“Shut off the light.” Dathan rolled over and turned his back to me.
When I scooted over to spoon with Autumn, she covered my hand and tucked it under her chin. Even the comfort of her warmth couldn’t keep my mind from venturing into places too disturbing to allow me to sleep. Would we step into the hallway the next day and find everyone else in the compound had been slaughtered while we slept?
Leaving the suite each morning already made me uneasy because I never knew what was happening on the other side of the door. Natasha’s security was better in her rooms than anywhere else in the building so getting inside was close to impossible. But we’d thought Ulric couldn’t get out of the tunnel and with each day came more risk. I suspected my mornings of peace would be over too soon.
I hoped my dad was right about healing even if I wasn’t asleep, because I was pretty sure I’d be awake most, if not all, through the night.
Chapter SEVEN
Zack
I’d finally fallen asleep and woke with a start only a few hours later.
“Up.” My dad flicked the back of my head with a towel.
Autumn mumbled into her pillow and I realized she’d barely moved all night. I wouldn’t have an opportunity to get that close to her again until bedtime. I nuzzled my nose behind her ear and took a long slow whiff. She always smelled like vanilla.
Renzo nudged my foot with his boot. “Wake her and get to your chores. I don’t want any of the shape-shifters feeling like we aren’t doing our share.”
“Has anyone checked in with the rest of them?” I asked, remembering our conversation about Ulric the night before.
“Everyone’s fine.” Renzo exchanged man-nods with Quentin when he and Olivia emerged from Natasha’s room.
I rolled away from Autumn as the tension left my body. “I don’t want to go into battle with Ulric. But at the same time, I can’t wait until it’s over.”
“I concur. But as much as I want this done and Ulric dead, I want both of you to have every second possible to prepare. Up.” My dad spun and headed toward the bathroom.
But no matter how long we trained, nothing could prepare us for what was to come. Battling Ulric would already be a challenge. Taking down an entire empire… I couldn’t see a way for us all to survive it when we were so grossly outnumbered.
***
After we’d wrapped up lunch hours later, Natasha tapped her pen against the pad of paper she’d brought with her to the dining area. “Nothing on the monitors inside or out have picked up signs of coming or going by anyone, scanning all the way back to the video when you arrived. If that was an animal in the tunnel and it was somehow buried immediately—which would explain the heat source disappearing so quickly—we can also assume the structure hasn’t been compromised and we could be safe here indefinitely.”
Dathan eased back in his chair and brought a glass to his lips, his eyes squinting at Natasha. Watching him sip on red liquid—most likely human blood—didn’t gross me out like it should have. The blood had an interesting texture which fascinated me in a weird way.
“You don’t plan on leaving it at that, do you? At the risk of repeating myself, Ulric probably has one or more of your people under his control.” Tension filled the room as Dathan’s gaze fell on each one of us, spending an extra moment on me before returning to Natasha. “He wants Quentin and Olivia and you. If he’s here, our best chance is to root him out before he can take us by surprise.”
“Agreed. And we still have Lulu’s death to take into account. Since I don’t think the murder was committed by any of my people, we have an intruder somewhere.” Natasha blew out a breath. “We need to do a more thorough inspection of the tunnel.”
Quentin scoffed. “Quite a stretch to believe that he got out of the tunnel on his own, then hypnotized someone to help him.”
“Or maybe it was the other way around,” Dathan said. “From the tunnel, he made contact with someone and telepathically got that person under his control. Then his helper let him in. Or he’s still in the tunnel and his assistant is doing his bidding.”
“No one here would murder Lulu under any circumstances. No werewolf has that much control over another,” Natasha mumbled, rubbing her forehead.
“You don’t know that. It’s even possible his helper has been glamoured into forgetting everything as soon as the deed is done. Your man may not even be aware of what he’s doing.” Dathan took another swig of blood. “We must be extra diligent and prepare for the possibility that more than one of your crew is working for him.”
Natasha swallowed. “I trust your assessment in war. Just how sure are you of this?”
“I’d bet my life on it.” Dathan tipped his glass toward her. “I’d also wager he’s more dangerous than I’m giving him credit for. I believe that if your people are clever and move about the compound in groups, four or five of them are still no match for Ulric.”
“Sean needs to do another head count,” Natasha said, scrawling a note on the paper.
“I don’t see the point since we can’t do anything about other disappearances anyway. We need to search the tunnel, like you said,” Quentin added. “Sooner rather than later, then check the entire compound again for intruders, make sure we’re not somehow left wide open.”
“Okay.” Natasha dropped the pad of paper and began to rise. “Let’s get started.”
“Who says we’re letting you go anywhere near the tunnel?” Quentin asked.
Was that concern over his queen or did he and Olivia have a prior relationship of some kind with her? Regardless, Quentin was right. Natasha was supposed to delegate while her people protected her.
Natasha’s head swung side to side. “It’s not your call to make. I’m the logical choice since I stand a stronger chance of surviving.”
Quentin scoffed. “You’ll survive because you’re not going anywhere.”
And now I was positive something connected those three. At least Autumn didn’t volunteer. Of course, if she had tried, her parents would surely prevent her.
Natasha ground her teeth. “Who should I choose to go in my stead? Which of my crew is less important than the other?”
“Agreed.” Renzo scooted forward in his chair and slapped an elbow on the table. “No one here is more capable of fighting Ulric than us.”
“I have a few things to do, then I need to make my rounds. Give me a couple hours,” Natasha said. Quentin and Olivia both opened their mouths, probably to object, but Ivan returned and began clearing the table. Natasha swooshed out of the room.
“She shouldn’t be off alone.” Dathan tapped his glass on the table, drawing my attention to the contents, then slammed down the glass and disappeared. It sat half full, the blood swirling a moment longer and finally settling. Why wasn’t the red goop repulsive to me? I hoped my sudden weird craving was due to just being hungry and not because I’d had enough vampire blood to become like Ulric.
Chapter EIGHT
Autumn
As we all prepared for our next training lesson, some of us stretching and others choosing weapons, my parents huddled with Natasha. They came off so genuine and easy, like being together that way was the most natural thing in the world.
“We’re not discussing it again.” My dad folded his arms over his chest. “You’re not going.”
Natasha snorted, which somehow didn’t seem unladylike with her. “Telling me what to do, are you?”
My dad grinned. “I’m older and wiser than you.”
Natasha huffed. “I could argue with the wiser part since you’re not the leader of an entire species.”
Did my dad just say he was older than Natasha? I’d thought he was joking, but the other two hadn’t corrected him. I already knew Natasha was over two hundred so that meant my dad was even older. Did that mean my mom was around the same age?
That makes your dad almost as old as my dad. Maybe older.
I glanced at Zack. Yeah, I caught that too.
Imagine what you could get f
rom your parents or Natasha if you actually asked, Dathan pushed into my mind.
God, Dathan was irritating. But I had more pressing things on my mind, and zeroed in on Dathan and Natasha. “Doesn’t holding back put us on the defensive? We should already be searching the tunnel.”
“Well, offensive is always better.” Dathan’s mouth lifted at the corners. When no one but me got it—either that or they didn’t think it was funny—he rolled his eyes. “All joking aside, I don’t want to rush us into battle, because every extra day we have is another day you and Zack have to train and get stronger.”
True. But I’d had an overload of sitting around and doing nothing. First, when we knew my ex Daniel would be coming after us. And later when we’d thought we killed Charles, the werewolf assigned to watch over Zack, but he came back to stalk us. Then again recently at the vampire palace. “But every moment we wait, we could lose more of the crew. We need to be proactive, starting with getting in that tunnel.”
“We?” Natasha lifted one brow. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“Exactly,” my dad said. “I’ll go.”
Renzo and my mom both chimed in their willingness to accompany my dad. I didn’t love that plan at all. I wanted both my parents where I could see they were safe.
“Give me a few minutes to think about this. You guys can continue training.” Natasha began pacing the large room.
“Quentin, care to go for a run in the park with us before we resume bullying Her Majesty?” Renzo asked. “We should get the urges out of our system so we can be more focused in our search for Ulric.”
My mom’s face lit up. “Sounds great.”
“You guys go ahead.” Natasha rubbed her temples without making eye contact with anyone. Renzo left with my parents and Zack hurried after them a moment later.
Talk to Natasha while you have a chance, Dathan urged as he followed the others. “I’ll make sure they make it to the park.”
I glanced around to find Natasha’s men hovering discreetly nearby, but they weren’t intrusive enough to prevent me from getting her attention. With her obvious distraction, how would I approach the subject? And I would need a good segue to ask the harder questions.
Seconds slowly ticked by as I searched my brain for a way to get any kind of conversation rolling. I didn’t have much time before my parents returned from the run and Natasha would go on rounds and we’d resume training. “So, what do you know about Ulric?”
Natasha blinked, as if I’d yanked her from deep thoughts. “In all my years, I’ve never known a werewolf like him.” She wrapped her arms around herself. “I find it quite disturbing.”
And there was my segue. “All your years… How many have you had? Three hundred, six hundred? Are you as old as Dathan?”
She rocked her head side-to-side, as if weighing how much information she should give me.
“It’s public knowledge around the compound, isn’t it?” I asked, hoping she’d see how ridiculous it would be to hold out when I could find out easily enough.
Her eyes darted around the room before switching to me. “I’m a few years shy of seven hundred.”
“Wow.” And my dad was even older? I stared at her, too stunned to think. During my silence, Natasha went back to contemplating the Ulric situation. When Dathan and my parents appeared moments later, I still hadn’t closed my mouth.
Apparently too preoccupied to notice my reaction, Natasha spun to face them. “In delaying the search of the tunnel to keep my people safe, I’ve put them in more danger by not discovering the intruder’s location.”
“Great.” Dathan swept toward the door. “Let’s get going.”
“Wait,” Natasha said. Her gaze riveted on Dathan. “I want a promise from you.”
Dathan groaned. “I can already tell I’m not going to like this.”
“Sean is my second in command. If anything happens to me, I want you to guide him, make sure he learns to lead.” She swallowed and took a deep breath. “You and I have our differences, but I know my people will be safe in your hands.”
“Nothing will happen to you.” Dathan’s jaw clenched. “But if I’m wrong, I’ll be too busy hunting down whoever harmed you to help your people.”
Natasha inclined her chin and stared him down. “Promise me that helping my people will be your first priority.”
Dathan glared a long moment, zeroing in on Natasha like they were the only people in the room. “Okay, I promise. Whatever. Let’s move.”
Sean tossed a flashlight to Zack and I, Renzo, both my parents, and Egon.
“You’re staying here.” My dad swiped at the flashlight I held, but missed when I dodged him.
I backed up, swinging the flashlight farther out of his reach. “Because anyone here can protect me better than you guys and Dathan?”
My dad’s nostrils flared, his cheeks flushing. “Fine.”
We followed Dathan and Natasha out of the training area and down to the parking structure where several more of her crew waited.
“We have no idea what’s waiting for us on the other side, so be ready for anything.” Natasha entered the code on the panel and the heavy metal door rolled up. “Egon and Sean, you’re coming with me. The rest of you stay behind and make sure this area stays secure.”
We all smelled the moist dirt and rotting flesh at the same time, various noises of disgust escaping us. I cringed, not looking forward to finding out the source of the dead smell. I really hoped it was an animal and not any of Natasha’s crew.
“Go on.” Natasha motioned us ahead, then swiveled around to the rest of the guards fanned out on the other side of the door. “Make sure this locks behind us. Whatever’s in here isn’t getting inside the compound.”
“Wait.” My dad said as one of the guards raised a hand toward the panel, then my dad turned to me. “You sure?”
“Oh, please.” I rolled my eyes. “I’ve been in worse situations than this.” Not that I wasn’t scared. I was. But I’d probably be more afraid on the other side of the wall without Dathan, Zack, Renzo and my parents. Plus, I wouldn’t know what was going on and I’d only worry.
Natasha nodded at the guard and the door rolled down. After checking to make sure it locked securely, we trudged forward. A beam of light extended from Natasha’s flashlight, reaching up to the rock ceiling. “Camera is completely crushed.” She marched ahead, stopping to spotlight another camera, also broken.
We instinctively moved together, some of us examining the ceiling while the rest scoured the tunnel sides. We didn’t travel more than a few yards when Dathan halted abruptly, his flashlight trained on a wide hole in the tunnel wall.
“Wait. I thought this place was built with impenetrable titanium,” Zack said.
“The compound, yes. The tunnel, no.” Natasha aimed the flashlight down the hole, peering in. “Obviously, that was an error in judgment.”
Dathan squeezed past her and poked his head inside, then felt around. “Let’s find out how far this goes.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Renzo and Quentin, how about a little detour with me?”
They both climbed through the hole after him. I doubted I was any safer staying behind with Natasha, my mom, Zack, Egon and Sean. Either path was dangerous, but exploring the hole wouldn’t require standing around and doing nothing. I jumped in after my dad, moving quickly so that my mom or Zack would have to climb into the hole and pull me by my feet if they wanted me out.
Damn it, Autumn, Zack shouted into my head. I can’t follow you or I’ll leave too few behind.
Sorry, I’ll be back soon.
We crawled through the narrow tunnel for several minutes. Finally, a shaft of light lit up the dirt, signaling we’d reached the end.
We know how he gets in and out of the tunnel. Now we just need to figure out how he gets in and out of the compound, Dathan told us silently. He reached the opening and poked his head out, then slowly scanned three-hundred sixty degrees. No sign of anyone. Except a slight scent of werewolf. Whoever w
ent through has been gone for at least a couple hours. Let’s get out of here.
I shifted gears and backed up. As soon as I found a space wide enough, I turned around. Unfortunately for Dathan, Renzo and my dad, they were too big and had to crawl the entire shaft feet first. As soon as I reached the end, I jumped out and into Zack’s arms. He squeezed me hard for a long moment before releasing me.
Dathan was the last to exit the passageway. “Leads to outside. Two-hour-old werewolf scent at the end.”
“Strange that his scent isn’t inside here though. Not that I’ve detected yet.” Natasha stepped forward, her flashlight constantly moving to scan the tunnel walls.
“The faster one moves, the less scent left behind.” Dathan dusted himself off. “He must have moved very fast.”
“That smell.” My mom gagged. “I’d like to find what’s been decomposing.”
“The smell rules out the two who just went missing,” Renzo said, moving toward the unexplored end of the tunnel. “They haven’t been gone long enough to create that level of stink.”
The rest of us crept forward. We breathed a collective sigh of relief when we spotted a pile of rats in various stages of decomposition. I coughed as the pungent scent violated my nose, relieved we were passing it.
“We’re almost to the end.” Natasha slowed, then stumbled. She stopped abruptly and tapped the soil with her toe. She spun, facing away. “I’m hoping this isn’t what a think it is.”
“A grave?” Dathan asked from several yards away. “Considering how strong the scent of blood is in this vicinity, there’s a body nearby. And it’s not an animal.”
Of course Dathan would be quicker than the rest of us to pick up the smell of human blood. I could smell it now too, a rancid metallic stench.
“Why don’t we head back, see you ladies safely inside, then return with a few more of your men?” Dathan motioned us away from the soft mound of dirt.
“Your statement is insulting on so many levels,” Natasha growled. “If I’m too weak to look at a decaying corpse, I shouldn’t be queen.”
Shapes of Autumn (Boxed set, books 1 - 5) Page 82