The Last of Her Kind Ch. 02

"Can I help you?" Her voice came out scratchy, the signal from her brain being positively disrupted by the sight of thick pecs through his tight shirt.

"I'm supposed to check out some loose tiles on the roof. Can you show me how to get up there?"

She nodded, pulling keys out of her drawer. Her legs twisted about, powering the gears that would spin her wheels. She led him out toward the main entrance, but turned at the last second into an old storage room she unlocked. It was full of chairs and tables for town meetings and the occasional fundraiser. She pointed to the large ladder on the back wall that vanished up into the darkness.

'There's a hatch at the top with a padlock." She felt like her voice was slurring, but Darren didn't seem to notice anything off. He took a few steps forward and looked up, the fabric of his shirt tightening. He set the toolbox down on the floor, then pulled a ring of keys out of his pocket, searching through them.

"Do you know what the key looks like?" He asked her.

"No. By the time I got my chair up there, I was too tired to open the door." She grinned at her own joke, but Darren remained quiet. "It should be a small one. All the padlocks are the same brand."

"I have a few suspects." He hopped onto the ladder, giving Ana a phenomenal view of his physique from below. His ass pressed tight against the seat of his pants, and her mouth watered.

"I'll leave you to it." She wheeled away, letting out a sigh of relief once she was away. She sat now in the lobby, pretending to check the bulletin board.

This was going to be harder than she thought. She needed to keep her mind on her work and avoid contact with men in general, but specifically Darren. It was frustrating how powerful of a force he had become in her mind in just under a day, a stranger who had come to town and likely wouldn't be missed if he disappeared.

"No." Ana shook her head, attempting to dislodge such murderous thoughts. Even if she were to do it, she suspected Sheriff Walters would do some digging. If she owed any man on this planet anything, it was the sheriff. If he hadn't offered her kindness when he had, she would probably be masquerading as a homeless person on the west coast somewhere. He had given her a safe place to live and she would never forget that. If she could just avoid any unnecessary drama until the urge to breed passed, everything would be fine.

The front door opened, sending in a light breeze which rustled the papers of the board like leaves, the scent of sea salt, honeysuckle and lavender washing over her. She slowly turned her chair around in disbelief. The newcomer smiled, rays of light scattering through her golden curls. She was wearing jeans that looked like they had been painted on and a cream-colored peasant blouse. Ana felt a powerful draw toward the woman, a sexual longing that could only be described as supernatural, which she knew it was. The only reason she could resist in her current state was the fact that sex wouldn't result in any young. In this instance, she was grateful for her natural instincts.

"Oh!" Louise had emerged from the library with some fliers in her hands. "Ana, I didn't know your aunt was coming!"

"It was meant to be a surprise," Emily said, her voice carrying musical undertones. She smiled at Ana. "I was hoping we could have lunch?"

"Take her, take her! I will cover for her." Louise stuck the fliers onto the bulletin board and pulled down some older ones. "Take your time Ana, I'll see you later."

"Of course." Ana glared at Emily. "After you, Aunt Emily."

Emily tossed her hair and walked out the door, holding it open for Ana. Nothing was said while they walked down the street to get to the diner. It wasn't like Ana had anything to eat in her apartment, and she knew exactly what Emily was craving.

The volume in Matty's diminished considerably when Emily walked in behind Ana, her spell immediately cast over the entire establishment. The townspeople all knew of Ana's mysterious aunt, and would likely be talking about her for weeks to come yet again. Hannah led them to a table to the side, removing the chair so that Ana could slide her chair into its spot. Somehow, the light entering through Matty's dirty windows seemed to shine directly on Emily, her very presence a beacon of light.

Emily had no relation to Ana. A few weeks after Ana had arrived in town, she had just shown up, looking for a niece that matched Ana's description. Once alone, Emily had confessed that she knew of Ana's lineage, offering her a place in some home by the east coast where other creatures all lived in harmony.

Ana had politely declined for many reasons. She feared that those who hunted her might put such a place in jeopardy. She also worried that the other creatures in the house may have similar histories, and it would turn into the nest all over again. Emily turned up every eight months or so since then to check up on Ana, but the answer was always the same.

"I'm still happy here," Ana told her. Hannah set down a coffee for Emily and some water for Ana. She didn't bother taking their order—Emily and Ana always ordered the same thing.

"As I assumed you would be." Emily leaned across the table to push a lock of hair out of Ana's glasses. What looked like a loving gesture was actually an inspection. "The glasses still helping with your vision?"

"They are, thank you." Emily had fixed the glasses for her one time when they had gotten broken. Until they were fixed, it had been makeup, long bangs and just keeping her extra eyes closed, which had been super annoying.

"You look pale. Are you getting enough sun?"

"Very funny."

Emily smirked. "I've come with a final offer for you."

"And you know the answer already."

"This is a different offer. I'm leaving the States for a while. There are things I want to check out in Europe and, when I get back, I won't be coming out this way anymore."

"Oh." Now that was interesting. Emily only traveled on monster-related business, and never for more than a couple of days. Ana knew better than to ask for details. "Who's watching the house?"

"Don't worry about that." Emily smiled over her coffee, but Ana saw right through it. Emily could put up a facade that was impervious to human scrutiny, but Ana could detect the subtle dilation of her pupils, sense the shift in her demeanor. This was a woman who would keep her secrets no matter what. "First things first. Those men who burned down your nest years ago. They belong to an organization known as the Order."

Ana felt a chill pass through her body. "The Order?"

"Well, that's their public name anyway. It would be easier to steal artifacts from the Vatican's catacombs than it was to find just this little tidbit out. But yes, they refer to themselves as the Order. And they are part of the reason for my departure."

"How?"

Emily sighed, then set down her coffee. "The Order has been around for a very long time, but nobody has ever heard of them. I was visiting a friend when he brought them up. In loose terms, they are monster hunters. They chase rumors and stories of creatures who prey on humans or otherwise disturb the Balance."

"What balance?"

"The Balance. Merlin sealed away magic from mortals so long ago, but magical creatures were spared. In short, creatures who interfere with mankind in some way."

"And your friend is reliable?"

Emily grinned. "He was being hunted for his starring role in a film that came out a few years back. Let's just say he's gotten better at hiding his enormous footprints."

"Shit." Ana looked around, but nobody was paying them any attention. "Is your friend okay?"

"Oh, yes. He's quite good at getting out of a bind. However, he did mention that one of them carried one of those folding swords you told me about."

Ana shivered. The men with swords had drawn daggers no larger than a kitchen knife. She had watched in amazement as the blade unfolded itself until it was several feet long. A convenient method of transportation, yet somehow solid enough to slice through her sisters.

"That was all I needed to track down the bare minimum. A few years back, a cryptid was spotted around West Virginia that they wanted to get their hands on. Well, it took several of their best members to catch it, and you can't have that many people in one place without leaving a trail for others to follow. As best I can tell, they are rounding up cryptids and either jailing them or killing them. Rumor has it they are tracking something very important in this area."

"I haven't seen anybody new around here." Ana realized what she had just said. "Other than a guy who came in on the bus, but he works for the library now."

"Was he alone? They always travel in pairs." Emily's voice trailed off and she smiled at Hannah, who set a plate of food in front of her. It was a chicken salad with dressing on the side. A ham steak with fried eggs was set in front of Ana.

"Yeah, he was by himself."

"Good. The Order always hunts in pairs. One who fights with a sword, and one who fights with magic."

"Really? They can use magic?"

"Sort of. It's more like..." Emily scrunched up her face, deep in thought. "Hmm. It's like a divine channeling, in a way. The magic they use doesn't belong to them, but they tap into it. Like when a priest casts out a demon by calling on their god."

"I'll keep my eyes out."

"You do that." Emily slid a piece of paper across the table. "And now for my offer."

Ana rolled her eyes, but took the paper and opened it. "What are these?"

"Coordinates. I own a large plot of land in Oregon, land that has been magically shielded. My friend is using it for his stomping grounds these days, away from prying eyes. You see, secrecy is the best weapon against the Order. I'm not worried about dealing with them because I never do anything to show up on their radar. This plot of land is more than large enough for you to live comfortably, out in the open, without fear of humans stumbling through."

"But I would be alone." Ana folded up the paper and stuck it in her pocket.

Emily sighed. "Yes, you would. But you would be alive. Look, I know you. You deserve a better fate than your sisters did. No more wheelchair or magic glasses. You could just... be." She took a bite of her salad, chewing thoughtfully. "This isn't something you have to say yes to. It's just a safe place you can go in case things get dangerous here."

"But what if someone follows me?"

Emily smiled. "I've made arrangements. Like I said, my friend uses that space as well. However, I don't think you two would get on very well. I know how sensitive to smells you are."

"Yes." Ana used her fork to pierce her eggs. They were runny on the inside, and coated her ham with their juices. She ate slowly, savoring the flavor. She tried not to eat human food too often. It could easily fatten up her upper half without providing the proper nutrition for her lower half. Fat spiders were easier to squish. "Does that mean I won't see you again?"

"If you stay here? No, you won't." When she shook her head, her curls bounced off her shoulders. "I'm going to miss the chicken salad. Some of the best I've had." She took another bite of it. "I'll miss you, too. It's been fun having a niece."

"You don't have a niece of your own?"

"Nope. I was an only child. My parents died shortly after I was born. I was a lot like you, growing up alone. The orphanage was okay, I didn't get treated as badly as some of the others. I think that's a little bit why we are kindred spirits." She gave Ana another large smile, one with years of pain secretly hiding behind it.

Ana said nothing, and they ate the rest of their meal largely in silence. When Emily was done, she knelt down to give Ana a hug.

"I know you're doing well, but consider it. Plenty of places for a girl like you to live in and enjoy." Emily tossed her hair again, catching the eye of a few men in the restaurant. "Even if it is as a last resort."

"I will." Ana took the slip of paper from her pocket and held it. "And thank you."

"You're welcome." Emily walked out the door, leaving Ana alone with her thoughts.

"Ugh. How many days have we been out here?" Jeffrey stepped out of the tent, his breath turning to fog and vanishing in the breeze. The sky was growing lighter, dawn quickly on its way. Jeffrey was in a full-body set of long underwear that could hold up to the claws of a mountain lion.

"Two weeks now." Cyrus had the map spread out on the tailgate of the truck, marking their current location with an X. They had seen more of the countryside now than most people who lived in town ever would. They had gone into town twice to restock supplies, and both times Cyrus had called to see if the Oracle still said their quarry was there. Both times had been a resounding yes. "We're running out of places to look."

"She's gotta be hiding in town. You know how they are, they can squeeze down really small and hide almost anywhere."

"Yes, but they still have to eat. There isn't enough food in town to sustain her, not without seriously snacking on some local pets." Cyrus folded up the map slowly, quelling the urge to ball it up and throw it into the fire. "There's a couple more promising leads on here, but we're going to need a different strategy if we're going to find her before she catches on to us and runs."

"Bah." Jeffrey wandered through the tall grass carrying a roll of toilet paper with him. Cyrus frowned, then pulled out his journal, flipping it open to the page he had marked with a ribbon.

"An Arachne requires a regular blood diet of any creature it can catch. Much like an ordinary spider, she will catch her prey in a web and wrap it up for eating later." Cyrus kept coming back to this sentence, but couldn't figure out why. He felt like he was missing something important. He picked up a stick and drew a web in the dirt with a spider next to it, then drew a house around the web and the word food off to the side.

Through the tall grass, he could hear Jeffrey grunting, followed by a machine gun blast of farts.

"This is why you need to eat better," he hollered in Jeffrey's direction.

"Yeah, well, maybe if we had somewhere better to eat..." Jeffrey never completed his thought, grunting loudly behind the trees. Cyrus grimaced at the sounds he was making, knowing he had a point. They weren't exactly eating well out there, they were limited to eating food they had brought with them.

Wait a minute. Cyrus smoothed out the dirt inside the house, then drew several little webs outside of the home. He drew arrows from the word food to the webs. "Hey Jeffrey? How many traps have we seen out here?"

Jeffrey mumbled something, so Cyrus waited for him to come back.

"What did you ask?" He fumbled with his belt, then tossed the toilet paper into their tent.

"Traps. You mentioned that you saw a lot of trap out here for small game. I was wondering if it was possible that she was using more conventional methods to catch her prey. Human methods."

"Hmm. That seems fairly inefficient." Jeffrey looked through the trees. "But it makes sense. Most of them aren't really kill traps. If an Arachne needs blood..."

"Then she catches live prey." Cyrus set out the map. "We should find some of those traps and wait around to see who shows up."

"Sounds like a plan." Jeffrey knelt down next to Cyrus and held out a plastic bag. "Jerky?"

"Yuck."

Ana stared at the clock. It was ticking closer to closing time, but not nearly fast enough. Shifting in her wheelchair, she had to fight the urge to touch herself and take the edge off. It had gotten dark outside, and the last book group of the evening had already left.

Wheeling down the long stacks of books, she stuck books back where they belonged, her eyes constantly going back to the large clock over the main desk. On more than one occasion, she could have sworn that it was moving backwards, time stalling out on her. Her chair clicked when she turned the corner and she ended up clipping the shelf. Rolling her eyes, she returned to the desk for the next stack of books.

Her legs were twitching, the ones she had disguised as human. Even through her thick boots, the movements were visible. She closed her eyes, letting her senses expand a little. She didn't think anybody was in the library, but really didn't need to explain how a paraplegic could suddenly shift her legs around. The movements started as nervous energy at first, but soon turned into something else. The way she was built, she could squeeze her front legs together hard enough that the flesh of her vulva would compress, tickling the thick fleshy nub at the top of her narrow slit.

She resisted the urge for as long as possible, stamping returned books and stacking them up on her desk. She was wiggling back and forth in her chair, her lower half betraying the upper. Her legs tilted inward and then squeezed, her human flesh compressing. Instead of calming her down, she felt her sexual urges go into overdrive.

"Fuck," she muttered, looking around. Maybe she should close up early and rush home. But then what? It was too early to crawl around in the belfry, and she had promised herself that she would only go up at night. Also, Darren was outside fixing some busted brickwork and would inevitably escort her home or want to chat. The last thing she needed was to be around a human male, especially one of breeding age. She could smell the pheromones oozing off of them, threatening to claim the logical half of her mind.

Ana looked at the stack of books around her and readjusted them. She had constructed a small wall between her head and the front lobby. Anybody walking in would be unable to see her right away and it would buy her a couple of seconds to react.

Her fingers were already at the band of her skirt, pushing their way inside. She had little black bumps instead of pubic hair and she rubbed her fingers across them, wondering briefly if she should just quit now while she still could. She could feel the heat and humidity radiating from her groin and let out a sigh.

It was now or never.

She rubbed at the tightly folded skin of her vagina, teasing free the thick, fleshy nub of her clit. Every touch felt like a shock to her entire body. She had denied herself any sexual pleasure since fleeing the nest, afraid that it might trigger her mating instincts. Now that she was here, she hoped that she could take the edge off.

She hissed through her teeth, her legs twitching hard enough inside the chair that the wheels vibrated. Both of her hands were fumbling in her skirt, trying to quell the fire she had just ignited. Rocking back and forth, she couldn't quite get at the right angle.

The flow of air shifted around her, letting her know the front door had been opened. Frustrated, she withdrew her fingers, quickly licking them clean as a pair of teenage boys came around the corner.

"Hi, Ms. Ana." The taller of the two, a boy with brown hair, set a small stack of books on the table. "These books were far out, but I've read them all. Do you have anything like them?"

Ana looked at the paperbacks he had set down. "The Hardy boys? We have something similar. Have you tried reading Nancy Drew?"

The younger boy laughed and the older one scowled. "Nah, I don't wanna read about some girl. I'll just look around a bit."

"Suit yourself." Frustrated, she sat back, the heat in her belly still running hot. She couldn't do anything about it while those boys were in the library. She took the books they had brought and stamped the cards. Sliding the books to the side, she contemplated the stamp she had just used. She used it on a spare piece of paper, making sure all the ink was removed.

What am I doing? she thought to herself, contemplating the thick wooden knob on the stamp. The metal tumblers beneath were fairly small, making the knob the largest part. The teens were toward the back of one of the stacks and couldn't see her. She slid the stamp beneath her waistband, positioning it at the front of her groin. From above her skirt, she was able to push and manipulate it until it was touching her labia. She lifted her hips and pushed it farther in, the knob spreading her apart.