Page 77 of Dark

“Five to seven each time. Sometimes more. They fed from us, too, but the females they took away immediately. They were holding them somewhere else. I’m not sure why.”

“And you know any of this because?” Aleksandr interrupted.

“One night I overheard our handlers demanding higher payment. Somehow they’d learned what we were being used for and wanted in on the cut. It was how I found out the next set of targets. Knew they were coming after her.” He jerked his chin towards Hayden, whose breathing had picked up. “We… used to cut ourselves, trying to locate the trackers. It took months, but when I finally dug mine out, I ran.”

He’d been trying to warn her she was next. Instead, she’d become his next victim.

Brody gave our uncle a hard look. “This doesn’t fit the typical pattern we’ve seen before. Usually with blood slavery, covens have a few victims they keep well hidden. They can be used for years. Decades, even. It’s like whoever’s doing this is begging to be caught.”

“And why only females?” I added.

“I’m waiting, Miss Blake.” Guillermo didn’t look up. “By now you’re no doubt aware we raided your feral compound two hours ago. Would you like to know what was found?”

River punched something in on his phone and a screen off to one side of the dais flashed to life, displaying a young woman with platinum hair wearing fitted black pants, ankle boots and an off-the-shoulder silk top. London Blake, who’d recently taken over the North Austin pack in her father’s place at barely twenty-five.

She bared her teeth. “I’m sure we can all imagine. Why don’t we spare everyone this bit of theatre?”

River smiled, the effect chilling. On screen, London tensed. “Burner phones. High-end computer equipment—”

“We were trying to set up access so our population in recovery could work remotely.”

“—meth. Heroin. Someone got tipped off their operation was blown. We got there just before the vamps.”

I growled, turning to the screen. “Let me get this straight. You’ve been using Ferals to kidnap girls off the street, no doubt sending them into neighboring territories like ours to hunt where you thought you wouldn’t get caught, then trafficking them over to the vamps. What’s the angle? What are they being used for?”

London shot me a glare. “I’m telling you I have no idea. This was all a setup. I’ve been pushing for reform, cleaning out the rot within our pack structure, and the old guard wants me gone. There have been three attempts on my life in the last month alone.”

Brody barked out a laugh. “Try the innocent angel act on someone else. You knew too many disappearances in a short period would get picked up by the cops, and that any hint of trouble within your own feral population would land you in it with the Council. So you got in league with the vamps. How are they paying you off? Money? Drugs?”

“The fang-head you used today at the festival was sloppy as hell.” West’s wet sneakers squelched on the cold tile. “Ghosting out in front of a crowd that size? You’re lucky I got to him before he could do any real damage. Better pray no one got that on video.”

“Wouldn’t count on it.” Brody stabbed a finger at Jake. “And what’s this loser’s connection in all this?”

“It’s like they don’t even need me,” Guillermo mused.

Cokehead’s heartrate jackknifed. “Look, man, I don’t know what’s going on here and I don’t care. You don’t have to worry about me going to the cops—”

“Lie,” Aleksandr murmured in a bored tone.

“It was just a gig. Easy cash. Pick out girls no one would miss and text my contact when I had them somewhere alone.”

“So why keep coming after Hayden?” I said through my teeth.

“She was never supposed to get hurt. I swear it. That night, I was going to be out there. Stop things before—” He glared at Hays. “But you had to go and be a bitch.”

Hayden whipped around, eyes glowing wolf-gold. “Can I kill him? Please? My wolf is still teething.”

Suddenly it all made sense. We’d been so focused on protecting Hayden that we’d missed she wasn’t the primary target. Topher’s attempts to make contact. Cutting the fuel line to Ellie’s car. Setting their trailer on fire. He’d been trying to scare her, hoping she’d leave town. Jake had been the one behind the messages. But the Ferals and vamps who’d shown up at the Harvest Moon Festival had no interest in Hayden. What was another girl when you picked up half a dozen off the street each month? No, it was Topher who knew the ins and outs of their operation. Topher, who could expose them to the Council.

Jake’s nostrils flared. “If anything happens to me, my father will—"

Suddenly he stiffened, eyes rolling up in the back of his head. Hayden and Ellie leaped back as he collapsed at the foot of the dais.

Guillermo shook his head. “Thank you. That was growing tiresome.”

Ellie lifted her eyes to mine, face twisted in revulsion. “Did you just—”

“That would be me.”