Replica(49)

He stood and I helped lower him to the floor. He released a long groan as he stretched out.

“I want to look at your leg,” I said, leaning closer.

“It’s fine. It’s set. I’m only hobbling because I need rest.”

“Do you make it a habit to get hurt this often?” I asked with a teasing grin. “I’m guessing you know from experience.”

The flickering of the kerosene lantern lit his dark eyes as he chuckled and folded his arms behind his head to make a pillow. “I usually lead a boring, mundane life.” He grinned, but something dark lurked in his eyes. “You girls are bad luck.”

“So why stay with us?” I asked carefully, wondering what his answer would be today.

He winked. “The thrill, of course.”

A bullshit response. “What do you think about Antonio?”

His eyes darkened further. “Be careful with him, Rachel. He’s dangerous. Especially with you.”

I nodded, but Lea seemed like the more obvious target given his attitude about the supernatural. “I suspected, and I can take care of myself.”

He gave me a sly grin. “I saw the cut on his neck when he emerged from the back of the plane. I know you can take him. I was talking about your heart.”

I snorted. “You have no worries there, my friend. He’s no threat to my heart. I’m more worried about him cutting out Lea’s. He has an agenda, and while he claims he wants to stop Stravinsky, I have this feeling there’s more to it.”

He gave me a curious glance. “Like what?”

I pushed out a sigh. “All I know is that we have a huge dilemma on our hands. He could be useful, but how do we know he won’t turn on us once we get to the complex? I’m not sure it’s worth the risk.”

He studied me for a moment. “I’m certain he wants the same thing we do—the destruction of the facility, Stravinsky, and everything that mad vampire created. But beyond that, I suspect we have very different agendas.” A protective fire burned in his eyes.

“Lea.”

He gave a sharp nod. “I will defend her to the death.”

I shook my head. “But why? Why does she mean so much to you?”

“She’s the only one who can defeat Stravinsky.” He paused. “The two of you are.”

“Why are you on this quest? You have to know we might not be coming back from this.” When he didn’t answer, I pushed on. “Lea called you a lone wolf. An enforcer. I don’t know much about werewolves, but I do know they need a pack. Where’s yours?”

“Gone.” He shifted, clearly uncomfortable. “She’s right on both counts. I was an enforcer. I had been sent to take care of someone who was out of line. My pack was from Canada, and this guy had traveled pretty far north. I was gone for nearly two weeks. When I got back, the pack was gone.”

“Do you live in communes?”

“No; unlike vampires, we try to fit into society. That’s the most disturbing part. They disappeared one by one. The disappearances had started before I left, but we didn’t recognize what was happening at first. Tobi, the runaway, was the one who told me. He was terrified when I found him. He said a monster had come for him one night, but he’d escaped. Tobi was no lightweight. I thought he’d lost his mind, especially when he told me he couldn’t shift.”

“You mean into his wolf form?”

He gave a sharp nod. “But I knew something was off. He smelled differently and there was a rash on his neck.” When I didn’t react, he said, “Werewolves don’t get rashes. We don’t get sick.

“When I tried to bring him back, he flipped out. He was acting so oddly, I called the pack to send someone to help me. But I couldn’t reach anyone. Tobi got hysterical and said he was coming for all of us. That he’d never let him take him again. When I asked who he meant, Tobi said a single word. Stravinsky. Then he pulled out a gun and blew out his own brains.”

I cringed.

“I looked around the cabin and found some notes, but none of them made sense. Stravinsky’s name and a list of several countries. Canada, the U.S., Iraq. A few random references. I grabbed what I found, torched the place and headed back…to nothing. Everyone was gone.”

“In less than two weeks?”

“Yeah.” Worry filled his eyes. “It’s not easy to take a werewolf, Rachel. Let alone a whole pack.”

“How did they do it?”

“A toxin.” He paused. “It was in Tobi’s notes. He had an address too. By the time I got there, everything was gone, but a pile of bodies was stacked in the back. The thirty-two members of my pack, minus Tobi and me. They hadn’t bothered to get rid of the evidence.