A London Werewolf in America

by A London Werewolf in America (lit)

  “I knew I should have waited in the car,” she muttered under her breath.

  “Please. Don’t go just yet. I want to talk to you for a moment.”

  “I wasn’t leaving. I just needed some air.” Darinda shut the door and turned to face Albert Duquesne. “I apologize for that. I hope Ellis isn’t angry.”

  “No more so than usual. We were all a bit put out that Roderick would bring a human with him.”

  “He wanted a doctor. It was kind of short notice. We really should have called ahead.”

  “It’s done.” Albert waved that off. He narrowed his shrewd eyes at her. “This ‘condition’ of his you’re supposed to be treating wouldn’t be lead poisoning, would it? Or silver poisoning?”

  That cleared her head in a hurry. “You’re well informed.”

  “I need to be. It’s easy with a were on the force. And then there’s you. The city’s got dozens of qualified vets, and Letty knows the best. A were wouldn’t hire a witch to treat a medical condition. He might hire one to scope out the pack he’s marrying into.” He chuckled. “Can’t say I blame him. His mother never put a paw down without sniffing the ground ahead first. He’s Bernadette’s pup, all right.”

  “You don’t miss a trick.”

  “Can’t afford to. I’m responsible for Ellis’s safety. Hiring a witch. Huh. I should have thought of that.”

  Something in his tone tipped her off. “Why? Has your family had any recent brushes with…lead poisoning?”

  “Nothing so direct. Just little things like accidents, near misses. Could be nothing.” Albert growled low down in his throat. He didn’t believe it. “Then a wolf with ties to the family gets shot at. A good beta has to ask questions. You understand?”

  “Perfectly.” Darinda smiled. “Does this mean you’d like an alliance?”

  “An exchange of information will do. We keep each other up to speed on anything off-kilter. You rub my belly, I rub—” He broke off at her raised brows. “Not literally. It’s a were idiom.”

  “I figured. When did the ‘accidents’ start, and who’s been the target?”

  “We’ve all had brushes. Ellis, Nora and me.”

  “Not Coraline?”

  “You think she’s responsible, don’t you?”

  “Either her or a jealous boyfriend. Best theory I could come up with.”

  “Let me set your mind at ease. Coraline’s all for the match and has been from the beginning. As far as a boyfriend, well, Nora’s been keeping a close eye on her since her first heat. There’s no one. We made sure.”

  “No one that you know of.”

  “There’s no one,” Albert insisted. His lip lifted, just a little. “Nora would know. We don’t need any loose litters.”

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to question your abilities. I’m just covering all the angles.”

  “I understand. We’ve got the same job, in a way.” The lifted lip became a smile. “In answer to your other question, those ‘accidents’ have been happening since before Roderick arrived. Brushes with humans, mostly. Males picking fights, cars coming at us in the street… Nothing that smells like an outright attack, but when you factor in last night it looks suspicious.”

  “We may have a common enemy,” Darinda concluded. “A human. So why target the Duquesnes?”

  Albert shrugged. “You’ve got me. We stay clear of humans, as a rule. Yes, that includes Coraline. She wouldn’t run with a human male. Nora would never allow it.”

  Scratch that theory, then. “Have you reported this to Big Alex?”

  “Reported what? Belligerent apes and bad drivers? Throw a stick in Center City, you’ll hit a dozen of both. We can’t even prove the attack last night was directly connected to us. It’s all conjecture at this point.”

  Darinda nodded. “I’ll keep my eyes open. If I learn anything, I’ll let you know. I’m staying at Meadowlands. You can reach me there.”

  On impulse, she held out her hand. Albert eyed it, then grasped it firmly. The brief touch confirmed her assumptions. Albert was sincere, concerned, and devoted to his brother and his brother’s family and their safety. All he’d told Darinda was truth, or as much of the truth as he knew.

  This certainly threw a spanner into her reading. The cards insisted the danger came from someone close to Roderick. With the Duquesnes off the list, that left Letty’s brood. He wouldn’t like that at all.

  Speak of the yellow-eyed devil. Roderick practically burst into the foyer with Coraline hard on his heels. She scowled at Darinda. He scowled at Albert. “Are you well?” he barked at Darinda.

  “Better,” she said. “It wasn’t anything serious. I’m going to go out and sit in the car.” Like I should have done in the first place.

  “No need for that. We’ll be going shortly.”

  Sure enough, she spotted the alpha pair behind him, all smiles, carrying their coats. “Already?” Darinda said.

  “We’ve concluded our business. Now the real work begins.” Roderick’s smile was strained. “After all, I’m getting married in eight days.”

  Chapter 7

  Darinda insisted she was well enough to drive. That was only partially true. By now the blunt force of Roderick’s desire had fuzzed a bit at the edges. That still left her nerves jumping and an annoying heat in her groin, but nothing she couldn’t suppress as long as he didn’t touch her. Or talk to her, or look at her, or get within fifty feet of her. Other than that, yes, she could drive a car. She climbed in behind the wheel before either Roderick or Aunt Letty could protest. Philadelphia’s traffic would give her something to fix on other than the wolf beside her.

  With Lupin Hill safely behind them, Darinda made her report. “You can relax. They’re not out to kill you. As a matter of fact, they seemed eager to welcome you into the fold. Almost desperate, if you ask me. Any idea why?”

  “Why wouldn’t they? I’m quite the catch.” Roderick’s dry snort dispelled any trace of ego. “Young, rich, good-looking, from a well-respected and powerful pack. Just the star they wouldn’t mind hitching their daughter to. Not a moment too soon, either. I thought she was going to have me right there at the table.”

  “Roddy!” Aunt Letty yipped from the back seat.

  “Don’t you ‘Roddy’ me. You could smell it as well as I could. Or maybe you couldn’t through that cloud of musk she’d dunked herself in. If they want me to marry her, they’ll have to bathe her first.”

  “She was a bit pungent,” Aunt Letty admitted. “But other than that, she’s a perfectly lovely girl.”

  “One step away from heat. What were they thinking, letting her run loose? I can’t believe even Americans would be so gauche.”

  “Keep in mind, Roddy, they are French.”

  “I had a chat with Albert,” Darinda went on, “and Roderick may not be the only target. Albert says the Duquesnes have had some close calls recently. Nothing as blatant as a shooting, but enough to put him on notice. The signs point to a non-were.”

  “The Duquesnes too?” Aunt Letty said. “Oh dear.”

  “So they’re not after me specifically?” Roderick said. “Imagine my relief.” Another snort.

  “If I were you, I’d take this seriously. An outsider targeting weres is nothing to sniff at. You might have to call Big Alex after all.”

  “Not just yet,” Roderick said. “It could be a jealous human suitor, like you said.”

  “Albert says no. He says Coraline never ran with humans.”

  Snort the third. “A lot he knows about shes, then. A bitch that far gone would roll with a—”

  “Watch out!”

  Darinda had just begun the climb up the drive to Meadowlands when something darted into the glare of the headlights. She slammed on the brakes. Aunt Letty yelped. Roderick, who had disdained his seat belt, was nearly thrown into the dash.

  Darinda peered through the windshield. She got a glimpse of four long legs, a grayish body, pointed ears and nose, a straggly tail. The creature bounded across the road and disappe
ared.

  “What the bloody hell!” Roderick roared.

  “Something ran in front of me.” Darinda focused on the brush beside the drive and came up empty. “Dog, I think.”

  Aunt Letty leaned forward anxiously. “You’re sure it wasn’t—”

  “One of the family? No, I know what weres look like. This was too small and spindly. Do you have strays around here?”

  Letty didn’t answer. Roderick huffed out a breath. “You’re feeding them again, aren’t you? Eugene tells me you once had a whole pack in the garden. Charlie ended up calling the pound.”

  “It’s lonely with the pups all gone. And they’re so pathetic, out there on their own. You have to take pity on the poor things. I imagine humans feel the same way about chimpanzees. Don’t you, dear?”

  “More or less,” Darinda said. She started the car up the drive again, at a much more cautious pace.

  The house was quiet and empty. Nothing had disturbed the wards. Aunt Letty trotted at once for the kitchen. “I could use some tea. How about you, dear? Did you get enough to eat? Do you want something?”

  “I’m good, thanks. Roderick made sure I got served.” She met his noncommittal gaze. He’d opted to put his faith in a stranger; the least she could do was reciprocate. “I suppose it’s apparent, huh?”

  “That you’re an herbivore? To our noses, yes. A meat diet adds a certain tang to even a primate’s odor. It’s missing from yours. It wasn’t hard to draw the obvious conclusion.”

  “Will that be a problem?”

  “For us? Not at all. Meat’s for the wolf. Our human forms need variety. You won’t starve. You might encounter problems with other weres, however. We hunt things that smell like you.”

  “Try some beef gravy, dear,” Aunt Letty said from the kitchen. “Just a little rubbed onto the skin so you don’t smell so much like an entrée.”

  “Uh, thanks. I’ll keep it in mind.”

  The three of them sipped herbal tea while Letty laid the groundwork for the upcoming nuptials. Roderick offered few opinions. He seemed lost in his own morose thoughts. Darinda dawdled over her tea for a polite interval, then finished it off and excused herself. She wasn’t at all surprised to hear Roderick pad softly up the stairs behind her.

  She stopped before his room to inspect the wards. “They’ve set nicely,” she murmured in satisfaction. “They’ll hold for a week, then need to be renewed. Hopefully we’ll have this all wrapped up by then.”

  “Assuming I live that long.” He gestured curtly toward the room, as much an order as an invitation. The look in his eyes said business only. Silently Darinda stepped within.

  Roderick followed and shut the door. “Now. Tell me what you wouldn’t say in front of Aunt Letty.”

  “I touched Albert, so I got a good connection. He told me the truth. The Duquesnes want this marriage. They certainly don’t want you dead. Albert swears Coraline doesn’t have a boyfriend, human or otherwise.”

  “Yes, she made certain to impress on me how available she is. So we’re back to square one.”

  “Your cousins.”

  “Letty’s pups.” He growled softly. “I appreciate your discretion.”

  “I can’t change the reading. The cards insist it’s someone close to you.” Darinda considered. “That implies family, but it doesn’t have to. I understand you’ve left quite a trail of human lovers behind you.”

  “Not in this country.”

  “Doesn’t matter. You might have a long-distance enemy. Somebody who waited until you were gone before they made their move. I’m sure you know the one about a woman scorned.”

  “It takes money to hire assassins, especially long-distance. None of the mon—that is, the women I dallied with had those kinds of resources.”

  “It doesn’t take much. A few emails, a couple hundred transferred between accounts… You’d be amazed what people will do, and for how little. Or the connections you can make on the Internet. My partner at the store talked me into online dating once, but you don’t want to hear about that.”

  “I might, when this is done with. All right. Let’s assume one of my romps has come back to haunt me. What has she got against the Duquesnes, then? If it’s true they’re also under attack.”

  “That does kind of goop up the works. I can’t think of any connection other than the wedding. You’re the common element. It has to be someone you know.”

  “Only one thing to do, then. Eugene owes me a night on the town, as the last was so rudely interrupted. We’ll get the pack together for a proper reunion. You’ll come along and work your magic and find which one of my relatives wants me put down. We’ll flip a coin to see who tells Aunt Letty.”

  “I’m not looking forward to that. Any of it.” Darinda practically growled herself. “Will they bite me if I touch them?”

  “Lucy might. Eugene will no doubt enjoy it.”

  “Great. Okay, you set it up. What if it’s one of them?”

  “I’ll deal with it. One other thing. At the dinner table tonight…”

  Uh-oh. “Yes?” she asked cautiously.

  “I could have sworn I heard your voice. Inside my head, I mean. Just a whisper. I’m not sure you were even talking to me.”

  “Just my voice? Nothing else?”

  “Why, was there more?”

  “No,” she said quickly. Thank Hecate he hadn’t noticed. “I have some minor telepathic power. I used it tonight to help scan the Duquesnes. Maybe you caught an echo or something. I assure you, it wasn’t intentional.”

  He stared at her just long enough to provoke a touch of sweat on her brow. Then he nodded. “This could prove an advantage,” he said. “Increase communication. One of the drawbacks of the wolf form is a marked lack of speaking ability. I don’t suppose you understand were?”

  “Too rough on my throat. Do I have your permission, then? I don’t want to just go diving into your head.”

  “Of course you have permission. You’re trying to keep me alive. You can do whatever you need to. I thought that was understood.”

  She nodded mutely. She’d managed not to look at him too much throughout the conversation. Whatever remained in her eyes as a result of his psychic swell, she’d rather he didn’t see it. She found herself looking at the clock on the dresser instead. Quarter to eleven. Set A Spell’s real customers would be crawling out of their coffins and basements and shadows for a chat and a laugh and whatever arcane needs they wanted met. She should be there for them, doing the work that fulfilled her, secure in her place of power. Not playing detective in a room that seemed so suddenly tiny now that it had the wolf in it.

  As if reading her mind, he said, “We need a break from this.” His gaze followed hers to the clock. “It’s early yet, at least for our kind. I’m sure we can think of something to do.”

  Warily, she asked him, “Such as?”

  He flashed her a smile. “Care to go walkies?”

  * * * *

  This wasn’t Darinda’s first stroll along Kelly Drive, just her first after full dark, as well as her first with a werewolf. As an escort, Roderick definitely fell down on the job. He’d trot briefly at her side before dashing off to investigate some foreign smell or movement. Like walking a puppy, she thought. Although this puppy would probably rip her arm off if she suggested a leash.

  Fortunately they hadn’t run afoul of anyone so far. People used the footpath even at this time of night, in the singular more than the plural: late-night joggers, strollers, the occasional couple. The restless, the worried, the homeless, the lonely. And the predators.

  She knew when a pair of teens fell in step behind her, and murmured under her breath. They got within six feet and suddenly veered around her. She slowed and let them pass. Their faces held vague, distracted expressions, as if they’d forgotten why they’d come out here. A truck rattled across a bridge up ahead, and they stopped to fixate on the sound, their mouths agape like fish. Their stupor would end shortly. By then Darinda would be gone.

&
nbsp; A low whurff at her heels alerted her to Roderick’s presence. She hadn’t heard him approach. “The benefits of magic,” she told him. “No one gets close to me unless I allow it. And where were you while my life could have been in danger? Or your own, for that matter.”

  His eyes glowed in the gloom. Nearby brushed the surface of her thoughts. Then he stuck his nose in the breeze and loped off to investigate some enticing odor down at the water’s edge. Darinda shook her head.

  Since pre-midnight still counted as “early,” she pulled out her cell phone without breaking stride. “You’ve reached Set A Spell,” Peri answered. “If you’re a zombie, press one.”

  “Relax, it’s me.”

  “Dar? Thank Gawd. The mummy dust shipment finally came in. I’ve got June from Camden helping out, and you know what a klutz she is. I’ve managed to keep her away from the breakables. Oh, you know the Merlin tapestry? Norman almost set it on fire. We caught it right as it started to smolder. Can you talk to him or something? Ever since you left he’s been hyper. His spines are all orange.”

  “Can you get him to the phone?”

  “Sure, lemme get my oven mitts. Hold on.” The receiver made a clunk. Darinda slowed to an amble and listened to Peri stomp around the shop, yelling at Norman to keep his scales on, she’ll be right with you. This was followed by grunts and puffing, as of a slightly-built young girl hefting a bulky lizard in her arms. “Okay, here he is.”

  “Thanks, Peri. Hey, baby, it’s mommy. How’s my boy? Who’s the bestest fella in the whole wide world?”

  Roderick padded up to her with a quizzical half-lift of his lip. “Relax,” Darinda said. “I’m talking to my dragon. He’s insecure.” The black wolf huffed and loped off. “Peri? How’s he doing?”

  “Code green. We’re good again. Really, Dar, you should get a cat.”

  The path, and Darinda, passed beneath the Girard Avenue overpass. Up ahead Roderick bristled at something across the street. Darinda came abreast of him and spotted Remington’s The Cowboy atop his bronze horse, riding herd on passing traffic. “It’s just a statue,” she said without stopping. “You really are jumpy, aren’t you?”