The Moon, the Madness, and the Magic (15 page)

“It’s the change. Here, let me help.” She took his shoulders to comfort him.

“No.” Rourke growled, and this time, it sounded like the true growl of an alpha male wolf. He batted her hand away and turned from her before he dropped to his knees. “You’ve helped more than enough. Stay away from me and Dane.”

He fell, his body flattened in the grass. Bones crunched and muscles exploded as he lifted himself off the ground to all fours. His glossy, black pelt covered his broad chest and sturdy frame. White facial markings surrounded his muzzle, and his bright golden eyes lent an air of familiarity to the wolf’s face as he glared back over his shoulder at her.

“You are magnificent.”

His expression screamed with accusation although she wasn’t sure what part he blamed on her and which he blamed on fate or himself. In any case, he had, for the moment, rejected her, their bond, and his heritage.

She knew he’d have to return to her eventually, but he wouldn’t take his place in the pack or on the Council until he accepted her.

“Rourke, don’t go off. We both sensed another presence inside you. It’s not safe for you to be away from me this close to the full moon when your emotions are mixed, not if there is another beast inside you, especially if it’s the dragon. The calling brought you here to me for a reason. I am the only one who can help you through your transition.”

“Help? You betrayed me.”
His thoughts said one thing, but maybe she picked up on his emotions, because his expression looked wounded.

“I would never betray you, Rourke.”

He snapped at the air and growled at her. Then he ran off, alone, slipping through the Veil into the mortal world just as dusk was falling. A few minutes later, she heard the howl, long and lonely, before she walked through the Veil and turned back to the lodge.

“Run, Rourke, but know this—I am always with you.”

Chapter 13

Were Attack

Dane expected Celeste when she knocked. He’d sensed her before he opened the door. What he didn’t expect was the impact the sight of her had on him. He couldn’t touch her, and yet something told him nothing would keep him from having her. Not Rourke, not heaven or hell.

He stepped outside and glanced around, half expecting Rourke to push himself through the doorway. “Where’s Rourke?”

Celeste’s face was paler, her expression drained. She didn’t meet Dane’s eyes when she answered. “He went off by himself to sulk. He’s upset, angry.”

“About what?”

“Actually, several things. And he has every right to feel as he does.” She told him about the story of their beginnings, watching the pain reach deep inside and twist Dane’s heart. His expression contorted with the emotions she sensed gripped him to his core.

When she finished revealing the story of their past, she stood and faced Dane toe to toe and stared him straight in the eye when she said, “He hates the idea of fate being forced on him. I’m not sure which he’s the most upset about—the past, that he and I are bound to each other, or the quirky little issue between you and me.”

“You told him—?”

“It was in my mind when he pulled the memories out.”

Dane shook his head and kept shaking it. She recognized his denial. She felt the same way.

“He knows how I want you, too.”

He kissed her quiet. Then he held her away at arm’s length. “I can’t do this to him.”

“I told him everything. I couldn’t promise to stay away from you.”

Dane pulled her back into his arms and crushed her against his massive chest. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled. They were doomed.

“He’s not convinced he can share me.” The sound of pack wolves howling in the distance stopped her. “We have to find him soon. He could be in danger.”

That was all Dane needed to hear. “I’ll go.”

“He doesn’t understand what he’s up against. He needs me with him— Oh, stop me. I’m rambling.”

“Stay here until I get back. He may come back looking for you. I know how to talk to him. I’ll find him and bring him back to you. We have a sixth sense between each other.”

* * * *

The sun was already sinking lower on the horizon when Dane went out hunting for Rourke. The sounds of howling wolves filling the air with their threats made him frown. Rourke had said wolves weren’t native to this area, not likely to venture this far south, but the constant howling proved otherwise. When he found him, Dane would take great pleasure rubbing his brother’s face in his mistake. So rare an opportunity shouldn’t be overlooked.

The sounds of the pack grew closer.

He did a quick double take, glancing around for cover. No place to run, no low branches to climb. He checked behind him, over his shoulder. What was he expecting? Backup? Not likely out here. When he spotted them, the pack turned out to be only two gray wolves with murder in their eyes, and Dane was the only prey in the area. Jeez, he’d never realized wolves got that large.

Dane knew he was in big trouble, when a third one came out of the trees and changed in front of Dane’s eyes. The creature stood up on his haunches, taller than any normal man. This was no ordinary wolf. Dane let out the breath he’d been holding.

No, this was a huge beast, bigger than any he’d ever imagined. The damn thing snarled at him out of an extraordinarily human looking form. The eyes glaring at him were those of a maddened wolf, flame-red, blazing, crazed.

No human in there despite his appearance. That was for certain. The teeth? Pure wolf. The claws on his large human hands matched those of a grizzly bear.

The others shifted.

It was so fast Dane didn’t see the attack coming when it started. Once the big one tore at him, the other two joined in, snarling and ripping into his flesh. Dane lost all sense of being until the vision of a white unicorn shimmered within a bright light in front of him. The monsters that had attacked him were nowhere in sight when he tried to lift himself off the forest floor.

He struggled to his feet and tried to orient himself to the forest. He thought of the beasts, not normal wolves, and he thought about Rourke. He hoped the three hadn’t gotten to him. Dane had to get back to Celeste before she came out hunting for him and met up with the beasts.

* * * *

All the revelations Celeste had shared with him almost relieved Rourke. Suddenly, he had a few answers to the questions he’d had before he came here.

The mental anguish weighing on him disappeared right after his shift. No guilt, no worries. No pain. Not until her voice whispered in his mind. He’d sensed the trouble as soon as she had.
Dane’s in trouble. He went out searching for you and didn’t come back.

Rourke ran. Full out. Through the forest, up the mountain to the summit. This wolf form was pure power and freedom.

It was well after dusk when Rourke heard a rustling in the bushes, and a familiar scent made his nose twitch. Rabbit. Not enough competition for his restless nature tonight. His golden wolf eyes sought out a more challenging prey in the dim light of the forest. Yes, they were there, watching, ready to strike. Ready to test him.

Wolves. Rogues.

Rourke sensed the other shift threatening, the one worrying him in his human form, the one that didn’t concern him now.

The darkness in him was anxious to turn, but even he knew it was too soon. The pale moon wasn’t quite full as it approached its zenith in the evening sky, but later this week, when it was, he knew he wouldn’t be able to prevent the inevitable change. Keeping the scary beast at bay grew more difficult as his emotions escalated and the full moon approached.

When he’d shifted into the wolf, he’d barely been able to stop there. Something wanted out, something frightening and powerful had tried to escape. Now it threatened again.

His giant, furry, black head snapped to attention when he caught the scent of the other predators’ approach. He smelled the pack.

Come on, guys, make my day!
The gray wolf pack started circling the tree line where Rourke stood inside the open patch, waiting. He needed this fight, an outlet to hold back whatever beast dwelled within him. He needed this savage hunt to quell the desperate violence mounting inside him.

If they thought he was just another lone wolf, they were very mistaken.

Run from me, my cousins,
he mentally warned into the night.

He’d tear out their throats and rip them to pieces just because he could. No remorse, no conscience.

No? Then come and get me. You’ve made your choice to die.
There was a joy in taunting them.

The scouts moved in, their growls escalating. One youngster came out of the trees prematurely, giving Rourke the advantage. The larger male wolf growled a steady snarl of reprimand from the perimeter, but it was too late. Then he joined in, simultaneously attacking from the other side.

Rourke circled, first grabbing one by the back of the neck and shaking him, breaking his neck, and tossing his body aside while he slashed out with his claws at the other. His greater size and strength slammed the young wolf’s body into the large pine beside him.

He welcomed the attack.

Meet your dark death, traitor. Your blood will rid me of the bloodlust for the moment, and as I kill each one of you, I will take your spirit and send it to the Underworld where those who betray their own belong.

The second wolf jumped Rourke from behind. He flipped the large male over his body and sliced his throat as he tossed him through the air.

With the blood of the kills dripping from his claws and muzzle, Rourke felt himself shifting again. This time, the transformation felt different. His body grew longer, taller, not man, not wolf. Was he turning into some kind of monster?

Where the hell was this transformation going?

His chest exploded, thick and wide. His snout broadened, and his wolf pelt shimmered into iridescent, black-pearled scales. Something about them looked familiar. Then he remembered Chicago and the night of the last full moon, his eyes, his teeth, and Amelia screaming beneath him, her blood dripping from his lips.

The cracking and tearing finally stopped, and the lingering ache from his bones separating and shifting dulled to merely an annoyance.

The trees looked shorter.

Rourke estimated his new, muscled body stood over ten feet tall and twenty feet long. His feet were clawed with long, deadly talons. He had wings, and his wingspan had to be over forty feet. The beast roared. A short spark of fire shot past rows of long, jagged teeth, and anger burst to the surface.

Flames blazed from his muzzle. A dragon.

Well, what-da-ya-know! I am a fucking fire-breathing dragon.

He stretched, shrugged his massive shoulders, spread his enormous talon-tipped wings, and roared again. This time, with purpose.
Wings and all.

The other wolves must have heard the screams from the earlier attack. The rest of the pack stayed back in the trees but slowly closed in, tightening the circle around Rourke. The alpha came out of the tree line more carefully, and the leader stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Rourke. The remaining wolves dropped to their haunches in submission.

His brother’s scent wasn’t on any of these wolves. There was another killer out there somewhere.

He turned his back on the wolves. He sensed they were of little consequence as they slinked back into the dark forest, wisely disappearing into the shadows.

Rourke remained behind in the clearing, trying to gather control, trying to shift out of the dragon and back into one form or other, man or wolf, at least one he knew he could contain.

Chapter 14

Searching

A breeze blew past Rourke, and he felt the itch to test his limits. As the moon crept higher, he wondered if he’d have time to try out his wings and fly before the bloodlust returned. Once it returned, he was afraid he’d be lost to rational thinking, his human side completely obliterated by his transformation. Each moment he experienced approaching the full moon brought him closer to the beast and further from his humanity.

Rourke flapped his wings and soared over the forest. A spark of joy flickered within his human soul, and the high pitch of the beast’s scream screeched
—re
sounding sharply inside his head
—
ringing out over the evening skies. The power of the dragon consumed him.

The scent of blood filled his nostrils. The scent smelled familiar. Dane’s. Wolf. Man. Three or four creatures. They smelled like a combination of wolf and man, only different. Stronger, wilder, more feral. His brother’s blood was on them.

With his dragon vision, he couldn’t miss the huge, hulking shadows inside the tree line. Weres. Something told him instinctively what they were, an old knowledge embedded in his
DNA,
maybe.