We followed the wall to the right until the corner. Jasmine pressed her palm against an indent in the wall, and part of the wall to her left opened to reveal a hidden room.
She turned to us. "You can hide in here, but whatever you do don't make a noise. They might hear you."
Orion nodded. "Understood, and thank you."
He carried me inside and Jasmine closed the wall behind us. We were left in pitch-black darkness.
A sudden thought came to my mind. "You think there's any way we can let ourselves out?"
Orion set me down. "They'll let us out when the police leave."
"And what if the police take them away?" I countered.
"Then we have a problem."
My shoulders slumped and I pinched the bridge of my nose. The scent of the spices bit at my sensitive nostrils. My eyes water"Maybe we should-" He clapped his hand over my mouth.
A moment later I heard the thud of heavy boots above us. Murmured voices floated to our ears. One was high-pitched and young. Jasmine. Another was soft. I could barely hear him. A third joined theirs. Their voice was deep and firm.
The many pairs of boots trudged across the first floor and faded upstairs. Orion dropped his hand from my mouth. I glared at him, or at least the spot where I thought he stood. I didn't have time to scold him before a pair of boots came back down the stairs. They walked the boards to the basement steps and proceeded down into the spicy domain. I held my breath as I heard the door creak open.
"What the hell-?" a man yelped.
The other boots pounded down the upper stairs and rushed to the aid of their basement fellow. "What's wrong?"
"What the hell is down here?" the first voice asked.
"It is our spice cellar," I heard Jerry explain. "The spices dry best beneath the ground, and store very well here. Would you like to try some?"
"What we'd like you to do is tell us where Orion and the girl went," the deep voice spoke up.
"I did not see where they had gone," Jerry replied. I suppressed a snort. It was the truth. Sort of.
"Everybody, spread out," Deep Voice demanded.
"But sir, there's no way we can smell them down here," the man who had yelped pointed out.
The guy with the deep voice growled. "Fine. Everybody back to the cars."
The boots began their ascent. A sudden tickle hit my nose. I threw my hand over my mouth. Too late. A small, squeaky sneeze escaped me.
The boots paused. I froze. Orion stiffened at my side.
"Did you hear that?" Yelp Man asked the group.
"The walls are old and make noises," Jerry spoke up.
"I don't think walls sneeze," Yelp Man argued.
The heavy boots walked deeper into the basement and stopped a few feet from our hiding spot. There was a long pause. The boots turned. "All right, men, let's go."
I heard Yelp Man take in some air. "But sir-"
"I said we're going," the gruff man repeated. "Thank you for your time, Jerry."
"It was my pleasure, and please come again when you are in need of supplies," Jerry replied.
"We will. Come on."
The boots and two pairs of other shoes clomped upstairs and out of the house. The sirens sounded, and faded into the distance. I leaned against the wall and sighed. "Are we having fun yet?" I quipped.
Orion chuckled. "I admit it's been a little too long since I had you in a dark room all to myself."
I rolled my eyes. "Maybe it's about time I taught you how to heel."
Soft footsteps walked down the stairs and over to the hidden door. The entrance swung open. I blinked against the basement light. Jerry and Jasmine stood before us, and both sported pursed lips.
"I would like an explanation please," Jerry requested.
Orion smiled and bowed his head. "And you'll have one, but in your living room."
Our little party trudged upstairs and to the living room at the front of the house. Orion and I took a seat on the couch, and Jerry seated himself in a chair opposite us. Jasmine stood behind him with one hand on the tall back. We recounted our story, and when we were finished Jerry leaned back and frowned.
"This is very bad," he commented.
Orion smiled. "Only bad in that we have to wait for the entire police force to leave before we can hunt for that loose werewolf."
"Did you want me to tell Mab about this?" Jasmine offered.
Jerry grasped her hand and shook his head. "I do not want you leaving. Not when it is dark and that werewolf might return."
Orion arched an eyebrow. "Return where?"
Jerry furrowed his brow and tapped his chin. "I cannot be sure, but I think I have seen this big werewolf of yours."
Orion and I leapt to our feet. "Where?" we shouted.
Jerry shrank beneath our question, but pointed a finger out the window. "Around the junkyard. The wolf tried to get in many times, but I scared him away with my growling." He smiled and nodded his head. "He is very afraid of me."
I rubbed my nose as another blast of spice rolled off our host. Maybe it wasn't so much the noise as the strong smell.
"Can you show us where you last saw it?" Orion requested.
Jerry stood and nodded. "Yes. Come with me."
Jasmine stayed behind while Jerry took us through the maze of junk to the back fence. He pointed at a newly repaired portion with two fresh metal sheets. Beside the fixed wall was the destroyed parts. Their lower joined corners had been peeled back to make room for a large body.
Orion knelt in front of the destroyed parts and ran his hand over the curved metal. "How long ago was this done?"
"Last night. Very late," Jerry told us.
Orion looked over his shoulder at the stacks of junk. I saw microwaves, water coolers, small fridges, and the legs of countless office desks. "Any idea what he might have been after in this part of the yard?"
Jerry followed his gaze and shook his head. "No. This area is for office machines only. No garbage to eat."
Orion stood and turned to our host. "Were there any recent dumps?"
Our friend nodded. "Yes. Yesterday. It came from city hall. Let me show you." He led us over to a slope of one of the piles and pointed at a broken computer monitor. The screen had a large hole in the middle. "They bring that one. I asked what happened, and they said it was an accident." He smiled and shook his head. "No accident. That is a fist."
Orion leaned down and brushed his hand over the screen. "You're right." He straightened and sniffed his hand. "And it smells like our old friend the mayor was involved."
I arched an eyebrow and nodded at the screen. "So that was her screen?"
He nodded. "Yes. She must have seen something she didn't like."
I snorted. "Probably spam."
Orion half-turned back to the fence and furrowed his brow. "The police investigation notes disappear, the mayor warns us not to interfere, and now we find our prey is stalking her."
I folded my arms and frowned. "If this were a mystery movie I'd say we had a motive for a multi-department cover-up."
He nodded. "Yes, but no solid proof. That's why we need to capture the werewolf before they do."
I grinned. "Looking to shake up city hall with some furry proof?"
Orion turned back to Jerry. "What time did the werewolf come here?"
"About one in the morning," he replied.
Orion looked to me and smiled. "Ready for a late night?"
I snorted. "For news, any night."
20
The late-afternoon sun fell below the horizon and night overtook the shadowed junkyard. The wait was a welcome reprieve. Sort of.
"Too hot! Too hot!" Orion yelped as he lunged for the glass of milk in front of him.
We sat at the dining table, Jasmine beside me and the men opposite us. Between us was a small bowl of innocent-looking red peppers. Orion had just consumed two at once and his mouth was in the final stage of grief, acceptance. It had accepted that the pepper was one of the hottest in the world, and he had been
stupid enough to eat two of them.
Orion tipped his head and the glass back, and downed all the contents. He slammed the glass back on the table and hunched over the table. His face was flushed and tears poured down his cheeks. He breathed in and out like he was the last dying dinosaur.
"Wow," he croaked.
Jerry chuckled and popped one of the peppers into his mouth. "It takes practice, my friend."
"Lots of practice," Jasmine added as she, too, partook of the peppers like they were candy.
"Or you could stop now and live to a ripe old age," I quipped.
Orion coughed and nodded at the untouched glass of milk in front of me. "Your turn."
I cringed and glanced at my watch. "Well, would you look at the time. It's almost midnight." I stood and pushed in my chair. "We'd better get going. We wouldn't want to miss the guy."
"Then next time I will insist," Jerry warned me as Orion stumbled to his feet.
"And it'll be double like mine," Orion added.
I made a mental check in my mind to avoid the junkyard in the future. Jerry and Jasmine led Orion out of the room to the front door. I tucked a few of the peppers into my pocket and hurried after them. I met them at the open door where Jerry grabbed his coat.
Orion grasped his arm and shook his head. "I'd rather you and Jazz stayed here."
Jerry frowned. "But this is my duty. I must protect the yard."
Orion nodded. "I know, but this guy's infected with the Sickness, and it wouldn't be a very polite thank-you if we got you involved and you caught the Sickness."
Jerry pursed his lips. "I still do not like this."
Jasmine grasped his arms and tugged. "Please, Dad. Orion knows what he's doing, otherwise Mab wouldn't trust him."
Our host sighed, but nodded his head and replaced his coat on its hook. "Very well, but call if you need help. We will come."
Orion smiled and gave a nod. "And we'll be glad to have it."
The autumn night was cold and dark as the two of us stepped out onto the lawn. The beam of light from the open front door disappeared at its closing, and we were left with the faint glow from the curtained windows. Before us towered the heaping shadows of the junkyard junk. Twisted shapes stabbed the sky and flickering shadows of rats skittered across the ground.
I pressed close to Orion and watched the critters of the night go about their scavenging. "Are we sure Jerry didn't see a giant rat?"
He shook his head. "Jerry's nose is never wrong."
"Even after all that spice intake?"
Orion cracked a smile. "The spice clears the nose, or so he says." He sniffed the air and looked down at my pocket. "Speaking of spice, what's with the load?"
I grinned. "Just a midnight snack."
We reached the spot in the fence where the werewolf had attempted its entrance. The night was still and quiet. A dog howled in the distance. I wondered if it was a neighbor.
Orion stiffened. In the dim night of the clear sky I could see his nostrils flare in and out.
"Smell something?" I whispered.
Orion pressed his finger to his lips, but nodded. He grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the fence to one of the piles close beside the office supply stack. A few minutes ticked by. My nose tingled with the stench of a thousand garbage cans. I reached out for Orion's sleeve to beg mercy.
A twig snapped. I stiffened. The noise came from the other side of the fence. I focused my eyes on the newly-repaired area of the fence. Something scratched against the metal. I jumped when two hands slammed into the two metal sheets. The fencing groaned as it was pulled apart. A pair of yellow eyes stared through the opening, and sharp teeth glistened in the moonlight.
A scream erupted behind us. I whipped my head in the direction of the house, but I didn't have a direct sight. Feet splashed through the puddles toward us.
"Orion!" Jasmine's voice screamed. The young girl rounded the corner of one of the piles and raced into Orion's arms. She clutched onto his coat and pointed at the house. "My dad! I think he's-!" The sudden wrench of metal brought us back to our first problem.
The werewolf shoved its broad shoulders through the hole it created and stepped on all fours into the junkyard. It raised itself onto its two rear legs and pierced the sky with its extreme height. The werewolf took a step toward the office supply pile.
A howl broke the already-panicked air. Large, furry brown forms lunged from beneath the trash piles and loped at the werewolf. They tackled him to the ground with their hulking bodies. The werewolf thrashed and kicked. It managed to free one hand and gash the face of one of its attackers.
The creature reared back its head and revealed itself to be a gigantic bear. It roared in pain while its fellow bear comrades pinned the werewolf to the ground. Their weight and numbers subdued the werewolf long enough for a familiar shadow to step from behind the office supply pile. The moonlight glistened off the needle in their hand. They strode over to the struggle and knelt beside the werewolf. The creature paused and growled at the person.
"This is long overdue," Mayor Darnell commented just before she stabbed the needle into the werewolf's arm.
The creature howled and thrashed, but the effects were almost immediate. Its eyes rolled back in its head and its head dropped onto the ground. The fur and thick muscles on its body shrank into his human form. In a few seconds a naked man of forty lay beneath the bear squad.
Darnell stood and pocketed the needle. She turned to us and narrowed her eyes. "I had hoped not to have such a large audience."
Orion drew his arm in front of us and snarled at her. "So it was a trap. The officers knew we were in the basement."
A ghost of a smile flickered across her lips. "I would prefer to think of it as a joint operation. I am grateful for your assistance, but-" the bears came up behind Darnell, "-now something must be done about you." She nodded at us. "Capture them."
Orion grabbed Jasmine and my shoulders and shoved us toward the house. "Run!"
We made it a few steps before I sensed something was wrong. Orion wasn't following us. I paused and glanced over my shoulder in time to see his clothes burst open as he assumed the wolfy position. The bears barreled down on him, but the first one took a hard punch to the face and was knocked down. He sidestepped the clumsy swings from the others, and looked to us.
"Damn it, run!" he shouted.
Jasmine shook her head. "We can't leave you!"
I grabbed Jasmine's hand and pulled her along with me. "Don't argue with the man when he's working!"
We raced to the house and reached the lawn. Jasmine dug her heels into the grass and pulled on my hand. "We can't go in!"
I half-turned to her and frowned. "Why not?"
Me and my big mouth as my question was answered by the sudden annihilation of the front door from the inside. The shattered pieces of wood flew into the lawn. I pressed Jasmine against me and faced my back toward the house so the pieces hit me. A terrible growl filled the night. Jasmine and I looked to the front door in time to watch the large tiger that was Jerry stride onto the lawn. Its wide, black eyes glistened with the insanity of a wild house cat about to kill its store-purchased prey.
I pulled Jasmine behind me and stepped back away from the approaching kitty. "Come on, Jerry! You don't want to hurt your own daughter!"
Apparently I was wrong as the tiger stalked us in a circle and pulled its lips back in a growl. I kept Jazz in back of me as it came closer, but she slipped around to my front. "Dad! It's me!"
The tiger lunged. I pushed Jasmine out of the way and raised my arms to block the blow. The shadow of another large, black cat leapt from the darkness and collided with the tiger. They rolled over the lawn with their claws swiping and their teeth gnashing at each other. They stopped their rolling with one beast atop the other. The victor was the black cat, some species of panther. The tiger's eyes were closed. He didn't move.
Jasmine tried to run to them, but I grabbed her shoulders. She stretched her hand out to her tiger fat
her. "Dad!"
The black cat partially transformed into a woman with torn pants and a blouse. She pulled out a familiar needle from her pocket and stabbed the point into the tiger. The tiger growled, and in a few moments Jerry reverted back to his tattered-clothes self.
The panther stood on its back legs and completely transformed into her human self. She turned to us, and my eyes widened as I beheld the tired face of Darnell.
Jasmine glared at her. "What did you do to my dad?"
Darnell held up the needle. "Nothing more than give him the antidote." She looked past us. "It is an easier remedy than one I have planned for you three."
I turned and followed her gaze. The four bears walked toward us. Draped over one of their backs was the stranger. On another back lay Orion.
"Don't think of trying to escape without Orion's help," Darnell advised us.
We were led from the junkyard to two patrol cars and a black sedan. Jazz and I were placed in the back of one patrol car and the men were tossed into the other. Darnell took the sedan for herself, and we were driven to our fate.
21
The cars turned a right at the main road and drove away from town. The wide pastures slowly changed to the woods as we approached the foothills of the mountains.
I pressed my hand against the cage divider and looked at the pair of bear-men. They were transformed enough to fit into the car and drive. "Mind telling me where we're going?" They stared straight ahead. "Will it be execution style behind a barn or do we get a forest view?" Stony silence. I frowned and dropped back onto the seat. I crossed my arms and slumped down. "Typical. Police never want to answer questions."
I heard a sniffle beside me and looked to Jasmine. She hung her head and clasped her hands in her laps. A few tears glistened atop her fingers. I straightened and set my hand atop hers.
She looked up and showed off her wet cheeks. "Do you think my dad's okay?"
I gave her a small smile and nodded. "Definitely. He probably won't even remember anything." I looked ahead and sighed. "Which wouldn't be such a bad idea right now." One of the officers chuckled. I glared at him. "What's so funny?"
His partner shot him a warning glance. He resumed his stony face and pursed his lips. I was left with no answers and a worse feeling than before.