Free Heart of the Woolf (Woolf Series) by Kai Andersen Page A

the
parking lot there was always full.
    “That’s the best suggestion I’ve heard all day.” Adrienne
slung her handbag more securely on her right shoulder and then leaned against
Jake’s wonderful strength as they walked. She couldn’t stop the yawn from
breaking out. “I can’t believe the board would keep us in the office so late.”
She checked her watch. “It’s nearing midnight.”
    “Well, it’s understandable that they would want to know how
the meeting went.”
    “Yeah, but for them to analyze each snippet of response or
question is a bit too much.”
    “If we didn’t manage to win this deal, they’d probably want
to be able to pinpoint what went wrong and see how to improve --”
    The loud, insistent, beeping alarm from Jake’s car sliced
through the deepening night. Adrienne felt him stiffen.
    “Stay here,” he said, and he was gone.
    She blinked. How could he move so fast? One second, he was
right there beside her, and the next, he was nowhere in sight. She stood on
tiptoes and craned her neck, hoping to be able to see Jake checking out the
car. But they’d walked some distance, and he was now too far away for her to
see him. The alarm was suddenly cut off, and the silence was deafening. She
hoped there was nothing wrong with the car. Normally, her residential area was
a good neighborhood, but with the increased criminal activities lately, even
the previously “safe” areas were not so safe anymore --
    Someone gave a vicious tug at her handbag. Her shoulder was
almost wrenched from its socket.
    She whirled around, screaming.
    “Give it to me, lady,” The beefy, towering male spoke in a
guttural voice. Something sharp poked her in the ribs. “Don’t fight, and you
won’t get hurt.”
    “No!” She couldn’t stop screaming, and instinct made her
cling stubbornly to her purse.
    The thug cursed, and a tug of war ensued between them. His
arm swung in an upward arc.
    She flinched, certain he meant to strike her.
    The knife flashed in the street lamp and severed the strap of
her handbag from the bag itself, which was in the hands of the hooligan. She
lost her balance and stumbled backward, the detached strap in her hands. She
watched, helpless, as the thug made a threatening gesture at her with the
knife, no doubt warning her not to follow.
    He turned to flee, but had only taken a few steps when
someone -- or something  -- flew past Adrienne.
    The blur of motion knocked into the thug, bringing him to the
ground with a hard thump. Her handbag fell beside him.
    Adrienne’s mouth opened in a wide “O” when she realized what
she was seeing.
    Jake.
    He was straddled on top of the thug, one hand around the
thief’s neck in a vicious grip. Low, angry growls issued from Jake’s throat as
he stared down at the thug, who was blubbering with terror, his arms and legs
flailing as he tried to scuttle away from Jake with an unmistakable expression
of alarm. However, he was doomed to failure for Jake was sitting squarely on
top of him.
    Adrienne breathed out a sigh of relief, thankful that Jake
was with her. In hindsight, she felt incredibly stupid for hanging onto her
handbag, which contained nothing but a few coins, some cosmetics and her mobile
phone. She stepped forward and scooped the bag from the ground. “Jake --”
    He turned to face her.
    Startled, she couldn’t control the gasp that escaped from her
lips. She saw the reason for the look of terror in the thug’s eyes.
    Under the street lamp, she saw that his gray-brown eyes were
inundated with flecks of yellow amber that glowed with an eerie light, and his
incisors had grown about an inch long. His expression was feral and fierce,
like that of a dog protecting its master. No, something more terrifying than a
dog -- a wolf. Yet, there was human intelligence shining from his eyes.
    She’d seen such a being before. Her ex-love ... “You’re
a werewolf.” Even to her ears, her voice sounded flat.
    She didn’t understand the look of