Opposite Side Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Friday came on them quickly like most weekends. Weekdays were usually uneventful. But on the weekends that’s when the good stuff went down. But Friday was the full moon. And full moon meant every Opposite went neutral. You broke neutrality and you got an automatic death sentence, no excuses. Everyone usually all took off to some deserted campsite or most went to Yosemite.

The bears liked Yosemite, which was known for seeing bears all the time. The wolves were torn between there and the hills were the other camp areas were. Even on a neutral night they liked being away from Supervisors.

Supervisors had strings everywhere. Up high, down low, in dirty drug alleys to the capital. So on full moons usually Yosemite was closed down to only Opposites. Supervisors patrolled just in case a human got to close. And sometimes it happened from time to time.

Leslie and Colin watched as Patrick tried to get his third ball in the basket. It bounced off the rim. “Well that sucked,” Colin said. “We should go back to the balloon darts.”

Full moon always came with a carnival. Cheap rides and thrills, before the moon made even the most powerful change. A few howls rode the spring winds; some of the wolves in the crowd raised their faces and sniffed. Wolves liked to mate on the full moon, tons of exceptions can be made when you are no longer human.

The three walked along the games, while the carnies shouted for players and more importantly money. Leslie’s hair rose as she felt the call. Her eyes looked at the moon, shining brightly above the valley, and then moved down to the crowd. Nathan walked through the crowd, his second and third standing on each side of him like good enforcers. No matter where you went or what kind of wereanimal you visited all clans were the same. You had your king or queen/ their mate if they had one, their enforcers then the alphas, and then the pets of the group the lessers. But unlike the wolves, which Jonathan was all powerful, Nathan gave the Bears a say to a point. Letting them vote for, what the world sees as a school council. You have the secretary, the treasurer, ect.

He stopped as did his two enforcers. “Hi guys, having fun I see?” Nathan said noticing the stuffed animals Patrick carried.

“Totally all his,” Colin said. “He’s trying to get the big one.”

“Aren’t we all,” Jorge, Nathan’s third said with a warm smile directed at Patrick. Leslie and Colin noticed the exchange of smiles between them and the wink. Leslie saw neither Nathan or Albert hadn’t noticed. Actually Albert seemed to be glaring at her. He leaned in and whispered something to Nathan.

“Now is not the time,” he said in a low voice. He left the two enforcers and walked over to her. “Can we talk for a second?”

“Sure.” She handed her stuffed monkey to Patrick’s ever growing mound and walked off with him.

Nathan had no destination in mind, he just walked. “Don’t mind Albert, he’s just mad about the whole basement thing.”

She snorted. “I’m still mad.”

His hand moved. Her heart started to speed up at the thought of him touching her. Her body yearned for his touch, and oh so much more. It made her skin heat up; just then the call of the moon hit her, making her knees weak. Nathan grabbed her making sure she didn’t fall. The power of it went from her into him. He looked at the moon, his eyes turning that green-gold which she now thought of as his bear eyes.

He closed his eyes, and shivered. “Not yet,” he said to himself and opened his eyes looking at her. “You feel her? You feel the moon.”

“I do, always have. I’ve never told anyone.”

“Blood witches are touched I know, because I heard you guys have more power on the full moon, but not touched like a wereanimal. That is how I feel her. You don’t change?”

She shook her head and stepped away from him. “No, but my skin feels on fire at times.”

The moon touched her once more. And again her knees felt as if they were going to give in. He grabbed her, and guided her behind a group of big redwoods. She pushed him away. “You have to stop touching me.”

He studied her in silence for a while. “It’s been worse since-”

“This is the worst it has ever been.” The moon called her again, and she grabbed onto the tree. Her eyes closed tight pinching out a tear as her spine bowed in pain. And then a calming hand seemed to smother over her. She opened her eyes. Nathan wasn’t touching her, but his hands ran up and down her body. His eyes were focused as his hands moved. The pain left. She let go of the tree only to collapse in his arms.

“I can only stop the pain for so long. You have no beast, but you are going through the change. The symptoms anyway.”

“Oh excuse me,” a man said as he rounded the corner. He was a rather normal looking man. He stood five-eight, with brown hair cut short, he wore slacks and a nice jacket that fit the cold weather of the valley. His head seemed more oval and heavy than normal, giving it an almost ancient look. Cavemany. No wrinkles, but laugh lines, around the moth and eyes. And they all knew that he loved to laugh. His nose seemed almost bulbous in shape, but it was his eyes that made him seem more then what he was. White, no pupils, no nothing. It creeped Opposites and humans out all the same.

“It’s okay Mr. Forever. Leslie is feeling ill.”

“My dear, the moon seems to be affecting you more than normal. I find that very interesting.” He lit a cigarette, and took in a deep drag. “Sorry the girls don’t like me smoking around them, says it’ll kill me.” He laughed.

“You know that I feel the moon?”

“I know a lot of things.” Mr. Forever is and has always been known by that name. It’s rumored that he had been around since the earth was created. Some whisper he is God, others say an angel, banned from heaven. No one knows much, other than if you need a question answered you can go to Mr. Forever, but some time the price can be much pricier.

“I’ve got bear in me don’t I?” Leslie asked.

He gave a raspy chuckle that turned into a big belly laugh. He finally calmed down. “That is what I like about you Leslie. You just come right out and ask questions. Never once asking about the price. You also don’t seem scared or weirded out by me.”

“You weird me out Mr. Forever. I just don’t have time to play around.”

“Good answer. I like that. From what I remember your great uncle was a bear, he had no children, but from what I remember, which is hard for a man my age,” he said with a small smirk. “your line goes on for some time of bear and blood witch.”

“I can’t be both,” she said.

“No. But you can have the bear tendencies. You are like a mix-breed. Your body fought the blood, and made you a blood witch instead of a bear. Rare, I do say since the bear blood I thought would be more dominate, since you do come from a very long line of very powerful witches. Each taught to suppress the power, and for a while the werebear only came out. But now it seems your blood wanted to be a were-blood-witch. You should bring the boys over one night, and we will talk more about this. For now, experiment, maybe you will get more powers, maybe you have already started to see them, maybe there is more of a change waiting for you.”

“I don’t think I need any more power.”

He tsked her. “My dear, we both know deep down that everyone wants more. Next week, I will be looking forward to it.”

They watched as Mr. Forever disappeared into the darkness. “I think Mr. Forever might like you.”

She shivered at the thought. It wasn’t a very nice thought, having the oldest being in the world like you. “Are you jealous?” she teased.

He gave her a thoughtful look. “Perhaps.”

She knew she couldn’t hide the flush that she felt. But before she could say anything. Carlotta and Rich walked by. Leslie reached out and grabbed Nathan pulling him close, so they wouldn’t be seen. “Is the strength new?” he whispered.

She shrugged. “I guess.” She watched them disappear around some bushes. “Come on.”

“Leslie, this is all neutral.”

“I know but still, come on.”

They followed behind them at a good enough distance not to be detected. They finally found themselves hiding in some thick brush. In front of them were a bunch of werewolves. Jonathan sat alone on a fallen tree trunk. He seemed to be shaking as if cold. Carlotta, hitched over with age and smelling of herbs, stopped close by their hiding spot. She leaned heavily on her cane as Rich talked.

“I can’t keep making this. I am running out of supplies, soon I’ll be all out,” she said.

“I’ll help. We can do it together. We have already passed it along, and it’s going to make you a lot of money.”

“I like money, and if you help then maybe we can get a lot more done. Here,” she pulled a small bottle of liquid from her pocket. “Jonathan looks like he needs it. But unless I can get new supplies there isn’t going to be more.” She turned and left.

Rich went over to Jonathan. He took out an insulin syringe from his coat pocket. He stuck it in the bottle, and checked by the light of the moon to make sure he had it right. Jonathan struggled out of his shirt. Wereanimals only needed jackets to look cool and fit in with the regulars. Rich took the syringe stabbing it into Jonathan’s arm. Jonathan shoved him away hard, and threw back his head, and howled.

“I smell bear,” he said as he looked around. His eyes swept by them twice.

“We are in bear country,” James said.

“I think someone saw what happened. Go check.”

This time it was Nathan who pulled Leslie along. She ran with him, not quite as fast, but enough to keep from falling on her face. He pressed her up against a tree, and pressed his lips hard against hers. From the corner of her eye, she saw a wolf briefly stop to watch. She kissed him back with just as much ferocity. She closed her eyes, hoping the wolf had left, and actually wanted to enjoy the kiss. But Nathan pulled away. His eyes were now more of a goldish green, they were large and bright.

“It’s time,” he said in a whisper. “Get back to Colin. You don’t want to see this.”

“Don’t think I can handle it?”

He shook his head. “I don’t want you to see me do this, the change is hard.”

She gave him a small smile. “It’s in my blood remember. You change, I can take it.”

He shook his head, and before she could blink an eye his t-shirt hit her in the face. She grabbed it, as he unbuttoned his jeans. She turned around then, face beat red. “You can take it huh?”

“I’m giving you privacy.” She heard him move behind her. He let out a small groan. And a small groan escaped her lips, as the moon call hit her again, hard. Nathan used his power and took the call for her. Then there was the sick wet sound, and the sound of breaking bones. She turned around to face the huge bear looking at her with those lovely gold eyes. She had never seen him or Patrick in bear form. He was huge like all bears, the size of a pony.

He turned his head, as if wondering if she was scared. She moved to him hand out. His large tongue licked it. She ran her hands through his unbelievably soft brown fur, that electricity still there traveling up through her arms.

“I bet you have to get to your clan,” she said. He gave a small roar.

“Have fun, I’ll see you later,” she said and watch him bound off into the trees.

Sound behind her startled her just a bit; she turned but not quick enough as pain exploded in her head, she didn’t see stars or birds. But as the darkness ate her, she felt another pain, which didn’t belong to her. She knew who it belonged too. She passed out before she could call out to him.

The Opposite Side Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The Wolves housed themselves in the Toga Hotel, one of the oldest buildings in town. It stood eight stories tall towards the end of Main Street. The place had recently been repainted, a nice off white with green trimming, to match some of the businesses it housed along the bottom. Usually all the scum hung out around the Toga. The Wolves made money by dealing drugs, pimping out their females and regular females, and other illegal things.

Patrick stopped the car on M Street. They all looked over at the old hotel. “You sure you want to do this?”

“If Rich locked me up, he was doing it for Jonathan. And I want to know what’s going on,” Leslie said as she got out of the car. Patrick and Colin got out as well. As she walked up to the hotel, the smell of barbeque filled the air as they passed by the Toga Café, and walked into the court yard. A blind old black man, sat by the door.

“Leslie, he’s busy,” the man said as she walked by.

“Oh well,” she said passing him buy.

“We don’t like bears in our place,” he said as Patrick passed.

He ignored the man and followed behind Leslie. They walked into the hotel. The inside was a mess of red and old furniture. There were wolves sitting around playing cards, dice, drinking, flirting. They all went quiet when the three entered.

Leslie, wearing her usual, jeans, t-shirt and hoody, didn’t even pause. She made her way to the elevator, and hit the button.

“I really don’t like this,” Colin said as the elevator opened.

“Calm it down,” she said as they walked in.

The wolves were still watching them as the elevator doors closed. The small old box made its way up to the eighth floor. “Do you even have a plan?” Patrick asked.

“I don’t know the usual.”

Patrick laughed. “This is how we get in trouble,” Colin said.

The elevator beeped open and they walked out and followed Leslie down the hall. James, Jonathan’s third stood at the door. He might have been one of the smallest of the wolves, standing five-seven, but he was mean as hell. Every part of him looked as if he had injected himself with steroids. He had no neck just huge shoulders; he was just one solid wall of rock. His brown eyes got wide as he saw Leslie walk up. She stopped in front of him, hands on hips, and just stared at him.

“Jonathan is busy,” he said.

“Not my problem,” Leslie said in a bored tone. “Now move or I might just get angry.”

Back about a year ago, there had been an incident, in which Jonathan and Leslie had fought over something, and in the end, she had destroyed the building they were standing in. Jonathan has been hurt pretty bad, but Leslie had no mark on her. No one knew exactly what the two were fighting over, neither ever talked about the incident, but Leslie could use it to scare some of the wolves.

“You don’t scare me,” James said crossing his arms over his huge chest.

She turned to the guys, back to James. Colin and Patrick watched as she rolled her eyes with a small frown. Then she got a small smile, and shrugged.

“Les-,” Patrick stopped Colin from saying more by placing his hand on his shoulder.

She turned. “You will let me in.”

“Your Jedi mind tricks don’t work on me,” he said with a small shake of his head.

“He has a girl in there doesn’t he?” she looked around him at the door.

“Leslie you should leave. Call Jonathan for an appointment or something.”

“Fuck that,” she said and raised her hand which was clinched in a fist; she opened it, so the palm was pointing at the door. It blew open with a loud crack as it smacked into the wall inside.

Women on the inside screamed loudly at the sound. Fredrico was at the door ready for a fight, his chestnut eyes turning a wolfy almost amber. He zoned in on Leslie who had both hands palms facing at James.

“Nina, you know how to make an entrance,” he said.

She reached into her pocket, and pulled out her Supervisor’s badge. “I’m here to talk to Jonathan. This is business.”

“James step down, and let the Supervisors through. You should know better,” he said to the shorter wolf, and his voice held a threat. “Come in, Nina, Jonathan will not be very happy to see you.”

“He never is,” Patrick said.

James moved letting them into the two bedroom apartment. Jonathan liked things simple and easy. He had a large couch in the living room facing a giant flat screen TV. The sound system and DVDS were the only other items in the room. He never used the kitchen, she knew he didn’t cook. They followed Fredrico to the second bedroom.

Leslie stopped at the door, hands on hips looking over the room. It had been set up very elaborate for Jonathan. A large velvet round bed took up most of the room. The small night stand had a large bottle of lube, fuzzy pink hand cuffs, and a large vibrator. A naked girl was chained to the left wall, looking horrified. Another girl huddled beside her, a whip at her feet. On the other wall were items of torture and sex, two big wolfy turn ons. Rich stood beside the camera.

“Well you don’t see this every day,” Colin said peeking over her shoulder. She elbowed him in the gut.

Jonathan stood up from the seat he sat in, in the corner. Jonathan, he stood an inch taller than her. Brown eyes, honey colored skin, wild dark brown hair, lips that naturally pouted. He looked like a biker, all leathers and jeans. And he could wear a pair of jeans better than almost anyone. The other man able to fill out a pair of jeans was Nathan. He was neither huge nor small; he had muscles, but not crazy buff like James, or lanky regular like Fredrico. He also held an air of power, Kingship.

“I should have known.”

“Porn now?”

He shrugged. “You know me.”

“I do. That’s why I’m here. It seems I was held against my wishes in a basement with some heavy duty wards on the door, and-” she stopped.

“And?” he asked.

Her brows furrowed. She didn’t like this one bit. If she mentioned the cub, he could spin it on Nathan. And why would he do something like that? It made no sense. She sighed. “There are only four people who can ward here. Me, Frank, Carlotta and Rich,” she said glaring at the rodent.

He pushed his glasses up on his nose at the mention of his name. “Or perhaps there is some new player in the game,” Jonathan said. He turned to the women at that wall. “Okay now that you two have calmed down. Warm the fuck back up. I have a movie to finish. I ain’t paying you bitches to sit there like scared cats.”

“Cats?” she asked looking at the naked ladies. Thin and delicate with dark hair and eyes. She then felt the buzz of power.

“Two of Randy’s ladies. So why is it that when something bad happens to you, you come straight to me? I applaud who ever locked you in the damn basement, but right now as you see,” he motioned to the camera, “I’m sort of busy. Why the fuck would I mess with you, I’m on a deadline.”

“Actually I came to talk to Rich. Since his WARDS are probably the best.”

“Well thank you,” Rich said still standing by the camera.

“Shut up,” Jonathan said. “Here, I know the drill. You will have to get a warrant to arrest him. He has been by my side since he went to the morgue to see about old Chester. Good old man, sad to see him dead. Anyway. I have an apartment of wolves who can verify, and other hookers who have been in and out of here working on this movie. Now Fredrico, please show the Supervisors to the door, and Leslie I will see you Friday. You should wear a dress once in a while, you look boring in jeans, and I know you have some nice legs.” With that he slammed the door in her face.

“Sorry, the jefe, he is not mismo,” he said then shook his head. “Himself. I’m sorry I forget myself. My last clan, spoke Spanish, I have to remember not everyone does.”

“It’s okay we pretty much understand most of it,” Patrick said. “Once you run into a clan of Spanish speaking chubacabras its kind of good we know Spanish to a point.”

“Interesting. I myself have never met one, but it is rumored that the lycanthrope virus comes from them,” he said stopping at the door. “Do they still live in town? I would very much like to meet them.”

“They went into hiding after we executed one of three of their only females. She had gotten blood lust and ate a camp full of people,” Colin said.

He sighed. “I shall then see you all on Friday then,” he said opening the door for them.

Leslie followed by Patrick and Colin left the room. And were quiet until they got to the car. Inside, they all looked at the Toga. “I know they had something to do with shoving me in that basement. Why? I have no freaking clue.”

“I was actually on a porno set,” Colin said.

Patrick and Leslie looked at each other. “Boys,” they both said.

Opposite Side Chapter 7

Chapter 7

She had gotten home. Her anger still riding high in the winds. She had come into her power late and unexpected and Rich and his master Jonathan had been there to show her what she was. They showed her a side she had never seen. Something exotic, different, tainted. At the time she had enjoyed it, deep down she knew it had been wrong. But her body loved the pleasure that they gave her. Rich had been her “soul mate” both blood witches in the same town, it had to mean something. Jonathan had been her lover. Human bodies weren’t meant to mate with wereanimals, even in human form they were rough. However, she was not a normal human, and she enjoyed the pain. Then there came the bloodletting, and the darker magic.

She grabbed Persuasion by Jane Austen off the bedside table, and after bunching her pillows around her, she started reading. Lately her only comfort was Miss. Austen. Persuasion was her favorite above Pride & Prejudice. Before her new life had started, she felt her life was exactly like Anne Elliot. She was no beauty and her family cared little for her. Except to help pay bills, they really had no use for her. She had always been the odd one out. So when Rich had introduced her to the Opposite Side she thought she had stepped into a fairy tale.

She was getting to the part when Anne finally left to Bath to be with her father and older sister when her phone rang.

Irritated she looked at the number, and noticed it didn’t have an ID. “Hello?”

“Leslie,” said a small-frightened voice. “Here in Snelling, is rogue werebear. Hurry, help.”

It sounded like a troll. “Where are you?” She jotted down the area.

She didn’t like to drive much, she liked being in the passenger seat, but driving made her nervous. The whole reason she learned is that she could stop relying on people to take her places. And right at the moment she was angry with Colin and Patrick. She arrived in Snelling forty-five minutes later, as the sun started to rise. She drove down the quiet main street passing the main store and the Freezie. And her GPS told her to take a right, and so she did. When she finally stopped she pulled up to the river. Frowning, she checked her gun before getting out of the car. Magic is good, but sometimes it still doesn’t stop certain things. Taking a deep breath, she got out of the car and started walking to the edge.

She looked around for a bit and finally found a trail down to the river. The trail seemed sort of rough, and sharp. She gave out a small prayer to the goddess and started down. Her feet slid out under her once, but she end up catching herself. The fact that she made it to the bottom alive seemed a huge miracle for her. She paused looking at the slow moving water. The river was high, but not as high as it would be in a month when the snow really started to melt.

She closed her eyes, and sniffed the air. She smelt, human sweat, river water, dead leaves, new growth, mud, a decomposing animal, and blood. She turned towards the smell, and started walking. She finally came to a small dilapidated shack after about half a mile. The brush and undergrowth seemed heavier here, and she had to cut through it quietly knowing she was probably doing a bad job at it. Rustling to her left made her pull her gun out. It got closer and she undid the safety. She smelt and felt power, and then those lively greenish gold eyes blinked at her over the muzzle of her gun.

“Nathan, what the hell are you doing here?” she whispered clicking on the safety and holstering the gun.

“I got a call that there was a rogue bear out here.”

“Funny that. I got a call that a rogue bear was out here too.”

“The shack reeks of decomposed animal and blood.”

“I know,” she said and put her hands out in front of her aiming them at the shack. She closed her eyes, and let out some energy. She opened her eyes, and looked at Nathan. “Nothing in there is alive.”

“Well let’s take a peek,” he said walking past her to the door. He pushed it open and walked in. She didn’t like this, something seemed off, but she followed after Nathan. Hand close to her gun. The old house wasn’t much of a shack; it had been a very nice two bedroom house once upon a time. Now the windows were missing glass, and boarded up, and the walls had last seen paint at least twenty years ago it seemed.

Nathan had a door open, as he waited for her. “It’s a sort of basement.”

“That’s what happened to the house. The river took it over,” she said finally noticing the water rot. She stopped next to him looking down in the darkness.

“I’ll go if you want to stay up here,” he said almost in a whisper.

She gave him a small frown. Sure she could think of better things to do then go into a stinky probably water filled basement, but this was part of her job as well. And she couldn’t let the Wolf King go down there by himself. She pulled out her mini flashlight, and flipped it on.

“I see, prepared for anything huh?” he asked his voice held an edge of tease.

“We work in the dark, flashlights are musts,” she said and started down the steps.

“What else do you have in your Batman pack?” he asked very close to her.

“The usual,” she said and made a small noise as she stepped down into water. She stopped.

“What?”

“Water.” She took two more steps before hitting the mushy ground. She stood knee deep. “You know for once I would really like to not get wet, covered in blood or dirty. Really is that too much to ask?” she said to herself mostly.

Nathan grabbed her arm, the one with the flashlight, and shown it around the very dark room. His touch startled her just a little, but what really startled her more was the person at the top of the stairs. They threw something in the water, and slammed the door. A thick gas started to rise from the water, a heavy fog.

Coughing, Leslie, grabbed her cell phone, and wrapped it in the plastic baggy she usually carried. Nathan didn’t let go of her arm, and dragged her up the stairs, he banged his shoulder into the door but it wouldn’t budge. The fog slowly filled the room; coughing Leslie had to sit down.

She could hear Nathan slamming his body into the door. “Nathan,” she said but the world went black. She woke up cold, wet, and in the dark. By the smell, she was sure she was in the same place. She opened her magic, and found the door they came through was heavily warded, and they were now not alone. Her magic found Nathan, to her right. Someone had come in after they were unconscious and moved them off the stairs.

“Nathan,” she whispered.

“Wha-,” he said. “Shit. Leslie don’t move.”

“There is a werebear in here with us isn’t there?” she asked.

He moved in the water towards her. She could feel him, and it gave her some comfort but not much. “It’s a cub, he’s going to change. The full moon is in a few days and there is fresh blood.”

She touched the cut on her cheek. “Uh-oh, um, that blood is me.”

“How bad?”

“It doesn’t hurt, so it had to have been a very nice sharp silver blade.”

A flood light came alive above them, probably on a timer, blinding them all briefly. They looked around, and saw the boy in the corner naked and scared. He seemed to be fighting off the change. But he would lose, they all do. Once the moon calls, the change happens, there is no fighting.

Nathan pulled off his shirt. He found a clean spot and wetting it he cleaned her cut. “It’s going to bleed for a while.”

“I think that’s the point.”

The boy let out a moan, and his body shuttered.

“Oh crap,” Leslie said and grabbed onto the Nathan’s arms.

That electricity zapped through them. They both sucked in air at the same time. But she did not let go. And he did something that should have unnerved her, but weirdly it didn’t. He leaned in as if he was going to kiss her, but then she felt his tongue moist and warm lick her cut. He looked at with those strange green eyes which were filled with curiosity.

The boy screamed behind them, the scream turned into a roar. Nathan crawled over to the boy, and using his own magic tried to sooth the cub. He couldn’t stop him from changing, but he could control it enough so that it could take longer.

Leslie got up and went to the door. She placed her hand against it and pushed some power into the ward. The ward didn’t like that at all; it shot back the power and some more. It hit at her in the chest pretty hard. She didn’t remember falling down the stairs, but she lay there in the cold water trying to breathe as Nathan talked above her.

She sat up. “Ouch,” she finally managed.

“Just an ouch. Leslie it looked like you got electrocuted, and whatever it was threw you down the stairs.”

“I’m going to find whoever did that ward and kick their ass?” She blinked at him. “Is that better?”

He gave her half a smile and turned back to the cub. The jolt had singed through the hoody, so she took it off, and it also singed some of her t-shirt. But she wasn’t about to go around shirtless. She was a tall Amazonian, as the guys liked to call her. And she might have been plain in most things, but she had been blessed with a double d cup size, so walking around shirtless was not a good thing. She really didn’t like to flaunt them.

The cub screamed and Leslie could see that his body was changing. “This is going to get dirty,” she said.

“Don’t panic.”

“Too late,” she said trying to calm her heart.

He came to her, and held her face in his big hands. The electricity flared. Her magic started to break through which happens even when she was scared. “Breath,” he said.

“I know what happens to the newly changed. They are hungry.”

He nodded, and leaned his forehead to hers. “I can’t stop it. This is going to be ugly just close your eyes.”

She did, but she could hear everything. All his bones were breaking, and reknitting themselves the sound sounded in-between a dog drinking water, and a messy eater eating something very gross. His screams turned to roars. Finally after all the bones we reknitted, it gave a roar that shook the small room they were trapped in. Nathan turned, keeping his back pressed to her, blocking her view. She did what she believed was the stupidest moves ever, but couldn’t help herself; she wrapped her arms around him. The flare of the electricity that entered her body, made her weak, and she leaned her head against the back of his neck.

The more skin that she pressed against him seemed to send more of the electrical feeling through them. But then something else happened. Her magic opened, but it didn’t go all scary. Instead it touched Nathan’s beast. His power flowed from him, mingling with hers. For a second they were nothing but magic. And then as one they looked at the cub, angry and hungry it slowly advanced on them. As one they willed it to sleep. And it did just that. It lay down and went to sleep, the bear body slowly turning back to human.

Nathan turned in her arms, and moved his face in close to hers. She thought he would like her cut again, but instead he pressed his lips against hers kissing her hard. Her arms moved up to circle around his broad neck, as she kissed him back with feverish wanting. Her hands had tangled themselves in his hair when he finally broke the kiss.

“What the hell was that?”

“A kiss,” she murmured.

“I know what that was, I mean that,” he said motioning to the boy.

“Magic,” she said.

“I’ve never fought the moon. But we did it. Your blood tastes bear and magic.”

The door above them exploded in, shaking the roof above them dangerously. “Never fear,” Colin said, “The Calvary is here.”

“Was that explosives?” Leslie said loudly barely able to hear over the loud ringing the explosion made.

“Sure was, hell with your magic. Give me enough boom, and I can get through anything,” Colin said. He turned. “Found your brother too.”

Nathan helped her up the stairs. She felt sad when he finally let go of her when he went back to get the cub. Outside the sun had set once again. She was sure they hadn’t been in there more than a day. But she couldn’t be sure by that gas that knocked them out. She grabbed a light and went back to the door. She wanted to see if there was enough wood left to see the ruins marked into the frame. She could maybe trace them back to whoever set the ward. As she looked she saw there was nothing left.

“Sorry,” Colin finally said as he watched her give up looking.

“It’s okay, at least you got us out. Very Rambo of you.”

“I was thinking more Die Hard.”

Patrick handed her a blanket. “I bet you can use some food, a shower and bed.”

She nodded, but looked at Nathan. He looked at her. She wondered if he felt the same, the need, want to touch. Her skin vibrated with this need. She finally looked at Patrick who seemed to be lecturing them about calling back up and letting people know where they were going. Lucky for her, they found out where her car was because the GPS.

“And mom had to call your work and say you were out sick. Your mother had to call in for you. So I hope you are ready to be teased at work.”

“Thank you Patrick,” he said. “This boy was turned against his will. So maybe you should be helping him.”

Colin and Patrick grabbed the boy and went and shoved him in Leslie’s car. Patrick would take him to HQ, Colin said he’d take Leslie home.

She had opened the passenger side door. Nathan stopped her before she could get in. “We have to talk about this.”

She nodded. “Drive safe.”

“I’ll be behind you all the way.” He started to turn away and stopped. “Do you still feel it?”

She rested her head against the glass. “I do.”

“Leslie, I found your phone. And I think it’s okay.”

“Hey, that’s always a plus.”

Nathan ran his fingers over her hand before leaving to his own car. She sat down, and laid her head back. “You going to tell me everything that happened down there?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Something happened between you two. I can see it by how you two look at each other.”

“I think I need to talk to Mr. Forever.”

“I am all up for a visit to the strip club.”

“I was thinking of waiting until full moon. He should be there, enjoying the festivities, like everyone.”

“Who warded the door?”

“There are only four people who can; me, Fred, Carlotta and Rich. The ruins were destroyed, but I’m sure its Rich. His wards are pretty damn tough. I am so going to kick his ass.”

Opposite Side Chapter 6

Chapter 6

They sat in the conference room with the files and papers spread out before them, as the air around them smelled of burger grease, ketchup and mayonnaise. They studied the reports on the deaths, and the forensic findings, which weren’t much since as they destroyed the body parts they had destroyed the evidence with it.

“What I don’t get is the first kill, the two bodies?” Colin said.

“Could have been their first kill,” Patrick said.

“Or it could have been what started their bloodlust,” Leslie said with french-fry in hand.

They looked at her. “Huh?” Colin managed with a mouthful of burger.

“They were hungry, slipped, killing two people, and they liked the bloodlust it gave them. One possibility.”

Patrick said, “I just don’t see that.”

Carlos busted into the room with a few files. Carlos, one of the youngest lab rats in the lab, and he was exactly that, a wererat. He stood about five-four and weighted at least 90 pounds. Small for a wererat, even in his rat form he was a runt. The Rat Pack didn’t like runts, so he either stayed with a pack down in San Diego and got the shit beat out of him as the punch bag, or became a Supervisor. He had gone through to get his forensic degree, and became a Supervisor lab rat. Of course, he had to leave Southern California, and moved up north, because the local Rata Rey, Rat King, labeled Carlos a Narc. And the Rat Pack decided they didn’t want him around.

“Hi, Carlos,” Colin said before taking another bite of his ultimate double steak and cheeseburger.

“Who let you out of the cage?” Patrick said. Wereanimals only got along so much.

Carlos ignored him, and slid the files over to Leslie. “Hi Leslie,” he said running his nervous shaking hand through his short black hair.

“Thanks Carlos,” she said as she grabbed up the files. “Usually we just come and get the files from you. You must have found something interesting to bring us the files.”

“I sure did. So, before, we couldn’t make out much of the bite marks, but we got a full print. And we ran it through the database. And it came up as a bear tooth.”

“Shit. I need to tell Nathan,” Patrick said.

“Not yet, we have to be really sure about this. Or else if it gets leaked out the wolves will use the info to start this stupid war that they so want to happen,” Leslie said. She looked at Carlos. “You have more I take it by the excited look in your eyes.”

“I do, we found the drugs in the blood. A form of X, but it has vampire and lycanthrope blood in it.”

“Impossible!” Colin said, “The two bloods can’t live together unless it found a livable donor. Like me, a half-breed.”

“Well the test says what it is.”

“What kind of lycanthrope are we talking about?”

“Undetermined. Maybe it’s mutated in the drug with the vampire blood. When we do tests, it brings us to wolf and bear. This again can’t happen since the different strains of lycanthrope can’t live together.” He was true. There have only been half-breeds who were wereanimal and vampire. However, never has there been a case of a half-breed who were two different weres.

“That’s why I picked up the smell in the blood. I smelled the vampire and lycanthrope,” Leslie said mostly to herself.

“Only wereanimals have smell that good,” Carlos said.

The guys sort of just shrugged it off, even though they both knew it bothered her. How did a blood witch start coming down with wereanimal abilities? It just never happened. Of course, the blood witches have been very few and most very secretive in their power. So not much had been studied.

“Anything else?” Colin asked the lab rat.

“Not as of yet,” he said.

“Okay well let us know if you do have anymore.”

Carlos left them alone with the new evidence. “If we have rogue bears out there, Nathan should know. He could set up a line and see if we could hunt them down. The full moon is coming, and this could cause a lot of crap,” Patrick said.

“We need to think this through. If we tell, it could get out to the wolves that there are rogue bears. Of course they will use it against your brother, and show he isn’t fit, and Kings do not step down from a challenge. But this would be challenge not in ranks, but to blood. And then we have to step in, and you know what will happen if the bears are brought up on charges. The wolves will want blood, for stupid shit, and there goes the civil war we have been trying to prevent. Both your clans are equally match, it will spill over to the normal world, and then think of all the trouble we are going to have,” Leslie said.

“Damn, everything is so fucking complicated,” Patrick said as he looked over the closest file.

“What if this has something to do with the wolves?” Colin said. “Maybe this is something they have planned.”

“I dunno,” Leslie said. “You really think Jonathan could come up with something so crazy as rogue bears? And where would he get the blood.”

“Not just that, but bear lycanthrope is harder to catch then wolf lycanthrope, it’s much easier to be born with it then catch it. So they would have to pump someone with a lot of bear blood to actually get them to change.”

“I’m just throwing out suggestions,” Colin said.

“And right now that’s all we have. However, we have to think of it this way. If this did get out the wolves have a lot to benefit from this. So maybe they do have ties to it. But I doubt Jonathan would dirty his hands too much. He might want to rule the Northern Central Valley, but he also knows if he gets caught it will turn around and bite him on his fury ass,” Patrick said.

“You know Jonathan to a point Les. What do you think his ties would be to this?” Colin asked.

Anger. Her mind clouded in with white noise. “You know I don’t know him THAT well. Fuck,” she said getting to her feet quickly toppling her chair. “Everyone assumes I seem to know him so well. Bite me.” She walked out the door.

“Ouch,” Patrick said and Colin nodded.

Opposite Side Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The Supervisors HQ was now firmly located at the old base. Before it was any old building away from other people, and that wouldn’t get unnoticed by the outside world. But seeing how much room was actually out there at the base, only a few other companies were there, the biggest being the AT&T Call center, they decided to settle down. The space was perfect, and the place blended in with the other buildings out there. No one to question the amount of vehicles, it was just another corporation.

The three walked into the small main office. It housed Angelina the night Secretary. She sat at her nice uncluttered desk, playing World of Warcraft. The four seats in the waiting area were empty, as usual. The room’s walls were a nice off white, with small murals here and there, a fake plant sat in a corner, EMO music played lightly through the room. It had to have been Angelina’s. Her job was just for show, just in case a regular human happened to walk in. Most people would be surprised, how curious people can be. She nodded to them never really taking her eyes off the monitor.

They went through the main door into the main office. There they entered into the very quiet room, all eyes half human to other watching them. They stood there not sure if they were in some sort of trouble or what by the awkward silence. Usually the place was alive with voices of the dispatchers, who mostly occupied the main area. They too were staring at the three young supervisors. Faces blank.

The room itself was a huge square, most of it taken up with nice desks set with computers and phone headsets. The dispatchers had their run of the area taking all the calls, and placing the right Supervisors were they were needed. They ranged from weres, banshees, fey of different types, a troll or two, and other breeds of Opposites. Around them were half breeds to humans who had seen too much. They were the dispatcher’s secretaries. They kept all the paperwork together, and were the go to guys or gals if called for something.

There you entered halls, and in the halls housed the Supervisor’s offices. The first rooms were labs and special designed rooms for experiments. Underneath the building which had once been a storage room, and quite possibly a bomb shelter, were now their holding cells. Magically warded and sealed, just in case.

Colin handed the biobag to a Tech. Who would do a few tests on the vamp and then incinerate the head. The three looked around uneasy, even the lab techs and other supervisors where out watching them. Some who weren’t even on shift yet.

“Okay what did we do now?” Patrick finally asked.

“They are waiting in your office,” Cheryl the main dispatcher said. Her short auburn hair was spiked; her ebony orbed eyes seemed to stare into their souls. Leslie fought the shiver that wanted to overcome her; she hated being stared at by the banshees. It had been creepy enough to see what happens when someone gets killed, there wailing, but they seemed to see more.

They walked down the right hall. Faces peeked out at them from the half open doors. “Is this freaking anyone else out?” Colin asked.

Leslie nodded. She was the closest to Patrick’s door, and they could feel the crowd behind them. She opened the door, and at first, the shock at who they saw in the room made them all pause. And then as their brains sprang into action they all had their guns out.

Two of the three visitors looked amused; the third had a very hostile look on her face. The man sitting smiled at them. “We have papers,” he said his voice held a thick Spanish accent.

The three exchanged a puzzled look as the seated man motioned to the man standing to his left. He stood about five-six, and as he walked a few steps forward, all three were thinking how quick it would be to drop him with one shot. He held out a folder. Patrick grabbed it from him quickly and read over the papers. He handed them to Leslie, his face blank. Leslie eyed the papers and then handed them over to Colin.

She put up her gun, since it would be considered cold blooded murder to kill them, so the papers said. “Well this is different.”

“No one else would talk to us, they asked us to wait here for you three. I take it you three must be the rookies?”

“Well why are you here exactly?” Patrick asked. They were rooted to their spot by the door.

“We were told that we had to come talk to the Supervisors in the area we decided to settle in. And so here we are. I am Raphael; I am Sheppard to my flock.” He stood and walked towards them, making all three take a step back.

He stopped face cold, showing no emotion, but his eyes watched them curiously. “I forget this is new to all of us. I am sorry. My flock is small; we are about half a dozen.”

“That isn’t very small,” Colin said.

His dead black eyes stared at him. “You carry our blood.”

Colin nodded. “I carry the disease.”

“We understand that this concept will be rather new to those here in the Supervisors. And the idea is new to us as well, but we hope to live in harmony with the other Opposites. We do not think like the others.”

“Leslie,” she said nodding and pointed to Colin. “Colin and Patrick.” The men all nodded when she said their names.

Seeing that the three weren’t going to harm them Leslie walked over to the other side of the desk. She looked them over. The vampires looked like all other vampires. Their skin was white as snow, which meant all three were a few decades old. Newer vamps usually had a tint of humanity left to their skin.

“I guess we should ask you a few questions. Colin,” she said taking a seat. He came over and slid in front of the computer. Patrick came to stand behind her. “Since this is new I guess we should first ask about residence.”

“We have found a place. A nice house. It is a two bedroom house on Elm Ave off of Mackee road. I do not understand the numbers, but Jennifer here can fill you in on that. It has a big yard, and the neighbors are not very close.”

“Okay as soon as we get the information down, which one of the secretaries in the main office will get. We will be putting you on probation,” Leslie said.

“What?” Colin said looking at her. She nodded. “We have to be sure about this, and we can’t just be sure you aren’t going to take some humans into your house and slaughter them.”

“I think it is very fair,” Raphael said.

“We’ve never really did this before, so say sixty days?” she asked looking at the others. They shrugged.

“That sounds roughly fair. I hear jobs do that as well.” He stood and they walked to the door. “So then who will be checking on us?”

She looked at him, “We are since it seems no one else is up to it.”

“We shall give our address and information then to a secretary. We do wish to be a part of this world, we want nothing more than to be treated almost human again.” A sad look went over his face. “For some of us we did not choose to be this way. So then we will expect to hear more about our probation. Our terms and whatnot.”

“As soon as we figure that out we will contact you.”

“Thank you, and good evening,” he said and was gone.

Patrick sunk into a chair beside Leslie. The three stared at the door. “What the hell just happened?”

“We have vampires who are legal citizens of the Opposite Side,” Colin said.

“As if we don’t have enough to worry about,” Leslie said.

“Maybe now is not the time to bring up the Fresno case.”

Leslie looked down at her hands on the desk. “A group of rogues, who kill for fun.”

“Yes, but the forensics say that it’s just not vampires its wereanimals too. The teeth marks are proof.”

“Crap,” Patrick said. “Well let’s get something to eat. I’m hungry. Then we can talk more about this.”