In an instant, the vampire took total control of the brawl. He grabbed the ghoul by the throat and flipped him upside down in a single move, slamming him head-first onto the floor. The wood slats cracked and Mo’Lock’s head split open wide. The ghoul’s thick, congealed blood spattered. Dave grabbed the dizzy ghoul’s ankles and held him dangling off the ground. Now the vampire had a weapon. He was going to bludgeon me with my own partner.

I could barely move. The pain from the werewolf gashes and bites had spread like a fire burning beneath the surface of my skin. My muscles were so tight I could hardly manipulate my own limbs. All I could do was lean there against the wall and watch the ugliest bloodsucker in the world drag Mo’Lock toward me.

He started swinging Mo’ around, at first in a circle, smashing two lamps and a half-full bottle of vodka, then back and forth, right at me.

“Cal, get out of here! Run!” the vampire’s baseball bat yelled out.

I leaned there helpless as Dave came at me, swinging Mo’Lock back and forth. I closed my eyes, more from the pain in my body than to brace myself for the blow.

Shit, how much more could it hurt after all I’d been through?

BAM!

Very, very much.

The first blow slammed me to the ground. The second missed, but took a chunk out of the wall above my head. Poor fucking Mo’Lock, getting smashed around like that. I knew he couldn’t be killed, but shit, it had to be pretty fucking unpleasant.

I was on the ground trying to crawl away. BAM! Another narrow miss above my head. The vampire was laughing, the ghoul screaming, and I was on the floor in a knot of pain. It was complete and total chaos. I scrambled weakly to my feet, and turned in time to see Mo’Lock’s yowling face coming at mine and—BAM!—I was down. Mo’Lock was out cold. Even a ghoul has limits.

The vampire was laughing. My smashed face was running with blood. My body heaved. My body burned . . . and then it happened.

Clothes tore, muscles rippled and rolled. My eyes shot open, and even through the wash of blood over my face, I caught the vampire’s expression as he dropped Mo’Lock and backed away.

He was scared.

I was changing.

I knew instantly what it was and it sure as fuck wasn’t any infection. I was turning into a goddamn werewolf! The pain was gone and now most of my clothes were too. I watched the hair grow from my hands and up my arms, sprouting through the pores of my skin on every inch of my body. My bones snapped and reshaped like a dislocated joint popping back into place, and I felt a great strength and hunger growing inside me.

But best of all was watching the vampire shit his pants. That’s right, you heard me. Shit ran right down his pant leg and plopped right onto the office floor!