Chapter 3

ROBERT SMACKED Dressler’s hand away from him and spoke through clenched teeth. “Put your hands on me again and I guarantee you a bloodied nose.”

Simply because he lacked experience in certain areas, hardly meant he was about to stand for this appalling display. He turned to Gabriel and shook his head, his heart heavy. “I never would have imagined such behavior from you.” He removed his mask and tossed it at Dressler’s feet, along with his gloves. “I’ll make certain the rest is delivered to you first thing in the morning.”

How could he have been so wrong about Gabriel? Turning to the man who’d occupied his thoughts and dreams for so long, Robert did his best not to let his disappointment show. “Is this what you do? Go to great lengths to humiliate poor saps like me?” He swallowed hard and ignored the pleading look in Gabriel’s eyes. No doubt the man was feeling guilty for this tasteless prank now that it had backfired, but it was too late. Gabriel had shown his true colors. “Well, I hope you both have a swell time laughing at my expense. Good evening, gentlemen.” Robert turned to go, but one of the large dogs materialized before him, snapping at him with a jaw full of razor-sharp teeth. Good God, it really is a wolf!

In his haste to get away, Robert lost his footing and landed on his rear. He stared up at the wolf, which seemed to have doubled in size, its pupils dilated and its teeth bared.

“Gabriel!” Robert cried out in a moment of panic as he scrambled back, the soles of his shoes slipping on the slick grass. His whole body was on alert, and a terrible sense of dread washed over him as the pack of wolves prowled toward him, with Dressler at the head. It was almost as if they were following his lead. Impossible.

Robert had never been more frightened in his life, and just when he thought things couldn’t get any worse, something even more improbable happened. A strange loud sound resembling a deep, chesty cough echoed in Robert’s ear, and for a moment he feared he had breathed his last breath. He stared in wide-eyed disbelief at the big, powerful black cat that stepped over him.

Heaven almighty, now there were wild cats too? What sort of place was this? Was there a zoo somewhere on the grounds he’d been unaware of? Robert didn’t know which to be more frightened of—the wolves or the large feline. Either way, he was about to become someone’s dinner. He sat very still, afraid if he moved, the jaguar would turn those frightful fangs on him. Why the thing hadn’t devoured him already was beyond his comprehension. It had to weigh over two hundred pounds, its fur pitch-black. More disconcerting was that Dressler didn’t appear concerned in the least. In fact, he looked… smug.

Robert tried to spot Gabriel from the corner of his eye, praying the man was all right. He was stunned to find him gone. Had Gabriel run off and left him there to die?

“Gabriel….” The word left his lips in a whisper, and the large, sleek cat turned its head. It stared straight at him. “Oh my God.” Those eyes…. “It’s not possible.” Robert shook his head, refusing to believe the insanity of what was transpiring before him. He had to be losing his mind. There was no way….

“You can’t protect him, Gabriel,” Dressler stated, calmly pulling at his gloves one finger at a time, as if merely having a discussion about the weather over coffee. “It’s far too late for that. You should have stolen him away from me and left your mark on him sooner. I gave you ample opportunity.”

To Robert’s utter astonishment, the large cat’s head slightly lowered and a grunt-like sound escaped.

“Yes, I imagine you are feeling rather foolish now, aren’t you? You think I didn’t notice your effort to stay away from him? Did you truly think that would stop us? Poor naïve Gabriel.” Dressler tsked.

Robert couldn’t tear his gaze away from the black jaguar Dressler continued to address as Gabriel. He found himself compelled to ask, “What’s going on?” He hated how shaky his voice sounded, but considering the circumstances, he had every right to be afraid. Why was no one finding any of this even remotely disturbing? And why weren’t there shrieks and shouts from panicking guests? He looked over his shoulder, and discovered why. There were no guests. Everyone had cleared off.

Swell.

“The truth is more than your feeble little human mind could comprehend,” Dressler replied haughtily, hitting Robert’s last nerve.

Robert narrowed his eyes and lifted his chin defiantly. “Try me.”

“The short of it is we’re not human. We’re an evolved species. A melding of two souls—human and animal. Though some have a habit of attempting to suppress their more innate natures more than others, such as my dear friend here.” Dressler cast the jaguar a reproachful glare before shifting his gaze back to Robert. His eyes appeared brighter than they had before. “This ball is a longstanding tradition, a means to satisfying that certain… itch. That is why your mask was different from the rest. So there could be no mistaking that I had claimed you for my own.”

It suddenly dawned on Robert. “The different colors….”

“That’s how we mark our prey. Provide each morsel with a distinctive mask of our design. Those donning gold and silver will not be leaving this ball. And neither shall you.”

“You’re going to hunt all those people?” Robert couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Despite the sheer implausibility of the yarn he’d been told, he couldn’t keep himself from feeling sick to his stomach. “You’re nothing but murderers.”

That earned him a truly sinister laugh that sent an awful chill up his spine. “Actually, the murderers are in there,” Dressler replied, pointing to the mansion. “And they wear silver and gold, dining on caviar and drinking champagne.”

“What?” Robert asked, stunned.

“It was Gabriel’s idea. Trés uninspiring, but the majority won the vote. I’m hardly about to get into the tedious task of explaining Gabriel’s oh-so-grand family history, but the gist of it is that we are limited by our ‘laws’ into hunting those who have escaped prosecution for their heinous crimes. It’s all very carefully monitored. You’ll find nothing but the most rotten in there.” Dressler let out a heavy sigh. “Sadly, it somehow taints the meat. Gabriel may be content to give us spoils, but I’ve had enough, quite frankly.” A big toothy grin spread across Dressler’s face. “Shall we start the fun? I’ll even give you a head start.”

Before Robert’s very eyes, in a series of chilling, gruesome twists and growls, Dressler ceased to be. In his place was a fair-haired wolf far larger and more terrifying than the other three grays behind him. If Robert hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed it. He sat, stupefied, until the jaguar turned its head and bumped it against Robert’s chest.

“Gabriel? Is… is it really you?” He felt like a complete pill, talking to a two-hundred-pound predator as if it was some common house cat.

A purr that sounded a great deal like a small chainsaw reverberated from the massive beast as the jaguar rubbed his head against the side of Robert’s. Shutting his eyes tight, Robert braced himself. Instead of receiving a deadly bite, he received a broad lick up his cheek.

“Um, please, don’t do that,” Robert muttered and opened his eyes to find the jaguar watching him. “I don’t mean to offend. It feels… incredibly odd.”

There was a fierce growl from Dressler, and some unspoken exchange seemed to go on between him and Gabriel. One that resulted in Gabriel pushing his head into Robert’s chest and making strange sounds.

“You can’t be serious. Don’t tell me you want me to run?” Even with the knowledge that it was Gabriel, when the jaws opened and a ferocious roar came out, Robert was on his feet and making tracks across the gardens.

“This can’t be happening. This can’t be happening,” he chanted over and over as he ran past statues and water features, kicking up grass and gravel as he did. Where the hell was he supposed to go? This damn place was like Central Park, and most of it was as badly lit. “This is impossible.” The odds against him were staggering. Dressler and his pack could surely smell him from miles away, not to mention see far better in the dark than he could. If he didn’t get pounced on and eaten, he would probably end up running headfirst into a tree!

Once he’d made it inside the forest, which might or might not have been the worst possible idea, he found himself in a thicket that appeared the same from every direction. All he’d wanted to do was sing on the radio. Was that so wrong? Was it worth being hunted like some quail or rabbit? He wasn’t even going to get into the fact that the man of his dreams was some human-animal beast-like creature. He should have stayed in Jersey.

A huge lump of shadow sprang out from his right, and he couldn’t hold back his yelp. Despite it being Gabriel, Robert ran in the opposite direction. A few more feet into the thicket, and Gabriel sprang out again, this time ahead of him. With a frustrated grunt, Robert turned and took another route, all the while wondering where Dressler was. Not that he was keen to see the man—uh, wolf—but that could only mean he was up to something.

Making it out of the shrubbery, he found himself directly opposite the maze’s entrance, though he had to run across an expansive clearing to make it there. Again, Gabriel popped up, and Robert clutched at his chest.

“Oh for the love of God! Will you please stop popping out of bushes? You’re going to give me a heart attack!” When Gabriel pushed his head against the back of Robert’s legs, he realized Gabriel had been herding him, getting him to turn where he wanted. It was a farfetched notion, but no more than everything else that had transpired up until now. Had Gabriel been keeping Dressler from him too?

Gabriel kept pushing, and Robert spun around, holding his hands out in front of him. “Now hold on a minute. If I go in, there will be no way out. I’ll be trapped.” He stood still as Gabriel circled him, rubbing his head against Robert’s legs and giving him little pushes. “Fine. You better know what you’re on about,” Robert grumbled, absently scratching the cat’s head and receiving another of those chainsaw-like purrs. It was only when he removed his hand that he noticed the blood on it. “You’re bleeding!”

There was no time for further inspection as two of the wolves emerged from the trees. Cursing under his breath, Robert made a dash for the maze. He’d almost made it when he collided with something hard and heavy. He was thrown to the ground, the wind knocked out of him. He threw his arm up, expecting it to be shredded to pieces, when a piercing yelp escaped the sharp-toothed canine. Its head was now in Gabriel’s jaw, and he dragged the wolf off Robert as if it didn’t weigh a thing. To Robert’s astonishment, the wolf was still alive. Gabriel hadn’t killed it. More surprising was the fact that the other wolf had stopped in its tracks, lowering himself closer to the ground with his ears drawn back as he made a whimpering sound. It was a relief to know the wolves cared about each other more than they did sinking their teeth into Robert.

Not waiting around for Dressler to make an appearance, Robert took off into the maze like Gabriel wanted him to. Behind him was a horrible cacophony of roars, growls, and yelps. He wished he could do Gabriel proud by trying to find his own way, but the hedges were at least twelve feet high, and he’d never been in here before. How could he possibly know which way to turn?

As soon as he felt the nudge at the back of his legs, he realized he didn’t have to. This time, Gabriel went ahead of him, and Robert ran as fast as he could to keep up, all the while wondering how far off Dressler and his pack were. In no time, they were at the heart of the maze. It was square, with a stone bench on each side, and potted roses. In the center was an old large stone two-tiered water fountain that was empty. There was also no way out.

“Damn it, what now?” Robert asked Gabriel, allowing the large cat to push him toward the fountain. He put his hands on the old chipped stone and arched an eyebrow at his feline companion. “And what am I supposed to do? Climb in and hope for the best?” Gabriel continued to push him against the fountain. “You can’t be serious?”

In one graceful bound, Gabriel was inside the large bowl, and he pawed at the edge. Good God, he actually wanted Robert to climb inside.

“This is sheer madness,” Robert grumbled as he climbed in. “All right. Now what, Mr. Smart Guy?”

Gabriel pawed at the base of the centerpiece in one specific spot. Taking a closer look, Robert noticed one of the stone flowers was slightly off-kilter. When he pushed on it with all his strength, he was stunned that the stone shifted, revealing a hole that was big enough for him to fit through, and a set of stairs.

“Incredible,” he breathed and quickly descended. As soon as he was in, Gabriel followed. After climbing back up, he looked around the opening, and inside found an exact copy of the flower he’d pushed to get in. The stone moved back into place, and he was plunged into complete darkness.

A lamp sprang to life, its gold flame casting a warm glow about the place. Turning, Robert gasped at the sight before him.

“Gabriel!” Robert swiftly climbed down the steps and ran to him, catching Gabriel as his knees gave out beneath him. Doing his best to keep Gabriel from hitting the floor, Robert spotted a bed at the end of the room. He put one of Gabriel’s arms around his shoulder and walked him over. Carefully he helped Gabriel onto the soft mattress, and by the time he’d removed Gabriel’s shoes and lifted his legs onto the bed, the man was out for the count.

Scanning the place, Robert realized it was some sort of makeshift, underground apartment, complete with a small kitchen and water pump. Why on earth would anyone need such a place? Then again, he should thank his lucky stars it was here. A low groan drew his attention. Robert had been so concerned with the danger they’d been in, he hadn’t noticed what bad shape Gabriel was in.

“What have they done to you?” he asked softly, taking in Gabriel’s bloodied state. His shirt had been all but torn to shreds, and his pants weren’t that much better off. He had bites and slashes all over his body—so many that Robert couldn’t begin to guess which ones the blood belonged to. He dashed around the room, gathering what supplies he could find, and gave a little prayer of thanks when he came across a first aid kit. Whatever this place was, it was well equipped.

With all the tenderness he possessed, he got to work cleaning Gabriel’s wounds. As he did, he was surprised to find they weren’t nearly as deep as they’d first appeared to be. When he took a closer look, he received another revelation. The wounds were healing unnaturally fast. Putting such thoughts aside, he finished attending to Gabriel. Once he had, he pulled the blanket out very carefully from under him, and before he could talk himself out of it, he removed his shoes and climbed up onto the bed. He lay beside Gabriel and pulled the covers over them.

As Robert lay on his side facing Gabriel, his head buzzing with endless questions and even more concerns, he found himself unable to take his eyes off Gabriel’s rugged face. Everything he thought he’d known about the man meant nothing now. Yet as he stroked Gabriel’s face, his heart swelled. He had no idea what to make of Gabriel Chase, of what he was and what he did, but Robert’s heart simply refused to listen to reason. With his hand over Gabriel’s, Robert soon drifted to sleep.