I twisted in my seat, searching every crevice of the truck for a weapon. My fingers found the handle of a long, black umbrella under the seat. I gripped it tightly, pulling it to my chest like it was going to make a difference if that beast caught up.
Cady sped up, knuckles white on the steering wheel. The headlights cut through dust as it swirled around the front of the truck, illuminating the trunks of trees just enough to make them look menacing. Each of them appeared otherworldly, another beast waiting to spring.
She swerved with the curve of the driveway, turning sharply around one corner then another.
“I didn’t realize this driveway had so many turns,” I said, my voice sounding calmer than I felt.
“Maybe I should’ve let you drive,” Cady grunted, slamming the brakes as the left side of the truck lifted off the ground.
“No, you should definitely be driving.” I glanced in the mirror again. The beast was gaining on us, reaching for the bed of the truck. “Um, Cady.”
“I see him.”
Another shape appeared through the windshield, stepping onto the road and blocking us. Cady braked, twisting the wheel until the truck turned sideways, one beast on either side of us.
“C’mon!” Cady growled, lifting the gun from the cup holder and pointing it out the open window.
The beast on her side charged. Cady fired, hitting him square in the chest over and over until his steps faltered, and he fell to his knees. The fur receded on his arms, slowly revealing a pale, bleeding man.
I was so distracted by the scene, I hadn’t realized the other beast was coming. A clawed hand smashed through my window, sending glass flying as he sliced at my legs.
I reacted without thinking, lifting the umbrella high and stabbing the tip through the window. It struck bone. Pain lanced through my thigh. I jerked the umbrella back and stabbed again.
The truck rocked sideways. Another beast was on Cady’s side, tearing at the driver’s side.
“I’ll kill you, asshole!” Cady shrieked, dropping her empty gun into her lap and slamming the truck into reverse.
The beast on my side slipped, grappling for purchase on the metal of the door. I saw my chance and took it, drawing the umbrella back one more time and aiming straight at his face.
He howled, falling away with his hand cupping his eye.
We were driving again, flying recklessly along the last stretches of the gravel drive as the third shape tore after us.
“Did you just stab a werewolf with an umbrella?”
“I guess I did.”
Cady whooped loudly and I shrieked, startled as she pumped her fist in the air.
“Come at us!” she shouted out the window. “I dare you!”
I leaned across the center console, gripping the steering wheel with my free hand. “Are you crazy?”
“After this week? Hell yes, I am. You’ll get used to it.”
There was a thump in the bed of the truck. I whirled around, umbrella held high.
Cady slowed the truck as the smooth asphalt of the county road glided under the wheels. “It’s okay, that’s Eli.”
“How do you know?” I ducked my head, trying to get a look at the beast through the back window.
“I just know.”
We drove ten minutes down the main road before Cady pulled the truck over. She fished a pile of clothes from the backseat seat.
“Here,” she murmured, handing me a pair of jeans. “Isaac’s going to need these.”
I scrambled out of the truck faster than my legs could handle, almost losing my footing in my haste to get to Isaac. I hadn’t seen him with Eli, but as soon as Cady said it, I knew he was here.