The bump behind my head arched as I opened my eyes. I was back in my human form, tied to a tree by a thick rope. The rope felt tight, nearly squeezing me against the tree.

“Wakey? Wakey? Good!” Betty perched in front of me, holding a gun. “I loaded this pistol with five silver bullets. So please don’t try to break free.”

Behind her was a bonfire, and ten men stood around it. All of them wore biker jackets with ripped pants and no boots. Their entire musty wolf scent clouded around my senses.

My heart raced, but I kept my face straight. “What do you want?”

Betty sniffed my hair while pointing her gun down between her legs. “Why do you smell like my brother?”

I glared. “Your brother?”

“Mark Roachshire.” She tilted her head. “Does that ring a bell?”

My throat turned dry and my heart pounded harder. His face flashed inside my head. Thinking about him made my skin turn cold. He did mention he had a sister with him when their werewolf father attacked his own family. I hoped he was lying, but apparently not.

“How do you know?” I asked through my frigid breath.

Betty grinned. “A werewolf sibling can always smell her relative’s scent. I assumed he bit you and left his sweet smell on you. It took me a while to figure that out because I suck at remembering scents from my kind.” She took a deep breath. “It’s been ages since I last saw him.”

“Perhaps too long, and he was a total asshole.”

Betty chuckled. “I agree with you. He was worse than our father. Dominant and abusive. He wanted me to stay in the woods with him forever, believing we could hunt humans in secret.” She brushed her hand through her hair. “But I rebelled and ran away to start my freedom. As you can see, I built my own pack. We traveled around hunting and riding for a long time. And it was better than rotting away in the woods like wild animals.”

I smiled. “You bikers are totally wild animals. Sort of…..”

Betty rolled her eyes. “But we are smarter than wild animals. So tell me, Mark’s mate-”

“It’s Jessica! Mark isn’t my boyfriend anymore!”

Betty shrugged. “Did you run away from him too?”

I grimaced. “He’s dead….. I killed him.”

Betty’s yellow eyes widened, but then she laughed. Her men laughed too, like wolves trying to laugh like humans. Totally uncanny valley crap.

“Fantastic!” Betty clapped her hands. “You must be stronger than him!”

My face lit up in bewilderment. “You totally don’t care about your brother?”

Betty flung her hands up. “Why should I? We never communicated for centuries. If I saw him again, I would have killed him myself.”

What a totally messed up family! They probably didn’t change much from the 1600s.

“Why did you attack our party?” I asked, wiggling a bit. The rough rope itched my skin.

Betty rubbed her gun against her temple. “To feed, silly girl. We werewolves gotta eat when we are on the road. But hunting a human pack is difficult when cops patrol the areas. Luckily we ran into Brian.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Brian?”

Betty held up her finger. “He is the one who had set up the party for us to eat your human friends. This lake island became perfect for our secret feast!”

"So he is one of you?"

Betty giggled softly. "No, we just made a deal with him. Remember what I told you about how we met?"

I nodded my head.

Betty sat down, crossing her legs. "That was a lie. My gang attacked the bar at night to feed. Brian was there at the wrong place at the wrong time. Before I attacked him, he begged for his life, like a dog. I despise weaklings, but Brian sparked me an idea. I told him to make a big party for my pack to feast in secret. In return, he can join my pack and live forever in our harmony."

My eyes widened.

For real? Brian sold us out to monsters for Halloween? That revelation chilled through my bones.

“I gave him a taste of my blood to give him a sample of my power,” Betty continued. “But I would not let him join my pack. Why should I allow a weakling to enter my biker gang? I got enough of good, strong men to keep our pack together. Only the fittest can survive with us.”

The men cheered in roars, shaking their fists in the air.

Betty rose and crossed her arms. “So we ate him too with the others. He tasted nasty, but using him was worth it. If it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t be here.”

My growl escaped from my throat. “You’re a monster, just like your brother!”

Betty snarled and slapped my face, leaving a claw mark on my right cheek. It stung until the scratch closed.

“I’m better than my brother, bitch,” she hissed through her growing fangs. “I saw the world more than him. That is why I am stronger.”

I frowned while glaring at her. “Then why don’t you prove it by killing me now? When I break free from this damn tree, I will make you pay!”

Betty laughed. “Yeah, right, but I want you to tell us where your human friends are. Then maybe I will let you live. Does that sound like a better deal?”

What the hell? Did she totally think I would give up my own friends to survive? Either way, I might be totally screwed.