hellcat 05 - come hell or high water (12 page)

After replying to several emails and cancelling appointments and meetings set up for the next few days, she’d caved and taken one of Ian’s sleeping tablets just after sunrise.  There had been no promising leads on Adriana’s location despite every available Werewolf in the City and a posse of vampires out looking for her.  Patrick called the front-liners in for rest and refreshment, and ordered Gabi to do the same. 

When she woke at midday, nothing had changed.  There were no leads on Adriana’s whereabouts, no demands had been made by her captors.  It was as much a mystery as when Gabi received Casey’s call the previous night.  If she’d had even the vaguest idea of where to start looking, she’d have been out there herself, but it was the proverbial needle in a haystack, and they couldn’t even be sure if she was still in the City.  She’d tried to contact Athena, in the hopes of using a Magi Tracker to find her friend, but Athena’s phone had gone directly to a message saying that she would be unavailable until six p.m.  That was hours away; the lack of progress was driving her stir-crazy.  Razor attempted to calm her by rubbing his head against her leg until she gave in and sat down to stroke him.  At least it was a distraction from the desire to chew on her nails.

She was just contemplating throwing a computer tablet at the wall to see what happened to it when she heard pounding footsteps out in the corridor.  As she rose, Kyle threw the door open, his face excited.

“We’ve got a lead on Adriana. I think she’s still alive.”

CHAPTER 7

Gabi punched the address into her on-board GPS as she waited impatiently for the door to the underground garage to lift.  The address was strange and disturbing on a number of levels.  It was for a church on the edge of a relatively new, low-cost housing area to the east of the City.  It had taken a couple of hours to pull a rescue squad together, just long enough for the Vampires to rise from their daysleeps. 

Kyle had gone to collect weapons and medical supplies from one of Byron’s storage lockers, but was now also on his way to the location.  Fergus was in Gabi’s passenger seat, Razor in the back seat, and a carful of Vampire backup was a few minutes behind them.  Alexander didn’t bother trying to stop her, they all knew the risks and were aware of the potential for attack at any moment, but when a friend’s life was at stake, nothing would stand in Gabi’s way.  Tomorrow night was full moon, and there was a strong possibility that Adriana wouldn’t be able to keep her form tonight, especially if she was stressed.  They needed to get Adriana out of there fast.

“What else dae ye know, lass?” Fergus rumbled beside her. 

Gabi pulled a face in the dark interior of the car. “Not much,” she said.  “They’d moved the search into the outer limits of the City, into some of the more outlying suburbs, and one of the Werewolves picked up a scent trail.  They’re staking the place out, but there’s been no movement in or out.  So far they’ve only found Adriana’s scent and some human ones.  Whoever is behind this seems to be experienced at hiding their true nature.” 

Fergus grunted and turned his attention to checking the blade of his falchion; it was a wicked-looking weapon. 

Gabi navigated the speeding BMW through the dimly lit streets, flinging the car around corners, blitzing red lights and stop signs.  She left more than one irate motorist shouting rude words at her, but they were the least of her worries. 

She brought the car to a stop down a tree-lined farm road more than a kilometre from their destination.  The plan was to rendezvous here with the Vampire and Werewolf forces before moving in, but Gabi and Fergus would be doing a quick reconnaissance of their own before the rest arrived.  She left her door open long enough for Razor to jump out, he was already wearing the leather armour Savannah had designed especially for him, and the three of them jumped a rural fence and moved in silent unison across a field dotted with half-asleep cows, towards the rear of the church.  They kept to the shadows of the larger headstones as they passed through the small, decaying cemetery adjoining the run-down church building.  A pair of somewhat dilapidated cottages hugged the stone fence separating the dead from the living.  The place had obviously been long abandoned and now the setting for the kidnapping made more sense. 

If only the rest of it did too.  The three of them were hunched down behind the stone fence only a stone’s throw from the church building itself, and Gabi had opened up her Vamp sense to the whole area.  With the advent of her consuming blood from Julius, her ability to sense supernaturals had strengthened substantially.  Where before she’d been able to sense anything within around a hundred metres of herself, now her senses picked up anything within half a kilometre.  And where before she could just about be sure what race they belonged to, now she could tell exactly what they were, how strong they were and even in some cases what gender they were.  She could clearly sense Adriana inside the building, and a tiny portion of the concern tightening her chest eased; she could only sense living supernaturals.  What made her more anxious, however, was the lack of other supernaturals in the vicinity.  The two werewolves watching the place were in position a short distance down the street from the church, in a car with darkened windows, but Gabi couldn’t sense another supernatural in the entire area.

She gave a low, frustrated growl and indicated with a flick of her head to Fergus to follow her back to the rendezvous point.  Whatever was waiting for them either wasn’t a supernatural army or had Magi help in concealing themselves.  There was also the very real possibility someone had opened a portal to the Etherworld, and she couldn’t sense anything because the demons hadn’t crossed through yet.  Another disturbing thought crossed her mind, it was only a few months ago that demons had turned a small army of humans into Ghouls, and the army had been let loose on Gabi and her team.  She hadn’t been able to sense the Ghouls before they attacked; they were essentially still human, after all.  A shiver crawled up her spine at the memory.

Back at the car she made a quick call to fill Alexander in as she pulled a pair of flame-throwers from the secret compartment in the back of the BMW; since the Ghoul episode she never attended a fight without them.  She ended the call to Alexander just as Kyle’s van pulled up with its lights off.  Gabi was relieved to see that he’d come alone; it was easier for both of them if Trish wasn’t around.  They both spent too much time watching out for her.  She knew it wouldn’t have been easy to keep her friend away tonight and wondered what trick Kyle had used to get her to stay somewhere safe.

“Trish is manning the Alliance’s central communications centre,” Kyle told her, correctly reading her thoughts.  “We’ve fast-tracked the system since Byron’s announcement; it seemed the best idea.  She’s keeping tabs on police monitors and media outlets. Doug is with her.”

Gabi lifted her eyebrows at the mention of the SMV Hunter Shape-shifter, he hadn’t been quite the same since being shot in the chest a while ago, but she hadn’t envisioned him as a sidelines person.  Mind you, he’d be a major asset in the Werewolves’ new set-up, he was quick-witted and organised, and had been a Hunter for nearly eight years. 

“We also have extra manpower on call and Ian is on night shift at the hospital just in case,” Kyle finished and Gabi blew out a breath, happy they had some behind-the-scenes backup in place. It was a genuine relief. 

She tossed him one of the flame-throwers as three other vehicles turned onto the lane. Kyle lifted an eyebrow, but knew her well enough not to require any further explanation. 

The vehicles pulled up and Vampires and Werewolves spilled out, strapping on weapons in efficient silence.  Gabi recognised some of the Werewolves; Ross and Rory had been SMV staff, and Butch had helped out on a couple of dangerous missions.  Matt was one of the longer standing SMV Hunters, another two she didn’t know, but their scent identified them as Red Shadow Pack, Adriana’s Pack members.  Harrison, the Red Shadow Alpha, was also in the mingle, along with another Werewolf Hunter who was so new to the scene that Gabi didn’t know his name.  From one of Julius’s cars spilled Tabari, a Werewolf Gabi had seen once or twice, and Mac.  She did a double take at the sight of her friend.  It was a shock to see him here, but also still strange to see him move like a Vampire.  Dressed in black from head to toe, with weapons strapped to his legs and waist, he looked very different to the grizzled man with a sly sense of humour Gabi had come to love in such a short space of time.

He paused when he caught her staring, and gave a slow smile as he lifted his hand in a quick salute. 

“He’ll be alright, lass,” Fergus said, laying a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “He’ll be alright.” 

And Gabi had to take his word for it, though she had some deep-seated doubts.  She did a quick mental tally: ten Werewolves, three Vampires, herself and Razor.  Under normal circumstances that would be a good-sized force, but with few of them ever having worked together before, along with the inclusion of a brand new Vampire and two Alpha Werewolves, there was always the potential for disaster. 

Luckily there was no time for posturing and arguing, and the Red Shadow Alpha seemed conscious of the fact that they were all here to get back one of his Pack.  When Gabi stepped up to explain the set-up and give orders, Harrison followed Kyle’s lead and nodded understanding of the strategies. 

They approached the crumbling church from three sides. The fourth side had no exit points; unless something rammed right through the stone walls, it wasn’t getting in or out that way.  Gabi concentrated the Werewolf forces at the front and rear of the building with easy-to-breach doors, and stationed the rest in positions outside to keep watch for anyone trying to take them unawares or flee the scene.  The long side of the church was adorned with over a dozen cracked and fading stained-glass windows. They were fairly large but positioned high off the ground.  Those she left to the three Vampires.  She and Razor would be last in from the back of the church, their responsibility to secure and evacuate Adriana as quickly as possible while the others took on any armed forces.  They were all under clear instructions to take as many alive as possible.  Nex’s jewelled handle was comfortably familiar in her right hand, and a MacDart, one of Mac’s crazy mash-up weapons, loaded with both Were saliva and liquid silver darts, was ready in her left. Extra cartridges of darts clung to her waist and the flame-thrower was slung across her back.

Gabi had thought they were ready for just about anything. She had been wrong.  There was indeed a trap inside, but not the kind they’d been expecting.  As Gabi followed Rory, Ross and Butch through the double doors at the back of the building, she, along with all the other rescuers, came to a screeching halt, and the Vampires paused on the ledges of the windows they’d broken through. 

The entire inside of the old church had been stripped bare, and in its centre a large metal cage huddled, cemented into the ground and reinforced with thick cables lashed to the very foundations of the building.  A dozen spotlights, dark but ready, surrounded the cage, and on a pallet in the middle of the cage lay Adriana.  She sat up in alarm, her blonde curls tangled and dirty, her face streaked with blood and grime and tears, her clothing in tatters, barely covering her body. 

“Adriana,” Gabi gasped, rushing forward and tucking the MacDart gun into its holster on her hip. 

The girl’s eyes widened with recognition and then relief.  And then fear.  In the dim lighting Gabi could see dark red welts covering much of her friend’s exposed skin, her eyes were round with terror, and the scent of her wolf was dangerously strong.

“Down, down, the cellar,” she said in a hoarse whisper. 

Gabi spun, searching the dark as Razor pressed his warm body close to her right leg.  Why hadn’t she considered an underground level? Her Vamp sense still wasn’t picking up anything beyond those with her.

“Spread out, find a way down,” she ordered, falling to customary SMV hand signals to send Kyle, Matt and the other SMV Hunter in opposite directions. The others quickly followed suit, scenting the air and searching the floor. Gabi approached the cage.

“Don’t touch it,” Adriana warned, and then shook herself. “Oh, Gabi, you’re probably okay; it’s plated with silver.”

“Silver?” Gabi checked and put a hand out to touch the metal links. 

Adriana was right. Though it didn’t affect her, she knew the cool touch of silver well; it had a distinct feel and smell.  The cage was heavy with it.

“Here,” Kyle’s terse voice called out.  “There’s a trapdoor here.” 

Adriana lunged up weakly off the floor, barely able to stand.  Razor suddenly hissed in alarm, staring into the dark beyond the cage.

“Don’t go down there,” Adriana begged. “They’ve got all kinds of weapons.  Just get out before they—”

Her words were cut off as the spotlights flared to life, blinding Gabi.  She threw her arms over her face, shielding her burning eyes as yells and shouts erupted.  Something fell over her from above, heavy but malleable.  Gabi managed to keep her feet under her and struck out with Nex, but she couldn’t move.  Some kind of heavy net or toughened fabric covered her, restricting her movement, weighing her down.  Razor yowled in warning, still pressed close to her legs. Grunts, shouts and cursing assaulted her ears.  Panic rose in Gabi’s chest as she fought to get free, hacking at the constraint with Nex.  Exultant battle cries resounded through the church, from many directions, but they didn’t sound like any of the Vampires or Werewolves.  Or even Demons or Ghouls.  Finally Gabi’s eyes adjusted to the bright light and she saw that the net was some kind of fine chain link; a masculine roar of pain confirmed it was also laced with silver.  Just as the panic began to ebb, as Gabi’s mind began to make some kind of sense of the chaotic scene, five small pops sounded and acrid, choking smoke filled the air.

“Tear gas,” someone yelled. She thought it was Matt’s voice.

“What the fuck?” Gabi growled.  She quickly stretched the front of her shirt over her nose and mouth, but knew it wasn’t going to be enough.  Wisps of the smoke swirled around her, and her eyes instantly stung like a thousand fire ants had bitten into her eyeballs; tears streamed, blinding her again.  Despite the protective covering over her face, she began coughing and choking, trying not to retch. Similar sounds echoed around her.  She wondered how the Vampires were faring, but figured they’d be worse off than her and the Werewolves.