The Hollowing (COYWOLF Series Book 2)

by Abby Tyson

  "That's not possible," said Savi. "Ren's the only one who can move him, and there's no way Ren's going near Berto's team again."

  "Well he's not welcome in my room anymore."

  "What is your problem, Nissa?" snapped Savi. "Didn't he save your life not even half an hour ago?"

  Nissa stormed out of the van and stood pouting by the rail fence.

  "She's angry at me," Glenn said.

  "How can she be angry at you?" asked Savi.

  "Since Ara died, she's been having a difficult time controlling her emotions."

  "You think?"

  "It seems her wolf half was the more mature of the two, imbuing Nissa with most of her wisdom and temperance. Although she still managed to get into plenty of mischief. I was a sorry substitute for what she'd lost -- my lot in life, it seems." He gave her a weak smile. "But I was at least hers, and provided her with some emotional stability. Now she's alone again." He was looking better, with some color returning to his face.

  "What happened down in Alligator River between you two?" asked Savi. "One day she hated you, the next she couldn't sleep without you."

  "When you and Marley left, I went to find some food. Everything you guys gave me -- although greatly appreciated -- tasted awful. Even raw meat from the grocery store was stale and dry. So I decided to let my wolf take over."

  Ren came around back to stand beside Savi, leaning against the van.

  "I was tracking a rabbit when a pack of red wolves found me," continued Glenn. "One of them was an origin. I tried to convince him to join us. Even though they said no, I apparently redeemed myself in Nissa's eyes. She began opening up to me, and I became her surrogate wolf half."

  He winced at some unseen pain. "I'm sorry I wasn't there when Amber came," he said. "I might have been able to help again."

  "Don't worry about that," said Savi, adjusting the towel though there was no reason to. "I'll come see how you're doing tomorrow." With a smile she added, "I'm glad you're back."

  "Thanks to you," he said.

  "Don't thank me," she said, cringing. "Putting you through that is not something you should be thanking me for."

  She said goodbye to him and Ren and got into the rental car. As she pulled out, Glenn managed to raise his fingers and wave. Savi waved back, but then regarded her hand distrustfully as it returned to the steering wheel.

  Shaking off the strange sensation of not being in control of her own body, Savi left the three of them behind, and drove back to the Den.

  Marley cried out in pain as another knife sliced deep into his side.

  "Get a closeup," ordered Second.

  The man who had cut him brought a handheld video camera up to the wound, which was already healing. Marley, his arms and legs bound to the ceiling and floor by thick, metal cuffs, caught a whiff of Second's spicy scent and felt his heart wither in response; he'd learned to fear that smell and the pain that it promised.

  "How's the light?" asked Second.

  "Good," said the man.

  "Tell me when it's resealed."

  About a minute went by and the man said, "Mark."

  Second tapped on her tablet. "Eighty-nine seconds -- excellent. I think we're done for today."

  As the man with the knife and camera left through the circular cell door, Marley closed his eyes and braced himself for the restraints to release. When they didn't, he opened his eyes to see Second still standing in front of him.

  "Are you interested in the results?" she asked.

  "I know the results," he said. "I was here, remember?"

  "I'm referring to how you compare to werewolf strength and capacity."

  "I know that too," he said through gritted teeth. "Now let me go."

  "As I recall," said Second, "you came to us quite willingly."

  "I wouldn't have if I'd known you were going to torture me for..." Marley realized he didn't know what day it was. Did time pass in hell? Because that's undoubtedly where he was. Second's brutal experiments, testing his endurance, his strength, and his healing ability, were all he'd known since Saturday night. He hadn't been outside, or even seen a window, since he'd been taken. Had he altered twice since he got here? Three times?

  "How long have I been here?" he asked.

  "It's almost sunset on Tuesday, September 20th. You've been our guest for nearly three days," said Second.

  "Guest?" he spat. "More like lab rat."

  Reading from her tablet, she said, "You can lift up to seven times your weight, jump three times your height, and run up to 40 mph. So although you're slightly faster, overall you're not as powerful as a werewolf." She glanced down at his side and added, "Your healing capacity is unique, however, as well as the fact that your skills last beyond the constraints of the full moon."

  She tilted her head, looking at him thoughtfully. "How would you like to add your talents to our staff?"

  Marley couldn't even laugh at the absurdity of the idea. "I would rather die in this godforsaken cell."

  Second arched her eyebrow. "That's rather dramatic."

  "It's true!" he shouted, lunging at her as best he could while still chained to the cell.

  Ignoring his display, she said, "Joining our team comes with many benefits. You could have your choice of location; we have clients all over the world who would pay handsomely for your skills. You could retire on what one of these projects would pay you."

  Marley glared at her, doing his best to wordlessly communicate the pure hatred he felt for this woman. Second took a step back, but her heartbeat was steady and her scent unchanged -- she wasn't afraid of him, not when he was chained like an animal.

  He again strained against the thick steel cuffs protruding from the ceiling and floor. He knew it was futile, but he was unaccustomed to feeling weak, and the inability to free himself was maddening.

  "I suppose you wouldn't want to leave while you have such strong bonds holding you here." Tapping on her tablet, she said, "Unfortunately, those bonds don't appear to be as strong as you think." She tapped one last button, then pouted at the tablet before turning it towards him.

  It was a picture of Ren, with his arms around a girl with short, curly black hair. Although she was facing away from the camera, the girl was unmistakably Savi. Her arms were tucked between them, her head pressed against Ren's heart.

  But it was Ren who Marley couldn't look away from. His brother was resting his head on hers, and his eyes were pressed tightly closed with a strong, unidentifiable emotion. It was an expression of such intimacy, such tenderness, as Marley had never seen on his brother before.

  After running out Saturday night to try and catch up with Savi, he'd convinced himself that he'd been wrong, that she and Ren couldn't possibly have feelings for each other. He told himself that he was being paranoid and jealous. Now, seeing them together, it was as though the man with the knife had returned and cut out his heart.

  "It's not real," he rasped.

  "I assure you, it's genuine," said Second. "We took the liberty of installing a camera in Mrs. Claudie's rental car before lending it to her. Your brother drove it to a bike trail park and met Ms. Claudie -- Savi -- there. A minute or so after she arrived, this picture was taken."

  Even though he knew it was futile, he said, "That's not Savi."

  Second turned the tablet around, tapped a few times, and then showed him a different picture. This time Savi and Ren were no longer embracing, but her hands were still on his chest. She was grinning up at him, and he was smiling back.

  Marley shut his eyes, but it was too late -- the image was seared into his memory. A fiery rage began swirling inside of him. Like a tornado plucking houses from the earth, the storm ripped his hopes from their foundations. All the while, Savi and Ren stood at the center of the flames, staring longingly at each other, protected by their love.

  "Didn't you think it was odd that she hasn't visited you?" Second asked, her voice soft and heavy with sympathy.

  The thought had never even occurred to him. "She does
n't know I'm here," he said, unable to keep himself from casting a questioning look at Second.

  She shook her head sadly. "I told her myself on Monday that someone very dear to her," Second gestured to him, "was in our custody -- showed her a live video feed, even."

  "I don't believe you," he said, hating this woman, hating himself for believing her.

  Second nodded. "That's probably best." She turned and walked out of the cell, the steel circular door slowly closing and mechanically sealing behind her. Marley's restraints released, but he was unprepared and collapsed, landing painfully on the steel floor.

  "Consider our offer," Second said, her voice coming through the speaker in the wall beside the door. "We can give you anything you want -- anyone you want, in exchange for your cooperation."

  With a guttural, primal scream Marley sprang up and wailed on the large circular window in the door. Second merely gave him a sad look, then strode away.

  Although he knew it was pointless, Marley continued to beat against the door. The familiar aching in his body told him sunset was near, but he ignored it, screaming and beating madly until fur started sprouting from his arms. Then he ripped his clothes off and screamed, until his scream morphed into a long, mournful howl.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  A couple days later, Savi was eating dinner with Dave and Chloe when her phone rang. When Savi didn't make any effort to go check it, her mom said, "You should probably see who it is."

  "No way." Savi gestured to her plate of eggs and toast. "Breakfast for dinner waits for no man."

  "Go check," said her mom. "It could be Marley."

  Savi eyed her bedroom, and then put her fork down and jogged to her phone.

  "I'll be right back," she said when she saw it was Baxter. Standing in the middle of the brick road, Savi brought the phone to her ear. "Hey Baxter. How's the search going?"

  "He found me," said a boyish voice.

  "Omar," whispered Savi.

  "Correct."

  "Where's Baxter? Put him on the phone."

  Baxter's voice came through on speaker. "Hiya kid. Can you believe it? I found 'em. I spent most of the day boppin' from site to site, and those folks were not happy to have a regular ol' joe like me pokin' around. Eventually someone from Omar's team found me, and here I am."

  "Are you okay?"

  "Right as rain. Omar's on board with the alliance, and they're already putting a plan together to raid the Den."

  "When?" asked Savi. "This weekend?"

  "We need more than a day of planning," came Omar's snide reply. "There's more to the Den than a collection of bungalows and soccer fields. He has a vast underground facility that is heavily guarded."

  "Underground?" Savi dropped her voice as a group of people walked by, heading to the main street.

  "Correct."

  "But you acted like you already had a plan for getting in," said Savi.

  "For getting in, yes; for crippling Berto's facility and slave trade, no."

  "Are they slaves?" asked Savi. "Do you know much about it?"

  "We know enough," he said. "Once their new graduates are altered, he and his do-gooders get them hooked on a special concoction of drugs that he claims they'll die without. That, combined with giant sums of money given to their loved ones, is usually enough to convince them to suppress their morals -- if they even have them -- and do as they're told three days a month."

  Drugs -- the room full of painkillers -- of course.

  "We should at least do it before the Eye," said Savi, "so we can leverage the coywolves' special abilities."

  "Their special abilities as you call them won't be any help. The majority of the underground facility is dedicated to training and restraining werewolves. Anything designed to withstand a werewolf will prove an insurmountable challenge to a coywolf."

  Savi didn't like having no way to confirm Omar's assertions. And now, with Baxter out of sight, she was finding it difficult to tap into that certainty of his loyalty that she had enjoyed a few days earlier.

  "Okay," she said. "What can we do to help?"

  "As Baxter said, we're working on how to get in and out as discreetly as possible, with all of the required personages. But at this juncture, I want some assurance that you will hold up your end of the bargain."

  "Me?" scoffed Savi. "I'm not the one who needs to prove their trustworthiness here. You tried to kidnap Hettie!"

  "Baxter informed me that Berto has your friend," said Omar, "but other than that she's yet another person you're requesting us to rescue, I've never heard of her before."

  "You're lying."

  "You're the one who sent an emissary to request our assistance. I will not ally myself with someone who questions my integrity."

  Savi could hear the enjoyment he was deriving from this conversation. She hated to give him anymore satisfaction, but she needed the Zuun. "Will you help?" she asked, trying not to let her enmity infect her words.

  "Will our own personnel risk their lives to extract you, your mother, Dr. Khan, Karis, and your friend Hettie, from the most state-of-the-art, well-guarded Alters facility in the world?"

  Savi waited, picturing his smug, childish face as he made her sweat.

  "Yes," he finally said, "but you must remain on location at a Zuun facility at all times, and work with us in earnest to engineer a cure for the unnaturals."

  Knowing that there was no chance in hell that she was ever actually setting foot in a Zuun lab again, Savi almost said yes right then. But if she agreed too quickly, too easily, it would be blatantly obvious that she was lying. She had to at least give the appearance of considering his offer.

  "At all times?" she asked. "As in I can never leave?"

  "Perhaps, after a consistent showing of cooperation and loyalty on your part, and if some form of insurance is negotiated, brief excursions may be granted."

  "Seems a little harsh, doc," said Baxter.

  "She's already a proven flight risk," said Omar.

  "Taking down Berto's operation will be as beneficial to the Zuun as it is to me," said Savi.

  "True, but we're carrying the load here. We're risking everything, while you and your unnaturals sit back and watch."

  "Even if it is on the Eye," said Savi, "Lila and Ren will be a part of the extraction team."

  "Two out of a team of thirty," came his pinched, patronizing voice, "hardly balanced."

  Holding the phone in front of her, Savi pretended it was Omar's repulsive, tiny head and shouted silent swears at it. Feeling slightly better, she said, "I'll stay on site six months out of the year. No more."

  "And your mother will be here the other six?"

  "No way. She's not part of the deal." She could hear Omar mulling it over. "You're bound to run out of platelets -- or whatever it was you sucked out of me -- at some point."

  Savi looked up at the stars and prayed this would all work out.

  "Deal," Omar whined, "but you will have nothing to do with the planning or the extraction. Your ignorance will ensure that you remain out of the way and out of the crossfire. You can't very well uphold your end of the bargain if you're dead."

  "Then you'll have to work with Ren," she said, giving them his number. "I'll check in with him to make sure you're keeping him in the loop and taking his ideas into consideration, or else the deal's off."

  "Agreed."

  "Bye kid!" called Baxter before she hung up.

  Gazing back at the starry sky, Savi wondered how much of her soul she was going to lose in this deal with the devil.

  The next few days were uneventful, with Savi establishing a routine of working in the morning, visiting Glenn for lunch, and dinner with her mom and Dave. Glenn was improving daily, able to move with little discomfort, and even going for early -- albeit brief -- morning jogs. Although Ren wouldn't give her any clue as to how the plans were progressing, he did say that the amount of information that the Zuun knew about the underground prison was surprising. Not only did they know the layout, they were
aware of details that only someone who was involved with the daily operations would know, such as when the guards changed shifts and the level of security during Anwi's Eye. Glenn had been participating in some of the planning as well, and while he was tight-lipped about it too, he said that Baxter had been understandably shocked to hear his voice.

  Returning to the Den one late afternoon, Savi was surprised to see a huge crowd gathered around two buses parked by the main entrance. A glint of gold flashed in the sunlight, and she recognized Vaughn on the steps of one of the buses. He turned back to wave at a group of eight people or so, huddled by the stop sign. A young woman, clad in more gold jewelry than Vaughn, waved back and blew him a kiss, then made the toddler on her hip do the same.

  Of course, thought Savi, it's Tuesday -- two days before Anwi's Eye.

  The crowd consisted mostly of residents from the Den who hadn't graduated yet, watching with anticipation and curiosity, wondering where they would go when their turn came. Savi wished she could honk her horn, get up on the hood of her car, and shout the truth to these people, but there was no way they'd believe it. If Veronica was any indication, they all viewed Berto and those at the Den as benevolent, sainted beings, above such humanly pursuits as greed and power. And that wasn't even getting into how far-fetched the werewolf angle was.

  A few members of the swarm parted for Savi to get through, and she crept forward inch by inch. As she sat idling, waiting for a stream of people to pass in front of her, she scanned the area by the buses. Den employees were standing by, some with tablets, apparently taking names to ensure everyone boarded.

  A man with short black hair, facing away from Savi and standing alone near the back of the bus, looked familiar. Savi watched him, thinking it might be the friendly baker from the cafeteria who had taken her under his wing and started teaching her the art of bread making. Then, as if he could sense Savi's eyes on him, the man turned around.

  It was Jameson.

  He sneered at her as a wave of people passed between them, blocking him from view. When they cleared out, he was gone.

  Savi calmed her heart, staring at the empty spot where he had been.