Chapter One
A muffled scream echoed through the sewer system, followed by a dull thud. Deepa clenched her jaw as she hurried through the dark tunnels. Her black hair was tied back in a tight bun, sweat dripping into her eyes as she moved swiftly between the rancid puddles and ancient pipes. The stench of waste made her want to gag, but she fought past it with every breath.
There was a glimmer of light up ahead. Heart racing, she approached cautiously, silver gun raised.
As she rounded a corner, she found a gruesome sight, a teenage boy trembling against the wall, blood dripping from the bite mark on his hand. Tears poured down his face as he rocked back and forth.
His eyes met hers, filled with panic and terror.
"Please," he begged, scrambling away. "I don't want to hurt anyone."
His pleas were cut short when he collapsed to all fours, retching bile as he began to shudder and change. His bones cracked and reformed as black fur spouted from his skin.
He was turning into one ofthem.
The gun trembled in Deepa's hands. Her heart thundered, drowning out the boy's whimpers as his humanity was stripped away.
In a matter of seconds, he'd become a six foot long monstrosity with black fur and glimmering teeth. He snarled at her, his fangs bared.
“Fuck,” Deepa hissed under her breath, raising her gun and firing off several rounds that ripped through its body.
The werewolf fell to the ground with a pained howl, blood spraying across the concrete.
It twitched and then lay still, lifeless.
"Sorry kid." She wiped her brow and holstered her weapon, feeling the adrenaline slowly drain from her veins. “You didn't deserve what they did to you.”
She momentarily let her shields down, which turned out to be a fatal mistake.
Two more wolves emerged from the darkness, their yellow eyes flashing as they stalked towards her.
Deepa gasped, reaching for her gun. But before she could raise it, one of the wolves pounced, knocking her to the ground. She struggled against the creature, trying desperately to break free.
A gunshot rang out, and the wolf slumped over dead.
Deepa looked up to see a large man standing above her, black hair neatly cropped and yellowInfection Controljacket gleaming in the darkness.
"Parker," she gasped, relief washing over her as he riddled the second wolf with bullets.
Parker grinned, extending his hand to help her up. "I thought I was the only one allowed to put you on your back."
Deepa rolled her eyes, brushing herself off. "Very funny. How are the other tunnels?"
"All clear. Ran across a few homeless that must have been their lunch, but nothing else."
Deepa suppressed a shudder. Newly turned werewolves had little control of their bodies, easily succumbing to the virus that had taken hold of their minds. Without easily available prey in the tunnels, they soon turned to snacking on humans.
Deepa brushed the grime from herInfection Controljacket, then smoothed any stray hairs back into her bun.
"Come on," Parker urged, lacing his fingers through Deepa's to pull her away from the bodies. "I think we’re done here."
The gray hallways of Infection Control stank of cheap sanitizer and blood. Deepa and Parker passed a trolley carrying several wolves in cages, one of them transforming back and forth from his human form like he couldn't control the process.
"Please," the werewolf begged as he rattled the bars, but no one stopped to help him.
It was just another day at the office.
"There you are!" called out Varn as he came jogging towards them, curly blond hair plastered to his forehead with sweat, werewolf blood splattered across his jacket and shoes. "Craig wants everyone to report to him before heading home."
