“There were two killings last month in Chattanooga, werewolf killings. Are you saying you had nothing to do with them?” Gail asked.
I stopped and waited for the man’s reply. I could see the sweet gum tree Gail had pointed out. I had to be within fifty feet of the shooter.
“Not me personally, I admit that a couple of my boys got a little rambunctious while I was breaking in our new lady, but accidents happen.”
“Your new lady? The female we killed here last night?” Gail asked.
The shooter didn’t respond immediately, but I had narrowed down his location. I slipped forward, Colt out now, cocked and locked.
“Yes and I’m torn up about losing her. She had good prospects, but you’ll make an even better mate than she did.”
“Frankly, I’m not that fond of arranged marriages. I think you should find someone closer to your own age,” Gail called.
I eased through the undergrowth. Last fall’s leaves carpeted the ground, but the humidity and recent rains made them soft and pliable, not crunchy at all. I caught sight of movement, near the sweet gum and froze.
“Don’t be like that, sweetheart. There aren’t many women my own age these days. That’s another benefit of joining me, girl. I’m pushing one hundred and I’m still in my prime. If you hunters didn’t kill every werewolf you found, you’d know that our healing ability bestows long life, too.”
Light glinted off metal and I could see the rifle. I followed the barrel down to where it rested on the shooter’s hip. The bastard was only thirty feet from me. My accuracy at thirty feet was a two-inch circle. I smiled as I brought the sights onto the man’s back.
“Long life isn’t everything,” Gail said. “Convince me that I won’t change, that I’ll always be myself.”
“Well, girly, you’re going to change, whether you join me willing or not. Your mind will be the same, at least most of the time. It’ll be a year or more before you’re experienced enough to change without a full moon. Hell, I’ll make you another offer. Bring that boy out with you and I’ll change him too. What ya’ say to that, boy? You want to feel what it’s like to run through the forest at night, hunting prey, feeling their life bleeding out in your jaws?”
I had heard enough and I was ready to give my answer. I flicked down the safety and fired instantly.
Even as my finger squeezed the trigger, the man was moving. My first round clipped the arm holding the rifle, but the man didn’t cry out or slow down. He was running flat out, moving in a sprint, at an angle away from me. I put two more rounds after him and then ran forward. When I reached the spot where the shooter had stood, I found his rifle. There were blood splatters on it.
I froze and listened. In the distance, I could hear branches snapping and clothes dragging against the undergrowth.
I picked up the rifle, cycled the safety off, and then back on. It was a nice Springfield with a Tasco scope. I’d thank the bastard for it the next time we met.
Moving toward the cabin, I called out to Gail to let her know I was alone.
When I stepped out into the clearing, Gail waited on the porch; her Colt was in her hand. “Did you get him?”
I shook my head and climbed the steps to join her. “Just winged him. He’s fast Gail, far faster than those children of his were. I had a bead on his back and fired as soon as I touched the safety, but he was already moving. I’m lucky I even hit him.”
Gail holstered her gun and put a hand on my arm. “That’s okay; you have his gun so he won’t be bothering us unless he thinks he can take you inside the cabin tonight. If he thought he could do that, he’d have tried it last night.”
I glanced at the skyline. “You’re probably right. It’s getting pretty late; we’d better get you ready.”
Gail looked up at the darkening sky. “Oh, hell.”
Gail went inside, directly to the bathroom. I went in and shut the door behind me, twisting the simple lock as I did. I gathered the wrist and ankle bindings from the table and moved them to the bed. I turned on my tablet and checked the time. A chill went through me when I saw it was eight twenty. Hell, how did it get so late?
I grabbed a couple of rolls of the bondage tape and tossed them on the bed, then gathered the twenty-five medallions and put them on the bed. Gail came out of the bath her blouse was off and she was unbuttoning her jeans.
When she reached the bed, I knelt, unlaced her boots, and yanked each one off.
“Damn,” Gail said. “That’s the time? That’s why the bastard came so late, he probably thought that he could keep us busy until it was too late to get me restrained.”
I gripped the cuffs of her jeans and yanked them off in one jerk. Gail picked up one of the anklets and wrapped it around her right ankle while I did the left. Leaving the snap hook alone, I took the collar and fastened it around her neck while Gail put on the bracelets.
Suddenly, Gail stopped and shook her head. She seemed disoriented. She shook her head again and then met my gaze. There was fear in her eyes. “Jesse, hook my wrist, quickly.”
“Already?” I rolled her onto her back and clipped the snap hook fastening her wrist together within three inches of each other. “I’ve got to get some silver on you before it’s too late.”
Grabbing two lengths of 8 mm chain, I wound one around each wrist. Her wrists felt strange beneath my fingers, fuzzy-like and getting fuzzier by the second.
“My mouth, Jesse, you’d better cover my mouth before …” Gail gritted her teeth and
