Shannon's Place - father of the wolf (excerpt one)

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Topic: father of the wolf (excerpt one) (Read 351 times)

Shannon
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father of the wolf (excerpt one)
« Thread Started on Sept 27, 2006, 4:44pm »

Eagle Clan: Father of the Wolf
Novel by L. Shannon
www.lshannon.net
Cobblestone Press
http://cobblestone-press.com/catalog/books/fatherofthewolf.htm

Athair came into Hope’s life with a nightmare on his heels and a clan full of baggage. With his first touch, he awakens a power within her, but will it be enough for them to overcome the odds against them? Only time will tell if their separate responsibilities will tear them apart or bind them together.

Here's a taste of the opening chapter. You can read more on my website http://www.lshannon.net/EAGLE/FatherOfTheWolf.html

Obviously she, Hope Carter, was insane. She sighed and shifted her weight away from the rough brick wall. What else could a person hiding outside her place of work at three in the morning be called? Coward might fit too. She had ducked out the door only minutes after calling her best friend to come pick her up. Steve, also known as the pity chauffeur, would be here soon and she was not going back into the veterinary clinic just to be shanghaied into another shift.

She limped to the corner of the building where a small bench sat slightly hidden from the doorway. She sank to the bench and buttoned up her light jacket against the cool night.

Steve’s station wagon pulled around and parked illegally right in front of the bench. The engine’s sound purred into the eerie quiet. Then it too became silent.

"Hey, why are you lurking back here?" He swung from the car entirely too energetically for the time of night, making Hope feel even more worn out by comparison.

"Sandy wanted me to work another shift." Their boss sometimes took her title a little too seriously.

"But you’ve already worked a double. That’s crazy!" Steve picked up her small bag.

"I thought the same thing." His cologne swamped over her, making her sneeze. "Joe never showed up so they’re short handed again." Steve needed to learn the word moderation. She sneezed again and fanned the air with her hand.

"You could have told them no and waited inside." He frowned at her and shifted his weight from heel to toe, then back again.

"As it was I almost agreed to do the shift. If it weren’t for the weather being so crummy today my legs might have held up for a while longer."

"No way, you shouldn’t even have done the double and I’ll tell Sandy exactly that."

"You don’t have to do that Steve. I’m fine, really. Let’s just go." What was with him tonight? He was wired and almost dancing in place.

"Is Julie on tonight?"

"Yeah." So the receptionist caused all the excitement. He was more than a bit sweet on the new girl, and she wanted them to hit it off, but not while the romance kept her from reaching her much desired bed.

"Great! Go ahead and start the car and I’ll be right back." He practically bolted for the front of the building.

"Steve..." She could go with him, cut to the chase and ask the girl for her phone number, but then she’d have to listen to Steve gripe the whole trip home.

"I know, but this is my best chance to get to talk with her. She’s mostly on night turn and I really want to ask her out." He hesitated with a glance of longing at the clinic.

"Oh fine, just please hurry. It’s been a long day." To say the least.

"Thanks Hope!" He tossed her the keys as he jogged toward the front of the clinic and out of sight. She juggled the keys and still managed to drop them to the sidewalk.

d**n. She glared at the keys then at the car which surely glared back at her. The car would be warmer than sitting out in the cool night air but she couldn’t force her legs to carry her toward the evil beast. She’d rather wait until Steve finished to get in for the drive home. Yet more evidence to support her insanity plea, she relied almost completely on Steve to drive her places.

She slouched on the bench and focused on stretching her battered legs. A car accident left her a mangled mess almost fifteen years ago. Besides her body never properly healing, she still hadn’t recovered her trust in the everyday machinery everyone else took for granted. As far as she was concerned, cars were the enemy, and they only kept a tentative treaty.

She picked up the keys, debating the rudeness of shouting for Steve when she saw movement in the alley across from the clinic. With only a glimpse, she had the impression of some large dark animal. Shadow and a flash of dark brown or black fur.

Certainly a dog. Probably a stray, someone’s house pet that wandered off. She had to try to catch it. No animal should be left loose to starve, reproduce or be hit by a car.

Hope placed her weight back onto her cramping legs, then limped slowly across the street to the alley. Here, alone in the dark, she’d no reason to camouflage her uneven steps. She slipped the keys into her jacket pocket and pulled out a flimsy kennel lead. He’d better be gentle. This lead was designed to slip over the heads of small dogs.

She peered into the alley, looking for the dog, or any sign of which way it went. Light from the full moon filtered through the clouds, only slightly cutting the deep shadows caused by the crowding buildings.

There, about thirty feet away, movement caught her eye. She made out several elusive shapes.

Not a stray.

A pack.

Four, maybe more, large dogs moved toward the other end of the alley. In this urban area, a pack of scavenging, possibly feral dogs, would be a menace. A shiver slid down Hope’s spine. The dogs crept, with a stealth that felt threatening and dangerous, as if they were hunting.

Hunting what?

She felt helpless. Tracking a pack was the responsibility of animal control. Already the dogs were far down the alley, nearly out of sight. With a shrug she turned to go back to the clinic but froze when she heard a short, cut-off scream. She spun back, dropping the lead in shock at what she saw.

The dogs were gone.

Shannon ~ http://lshannon.net ~ http://lshannon.blogspot.com
for monthly contests ~ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LShannon/

« Last Edit: Jan 19, 2008, 12:59pm by Shannon »

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www.lshannon.net

~L. Shannon~
www.lshannon.net ~ www.lshannon.blogspot.com
Anom'tan Series: Walking with Synn, Walking in Memories, Walking at Sundown, Walking Death's Edge
Eagle Clan Series: Father of the Wolf, Destiny
Origin Stories: Vali's Curse, A Spirit United, My Immortal
Lynx Clan 1: Forgiven
Tascryn Royals Series: Of Blood and Blessings, Blood Reign
Tascryn Stories: Season of Blood, Surviving Synn, Misplaced Fate
Valafrn Stories: Lost Soul of the Wolf, Forever Eden
A Snowball's Chance
Acacia Series: Abducting Aeron
Steel City Vampires: Welcome Home (w/Moira Reid)

~coming soon~
A Lover's Touch (June 2008) ~ A Second Chance, Acacia II: Blindsided, SCV: Bound and Determined, (SCV)Vampire Oracle: LOVE (August 2008) ~ Father of the Wolf - in PRINT (July 25, 2008)

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