WIPWordSearch Excerpts March 2024 Week 4

With every step, his gait improved until he sprinted down the street, sticking as close to the dim #lights as possible. As he grew stronger, he knew his attacker was recovering, too.

“This is what I get for marrying someone so young,” she said, breaking free only to #lean in for another kiss. “Lose the stupid slang and you’d be perfect.”

What felt like a sledgehammer connected with his jaw, and Thomas was knocked to the ground. Before he could stand, he caught a swift kick to the stomach with enough force to #lift him straight into the air.

“Is that what we have, then? Are we in #love?”

He reddened as the words left his mouth. What a clumsy thing to ask. Wasn’t love something you could just feel? If he was in love, shouldn’t he know?

“You’re in a #lot of trouble with Thomas,” Nelson joked as he reached for his lemonade. “He thinks visiting a coffee shop ten blocks from his apartment is an exotic trip.”

“I wouldn’t go out there, kid. Sun’s only a few moments from stretching itself over the horizon.”

Too #late. Thomas pushed open the pub door and stepped out into the bitter winter air.

His pen slipped from his twitching fingers and fell from the clipboard. Before it hit the tiles at his feet, Thomas knew the exact spot it would bounce and #land.

She released him and pulled him inside where the hallway’s orange #light didn’t assault their eyes and add a sickly tinge to their skin. Yet inside, Sean didn’t look any better. The bags under his eyes were much thicker, and he had a new gauntness in his cheeks.

Both Clara and Benjamin found themselves #leaning closer to the Crone, scared to miss a single word.

Putting on a brave smile, Clara managed to #lift her hand and touch Sean’s face.

“I’m alive because of you,” she whispered. “You saved me, Sean.”

Even from the street there were offensive smells, sour stenches, and stomach-churning reeks that only a werewolf’s delicate nose could detect. Clara, for all of her #love of aromatherapy, could hardly identify half of the scents oozing from the cracks within the building’s walls.

A #lot of younger wolves were struggling to build their fortunes, but Clara didn’t mind. She wasn’t sure she wanted to leave. The pack was her family and she wasn’t in a hurry to leave them behind.

Hopefully it wouldn’t be too #late, and it wouldn’t be too much of a shock for him after whatever happened with Thomas and the vampires.

He tipped his head back and opened his mouth, letting the little white pills #land on his tongue. Each brought with it a faint sour taste.