"Are you okay, Darcy?" Phil asked as he pulled the car into the driveway of their home. It was a dumb question to ask when he knew her answer was yes, but he felt like he needed to ask anyway.
"Just peachy," Darcy said, trying to not let her nervousness show. Her basic S.H.I.E.L.D training gave her enough preparation to face whatever was out in the woods, but she didn't feel like her mind was prepared at all. She had never been fond of wild animals, especially giant ones that mauled and killed people, so going out into the woods at night to track one was certainly not on the top of her fun list. "So can I just say that it was not cool that Melissa had her hand on you? That really pissed me off." It was way off the subject, but it had been bothering Darcy since they left the bar.
"Can we get back on track here, Darcy?" he asked, getting out of the car.
"I just don't like her manhandling you. I mean, her hand was a bit close to the crotch region. Who the hell does she think she is? Who moves in on another woman's husband so out in the open? Kind of ballsy of her." Darcy followed Phil into the house and up the stairs to the bedroom.
"I didn't enjoy it," Phil answered, reaching into a black bag and pulling a vest of it. He tossed it over to Darcy. "Done ranting? Put that on under your clothes."
Darcy rubbed the thin material of the vest between her fingertips. The last time she had worn one of these was at the beginning of her level two training. Not a particularly fond memory as she recalled bullets being fired at her as she ran through a crazy-ass obstacle course. Of course, she was told that they weren't real bullets just some sort of holographic ones, but would still hurt like hell if they hit her. "Bullet proof vest? Against a wild animal attack?"
"It'll keep your chest protected," he said as he stripped his shirt off and put on his vest. He was quieter now, slipping back into that agent mode as he placed items into the black bag. "We'll drive down to the logging site; there's an area that's covered by a dense patch of trees where we can park to hide the car. From there we'll go on foot and look for clues."
"Do you think Dunham will be out there?" Darcy asked, pulling off her tank top and reaching for a dark colored shirt.
"I'm hoping he won't venture back out until tomorrow morning-"
"What do we do if we run into him?"
"We won't," he said, looking into her eyes. "Darcy, it's time to use all the knowledge and training that S.H.I.E.L.D has instilled into you. Sometimes getting caught just isn't an option."
"I'm taking my taser," she said pulling it out of the nightstand and placing it into one of the cargo pockets of her pants.
"Take your gun too, Darcy," Phil said sternly.
"Okay." Darcy wasn't fond of guns, and it wasn't because she was a bad shot. It was because the thought of killing someone did not sit well with her; even the thought of injuring someone with a gun made her stomach turn a bit. Of course, she never would tell anyone in S.H.I.E.L.D this, not even Phil. However, killing or injuring a man-hungry wild animal was a different story.
"Ready?"
"Ready as I'll ever be," Darcy said giving him a small smile.
Phil told her his entire plan on the drive to the lumberyard, and Darcy was listening except it felt like it was going in one ear and out the other. How could that man be so knowledgeable in so many different areas? Years of training she guessed, not to mention he was the smartest person she'd ever met in her entire life. He totally kicked her ass at Jeopardy every time they watched it. If she had just a tenth of his brain, she'd feel like a rocket scientist. He turned his headlights off as he pulled into an area just off to the side of the worksite that was well camouflaged by trees and undergrowth. Phil turned to her and placed his hand on her knee. "It's going to be fine," he gave her a soft, reassuring smile and squeezed her knee gently. "We're not going to split up."
"I am fine," she said nervously. "Let's just go okay?" she said, opening the car door and stepping out into the damp ground. It wasn't as dark as she thought it was going to be outside because the moonlight was shining brightly above them. The fog, though, was extremely dense which made it hard to see out into the distance. Darcy rubbed her hands over her arms, trying to warm herself and fight down the butterflies that were bubbling up in her stomach. The only thing that was keeping her from jumping into Lola and driving off was Phil standing near her and the taser in her pants pocket.
Phil flipped on a small flashlight and pointed it outwards, scanning the area. "Damn fog," he muttered.
"Not gonna lie, Phil." She tried to strain her eyesight through the thick fog. "This has all the makings for a cliche horror movie," she whispered as they began to walk cautiously through the woods.
"Don't freak yourself out," Phil replied, shining the light towards the ground so they could see if there were any fallen branches or roots they needed to avoid. "Thinking like that is going to make you lose concentration on the mission."
"I just keep thinking there are going to be zombies popping out around those trees," she muttered. Her heart began to beat faster and she knew she needed to stop. She glanced up at Phil, worry evident on her face. "Zombies aren't real are they?"
He didn't say anything which made her worry more. "Are they?" she asked again.
"I don't think we're dealing with zombies, Darcy. In no way does this have any signs pointing to a zombie attack." He was totally admitting that zombies were real. Her heart skipped a beat. He took her hand and helped her over a rotted log. "I'm a hundred percent sure we're dealing with an animal attack."
"Which doesn't make sense why we're out here," Darcy said matter-of-factly. "When I suggested that maybe this was the work of serial killer, you said that S.H.I.E.L.D didn't deal with that. However, here we are tracking an animal? That doesn't seem like something S.H.I.E.L.D would waste their time with. What do you know, Coulson?"
He was silent for a few moments as they continued on their journey deep into the woods. The moonlight was having a hard time penetrating through the trees which were clustered closer together now. "Let's go this way," he said through the darkness.
"No," Darcy said flatly. "I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what the fuck you know. I'm part of this mission too. It's not fair to keep me in the dark when it's clear that you know something. Is my security clearance not high enough or what?" She stomped her foot firmly on the ground showing him that she was serious.
He sighed deeply. "Darcy," he started but stopped when a loud snarl was heard off in the distance.
"Oh fuck," Darcy whispered. Something was coming towards them through the fog. She could hear the crunch of fallen branches and leaves as it came closer. "Phil, what-"
"Shhh ..." Phil whispered back. They both stilled their breath, listening carefully for anymore sounds. "Darcy, get your gun out," he said as he pulled his out and took the safety off.
There were more snapping of branches as it moved closer and closer. A low hoarse breathing came next followed by another snarl. Phil took Darcy's hand in his and they started to move quickly out of the area. Whatever was out there in the distance was following them. Phil ducked behind and tree and pulled Darcy with him. "Stay close to me," he said quietly into her ear.
"I think ..." Darcy could barely get the words out. "It's right behind ... us." She could hear movement and something rubbing up against a nearby tree.
Phil nodded. "It's stalking us," he whispered. "Playing with us."
"You mean-" Whatever Darcy was going to say next didn't happen because there was another loud snarl and then a hairy shape jumped out from behind a bush.
"Darcy," Phil said loudly, grabbing her hand. "Move!" he yelled, pulling her with him through the woods as they weaved between trees and jumped over fallen debris as fast as they could. Whatever the thing was, it was following them, gaining speed as it snorted and snarled.
Everything was going in a complete blur for Darcy; it felt like she wasn't even in her body as she darted in and out of the trees running for her life. "It looked like a wolf," she said breathlessly, running to keep up with Phil. "I couldn't see it well, but it looked like a big hairy dog. Phil?" She stopped and spun around looking for him; her heart pounded hard in her chest.
They had gotten separated from each other, it was something that he had promised wouldn't happen. "Phil," she whispered into the fog. "Where are you?"
Phil felt like he had been running for hours; his breath was ragged and he was beginning to get a cramp in the back of his leg; he slowed his pace down and rested his hand against a moss covered tree. "Darce?" he breathed out, trying to catch his breath. When he didn't hear her answer he turned to look behind him. "Agent Lewis?" he called out again. She had been right behind him a minute ago. He had told her that they wouldn't be separated, but he had let it happen and now he was starting to panic.
He hadn't heard the animal for the last few minutes. The forest was completely silent except for the chirps of some tree frogs every now and again. Phil walked slowly back the way he had come, hoping that Darcy would walk through the fog at any moment. He jumped when his cell phone beeped and he pulled it out of his pocket and looked at the screen, praying that it was from Darcy.
It was a message from the S.H.I.E.L.D biology department. He opened the attachment and swore under his breath: the hair sample he had sent to get analyzed was a hundred percent match to a lycanthrope. "Shit," he muttered; it was just what he had thought it was going to be. He dialed Darcy's cell number. Now was not the time to be separated from each other when they were dealing with a werewolf. "C'mon ... pick up ..." he said quietly over and over again.
"Did you lose somebody?" a woman's voice whispered behind Phil.
He spun around, his face in shock as he looked at Melissa, leaning up against a tree. Her red hair was in a tangled mess and she was completely naked. She wiggled a little bit against the tree and smiled, biting her lip playfully as she stared at him with desire in her eyes. The phone was still ringing in his hand; maybe Darcy would answer then she could be warned to get out of the forest and alert S.H.I.E.L.D. "It was you chasing us," he said reaching slowly for his gun.
Melissa smiled and shook her head. "No. Not me," she said, coming closer to Phil. Her eyes darted down to his hand that he was putting into his pocket. "I wouldn't do that. I don't want to kill you."
He dropped his hand to his side, but he kept his gaze locked onto her. "There's more?"
She grinned and nodded. "Two of us," she said softly, placing one hand on his shoulder. The other hand reached for his phone and crushed it like it was made of eggshells.
Phil couldn't move; he wanted to move, his brain was telling him move, to put all those years of training in various forms of martial arts to good use, but he physically could not fight back. "Where's Darcy?" he said quietly, his eyelids fluttering as Melissa rubbed herself against him. Her intoxicating sent filled his nostrils and a strange sense of euphoria was overcoming him. "What ..." he moaned softly when she placed her finger to his mouth
Melissa giggled. "What am I doing? What's the plan?" she reached for his jaw and pulled him into her, kissing him sweetly on the lips. "I couldn't smell Darcy on you when we first met. There was nothing intimate at all between the two of you. I know you hadn't mated with her, therefore she must not be your wife. But now I can smell her all over you. I can taste her on your lips. I don't like that, not one bit."
He couldn't help himself as he leaned in and kissed her softly. His brain was going cloudy as he felt himself begin to lose the battle. "What do you want with me?"
"A mate. A lover. Isn't that what we all want in life?" she asked, kissing him back.
"Did you kill, Bob?" he managed to ask.
"Yes. I had thought that maybe he would be the one for me, but I found out some unsavory things about him. He had other lovers than me, and he even got another girl pregnant. I had to kill him. I ripped his heart out with my bare hand, showing it to him as it took its last couple of beats and his eyes lost the light of life." She gnashed her teeth together, hatred glowing in her eyes.
"And ... the others?"
"I killed them all. Each one of them I thought would be my perfect match, but I was wrong about all of them. But I have a good feeling about you, Phil. Never before have I ever felt such a desire and attraction to someone. Once I turn you, we'll be together forever," she whispered, sliding her hand through his hair. "Now, you're asking too many questions. Let's go." She took his hand and began to lead him through the forest.
"Who else is a werewolf?" he asked as he unwillingly followed Melissa. It sickened him to think that Darcy was possibly in the same sort of trouble that he was in.
"Shhh, darling," she smiled and squeezed his hand. "Just follow me."
Where the fuck was Phil? That was the only thought going to through Darcy's mind as she walked through the forest. "Oh my god, I'm so stupid," she muttered to herself, shaking her head in disgust. She reached for her phone; all she had to do was call him and he'd tell her where he was at and they'd meet up. Problem solved. Well, it would have been if it weren't for the fact that her phone was not on her. "Son of a bitch," she said clenching her jaw, remembering that she left it in the car. Now she would have to go back and get it, if she could actually remember where the car was. Hell, she didn't even know what direction she was going in.
On top of all that, there was still a wild, man-eating animal out there. She blew out a deep breath and tipped her head back to look at the sky. Was there something about the moon that could tell her what direction to go? Or was that a star? It didn't matter anyway because she couldn't even see the sky through all the trees. "I hate the outdoors," she muttered. Phil had mentioned to her one night that it would be fun to go camping one weekend once they got back from this mission. Well the hell with that now. Mother nature could go suck a-
There was a snapping sound in the distance that made Darcy stop dead in her tracks. She held her breath and listened for a moment and began to move quickly once she didn't hear it again. There were noises in the forest, not all of them came from big-ass animals. Maybe it was a pinecone falling, or a cute little bunny. That's what she told herself anyway. She had almost shouted a 'hallelujah' when she found a dirt road and a sign that pointed to the direction of the lumberyard. She walked as fast as she could without breaking into a full-on run towards the main area of the worksite. In just a few minutes she'd have her phone and all would be right in the world again. That feeling of puking her guts out was going away, and she smiled as soon as she saw the office cabin.
Except there was a light on in the cabin that hadn't been on before. Who was out here? Dunham? Jack? Those were the only two possibilities that made sense; anyone else would just be odd. Darcy crouched down and crept towards the cabin. She leaned against it just under the window, thinking maybe she could take a peek inside and see who it was. That was the plan anyway, she just had to psyche herself up to doing it. She closed her eyes and counted to three and then bobbed her head up just slightly to get a glimpse inside. There, tied up in the corner, were two people: a woman and a little girl.
Lindsey and Annie.
What the hell was going on? Darcy glanced from side to side to see if anyone else was in the cabin; she didn't see anyone but that didn't mean that there wasn't anyone hiding in the small room off to the side. She tapped softly on the window and when Annie looked over, Darcy mouthed the word 'safe?' Annie nodded 'yes' in response, and Darcy took a chance to go inside, using the front door, which she opened slowly, hoping it wouldn't draw any attention from unwanted company.
"Are you okay?" Darcy whispered as she pulled the gag off Annie. "Who did this to you?" she asked, taking Lindsey's gag off. She could tell that the woman wasn't well at all: there was sweat dripping from her forehead and her eyes were glassy.
"Mrs. Coulson, you have to get out of here before he comes back," Annie said in a rushed breath.
"No way, I can't leave you here! Now who did this?" Darcy scrunched her eyebrows together as she began to untie their hands.
"Jack. He's a monster," Annie said fearfully.
"No shit, he's a monster."
"No, a real monster," Annie said, shaking her head back and forth. "I saw him change. He knew that I saw him, and he brought me and my mom here."
"What do you mean change? What did he change into?" Darcy asked as she continued to fidget with the ties. There was silence from the girl. "Annie, what do you mean?" she asked again, looking up at the girl's face, which was frozen in horror, looking past Darcy towards the door.
"Hey there, Darcy." Jack was standing in the doorway, shirtless and pair of jeans hanging loosely around his waist. He looked her up and down, grinning widely. "Something tells me you aren't just a teacher, are you? Actually, I don't think you're a teacher at all. Don't think your ... so-called husband is a writer either, is he?"
Darcy stood up and blocked Annie and Lindsey. She was not going to let anything happen to either of them. "Who are you?" she demanded, reaching for her taser. That bastard was going down in about two seconds. "You're a fucking sicko!"
He just laughed and then took one step closer. "Darcy, I'm in love with you."
"Stay the fuck back," she ordered. "I swear, you take one step closer to us and your ass will be on the floor." Her hand was at her cargo pocket now, reaching in, the taser almost in her grasp.
"Want you, Darcy," he smiled again, this time barring his sharp looking teeth. "You'll be a perfect mate."
"Whoa, hold up! Mate? Don't you have a wife? And by the way, what the hell did you do to her? Why is she sick?" The taser was in her fingers now and she was ready to drop this bastard to the ground.
"Things are a little stale between us, aren't they sweetheart?" Jack said looking past Darcy at Lindsey. "Never really felt a deep connection to her, not enough to turn her anyway. That, and I hate her brat."
"Don't you dare say anything about Annie!" She was pulling the taser out slowly now. She shook her head, just realizing that he said something rather odd. "Turn? What do you mean turn her? You know what? Fuck it!" she yelled loudly, pulling the taser out as quickly as she could and pressing the trigger.
Jack moved like lightning, dodging the dart-like electrodes of the taser. He ended up over by the desk, nails digging into the wood, and a sneer on his face. "Gonna play hard to get? That's my favorite way to play."
"What the hell are you?" Darcy had never seen a human move that fast before, and she was starting to think that Jack was anything but. Her heart pounded and she could feel her legs start to weaken.
"Some call us a werewolves, but I like the term Lycan more," Jack explained, lifting his hand as it began to shift to a more claw like form.
"Holy shit," Darcy whispered, unable to take her eyes off his changing hand. "Did you kill Phil?" she managed to squeak out.
"No. I don't think Melissa wants to kill him, she just wants him as her mate."
"Melissa is one too? Who else? Ken? Barbara? Is this whole fucking town filled with werewolves?" Darcy's head was spinning; all of this was just too much to take in at once.
Jack laughed. "Ken and Barbara are just idiots. Nope, there's only two of us in this town: me and my sister."
Melissa was his sister; that made perfect sense. Darcy glanced back at Annie and Lindsey, who were both huddled up together keeping absolutely silent. "You cannot hurt them! I will come with you but you have to let them go," she said looking back at Jack.
"They know too much now. They have to be silenced." His eyes flashed yellow as he looked over at them. He looked back at Darcy showing her his fanged teeth again, slowly he began to walk towards her.
"Don't let him get close to you, Darcy," Lindsey said hoarsely. "He'll put you under his spell ..."
Darcy's eyes flicked towards the door. If she could get out, maybe she could make it to the car and alert S.H.I.E.L.D. It was the only thing she could think of at the moment. She would have to try, there were lives at stake. She looked back at Jack, who still had that evil sneer and lust in his eyes. No way in hell was she going to go with him. Then, without any more hesitation, she dashed towards the door.
She could hear Jack laugh as he began to pursue her. "Darcy! I'm coming for you," he yelled. She heard his laugh again, which turned more snarl-like, followed by a howl. When she heard Annie scream, she clasped her hand over her mouth praying that Jack just didn't do something to the little girl. It was stupid of her to leave them vulnerable, especially when Jack admitted he was going to kill them. She could only hope that they were still okay. She could hear something large chasing after her through the woods as she raced for the car. She heard faint scream from Annie again, and she closed her eyes in thanks; at least she was still alive.
Darcy reached into her other pocket and pulled her gun out, removing the safety and placing her finger on the trigger. There was a rustling in the bushes, and she aimed her weapon at it. "Jack, I am warning you! I have a weapon and will kill you if you come near me!" The gun shook in her hand. There was howl as Jack jumped out of the bushes in his wolf form, and he growled and grunted as he scampered towards her. Darcy fired her gun twice, missing him both times. "Shit," she squealed and then started to run again.
She ran through the woods as quickly as she could, knowing that she was getting lost with every turn. She was probably so far away from the cabin now that getting back there was going to be impossible. She could still hear Jack coming after her, but he had slowed down as he tracked her. Darcy recalled that Phil had said that they were being played with, and that's what Jack was doing. He was playing with her; using her like a toy. Darcy pushed her way through some tree limbs and found herself in an area with lumber machinery and trucks; at least here there would be someplace to hide. "Damn it," she mumbled, pulling on the handle of a truck only to find it was locked. She tried another one with no luck. "Fuck." She leaned up against the truck and closed her eyes, trying to think of what to do next. Whatever she needed to do, she had to think of it fast. Phil, Annie, and Lindsey depended on her. The air seemed to get warmer and a strange foul stench floated through the air, making her almost gag.
Darcy opened her eyes, turned her head, and dropped her mouth open. Her eyes met a set of yellow ones, and they burrowed into hers making her entire body shake. She was seeing Jack's wolf form clearly for the first time, and it was more horrifying than anything she'd seen in any werewolf movie. His face was just mere inches from hers, fanged teeth dripping with saliva and foam. Steam seemed to puff from his nostrils as he breathed in and out raggedly. His hair was dark reddish brown in color, matted and sparse across his body. Her eyes traveled down to his claws, which were gnarled, but razor sharp, and looked like they could slash through anything.
He doesn't want to kill me, he wants me as a mate. Darcy knew that right now running was her best option, she needed to keep away from him. Jack growled, stepping closer so his nose was two inches from hers. She swallowed the lump in her throat and then she rolled to her side, pushed up off her knees and she ran and ran and ran, as fast as she could make herself go. There was a loud howl behind her as Jack chased her through the worksite.
Jack as right behind her now, she could feel him gaining speed on her. His growling and snarling was enough to make a person drop dead, but she couldn't let it get to her. She turned a corner and crouched down by an industrial sized wood chipper with the key still in it. Suddenly a light flicked on in her head. Could she do this? Could see actually pull this off? Jack was racing at full gallop at her now; she jumped out standing in front of the mouth of the chipper. "Come and get me, bastard," she said to herself, watching Jack as he lunged at her. She dropped to the ground just before he reached her. Darcy hit the red button on the side of the chipper and it started up just as Jack fell into it; she rolled off to the side and covered her ears as the sound of howling and the grinding of bones filled the forest.
She lay on the ground with her eyes squeezed tightly shut for several moments after the howling stopped. The only sound now was the grating and turning blades of the running machine. She opened her eyes and slowly got to her feet, walking over to the chipper. Jack had to be dead; there was no way anything could survive that. "Ohhh," Darcy put her hand up to her mouth, seeing all the blood and clumps of hair splattered all over the chipper. She turned it off, and peered inside: oh yeah, he was dead. Darcy turned away quickly and threw up, placing her hands on her knees to steady herself.
With her heart pounding heavily in her chest, she ran through the forest, retracing her steps as best as she could. She stopped at an old fallen pine tree that she had remembered seeing before, and knew that she was getting close to the cabin. Her knees shook as she slowed down her pace to a quick walk towards the area where Phil had parked Lola. She stopped and placed her hands on the back of the car, resting her weight against it. She closed her eyes momentarily to try to get her breathing back to a somewhat normal rhythm. Being hunted down by a werewolf was not exactly how she thought this mission was going to go, she didn't know what to expect, but a werewolf had never crossed her mind. She swallowed, still being able to taste the bile in her throat from throwing up. She was not going to even let her mind wander back to the wood chipper event right now. Slowly, she made her way to the passenger side of the car and opened the door.
"Halle-fucking-lujah ..." she grumbled reaching for her phone which was lying on the seat. She pressed the number to S.H.I.E.L.D and waited for someone to pick up. "This is Agent Darcy Lewis. Security number: 1-4-6-6-9-0-4-8-3-2. I need to speak with Deputy Director Hill or Director Fury," she said breathlessly into the phone. She wasn't connected to either of them, but got Agent Matson instead. She explained what was going on as best she could and he informed her that they would be sending out a team right away. He told her to stay put, but there was no way she was going to do that. Not when Phil was out there with Melissa.
After she hung up she walked back into the cabin, and smiled when she saw that both Annie and Lindsey were still in there, alive.
"Mrs. Coulson?" Annie whispered. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Jack is gone, you guys are safe from him now." She looked down at her jacket, which she could see was covered with blood now. "He's—it doesn't matter what happened to him, but you're safe. My name is isn't Darcy Coulson, it's Darcy Lewis and I work of an organization called S.H.I.E.L.D. They'll be here in about twenty minutes, and they'll take care of you and your mother." Darcy looked over at Lindsey who curled up in the corner, sleeping, but breathing roughly.
"I'm scared," Annie said as Darcy got her untied. "Please stay with us."
"I can't, Annie. My ... partner is out there someplace and I need to find him before something bad happens to him." Her voice cracked a bit as she thought about what was happening to Phil at this very second. "Stay put until S.H.I.E.L.D gets here. Don't worry, you'll be fine." Darcy gave Annie a tiny smile, and then left the cabin, looking out into the fog.
She had to find Phil, but she had no idea where to even begin searching.