Raven, Red

by Connie Suttle

  "I guess that's why Janie's worried about a massacre."

  "With the myths and legends about werewolves, not to mention books, television shows and movies freely available to spread misinformation, most people will shoot first and ask questions later. Not that shifters wouldn't be a danger to humans, if their lives are threatened," Mac qualified his statement. "Human meat is still meat, but it brings too much trouble with it. Easier to feed off deer, rabbits and other wildlife that nobody else will miss or send out a hunting party to find. Humans have developed weapons to kill shifters from a distance."

  "Like Ari's father."

  "Yes. It's safer for shifters to blend in with the human population; it ensures that they're able to survive in places with shrinking wild country, although a few reside in large cities. They prefer more open spaces if they can afford it, or suburbs if they can't."

  "Is it weird that Janie's family raises cattle?"

  "You'd be surprised at how many shifters raise meat animals," Mac replied. "I once knew a fox shifter who owned a poultry farm in Spain."

  "Irony," Nico snorted a laugh.

  "He liked his chickens more than he liked people, and not necessarily in the culinary sense," Mac grinned. "Had a clever sense of humor, that one."

  "Aren't foxes known for that?"

  "That's the rumor I've always heard."

  "Mona, thank you for volunteering to go with Val and the others," Janie told her. "Take a seat. Ari and I are having an afternoon snack."

  Mona nodded to Ari and took a seat near hers. Janie set a fresh cup of coffee at her elbow, then joined them at the kitchen island.

  "What's the latest on the Franks' cattle?"

  "Word is they'll have to be destroyed—they're all infected from being packed so close together."

  "Idiots," Mona echoed Ari's critique of Janie's neighbors. "Is that gun-happy old man going to do the honors?"

  "I don't know what the plan is," Janie sighed, staring out the kitchen window toward the back yard. "I just want it to stay away from our side of the fence."

  "Will you have some of the hands guarding the fence tonight, while Val and the vamps are out?"

  "He's already made arrangements," Janie nodded, holding her coffee mug in both hands to sip its contents.

  "Good. Every time I think of those people, I get the willies."

  "I just feel soul-burning anger," Ari muttered.

  "I'm pissed and worried at the same time," Janie admitted. "If they cost us our herd, you can bet Burke will get involved and a lawsuit will be filed. There's an attorney in his firm that specializes in this sort of thing."

  "You think the Franks have insurance?" Mona asked. "I doubt they have enough money in the bank to handle a loss like this."

  "I have no idea. They sure weren't spending money on ranch hands to tend their cattle properly. They have plenty of land—they just didn't want to travel more than a few hundred yards to feed and water any of them. Val says their windmills aren't working and the ponds are mostly dried up. Penning the animals was Denton's way of dealing with the situation, instead of looking for somebody to do repairs or dig new wells."

  "You're saying those animals have stood in slop and feces, packed in like sardines?" Ari growled.

  "Yes. We probably should have asked the Feds or an animal rights group to check the place before now, but we didn't want to get any closer to them than necessary," Janie made a wry face. "Calling the Sheriff and the county was a waste of time. Neither Val nor I have any sympathy for the men in that family."

  "I've never met Denton's wife, but I have only anger and condemnation for Mitchell and Denton." Ari's hand shook as she lifted her coffee mug to drink.

  "Ari, if you'd like to change for a while," Janie offered.

  "Thank you. Will it upset you?" She pointed her question at Mona.

  "Not unless I'm on the menu."

  "You're not. I'm not hungry—just mad, and you'd never be on the menu anyway."

  "Then we're good." Mona sipped coffee.

  "I'll be back in a few," Ari said and walked out of the kitchen.

  "Mac, we may have trouble," Nico called out from his chair by the window. "It looks like the neighbor's truck just pulled into the driveway."

  "What the hell?" Mac reached the game room window in three long strides, pulling back the curtain to see the truck parked in the drive. It still bore the damage that Ari had done to it only a few days earlier.

  "We should probably get down there," Mac let the curtain fall before turning and heading for the door and the stairs beyond.

  Nico rose and hurried to follow, clattering down the stairs in Mac's hurried wake. He nearly slid off the bottom step when Mac shouted—at Ari's mountain lion.

  Her tail-tip curving and whipping in anger, Nico could see she was more than agitated as he held onto the bottom newel post to regain his balance.

  "Arianne, I don't need to tell you what kind of trouble this will bring if you go to the door," Mac lectured.

  Ari growled, her tail whipping faster after the scolding.

  "Janie and I will handle this," Mac snapped, before stalking toward the front door.

  "Ari, you need to stay back here," Nico hissed at her. "Janie doesn't need them accusing her of having a wild animal in her home."

  "Grrrr-owlllll," Ari argued, the sound deep in her throat as she bared large, sharp teeth at Nico. Nico's eyes widened in shock. Ari turned away after seeing her friend become fearful. With tail still curling in anger, she padded toward the hallway where her bedroom lay. Bite them if they upset Janie, Ari instructed Nico. Claw them if they try to come in the house.

  I'll leave that to Mac, Nico replied, his sending shaky. I hear his kind like eyeballs.

  Sounds great. Tell him to do that with my blessings.

  I'll—be sure to let him know.

  "What do you want, Denton?" Mac watched as Janie crossed arms tightly over her chest. He could feel the waves of anger coming off her; her wolf wanted out to tear into this idiot human, who had no clue how close to death he could actually be.

  "I know it was you who called the feds," Denton snapped. "We're gonna lose all our cattle because of it."

  "You think you could pass those steers and yearlings off as healthy at a cattle auction?" Janie huffed. "You're pretend ranchers, you know that? You and that joke masquerading as your father. You're lucky nobody was following the trail of dead cattle you've been hauling out of here at night. Did you think the auction service wouldn't notice sick animals when they came out to video your livestock for sale? Or, were you hoping you could pay a bribe or two and get past that?"

  Denton's mouth hung open in shock. "I think you hit the nail square on the head," Mac told Janie as he gently pulled her out of the way. "I believe you'll be hearing from the Jordan's attorneys regarding compensation, should any of their herd become infected," Mac told Denton, as he took a step toward the other man. "And we'll certainly pass on information that a bribe may have been offered. My suggestion is that you don't make this worse by overstaying your welcome here today."

  "This isn't over," Denton pointed a finger at Mac as he backed away from the door.

  "Of course it isn't—how long before you lose the property, Franks?" Mac demanded.

  "Shut the hell up. You'll be sorry for this, I promise you," Denton shouted as he jerked his truck door open and climbed in.

  Denton slammed the truck door. The rearview mirror, barely hanging on after Ari damaged it, dropped with a crash of metal and broken glass onto the concrete driveway.

  "Idiot," Janie snapped as Denton put the truck in gear and squealed away.

  "Is it too much to hope his transmission falls out going over the cattleguard at that speed?" Mac mused.

  "He'll just blame us for that, too," Janie snapped. "Shut the door. I need a drink."

  Ari, still in mountain lion form, paced and growled inside her bedroom. Every time she thought of Janie, the pain formed between her shoulder blades.

  Was Janie in
danger? She was planning to stay at the ranch while Val went with the others to find Hunter Pace.

  Ari growled low, until she envisioned Janie going with Val while she stayed at the ranch. The pain between her shoulders faded.

  Janie needs to go with Val tonight, Ari sent to Nico. If she doesn't, I think she'll be in danger here.

  Why do you think that? Mac entered the conversation.

  Because of the pain I get when I think of her staying here. I should stay here instead. You're an asshole, by the way.

  Because I kept you from making a fool of yourself again?

  My assessment still stands, whether I make a fool of myself or not.

  Look, I understand that the full moon is close. Just—keep your wits about you if you stay here tonight.

  Fine.

  Maybe Renault should stay here, too, Nico pointed out.

  Well, it couldn't hurt, Mac agreed.

  You don't trust me, do you? Anger was evident in Ari's mental voice.

  So far, we haven't seen much restraint, Mac's sending was dry.

  You can fuck right off, Mac Flynn.

  We shouldn't be fighting amongst ourselves, Nico warned. It will give the Adversary an advantage he shouldn't have.

  Right now, the Adversary is Denton and Mitchell Franks.

  The real one will arrive soon enough—he's already out there, Ari, Mac retorted. While I understand this is all strange and new to you, I've been fighting this same battle for centuries.

  Just—leave me alone, all right?

  We'll leave you alone for now, Nico ended the mental argument.

  Mac hated how guilty he felt every time he argued with Ari. Can't be because you have you have an ulterior motive for shoving her away from Nico—and from you, too, the small voice reminded him.

  Shut up, he told himself and followed Janie to the bar for a drink.

  "Will you be okay if we ah, have to stay through the full moon?" Lance asked Laronda quietly as they boarded the stranded yacht.

  "We'll make arrangements if we have to," she replied. "This isn't our first rodeo, and probably won't be our last."

  "All right. If you need help or a guard or something," he said, stepping across the deck where the evidence markers lay. They'd dressed in haz-mat suits before boarding and doubled up on the gloves required.

  "How long were they dead on the deck?" Lance squatted next to Del, who studied the outlines of body-shaped red slime on the surface.

  "Not sure," Del replied. "So far, this is the first time we've seen anything like this."

  "You think it's because they were in direct sunlight?"

  "I can't even speculate about that," Del grunted as he rose from his crouched position.

  "Got a report," Laronda handed her phone to Del.

  "Looks like somebody had the same thought," Del passed the phone to Lance, who'd also risen to his feet. "They exposed one of the bodies found on the deck to a sunlamp—looks like the body is turning to red jelly."

  "That's—sick," Lance thumbed through the text and images on Laronda's phone. "Do you think the sunlight is neutralizing the disease—or making it easier to spread around?"

  "They're still working on that," Laronda replied. Lance handed her phone back with a nod.

  "Ready to go below deck?" Del asked.

  "I thought you'd never ask," Laronda sniped sarcastically.

  "Can you send that information to Mona?" Lance asked as they made their way toward the steps. "Maybe she'll see something we don't."

  "I can do that." Laronda tapped on the cell phone for a few moments before Lance heard the swooshing sound of a message sent.

  "You got good reception out here—my phone may as well be dead," Lance told her.

  "We have good reception in a lot of places," Laronda offered a tight smile. "Come on, let's go see if the former residents left anything behind that will help us out, here."

  "Gone native?" Val asked as Ari's big cat walked past him on his way to the kitchen.

  A tail twitch was her only reply.

  "Wish I could do the same," he called out after her. "I've been itchy and out of sorts all day."

  "Because Denton Franks decided to pay us a visit," Janie greeted him in the kitchen. "No, she didn't get involved—Mac and I handled the fool and sent him packing. Val, I think he may have paid a bribe to get those cattle sold at auction," she added.

  "I'll mention that to the USDA agent. They're pretty pissed about this. Wish we'd known it sooner."

  "You have Renault to thank for finding it when he did."

  "What do you buy a vampire who has everything? As a thank you?" Val mumbled as he lifted a stack of mail off the counter and leafed through it.

  "The vet has the bullet that killed our heifer—pulled it out during the autopsy. He's waiting for the Sheriff to pick it up," Janie said.

  "Clint McCullough is famous for losing evidence and turning a blind eye," Val grumped as he dropped the stack of mail back on the counter. "Appears to be letting his son run wild—I heard the kid was picked up with two other students at their high school for destruction of school property. All three were released afterward, without even a slap on the wrist."

  "No surprise there," Janie sniffed. "The vet sent pictures and as much information as he could in an email. I think he expects the bullet to get lost, too."

  "He's had dealings with Clint before. No idea how the man keeps getting elected."

  "I do. He pays and then takes kickbacks," Janie said. "Any election is for sale, if you have enough money."

  "True enough. What's this I hear about you coming with us tonight?"

  "Ari and Nico think I should. Ari will stay here, and I hope Renault stays with her—in case Denton or Mitchell want revenge of some kind."

  "The Franks better stay on their side of the fence," Val growled. "Penning up our herd on the east side wasn't easy, and that grass wasn't ready for them to graze again this soon. We're just now getting hay baled in the northwestern fields—we need that for the winter months."

  "They had no idea what they were doing, and they've not only killed their herd because of it, they've put ours in danger, too. I asked Mary Kate to cook chicken fried steak for us tonight—may as well have our favorite meal—it's the only thing that could go well on this day."

  "Have you heard anything from Lance?"

  "Laronda sent some pics of red gunk left behind after zombies were left in direct sunlight. I have no idea what they walked into with this new breakout. Laronda will need someplace to change tomorrow night. I hope she's able to find a safe place if they have to stay through the full moon."

  "I'm sure she's dealt with this before, and her partner is used to it—he said so."

  "I hope the vamps have taken care of—you know."

  "Claudio did it himself—nobody in that group will reveal what or where we are, Mom."

  "Good. I should have known you'd take care of things."

  "Do I have time to clean up before dinner's ready?"

  "If you can do it in fifteen."

  "I'm heading for the shower now."

  "I'm not upset that they're leaving me here," Renault assured Ari. She'd changed back to eat dinner with the others; now, she and Renault watched as Janie's SUV and Burke's van drove toward the ranch entrance. "Alejandro and Claudio can deal with this easily enough."

  "I hope Nico can make the boy feel safe enough leaving his aunt—if meeting other werewolves doesn't convince him of that."

  "Once he scents them, I think it will go smoothly," Renault reassured her. "Now, it is time for me to walk the fence between this ranch and the neighbors', eh?"

  "I'll keep my phone with me in case there's trouble," Ari told him.

  "I don't expect trouble—the visit earlier was only bravado and idiocy wrapped together," Renault said. "Nevertheless, I will let you know if anything out of the ordinary occurs. I also believe that Val's wolves will be placed strategically between the divider fence and the house."

  "Barbed wire is
a good idea—until it isn't," Ari shook her head. "I'd go with you tonight, but."

  "It is too dangerous," Renault agreed. "Rest assured, I will only notify you if things have gone beyond my talent to rectify."

  "Renault," Ari placed a hand on his arm as a familiar pain struck between her shoulders. "Don't wait. If something doesn't look right, send the message fast."

  "If you insist." Renault surprised her by patting her hand, rather than removing it. Most vamps didn't like being touched unless they invited it, and Ari hadn't realized it until she'd already done just that.

  "Stay safe," Ari called out as Renault faded quickly into the darkness. Then, pulling the front door shut, she bolted it, patted the phone in the pocket of her jeans to make sure it was there, and went to find a book to read in Janie's library.

  "Swindall is a wide place in the road between Comanche and Blanket, north of Highway 377," Val explained to Claudio, who sat in the front passenger seat. Janie had chosen to sit in the back while Mac, Nico and Alejandro rode in Burke's van, which traveled the road in front of them.

  "I take it the boy's home is in a rural area?" Claudio asked.

  "Very, according to Burke. He says it's confusing, unless you're a local—or a wolf."

  "Some choose a rural life for that very reason," Claudio agreed.

  "I don't know about your kind, but my kind definitely prefer a rural existence," Val responded.

  "As do many of mine, although they are always near a post office or mail facility. We must eat, you know."

  "We do, too," Janie spoke from the back seat. "There are many of us who raise meat animals—it's insurance against lean times, if they come."

  "A wise decision."

  "You're worried about what's coming, aren't you?" Val gripped the steering wheel tightly for a moment.

  "Yes. It will become much worse before it gets better. In all the knowledge that I have gathered, these—zombie-like creatures have only appeared once before, and then only for a short time. This is not a good omen, my friend."