The Only Witness: The Center City Series: Book One

by Shannon Flagg

  The day had been the longest ever, but at the same time it had gone by in the blink of an eye. Vera couldn't count how many times she'd looked out a window with the hope that she'd see Deacon coming down the driveway, but he never had and as the sun began to descend lower and lower in the sky she knew that the answer to the only question that mattered was about to be definitely clear. Either she'd transform from human to animal form, or the attempt would kill her as her body was torn apart.

  A burst of hysterical laughter escaped her throat. It wasn't her imagination that all eyes were on her even before the sound, because they were. Susan and Houdini hadn't left her side since she'd come out of the bedroom that morning. It was sweet and she loved them for it, but if she didn't get some time alone soon there was going to be no other chance.

  “I'm going to take a shower. Get dressed for tonight.”

  “Dress warm.” Houdini told her. “It's supposed to get chilly tonight.”

  “I will,” Vera realized that she might not see Houdini again before she and Susan left the house. “Thank you. And thank you for anything that you've done.”

  “Don't start that shit, Vera.” Houdini shook his head. “You're going to be fine.”

  “Just covering my bases. Trust me I really want to see you again after everything.” Vera walked across the room, wrapped her arms around him the best that she could and hugged him.

  “I'm going to be there tonight, Vera. Please don't fucking eat me.”

  “Wait, what?” Vera pulled back, looked over to Susan with confusion. “I thought that it was too dangerous.”

  “It is,” Susan said shortly, her dark eyes were full of anger. “He won't be there.”

  “Fuck that, I'm in this as much as you both are!” Houdini protested. “I let you think you had your way so that the past few days wouldn't be full of us fighting, but the bottom line is, I'm going.”

  “No. You are not.”

  “I won't hurt him,” Vera interjected. “I swear I won't hurt him if I turn, and if I don't, I'd like him to be there so you're not the only witness to what happened. So, why not?”

  “I don't change in front of humans.” Susan replied in a tone that suggested she wanted no more conversation on the matter.

  “Even humans that you're married too?” Houdini countered.

  Vera knew that the conversation was just going to go downhill from there, as much as she didn't like to see them fight, but she also realized this was likely the only way that she was going to get any real time alone. They'd stop fighting eventually, most likely after they gave into their base impulses with one another.

  Neither noticed as she made her way to the back of the house and the bedroom that she shared with Deacon. Where was he? Her heart hurt to think of him because she couldn't really feel him. She just knew that he was still breathing, nothing more, and she'd tried to break through. Tried so hard that she hadn't slept in three nights because she couldn't chance that he'd open up again when she was dead to the world.

  There was a small, cynical part of herself that was glad for the radio silence, because it meant she wouldn't be the bad guy in the story when she shut the door once the change started. She wasn't sure she could handle the pain and whatever Deacon was thinking. Vera was certain that she couldn't handle him feeling her pain.

  Everything she did took on a surreal quality as she prepared for her shower. Vera was painfully aware that this might be the last time she washed her face or carefully brushed her hair. It might be the last time she used her favorite coconut milk body wash or the last time that she sat on the bed she shared with Deacon.

  She missed him down to her soul, would have given anything to have him there with her. She wanted to kiss him, to feel his hands on her hair, and most of all to have him tell her that everything was going to be alright. Vera had never wanted to believe anything more in her life.

  Vera dressed slowly, choosing one of Deacon's plaid shirts instead of any of her own and tried one last time to reach out to the man that was on her mind, but she had no luck.

  A tingling was starting to spread through her body, from her toes and working upwards. A glance out the window told her it was almost time. Vera shoved her feet into sneakers; there was a sense of urgency behind all of her movements from that point on. Suddenly she was restless, compelled by the need to get outside.

  “Vera?” She heard Susan speak but it sounded like her friend was far away. “Oh fuck, Vera, you need to keep breathing, slow and deep. Can you hear me?”

  Screw slow. Screw deep. Vera ignored the instructions, heart going wild in her chest as she found the back door and jerked it open. “Holy Shit.” She stopped to stare because she'd never seen anything quite as brilliant or beautiful as the woods edging the property.

  She'd never felt so free or graceful as she did when she ran out the door. Vera had barely gotten down the steps when the tingling turned from pleasant, pleasurable even, to a fire. A scream escaped her throat; her knees felt like they shattered when they hit the ground hard.

  Agony wasn't an accurate enough word, the feeling surpassed excruciating. It was like every bone in her body was being twisted, the sound of her tendons and muscles popping filled her ears. There was nothing but the feeling, the horrible sensations that made it impossible to even cry. Vera wanted to sob. Vera wanted to die so that it would end. How much could her body possibly take? Or maybe it had ended and she'd simply gone to roast in the flames of Hell. It was getting to the point where it didn't matter. Vera felt her mind slipping, the edges of everything going black and she welcomed the void.

  Except it wasn't a true void, it was more like a tunnel. The other side was just as beautiful and wonderful as it could be. Vera shook her head, realized with a start that it wasn't her head, or at least not the way it had been. She looked down, saw two paws. Paws. She had paws. Black and gray paws.

  Tentatively she lifted one up, put it down. Elation rolled through her. She'd survived. Vera Warren was a survivor. She was also alone. The pain had robbed her of all thought, even thoughts of Deacon, but now they were back and as wonderful as she felt, it was clear that something was missing. For the first time she understood what it truly meant to have a mate, how rare and wonderful it was and how she didn't want to be without him. A dark feeling took root in her stomach, consumed everything in its path.

  “Vera?” Susan's voice made her head snap to the side. The wind shifted and she caught a scent, something as wild as she was but not free. No, Susan hadn't shifted, which meant that she was as vulnerable as Houdini, who was a few feet behind her.

  They were vulnerable because of her, because of the sensations rolling over her that she couldn't deny or understand. If whatever control she had snapped, she could hurt them or worse. It would be easy to kill them, so fragile. So human. Vera realized that she could smell the blood pumping through their veins. The aroma was intoxicating.

  She wouldn't act on it. She couldn't. These were her friends. They had stood by her and she would not repay their kindness by shedding their blood. She tried to speak but the sound came out as a whine. Of course she couldn't talk.

  There was a lot that she was going to need to get used to now. It was a touch overwhelming. From the edge of her vision Vera could see Susan had taken one more step towards her.

  Vera did the only thing she could think of doing, the only thing that guaranteed the safety of these people she loved. She started to run. Her strides carried her quickly towards the woods. The ease with which she could move was a pleasant surprise; it was thrilling. Fallen trees and blocked paths meant nothing to her, she jumped them as if they weren't even there. Her mind raced, but it became harder to focus. Vera realized that the wolf was taking her over, the wolf didn't worry over every little thing.

  The further she moved into the woods, the more alive she felt. She could only hear the sounds of other animals and smell their scents. Vera didn't smell anyone human, not even a trace of Susan and Houdini because they hadn't followed her. She
was alone and she didn't mind, not in the least, even if she could still feel the missing hole inside of her where Deacon should have been.

  <#<#>#>#>#

  He was too late. Too fucking late. Deacon had driven as fast as he could, recklessly and taking risks that could have killed him in the hopes they'd shave off enough time so he could get home before the moon was full in the sky. “Vera!” He started shouting before he even got the truck door shut behind him. “VERA!”

  “She's alive,” Susan informed him as he rushed into the backyard. “She changed and she survived.”

  “On her own?” Deacon had never wanted to hit a woman before, but in that moment he'd have happily slugged Susan, if he didn't realize he'd regret doing it. “You were supposed to change with her!”

  “I don't change in front of humans, so take it up with Houdini.”

  “Take it up with Houdini? Really? I'll take it up with both of you. You were supposed to look out for her! Supposed to make sure she was alright. She's not alright, she's out there somewhere alone and terrified! How is that keeping an eye on her?” Deacon couldn't control the way his hands were shaking, his entire body was shaking. Vera had been alone.

  “Deke...” Houdini tried to cut in, but Deacon cut him down with a shake of his head.

  “If anything happened to her, I'll kill the both of you.” It was as serious a promise as he'd ever made. Deacon ignored anything else either of them said, stripped off his clothes and prepared to change. He felt the air grow warm around him, the popping of his muscles and tendons. Joints snapping as they were twisted in unnatural ways. After all this time, it barely hurt. The pain was something that he'd been able to get used to.

  Vera wouldn't be used to it. What if she'd fallen after she changed? Got caught by another animal, or maybe there were Hunters even in these woods. Maybe she wasn't safe. Fear, worry and the need to see her drove him into the woods at top speed. He caught the scent of her in the air, rosemary and mint mixed with something earthier, something arousing. Deacon stopped long enough just to howl with the hope that she would hear him.

  Every sound seemed amplified, but there was no return howl. How far could she have gone? Deacon's movements became frantic, his only focus on following the trail of scent that would lead to her. Except it seemed to be taking him in circles. A sound from behind him stopped him, he turned with teeth bared ready to pounce on whatever had come up behind him.

  Deacon knew that it was Vera before he caught the whiff of her scent. He also knew in that instant who had attacked her and caused the change, because she looked just like him. Slowly he moved forward, unsure if she'd take his approach as a challenge.

  She remained still, allowed him to get close enough to sniff her glistening black fur. Her snout brushed against his, teeth nipping down playfully on his leg just a moment later. Deacon threw back his head and howled at the realization that not only had Vera made it, she was enjoying herself. She wanted to play.

  Tonight they'd play. Tonight he would push everything else out of his mind and concentrate on giving her the best possible first night experience. Tomorrow morning was soon enough to tell her why he'd been late and how what he found was going to change everything for them. It could change everything for their kind.

  Deacon lunged for her, felt delight as she darted just out of his reach. He growled low in his throat, she bared her teeth and took off like a shot into the thick growth around them. Without hesitation he bounded after her, feeling more alive than he had in a long time. They'd come through Vera's attack whole, stronger than they started and they'd remain that way and grow even stronger.

  Together, they would face the new threat of The Hunters and they would stop them. There was no other option.

  Epilogue

  Vera was sleeping. Deacon would let her sleep until she couldn't anymore. She'd been spreading herself way too thin lately. It had been almost six months since the night that he'd returned home to find she'd not only survived, she'd thrived.

  Deacon had worried that when he told her about The Hunts and The Hunters that she would be scared, or pissed that The Strays had obviously known more about the situation than they let on, but she was neither. Instead she'd thrown herself into the search for them in a way that he hadn't ever imagined.

  Even now, she was asleep on top of one of the notebooks he'd brought back. The notebooks had been a gold mine of information. They had led them on a slow journey up the food chain. Eventually, they'd reach the top, cut the head off the snake and watch the body die, and only then would they be able to resume their normal lives.

  Deacon wasn't sure what normal was anymore, or if they could ever go back to Center City.

  “Deke?” Vera stirred on the bed, sat up and rubbed her hand over her cheek. “You're home.”

  “You were supposed to be taking it easy tonight.” Deacon pointed out. In fact, when he'd talked to her a few hours earlier she'd told him she was reading in bed. “And funny you didn't mention you were reading the journals.”

  “I didn't think it was pertinent information. Besides, I think that I found something.”

  “Vera,” Deacon took the notebook she'd grabbed out of her hand, closed it and tossed it to the floor. “We've poured over those papers, and not just us. Hundreds of eyes have read every word. There's nothing left to find.”

  “I've got something that they didn't have.” Her eyes were now narrowed, he didn't need to be able to feel what she was feeling to know that she was annoyed.

  “What?”

  “Do you remember before Piper died? She told you to read her journals.”

  Deacon remembered. He also remembered forgetting about them when they'd gathered their things to leave. By the time that he'd realized his mistake, it had been too late. “Of course, I remember. The journals are in Center City, Vera. They might as well be in Siberia. We can't go back. We can't get to them.”

  “Technically, the journals are in Center City. Virtually, they're here. I had Adelaide scan them and upload them online, a very discreet site. I then went to an internet cafe an hour away and downloaded them.”

  Deacon's temper roared to life. “And you did all this without saying a word to me? You hid it from me.”

  “I didn't want to get your hopes up, in case it didn't have anything to do with The Hunters, but it does. From what I can tell, Piper never felt right about how Finn died. She never bought the explanation so she started looking into deaths in the community and she found them. She found more than we know about, but she started to start to trace the spread of it across the country.”

  “If she knew something, why didn't she say it? Why stay quiet?”

  “She was worried that no one would believe her, that you would all think she was crazy.”

  Deacon wanted to say that he wouldn't have thought she was crazy, but he wasn't sure. “Fuck.”

  “Yeah, pretty much. There's one name in common between Piper's journals and Guy's things. Orion, obviously it's some sort of alias. I think he's the one behind it all.”

  “Fuck,” Deacon ran his hand over his face. “We've got to take this to The Council. I need to make a call.”

  “I already called Lina. She's bringing Shepard with her.”

  “Why didn't you call me?”

  “I knew that you were on your way back, figured you'd appreciate being told in person. Look, I know that you're pissed but...” She stopped speaking as the alarm signaling that someone had crossed the driveway blared. “Who the fuck is that?”

  Deacon walked over to the closet, took out his shotgun. “We're going to find out. Stay up here.” He set the shotgun down, took out a handgun he knew that Vera was familiar with. She was actually a pretty good shot, they'd practiced some. “Take this.”

  “That's not going to happen and we both know it.” She was off the bed in a flash, pulling on a pair of pants she'd discarded over her vanity chair and a pair of flip flops. “Maybe it's them.” She took the handgun from him, checked to make sure that it was loa
ded, just like he'd taught her.

  “They would have called. They know the security precautions.” The sound of a horn honking over and over again filled the quiet of the night. Deacon heard movement on the other side of the house; Houdini and Susan were up. “Take a position in one of the front windows, if I give the signal kill anyone moving who isn't one of us.”

  “Us like us or us like the us that lives in this house?”

  “The ones who live in this house,” Deacon reached out and pulled her to him. He kissed her hard and deep. “Stay inside.”

  He couldn't wait to see if she was going to listen, he had to go. The driveway was only so long, in mere seconds whoever it was would be at their front door. Fuck.

  “Nice choice,” he grunted the words at Houdini as the man came out of the bedroom he shared with Susan with an assault rifle in his hands. “Hopefully this is just some turned around tourist.”

  Houdini let out a snort of laughter. “You really believe that, Prez?”

  Deacon let the title slide. He'd given up on trying to stop Houdini from saying it, in fact the more that he'd protested about it, the more that Houdini had done it. It was finally Vera who'd pointed out that technically, he still was President of the Vikings. Leaving behind the club that had given him enough strength to survive after he'd lost most of his family, and even before that, still didn't sit right with him. Hell, leaving Center City didn't sit right with him, but there hadn't been a choice.

  Houdini moved towards the back door as they reached the first floor. Deacon took the front way out. He jerked open the door, stepped out on the porch and immediately recognized the vehicle careening towards him.

  Adelaide's truck came to a screeching stop and she jumped out. “Deke! I need Susan. I need help. HELP!”

  Everything seemed to happen in fast forward then. He rushed towards his sister and saw that she was covered in blood. “What happened? What did he do to you?”

  “He didn't do anything to me!” The rage with which Adelaide spoke the words had Deacon stopping in his tracks. He recognized the look in her eye and took the smack to his face in stride. “I need the help for my husband! Please, Deke. Please, I think he's dying.”