Before the Moon Rises
Janet
    rolled on the ground to avoid his dead weight.
    Shaking, Janet dropped the gun and watched as wolf
    turned into man. With one final breath, Gorman stared at her
    with hate in his eyes.
    Her hand wiped at her tears, clearing her vision. Howls
    returned from above. Max nudged her hand with his nose.
    Janet drew back from his touch.
    "Why didn't you tell me?" she cried, pushing Max away.
    Max backed up, the barks outside grew louder. He
    bounded up the steps only to reappear in a few seconds.
    He barked in warning and nudged the gun back to her
    side.
    "There are more of you? Aren't there?"
    Max let out another bark in answer.
    Janet jumped to her feet, the chain still keeping her hands
    close together. She took the gun, glanced at the dead man by
    her side and started to move.
    Max hurled himself in front of her. The house was vacant
    of any furniture, not one light shone to guide her. Max
    grabbed the dangling chain and led her out of the house.
    Outside the moon illuminated the landscape, giving her the
    light she needed to see where to go. His Ferrari was parked
    with the engine still running, the driver side door opened.
    Barks and howls sang from every direction. Scared, Janet
    ran toward the safety of the car. As she rounded the hood,
    81

    Before the Moon Rises
    by Catherine Bybee
    another wolf, this one black and larger than Max, stared at
    her and blocked the way. Without thinking, Janet aimed the
    gun at the animal and fired.
    She missed, but the wolf backed off. She inched closer to
    the door, never looking away from the red eyes that stared at
    her.
    Standing by the door of the car, she yelled at Max. "Get
    in!"
    Snarls and yelps came from behind her. Max shook his
    head and stepped back.
    "What are you doing? Get in."
    He shook his head again, this time he pushed at her leg
    with his head.
    His blue eyes swirled with grey.
    Out of nowhere, the black wolf pounced on Max. Needing
    no further encouragement Janet jumped into the car and
    slammed the door.
    Another wolf landed on the hood bringing a scream from
    her throat. Jolting the car into reverse, Janet punched the gas
    and squealed out of the dirt driveway.
    The lights of the car hit Max and his newest enemy.
    Beyond them through the light of the moon, she saw them
    all. Black, white, grey and brown, wolves of every imaginable
    size and shape were everywhere.
    Several wolves stood by Max's side as if in unity. They
    approached their enemy slowly until all hell broke loose.
    Behind her, a truck pulled up along side the car. Inside a
    middle-aged man rolled down the window and shouted at her.
    She opened her window slightly to hear his words.
    82

    Before the Moon Rises
    by Catherine Bybee
    "Get out of here. Do you have a death wish or something?"
    Janet glared at the fighting pack. "I can't leave him here."
    "Max can take care of himself. You're a distraction, Janet.
    Go."
    She stared at him in surprise. "How do you know who I
    am?"
    Annoyed with her questions, the man yelled again. "Go!"
    Torn, Janet glanced at the mayhem unfolding all around
    her. Wolves fought and tore each other to pieces.
    She reached for the door, thinking she could somehow
    help. The muzzle of one wolf slammed against the glass,
    teeth bared. Swallowing hard, Janet put the car in drive and
    tried her best not to look back.
    [Back to Table of Contents]
    83

    Before the Moon Rises
    by Catherine Bybee

Chapter Eight
    James let her in the gate and met her at the door. He took
    one look at her and then ran to the garage to retrieve a pair
    of bolt cutters and removed the chains.
    He didn't ask questions. He didn't comment. He simply
    went about getting Janet the supplies she needed to bandage
    her marred wrists.
    She went to her room, and walked straight to the shower.
    Clothes and all she got in and set the water on high, trying in
    vain to wash away the horrible images of the night.
    Tears flowed and her body shook as she yanked the
    clothing from her skin. She rubbed her skin raw,

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