Wolf Ties (A Rue Darrow Novel Book 2)

by Audrey Claire

  A bevy of hostile gazes stared me into silence after this little speech. Who was I to vouch for Nathan? Well, I had spoken the truth. Many times, Nathan had come to my help and rescue. The werewolves didn’t have to believe me, but I wanted them to believe Nathan was better than the good for nothing they thought he was.

  “I have a thought,” Cecil said, and everyone quieted again. “If this was done by a human, don’t you think Violet and the police would just find the persons responsible and end it?”

  “No one mentioned a human,” Trace said.

  “No, but I mean, they sealed the crime scene. They won’t even tell us where he died, and they won’t let us near Nathan to get to the truth. I’m beginning to suspect it was one of our enemies, maybe even those lowlife creatures.”

  I knew right away he referred to the cat shifters. The werewolves considered them so far beneath them the cat shifters didn’t deserve to be named. Schooling my features to give no reaction whatsoever, I waited for Trace to reply. Instead, one of the others tossed a chair aside, and it banged into a table as he made his way toward me. I didn’t stand up or uncurl my legs.

  The wolf leaned in close and sniffed my arm, squinting his eyes, teeth bared. Maybe he thought I should be afraid since he let his canines lengthen and thicken like that of the wolf. I rotated only my head to face him.

  “You were near Nathan recently, weren’t you?”

  He was fishing. I didn’t give off much of a scent, and what little I did was a mixture of my environment. Even if there was a hint of Nathan on me from the hug he had given me, it was no more than the tiny bit that clung to me from spending any time in his presence. The wolf wouldn’t know I had visited Nathan with Violet.

  I grew out a nail and tapped my finger against my arm. “You have three seconds to back away from me, wolf.”

  Now, you know I was just bluffing. I was outnumbered and as proud as I was of what I had learned over the last few weeks, I was still an amateur. Many of these people had been around decades longer than I had, even if they didn’t look it.

  The werewolf straightened, but he didn’t move away. “You’re one little girl alone. What do you think you can do?”

  Time for more bluffing because I sensed tension increasing in the room. The werewolves were spoiling for a fight, even one that wouldn’t provide a challenge. I imagined myself hanging from this one’s powerful jowls being shaken like a piece of meat and then tossed to the next and the next. Not good at all.

  “That’s what you see?” I stretched my legs out and raised my arms with casual grace above my head. “One woman alone? Did you miss the vampires all around this area?”

  He frowned in doubt at me. I stood, and he backed up a step. One point in my favor.

  “Maybe you’ve heard of Silvano. No? The leader of a very powerful and influential coven in New Orleans.”

  “You’re…one of his?”

  I studied my nails, feeling all of their eyes on me. “You being so proud of your sense of smell, I realize now it can’t breach a vampire’s cloak.”

  Mutters rose around the room, offense, nervousness, anger. The emotions ran the gamut, but no one moved against me. I hadn’t claimed to join Silvano’s coven because I hadn’t done so, despite how many times he offered. I didn’t know who they all were, and I could no more breach their cloaks than could the werewolves. Silvano might be in the area, and he might not be. None of us in the restaurant knew, although it was likely he wasn’t inside the building.

  “She’s bluffing,” Cecil said.

  “Why should she?” This was Ella, and Quinn nodded in agreement.

  Trace settled matters. “All right. Leave her alone. We’re not going to push you, Rue, but consider how we feel. We’ve lost our leader, and it’s killing us to be told to leave it to the police and do nothing. It’s not in our nature. How would you feel if someone killed Silvano?”

  I thought about this and knew the answer wouldn’t be what he thought. Silvano wasn’t a friend, even if I did spend more time with him, and he also had helped me. I sensed ulterior motives. Silvano smiled, presenting himself as someone who cared about my well-being. Yet he came across as cold, and with the same chill growing inside me, what appealed to me more was warmth and passion.

  I surveyed all of their faces and encountered a sea of hostility, but I also saw their pain and loss and their confusion. “I will find the person responsible for Dalton’s murder, and I won’t give up until I do.”

  No one gave me a pat on the back and a wish for good luck. I spent a little while longer in their presence, talking with each, trying to get to know them. By the time I was ready to leave, I had a good sense that not one offered friendship to a vampire. I was an outsider, an interference linked to the police, whom they hated. No wonder poor Violet wasn’t pack. What a lonely existence she must have, and it helped me to see why she cared so much about Nathan. He was on the outside too. If not for the wolves, at least for me and for Violet, I would make sure Nathan was set free.

  * * * *

  I supposed the vampire liked to become visible before cloaking himself just to be sure I didn’t get any notions about trying to attack Silvano. The very thought was ludicrous, but each time I agreed to meet with Silvano, one of his men did just that. He’d watch me from a dark corner wherever we happened to be and then disappear so I could no longer sense or see him.

  “Don’t worry about Francis,” Silvano said, chuckling. “He’s overprotective. I told him you’re one of us, but he’s distrusting. I don’t blame him, and as long as he never tries to harm you, there’s no reason to take it personally.”

  I begged to differ as I couldn’t shake the suspicion Francis plotted on me. Maybe I was being too cautious as well. After all, I had hoped the werewolves would embrace me, and they did not, but I held the vampires at a distance. In what world did that make sense?

  “Today, we’re going somewhere different,” Silvano said.

  “Where?”

  He grinned. “You’ll see. Try to follow me.”

  Try? He must be joking. We flitted in and out of shadows, up onto rooftops, and descended to the earth on a current of wind. Cars, people, everything zipped by at blinding speed. Rather we did, and at last we arrived at our destination. I frowned at the line of glass doors and the lights beyond them.

  “Here?”

  “Yes, here. It’s the perfect place for your request.”

  He started forward at an ordinary pace, but I hung back. “I’m not sure about this, Silvano. A mall. There are walls of humans.”

  “You live among them. Is there a problem?”

  “Yes, there’s a problem!” I gestured. “I asked you to help me learn to read minds.”

  He nodded. “And there are hundreds there.”

  “And heartbeats. I’ll be too focused on hearing their blood pumping to hear their thoughts.”

  “I assure you, you won’t.”

  “I will. Maybe you’re too old to remember how it calls to you and all you can think about is hunting them.” In fact, Ian had told me to avoid going to places such as malls for at least a couple years. Silvano didn’t seem to feel as cautious, or perhaps he didn’t care about the danger.

  He walked back to me and ran his hands along my arms. “Rue, the blood calls for eternity. My age doesn’t lower its voice.”

  “Then…” I peered past him at the entrance. A woman stood before a rack of men’s clothing and held up a pair of slacks, displaying them to a man who I assumed was her husband or boyfriend. All of it looked so normal, but it wouldn’t remain so if I injected myself into the formula. “I just can’t.”

  “All right. We won’t go there.”

  I thanked him, and we moved on, searching for a good place. The most logical might have been a restaurant, but I had wanted a change of scenery and to avoid pretenses. To my relief, Silvano agreed because he said we might need quite a while for me to practice, and one could only drink so much wine and not order food at the restaurants without
looking odd. I supposed we could have gone to a bar, but listening to minds over music was another problem.

  At last, Silvano stopped outside a fenced field where a game of co-ed adult soccer was going on. “This is a good place. Quite a few humans but not too many. Does it meet with your satisfaction?”

  I smiled. “Yes, I’ve never watched a soccer game in real life before. I’ve seen it on TV once or twice.”

  “We’re here to learn, Rue. You must concentrate.”

  “I know and I will.”

  We found a spot on the bleachers away from any humans, which was easy because there were far fewer spectators than room to sit. I surveyed the crowd of eager onlookers, some leaning forward, concentrating on the game, others chatting among themselves. A few cupped their hands around their mouths, calling encouragement—or insults—to the players.

  I watched the players for a little while, and Silvano said nothing. I supposed he gave me time to adjust to the atmosphere of the game, or to work out my excitement over the new experience.

  My gaze settled one team’s area where a couple players sat on the grass and others jumped around and stretched, obviously to keep their muscles warm. One man bent over a supersize thermos and handed out small cups of water to the others. I narrowed my eyes at him. He wasn’t wearing shin guards, and his feet were bare, but he wore the jersey. I sniffed and frowned.

  “He’s a cat shifter,” Silvano supplied, following my line of vision.

  “That’s not fair. He could far outrun everybody.”

  “Which is probably why he’s just an assistant to the coach or something.”

  I grunted. “And now I feel like it’s not fair in the other direction. He doesn’t get to play a game he loves because he’s not human.”

  “Is that what he feels, Rue?”

  I glanced at Silvano. “Huh?”

  “Focus on him and relax. I want you to open your mind to that young man. Imagine you can hear his inner voice and let it come to you, gently and without fear.”

  Easy for him to say. The moment I knew we were beginning, I tensed, couldn’t help looking at everyone around us. This had been my request, that Silvano teach me how to read other people’s thoughts. I figured it might help me to get into the cat shifter’s head and learn the identity of the murderer.

  “Can I even get into his head?” I asked.

  Silvano studied the man, whose wiry frame was hunched at the shoulders as he apparently took the barbs the player in front him tossed at him. “Nonhumans who are strong enough can block you to some extent or lead you down a merry trail of lies. You won’t know the truth until it’s too late or you learn to do better.”

  “Great.” I moaned.

  “Almost all humans are easy pluckings.”

  “So why can’t we go with one of them? And why do you say almost all?”

  “Witches and those with other psychic abilities could throw up blocks to keep you out. A vampire such as myself could get through eventually, but not without damage to the human and possible destruction of the information that is sought.”

  I nodded.

  He scanned the area nearer to us. “Okay, forget the shifter. Here is a human that should be easy. Let’s go with him.”

  I checked and discovered an ordinary man sitting alongside a pretty woman. From his bearing the man appeared anxious. I wasn’t sure if that would contribute to a block or to him being an open book. Neither he nor the woman was speaking to the other, which had been one of my concerns, that all I would pick up was what I heard with my physical ears.

  Silvano coached me. I strained. Chatter rose around me, but it was the same as what I was already hearing. My mind filled with sentiments of self-doubt and speculation of what the man could be thinking.

  “Stop assuming, Rue. Let it come to you.”

  “I’m not assuming,” I lied.

  He quirked an eyebrow toward his hairline. I ignored him and focused on the man. Silvano touched my lower back. I resisted moving out of reach.

  “I’m going to give you a little boost. Don’t be alarmed.”

  “What do you—”

  He was in my head, pushing what felt like walls. I resisted. He spoke soothing words. My mind expanded, and the chatter rose. I knew within the voices were those both from the people’s mouths and their heads. Nerves knotted in my stomach.

  “Wait,” I whispered.

  Silvano pushed a bit more, and the noise increased. I believed in that moment he had the power to damage my mind as much as he had said a vampire could do so to a human.

  “Get out!”

  I didn’t touch him, but an unseen force sent him backward. He would have rolled, maybe flown across the empty space between us and the humans. To stop himself, he grew out his nails and stabbed all five on one hand into the bench under us. I looked on in shock and horror as his nails cut through the surface and dragged a good foot. These were metal bleachers, and he had cut straight through. Not to mention the fact that I had created such energy to require him to hold on in this manner.

  The entire incident began and ended within a couple seconds. No one around us seemed to notice, not even the grating sound, not above noise of cheers. From the moment I demanded Silvano to stop, he let go of my mind, and all the noise inside it ceased. I regretted my hasty actions and pulled his hand up from the gashes he had created to cradle in my palms.

  “I’m so sorry. I overreacted, Silvano. Forgive me.” I examined his fingers to see that there were a few cuts that closed as I watched.

  “No permanent damage done. I think I’ll stay out of your head.” He chuckled, but I saw an assessing look in his gaze. “You’re a powerful vampire, Rue, and you should acknowledge it while being very careful.”

  “Careful? Why?”

  He gazed at the players running about the field. “Because there are those who would like to control someone like you, someone strong but vulnerable at the same time.”

  “Not you though.” I smirked.

  He didn’t find it amusing. “You must make alliances. It’s the only way to survive in the world we live in.”

  “Not that again, Silvano. You agreed to let me take all the time I needed to know if I want to join your coven.”

  He offered a tight smile, and I figured his patience was at an end. “I did, and I stand by it. I’m just reminding you.”

  In truth, I understood what he was saying. Ever since my conversation with Orin about Almonester, I had been on edge. Orin led me to believe Almonester had developed some way to ensnare people and make them his slaves. While my rational mind wanted to dismiss this notion, I knew there was an infinite amount knowledge and ability in the world that I had never heard of nor could imagine.

  Orin had said I would willingly give up my freedom to Almonester. I refused to believe that, but he seemed so certain no matter how I had argued. Also, regardless of what I said, he wouldn’t elaborate.

  If I wasn’t careful, I could be enslaved, Orin had said. I dared not to think of it, but with Silvano’s warnings in my ears, I couldn’t help myself. Despite my fear, conclusions formed against my will. The one that struck the strongest and surest was in dealing with Orin and Pammie. As the seconds ticked by, I became more and more certain. Orin and Pammie, although beautiful magical fae, were enslaved to Almonester.

  “Are you ready to go again, Rue?” Silvano asked, interrupting my train of thought. I wanted to tell him I had had enough for the day and to let’s call it quits. However, if I was going to defend myself against Almonester and those like him, ignorance couldn’t be allowed. I needed to know all I could to defeat every enemy.

  “I’m ready,” I said.

  Silvano studied my face a second, but I knew he wasn’t in my head and didn’t know what I had been thinking. “I’m not going to give you a boost this time.”

  I apologized again.

  “You’ll have to feel your way, but I’ll guide you with my words. Trust in your ability, Rue. You can do this because it’s natural,
as ordinary as breathing is to a human.”

  So he said, but humans did it from the moment the doctor swatted their little bums at birth. Maybe if someone swatted my bum. I blushed and was grateful it neither showed nor was anyone sharing my thoughts.

  We worked half the night, Silvano calm and encouraging, me frustrated and edgy. At some point, I managed to open myself, and once I realized what I feared was pain from all the voices, I tested the theory. Thoughts of a hundred or less humans didn’t hurt, but it was confusing. As fast as my head spun, my innate ability to right myself kicked in. I buzzed mentally and fought to make sense of it all.

  “I can’t tell who is who,” I whispered to Silvano while staring at the man who was my target.

  “Imagine you’re listening through a tube, and the other end is pressed to his head.”

  An empty paper towel roll came to mind, and I made use of it. The voices grew thinner, and soon I heard him above the others. At least half a dozen people kept flooding my head, but I knew which one was the man’s.

  Then I jerked away and shook my head. “Of all the depraved…”

  Silvano grinned. “Something dirty?”

  “Yes, he’s thinking about her. I have half a mind to go down there and tell her what the pervert is imagining.”

  “And how will you explain it?”

  I grumbled. “You’re right.”

  “When you read others’ minds, you run the risk of being offended or in this case disgusted. Comes with the territory. Also, the more you do it, the more natural it will be, and you will have to exercise effort not to let their thoughts flow into you. Too much input from others waters down your strength and lessens your effectiveness.”

  “You mean I’ll find it harder to make my own decisions.”

  “In part.”

  “But you’re asking me to join your coven, and as such we’ll all be connected. I’ll have access to other vampires, and they will have access to me.”

  “Not by force, Rue. No one will ever force you. Besides, you saw what you can do to protect yourself. You’re also able to tell when someone is in your head. Isn’t that right?”