Chapter Ten

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A/N
Most of this book will be in Leah's POV, so instead of  saying it in every chapter I will point out when it's Nicholas' and then again when it goes back to Leah's.
Happy reading!

(Image: Rosie Blackwater)

Leah's POV

I shifted right as I burst through the kitchen door, landing on my four paws gracefully, a snarl upon my lips as I quickly took in the scene before me.

Rosie was laying against one of the metal cupboards, eyes closed. I could hear her heart beat but it was very faint, instantly making my own heart clench with worry. I would have to inspect her more in a minute after dealing with the threat. She was hurt badly, I could tell that much.
I glanced around and saw a mangy looking mutt, rat gray colored fur that seemed to grow in tufts making him look like a patch work quilt of icky, dirty fur. The stench of filth that accompanied him was vile, almost making me wrinkle my snout in disgust. His eyes were yellow but they were dull and sunken in to his skull and his teeth had the same color, everything about the wolf screamed rogue, filth, mutt.

An angry growl erupted from my throat as I took a deliberate step towards him, sensing the others burst in to the kitchen behind me.

Oh no. This one's mine. Vampire blood or not.

Assessing the scene quickly with my trained eye I saw he favored his right foot to put weight on, leaving his left flank open. The door was to his left so that gave me an advantage but not by much. The blood made them faster and stronger than a normal wolf, but it also hazed their mind, making them puppets of sorts.
A continuous low growl came from within me as I approached, making it known to the mutt that I would be the last wolf he ever saw. Mistaking my slow approach for fear, the wolf lunged at me using his right side, as predicted.
I dodged left and reached out with my own right claw and sinking it in to the soft flesh of his flank. I heard the skin tearing and smelled the blood rather than saw it. The cut was not deep, I didn't want to kill him. Yet.
Landing in one fluid movement I whirled around before he could properly regain his footing, allowing me to lunge this time, closing my jaws around his throat and pinning him to the floor.
For good measure I made sure he was immobile before lifting my teeth away from his neck and closing them sharply around his front right leg, then the back one, my powerful jaw breaking through the bone easily and making it impossible for him to walk.

He was strong, but stupid. Good thing or else I would have gotten seriously injured.

As the pitiful animal whimpered I looked at Eric pointedly and then back down at the wolf. He understood immediately and grabbed a long piece of fabric from one of the aprons to tie the snout with before picking up the trembling form and taking him away. I'd see where to later. Right now I had more important things to deal with.

I trotted behind another countertop and shifted back in to my human form, cursing silently as I realized my clothes would have been torn up in the sudden shift.
Standing there butt naked I glanced around hurriedly, trying to find something to throw over my body. My gaze settled on a chefs coat. That would have to do for now.
Shrugging in to it and buttoning it up I hurried towards Rosie, kneeling beside her to assess her wounds.
She had three long gashes that ran from under her left breast, all the way around the soft flesh of her upper right hip. They were oozing blood but nothing a few...ok a lot of stitches and special ointment wouldn't cure in time. She was unconscious, meaning the blow must have knocked her down and she may have hit her head. With steady hands I inspected her skull, finding a large open wound where she must have banged her head on the edge of the counter. This one could be tricky. Head woulds were especially dangerous for wolves. Our bones in both human and wolf form were slightly softer than others, thus allowing us to shift back and forth and minimize the pain. This is usually a good thing since it makes healing bones much easier as well, but in a head wound it was also much easier to suffer damage to ones brain without the extra protection of the hard bone.
Sending a silent prayer to Gaia I reached for a kitchen towel to wrap around Rosie's head to stop the bleeding.
At that moment the kitchen door burst open and a familiar scent enveloped my senses. Nicholas was here.
"About bloody time!" I snapped and only then realized that everyone had been standing there in silence watching me closely. I had forgotten about them.

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