Blue Moon: Blood Moon Trilogy #3 (25 page)

We stepped through the doors to find a sea of people waiting to greet their friends and loved ones after a long flight. As we waded through the masses, we were subjected to stares and whispers about the “excitement” on the flight. Roxanne tried to contain her snickering, but she failed miserably. Even Jackson was smirking.

“You’re both going to hell,” I chastised, shaking my head and picking up the pace.

“Come on,” Jackson said from a few steps behind me. “You don’t even find it a little funny now?”

“I’ve been stripped of my ability to shift later,” I reminded him. “Granted, it was the best solution at the time, but I can still feel the tension in every inch of my body.”

“On the plus side,” Roxanne interjected, “the fact that you can feel the wolf’s tension is a sign that the silver is going to metabolize pretty quickly. You might be able to shift within the next twenty-four hours.”

I was just about to argue with Roxanne, tell her that she couldn’t possibly understand what it felt like to essentially be castrated, when I caught the scent of both Keaton and O’Malley. I hadn’t even seen them before O’Malley wrapped his arms around me.

“Hey, Brooke,” he greeted, squeezing me tighter. “How the hell have you been?”

He released me so Keaton could hug me next, and the smile on my face grew so wide it hurt a little. “Good, actually,” I replied. “Given the circumstances.”

“Understandable,” Keaton acknowledged. His eyes drifted up past me for a moment. “You, uh, want to head to your place and drop your things?”

I inhaled deeply, trying not to let the sudden urge to vomit come to fruition. I wasn’t sure I was ready to go back to my house just yet. It brought back so many memories of the night David died.

“Actually, I’d like to go to the station and maybe get started on finding my parents. I’d like to go to their house as well. See if anything unusual turns up.”

Keaton took my bag for me, and I noticed Jackson’s eyebrow quirk up suspiciously at the meaning behind the gesture. Once we were outside, O’Malley turned to me. “Should we drop your”—he looked at Jackson and then Roxanne, letting his eyes linger on her a little longer than what would be discreet—“companions off at their hotel first?”

“We go where Brooke goes,” Jackson stated a little too firmly. I wasn’t ready to explain why Jackson and Roxanne would be tagging along over the next few days, so thankfully O’Malley and Keaton didn’t ask…though, I could tell they were both dying to.

“Sorry,” I said, apologizing for Jackson’s aggressiveness and having not introduced them to my old partners. “This is Jackson and Roxanne. They just want to help.”

Keaton led the way to where they parked the car, opening the trunk for our bags. He and O’Malley slid into the front seats while Jackson, Roxy, and I hopped into the back. Oddly, it wasn’t the first time I’d been in the backseat of a cop car—not that this was a standard-issue cruiser; there were no decals on it identifying it as such, and there was no divider between the front and back seats.

I sat between Roxanne and Jackson, and while we were sitting flush against one another, the three of us fit somewhat comfortably in the backseat. We drove in silence for a little bit before O’Malley tried to break the ice.

“So,” he began, looking in the rearview mirror at me. “How do the three of you know each other?”

Jackson smiled. “We’re friends of Nick.”

Confused, O’Malley’s eyebrows furrowed. “Nick?” He paused. “As in your ex-boyfriend?”

I could feel the warmth creeping into my face. “Yup. That’s the one.”

“Your dad said something about you moving in with him.”

I opened my mouth to protest, because that’s not exactly how I explained it to my parents originally, but then I decided against it. The assumption wasn’t wrong, actually, no matter what spin I tried to put on it.

“I suppose,” I said instead. “I guess after everything that happened, I just needed some space. Nick could offer me that.”

Keaton turned around and smiled at me. “You don’t have to explain yourself, Leighton. We’re just happy to see you doing relatively well. Whatever you’ve got going on up there, it seems to be working for you.”

I blushed again, averting my gaze as Jackson nudged me with his elbow. “Even they can recognize that this life is good for you,” he said low enough for only Roxanne and I to hear.

“That’s probably just because I’m now capable of avenging the wrongs that have been done to my family.”

“Or,” Roxanne interjected just as quietly, not taking her eyes away from the window, “you were simply destined for it.”

While I was finally content with my new life, I wasn’t sure that “destiny” was what brought me into this world… Or was it? All of this started with Bobby’s death. Nick left. I became a detective and my first homicide investigation led me full circle and back to Nick. Was that destiny? Maybe Roxanne was right.

While O’Malley navigated the streets of Scottsdale on route to my parents’ house, he filled me in on what they’d uncovered so far—which wasn’t much.

“It’s unlike him to just not show up for work—hell, it’s rare for him to actually stay away for an entire vacation. He’s usually back to work a day or two early.” O’Malley wasn’t wrong; it was unlike my dad to even take a vacation for the most part.

“Has the airport been helpful?” I asked.

“They cooperated as much as possible by giving us the surveillance footage. We’ll show you the tapes when we get to the precinct,” Keaton explained. “We never expected you’d fly out here.”

“I’m glad I came,” I told them. “There could be something that was missed. I was the last one to see them both. Maybe something will trigger a memory of something they said and we’ll be able to figure out what happened to them.”

When we finally pulled to a stop outside my parents’ house, I could sense just how empty it was before I even got out of the car. The plants were all unkempt—something my mother would never normally let happen—and the mailbox was overflowing with flyers and envelopes. I took the lead as we all walked up the pathway to the front door, and I slid my key into the lock and pushed the door open, inhaling the slightly musty air as I entered.

Subtle notes of my mom and dad hung in the air, faint given they hadn’t been home in weeks, but still there, lingering on the fabric of the furniture and clinging to the walls. Slowly, I made my way through the main floor of the house, turning on lights and leafing through their personal effects. Nothing seemed out of place as I looked around, finally making my way upstairs. Again, everything seemed fine…so why were the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end?

I had to be missing something, but my gut told me it wasn’t on the second floor. I descended again to find Roxanne and Jackson standing in the living room, looks of deep concentration on their faces as their nostrils flared subtly. They were trying to pick up something Keaton and O’Malley wouldn’t be able to. They sensed this was a situation only we were adept to deal with as much as I did.

I stood at the foot of the stairs and looked around. Trying to see if something was out of place…something only I would notice. If this was some kind of message from the coven, they wouldn’t do something that just anyone would notice. The clue they’d leave would be just for me. Bobby would make sure of it…

That was when I noticed that one of the photo albums was pulled out a half inch and flipped upside down. My mother was ridiculously OCD about that sort of thing and it would drive her nuts. There was no way this was an oversight on her or my father’s parts.

O’Malley and Keaton watched on with confusion and intrigue as I raced across the room and pulled the album out. The smell of rot and decay hit me so hard I almost fell over, but I tried my hardest to maintain composure as I flipped through the pages, stopping when a loose photo fluttered to the floor, landing face down.

I picked the photo up, knowing in my gut that this was the break I was looking for. Nervous, I swallowed thickly and turned the photo over. I had to really focus to not alert Keaton and O’Malley that it was a huge deal given the sensitive nature of the photo. Not only was it a picture of my parents sleeping—it took me an extra second to realize they were in the bed at the hotel in Calgary that we’d all stayed in—but in the bottom corner was Bobby. His smile was so wide his sharp canines gleamed in the light of the almost-full moon that shone through the window that night.

All the while, my parents slept soundly, completely unaware that their long-lost son stood less than five feet from them.

U
nable to stomach the idea of going to my house for fear of unleashing a torrent of bad memories, Jackson and Roxanne took me back to the Pack’s Arizona home. While it had been months since I’d last been here, it felt as though no time had passed at all. Our scents still lingered in the air—albeit faint and woven with dust motes—but it offered me a little bit of comfort. It was like being back home.

Back at my parent’s house, I didn’t let on to O’Malley and Keaton that I’d found anything. I couldn’t. It was bad enough the cops up in Canada were getting involved with Marcus and Miranda’s deaths, putting us all at risk of exposure; I couldn’t chance anyone else getting suspicious about us.

“Now that we’re alone,” Jackson said after closing the door and watching as O’Malley drove away. “What did you find?”

I reached into my back pocket and pulled out the photo. He took it from me, and Roxanne sidled up next to him to have a look.

“Those are your parents,” she stated.

I nodded. “Yup. And the sadistic freak that’s wearing my brother’s face is in their hotel room—the room that was right next to mine and Nick’s the night of the attack at Vince and Layla’s.”

“And you didn’t sense him?”

Exhaling heavily, I flopped down on the couch. “I was so damn worn out from hunting them that night, and Nick had been injured, my parents put in danger… I wasn’t really focusing on them. I’d thought we’d destroyed the coven that night. We thought Bobby was dead.”

The shrill ring of my cell phone interrupted us. I pulled it from my pocket and saw that it was Nick, so I answered it, happy and filled with relief at the prospect of talking to him. The Pack was never far from my thoughts since we’d left, and I worried about Cordelia as the hours ticked by.

“Hey,” I greeted warmly. “How’s everything going?”

When Nick breathed into the phone, it was like I could feel his own relief at hearing my voice. Any worry he’d had just melted away. “Everything’s…fine. How was the flight?”

I caught Jackson’s eyes the minute Nick asked the question, and I knew he’d heard. “The flight was good.”

“Brooke, if you don’t tell him…” Jackson warned in a low voice.

“There was…” I paused, cringing when I remembered how close I’d come to losing control. “I had a moment.”

“A moment?”

I nodded, even though he couldn’t see me. Feeling uncomfortable talking in front of Roxanne and Jackson, I excused myself and headed to Nick’s room. His natural scent hit me hard, almost as though he was still in the room, but it was just his bedding.

“Brooke?”

I closed the door and sat on the end of his bed, inhaling Nick’s woodsy scent and finding it was still mingled with mine from when I’d slept here after David’s death. “I let my anxiety get the best of me. You were right, I should have gone for a quick run before we left the city.”

I heard Nick chuckle. “I’m sorry, what?”

“You were right,” I repeated, knowing that was what he was referring to. “Don’t get used to hearing that, though.”

Nick laughed this time. “Once is all I need to check it off my bucket list.” We shared a laugh together before he inquired about the episode on the plane.

“I’m sorry I didn’t take you more seriously,” I offered. “I was stupid to think I could handle it. I should have known my history with flying might trigger a loss of control.”

“It’s fine.” His tone was genuine and soothing, comforting me. “I’m glad Jackson was able to calm you down.”

“Not without a price.”

“You’ll be able to shift by tomorrow,” Nick assured me before falling silent. Even though we were thousands of miles apart, I could sense that something was wrong.

“Nick? What’s going on?” Another beat of silence only added to my increasing concern. “Nick. Spit it out,” I demanded. Then the gnarled fingers of fear clawed at me, threatening to strangle me. “Is it Cordelia? Did you find her?”

“No,” Nick finally answered. “We haven’t found her yet.”

I wasn’t sure if I should be relieved or still panicking. Both. I was experiencing an equal combination of both emotions.

“The cops are relentless,” he finally confessed. “It’s becoming a problem, and making it impossible for us to shift in order to keep searching for her. There’s a reason we don’t involve them in Pack affairs.”

Of course, I understood this; I was having the same difficulties knowing that O’Malley and Keaton were going to be with us every step of the way while we located my parents. I wouldn’t be able to successfully hunt my twisted twin brother if they were around—especially now that I suspected he was behind their abduction.

“He has them,” I blurted out before clarifying further. “My parents. Bobby has them too.”

“What do you mean he has them?”

Mentally and physically drained, I flopped down onto the bed and stared up at the white stucco ceiling. “I went to their house earlier. I looked around and couldn’t find anything at first. Upon sweeping the living room again, I noticed one of the photo albums was upside down.”

“Well, that’s unlike Laura,” Nick stated, likely coming to the same conclusion I had.

“Exactly. I went for it and found a loose photo marking a page of photos from our last vacation before Bobby’s death.” I suppressed my anger at having not sensed Bobby’s presence that night. “It was a photo of Mom and Dad sleeping in their hotel room—”

“In Calgary?”

“Yup. Bobby had taken some ridiculous vampire/victim selfie and then came back here to leave me a clue as to their whereabouts instead of just telling me when he had me captive.”

“If he’d have told you, you’d have rescued them.”

“You’re damn right I would have!”

“Brooke, sweetheart,” Nick interjected calmly, his tone even and rational. “This is a game to him. I’d be willing to bet he anticipated your escape, and he kept your parents’ whereabouts from you so he’d have something to lure you back.”

“So what’s our next move?”

Nick sighed heavily. “You come home.” I smiled, loving how that sounded. I’d lived in Arizona my entire life and never once thought about moving anywhere—especially not somewhere as cold as Canada—so it surprised and delighted me to find I accepted the manor as home. Especially since it was never my intention to live there; I’d only gone to learn how to control my wolf half.

“And then?” I asked, snapping back to the conversation.

“We track them. We find where they’re keeping your parents and Cordelia. We rescue them and kill the coven.”

“You make it sound easy,” I said, smirking. Truthfully, I knew it would be more difficult than he was letting on, but his confidence was contagious. “Do you have any leads?”

“There’ve been some rumors in the city.”

“About?”

“Random attacks. Some of the victims say they were jumped by muggers, but then claim to have been bitten before their attackers ran off.”

“Bitten?” I queried. “How many bodies?”

“None.”

That didn’t make any sense. Vampires were out, biting people, but not draining them? For what purpose? Anything I’d read or been told—hell, or even knew from past experience—said that, to become a vampire, you had to be drained and accept the change in your final moments. If you didn’t accept it, your maker would ensure you wouldn’t rise in the coming days.

“So, what are you saying?”

Nick waited a moment, maybe gathering his thoughts before continuing. “I’m not exactly sure what to make of it. Maybe they were interrupted. Their survival also relies on secrecy. They can’t be exposed for the same reasons we can’t be.”

“How many victims?”

“Seven.”

My mouth dropped open, and I shot to my feet. “Seven? And no one’s died? I might be new to all of this, but even I know that’s not normal.”

“Exactly. I’ve got Vince and Zach keeping an eye on the situation. They’re keeping in contact with us, and we’ll investigate further when you get back. We can’t exactly get involved with the cops on our asses 24/7.”

“True enough. Have they said anything else about Marcus and Miranda?”

“Not much. They’ve been hanging around to make sure we’re staying close to home. There was one thing they brought up, though.”

“Yeah…?” I inquired, letting the word trail off.

“The body of that woman from when you first arrived. They found her soon after we moved her, just a few miles down the road where the guys left her. They find it odd that only several weeks later, they have another homicide to investigate. Especially for a normally quiet area.”

I sat back on the edge of the bed and pressed the heel of my hand into my eye, hoping to relieve the pressure that was slowly building. “God, this is a mess. No matter what, this just keeps getting worse. “ I paused. “Maybe we should have run that night.”

“No,” Nick argued. “You were right. It only would have made them more suspicious. The only reason they haven’t arrested us is that we’re cooperating—that, and a lack of evidence.”

Of course he was right; I was only freaking out because it felt like I was failing my pack less than a week on the job. With every day that the cops poked around our home, the more at risk we were for exposure. I was sure that was the coven’s plan; they wanted us out of the way and under the watchful eye of the cops so they could do whatever else they had planned.

“They haven’t found anything in the house that has aroused their suspicion one way or another,” Nick continued to assure me. “And I don’t think they will.”

“Wait, what about Cordelia? Has an Amber Alert been issued?”

Nick was silent for a brief moment. “Thing is, the Pack keeps such a low profile that the younger members don’t really exist until they’re older and have to start keeping up appearances. As far as the cops are concerned, she doesn’t exist.”

While my heart hurt that this was how things worked within the parameter of Pack Law, the wolf felt a little relief knowing these innocent cops weren’t going to get themselves killed looking for a missing child. On the flip side, it was more work for us.

There was a commotion on Nick’s end of the conversation before he spoke again. “Look, Colby’s getting restless. I’m going to try and take her out for a run. Hopefully the cops aren’t watching too closely. She could use the release.”

“Of course,” I said with a nod. “Be careful. I’ll see you in a day or two.”

“Love you.”

I returned the sentiment before we disconnected the call.

Tossing my phone on the mattress, I headed back out to the living room to find Roxanne and Jackson sitting on either end of the couch, flipping through the channels.

“You guys have cable here year-round?”

Roxanne and Jackson exchanged a glance. “Seems like an unnecessary expenditure.” Jackson flipped through the channels again. “We
might
be tapped into the neighbors satellite.”

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that,” I said, flopping down into the armchair.

“That’s probably best,” Roxanne said. “How are things back home?”

After I explained Nick’s findings in Calgary, I sensed Jackson and Roxanne’s distress. “Nick says they’re keeping an eye on things, but since there haven’t been any deaths, he figures it can wait until we get back.”

“Not that I want to rush this process,” Roxanne interjected, “but how long do you think that might be?” I sensed her apprehension, and I couldn’t blame her for feeling that way; she was challenging her Alpha’s decision, something no one did too often.

“Honestly, now that I know Bobby is likely behind my parents’ disappearance, I don’t see why we have to stay much longer,” I replied. “I’d like to stop by my place and grab a few things, maybe check in with Keaton and O’Malley before we fly out, and I’d definitely like to go for a run as soon as possible.”

“You still unable to shift?” Roxanne asked; I could sense she wanted to head out tonight.

I focused all my energy on the wolf and tried to gauge where she was at. She paced the edge of my control, and I could feel her strength beginning to merge with my own.