Chapter 44

I followed Tatyana and Bruce through the alley door that led to the dungeon. I’d brought up the topic of the hairy beast that lived there when she mentioned this entrance. She identified it as a werewolf. Earlier, we would have laughed such a notion off, but now we huddled close together while staying prepared for action if we encountered it. Armed with only our crossbows and arrows, we hoped it would be enough. Crossbows worked on vampires, but what about werewolves?

It took a moment for our eyes to adjust to the dimly lit dungeon. We crept along slowly, looking in all directions for the creature. We were almost to the bottom of the stairwell when he appeared out of nowhere. His enormous hairy hands yanked Bruce back, knocking him off balance and causing him to fall to his ass. Before we could register what was happening, the creature grabbed him by the throat and pulled him to his feet.

To both Bruce’s and my surprise, it was Tatyana who reacted first. Wi