The Gathering Read Online Free

second.
    When they reached another fork in the tunnel,
Garrett stopped him with a hand to his arm. “Do you hear that?”
    Bryce held his breath, listening for any
sound. He heard it moments later. “What is that?” A barely-audible
tapping was coming from somewhere inside the tunnels. There was a
discernable pattern. Three taps, a pause, and then three more taps.
It continued without fail.
    Garrett shook his head. “Don’t know.” He
looked down the right tunnel, then the left. “It’s hard to tell how
many tunnels are in here and with the acoustics I can’t even tell
which direction it’s coming from.”
    Neither could Bryce. “Want to split up?”
    Garrett nodded. “Dillon, you and Gavin stay
here in case the others decide to join us. Bryce, take the left
tunnel, I’ll take the right. Yell if you see anything.”
    Bryce headed down the left tunnel, his
flashlight beam sweeping the packed dirt floor and across the
walls. There were more dead animals along the path, some nothing
but skin and bones. He’d seen too many things since the day he’d
been turned into a werewolf to be squeamish but even this made him
sick to his stomach. The sight alone didn’t bother him. It was the
eye-watering stench that did it.
    He rounded a sharp turn and the tapping grew
louder. Movement further up the tunnel made him pause. He aimed his
light toward it, seeing something crouched near the wall before
disappearing. He looked behind him, wondering if he should yell for
Garrett and decided against it. It could be another animal… one
that hadn’t died yet.
    Taking a few cautious steps, he eased up the
tunnel, his flashlight beam scanning the corridor. Whatever he saw
move had disappeared.
    When he reached the spot where he thought
he’d seen it, he stopped. The smell of decay was thicker here. Dark
splotches covered the earthen floor and the number of animals
littering the tunnel was mind numbing.
    A sound further up the passage drew his
attention and he aimed the beam of light into the darkness,
listening to what sounded like shuffling of feet before taking a
cautious step. He’d only taken four when a dark shadow flew past
him. He turned as something grabbed him, launching itself onto his
back, and biting into his neck.
    Bryce yelled and fell to his knees, reaching
behind him as whatever was attached to his back sank its teeth
deeper into his flesh. The pain caused his vision to blur moments
before his claws lengthened and he slashed at whatever had a hold
of him. The sound of people running, and Garrett’s voice, barely
registered as he weakened. The thing on his back was draining him
quicker than he could fight it off.
    “Christ! What the hell is that?”
    The thing on his back was yanked away moments
later. Bryce screamed as the creature was ripped away, taking his
flesh with it. The pain in his neck was excruciating and he fell
face first onto the dirt floor as multiple voices yelled and
someone touched his back.
    “Fuck man, are you all right?”
    It was Gavin, one of the few remaining Alpha
males in their wolf pack. Bryce turned his head to the side, trying
to filter out the scent of rot as he gasped for air.
    The commotion at his back was a riot of
shouts, shocked gasps and a loud hissing. He placed his hands on
the floor and raised his body up off the ground. The cave went out
of focus again. Whatever the hell attacked him damn near drained
him. Blood leaked from his neck and he raised his hand to cover it
before Gavin stopped him. “Don’t touch it, man. Your hands have
lord knows what on them. Here, use this.”
    Bryce heard something rip before Gavin handed
him the remains of what looked like his t-shirt before pressing it
to his neck. When the pain subsided, he noticed the commotion had
stopped and nothing but the hissing and soft whispers remained. He
turned to look behind him.
    A glance into the corner showed his attacker
and his eyes widened when he saw it. Or rather, her. It was a girl,
crouched in the