Moon Crossed (Werewolf Hunter Series): Season 1 (Episodes 1-6) (Crescent Hunter) (56 page)

I look at Ben. “Honey,
do you think we'd be the first hunter/wolf couple to break the
rules?”

Hayden's face drains of
blood. “I think maybe this is something we could discuss at a
later time.”

Zane, completely
clueless, sips his coffee and adds, “It's not like you're their
dad. Let them do what makes them happy.”

Whoops, this just
went too far.
I forgot the web of lies and secrets. Zane looks up
from his cup, noticing the silence. Ben, Hayden, and I are all
looking at each other wide-eyed, and Zane stiffens, trying to figure
out what has us so quiet.

Time for me to step in.
I get up from the table. “We're just screwing with you.”
I pour more coffee. “Bravo, Ben, we got a twofer.”

Everyone breathes a
collective sigh of relief.

Ben looks at me with
remorse in his eyes.
I'm so tired of all the lies.

Me too,
I
answer, realizing that we are communicating telepathically. I study
him for a long time, but he doesn't notice while he's talking to
Hayden.

My desk is such a mess.
I'd almost have the motivation to clean it, but I have too much else
to do. This will be my first full moon without the boys here. I get
busy, setting up slides with samples of the boys'
blood. While sitting on the porch
pondering one day, I thought about the fact that something has to
change in them on a molecular level during the full moon. I'm setting
up samples to record the changes throughout the night.

I'm not sure why I
never thought of that before; it's kind of obvious. But always having
the boys here, it seemed more prudent to study them and their
changes. One night, I took samples from Locke hourly until he
shifted.

I prepare the slide
with Trevor's blood. I'm wondering if there's going to be a
difference in how his blood differs from the other boys with him
being a hybrid. I'll certainly be busy for the next few weeks,
interpreting the results.

Just for giggles and a
control, I set up a slide with my blood. It would be nice to have
another hybrid's blood. Oh, Ben.

It would be a good time
for a cigarette, and to ask Ben for some blood. When I go out on the
porch, Ben is mowing the yard and Zane is weeding Rabbit's garden. A
pang of hurt runs through me, seeing someone else in the garden. I
want to tell him to stop, since it feels like he's stomping all over
Rabbit's territory. But I don't. It will be nice not seeing it
overgrown.

Ben stops the lawn
mower and joins me on the porch. He wipes the sweat off his brow.
“Taking a break?”

“Yeah, I also
wanted to ask you a favor.” I know he won't mind, but it always
feels weird asking someone for his blood.

“Anything.”
He smiles and takes a big swig of water.

“I'd like a blood
sample from you.” I give him a big toothy grin.

“Sure.” He
looks at me a little sideways. “Are you going to experiment on
me?”

“Well, not on you
directly. Just your blood.” I think about it for a minute. What
must he think has gone on here? “You know, the boys only ever
took potions that I took first. To be sure it wouldn't hurt them?”

“Claire, I'm not
questioning your ethics.” He leans forward in his chair. “I
know you would never do anything to hurt them.”

“I wouldn't.”
A melancholy befalls my mood.

“Let me wash up a
bit and I'll come down so you can suck my blood.” He tries to
lighten the mood as he walks into the house.

“Cool, I'll meet
you down there.”

All of the slides are
ready and the microscopes are already recording change data. I'm
really excited to watch the replay. I close everything up and head
back upstairs.

Ben and Zane are done
with the yard, which is amazing considering how big it is. I notice
that the graveyard is still overgrown. It's just as well; I would
rather do that myself. Locke used to be the one to keep it looking
nice. But he's gone.

“I need a
shower.” Zane comes up on the porch, plopping down in the
chair. “It's freakin' hot.”

“Well, we've got
some more manual labor to do. Remember, we're going out to the
training grounds to get the trash,” I remind him. “Although,
I'm sure that Ben and I can get it if you want to get some rest
before tonight.”

“No, I'd rather
go with you.” He nods.

“Cool, I'll get
the keys. Will you tell Ben?” I ask, running into the house.

“Sure.” I
hear him call Ben's name.

We pile into my dad's
old pickup truck and slowly traverse the poorly cut road, although
the branches aren't scraping along the paint like I expected. Not
that it would matter; this truck was old when I was a kid. If not for
the rust, I'm sure it would have fallen apart long ago.

When we reach the
training grounds, I park and we all get out of the truck. “What
the hell?” Sitting in the middle is a stack of plywood, and
next to it are various blocks, four by fours, and two by fours.
“Zane?”

He looks at me and
shrugs. “I have no idea. I didn't do this.”

“Did you tell
Hayden?” I turn to Ben.

“No.” He's
just as bewildered as I am.

One
side of the stack of plywood is stamped
“Magnolia Heights Lumber Yard.”

A knowing look crosses
Zane's features. “Cole.”

“Cole?” I
question.

Ben nods and smiles.
“Yeah, that's where he works.”

Zane's sarcasm is
apparent. “Isn't that nice of him.”

“It actually is.”
Ben looks at me, smiling, trying to reiterate what he said last
night.

“It's whatever.”
I shake my head, walking away. Part of me wants to burn it, throw it
away, just like Cole did to me. I look to where we left the pile of
trash, but it's gone. “Well, there's nothing for us to do
today, so let's get back.”

We all pile back into
the truck and have a very silent ride back to the house.

There is a flurry of
activity when I pull around to the side of the house. I look to Zane
and Ben questioningly.

“Hayden wanted
this to be headquarters tonight.” Ben unbuckles his seat belt
and slides out of the truck.

I go to Hayden, who's
hovering over a map of Red Top Mountain. “Hey, Claire.”
He greets me without looking up.

“What's all of
this?” I hold my arms open, motioning to all of the people.

“Tonight I think
it's best to have this be the command post. It will keep the house
safe, and it's close enough to Red Top that it will be a good meeting
point.” He still doesn't look up.

“Have there been
any threats?”

“There are always
threats.” He looks up at me over his glasses.

He's right. “I'm
going to get my gear on and get ready to go.”

“Sounds good. You
and I are going to head over a little early,” he says absently,
still studying the map.

“Okay.” I
run upstairs and get ready. When I come back down, a group of thirty
or so hunters are gathered around the back porch.

Hayden and Aunt Rain
are standing at the top step. As I start down the stairs, Hayden puts
his hand on my shoulder, keeping me next to him. “Stay here,”
he whispers.

“Okay.” I
shrug, thinking it's a little strange.

“May I have your
attention.” Hayden waits for the crowd to quiet.

“As you all know,
we are going to be patrolling Red Top.” He presses his lips
into a tight line. “The Red Top pack has openly denounced Pike
and Amicalola, putting them at risk for an attack.”

The crowd mumbles
amongst themselves for a moment. “So we have to be extra
vigilant.
Red Top's alpha has assured me that they
will not be out wandering the full moon. All of the Red Top pack has
been told to stay home. They know Pike's plan to infect as many
wolf-borne with the moon-touch, and they want to protect their pack.”

“To further
complicate things, we expect this to be one of the busiest camping
weekends of the year. The last chance to enjoy the warm weather, and
it's a Saturday to boot. The Chattahoochee National Forest has issued
a rabies warning, meaning Red Top's camping grounds are completely
booked.”

The crowd collectively
groans. This is not good; it's the perfect recipe for disaster.

“So we have to be
on our toes, we have to be invisible, and we have to be diligent.”
He looks to Aunt Rain, taking her hand, and they exchange a worried
smile. The disquiet in his eyes is unnerving; I'm hoping that the
people in the yard can't see it. But I can feel it.

“We are going to
be four to a group on patrol, maintain radio contact, and come back
alive and well,” he reassures the crowd. “Are there any
questions?”

“Do we have a
ranger there?” someone in the crowd shouts out.

“Yes, there are
two park rangers on duty tonight and they are both hunters.”
The confidence in Hayden's voice comforts me.

“Okay, let's get
ready to move out.” He turns to me. “We're leaving now.”

“Now?” I
look at Aunt Rain.

“Yes, we're going
to speak to Dugan, and someone has requested an audience with you.”
His smile lights his eyes.

“Who?” I'm
very friendly with the pack, but I can't imagine anyone “requesting
an audience.”

“Elder Shaman
Rayel.” He waits for my reaction.

I suck in a sharp
breath and my skin breaks out in chill bumps. “I haven't seen
him since I went to summer camp.”

“You're going to
see him tonight.” He nods. “Are you ready?”

Somehow I feel like I
should dress up, or fix my hair better. “Um, I guess.”

“Don't be
nervous. You'll be fine.” He pats my shoulder with a laugh.

“Easy for you to
say, you've probably had dozens of meetings with Shaman Rayel.”
I worry the edge of my shirt.

“No.” He
looks down at me.

“No?” How
is that possible? “How many times have you met with him?”

He hesitates. “Aside
from when we all see him at camp? Never.”

“What?” I
look at him, astounded, then to Aunt Rain. “How could you not
have?”

“He's never had a
need. Not since I was at camp.” His brow arches.

My eyes widen with
apprehension. “Oh, God, am I in trouble.” A million
things race through my mind. I'm about to get the ultimate scolding
from a holy man.

Aunt Rain takes my
hand. “You're going to be fine.”

“Easy for you to
say.” The words spill out with panic.

“Yes, because I
know it's going to be fine.” She smiles reassuringly.

“We have to get
going. Do you have this?” Hayden asks her.

“I do.”
There's something deeper behind her smile. I think I might like where
this is going. At this rate, Ben and I may end up being family.

Hayden leans over and
kisses her, right here in front of everyone. Aunt Rain blushes,
watching for my reaction. I shrug. “Good for you guys.”

I head for Hayden's SUV
and get inside. He slides into the driver's seat. “So you are
okay with all of this?”

“I'll admit I'm a
little scared,” I say, without looking at him.

“You really are
going to be fine, but I was talking about your aunt and me.” He
inhales a breath, waiting for my answer.

“I think it's
awesome.” My eyes widen. “I think we need to pursue
whatever happiness we can.”

“I'm glad you
feel that way.” He nods. “You and Ben have been spending
some time together. How's that been?”

“Fine, he's a
sweetie.” I smile. “Where will he be tonight?”

“He's staying
with family. He'll be fine,” he assures me.

“Good. He's a
good friend, and he mowed my lawn.” I laugh.

“I'm glad one of
us could get him to do some chores.” He looks over at me.

“We never want to
handle our responsibilities, but handling other people's doesn't
really feel like work, I guess.” I shrug.

Hayden quirks his brow.
“I'm sure that's it.”

We're both silent for a
moment. He inhales a deep breath. “You know I approve.”