Leslie steeled herself and walked toward the large doors, pushing the girls ahead of her in the stroller. They were beginning to wake and would be crying for food soon. She didn’t even have their diaper bag. No doubt, this would all anger Blane and she’d have to deal with that from him soon. She felt like the world was ending. She wanted to know that Tucker was okay. He couldn’t be or he’d be in here, defending her. Why was no one here to help her? Were they so involved with the fight outside that they weren’t aware of what was happening inside?
“Don’t do anything stupid, Constance. I’m not playing with you. Walk out the front doors and get into the backseat of the gray Lincoln SUV sitting there. If you do so much as stumble on the way out, I’ll kill the girls while you watch and then I’ll take you home and cut the ones out of you, so you can watch me kill them too, while you bleed out.”
Constance felt numb. She was terrified. If there was one thing she knew about Blane, it was that he had always bordered on being a sociopath. Now, he was demonstrating just how much of one he was and would continue to do so when he got her alone. There was almost zero chance that she survived this in the long-term, probably not even the short-term. The moment they returned home, she and her unborn children were most likely doomed. Still, better to save the girls than to save none of them.
“Let’s go,” Blane said to the nearby wolves. Blane pushed her toward the door, his hand grasping the back of her neck. The wolves followed behind. Opening the door, Blane shoved her out, the stroller pushed through by her body as she went. There was no one there waiting for them. Her heart sank. She started across the lobby and headed toward the front door.
She could think of nothing but her family. This was the end for some of them. Perhaps, all of them. It might be the end for Tucker, if it hadn’t already been. Right now, she was just running on instinct, which could be compromised, but how could she decide anything right now? They made their way quickly toward the door. Blane opened it and peered out before motioning her forward with the stroller. She headed out and down the ramp toward the SUV with Blane and the three wolves behind her. She averted her eyes from them, not wanting to see the toddlers they carried in their mouths.
A weird buzzing sound filled her ears, followed by what sounded like a loud groan and a thud. Then there was something else. It sounded like thunder against the planks of the front porch. Leslie whirled around and then turned away, hurrying the rest of the way down the ramp with the triplets, getting them out of the way. Behind her, wolves converged upon the three that had exited, making quick work of taking them down. They were outnumbered two to one and never stood a chance.
Blane laid on the ground, his body seizing violently. Leslie’s eyes widened as she followed the metal coils that led her to the oversized stun gun in the hands of Mari, who looked terrified and was frozen with her hand still depressing the button that sent out a charge. As Leslie watched, the buzzing stopped and Blane began to slowly recover himself, seizing the chance to shift. His eyes locked in on Leslie and he launched himself toward her but was quickly side swiped by Tucker’s wolf.
Their heavy bodies rolled together, snarling and clawing at one another so violently that it made Leslie’s stomach turn with horror. Blane managed to get to his feet and bolted around the edge of the clubhouse with Tucker right behind him.
Leslie looked at Mari, who still looked horrified. Mari looked back at her.
“The charge ran out,” she said, sounding dazed.
“Come with me,” Leslie told her, motioning her toward her.
Mari moved as if her feet were in quicksand at first, but quickly picked up speed, following Leslie across the front yard, away from the fray. Then, it was over. Bodies laid across the porch as slain wolves began to resume their human form.
“What is happening?” Mari shrieked.
“Have you and your husband not talked about what happens when wolves die?”
“No. I, I guess we didn’t think it was something we needed to talk about anytime soon.”
“When a wolf dies, if he or she dies in wolf form, their body returns to human form for burial.”
“Why?”
“Who knows? It’s just the way it has always been. It’s not easy to explain a dead wolf in some situations, so nature built in a way to correct the situation.”
Mari stood there, looking around at the carnage, just as terrified that her husband might be on the ground as Leslie was for Tucker. She had seen him charge around the corner of the house and jump Blane, but then they had disappeared around the other side again and she had lost sight of him.