"Can't we just talk about stupid things? I'll bat my lashes and giggle, and we can throw little flirty lines at each other?"
"We could," he said, smiling. "But then we truly wouldn't get to know each other."
"What's the point in getting to know each other? You're leaving soon, right? And I've got my own problems to deal with. We're not friends."
"You're right. I'm not fast to toss the friend word around." He looked her up and down. "You do look delicious in that shirt."
She laughed as she glanced down at the table. His chocolaty smell filled her nose. She'd never shared her past with anyone before. It was hard to believe Jack would be the first.
"I pretty much grew up in that bar you killed. It was my parents'. They were great to me."
Her chest tightened at the thought of them. She waited for Jack to say something, either rude or sarcastic. He said nothing.
"I was a woods girl even before the bite. I was out hiking when they attacked me, right in the middle of the day. Eight of them, in all. They tore me to shreds and left me to die. But whatever it is that lets some humans come back, I have it, I guess. I was missing for four days. The entire town searched for me. They found me, and I actually made the papers. I'll never forget the first night I changed. There was a drunk guy at the bar, and he pissed me off so much. Flirted with my mother, tried to start a fight with my father. I ran from the bar and changed in a back alley."
She sighed at the memory. Her hand shook as she reached for her glass of orange juice.
"The leader of the pack that attacked me approached me. He said I belonged with them, that I was no longer human. I politely declined, but…" Her face twisted in anger, and she didn't realize it. "They felt they needed to give me a reason to leave humanity behind. So, they killed my parents."
Jack nodded slowly. "I see why you don't run with a pack."
"Fuck packs," she said, drawing attention from a couple three booths behind them. "Anyway, it was bloody mayhem in Sandy Cliffs for a while. The town freaked out when they found my parents' bodies, and then the other corpses started showing up. Bloodied, destroyed, silver spikes sticking out of them."
He put the clues together. "You killed an entire pack of werewolves?"
She nodded. "I buried who I could out in the woods, but not all of them. I got interrupted a few times, and the town thought they had a monster on their hands. All they saw were human bodies after I was done."
"I know," he said. "Wolves change back to human when killed with silver. You should see a vampire when the sun hits them. They turn into a big pile of dust. Break out the vacuum cleaner."
"They didn't have a chance," Marie said, the violent memories playing through her mind. "I was so angry. I ripped into them, mangled them. Then I shoved silver into their hearts."
"Ah, on that note," Jack said, spotting the server with their food. "Let's eat."
Marie laughed shortly, although her mood soured somewhat. She relived the memories over the decades, but never shared them with anyone. Her past certainly didn't affect Jack's appetite, as he dove into a stack of pancakes.
"So," she continued. "I left Sandy Cliffs. Been gone almost fifty years, until recently."
"You did what you had to do," he said between mouthfuls. "And you moved on. I approve."
"Oh, well, all is right, now that I have your approval. Anyway, I came back here to run my parents' bar. It's cool that I got that chance, even if just for a few weeks."
"For what it's worth, I wasn't honest before. I did like the place, before it burned down."
"Ah, thank you so much."
They shared a genuine smile, holding eye contact just a second longer than necessary. Jack was violent, deadly, dangerous.
Just like her.
"So, you came into some unexpected money," he said. "What are your plans?"
"It'll certainly be enough to get to another town, start over. With that much cash, I can stay out of the system for a bit, make me hard to track."
He stopped eating for a moment. "Ah, so you're running like a little bitch."
"Did you not hear a word I said? I've done enough killing in this town."
"I haven't seen you change completely into a wolf yet. When you do, is there a yellow streak down your back?"
"What would you do, Jack?"
"I'd kill every single one of them."
"More would come."
"Kill them, too."
"Ah, so simple."
"It is. I'm a genius."
They laughed together once again. The strangeness of their situation wasn't lost on Marie. A grown man and woman, eating breakfast at a restaurant, laughing and joking about killing humans.
"I've told you," she said. "I just don't want to be part of another bloodbath in this town."
He shrugged. "Hey, it's your life. Live it any way you want."
"Now it's your turn. Enough about me. Tell me something about yourself."
He thought a moment, keeping his eye on her as he drank tea. He certainly stood out in a crowd, even if he didn't want to. Strong features, handsome face. He had that dangerous twinkle in his eye. After spending time with him, it was obvious it was so much more than a twinkle.
"I've been wanting to die most of my life," he said. "But I can't. I thought I'd seen it all, and I was sick of the world. It wasn't until I met Tiffany, my daughter, and Erica, that I learned mortals could still surprise me." He looked her up and down. "It's nice to know other monsters in the world can surprise me, too."
"Who you calling a monster?"
He held his hands up in defense. "Sorry. I'll go with mortally-challenged."
They finished their breakfast, enjoying their conversation along the way. Marie was sad when the time funneled to an end. Jack paid for their meal, and again Marie was reminded of how long it had been. Talking with a man, sitting across the table from him, feeling like her words mattered. Jack had no motive for spending time with her, no business to conduct.
He simply enjoyed being with her. Marie could tell, and felt the same way.
They drove back to her apartment. He opened the trunk and reached for her bag once again, handing it to her. She slung it over her shoulder as they both stood there, neither one moving. She wanted to say something, but words escaped her for a moment.
"You ruined my dream, the last place I felt close to my parents. But, for whatever reason, I don't hate you."
He nodded. "What a wonderful compliment. My good looks, perhaps? Even though you have fleas and would probably piss all over my carpet, I don't hate you, either."
Marie smiled. "If I didn't have to pack, and you didn't have someone to kill, I think I'd spend more time with you."
Jack laughed and reached into his coat, fumbling in the pockets.
"I want to give you a very rare, special gift."
He unveiled a business card. Marie laughed aloud as he handed it over.
"Oh, wow, Jack, you shouldn't have."
"You don't realize what an honor this is for you."
"That's not true. I definitely feel the honor."
"I give one of these out maybe once a decade. It's got the number to my favorite private secretary, and my personal cell phone number. You never know. Maybe today isn't our final meeting."
Marie found herself hoping he was right.
But she had work to do.
"Maybe," she said.
Jack held out his hand. She stared at it in surprise.
"You'd better hurry," he said. "This hand won't stay out there forever."
Marie pushed it aside and shocked him with a hug. Jack gasped, and his instinct was to throw his arms out. She enjoyed the simple contact, her face buried in his chest. He was considerably taller than her. His chin touched the top of her head.
"Uh, what exactly are you doing?"
"Hugging you. You should try it. A hug won't kill you."
"Nothing will kill me."
He slowly wrapped his arms around her. She was embarrassed when a quiet
, contented sigh sneaked out. A simple hug with someone that knew she was a werewolf was a new experience for her.
"Hmm. I've never hugged a dog before. It's not as bad as I thought it'd be. Just don't start humping, okay? That would look weird."
"You know just what to say to a lady."
She pulled away and flashed him one final smile. He responded in kind and gave her a polite nod.
"Goodbye, Marie. I would wish you luck, but I don't believe in it."
"Neither do I."
She watched as he drove away.
*****
"Yo, Sean. Wake up. We're just about there."
Sean Faraday opened his eyes to see the roof of the car. The sky and trees moved in the passenger's window to the right, almost making him nauseous. They hit a bump, and his stomach shifted as he bounced in the seat.
"Jesus Christ," he said, inclining forward. "They should fix the damn road. Or you need to learn how to drive."
"Don't be jealous of the driving skills."
He wiped the sleep from his eyes and glanced at Nolan. Nolan was ten years older than Sean, one of the more experienced hunters in their unit. The guys liked to poke fun at his age, but with that fun came a certain respect. Everyone knew Nolan had killed his share of werewolves. There was even a rumor that he'd killed one with his bare hands once before. When confronted, Nolan had only responded with a maybe. The younger guys were always in awe of him, and Sean could see why.
"We're…what, about ten minutes out?"
"Yeah."
Sean sat up straight and grabbed his laptop and cell phone from the back seat. There were procedures and plans to follow. He knew his team like he knew his own family. Sean and Nolan were the last two to arrive, and the rest of the men were already hard at work. He didn't need to check up on them, but it was his job.
Taylor, one of his best men, answered his phone on the second ring.
"Hello?"
"It's Sean. We're just about into town. Give me good news."
"The people here speak English."
Sean frowned. "Taylor, come on—"
"I'm kidding. We're just about done here. The space is all set up. We're just killing time, really. Seeing the town, reviewing the notes."
"How is the space? What do we got?"
"You really have to talk to management about what they give us, but that's a talk for another day."
"Not good, I'm guessing?"
"It's office space. I've seen worse. We're setting the gear up on the first floor, the cots on the second."
"It sounds fine to me."
"I know. I'm just thinking of that Seattle job, where we all had our own hotel rooms."
"That was privately funded. It's a small town. We have to deal with what we got."
"I know, boss. I know. Just griping. Also, Vance had to leave. His wife's going into labor, so he's heading back south."
That left the team with eleven people, with a surprise twelfth on the way. Sean wasn't sure he was comfortable with the count. They still weren't sure how many puppies they were dealing with.
"Okay, we'll make due. I'm gonna stop by and pick up my brother. Then we'll all be over. I'll pick up some food on the way. I don't see any reason we can't get started tonight."
"We'll all?" Taylor said, picking up on the phrase. "Is Rob in?"
Sean just smiled into the phone.
"No comment. I'll see you soon."
"You got it, boss."
He hung up. Lost in the paperwork, the preparation, the day to day operations of the organization Sean worked for, was the quest of his younger brother Rob. Rob had personally gathered the necessary data on the last two werewolves they killed, with the latest, Marie Johnson, being the third. He did it all on his own, with no help from anyone, and reported directly to Sean. With each assignment he took more risks, with the latest involving working for the target in question. Rob was wild and unpredictable. It took a monumental effort on Sean's part, but he finally managed to convince the organization of a simple fact.
With guidance and the right team, Rob would be a tremendous asset.
Sean already had his words prepared. He'd deliver them in person, but wanted to call his brother first.
Nolan cast him a sideways glance as Sean dialed the number, smiling slightly. Sean liked to keep his private life to himself, even though he was very close with the team. Everyone knew how close Sean and Rob were.
Rob didn't answer the phone. Sean waited for the beep.
"Hey, little brother. It's me. We're in town now. I'm gonna swing by your place. I've got some news for you. Just to give you a little hint, you can go ahead and quit your job. I'll catch you in a few."
Sean shoved the phone away as he opened Marie Johnson's file on his laptop. He didn't know how long she'd been on the organization's radar, and he didn't care. Nearly every single photo taken of her had been done by Rob. There were shots of her in her apartment, walking to the woods, going to the grocery store. Rob was right; she was a beautiful woman.
There was a game he liked to play during the preparation phase of each hunt. He liked to guess how old they were. He was almost never near the mark, but he kept trying. Marie looked like a thirty-year-old woman, but that obviously wasn't true.
Sean guessed she was still in a human age range, probably younger than ninety. One time he tracked and killed a puppy three hundred years old. That dog just had a certain look to him, the way he moved and watched the world. Marie didn't have that look. She still had a youthfulness to her, and he could easily imagine his brother flirting with her nonstop.
"Hey Sean," Nolan said. "Rob's up here on the left, right?"
Sean looked up from the laptop, seeing Sandy Cliffs for the first time. Typical town, no different than any other small town they hunted in. Not much activity on the sidewalks, very little traffic. The entire town was surrounded by green. There were more woods than actual town. Hopefully the hunt would be quick and clean, and they could get back to that break they were planning. They had to be ready for anything, be dynamic and willing to change everything in an instant. They knew Marie, but didn't know her pack. Perhaps they'd take her hostage, draw them out. Or torture her into revealing their location. Maybe Rob could use that charm of his to convince her it was in her best interest to talk.
"Yeah, that's it. First left, building 802."
He thought nothing of it when he saw the ambulance parked outside. Two men carried a stretcher out the front door. They walked with care, but without urgency. The white sheet covered whoever was on the stretcher from head to toe, and Sean realized they were carrying a dead man.
They were leaving building 802.
Sean felt tight in his chest. A small crowd was starting to gather, as residents from the other buildings milled about on the grass. There were police cars next to the ambulance he didn't see before, and two cops passed the ambulance on the way to the door.
"Park," Sean said. "Now."
He jumped out of the car before Nolan completely stopped. Pushing two bystanders aside, he walked straight for the paramedics. They were caught by surprise and froze as Sean approached them. He threw the sheet back, drawing startled shouts and anger from the paramedics.
Sean didn't hear them. He wasn't aware of anything happening around him as he looked into the face of his brother.
Rob's face was black and blue, the result of a beating. His throat was a bloody mess, gore and fluid all over the shirt Sean had gotten him for his birthday.
He was vaguely aware of his surroundings. Nolan was grabbing him by the shoulder, pulling him away from the stretcher. He argued with one of the paramedics and offered an apology to the police and bystanders nearby. Sean nearly stumbled twice, and Nolan gripped his shoulders to keep him upright.
Sean had seen much in his time as a wolf killer. He'd seen two wolves having sex, an image he'd never unsee. He witnessed a single werewolf decimate some of the organization's best men, all because they'd gotten careless. Once he saw an actual vampire,
who inadvertently lent a hand in one of the hunts.
He'd seen much death and violence. It still didn't prepare him for seeing his brother on a stretcher.
Nolan was talking. Sean only heard the last part.
"…okay, Sean?"
He fell to one knee.
"Congratulations, little brother. You're in."
Nolan's brow furrowed as he knelt in front of Sean. "What's that again?"
Sean went through the rest of his prepared words.
"The organization thinks you'll be a great fit, and so do I. You'll see and learn about things few people get the chance to. But they think you're a bit of a wild-card, so you'll be in my unit. We're going to do great things, little brother."
Nolan said nothing, simply patting Sean on the shoulder. The ambulance left, but the police stayed behind, moving in and out of the building. The crowd broke up, with only a few staying behind to gawk.
"That didn't look like a puppy attack," Nolan said.
Sean struggled to gather his thoughts.
"No, it didn't. That doesn't mean it wasn't one, though. We can't rule anything out. It could be entirely unrelated to our little puppy, or it could have everything to do with her."
"I'm behind you, Sean. Whatever you say, we'll do."
Sean pulled himself to his feet with Nolan's help.
"We do what we came here for. We go wolf hunting."
CHAPTER 28
Jack sat in the chair in the corner of Charlie's bedroom. He hadn't slept since leaving the pocket-watch at home, so his body had no sense of time. He was too lazy to check his cell phone, but guessed it was maybe one in the morning.
Charlie slept soundly in bed, oblivious to the day's events. He was unaware that Jack had dissected his life, rigged up the patio door to not lock. Jack watched every move Charlie made after he came home from the garage. Charlie took a quick shower, made a microwave dinner, and watched television. Before bed he went to the dresser and pulled out the photo album, thumbing through the pages with a sad smile on his face.
Jack fought the urge to break in and kill him then.
Damned and Cursed (Book 2): Witch's Kurse Page 30