Hot Blooded

gradually, she saw the faint glow, and then the dancing firelight in the
distance. She picked up the pace and tried hard to move quickly, but quietly at
the same time. The two of them crept up to the edge of a tiny clearing, and
peered from the trees.
    Jenny spotted Samuel. He lay on the ground, his hands and feet bound in front
of him. He was barely conscious, eyes flickering open and closed, and there was
blood coming from his head, glistening in the firelight as it trickled over his
face.
    A tripod had been erected over the fire, and a cauldron hung from it. Steam
rose from the cauldron as its contents boiled, and the scents of herbs filled
the air. Close by, Dr. Hinkle sat on the ground, completely naked. He was
rubbing something gooey over his arms and chest. Jenny wondered if it were
feline fat and felt her stomach lurch. God, how many innocent animals were going
to have to suffer to satisfy Hinkle's insanity?
    "What do we do?"
    "He's made a circle," Mamma Louisa pointed at a ring of what looked like
salt, on the ground. "I can break it. Come."
    She took a feather fan from her bag and used it like a broom, sweeping the
air before her as they crept forward. Hinkle sat with his eyes closed, chanting
the words of his spell.
    As she reached the ring of salt, Mamma Louisa said, "Open!" and swept the fan
in the air and then over the ground, brushing the salt away and stepping inside.
Jenny followed, then froze as she saw the glowing sphere of the moon rising
above them. She spun around, and saw Samuel, bound there, jerking spasmodically
against the ropes as growling sounds emerged from deep in his chest.
    At the sound of Mamma Louisa's command, Hinkle's eyes flew wide and he sprang
to his feet. "You get out of here!"
    Mamma Louisa shook her head.
    Beyond her, Samuel was changing. His eyes rolled and his back arched as his
facial muscles contorted. The rope at his wrists snapped in two.
    "In the name of Oya, in the name of Yemaya, I cast every negative force from
this circle! I call in goodness. I call in white light. I call in protection!"
    "No! Get out, I say!" Hinkle crouched low, reaching for something, and when
he rose again he lifted a gun.
    "Look out!" Jenny shouted.
    But even as she said it, the wolf leapt, hitting Hinkle squarely in the
chest. The gun flew from his hands, and the shot it fired went wild.
    Now Hinkle was on his back, with a snarling, fiercely powerful wolf standing
on his chest, growling. The two women stood there, staring, and Jenny knew full
well there would be nothing either of them could do to prevent the wolf from
tearing out Hinkle's throat. Not physically at least.
    Swallowing hard, Jenny knew she had to try to reach the man she loved, before
he made himself a killer.
    "Samuel, I know you're in there," Jenny said softly. "I know you can hear me.
Mojo is alive. He's at the vet, getting treatment even now. And this man will
never hurt anyone again, not when I testify as to what happened here tonight."
    The wolf looked toward her. Its eyes… they were Samuel's eyes. Mamma Louisa
reached into her bag, and Jenny held up a hand to stop her. "No. No, you don't
have to use magic. He won't do harm to a human being, I know it. Just wait."
    The wolf growled, deep and low.
    "Don't hurt him, Samuel. You're a healer, not a killer."
    The animal looked back down at the man on the ground, then at her again.
    "I love you, Samuel," she whispered.
    The wolf focused on Hinkle's face, leaned very close, so close the man must
have felt the animal's hot breath on his skin, then it let loose a series of
sharp, angry barks and growls and snapped its jaws within an inch of Hinkle's
face, before it turned, and leapt to the ground. It didn't run off as Jenny had
expected, but only moved beyond the fire's light and curled on the ground in the
shadows.
    Jenny ran to snatch up the pieces of fallen rope and the gun. Then she made
Hinkle put on his clothes while she held the weapon on him. "What the hell were
you thinking?" she demanded as he dressed. "Why would you want to do something
so insane?"
    He looked up at her as he buttoned his shirt. "I'm aging, Jennifer, or hadn't
you noticed that? Young, sharp professors like you are coming in. Pushing me
out. I miss my youth, my vitality. I've read the accounts. With the wolf inside
me, I'd be young again, strong as a man half my age."
    "Wonder how fast you'll age in prison. Maybe you should have considered
that."
    He shook