The Better to Bite(75)

“You and Brent,” she continued. “I saw you change last spring.” She lifted a claw-tipped hand and pointed to the woods. “I saw you running out here, and I knew the two of you were just like me.”

Brent had risen to his feet.

“We don’t kill!” Rafe snarled at her.

“Not yet, but you will.” Valerie seemed so certain. “Once you get a taste of their blood, once you feel the power, you will.” Her eyes found me. “Blood and death will be all either of you know, unless Anna saves you.” She laughed, a wild, mad laugh. “And she’ll only save you by dying.”

“You’re crazy!” I screamed the truth at her. “I can’t save anyone! I’m not a witch! I’m just a girl who—”

She lunged for me. She shoved Rafe right out of her way as if he were nothing, and as I fell from his arms, she wrapped those claws around my throat.

“Lost your necklace?” She taunted. “It won’t save you now, nothing will—”

“I will.” Rafe’s voice. He’d risen instantly to his feet. “Valerie, in case no one’s ever told you this…you can be one real bitch.”

Then he grabbed her and wrenched her away from me.

But Valerie didn’t fight him. She just fell to the ground and stared up at me, her face slack with surprise. “Y-your neck…”

My hand was on my neck, looking for blood. But she hadn’t ripped into me. Not yet.

“Silver…” Valerie rose to her feet. “I’ve seen that rash before.”

It wasn’t surprising that she could see in the dark. Not with those glowing yellow eyes that were burning so bright, but I didn’t know what the hell she was talking about.

Then she started laughing.

“Get Anna out of here!” Rafe ordered Brent as he pushed me toward the other guy. “I’ll stop Valerie!”

My knees buckled. Too much blood loss. I wanted to fight but I was suddenly too weak. Broken.

Brent caught me and lifted me into his arms. His lips brushed across my forehead.

I couldn’t outrun a wolf.

But he could.

“You’re just like your mother.” Valerie’s taunting voice carried in the night. More laughter, and I really wanted to punch the bitch, but I didn’t even have the strength to lift my arm. “Not a savior, are you, Anna Lambert? You’re just as much of a monster as I am.”

Her words settled deep inside me.

Just like your mother.

No, no, that wasn’t right—

“Stop,” I whispered to Brent.

I heaved up and looked over his shoulder.

Rafe stood just a few feet away from Valerie.

Valerie was staring after me. “I read the journal, Anna!” She yelled. “Before I torched that damn station, I read it—I know your secrets! I just didn’t realize—not until now—just how like dear, dead mommy you really were.”

Dad hadn’t let me see the journal. Why hadn’t he?

But Valerie turned her smirk on Rafe. “You think she’s so perfect? You don’t even know the truth about her.”

“Brent!” Rafe’s voice snapped like a whip. “Get her out of here! I don’t want Anna to see—”

He didn’t finish. But I knew.

I don’t want Anna to see me kill Valerie.

Dad had said there was only one way to stop a rogue. To save me, to protect the town, Rafe would have to kill Valerie. But what would that do to him?

“You can’t!” Valerie’s taunt. “You won’t. You don’t have it in you, Rafe Channing.”

Brent was running now. Leaving them behind and holding me so tightly that I knew I’d have bruises from his hands.

“She’s not getting away! I won’t let her get away!”

Once more, the snaps and pops of the shift filled the air. Valerie’s voice deepened, became wild. “I’ll track her, I’ll kill her, wherever—”

A gunshot blasted through the night. One, then another.

Brent froze.

My hands dug into his shoulders. I tried to look back—

Valerie—her face twisted and her hands still claws—had a hole in the middle of her forehead.

And in her chest.

She fell back to the ground and Rafe—Rafe had been at her side, fighting with his own claws. He wasn’t hurt yet, but his fangs were out and his claws were out and he looked wild and—

“No!” My scream. Even though my body hurt, even though I felt a bone-deep cold chilling me, I jerked free of Brent’s arms. I hit the ground. Tried to crawl back to Rafe. “Dad, don’t!”

Because I knew who’d shot Valerie. In the vision I’d seen, my dad had been running through the woods, running to me. The wolves with him had scented the blood and led him straight to us.