AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"It'll make you bleed more."
"Pull it out!"
Tears ran down her cheeks as she grasped the shaft and gave it a hard yank. Carlos cried out.
"Don't die on me!" She yanked handfuls of T-shirts and underwear from her backpack and pressed them against the wounds on his back and stomach. "Don't you dare die on me."
"Don't be afraid," he whispered. "I'll be here for you."
Her tears splattered onto his T-shirt. "Carlos, don't leave me."
His eyes flickered shut. His body shuddered, then went still.
"Carlos?"
He lay there, still and pale.
Caitlyn let go of the clothes she'd pressed against him. She sat back and looked at her trembling hands covered with blood. His blood. He was gone.
"No!" She flung herself on top of him. "No, Carlos, no." This couldn't be true. She couldn't lose him. She clutched at him, willing him to come back.
The cave suddenly grew much darker and colder. She glanced at the entrance. It was dark outside. And she was all alone in the jungle, in the Temple of Death.
With a shudder, she realized the sun had gone down. She might not be alone after all.
Chapter Twenty-two
Caitlyn fumbled on the ground and located the flashlight she'd dropped earlier. The beam quivered in her shaking hand as she pointed it at the narrow opening.
Get a grip. But how could she when Carlos was dead? A sob racked her body. Don't fall apart now. Think, think. She needed to protect herself. Carlos would be angry if she hadn't learned her lessons well. He would be even more pissed if he'd died in vain protecting her. He's not feeling anything. He's dead.
She wiped at the tears streaming down her face, then realized her hands were still coated with Carlos's blood. She rubbed her hands on her khaki pants. She had to protect herself. She had to make him proud. She removed the gun from his holster. If anything came through that opening, she'd shoot and keep shooting.
The gun trembled in her hand, and she prayed for strength. She kept the flashlight aimed at the opening and waited. And waited.
She edged closer to Carlos 'cause somehow she felt safer when she was sitting next to him. His body was still warm. And solid. Tears slid down her face, but she didn't dare put down the flashlight or gun to wipe them.
It was going to be a long night. In the dark. How long would the batteries last in the flashlight? Carlos's was still on. She quickly set her flashlight and gun down, so she could grab his flashlight and turn it off. She might need a backup.
Still nothing from the narrow opening. Maybe the vampire was gone. Maybe she was safe. Relatively safe. There was still a ditch filled with iron spikes between her and the cave entrance.
If she couldn't go back, could she go forward? She eyed the narrow opening. Maybe there was an exit on the other side of the mountain? Or maybe there were more booby-traps. Or worse.
No, she wasn't going through that opening. It was too much like the silly girl in the movies who ventured up to the attic all alone. Or the basement. In her underwear.
She dug into her backpack and pulled out her cell phone. It was worth a shot. No signal. Not surprising when she was in a friggin' cave in the middle of the jungle.
"What do I do, Carlos?" she whispered.
She dropped her phone into the backpack and noted the silk scarves she'd bought for the three were-panther girls. She smiled, remembering how Carlos had fussed about her shopping. More tears rolled down her face.
She smoothed her fingers along the silk. So soft and shiny. And amazingly strong. She fisted her hands in it and yanked. If she tied the three lengths together, she'd have a nice rope. She scanned the cave with her flashlight and studied the crisscrossed ropes where the monk had hung the yellow paper prayers. Maybe the prayers had worked. The vampire didn't seem to be using this cave anymore.
She tied the scarves together, then tied one end to the spear shaft. Hopefully, all her exercising with Carlos had helped her upper body strength and aim.
She propped the flashlight on top of her backpack so it would light up the prayer ropes. Then she threw the spear like a javelin, hoping to wedge it into the crisscrossed ropes. The first few tries failed, and she retrieved the spear by pulling on the scarves.
It was too lightweight, she decided. She reattached the end of the scarf with one of the silver panthers. This time when she threw the spear, it caught. She tugged hard on the scarves to make sure it was secure. She needed to swing across the ditch without falling in.
She anchored the end of the scarf on her side with Carlos's backpack. She would wait till morning before attempting to cross the ditch. No way was she venturing into the jungle in the dark.
She sat beside Carlos with the flashlight and gun within reach. A new wave of grief swept over her, and more tears fell. As the hours dragged by, it seemed like she'd fallen into a nightmare that would never end.
Carlos jolted as an electric bolt of energy jump-started his body. He opened his eyes to darkness.
Something behind him jerked, and he heard a gasp and a fumbling sound. A flashlight beam struck him in the face, and he turned his head.
Caitlyn screamed and scrambled away.
"Cait - " His throat was tight, so he cleared it. It rumbled deep in his throat like a growl.
"What - Who? What?" Her voice sounded panicked.
"Caitlyn." He sat up. His eyes adjusted quickly to the dark. "Dammit, woman, don't point that gun at me."
"You - You're dead. I saw you die."
"Put the gun down. I can explain." Or maybe not. He didn't have much time. Already he could feel the Surge building inside him.
"You were dead," she whispered.
"I know." He yanked his T-shirt over his head. "I hate it when that happens." He pulled off his hiking boots and socks.
"You're alive?" She set the gun down. "And stripping?"
He unbuckled his belt, yanked down the zipper, and pulled down his cargo pants, taking his underwear with it. "I don't have much time. The Surge is coming. It always comes right after - " He jolted as the first wave of new power shot through his system.
"Carlos?" She stepped toward him.
"Stay back." He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. So much raw power. He wasn't sure he could control it. "I'll try not to hurt you."
"What?"
He cried out as the Surge took him over. Wave after wave struck his body with increasing force, pummeling him so that he writhed and twisted as the power grew and grew. He flipped over onto his hands and knees and arched his back. His body shimmered, then transformed. But that wasn't enough. No, now he would be a level four were-panther, larger than he was before. His bones crackled, lengthening and thickening. He thought his head would burst. He roared with the pain, and the sound echoed around the cave.
He rolled his massive shoulders back and looked at the huge paws supporting his black powerful body. His claws sprung out, more sharp and lethal than ever. His vision was sharper. Even in the dark he could make out the tiniest of spiders on the cave wall.
With a low rumbling growl, he turned his head toward Caitlyn. His woman. His wife.
She stepped back, her face pale. The flashlight trembled in her hand. "Ca-Carlos? Are you there?"
He lifted a paw, then advanced a step in her direction.
She stepped back. "N-Nice kitty?"
A red haze filled the cave. Something strange was happening to his eyes. His woman seemed to shimmer in a red glow. It made his blood boil, his heart pound. He had to take her. He stalked slowly toward her.
Her eyes widened and she looked about nervously. Suddenly, she ran to a length of silk and pulled it loose from where it was anchored by his backpack. She jammed her flashlight into her belt and took a running leap across the ditch.
He roared for fear she would fall to her death, but the silken rope carried her safely across. She scrambled to her feet and faced him. He growled deep in his throat. Did she think she could escape him?
He leapt across. She screamed, and he knocked her flat on her back. He straddled her trembling body. All it would take was one bite, and she would be his forever.
"Carlos, please," she whimpered.
He bared his teeth and snarled.
Tears filled her eyes. "Don't kill me."
Kill her? He didn't want to kill her. He wanted to possess her, mate with her, keep her forever. All he had to do was bite her.
And that might kill her.
He shook, trying to regain control. He couldn't bite her. He could never bite her. He loved her too much.
