The Gathering (18 page)

“You’re better off not knowing, Chad.”

“Maybe,” he said. “But Rayna asked for my
help and I gave it to her. I even kept her kidnapping to myself
instead of involving the rest of the department, just as she
requested. The least you could do is tell me what’s going on. You
owe me that much.”

He did owe him that much but it didn’t mean
he was going to tell. He stared at Chad and wished like hell he
could be honest with him. Wished he could tell him what he was,
what lurked in the dark in every city of the world, and what he
should do to protect himself from it. He’d stopped trusting humans
years ago. Stopped trusting anyone. He couldn’t afford to let
anyone into his world. It was dangerous for him. For the people who
knew what he was. It was why he hadn’t told Rayna when they
practically moved in together while they lived in Bluff’s Point.
Why he’d kept her in the dark.

But your secret almost got her killed.

Garrett sighed and looked across the room at
nothing in particular. The others were standing quietly at his
back. He glanced at them and Judith’s eyes flashed amber for a
brief second. “I have nothing to hide,” she said. “Nothing to
loose.”

“Judith.”

“It’s my choice. We need that address and if
this is how we have to get it, then so be it.”

Chad looked around Garrett at her. “What is
she talking about?”

Garrett stared at her and knew she was right,
as much as he hated to admit it. He either forced Chad to give up
his information, and lose his respect, or he told him
everything.

Turning back to his friend, he scrubbed a
hand over his face and sighed. “You’re going to wish you didn’t
know when you find out.”

“I doubt that.”

He glanced at Judith when she took a step
closer to him and he shook his head. “I’ll do it.”

“Are you sure?”

Garrett laughed and rubbed the back of his
neck, glancing down at his feet. “No, but he’s not going to give me
a choice.”

He looked up at Chad and stared at him for
long moments. “Just remember you asked for this.”

Garrett called the beast, letting him pull to
the surface enough for his eyes to change color, for the bones in
his face to shift slightly. When Chad went wide-eyed and gasped,
Garrett grinned, showing his fangs. “Aren’t you glad you asked
now?”

Chad’s reaction was instantaneous. He jumped
backwards, knocking into the computer desk and sending the papers
and books stacked on the side tumbling to the floor.

Garrett let the wolf slide back down until he
knew he looked normal again. “Sit down before you fall down.” He
reached out to grab Chad’s arm. His friend jerked away from him and
Garrett took several steps back and waited.

It took Chad three attempts before the words,
“What are you,” came out.

“For lack of a better word, a werewolf.”
Garrett watched Chad’s face and didn’t say anything else. They
stared at one another for long minutes. The house was quiet, the
ticking of a clock echoed in the silence and Garrett crossed the
room to put some distance between them.

When Chad had recovered, he took a deep
breath and released it. “Werewolves don’t exist.”

Garrett grinned. “I’ll assure you they do.”
He held up his hand, called the beast until his claws grew.
“There’s more, but if I do a complete shift, I’ll be stuck in that
form for a while.”

Chad blinked and looked to the others. “Are
they…?” The question hung in the air.

Judith let her eyes shift to wolf amber
before flashing back to normal. “We all are.”

The look on Chad’s face would have been
comical if Garrett had time enough to be amused. At the moment, he
didn’t. “I need that address, Chad. I have to get to Rayna before
the Collective sends her to her death.”

Chad stared at him sightlessly for long
moments before finally blinking. “Does she know? I mean about you?
That you’re a…” He laughed. “I can’t even say it.”

“She knows.”

“Is that why you left?” Chad took a step out
from behind the recliners, hesitated for a few seconds, and crossed
to the center of the room. His face looked stricken, like Garrett
had told him he had less than six months to live. He wasn’t
screaming like a girl so Garrett thought he was handling it pretty
well.

He glanced at the others before facing his
friend. “My pack, the other wolves I used to live with, lured Rayna
to them. They wanted to infect her. To make her one of us so she
could show the world we exist. When I found out, I went to get her
back. That’s why I left the day Reynolds told me Rayna and Mitch
left town. To make a long story short, Rayna was infected. That’s
why we didn’t come back. It’s not safe for us.”

“Infected? You mean she’s a werewolf
now?”

“Yes.”

Chad gasped, his eyes widening again. “And
Pierson? Her newsroom partner? He disappeared at the same
time.”

“Mitch. He’s infected, too. He’s still in
Wolf’s Creek.”

Chad shook his head and continued to stare.
“Why the hell didn’t you ever tell me?”

“I’ve never told anyone.”

“Did Rayna know? I mean, before they took
her. Did she know?”

“No.”

Chad looked surprised. “Is that why you broke
up with her?”

Garrett nodded. “That serial killer she
thought we had in Bluff’s Point was a werewolf and it was hunting
her. I figured the more distance I put between myself and her the
harder it would be for it to find her.”

Chad sighed and paced the room, glanced at
the others, and walked back to the computer. He stared at the image
on the screen. “Do you know how hard this is to believe?”

“Yes.”

“Werewolves are real.” It was more statement
than question so Garrett didn’t say anything. He knew it would take
Chad time to accept the truth and he still wasn’t sure why he’d
told him. He could have demanded the address and been half way to
where Rayna was being held now. “A lot of things are real.”

Chad lifted his head. “Like?”

“Other shifters. Werelions and panthers to
name a few. Witches. Real witches, not humans who dabble in black
magic. Vampires, demons. The list goes on.”

Chad pointed to the computer screen. “And
what is that thing?”

“A demon. A Kriladon, to be exact. Demon
breeds number in the hundreds. Not all are killers, but that one
is.”

When Chad turned back around, he took a deep
breath and blew it out loudly. “So, monsters are real.”

“Yes.”

“So who has Rayna and why?”

Garrett told him everything he knew about the
Collective, the Breed leaders, their plans and what they hoped to
accomplish. When it was all out, Chad shook his head. “If they make
her prove to the world werewolves exist, you know what’s going to
happen, don’t you?”

The wolf shifted at the thought of it. “Yes.
They’ll kill her. Which is why I need that address. Now.”

Chad gave a curt nod before turning back to
the computer. “If this is where she is, we’re going to need more
than the people you brought with you to get in.”

“We’ll be fine,” Garrett said. “Gavin and
Dillon are the strongest fighters I have. They can handle their own
once we breech the house. Ethan and Henry might not look capable of
a fight but they have years of experience behind them.”

Chad glanced at him before clearing his
throat. “And Judith?”

“I can hold my own,” she said. “I may not
look like much but you haven’t seen me pissed off yet. Besides,
I’ve been a wolf for over thirty years. If Garrett gets to go in,
so do I.”

“Thirty years?”

Judith nodded. “I’m the oldest wolf in our
pack.”

At Chad’s confused look, Garrett said,
“Werewolves don’t age like humans do.”

“What do you mean?”

Garrett grinned. “I’ll be fifty-one in
September.”

Chad gasped. “You’re shittin’ me.”

“Afraid not.” He was given a once over as
Chad inspected him. For what, he wasn’t sure, but the look on his
face was priceless. They both looked around the same age. Mid
thirties. And that’s what he told anyone who asked. Telling people
he was fifty when he clearly didn’t look that old was hard to
explain.

Chad gave them all a critical look before
shaking his head. He sighed and rubbed his eyes. “Okay. You were
right. I didn’t need to know any of this but now that I do, lets
figure out a way to get into this house.”

Henry cleared his throat and looked at
Garrett. “We don’t even know if Rayna’s still there. If they have
some master plan for her we can’t assume they still have her
there.”

“It’s easy enough to find out.” Garrett
walked across the room and picked up the phone. “What’s the phone
number to the house?”

Chad snorted. “What? You’re just going to
call them?”

“Why not?”

“That’s a stupid idea, Garrett. If you call
they’ll know we’re on to them.”

“Exactly. We’ll either see them come out of
the house with her or they’ll let me know she isn’t there.”

“And what if you calling them makes them act
sooner than we’re ready for?”

“We?” Garrett said, raising an eyebrow.
“There is no we in this, Chad. You’ve done your part. I can handle
this on my own.”

Chad crossed his arms over his chest and
shook his head. “I used to think this posturing bullshit you did
was to just make yourself look good for the chief. But now I’m
thinking you’re just too arrogant to let anyone help you.”

Garrett laughed and walked to the desk. “You
sound like Rayna now.” He searched the stack the papers for the
phone number to the house, checked the computer screen, refreshing
the picture to see if anything looked different, and straightened
when the number of cars coming in continued to grow. “Looks like we
have more guests arriving. I’m going to guess and say Rayna is
still there.”

“Then there’s no reason to call.” Chad took
the phone from him and turned to face the others. “We need to
figure out a way to get inside that house without raising any
suspicions. Anyone have any ideas?”

“I do,” Judith said. “I look the least
threatening. There’s no reason for them to expect me to do much
alone. Get me to the house and I’ll go in and make sure Rayna is
okay.”

“And just how are you going to get inside?”
Chad asked.

“I’ll knock on the door. How else?”

Chad laughed. “Are all werewolves insane?” He
turned to look at Garrett. “First you’re going to call them and now
she’s going to just knock on the front door?”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Garrett said,
tilting his head as he stared at Judith.

Chad gasped. “That’s a terrible idea! You
can’t let her just waltz up to the front door.” He stared at them
incredulous. “Garrett, you don’t even know how many people are in
the house. You can’t be that crazy.”

Garret scowled. “They have my girl. I’ll do
whatever it takes to get her back.”

* * * *

Thaddeus opened the bedroom door and gave
Rayna a pointed look. “There’s been a change of plans, Ms.
Ford.”

“What kind of change?”

“The others have gathered. Victor is waiting.
Come along.”

Rayna stood and crossed the room. The look on
Thaddeus’ face was unreadable. She was ushered into the hall and
down to the main floor, through a series of hallways, and into a
large room at the back of the house. The ornate chandelier’s and
the tiled floor made her think of a grand ballroom.

The room was packed with people. If she had
to guess, at least fifty were crowded into the space. Their
eagerness was almost palpable. Smiles lit the faces of everyone she
looked at and Rayna sucked in a calming breath. It didn’t help.

When Thaddeus put his hand on her back, she
jerked away from him, turning her head to scowl. “Don’t touch me.”
He grinned and motioned her forward.

The walk through the room seemed to take
forever. The people, no—the shifters, vampires, an obvious demons
she saw staring back at her made her wolf uneasy. It could sense
the danger she was in. This many breeds in one place left her edgy.
And little choice but to do as they wished. There would be no
getting out of this one.

Victor sat at the front of the room in a
chair large enough to sit two people. It was made of intricately
carved wood and sat on a small raise dais. The only thing missing
from his kingly appearance was a purple robe and crown.

His cane was propped against his chair and
that hard scowl he always wore was firmly in place. He looked
pleased. A tiny smile lifted the corner of his mouth and those dark
eyes held the gleam of a true predator.

When she stopped in front of him, his hard
gaze roamed her from head to toe. He shifted in his seat and the
soft whispers in the room died. Rayna’s wolf slid then, agitated.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and willed her hands to stop
shaking.

“Ms. Ford,” Victor said, those hard, black
eyes of his gazing into her own. “Please be so kind as to tell me
who you called today.”

Rayna’s heart lurched in her chest. He’d
found the misplaced phone. She smiled to cover her nervousness.
“Call? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I think you do.” Victor glanced to his left
and nodded his head. There was a commotion, several gasp’s from the
crowd, and a series of soft murmurs. “I’ve questioned your escort
but after a few hours of… persuasive discussion, he was unable to
tell me anything. Now, please. Tell me who it was you called.”

The crowd parted and Rayna saw what held
everyone’s interest. Sabriel was being walked through the room, his
body being held upright by two men. She barely kept from gasping at
the sight of him.

His lip was busted open, both of his eyes
swollen and blood encrusted, and his face was a colorful mosaic of
ugly bruises. Both of his hands were mangled, his fingers obviously
broken and blood coated his shirt, causing the material to cling to
his skin.