by J. C. Diem
I shook my head, ignoring another flare of grief. Texas was where my father was currently based. The ugly yellow house with brown trim had been my final temporary home before I’d been recruited by Mark. It was doubtful that we’d run into my father. Texas was a large state and he probably wasn’t even in the country at the moment anyway. “I’ll be fine.” A thought came to me and I voiced a question. “You didn’t tell my Dad that I went missing, did you?”
Mark couldn’t quite hide his shudder at that thought. “No. Call me a coward, but that was a conversation I’d put off in the hope that you would return to your human form again.”
I assumed the pair still kept in touch despite the difficulties my father and I were having. “You’d better not mention it to him,” I said to his relief. “Everything turned out okay in the end, after all.” I had to wonder if my dad would have mourned if I’d disappeared forever. Surely some part of him still loved me despite the fact that I regularly turned into a ravenous beast? My own question was answer enough. How could anyone deal with their loved one changing so drastically and permanently?
“What’s our next mission?” Kala asked, getting us back on track. “Please tell me it doesn’t have anything to do with zombies, vampires or ghouls. I’m sick of dealing with the dead, the undead and whatever the hell ghouls are.”
“This job is different,” Mark assured her and looked at Flynn. “This one involves snakes.”
Flynn’s surprise was nearly comical. “Why would we be called in to deal with reptiles?”
“Because they’re apparently being used as murder weapons.” Mark’s answer stunned us all.
“I have a feeling this case is going to be very interesting,” Kala said, intrigued already. Considering the things we’d confronted while I’d been on the team, that was saying a lot.
Mark stood and gestured for the rest of us to follow him to the coms room. “I’ll show you what I’ve been sent so far. You can see what we’ll be dealing with for yourselves.”
We followed him upstairs, taking our coffee with us. Zeus chose to remain behind. He wasn’t up to climbing the stairs just yet. We sat at the computer table and another wave of anguish hit me. There were only four black leather office chairs rather than the usual five. Reece’s chair had been taken somewhere else inside the compound. Its absence was a reminder that our team would never be the same again.
Pushing aside my self-pity wasn’t easy, but I forced myself to focus. Now that I’d been upgraded to level five clearance, I would have access to some of the files that had previously been kept secret from me. It would be interesting to see what I’d find the next time I searched for information.
Mark opened a file and sent the data to the monitors that hung on two of the walls. “A reptile park was broken into a month ago,” he explained. “Only the highly venomous snakes were stolen.” A dozen photos of snakes appeared on one of the monitors next to a picture of the reptile park. I recognized the Diamondback and Sidewinder rattlesnakes. The Cobra was also easy to identify, but the rest were a mystery to me.
Flynn leaned forward to study the photos. He was understandably fascinated by his distant kin. I still wasn’t sure what kind of snake he became when he turned. He seemed to be a combination of several different types. I knew he had a hefty dash of cobra because of the hood that flared when he hunted. He referred to himself as a wereconstrictor, which was apt since he could squeeze his opponents to pulp with his tail.
“A woman reported her husband missing a few days after the theft,” Mark continued. “He was located in his car in the parking lot where he worked later that afternoon.” He tapped a nearly invisible key on the computer and another photo came up. A bloated corpse with two puncture wounds in his neck was displayed. It was impossible to tell how old the victim was. Being shut inside his vehicle for most of the day had most likely contributed to the swelling on his face and neck.
“Whoa,” Kala said in admiration rather than disgust. “I didn’t realize snakes could do that kind of damage to a human. Does the report say what sort of snake bit him?” Death didn’t repulse us as it did most people. We were more pragmatic as shifters. Death was unavoidable and it would catch up to us all one day.
“Toxicology results revealed that it was an Eastern Brown Snake.” He clicked on the picture of a plain looking snake to enlarge it. It had brown scales on its back that faded to a lighter color on its belly. It didn’t look particularly dangerous.
“Gee, a lot of thought went into that name,” Kala said sarcastically. “Where do they come from? Florida?”
“Not even close,” Mark replied dryly. “They’re from Australia. They’re also one of the deadliest snakes on the planet.”
“I take it the reptile park had one before they were robbed?” I asked.
He inclined his head in the affirmative. “A week later, a second death by snake bite occurred. This time, a woman was found dead in her home.” Another picture flashed up on the monitor. This victim had also been bitten on the neck. She lay on the floor of her bedroom with one foot still tangled up in the sheets. She hadn’t made it far before the venom had rendered her unconscious. Not in quite as bad shape as the first victim, I estimated her age to be somewhere over forty.
“What type of snake was it this time?” Flynn queried.
“A Taipan.”
“Where are they found?”
“I’ll give you one guess,” was Mark’s wry answer.
“Australia?” Flynn hazarded and received a nod. “How many of the stolen snakes came from that country?”
Mark clicked on a police report and scanned it before responding. “Four in total. They also had a Tiger Snake and a Death Adder, which were used to kill the next two victims.”
“How many deaths by snake bites have been reported in the area?” Kala asked.
“Five during the past four weeks.” Mark opened another report and three more photos were shown. Two were male and one was female. Their biographical details had been supplied. They ranged from their mid-twenties to their late fifties. Each victim had one thing in common, they’d all been bitten on the throat.
“What type of snake killed the fifth person?” I asked. The first four had been Australian and I was curious where the final snake originated from.
“A Black Mamba.”
“They’re from Africa, aren’t they?” Flynn said.
“Correct,” Mark confirmed.
“I thought for a moment there we were chasing a mad Australian snake charmer,” he said with a grin.
“I had the same thought,” Mark admitted. “According to the reptile park’s website, these five species were their most venomous snakes. I think it’s just a coincidence that four of them were Australian. That country has a wide variety of animals and insects that can kill the unwary.”
“Sounds inviting,” Kala joked. “We should definitely go there for a holiday someday.”
“Do the police have any clues at all?” I asked.
“None so far.” He brought up the police reports that stated they’d found nothing to link the victims together. “Whoever is targeting these people seems to have a private agenda. There’s no way to know for sure whether the victims were random or not.”
“I still don’t get why we should be interested in this,” Kala said in a doubtful tone. “Some weirdo is using snakes to kill people, but we’ve seen far stranger things in our line of work.”
“I’m curious about how he manages to control them,” Flynn said. He pointed at the grisly photos. “The bites are all in the same place. Snakes don’t usually go for the throat. They aim for the closest point, which is usually the foot or ankle area.”
She studied the monitor thoughtfully. “Okay, that is kind of strange now that you mention it.”
“Who could be behind this?” I asked Mark.
“I have no idea, but we’re going to find out. I’ll arrange for the jet to pick us up in the morning.”
“Wouldn’t today be better?” I wan
ted to leave the compound where my life had been so drastically altered. Everywhere I looked reminded me of Reece and of what I’d lost.
“Let’s give Zeus overnight to rest up,” he suggested. He motioned for Kala and Flynn to leave so we could speak privately. Knowing how good their hearing was, he waited for them to be in the kitchen before he spoke. “Give yourself time to get used to the idea that Reece isn’t coming back,” he said softly. “Even if it’s just for one day.”
Tears welled and I brushed them away before they could fall. I didn’t want to face my grief, but maybe he was right. It wouldn’t do me any good to keep my emotions bottled up inside. “I’ll be in my room if anyone needs me,” I said dully.
I didn’t lock the door just in case he thought I was going to do something drastic like fill the bathtub with water and try to drown myself. I was depressed, but I was far from suicidal. Flopping facedown onto my bed, I allowed my grief to rise and I cried out my heartache. Turning into a werewolf had delayed this moment, but it was time to face reality. Reece was gone for good and I’d never see him again. My pillow muffled my sobs, but it couldn’t do anything to stem the pain in my heart.
Eventually, Flynn and Kala couldn’t stand the pain that they sensed through our link. They entered my room and lay down on either side of me. It was comforting to be held by my friends, even if they could never fill the void inside me.
“We’ll never leave you, Lexi,” Kala said softly.
“You’re our sister now,” Flynn added.
I wished I could believe them, but how could I? I should have been able to count on my family, but my own father had walked away from me. I was too monstrous for even a trained killer to be able to accept.
₪₪₪
Chapter Seven
When my sobs finally petered out, my friends left me and headed back downstairs. Exhaustion drove me into a deep sleep that was broken by my alarm going off the next morning. I hadn’t set it, which meant that either Kala or Flynn had. I appreciated the thoughtful gesture.
Starving after missing out on dinner last night, I hurriedly dressed. Mark smiled in greeting when I passed him in the coms room. He held a steaming mug of coffee in one hand as he read a report on one of the monitors. I smiled back, but my hunger was too intense to pause for conversation.
Kala grunted a greeting at me from the dining table. She was hunkered over her cereal bowl with Zeus sitting beside her. His attention barely wavered from her as he waited for her to drop something to the floor. Flynn was making toast in the kitchen. He raised his brows in silent query. I nodded and held up four fingers. He added more bread to the toaster that could hold six slices.
“Has Zeus been fed yet?” I asked Kala.
“Nope,” she replied with a smirk. “That’s your job.”
Hearing his name and guessing I was talking about feeding him, my guardian rushed over to me. He skidded on the bare concrete floor and yelped when he crashed into my legs. “Take it easy,” I admonished him. “You don’t want to bust your stitches open.” Limping at a far more sedate pace, he followed me into the kitchen.
I filled his bowl with dog food and watched in amusement as he gobbled it down. We had a long journey ahead, so I let him out into the front of the compound. He still walked with a limp, but I was confident that his leg would heal fully.
Flynn carried a plate of toast over to the table and I sat down to eat. He had a bowl of cereal to go with his meal. Four pieces of toast wasn’t enough and I devoured them quickly then made more. I washed it all down with two cups of coffee and was finally sated.
Moments after I finished eating, Mark knocked on the glass wall that prevented anyone from toppling to the floor below. We all looked up at him expectantly. “We’ll be leaving in ten minutes,” he called out. “I suggest you pack now if you haven’t already done so.”
That sent us into a flurry of motion. I quickly washed my dishes and Zeus’ bowl then sprinted for the stairs. I packed a small suitcase with enough clothing for a couple of weeks then headed to the gun safe that stood in a corner of the room. I grabbed my sniper rifle, my favorite handgun, a shoulder holster and spare ammo.
Lastly, I snagged a black backpack out of the closet and stuffed the ammo into it. The rifle was already broken down into several pieces so I didn’t have to waste time disassembling it before adding it to the pack. My laptop had gone into my suitcase, but I stashed my ereader in the pack as well for easy access.
Donning the shoulder holster, I slid my Beretta inside then hid the fact that I was wearing a weapon with my slightly battered black leather jacket. I still had a couple of minutes to spare by the time I reached the garage, but everyone was waiting for me. Zeus trotted into the garage when Mark triggered the door. He jumped into the back of the SUV unaided.
“Since you all just ate breakfast, I don’t want to hear anyone whining that they’re hungry during the drive,” Mark warned us when we were all seated. Flynn had claimed the front passenger seat, much to Kala’s annoyance. At least we had plenty of room in the back now. Poor Zeus was still confined to the storage area with our bags. He and Kala were closer now, but she still didn’t want him crowding us.
Kala rolled her eyes and turned to me as the vehicle lurched into motion. “What are we going to whine about instead?” she asked. Mark wasn’t as reckless as Reece and drove at a sensible pace towards the gate.
“I’m sure we’ll think of something,” I replied. I was making an attempt to be normal, but I felt hollow inside. My emotions were fragile and could easily shatter. For the team’s sake, I was doing my best to hold myself together.
Feeling hot air on the back of my neck, I turned to see Zeus staring at me. He licked my chin, which made me smile a little. It was his way of telling me he was there for me.
“He went nuts when you left,” Kala informed me quietly. “Mark had to cut the power to the fence. He was afraid Zeus was going to zap himself to death trying to get out.”
That news renewed my guilt that I’d left them. “I can’t believe I shifted for almost an entire month.” It was still mindboggling to me now.
“Neither can we.” She studied me curiously. “It must be so cool to be able to turn at will. What’s it like?”
“I don’t remember much at all. I don’t seem to be able to retain my memories when I’m alone.” When Reece and I were together, we were able to remember everything. As a lone wolf, it seemed I lost that ability.
“Maybe it wouldn’t be so great after all,” she conceded. “Without Reece there, you could easily lose control and eat some humans.” Then they’d have to hunt me down and eradicate me, which was their greatest fear.
It took us nearly two hours to reach the small airfield near Denver. The jet was waiting for us and the same pilot we’d seen before emerged to greet us. Tall, fit and in his fifties, he nodded in greeting but didn’t ask why we were missing one of our squad members. Word must have spread that the TAK Squad was now one member short.
We stashed our bags in the hold then climbed the stairs. I carried my backpack onboard, unwilling to let it out of my hands. The sniper rifle was my most prized possession and losing it would be unthinkable.
It was a relatively short trip from Colorado to Texas. I barely had time to get into the book I’d chosen before we were landing. Kala in the meantime had fallen into a semi-coma from lack of anything interesting to do. Unlike me, she didn’t enjoy reading. Her idea of entertainment was to listen to music or to watch movies. Flynn shared her interests, if not her taste. They tended to either sleep or to stick earphones in and zone out listening to music while we travelled.
Instead of trees and a snowy landscape, we were surrounded by a stark desert when we disembarked from the jet. We were several hours away from the army base where my father was stationed when he wasn’t on an overseas mission. For all I knew, he might have been transferred somewhere else by now. If he had, he hadn’t informed me of it. All of my belongings had been shipped to our base in Colorado. There w
as nothing for me in the small town where I’d lived for a few short months.
The usual black SUV was parked near the runway. “Where are we staying this time?” Flynn asked as he climbed into the back and sat next to me. He and Kala had decided to take turns riding up front. As the junior member of the team, I didn’t fight them for the privilege. I was supposed to be an alpha, but I didn’t feel the need to take the wheel like Reece always did.
“We’ll be staying at our base, which is a four hour drive from here,” Mark replied as he took off. “We’re in luck this time. The town where the deaths are occurring is only forty-five minutes away from the compound.”
“Yay,” Kala said in mock joy then slumped against the door. “Wake me up when we get there. If I die of boredom along the way, just push me out the door and keep going. Don’t bother to stop and bury me. I’m sure the vultures will pick my corpse clean.”
Mark ignored her grumpy complaint and turned the radio on, but kept the volume down low. He had several country and western radio stations to choose from. I could tolerate the style of music, but I’d never be a fan of it.
“Is it weird?” Flynn turned around to ask me after we’d been driving for a while.
I’d been staring blindly out the window and shifted my gaze to him. “Is what weird?”
“Being back in Texas again.”
“Not really,” I replied honestly. “I was only here for a short time before I joined the team.”
“You must have travelled a lot being an Army brat.”
“We sure did,” I agreed. “I went to twelve different high schools.”
“Was it hard being the new kid all the time?”
“Let’s just say I didn’t have many friends.” To be truthful, I hadn’t had any friends during high school. I’d never quite managed to fit in. That had all changed when I’d joined their squad. I’d felt strangely at home with them without knowing why.
I knew why now. I’d been infected with vampirism as a baby. Thanks to my mother, I’d never been normal. Almost from the moment of my birth, I’d been different. Now that I thought about it, that explained why I’d never been able to identify with the kids I’d gone to school with.