Chosen by Fate (37 page)

Wraith popped her gum and threw her hands up in a gesture that seemed to say, “What are you going to do? We just can’t seem to control the wolf.” “Sorry about that,” Wraith said. “But you see . . . Dex and Lucy are particularly close, if you get my meaning, and he’s worried about her.”

“She used him to ease her heat, just like most felines use men. Or, should I say, let themselves be used.” He didn’t say the words disdainfully, the way someone like Harry Jenkins, the televangelist Otherborn-hater, would have, but rather, he seemed to hold a great deal of compassion for the felines. He’d obviously fallen for Lucy’s feline act just like they’d wanted.

“I’m not sure what you meant earlier, but if Lucy was going to appreciate what you planned to do to her, why’d you have to drug her first?”

He looked affronted. “I couldn’t do it to her otherwise. The procedure would have been too painful if she was fully sober.”

Procedure? “Enlighten me. Please.”

“Sterilizing a feline is major surgery. Ideally, she’d be in a hospital and put under. But given the circumstances, I do the best I can for them.”

What the . . .
Sterilizing
a feline? She struggled for words and finally said, “So you think you’re helping the felines? By sterilizing them?”

“Of course. It’s what they want. What they’d choose if they felt they had the option.”

“Says who?”

“They do,” the shifter said gently. “When they come to the clinic I work at. Every day, they beg us for meds to ease the heat. To give them some modicum of control. They complain about their partners or how they don’t want to have more kids, but they don’t have any choice, not when the heat controls them half the time. Did you know that while licorice can help ease their heat, it’s only a temporary fix?”

“Uh, no. I didn’t know that.” Wraith thought of what Ramsey had told her. That the feline rapes weren’t rapes at all. Despite his warning, despite how great she was with riddles, she hadn’t put two and two together, not even given her past experiences.

Maria had betrayed her and turned her over to the mage, ostensibly in exchange for some kind of relief from the heat, but Wraith hadn’t really believed it. Wraith had known many felines who enjoyed their sexual natures, adored their children, lived happy, full lives. She’d convinced herself that Maria’s motivation must have been something else. Something more universal. Money. Power. Love. Had she really been that wrong? “Lucy didn’t want to be sterilized,” she pointed out. “She’s not even a feline.”

The shape-shifter pursed his lips. “What planet are you living on?”

That made her mad. She scooted off the table, stood threateningly close to the shifter, and rested her hands on her hips. “Meaning?”

“Meaning she’s part feline. The were knows it. He helped her because she wanted an end to the heat. She wanted to break its control on her.”

Lucy was part feline? Wraith’s first instinct was to feel betrayed all over again. But she quickly pushed the feeling away. Lucy was her friend. A true friend. She’d kept her secrets, just as Wraith had kept Lucy’s. She hadn’t done a thing to hurt Wraith, not the way Maria had.

But how could she not have known she was feline? It hadn’t been in Mahone’s files, but did . . . ? She scowled. Of course Mahone knew. The bastard’s machinations were really starting to piss her off. “How did you know . . . ?”

The shape-shifter just smiled secretively, causing her to narrow her eyes. Fine.

“How did you get my DNA to impersonate me? Did someone give it to you?”

Now the shape-shifter looked confused. “Who would give it to me? I just waited until the bartender took your empty drink. Then, when I got my chance, I grabbed the glass before it went into the kitchen. I licked the rim, and presto!”

Wraith grimaced at the visual. “Yeah. Presto, change-o. You’re a wraith. Lucky you.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself. It won’t be long now. You’ll have your chance at peace.”

Whoa. Were all shape-shifters so woo-woo? “What do you know about it?”

“Only what you do. What you feel. I know you’re close to the end, though I’m not sure why you regained your wraith appearance. It’s rather exciting, if you think about it.”

“So when you take someone’s form, you also pick up their thoughts? Their feelings?”

He shook his head. “I can pick up emotions and feelings simply by touching someone. I don’t have to take the person’s form.”

“And you picked up on my ‘feeling’ that my end is near?”

“I feel your sadness. Your longing. Your regret. Major bummer.”

Well, crap. “Sorry I couldn’t be more cheery for you,” she snapped.

“Don’t be. Your emotions are what they are. They’re part of you, so they should be appreciated. Valued. Interestingly, what I picked up most from you was resignation. You’ve already given up, you know. I never would have suspected, but then most people wouldn’t, would they? That’s the bitch about being a wraith.”

Unconsciously, she took a step away from the shifter. Resigned. Was that really such a bad thing? Why fight for something when all hope was obviously lost? Wasn’t it better to die with dignity? Aware that he was distracting her, she tried to steer the conversation back on track. “Let’s get back to Lucy. You said my friend wanted an end to the heat and you wanted to help her? Have you helped others?” He glanced away, but not before she saw the confirmation in his eyes. “You have, haven’t you? You raped those felines.”

His eyes rounded. “Certainly not. I merely gave them what they asked of me. They chose how to characterize it to others for their own purposes.”

“You sterilized them, and they cried rape?”

“It’s the only way they felt they’d be accepted—by claiming that somehow the rapes were connected with their future inability to have children. I didn’t think I could pity them more, but there you have it. Dr. Maddox warned me how extreme felines could be, but I didn’t listen. Not until I saw it for myself.”

“Dr. Maddox?”

“Dr. Alton Maddox. He’s a doctor. My mentor. He does much for Otherborn. He even helped them during the War.”

“So he’s okay with helping felines report false crimes? So long as it helps them? Sounds like Dr. Maddox is an ‘ends justifies the means’ kind of guy.”

“I’d say you’re right. Just like me. So tell your friend she can come see me. After I’m out of here, of course. Just look up Dr. Maddox’s clinic, and he’ll get us in touch.”

“Oh, I will. But tell me something first.”

The shape-shifter looked at her expectantly.

“Why are you telling me all this?”

The shifter smiled. “Believe me, you don’t want to know.”

She grinned, showing her teeth. “Believe me, I do.”

“Fine, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. It’s because I can feel your pain. You genuinely care about the girl. So do your friends.” His mouth tilted in a mocking smile. “I felt how much they cared when they were choking the life out of me.”

“And?” Wraith prompted.

“What makes you think there’s more?”

She simply stared at him.

He shrugged. “And . . . well, honey, believe it or not, I feel sorry for you. We shape-shifters look like aliens, and we spend our whole lives pretending to be someone else. You don’t get that benefit. I wouldn’t want to be you for anything on this earth. Plus, you’re dying. I guess you can look at this as a farewell gift. One outcast to another.”

C
aleb and Dex were waiting just outside, nursing some coffee, when Caleb saw Wraith. He stood as Wraith approached them.

“Well?” Dex growled.

She looked shaken but tried to hide it. “We need the address for a Dr. Alton Maddox.”

“Who’s he?”

“He and the shape-shifter have apparently been sterilizing felines. Most with their consent. Some with what they assumed would be consent.”

“Sterilizing, not raping . . .” Caleb froze. “You’re saying the felines
faked
the rapes? We suspected Natia, but Morgana . . . A feline princess lied to the police about being raped?”

“What? You think your ex-girlfriend is capable of hiring goons to come after me, but you don’t think she’d be capable of crying rape on behalf of her sister? And in all likelihood, on behalf of herself eventually?”

“Damn it, Wraith, stop twisting my words,” he snarled.

“Who reported the rapes?” Dex snapped.

Reluctantly, Caleb turned to the were. “I assumed the victims did, but . . .” Caleb shrugged. “Let’s check it out right now.”

The three of them converged on the records clerk and had the files they needed in under five minutes. Each of the rapes had been reported by a Dr. Alton Maddox, after the felines had been brought to his clinic for sexual assault. He’d done an examination first, confirmed sexual assault, then signed off on the paperwork.

“I can’t believe we overlooked it.”

“I can. He’s the doctor who treated them. He regularly treats felines. We had no cause to be suspicious,” Wraith said. “We’ve got the address to his clinic right here. We can—”

A cell phone rang. Dex’s.

He checked the screen. “It’s Lucy.” Swiftly, he flipped the phone open. “Lucy,” he said. He looked at Wraith and Caleb and nodded. Caleb felt Wraith relax just as much as he did. “Yeah, we figured that out on our own. Is the vampire with you?” Dex scowled. “You know damn well who I’m talking about, Lucy. Is Jesmina Martin, the vampire who was at the club, with you? Oh really? All right, we’re coming to get you. Do not leave. And Lucy? I’m pissed, so I wouldn’t try anything else stupid tonight, all right? Do not warn the vampire that I’m coming.”

Dex flipped his phone shut. “She’s at Maddox’s clinic. She went there to talk to him after the vampire tipped her off about the sterilizations.”

“Why?” Wraith said. “Why wouldn’t she have come to us?”

“Who knows,” Dex growled. “Maybe she was embarrassed. Pissed off at you two for what went down in front of Mahone. Pissed off at me for . . .” He shook his head. “Hell, it could be a hundred different reasons.”

“Yeah, and that reminds me . . .” Wraith turned on Dex. “Did you know Lucy is a feline?”

“What?” Caleb exclaimed. Wraith glanced at him, then back at Dex.

“I figured it out a couple of days ago. It was the main reason I—”

“I’ll bet Mahone knew and chose to keep it from us,” Wraith said. “And Lucy let him! Here I am, giving everything I’ve got to this team and Lucy holds something like that back.”

“Everything you’ve got, huh? Like telling us you were turning human? I’m sorry, but that would’ve been nice to know before I relied on you as my backup, don’t you think?”

“Screw you, Dex! I—”

“Stop it!” Caleb yelled. “We’ve all got our secrets. Every single one of us. Lucy wanted to keep hers, fine. We need to get to her and figure out what we’re going to do about this whole damn mess.” He turned to Dex. “What else did she tell you?” Caleb asked gruffly, still reeling from the idea that the felines had made up something as serious as rape.

“When she got there, Maddox was dead. His throat slit. Lucy called on her cell from his office and is meeting the vampire outside.”

Wraith cursed and Caleb immediately knew what she was thinking. “Dex, we don’t know anything about the vampire. How do we know she didn’t kill Maddox? How do we know she didn’t set Lucy up?”

Dex looked confused for a second, then fire blazed in his eyes. “No. I talked to the vamp—I would’ve known if she . . .” Dex closed his eyes. When he opened them, his expression was shuttered. On him, it was the same as deadly. “Let’s go.”

 

From the shadows of the clinic entrance, Lucy stared at Jesmina Martin, the vampire who’d led her to Dr. Alton Maddox’s clinic. She was standing under a streetlight several feet away, her long, silver hair gleaming. Maddox hadn’t died pretty, and Lucy couldn’t help wondering if accompanying the vampire had been a huge mistake.

Oh, she’d told the truth about Maddox. After Lucy had discovered his body inside, she’d searched through his files. She’d found the ones on the felines inside his locked safe, which she’d easily opened with an entry spell. He and his assistant, a shape-shifter, had indeed sterilized the three felines at their request, then helped them cover for the surgery with reports of rape, rape and deliberate or consequential sterilization—either one would do—so they wouldn’t be shunned by their clan. However, according to the files, Maddox had sterilized other felines. He’d called what he’d been doing feline liberation, regardless of whether his patients had sought his help or not. The ironic thing was that Maddox and his assistant had drugged those felines, but afterward, the felines hadn’t remembered enough to realize what had happened. Either that, or they’d been convinced not to talk. The only proof of what had been done to them was in Maddox’s files.

And Maddox’s suspiciously timed death was also something to consider.

After all, it was highly likely that at least one of Maddox’s so-called liberated felines had found out what he’d done and shown him just how much she
hadn’t
wanted his help.

The thing was, Lucy regretted bringing the vampire with her now that Dex was on his way. Despite their short acquaintance, something was going on between the two and—

Jesmina turned with a sigh and called out to her. “I can read your thoughts from here, Lucy. Stop worrying. I’m not afraid of Dex. Did you talk to Maddox?”

Lucy bit her lip, wanting to break the news gently because she knew Maddox had been Jesmina’s friend. She needn’t have bothered. Jesmina took one look at her face and smiled sadly. “Poor Alton. Was it someone he helped who killed him?”

“More likely someone he helped who didn’t want to be helped.”

That seemed to surprise Jesmina. She tried to speak but couldn’t until she’d taken several breaths. “My record’s holding firm.” She smiled at Lucy’s confused look. “I have horrible judgment when it comes to men. That’s why I try to stay away from them.”