* * * *
“You all right?”
I shook my head and Dawson snorted.
“I told you, you should have added more brandy. Who the hell drinks coffee straight anymore?”
“Um, I don’t know,” Sonya snipped. “Non-alcoholics?”
“You’re this close to getting fired.”
“Don’t threaten me with a good time.”
I stared down into the dark recesses of my mug, enjoying the steam that caressed my face. After my breakdown earlier, the Weres in the room had surrounded me. For a while they wouldn’t allow anyone, even Sonya to touch me at all. It was only when Georgette and Mark brought Asrai back in from breakfast that the Weres made way.
The little Sidhe calmed me with cool hands and soft words spoken in a language I didn’t understand, but knew in my blood and bones. She got me up from the floor and into Dawson’s office.
Now I found myself drinking spiked coffee while a Sidhe, my sort-of boss, and a woman who was alarmingly close to being my one and only friend, filled me in on the latest news in Briarcliff.
When I was up for it, Dawson had Sonya show me the tape that had been mentioned on the broadcast. It showed a wolf, as big as a small pony, tearing through a group of Huntsmen like they were nothing. Then it shows the wolf changing, and the man who stood in his place was a panting and blood splattered Gabriel.
“He killed all of them,” Sonya said, mouth tight with disapproval. “Every last one. I can’t get in touch with any of my superiors or any of the recon team from last night.”
“It wasn’t him.”
It looked real enough, but the one and only reason I knew that Gabriel wasn’t the Were who’d killed all of those hunters was because of the size of the wolf. Gabriel in wolf form was impressive, but I’d noticed that first night that he was significantly smaller than the rest of his pack. Whether it had something to do with the finer distinction of being a Hell Hound was irrelevant. The fact was that someone had doctored the footage and released it. That meant that either the Feds had a Were who could shift in their employ and they’d had the Huntsmen killed for a reason, or that a member of Gabriel’s pack had gotten caught on video slaughtering the men who’d helped kidnap Gabriel.
Either way, it looked bad.
“How did they get this?” I asked finally.
“Ever since the big reveal, we’ve had wannabe Werewolf hunters pouring into town,” Dawson said.
Sonya smirked. “Only the term ‘Hunter’ has taken on a new meaning.”
“What do you mean?”
“If tourists aren’t trying to shoot a Were and mount their heads on their walls, they’re taking their pictures and asking for autographs.” Dawson rolled her eyes. “Not to mention the fact that Briarcliff now has a couple hundred more registered sex offenders.”
I gaped. “The Weres are assaulting humans?”
Sonya laughed. “Nope. It’s the other way around. We’ve got furries walking down main street, hookers with dog collars and leashes, and your random housewife looking for some wolfman lovin’.” She waved away my disbelief. “It gets better. There’s a dating site. Love Me by Moonlight.”
“Ew,” I deadpanned. “Is that the best they could come up with?”
“It was either that or ‘Fangs For You.’”
“I guess sounding sappy is better than sounding like vampire porn,” I conceded. The banter was doing more to settle me than the coffee had, and I found myself leaning forward as we talked. Asrai had fallen asleep in Dawson’s desk chair and I figured the kid deserved some rest after the sort of night we’d had.
“What’s this about a bill being passed?”
Sonya winced. “I forgot that you’ve been out of commission for a while. We learned about it two weeks ago. They’re saying that Weres are a danger to the human race and that they need to be quarantined and tagged for everyone’s safety.”
“That’s bullshit.”
“Well, the Weres out there agree with you.” I turned to look at the wolves still roaming the office.
“Is that why they’re here?”
“They started showing up about an hour ago, when the broadcast first aired.” Sonya reached out and took my hand. “They came to defend Gabriel.”
Speechless, I could only look between her and Dawson in astonishment.
“They want to everyone to know the truth. Apparently everything that made Gabriel look like a member of the Sopranos was just him being Alpha. He wasn’t making people disappear, he was training newbies. Oh, and remember when we all thought he was running a drug cartel? It was Wolfsbane. He distributes it all over the country to help other Weres control themselves so they won’t flip out and start eating people.”
Dawson continued the explanation smoothly. “After they realized what was going on, they came straight over. They want to explain to the world what sort of man Gabriel is. How their Alphas aren’t monsters. If they can tell people their side of the story, prove that they aren’t animals, it may be enough to keep the bill from going through.”
“But why here?” It was all I could think to say. It was a good question though. The Oracle was by no means the biggest, or most influential paper. If the Weres wanted to speak for themselves why come to us?
Sonya and Dawson looked at one another, but it was Asrai who spoke.
“They came because of you,” she spoke on a yawn. “You’re Fiery Phaedra. The woman who thwarted the Hunters and saved his life. Now that they’ve scented you and know that you’re his mate, you’re the only one they’ll trust enough to talk to.”
“You know this how?” Sonya asked.
Asrai settled more comfortably in her impromptu bed, skinny legs curling beneath her and plump face already growing slack again with exhaustion.
“I can just tell,” she grumbled, eyes closing. “It’s how I knew Phaedra would help me. It’s why I showed her my secret.”
Thoughtful, Sonya stared at the child for a second longer before looking back to me.
I shrugged, pretending ignorance. I trusted Sonya, but I didn’t want anyone else but Gabriel and I to know just how important the child was. It was just safer that way.
Meanwhile, Dawson was looking at me and rubbing her hands together in glee.
“Exclusive interviews,” she said. “Conners, I’m sorry I ever doubted you.”
“Is the camera on? Are we rolling? OK. We’re rolling…Do I look all right?”
—Yvette Reed
Chapter Eighteen