JAWS ready.
GOING NOWHERE 1:
HOWLING IN THE MOONLIGHT
by
Brenda Bryce
Prologue
As she picked up the hairbrush, she laughed. She’d caught herself humming a jaunty tune, and considered herself entitled. Lannie Michaels had never been happier. She had done what millions of other women only dreamed about. She’d found her one true love, and he was about to propose. She knew he would pop the question soon; she had seen him buying the ring. He would walk in any minute now, and she couldn’t wait. Laughing delightedly, she hugged herself, then leaned against the vanity.
Absentmindedly flipping her long, blond bangs out of her eyes, she continued brushing the back of her head where the hair was cut very short. Staring into the bathroom mirror, she didn’t see her cornflower-blue eyes or her petite, five-foot-and-almost-three-inches-tall body. She daydreamed about the future instead. Her favorite pastime anymore was to imagine how their lives together would be.
She heard the front door open and slam closed. She ran out of the bathroom and into the living room, where he stood near the door, glaring at her.
“Kyle, what’s wrong?”
“Let me talk. Then you can tell me whatever you want.”
He looked at her as if he had never seen her before. His eyes reminded her of ice as his gaze traversed the room, then settled on her.
“What ...”
“I said, let me talk first. I told him I would get your side of the story before I did anything.” He ran his hand through his hair and began to pace. “He had witnesses, Lannie. Jesus, I just don’t understand how you could go to him when you held me off.”
“You aren’t making any sense. What are you talking about?” She needed to get to the bottom of this. Something drastic had happened, and he was talking in circles.
“Pete told me that you were cheating on me. I didn’t believe him. He said you came on to him. I didn’t believe him about that, either. Then he provided witnesses. What the hell am I supposed to think now?” He never raised his voice and that made it worse.
“I have never cheated on you or come on to someone else. Why would anyone say I did?” She had only spoken to Pete at the party the night before because he was Kyle’s number-two man. His “right hand” was how Pete had been introduced. Lannie had thought he was kind of smarmy, but maybe he was good at his job and that would make up for any faults he had.
“Damn it, he told me that you two had a little tête-à-tête off in the corner last night.” He glanced up and saw her flush. “I see he told the truth.” Again his gaze dropped, and he shook his head.
“Yes, I talked to him last night, but I wouldn’t call it a tête-à-tête, Kyle. It was more a ‘hello, you work with my boyfriend’ conversation.”
“He said you came on to him. Damn, you’re blushing again.”
“No, Kyle, he came on tome . I didn’t come on to him.” She didn’t know how to make him listen. She had told Pete that she was in love with Kyle and that she wouldn’t have any reason to stray, even though Pete hinted that he probably would. Lannie had laughed and said that she would keep him occupied enough that he would never need to. Pete had graciously wished her luck and left her standing in the corner, alone. That had been the extent of their conversation. “I don’t understand. This doesn’t make sense.”
“I’ll tell you what doesn’t make sense. You came on to my friend right in the middle of a party where everyone could see you. I didn’t really believe them until I came here and saw your reactions to my questions. You blushed like a schoolgirl caught behind the bleachers with a boy.”
“That isn’t why --” Lannie tried to set the record straight, but he wasn’t listening.
“I thought you understood that I believe in monogamy, damn it. That means one person and no cheating.” He didn’t raise his voice, but the words had come out so cold, they sent her reeling back a step.
Kyle strode toward her and looked down into her face. “I don’t understand what you thought you could get from Pete that you couldn’t get from me. Maybe it was in your head for a last fling or something, but ...” He reached out, gripped her lightly behind the neck, and pulled her against him. He put his nose against her neck and inhaled deeply. “I can make sure you never want to go to another man. You’re my woman and ... Never mind. I’m too angry to talk about this right now.” He pressed his mouth into the soft part of her neck where it met her shoulder.
Lannie jerked back from him, causing his teeth to scrape her neck. “No, we’ll talk about this now. I don’t like that you came into my apartment to accuse me of something I didn’t do and then think that I’m just going to take it and forget it. No, damn it, I won’t.” She put her hand to her neck, then pulled it away and looked at it. There was a tiny amount of blood where his teeth had scraped her skin. “I don’t understand how you can think the worst of me. I’ve done nothing wrong and --”
“There were witnesses . How can you argue the witnesses?”
She gasped. He stood over her, and he looked as if he had gotten bigger. Maybe he was just more intimidating, but his eyes and teeth ...No, that isn’t real. It’s an optical illusion.
He turned away from her as if he hated her, strode toward the window, and stared outside. “If it had just been Pete, well, maybe I could have believed you, but how do you explain the others? Is it just a big conspiracy? Hardly.” He looked down at his right arm and something must have caught his attention. “I have to go now. I’ll be back later. I can’t talk about this right now. I’m too angry, and I would rather not say or do something that can’t be taken back.”
Stunned, she watched as he strode purposefully toward the door. “Something already has.” After Kyle left, she sat on the chair trying to figure out what the hell had just happened. It didn’t make sense. She’d had such hopes for the future. Children, definitely. Lannie wanted several. Being an only child had been way too lonely, and she never wanted to subject any child of hers to that. A home, most assuredly. Since Kyle loved the woods, they would’ve probably lived there. That wouldn’t have been a problem, the forest had a beauty all its own, and she would’ve been so diligent that there would be absolutely no chance of her children wandering off and getting lost. Nope, not her children. Now there would be no house and no children. The loss of her dreams hurt so badly, her eyes leaked bitter tears.
Love is grand! She sniffed and shook her head at the sarcasm.
He couldn’t love her. He would’ve trusted her if he did. She stood and began to pace, and as she thought about what had happened, became more and more angry.
When the knock on the door interrupted her, she hesitated to answer it.
“Lannie! Are you all right? Let me in. It’s Pete.” The question came from the other side of the door, muffled.
“Pete?” Hesitantly, she approached the door. Without opening it, she called out, “What are you doing here? And what did you say to Kyle to make him think I came on to you? We both know that isn’t the truth.”
“I didn’t tell him anything. Someone else saw what happened and told him. I would never jeopardize my position by telling him something like that. However, I’m not here for me, but for you. He’s so angry right now that I’m afraid of what he might do to you.”
“Why would you be afraid of what he might do? He didn’t do anything but piss me off with someone else’s lies.” With that, she started to walk away from the door. She was sick of the whole conversation.
“No, Lannie, you don’t understand. He is angrier than I’ve ever seen him. You have to ...”
“Look, Pete. I don’t care what you say. I don’t even care what Kyle Sylia says at this point. I’m upset and need some time alone to think some things through.”
Pete sighed through the door. “He’s been here already?”
“Yes, he was here. He just left.”
“He didn’t hurt you in any way?” Pete knocked on the door. “Let me see that you’re all right. Please.”
His pleading made her skin crawl. Something about this man really gave her the creeps.
“No, he didn’t hurt me. But now that you mention it ... give him a message for me. Tell him I’m going to be out of town for a while.” She made the decision on the spur of the moment. She had been considering a sightseeing trip to give her inspiration for her sculpting, but had been putting it off because she hadn’t wanted to leave Kyle. But now seemed a good time to go. Maybe a little fresh air would help her get through this intact. She could feel her heart breaking and would rather be angry than heartbroken.
“You’re leaving? That might be best. Get out of sight for a while and let him forget about you. He can get really violent if provoked.”
Lannie looked at the closed door as if it had grown an arm. “Violent?”
“Yes, he can get very dangerous. He’s been known to hurt women. That’s why I’ve been trying to help you.” Pete’s voice had taken on a pleading tone.
She didn’t believe him. Even as angry as he had been, he hadn’t even raised his voice to her. But Kyle had trusted everyone else’s word over hers, and that she wouldn’t deal with. “Just tell him that I’m leaving town and he can take his accusations and stick them up his butt. I don’t need to take this.” Lannie walked away from the door, heading to her room so she could pack.
Chapter One
Two months later ...
Stretching her arms over her head, she groaned deeply. Straightening from her slumped position at the workbench, she carefully lifted the small clay figurine and set it on the drying rack. A day of drying, and she would paint it, put it in the kiln, then put the finishing touches on it. Glancing at the clock, she winced. It was almost five in the morning. She’d stayed up all night working again. At least this stage of the process was done. She’d be able to take a couple of days off after this batch was completed, and give herself a break from the constant backache she’d gotten while crouching over her workbench. She’d been working practically nonstop since she had first dreamt the creatures she sculpted.
She would wait until she’d had some sleep, then crate up the completed pieces to send to the gallery. These were to join the ones she had sent earlier in the week. Later ... yes, she would crate them later. Right now, she desperately needed a shower and some sleep. Hopefully, sleep without dreams.
Dropping her clothes behind her, she headed for the shower. She tugged off the bandanna that she used to keep the clay out of her hair and tossed it in the sink. Bright red, it looked like a puddle of blood against the white porcelain. Lannie shook her head and ignored the vision. This macabre stuff was sure getting to her. Scratching her head to relieve the mild headache she’d gotten from wearing the bandanna, she reached into the tub and turned on the water. As it heated, she gathered a towel and the back brush and then put them near enough to reach from inside the shower. When she flipped the switch, the water shot out of the showerhead, and Lannie climbed into the tub. The water felt wonderful sliding over her sweaty, clay-covered, stiff body. The silky streams of liquid heat penetrated her aching muscles, between her breasts, and over her abdomen, to the small mound of hair between her legs. The sensation caused her breath to quicken and her heart to beat hard in her chest. Her body felt heavy and her breasts tight and full. Slowly, her hand slipped up her side, smoothing the water against her skin to her breast. Softly, tenderly, she cupped the fullness of it and lifted it, pinching the hard, distended nipple. Gasping, she realized what she was doing. Gods, what was wrong with her? She never acted like this. Quickly, she washed off, then dried herself and fell into her unmade bed naked, and slept deeply.
She stood in the living room of her apartment in the city. Not sure how or when she’d arrived, she looked around and tried to figure out why she was here. The door opened, and there stood Kyle. Just as she had seen him on the day she left. He looked weird though. Bigger than normal. Much bigger. He also had red eyes. That was a little disturbing, but when he started to unbutton his shirt as he approached her, her thoughts scattered.
His chest was great. Tanned and smooth. She had to fight herself to keep from reaching out and touching it.
“You belong to me, Lannie. Only to me.” He continued to peel off his shirt and dropped it on the floor when he stood directly in front of her.
“Really? Could’ve fooled me. You’re the one who didn’t trust me, and I don’t need that kind of aggravation.” Turning, she started to step away from him.
Reaching out one hand and grasping her arm, he halted her forward movement. Then, he pulled her toward him, rested her back against his chest, and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Still, you are mine. Never doubt that. No matter what happened, you belong with me.” She could feel his breath on the back of her neck as he spoke. Goosebumps formed on her flesh.
She’d always reacted that way to his touch. Instantly and intensely.
“What is it you want from me? I can’t live a life of mistrust and anger. I grew up that way, and I won’t have it in my own relationship.” She tried pulling away from him, but he wouldn’t let her.
“I need you. Always.”
He turned her in his arms, and she looked into his tight face. “Kyle --”
He silenced her with his mouth on hers, kissing her deeply. God, she missed him. No matter how she felt about his betrayal, she was still in love with the stubborn ass. His kiss deepened and she let it. It felt too good to make him stop just yet.
When she moaned, he pulled her tighter into his body. Rubbing his chest on hers, causing electric shocks to run through her nipples and straight to her abdomen, he continued to ply her mouth with his.
Feeling his hands tugging at her shirt, she pulled back far enough to take a breath.
“How do you do this to me? It’s too much, too fast.”
He seemed to ignore her. Placing his hands under her shirt, he caressed her abdomen and up to her breasts. Murmuring quiet endearments, he popped the front clasp to her bra open and spread the cups apart, then took her breast in his big, strong hand.
Her breath caught in her chest, she closed her eyes and pressed harder into his hand, loving the feel of him, surrounding her, needing her, hating the fact that she needed him, too.
“Not a good idea.” She tried pulling away from him, but he wouldn’t allow it.
“It’s a great idea.” As he pulled her into his chest again, she looked into his eyes. The red glow startled her and she gasped.
“What’s up with your eyes?” Leaning back in his arms, she kept her eyes on his.
“It’s natural. Ignore it.”
“That’s kind of hard to do. I mean, really, Kyle, your eyes are bright red. Something isn’t right with this picture.”
She blinked when he growled and dug his nails lightly into her back. “All is as it should be.”
“Dang it ...” Her voice trailed off as she continued to look at him. His face had begun to change. Becoming narrower at the nose and chin, he started to sprout hair where he had been clean-shaven before. His chest was also getting hairier.
“You are mine, Lannie. Always mine.” His voice had become more gravely, and as his face and body continued to change into a canine shape, he leaned over and bit her where her neck and shoulder came together.
She jerked awake around noon. “Freaking dreams are going to be the death of me.” Dressing and getting her sculptures of mythical creatures crated didn’t take long. She was soon walking, pulling her wagon that had the crate in it, the mile toward town and the post office.
After leaving her almost-fiancé, she had wandered aimlessly for a few days, searching for inspiration. When she’d stopped at a diner for a bite to eat, she’d asked where she was. The unanimous answer had been “nowhere.” It had taken her several minutes to realize that “Nowhere” was the name of the town and not the prevailing attitude toward it. The name had struck her funny bone as nothing had for what seemed like a long while, so she traipsed around the countryside for a few days. She gradually began to feel better, not so heartbroken. On a whim, she visited the local realtor, rented a small house, and moved out of the motel that she had spent the previous nights in. Lannie had decided that until she was over Kyle, perhaps an entire change of scenery was in order. She had money in the bank, so the rent hadn’t posed a problem. Her parents had invested wisely before their car had been hit by a drunk driver. They might not have been the best parents, but at least they hadn’t left her destitute. She sighed, thinking she would’ve rather been loved.
Shaking her head, she dismissed the thoughts of what couldn’t be changed, and thought about what had been. She’d fallen into her newest obsession by accident. She’d always loved sculpting, but the macabre was her new genre. She had been watching an old black-and-white horror movie on the television one night and realized that she could do clay figurines of the creatures. She started with pencil and paper and drew the first of a series of vampires, werewolves, mummies, witches, and sorcerers. Using the town library’s computer, she searched out the best clay producers and ordered a large quantity and a small kiln.
The moment her purchases had arrived at the post office, she’d run them home and set them up. As soon as possible, she had her hands in the clay and drew her creatures out of the gooey slabs. After finishing several of the figurines, she took pictures of them and sent the photographs to an agent. Timing must be everything. The agent was ecstatic. Apparently, she’d been commissioned to find artists who dealt with more than the usual flowers and meadows for a specialty gallery. The agent had mentioned that any type of paranormal art was selling like hotcakes right now, and she already had the gallery clamoring for those and more of her sculptures.
Buying quality carving tools and good paints was her next step. It made the second set of sculptures look more professional, something she wouldn’t be embarrassed to show to strangers. The crate she was mailing out today would be the fifth set of sculptures that she’d sent to New York. The news of her first gallery showing had hit the papers a couple of days ago, and until this moment she had been so busy, what with the creatures running around in her head clamoring to be made, that she hadn’t spent any time stressing about an honest-to-goodness showing.
Her mind still felt too full to worry about the gallery. As she pulled her wagon down the street, she clenched her teeth in frustration. Now that she had the mythical beings and monsters out of her head for the moment, Kyle popped back in.
Kyle. Other than in dreams, she tried not to think of him too often. It hurt too badly. Remembering how he had attacked her verbally and how he hadn’t believed in her innocence still caused a pain in her heart. It felt as if a steel spike were being driven into her chest every time she remembered. She kicked angrily at a rock that lay in her path and continued on her way towards town.
She didn’t plan on seeing the man -- or whatever he was -- again.
Remembering how she had imagined he had grown physically and how his eyes and teeth had changed had been the original basis for her sculptures. She knew she hadn’t really seen that. There are no such things as shape-shifters. She figured it must have been some sort of adrenaline-induced mirage that made her see what she had. The reality is that only in her dreams did she see him changing.
She had started on the first sculpted piece within two weeks of his betrayal.
Enough of that ... Lannie realized she had made herself depressed when she should have been at her happiest. That was Kyle’s fault, too, she decided as she looked around and started seeing habitation. She had made it to the outskirts of Nowhere, and the post office sat in the center of town. Luckily, the center of town was all of two whole blocks from the outskirts.
Passing the only chain grocery store in town, she reminded herself to pick up something for dinner. Spending all her time working, she sometimes forgot the essentials, like eating. Often, when she remembered eating was a necessity, she opened the fridge and ate the first thing that came to hand. At the moment, there wasn’t much to reach for. She would have to restock. She actually felt a little faint from lack of sustenance. She would have to change that soon.
Waving at the ladies and men in the hair salon, she crossed the street at the crosswalk and entered the post office. She wasn’t there long, even though the postmistress had asked her dozens of questions concerning the new sculptures. Lannie smiled and assured her that it was indeed the final batch, that the first showing would be soon, and that she would be sure to get the woman an invitation to the gallery for the exhibit. The postmistress smiled grandly and mentioned that, while she wouldn’t be able to actually attend, the gallery being in a different state and all, she would most certainly put the invitation in her scrapbook.
Smiling and shaking her head at the difference between big-city attitude and small-town friendliness, she headed to the diner. “Always shop on a full stomach” was an adage she followed. The bell over the door tinkled, and every eye in the place turned to her. Knowing that anything to break the monotony interested everyone in Nowhere, she smiled and looked around for an empty seat.
Her eyes clashed with a pair of brown eyes that she knew all too well. Kyle!
Kyle had been...
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