"Yours—mine's already shakin'," Trace said. Ashe stood and stretched, allowing Trace enough time to walk over and pull one of Ashe's ears, hauling him out of his office.
"They're moving the kitchen equipment into the restaurant," Trajan pointed out as Ashe opened the van's back door. Winkler was already loaded into the front seat and Trace had climbed in on the driver's side. Ashe watched for a few seconds as a delivery crew unloaded a huge stove. Two large freezers were parked on the driveway, waiting their turn.
"Buck will have that finished before school starts," Winkler said as Ashe slid onto the seat behind him and shut the door.
"Where's Ace and Marco?" Ashe asked.
"Ace, Marco and Andy are at the beach house, getting Andy's and my office put together." Winkler leaned around the back of his seat to look at Ashe. "Don't tell anybody, but we're moving in on Friday, first thing after breakfast."
"Good," Ashe said. Perhaps that would take the sting out of seeing his friends drive past on their way to a day spent amid sand and surf.
"We're going to Victoria's, and your mother will be there," Winkler added. "Is that gonna bother you, son?"
"No, Mr. Winkler," Ashe sighed heavily and stared out the window. "Has she already taken it over for you?"
"Yeah. A couple of days ago. Kid, I'd fix this if I could." Winkler settled in his seat and stared out through the windshield.
"I know. Nobody can fix this, Mr. Winkler, except my dad. And he's not returning my phone calls."
"Ashe, we'll get through this." Trajan reached over and patted Ashe's shoulder.
"Yeah." Ashe was sinking into the mire of his misery as he watched the coastal community of Star Cove fly past his window.
* * *
"You're kidding." The service station attendant stared at the pile of bills and coins Sali dumped on the counter.
"Nope. Twenty-three dollars and seventy-six cents," Sali grinned at the man, who appeared to be in his early twenties. "Everybody chipped in so we could go to the beach."
"Which beach?" The attendant asked as he counted out bills and coins.
"Padre Island. At least we have a permit and don't have to pay to get into the park," Sali said.
"Yeah. I like going there, too, and the price of the permit is definitely worth it."
"My dad said it was cheaper than paying every time," Sali agreed.
"You're set," the attendant raked the money into his register and turned on the pump. "Have fun at the beach. That's where I'd be if I had time off."
"Yeah. School starts in a couple of weeks so we're going out while we can."
"Understood," the attendant said.
Hayes was already pumping gas when Sali got back to the car, and Jeff was washing beach scum off the windshield and windows while Wynn, Dori and Cori watched.
"Cori, did you pack any soda?" Sali opened the trunk to scavenge from the cooler.
"It's in there," Cori said. "I want an orange." Sali tossed the bottle of orange to Cori and lifted out a cola for himself. "Dori, what do you want?" he asked. Everybody had soft drinks in hand before they pulled away from the service station.
* * *
"Look—that's Sali's car," Chad pointed to a car waiting in line to get onto Padre Island. Sali's small red vehicle was three cars ahead of them.
"Let's follow them," Jeremy suggested. "Maybe the empty is with them."
"Yeah. Nobody here to protect the stupid little bat this time."
* * *
"Ashe, I've set up your new bank account in both our names; it'll make the deposits simpler," Winkler handed over a new debit card while they waited for their server to bring lunch. Ashe had seen his mother going into the manager's office near the kitchen but she hadn't stopped to talk with them. "All the funds have been transferred from your old account already. You can set up something online to keep track of everything. Half of your wages are going straight to a savings account and I have to approve any withdrawals."
"That's fine," Ashe said absently as he watched his mother walk out of her office and into the kitchen.
"Kid, do you even know how much you make?" Trajan tapped Ashe's shoulder.
"What?" Ashe turned to Trajan.
"He hasn't been listening," Trajan sighed.
"But," Ashe began.
"Kid, it'll work out," Trajan leaned back and sipped his iced tea.
* * *
"Jeremy, go away."
"What? We paid to be here, too. Where's the empty?" Jeremy lounged against the side of his mother's car while Chad growled at Sali. Hayes was pulling on Sali's arm.
"Dude, this isn't the time—it's too close to the full moon," Hayes whispered as Sali growled at Chad. Chad bristled right back and growled louder.
"Chad, Ashe isn't here. He's working, but that's something you wouldn't know about," Dori snapped. "Get out of here. We don't need a fight; there are humans!" The last word was hissed at Chad. Humans were all around them; Sali had parked in a popular spot on the beach and Jeremy pulled in right beside him.
"Look, we don't need to get into a fight," Hayes said. Jeff was now on Sali's other side, trying to pull Sali away. Cori was hugging Dori to keep her from helping Sali. Wynn was backing away, frightened by the potential conflict. Chad lunged at Sali, snapping his teeth at him. Sali broke away from Hayes and Jeff and the fight began. Chad had no idea how angry—or tough—Sali really was. Chad was shrieking in no time while the others watched helplessly.
"He's killing Chad!" Jeremy shouted as Chad shrieked again. Sali, being the werewolf that he was, bit Chad as he pounded and pummeled.
"Get back, you'll get hit!" Cori shouted as Jeremy attempted to get close. When he didn't back away, Cori grabbed his arm to pull him back. Jeremy flung Cori's arm away, nearly knocking her to the ground.
"Hey!" Dori shouted. In a blink Dori had changed, lunging at Jeremy in ocelot form. Cori shouted at her sister, Wynn screamed, Hayes and Jeff attempted to separate Chad and Sali only to be rebuffed and Jeremy, angry and desperate to help Chad, ran to the trunk of his mother's car and pulled out both tranquilizer guns.
* * *
Ashe watched as Buck, Winkler's werewolf contractor, walked in and began talking with Adele. Then Ashe blinked and stiffened. First, because Buck leaned down and kissed his mother, and second because he knew there was trouble. "You have to come," Ashe whispered and pulled all three werewolves away from the table, disappearing amid shouts and screams from the other patrons. Buck, jerking around, guessed what had happened.
"Adele, we have to get Marcus," Buck said and hauled out his cell.
* * *
"Dori!" Cori shouted when she saw the two guns in Jeremy's hands. Dori was hissing and spitting at Jeremy as he raised the first gun and pointed it at Sali. He had to wait—Sali and Chad were locked together, Chad still fighting for any advantage over Sali. Sali, four years younger than Chad, was tougher and more determined. He growled as he shoved Chad to the ground, preparing to follow and deliver more blows. When the two young werewolves separated, Jeremy lifted the gun. Dori's ocelot leapt at him, clawing his arm and locking her teeth in his wrist. Cursing, Jeremy knocked her away with the butt of the gun and aimed at the spitting ocelot.
"No!" Cori screamed and sprang toward Dori, attempting to snatch her sister away. Jeremy fired the gun, hitting Cori in the side with the poisoned dart as she dropped to cover Dori's body. The moment Cori fell, Jeremy jerked around and fired at Sali.
Chapter 16
Wynn couldn't stop screaming. Cori was convulsing on the ground and Hayes, who'd stepped between Jeremy and Sali, was doing the same. Jeremy stood, staring at the ones he'd shot with poisoned darts while Sali shoved Chad away and dropped to his knees beside Hayes. Jeff tilted his head back and howled in grief. Humans nearby were beginning to walk in their direction. "No," Jeremy whispered, dropping the guns and running down the beach. Chad was soon behind him. Ashe, Winkler, Trace and Trajan appeared at that moment. Frightened by the scene before him, Ashe glanced from Hayes t
o Cori, moaned softly and dropped to his knees beside Cori's convulsing body.
"Trajan, Trace, go!" Winkler jerked his head toward the fleeing Chad and Jeremy. Both werewolves took off at a run.
"Ashe, please," Wynn held onto Dori, who was still in ocelot form. Ashe placed his hands on Cori, looked up at Wynn with stars in his eyes and blinked.
* * *
"What the hell happened?" Marcus demanded. Buck rounded up several patrons who'd seen Ashe disappear with Winkler and the others.
"That boy and the others just—vanished," Adele whispered.
"Adele, that boy is your son," Marcus snapped. "What the hell was he doing?"
"No idea," Buck said. "But we need somebody to tell these folks they didn't see anything."
"Get names and numbers; sunset isn't for another four hours," Marcus growled. "Tell them to go home and not discuss it until they're contacted by the authorities. All right?" Marcus pulled his cell out and dialed Winkler's number. Adele and Buck both listened when Winkler answered.
* * *
"Cori?" Cori stared around her. All was muted light. It felt comfortable, wherever she was. She was weightless. Happy. Had no desire to leave. She recognized the voice, though. Ashe.
"Cori, I neutralized the poison," Ashe said gently. "But you have to decide to come back. Come back with me now, all right?"
"But," Cori said. Something else was pulling on her.
"Cori, Marco is waiting. He'll be hurt and upset if you don't come back," Ashe coaxed. "Come on, Cori. We've been friends for a long time. Come back with me now so I won't have to tell Marco I lost you."
"But I'm not lost," Cori said.
"Cori, come on, pretty girl. Come home with me."
"Oh, all right," Cori turned away from the beckoning light. Somehow, without even being there with her, Ashe pulled her away.
"Hayes is dead," Jeff wept as Cori opened her eyes to stare up at Ashe. How had she gotten flat on her back on the hot sand? Confused, she blinked at Ashe, who seemed to have deep blue eyes with stars in them. Dori, wrapped in a beach towel, was hovering nearby, wiping tears away while Wynn held onto her. Jeff was crying for some reason and Sali stalked past, growling.
"Did he say Hayes is dead?" Cori attempted to sit up. Ashe, whose eyes went from darkest blue to normal in a blink, helped her.
"Cori, Jeremy shot both of you. I didn't have time to help Hayes." Ashe sounded upset about that. The afternoon sun blazed down on all of them and seagulls rode the breeze nearby. The drama playing out on the sand held no concern for them. Cori watched as William Winkler passed through her field of vision. He had a cell phone tucked against an ear, talking with someone.
"Ashe, we need help over here," Winkler jerked his head. Ashe stood on unsteady legs and gazed at the gathered crowd of humans.
"Yeah," Ashe muttered. "Wynn, get something for Cori to drink." Ashe walked toward the waiting crowd.
* * *
"Mr. President, take a look at these records," Matt Michaels handed an electronic tablet to the President. Matt Michaels had been in the oval office many times. Never with news such as this before, however.
"What is this?" The President tapped the tablet as he examined an image that appeared to be a map of GPS coordinates.
"We have a subject wearing a watch with a chip embedded, so we can track him," Matt said. "The first map shows the start point. The second map shows the destination. Elapsed time from start to finish is less than one second, sir."
"But the start point is in Texas and the destination is somewhere near, let's see—London? That can't be right. Am I operating this correctly?" The President turned the tablet around to show the Director of the Joint NSA/Homeland Security Department.
"You're operating it correctly, sir. This has been confirmed by firsthand witnesses. The kid relocated from Texas to England in less than a second."
"Kid?"
"Yes, sir. It's time you knew, sir, since I intend to recruit him the minute he turns eighteen."
* * *
"You'll sit there and behave or I'll come back there as my wolf and we'll have a chat," Trajan threatened Chad and Jeremy. The two boys sat in the back of Diane Booth's car while Trace drove. Winkler was driving Sali's car home with Hayes's body in the back seat—Ashe had already transported the others to Winkler's temporary home in Star Cove.
"Hayes is dead?" Jeremy sounded bewildered.
"You pulled the trigger; why act so surprised now?" Trajan growled. "If Ashe hadn't come, Cori would be dead, too."
"I was aiming for Sali," Jeremy still sounded confused.
"Even worse. You expect Packmaster DeLuca to have any mercy for you when you tell him that?" Jeremy huddled farther into his seat. Chad was sullen and refused to speak.
"Doesn't matter, bro," Trace said. "As soon as those vampires are up, we'll find out what these two were planning."
* * *
Ashe rubbed his forehead. He had the worst headache imaginable. Marco sat on the sofa nearby, his arms wrapped protectively around Cori, who huddled against him. Wynn was still shaking while Ace attempted to calm her. Dori and Sali stood together in the corner, wrapped in one another's arms. Jeff sat on the floor near Marco's feet, staring at his shoes. All of them waited for Mr. Winkler to arrive and for parents to come. Ashe knew Hayes had been Jeff's best friend since first grade. Now, Winkler was bringing Hayes's body back to his parents. Mr. and Mrs. Howard would be devastated; Hayes was their only child.
"What kind of poison was that?" Jeff looked up at Ashe. "Werewolves don't usually die from poisoning."
"Jeff, this was batrachotoxin, from those poison arrow frogs in South America," Ashe sighed. "That stuff can kill just about anything. I have no idea how those two got it. I don't think they even knew how dangerous it was. Stupid, stupid, stupid," Ashe pounded his forehead with a fist.
"Ashe, son, come with me for a minute," Winkler walked into the living room. Ashe felt weary as he followed Winkler into the kitchen. Marcus was standing there with Micah, his Second. Ashe wanted to snap at Marcus. Marcus was responsible for ruining his friendship with Sali.
"Kid, we've got Weldon's forensics team coming in to examine Hayes. We need to know what killed him," Marcus sighed, raking a hand through black hair in frustration.
"You can bring 'em in, but I already know what killed him. It's Batrachotoxin, from the poison arrow frog," Ashe said. Marcus cursed. Ashe figured Marcus knew what it was—he'd been Special Ops for the military.
"The kind that can kill a man in just a few seconds?" Winkler asked.
"Yeah. Only it took a little longer to kill Hayes. Almost killed Cori," Ashe muttered. "If she'd been human, I wouldn't have been able to save her, either. I didn't have time to save both, Winkler. I wish I did."
"I know, son. I just don't understand how you saved Cori to begin with."
"I don't want you to know." Ashe stared at Marcus when he said it. Marcus tossed a hand out helplessly and stalked off, muttering.
"Ashe, one of our Pack died today, and another member of our Pack is likely responsible. I don't think Jeremy would have any hand in this if Chad wasn't urging him on," Marcus turned back and leveled his gaze on Ashe.
"They're both guilty," Ashe said. "I'm sure those vampires can lay compulsion and get the truth. I suggest you have Jeremy's parents and Hayes's parents there when you question them."
"We'll do that," Micah said gently. "Ashe, you did a good thing—an impossible thing—today. I know we've persecuted you lately, and I want to apologize for that. Winkler says that Jeremy was aiming for Sali when Hayes stepped between them. If you hadn't arrived with Winkler and the others, the rest of them might have been killed as well. We found four more darts inside that case."
"Something to ask them about," Ashe nodded, settling on a barstool and staring at the kitchen wall. Whoever had lived in the house before had left a calendar hanging there. Winkler hadn't bothered to change it and it was still on July. Ashe recalled that a month ago, his life hadn't been so c
omplicated and he still had parents. Now everything was different and he found himself navigating unfamiliar terrain. "Hayes was always the peacemaker," Ashe said softly. "He would joke around or do something to distract everybody and ease the tension. I know you don't think of your submissives as particularly brave, but Hayes may have been the bravest of all of us."
"I'm not going to argue with you on that," Marcus said. "He certainly proved it today—gave his life to do it, too. No Packmaster can ask for more than that."
"Somebody grilling one of mine?" Bear Wright walked into Winkler's kitchen.
"It's okay, Mr. Wright," Ashe sighed. "We were just talking about Hayes."
"Good. I don't like arguing with werewolves," Bear sat next to Ashe. "Has anyone informed Mrs. Evans?"
"She knows." Marcus said the words flatly. Bear Wright hunched his shoulders and didn't mention it again.
* * *
"Aedan, Casimir and I just finished placing compulsion on those restaurant guests," Nathan reported. He'd called his vampire sire as quickly as he could afterward. "Ashe, as I understand it, managed to save my oldest today. Nobody seems to understand how he did it—the same kind of poison dart killed Hayes Howard."
"Nathan, what are you saying?" Aedan was confused.
"We'll get the particulars, once we place compulsion on Jeremy Booth and Chad Daniels. They had tranquilizer guns, loaded with poison darts. Marcus says the poison was deadly—from those poison arrow frogs in South America. That will kill werewolves and just about anything else short of a vampire. Cori took a hit, as did Hayes after Salidar got into a fight with Chad Daniels. Chad started the fight but Sali was taking him down. Jeremy pulled the guns from the boot of his mother's car and shot Cori, who was protecting my youngest, and then Hayes, because Hayes stepped between Jeremy and Sali."
"And Ashe showed up immediately," Aedan sighed.
"Yes. Somehow, I'm not sure exactly, he managed to neutralize the poison in Cori's system. That's what she told me when I woke tonight—that Ashe told her that."
"Child, I'm alive because Ashe intervened. Those creatures had me hauled out into full sunlight when he showed up with Marco and Cori. We'd both be dead if not for my son."
Vendetta (Legend of the Ir'Indicti #4) Page 20