The Amulet Read online

  As much as she hated to admit it, everything they were telling her made perfect sense. She wondered which of her parents had been a werewolf and how they had managed to keep it hidden. She also wondered if it had anything to do with their sudden disappearance. Xander, the wolf, nuzzled her in her thoughts.

  There was a part of her mind that she was keeping secret. It wasn't hard, really. Holding one small shield was far simpler than maintaining a large one. It was such a small part of her mind, she doubted that either of them realized she was doing it. It was no wonder her heart was torn two ways, she thought. The vampire wanted Nevar, but the wolf in her wanted Xander. She wondered secretly which of the two was stronger.

  "Speaking of being prepared, we should get ready," Nevar stated. "You need to feed, Alyssa."

  "I'm not really hungry," she noticed as she said it.

  "You should eat anyway," Xander told her. "If you face Gabriel again, you'll need the extra energy."

  "If we go looking for Matthias, we will have to bring the medallion with us, won't we?"

  "Yes," Nevar's tone was less than thrilled. "It seems to have chosen you as its new owner, so you must carry it. I doubt it will abide by myself or Xander."

  "I was afraid you'd say that," she answered. It was strange. She was terrified of the amulet, but at the same time, she longed to wear it again. She knew the power it contained and could feel it coursing through her. It was no wonder Gabriel wanted the amulet back.

  They all disbursed and went about getting ready. Alyssa pulled her phone out of her bag and dialed Jessie's number. It was cutting it close, but she made her deadline.

  "Hello?"

  "Hey, Jess. It's me."

  "Hey! How are you doing? You must have hidden yourself really well this time! I haven't seen any photos of you in days."

  "Yeah, the paparazzi hasn't found me yet, thankfully."

  "Have you been thinking about this movie offer? They have been calling me like crazy trying to get an answer."

  "I have thought about it a little. You said it would be about a month before they start shooting?"

  "Well, a month and a half before they shoot the first scene, but you know how these things go. You've got your rehearsals and such before they try to get a final cut."

  "How soon did they want me down there?"

  "I could get you there as soon as a month from now, but I don't have a deadline for you. Why are you so concerned about time? This is what you've been waiting for, isn't it?"

  "I was waiting for something, but they are throwing this at me pretty fast. I usually have more time to prepare and get into my character and I usually like to read the script before I agree to play a part."

  "Oh, Alyssa, I'm sorry. You're absolutely right! I'll get you a script right away and I'll see if I can pull some strings. They may be able to shoot the scenes you won't be in first to give you more time."

  "Thanks, Jess. Talk to you later, okay?"

  "Love ya, Lyss! Bye!"

  She made sure her phone was on silent then slid it into her bag and packed a spare set of clothes. Looking into Nevar's gilded mirror, she pulled her long black hair up into a modified ponytail, leaving the ends of her hair tied in the knot making it look like a bun. She was radiant as she gazed at her reflection. She would have killed for looks like this when she was human. The allure of being a vampire was a nice plus, but, besides changing into a wolf, what attributes had she gained from her were genes?

  I'm sure you'll find out soon enough, Xander's voice echoed in her head. Are you ready?

  As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose, she sent back. They met up in Nevar's sitting room and proceeded upstairs.

  "I can't travel by mist," Xander told her. "I'll only slow you down."

  "We don't need to go far to feed, do we? I can go as a wolf. I've been wanting to test my limits a bit." It looked like Nevar wanted to argue when she added, "Besides, it might be helpful if I get some practice in case we have another run-in with Gabriel."

  He reluctantly agreed but pointed out, "Your clothing will either be a hindrance or destroyed when you transform. You may have to sacrifice your modesty."

  "No," she said. "You two will be gentleman and turn away while I strip."

  Xander's smile stretched from ear to ear. "Now where's the fun in that? Nevar's a gentleman, but I claim no such title." He laughed, but he turned his back just the same. Alyssa picked up the thoughts that danced through his head that he didn't bother to hide. He may not have been looking, but he was watching in his mind.

  Nevar, oblivious to Xander's coded visions, turned away from her as well. She slipped from her nightgown and out the back door to the veranda. She thought it best not to transform in Nevar's magnificent house. It took a minute or two, but she found the place inside her where the beast slept. She told it to run, to hunt, to free itself from the cage.

  It responded willingly. Her body twisted until her paws hit the ground. She faced the door to the manor and waited for her escorts to emerge. She saw her reflection in the glass and marveled at it for a moment. Her fur was silver and reflected the moonlight so that she seemed to glow. Her body was nearly the size of a horse with long, powerful legs. Perhaps most stunning of all, were her eyes. They were the color of burnished gold and they gleamed intensely back at her.

  Xander emerged from the doors followed closely by Nevar. Alyssa wagged her tail at them. LunR. The name came from Xander and translated oddly into letters. In his wolf's mind, she was the moon with the body of a wolf, reflecting the rays of the sun in her eyes.

  Suddenly, the reason Nevar's name had sounded so foreign made sense. Xander had called him Raven, but letters get mixed in the mind of the wolf, so it had ended up Nevar. Still, it was a good name and she found she rather liked LunR as well.

  Nevar was carrying her bag with him. He looked almost regal and even the wolf had to admire the strength she saw there. His piercing blue eyes searched hers but she knew they would not find the meaning they were looking for. Her mind was a puzzle that could not be unraveled. "I implore you, do be careful. You are vulnerable in this form," he reminded her. The wolf sensed his anxiety and there was an edge of fear in his tone.

  She dipped her head to show she understood and let out a bark at Xander. He got the message. His hands slid to his waist to remove his shorts. She turned and bolted towards the tree line. It would not take him long to catch up to her and she could not make herself watch him undress. The wolf was not so bothered by the sight of a naked man, but Alyssa blushed at the very thought.

  Xander was already laughing in her thoughts. She felt him transform through his mind just as she reached the cover of the woods. She stopped to wait for him, but her mind reached out for Nevar. She found him some distance away, traveling by mist. She was unsure if he would understand her thoughts, but she knew he could feel her emotions. She was happy, but also cautious. Their luck had been running pretty thin so far and she worried about him going off alone.

  He must have understood her message because he whispered back to her, I will be back soon. Go, have your fun and grow stronger. Xander may need your added strength to keep him out of trouble.

  Xander approached her from behind and pounced on her back, bowling her over. He pinned her momentarily before she countered by using her back legs as leverage to throw him off. As he hit the ground, she recovered her feet and tackled him. Her jaws found his neck and she grabbed a mouthful of fur using just enough force to hold, not puncture. He gave her a gentle lick and she released her hold.

  He was impressed. Her reaction had been swift and she had been able to think her way out without panicking. He got back to his feet and sniffed at the air. She followed his lead and tried to pick up a scent. She could smell the horses still lingering in the air, but the scent was growing old. Her nose picked up a woodsy smell that she thought might be a squirrel.

  Xander identified the scent as a common grey squirrel. In his mind, the scent was a stream of color that bounced along among the falle
n leaves and low-growing foliage before scampering up a tree. She was amazed how the scent took on a life of its own and the way he could track it visually. He nudged her neck with his nose for her to make an attempt of her own.

  It wasn't easy for her. She sniffed the air again searching for something to track. Finally, she smelled something similar to the horses, but it smelled distinctly gamey. Following her nose, she found tracks in a patch of soft soil. It was a deer. Once she had identified the scent, she focused in on it, blocking everything else out. That's when it happened. The trail seemed to light up like a glow stick.

  Xander wagged his tail at her and gave her ear an affectionate lick. A shiver of joy raced down her spine but she wasn't sure it was from her accomplishment. She nipped his shoulder gently in return, a play bite, but enough to get his attention. They were here to hunt. He shook his head then, straightened and pricked his ears. He was ready. She could feel his excitement and it spilled over into her.

  She took the lead, following the trail on silent paws. Xander was at her flank guiding her over the terrain through his memories. They were nearing the end of the trail. It was strong now. Her heart quickened with anticipation of the coming chase. She hoped it gave her a good run. She wanted this. Her first hunt should be terribly thrilling. She wanted to stretch her muscles, to pit her speed and wit against her prey and see who came out on top, and she wanted to race at top speed. She wanted the wind and fire in her lungs and the pounding of her heart because only in this body could she ever feel it again.

  Xander nudged her to veer off to the left. He would go right and together, they would chase their quarry north towards a large rock face where they would have an advantage. They had to time their move perfectly or the animal would slip from their noose and escape. He wanted her to make the first move. He was testing her, she knew, but she planned to pass with flying colors.

  She slipped quietly through the brambles to the edge of a small clearing. It was there, grazing on a patch of clover. It was a young buck but he had a rack atop his crown. Good, he was at least armed. She might have felt guilty to take down a doe. He was such a beautiful creature, but this was the nature of things, predator and prey, nothing more. Her mouth began to water and her stomach growled low at her. The wind was in her favor. Xander was in position now. All she needed was an opportunity.

  Her muscles were coiled like a spring, ready to unleash the full power of the beast. The buck lifted a hind hoof to scratch at an ear. Now! She sprung while he was off-balance. Brambles snagged in her coat, but she burst through them with ease. The buck teetered on three legs for an instant before bolting. Xander emerged from the brush and charged after it, cutting off its escape path.

  Alyssa lengthened her stride and her paws ate up the turf with tremendous speed. She could see the white in the buck's eye as she closed in on him. Her heart pounded and adrenaline poured into her veins. The wind rushed into her burning lungs to quench their thirst for oxygen. Xander was keeping pace with her and they herded the deer towards the rock face.

  As they approached the face of the rock, the buck began to panic. He was running out of ground and he had no escape. Alyssa knew he was going to turn and fight an instant before it happened. She dodged the rack on his head but had to lunge at him to prevent him from using his momentary advantage to escape. He bucked and caught her in the chest with his rear hoof. While she caught her breath, Xander leaped onto the buck's back and managed to bite into the flesh of his withers.

  The buck threw his head in pain and glanced Xander with his rack, catching his shoulder. It was enough to throw Xander off his back, but Alyssa had recovered and it was her turn to launch an attack. She had one chance to take this buck down without getting pierced by his crown and she had better aim just right or she might end up the trophy.

  She gathered all her strength into one powerful leap. The buck's attention was still on Xander. By the time it saw Alyssa, it was too late. She collided with the deer with her paws out-stretched and her jaws open. Once she felt flesh, she clamped down. It was over in a matter of moments. She had found the hold she had been aiming for: the throat. Her sharp teeth had punctured the jugular vein and her jaws had constricted the trachea.

  The buck was gone, but it had been quick and nearly painless. He had put up a good fight. His hoof had left a nasty gash on her chest. Scarlet rivulets were staining her silver pelt. She dropped the buck to check on Xander. He was trotting towards her, favoring his right front leg. The antlers had pierced his flesh in three places, one of which looked deep.

  She licked his wounds to clean them of dirt and blood. She was surprised to feel his tongue nursing the laceration on her chest, although, she supposed it should not have been a shock. It stung, but already, she could feel the fire in her chest as her body burned energy to repair itself. Xander's tongue was comforting next to the heat burning in her chest.

  Suddenly, she was starving and the fresh venison beside her was making her mouth water and her stomach growled like an angry beast. Xander nudged her towards their kill. They hunted for food, not for sport, he told her. She nodded her head and together they settled in to eat.

  With full stomachs, they laid down lazily. Their bodies needed to heal and digest. Alyssa curled into herself and wrapped her tail over her nose. Xander settled in beside her, resting his head on her neck. His body was warm against hers and his breath ruffled the fur on her neck. It was all so comfortable and intimate. The feelings he evoked in her were unsettling, but not unpleasant.

  The beast inside her was almost sated but there was still one desire it had not yet satisfied. It was the only reason it had not curled back up into the cage she had built for it. She was unable to censor the thoughts of the wolf and Xander's low rumble reverberated through her. He wanted to satisfy her need. He had held it back before, but now she could feel his need as well. It was the nature of the beast. It had limited desires but none so basic as this: the desire for flesh.

  He licked her ear softly as his breathing grew deeper. A low moan escaped her that was not hers. Xander's petting increased and his heart was beating faster. She could hold the beast back no longer and she was lost to its desires. LunR leaned into the licking and uncurled her body. Alyssa was just an idea; she was a faint memory in the mind of the wolf. Now, all that was left of her was LunR, the werewolf.

  Xander was biting gently at her hind collar and she responded by arching her back for him. His paws wrapped around her waist and he joined his body with hers. His mind lit up with a million white fires as his body locked with hers. She sang to the moon for him in her thoughts and a million white fires danced in the sky. There was a tear in his thoughts, but she didn't have the capacity to contemplate its meaning, nor did she care to. LunR was lost in the moment. Her world exploded into a million tiny pieces. As they separated, Xander licked her muzzle and they both collapsed into a bed of soft grass to sleep.

  The wolf was sated now and she crept back into the depths, leaving Alyssa lying in the soft fur of Xander's pelt. It was some time later before she came back to her senses. She was warm, she realized, but she felt exposed. Her fingers were laced in thick, soft fur. She opened her eyes slowly and found she was nestled by the belly of a massive wolf.

  She startled for a second before she recognized the scent as Xander. Then, she realized she was naked. He had curled his body around her to keep her warm. She felt safe with him and only a small part of her mind was concerned with her nudity. Xander's even breathing told her he was asleep before she found his closed eyes.

  Alyssa wanted to reach out for Nevar, but something told her to wait. She was comfortable here with Xander and she felt a warmth that she had never felt before. The wolf had been injured, she remembered. She checked her chest for the gash but found only a small cut, nearly healed. Soon, it would be nothing but a memory.

  Xander stirred beside her, his fur tickling her bare skin. He lifted his head and nuzzled her gently. His thoughts were conflicted and she was having a hard time dec
iphering them. He seemed to be debating on whether or not to tell her something. She ran her fingers through his thick coat, finding sleek muscle beneath. His conflicted thoughts made her want to soothe him and she curled herself closer to his warm belly.

  "It's okay, Xander," she told him. She wanted to tell him why it was okay, but she couldn't find words. It would have been easier if she knew what was on his mind, but she had no clue. Instead, she gave him her thoughts. She was content, whether he told her or not, she would think no different of him. There was a tear in his thoughts that broke her heart. He was saddened by something, but it was unclear what that was.

  When he reached out for Nevar, she was surprised and disappointed. She realized the reason she had not called Nevar herself was that she had wanted more time with Xander. He picked himself up and backed away from her. His eyes were turned away from her as if he couldn't bear to look at her. As a thin mist began to filter through the trees, Xander bolted into the woods without so much as a backward glance.

  She wrapped her arms around herself, feeling very vulnerable and hurt. Nevar stepped beside her and removed his shirt. He wrapped the red silk around her and lifted her out of the dirt in his strong arms. She nestled into his bare chest with the beginnings of tears in her eyes. He had abandoned her and she didn't know why.

  "Alyssa," Nevar said her name like a caress, "What's wrong?"

  "He just left me, Nevar. No goodbye, he just left me exposed like this. I know I should be stronger and be able to fend for myself, but I didn't expect him to abandon me naked in the woods." She felt stupid for crying and even more so for telling Nevar her feelings. She was stronger than this. The real reason she was crying was that she had felt a connection with Xander, had wanted him to nuzzle her, and had sought the safety and solace she had felt nestled in his fur. It seemed he had not returned her feelings and, instead, had left her to the elements. Her silent heart felt like it was shattered.