He slept on the foot of my bed. When I suggested he might be more comfortable in his room, he regarded me steadily with ice-colored eyes.
Where does a werewolf sleep? Anywhere he wants to.
I thought it would bother me, thought it would scare me. It ought to have bothered me. But somehow I couldnt work up the energy to be too worried about the big wolf curled up on my feet. It was Sam, after all.
* * *
MY DAY STARTED OUT EARLY DESPITE MY LATE NIGHT.
I woke up to the sound of Sams stomach growling. Keeping him fed had attained a new priority level, so I bounced up and cooked him breakfast.
And then, because cooking is something I do when Im upset or nervousand because it sometimes helps me think, especially if the cooking involves sugarI indulged myself with a spate of cookie baking. I made a double batch of peanut butter cookies, and while they were in the oven, I made chocolate chip, for good measure.
Sam sat under the table, where he was out of my way, and watched me. I fed him a couple of spoonfuls of dough even though hed eaten several pounds of bacon and a dozen eggs. He had shared the eggs with my cat, Medea. Maybe that was why he was still hungry. I fed him some of the baked cookies.
I was in the middle of putting cookies into baggies when Adam called.
Mercy, he said. His voice was fuzzy with fatigue, his tone flat. I saw the light was on. Ben told me what you said. I can help you with that.
Usually, I follow Adams conversations just fine, but Id had less than three hours of sleep. And I was preoccupied with Samuel, which he could not know anything about. I rubbed my nose. Ben. Oh. Adam was talking about how the pack had screwed up our date. Right.
I had to keep Adam away. Just until I figured out some brilliant plan to keep Samuel alive . . . And here before me was the perfect excuse.
Thank you, I said. But I think I need a break for a few daysno pack, no . . . I let my voice drift off. I couldnt tell him I needed space from him when it wasnt true. Even over the phone he might pick up the lie. I wished he was here. He had a way of making things black-and-white. Of course, that meant that Samuel should be killed for the good of the wolves. Sometimes gray is the color Im stuck with.
You need some distance from the packand me, Adam said. I can understand that. There was a small pause. I wont leave you without protection.
I looked down. Samuels off for a couple of days. I needed to call before heading to work and get him time off, but that didnt change the fact that he wasnt going to be at work for the next couple of days. The wreck made a convenient excuse. Ill keep him with me.
All right. There was an awkward pause, and Adam said, Im sorry, Mercy. I should have noticed there was something wrong. He swallowed. When my ex-wife decided Id done something she didnt like, shed give me the silent treatment. When you did it . . . it threw me.
I think that was the point someone was aiming for, I said dryly, and he laughed.
Yeah. I didnt stop and consider how unlikely a tactic that was from you, he agreed. Sneak attacks, guerilla warfare, but not silence.
Not your fault, I told him, before I bit my lip. If I didnt need to keep him away from Sam, Id have said more. A lot more, but I needed time for Samuel to fix himself. I didnt figure it out until we were almost home.
If Id realized something was up while it was still happening, I could have found out who it was, said Adam, a growl in his voice. He took a deep breath and let it out. When he spoke again, his voice was calmer. Samuel will know how to stop them, too. While hes escorting you around, why dont you ask him to teach you how to protect yourself? Even when its not deliberate He had to stop again. The needs and desires of the pack can influence you quite a bit. Its not too hard to block if you know how. Samuel can show you.
I looked at the white wolf sprawled out on the kitchen floor with Medea cleaning his face. Sam looked back at me with pale eyes ringed in black.
Ill ask him, I promised.
See you, he said, but continued in a rush. Is Tuesday too soon?
It was Saturday. If Samuel wasnt better by Tuesday, I could cancel. Tuesday would be really good.
He hung up, and I asked Sam, Can you teach me how to keep the pack out of my head?
He made a sad noise.
Not without being able to talk, I agreed. But I promised Adam Id ask. So I had three days to fix Samuel. And I felt like a traitor for . . . I hadnt really lied to Adam, had I? Raised among werewolves, who are living lie detectors, Id long ago learned to lie with the truth nearly as well as a fae.
Maybe I had time to make brownies, too.
My cell phone rang, and I almost just answered it, assuming it was Adam. Some instinct of self-preservation had me hesitate and glance at the number: Brans.
The Marrok is calling, I told Samuel. Think hell wait three days? Me either. But I could delay him a little by not answering the phone. Lets go work on some cars.
* * *
SAM SAT IN THE PASSENGER SEAT AND GAVE ME A sour look. Hed been mad at me since I put his collar onbut the collar was camouflage. It made him look more like a dog. Something domesticated enough for a collar, not a wild animal. Fear brings violence out in the wolves, so the fewer people who are scared of them, the better.
Im not going to roll the window down, I told him. This car doesnt have automatic windows. Id have to pull over and go around and lower it manually. Besides, its cold outside, and unlike you, I dont have a fur coat.
He lifted his lip in a mock snarl and put his nose down on the dashboard with a thump.
Youre smearing the windshield, I told him.
He looked at me and deliberately ran his nose across his side of the glass.
I rolled my eyes. Oh, that was mature. The last time I saw someone do something that grown-up was when my little sister was twelve.
* * *
AT THE GARAGE, I PARKED NEXT TO ZEES TRUCK, AND as soon as I got out of the car, I could hear the distinctive beat of salsa music. I have sensitive ears, so it was probably not loud enough to bother anyone in the little houses scattered among the warehouses and storage units that surrounded the garage. A little figure at the window waved at me.
Id forgotten.
How could I have forgotten that Sylvia and her kids were going to be cleaning the office? Under normal circumstances, it wouldnt have been a problemSamuel would never hurt a child, but we werent dealing with Samuel anymore.
I realized that Id gotten used to him, that I was still thinking of him as though he was only Samuel with a problem. Id let myself forget how dangerous he was. Then again, he hadnt killedme yet.
Maybe if he stayed with me in the garage . . .
I couldnt risk it.
Sam, I told the wolf, whod followed me out of the car, there are too many people here. Lets
Im not sure what I was going to suggest, maybe a run out somewhere no one would see us. But it was too late.
Mercy, said a high-pitched voice as the office door popped open with a roar of bongos and guitars, and Gabriels littlest sister, Maia, bounced down the short run of steps and sprinted toward us. Mercy, Mercy, guess what? Guess what? I am all grown-up. I am going to pretty school, and I
And that was when she caught a glimpse of Sam.
Ooo, she said, still running.
Samuel is not bad-looking in his human formbut his wolf is pure white and fluffy. All he needed was a unicorns horn to be the perfect pet for a little girl.
Pretty school? I asked, stepping forward and to the side, so I was between the werewolf and Maia. Maia stopped instead of bumping into me, but her eyes were on the wolf.
The next-oldest girl, Sissy, who was six, had emerged from the office a few seconds after her sister. Mamá says you cant run out of the office, Maia. There might be cars who wouldnt see you. Hi, Mercy. She means preschool. Im in first grade this yearand she is still just a baby. Is that a dog? When did you get a dog?
Pretty school, repeated Maia. And Im not a baby. She gave me a hug and launched herself at Sam.
I would have caught her if Sam hadnt bounded forward, too.
Pony, she said, attacking him as if he werent a scarily huge wolf. She grabbed a handful of fur and climbed on top of him. Pony, pony.
I reached for her, but froze when Sam gave me a look.
My pony, Maia said happily, oblivious to my terror. She thumped her heels into his ribs hard enough I could hear the noise. Go, pony.
Maias sister seemed to understand the danger as well as I did. Mamá, she shrieked. Mamá, Maias being stupid again.
Well, maybe not as well.
She frowned at her sister andwhile I stood frozen, afraid that whatever action I took would be the one that sent Sam over the edgetold me, We took her to the fair and she saw the horsesnow she climbs on every dog she sees. She almost got bitten by the last one.
Sam, for his part, grunted the fourth or fifth time Maias heels hit his side, gave me another lookone that might have been exasperationand started toward the office, for all the world as if he were a pony instead of a werewolf.
Mercy? Sissy said.
I suppose shed expected me to say somethingor at least move. Panic left me with cold fingers and a pounding heartbut as it faded, something else took its place.
Ive seen any number of werewolves whose wolf had superseded the man. Usually, it happens in the middle of a fightand the only thing to do is to lie low until the man takes back control. The other time it often occurs is with the newly Changed wolves. They are vicious, unpredictable, and dangerous even to the people they love. But Sam hadnt been vicious or even unpredictableexcept in the best sense of the wordwhen Maia had hopped up to play Wild Horse Annie.
For the first time since Id walked into that damned hospital storeroom last night, I felt real hope. If Sam the wolf could keep to civilized manners for a few days, maybe I would have a chance to persuade Bran to give us a little more time.
Sam had reached the office door and stood patiently waiting for me to let him in while Maia patted him on the top of his head and told him he was a good pony.
Mercy? Are you okay? Sissy looked in my carI often brought cookies. Id brought the ones I made this morning out of habit. I usually make a lot more cookies than any one person can eat, so when I have a baking fest, I bring the cookies for customers. She didnt say anything when she spotted the bags sitting on top of the book I still needed to deliver to Phin, but she got a big smile on her face.
Im fine, Sissy. Want a cookie?
* * *
WHEN I OPENED THE OFFICE DOOR, WHICH WAS A FADING orangish pink and needed to be repainted, the blaring music was overwhelmed by Mercy and Look, dog! And what seemed like a hundred small bodies piled on us.
Sissy put her small fists on her hips, and said in a picture-perfect imitation of her brother, Barbarians. And then she took a bite of the cookie Id given her.
Cookie! shrieked someone. Sissy has a cookie!
Silence fell, and they all looked at me like a lion might look at a gazelle in the savanna.
You see what happens? asked Gabriels mother, not even glancing up from scrubbing the counter. Sylvia was about ten years older than I, and she wore those years well. She was a small woman, delicate and beautiful. They say Napoleon was small, too.
You spoil them, she told me in a dismissive tone. So it is your problem to deal with. You must pay the price.
I pulled the two bags of cookies from where Id hidden them in my jacket. Here, I gasped, holding them out over the hordes reaching hands toward their mother. Take them quick before the monsters get them. Protect them with your life.
Sylvia took the bags and tried to hide her smile as I wrestled with little pink-clad bodies that squealed and squeaked. Okay, there werent a hundred of them; Gabriel had five little sisters. But they made enough noise for ten times that many.
Tia, whose name was short for Martina, the oldest girl, frowned at us all. Sam, sitting beside her, had been abandoned for the possibility of a cookie. He seemed amused, more amused when he caught my wary glance.
Hey, were doing all the work, Rosalinda, the second-oldest said. You chicas start scrubbing right this moment. You know you wont get cookies until Mamá says.
Sissy got one, Maia said.
And that is all anyone will get until it is clean, proclaimed Tia piously.
Youre no fun, Sofia, the middle girl, told her.
No fun, agreed Maia with her bottom lip sticking out. But she couldnt have been too upset because she bounced away from me to crawl back onto Sam, her fingers clutching his collar. My puppy needs a cookie.
Sylvia frowned at Sam, then at me. You have a dog?
Not exactly, I told her. Im watching him for a friend. For Samuel.
The wolf looked at Sylvia and wagged his tail deliberately. He kept his mouth closed, which was smart of him. She wouldnt be happy if she got a good look at his teethwhich were bigger than any dogs Ive ever seen.
What breed is it? Ive never seen such a monster.
Sams ears flattened a bit.
But then Maia kissed him on the top of his head. Hes cute, Mamá. I bet I could ride him in the fair, and we would win a ribbon. We should get a dog. Or a pony. We could keep it in the parking lot.
Uhm, maybe hes a Great Pyrenees mix? I offered. Something big.
Abominable Snow Dog, suggested Tia dryly. She rubbed Sam briskly under one ear.
Sylvia sighed. I suppose if he hasnt eaten them yet, he wont.
I dont think so, I agreed cautiously. I looked at Sam, who seemed perfectly fine, more relaxed than Id seen him since I walked into the storeroom at the hospital.
Sylvia sighed again, theatrically, her dramatically large eyes glittering with fun. Too bad. It would be much less trouble if I had a few less children, dont you think?
Mamá! came the indignant chorus.
There arent as many as there seem to be when they are running around shrieking, I told her.
Ive noticed. When they are asleep, they are a little bit cute. Its a good thing, or none of them would have survived this long.
I looked around. Theyd already been working for a while. You know, people are going to walk inand turn around and walk back out because they wont recognize the place. Are Gabriel and Zee in the shop?
Sí, yes, they are. Thank you for the use of your car.
No troubles, I told her. I dont need it right now. And you can do me a favor and tell me about anything you notice is wrong with it.
Besides the steering wheel popping off?
I grimaced. Yep.
I will do so. Now you and that . . . elephant you brought . . . need to go into the shop so my little monsters can get back to work.
Obediently, I lifted Maia off the wolf. Lets go to work, I told him.
Sam took two steps with me, then lay down in the center of the office with a grunt. He stretched out on his side and closed his eyes.
Come on, S I bit my lipwhat was the name Samuel kept on his collar? Right. Come, Snowball.
He opened a single white eye and stared at me.
I swallowed. Arguing with dominant wolves could have unpleasant results.
I will watch the puppy, declared Maia. We can play cow-girls, and I will teach him to fetch. We shall have a tea party. She wrinkled her nose. And then he wont get all dirty playing with the greasy cars. He doesnt like being dirty.
Sam closed his eye as she patted him on the nose.
He wasnt going to hurt her.
I took a deep breath. I think he likes the music, I told Sylvia.
She huffed. I think you want him out of your way.
Maia wants to babysit, I said. Itll keep her occupied.
Sylvia looked at Sam thoughtfully. She shook her head at me but didnt fuss when I left him lying there.
Zee had shut the door between the office and the shophes not fond of Latin music. So when I went in, I closed it behind me, too.
Chapter 4
THE FIRST THING I HEARD WHEN I EMERGED FROM THE bathroom with my working overalls on was Zee swearing in German. It was modern German because I could understand about one word in four. Modern German was a good sign.
The Buick was in the first bay. I couldnt see Zee, but from the direction of his voice, he was under the car. Gabriel was standing on the far side of the vehicle; he looked up when he heard me come in, and relief flashed across his face.
He knows Zee is . . . well, not harmless, but that Zee wont hurt him. But Gabriel is too politeand as a result he has to put up with a lot more of Grumpy Zee than I do.
Hey, Zee, I said. I take it that you can fix it, but itll be miserable, and youd rather haul it to the dump and start from scratch.
Piece of junk, groused Zee. Whats not rusted to pieces is bent. If you took all the good parts and put them in a pile, you could carry them out in your pocket. There was a little pause. Even if you only had a small pocket.
I patted the car. Dont you listen to him, I whispered to it. Youll be out of here and back on the road in no time.
Zee propelled himself all the way under the car so his head stuck out by my feet.
Dont you promise something you cant deliver, he snarled.
I raised my eyebrows, and said in dulcet tones, Are you telling me you cant fix it? Im sorry. I distinctly remember you saying that there is nothing you cant fix. I must have been mistaken, and it was someone else wearing your mouth.
He gave a growl that would have done Sam credit, and pushed himself back under again, muttering, Deine Mutter war ein Cola-Automat!
Her mama might have been a pop machine, I said, responding to one of the remarks I understood even at full Zee-speed. Your mama . . . sounds the same in a number of languages.
But she was a beauty in her day. I grinned at Gabriel. We women have to stick together.
Why is it that all cars are women? he asked.
Because theyre fussy and demanding, answered Zee.
Because if they were men, theyd sit around and complain instead of getting the job done, I told him.
It was a relief to do something normal. In my garage, I was in control . . . Well, Zee was really in charge when he came in. Even though Id bought the shop from him and now paid him to come in, we both knew who was the better mechanicand hed been my boss for a long time. Maybe, I thought, handing him sockets size ten and thirteen, that was the real relief. Here I had a job I knew how to do and someone I trusted giving me orders, and the result would be a victory for goodness and order. Fixing cars is orderlyunlike most of my life. Do the right thing, and it works. Do the wrong, and it doesnt.
Verdammte Karre, Zee growled. Gib mir mal
The last word was garbled as something heavy went thump, thump, bang.
Give you what? I asked.
There was a long silence.
Zee? Are you all right?
The whole car rose about ten inches off the jacks, knocking them over on their sides, and shook like an epileptic. A wave of magic rose from the Buick, and I backed away, one hand locked in Gabriels shirt so he came with me as the car returned all the way to the ground with a bang of tires on pavement and the squeak of protesting shocks.
I feel better now, said Zee in a very nasty tone. I would be even happier if I could hang the last mechanic who worked on it.
I knew that feelingah, the unparalleled frustration of mismatched bolts, miswired sending units, and cross-threaded parts left for me to discover: things that turned what should be a half-hour job into an all-day event.
Gabriel was pulling against my hold as if he wanted to get farther from the car. His eyes were wide, the whites showing all the way around his irises. I realized, belatedly, that it might be the first time hed seen Zee really work.
Its okay. Hes through now, I think. I let go of Gabriels shirt and patted his shoulder. Zee, I think the last mechanic who worked on it was you. Remember? You replaced the wiring harness.
Zee rolled out headfirst again, and there was a black grease mark running from his forehead to his chin where something had rolled across his face. A spot of blood lingered on his forehead, and there was a lump on his chin. You may shut up anytime you choose, Kindlein, he advised me sharply. Then he frowned. I smell cookies, and you look tired. What is wrong?
I made cookies, I told him. I saved a bag in the car for you to take home. I brought more with me, but the horde is in possession.
Good, he said. Now, what is robbing you of sleep?
He used to leave me alone. But ever since Tim . . . ever since Id been hurt, he coddled me in his own way.
Nothing you can help me with, I said.
Money?
Nope.
He frowned, his white eyebrows lowering over his cool gray eyes.
Vampires? He snapped it out. Zee didnt like vampires, much.
No, sir. I saluted his tone. Nothing you can do anything about.
Dont you sass me, girl. He glowered at me. I
One of Gabriels sisters screamed. I had a terrible vision of Sam chewing on one of the kids, and I was running.
I had my hand on the door and the door mostly open when Tia shouted, ¡Mamá, Mamá, una pistola! Tiene una pistola.
Inside the office there were kids all over: hanging from shelving, standing on the six-inch sill at the bottom of the big window, on the floor wrapped around Sam.
A man, a huge man with a nasty-looking automatic in a steady two-handed grip, stood in the doorway between the outside and the office, holding the door open with one black leather-booted foot. The rest of him was dressed in black, too, with some sort of bright yellow design on the left shoulder of his leather pseudomilitary jacket. The only outlier in his generally soldier-of-fortune appearance was the shoulder-length silver-threaded red hair that flowed from his head in a manner that would have done credit to a romance novel cover model.
Just behind him, I caught a glimpse of another man, dressed in a button-up shirt and slacks. But the second mans body language told me at a glance that it was only the first man, the man with the gun, who was a threat. The second man held something on his shoulder, but, beyond determining that it wasnt a weapon, I ignored it and him to focus on the dangerous one.
Sylvia held a broom in her hand, but she was frozen because the barrel of the gun was aimed right at the littlest Sandoval. Maia was locked onto Sam with both hands and screaming Spanish in a manner that might be overly dramatic if there hadnt been an automatic pointed at her.
I expect it was worry for her that kept the wolf motionless on the floor of the office, his eyes narrowed on the barrel of the gun as the skin over his muzzle moved in a soundless snarl.
If Id had time to be scared, it would have been then, looking at Samuel. At Sam. Already I could see the tightening of the muscles in his hindquarters that preceded an attack. Gun or not, Maia or not, he wasnt waiting long.
All of this I saw the first instant I opened the door, and I was moving even as I took in the scene. I snatched Sylvias broom, rounded the corner of the counter, and brought the broom handle down on the gunmans wrists. It hit with a crack, knocking the gun loose before he, or anyone else in the room, had a chance to react to my entrance.
Aside from turning into a coyote when I feel like it, my superpowers are limited to an inconsistent resistance to magic and a turn of speed that is a bit on the far side of humanly possible. From the time I heard the first scream, I used every ounce of speed I had.
I swung at the man a second time, this time aiming at his body as if the broom were a Louisville Slugger, saying urgently, Stay down, Sam.
All that karate was good for something, I thought, as the man grabbed the handle and jerked back. I let it go. Off balance because he was braced for resistance, he took a step back, and I kicked him in the stomach, knocking him down the stair and onto the blacktop outside. Not incidentally, he took the guy whod been behind him with him to the ground.
Now, if only the werewolf listens.
I snatched up the gun our intruder had dropped on the floor and stepped into the doorway, holding the door open as he had, with one foot. I pointed the gun at the strangers faceand waited for the real terror to begin.
But there was no roar behind me, no further screams as Sam shook off the air of civilization that made people look at him and think pet rather than monster.
I took a moment to breathe then, half-stunned by Sams restraint. It took me a moment to figure out what to do with the best-case scenario Id been unexpectedly gifted with.
I could hear noise behind me, but I ignored it. Zee was there; no enemy could come at me from that direction. The sobs and frightened voices softened and stopped. Sam wasnt growling. I wasnt sure if it was a good sign or not, but decided to think positively.
Sylvia, call the police, I told her after a half second of consideration. We were in the right. And thanks to Adam, who littered my workplace with security cameras, wed have proof. As an added bonus, there were no werewolf attacks to explain away. No reason for Sam to play any role in this at all. Tell them what happened and ask them to hurry.
Hey, lady, you dont want to do that, said the second man, breathlessly. He was beginning to struggle to get out from under the gunmanwho was assessing me with cool eyes while his assistant kept talking. You dont want the police involved. This will go better the quieter we can keep it.
If he hadnt sounded so patronizing, I dont think I would have pulled the trigger.
I shot to the side, far enough that there was no way it would hit either of them, near enough that the blacktop that was dislodged by the bullet hit them both.
Id stay still if I were you, I said, adrenaline making my voice shake. My hands, the important part, were steady.
I am calling Tony, said Sylvia behind me in a low voice that the two men lying on their backs at the base of my steps wouldnt hear. That way there will be no mistakes made. Her voice was calm and unhurried. All those years as a police dispatcher coming to her aid. Tony was my friend, Sylvias friendand we both trusted him.
With the intruders under control, I became aware that there were other people outside. Not customers these. They stood by a full-sized black van that managed to look wicked and elegant in a custom paint job.
There were three peopletwo (one man, one woman) dressed like the gunman, right down to the flowing locks, and a girl in a gray T-shirt and a headset. The van had the same yellow lettering that was on the mans jacket.
KELLY HEART, it said, I realized once I had leisure to read it, BOUNTY HUNTER. Underneath the yellow, in slightly smaller letters, it said: SATURDAYS AT 8PM CENTRAL TIME. CATCHING THE BAD GUYS, ONE AT A TIME.
Smile, I said grimly to the people who had my back: Zee, Sylvia and her girls, and Sam. Were on Candid Camera. Zee and Sam needed to know there were unfriendly cameras pointed at them.
Now, just you calm down, said one of the people in black, the woman with bright yellow hair and red lipstick. As she started to talk, she began walking toward us briskly. Youll want to put down that gun. Its just TV, lady, nothing to get excited about.
I dont take orders. Not from people invading my place. I sent a second shot into the pavement in front of her.
Tanya, stop, shrieked the techie-girl. Dont make her shoot again. Do you know what those silver bullets cost us?
Youll want to stop right there, I told them. Silver was for werewolves. Theyd come hunting werewolves. I was raised in the backwoods of Montana. I can hit a duck on the wing. Maybe. Probably. Id never shot a duck in my life; I prefer hunting on all fours. Where I come from, a gun is a weapon, not a TV prop, and if all the bad guys are dead, our side of the story is the only one that gets told. Dont make me decide that would be easier.
Tanya froze, and I pulled the barrel back to center on the man whose face was vaguely familiar once I knew he was a TV star. I was fighting against the growing urge just to pull the trigger and be done with it.