Werewolf Academy Book 6: Vengeance (4 page)

***

A single set of footsteps sounded down the hall. It was too soon. Alex could move both hands and wiggle his toes, but any shows of strength would be completely past him for a while longer. If whoever was coming was supposed to begin the tests, he would have no chance.

The door opened. Kate, the assistant, poked her head in. She looked past both werewolves, searching the room.

Alex held perfectly still, hoping that if she was checking on their progress, she would conclude that they weren’t close to ready.

Kate shut the door behind her. She drew something from the pocket of her scrubs.

Alarm filled Alex at the sight of the gun. Kate lifted the weapon and aimed. Confused at the line of her trajectory, Alex willed his hands not to clench into fists and give him away. The hum of a silenced bullet buzzed past him and hit something out of the range of his periphery. She aimed past Drogan and did the same. Turning, Kate fired two more times, taking out the cameras on either side of the door.

She hurried across to Alex, her expression showing something close to alarm. Alex had no idea what she was up to. He flinched when her hand touched his wrist. Her palm was cold and clammy.

“Good, you can move,” she said, her voice toned more for herself than for Alex. She put a key into the cuff on his arm and turned it. The cuff opened.

Realizing he had already given himself away, Alex decided he couldn’t do any worse by speaking. “What are you doing?”

“Getting you out of here,” she replied without looking at him.

Chapter Four

Surprised, Alex asked, “Why?”

“Because she’ll kill you.” Kate gave him a searching look. “She already did, actually. I don’t know how you’re still here. I wanted to get you out before, but I couldn’t without them seeing.”

She unlocked the other cuff. Alex flexed his fingers. “Why are you helping me? Aren’t you one of them?”

“An Extremist intent on sucking the blood out of every werewolf we catch so we can make some super creature that will listen to the league’s every whim?” she asked, looking up at him with her hand paused on the cuff at his right ankle.

“Yes,” Alex replied; he watched her closely.

Kate shook her head. “I can’t see anyone else die.” Moisture filled her eyes and her jaw tightened as though she forced herself to stop talking.

She unlocked both cuffs on his legs and moved to his waist. It was a moment before she said, “She killed my fiancé two and a half years ago with the help of your comrade over there.”

“He’s not my comrade,” Alex muttered.

“Good,” she said. “If you were with Drogan, there’s no way I would let you out. He can burn with the concoctions Dr. Kamala had so much fun creating. It would serve him right. Thorpe didn’t deserve to die.” Her voice caught. She unlocked Alex’s waist, then hesitated at his neck. She met his gaze. “Will you kill me after I unlocked this one?”

Alex kept his voice firm and calm when he replied, “No. I won’t hurt you. You have my word.”

She watched him a moment, then reached up and unlocked the final cuff.

Alex fell forward. His legs gave out and his landed on his knees on the tile floor.

“Get me out,” Drogan demanded.

Alex rose to his feet before Kate could help him and crossed to the Alpha. Drogan’s threats swirled in his memory as he looked up at the Extremist. “You’ve taken so much from me,” he told the werewolf. “You won’t take anymore.”

Drogan’s eyes widened with the realization that he was going to be left. “Don’t do this, Alex.”

“We’ve got to go,” Kate said. “They should be investigating the downed cameras by now.”

“You’re through hurting werewolves,” Alex said. He turned away from Drogan.

“Alex!” Drogan shouted. “I’ll hunt you down, Alex, and when I do, I’ll kill you!”

Alex ducked out the door behind Kate. He let it shut against Drogan’s enraged screams.

Kate led him down one side hall, then another before she asked, “Isn’t he your brother?”

Alex was silent for a moment. He finally shook his head. “He’s no brother of mine.”

The place was quiet. Alex guessed it was late at night by the silence. He followed Kate down a flight of stairs. They were almost to the bottom when a sound caught Alex’s ears. Fire filled him at the familiarity of the claws on tile.

“Hold on,” he whispered, catching Kate’s arm. The human hesitated.

As if on cue, the door below them flew open. Two of Drogan’s curs entered the stairwell.

“What is that?” Kate asked, her voice tinged with fear.

“Looks like Drogan brought his own backup,” Alex replied.

The creatures climbed up the stairs; their heavy footsteps shook the ground.

Kate let out a little shriek of fear.

“Stay behind me,” Alex told her.

With the remains of the silver still in his veins, he wasn’t sure he could take the curs on. He tried to find the will to morph, but the strength avoided his command.

Alex backed up so that Kate was sheltered behind him in the corner of the landing. He could hear her little whimpers of fear as the curs drew near. The one on the right was huge. It was the scarred one, Lucian, that Drogan had told him about. The curs growled with each breath and their massive heads swung from side to side. When they reached the landing Alex and Kate were on, both sets of eyes locked on Alex.

Kate had risked everything to save his life. Alex was prepared to do the same for her. He bent his legs and held up his hands in a fighting stance, ready to protect her with whatever he had available.

To Alex’s surprise, Drogan’s curs glared at him and continued on up the stairs. He watched them cautiously, prepared for the moment they would turn and attack. That moment never came.

“They left,” Kate said, her voice shaky.

Alex stepped away, letting her free from the corner. “They’re going to free Drogan. I should stop them.” He set a foot on the stairs leading up.

Kate grabbed his arm. “Don’t be ridiculous. You can barely stand upright, let alone take those things on. They would tear you apart. Why don’t you live and defeat him another day.”

Alex cracked a smile. “You and my sister would get along great.”

Kate led the way down the stairs. Her steps were slow as if she expected more curs to appear in the doorway at any moment. Alex pushed the door open and checked the small parking garage. He could smell more curs, but there were no others in sight.

“It’s clear,” he told Kate.

“Let’s get out of here,” Kate replied. She led the way to a little blue car near the end of the garage. “You should probably lie down in the back until we get out of here.”

As strange as it felt to follow a human’s orders, Alex did as she said. Kate grabbed a blanket from the trunk and spread it over him. Alex listened tensely as Kate gave one of the security guards at the exit her card.

“Leaving late,” a man noted.

“Yeah, you know Dr. Kamala. She likes to squeeze out every hour of daylight she can.”

“Tell me about it,” the guard replied. “I should be getting overtime for this shift, but I won’t.”

“You and me, both,” Kate said with a little laugh.

Alex had to give her credit for the small talk she was able to make. There was only the slightest hint of a tremor in her voice that the other human probably couldn’t detect.

After what felt like an eternity, the guard said, “You’re clear. See you tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Gerald,” she replied.

The car moved over a bump and the sound of the tires changed from the higher hum of cement to the lower vibration of asphalt.

“Thank goodness,” she exclaimed.

Alex threw the blanket back, filled with relief that he was away from that nightmarish place.

She glanced at him in her rearview mirror. “You should probably rest. You look horrible.”

Alex gave her a small smile. “You’re assuming I don’t always look like this.”

Kate gave a real smile in return. “I’ve seen you on the news, Alex Davies. Why else do you think I broke you out? You can bring down Drogan and Kamala. There’re rumors that you have a whole werewolf army at your command.” She paused, then asked, “Do you?”

There was a hint of urgency in her voice as if his answer was the most important thing in the world. He thought of the Academy and of the humans from Greyton who rallied to save the students. She had taken quite the risk to save him. Her family might be in danger, too. She deserved his reassurance.

“I do,” Alex replied quietly.

Kate gave a satisfied nod. “Good; then you can bring down the Extremists. Thorpe will finally be avenged.”

“I’m sorry about your fiancé,” Alex said.

“Me, too,” she replied. “We were young,” she smiled. “At least younger than I am now. I loved him all through high school. I was working when Drogan’s men captured him. It took a long time to find the trail to Dr. Kamala. By then, he had been killed and they were on to other werewolves with their experiments. I got them to hire me in the hopes that I could fight back.” She met his gaze in the mirror. “It’s taken two years for someone like you to get there.”

“I’m grateful for you,” Alex told her. His eyes kept closing of their own accord.

“Just make sure it was worth it,” she replied.

“I will,” he promised. He forced his thoughts to focus. “Where are you going?”

Kate’s reply was soft at first as though the word was unfamiliar. “Home,” she said. A slight smile touched her lips. “I’m going home,” she repeated. “I haven’t been there since Thorpe was taken.” Her voice tightened. “I’ll bet Mom thinks I’m dead or something.”

“She’ll be glad to have you back,” Alex told her.

Kate gave a damp smile at the thought. “She will.” She glanced back at Alex. “Where should I take you?”

“Anywhere,” Alex replied. “My friends will pick me up. With Drogan getting out, the further you get away from me, the better.”

She nodded. “I’ll take you to a city where you can hide out until they can get to you.”

A thought occurred to Alex. “Any chance you know where Greyton is?”

Kate nodded with a hint of surprise. “Yes. We pass by it on the way to my mom’s. Do you have friends there?”

“Yes.” The thought of going back to the Academy filled him with relief. “That would be a great place to get dropped off.”

“Good,” Kate said with a firm nod. “Get some sleep. We have a ways to go.”

Alex’s eyes were already closed. He couldn’t think of a place more comfortable than the backseat of the little blue car with the moonlight streaming through the windows and the last remnants of silver fading from his veins.

***

“Alex?”

He opened his eyes with the realization that the car had stopped. His first thought was that Drogan or Dr. Kamala had found them. Alex grabbed the tire iron from the floor and sat upright, prepared to fight them off.

Kate stood outside the door. She lifted a hand with an understanding expression. “It’s okay. I know exactly how you feel. But we’re safe.” She glanced behind her. “We’ve made it to Greyton.”

Alex’s gaze shifted to their surroundings. The sight of the familiar buildings and the streets for which he had bled to keep safe chased away the tension. He pushed the door open and rose.

“How do you feel?” Kate asked, eyeing him uncertainly.

“Good,” Alex replied with surprise. He rolled his shoulders and took a deep breath. His ribs had healed and the last effects of the silver had seeped away during his sleep. The moon was almost a complete circle and he could feel the pull reminding him that it would be full the next night. He smiled. “Thank you very much.”

“Just make sure that was worth it,” Kate replied, shaking his hand.

“It will be,” Alex promised. “I’ll make sure Drogan and Dr. Kamala get the justice they deserve.”

“Glad to hear it,” Kate said. She reached for the car door, but hesitated. “Are you going to be okay?” she asked. “You had a rough couple of days.”

Alex gave her a reassuring smile. “I’ll be fine, thanks to you.” On a whim, he reached back into the car and grabbed one of the sticky notes from her console along with a pen. He quickly wrote Trent’s phone number on it. “If you ever get into trouble, you can reach me at this number.”

“Thanks,” she replied. She grabbed some coins from the cup holder and set them in his hand. “So you can call your friends.”

“I appreciate it,” Alex told her. He shoved the money into his pocket with the realization that he was only wearing pants. His shirt had been destroyed by Kamala’s assistants, and he had no idea where his shoes had gone. The rough gravel under his feet felt cool and reassuring.

Kate climbed back into the car and gave a little wave. Alex waved back and watched her drive toward the rising sun.

Chapter Five

Alex walked to the gas station at the corner, taking care to keep to the shadows so that nobody would call the police about a teenager running half-naked around the city. Things had sure changed since he went on his personal vendetta against the gangs of Greyton. Instead of hiding indoors after the sun went down, citizens were proactive now. He could hear the sounds of kids playing night games in the park. The weather was perfect for it and now parents weren’t so afraid to let their children have fun after dark.

Grateful the payphones were on the side of the gas station without windows, Alex slid the coins Kate had given him into the pay slot. He punched the number he had written down on the piece of paper.

“Hello?”

Alex smiled at Trent’s suspicious voice. He knew the werewolf was already no doubt plugging the unknown number into his system, tracing the call to find out who knew one of the Wolf Den’s phone numbers.

“Hey, Trent.”

“Alex? Alex!” Trent sputtered. “I can’t believe it’s you! Are you okay? We’ve searched everywhere! You disappeared into thin air! There was no trace at all, but we didn’t stop looking. We were thinking Drogan found you or maybe other Extremists, or some of the gangs. You have quite a few enemies out there. Where are you? Wait, my computer says Greyton. How on earth are you in Greyton?”

“Trent?”

“I mean, one minute you went out the door to say hi to Officer Dune, and the next you were gone, completely vanished, like you were blown off the face of the earth! Not blown as in blown up by a bomb or anything, but like the wind, you know, like dust in the wind. Isn’t there a song about that?”

“Trent!”

“Uh, sorry, Alex.” Trent sounded embarrassed at his babbling. “I’m so happy to hear your voice I can’t even think straight right now.”

“I’m okay,” Alex reassured him. “It wasn’t a pleasant experience, but I’m back. Any chance you could pick me up?”

“Definitely,” Trent replied. “Siale will be so happy! She’s been scouring the news, working with the Greyton City Police and with Jaze and the Black Team, and she won’t give me a chance to breathe with all her—”

“What about the police?” Alex asked, cutting him off.

“Well,” Trent said, sounding baffled. “They’re just as anxious as we are to get you back. We’ve kept things on the down-low, but they know you disappeared. They’ve been combing the city, shutting down more gangs in the process. They were hoping to find you in one of the hideouts, but as you probably know, they weren’t successful. Officer Dune has been our biggest advocate toward getting you home.”

“Officer Dune?” Alex asked, surprised.

“Of course,” Trent replied, his confusion deepening. “He’s been beside himself. The man won’t rest. I get at least two dozen phone calls from him day and night. He’s desperate to find you. It makes sense. His department was responsible for the safety of the students at the prom, and you guys are friends.”

“Yeah,” Alex said, keeping his voice level. “I might need a bit of time before you pick me up here. I’ll call you back.”

“Can I tell everyone you’re okay?” Trent asked with a hint of desperation in his voice.

Alex could tell trying to reassure everyone while searching for him had worn out his friend. “Yes, please.”

“Um, what should I tell them?”

Alex leaned against the wall and looked up at the moon. “Tell them I was kidnapped by Extremists who tried to make me morph into the Demon.”

“Make you?” Trent asked. “Alex, what did they do?”

“I’ll tell you later. All that matters now is that Drogan was kidnapped, too. They thought they could make him morph into the Demon also, since we share similar genes. I need you to find out if that’s true.”

“I’ll do what I can,” Trent replied. “Is he still there?”

Thoughts of the Extremist werewolf filled Alex with regret that he hadn’t gone back to finish him when he had the chance. It would have been worth getting caught again to wipe out the threat from his half-brother. “No. He got out. How’s our security at the Academy?”

“Solid,” Trent answered. “Brock and Mouse have had us on lockdown since everyone got back from the prom.”

“Good. Keep it that way,” Alex told him. “Drogan has a vendetta.”

“He always has.”

Alex rubbed his forehead. “I have a feeling it’ll be more so now.”

“We’ll be ready,” Trent promised.

Alex said goodbye and hung up the phone feeling torn. The fact that Officer Dune was at least acting adamant about getting him back even though the man was the reason he had been tortured by the Extremists was troubling. He had to find out what the officer was up to.

Alex kept to the shadows as he made his way to the Greyton City Police headquarters. Officer Dune had to pay for his betrayal. Alex didn’t know exactly what he would do. He hoped something would come to him when he saw the officer.

Officer Dune’s familiar form appeared at the door to the headquarters about a half hour later. He ran a tired hand along his short beard and walked down the steps.

Instead of confronting him, Alex followed the officer through the streets of Greyton. Officer Dune walked three blocks before turning north. Alex soon found himself taking a tour of the more docile neighborhoods he hadn’t visited. Officer Dune glanced back once, but Alex was careful to keep to the shadows thrown by the streetlights and the slowly rising sun. After a few more blocks, Officer Dune led him to a small house at the corner of a cul-de-sac.

Alex silently jumped the back fence and crept through the yard in time to hear the officer thank someone. A glance around the house showed a middle-aged woman talking to him on the doorstep.

“She kept the applesauce down,” the woman said, “And she said she felt stronger. She wanted to wait up for you, but I told her it would be better if she got her rest.”

“I appreciate it, Marigold. I have the same shift tomorrow night.”

“I’ll be here,” she promised, crossing the sidewalk to her car.

Officer Dune watched her drive away before shutting the door. Alex ducked back around the side of the house and followed the officer’s progress through the windows.

Officer Dune paused in the first bedroom to put away his weapon and badge before continuing down the hall. Alex lost him for a moment, then a door pushed open and the light from the hallway spilled into the room at the end of the small house.

“Daddy?” Alex heard a girl say.

“I didn’t mean to wake you,” Officer Dune replied, his voice gentle.

Jamie sat up in the bed. Alex’s wolf eyesight made out the fact that she had no hair. There were dark circles under her eyes and her cheekbones stood out as she hugged her father.

“Marigold said you’re feeling better.”

Jamie nodded. “I think I’ll be able to go back to school soon.”

Officer Dune smiled even as his eyes filled with tears. He blinked them away before he sat back so that she wouldn’t see. “Yes, you will.” He motioned for her to lie down and he tucked her into the bed once more. “As long as you get good sleep and your dad doesn’t keep waking you up.”

“Oh, Dad,” she said with an answering smile.

“Goodnight, my Jamie,” he told her, crossing to the door.

“Goodnight, my Daddy,” she replied.

He pulled the door shut and darkness closed in once more.

Alex slipped the latch on the sliding kitchen door and crossed silently to the door to the officer’s room.

“You betrayed me,” he growled.

Officer Dune dropped the cup he had just filled from the pitcher by his bed. His face turned as white as his pillow at the sight of Alex standing there.

The officer’s eyes flickered to his gun hanging just inside the cracked closet door.

Alex reached him before Office Dune could even move. He picked the officer up by the neck and shoved him against the wall.

Officer Dune struggled in his grip. “I was wrong,” he forced out through his constricted throat. “You didn’t deserve that.”

“They would have killed me!” Alex said. His hands shook with the effort it took to not break the officer’s neck. The thought of the little girl in the next room was barely enough to keep the Demon in check.

“I was desperate,” Officer Dune said. Tears rolled down his cheeks. “I was wrong.”

Alex brought him closer and said, “You took an oath to serve and protect.” He swallowed past his own tight throat. “I trusted you.”

He couldn’t blame Officer Dune for wanting to protect his daughter, but they had been friends, once. Werewolves didn’t betray each other. The friendship he thought he had with the officer made it hard to comprehend such deceit. He had almost died. Siale would have never known what had happened to him. Pain gripped his heart at the thought.

Officer Dune pulled weakly at Alex’s hands. Alex realized the officer’s face was bright red. He released his grip. Officer Dune fell gasping to the floor. Alex turned away.

After a few minutes of ragged breathing, Officer Dune rose and stumbled over to sit on the bed, though it was more like collapsing as if his legs gave out. “I was so wrong,” he said, burying his face in his hands. “So very, very wrong.”

Alex remained by the door and kept his face carefully expressionless. “You gave me to them.”

Officer Dune nodded without looking up at him. “I didn’t have a choice.”

“There’s always a choice,” Alex replied coldly.

The officer’s shoulders shook. “I made the choice of a father instead of the choice of an officer and the friend you deserved.”

Alex tried not to be moved by the pain in the officer’s voice. Sorrow wafted from him. Alex knew he was looking at a man filled with true regret. He clenched his hands into fists, trying to keep his stalwart front. “They wanted to kill me.”

Officer Dune lowered his hands, but kept his gaze on the floor. Tears fell where he looked, pattering on the carpet in soft splashes that filled Alex’s ears. “I shouldn’t have done it. I didn’t want to. It killed me when they took you away.”

Alex asked the question that had eaten at him since he felt the dart hit his chest. “Then why did you do it?”

Officer Dune opened a hand in the direction of Jamie’s room. “My daughter has leukemia.”

Alex leaned against the doorframe. He didn’t know what it meant to be a father, but he had seen Jaze sacrifice so much to protect the children at the Academy as if they were his own. Now with little William, he saw the same look in the dean’s eyes that he saw in Officer Dune’s. A father would sacrifice everything to save his child.

“You needed the money,” Alex said quietly.

“I thought I did,” Officer Dune replied, his voice soft. “Jamie’s medical bills were so high we were going to lose this house. It’s the house...” His voice choked off. He swallowed, then continued, “It’s the house my wife and I lived in when she died.” He took a shuddering breath. “I couldn’t bear to lose it, and I couldn’t afford to pay more medical bills, especially if Jamie needed another round of treatment. With Jamie sick, I was about to lose everything.”

His jaw clenched for a moment, and he looked up at Alex. “The second you were gone, I realized my mistake, my terrible, horrible mistake. I had just killed my friend, someone who trusted me and who saved my life and the life of my partner. I gave him away for money.” He said the last word with disgust as though even the syllables tasted bad.

“Maybe it was the right decision.” Alex spoke the words quietly, trying to understand despite everything he had gone through.

“It wasn’t,” Officer Dune replied. “It could never be.”

“You were trying to save your daughter.”

The officer’s voice broke when he said, “She is in remission; we just found out yesterday. We made it through.” He tried to smile, but failed. “I betrayed you and it wasn’t even necessary.”

Alex didn’t know what to say or do. Nothing was what he had expected it to be. The angry confrontation he had expected had instead turned into the heartbroken confession of a lost father trying to fight for his daughter. He would rather Jamie live than himself. She was young and innocent. The voice in the back of his mind said that he had been the same way, once.

Officer Dune finally broke the silence. “What will you do?”

Alex stared at him. There was an acceptance to the man’s expression as if he expected the werewolf to kill him for his betrayal and he knew he deserved it.

Officer Dune lowered his eyes once more to the floor. “At least don’t let Jamie find me, please.”

When Alex spoke again, it took so much work to voice what he needed to say that his words came out raspy. “Do you not know me by now?” He swallowed and continued in a voice barely above a whisper. “What kind of an animal do you think I am?”

He left the room. His mind reeled; questions and memories flooded through him, swarming him with conflicting emotions.

“Alex, wait!”

Alex barely heard the officer’s request. He slid the kitchen door open and stepped into the backyard. He didn’t stop until his bare feet stood on the grass still cool from the night. The warmth of the rising sun fell on his shoulders. He lowered his head, unable to look around him.