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Elizabeth rose from the snow off to their left.
The woman said, “Oh, please, no.”
They barely had time to reach for their guns before Elizabeth was on them.
It was over without a shot being fired.
Birds took off in the trees, wings frantic as a predator took down its prey.
Hunter blood had once again been spilled on Bennett land.
And we had only just begun.
When Elizabeth lifted her head, red droplets clinging to her whiskers, her eyes flashed orange.
pack, she whispered in my head. packpackpack.
WE CAME in on the opposite side of town, near where we’d found the abandoned car.
Our tire tracks had long been buried by the storm that had since dissipated into flurries.
I wondered what they’d done with Jones. His body. When all was said and done, I would make sure he got a proper burial.
We stayed off the road as we approached Green Creek, the buildings rising up out of the snow. In the distance, I could see the remains of the diner, the tow truck still on its side. I didn’t know if they’d tried to move it to get at the body of the red wolf underneath or if they’d just let it be.
Farther down Main Street, one of the traffic signals was blinking yellow. Beyond it was the garage.
The hunters’ trucks still surrounded it. It didn’t look like they’d been moved since we’d been there last, hunkered down in the diner. I could make out someone moving on the roof. Still others near the trucks. Halogen lights had been set up around the garage, casting a harsh glow in every direction. The power in the town was still out, but the garage was lit like a beacon.
I was uneasy. Elijah wasn’t stupid. We couldn’t underestimate her. She had waited until the full moon for a reason. Whether it was to justify the killing of werewolves under the thrall of the moon, or to wait and see if the feral wolves would either infect or kill the others before she descended, I didn’t know. But the fact that she hadn’t tried anything further since coming to Green Creek was unexpected. I hadn’t believed her when she’d said the humans of the town were off-limits. She was waiting for something, but what, I didn’t know.
But she had Chris and Tanner.
That was more than enough reason for us to descend upon her.
The sky above had begun to darken almost an hour before. The moon was growing brighter through breaks in gray clouds.
We hit the town line, staying out of sight behind the buildings in the shadows.
There were no other hunters this far south. What those two had been doing in the woods, I didn’t know. Maybe they were on patrol. Maybe they were looking for us. It didn’t matter anymore. They couldn’t hurt anyone again.
We were a few blocks away from the garage when we stopped. I leaned against a brick wall. The building had once housed a post office before it’d been closed and moved to Abby. It was now a seasonal gift shop that had closed early for the winter ahead of the storm. The shop owner brought her ancient Buick in for an oil change every three months like clockwork. I hadn’t seen her in the Lighthouse. I hoped she had escaped before the hunters had come.
We waited.
It wouldn’t be much longer.
The wolves sat in the snow on either side of me, huddled close to keep me warm.
I said, “If this doesn’t go well—”
Elizabeth growled.
“If we don’t make it out—”
Mark growled.
“I’m trying to—”
