Page 6 of Scout’s Honor

“The keys are there,” he told Thorn, pointing at the ignition.

Thorn nodded but didn’t move.

Dallas moved around the van, toward the women, pointing at the van. “You can get in. We’ll drive you.”

The woman in the nightgown shrieked and they all backed away together.

“Stay away!” one yelled.

“No, no, you got it wrong,” Dallas said. “It wasn't us. We're helping you. We didn't…” He gestured to his neck. “We didn’t do anything to you. We chased down the guys and ah, well, our friends chased them into that cave and we're going to take you to the hospital now.”

Thorn moved slowly closer. “That's right. You all deserve the best medical care. I won't stand for what happened to you! I-I want to help you. We'll take you to the doctor and get this sorted out. I'll pay for it and make sure you all get home to your families.”

Dallas took a step away from Thorn, watching the passionate speech, confused. Thorn sure was taking it personally. He even seemed to feel guilty… but the women ate it up. They stared openly at Thorn, some of them nodding along as he spoke.

At the cave entrance, someone came out—Maze. He stalked toward the group, his demeanor different—dark and angry now.

“Get into the van,” Thorn told the women, waving Maze to the driver’s seat. “Right now, go ahead, all of you. I’ll personally make sure each of you gets the best care possible.”

The women seemed almost hypnotized now, all their eyes on Thorn, heading for the van. He herded them inside like sheep, then shut the sliding van door and turned.

“Let’s go,” Thorn said, turning to Maze, a commanding note in his voice.

Maze looked confused for a moment. He nodded, then climbed behind the wheel of the van.

Dallas looked around again, not sure what the hell he was supposed to be doing out here. “I, uh, I’ll stay here.”

Maze started the van and eased it along the drive with the women inside. Thorn ran to his car and followed.

The vampire carcass lay on the ground where it had been revealed when the van drove off. The bones and even the skull had collapsed into dust, and the clothing lay in disarray.

Dallas stared at it.

Vampires were real. His sister was a witch. And he was a fucking liability. He looked up at the cave entrance. Should he go in? Should he stay out? He shook his head. What if he went in there to help fight and his sister had to save him? He shook his head at that horrible thought. This fucking sucked.

Should he bury the vampire remains? Or push it into the bushes? Dallas paced around, thinking, ignoring the throbbing in his bad leg. He went inside the caves a short way. He came to a juncture and didn’t know which way to go. He shifted into his animal and stood stock still for several moments, scenting and listening.

Dakota was fine, and she didn’t need him. Aven didn’t need him either. He wasn’t sure how he knew, but he did, so he shifted back into a man, nodding his head appreciatively at his clothes reappearing, then he strolled back outside.

Dallas took a knee in the grass and waited, listening, scenting, ready for anything… even vampires.

5—Candor At Law

Bonhi Candor sat behind her desk, closing out the day’s work. She was a door lawyer, meaning she’d take any case that walked in the door. That day, she’d drafted two wills, shuttled paperwork for an eviction, represented a teenaged girl in traffic court, and filed a pro bono restraining order for a woman in need. She finished writing her reports, then backed everything up and shut the computer down.

“Done!” she called out to the empty room. Now she could go home and get something to eat. She’d worked late with only some yogurt for dinner and she was hungry.

Headlights shone in her office window, and she looked out into the evening darkness to see a sleek silver sedan pull into the complex parking lot. It parked, and a pickup truck followed and parked next to it. They turned off their lights. A stocky older man with tanned wrinkled skin and a high and tight haircut got out of the sedan, wearing crisply ironed jeans and white button-up shirt. From the truck, a younger man got out, dressed all in black. He walked behind the older guy, his eyes roving around like security.

“Interesting,” Bonhi muttered. She hurried out of her office into the foyer and to the door. She worked alone with no assistant, and she shared the small complex with a bakery, a restaurant, a thrift store, and a paint store. All the other businesses were closed already. Security cameras covered each doorway, but other than that, she was alone. She had pepper spray in her purse and bear spray in her car, but those were her only defenses. It was a small town, and she hadn’t felt unsafe yet.

Bonhi got to the door just as it was being knocked on. She opened it, assessing the men analytically. The one in back didn’t look at her but instead continued to look out and around at the nearby forest and the road and businesses that lined it.

The older man in the middle bowed his head, then smiled. “Excuse me, miss, I’m here to talk to the lawyer.”

Bonhi nodded once. “That’s me. It’s after-hours. Is this an emergency?”

The man looked surprised. “B. Candor?” he said.