Chapter 19 ~The Spark
KC’s P.O.V.
I walked out of the bathroom to meet the animalistic sounds of primal anger and insane cackles. Glancing towards the bed as I ran towards the open balcony, I noted that Damon was gone. Instead, I found him below, his clothes ripped, a sickly looking man in his grip and an equally grotesque woman laughing at his feet. He pulled his arm back and punched the man over and over again; all the while he continued to laugh that nails-on-a-chalkboard cackle. Behind him, the fifteen-odd scouts growled and snarled at the intruders, hackles raised and ready to pounce.
Hands gripping the railing, I gazed down at Damon as he nearly beat one of the rogues to death, their psychotic laughs reaching my ears. He dropped the one in his hand and I heard him order a few of the scouts to take them to the cellar. I watched the cackling rogues as they were dragged by their arms, the scouts clearly not being careful.
I looked down at Damon just as he looked up at the balcony, his ferocious eyes meeting mine. His features softened as I looked down at him in question, my eyes bewildered. He took in a deep breath before slowly letting it out, calming his wolf. Knowing there was something more to these intruders, I ran back through the Suite and sprinted out the door, flying down the many stairs before reaching the grand oak doors that made up the front entranceway. To my surprise they were already open, meaning that the four scouts had already dragged the pair of rogues down to the cellar. But that’s not what shocked me the most.
There was a body lying on the front steps. Taylor and Ali flanked it, their amber eyes studying the mutilated corpse. I had to put a hand over my nose and mouth as I gasped, taking in the strong stench of decay.
“Ali, what happened?” I asked, demanding the whole story.
“We were patrolling when we caught the two rogues breaking into the territory with the body. We chased them to the house where we cornered them. That’s when Damon tore in,” Ali informed me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Damon make his way towards us, his gaze, without a doubt, aimed at the pile of skin and bones.
“Taylor and Ali go find Janna and Ben,” I ordered, the scouts nodding before trotting past me into the house.
“You think it’s one of the town’s people?” Damon questioned, glancing towards me.
“Don’t you?” The pale, bloody mess in front of us was obviously human, but the arms, legs, and face, or what was left of a face, were twisted into impossible angles, forcing me for a moment to second guys whether or not it really was human. It was the scent, however, that confused me the most. Underneath the gory stench, I barely smelled human and wolf.
“What the hell happened to him… or her?” Damon murmured as he kneeled beside the corpse, straining his eyes as he studied it.
“That’s what I’m hoping Janna or Ben will tell us,” I breathed, staring at the morphed face.
“Luna, I’d advise you to stand back,” Janna said from behind me. I looked back over my shoulder, watching the healer approach with Ali flanking her. “I don’t think breathing in fumes of death will do the baby any good.”
Stepping back, Janna took my spot and kneeled beside the body, repositioning it so that she could get a better look at the face and front side. I stood behind her, watching her movements and waiting, rather impatiently, for some kind of report.
“Ben,” I greeted as I turned towards the stairway, hearing the retired Beta hurrying down.
“Taylor told me what happened. We have the rogues in lockup?” he wondered and I nodded in confirmation.
“I was hoping you might be able to tell us if this is one of the missing people,” I said and Ben looked to me for a moment more before moving to stand beside Damon on the other side of the body, grimacing as he took the image in.
“It’s hard to tell,” Ben admitted. “But I can definitely say tha-.”
“Alpha,” Janna interrupted, her gaze flickering to Damon. He looked quickly to me before he moved around to body so he could see where Janna was pointing.
“Son of a bitch,” I heard him mutter seconds later.
“What?” I asked, trying to look around them. Even Ben must’ve seen it because he released a sigh as he dragged a hand down his face, frustration flashing through his eyes.
“He didn’t make it,” Janna whispered to Damon. At that point, my impatience was exceeding me and I growled, mustering up my Luna tone.
“What the fuck is it?” I barked, my hands clenched by my sides as I bared my teeth towards the trio. Damon stood and turned, walking towards me with a dark expression.
“There are bite marks along his shoulders,” he admitted.
“What does that mean?”
Damon sighed. “It means that they were trying to change him. His immune system couldn’t take lycanthrope venom.”
“That’s why his body’s so deformed,” I thought aloud, Damon nodding in confirmation. “Why would Doyle try to change them? He’ll have a bunch of younglings on his hands.” The thing about new werewolves, especially ones that have been bitten like younglings, is that their almost impossible to control. They’re reckless, destructive, conflicted, and completely untamable for about a month. Plus, they have no control over their shifting.
“That’s what we’re going to have to find out,” Damon said. I thought of the captured rogues almost immediately, and I had little doubt that Damon did, too. Maybe with enough persuasion they’ll flip on Doyle and tell us what he has planned and what he’s doing with the town’s people.
“Alphas,” Ben beckoned, Damon turning his attention to him. “I’m going to take the body to the morgue at the precinct and see if I can get the coroner to identify him.”
“What if he starts asking questions about the deformed limbs?” I said.
“Oh, Jim knows about us. He’s working on the victims from Doyle’s attack,” Ben told us, easing my nerves just a little bit. Damon nodded and ushered for Taylor and Ali to help the sheriff move the remains to his truck.
“I’ll get Dan and we’ll start interrogating the rogues,” Damon said and started towards the stairs.
“I want to interrogate them,” I argued. Damon stopped and turned towards me again.
“KC, they’re a pair of lunatics. I don’t want you near them. For one thing, I don’t want you getting hurt and secondly, I don’t want them seeing that your pregnant. They could inform Doyle through their pack link.”
“I can handle myself, Damon, we’ve talked about this,” I snapped. “Besides, they’re not even a pack.”
“We don’t know that. If Doyle’s making younglings we have to assume that he’s now the Alpha of his own pack of rogues.”
“I’m going to have to agree with Alpha Damon on this one, Luna” Janna said. “It’s not good for the baby to be in a stressful environment. If my words are of any importance, I would say return to your room and get some rest. Your eyes are awfully dark,” the healer instructed and Damon gave an agreeing nod. I sighed as my shoulders slumped in defeat, my arms crossing defiantly.
“Fine,” I groaned, glaring between my mate and healer. Janna smiled to Damon and me before she turned and walked towards her office. Damon wrapped his arms around my shoulders, trying to lead me up the stairs.
“Don’t be afraid to pull some teeth or break some bones. I want to be able to hear their screams from our room,” I said, causing Damon to chuckle.
“Relax, Kace, I know what I’m doing,” he assured. “Just try and go to sleep when you get back to the room, okay? I don’t want you stressing out about this.”
“I’ll try,” I rolled dryly; annoyed that Damon was babying me. When we got to the last stairway, Damon made me promise not to wait up for him before kissing my forehead and sending me up to our room before he went to retrieve Dan.
I tucked strands of hair out of my face as I opened the door to my suite and shut it firmly behind me, moving across the front room towards the bedroom. I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep with mud crusted in my hair and sweat still sticking to my body so I decided to take a quick shower to calm my nerves.
I wrapped the towel around my body as I stepped out of the shower, the air hot and moist from the steam. Grabbing my damp hair, I wrung it out over the mat before flipping it back over my shoulder, planning for it to air dry.
I walked across the cold tiles towards the door, holding my towel by the front to make sure that it stayed. As soon as I opened the door, the steam slid out after me and the cool night air that came in from the opened windows made me shiver.
“Well, this is certainly a treat.” A squeak of surprise escaped my lips as I spun towards the corner where the voice came from. Sitting in the corner of the room under the reading lamp was Cameron, his legs crossed. The only item of clothing on him was his grey sweatpants, leaving his well-toned torso exposed.
“Cameron, what the hell are you doing in my room?” I snarled viciously, my other hand flying to my towel to make sure it would definitely stay secure. He stood and took a step towards me.
“Don’t you dare move,” I growled through gritted teeth, threatening him with elongated canines. Cameron chuckled as he put his hands up in surrender, planting his bare feet. “I’m not going to ask you again; why are you here?”
“I was simply wondering why the scouts were suddenly on high alert? There I was, all tucked in for bed when I heard a commotion outside and was curious,” he said, but his excuse didn’t make me feel any better.
“So you broke into my room while I was in the shower?” I hissed. Cameron smirked.
“Sweetheart, the door was unlocked,” he defended but I stormed up to him with a snarl on my lips. I glared up into his eyes as I bore my fangs.
“Don’t you ever call me sweetheart,” I spat, my eyes beginning to burn, informing me that they were glowing metallic silver.
“Whatever, princess,” he scoffed. I growled at the new nickname. “Anyway, are you going to answer me or do I have to see if I can weasel it out of Damon. But between you and me, you’re easier to talk to than your hound of a mate.”
“Shut up,” I snapped angrily, not liking how he was talking about Damon. Unaffected, he raised his eyebrows at me, waiting for an answer.
“A couple rogues dragged a body into our territory. We have them in lock up and the body’s at the morgue to be identified,” I hesitantly confessed, not ripping my gaze from Cameron’s. He cocked an eyebrow in interest.
“Thank you, KC,” he said and turned towards the doorway.
“It’s Luna Falon,” I corrected darkly, but Cameron ignored it. “There were bite marks on the body!” I called and Cameron immediately stopped. I gritted my teeth, wondering why I had said that. The Alpha turned back towards me and took a few steps closer.
“On the shoulders?” he questioned. I nodded. “He’s making younglings,” he said aloud to himself.
“You wouldn’t have any idea why, would you?” I asked, looking up at him through my brow. He raised his eyebrows and his jaw fell a bit as though he were surprised to why I would ask.
“Well, Luna Falon,” he mocked. “I would think that you of all people, being so wise, would have an idea.”
“Cameron,” I warned.
“It’s Alpha Mitchell,” he sneered, but broke into an amused grin when I snarled at him again. “The only reason why Doyle would want to deal with younglings is because he’s making a pack.”
“What?” I gaped.
“Really, Luna, I’m surprised that you didn’t think of this.” Cameron jeered with an eye roll. “Why else would he have taken only the healthiest children from your town? They would have a better chance of accepting and surviving the venom better than the toddlers and adults.”
“If he’s creating a pack, then he has to be planning an attack,” I said more to myself than to Cameron. He nodded as his grin grew.
“Like I said, wise,” he claimed lightly. I turned my glare back up at him, remembering that he was still there.
“I’ll see you tomorrow at training,” I hissed, silently insisting that he leave.
“Sure,” he chided. “Good night, Luna Falon,” he sang as he casually walked out of my room. I waited for a few seconds before I heard the front door open and shut again.
Damon’s P.O.V.
The cellar was dark except for the two or three light bulbs that hung here and there from the ceiling. The two rogues were strapped to a pair of wooden chairs and were seated underneath one of the light bulbs, illuminating their faces.
Taylor, Logan, and Carlos were lined up behind the chairs, all four dressed in black and glaring down at the rogues. Dan and I stood across the room, observing the contents of the table in front of us. The Tala Luna Pack has always been a peace loving pack, but there have been a few times where a certain kind of persuasion was necessary. Times such as now.
“What’s that one do?” Dan asked in a whisper, pointing to a nasty looking tool.
“Let’s just say it’s called the nutcracker for a reason,” I answered as I picked up another tool, a hammer, and studied it, contemplating about which side of it I should use when I bring it down on their hands. I noticed that Dan grimaced and shuddered beside me.
“This is one of those moments where I’m really glad I’m on your side,” he breathed through a small, nervous smile. I grinned back as I firmly gripped the handle of the hammer and lightly smacked it against the palm of my hand before turning towards the rogues, who were, oddly enough, too calm for their own good.
“So, are you going to confess anything before I start breaking fingers?” I threatened, the silver headed-hammer glinting under the dim lights.
“You’re wasting your time,” the female sang.
“Actually, Julie, I think we’re wasting his time,” Erik chortled. “Instead of playing with us, he could be resting up for the big day.”
“What big day? What’s Doyle planning?” Dan questioned lowly, using his intimidating Beta voice. Julie and Erik exchanged looks and broke into a fit of sickening laughter.
“Damon!” I looked back towards the stone stairway, my hand tightening around the hammer. A voice as melodic as that could only belong to one person. Sighing, I exchanged a look with Dan, who nodded, and walked up the stairs where I met KC at the top. She was in her pajamas.
“KC, you’re supposed to be in bed,” I growled, looking from Danica, who was guarding the door, to KC. “I told you not to come down here.”
“I know, Danica made that very clear to me,” she muttered, glancing to her friend who threw me an apologetic look. “But there’s something I have to tell you.”
“What?” I pressed, but then a scent registered in my nose and a growl spilled from between my lips as I squeezed the handle of the hammer. “KC, why do you smell like Cameron?”
“He stopped by the room,” KC said quickly, but that only made me more furious.
“Why the hell was he in our room?” I snapped, but I didn’t let her answer before I moved around her and started for the stairs, planning to bash a certain Alpha’s head in with a silver hammer.
“Damon, stop!” KC yelled after me, grabbing my shoulder. “He was just wondering what happened. He heard all the noise.”
“Then he should’ve asked me! Or better yet, he needs to mind his own damn business and stay out of it!”
“Doyle killed his pack, Damon! Of course he’s going to be freaking curious!” my mate argued. “If I was in his position I would want to know every damn detail about everything.” I sighed in defeat, knowing she was right. However, Cameron knows how I feel about him and he knows how I feel about him when he’s around my mate. At training, I decided, I would teach him a lesson or two.
“What was so important that you had to tell me immediately?” I released, relaxing my arms which were tense moments before.
“Doyle’s making a pack of rogues and younglings,” she said. “He’s planning an attack.”
The Big Day, popped into my mind almost immediately. The Big Day’s the day Doyle’s going to attack the Pack House, it has to be.
“KC, you need to go back to the room and go to bed, okay?” I said softly, cupping her cheek. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she stared hard into my eyes, searching for something. A scream sounded from behind and KC glanced past me in curiosity, but I pulled her attention back to me.
“Damon, what is it? Did the rogues say anything?” she questioned, demanding an answer. Well, by the sound of that scream they should be talking now.
“Kace, trust me, we’ll talk in the morning, but you need to go to bed. Remember what Janna said?”
“I do, but-,”
“Please, vixen,” I pleaded gently, kissing her. She looked at me for another moment before pulling away and climbing the stairs. I waited at the bottom and watched till she disappeared before I worked back towards the cellar.
“Danica, if KC comes back down again find Maggie and take her back to her room.” I commanded and Danica nodded. With that settled, I gritted my teeth as I walked down the stairs, glad that Dan had gotten started, a bloodied silver pipe in his hand. Through Erik’s right hand, I could see a nail protruding from the center of his palm, fresh blood pooling in his hand. I couldn’t help but notice that Julie was staring at it with a wide grin, rotting teeth displayed.
“It’s all giggles and shit with these guys,” Dan grunted, pointing the pipe towards the two. I cursed under my breath, having a bad feeling that these rogues were too sick in the head to give us anything but hints. But, I had to try.
“When’s the Big Day? When is Doyle attacking?” I gnarred with my Alpha tone, holding the hammer so that it glinted under the light.
“Ooh, shiny!” Julie gasped, staring at the hammer in awe.
“Oh, I’ll show you something shiny, bi-,” Dan sputtered, clenching his fists tightly.
“Julie,” I warned, hoping that by using her name I could capture her attention for a few seconds. “When’s the Big Day?” She looked at me for a second, blinked, and then broke into laughter, Erik following her lead despite a nail in his hand.
“Soon, baby Falon, soon, soon, soon!” she chirped, Erik echoing her.
“When is soon?” I demanded, baring my teeth as I leaned towards her, my eyes burning as I glared harshly into hers.
“When the light dies and the shadows come out to play,” Erik whispered to himself and I exchanged with the scouts a peculiar look.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Dan pressed.
“Shadows like fire, shadows dance when there’s fire,” the rogue whispered, nodding to himself. All the while, Julie was humming a tune to herself as her head lolled against her shoulder.
“We lost them,” I hissed. “They’re not making any sense anymore.”
“What do you want us to do with them?” Taylor said, the scouts waiting for orders. I looked to Dan for input.
He shrugged. “I say we try again tomorrow. They’re minds are too twisted and their attention spans minute. But maybe we can squeeze something out of them if we do it slowly.”
“We might not have the time,” Logan intervened. “The Big Day could be any day now. For wall we know it could be tomorrow.” I pursed my lips as I absorbed Logan’s words and considered them.
“We’ll lock them up for the night and just hope that the Big Day isn’t tomorrow. We’ll give them another chance to give us more before we give them the wolfsbane.” The scouts nodded and began taking the bonds off of the mutts, James and Carlos dragging them to individual cells.
Dan and I turned in the opposite direction, hiking up the stairs. As soon as we walked to the bottom of the stairs, I turned to Dan with a sullen look. “If we learned anything, it’s that there’s something coming. And it’s not going to be pretty.”
“What do you think it is?” Dan questioned.
“I don’t know,” I breathed in irritation. What exactly was coming and how could we stop it? For a brief second, I considered that calling the National Pack would be the best thing to do, but dismissed it quickly. This was our problem, which meant it was going to be by our rules, not the National Pack’s.
“I don’t know about you, but I can’t think without sleep. Besides, I should get back to Amber and make sure everything’s fine,” he claimed and I released him moments before a yawn escaped my own mouth, my mind reeling yet fogged with exhaustion. Sleep sounded good. Besides, how can you fight when you’re pushing yourself over time? If something big was coming to us, it would be best to be refreshed and ready.