“Get rid of him. I don’t want to hear from you again until he’s dead.” He slid the phone closed, ending the conversation as abruptly as he’d begun.
Hope flooded me. He could only be talking about Emmitt. I frowned, and hope turned to worry. Someone was helping Frank and had seen Emmitt. I wondered if Grey and Carlos were with him. I needed to distract Frank from planning anything further.
“What is an Urbat, Frank? And what decision were you waiting for me to make?”
“If Blake wants you to know, he’ll tell you.” He continued to pace, his steps agitated. He occasionally stopped by the window to look out the gap in the curtain.
I thought quickly. “It has to do with Claiming one of you...the men he brought to dinner, doesn’t it?” I asked. “Why does Blake want me to Claim one of you? Why not Emmitt?”
“The puppet has a brain. Impressive.”
I wasn’t getting enough of his attention. “How could I have ever thought of any of you in that way? I was fifteen when all that started.” Frank ignored me so I tried again.
“What’s so important about Claiming one of you? He already had me under his control.”
“Hardly. Mated to one of us, you’d never be able to run and hide like you did. We’d sense exactly where you were and come for you. That is control. But that’s not the real reason.”
He started walking toward me but paused before he made it halfway. He tilted his head as if he heard something. I’d seen that same look on Emmitt; Frank listened to something I couldn’t hear.
I glanced toward the door. A crackling noise filled the air as the wood bulged. A moment later, the door flew inward and hit the wall with a loud thud.
Emmitt stood in the opening, outlined by the fading light of the sun. His grey t-shirt sported several tears and bloody patches. The rips exposed skin that was blemish free so I knew the blood wasn’t his. He did, however, have a bruise shadowing his jaw under his emerging whiskers.
His gaze skimmed over me before it locked on Frank. Anger boiled beneath Emmitt’s features. He flexed his hands. His usual pink, blunt cut nails extended into long, lethal grey claws.
Frank crouched and rolled his shoulders. Spotty patches of fur erupted from his skin and the tips of his now pointy ears. One leg started to transform, the thigh shortening while the foot elongated.
Tendons stood out on Emmitt’s neck as his canines burst forth from his mouth. His face started to shift, elongating slightly, making room for his teeth. I could barely understand him when he spoke.
“Your mistake was her blood,” he growled just before he lunged for Frank.
They met, snarling in the center of the room. Emmitt grabbed Frank by the shoulders and pulled him in for a head-butt before Frank could swipe at him. I cringed at the sound of the solid thunk, but Emmitt didn’t seem fazed. Frank, however, staggered—partially due to his foot. Emmitt lashed out toward Frank’s chest in a move so fast I almost didn’t catch it. Frank leapt out of the way.
There wasn’t much room for them to maneuver as they circled each other looking for openings. Emmitt seemed to be waiting for Frank to do something. When Frank’s back was to the door, Frank lashed out with his right just after feinting with his left.
Emmitt dodged Frank’s swing, ducked under it, and raked his claws over Frank’s exposed side. Four bloody furrows erupted. Frank swore. His control slipped, and his feet fully sprouted claws and fur. Frank started panting with the effort.
Emmitt gave him no opportunity to recover. Instead, he pushed Frank harder, striking repeatedly with his claws, once even biting. Frank didn’t moan in pleasure, then. His howl of rage ricocheted off the walls.
Through the damaged hotel door, I saw the parking lot lights clicked on and watched three men run from the main office.
“People are coming,” I said to both Frank and Emmitt. They couldn’t be caught fighting in their current state.
Emmitt nodded slightly and blocked Frank’s swing with his left forearm. He drove his right fist into Frank’s face. There was a sickening crack as Frank’s head whipped back. I glanced at the door again as he staggered.
The men were halfway across the parking lot. One of them spotted me tied to the chair and pointed.
An odd raspy exhale drew my attention back to Frank just in time to watch him fall hard. His eyes rolled back into his head. His face bled from several scratches. His nose bled, too. It was badly broken. I had a feeling Emmitt had been toying with Frank up until that final blow.
The air in the room stirred as Emmitt used his supernatural speed to turn and slam the door shut. He bolted it before the men could reach it. Just as quickly, he moved to me.
The men reached the door and started pounding on it.
Emmitt softly swore when he saw my hands. He knelt and carefully used his teeth to bite through the plastic.
Frank groaned on the floor.