Page 12 of Blood Pack Beginning (Pack #5)

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Sasha couldn’t help grinning. Her tryst with Cyrus had been quite satisfying. The man knew how to please. Hopefully he would continue to do so after she took his friends as lovers. It wasn’t greed that had her determined to sleep with all three, but need. Blame a high sex drive, which she’d been neglecting because sturdy lovers didn’t exactly come along every day.

The unintentional link between her and Cyrus proved interesting. She wouldn’t have thought such a small sample of blood would have had an effect. It made her wonder if the same thing would happen if the other two Lycans were given a taste. Would they want such a connection, though?

Cyrus dropped a kiss on her lips then left while she dressed and checked her email. Pierrot sent a message to inform her he was following some leads about other possible ghoul nests.

Of concern, he’d discovered a massacre in another small town that seemed to have resulted in some residents missing. Authorities were baffled as to the reason behind the killings and had no leads to offer on the perpetrators of the horrific crime. Given the similarity with what they’d found in Moon Dew, Thaddeus ordered Pierrot to forward the list of names of those missing to Nathan to see if he could confirm or not whether they were dormants. Sasha assumed yes, and, if so, it was bad news because it meant this mysterious Master really didn’t give a fuck about their crimes being noticed. Someone who didn’t give a fuck and craved attention would keep on acting unless they were stopped.

Dressed in some leggings and a tight tank top, Sasha headed out to the training yard to find her Lycans sparring with some of the newcomers, mostly fit and good-looking males ranging in age from late teens to forties. Some showed promise, already knowing how to use their bodies to fight effectively. A few appeared to be even better with their fists than her current trio, but she didn’t plan to exchange them, seeing as how the newbies didn’t make her pulse race or blood pound.

Upon spotting Sasha, Amir waved and headed over with Diego and Cyrus in tow. Of Omar, she saw no sign. Perhaps the boy had finally left.

“Hey, Shorty,” Amir called out with a wide grin.

It would seem her boys had found their versions of retaliation for Puppy Chow and Grouchy. She could have punished him for being disrespectful, but it kind of amused. Most people were too scared of her to tease.

“Good evening, flea bags. I trust you’re all recovered from last night’s excursion?”

“Feeling better than ever,” Amir boasted.

“Not as good as Cyrus is.” Diego’s smart-ass addition held a hint of sour.

The jealousy in the tone arched her brow. “No need to get into a pissing match. You will get your turn. As will Amir.”

“When?” Diego huffed, his eagerness gratifying, but he needed to learn he didn’t call the shots.

“When I say it’s time. And you’d better hope you’re as good as you keep implying. I have a pretty high bar.” She slewed a glance at Cyrus for emphasis and almost laughed because the man blushed.

“Anytime you want to go for a ride, Shorty, I will be ready.” Diego winked.

“Me too,” Amir hastened to add.

“How to choose which goes next?” She tapped her lower lip.

“We could arm wrestle.” Amir flexed his thick bicep.

“Like fuck. We both know you can beat me. How about a foot race?” Diego suggested.

Cyrus was the one to say, “Again, not a fair matchup. If you’re going to make it a competition, it should be something you’re both good at.”

“Like what?” Diego asked with pursed lips.

“I have an idea actually.” Sasha crossed her arms and tilted a hip as she drawled, “I’m going to leave the compound and head into the forest surrounding it, looking for signs of possible spies. Whichever one of you manages to track me will be next.”

“A hunt?” Amir exclaimed. “Fuck yeah.”

“There’s a caveat,” she teased. “No shifting.” She wanted to see what they were capable of in their human form. So much of their training had been about being able to prove they didn’t need to depend on their wolf side.

“Fine by me,” Amir confirmed.

Diego nodded. “I’m in, too. How high are we counting before we come looking?”

“This isn’t a game of hide and seek,” Sasha scoffed. “And I didn’t say it would be tonight. I’m already rather satisfied for the moment and have other matters to attend. But pay attention, because my excursion will happen soon. Let’s see who between you is the most observant.”

Sasha tossed the gauntlet but miscalculated just how much both men would want to win. She developed literal shadows. That first night, they didn’t leave her alone for a minute, skulking just out of sight. She half expected to find them in her bedroom when dawn approached but was spared being stared at while she slept.

The visions had calmed down since she’d ingested the ashes, and she managed to slumber without issue. When she woke, just after sunset, rather than seek out her trio, she dressed in dark clothing and exited the house via the unground emergency tunnel that spilled into the woods.

The overcast sky blocked the almost full moon and stars, leaving the forest dark. Not an issue, as her eyes adjusted to the lack of light, giving her general shapes of things around her. When she concentrated a bit harder, she could see traces of heat signatures. Small spot in a tree, most likely a squirrel or bird roosting for the night. A crinkle of leaves on the ground and a blur of color probably a mouse or chipmunk.

She inhaled, enjoying the pine-filled aroma, but frowned at a hint of something rotten. Could be the normal kind of decay that came with the circle of life. After all, animals died every day. However, there was a reason why she and the other vampires took turns scouting the environs. With the number of Lycans currently residing with them, they had to be more careful, lest their new pack see some members poached or, worse, influenced by the mysterious master. It would suck if she or Thaddeus, or any of the other vampires for that matter, got betrayed by a Trojan wolf.

She set off on foot and wondered how long it would take Amir or Diego to notice she’d not emerged from her room and, from there, to realize she’d slipped their surveillance.

The light steps she took didn’t disturb foliage as she travelled, the only noise that of the rustling branches and the occasional hoot of an owl. While she didn’t follow a trail, per se, she did angle in the direction of the smell, which grew stronger and more distinctive. A once-living creature decayed, the rot of death not something easily mistaken. What concerned was how far the odor reached. It implied something large had died, and yet these woods weren’t known to house anything bigger than a racoon or a fox. There were no bears in these parts or non-Lycan wolves.

The odor intensified, and with it, she noticed a lack of expected noise. No rustling leaves or skitter-scatter of wildlife scurrying through brush. What else she didn’t hear? The buzz of flies. Decaying meat always produced maggots, which, in turn, would have become flies—lots of them—only she didn’t hear a single whir of wings.

Past a thick tree, with a trunk bigger than she could hug, she stepped into a clearing, only instead of crabgrass tufting she encountered a heap.

Of bodies.

She blinked, immediately assuming she’d fallen back into one of Roderick’s or Morpheus’ memories. But the dead pile of people remained, a grotesque reality she had to deal with.

Did they have ghouls in the forest? It seemed unlikely. Someone would have noticed. While they didn’t have someone patrolling every night, they did ensure someone scouted every day. Yet these corpses had been dead for several. How had they not been noticed? Who were they, and who’d left them practically on the compound’s doorstep?

She neared the ungainly mess of limbs to get a better idea of how they’d died. It unfortunately required her to pull a few bodies free from the messy stack to check them for cause of death or pre-death injury. She grimaced at the spongy feel of their flesh. Two corpses tumbled free and hit the ground at her feet. Both males, and a quick glance at those still in the heap seemed to indicate all of them swung dicks. Of interest, the flesh remained intact, no gaping wounds except for a pair of puffy holes in each neck. Drained, most likely by a vampire, but that wasn’t the only interesting fact.

“They’re Lycan,” she murmured. Not easy to discern, given the current decomposition, but the obvious dog smell still lingered underneath.

A vampire, perhaps more than one, had killed these wolves and dumped their bodies in the woods. But why?

If this was meant to rattle her boss, wouldn’t it have been better to leave them somewhere more visible? This section of the forest was far from the compound. That said, it should have been part of the patrolling sweep. She’d have to find out when the last one occurred to gauge when the bodies might have been dumped and then raise hell because the sweeps were meant to be done daily.

“Holy dead people.” Diego’s sudden drawl startled Sasha, and she almost fell over she spun so fast.

She stared at him. “How did you manage to sneak up on me?” She thought herself the queen of stealth.

His lips quirked. “I’m quite good at tracking, even in this shape.”

“How did you know I’d left the compound?”

His smile widened. “I had a hunch you might be popping out tonight.”

“How did you find me, though? I didn’t leave through the usual exits.”

“I knew about the secret tunnel. Found it when I went for a jog the other day. I happened to be watching it when you emerged.”

“And didn’t immediately pounce?” She arched a brow.

“Didn’t seem sporting to catch you so quickly. I let you have a bit of a head start before I started tracking, which I’ll admit might have been a mistake, given you’re pretty good at not leaving a trace. I thought I lost you, but soon as the rot hit my nose, I had a feeling I knew where you’d be heading.” He glanced at the bodies and grimaced.

“Was this here when you went for your run?” she asked.

“Don’t know. I didn’t come this way, but I did notice the smell. Assumed something large had died.”

“Have you seen anyone else in the woods?”

He shook negatively. “Nah. And I only went for a jog the one time.” He stepped closer and canted his head. “How did they die? I don’t see any wounds or blood.”

“Vampire.”

He shot her a perturbed look over his shoulder. “I thought Thaddeus’ flock didn’t eat and kill people?”

“They don’t. I think this is meant to be a message from Morpheus’ master.”

“What kind of message? And what makes you so sure it’s this master?”

“A vampire killing Lycans and leaving them in Thaddeus’ territory resembles something Morpheus’ shit-disturbing master might command one of their minions to do.”

“You think one of their minions is kidnapping and killing Lycans then dumping them here? Why so far from the compound if they were meant to taunt?” Deigo frowned as he eyed the discolored face of one of the bodies she’d yanked free. He stood and paced around the pile.

A silent Sasha watched. Diego appeared intent, but she couldn’t tell what piqued his interest.

It took a few minutes before he whistled. “I don’t think these people were kidnapped from the packs.”

“They’re Lycan,” she pointed out.

“Yeah, they are, but I don’t think they were stolen and dumped here.”

“What makes you say that?”

Diego pointed to a corpse. “See that tattoo on the arm? I saw it recently on a dude named Brian who came knocking at the compound last week. Claimed his pack wouldn’t let him back in, and when he complained, his alpha told him to come here. Only Brian hadn’t known he’d have to follow the orders of a vampire, and when he learned it, he didn’t like it and went on a rant about how he’d rather be a rogue than take orders from a bloodsucker.”

“So this Brian left and got ambushed on his way out.”

“Maybe. I never actually witnessed him leaving. One of the compound’s other vampires took him aside, and that was the last I saw of Brian. Could Thaddeus have ordered him executed so he wouldn’t blab about the vampires?”

She shook her head. “No. He’s not one to kill wantonly. Thaddeus would have wiped his mind of anything he’d learned and given him a compulsion to leave and never return.” Something about the situation nagged, but it refused to coalesce. “Do you recognize anyone else?”

Diego went hunting through the bodies, hauling them from the heap, laying them out on the ground for easier perusal. Eight in total.

“I don’t know any of the others, although that marking on his wrist?” He indicated an outstretched arm. “Is the one commonly used by the Redwood Pack on the West Coast.”

Sasha stood, a finger on her lower lip, staring at the faces and startling as she recognized one. “That’s Dylan.” The young man had been one of the first Thaddeus collected when he started his new pack.

“When did Dylan leave the compound?” Diego asked.

Her brow furrowed. “He didn’t. He was assigned to Anabel, and, as far as I know, there’s been no issues. He seemed eager to learn and work with us. Mind you, that was a few days ago. Perhaps something changed.”

“Maybe he went for a run and got caught by someone in the woods.”

“Maybe.” When she finally grasped why the situation niggled. her stomach tightened into a cold knot. “We need to return to the compound.”

“You just thought of something.”

“I did.”

“Well? Spill.”

“No, because I might be wrong.” She attempted subtlety, but Diego caught on.

“Holy shit, you think one of Thaddeus’ vamps did this.”

“It would be rather unlikely. They are loyal to him.”

“He wouldn’t be the first dude betrayed by those he trusted, and it just so happens, Anabel was the one to take Brian aside.”

“Anabel has been with Thaddeus for years. She’s always been the perfect flock member.”

Diego stood and waved at the bodies. “Someone killed them.”

And that person would be held accountable.