Page 5 of Scout’s Honor

“Fuck,” Dallas muttered, looking around.

The fucking new guys were on their own.

4—Cause Problem

Dallas looked at the cave entrance and saw no help coming from that direction.

Thorn gestured at the group of women, hissing, “We’ve got to help them.”

Dallas took a step away, but Maze stepped closer to Thorn, nodding and saying, “I’ll drive them to the hospital if they’ll get in the van.”

The women grouped up and huddled like rugby players. He moved to his left in the evening darkness, trying to get back and away from all the people.

A woman broke from the group and shrieked like a Valkyrie, rushing the cave entrance in bare feet. Fuck. Dallas got in her way and stopped her. Two other women followed her and Maze came close. Dallas put weight on his good leg and moved his bad one behind where no one could kick it out from under him.

“You need help,” Thorn said, and he moved in closer to the women, speaking soothingly. “Hey, hey now. It’s cool, we’re cool, we can figure this out. No one’s going to hurt you.”

The three women calmed some, responding to Thorn. Even the ones still grouped up near the van seemed quieter, and all eyes were on Thorn.

“Reservations?” a woman said and they all got worked up again, looking like they might rush Thorn—but then something strange happened.

The group of women all twitched as a unit, then the hostility drained from them and the strange blur disappeared, making Dallas’ stomach swoop.

The women looked around like they had no idea where they were, and they looked at each other, then looked at Maze and Dallas and Thorn. One of them burst into tears and hid behind the group. They touched their necks and held their wrists close to their bodies, looking at the males with fear in their eyes.

Maze backed away, his eyes on the cave entrance. “Keep them out,” he said, pointing at the women. “I’ll be… I’ve got to check something.” He sprinted into the cave.

Dallas watched him go, then locked eyes with Thorn. Thorn shrugged and Dallas shrugged back.

“Ah, get in the van, everyone,” Dallas called. “We'll take you to the hospital.”

Not one woman moved. They huddled closer to each other.

“Yeah!” Thorn said. “Yes! We'll do that.”

Thorn hustled over to the driver’s side of the van and his face went white. “Uh oh,” he said, looking down. “We’ve got a problem here.”

Dallas ran over. At the driver’s door, the scent of pine and bitter herbs hit him in the face, and he gagged at the smell of death mixed in. A rotting carcass dressed in a moldering dark suit lay sprawled across the driver’s seat.

“Gross,” Dallas said, finally believing. “Vampire.”

“Vampire?” Thorn asked, his eyes big, his mouth twisted.

Dallas shook his head, holding his hand out. “I don't know, man, what else would do that?”

Thorn looked back down at it, nodding. Dallas got a good, strong whiff of Thorn’s scent for the first time and it left him feeling confused. Was Thorn even a shifter? His animal scented fucking strange. Thorn caught him staring.

“Get rid of it,” Dallas said, gesturing to the carcass.

Thorn backed up. “I'm not touching it.”

Shit. Dallas looked over at the group of women. They were huddling together, some crying, some hugging, some looking around tearfully at the dark, surrounding forest.

Dallas leaned over the gross-ass carcass and grabbed a manila folder from the center console. He used it to push the nasty-ass clothing and bones and skull off of the seat, onto the ground. It all hit the ground with a tiny splat. Dallas pushed it under the van with his boot. He covered his mouth and nose with one hand, then used the folder to wipe the seat clean, while vampire bone dust floated in the air.

Thorn backed farther away, his face a drawn mask.

Dallas tossed the folder in the bushes and backed off, taking in big gulps of fresh air.