Blood Bond (11 page)

“I’m just tired,” I said slowly, my eyes
narrowing. “You’re not mad?”

“Why on earth would I be mad? It’s not your
fault you were attacked.”

“Did—did Grandma tell you about Bailey? And
CHAS coming?”

“Yes. It’s such a shame.” Her eyes filled
with tears. “He was so young.” She blinked and her jaw hardened
like I’d seen Grandma do when things got serious. “Makes me think
CHAS has it right. Those hybrids need to be dealt with. They’re too
dangerous to have running loose this way.”

“Mom, they’re people, too,” I protested. “A
lot of them used to be Hunters or even humans.”

“They’re too far gone if
they’ll attack an innocent child. Or should I say
children
. Grandma said
she already told you not to go anywhere alone?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll add to that by saying not to go
anywhere without another Hunter.”

I glared at her. This was her punch line.
“Is this your way of saying I can’t be alone with Wes?”

Her expression remained neutral. “I’m doing
this purely for your safety, Tara. Nothing more.” I rolled my eyes
as she turned to go. If she saw it, she didn’t react. “See you in
the morning. Try to get some sleep.”

I waited until the door was closed and then
let loose. “She’s so full of it! She’s only using what happened to
keep me from seeing Wes. That’s why she’s acting so cool about
everything.”

“Well …” Cambria drew out the word. I looked
up. There was a glint in her eye, a wicked smile curving her lips.
“I’ll make you a deal. I’ll cover for you and your Werewolf if
you’ll cover for me and mine.”

I sat up. “You mean you and Derek? You like
him?”

Her grin widened. “What’s not to like? He’s
got that whole dark-hair, dark-eyes, total hotness thing going on.
I can’t help myself. And have you seen his biceps?” She fell back
on the pillow and stared into space. “I sort of want to lick them,
see if they taste as good as they look.”

“But he’s a Werewolf,” I said, ignoring her
attempt to take my mind off the events of the day. I couldn’t help
my shock, even after the flirting I’d seen between them earlier.
I’d assumed it was just that—harmless flirting. Cambria was a
Hunter and even though she wasn’t nearly as prejudiced as the other
kids at school, she was still raised to believe Werewolves were the
enemy.

Cambria sat up and shrugged. “We all have
our flaws.”

“Cam, it’s not a flaw, it’s who he is.”

She rolled her eyes. “Geez. I’m joking. Do
you seriously think I’m that judgy? You should know by now I’m not
the hate machine Wood Point tries to mold us into.”

I couldn’t help but think of Alex. “You’re
right, you aren’t like all of them, but where can it go, Cam? You’d
be going against everything they stand for. You’d be thrown
out.”

She snorted. “Like I’m not already. You
think they don’t know about my mother and her preoccupation with
the bottle? Or how I’ve been kicked out of more schools than most
of them have pairs of socks? I’m destined to be the loner. Besides,
it’s not like I said I wanna have his puppies or something.”

“You just gave me a mental picture of a
bunch of wolf babies with Cambria heads.”

Cambria grinned. “Cute, right?” I threw a
pillow at her.

Chapter Seven

The next morning, Grandma, Cambria, and I
made our way to Fee’s door, weaving in and out of black Town Cars
parked haphazardly in the grass. Some still had a driver inside,
replete with white gloves and a bow tie. Most, however, were
empty.

Gordon Steppe was early.

“How many people did they send?” I
asked.

“Looks like the entire council,” said
Cambria.

The last three vehicles were black cargo
vans, no logos or emblems visible. “What are those?” I asked.

“Refrigerated transport vehicles,” Grandma
said, glancing over. “RTVs, we call ’em. They’ll take the bodies
back to CHAS headquarters in DC for dissection.”

“Sucks to have that guy’s job,” Cambria
said.

The front door swung open before I could
knock. It was Jack. Despite the circumstances, my eyes lit up. So
did his. “Tara.”

He waited until Grandma and Cambria passed
and then reached out and pulled me into a hug. His massive arms
were like lead grips. He didn’t squeeze hard enough to cause
discomfort, but I had no doubt he could flatten me if he tried. I
inhaled the scent of pine that always clung to him and something
frazzled inside me settled into place. I finally felt like I was
home.

My fingers brushed the cane clutched in his
hand. The way his body leaned on it brought tears to my eyes.
Bittersweet. Bailey’s face floated in my mind but I shoved the
image aside. Crying was for later.

“Jack, it’s good to see you.” I spoke the
words against his shoulder. He gave me a final squeeze and then
released me.

“Same. And you don’t look any worse for wear
after almost becoming queen of the hybrid underworld.”

“Funny. You don’t look so bad yourself.
How’s the leg?”

He tapped the cane against
the ground. It made a
thunk
against the hardwood floor. He bent closer and
lowered his voice. “Between us, I only use this thing at home so
Fee doesn’t nag me. I feel great.”

I laughed, but it sounded hollow. “I bet.
Wes says you’re all over the place.”

“Ssh.” He glanced around. “Don’t let Fee
hear that.”

“I won’t. Where is she, anyway?”

He gestured upward with the cane. “Trying to
keep Cord upstairs until Steppe leaves. She happened to answer the
door when they got here and let’s just say he knows where she
stands now.”

“They’re in the back?” Grandma asked.

Jack nodded. “Out by the shed, taking stock.
Wes and Derek are giving their statements.” His eyes flickered to
the clock on the wall. “They should be done soon.”

“I’m going to head out, run interference,”
Grandma said, starting for the back door.

“Interference?” I repeated.

“Steppe isn’t known for his love of Weres,”
explained Jack.

“You mean Wes and Derek? But we’re helping
them. We’re giving them hybrids—dead, just the way they wanted
them.”

“Doesn’t change the facts,” he said.

“Trust me, it doesn’t matter whose side
you’re on with Steppe,” Cambria said. “If you’re furry, you’re the
enemy.”

I shook my head, disgusted. Cambria and I
started down the hall behind Grandma. “You coming?” I called back
when Jack didn’t follow.

“I’ll wait here until they’re done. Might be
better that way.” He disappeared into the living room.

“I can’t believe we missed Cord going off on
Steppe,” Cambria said as we walked. “I would’ve paid money to see
that.”

“This guy cannot be that
bad,” I said half-heartedly. Cambria arched a brow and I didn’t
argue further. If Jack and Fee—the ultimate peacemakers—were hiding
inside, maybe Steppe
was
that bad.

I pushed the back door aside and stared at
the scene before me.

Dozens of people, all dressed in an
identical uniform consisting of dark suits and sunglasses milled
about the yard. Here and there, groups of two or three huddled,
exchanging whispers and consulting clipboards. A couple of suits
passed by, carrying black, zip-up bags between them as they
disappeared around the house. Some sent glances our way but most
seemed completely wrapped up in their own purpose. True to
Cambria’s description, they reminded me of Secret Service
agents.

“Whoa.”

“Ditto,” Cambria said.

I sent her a sideways glance. “Have you seen
this sort of thing before?”

She shook her head. “Not like this. I mean,
this is calling in the big guns. Usually it’s just a team of two or
three. Five at most. Plus Steppe is here. This is big time.”

“He doesn’t normally come to this
stuff?”

“The director?” she said, heavy on the
sarcasm. “Uh, no. He hides in a cave and plots evil. He doesn’t
come out in public much.”

“You ever met him?”

“Not directly, thankfully, but if you wonder
where our prejudices come from,” she paused to gesture with her arm
at the scene before us, “look no further.”

We made it halfway to the shed where a small
crowd was gathered when a stern voice rose above all the others.
The tone was both sharp-edged and slippery. “I don’t give a rat’s
ass about immunity or peace or whatever the hell. They will be
caught and killed, understand?”

I caught a glimpse of a deep scowl set on a
face much younger than I’d imagined and shifted my position for a
better look. The man standing at the center of the suits wore soft
gray that set him apart from his minions. His face was angular and
lean but even through the layers, I could see wiry muscle. The
entire picture was intimidating enough to make me sorry for
whomever he was laying into. I strained my neck to catch a glimpse
of his victim, but the suits made it impossible to see.

“CHAS has a singular mission, and that’s to
keep monsters like these away from the human population. No one’s
going to get in the way of that.” He poked a finger at whomever he
was speaking to. His eyes were thundercloud gray.

“Wow,” I said under my breath.

“Told you,” Cambria shot back.

“Is that Steppe?”

“Yup. Who’s he talking to?”

I shrugged. We crept closer as Steppe spoke
again, straining to see. I caught sight of a broad shoulder and
tanned bicep and kept moving until the face came into view. When I
saw him, I pulled up short and Cambria ran into the back of me.

“What the …?” she trailed off as she caught
sight of him too.

Wes spoke, responding to Steppe’s outburst
in a low voice. Dangerously low. I couldn’t make out the words from
this far but whatever they were, they definitely had a negative
effect on Steppe. I shoved forward as Steppe spoke again.

“I don’t care what they want or who’s in
charge of them. You run your operation your way, I’ll do the same.
The Hunter community is not going to stand for this. If we don’t
hunt them down, the enemy will only use them against us.”

Wes’s jaw flexed, his voice strained. “Sir,
with all due respect, they deserve a choice.”

“They made their choice when they attacked
you, wouldn’t you say?” Wes opened his mouth, likely ready to
argue, but Steppe went on. “I don’t have to defend my decision to
you. Your organization is lucky to even be recognized after
everything you’ve done.”

Wes’s eyes widened.
“Everything
we’ve
done? We do nothing but support you, even though you’d rather
kill us than work with us.” Steppe didn’t argue that point, and
Wes’s hands balled into fists. “Just tell me they get immunity if
they join us.”

Steppe’s eyes narrowed to slits and he
leaned forward so they were nose to nose. “Fine. If they join you,
they’re spared. For now. You just better hope I don’t find them
first.”

Wes didn’t blink. “You couldn’t hunt down a
Werewolf if he left a trail of breadcrumbs behind.”

Steppe’s lips pressed into a hard line.
“Your disrespect is noted. One of these days, you won’t be
surrounded by your gang of misfits, and we’ll settle this.”

“We can settle it now,” Wes shot back. “This
is between us. They won’t interfere.”

“Loyalty’s overrated,” he sneered. “Isn’t
that what got your little friend killed?”

“Don’t talk about Bailey. He was ten times
the man you are, even at fifteen,” Wes said.

“Yet he’s the one you’ll bury tomorrow.
Maybe you should put him next to your parents, with the other
failures.”

Wes’s fists tightened. I watched the
decision being made in his expression. Steppe must’ve seen it too,
because at that exact moment, Steppe moved back, leaving one of his
guards exposed in front of him. Either the switch didn’t register
to Wes, or he didn’t care. He cocked his fist back and smashed it
into the guard’s face.

The guard staggered back at the blow. I held
my breath as he stumbled, waiting for him to fall and for Wes to
leap—or worse, shift. Somehow, the man managed to stay on his feet.
He dabbed a hand gingerly against his lip. It came away with red on
it, where the skin split at the corner. He rounded on Wes, eyes
hard and set. Without a single spoken command, every single one of
the dark-suited minions produced a metal-tipped stake and held it
at the ready toward a shaking, convulsing Wes.

“Shit,” Derek said from beside me. His arms
were taut at his sides, his expression grim. “If he shifts, this’ll
get ugly.”

“Uh, I think it already is,” Cambria
said.

I ignored her. My heart was pounding. Steppe
was an ass. That had officially been established. But Wes couldn’t
fight him—guards included. Not with this many stakes pointed his
way. I took a step forward, ready to push my way through, but
Derek’s hand on my arm stopped me.

“No way, you can’t go up there,” Derek said
in a low voice.

“I have to talk sense into him,” I
hissed.

He shook his head. “Steppe will just use you
to bait him again. You’ll only make it worse.”

“Fine. Can you make him stop?” I pleaded
with Derek.

“I can try. No promises I won’t change my
mind and help him.” Derek shoved through the crowd as Steppe
marched toward Wes. The rest of the crowd stood, stakes drawn but
making no move to intervene. By the expression on their faces, they
were enjoying the show.

“Wes, dude, let’s take a walk,” Derek
said.

Wes glared past the guard at Steppe. “I’m
not done,” he said.

“Yes. You are.” Grandma appeared in front of
Wes, her mouth set in a hard line. “You can take a walk with Derek
or with me.”

Wes turned away, shaking with the effort of
remaining human.

Then, Steppe smiled, his upper lip curling
back from his teeth. It distorted his smooth features. “One day,”
he said so low I barely caught it, “you and I will meet alone. And
I will remember this.”