Heather glanced at its eyes. The glow had faded, and the red was turning pale blue. It stopped in front of her and tilted its head like it was studying her. Maybe it was. The eyes looked intelligent. And somehow familiar.
It inched closer, its muzzle over her drawn-up knees.
"No," she breathed, lifting a hand to ward it off.
It leaned forward and licked her palm.
With a gasp, she closed her hand. Her mind raced. The wounded leg. The screeching sound of metal being ripped. The sniffing for bombs. The familiar eyes.
"Phil?" she whispered.
The wolf whimpered.
"Oh my God." She closed her eyes briefly against the sting of hot tears. She wasn't alone. Phil was here to protect her.
Louie sighed. "What a disappointing beast. Billy, kill it."
Billy lifted his pistol.
Phil spun around, growling. And charged.
Billy pulled the trigger, but nothing happened. He backed up, frantically pulling the trigger over and over.
Phil knocked him down and snapped his jaws on Billy's arm.
Heather grimaced. She didn't want Billy to die.
A loud howl reverberated through the room. Phil had pinned Billy to the floor and appeared to be enjoying his victory. He threw his massive head back and howled again.
"Damned creature." Louie circled the altar, unbuttoning his long black coat. "I'll take care of it myself." He whisked off his coat and tossed it on the table. It landed on Sasha.
Just then, two forms wavered before Heather's eyes and became solid. She cried with relief.
Robby already had a sword in his hand. Ian drew his claymore.
A third form appeared.
"Jean-Luc!" Heather cried.
He glanced at her. "Thank God." He drew his foil and spotted Louie by the altar. He strode toward him. "Let's finish this now."
Louie sneered. "Agreed." He vanished.
"No!" Jean-Luc shouted.
Louie suddenly appeared next to Heather. His left hand gripped her arm. Good Lord, he meant to teleport away with her!
A dagger spun through the air and sliced Louie's arm before falling on the ground. He cried out and released her.
Heather grabbed the dagger, then scooted away. It must have come from Robby or Ian. She sawed at the ropes binding her ankles.
A warm nose nuzzled her shoulder, and she jumped. "Oh, it's you." Phil sat beside her. Her personal guard was back. "Good boy."
"A sword, Robby!" Jean-Luc yelled. He dropped his foil and kicked it toward Heather, then caught the sword Robby tossed him.
Heather scrambled to get the foil, then froze when she saw Jean-Luc circling Louie. Oh God, this was it. The final showdown. Louie had a huge broadsword. No wonder Jean-Luc had discarded his foil.
Louie attacked, making a swipe that whistled past Jean-Luc's stomach.
"You missed." Jean-Luc jumped and levitated to the ceiling.
Louie levitated to meet him. Jean-Luc crashed his sword against Louie's with so much force, it caused Louie to flip over backward in the air. He banged against a rafter and fell to the floor.
Jean-Luc landed on his feet next to Louie's sprawled body. He raised his sword for the killing blow, but Louie rolled suddenly and sliced upward.
Jean-Luc jumped back. His shirt was sliced, and a thin red line crossed his pale skin. The tip of Louie's sword had left its mark.
Louie leaped to his feet, smiling. "You're pitiful. I grow tired of toying with you."
Jean-Luc attacked. The swords clashed again and again. Heather glanced at Robby and Ian. Surely they wouldn't let Louie win. Ian was hovering nearby, his claymore drawn and ready.
Robby had drawn the sword from his back. He strode over to Billy and placed a hand on Billy's brow.
Heather's gaze flitted back and forth. Her ears rang with the constant clanging of swords crashing together. Both Jean-Luc and Louie were breathing heavily now.
Billy stiffened and pulled away from Robby. He looked around and cradled his wounded arm to his chest. His eyes met Heather's. "What have I done? I'm so sorry."
"Heather, move!" Jean-Luc yelled at her.
Move where? Then she realized what he was doing. Jean-Luc was driving Louie toward her and Phil. She scrambled away, and Robby grabbed her.
Jean-Luc continued to force Louie to retreat. Phil sat still and quiet. When Louie was a few feet in front of Phil, the wolf let out a tremendous howl.
Louie jumped and glanced behind him. In that second, Jean-Luc stabbed him through the heart. Louie turned completely gray, then disintegrated into a pile of dust on the floor.
Jean-Luc stepped back, lowering his sword. He closed his eyes and let the sword clatter onto the floor. "It's done," he whispered. He turned to Heather. "We're free."
With a cry, she ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. He held her tight.
"It's over," Heather whispered. "It's over."
He kissed her brow. "You're free now. You can have your old life back, if you want."
She cradled his face with her hands. "I want my new life with you."
"We can do that, too." He squeezed her tight. "It was my worst fear. I woke up to find you were in danger."
"It's all right," she whispered. "You killed him. Louie will never torture you again."
Robby walked over to retrieve his sword. "Well done, Jean-Luc."
He glanced around the chapel. "Is everyone all right?"
Sasha moaned. She struggled to sit up, but fell back onto the table.
"Sasha!" Billy ran toward her. "Thank God you're all right."
"Billy." She stretched out a hand to him. "I never meant to hurt anyone. Please believe me."
"I believe you." Billy took her hand. "He controlled me, too. It was terrible. I was fighting it, but there was nothing I could do." He kissed her hand.
"He remembers everything," Robby whispered. "I broke the hold Lui had on him, but I dinna erase his memory."
Jean-Luc nodded. "That's probably for the best. It would be difficult to explain all this."
"Sasha's lost too much blood," Heather whispered.
"We'll have Dr. Lee make another house call," Jean-Luc said. "He can give her a blood transfusion."
"She won't become a vampire?" Heather asked.
"Nay," Robby replied. "She'll be fine. Her blood wasna completely drained. I just hope Dr. Lee can remove the bullet from Phil."
Jean-Luc looked at the werewolf. "Why didn't you tell me about him?"
Robby shrugged. "'Tis a company secret."
"How many are there like him?" Heather asked.
Robby's mouth quirked. "If I told ye, it wouldna be a secret."
"He bit Billy," Heather said.
Robby's smile faded.
"Bugger," Ian whispered. He gave Billy a worried look.
"Oh no," Heather breathed. "It's contagious?"
Robby nodded. "Aye."
Heather winced. Poor Billy. She glanced at the altar. Billy was sitting on the table, holding Sasha in his arms. Well, he'd finally gotten the girl he wanted. Hopefully, Sasha wouldn't mind a boyfriend who went furry every now and then.
"I'll explain it to him later," Robby said. "Ian, go ahead and teleport them to the house. And call Dr. Lee."
"Verra well." Ian strode toward the wounded couple, and soon they all vanished.
Heather stepped back to look at Jean-Luc's wound. "You need to see Dr. Lee, too."
He shrugged. "It's just a scratch."
She snorted. "That scratch nearly gave me a heart attack. You have got to stop getting injured every night."
He grinned. "You're cute when you're bossy." He pulled her closer and whispered in her ear, "We'll have to find some new positions that won't strain my injury."
She laughed.
Robby strolled over to the table and blew out the candles. "I'll teleport back with Phil, and we'll be done." He glanced up at the choir loft. "Is there something up there? I thought I heard something."