Fangs & Fates, page 25
“Regan?” Sheridan prompted.
I scanned the crowd again and hesitated. As soon as Sheridan had issued the instruction, I knew who I’d choose, but now I wondered. Would it look bad if I chose one of my friends? This was supposed to show my strength of leadership. But in the end, I wanted to win, and I wanted a team I trusted. My eyes landed on Carter, but it was the death stare from his sister beside him that made me call out her name before his.
“Bevin.”
The crowd cheered as Bevin descended the stairs. My dad nodded at me from the stands. I’d made the right choice. I exhaled.
“Charlie, your turn,” Sheridan called.
“Oh, um …” Charlie hesitated. I looked over at her and ignored the knot that had formed in my stomach that morning and never left. “I guess …”
She scanned the crowd and I could see the tension in her. It dawned on me I had no idea who she would pick. My friends glared at her from their spot in the stands. The knot twisted in my gut, making it hard to swallow. If that vampire was right, my pack clearly had it in for Charlie, and someone might even follow through on that. Someone capable of murder.
“Carter,” Charlie’s voice rang out, yanking me out of my worrying thoughts.
My jaw fell open.
A few clapped. Most didn’t. Carter made his way down to the arena without looking at me. I knew he did it on purpose, that he could feel my gaze burning holes in him as he passed. Bevin, who’d come to stand beside me and had already shifted into her wolf without missing a step, growled at him as he passed. He didn’t look at her.
“Regan,” Sheridan prompted. “Your second choice?”
I looked back at the stands, at the eager faces of my pack. My thoughts were colder this time, more calculating. I didn’t just want to win. I needed it. Carter could not be allowed to help Charlie beat me. I debated between Al and Brent. Both were walls of strength, even in their human form, but Brent was colder about it. The lack of feeling in him always made me nervous.
“Choose Al,” Bevin said into my ear.
“Al,” I called. He got slowly to his feet, pushing off his large legs as he stepped down the bleachers.
“And Charlotte? Your second choice?” Sheridan said.
“Uh …” Charlie looked at the stands, her eyes darting back and forth. A moment passed. Carter leaned down and said something low in her ear. “Brent,” Charlie called out.
I shot Carter a look, but he just shrugged.
Sheridan waited until everyone had reached the arena floor and shifted to wolf form. “You will line up with each team at either end of the rope. When the signal is given, you may begin pulling. The first team to step over the center line loses. Please move into position.”
I knew Bevin was the most aggressive so I arranged us with Bevin in the front and Al in the rear. I slipped the rope in between my teeth where it lay over my tongue. Dirt and dust caked my mouth. I ignored it and dug my paws into the ground, anchoring myself.
When the whistle blew, I bit down and yanked.
The rope bucked and my body went with it. I jerked forward, wincing against the pain in my jaw as the other team forced us forward a step. I dug in until I found my footing and the rope pulled back enough for me to step back into place. I felt the force of another pull from behind me and the rope gave some more. A satisfied smile tipped the corners of my wolf mouth as I bit down and yanked for all I was worth.
Chapter Four
Charlie
My teeth hurt. My ankles hurt. My shoulders felt stiff. My joints screamed at me as I struggled to keep my paws planted. Soon they’d refuse to obey at all. I felt the rope slip in my teeth and bit harder. Dirt caked my tongue. I let it slide down my throat and kept pulling.
In front of me, Carter was crouched and leaning backward, trying to gain ground and move us farther away from the center line. The losing line. Instead, a surge of new tension came through the line and he was pulled forward. One step. Two.
No tension came from Brent behind me. The rope felt slack where it left my jaw and led to his. I’d been afraid of this the moment I’d learned I’d need a team. His jaw had closed over the rope enough to make it look like he was trying. Other than that, he didn’t move. It didn’t surprise me. Carter did. I’d chosen him mostly to mess with Regan’s head, since it was the only real weapon I had left. The fact that he was actually helping, instead of only pretending, was a bonus.
It wasn’t enough.
Two against three. Carter and I couldn’t hold it.
Sweat burned my eyes. My throat began to close around the dust in my mouth. With a final yank that sent my shoulders rattling in the socket, I lurched forward. I knew the second Carter’s paw crossed the center line. The crowd went wild. Chaos reigned in their shouts and clapping and then as if by some invisible cue, Regan’s name emerged as a single chant.
“Regan. Regan. Regan.”
The roar was deafening. The one word became two syllables as they drew it out, celebrating her victory. I saw her out of the corner of my eye, already human again. Head lifted, eyes clear, shoulders back; every bit the leader they proclaimed her to be.
I was … nothing.
Future beta.
But second to them meant last.
I didn’t wait for my cue before shifting back to two legs and heading for the small door stage right.
“Hey.” I turned at the sound of Carter’s voice. He stared back at me with dark eyes, liquid and depthless. “I’m sorry. I should’ve … I tried. I hope you know that.”
“I do,” I managed. His apology, the fact that he even felt a little badly, made a lump rise in my throat. “Doesn’t matter. I was finished the moment they told us to pick teams.”
He didn’t respond, but it wouldn’t have mattered if he did; Brent was already gone. Back to the stands to high five the others. Carter looked past me, silent. I shook my head. We both knew Brent had been a prop.
I left Carter standing there and walked away without looking back. I didn’t allow myself to think of Owen somewhere in the crowd. If I did, I knew I’d picture the disappointment on his face. Or worse, pity.
I shoved the wooden door shut with my shoulder and, for once, the smallness of the room didn’t bother me. Not if it meant the solitude I needed to compose myself.
It was the smell that alerted me. Acrid and sweet, like metal. It permeated the small space and seeped through my nostrils, down my throat, until I tasted it over the dust that coated my tongue. My head came up, my eyes scanning.
The room was empty. Nothing but wood walls and a dirt floor.
Something wet fell onto my nose. I shook it off, startled, and looked up. A dagger hung upside down from the wood-planked ceiling, its tip buried deep in the splintered bark. Something wet and dripping clung to the knife blade, impaled by it. I cocked my head to the side, staring, trying to understand. Another drop fell. It hit the dust floor, two inches from my foot. I jerked back and stared. My nose twitched as my brain finally identified the scent. I’d only been this close to it one other time. The day I’d hunted in the woods. With Regan.
Blood.
I backed into the corner of the room, shifting back to my wolf before I’d even realized it. My eyes had gone wide and the fear in me, the human-like terror, warred with the wolf’s anger and confusion. Unable to open the door with my paws, I huddled into the far corner. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t scream. I opened my mouth. The sound that came out was a howl.
Chapter Five
Regan
My blood ran cold. The howl was unmistakable—at least for me.
Charlie.
I shoved bodies aside, ignored their well-wishes, and ran for the stage. The sound had come from Charlie’s room backstage. I couldn’t explain how I knew it had been her. I just did.
“What was that?” Another set of feet pounded at my heels. Carter.
“Charlie,” was all I had time for before I hit the door. I knocked it aside with my shoulder and it swung hard. I had to shove forward to keep it from slamming shut again. Charlie was backed against the far corner, her wolf eyes wild. The set of her shoulders, the way she huddled instead of crouched, made her look manic, caged.
“What is it?” I asked.
Her gaze flickered upward.
I followed it as a drop of some dark liquid fell from the ceiling and hit the dirt floor at my feet. “What the…?” I couldn’t finish. Carter crowded in next to me, wedging himself between my hip and the doorframe. The contact barely registered.
“What the hell is that?” he asked.
Charlie whimpered. I stared.
“Shit. I think it’s a … a heart,” Carter said when I didn’t answer.
I tried to swallow but it got stuck. Another drip hit the floor.
“Huh,” Carter grunted. He seemed to be considering it, examining the red blob stuck to the ceiling by what looked like a fancy hunting knife.
“It’s a heart,” I confirmed. I forced a swallow even though it was dry. Then I looked at Charlie. “A deer’s heart,” I murmured, thinking of our hunting day a couple of weeks back.
Outside in the arena, the crowd was still celebrating at full volume.
I moved quickly.
If I slowed down for even a second, the reality would hit me. The vampire from earlier—he’d clearly been telling the truth about my kind being out to get us. No way a vampire had gotten back here unnoticed—which only left one of my own people. Doubt threatened to overtake me. I couldn’t let that happen. Not with everyone’s eyes on me. Not with Charlie falling apart like this.
“Carter, go get my dad. And any other council members still here.”
“Are you sure it’s a—”
“Now, Carter!”
He slid out. I took a deep breath.
“Charlie?” She was still staring at the ceiling, at the heart. Another drip fell. I averted my eyes. “Charlie,” I repeated, this time more firm. “Look at me.”
Slowly, she dragged her gaze downward. Her eyes met mine. I drew on what little mental energy I could muster. There wasn’t much left after the long day. “Come outside and talk to me,” I said. I kept my voice gentle. Partly for Charlie’s benefit, partly because it was all I had in me. I needed out of this room.
She whimpered again.
“Come on. I’m right here.”
She shook her head. Her eyes had gone glassy. Shit. I couldn’t let her go into shock. Not with Dad on his way over. She couldn’t afford to look any weaker.
“Look, you’re going to shift back. Then you can take my hand and we’ll go outside. Backstage, not into the arena. We’ll take a walk. Sound good?”
She didn’t respond.
Another drop fell.
I considered walking over and dragging her out with my hands. Or shifting back to my wolf and using my teeth to do it. Before I could do either, her ribs expanded with a heavy breath and she closed her eyes. The air rippled and shook then settled again. Her form lengthened and she straightened, shooting up from the ground like Alice in Wonderland after the cake. Her hair blocked her face, but even in this form I could smell the fear.
“Come on,” I said. I held out my hand. She hesitated. Her eyes flitted toward the floor as another drop fell. “Don’t.” I hardened my voice, willing her to obey. Dad would be here any minute. “Don’t look. Come with me now.”
She reached for my hand and I led her out. Carter and Dad appeared at the door behind us. Al and Sylvia were close on their heels.
“We’re going to take a walk,” I said. I gave Carter a pointed look. He nodded. Dad and the others were already staring at the ceiling in confusion.
“Don’t go far,” Dad said, still staring upward. I pulled Charlie out and headed away from the room. As soon as we were clear, Dad cursed loudly. Charlie shivered.
I led us farther away, into the backstage area before more specifics could reach Charlie’s ears. We found a space where the wall arched, creating a pocket where we could huddle without being trampled. More and more people were flooding toward Charlie’s room. Sheridan’s shrill voice could be heard above the hum of male voices, demanding someone fetch a plastic bag and gloves.
“Who do you think left it?” Charlie asked. “The heart, I mean.” Her voice sounded small, barely above a whisper.
“I don’t know.”
“They left it for me on purpose. It means something.” I ignored the look in her eyes that suggested we both already knew what that something was. Our hunting trip—the deer I’d pretended Charlie had killed—had been found out.
“It means someone’s crazy,” I said.
She didn’t say anything. We both knew it meant more than that. Carter appeared from the stage door. I waved at him from our shadowy alcove. He switched his gaze from me to Charlie as he approached. She stared up at him, nervous energy rolling off her in waves.
“Do they know who it was?” she asked.
“Not yet. It’ll take some time to figure out who had access to this area,” he said. He shot me a look and I knew what we were both thinking. Everyone had access—everyone from our pack, at least. The only ones who didn’t were the vampires. Which made every single werewolf here a suspect. I wondered if Dad thought that too, or if he knew the stuff my vampire visitor had told me this morning. “How are you?” Carter asked Charlie, leaning toward her.
Her eyes flitted right and left. “I’m … all right, I guess.”
He frowned. “Good, because your dad wants to talk to you.”
“Give her five minutes,” I said.
“He said now,” Carter replied apologetically.
“It’s all right,” Charlie said to me, straightening.
“Are you sure? Dad’s not going to go easy on you.”
“I’ll go with her.” Carter offered her his arm.
Something twisted in my gut. It was more than worry for Charlie. It was the same ugly feeling I’d had when I’d seen him step up to be on her team earlier. “We’ll both go,” I said.
Dad waited with an entire entourage outside the door to Charlie’s ready room. Sheridan’s voice came from inside the room, still giving orders. Wolves patrolled the perimeter of the arena and the now empty bleachers, their noses to the ground and their ears pricking back and forth.
“Charlie,” Dad said when we got close. His expression was all business. You’d never know by looking at him that he’d just walked in on a heart stuck to a ceiling, dripping with fresh blood. “Tell me what happened.”
“I went back to my room after the tug of war and I didn’t see it right away. The dripping … it was the dripping that made me realize … And then I saw the knife. It was dark. I didn’t know what it held at first …” Her voice sounded unsure but clearer than when I’d first gotten to her. I breathed in relief.
Dad frowned, studying her. “You all right?” he asked. His voice was gruff but I could see the gentleness in his eyes and, for once, I was grateful for the way he always seemed nicer to Charlie.
“I’m fine,” she said.
I bit back a smile at the way she jutted out her chin when she said it. The gesture was so much like Dad.
“Good. They’ll get the heart out for analyzing and figure out what sort of creature it belongs to. The fact that someone left it for you is a clear message. One I don’t like. You’ll have to be careful about being alone until we can get this sorted out.”
“Of course,” she agreed.
“Regan, you get with Carter. Make a schedule and get it to me by end of day. Use the junior members, too, so it’s flexible and the word is out that she’s not an easy mark.”
Charlie’s shoulders stiffened. “What do you mean ‘make a schedule’?”
“For protection. You think I’m going to leave you alone so some nutcase can do to your heart what he did to that one?” Dad said.
“But, I don’t want—”
“It’s already decided. Regan, you and Carter get her home. I’ll meet you there after we finish up.”
“What about the dinner?” I asked. I remembered there was supposed to be a celebratory dinner after each test day, to honor the victor.
“We’ll reschedule. Everyone’s being sent home or put on patrols. Get going. Sheridan!” He walked away before I could argue. At least it meant he’d get rid of the vamps.
Charlie didn’t say a word on the walk home. Carter fell back a few paces to guard our flank. My eyes darted side to side, my senses widened to catch even the smallest movement, but there was nothing.
“Guarding me isn’t going to help,” Charlie said as we climbed the hill toward our porch.
“Why not?” I asked, surprised at how her words echoed my thoughts.
“Because.” She sighed. “No way a vampire would’ve gotten in there unnoticed. Which means …” She shot me a glance and her cheeks reddened. “Never mind,” she mumbled.
I stopped her with a hand on her arm. “You don’t have to be afraid to say it,” I told her. “I agree with you.”
“You do?” Her brows knitted as she studied me.
“I’m going to make sure everyone on the schedule has a partner. No one guards alone. Even if the guilty party is on the rotation, they won’t have an opportunity to get to you.”
I left Charlie in her room, told her to try and sleep. She sat on the bed as I shut the door, her expression far away, somewhere I knew I couldn’t follow. Guilt gnawed at me. I wanted to help, but I had no idea what to say, how to begin. Part of it was my fault anyway; stabbed heart aside, she’d lost today. To me. I couldn’t be the one to console her about it.
Carter waited in the study. I pressed my lips together, ignoring him as I went to the desk to make up a schedule. Even after everything with the bloody heart, I was still irritated he’d helped Charlie in the tug of war. At how concerned he’d been after the heart had been discovered.
“How is she?” he asked. I scowled before I could bury the reaction. Carter’s eyes narrowed. “What?” he asked.
