Stain of Midnight

by Cassandra Moore

  He gusted a sigh. “I suppose you’re right. It just feels like we ought to do something.”

  “Don’t mistake ‘doing something’ for ‘accomplishing something’. Sometimes, the best way to accomplish what you need to is to patiently do nothing.”

  A little smile quirked up his lips. “That more Sun Tzu?”

  “More like ‘Sunny Tzu’. I just came up with that.” She chuckled.

  This time, it coaxed a laugh out of him. “Sunny Tzu. I like her better than an old, dead Chinese guy, anyway.”

  “I would hope so.” Linen rustled around her as she leaned forward to steal a kiss. “Or I’m throwing you out of bed right now.”

  “It’s no contest. Though, if Sun Tzu has The Art of War, does Sunny Tzu have The Art of Love? Or at least The Art of Filthy Sex?” One of his legs slid over hers to press her up against him. His insistent erection nudged against the soft slickness of her folds.

  “Why not find out?” she murmured against his lips.

  Then they were moving together, him inside her, and neither could worry about war for a while.

  Bladders paid no attention to the demands of romance, or even convenience. Cameron still slept, face peaceful, when Sonja’s need to hit the head annoyed her awake. Charlie followed her into the bathroom, possessed of the certain knowledge that she wouldn’t manage her business without his concerned stare. Once she’d dealt with the requirements of biology, she decided to check her phone in case her father, or the people he’d promised to call, needed to get hold of her.

  Her father had left one message to tell her that backup would be there after noon tomorrow, and that she shouldn’t worry. Instead, she should get some rest, then pack up in the morning. His reassuring tone reminded her of the times she’d loved him best, when he’d dared to reveal the more vulnerable parts of himself where he hid his endless affection for his child. They were, she reflected, far too alike in some ways. Both stubborn, both hurt before, both inclined to love too deeply and scare themselves with how much they cared.

  Various energy slingers had left voicemails to confirm they intended to leave town as soon as possible. The city had grown unsafe, with a vampire war brewing from a suggestion to an ugly reality in a matter of hours. Sonja had also called a handful of the witches earlier to warn them the werewolves might not have the ley line power under control, and anyone attuned to magical energy might want to flee for their own health. That word had gotten around.

  Russ had left seven messages, all variations on the theme of call me, we need to talk now. Dressed in a ratty set of sweats, she strolled outside with Charlie at her side to consider how she wanted to handle Seattle’s alpha. She found Peter sitting at her patio table, looking up at the moon.

  He smiled when he saw her. “Can’t sleep?”

  “I did for a little while. Too much to drink before bed. Then this.” She gestured at her phone with a rueful look. “The witches are leaving, and Russ wants to either talk to me or destroy my battery.”

  “I’ll bet.” Peter snorted. “You have a reputation for knowing everything. He probably thinks you know where we’re hiding.”

  “That’s obviously a load of crap,” she said, deadpan. Charlie snorted.

  “Obviously.” Peter sounded wry. “He probably wants to make you the same threat his enforcer did. Join the pack or follow us into exile. He’s never been very open to lone wolves. When he and I met for beers, alpha to alpha, he used to talk about how I’d made a mistake when I allowed you in my territory. Lone wolves are wildcards, he’d say. You can’t count on their loyalty.”

  “Because his pack is so much more loyal,” she drawled. “Like his enforcer. The paragon of fealty. Though... Why did you let me stay?”

  Peter leaned back in his chair. Thoughtful eyes looked at her for a long moment before he replied. “You needed to be alone. I could tell. Whatever had happened in your life had left you in a spot where you needed time to turn inward. You’d come to us when, or if, you were ready. Until then, you earned your place, and you didn’t threaten mine. Good thing I kept you around.”

  “Thanks.” It meant more to her than she thought it would. They’d kept a place for her, even when she’d done her best to deny them. She prodded the screen of her phone, deleting Russ’s messages one by one. “Do you miss being alpha?”

  “Sometimes. Then I remember why I lost it.” He traced a moonbeam along the tabletop. “If it were possible, I would take the position back tomorrow night. Russ has to call a pack meeting. It will be full moon, and he has the vampires, Teresa, and us to deal with. The pack will need to get their inner wolves handled, then move out for some sort of offensive. Easy enough to go to the meeting, make a challenge, then name Cameron enforcer again. That would give us a full pack, an enforcer backed by the mountain, and half a chance to stop Teresa before she finishes what she started.”

  “But it’s not possible.”

  “Not until next full moon. Traditional werewolf rules. No one from the defeated pack can challenge until an entire lunar cycle has passed.” Peter caught her gaze and held it.

  What is he— The thought started and died into obsolescence before she even finished it. Once she considered it, his meaning came across with great clarity.

  He looked away, out into the darkness of the yard. “What are you going to tell Russ?”

  “Let’s find out.” She brought up the recent telephone numbers her phone had recorded, then tapped Russ’s.

  “Sonja Carter. I’ve been trying to get hold of you for hours.”

  “Sorry it took so long. The city’s kind of a clusterfuck right now. I had some business to take care of.” Not easy to keep her tone light and casual, but she managed. “What can I do for you?”

  “I’m looking for the remnants of the Tacoma pack.”

  “Good luck with that. I haven’t heard anything about them since last night. My information says they got their asses kicked by the new local bogeyman. Bogeywoman? Bogeybiter. You know what I mean.”

  Peter stifled a snicker at the term bogeybiter.

  “I don’t think that’s what really happened. Cameron Roswell set up an ambush and killed half my enforcers tonight. I think he’s been working with the bitch who’s doing these sacrifices all along. I want you to tell me where he is.”

  “Wow. That’s... That doesn’t sound anything like the Cameron Roswell I know. That’s surprising.” It’s also not true, you dumb asshole. Stop thinking with your revenge boner. “Like I said, I haven’t heard anything about them since last night. I tried to call their alpha a couple times to get some information, but he didn’t answer.”

  Peter mouthed something about the Cameron Roswell she knew, then made a suggestive gesture. Sonja almost cracked up. He’s trying to get me back for making him choke on his waffles this morning, I know it.

  “He’s not the alpha anymore. I took the city tonight.”

  “Oh. Um, congratulations? This is a pretty rough time to take over. Like I said, it’s a clusterfuck. You bringing down the rest of your pack from Seattle?”

  “They’ll be here tomorrow. We’re going to sweep this place clean. Speaking of, there’s a meeting tomorrow night at moonrise. It’d be in your best interests to be there.”

  Sonja rolled her eyes. Oh, here it comes. “That sounds a little bit like a threat.”

  “It’s an invitation. This is a dangerous time to be alone. You’d have protection with us.”

  She had to give him credit for starting out with the positive part of the offer, not to mention for genuine friendliness in his voice. “That all?”

  “It’s the most important part. You’re a smart woman, Miss Carter. Your local pack just betrayed us. The city is falling to shit. I can’t afford wildcards right now. Really, I’d rather not make this an ultimatum.”

  He seemed like a decent man. She hated to deceive him. “That’s fair enough. Send me the location. If I’m not there, assume I’ve left town and won’t be your problem anymore.”

&nb
sp; “I’ll do that. If you get any word on the Tacoma pack, call me right away.”

  “Good luck, Russ.”

  She disconnected the call. Peter folded his arms across his chest. “Do you know what you’re going to do?”

  “I’m going to take advice from a dead Chinese guy.” Her chair scraped on the porch as she stood.

  Peter blinked. “What?”

  “‘The one who knows when he can fight and when he cannot will be victorious.’ Sun Tzu. I want to sleep on it. See what happens tomorrow, but... It could be we’ve got that answer.”

  A slow smile spread across his face. “Do you know what else he said? ‘Opportunities multiply as they are seized.’“

  “Then maybe we’ll grab a few for ourselves. Though I’m going to hope they aren’t opportunities to get our asses kicked.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  “When you said the Army pack was going to come help us, I don’t know what I expected, but I’m pretty sure this wasn’t it,” Cameron said.

  Two military-style cargo carriers dominated Sonja’s front drive. They’d already stopped off at Cameron’s house – unexpectedly and without more warning than a video call from Cameron’s living room – to clear out anything the former enforcer couldn’t bear to leave behind. After that, they’d done the same for Peter’s. It had kept the Seattle pack from interfering, if they’d decided to surveil the house. No one but no one messed with the military packs. Or armed soldiers in fatigues, either.

  Now, they emptied out Sonja’s more personal possessions to tuck into niches in the truck. Once they had finished, they would load the living cargo into the second truck. Dani, Kayla, Noah, all the others rested in special containers that would keep everyone safe for the flight. Getting them in had been quite the rodeo.

  Sonja and Cameron would rent a trailer, load up what couldn’t fit in the transport trucks, then drive out to Arizona to meet up with the others. If they got lucky, they could use the distraction of the full moon gathering to pick up some of Noah, Kayla, and Dani’s possessions on the way out. If not, they’d drive very fast in a southwesterly direction and hope they made the territory line.

  A sensible, efficient exfiltration plan. Cameron hated it.

  Sonja chuckled, even though she looked thoughtful and grim. She’d looked that way since they’d gotten out of bed. Cameron couldn’t blame her. He’d tried to keep his own brooding at bay all morning. “When the Army pack decides something needs to get done, there isn’t much stopping them. Though I didn’t expect the transports, either. My father just told me he’d handle it. He never said how. Come to think of it, I probably should have asked for specifics.”

  “Would he have given them?”

  “Probably not, but at least I’d know I’d thought to ask.”

  Peter came out of the house, laden with huge duffel bags. Two went into Sonja’s Humvee. The third went into a transport next to the big bag of dog food. “Clothes and toiletries are out,” he called to them. “I put the food in the ice chest. Charlie’s things are all in a box. His bed is in the truck.”

  “Thanks, Peter. You’ll take good care of him?” Sonja’s voice had a wistful, worried tone, as if she had to say goodbye for far longer than a handful of days.

  Peter nodded. “Like my brother from another mother. And species.”

  “You know, he could come with us, Sunny,” Cameron said. “Your car will have room.”

  “No. It’s better that he goes with Peter.” Sonja glanced sideways at him. “There’s something I need to talk to you about, Cameron. After everyone’s gone. A last act of defiance. You may or may not be down with it.”

  Twin currents of hope and trepidation trickled through his mind. “You mean, you have a way to hoist a finger at Teresa Espina on our way out?”

  “Kind of. Let’s get our friends safe first, all right?”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  It didn’t take long. Sonja had a word with the ranking werewolf about their intended route. As they talked, Peter came over to give Cameron a hug. “Take care of yourself, my friend. I’d tell you to take care of her, too, but she does pretty well on her own.”

  “She’s more likely to take care of me,” Cameron said. “You sure you don’t mind watching out for the rest of them while we catch up?”

  “I should have watched out for them better a long time ago. Now’s my chance.” One last hug, and Peter took a step back. “Be careful, all right?”

  “You, too. I’ll see you in a few days.” Cameron ventured a smile.

  Peter returned it, though the ghost of worry haunted the expression. Bet he knows whatever Sunny has up her sleeve. “I’ll look forward to it.”

  Sonja brought Charlie out on a leash. “Don’t forget to let him pee before you get on the plane. Otherwise, it’ll rain over Nevada.”

  “I’ve got this,” Peter said, and gave Sonja a hug. When he drew back, he looked her in the eyes. “And so do you. Be careful.”

  “Thank you, Peter. For everything.” Another hug for the man, then one for her dog. Charlie whined. Cameron ignored the sting in his eyes as he watched the farewell.

  Minutes later, they were gone. Anticipation prickled through the sudden silence. The sun lingered low over the horizon, not yet surrendered but not long for the sky. Even without the awareness he had possessed as pack enforcer, Cameron could sense the wrongness of the land around them. The corruption of the second ritual had spread throughout the night. He wondered if normal humans could feel it yet.

  Keys jingled as Sonja pulled them out of her pocket. They almost beaned him as she tossed them over. “Let’s go. You’re driving.”

  That surprised him. “You sure?”

  “Yep. I’ll explain on the way.”

  “Where to?”

  “That depends on what you say.” She walked around the vehicle to get in the passenger’s seat. “We’ve got two choices, Cam. The first is, we hit the rental place and grab the trailer. Pack up what we can, then get the fuck out of town.”

  “Which is what we planned.” He opened the driver’s side door to locate the seat position levers. If he tried to sit where Sonja did, his knees would bark against the wheel.

  She pointed the levers out. “Or you head for the mountain. Drop me off near the Seattle pack’s meeting, then keep driving up. You’ll have to find where Teresa intends to have her final ritual, but don’t think that will be a problem for you.”

  “I think I know where it is,” he said, as he buckled into the seat. He could still see the place behind his eyes when he closed them. The cave, shadowed and foreboding, the underground nexus of ley lines that had run to darkness. “What the hell do I do when I get there? I don’t know if I can stop her now. I’m not the Guardian anymore.”

  “If I do this right, you will be.”

  The engine turned over. “So your plan is to go talk Russ into giving me my old job back. Then the two of us can take on whatever lackeys Teresa has gathered, and then, take her on. I’m not sure I like our chances.”

  “Not quite.” Sonja turned in her seat so she could see him more easily. “I’m going to bring the whole pack to back you up.”

  “That’ll be a neat trick. There’s no way their alpha will order that.”

  “Not a problem if I’m the alpha.”

  Cameron almost drove into a tree. “Wait, what? None of us can challenge for that. Not until the next full moon.”

  “None of your pack can challenge for it. I’m not part of the pack. I never have been.” Sonja smirked. He could see the nerves behind it, the uneasiness, but also, he could see pride. Acceptance. “That rule doesn’t apply to me.”

  He had to force his eyes back onto the road. “You think they’ll follow you up to help me?”

  “I think I’ll alpha shift their happy asses and force the issue if I need to.”

  Words he’d never expected to hear from her, especially after last night. He understood now how deep the discomfort for her werewolf side ran. “I don’t
want to take the wind out of your sails, here, but I need to say this. If you’re offering this because of what I said about wanting to do something, I appreciate it. But you don’t have to. You don’t ever have to change who you are because of me.”

  “No. I’m doing this because of me.” With a sigh, she shoved her hand through her hair. “I can’t live my life hating myself. The wolf is part of me. And now? People need my wolf. What kind of shitty individual would I be to turn my back on that? That’s not who I am.”

  Never in his life had Cameron been more proud of someone he knew than at that moment. “This is dangerous, you know. Odds of us not walking away from this are pretty good. We could try Plan C. Challenge for alpha. Make me your enforcer. Then hide out for the rest of the night so she can’t get to the power in time.”

  “I’m not sure that’s enough anymore. Not with what we know about the demon in the Heart of Darkness.” Sonja reached over to put her hand on his leg. “It’s up to you, Cam. If you don’t think we can do this, or if you’d rather we stuck to the original plan and came back to fight another day, I’m with you. Whatever you decide, I support it. And we do it together.”

  He thought about a strategic retreat. They could get their friends’ important possessions and blow out of town. Spend a mild desert winter rehabilitating their wounded, trust the Seattle pack could keep the territory above water. Hell, they might even get their shit together tonight and stop it before it could go further. They had a big pack with plenty of experience, and it was sheer arrogance to think only he and Sonja could stop it.

  Except Russ trusted Curtis. Except Curtis worked for Teresa. Except Cameron and Sonja knew the most about the magic, and the Heart of Darkness.

  He drove past the rental place. “We don’t have to break up when you’re the alpha, right? There’s no rules about fraternizing with your lackeys?”

  “Only rules that my lackeys have to satisfy my every whim.”

  “I can live with that.”

  They stopped to put gas in the tank on the way to the mountain. While Cameron pumped the fuel, he watched through the window as Sonja fielded two calls. Each one added lines to the frown on her face. “Everything all right?” he asked as he climbed back into the car.