Tales Of The Sazi 05 - Moon's Fury (25 page)

Leaning forward with obvious interest, Lucas smelled pleased and slightly amused, but he didn't know why. It was then that Adam noticed he could actually smell Lucas, who now revealed an underlying scent of cactus fruit and prairie grass, along with sweet curiosity. And, like at the restaurant, he was keeping his power inside. Actually, he realized he scented Lucas in the outer room, sharing the pain and anger of the wounded pack. It had probably helped him be allowed to walk through the building unmolested, where the Wolven cologne might be a liability when everyone's nerves were on edge.

"No, please go ahead. What did she find?”

Adam told them all about her conversation with the attorney, and how she'd tied it together with the missing animals. "She told me as soon as she can hook up with Will, she's going to check out the property.”

Lucas turned his attention to Bobby, who was taking notes in a strange sort of shorthand that was nothing more than squiggles and swirls. It wasn't the sort secretaries used to write—his mother had done some typing for an old lawyer when he was a child, and that was different, though no more legible, than Bobby's. Still, he seemed to understand it, because he was reading back over it from time to time, mouthing words. "Bobby, when you get there, check to see if she's gone out with Will yet. That's Sam Cloudsfall's present identity, by the way—Will Kerchee. He's a Texas Ranger. If Will hasn't been able to fit it in, take an afternoon and help her out. But remember it's her territory and she's a fellow agent. It's her game down there, so if she doesn't want your help, back off. But," He raised a finger and pointed at Giambrocco. "Tony's session goes on with or without her permission. That's straight from Charles. I'll let her know that when I talk to her.”

The Chief Justice had ordered Ziri be questioned? This was sounding like a lot bigger deal than he'd first thought. Was there more to this than a simple case of rogue birds?

Lucas stood up and pushed back his chair. "Okay, time for you guys to take off…before the other pack members get here. I think they've seen enough of you two for awhile.”

Before he could even register the thought in his brain, Adam took a step forward and spoke, the inflection in his voice flat and commanding.
"No.”

Lucas raised his chin and motioned to the others to obey, as though he was expecting the interruption. Confusion roiled through Adam as he tried to figure out why he stopped Bobby and Tony from leaving. The older wolf must have noticed. "You're not sure why you're feeling so aggressive, right?

Trying to figure out why you're countermanding my orders?”

All he could do was nod, furrow his brows, and try to figure out how to respond.

"You're an Alpha in your prime, and there are unattached wolves nearby. You're seeing me as a threat, even though it's not on a conscious level. Growling at me for being in the center chair, taking the final word on directions…that's all the wolf talking. The best thing to do is ride with it. Those who might challenge you for the top slot are going to be aggressive to you now—meet your gaze, snarl, or growl. You'll probably have a few fights on your hands during the next days if you stay.”

Adam blew out a slow breath. It made sense and yet it didn't. "But I've never wanted the pack. I've been content to be Josef's Second.”

That pulled a laugh from all three men, but it was Lucas who spoke. "You've been content to be Second because Josef
convinced
you that you were—as part of the pack binding. I've done it myself with some of the more aggressive members of my pack. In centuries past, the newly crowned Alpha would simply take on all comers, defeating…and usually
killing
the lesser alphas. Leadership challenges are to the death, after all. But that's tricky to explain in today's world, so the council recommends to new alphas that they
first
try to use magic to lessen the aggression of powerful alphas in their pack. But without Josef here, the need to rule is starting to eat at you. And it will eat at others, too." He paused significantly. "But that's not why you stopped them from leaving, is it?”

While Lucas had been talking, Adam had tried to think just what did make him stop the pair from leaving. Yes, there was something to what Lucas said about feeling aggressive, but that wasn't everything.

"I need to see for myself." He dipped his chin to Tony. "You can do that, right? You can let me see what
really
happened here yesterday…with your gift?”

Tony shrugged. "Yeah. Can't imagine why you'd want to, but I can do it." He glanced around the room as though looking for something. "Here's as good as any, I guess. Bobbo, how about you go sit on the other side of the room. I doubt you're interested in a rerun.”

"No lie." The tall African stood up and walked over to join Lucas at the wet bar in the corner. Tony looked at him again and started to pull off his gloves, tugging to get the tight leather peeled off his fingers. "Okay…choose your victim.”

"Excuse me?" Adam felt his brows raise as he stepped closer. "What do you mean?”

Lucas responded. "Hindsight is a very unusual seer gift. Instead of seeing random flashes of some unknown future, the seer is drawn into a past scene—through the visceral experiences of a person who lived it. He can touch a person and sift through their memories, then use his gift to project those events to a third party. So, you'll be able to view the events that person lived.”

"View…
yeah right," replied Tony dryly after an intentional snort. "Don't expect just a simple viewing. Maybe other seers get lucky and just get visuals. But so far I can't do that. I'm too new at this to do much more than pause, rewind and fast forward, if I can even make them dredge it up. No, you'll be getting a roller-coaster ride of sights, sounds, smells, and sensations. You'll feel every claw tearing your skin and taste sweat, blood, and bile on your tongue. You'll hate it or enjoy it, just as that person did, so pick carefully who you want to be attached to, or you might see a lot more than you want. The victim …I mean,
subject
won't notice a thing, but unfortunately,
we
can't pull out of there until they're done with the event. Memories are sort of like podcasts—short loops of time that replay when triggered. Freud would have been fascinated with some of the things I've learned.”

"Freud?" Adam couldn't keep the surprise from his voice. "You've heard of Freud?”

The scent that rose from Tony was a blend of amusement and annoyance, a caramel citrus mix, even though his face was a blank slate. "Uh, yeah. Psychology minor, business major, in case you care. Testing the soundness of his theory of unintentional verbal utterances being attached to memories, what most people call Freudian Slips, has become a bit of a hobby of mine lately.
Anyway
…the best I can do is fast forward a memory pod, and that's a case by case thing. Oh, and you won't really be sure while it's happening that you're going to survive." He chuckled lightly as he tucked the gloves inside the pocket of his jacket. "I'm your ticket inside the world's most realistic video game …no quarters necessary. If I could find some way to market this shit to EA Games, I'd be a friggin' billionaire." The smile he gave had more than a little challenge to it. "Sure you're up to taking a dip in
my
pool, tough guy?”

Adam ignored the sarcasm. He was starting to realize he might not be giving the man in front of him enough credit. Perhaps there was a good reason why Lucas trusted him enough to send him here. He felt his chin dip once, sharply and squared his shoulders. "Whatever my wolves endured, I'll endure. You were both there. Who would be the best person to view through? Someone who was there from beginning to end.”

Tony looked over at Bobby, who shrugged. "How about that one wolf who met us at the door?" Tony suggested, "The little blonde with the short hair who's been cleaning up—she was the one who did your hand, right? I know she gave me the claw to the face.”

"Yeah," replied Bobby with a skeptical look. "She'd be a good pick, if you've got a strong stomach. But she was probably most strongly under Josef's control, so I'm not really sure how much she'll remember. What was her name again? Jane? Julie?”

"Jill?" As much as he didn't want to, he felt himself stiffen. Jill seemed so terribly traumatized by the event. But maybe that was the point. If she was there the longest—"You're sure it won't hurt her? I don't want to cause any damage.”

"Actually, it'll probably
help."
Tony seemed confident, almost casual about his ability and Adam felt himself being persuaded, almost against his will. "I can bury the memories pretty deep when I leave, so it'll be like forgetting the details of childbirth—or so I'm told. Personally, if
that's
what childbirth is like, I'll stay home and send my wife in a cab so she doesn't rip my face off.”

Bobby laughed but it had a nearly fearful edge. "At least your wife is human, so she isn't physically capable of ripping off your face. Mine is not only capable, but occasionally
eager.
I think I'll be hiring you to make Asri forget all about it. She's not the forgiving type." He looked directly at Adam and shuddered. "Don't ever knock up a Komodo dragon, kid. The fun isn't worth the pain." He stood up before Adam could ask more about this woman Bobby had tied himself to. He nearly opened his mouth to ask when he realized it would only avoid what was to come. It was so much easier to banter and tell war stories than to walk into the war.

"Speaking of pain, let's do this." Adam's voice sounded flat to his own ears, and it sobered the mood in the room.

"I'll go get her.”

Adam could hear murmuring in the corridor outside as Bobby opened the office door, which disappeared when the latch closed again. He realized just how well insulated the room really was and it seemed strange he never noticed it before. After a deep sigh, he raised his hands before asking the obvious question. "So, what now?”

Once again Tony shrugged. "Bobby comes back with the woman, you do the touchy-feely stuff to make her feel comfortable, and she sits down on the love seat with me. I'll ask her one or two questions to jumpstart the memory you want. Soon as I touch her, the game starts. Her eyes will shut—

that's my own twist on these sessions, by the way. It's probably not necessary, but it helps the person focus, and other people keep their distance. Now, once that happens, I'll hold out my hand." Tony paused and lowered his voice until it was a warning rumble and pointed one finger at him. His scent became filled with determination's hot metal with a hint of burnt coffee anger. "
Do
not,
under any circumstances, touch me
until
I hold out my hand. The last two people who did that got a bullet in the head. They were damned lucky I came to before I pulled the trigger a second time.”

Adam fought down his initial response at Tony's scent and words, which was to leap forward and reach for the man's throat, make him show more respect. Wow! Lucas wasn't kidding about feeling overly aggressive. He managed to tense his muscles and remain in place and keep his voice calm, but there was tension at the edges that he struggled to control. "I don't like that. I'd prefer you put your sidearm out of reach.”

The smile in reply was a baring of teeth and the words sarcastic with a distinct Italian accent. His scent was calm, but hovered on the edge of hostility. "No. I'm a fucking three-day, who'll be in a trance and will be surrounded by people who have already tried to rip my face off.
Capisce?
I don't think so. Next question.”

Behind Adam, Lucas let out a sigh. "Tony keeps his gun during sessions. End of discussion.”

What in the world sort of hold did Tony have over the Wolven chief to make him continue to side with him over caution? Adam shook his head and held up placating hands. He was glad they were on the same side, but really didn't want to deal with him ever again.

He opened his mouth, but was saved from responding when the door opened. Jill was nearly shaking as she entered the room and began to rub her arms. No doubt she was feeling the sting of magic from so many Alphas gathered in the same place. Lesser wolves would often avoid pack headquarters altogether when Josef was in one of his moods.

She flicked her eyes up briefly to meet his before lowering them again and ammonia panic flowed in a rising wave. "Have I done something wrong, Alpha?”

The trembling in her voice made him soften his reply and project an aura of warmth and concern.

"No, of course not, Jill." He held out his hand and stepped toward her. "There's nothing to be afraid of. I'm just trying to find out a little more about what happened, and these gentlemen said you were there when they arrived. We'd just like to ask you a couple of questions, if that's okay.”

She nodded, almost shyly and offered her hand. It was sweating and cool and her scent such a chaotic mess of emotions that he began to sneeze.

"I'm sorry." She winced just a bit. "I'm trying to control them, but I just can't seem to manage it.”

"Maybe I can help you." Tony's voice had gone soft and warm, giving Adam even more insight into the man. "How about you sit down here and I'll see what I can do about that. I'm a healer of sorts.”

Jill's eyes rose hopefully and then noticed the gashes on Tony's face. A hand flew to her mouth.

"Oh my lord! Your face! You're a healer? But you're not healed yet." Shock and sadness drifted to the top of the pile of scents.

Tony only smiled and it reached all the way to his eyes. "Nope. I'm not that sort of healer. I'm a three-day, just like you. But we're
both
going to be okay, right?" He patted the cushion next to him, leaned back into the posh leather, then crossed one ankle over his other knee and put an arm on the back of the love seat. It was a seemingly casual series of motions that Adam realized was carefully planned.

She nodded, shaky at first, but then with a little more confidence. "Yeah. We're going to be okay." She walked past Adam to sit next to Tony.

Once she was seated and looked reasonably comfortable, Tony began. "So, I know we went over this before, but now that Adam's here, I'm sure he'd like to hear it directly from you. About what time of day was it?”