Moonlit Dangers

Chapter Ten

It turned out that the thin man's name was Robert. He told me that his ability was an extremely practical one. The nickname that the guardians had stuck him with was "Hound" because even though he wasn't a lycan, he was an extraordinary tracker. Once he'd touched someone while thinking about them, he could literally see where they'd been in the previous twenty four hours. Their footsteps were lit up like neon signs saying, "They went thatta way hoss!"

Evelyn joked that he would never have to hire a private investigator to follow a possibly cheating girlfriend, and Kory told me that he was a singularity. At that particular moment however, the only singularity I could tell about him was that he snored like an elephant with a cold. And I sort of wanted to smother him with a rolled up towel. Or anything that a person could use to smother someone. I could get creative.

Currently, we were all camped out in the living room, as they didn't want anyone to stay in a room by themselves lest a lycan climb through a window and stealthily take someone out. We had pushed all of the broken furniture up against the windows in an attempt to block them, and I'd pulled out every blanket I had and laid them out on the floor. The guardians had brought sleeping bags for everyone, but I figured that extra padding was always nice. I was right in the middle of Kory and Robert, and Robert's incessant snoring had awoken me right as dawn was breaking. As irritated as I was about my home looking like a refugee camp, there was one silver lining.

I had discovered that not only did Kory not snore, but that he was as cute as a child when asleep. He had both hands tucked under his face prayer-style and had one leg stretched out and poking out of the side of his sleeping bag. He wasn't so formidable looking once his face relaxed and lost the constant frown lines he wore. His lips weren't compressed in a disapproving manner either, instead they looked as soft as they had felt when we'd kissed the last night I was at the compound. I wanted to kiss him again, but settled for slowly reaching out and brushing a lock of his forever tousled hair from his forehead.

As soon as I touched him he woke up, his eyes popping open like they were spring loaded. I expected him to snarl at me, or maybe just frown, and grinned in anticipation. He surprised me by smiling back, making my heart jump a little in my chest. We stared at each other for a few moments.

"Good morning." I whispered. He reacted as though I had broken a spell. Within seconds he was up and out of the living room. Frowning, I cupped my hand over my mouth and nose and did a breath check. It was nothing terrible, so what was that all about? Sighing, I gave up on sleep and busied myself with rolling up my sleeping bag. Time to deal again I supposed. I had just started a pot of coffee while the others were beginning to rouse themselves, when Kory re-entered the room.

"Wake up guys, nap time is over." He snapped. "Robert, we are going to need you on point. Can you see Lina's footsteps still?"

"Not without coffee I can't." Robert said while stretching, his voice hoarse with sleep. "But even without, I can tell you that her trail has gone cold."

Kory cursed.

I smirked as I poured a cup of coffee for myself and a cup for Robert. "Anyone else want any?" Evelyn and Lee shook their heads. "Oh well, more for Rob and I." I winked at him conspiratorially. Amused, I watched Kory brooding and staring at my floor for a moment, enjoying his brief moment of indecisiveness. Taking a sip of coffee, I walked over to my ottoman and sat down.

Casually, I said, "You know that Lina's my best friend right? So I know where she lives?"

Kory spun around, the light finally dawning. "Where? Maybe she left something behind. Or maybe they took her from there."

I nodded before raising my cup in a mock toast. "Sure you don't want a cup, Kory?" He actually blushed when the others began snickering softly. "Creamer and sugar are in the cupboard above the stove Robert." Kory, one hundred and two; Elle, one. I'd take my victories where I could get them.

***

After clearing out my living room of our makeshift beds, we were in the SUV and on the way to Lina's house. I got shotgun, which of course sat me next to Kory, but there was no way I was going to be sandwiched in the back with Evelyn, Lee, and Robert. On the way, I thought over what had happened to Lina. How did they find her? It's not like she wore a sign that said, 'I'm Elle's best friend, so if anyone wants to hurt her, come get me."

Whoever did it had to have some information on me, because Lina was the only family I still had left. From the time we'd been little girls, she was always the one to whom I turned whenever I had a problem, be it hurt feelings or a skinned knee. She was also the only one other than my mother who I turned to when I had a triumph of any sort. She had been the one to console me after my mother's death. She'd moved into my house, forced me to take care of myself, held me when I cried, and tried everything she could to make me smile. Even after I had gotten back to normal, she would still drop in unexpectedly from time to time to make sure I wasn't putting on a front. I didn't know what I would do without her.

"This the place?" Robert asked me. Looking up, I realized we were at Lina's house already.

"Yeah," I said. Lina's house was built like her. It was little, but it was beautiful. Forest green with cream colored shutters and columns on a petite porch, the bungalow style house boasted an equally petite but well-manicured lawn. I opened the car door and swung myself out, shutting the door behind me. Without waiting for the guardians, I strode up the walkway and pulled out my keys. Kory caught up to me by the time I reached her door and began searching for Lina's housekey.

"You have her spare key?" He asked, one hand on the doorjamb and the other on his hip.

"We've always had each other's spare keys." I said softly. He nodded as I put the key into the lock and opened her door. Stepping inside, I held it open for everyone before shutting and locking it behind us. They immediately began looking through the living room. "Lina's always had nosy neighbors. Part of the reason I wanted to live on the outskirts of town." I explained.

"Less chance of someone being in your business you mean." Evelyn said, opening a drawer and rummaging through it. I nodded, moving out of the way as Lee came back through a doorway. After ten minutes of feeling in the way of their search, I walked over to a recliner that Lina and I jokingly called her office and sat down. Leaning over, I pulled her laptop out of the side pocket of the recliner, and set it on my lap. I opened it and hit the power button. I could pass the time with a game of solitaire. I felt guilty for playing a game while Lina was in torment, but I knew I was no detective. There was no point in my searching for clues. I waited for the laptop to boot up, watching as the others searched every nook and cranny they could think of. Looking back at the laptop, I was startled to find Lina's web browser was open to a dating site. "Huh." I said to myself.

Kory immediately picked up on it, and came over to me. "Let me see that for a moment." I handed the laptop over, one eyebrow cocked. I watched Kory click and scroll for a few seconds. "Got it." He said. "She had a date last night with some guy she met on this website. I think her laptop went into hibernation and left the browser open after she left to meet him."

I grabbed the edge of the laptop, trying to tug it closer to me. "Let me see." There was no picture on the man's profile. However, in their messages she had said. "Can't wait to meet you in real life tonight! See you at The Lion's Mane Tavern at 8 sharp."

"Oh my god!" I said excitedly.

"What?" Kory asked, clearly aggitated.

"She told me about this guy." I explained. "She said that she had been talking to him, and that he seemed like a decent guy." I sobered as I realized that once again, Lina had picked a bad apple from the bunch.

Kory grabbed the laptop back from me, closing it and putting it under his arm. "Anyone thirsty? Because we're going to go and knock a few back."