I took a very deep breath. Yes, he was definitely gone. Maggie too, from the smell of it.
By all accounts, I should probably have been terrified of what he planned to do to me and about what injuries I had sustained. What I was, however, was pissed. As in royally pissed. Which made it very hard to do what I had to do. Focus. Think of Rose and send a legible call for help. I really didn't want to remain trussed up like a freak show Christmas present waiting for him to come unwrap me.
In a matter of minutes, I started to hear sounds coming from the door. Rose's lessons must have done some good because I knew it was them and not Jed returning. It was weird. As if a part of me were inside Rebel. A very unhappy and royally pissed Rebel. We are so related.
I heard the sound of metal scraping on metal and light clicks and then the door opened to let in Rebel, followed closely by Rose.
"Oh dear." She called back over her shoulder, "Lily, be a dear and bring me the toolkit, please."
"He shot me, Rose. The bastard shot me. I can't see. My right thigh, how bad is it?" The muzzle was just loose enough to talk through, though my words weren't as clear as they should have been.
She looked puzzled. "He shot you?" I could feel her pulling my jeans around. "Ah, I see. He must have tranqed you."
"What?"
"Honey, there isn't any bullet hole, just a tiny hole like a dart would make. He must have had a tranq gun handy to use with the coyotes. There isn't any blood either, so once we get you loose, you should be good to go. But it might be awhile before you get full movement back to your leg."
Lily came in with the tool bag. She took one look at me and shook her head. "That is one freaky fetish." She looked at her Gran and said, "I know, I know. I'm the lookout. It would help if I knew what he drove."
"Sky blue old model Chevy Nova. Two door," I said, amazed at how much one can say without moving one's jaws.
"Got it," she said, walking out.
"He tranqed me?"
"Yes, dear. But let me concentrate right now on getting you loose before we have company. You can explain what happened on the way back to the house."
As she talked, she drew out a lock pick and set to work picking the lock that was holding the muzzle to the bedframe. In seconds, I heard the click and felt the give in the muzzle. I stretched out my neck. It would take a while to work out all the kinks and the weight of the muzzle was awkward, to say the least.
I started to protest as Rose left the muzzle and bent to loosen my leg restraints.
"First things first, Taz. Our primary concern is getting you out of here. Mobility. I know that muzzle is irritating you, but we can get it off later." I felt my right leg give as the restraint came loose. "Just one more, dear, and you'll be free."
"Where'd you learn to pick locks? Not that I'm complaining about your skill set. I'm very, very grateful you have it."
Rose smiled at me as the last restraint came off and helped me sit up on the side of the bed. She was right, my right leg wasn't wanting to cooperate at all. "We'll save that story for another time. Now lean on me and let's get you to the van."
With her help, it was short work to get to her minivan parked outside, although climbing into the van was quite a feat of accomplishment on my part. Luckily, it was getting dark earlier and earlier, so my strange facial attire couldn't be seen from the nearby road, and the parking lot on this side of the motel was empty.
If I'd been driving, I'd have peeled rubber out of the parking lot. Rose took her time, driving sedately like she didn't have a care in the world. Of the two methods, hers was probably the least likely to draw attention. Good thing she was driving. I looked out the back window at my abandoned Jeep. It didn't feel right leaving it behind.
"I don't think he'll do anything to your Jeep, dear. I believe he focuses on all of us evil weres. So unless your Jeep changes to a Cadillac by day, it should be safe."
I knew that of course, but it still didn't feel right. It felt like I was leaving my freedom behind. Then I had a thought. "Since Jed thinks he has me all trussed up back at the motel, do you think a quick trip to my cabin would be safe?"
Rose glanced at me in the rearview mirror. "Do you need something badly enough to risk it?"
I nodded. "My dad's old motorcycle is in the workshop. I'm pretty sure I can handle it to your place." I turned around in my seat with my back to Lilith. "I don't suppose you could..."
"Oh, yeah," she said like she'd forgotten. "Gee, you know, you could start a whole new horror genre with that muzzle thing. Kinda like the whole Hannibal Lector thing, but for wolves." I could feel her fiddling with latches at the back of my head, so I bit my tongue and didn't respond.
It loosened and then fell in my lap. I rolled down my window and started to throw it out, but then changed my mind. Jed would probably just find the dang thing. Besides, maybe I could use it on him. After I'd drugged him and chained him to a bed. Not because I'm evil or anything. Because I'm just a vengeful bitch.
Rose pulled off the road at the bottom of my drive. "We don't want to risk getting trapped in the drive. Are you able to walk on your own now?"
I stretched my leg out. It was still sore, but at least it felt more like a leg again. "I think so," I said, nodding.
Lilith got out on her side and actually came around to help me. Once out of the van, I tried a few short steps. As long as I took my time, I should be okay.
"I'll grab the cycle and meet you guys at your place...if you think that's safe?"
Rose's lips tightened. "Safe or not, it's where you're going, Missy. I'll not have a repeat of this morning's worries. We'll wait here for you, so we can follow you to the house. If we see Jed coming, we'll toot the horn to warn you."
My eyes grew moist and a lump actually formed in my throat. It had been a long time since anybody had really, truly cared about me. It was almost like having a family again. A family I was endangering by just standing there feeling sappy.
I turned and took off at a slow, limping jog up the drive to my workshop. I turned the key in the lock—luckily Rose had remembered to grab my pack from the motel—and opened the door. Taking a deep breath, I enjoyed the first sense of normalcy that I'd had since the UPS truck that morning.
Then I threw the tarp off the cycle and started it up. I drove through the workshop door, then stopped to lock the door behind me. Hesitating only a moment, I ran into the house for a minute to gather some personal things and more clothing. I didn't bother to pack, just ran from the house with my arms loaded down and threw the stuff into the bike's saddlebags. Then I locked up and drove down the drive. Rose motioned out her window for me to take the lead and we drove in our little mini convoy to her place.
As we passed the entrance to the park, I almost broke and turned in. This might be my one chance to catch the wolf-not-wolf. Helping Jed had nothing to do with it. He deserved whatever the skin-walker could dish out.
Probably. My mind was still struggling with that. If he'd truly thought that all weres were evil, why hadn't he just outright killed me? Did the Luparii have some kind of prison set up somewhere to house the innocent human counterpart?
My heart tweaked. Could the Luparii have my sister? She had been my only Finding failure. Were the Luparii shielding her from me? Was it possible she was still alive?
Rose opened her garage door and made a shooing motion toward me. I drove in and turned off the Honda, settling it down for the night. Then walked back to the van, ducking as the garage door slowly closed.
Inside the house, Rose brought out blankets and a pillow for me. Her house was a small two bedroom, so the couch was to be my bed. Not a problem. It was a soft couch. Reb looked at me and grinned.
While I had been getting the Honda out of the workshop, he had run into the house and dragged out his rug. We all had our own priorities. Lilith had rolled up the cowhide for him, and he had worked to straighten it out in front of the fireplace. Now he sat there, looking extremely proud of himself. Home was where you kept your yellow
rug.
After checking to see if I needed anything else, Rose and Lilith headed to bed. I stretched out on the sofa under a blanket, but I couldn't keep my mind from the park. As Benandanti, I should be there right now, tracking the Skin-walker.
Of course, I would need to be in fur form so I could handle him when I found him. And if Jed saw me in wolf form, he would assume I was the killer and it wouldn't be a dart he would shoot me with.
I'd seen Jed in action. He was a good tracker, even without the scent abilities I was privy to. He would eventually hunt me down. But then I didn't intend on hiding.
A faceless enemy is much scarier than a known one. Now that I knew my enemy, I planned to give him a run for his money.
Chapter 19
I was getting used to being woke up by my phone, so when it rang at eight o'clock the next morning, I wasn't surprised at all. Out of it, yes, but not surprised. Fumbling, I tried to get the phone open before it woke the whole house.
"Taz, here."
"Hey Taz, it's Brian."
My mind drew a complete blank. "Brian?"
A dry laugh came over the phone. "It's a sad thing when someone you've known for years doesn't even know your first name."
By this time the voice recognition ability of my brain kicked in. "Sorry, Dunwood...uh, Brian. I'm not sure I've ever heard you called that before."
"Don't worry about it, half the town thinks my first name is Sheriff." He hesitated. When he spoke again, his voice was deadly serious. "There's been another wolf attack. McCormick's Creek this time. A hiker. I'm calling to let you know the park is shut down until we catch the wolf. The forestry too. Now would be a really good time to purchase a YMCA membership if you don't already have one. Do your running there, okay?"
I swallowed. He wasn't asking for Rebel. This was so not good. "How is the hiker?" I knew within reason, but there was always hope.
"Dead." Or not. "Young man by the name of Russell. His mom is devastated. Her only child."
My heart skipped a beat. "Not Russell Paine?"
Silence from his end of the line. Then he said, "You knew him?"
"Yeah, he worked over at the mill part time cleaning. I just saw him the other day. I drove him home after work. His mom was worried about the wolf attack and his walking. He was a good person."
My brain did a quick calculation. "Wait a minute, didn't you say the murder was in the park? That's a good four miles from his house. He wouldn't have been walking that far out in the cold."
"I don't know what to tell you, Taz. That's where we found him."
A sick feeling started to grow in the pit of my stomach. Please, Creator, don't let the killer be sending me a message, too.
"When do you want me and Reb for the search?" I held my breath, fingers crossed.
"Sorry, Taz, you're going to have to sit this one out. Reb too. With two confirmed wolf kills, they've brought in the big boys complete with bloodhounds. If luck is on our side, we'll have the wolf and owner in custody before the day is out."
"I really hope so, Dunwood," I said. "Be real careful out there, okay? You still owe me a night on the town. That is, if you still want to... I mean...," my voice trailed off as I struggled to find an explanation for Item number four, but then it was pretty much self-explanatory. So I just stopped talking.
I swear I could feel the heat of his blush through the phone line. "Look, I'm sorry about yesterday. It's just that I—no I can't explain it. It was silly of me to run off like that. I figured after that I wouldn't stand a chance against the handsome ranger. You know there's something vaguely wrong with that phrase."
"You're probably thinking of handsome stranger." I thought about addressing the Jed issue, but really what could I say? Naw, he's out now that he shot me? That'd go over good.
"Must be it. I'll call you when we get things straightened out," he said. "And Taz?"
"Yeah, Dunwood?"
"Thanks. I really needed something to look forward to today." He rang off, and I sat holding the phone. Creator, please protect him. He really is a good man.
Sitting there, I ran through my options. I grabbed a small notebook from my purse and copied my to do list. Item one was done. The Luparii was present and accounted for. Item two was still outstanding, but not only was I out of the loop, I wasn't even allowed in the park or forestry. If I tried to sneak in via fur form, I'd become the prime target and never be able to prove my innocence. Besides, I really don't think Dunwood would make it if he shot a wolf and it turned back into a lifeless me.
Item four was now out of the question unless I reconsidered Mason, and item five was taken care of. Providing of course that Lilith would take an IOU as I'd left her nice gift bag and card on my kitchen counter. So that left work. But in the daytime, the mill workers would be there, and with the wolf attacks, they wouldn't be receptive to my model. Besides, Jed knew about my job and might be waiting for me there.
I considered telling Mason about Jed. As far as the FBI were concerned, though, they were dealing with a single killer. They didn't realize they were tracking an entire order of assassins. If Jed could prove an alibi for even one of the killings, he would be off the hook. And chances were good he didn't do all of them. I really hoped he had told me the truth. I didn't want to live the rest of my life knowing that I'd kissed the man who killed my family.
Rose peeked her head around the corner into the living room. "I thought I heard your phone. Curiosity got the better of me, dear."
I scooted over to one end of the couch to make room for her, too. "It was Dunwood. There was another fatal attack last night." I told her everything, right down to my fears that the killer somehow knew about the Benandanti and was sending me a message. Russell just wouldn't have been walking in the park. He walked to work and back and to the little country store for his mom, but never farther than that. I could see Mrs. Paine standing out on her porch, waiting for Russell and tears filled my eyes. Poor Russell.
Rose put her arms around me and allowed me to cry myself out. Afterward, I did feel better, though no less sad.
My eyes still watery, I looked up at Rose. "I'll find him and make him pay, Rose. I swear it."
She shook her head at me. "No, dear. We'll find him and make him pay. You're not alone anymore. We'll do this together." She patted my hand. "Now, you go get cleaned up and dressed. I'll fix breakfast and the three of us will eat and decide our next course of action together."
I sniffed, new tears forming as I shuffled off to Rose's bathroom and a warm shower. Together sure had a nice ring to it.
I WAS POURING JUICE into glasses when Lilith walked into the kitchen and I nearly spilled an entire glass. She was wearing gray leggings and a bulky burgundy sweater that fell down to her mid-thighs, and not a lick of makeup. Not even her black lipstick. She looked—normal. Well, almost normal. Her hair was still far too black to be natural, but still, she looked good.
She smiled when she saw my reaction. "Hey, Gran says we're family now. So I guess you can see the other me and still live to tell about it. Although, just to be sure...don't talk about it, 'K?"
All I could do was nod. I'd been struck dumb.
Rose had fried some eggs for Rebel's breakfast. He grinned up at her as she scraped them out of the pan and into a bowl, nuzzled her hand in thanks and dug in.
"Don't get used to it. It'll be Kibbles and no complaints tonight, fellow." He looked at me and stuck out his tongue. Oh for the days when I thought I had a normal dog.
Rose put a plate of pancakes on the table along with a bottle of maple syrup. For a minute, I waited for her to add the meat, then remembered. She did add a bowl of strawberries and cut up melon, though. What I wouldn't give for a half dozen slices of bacon right now. Or sausage links. Now sausage links smothered in syrup...there was my idea of a good filling breakfast. I stared at my plate then filled it with fruit and carbs.
Lilith was the first to break the silence. "I know this is going to sound selfish and it's really not. I'm just wanting
to know for informational purposes, okay? But...are we still doing the whole birthday thing tonight?"
I gasped. Wednesday, Thursday, crap, today was Friday. "I totally lost track of the days. Happy Birthday, Lilith."
"Thanks," she grinned. "So I guess I shift tonight, huh?"
"Lord willing, yes," Rose said. "And it's not something we could put off even if we wanted to, dear. Which we don't, of course. At nine o'clock tonight you step into your new role in life. I'm afraid it will happen whether we prepare for it or not. So let's get things as straight as we can today so we'll have tonight to truly celebrate." She paused. "You have read my instructions on how to change back, right?"
"Sure thing, Gran. Otherwise, I'll be stuck until I fall asleep, right?" Lilith sounded a little too perky this morning, and it was freaking me out big time. My intuition said she was really looking forward to a big I told you so tonight around 9:05. Wouldn't she be surprised who got to say it?
"Yup, or until you faint like I did my first time. I knew it was for real after watching my mom change, but I still freaked when it happened to me. Just stay calm and remember to breathe, okay? Once you learn to control it, it isn't nearly as frightening. It's actually fun, having two forms you can choose between. Just don't judge right away, okay?"
Lilith looked at me and rolled her eyes. I'd obviously overdone it with the advice. "I'll be fine, I promise," she said.
"So," I said, changing the subject, "how do we go about straightening things out? Do you have a plan in mind?"
"Nothing definite. I thought I'd help Lily try to narrow down the search for the skin-walker, while you and Reb take a nice run in my woods. You need to burn off some of that energy before you burst. You're positively bouncing in your chair."
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