The Alpha's Search (The Craven Trilogy, #1) Read online

  DC South and Anne were only a few feet away from the two men now. Anne had the taser pointed towards the man closest to her. Suddenly, one of the men made a move. I tried to make sense of what I was seeing. The man's clothes appeared to drop from him as his body changed form. Both DC South and Anne stopped dead in their tracks. In what was no more than a blur, the second man transformed too. Where moments earlier there had been two men, there now stood two huge wolves—teeth bared. Anne was taking small, backward steps away from the beasts. DC South seemed to be frozen to the spot. When the first wolf pounced, Anne tried to fire the taser, but the wolf was on her before she had time to pull the trigger. DC South looked on in horror as the first wolf ripped open Anne's throat. Before he had a chance to move, his own throat was pouring blood.

  I couldn't breathe. My whole body was shaking. The two wolves wasted no time in tearing the two stricken bodies apart. I tried the seat belt again—desperate now. It was hopeless. When I looked up again, the two wolves were walking towards the police car.

  “Help!” I screamed.

  The first wolf was next to the car now. Its snout smeared the side window—it was only inches from my face. The second wolf growled and bared its teeth. The front passenger door was hanging off its hinges. If I could just get the seatbelt open, maybe I could make a run for it. I hammered the catch so hard it cut my hand. I hit it over and over again.

  “Come on, damn you! Open!” I screamed just as the catch gave way. The seatbelt popped open.

  I pushed the belt away, and turned around.

  The wolf's head was now inside the open door.

  *********

  As the wolf moved closer, I braced myself. Any second now, it would launch itself at me. It was all too much to bear, so I closed my eyes.

  The car rocked under a tremendous impact. It felt as though it had been hit by another car. When I opened my eyes, the wolf, which had been only inches from me, had disappeared. A terrible howl came from the road. There were now three wolves just feet from the car. The largest of the three had its back to me, and appeared to be in a stand-off with the other two. This was my chance to escape.

  I slid forward into the front seat. The original two wolves were moving gradually to either side of the larger wolf in what appeared to be some kind of scissor manoeuvre. I was in the front seat—next to the open passenger-side door. I noticed a gash on my right ankle; I hadn't even felt the pain. The larger wolf growled loudly. Moments later, the other two attacked it. That was my cue.

  I pushed myself out of the car. It was slippery underfoot, but I managed to scramble up the grass bank. In front of me was a stretch of open land covered in heather. Behind me echoed the sounds of a ferocious fight. I didn't look back—my only thought was to get as much distance between me and the wolves as possible. If I could just find somewhere to hide—maybe a cave. Perhaps my dreams hadn't been nightmares at all—perhaps they'd been premonitions. There was no time to worry about that.

  The ground was uneven, and my ankle was throbbing. Twice I stumbled—grazing my legs. When I'd covered about a hundred metres, I realised I could no longer hear the sounds of the fight. I stopped and turned around, but immediately regretted my decision. There, in the distance, I could see the figure of the larger wolf. He was looking directly at me. I turned and ran, but my legs felt like jelly. I seemed to be making no progress at all. Within seconds, I could hear the sound of paws pounding the ground behind me. I looked for anywhere I might seek refuge—anything would do—there was nothing. I stopped running—it was pointless. Exhausted, I turned to face the predator.

  The wolf skidded to a halt no more than six feet from me. Its snout was stained with blood. There was no sign of the other two wolves, so I assumed this giant had seen them off. I was bout to become its third victim.

  “Come on then!” I screamed. “What are you waiting for?” I picked up the small rock by my foot. At least I could him a bloody head before he took me out. “Come on you bastard!”

  Chapter 8

  The wolf transformed into human form right in front of my eyes.

  “Are you okay?” Craven said.

  I couldn't speak.

  “Louise. Are you okay?” He began to walk towards me.

  “No! No! Don't come any closer.” I was almost hysterical. I couldn't think straight. I'd expected to die—I thought it was all over. But I was still alive, and right there in front of me stood Craven—naked.

  “It's okay.” he said. “Everything's okay now. You're safe.”

  In that moment, I knew everything he'd told me was true. He was a wolf-shifter. Lassiter was a vampire. My name was Louise, and I was a ... I could hardly bear to think about it.

  “Don't try to speak,” Craven said as he helped me back to the road. “Everything's going to be all right.”

  I doubted it. How could anything ever be all right again? Nothing would ever be all right again.

  We took the BMW. Craven had collected: my holdall from the stricken police car, and the clothes which had been discarded by our would-be assailants. I noticed that the two dead wolves had transformed back into human form on death.

  “What's wrong?” Craven had seen my tears, and put his arm around me. “It's over now. You're safe.”

  I didn't answer. I wasn't crying for myself, but for the young policewoman who had been planning her wedding.

  Craven took care of the formalities as we booked into yet another motel. This one was a little more upmarket than the one we'd stayed at the previous night.

  “I've booked adjoining rooms,” he said, as we walked up a single flight of stairs. “Are you going to be all right?”

  “Yeah, I'll be okay.”

  He saw me to my room. “I'm just next door. Call me or knock on the wall if you need me.”

  I nodded. “Craven,” I called just as he was about to leave.

  “I'm sorry I didn't believe you.”

  “That's okay. Get some rest. I'll check on you later.”

  I climbed onto the bed; I'd never felt so alone. Everything I thought I knew about myself had been destroyed. Before all of this had started, I hadn't had much of a life: no money, so-so job, no boyfriend. But at least I'd been a normal human being. What was I now? Some kind of freak show? I'd read a thousand paranormal books, and I'd always enjoyed them, but that was when I'd thought they were make-believe. Escapism—that's all they'd ever been to me. I didn't want any of this—I wanted my boring, mundane, no-boyfriend life back. In my mind's eye, I could still see those wolves as they tore the life out of poor Anne. I hated the idea that I was one of those creatures. I couldn't hold back the tears any longer.

  “Louise? What's wrong?” Craven looked surprised to see me at his door.

  “Can I come in?”

  “Of course.” He stepped aside. “Do you want a drink?”

  “No thanks. Can we talk?”

  “Sit down.” Craven pointed to the solitary armchair.

  “I need to understand,” I said.

  “I know. I'll tell you whatever you want to know.”

  “Was that Milton? Back there on the road?”

  “No. They were two of his pack. He probably thought they'd be enough to see you off.”

  “Will he try again?”

  “Yes. He won't give up until you and I are dead.”

  “What are we going to do?”

  “We have to find a pack. The two of us alone don't stand a chance, but if we can be accepted into a pack, we should be safe.”

  I hesitated before asking the question I really wanted to ask. “Am I really like you?”

  “A wolf shifter? Yes.”

  “How can I be? I can't change into wolf.”

  “You can. You've just forgotten how. It'll come back to you once you allow your instincts to take over.”

  “But I don't want to. I don't want to be one of those dreadful creatures—”

  He frowned.

  “Sorry. No offence.”

  “It will feel like the most n
atural thing in the world. You're a beautiful wolf. Even more beautiful than your human form.”

  It was possibly the strangest compliment I'd ever been given, and I felt my cheeks flush. “Why don't I remember any of this?”

  “I don't know. You were missing for so long.”

  “How did I go missing? What happened?”

  “I have no idea. It's possible Lassiter took you, but I can't be sure.”

  “And you've been looking for me for forty years?”

  Craven smiled. “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  “You're my fated mate. We were born to be together. I vowed I would keep on searching until I found you or knew for sure you were dead.”

  “What about your pack?”

  “I left them behind. I couldn't expect them to follow me. They wanted me to take another mate, but I would never do that.”

  His words hit me like a hammer to my heart. No one had ever shown that kind of affection or devotion to me before. Something stirred inside me—a long forgotten emotion—I tried to keep a hold on it, but it was gone as quickly as it had appeared. I wanted him to pull me into his arms, but he was waiting—waiting for me to feel the same connection he felt.

  Chapter 9

  By the time I left Craven's room, my head was full of thoughts, questions and fears. I didn't expect to sleep, but as soon as my head hit the pillow, I was out like a light. It was almost eight o' clock when I woke the next morning. As I lay in bed, I thought about my accident and the aftermath. My first memory was of waking up in A&E. I'd been found unconscious by a woman taking her Akita for an early morning walk. My mind drifted back to that fateful day:

  I opened my eyes—someone was looking down at me.

  “Where am—?” My mouth was so dry, I could barely speak. “Where am I?”

  “You're in hospital,” the young woman said.

  My vision was slowly clearing—I could see she was wearing a blue nurse's uniform.

  “What happened?” I tried to sit up, but the nurse put a hand on my shoulder.

  “Don't try to get up. Wait until the doctor has seen you.”

  “Why am I here? What happened?”

  “What's your name?” she said, ignoring my questions.

  “It's—” My mind was a blank. I tried again, “My name is—”

  “It's okay. Don't worry. The doctor will be here in a few minutes.” With that, she disappeared. I glanced around to find I was in a small, tiled cubicle. A white curtain was drawn—beyond it I could hear voices and footsteps.

  I lifted first one arm, and then the other. I did the same with my legs. All in working order, and no pain.

  “Ah good, you're awake!” A male voice this time. “I'm Doctor Mason.”

  “What happened to me, doctor?”

  “I was hoping you might tell us that.”

  “I can't remember anything. Not even my name.”

  He nodded. “That's okay. Don't worry. It isn't uncommon in cases like this.”

  “How did I get here?”

  “I believe someone found you in the park.”

  “Park?”

  “You don't remember going into the park?”

  I shook my head.

  “Do you know where you are?”

  “Hospital.”

  “Do you know which town this is?”

  Once again, my mind was a blank.

  “It's okay. It'll all come back in time. Right now, we need to run some tests.”

  “What tests?”

  “Nothing to worry about. All routine. We'll start with a scan of your head to make sure everything's okay inside.”

  They did the scan, plus a million and one other tests. Everything came back clear—except my memory. Two days later, I was on an observation ward when I had a visitor:

  “Hi!” The middle-aged woman smiled at me.

  Did I know her? She obviously knew me.

  “Hi?”

  “They said it was okay to come see you. I hope you don't mind.”

  “I'm really sorry, but I don't know who you—”

  “My fault.” She waved away my apology. “They told me that you’d lost your memory. I was the one who found you in Toppers.”

  “Toppers?”

  “Toppers Park. Strictly speaking, it wasn't me who found you. It was Jack—my Akita. He's a well-behaved dog. He usually comes back as soon as I call him. That morning, he ran into the bushes, and wouldn't come back no matter how many times I called. I'd never heard him howl like that before. When I found him, he was standing over you.”

  “Did you see anyone else nearby?” I asked.

  “Who?”

  “I don't know. The police think I might have been mugged. I just wondered if you'd seen anyone.”

  “No. I usually take Jack out early—before breakfast. We occasionally see other dog walkers or joggers, but that morning the park was deserted. It was a Sunday though—people like to stay in bed on a Sunday.”

  “Oh.” I tried to mask my disappointment.

  “I'd better not keep you talking, dear. You need your rest. I just wanted to check you were okay. You look better than the last time I saw you.”

  “Thanks for coming, and say thanks to Jack for me would you?”

  Later that same day, I had another visitor.

  “Do you have any news?” I sounded as desperate as I felt.

  “Sorry. Nothing yet,” Officer Tamblin said.

  Tamblin was the policeman who'd interviewed me on the day I'd been admitted to hospital. The police thought I might have been the victim of a mugging because I had no personal possessions on me when I was found.

  “Surely someone must have missed me by now?”

  “It's unusual,” he admitted. “Normally someone comes forward within forty eight hours in cases like this. A family member, boyfriend, friend, work colleague...”

  I felt sick to my stomach. It was bad enough that I couldn't remember who I was, or anything else about my life, but it was even worse to realise that no one out there had missed me. Did I have family, a boyfriend, friend or work colleague? I had no idea.

  “I've spoken to my boss,” Tamblin said. “We're going to make an appeal on local radio and TV. A photographer will come around later today—if that's okay with you?”

  “Sure.” I tried, but failed to sound upbeat.

  One week later, there had been no response to the radio and TV appeals. I couldn't have told anyone how desolate I felt at that point. Losing my memory was bad enough, but the thought that I had no one—absolutely no one—was horrible. The staff at the hospital had been marvellous, but it was obvious to everyone that there was no longer any reason for me to be there. Physically, I was fit—I'd had a million test results which said so.

  Where would I go? I had no home, no money and no name. The police had arranged for a social worker to visit me:

  “My name's Maxine. I've been assigned your case.”

  “Hi.”

  “This is rather awkward.” She hesitated. “I need a name to use on your file, but—”

  I laughed. I couldn't stop laughing. I couldn't help it. I had nothing—not even a name. Then, I cried.

  “Sorry,” Maxine said. “I didn't mean to upset you. We can sort that out later.”

  “It's okay.” I wiped my eyes. “I guess I should have a name.” I thought about it for a moment. The Akita that found me was called Jack.

  “Jackie,” I said.

  I was on Coleman Ward.

  “Jackie Coleman.”

  “Right.” Maxine looked uncertain. “That'll do until we know your real name.”

  Maxine was a little too fussy, but did everything she could to help including organising a one-off payment from a social fund to cover my initial expenses. I had only the clothes I'd arrived in. She also organised a place at a hostel. Two days later, it was time for me to leave the hospital. Judy, the nurse who was the first person I'd seen when I came around, had been a regular visitor to my bedside.

  �
��You leaving us?” Judy asked.

  “I guess so.”

  “Where will you go?”

  “I've got a temporary place at a hostel.” I took the slip of paper from my pocket. “Dunston Hostel.”

  I saw the reaction on her face.

  “That bad, eh?”

  “You shouldn't have to go there. It's full of drunks and addicts. Couldn't they find you anywhere else?”

  I shrugged. “I'd better get going.”

  “Wait!” Judy put a hand on my shoulder. “Me and my flatmate are looking for someone else to share. The last girl moved out to live with her boyfriend.”

  “That's sweet of you, but I don't have any money or a job.”

  “You can pay us when you do.”

  “What will your flatmate say?”

  “Alison? She'll be fine with it. You'll like her—she's nice. What do you say?”

  “That would be brilliant. Thanks!”

  Judy and Alison were great flatmates. The most difficult part about finding a job was getting the paperwork sorted. I had a zero identity. It took weeks and a lot of help from Maxine to get paperwork under my new 'temporary' name of Jackie Coleman.

  Over the next two years, I did a number of jobs—bar work, shop work—most of it part time and/or temporary. Then I landed the job at Dexter Travel. Judy moved out a year later. Me and Alison never did get around to finding a new flatmate. I built a new life for myself in Camthorpe. I even managed a few brief relationships although they were short-lived and forgettable. At the back of my mind was always the hope that one day my memory might return, or that I might meet someone who knew me—the old me.