The Hunted

Forty

Henry's fingers tapped against the side of the desk, considering.

Blake continued, "Red and I were looking for a werewolf that was away from pack territory for each murder and no one fit the profile which made us think about a possible team. We also saw crime scene footage from one of the murders in Denver that supports this. We saw a follow a human into an alleyway after which a human entered. It was too dark to see any faces but when I got the M.E. report back about the skin beneath Caden's nails, it all clicked into place. It doesn't make sense that there would be human skin cells beneath Caden's nails if he were murdered by werewolves. The DNA sample in that case would have come back corrupted. So we know that he fought a human and when I inspected his wounds, I realized that I knew the exact blade that had cut him."

She gestured to the wound on her face. The long red and raised mark that would leave her scarred for life.

"Malachi was using blades to kill humans but he made it look like a werewolf did it. Only examination of the wounds would reveal if it were claws or a blade which the M.E. might have been able to determine that the bodied not been so brutally damaged and torn to shreds. The M.O. was so inconsistent. Sometimes it was blades, other times claws, and a few times it was even both which means they worked together to kill all those humans. Malachi wanted enough people to die so that it would catch the attention of other hunter groups as well."

"Why? If he wanted a war, why would he care if other communities knew when he could just call them in?"

Blake's answering smile was grim. "Because Malachi is, first and foremost, a self-preserving prick. He wanted someone else to take charge so he could fall back if necessary and come out the hero. Malachi's whole goal was to lead hunters into a broad-scale war which means he would have had to survive the attack to do it.

"So Daryl took the lead and Malachi made sure that he got himself out. Just like your wolf did. It's someone who wants the war but also wants to be the hero. Someone who wasn't on pack territory during the attack because they were intending to come back and rally those of you that were left. It's why we were given the order to take out the strongest of you but not all of you. The wolf wanted to make sure they had a pack to come home to and take command of."

"You know who it is." Not a question from the Alpha. Just a hard, flat statement.

"I know who it is."

"But you don't want anyone else to know? Not even Red?"

Blake shook her head. "Only you. The person at the very top of the hierarchy."

Henry raised a brow. "Why?"

"Red is a piss-poor liar. Everything he's thinking is written all over his face. If I told him, he could unwittingly let it slip that we know who the traitor is. You're the Alpha. It's your call what to do with the information – but if I could make a suggestion, it would be to keep some things to yourself and not tell anyone the plan once you know it."

"Things like what?"

Blake hesitated, biting her lip but knowing she had to tell him everything. "Don't rip my throat out, 'kay? One of the things Malachi wanted to know when he sent me in here were primary targets and important relationships. We already knew that Lucy was pregnant during the initial attack but I told him how far along she is which means they know that she's near-term and due in few weeks." A feral snarl ripped from Henry's throat at that and the Alpha's eyes began to darken. "I also told him that if they wanted to make sure that the Alpha was taken care of, all they'd need to do was kill her. Malachi will be gunning for Lucy and your healers and—"