by Sydney Addae
Turning, he watched Tyrese jog toward him. “Ready?”
Tyrese grinned. “Oh yeah.”
Silas nodded as adrenaline pumped through his body at the prospect of the hunt. “Let’s go.” He shifted into his wolf along with the Tyrese, Tyrone, and Leon. They took off toward town. Silas stopped two miles out where Tyrese had stashed equipment and shifted again. He sent out energy and located two bodies with explosives. Silas encircled the two bodies with energy, preventing them from moving or contacting anyone.
Tyrone and Leon shifted to their human forms, grabbed the equipment and went in search of their targets. Scanning the minds of the men carrying the explosives, it was as Silas suspected, young half-breeds who had been forced into servitude. Griggs used and abused those she claimed to protect. Tyrone and Leon deactivated the explosives and left the breeds in a drug-induced sleep so they couldn’t be utilized.
Silas repeated the process, and within an hour, ten half-breeds had been spared. There was one more body with explosives, but it was human. Had Merriweather armed himself? Silas didn’t think so, but he couldn’t be sure. Instead of leaving it to chance, he surrounded the human in an energy bubble and tightened it so that if he exploded it would only kill him.
The four of them shifted and ran into town to meet Merriweather. At the edge of town they shifted and strode toward the rotunda in the middle of the county seat.
“Shit,” Tyrone murmured from behind Silas.
Silas echoed his sentiments. Attached to the swing set at the park was the police captain. Merriweather had attached two small bombs to the man’s chest and placed gray tape across his mouth. This was the human Silas had wrapped in energy. A forlorn look of acceptance graced the captain’s face. Silas’ energy lashed out in search of Merriweather and found no signs of the man. The ground shook. He spun and stepped forward to get a better view. The twins and Leonidas stepped behind him at first and then moved to his side. Leonidas released a low whistle. Silas brow rose as ten amped up hybrids walked toward them. He sought their wolves and met with static interference. Strange. He sought to take control of the wolves again and met static resistance. It was as if their signals were blocked and they could not receive a transmission.
“If you participate in this fight in any way, Sir Knight, I will blow up the captain,” Merriweather’s voice blasted into the silence from some point beyond Silas’ vision. “I have an audience and they want a show.”
Silas glanced at the eagerness in the twins’ eyes as they shifted into their wolves. He fought his wolf’s demands to shift all the way.
Within seconds the onslaught of hybrid wolves attacked, and from the outside it appeared they had the upper hand.
Silas sent Hank a message. “Pinpoint Merriweather, I want him.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Leon jumped back snarling as he landed on his four paws outside the huddle. The first hybrid flew through the air and landed with a thud. Leon jumped on the wolf before it could rise and with a snap of his strong jaw broke his neck, tossing the beast aside. Seconds later another hybrid was tossed aside and Leon repeated his actions. It wasn’t until four of the hybrids had been destroyed that Silas got a glimpse of the real fighting. Tyrone and Tyrese moved in blurred precision, attacking so fast it was hard for the hybrids to touch them. Leon had been in their way and it made sense for him to be on the outside.
“Sir, he’s off-site in a home outside of town. I didn’t pick up any signs of explosives and there is one other body with him.”
Silas grinned, Merriweather had made the same mistake so many others made, he had underestimated his opponent. “Send in a covert crew to pick him up. I want to know who’s watching this fight, and any other data you can pick up. I want him and the person with him alive and brought here for justice.”
“Yes, Sir.”
The numbers were even now, three for three. Tyrese and Leon shifted to their two legged hybrid form. This was the first time Silas had seen Leon’s hybrid in action although he had given Dr. Passen permission to give Leon the shot. He was shorter than Tyrese and not as fast but still a good fighter.
But Tyrone was the real surprise. He shifted into something Silas had never seen before. He stood on two legs in a crouched position, larger than Leon but not as big as Tyrese. He was faster than everyone left on the battlefield and fought with daunting ferocity. Tyrone jumped over his opponent and hit the hybrid with a series of punches that were so fast the only thing Silas saw was the resulting jerking of the hybrid as the blows landed. The hybrid jumped up and flipped behind Tyrone only to discover Tyrone had flipped and was now behind him.
The sound of flesh hitting flesh filled the air.
Leon knocked his opponent to the ground but the beast jumped right back up with remarkable reflexes and landed a punch in Leon’s gut, which sent him stumbling back a bit. When the hybrid charged, Leon was prepared and slammed his fist into his opponent’s throat, which would have killed a human. The half-beast grabbed his throat as he staggered backward, leaving himself open for Leon to pummel his chest and gut. When the hybrid doubled over, Leon quickly got behind him and wrapped his arm around its neck. A hybrid grabbed Tyrese and tried to place him in a choke hold. Tyrese flipped the hybrid, who was almost double his size, over his head and punched him in the face. The sound of crunching bones hit the air. The hybrid pushed Tyrese back, jumped up and charged him. Tyrese ducked out of the way of the outstretched arms, and landed a punch in the beast’s gut. Silas looked on in approval as the loud sound of air leaving the hybrid reached him. The hybrid fell to the ground and rolled over, trying to breathe. Tyrese grabbed him by his hair, pulled him up and powered down with his elbow into the skull.
Silas stood with his arms crossed, evaluating the fighting techniques of each man, and found little he would correct or change. A moment later, Tyrone crushed the skull of the hybrid he’d been fighting. He reared back and released a loud howl as he tossed the beast aside. A few moments later, Leon joined in, and then Tyrese. Impressed with the level of skill he’d witnessed, Silas’ howl merged with theirs.
Tyrone shifted into human, his need to run buffeted Silas. He gazed at the three men and waved them off. “Go run, get it out of your systems. The police will clean up this mess.”
The three turned and ran toward the outskirts of town where they would shift. Silas turned to Captain Samson. “Be patient.”
The captain gave a half nod.
“We got him, Sir. Security is bringing him and his guest to you. You can release the captain, the bomb’s deactivated. The man he’s with is a doctor, like Passen. I pulled as much data from his laptop as I could before it was remotely destroyed. He’s one of the men from the other team, Sir. Seems Merriweather was playing both sides.”
Silas had suspected that when he saw the hybrids. There were too many of them, plus Griggs hadn’t been interested in improving or changing half-breeds. “Thanks.” He released the captain.
“My men are bringing Merriweather to me now. I plan to kill him, so if that’s a problem for you, you need to leave now.”
The captain wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. There were still sticky patches of white glue on his face. “If you’d allow it, I’d shoot him my damn self. Son of a bitch sent those assholes into the station and jumped me. I didn’t even hear them coming.” He ran his hand over his short cropped hair. “I’ll go inside, wait it out.” He pointed to the pile of broken bodies. “What do you want me to do with those?”
“Get rid of them.” Silas glanced at the heap and noticed the gleam of metal on the necks of each one. “Hold on.” He stepped to the one Tyrone had killed and yanked off the necklace. Mark had worn a gold circle similar to this. Silas had assumed it was jewelry. Could it be more? Was this what Asia had mentioned to Jasmine?
“Take off as many of these as you can,” he told the captain. “I want to have these examined.”
“Yes, Sir.” They worked quickly and in silence until they had collected the gold ban
ds. “Keep these with you.” Silas handed the ones he'd collected to the captain. “I’ll pick them up after.”
The captain accepted the additional bands and headed inside the building. Silas leaned against a tree in the shadows as he waited for Merriweather to arrive.
“Jasmine?”
“Hmmm?”
“You asleep?”
“Kinda, the TV’s watching me.”
“How’s your mom?”
“Not good. Mark wasn’t lying; she’s going through withdrawal and is in a lot of pain. She cursed Jacques out, snapped at me, and cried asking for Mark. We decided to wait until she’s through all this before I tell her he’s dead. Pity, I think he really loved her, well as much as he could love someone with that thing in his head.”
“Yeah.”
“They set her up from the beginning, chose her because she was my mom, and then tried to destroy her.”
“Or they wanted to use her as a guinea pig for a new product. Maybe they wanted to see how the poison affected breeders, you never know with those assholes. I’m sure quite a few humans already died testing that stuff.”
“Hmm…more stuff I don’t want to think about right now.”
He chuckled imagining her lying on the sofa in the family room waiting for him. “I’ve got one more thing to do before picking up where we left off.”
The smile she sent him slid across his chest and spread out. “You left me hanging…again.” A picture of her pouting lips filled his vision. He chuckled.
“An emergency arose, but I promise to make it up to you.” He deepened his voice, enjoying the shiver she allowed him to feel through their connection.
“You better. My skin is all prickly and stuff, is that normal?”
“Yeah. You need to release a different kind of energy. I’ll be in a similar state when I get there, so be prepared.”
She growled.
He purred and she laughed. “Hurry home, I need you.”
He straightened as a large dark Suburban pulled into the parking lot.”You can bet on it.” He disconnected as one of his security members stepped out of the van and moved to the side. Silas ran a scan, and sent the man verification. The other door opened and the process was repeated.
One of the security men opened the back door and pulled a blindfolded and bound Merriweather from the truck. Silas waited for the other occupant to be removed from the truck.
“This one is dead, Sir.”
Silas shook his head at the waste. “Pull him out and toss him on the pile with the others.” He waited until his instructions had been carried out. “Go inside and ask the captain if he needs your help moving the bodies. If he does, assist him and then leave. If not, return to the compound. Silas ignored Merriweather, who had been pushed to the ground and lay struggling. A glint of metal caught Silas’ eye. Merriweather wore one of the gold collars. Did the man have to be free of the metal bands that were wrapped around his body to activate his hybrid beast?
Excitement rose inside his chest. Instead of killing the bastard outright, Silas would allow his hybrid to fight. The prospect of beating Merriweather’s ass before destroying him was a pleasurable bonus. He stooped next to the man and ripped off the duct tape that served as a blindfold. Beads of bloods formed where the tape pulled off skin. Not wanting to hear the man’s voice, Silas left the tape covering his mouth in place.
“Hello, Alfred. I understand you’ve been trying to arrange a meeting with me.” The man’s eyes narrowed as he stiffened. Silas fingered the gold band around the man’s neck, enjoying the pungent smell of fear that wafted to his nostrils. “So you want to be a super soldier, huh? Sold your poor mama out, didn’t you? She thought she had all of those hybrids on drugs, ready to step into the public and tell the world about wolves.” Silas chuckled at the surprised glint in his nemesis’ eyes. “You played her like an old violin. Strange thing happened when my alphas hit all those safe houses, few of the breeders had any idea what was going on, many never gave their pups the shots. You exaggerated the numbers for Corrina, didn’t you? You played double agent and gave away her secrets to the highest bidder.”
Disgusted with the stench of greed rising from the man, Silas stood. “You’re garbage, Merriweather. You mean nothing to no one. If the men you worked for valued you, they would have executed you like they did the good doctor.” He ignored the surprised expression in Alfred’s eyes. “They used you and your mother to stall for time. They never intended for the world to know about us or what we can do. Not when they are trying to mimic me and my abilities. Her plan was doomed from the outset, they gave her enough rope until she hung herself.”
Merriweather jerked against the metal rings holding him.
The captain stepped out the building, followed by the two security workers. In silence they headed to the back of the Suburban, opened the doors, and tossed the bodies inside. When they finished, the captain held up a bag.
“Take that to the lab, give it to Dr. Passen,” Silas said to security. The man accepted the bag from the captain. The three men entered the truck and drove off. He looked down at Merriweather and smiled. “Time for justice to be served, wolf-style.” The man struggled against the metal bands in earnest.
Silas strode to the middle of the street and called his people to him. Within minutes, the street was crowded with full-bloods and half-breeds, with more on the way. Silas noticed that the twins and Leon pushed their way to the front, becoming a barrier between him and the people.
He held up his hand and the noise died. “Tonight another assault was thrown against our people.” He went on to tell them what had happened with the explosions and the incident with Mark. He appreciated the concerned comments regarding the health of his pups and his mate. Most were in awe over Jasmine’s abilities, and some wore masks of doubt. No matter, they would all soon learn his mate was not one to be trifled with.
The burning need for retribution rose from the masses as a tantalizing fragrance wafting toward him. He glanced over his shoulder at Merriweather. The man met his gaze with a defiant stare. Silas exhaled as the realization that his personal desire to beat the man within an inch of his life was not going to happen.
“One thing these…our enemies forgot. We are pack. I am pack.” He slapped his chest. The crowd roared in approval. “You are pack.” He pointed to the crowd. They screamed in agreement. “We are pack.” His voice rose as the crowd yelled and howled.
“Coming after me…meaningless. We are connected, we are one. We live and fight as one. So here is the message we send to our enemies, come for one… come for all.”
“Come for one, come for all,” the crowd chanted repeatedly.
Tyrese looked over his shoulder at Silas with a grin.
Silas held up his arms, the crowd quieted. “Alfred Merriweather and his mother Corrina Griggs have been judged guilty of crimes against our nation. The bombs…that killed so many of our people…they are the ones who created and placed them in people, often without the person’s permission. You remember Detective Jennings...” He pointed to the police station. “They did that.”
Growls and snapping of teeth filled the air. Some shifted and moved closer to Merriweather. Silas ignored the scent of fear wafting from the man. The crimes the man committed were against the many and Silas wanted to show those who attacked him that there would be a price paid for their actions.
“Release his bands.” Tyrone and Tyrese walked to Merriweather, stood him up amongst the jeers and calls for vengeance. More had shifted and moved closer. The moment Merriweather was free, he looked at the growing crowd and then Silas.
“Killing me won’t help. I can help you. I know how to find them, I can take you to them…I’m telling you, I can help you win this thing.” The man’s head whipped from Silas to the crowd who had moved closer.
“No you can’t. They didn’t trust you with anything of value, by now everything you think you know has been changed. You couldn’t contact them if your life depended on it. Lucky for
you, it doesn’t. We will find our enemies and eliminate them just as we will eliminate you.”
Merriweather’s eyes widened and then he shifted into a hulk-sized creature. His eyes slid to Silas and then at the pack of wolves closing in on him.
“Kill you.” He pointed at Silas and took off running.
Silas shifted and led the pack of wolves after him. Merriweather may have been big, but he was fast. He ran through the town knocking down everything in his path. Silas and the wolves jumped over or ran around the obstacles. Merriweather made it to the edge of the woods. Silas grew tired of the chase, shifted into his hybrid and jumped. He landed on the man’s back, the force of the impact sent Merriweather sprawling forward a foot or so before his face hit the ground. Before Silas could reach his neck, the man jumped up, shaking off a couple of wolves who had attacked his arms and legs. Swinging wildly, he missed the wolves who darted back and forth, in and out. Silas jumped again, this time his large canines punctured Merriweather’s neck. The man grabbed Silas and tried to pull him off, but Silas had been leading pack wars for too long. He ignored the blows to his body and dug in while the rest of the pack attacked other areas of Merriweather’s body. Weakening, his opponent fell to his knees, and Silas released his grip and moved out of the way, silently granting his pack permission to finish the kill. It didn’t take long for the man to be ripped to pieces.
Blood glistening on his snout, Silas released a victory howl. A chorus of howls followed his as his pack rejoiced in defeating another of their enemies. Afterward, Silas took off running into the woods beneath the moonlit sky. The pack followed, and for the first time in months, his wolf led his pack. A glorious sense of purpose filled him as yips and howls filled the air. He had allowed his enemy to stop him from being himself. Harder he ran, muscles stretching as his mate’s words returned to him. “We have wolves and all that goes with that...” He had missed the simplicity of her statement, just be who you are. Pack. He scented prey and headed in that direction. Soon the large buck came into view. Adrenaline surged through him as the buck raced away. The chase was on.