Silver Stake (The Werewolf Hunter Chronicles Book 1) Read Free Page B

you.  I’ll take you to Cole, he’ll fill you in.  He’ll help you, even if you don’t want it.”
    “How did you find me?”
    “A charm.  It let me find you, courtesy of Cole’s wishes.”
    “Who is this Cole?  How does he know anything about me?”
    “You’ll have to ask him that.”
    “That’s it, I’m leaving,” she said, stalking past him.
    “You don’t get it, do you?  If you don’t have help you won’t survive it here.”
    Maya stopped, but she didn’t turn around.  “Where is it you want to take me?  Will this Cole give me answers, or will he talk in riddles too?”
    “He’ll give you answers all right, probably more than you’d care for.”
    “Where is he?”
    ∞
    This is possibly the worst idea I’ve ever had, thought Maya, as she approached what was apparently Cole’s house, only a mile from her own.  The man who had never divulged his name had slunk away after he’d told her the address, but she had a feeling he was still watching.
    The house itself was a two floor terraced cottage.  With no front garden it sprang directly from the pavement, and she couldn’t help but feel its presence comforting … something about the simplicity of the abode.  She raised her hand and knocked.
    The door was flung open and an old man stood before her.  He immediately sized her up, then came out further and checked no-one else was out there.
    “Come in.  Quickly,” he said, ushering her over the threshold.
    She figured now she’d come this far, she might as well trust him, and stepped inside.  The hallway was dark, but a warm light came from the next room so she walked in there, to find a cosy living room.  The walls were lined with books, the fireplace filled with smouldering embers.
    The old man followed her in.  He wasn’t quite as aged as she’d first assumed, maybe around seventy.  His face had the lines of time but his eyes looked sharp and assessing.  He wore a woven jumper over a shirt, along with a pair of jeans, dirty at the knees, as though he’s spent the afternoon gardening.  Which, Maya thought, wouldn’t surprise her.
    “Are you Mr Cole?” she said.
    “I am indeed,” he said, with a mild Liverpudlian accent.  “And what is your name?”
    “You don’t know?  Then why did you try to find me?”
    “I know that you are a werewolf hunter.”
    “That’s right.  How do you know what I am and what do you want with me?”
    “I have a gift—I can sense when hunters are nearby.  It is my job to help them.  It’s a gift I was given by the Order of Meeth, whose sole intent is to find and eradicate werewolves.”
    “What?  I’ve been pursued by wolves this last year and I’ve never heard of this … Order of Meeth?”
    Cole nodded.
    “What do you want with me?” Maya said, starting to pace the small room.  “I’ve had enough of being chased!  I just want them to leave me alone!  In fact, I don’t think I’ll stick around…”
    “Wait!” Cole said, blocking the doorway.  “You have to know what’s going on.  What they’ve done to you.  There is no way you will escape the wolves.  They are already here.  They are everywhere.”
    “What?  What are you talking about?  How do you know? ”
    “Have you ever noticed how easily you fend off the werewolves?”
    “It’s not easy.  Every moment is life and death.”
    “But if you were a regular human, with no special gift, you wouldn’t have survived this long.  The wolves would have killed you by now.”
    “You think I have a special gift?  It doesn’t feel special to always be pursued.  I just want to go to school, make friends, stay in one place for a change.  I don’t want this to be my life!”
    “But you do have a special gift.  You are strong, and I’ll bet a superb fighter.  But most importantly the werewolves are drawn to you.  Have you never wondered why?”
    Maya paused from her pacing and stared at him.  “Of course I’ve wondered, but wondering didn’t get me