by Nova Archer
Stopping in his tracks, Jace began to push his way back through the crowd toward Tala. An officer made a grab for him, but Jace was too quick and too strong for him to get a solid hold on his arm. A low menacing growl rumbled from his throat as people stood in his way. The mob split open and allowed him access.
Tala pushed past the last two people and grabbed Jace's hands. He pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her, nuzzling his face into the silk of her hair. He could feel her vibrate under his touch and he knew she suffered as he did.
"I couldn't leave without touching you one last time," he murmured into her ear.
She dug her fingers into his back but said nothing. He felt her sudden intake of breath and knew she was stifling her tears.
He pressed his lips to her temple. "Find that boy. Get pictures of his mark. Make the connection. And trust no one."
They were torn apart. A burly officer held his arm. His other hand was on the butt of his gun. "Don't make me shoot you."
Jace grinned at him. "I could grab that gun of yours before you could even blink. Think twice about threatening me again."
The officer dropped his hand from his weapon and let go of Jace's arm.
Jace looked back at Tala. "Stay safe."
"You, too."
He turned around and allowed the officer to veer him back to the mob waiting for them near the front exit. Caine arched a brow when Jace got in place behind him. The vampire didn't have to say a word.
As they continued the procession toward the door a voice sounded beside Jace.
"Mr. Jericho! Mr. Jericho!"
Jace turned to see Rick running alongside the mass of people. He smiled at the young lab tech. His hair was sticking up all over the place; it looked like the guy hadn't showered in days.
"Mr. Jericho, I'm with you, man." He punched his fist into the air.
Jace shook his head and smiled. "Stay cool kid."
When they reached the doors, the officers pushed everyone back as one by one, Caine, Eve, Lyra and Jace exited the building and into the mass of reporters waiting outside. From one mob to another, Jace thought.
Maybe it was best that they left San Antonio. Their presence was only causing more problems than they were solving. He knew it wouldn't work out. There was no way that Otherworlders and humans could work peacefully together. It just proved to Jace once more that he was right about them.
Sometimes being right just felt wrong.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Elation and satisfaction filled him as he watched the members of the OCU being herded into the waiting SUV's by the human police. Pushed and shoved around like cattle. It was perfect.
He had risked exposure by being out in the daylight, but he couldn't resist watching their humiliation as they were escorted out of the building and eventually out of the city itself. The dejected look on Caine's face and the rage on the lycan's were well worth the trip out.
They had been getting too close to the truth to allow them to continue their investigation. A few phone calls were all it took to turn the tide. Humans were so easy to manipulate. Power had its privileges. Something he had been reveling in for a long time.
If only they knew the true scope of his power. They would quiver from fear.
Some days he ached to reveal himself to Caine and his team of miscreants. He longed to see the flicker of horror and awe on their faces with the knowledge of his true identity.
But the ruse needed to continue for a while longer. He wasn't quite finished his work.
Three more to go until he could fully realize his true purpose.
Once the vehicles pushed through the gathering crowd of reporters and curious onlookers, he moved on from where he stood on the fringe of the crowd. Walking down the street, he began to plan his next move.
As the sun waned in the distant sky, he smiled a little. Since it was such a beautiful day maybe a stroll down by the River Walk was in order. He had time yet. Nightfall was the best time for hunting.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Before Tala could make her escape from the police station to go to the hospital, the sheriff called her and Hector into a meeting.
She sat in one of the sparse wooden visitor chairs in the sheriff's office and waited for the chastisement she was certain was coming. Hector sat beside her, his leg jiggling up and down. He looked as nervous as she felt.
The sheriff sat on the edge of his desk and glared at them both.
"Due to the delicate nature and circumstances of this case I expect discretion from you both. I don't want either of you discussing this case with anyone here in the lab or outside of it. Remember the contract you signed about the Otherworlders. I will assign you both to new cases."
"Sheriff, may I speak?" Tala asked.
"No, you may not." He stood. "I expect all pertinent information and evidence either of you may have in this case presented to me immediately. Failure to do so will result in immediate release from your position."
"What if there is another murder, sir?" Tala couldn't keep her mouth shut; she was too angry. Something more was going on.
"That is no longer your concern." He rounded his desk and sat in his expensive leather chair.
"But sir."
"I told you to shut your mouth, Officer Channing. I suggest you do it immediately. You are already on shaky ground."
Hector put his hand on her arm. "Tala," he warned.
"Sir, I'm sorry, but I don't think you understand."
The sheriff steepled his fingers together on his desk. "Officer Channing, if you speak again I will suspend you without pay. I will look into the allegations from the narcotics divisions of your possible involvement with drugs and also why you left a scene of a crime unexpectedly without informing Officer Vargas of your intentions or whereabouts." He leaned back in his chair. "And if you push me further, I will also look into the attack of the youth still in hospital care. I can't arrest your lycan friend, but I can arrest you."
Fury wrapped its strong arms around her as she stood. It took all the control she had not to leap across the desk and wrap her hands around the sheriff's throat and squeeze until his doughy face turned purple. She always knew politics were at play here, but never to the extent that a case would end up suffering. Where a murderer would remain free because of the incompetence of this office.
Her hands shook as she stood. "Am I done here?"
"You're dismissed, officer," the sheriff sniffed.
Tala turned and marched out of the office. As she strode down the hall to the parking garage, Rick jumped out at her from a darkened room. He grabbed her arm and tugged her into the storage room, and after glancing each way down the hallway, shut the door quietly behind her.
"What are you doing?" she demanded, shrugging off his grip.
"I think we should form a plan and a way to communicate without other people listening," he said.
"I have no idea what you are talking about."
"The plan," he said, his bushy brow arched, "to help Mr. Jericho and the team solve the strange murders."
"There is no plan, Rick. Jace is gone and we will be assigned to another case."
He nodded and grinned. "There is always a plan. Gwen and I have already discussed the logistics."
"Gwen?"
He smiled again, and Tala could see the moony-eyed look on his face. "The brilliant lab tech from Necropolis. She's in agreement with me that we—you and me-should continue to collect the evidence and smuggle it out to her."
Tala shook her head and went to open the door. "Rick, my advice to you, is to stay out of it and do your job. The one you're told to do."
"Hey, do you think we should inform Hector of our plans? Or do you think he's a political liability?"
She opened the door and walked out. Rick followed her, still surveying the area as if he was a secret agent.
"What's our code word going to be?" He asked as he continued to trail her down the hallway.
When Tala reached the parking garag
e door, she yanked it open and looked at Rick who was busy thinking about secret code words. She could tell by the way his forehead wrinkled and his eye squinted. "It's over. Let it go."
He glanced at her and smirked. "That's an awful code word." He patted her on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Tala. I'll think of something." He turned and shuffled back down the hallway. He waved his arm in the air. "The man cannot keep us down."
Chuckling, she watched Rick until he disappeared around the corner. She hoped he didn't spout off about his 'plan' to anyone that mattered. The way the sheriff was going she wouldn't be surprised to see Rick on the unemployment line, standing right behind her.
She went into the garage and jumped into her vehicle. Before she started it, she sat and stared out the windshield. What was she going to do? The sheriff made it quite clear that he didn't want her anywhere near this ongoing case. But she couldn't just walk away. Not after everything they had gone through to get the evidence they had collected. Not after everything Jace and the rest of the OCU had tried to do. Caine had said there would be another murder and she believed him.
Maybe Rick had the right idea. Continue the search and gather the evidence. What harm could come if she found the smoking gun and solved this case?
She'd be fired, that's what.
Maybe she could just pop in at the hospital and visit a sick kid. There was nothing wrong with that in the grand scheme of things. And the fact that she was going to buy a disposable camera along the way had no bearing in that visit at all.
The kid's name was Tommy Ross and he was on the sixth floor of the University Hospital.
When Tala reached the triage desk she flashed her badge and asked for his room number. The nurse at the desk pointed down the hall to room eight.
She wasn't quite sure what she was going to do once she got to his room. She couldn't just walk in and start snapping pictures of him, could she?
When she got to the door, it was propped open. She peered inside and saw Tommy asleep in a bed by the window. There was another bed in the room and it was occupied by a young black girl. Unfortunately, she was wide awake and saw Tala the moment she poked her head through the doorway.
Taking the plunge, Tala walked into the room, smiled politely at the little girl and continued on to Tommy's bed. As quietly as she could, she pulled the curtain around the bed separating them. She really didn't want a witness.
She took the disposable camera out of her jacket pocket and crept around to the other side of the bed. Tommy's head was tilted to the left so she'd have a perfect shot of his exposed throat. She noticed the dark mark instantly. It was situated on the lower part of his neck just above his lat muscle. It was blacker than a regular bruise. And by now, if it was just an ordinary bruise, it would've started to turn different shades of green or yellow. And it did look like a goat's head. A long face with horns.
She snapped a couple of pictures of it. After the third take, Tommy started to stir. Time to go.
But before she could walk around the bed, he was fully conscious and making a lot of noise.
"You," he croaked, pointing a finger in her direction. "You're a...a."
She rushed back around the bed and covered his mouth with her hand. Bending down to his ear, she said, "I suggest you be quiet. You wouldn't want to make me angry again, now would you?"
He shook his head, his eyes wide in terror.
"I just came to talk, Tommy," she said. "I have a couple of questions for you then I'll leave you alone. Do you understand?"
He nodded.
Slowly, she took her hand off his mouth and stepped away. Jace's words came back to her. A human lie detector. Reaching over, she took hold of his hand, and wrapped her fingers around his wrist.
He struggled against her hold. "Let go."
"Don't worry, Tommy; I'm just taking your pulse. Like the nurses do." She smiled at him and he instantly stopped fussing. His heart was pumping but she knew it was out of fear.
"How did you get that mark on your neck?"
"What mark?" he sniffed, but his eyes didn't shift. It was human nature to try and look for the thing that another person was asking about, even if it was located in an impossible position to see.
With her other hand, she pressed her thumb over the mark. He winced. "This one."
He shrugged. "I don't know. I get bruises sometimes. No big deal."
His pulse spiked. He was lying.
"Do you know Darryl Rockland, otherwise known as Rock?"
"No."
Again his pulsed jumped. Another lie.
She leaned forward, and let her lycan rise to the surface. Just a little. Enough that her eyes glowed. Without the silver nitrate rushing through her system it proved easy to do.
"I know you're lying to me. And when I find out the truth, and I will find out the truth, Tommy, I'm going to make sure that you are charged with accessory to two murders."
"I didn't kill no one," he sputtered.
"But I know you know who did." She squeezed his wrist tighter. His pulse was racing. "Give me a name. Something to go on."
"I don't know who killed those girls. I really don't."
His pulse was racing but it didn't spike. He was telling the truth about not knowing. But she knew he still had information they could use to catch the killer.
"Tell me something you do know then, like how you got that mark. Darryl Rockland has the same one. Why?"
The look in his eyes was one of pure panic and fear. He was deathly afraid of something, and Tala didn't think it was of her. Surely, she wasn't that frightening.
"A few weeks ago, I was partying with some friends. I took some drugs and passed out. I don't remember much after that, but when I woke up the next day I had this mark."
"There's something you're not telling me, Tommy. I can see it in your eyes. Who were you with? What did you see?"
He shook his head. "I don't know."
"Yes, you do. Think, damn it."
"A wolf. I think I saw a wolf. And the moon."
Flinching, she stared at him. "Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Were you outside? In the woods?"
He shook his head. "I was definitely indoors. And I heard lots of noise. Music, I think."
"What else?"
"That's it. I can't remember anything else." Tears streamed down his cheeks. He looked like he was going to throw up. "Now, his voice is in my head."
"Whose voice?"
"I don't know. But he whispers to me. Tells me to do things." His eyes widened and fresh tears formed in the corners. "He told me to go after you in the parking lot."
She flinched at that confession. A phantom voice had spoken to him, told him to attack her. Who knew of her involvement in the case, besides those already on the case?
"Did you know the girls that were murdered? Had you seen them before?"
He shook his head and his pulse remained steady. He wasn't lying about that.
Tala let go of his wrist. "Tommy, you have an opportunity here to get yourself straight. I suggest you use it." Tucking the camera into her jacket pocket, Tala turned and walked around the bed to leave.
"Wait" he called, reaching out to her. "What should I do if I hear his voice again?"
"Don't listen to it. And get off the drugs. They're going to kill you."
Tala left the room with the intentions of going back to the lab and finding Rick. They had work to do and little time to do it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Once the team trudged down the hallway to the staff room of the Boneyard, Jace tossed his duffel bag onto the floor and cursed. Loudly.
"It's utter crap, Caine. Isn't there anything we can do?"
Caine moved to the sink, grabbed a teacup from the cupboard and filled it up with water. After dropping in a teabag, he plunked it into the microwave. It was his custom when they started a shift. As the water heated, Caine rubbed a hand over his face.
His usual casual elegance was wearing down. With his tie askew and
wrinkles in his usually pressed pants, he looked as tired and worn out as the rest of them. The case was taking its toll on everyone.
"What would you have us do, Jace?" Caine asked as he took out his cup of tea and sipped it. "Storm the gates? Take up arms?"
"So you're just going to give up? Let them win?"
"I'm not giving up, Jace, but I'm inclined to be more pragmatic about this than you are." Caine sighed. "I need a shower and a pint of blood, and then, we can sit down and think this through."
Eve crossed the room and wrapped her arms around Caine. Setting his chin on top of hers, he closed his eyes and hugged her back.
"Oh, I certainly needed this," he murmured.
Jace turned away from the display. This was not the opportune time to be reminded of something he'd nearly had.
Pacing the room, Jace asked, "Isn't there a back door we can sneak through? Maybe Hector can give us a way in."
"Nobody from this lab is going anywhere." The baron's voice came from the doorway.
Jace swiveled around to see Laal, hands on hips, glaring. He looked pissed off.
"I've just been on the phone with Sheriff Atkins for the past hour. I'm ashamed to even repeat what he told me." Laal huffed. "All of you have disgraced this lab and this city with your unprofessional antics."
Caine moved so fast across the room that everyone had trouble seeing it, especially Eve, who was still righting herself from almost tumbling over from the sudden movement. He stood in front of Laal an equally angry-and more frightening-glare in his eyes.
"Don't even start, Laal. You have no idea what went on in San Antonio."
"I know enough," Laal pointed a finger at Jace, "to consider arresting him. That poor boy may never get over what happened to him."
Jace snapped. It was instantaneous. He stalked across the room, grabbed Laal by the shirt collar and slammed him against the window of the staff room. The force of the impact cracked the glass.