Caught Vamping Around With A Lycan: Caught with a Lycan, #3

By Stephanie R. Lowell

Tom has been falling for Liv since he first saw her after venturing into the werewolf pack, the only problem? Liv wants nothing to do with the vampire. What Tom doesn't know is that Liv has a tragic history that has led to her mistrust of his kind.

Even though Liv wants nothing to do with him, Tom is never too far away.

When Liv suddenly takes off while leaving her werewolf pack behind, Tom suspects that she is running into danger and is quick to follow her and keep her safe.  He has no idea that what she is chasing after could be her death. Can Liv protect herself from her enemy and protect her heart from Tom or will Tom show her that not all vampires are evil?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Stephanie R. Lowell
• Release date: Jan 14, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201834364

Stephanie R. Lowell

I love to write!!! I write poems, songs and I am working on a couple other books. As much as I love writing I also love making people laugh, usually at great risk to my own dignity. I am "that girl" who if you laugh at my jokes I will keep going, spiralling and escalating until boundaries are crossed or people stop laughing... usually both. Above all else I hope you read my stuff and even more than that, I hope you like it!!!

Book preview

Chapter One (Liv)

I have to tell her, I don’t know how but I must. She is going to be so pissed at me for this which in turn will anger Torunn. I really don’t have a choice and if I don’t do this, who knows what will happen. I relax after the realization that I have been squeezing my hands together while standing right outside Devin and Torunn’s door, my heart in my throat.

I raise my fist to knock, but I stop in mid-air. Will she at least understand? I’m sure she will, she isn’t a monster. Why am I so nervous then? I finally force my knuckles to meet the door.

Coming! I hear from inside. I hear her making her way to me before opening the door. Her smile widens when she sees me then fades just as fast as she takes in my countenance. What’s wrong?

I take a deep breath. I have to leave for a while.

Devin sighs with relief. I thought something terrible had happened. She gently smacks my shoulder. So where are you going?

I have no set destination at the moment. Until I can finish this once and for all, but I can’t tell her that. I can’t tell her why.

Do you know when you will be back? I can see that she is losing enthusiasm fast and her shoulders are tensing up.

I don’t right now, no. She sighs a sad sigh.

I hope everything is okay Liv.

Of course they are. I lie with a smile that doesn’t reach my eyes and I can tell that she isn’t convinced. They will be. I try again.

You will keep in touch right? Devin asks hopefully.

I will try to when I can. I don’t know if I will be able to, but I will do what I can for my best friend.

Do you want to have a drink before you go? She asks me. As much as I would like to, I can’t.

I better get going. I turn around and walk away. I don’t want to look back at her confusion and disappointment. It isn’t like me to just leave.

Call me when you get back. She yells, her voice sounds exactly how I thought she would look. I just keep going.

I make it to the treeline and I turn into a wolf, ready to run off. Just as I take off, a huge black wolf’s body checks me and I roll on the ground.

What the hell? I stand up, brushing myself off in my human form.

Are you in danger? Torunn asks without missing a beat.

Yeah, I was just attacked by a huge wolf! I exclaim.

I needed to slow you down. What is going on? He asks calmly.

It worked. I rub my side where he made impact but I don’t answer his question.

Did you find him? His tone is authoritative.

I did get a possible location. I have to go now Torunn, before I lose him again. It’s been five hundred years and I might finally have him. Thank you technology! I look at the sky as if I am thanking a deity, which in today’s world, I guess I am.

Call me if you need anything. He takes my shoulders in his big hands.

I will. Please don’t tell Devin. I bite my lip knowing it may be an unfair request.

Take care of yourself, I’ll let you tell her your story. You better get going. With that, I turn back into a wolf and continue on my way.

It’s lonely being out here, running through the woods, without the company I have held for the last few years.  Devin has been by my side since her and Torunn met, before they were even together. I had to convince Devin that he wanted her, and I had to convince Torunn that he must be an idiot if he couldn’t see how much she means to him. The truth was, he knew all along but he thought his youngest brother James was dating her, before he found out it was a ruse and yadda yadda yadda, the rest is history. The important part of the story is when we became best friends. Torunn has three brothers so you can see how she might have needed female companionship. That’s where I came in. Before her, Torunn was my best friend and as previously mentioned, he has three brothers and I needed some female companionship as well.

She is the one woman I know who would have come with me for this journey just to keep me company and to have my back. I just couldn’t put her life in jeopardy, not in her condition. When I first received the letter, I couldn’t believe my eyes. It has been close to two hundred years since there has been any sighting of the vamp-beast I am about to kill. The vamp-beast I thought to be long dead. I use the term vamp-beast because, I don’t really know how else to describe him or know how he has become the immortal that he has. One that seems to be part vampire and part terrifying beast. I don’t know how long he has been alive for, especially if he himself has such a problem with our kind. Werewolves didn’t seem to be his only victims. I have heard of other immortals who have lost families to a tragic fate.

The letter had no address so I have no idea who knew enough to warn me. I am hopeful that I am not the only member to be given the warning and that others will want to band alongside me. Time will tell. The only thing I do know for sure is that I was given an address and nothing more. It said Be here in one weeks’ time. I don’t even know what that means, so I am going there to find out.

The problem that I am observing on one of the maps I studied is that there is rough terrain ahead, especially if I want to remain hidden and take any short cuts. Why do short cuts always involve great bodies of water, thick brush or rocky hillsides that are difficult, but not impossible to climb?

I wasn’t left enough time to take the rational and easy way around. Maybe enjoy a train ride, but nope, I had to make a quick decision to leave and take the most horrendous route imaginable. But it’s faster. Even in my head that last part sounded sarcastic and mocking.

After running for the majority of the day, I would like to lie down and have a nap.  Unfortunately, that will have to wait. Though I have been running through the country side I now have to make a stop in the closest city. I need to pick up some weapons. What will kill an evil murderous monster? A lot. The weapons I need are going to be exceedingly difficult to get my hands on, this is Canada after all, it’s not like you can buy a semi-automatic all willy-nilly. This means I am going to have to make some questionable decisions. In hind sight, I should have talked to Torunn, the Alpha of the pack, about borrowing his weapons but I didn’t want to have to lie to Devin more than I already have.

So, back to my questionable decisions. Where am I going to find some gun trafficking criminals? This is definitely not one of my finer moments, but sometimes ‘a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do’. Now what does a girl have to do? First I think I am going to have to get a hotel room, one with a fancy bathtub where I can soak and relax my tense muscles. Thankfully I have a credit card under an alias name.

(Tom)

I have been keeping my eyes on Liv, I can’t help myself. I’m enthralled by her. I have been completely enraptured with her beauty and wits and she has no idea that I have remained so close to her after the events that had occurred with Meaghan. Now I see Liv flee and I know something is very wrong. She is very community oriented, pack oriented really. She wouldn’t just run off on her own unless she felt like she had to. I try my best not to give myself away as I stalk her like I would my prey. My phone vibrates in my pocket with a message from Torunn that reads, ‘Liv is on a mission, please keep an eye on her for me since I know you won’t be far behind.’ I don’t even want to know how he knows I’m out here.

When she transforms into her wolf self with her heightened senses, I know that I am going to have to keep my distance, relying on my own vampire senses to track her. I can tell that she is headed toward trouble and I can’t fathom why Torunn would just allow her to go off on her own. I watched as she went to their home and how upset Devin was. I also saw how Torunn nodded his head in understanding before she took off. I have this undeniable urge to keep her safe, not like the urge to help Meaghan. This one is rooted much deeper, along with my urge to touch her.

Liv doesn’t exactly strike me as the kind of person that doesn’t formulate a plan, but in this, I am confident that she did not. Why you ask? Because one day she was the normal Liv that smiles and laughs so freely. The kind of big smile that lights up her whole face and the kind that I would kill to have directed at me. The next she is anxiously making her way to Devin and Torunn’s, telling them she has to leave but without telling them to where. She left with nothing but the clothes on her back and her credit card as far as I can tell. Now that I have seen that she’s relying on her wolf form, I can understand why packing a bag may not have been advantageous.  As I stalk her I can’t help but think, maybe taking a car wouldn’t have been such a bad idea.

She finally stops at a hotel for the night and I try to strategize my next step, while waiting to see what hers will be.

I sit in my room, pondering if I should let her know that I am here, that someone has her back. I have a feeling that she wouldn’t appreciate it very much. In all the time that we have spent together, not once has she shown any more interest in me than just another living organism. I get the sense that she has never really let her guard down around me. She has never been rude or unfriendly, but she seems to tolerate me at best. I don’t think she would appreciate my presence very much right now. It might be better to stay under the radar.

Chapter Two (Liv)

I go out and scour the closest city. I don’t know what my chances are of finding any weapons or what the crime rate is like, but it is a city nevertheless, even if it’s a small one. I decide to go to the sketchiest part of the city, keeping my eyes peeled for unusual activity. Although I didn’t sense any danger, I did get a feeling that I wasn’t alone. As I search my surroundings, I can’t see anything out of place. I haven’t had to hunt for weapons in over a hundred years, I don’t really know how one would go about it these days. I really wish I had talked to Torunn before I left.

I scour for hours, hoping to come across anything that would help me acquire what I needed, but I return empty handed. I knew the odds of this happening was high, but I was hopeful anyway. As I open my hotel room door, I see a small piece of paper on the floor and on it says, ‘for fire arms acquisition’ with a phone number. I look back out the door but I don’t see so much as a shadow move. I wonder who would have put this here. I sniff the paper, but there is no scent. Whoever it was, went through a lot of trouble to stay anonymous. First I think of Devin and my heart races, I don’t want to put her life in danger, but then I discard the thought. Devin is a lot of things but subtle isn’t one of them. If she were here, I would know it. No, this is someone else, I hope they are a friend and not a foe.

I study the number, hopeful that this could be my lucky break but as I look at the time, I realize that I might have to wait another day to call them. It’s an indecent time to make a phone call now, even if it is someone who lives a life of crime.  I lie down and turn on the T.V but my eyes keep darting over to the phone number that I set on the side table and over to the clock. I might be able to make the phone call.

I pick up my hotel phone and dial the number. It rings and rings before an angry guy answers the phone. I don’t even think he is angry at me for calling so late, it sounds as if he’s just angry at life. I talk to him about needing utilities and he sets up a meeting for the next day. Somewhere neutral, meaning, he wants to make sure I’m not wearing a wire or carrying a tracking device before he gives me what I need. What am I going to need? Ideally I would be able to acquire military-esque weaponry, but I also need it to be portable, hopefully he has something handy.

The next morning I meet with the guy who is to help me out. He is tall, thin and muscly with dark hair and eyes and slightly tanned skin. He thoroughly pats me down, it would have made me blush if I hadn’t done such checks in the past myself. Security is always number one, I respect that. As we sit down and start talking, I can see that he doesn’t have the type of weapons I had been anticipating. What he has is even better. There are people in this world who have great magic, some of them use it for evil like the warlock who almost had Devin and Meaghan killed, and good ones like Rachelle, Devin’s brother’s girlfriend. This guy seems more like an opportunist and would just as likely sell these weapons to a