Houdini didn't expect to dream, but he did, he dreamed of Susan. Of just being with her and hearing her voice, feeling her hands on him. It wasn't anything special or even memorable, just the day to day things like the way she'd refuse to wake up and he'd have to tickle her or the way that she'd relax just from him pressing his head against hers.
The dreams, though he knew on some level they weren't real, gave him a sense of peace. He felt warm and comfortable, safe as if she were right in the bed next to him. He was reluctant to lose that feeling by opening his eyes when someone began to knock loudly on the door. “Fuck off.” He shouted and shifted his pillow over his face.
The knocking continued; he had no choice but to get out of the warm bed and put his fist through the face of whoever dared disturb him. All the warmth and comfort of the dreams were gone, replaced with the dark reality that Susan was gone. “What?” He bellowed as he opened the door.
Eddie jumped, stumbled back a few steps and looked very much like he was going to wet himself. “I've got something. I'm not sure what, but it's something. Nate talked to the Redmonds, Edgar and Minnie, who were apparently pretty nice when they thought he was looking to buy the house across the street, which was for sale. Anyway, when Minnie was giving him a nice cup of tea, he saw a picture on the wall, asked about it. She said it was her son, clammed up and suddenly the welcome wasn't very welcoming anymore. I found the son, but he's been declared legally dead, which is kind of weird because that picture looked seriously recent.”
“Declared legally dead, doesn't mean actually dead. It just means a court ruled that way because you've been gone with no trace for like seven years.” Houdini was now wide awake. “Let me guess, the son's name is Rick.”
“Richard actually, but Rick is the most common nickname. How did you know that?”
“Get Deke. Get everyone.” Houdini barked the order, his blood surged through his veins. “I said get them, now!” There wasn't enough coincidence in the world for there to be another man named Rick who had been declared legally dead but wasn't, or that anyone else would have the personal motivation that he did to kill other-natured individuals.
Eddie finally took off running for the front of the warehouse. Houdini realized he wasn't even really sure where anyone was. Had they all gone? It didn't really matter. He needed to find what he could about Rick Redmond as well as any link to Susan.
He'd never run a check on her when she started hanging around. Now, normally he would have, but the circumstances had been so extreme that there had been no time or opportunity. It had taken him several months to get a computer that didn't suck and by then, he never even thought of it. Would he have been able to find the link? Seen this coming if he'd dug deep? There was no way to know and no way Susan would have known; if she had she would have told him.
By the time Eddie returned with everyone, all of The Vikings, Adelaide and Shepard and Lina were all eyeing him warily as they waited for him to speak. He'd been busy, printing out packets of information about Rick Redmond, the leader of The Hunters. Once he had the name, which the searches he left running confirming it, it was almost easy to get everything about the man.
“I know who runs The Hunters, and he's got Susan.”
“Wait, what?” Deacon spoke up first, though they all looked equally confused. “Take us through it again, slowly.”
Houdini started at the beginning, gave as much detail as he could and tried not to be pissed he was asked to repeat himself. This was big. It had taken him a few minutes to wrap his head around it but all he knew was they needed to act, and fast, to save Susan.
“This is the best information we've had so far about The Hunters.” Shepard cleared his throat. “We'll need to check it out, be sure that what you found is...”
“They've got Susan. She doesn't have the time for us to sit around here and fucking wait. We need to act, we need to act now.”
“We won't go into the situation blind.” Lina spoke up. “I think that you're way too personally involved to continue being our point man on this. I've arranged for someone to come and work the digital angle.”
“And what the fuck I am supposed to do?”
“Honestly, I don't care. You won't be handling the electronics. The Council orders it and you are bound by their decision. Effective immediately, you will not be involved in either the search for The Hunters or Susan.”
“This is bullshit.” Houdini told the blonde. “Are you on board with this, Deke? Is the club on board with this?”
“Deacon is bound by the orders of The Council, just as you are, Houdini. I understand how difficult it is for you to step back but it is what must be done. There is more at stake here than simply Susan's kidnapping, there are countless lives at stake and they must be considered.” Lina stood tall even as he approached her, stared her down.
“And if I take it upon myself to keep looking for Susan?”
“I see how that would be tempting; however, the consequences would be dire.” Lina frowned.
“You are interpreting the orders wrong, Lina.” Shepard's voice was low and calm, but his tone was serious. “As a member of The Council, I assure you that our intention was not to limit Houdini from participating in the search for Susan and The Hunters in any way except electronically. We need to be sure all the possible information is found.”
Lina didn't look pleased. Houdini didn't care. He was surprised that Shepard had spoken up, glad he had because the consequences didn't matter to him. “So, what now?” He asked; standing around was not an option.
“We start to check the properties that RI Ltd owns.” Deacon spoke up. “Start with the closest ones and work our way outward. If the Strays can provide some bodies, it won't take long at all.”
“I'll send as many of the pack as I can spare.” Adelaide added.
“Wait,” Shepard held up his hand. “The pack needs to stay here, to protect the town. In fact, we'll arrange for more people to come here to keep an eye on the town. We cannot look past the possibility that this is all intended to pull us away from town.”
“The pack will stay in Center City, under the leadership of my second in command, Caro. I will join in the search.” Adelaide told them. “I need some time to make the arrangements.”
“We'll leave out at first light,” Deacon looked over to Houdini. “Does that work for you Brother?”
“Yeah, works for me.” Some of Houdini's anger had deflated. These people had his back. “Everyone who is coming with us, be ready.” He turned his attention to the newest members of The Vikings. Nate met his stare steadily, as did Mike. Lane and Eddie, on the other hand, were quite obviously nervous. “There's no shame in not being up for this, no shame at all. If any of you are having any kind of second thoughts, now is the time to act on them.”
Houdini expected all of them to waver; none of them, with the possible exception of Nate, were killers or hard men. “No one is having second thoughts,” Deacon shut down subject. “Alright, we need to get supplies and get into groups. If we split up, we cover more ground.”
Houdini left Deacon to handle the logistics and went on a weapon hunt. Almost as an afterthought he packed a change of clothes and sneakers for Susan. He did the same for the other two groups. She'd want clean clothes. She'd need them.
The others had taken the clothes without comment. Deacon knew that eventually someone would say the thing he didn't want to hear, someone would ask how they could be sure that she was still alive, especially if Rick had such hatred for her. He didn't know the answer to that, except that he'd known the moment the life slipped from Willow's body, and not just because he'd been looking at her. He'd felt it, deep inside. Felt it even deeper when Junior was gone, too.
All he felt now was anger. He'd let it fuel him, carry him as far as it could. He'd find Susan or die trying, he just regretted anyone else who might lose their life along the way, even if they knew what they were signing up for. “Everyone get moving, there's only a few hours until morning.
As far as they could tell, RI Ltd owned seven properties. The largest, what they were calling The Compound, was now under control of the Strays, but that still left six. Three warehouse properties and three that showed as residential areas.
They'd sent out three search parties. Houdini rode with Mike and Shepard; he was curious to see how both men would handle themselves if something went down. Deacon had Nate and Lance with him while Lina, Adelaide and Eddie left together.
Caro was in charge of Center City, and Houdini didn't know why that wasn't quite sitting right with him. He liked Caro. They were friends, but there was something in the way she'd looked at Adelaide when they left that made him fucking uneasy. He didn't need any more reason to be on edge.
The first property they'd checked, a residential building, had been home to a swarm of rats and roaches, with no sign that anyone had been there in a long time. It was a sharp disappointment to him. Honestly, he'd expected that she'd be there, or at least he hoped like hell that she was. Every hour she was gone, it was getting harder and harder for him to keep his faith that she was alive or even well.
The first forty-eight hours after a kidnapping were crucial; everyone knew that from television shows, but it was the truth. They'd burned nearly twenty-four hours so far with not a sound from whoever had taken her. It wasn't a good sign, at all. Neither was the upcoming moon. There had been an uptick in missing Weres and Shifters, and somewhere a hunt was being prepared.
Houdini motioned for Mike and Shepard to pull to the side. He brought his bike to a stop and reached for his phone. There were four missed calls. A cold feeling spread up his spine as he dialed Deacon back.
“You need to get here, Brother.” Deacon sounded grim. “I just texted you the address.”
“Is she dead?”
“Just get here, Houdini.”
The fact that he hadn't answered the question was answer enough. “We'll be there as soon as we can.” He ended the call, checked the text message and realized that it would take about two hours to get there. “Change of plans,” he cleared his throat, looked at the men riding with him. “We're heading to Rivers Edge. It looks like they found Susan.”
He didn't need to say more; it only took a look to know that both men understood what he meant by “found.” Found. Like you'd find an old shoe on the side of the road. It didn't feel real. It couldn't be real. He'd feel it. Houdini wasn't feeling anything; his entire body was numb. He wasn't even sure that he could ride, but he would ride, he'd ride and maybe when he saw her body for himself it would feel like something.
They rode for about an hour and a half, pushing the bikes as far and fast as possible. There was one stop for gas, but none of them spoke. Finally they pulled up in front of a cute little house complete with flower beds and toys strewn on the grass.
Deacon stepped outside, somber expression on his face. Houdini got off the bike and walked towards him. He shook his head when his friend went to speak; he didn't want to talk. “Show me.” They went inside, the house was almost fully furnished, and there were signs that whoever had been there left in a hurry.
Houdini followed Deacon to the basement, caught the faint smell of smoke and cooked meat. His stomach churned. He had a good idea what he would see, so he tried to brace himself. The body was in the middle of the unfinished basement, on a concrete floor stained with blood. “It's not her. It's not Susan.” Even as he said the words he moved closer, something else on the basement floor catching his attention.
There was a pile of clothes, clothes stained with as much blood as the floor. He lacked the heightened senses of most of the people in the room, but he recognized them immediately. The black pants were Susan's favorite and the dark gray shirt had been his until a dryer incident. Laid neatly on top of the shirt was the necklace that she wore every day.
He'd teased her once about the flowers; she didn't seem the flower type, and she'd blushed. She'd thought it was pretty, and it had been the first thing she bought after she found out that she'd passed her boards and was officially a doctor.
She'd been wearing it, and nothing else, the last time that he'd seen her. He'd left her in their bed, and then she was gone and now she was nothing more than charred flesh. She was gone.
“I am so sorry, Brother.” Deacon laid a hand on Houdini's shoulder, and he realized that he'd gone down to his knees. He didn't remember that. “We'll take her home. Take care of her.”
Houdini closed his hand around the necklace, rose to his feet and looked down at the body on the floor, at Susan. He couldn't connect it in his mind, couldn't see it as her. Maybe that was for the best, his last image of her wouldn't be this. It would be in the apartment, her all warm and soft when he'd reluctantly slipped from bed.
Deacon's phone shattered the silence. “It's Vera,” he put the phone to his ear. “It's not a good time.” He listened for a moment. “Wait, what? Are you sure? Fuck. Everyone left needs to lock the house down, fortify it. We'll be back as soon as we can.”
“What's going on?” Houdini demanded, glad for the distraction.
“Caro is the informant,” Deacon sighed. “She just handed over six people to The Hunters, right in the backyard at Rose's house, and then left with them. Tonight is the full moon, we all know what that means.”
More people would die, just like Susan had died. “It means that there's a Hunt.”
“They need a large area for a Hunt, it would need to be relatively close to Center City as well, because they're not going to want to waste time on travel.” Shepard cleared his throat. “None of the properties have enough land. They'd need at least fifty acres, preferably more.”
“What about the state park?” Lance spoke up. He looked nervous as all eyes turned to him. “It's like a hundred thousand acres. Some guys I know have a sick grow out there, the rangers never come around.”
“That doesn't exactly narrow it down,” Houdini pointed out, even though it was a good suggestion. “It's a lot of ground to cover, and we're stretched really thin.”
“That's where The Strays come in,” Shepard slipped his phone back into his pocket. “The Council will order every able-bodied Stray in the area to go to the park or Center City.”
“And that's going to take time. Time we don't have.” Deacon shook his head. “I need to get back, I need to get Vera.”
“Let's split up,” Houdini suggested. He had no urge to go back to Center City, at least not yet. “I'll head up to the state park. Who knows? Maybe we'll get lucky.” The odds of them getting lucky were slim, and if the past was any indication, they wouldn't break their streak of shitty luck.
“I'll go with you.” Shepard told Houdini.
“Me too,” Nate replied.
“And me,” Lance was the most surprising volunteer. “And I can call my friends, see if they noticed anything out of usual up there lately.”
“Make the call,” Deacon told him. “We need to find something to put Susan in so we can take her back.”
“No,” Houdini shook his head. “It's too risky, if you get pulled over we're fucked.” He looked down at the shell on the floor. It wasn't Susan, at least not anymore. “She wanted to be cremated, let's finish it. Burn this whole place down while we're at it.”
“Brother, are you sure?”
“Burn it all.”
<#<#<#
The trip to the state park was a bust, just as Houdini had expected it would be. Lance's weed-growing friends hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary in their neck of the woods so they'd worked their way as far in the other direction as possible. Once darkness fell it was too risky to keep looking with just the four of them.
They'd regrouped at a hotel just down the road from the park, waited for the Strays to show up as Shepard had promised. By morning there were a dozen of them, and by mid-afternoon they'd found the site of The Hunt.
The scent of blood was thick in the air; the ground actually muddy in spots because of it. “This wasn't a hunt.” Houdini
looked around with disgust. “This was a slaughter,” he motioned to where the outline of cages still were obvious in the ground.
“Maybe they were drugged,” Lance spoke up. “I read this article once about exotic animal hunts and disreputable guides would drug the animals so that the hunter had an unfair advantage. That could be what happens here.”
“There are tracks heading into the trees,” Shepard pointed out. “Some ran. We should look, be sure that they're not out there.”
“They'd have swept the woods. They wouldn't leave survivors, but we should look, maybe there's something that will help us find where they are now. And when we find them, Rick Redmond is mine.” Houdini addressed his words to Shepard. He knew that The Vikings wouldn't stand in his way and needed to be sure the Strays wouldn't either.
“Of course,” Shepard nodded his head. “I'm going to follow these tracks and see what I can find.”
“We should all split up,” Houdini looked around. There were enough of them that they could cover a decent distance. “Everyone be alert.” He might have lacked heightened senses, but his own eyes and ears had always done him justice. He had to find something to lead him to Rick.
He was going to take a perverse amount of pleasure in killing the man; it would be slow and painful. Rick would suffer and feel the fear that Susan had felt. He would pay for taking her life. Houdini didn't know what he was going to do once Rick was dead; the only thing stopping him from eating his gun was the fact that the man was still breathing.
There was no huge clue in the woods, at least not that he found. He had, however, seen tracks indicating that several large cats had been through the area. He didn't know what had happened to the bodies but he was sure it wasn't good. By the time he returned to the clearing where they'd all arranged to meet back up, everyone else was back, as well as a new addition.
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