Blood surged through Daniel's veins, and his entire body had become a tightly coiled spring ready to break. He fought down his wolf, who threatened to emerge in uncontrolled rage.
The tension in the room was so thick it felt like it had a physical presence. All eyes were glued to him, and he was unsure of how to react, what to say, or even how to feel. Every person in his office was in total denial, not wanting to contemplate the ramifications of what Alice had just told them.
He said nothing, his jaw clenched as his eyes bore into the pack's doctor, as if his mind could eliminate this new problem by mere force of will.
The seconds stretched out and his eyes flickered toward Parker. Even with her Human frailties, she was capable of recognizing the turmoil moving through his mind, his anguish, concern, and anger at those who would viciously and indiscriminately kill in this manner. His gaze locked on Parker. Her emotions mirrored his. Without words, she was projecting the empathy and strength he was coming to rely on.
"Are you sure?"
Alice nodded slowly and gulped. "Alpha Hendricks went to the hospital himself. He couldn't get too close as they had the girl isolated, but the symptoms are the same." She paused before continuing. "All of them."
Simon let loose a feral growl. "I don't understand." He clenched his hands. "It's one thing to target Werewolves, but Humans? They're going to notice the dead bodies piling up. We've contained the Werewolf outbreak from the Humans, but this will become front page news."
This had been one of his first thoughts as well. He paced around the room. "I have no idea what Elise is up to. Even with her addled brain, surely she foresaw this?" He stopped to stare out the window, deep in thought. "Wildfire is very explicit about which Werewolves it affects. I suspect that the same applies to the Humans."
Alice nodded. "I won't be sure until I run a DNA test, but yes, my initial thoughts are that those Humans with a dormant Werewolf gene are at risk."
Silence deafened the room. The ramifications of this new development were far-reaching and more horrifying than their initial assumptions.
Parker stood and made her way to the window. "How many?"
There was a brief pause. "There's no way of knowing. We have no idea how many generations the gene has passed down." Alice's voice rose in pitch as she considered the possible numbers. "If it's like mitochondrial DNA, there's no limit, it could be hundreds of thousands."
He watched as Parker visibly recoiled. While the figure was news to her, it wasn't to him.
Alice shifted in her chair, and her shoulders slumped as she turned back to him. "The San Diego pack is obtaining a blood sample for me. Until then, we're just guessing."
"Once you have the sample, how long?" He needed an answer.
"Provided everything goes well," Alice said, "twenty-four hours before I can confirm if the girl has the gene."
Alice shot Daniel and Parker an apprehensive look before continuing. "Alpha, I've been doing some research into man-made diseases and how they work..."
He narrowed his eyes. Her hesitation put him on high alert.
"If Elise has created the disease, it would be a reasonable assumption that she also has a cure for it."
Cure. The word resonated through his head. "We need to find her. Now."
He turned to Simon. "Whereis our pet psychopath today?"