Savage Desire
Chapter 2

Professor Ryan Hicks moaned in pain as he slowly opened his eyes. "What the f**k!" He muttered as he got to his feet and looked around.

He realized he was in a huge cage in a very dark place. The only light was the moonlight that was streaming in through the small window. He didn't have his glasses on so couldn't see very well. The idiots who had taken him must have thrown his glasses away. But even without the glasses, Ryan could tell that he was alone. He felt a painful throb at the back of his neck and raised his hand to touch it. What was it with that man anyway...biting him so painfully, he thought, touching the still wet sore. One minute the man was stalking towards him with an angry look, and the next, he was biting him. Ryan had never felt such excruciating pain in his life. What the f**k was the man's problem anyway? And they didn't even clean the wound. What a*****e actually treated people like that, he wondered.

"Oh my God." Ryan groaned as a bolt of pain flashed through him, causing him to fall to his knees. "What is happening to me?" He moaned as he writhed in pain. It felt as if his insides was about to explode.

Ryan breathed deeply in and out till the pain subsided. What had he gotten himself into, he asked himself for the umpteenth time. Since his infancy, Ryan Hicks had learnt to stay out of trouble. He'd been an only child of a single mother. His mother said his father had disappeared on her before she'd even realized she was pregnant with him. She'd explained when he was old enough to understand that she hadn't been married to his father. Since as far back as he could remember, his mother always sheltered him, not allowing him to play with other kids or even have any friends. It was only when he came of age that he understood why his mother treated him that way. Ryan Hicks was a freak and he got to know that the hard way.

When he was nine years old, the swimming coach had come to his classroom one day to encourage them to join the swimming club. Most of the kids in his class had registered so Ryan had too. He'd been so excited because he watched people swim in school and on TV and had always wanted to swim too. But of course he knew his mother would object to it so had never suggested it to her. She always told him he was dierent and special. Why he had to stay away from people for that reason, Ryan had never understood. So when the coach asked everyone to come to the swimming area after school to try out, Ryan couldn't wait.

After school, he followed his mates to the pool area. Coach Chris told everyone to change into any of the school costumes. When all the boys started stripping openly in the boys' changing room, Ryan too quickly striped, equally excited...till he heard the shrieks and the laughter. Everyone was pointing and staring at his penis...maybe he should simply call it, penises. Yes, Ryan had two whilst every other kid had just one. He hadn't been around kids much so he didn't know that very important fact. He'd

always had two. One was slightly smaller than the other but he could pee with both just as penises were meant to be used. So he didn't understand what the fuss was about till the laughter and shouts had gotten rather loud, attracting Coach Chris' attention to the boys. The coach's reaction, when he came in and saw Ryan, was something that scarred little Ryan for life. He'd called him a little freak and ordered him to dress up and go home.

Ryan had gone home in tears. He remembered all too clearly, his mother hugging him to her and crying with him. She hadn't allowed him to go back to that school again but had rather packed their stu and moved them to another state by the end of the week. And Ryan had kept to himself ever since. He never did things that would make people see him naked...like attend a boarding school, use public bathrooms, or hook up with anyone. He'd never entered into any relationship for fear of hearing someone shout the word freak to him again, which was rather unfortunate as he got propositioned by a lot of ladies due to his looks. They claimed he was beautiful and that always amused Ryan. But for his abnormal nature, he would have really enjoyed the ladies as he was highly s***d. Ryan's prostate got inflamed if he didn't ejaculate enough. But with the help of his own hands and s*x toys, he always saw to his needs. Though he always wished he could get someone he could share his life with, he knew that would never happen. Ryan was hit with another bolt of pain so intense, he screamed. Although he instinctively started to breathe in and out just like before, the pain wouldn't stop.

"Somebody help me please." He screamed but no one came to help. "I need a doctor please." He kept screaming for help till the pain subsided again.

The way he was panting harshly would have amused Ryan under any other circumstances. He'd watched a documentary once in which a woman in labour had been asked to breathe in and out just as he was doing. That woman would have envied Ryan's skills. Ryan wished it was all a bad dream from which he was going to wake up hopefully soon. But if it was a dream, then it was a real long one...going as far back as his conversation with Timmy York, he thought. If only he could get his hands around the neck of that little rascal, Ryan fumed. He was in his current predicament because of Timmy. He would never forget that fateful day when Timmy, a freshman zoology student who was trailing his class had approached him after a lecture.

"Prof Hicks, can I have a moment of your time please?"

"Sure. What can I do for you?"

Ryan was a professor of zoology in UCLA. Since he was a kid, he'd spent most of his life friendless, and had therefore ended up spending lots of time just being around animals. He'd developed a liking for animals and an even greater interest in their behaviour. His mother, bless her soul, had not been surprised at all when he'd ended up becoming a zoology professor. She always told him that there was nothing better than your job being your hobby as well.

"At the beginning of your course you told us to let you know if we ever come across any animal that we've never seen or..."

"Read about before." Ryan finished with a chuckle. "Found anything interesting?"

"You could say that." Timmy had responded cockily. "And that part about getting extra marks if our discovery is really new was no joke I hope..."

"No it wasn't Mr. York." Desperate times, Ryan thought with amusement. What new specie could a student like Timmy York discover?

"I'm so glad you were serious about that because I've discovered something which will blow your mind."

"Really?" Ryan closed his laptop and slipped it into his bag. "I'd love to see what you've discovered Tim. Do you have a picture?" Ryan asked as he started towards the door.

"Oh we have to go check it out Prof." Timmy said, falling into step beside him.

"And where exactly do we have to go to see this new specie?" Ryan asked, turning towards his office.

"A couple of friends and I are taking Stanton Woods to check out the animals. come with us?"

A drive to the Why don't you?

"The Stanton Woods. Isn't that area restricted property?" Ryan asked, opening his office door.

"Oh the part we'll be visiting is open to the general public so there's nothing to worry about. We just have to stay together. You know the dangers that sometimes lark in the forest."

"I know." Ryan had chuckled. He always tried to encourage his students by listening to and checking out their stories whenever he could. It was no bother at all. After all, he wasn't a busy person. "So when can we go and see this special specie?" Ryan had asked. "Is next week Saturday okay?" Timmy had asked eagerly.

"Sure. It's not like I'm busy on Saturdays anyway." Ryan chuckled.

"Cool. I'm so glad you've agreed to come, Prof."

"Don't be surprised. The last time I checked, I was a zoology professor. My work is all about researching into diferent species of animals. And like I said, I don't have anything better to do anyway." "Can I ask you a question Prof?"

"Feel free to." Ryan gestured for Timmy to sit down.

"Thanks. What do you know about werewolves?" Timmy had asked, making Ryan burst into laughter.

"They don't exist, Tim. They are fictional and therefore can become whatever a person wants them to be. You want people to become werewolves by a scratch; say that's what happens."

"What if I told you they were real?" Tim asked with all seriousness.

"I'd tell you, you watch too many movies. Hey... Don't tell me that's what you're going to show..." Ryan tried very hard to keep the amusement and incredulity of his face.

"No, no." The boy had quickly said.

"Thank God. So, next week then."

And that was how he found himself riding into the Stanton Woods with Timmy and two other boys around five p.m. that day. According to the boys, they had to wait a while for the strange species to show up. Although Ryan doubted Timmy had anything interesting to show him, he wasn't really bothered because he knew he could use the opportunity to look around himself. After all, for a zoologist, the most fascinating place to be was in the forest. He should however have listened to the boys and stayed close to them. They'd specifically advised Ryan to stay close to them because according to them, they'd come prepared with tasers with which to daze wild animals should they

encounter any. Ryan had thought at the time that, that was a real smart thing to do. So why the f**k had he wandered o], he asked himself for the umpteenth time. If only he'd stayed with the boys, he wouldn't have been caught, seeing as none of the boys had been caught except him. Now he was in pain in some dark cage God knew where, and didn't know what to do. He'd tried to explain to the men who had caught him that he'd only been researching, but they wouldn't listen. Ryan had been sure he'd been caught because he was trespassing on restricted property, till that man had bitten him. Who the fuck were those people? Probably a cult of sorts. He'd heard stories about secret cults with weird practices but hadn't thought barbaric acts such as biting people could actually be accepted by normal human beings. Were they cannibals? Oh God! If only someone could...

"Oh fuck!" Ryan screamed as he trashed about in pain. This time his insides felt as if it was rearranging itself.

Whatever was happening to him was too painful for words. Ryan threw up. He'd been in that cage for almost eight hours and nobody had bothered checking up on him even though he was obviously not well. Ryan didn't know how to accurately describe what he was going through but he just knew he was going to die. His skin was burning as if he'd been dumped into blazing fire. Surely even hell wouldn't be that painful. He ripped his already ruined shirt from his body forcefully and unbuckled his belt. But before he could pull out the belt, a gut-wrenching scream tore out of him as he hurled himself at the wall that was made of solid stone. Ryan slammed onto the floor and watched in shock and horror as his fingers began to elongate into claws. Christ, what was happening to him? "Help me somebody." He tried to scream but the words that came out didn't even sound human.

He watched as fur sprouted all over his arms, abs, stomach... he was burning up all over. What the f**k was happening to him? He felt a burning sensation in toes and looked down just in time to see his toes forcefully push through his boots, ruining them. "Holy Moses." He gasped, pulling of his ruined boots and socks.

Ryan yanked on his jeans but before he could get to his boxers, he fell to the floor as the greatest pain ever, rocked through him. He closed his eyes and allowed a scream to burst forth. But this time his scream sounded like an animal in pain, which rather shocked and confused Ryan. Not even having the strength to move, he just lay quietly on the floor, willing the pain to fade away but it didn't. It came hard and fast, slamming into him, taking him into a sea of excruciating agony. He curled into a ball, his insides convulsing in painful waves. It felt as though something was moving within him...taking over his very being. It was terrifying as hell. Ryan was in so much pain his vision dimmed as sweat poured out from his pores. His gums tingled agonizingly. It felt as though he suddenly had more teeth. He curled into himself even more, trying to escape the pain but it kept slamming into him again and again. For the first time in his life, Ryan wished for death. He tried to scream, but what came out was a howl. He was in too much pain to wonder where that came from. Ryan didn't know how long the pain lasted. It could have been hours, days, weeks... All Ryan knew was that death had never sounded more appealing.

Suddenly, a sense of calm came over Ryan. He no longer felt any pain at all. He felt...strong, fresh and energized. He opened his eyes and immediately thought a light had been turned on where he'd been locked but soon realized it wasn't so at all. He could just suddenly see better in the

darkness. Hell, he couldn't even see that well in his glasses, Ryan thought, surprised. He quickly turned around with the intention of grabbing his jeans to pull on before someone came in to see him naked. And that was when Ryan realized that he didn't have hands but rather, paws. He slowly turned his head to look at himself and realized that, not only did he have a tail, but his whole body was covered in fur and he was standing on all fours... He was a wolf!

Jeremy heard his mate's howl and sprinted towards the dungeon. In just a pair of jeans, the muscles in his naked upper body rippled beneath his beautiful caramel coloured skin, which was covered in a fine sheen of sweat as he ran. He'd come back earlier than the pack just so he could see the hunter in his wolf form. Much as he still had the urge to kill the bloody hunter, he had an even greater urge to see the hunter's wolf. And Jeremy couldn't fight that urge. The other reason he wanted to see the hunter's wolf before it shifted back into human form was to compel the fool not to dare attack anyone. Until he learnt to control his wolf, the hunter would try to kill anything that moved. Jeremy clearly remembered his own first shift. He'd ripped out the wooden door to the room he was being held in and escaped into the night. By the time he was found, he'd slaughtered about forty horses he'd found in a barn. It was the thirst...the hunger...the urge to kill that every wolf had. That deadly urge was blindingly strong in every newly shifted wolf. As alpha, Jeremy had the ability to compel members of his pack if it was to protect them. And compelling the hunter was for his own good because Jeremy knew that he wouldn't hesitate to kill the hunter...mate or not...if he so much as put a scratch on any member of his pack. Killing his mate would cause his own painful death but in his current state, Jeremy didn't care at all.

At the entrance of his mansion, Jeremy grabbed a t-shirt from the large box filled with diferent sizes of t-shirts before entering. He knew Philip was not far behind but he didn't care. At the top of the stairs, Jeremy inhaled deeply and shivered with arousal. That scent! So delicious and so damn arousing. Fuck! As he descended the stairs into the dungeon, he adjusted himself and then pulled on the t-shirt. He turned on a switch and flooded the whole place with blinding light. Then he went to stand in front of the cage which held his mate and stared at the beautiful pure white wolf. He was simply spectacular, Jeremy thought willing his erection to go down. He hated the hunter, yet he desired him with an intensity that shook him to the very core. His body obviously had a mind of its own. It was that call of a mate. There was nothing stronger than that.

Ryan looked up at his tormentor as he came to stand in front of his cage. He was still processing the fact that he was a wolf and no longer a man. He had a lot of questions but the last time he checked, wolves couldn't talk so Ryan simply stared at the man who had caused him so much pain. To say he hated the man would be an understatement. The man was around six 'five in height and built like a rock. His beautiful smooth skin glowed under the bright light, the colour of rich coffee laced with cream. He had really soft- looking low cropped dark hair and eyes so strangely red and intense they just pulled you in. What was with the red eyes, Ryan thought. Maybe he was wearing contacts. Who does that though, Ryan almost snorted. But despite the strange eyes, the man was strikingly gorgeous. From the colour of his skin, either he spent a lot of time outdoors or he was mixed-race. Ryan thought the five o'clock shadow made the hunk look sexy. Was it even normal for a man to

be that gorgeous, Ryan asked himself. Of course it wasn't normal, he answered himself. The man was obviously a supernatural being so nothing about him was normal. And whilst he was on the subject, why the f**k was he even admiring another man so much when it was obvious from the scowl on the man's face that he hated him? Well, the feeling was mutual, Ryan wished he could tell the cannibal. He dropped his eyes and waited to see what the wicked man would do next. Jeremy couldn't take his eyes of the white wolf. Why couldn't he have been a woman for fuck's sake, he thought. He would have gladly ignored the fact that she was a hunter and treated her with the respect an Alpha's mate deserved. He knew that there was no way he could love a hunter but he could have learnt to accept him if he were a woman. But he was a man. And Jeremy Stanton didn't do men. Ideally, he was supposed to have been with him throughout his change, to talk to him, help and guide him to make it easier for him. But of course he didn't think the hunter deserved any such privilege or kindness. He could only imagine the agonizing pain the man had gone through. He could see the evidence on the floor. He'd obviously thrown up several times. The ground of the cage was virtually covered in vomit. Served him right, Jeremy thought heartlessly. But even seeing his mate in that filth didn't stop Jeremy from wanting him. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if the hunter was in human form, the red-eyed slayer thought hopefully. He needed to compel him quickly so that he could shift and remind his obviously confused brain that he was a man.

Jeremy crouched in front of the cage and commanded in a cold voice, "Come here."

Ryan felt his hackles rise. Crouching somehow brought the red-eyed man closer to him and Ryan couldn't stop the

shiver of fear that slithered down his spine. There was a powerful, intimidating presence around the man that struck fear into Ryan. But more than that feeling of fear, Ryan wished he could throw himself at him and beg him to fuck him, which was rather strange. After all, he wasn't gay and had never been attracted to men. Ryan didn't understand what was happening to him at all. Admittedly, he was still a virgin at thirty-one but Ryan knew for a fact that he liked woman...and they liked him too if the blatant flirtation of the females he encountered was anything to go by. So where from all that attraction for the hunk staring at him with a dark scowl, Ryan wondered. Although he'd bitten him and obviously turned him into a wolf...and he should understandably be furious at him, the lust within was so strong. Even strange was the urge within to smash the man's face in, which confused Ryan even more. He wanted to destroy something. Fear, lust and a murderous rage...three strong emotions all at once. It was confusing and frightening. Ryan heard the man telling him for a second time to come forward and suddenly felt blinding fury. How dare the man even talk to him...how much more make demands, Ryan thought. The impudence... Ryan began to growl.

Jeremy watched his mate bare his teeth and get into an attack mode and almost wished there were no bars between them. No bars meant the hunter could attack him right? And that would mean he could finally kill him as he'd wanted to do in the first place. Jeremy's hand shot through the bars so fast Ryan didn't see it coming.

Ryan's growls reached a fever pitch when he felt the red-eyed man's strong fingers tightly grip the thick fur on his neck and pull him closer to his face. But for the bars, their faces would have touched. Ryan growled both in anger and fear. Those eyes... "You are not to attack any member of my pack ever." Came Jeremy's compellingly hypnotic voice. "Discard any thirst you have to cause mayhem and destruction." With that, Jeremy released a now quiet Ryan and got to his feet. "Change back." Ryan whimpered pitifully as he stared at Jeremy without doing as he'd been instructed. First of all, he didn't know how to change back. He would gladly have done that if he knew how. Secondly, he hated how uncomfortable and shaky the man made him. He gave a distressed whine and backed away from the steel bars till he felt his tail brush against the stone wall. If the man wanted him to shift, he should make him.

The alpha watched his beautiful mate stare back at him with eyes filled with abject helplessness. He could feel the wolf's unease and misery. It was obvious to Jeremy that the hunter didn't know how to shift. The ideal thing was for him to talk him through it which Jeremy would have done under normal circumstances. He would have opened their mind-link so he could talk him through changing back. But the murdering hunter didn't deserve any such kindness. With a growl that would make the strongest of warriors shake, Jeremy repeated in his controlling alpha voice;

"Shift back, now!"

Ryan whimpered in fright and instantly peed himself at the sound of that powerfully authoritative voice. He whined even more pitifully as he began to uncontrollably change back into human. It was painful but not as painful as what he'd gone through to become a wolf. Immediately he was back to human form, Ryan quickly moved to where his jeans lay and pulled it on, ignoring the weakness he suddenly felt. He winced at the discomfort he felt due to the absence of his boxer briefs. He did love to go commando but sometimes, depending on how tight his jeans were, the seam that usually lie in between his dicks could be a pain as the skin between them was a little delicate and sensitive. But that was definitely not the time to think about his dicks. Ryan was just glad he'd been able to keep the sadist from seeing his deformity. Surprisingly, back in human form, Ryan felt so exhausted. His whole body ached. But then after what he'd been made to go through, who wouldn't, he thought bitterly. He'd been captured, bitten, locked in a cage, left to scream in pain and turned into something he didn't even know existed. And it had all been the doing of the man standing in front of him. As if that was not enough, he'd scared the bejesus out of him with a cruel command, causing him to pee himself, which had been so humiliating. Whoever the gorgeous hunk was, he was not a good person and Ryan was ready to tell the cruel man his piece.