Dark of the Moon Read online

  "You're taking this better than I thought you would," Lucas said.

  "You took a chance bringing me up here. I might have decided to fling myself off the roof."

  He laughed. "Not you. If anything, I was worried you'd toss me off."

  I smiled at that. I guessed I did have a reputation for being tough. "So what now?"

  "I'm going to meet with the guy who can give us some tips on how to bring down the Bio-Chrome lab without creating a fire hazard. Then Kayla and I are driving back to Tarrant. I've got the patrollers' backpacks I need to drop off at the entrance to the national park. Other things that need transporting. But there's room in my jeep if you want to ride with us. Or you can make your own way back."

  As a hiker—my only option—it would take too long, longer by far than as a wolf. Wolves could attain a burst of speed up to forty miles an hour, but they couldn't maintain it for long. Not even Shifters. In wolf form, it would take longer to reach the park entrance than by car. So it would be perfectly reasonable for me to accept the reprieve he offered. "I'd rather go with you. I think my mom is supposed to be back from her trip today. I'm anxious to see her."

  I wondered how many lies and excuses I could get away with before Lucas became suspicious. He wasn't stupid.

  I started to regret that I hadn't decided to just hike it on my own when I climbed into the back of the jeep behind Lucas and Kayla. It was like I had a front row seat to just-discovered love as they smiled at each other and held hands as much as possible during the journey. I didn't resent that they had each other, but seeing them together was a constant reminder of what I didn't have. I spent a lot of time staring out the window, watching the scenery rush by.

  At one point, I asked, "So how did your meeting with the imploding guy go?"

  Lucas met my gaze in the rearview mirror. "He offered a lot of suggestions. I don't know if that's the way we'll go though. He needs plans of the building. If it's a secret facility, we may not be able to find anything in the public records."

  "What are you going to do then?"

  "Do some research. Maybe send in a spy. I don't know. I'm going to talk with my dad."

  His dad had once been the leader of the Dark Guardians. Then he'd handed the position over to his older son, who had betrayed us by revealing our existence to Bio-Chrome. I figured Lucas felt as though he had something to prove, to show everyone that he was nothing like his brother.

  Kayla looked back over her shoulder at me. "So last night. At the movie. You and Connor."

  "It wasn't like it was a date. We just both got there at the same time." I shrugged as though it wasn't a big deal. "So we sat together."

  "And you left together."

  I sighed. "Are you hinting at something?"

  "Just wondering how you feel about him."

  "You know, I really don't know." I wasn't about to confess how much I cared for him, not with Lucas there. So many things in my life weren't working out exactly as I'd planned. I was trying to limit collateral damage, how many things people would want to give me sympathy for.

  "Well, I think you're cute together," Kayla said.

  Ringing endorsement.

  "I'll keep that in mind," I said with a grin.

  Then Kayla turned her attention back to Lucas, and I shifted my gaze back to the passing scenery. It was the middle of summer, and the foliage was thick. Sunlight dappled through the trees, creating a mosaic of brightness and shadows. It was all so beautiful.

  Then something—a dark furry mound?—came into my line of vision too quickly for me to be sure.

  "Wait' Lucas, stop'" I yelled.

  "What is it?" he asked.

  "Just stop. I saw something back there."

  Before the jeep came to a complete shuddering stop, I was out the door and racing back in the direction from where we'd come. I leaped over a narrow ravine. Dried leaves and twigs crunched beneath my boots as I searched frantically for what I'd seen. Exactly where had it been?

  And then I saw it, and my heart leaped into my throat. I staggered to a halt and knelt beside the fallen wolf. It was unnaturally still, its chest barely rising with each shallow breath.

  "What's wrong with it? Is it dying?" Kayla asked as she and Lucas crouched beside me.

  "I don't know," I whispered. I stroked it tenderly, my fingers combing through the black fur until they encountered something hard. Gingerly, I parted the fur.

  "A tranquilizer dart," Lucas said angrily, reaching for it and tugging it out. Dropping his head back, he inhaled deeply. "Bio-Chrome. I smell Mason. The guy reeks."

  Slowly we all glanced around. I couldn't smell them, but I could definitely detect a disharmony in the forest.

  "Why would they do this?" Kayla asked.

  "Maybe they thought it was a Shifter," I responded.

  "But why leave it?" she asked.

  I didn't have an answer for that. Neither did Lucas.

  "They could still be around," Kayla said.

  Lucas shook his head. "The scent isn't strong enough."

  "I feel like I still have so much to learn," Kayla said.

  Lucas took her hand. "You're doing fine. This Bio-Chrome stuff—it's not what we usually have to worry about."

  "What are we going to do about the wolf?" I asked. "We can't leave it like this, vulnerable to predators."

  "I'll shift and stay with it," Lucas said. "Then I want to do some reconnaissance. See what else I can pick up. You go back to the jeep, drive into town, and I'll meet you at the Sly Fox tonight."

  "I don't want to leave you alone," Kayla said.

  "I'll be fine," Lucas assured her.

  If I could have shifted, I'd have volunteered to stay behind. Instead, I got to my feet. I needed to leave so Lucas could shift. I also wanted them to have a couple of minutes alone to say goodbye. "I'll meet you back at the jeep. Be careful," I said.

  Lucas grinned. "Will do."

  I took a step and heard something crack beneath my hiking boot. Bending down, I picked up a broken microscope slide smeared with blood. "Okay, this is something we don't see in the forest every day."

  I showed it to Lucas and Kayla.

  "Huh," Lucas said. "They must be traveling with some kind of lab equipment so they can test blood. That's the reason they left the wolf. They were able to figure out it was pure wolf."

  "Then they leave it behind, vulnerable." I couldn't stop the anger from resonating through me. It was one thing to come after Shifters, but now they were putting innocent wolves in danger.

  The wolf began to slowly stir.

  "He's not going to be happy when he's fully awake," Lucas said. "You need to go."

  "Like I said, be careful," I reminded him before I headed back.

  A couple of minutes later, Kayla joined me at the jeep, Lucas's clothes bundled in her arms.

  "I can't believe I thought Mason was a nice guy," she said.

  "I thought he was, too," I told her. "He's just gotten obsessed."

  She got behind the wheel, while I climbed into the passenger seat. After tossing Lucas's clothes into the back, she started the jeep and we were off.

  "They're getting closer," she said quietly. "I can sense it. Can't you?"

  "Yeah." Even now, I felt as though they were watching.

  "How can we make them leave us alone?" Kayla asked.

  "I don't know if we can. I think Connor is right. If we destroy the lab, we may slow them down, but I don't think we'll stop them. I guess this isn't exactly how you'd planned to spend your summer vacation."

  Kayla released a puff of laughter. "Hardly. I didn't even know Shifters existed when the summer started." She grew serious. "But I'd do anything to protect them now."

  "You and me both."

  "Do you think we'll win?" she asked.

  I didn't answer. I'd met my lie quota for the day. The truth was they were encroaching on our forest, on our lives. I didn't think anything would stop them until they had one of us in their clutches.

  NINE