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“That’s Melony,” she said.
“We don’t know that,” Denny said. Who the hell else could it be? He glanced back to Rabbit. “You see anyone else lurking around? An old guy, or a hippie woman, or a feral?”
“Nah, boss. Just the blonde. I called straight away. Beauty’s keeping watch now, just in case she books it before we get there.”
Felicity arched a brow. “Beauty?”
Denny snorted in apparent amusement. “You’ll know him when you see him.”
Denny got onto the interstate, taking the I-35E south toward Waco. The land stretched far and flat, cracked asphalt beneath us and broad horizons up ahead. Felicity gnawed on her lower lip. Her hand on my knee was a comforting weight. I wondered if she was thinking the same thing I was.
They said everything was bigger in Texas, but out here with so much open space, it struck me how vast this country was in general. No wonder a shifter could travel incognito with such ease. The cities were huge, but the rural expanses of land between them were even huger.
America was a big place to get lost in. There were so many places someone could hide here if they didn’t want to be found.
We got off the interstate after about an hour of driving and passed through a tiny, sparse town that didn’t seem to have much going for it beyond its community center. SHARPE CITY BAR-B-CUE, its marquee read in faded letters, followed by a date and a time. COME ONE COME ALL. GOD BLESS!
Beyond Sharpe City, the roads turned to a labyrinth of gravel. The truck kicked up a fat, thick plume of dust behind us. The skies were laced with wispy clouds. Rabbit gave Denny directions for another half hour. I could see what he’d meant about this place being hard to find. When I checked my phone, I realized I had no service. Out this far, there was no relying on GPS.
“It’s right up ahead now,” Rabbit informed us. “There’s a long driveway with a little bit of cover, so she shouldn’t see us coming. But we won’t want to get too close with the truck.”
“We’ll park here,” Denny finally said, pulling off into the grassy driveway of a field. “We can walk the rest of the way.”
Out of the truck, Felicity grabbed the diaper bag from the floor of the backseat. I reached out to take it from her, but she slung the strap over her shoulder and shook her head.
“I’m not going to be of much use to anyone beyond carrying this,” she told me. “You should keep your hands free in case anything goes wrong.”
We walked down the gravel road for maybe five minutes before the ranch came into view. Felicity kept her hand in mine the entire time. Now, she was the one with the death grip.
I didn’t mind.
The house was single story, quaint, with car pulled up in front of the garage, and a little red lantern on a post at the end of its long drive. Apple trees lined the driveway on either side. As we neared the turn-off, Rabbit gave a whistle. From somewhere nearby came an echo.
“Coast is clear, Beauty,” Denny said. “Come on out.”
Something rustled in the ditch right next to us. The brush heaved. A massive man emerged from it, so huge I couldn’t believe we hadn’t noticed him right away. He had the body of a refrigerator, a head like a brick, and a face that looked like he’d been hit by both.
Beauty, huh? He was the ugliest man I’d ever met.
“Hey, boss,” Beauty greeted Dennis in a deep, chesty voice. “Rab.”
He gave Felicity and me each a nod but said nothing else.
“You got eyes, Beauty?” Dennis asked.
“’Bout an hour ago. Same blonde we saw when we called you last night. She came out to get something out of the car, then went right back in.”
Denny turned to me. “You bring something with the boys’ scent on it like I asked?”
“Here.” Felicity reached into the diaper bag and pulled out two zip lock baggies. Each contained a onesie. Rylan’s had a duck on it. Ryder’s, a train. “They’re from nine days ago, but…”
She’d been counting, I realized, seeing the worry in her eyes as she offered the onesies to Denny.
“It’ll be enough.” Denny took the bags. He opened each and stuck his nose inside, breathing in quickly but deeply. When he closed them again, he raised his nose to the air next.
“Are they here?” Felicity asked.
“Someone is. Let’s get on with it, then.” Dennis pointed to Rab and me. “You two, with me. Beauty, hang back with Miss Felicity here. Anything goes tits up, whistle.” He turned to Felicity. “And if he whistles, don’t run. Just hide. Quick as you can.”
