Excerpt from House of Wolves
By Jonathan Yañez, Orange Branch
“You should really wait and read the directions, “Sloan said as she took a step back. “You’re just asking for trouble.”
“No way. These things are a perfect fit. Let’s see what these babies can do.”
Jack took Sloan’s lead and took a step back as a grinning Aareth stood up, flexing his fingers.
“Look, see? Nothing to it. I wonder what the buttons on the palms are for.”
Aareth opened his hands, palms to the ceiling, and touched each button with the tips of his middle fingers. There was a crackling noise as the gloves began to glow. Thin lines of blue magic disappeared and reappeared just as quickly.
Jack didn’t know what to think. Never in his life had he seen anything remotely similar.
“Aareth, you should really – ” Sloan took another step back.
“Captain, please. I know you’re in charge, but I’m not a child. I can think – ” As Aareth said the word ‘think,’ his right arm came up and his pointer finger touched the side of his temple.
There was a loud hissing noise followed by Aareth’s entire body being thrown into the side of the cart. His large frame collided with the rack of supplies. He fell to the ground, motionless.
Jack and Sloan looked at one another, taking a moment to try and process what just happened.
“Is he – is he dead?” Jack took a cautious step forward.
“No,” Sloan shook her head as she joined him. “His chest is still moving. But my gosh, did you see that?”
“How could I miss it? He must weigh over two hundred pounds and he was thrown across the room like a rag doll.”
As they bent down over Aareth’s body, the bright blue currents over his gauntleted hands dissipated.
Jack reached out with a tentative foot to prod Aareth. Before he could roll Aareth over on his back, the large man sat up with a scream more suited for a young girl than a grown man.
“Ahhhhhh!”
Jack and Sloan fell backwards as Aareth teetered in a sitting position. His hair was standing in all different directions. A line of spit fell down the left side of his lip. A piece of toilet paper from the rack he had fallen against wrapped itself around his head like a turban.
“What – what just happened?”
“I think you just knocked yourself out,” Jack raised a hand to stifle his laughter.
“I told you to read the directions,” Sloan coughed trying to hide her own smile.
Aareth wobbled to his feet as he slowly took off the gloves.
“You have a piece of toilet pa – “
“What Jack’s trying to tell you,” Sloan interrupted with a wink,” is that it’s time for a meal before you decide to give yourself another concussion.”
House of Wolves is the first novel in
Jonathan Yañez’s Vampire Project Series.