hadn’t vomited.
Hell. She’d had the thought too soon. The moment the padlock clanged in place, Malik stumbled to the side. He rushed to the garbage can and lost the contents of his stomach. She could hardly blame him. The stench in here was awful. And yet she did. She’d hired him to protect her and her business, but he’d been useless. What good was a dead shot when she’d told him not to do it? Which made it her fault, not his.
Simon had saved her. But what had he done to her brother? The monster was immobile, its face bloody and body collapsed like a discarded rag doll. A huge, furry, disgusting rag doll.
“Is he dead?” she whispered.
“He’s breathing,” Simon said, his tone flat. “He’ll probably heal when he reverts to human.”
She spun to look at him. “He’s a shifter, then. He was right.”
“No.” Simon’s dark green eyes burned into hers. “He’s a monster.” Then he turned and walked to the stairs.
She was going to call him back. She was going to demand he explain what he meant. Her brother might look like a monster, but he was sick. And Simon was here to fix that. Vic was an irresponsible doofus who was just starting to get his act together. Simon had to save him.
Except the gouges of dark red on Simon’s back told a different story. Her brother had done that with massive claws. And had his nose been a snout? And he’d been about to bite Simon with a mouth filled with cutting teeth. Not a molar in there as far as she could remember. She didn’t want to look back to see.
So she focused on Simon. She had to say something to him. She had to get him to help fix this. He was their Hail Mary pass and he was leaving.
“Help us,” she said. Not a command. Not even a prayer. Just a simple plea from the heart.
He paused with a foot on the stairs. “I can’t,” he said. Then he left.