“It’s already out.” I glanced over to see that she had a firm grip on the handle. The blade was longer than mine, but she needed the extra length because she wasn’t as strong as I was. Score one for James.
“Once they charge, I’ll hold them down,” I said, “and you stick the knife right behind their eyes. Got it? We work as a team.”
“How are you going to—”
One of the wolves broke from the tree line and loped headlong toward us. I leapt into the clearing, morphing instantly into my Lycan form. Right as it closed in. I grabbed on to its neck, careful to stay away from its teeth, and hit the ground, one arm clamped around its middle. It lashed out in a fury, snapping and growling, trying to free itself. It smelled like decay and its organs were mushy and soft under my grasp. Gross.
Marcy rushed toward us, her knife shaking slightly. “Marcy, do it fast.” I gritted my teeth as the wolf struggled in my arms.
She lunged forward, plunging the blade into the wolf’s head, quick as lightning. The wolf instantly went limp in my arms and I glanced up, smiling. Marcy appeared a little wild-eyed, but she took hold of the wolf by the scruff and tossed the mangy thing to the side as I stood.
“That was impressive—” I turned. “Look out!”
Two wolves barreled toward us at the same time, sprinting into the clearing. I rushed forward to intercept them, springing out to kick one in the flank, sending it flying as I took the other one behind the ears, tearing it off the ground and tossing it out of the circle. The wolf sailed far into the trees, crashing through them as it landed. Neither would die, but I hoped this would buy us time, and only one would recover at a time.
“Jeez, I’m amending the name Hercules, and from now on I’m going to refer to you as Wonder Wolf.” Marcy whistled. “You moved so fast I could barely make out your form. That wolf flew clear across the clearing into the trees over there.” She gestured right as the thing sprang back into view. “Dang, they don’t stay down long, do they?”
“Marcy, I may be strong, but I can’t be in two places at once.” I turned as the other one rose. At least now they were coming at us from different directions. I moved toward the wolf closest to us, the one I’d kicked, as both he and his buddy closed in. They bared their yellow, decaying teeth and snarled.
“Don’t worry.” Marcy placed a hand out in front of her and started chanting right as the wolf began to run. “I’ve got this one.”
“Okay.” I turned as the wolf in front of me sprang. In one motion, I unsheathed the knife strapped to my arm and angled my body to the side, striking the wolf through the brain as it leapt past me in midair. It collapsed to the ground and I moved back to help Marcy, only to see that the other wolf was already down in front of her and she was pulling the knife out of its head with a satisfied grunt.
It was hard not to be impressed.
There was one wolf left.
This one had watched all the action from the sidelines, just behind the tree line. It had huge patches of fur missing and seemed older. Its eyes were cloudy and somewhat vacant, but its pupils were alert, which made sense if the bokor was controlling them like zombie wolves. “I see you,” I called to the wolf. “You’re not fooling us, sorceress. I know this wolf is your puppet.” I waved my hand in the air. “And I know you can see me. I want you to know, we’re coming for you. You’re not going to succeed in hurting my friends. And once I find you, it’s not going to be pretty.”
In response, the wolf turned its muzzle up at me in a gruesome smile. If that dirty thing could talk, it would tell me good luck and have fun trying. Either that or it would tell me to fuck off.
The mangy beast glanced behind him, back over the trees. “What? Aren’t you going to attack us now?” I asked. “Afraid we can kill you just like the others?”
It snapped its maw at us, yellow slime running between its jaws, and then it abruptly turned tail and ran, disappearing into the cypress trees.
“Well, that worked well,” Marcy commented. “Now what? Do we follow it?”
“Yes.” I sighed. “We follow it. I don’t have a better plan, but we’ll have to be watchful. She’s expecting us.”
As we began to track the wolf, Marcy’s back pocket vibrated. She drew her phone out and held it in front of her.
The screen held two words.
MOVE CAREFULLY.
12
“It would be nice if Juanita would explain what’s going on in more than two or three words. An actual phone call would be nice,” I grumbled as we climbed across dead, broken tree roots, trying not to stumble. “Have you ever tried to call her?”
“And how exactly would I call her?” Marcy asked, tripping behind me but catching herself before she tumbled through the roots. “I don’t exactly have a coverage plan that includes friend-to-friend calling with ancient supernaturals. Plus, I’d need her number and she killed my phone. The only thing this phone is good for anymore is her ticker tape messages. She doesn’t leave any traces behind. Nada.”
I stopped for a moment to assess the area. “I feel like we’re going around in circles. It all looks the same. How do the zombie wolves run through this stuff?” The cypress trees were tangly and hard to maneuver around. “It wouldn’t be easy on four legs.”
“Maybe we missed a path?” Marcy said. “I’m thinking there must be a trail of some kind and she’s not letting us see it.”