avoid a stray leaf that seemed to be reaching for him. “Corn is a seriously creepy vegetable.”
William stopped, motioned aggressively for him to be silent, and gave him a look that threatened violence.
Paoli raised his hands in mock surrender and mouthed ‘sorry.’
William continued to glare at him another minute.
Paoli needed to understand the severity of the situation they were in. Wolves had excellent hearing, and the last thing they needed was for his big mouth to give them away. There was no telling how many wolves might be around, and it was important they have the element of surprise if they were going to get the execution done and get out with minimal incident. William might be an excellent fighter, but even he wasn’t capable of taking on an entire pack of wolves.
William was still glaring at Paoli when a smell caught his attention. It was very faint at first, like a whisper.
A promise.
It was there for only a second, then gone.
His head snapped around, and something inside him became very alert.
“What’s wrong?” Paoli whispered, closing the distance between them to stand at his side.
“Did you smell that?” William closed his eyes and inhaled, chasing the elusive scent. It was gone, and he couldn’t pick it back up.
Paoli gave him a look, then sniffed and shook his head.
“I don’t smell anything,” he said.
William stood for another moment without moving a muscle. He used all his senses, but he couldn’t identify a danger anywhere. There were no scents in the immediate area except the two of them and the corn.
Besides, it hadn’t smelled dangerous.
It smelled . . . good.
Comforting, somehow.
Confusion edged his every step when they resumed their advance. There was something so familiar about the smell, and yet not. Almost like a memory playing on the edge of his mind that he just couldn’t bring into focus. It drove everything else out of his immediate concentration.
He was aware of Paoli watching him with concerned eyes, but he had no explanation to offer, so he ignored it and continued forward. They had a job to do. No matter what else was happening, he needed to remember the job. Somewhere nearby was a female wolf with a sentence of death. He had to get his focus back on that before his fractured concentration led both he and Paoli into trouble.
Just a few more steps brought the scent again, stronger this time. He breathed in the subtle aroma, trying to figure out why it had such an alluring effect on him.
“Are you seriously telling me you don’t smell that?” he hissed at Paoli.
Paoli frowned, his face growing even more concerned. With his eyes still on William, he breathed in the night air very slowly. After a few seconds, he shook his head and gave William a look of mixed confusion and annoyance.
“I don’t smell it,” Paoli said a little defensively. “I’m a vampire. My sense of smell isn’t as good as yours. What does it smell like?”
Peace. Joy.
“I don’t know how to describe it.” William took another lungful of air. “But it’s different than anything I’ve ever scented.”
Better. More.
“I don’t like this,” Paoli said, his eyebrows drawn together in worry. “Maybe we should come back tomorrow and try again. This is dangerous enough without something unknown complicating it further.”
“Tomorrow won’t be a full moon,” William pointed out. “This may be the best chance we’ll have for a month. Do you really want to wait that long?” He gave Paoli his full attention and raised one sardonic brow.
“Don’t look at me like that,” Paoli said with as much attitude as he could manage at a whisper. “Better to wait a month than walk into a trap. I don’t want to turn to dust at sunrise and blow away after they kill us. Well,” he added offhandedly. “I’d blow away in the sun. There’s no telling what’ll happen to you.”
William would have conceded his point, but there was something about the scent that called to him in a visceral way. It brought out a need to . . . protect. Guard. Provide. There was no hint of malice.
“This doesn’t give me the impression of danger,” he said.
He hoped his voice didn’t sound as befuddled as he felt. What was happening?
He began to move again. Paoli was still watching him closely, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He just needed to find the source of the unusual smell. It seemed to leech into his mind and push out everything else. His mission was all but forgotten. He let his nose guide him on toward the house, Paoli following closely behind.
After what seemed like forever, they broke through the last row of corn and were near enough to the farmhouse for an unobstructed view.
Without warning, the scent seemed to saturate him like honey. As if a spell had been cast, it dragged the instincts of his beast forward. All capacity for the tight reign of control he fought to hold on to was gone. Paoli was talking, but none of his words penetrated the blind fog in William’s mind. There was nothing in the entire world but that smell and the unknown promise behind it.
“William?” Paoli’s voice was hesitant and questioning. “What is it?”
His gaze darted in all directions, as if expecting to see wolves descending from somewhere. There was nothing.
William barely responded at all, and when Paoli gripped his arm, the eyes that snapped toward him were liquid gold and hungry. William was no longer in control.
“Oh no!” Paoli exclaimed. “This is not the time to go all wolfy. You have to fight it before you get us both killed!” His voice was a tight hiss.
Without a word, William jerked away and flew toward the house, leaving Paoli no choice but to follow. He gave a loud, strangled groan and stayed right on William’s heels.
William knew only a fool would rush in this way, but he was helpless to stop himself. His body trembled with the effort he put into fighting the compulsion, but he could barely even manage to slow down.
Old wood creaked as he stepped onto the back porch, but all he heard was the female scream from inside.
He tore through the back door of the dilapidated house like a crazed animal. Not for a second did he stop to consider what he was doing. He was beyond rational thought, the beast within having taken complete control for the first time in years. He located the origin of the scent immediately.
It was coming from a small woman who stood in the doorway of a hidden room, blocking the entry. In front of her was a large man with shaggy blond hair clad only in dark jeans. He held her arms in a painful grip and pulled her forward so far she was on her tiptoes. William’s nose instantly marked him for what he was.
Werewolf.
Chapter
