“We have a theory about who’s behind the skinwalkers.”
The very mention of the word skinwalkers sent a bolt of anger through his body. His eyes flashed yellow and I could see the muscles in his jaw tighten. He held my gaze and I didn’t look away. After a slow exhale through his nose, his eyes returned to their usual dark color and he gave me a half smile.
“My apologies, there’s something in the air,” he said.
“No worries. So, here’s what we think is happening. Someone is trying to get you and the Creek to fight in order to weaken your packs. Then they’re planning to take over this area with their own pack. One comprised of skinwalkers. Any idea who that might be?”
“You didn’t look away?” he smiled.
“Huh?”
“It doesn’t matter. What leads you to believe that I’d know who was behind this?”
“Because we think it’s a lycan, one strong enough to be an alpha. A dominant wolf, if you will.”
“There are quite a few of those in the area, some in our packs, some not. That isn’t narrowing it down much,” he said.
“Okay. But surely some of them are more ambitious than others.”
“Most dominant wolves are ambitious. They all poke and prod in an attempt to find weakness in the current Alpha. I’m afraid I’ll need a bit more to go on.”
“Can you narrow it down to any wolves that you’ve had recent conflicts with?”
A wide smile crossed his face, “I’m over two hundred years old, boy, and I’m sure you and I have a very different definition of recent. Besides, challenges are practically a daily thing.”
The two hundred years old thing shocked me enough that I let the “boy” comment slide. As I said before, Gideon looked to be about fifty years old, and I’m sure the fact that he was in such incredible shape caused people to see him as a bit younger. Later, after we’d saved these kids, someone was going to have to explain lycan life spans to me.
“Fine, so they all challenge you all the time. But obviously someone as cunning as yourself would have a list of the most likely suspects?”
His smile turned to a smirk and I knew that my compliment had served me well. Dutton had remained quiet, watching as always. Although, his attention seemed to be more focused on me than Gideon. I wondered if he was worried I’d step over some line. Probably why the meeting was up here.
“How can you be so sure the Creek are not behind this?” he asked.
“We can’t. But even those nut jobs didn’t seem capable of something this gruesome. Not with children. This is a sickness way beyond wearing too much leather.”
“If that is true, then things are even more dire than you believe.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean that the Creek have been crippled. We struck this morning. While victorious, our pack has also suffered great losses. If there’s an outside party preparing to strike, now would be the opportune time,” he stated.
“Shit.”
“Exactly,” he agreed.
“Between that and tonight’s full moon, we’re running out of time.”
“So it would seem.”
“Look, we know this person is using some type of Native American ritual to make the walker skins. Is there any chance you have some medicine men among your dominates?”
“No, we have no Native…” he stopped, his eyes looking away briefly as he got lost in thought.
“What?”
His eyes again locked on mine, “Three years ago, there was a powerful wolf who challenged me for the pack. Obviously he was unsuccessful. But, his mate, she was a Navajo I think. The woman was a powerful witch. She attempted to assist him in the Alpha challenge. This, of course, disgraced him in front of the pack. He fled in shame before I could have him permanently dealt with.”
“Freddy?”
He cleared his throat before speaking. I got the impression that he wasn’t real comfortable. Perhaps Gideon was more intimidating in bright light.
“Yes. While, um, many Native tribes practiced the skinwalking rituals, the Navajo are probably the most well known. It is very possible that she knows what must be done,” Freddy said.
“Okay, so how do we find this guy?”
“Joshua was his name,” Gideon replied, “That was all I learned at the time. He fled into the Veil, after which I do not know. Wounded puppies are not normally worth keeping track of.”
“Can you tell us anything about him?”
“He was Brazilian, with bronze skin and black hair. He stood about six and a half feet tall and was heavily muscled. His wolf was jet black and he was incredibly strong. Not too bright, though,” Gideon smiled.
“Brazil, huh? That can’t be a coincidence.”
“Pardon?”
“We believe that the Reds came to town from Costa Rica. How much do you want to bet that they received a tip from a local Brazilian wolf?”
“While possible, Joshua was not a planner. I believe you are giving him too much credit,” Gideon replied.
“What about his woman?”
“Perhaps.”
“Okay, so we’re looking for a Brazilian wolf named Joshua and his Navajo medicine witch woman. Where does that leave us?”
The room was silent. Apparently my question sounded rhetorical. Or perhaps they were racking their brains like I was. We needed more information. I gave a quick glance towards my team.
“Freddy, give the Brazil team a call. See if either Joshua or this medicine woman raises any flags. Maybe we’ll get lucky and they were tracking them.”
Freddy nodded at Dutton and me before heading out to make his phone call. I then shrugged in Vector’s direction.
“Okay bro, I know it’s not much to work with, but see if you can find anything.”
Vector nodded and stepped over towards the corner before sliding his goggles on. His hands started their dance and I knew he was searching everywhere he could for our villains. I noticed that Dutton cracked a small smile when I called Vector “bro”. I wondered if he knew about our past already. But those were questions for another time. For now, before heading down and hoping that our prisoner had something useful, I tried to get anything else I could out of Gideon.
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but should we also ask the Creek if they know anything about this? They might have different information sources than you.”
“These would be the same information sources that failed to warn them that Reds were in town? Those sources that also failed to warn them to use caution as they exited the Circle? Or do you mean the sources, which had no idea I was attacking this morning?” he smiled.
“Good point. They’re not big on information. But right about now, anything might help. Is there anyone else in your pack that we can talk to? Someone who knew Joshua or hung out with him or something?”
“He was a lone wolf, never part of my pack. He showed up one day and challenged for my chair. There is nothing more I know about him.”
“Well, if you think of anything else, I’d appreciate it. In the meantime, perhaps we should think about getting you into protective custody. You are definitely going to be a target tonight.”
He held up his hand and smiled, “I appreciate the offer, but I do not believe it will be necessary. I’ve been doing this a long time, boy, I’ll be all right. Now, unless there is something else you need from me, I should begin preparations for a siege.”
“Nothing I can think of. Thanks for your help, Gideon.”
“My pleasure.”
With that he said his goodbyes to Dutton and made his way out. He stopped at the door and looked back over his shoulder first at me and then at Dutton.
“You’re right. He is the alpha,” he smiled.
Dutton laughed and Gideon stepped out the door. There was a weird sensation as he left, almost like a heaviness that had been hanging in the air had vanished. I hadn’t really noticed it before. But, I was pretty sure it was the actual force of his presence. Maybe that was why Fre
ddy was so nervous talking. I caught Dutton’s gaze and hoped he’d give me some kind of an explanation.
“Sir?”
“Yes?” Dutton replied.
“Um, was he saying that I’m a werewolf? Because Freddy and Erika made it clear that being bitten by a lycan isn’t contagious.”
“Don’t you have a prisoner to question?”
“Yes sir.”
Dutton didn’t say another word; he just gave me a look. I got Vector’s attention and we headed out of the office. Gideon and his Amazon were already gone, no sign of them in the hallway. I waved goodbye to Ms. No Nonsense as we left, and she ignored me. Hoping that my brother was a good multitasker, I wondered if he understood any more about what was going on in there.
“Did you catch that alpha comment?”
“Yup.”
“What the heck was he talking about?”
“You’re not a shifter, if that’s what you’re worried about,” he smiled.
“Good to know. So, why the alpha crack?”
“I think it was a compliment. He was probably referring to your personality. You do sort of dominate your team.”
“That’s not my fault. If I don’t put my foot down, they’ll let Freddy run the show.”
Vector laughed and continued moving his hands around as he searched the web for information. Our conversation didn’t seem to be distracting him in the least. I guess he could multitask. We jumped in the elevator and started the slow ride down to security. After he was done laughing, Vector spoke up.
“I’m sure the staring contest impressed him as well.”
“What staring contest?”
“The one where you kept looking him in the eyes,” Vector said.
“Yeah, where else would you look at someone?”
“Right, it’s how we engage in conversation. But Gideon is a wolf, a very old and very powerful wolf. In the animal kingdom meeting an alpha’s eyes can been seen as a challenge.”
“So, you’re saying I was challenging him to a fight back there?”
“Not a fight really. You were just making it clear that you do not fall under his authority. It’s not a bad thing. But it could be taken as a sign of aggression. Your way of letting him know he was on your territory.”
“Well, he was in our offices.”
“Exactly. But that doesn’t mean everyone has the strength of will to meet his gaze for long. Especially when he started to shift,” he said.
“Yeah, that was a bit weird huh?”
“It would seem the rage in the air is affecting him as well. Luckily for us, Gideon’s control is more than enough to keep it in check. I don’t think he liked the idea of lycan skinwalkers.”
“Can you blame him? I don’t even know these kids, and I want to kill the people responsible.”
“Understandable,” Vector nodded.
“You know, I could have sworn that when Gideon left the room, I could feel it. Was that his anger sitting in the air?”
“Not exactly. The alphas, or any dominant for that matter, can make their presence known. Think of it as a force of will. It’s part of how they control their wolves. That’s how Erika thinks Joshua is forcing the young wolves to change so that they may perform the ritual.”
“Interesting. How come I didn’t notice it right away?”
Vector laughed, “I guess your strong personality got in the way.”
“Good. That will be a nice warm up for the interrogation. If our prisoner doesn’t talk fast, he might find out just how alpha I am.”
Vector nodded, and the elevator doors opened on sub-level three.
CHAPTER 26
Just as it had looked before, the security office reception area sat empty, one guard behind the large sheet of bullet-proof glass. He was a young guy with dark hair and he buzzed us in. Just past evidence storage on our right there were a couple of interrogation rooms. Although, I guess technically they were called interview rooms. But why beat around the bush? A second door, past the interrogation room entrance, led to an observation room. Vector and I headed in there to look things over.
Our room was dark, and we could watch the interview through a one-way mirror. TanFour, in human form, sat facing us on the far side of a large metal table. His hands were cuffed to a ring in the table, and he looked just as weak as he had earlier. Talking to him were my two favorite GHOST officers, Mutt and Jeff. And just so you don’t think I’m being rude, I’m calling the girl Jeff.
They both wore dark suits and looked like generic FBI agents. She was in her early thirties, with sharp features, and her hair was cut short and efficient. Last time I dealt with them I learned that she was a shrink. According to her, a really good one. She stood up, arms crossed, her gaze fixed on our prisoner. Her partner was older, in his forties, with broad shoulders and a shaved head. He sat in the chair facing TanFour. One day I might care enough to learn their real names so I’d know what to yell when I’ve kicked them out of the room. But, this wasn’t some angry troll like last time. Our prisoner was weak, malnourished, and clearly spacey in the head. So, I gave the interrogators a second chance as Vector and I watched for a bit. It didn’t take long before we realized things weren’t going well.
The prisoner, whose name turned out to be Dougie, wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer. He giggled a lot and constantly rubbed his face against his cuffed hands. Adding that to the shakes made it fairly obvious that he was a hardcore drug addict. Most of his answers reinforced that fact. He commented on the pretty walls and the shiny cuffs and how his chair was eating him. It was clear that he didn’t understand a whole lot about what was going on. I almost felt sorry for him. That is, before they asked about the kids.
“Tell us about the children,” Mutt said.
“The pretties. So small,” Dougie giggled.
“Where are the kids?” Mutt tried.
“In the cages. We can’t let ‘em out yet. Not yet,” Dougie said.
“Why not?” Jeff, the lady, jumped in.
“Because they’ve been bad. Very bad,” he smiled.
“How were they bad?” Jeff asked.
“They have a wolf inside of them. Very bad. Have to get it out,” Dougie nodded.
“How do they get the wolves out, Dougie?” Mutt asked.
“They cut that nasty wolf out. Cut it right out. The kids yell and fight, but sometimes we help. We hold them down. We make sure the master can cut out the wolf,” he replied.
“Who’s the master, Dougie?” Jeff asked.
“She is the knife and we are her children,” Dougie laughed.
He broke into hysterics at that point, chuckling like a lunatic. It took Mutt and Jeff a bit of time before they could calm him down. Finally he relaxed enough for the questioning to continue.
“Where is the master, Dougie?” Jeff questioned.
“She’s waiting for us,” he replied.
“Where is she waiting?” Mutt said.
“With daddy wolf,” Dougie smiled.
“Where are the kids, Dougie? Where are they keeping them?” Jeff asked.
“They’re at home, with mommy knife. She cares for them. Keeps them in the cages until she can get all of the wolf out,” he said.
They went back and forth that way for a while. Every time it seemed like they might get more information, he would repeat the same thing a different way. It was clear that his mind had been fried from years of drug abuse. Watching how fragile he was, I didn’t know if I’d be a help or hindrance. Every time they pushed harder he clammed up. There had to be a better way. I looked over at Vector who was half watching and half searching his invisible web.
“Do you think we can give him something to clear his head?”
“Sadly, they already did. I can see in his file that they administered…” I cut him off.
“Then why isn’t he more lucid?”
“This might be as lucid as he gets,” Vector replied.
“There has to be a better way. Have you found anything?”
<
br /> “Nothing yet. We don’t have much to go on. I’m cycling through more camera data, hoping for another vehicle hit. Also trying to back track the SUV from earlier and see if I can find it at another location. So far, nothing helpful.”
“No word from Freddy yet, huh?”
“Nope. Looks like he’s still on the phone” Vector said.
“You can see that?”
“I can see a lot when I’m in here.”
“Come on, bro, find me something to work with.”
“I’m trying. But unless we find more than a Brazilian and a witch, I think we’re going to have problems,” he said.
I thought for a moment. Vector was running all kinds of visual recognition software. So, if we could get him a description, maybe he could find a building. I doubted Dougie could give an accurate enough account of his home, even if we could get him to talk about it. But maybe there was another way.
“Hey, can you see Danny from in there?”
Vector nodded and moved his hands before answering, “Yeah, he’s sleeping but stable. Looks like they have him on quite a few meds. Are you thinking what I think you’re thinking?”
“If he can pull a picture from Dougie's mind, can you work with that?”
“Hypothetically, but Dougie's mind is a mess and Danny is far from in top shape. I’m not sure he’ll be able to get us what we need,” Vector said.
“Only one way to find out. Let ‘em know we’re on our way.”
Vector nodded and I headed into the interrogation room. Mutt and Jeff’s expressions made it very clear how happy they were that I busted in.
“It seems like you’ve hit a dead end?”
“Give us time, we’re getting there,” Mutt said.
G.H.O.S.T. Teams (Book 2) Shifters Page 23
