Page 27

Chapter 26

Rabbit

EDIE

A fter crawling out of the East River near the airport, I make my way to my safehouse, an attic above a garage belonging to a family who rents it out for storage. In my current state, it’s not easy to make it to the Oakland Gardens home.

I choose to remain in my wolf form as I’ll heal faster and be less conspicuous. A naked, bleeding woman running through the streets is bound to draw attention. I’m drawing attention anyway. I’m twice the size of any normal dog. I’m limping and clearly injured.

Several people try to stop me as I lope toward my destination. I ignore all of them except one.

I’m a couple blocks away from the house when a human policewoman calls out to me, making kissy sounds and calling me ‘doggie’. I halt in my tracks and turn to watch her as she makes her way cautiously toward me. When I don’t move, she grows bolder, coming closer, allowing me to sniff her upturned hand.

Smiling, she kneels on the ground in front of me. “What a big boy you are!” She runs her hands through my fur, pausing as she reaches the bloody matting on my chest. “You’ve been hurt. We better get some help for you.” She stands, dusting the knees of her pants with her hands. “I might have some rope in my squad car I can use as a leash.”

She turns to stride across the street to her car, but I leap before she can take more than a step, sinking my teeth into the back of her neck and biting down. She dies instantly, her body collapsing to the pavement.

Though she was human, I regret her death. She was kind to me in a moment of need, but it’s not her kindness I need.

I drag the woman off the street and into someone’s yard, shifting to human once we’ve been swallowed by the shadows. I quickly strip her of her uniform and pull it on. It’s tight in the chest and hips, but it’ll do what I need it to do.

Hurrying the two blocks to my safehouse, I break the lock on the garage door and make my way up to the loft. It’s exactly how I left it, several years of dust coating everything.

I keep food, water, clothes, money and several fake IDs here in case I need to leave New York quickly and can’t get back to my Manhattan apartment. My vigilance has paid off.

I remove my newly acquired police uniform and shift to my wolf, crawling into the dusty bed and setting my internal alarm clock to wake me in two hours. That should be enough time to complete the healing process.

I wake to sunlight streaming across the small attic space, warming me on the bed. I stretch my paws out, then the rest of me, assessing my injuries. Except for a few aches, I’m mostly healed. Good enough to do what I have to do.

It’ll be dangerous, but I’m not planning on coming back from this. Once I’ve destroyed Lennox’s mate, he will hunt me relentlessly. I’ve spent a century and a half watching him, studying him. He never misses. He’ll find me eventually and that’ll be the day I die.

I’ve made peace with it. Solace in the inevitability of death is about the only peace I’ve known since losing my mate. That and knowing I would one day make Lennox feel the pain I’ve felt.

I dress in the policewoman’s uniform, using a small mirror to tame my hair into a knot at the back of my neck. I look wistfully over the attic, my gaze lingering on the boxes of items I’ve spent centuries collecting. All of it is useless to me now, likely to be auctioned off when I fail to pay rent.

Taking the stairs down to the first floor of the garage, I leave the protection of my attic haven behind, stepping into a sunny street.

I jog to the nearest subway station, using my police uniform to get myself onto a train without a ticket. The agent barely glances at me as I explain that I’m tracking a perp who came this way. She lets me through the barrier without comment.

When I reach Manhattan, I switch lines, making my way steadily toward my target. It won’t be easy, but I can’t back down. By now the entire city will be looking for me. My disguise won’t hide me for long.

I leave the subway station and jog up to street level. hoping the private detective I’d hired to gather information on Lennox and Charlie is worth his exorbitant rate.

Someone tries to stop me. “Officer, I need help – ”

“Not now,” I snap, hurrying away from a shocked woman who stares after me.

I turn in a circle trying to get my bearings. I’ve become too used to modern day conveniences, like the map app on my phone. I know where I need to go, but I’m not sure of the exact location.

I’ll have to use my instincts. Closing my eyes, I breathe deeply through my nose. So many smells. Food, garbage, humans, shifters… ah, there it is.

Opening my eyes, I turn and stride swiftly toward my target. Two more blocks and I’m there, gazing up at a three-story brick building. The American flag waves in the breeze, the chink of the metal loops loud as it strikes the flagpole.

I stride up to the front doors and show my badge to the security officer who asks, “What’s your business?”

Hoping I’m right, and that Lennox’s protective instincts would extend to the child, I say, “I’m here for Luke Lopez.”

LUKE

“Luke.” When I look up, Mrs. Vingeland says, “You’re wanted in the office.”

I frown. I haven’t done anything wrong. At least nothing anyone should know about. Me and Hunter figured out how to get onto the roof and we hid a lunch pail up there with some of our comics inside. Hunter wouldn’t rat on me, so it can’t be that.

I close my reading book, Flat Stanley, and make my way to Mrs. Vingeland’s desk. I grab the hall pass she hands me. “Take your backpack. I don’t think you’re coming back today.”

My eyes widen in panic and I stare at her, unable to force myself to go to the coat room and grab my backpack. “Wha… what’s happened?” The last time I was taken out of school, my mom was waiting for me in the office. It was the day my dad was killed.

Mrs. Vingeland knows about it and rushes to reassure me, “I’m sure it’s nothing big.”

I don’t believe her though. Experience has taught me otherwise.

I head to the coat room, images from my dad’s funeral filling my mind. I was only four at the time, still in pre-K, but I remember everything. The day I realized my dad was never coming home was the worst day of my life. I keep his picture by my bed so I never forget what he looks like. In it, he’s wearing his Fireman’s dress uniform and his face is serious.

What if something happened to my mom? I feel like crying but hold in the tears. Maybe it really is nothing.

As I make my way to the office, Principal Louis rushes toward me and my heart leaps into my throat. I freeze on the spot and watch him fearfully.

“Come with me, Luke.” His hand lands on my shoulder and he escorts me to the office, his voice low and soothing as he talks. “There’s a police officer here who’s going to take you to your mother.”

My voice shakes as I ask, “Is my mom okay?”

He squeezes my shoulder, but not hard. Soft, like he’s comforting me. “Your mom is fine. There’s nothing to worry about. This is just a precaution, I believe.”

“What’s going on?” I can’t think of a reason my mom would send an officer to come pick me up. “Why didn’t my mom come if she’s okay?”

He shakes his head and tries to give me a confident look, but his eyebrows are down. He’s worried about something. “I don’t know much, Luke. All I know is something happened with a case she’s working on and she’s asked that you be picked up and brought to her.”

I suppose it makes sense. My mom is protective. If there was even a hint of danger, she’d definitely want me nearby.

“Hey, Luke!” I look up to see my cousin, Dallas, waving at me. “What’d you do?” His wide eyes are on Principal Louis.

“Back to class,” the principal says. “Where’s your hall pass?”

Dallas waves it and rushes off, giving me a pitying look as he goes. Great, now all the cousins will think I’ve done something wrong.

We enter the office and I see the police officer right away. Her gaze falls on me and a chill runs down my spine. I back into the principal. “I want to call my mom.”

“We need to leave the premises immediately,” the officer says to Principal Louis, ignoring me. “There may be some danger to the school.”

Principal Louis looks alarmed. “Should we lock it down?”

She shakes her head. “Probably not necessary but tell your security to stay vigilant.”

“Is there any danger to Luke?” Miss Granger, the school secretary asks, her worried gaze on me. She’s always had a soft spot for me, even covering for me once when I was caught sneaking a bag of crickets I’d gotten at the pet store into the teacher’s lounge.

The officer shakes her head. “He’ll be fine once we get him to his mother. We’re just being extra cautious.” She smiles at me, but it’s not a warm smile. The feeling like something is wrong hits me again.

“I want to talk to my mom,” I say stubbornly. “I’m not going until I can talk to her.”

Principal Louis uses his grip on my shoulder to turn me to him. “Luke, you need to go with Officer…” He looks at her and she supplies her name. “You need to go with Officer Callie. She’ll keep you safe until you see your mother.”

“I want to talk to Lennox,” I argue. “He’s a police officer too. He should’ve been the one to pick me up.”

The woman smiles again. “I know Officer Wolven-North well. We’ve worked together for several years. I’ll get him on the radio when we get to my squad car. Does that work for you, buddy?”

I hate when people call me buddy, but the adults have already started talking over me, ignoring my requests.

Things just aren’t adding up.

“We were told you would just watch over him, that he’d stay at the school for the day.” Miss Granger questions the officer, clearly thinking things aren’t adding up either.

It’s Principal Louis who answers. “I received another call letting me know Ms. Lopez wanted Luke brought straight to her.” He looks at Officer Callie and she nods.

“That’s what I was told. Not sure why they changed my orders, but I know I’m to take him straight to his mother.” Her eyes gleam as they land on me. “Let’s go.”

I feel betrayed as Principal Louis releases his hold on my shoulder and nudges me gently toward the officer. “Go with her.”

Miss Granger’s worried gaze follows me. “I’ll call your mom and let her know you’re on your way.”

“No need,” Officer Callie says, striding toward me. She takes my arm in a tight grip. “We’ll call her from my squad car.”

Officer Callie rushes us out of the office, down the hall and through the front doors of the school, ignoring the security guard who says something to her.

I look around. “Where’s your car?”

“It’s on a side street. I couldn’t find parking out front.”

I yank on my arm, but she refuses to let go, dragging me down the street at a pace that’s too fast. “Slow down,” I complain, and she turns to look at me, still walking too fast.

“If you say one more word, I’ll rip your arm off.”

I stare at her, shocked. My mom would never send someone like her to pick me up. I twist around to look at the school, hoping the security guard is watching us, but before I can shout for him, she shoves me into a dark alleyway.

Something’s wrong. There’s no police car here and she’s staring at me, her eyes gleaming with triumph. I back away, but she’s still holding my arm.

“You’re not the one that I wanted, but you’ll do. Killing you will destroy his mate. She’ll blame him, hate him until the day she dies. Maybe this is better. It’ll make him suffer longer. As long as she’s alive.” She’s talking to herself, but I’ve heard enough.

I open my mouth to scream for help, but she grips me by the neck and lifts me, choking me. A hideous grin stretches her lips and I know I’m about to die. Tears fill my eyes and I beg silently for my mom.