Nocturne 040 – Scions 02 - Patrice Michelle - Insurrection (21 page)

Landon skimmed the photo and glanced at the quiet printer. “And the other one?”

Kaitlyn retrieved it and set it in his hands. Walking away, she leaned against the desk and crossed her arms. “That second one definitely makes me scratch my head. It almost looks like a black panther. What do you think?”

Landon’s jaw flexed and his gaze narrowed. He set the pictures on the waist-high bookshelf near the doorway. “Your eyes aren’t playing tricks. That’s what it looks like to me, too.”

“That’s just bizarre,” she said. When the tense silence between them drew out for five long, agonizing minutes, she finally spoke, “I’m assuming you want to discuss the meeting with Remy once Caine gets here. While we’re waiting for him, why don’t you tell me where werewolves came from. You fought those vampires like you’d tangled with them before.”

Landon leaned back against the doorjamb and crossed his arms. “I have. Werewolves exist because the vampires created the Lupreda to have a worthy adversary to hunt.”

She winced at his word hunt. “That’s so barbaric.” Then again, she had to remind herself, Landon wasn’t human. He’d defeated two vampires with his bare hands. The man, er…Lupreda could take care of himself. Landon shrugged. “It all changed when the vampires started dying twenty-five years ago. They withdrew from their stronghold and we had our freedom.”

“Do you know where the vampires came from? Why they were so vicious to humans?”

He nodded. “The original vampires were humans who volunteered for the government’s secret Scions project. The project’s goal was to use genetic manipulation to create the ultimate superhuman who could resist potential future threats from enemies, not unlike the biological terrorism against our paper monetary system decades ago.”

“But why did the vampires attack the humans?”

“Because the scientists treated them like lab rats with cruel tests and no life outside the research facility. Eventually, they revolted.”

“And then they went on a rampage of attacking humans for food and creating werewolves to hunt, is that what you’re saying?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “In a nutshell.”

She frowned. “How is it that we knew about the vampires’ existence, but not werewolves’?”

He smirked. “Because werewolves weren’t attacking humans. The vampires engineered us such that if we bit a human while in our wolf form, we’d stay in that form permanently. It was a great incentive to behave.”

She grabbed her shoulder. “You bit me. Is the reverse true? Am I going to turn into a werewolf?”

He straightened and dropped his hands to his sides, his expression insulted. “That wasn’t a wolf bite.”

“It sure felt like one to me,” she shot back in annoyance. Before she could blink, he was standing an inch from her. Staring down at her with challenging eyes, he said in a husky tone, “You didn’t seem to mind.”

Heat spread through her cheeks. She moved away from his penetrating stare to scan the titles of her father’s wolf and werewolf lore books on the wall behind the desk. Glancing Landon’s way, she asked, “Do you think my father knew what you were and that’s why he had a photo of you?”

Landon didn’t speak for several seconds, then he shook his head. “I don’t think he knew until that night in Morningside Park.”

She shrugged off any deep, heart-wrenching thoughts about her father and Landon on that fateful night. She couldn’t fall apart right now. What she needed were answers. Landon’s mention of Morningside Park spurred another question. “Did a vampire burn your zerker?”

“No.”

His stoic, one-word response wasn’t cutting it. She narrowed her gaze.

“But you know who did, don’t you?”

Landon debated whether or not to tell her the truth…or at least his theory. Even he wasn’t sure, but the Velius was the only conclusion he could come to, especially since one had shown up near a Tacomi truck. He sighed and adopted her earlier position, leaning against the desk.

“Once the vampires had created us, they abandoned their lab. There were those among my pack who wanted to experience the thrill of the hunt instead of being hunted. Unknown to the vampires, some Lupreda began to secretly experiment, creating a prey simply called Velius.”

He paused as a portion of the prophecy flitted through his mind. The hunted becomes the hunter, no longer the prey.

“So you weren’t in cages, let out only to hunt?” she asked. He shook his head. “No, the silver collars the vampires forced us to wear not only kept us from shifting but bound us to an area as well.”

Widening her stance, she folded her hands behind her back. “Go on. I’m listening.”

His jaw tightened when he thought of that hateful lab. “Only a few Lupreda knew about the new prey. There were those of us who didn’t agree with the entire project.”

“You mean you, correct?”

He nodded. “And a couple others, but I acted. I couldn’t believe the Lupreda would subject another race to the same fate, either by us or by the vampires when they discovered their existence. I destroyed the lab and set the few subjects free.”

“Bet you weren’t very popular among your kind.”

“Nope,” he said with a shrug. It was ironic that he’d come so far since then, earning the pack’s grudging respect.

“What prey had the Lupreda created?”

He met her gaze. “Shape shifters, specifically humans who could shift to panthers…at our discretion, of course.”

“Of course,” she said with a frown, then began to pace in front of him. Kaitlyn looked much younger than her twenty-four years in her jeans and baseball cap, but still just as beautiful to him.

“You think these panthers have survived and are seeking some kind of vengeance?” she asked.

Her question brought a segment of the prophecy back to his mind. The hunted becomes the hunter, no longer the prey.

An enemy in your midst is less dark and more gray.

Examine your failures and there you will find the answer to all your questions in time.

The panthers were the only answer that made sense. Ironically, an insurrection of a different kind. Someone had tried to pit the werewolves against the vampires. The Lupreda had definitely failed with the Velius. But what did the “An enemy in your midst is less dark and more gray” part mean? Burning three zerkers and trying to start a war between the weres and the vampires was pretty damned dark in his book. And how the hell were the panthers skulking around without leaving a smell behind? They’d definitely had a distinctive scent in the past.

“Hel-l-l-lo-o-o-o.” She snapped her fingers in front of his face. “Human to werewolf, come in.”

Landon loved her spunk. He wished her father’s death didn’t hang between them, but at least she was still talking to him. “I was just thinking how so much of what has happened fits in with a prophecy I’ve been told by a vampire.”

Her eyes widened. “A vampire? It seems to me you guys wouldn’t be on speaking terms.”

“It’s a long story.”

Her lips formed a stubborn line. “I’ve got the time.”

Landon relayed the story about the prophecy and Ariel’s book attracting Jachin’s attention. He went on to explain how he’d forged a truce with the vampire leader, who eventually took over the leadership of his vampire clan and fell in love and became a mate to the human woman he’d kidnapped.

When he finished, Kaitlyn had a stunned look on her face. “Wow! That’s like a movie or something, it’s so unbelievable.”

“According to humans, so are werewolves and vampires, yet we exist.”

“And now, so do the panthers.”

He shook his head. “I didn’t know for sure until I saw that photo. Now it all makes more sense.”

“But you’ve smelled them at the park, right? Don’t you werewolves have a supersonic sense of smell? And what about the handprints?”

Landon scowled. She’d hit a nerve. “I didn’t smell anything and neither did Jachin. They’re somehow masking their scent. None of the weres mentioned sparkles when the zerkers were taken.” He gave her a fierce look. “But now we know the panthers are connected to the Mafia and the Garotters.”

Understanding dawned on her face as all his past warnings started clicking into place. “Yeesh! That’s not good.”

Landon stood and stepped close, cupping the back of her neck. “You’re not just dealing with human bad guys anymore, Kaitie. That’s why I called Caine and some others in for help.”

She gripped his wrist, her eyes wide. “Others? How many werewolves are in your pack?”

He slid his thumb along her cheek. “One hundred and fifty.”

A knock on the door interrupted them. The weres were close enough for him to detect their scents. Landon met her questioning gaze. “It’s Caine, Laird and Roman.”

When Landon’s younger brother, Caine, and two other tall men walked into her office, crowding the room with their broad-shouldered, muscular builds, Kaitlyn could only stare at them. Even in their human forms, they were an intimidating group. Knowing they were all werewolves made her move a little closer to Landon.

“This is Laird.” Landon nodded to the auburn-haired man about her age with piercing blue eyes.

Just as tall, but a bit slimmer in build than Landon, Laird inclined his head. “Nice to meet you, Kaitlyn. I understand you’re a cop.”

His steady gaze and open smile instantly set her at ease. Kaitlyn nodded.

“Thanks for offering to help.”

“You mean we had a choice?” A blond-haired man with an affable smile peered around Laird’s shoulder. He tucked his shoulder length, windblown hair behind his ear, looking more like a laid-back surfer than a man who could shift into a powerful beast.

“Zip it.” Caine frowned at the blond were, then smiled at her. “It’s nice to see you again, Kaitlyn, though I wish it were under better circumstances. You’ll have to ignore Roman. He always says whatever pops into his head. Some people don’t get his twisted sense of humor.”

Landon put his hands on Kaitlyn’s shoulders. Pulling her back against his chest, he addressed the weres. “There are a few details I want to relay.”

When Landon spoke, all the roguish smiles and relaxed poses vanished. Tension instantly filled the air and their respectful gazes locked on the man standing behind her. The command Landon carried over the other men with just a few words was amazing to watch and admire.

“We were able to retrieve the information Ron sent Kaitlyn. There’s proof that at least one Garotter was involved in the recent Tacomi truck accident. I need you to be on your highest alert. The Velius are involved. There is also a connection between the panthers and our zerkers. I believe they may have been behind the zerkers’ kidnappings and subsequent murders.”

“You found all the zerkers?” Laird asked, confusion flitting across his handsome face.

Landon nodded.

“The panthers are real?” Roman asked. “Man, I thought all that was just an urban legend told by the older pack members.”

“Why haven’t we smelled them?” Caine followed up.

“That’s one question I wish I knew the answer to.” Landon released Kaitlyn’s shoulders and retrieved the photo she’d printed out. He handed it to Caine. “Do you see the shape in the background?”

Roman and Laird crowded around Caine to see the picture.

Caine glanced up and snarled, “Son of a bitch!”

Landon’s expression didn’t change. It held the same down-to-business look. “Let’s talk about how this meeting with the Garotter is going to play out.”

“You think the panthers might be there, too?” Caine asked. Landon’s tone hardened. “Be ready for anything. I want you, Laird and Roman to follow Kaitlyn to the train yard. Park a few blocks away and arrive on foot. I don’t want the man Kaitlyn’s meeting to know you’re there. He might have men watching, so keep your eyes open as you approach. Take him alive. We need someone to roll over on this whole operation.”

Kaitlyn’s chest squeezed in concern. “That’s risky. What if there are other men there, these Velius? None of you can track their smell.”

Landon glanced at the weres. “We weren’t able to detect a scent after the fact, but I can guarantee these guys will be able to hear the panthers’ hearts beating if they’re in the vicinity.”

He met Kaitlyn’s gaze and finished, “I’m going to the hospital to make sure your mother stays safe.”

Caine pulled his cell phone off the clip on his jeans pocket and handed it to Landon. “Take my cell. We’ll call you after we’ve taken care of these bastards. It’s on vibrate mode.”

Landon nodded and tucked the slim cell phone away in his pocket. Turning to Kaitlyn, he said, “Do you have an ankle gun?”

When she nodded, he put his hands on her shoulders, and his intense green eyes seemed to stare right into her soul. “I’ll protect your mom. Promise me you’ll stay safe.”

K aitlyn’s stomach felt as if an army of bugs were crawling around inside. By the time she parked her car down the road from the area she was supposed to meet Remy, she was a bundle of tightly wound nerves. Other than her car, the only other vehicle she saw was Remy’s black BMW. One lone streetlight illuminated the street but left the area she was supposed to meet Remy eerily dark.

She strapped her gun around her ankle then pulled her jeans down to cover her weapon. Grabbing Landon’s cell phone off the seat, she erased the mail she’d sent herself from the memory log, then put the phone and her keys into her jacket’s front pocket. Retrieving her flashlight, she got out of the car.

As she walked up the road she surreptitiously glanced around the abandoned area, looking for men who might be hiding up on the abandoned track or around a thick steel railroad support. Night shadows loomed everywhere, but the place appeared completely desolate. Only a lone figure stood underneath the tracks, silhouetted against the moonlight.