Series: Shifter Ops Series by Renee Rose
Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 65371 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 327(@200wpm)___ 261(@250wpm)___ 218(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65371 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 327(@200wpm)___ 261(@250wpm)___ 218(@300wpm)
Bullets blast into my face. One of them nicks me, and the silver burns. I relax and let my wolf come.
The passenger rises up, aiming a gun, and gets a face full of claw. I lunge forward as a wolf and close my jaws over his head. Crunch.
The driver stands in his seat, aiming for me. I look down the barrel and see my death.
A flash of white descends. The huge owl clamps its claws on the driver’s shoulders and lifts him up. The owl flaps its wings, gaining height with the struggling enemy in its claws. The driver cries out, spraying bullets wildly. Before he can aim, the owl shrieks and lets go.
The enemy crashes to earth, where a swipe of Caleb’s bear claw puts an end to him.
I release my kill and lope down the windshield, back into the fight.
The SUV Grizz took out is upside down, wheels spinning in the air. A huge bear lumbers away, its fur spattered with gasoline and blood. Its size takes my breath away. Legend says that Grizz’s bear has thick brown fur like a Kodiak bear on steroids. One who can bench press a Mac truck. It rises to its hind feet and roars. All around me, cheetahs yip and hyenas cackle.
Smoke stings my wolf eyes.
A shape takes form in the gray smog. A giant in a leather jacket. Hannibal, his face contorted. His clothing is starting to rip as his animal fights to the surface. He sees me and roars. “Rematch!”
I snarl and race towards him.
He pulls out a gun and shoots. I dodge and keep running. Bullets skim my fur. I put on a burst of speed and leap, my fangs aiming for his throat.
He bursts out of his clothes, his form morphing into a massive monster. He’s huge and muscular, with two giant horns. I hit his chest and knock him back a step. My fangs score at his shoulder, but his skin is thick, and I can’t get purchase. I twist and bound away.
Goading him to shift has its benefits. He dropped his gun and let it skid to the side. Without the threat of silver bullets, I’m free to rip and tear into him.
He’s wicked strong and fast, but not as fast as I am. I dart in and out, snapping at his limbs. He bellows and tries to stomp my wolf, but I weave through his legs, slicing at the insides of his knees. First blood.
I’m too slow getting away, and his arms clamp around me. I twist, my fangs seeking his throat. He clamps his arms around me. My bones crack as he squeezes.
I shift back to man form. Suddenly I’m a lot smaller than the animal he was holding, and he staggers. I fall to my back, dragging him with me, and kick out my legs, launching him over my head. He crashes to the pavement ten feet behind me.
Three cheetah shifters leap on him. A second later, they're flying through the air.
Damn, how am I gonna beat this guy?
A rocket whistles by and an SUV explodes. Flaming chunks of twisted metal rain down.
I lose sight of Hannibal in the thick smoke. My ears ring. I can barely hear the crack of gun fire followed by a pained bellow.
To my left, the enemy is making a last stand. Grizz’s giant bear wades into their ranks. His claws are so big, one swipe sends their heads rolling. Their bodies crumple. Beheading is the easiest way to bring down a shifter. Grizz elevates the grisly task to an art form.
I give him a thumbs up, and he displays teeth the size of my forearm and lets out a roar that I’m pretty sure means, “Great work, bestie!”
Hannibal’s gun lies on the pavement. I scoop it up and go hunting. I follow the trail of werecheetah bodies until I find him. His telltale horns emerge from the smoke.
“Hannibal,” I shout. I’m limping–must have caught a bullet. The wound burns the way silver does.
I rack the shotgun, but it’s out of bullets. I toss it between us. There. Now we face each other, animal to animal.
He stomps the pavement like a bull. My wolf is ready to take over when there’s a whooshing sound behind me.
A group of werehyenas have taken control of the final SUV. They’ve pulled up close and are aiming the launcher at Hannibal….and me.
“No, wait!” I holler. Too late. One of the hyenas shrieks and launches the weapon.
I drop and eat gravel. The rocket whistles overhead, the zooming sound blending with Hannibal’s roars.
The boom deafens me. I leap to my feet as soon as I can, but there’s no sign of Hannibal. Just a crater and a ring of soot in the place where he stood.
I curse.
Other than the crackling bonfires and the distant screech of a hyena, the parking lot is quiet. The fight is over.