Ch 8: Seven Devils

Jackie came to a screeching halt, her heart pounding as she frantically looked around. There was no way she had outrun Laura. Laura wouldn’t just disappear. Struggling to steady her breathing, she reached for her phone. Before she could unlock it, the screen lit up with an incoming call from Luke.

“Luke! Something—”

“SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH LAURA! WHERE ARE YOU?!”

Jackie’s blood ran cold. “How did you know? I’ll drop a pin with my location.”

“Okay, I’m on my way!”

“WAIT,” But he hung up before she could ask anything else. She quickly shared her location, and just as she hit send, a sharp, brutal force struck the back of her head. The impact made her vision explode with stars, her body nearly giving out beneath her. She stumbled to her knees, hissing in pain. Before she could rise, another blow sent her sprawling, and a black sack was yanked over her head, cinched tightly at her neck.

It was dark, and disorientating, and all Jackie could feel was the rough jostling of a moving vehicle beneath her. Jackie gritted her teeth, forcing herself to stay calm. She didn’t dare fully shift in front of humans, but she let her face transform just enough to heighten her senses. The stench of musk, metal, and blood assaulted her, making her gag. But beneath it all, she caught something familiar, Laura. Nearly identical to Luke, her scent was like the ocean in the middle of summer. Relief flickered in Jackie’s chest. Laura was here. She was alive.

Jackie tested her restraints, but they were tight. She turned her head slightly. “Laura, are you—”

A crushing blow smashed into her face, snapping her nose with a sickening crunch. She howled in pain, her body jerking involuntarily. Though her rapid healing kicked in, she still felt the burn and snap of it resetting, and the blood still ran down her face where she tasted her own blood.

Her vision swam as anger surged through her veins, hot and searing. She had to breathe through the scent of her own blood to stop herself from shifting completely. Not yet, it wasn’t the right time. Time blurred while she calmed herself down and tried to come up with a plan. The van skidded to a stop, then the doors slid open with a metallic screech. Rough hands dragged her out, gravel scraping her skin. The sack was yanked from her head, and she blinked hard against the sudden flood of light and the image of Laura.

Jackie’s rage reignited at the sight of her friend. Blood stained her face and clothes, her body curled in on itself, but her expression was fierce, sharp with defiance. She had fought hard against them in her human form; that much was clear. Her focus wasn’t on Jackie at that moment. No, Laura’s fiery stare was locked on the figures lurking in the shadows.

Jackie forced herself to speak. “Laura, are you okay? What the hell is going on?”

Laura flicked her eyes to Jackie for the briefest second before returning them to the darkness. Her voice was a low hiss. “I’m fine. But we’re in the presence of Mngwa. And I’m guessing it’s the same faction that attacked you last month.”

Three men prowled out of the darkness into the dim light. Jackie’s breath hitched. One of them looked just like the monster who had attacked her and Andrea at the lake. The memory clawed at her mind, and her pulse spiked in fear. The other two were just as imposing, but none rattled her nerves like him.

The leader sneered in a thick Slavic accent. “Yes, we are the ones. I am Adrik, and you”, his bloodshot eyes locked onto her, burning with hatred, “are the one who ripped my brother Dimitri apart. You and that other girl were supposed to be an easy meal.”

Jackie swallowed back the old fear. Rage was easier. It burned away the rest of her emotions. “I didn’t shred him enough for what he did.”

Faster than a heartbeat, he lunged. His hand wrapped around her throat, cutting off the air. His breath was rancid, his words venomous. “You insolent little girl. My brother was superior to you. You should never have survived.”

He released her, allowing her to choke in a gasp. Before she could recover, two Mngwa pinned her facedown, her cheek scraping the floor. The leader grabbed a fistful of her hair, forcing her to watch as three of them descended on Laura.

A deep growl rumbled through Jackie’s chest. Her body trembled, her vision sharpening as her instincts screamed for release. Then the man to Laura's right brought his fist down and cracked her jaw, and another kicked her in the ribs. The leader, feeling triumphant, continued to speak while circling Jackie, “You will watch me rip out her heart and eat it. You will watch me become more powerful, and you will watch as I open your chest to do the same to you.”

As he spoke, Laura, despite the blood trailing from her mouth, smirked. It was a silent signal for Jackie to unleash herself.

Jackie nodded and shifted, with pure fury, pure power, she exploded to her feet, throwing the two off her. Even with her hands bound, she was a force of nature. One savage kick sent a man flying. She slammed her head back, cracking against the skull of the one behind her. With a violent twist, she snapped her restraints. Then she leapt towards Laura’s attackers, anger and instincts guiding her.

Her claws sank deep into the neck of the Mngwa, who had punched Laura, nearly severing his head in a single strike. With her other hand, she tore through the arm that had struck her friend, the force of it all nearly ripping him in two from his neck to his shoulder. Blood sprayed, and his gurgling scream shattered the momentary shock of the others. Jackie spun, slicing Laura’s restraints free as the remaining five shifted.

Assessing the fight ahead, Jackie growled, “I may die today, but I’m taking as many devils with me as I can. Never again. I’ll burn them all before they hurt someone I love.”

Laura, rolling her shoulders, smirked and said, knowing their opponents were outmatched, “Nothing can save them now. Let’s kill some vermin.”

They charged. The first two fell like dead weight. Laura ripped a throat clean out and, without wasting time, turned away, gore in hand to defend herself from the next attacker, splattering blood all around them. At the same time, Jackie, surprising even herself, plunged her fist straight through the chest of her target. Bone gouged her knuckles as she removed her arm from his limp body. Blood coated her up to the elbow, and her wounds sealed as quickly as they were inflicted. Invigorated, she locked eyes with the leader. His momentary flicker of fear thrilled her. Then he lunged towards her.

Jackie dodged his first swipe, but his second struck true. Claws buried deep into her gut. She gasped, blood spraying from her lips as she lashed out, tearing open his cheek. He reeled back, removing his claws from her skin, snarling.

“You’re a pest!” he spat, wiping at his face. “You will not leave here alive!”

Jackie, trembling, barely breathing through the pain, grinned, teeth stained red. “I’m not the one dying today, coward.”

“GET HER!” he roared.

A pair of clawed hands yanked her back, but before he could strike, Laura appeared behind them. With one deadly swipe, she slit their throat. Now it was two against one. This time, Adrik looked truly afraid, and it curled into anger. Jackie and Laura tensed their bodies to prepare for the next melee, but just before the tension snapped, there was a deafening crash that shattered through the air. The entire building trembled as a car smashed through the entrance of the warehouse. The leader spun, eyes wide as Luke stormed out of the rubble and dust, his face twisted with fury. Using the confusion and debris blocking everyone’s vision, the Mngwa who had first attacked Jackie grabbed the leader and fled, disappearing into the night.

Jackie growled in frustration but knew chasing them alone was suicide. She turned to Laura and Luke, and suddenly, the room tilted as her adrenaline drained, and pain began to swallow her whole. She clutched her bleeding stomach, and her knees started to turn to jelly under the weight of her body. Luke’s arms were around her before she hit the ground. His voice, frantic and urgent, barely broke through the ringing in her ears.

“Jackie! Stay with me! Mon Petit Chaton, I’m here.”