6—Further Investigation
Dallas, in his black jaguar form, crept up a boulder, hunting, his belly low to the rock, fully hidden in the darkness.
He pounced, leaping high in the air to grab a bat with his front paws.
It fluttered and squeaked. He released it and hit the ground, then leapt into a tree, and climbed straight up, slinking along a branch until he could leap to a branch of the next tree.
Memories clawed at him, and he did his best to outrun them.
Dakota and Aven and the others had come out of the caves thirty minutes ago. Dallas had told them what he, Thorn, and Maze had dealt with, then he'd melted into the underbrush. No one had noticed.
He'd been running ever since. At first, it had been a joy, but then his thoughts had caught up with him and then came all his most painful memories. The pain in his leg never let him forget what he’d been through for long.
It was the first thing he thought of in the morning and the last thing at night.
The memory climbed onto his back and rode him through the forest. He struggled with it, snarling, and biting the air as the pain and terror of being shot and snakebit coursed through his system yet again.
Then he’d spent so many months in devastating pain that wouldn’t resolve even for a moment... until…
He’d woken up from the operation without a foot that had been there his whole life.
The terror of seeing that had been worse than the gunshot, worse than the snakebite, worse than his friend dying, worse than all of it, and those thoughts still lived inside him to pop out at any time: He was hobbled.
He was broken. He was less than he had been, less than whole, and he never would be the same again. His life was ruined.
The trees opened up into a moonlit meadow, and Dallas fell onto his side in the grass as the familiar thoughts raced through his mind, terrorizing him anew. Exhausted from the emotions, he took a catnap in the moonlight, at peace knowing he was the most dangerous thing in the forest.
Sometime later, he woke and stretched, feeling better, with a quieter mind.
He rose to his feet and slunk back into the trees, intent on exploring what could possibly be his new home.
He liked the Nantahala Forest. He didn’t like the vampires, but he liked the fact that he could be a part of the force that was fighting them.
The blade of the prosthesis slipped against a rock, and the sleeve slipped on his leg. Dallas kicked the limb out, trying to straighten things. The foot came down funny, and bent with a strange noise, and the blade itself gave way, tripping Dallas.
He shifted to a man, standing upright. His pockets were all out and his phone and wallet spilled to the ground.
He picked them up and fixed his pockets, swearing quietly, his body hot and his brain prickly.
His prosthesis was holding his weight as a man, and that was good, but his night of running was over.
Dallas turned back in the direction of the cave entrance, hoping the others were gone. He didn’t want to talk to anyone.
Dallas plodded quietly in the moonlight, trees all around, glad when he was almost back… but then he remembered he didn’t have his car! He’d ridden with Aven and Dakota, and they were sure to be gone by now.
The night was quiet and still. He strode faster, now hoping someone was still around. He reached the area where shit had gone down and everyone was gone, even the vampire carcass. Only the boot prints in the dirt showed anyone had been there at all.
Dallas pulled his phone out of his pocket and called Aven.
His phone rang and rang. Dallas hung up and called his sister.
Her phone also rang without an answer. Dallas walked until he found the washed-out road, then he followed it, thinking about what he was going to do.
Walking home would take all night. In his contacts, he found a number for the house phone.
He called and an answering machine picked up with a robotic voice saying, “Leave a message.”
“Guys,” Dallas said, still walking. “I’m still out at the caves. Y’all left me…. I need a ride… or my car, or something. Call me back.” He hung up.
Blue light lit the sky from behind him, with an explosive CRACK. Dallas whirled around. The light faded, but something big sat in the road where he’d come from. Dallas jogged toward it.
His rental car.
He’d left it in the garage at the magical house. Dallas ran a hand over the hood, amazed at any magic that could transport a car twenty miles, instantaneously. He climbed in the seat, grinning at the keys dangling from the ignition.
“Well, all right,” Dallas muttered. He could get used to this magic stuff.
He punched ‘HOSPITAL’ into his GPS and followed the mountain road slowly. Twenty minutes later, he pulled into the hospital parking lot and parked next to the white van.
He jogged into the quiet ER waiting room and saw Maze, who raised his hand.
Dallas crossed the room and sat down near him. “Hey, how’d it go?”
Maze sat back in his chair, kicking his booted feet out. “The cops came and questioned me.”
“Oh, shit,” Dallas said.
“I had to give them your name because Thorne was there.”
“Did you mention… you know… vampires? Or ‘The Cause’?”
Maze shook his head. “I didn't have to. Some federal cop showed up and thanked me for my assistance, then told me to shut my mouth. I think I'm free to go.”
“What about Thorne?”
“He took off with the hospital director a while ago. He’s paying for everything, like he said.”
Dallas leaned in close and lowered his voice. “What's his animal?”
Maze laughed. “I don’t know, kangaroo?”
“He doesn’t smell like a kangaroo.”
Maze snorted. “What’s a kangaroo smell like, Hot Pockets?”
Dallas grinned. “We're supposed to figure Thorn out, me and you.”
Maze nodded. “I figured. I set up a meeting with him tomorrow at Wolf's Keep at 2. p.m.”
“I don't know where that is.”
“Hold on.” Maze strolled over to the desk and came back with a paper and pen. He drew a map starting from BBOC and heading off into the forest. He finished it and gave it to Dallas, saying, “See you then.”
He went outside and Dallas followed. Maze crossed the parking lot, then jogged across the road to the trees lining it where he melted into the forest. After a moment, a hawk buzzed Dallas’ head and flew away, screeching like a dinosaur.
Dallas got in his car and drove slowly out of the parking lot, replaying the night over in his head. He turned onto the highway and picked up speed, trying to remember the name of the magical house he was heading for. Was it Truth? No. Belief? No. Conviction? No.
Shit.
To his left, a blue glow caught his eye.
Curious, he slowed, peering at the tiny outlet mall set just off the highway.
The glow moved around inside one of the units, but too fast, Dallas was past it.
Traffic was light and he had no problem turning around quickly in a scenic pullout, then driving past again.
The blue glow came from a woman, and she was now in the parking lot loading bags into a car.
Even from the road, he could tell she was beautiful.
Her body was curvy and she had long, wavy brown hair draped over slender shoulders.
In fact, he even knew her eye color—green because he’d seen her before—she was a lawyer—Jameson’s lawyer!
A few days ago, before they’d figured out Dakota was a switch, Dallas had hunted Jameson down to tell him Dakota had never shifted.
Tough as she was, she couldn’t hold her own with the other shifters.
He’d found Jameson at the courthouse on ‘Cause’ business.
Dallas had said his piece, and then something lovely had caught his eye.
Dallas fell into the memory, savoring it.