Red Hood: The Hunt (9 page)

I shrugged, “They are just things.  I've never been much into owning stuff.  Not after...  well and it's hard to have many belongings in the foster system.  It just sort of carried over into my adult life.”  I tried to joke, “I have a kitchen table.”

The expression on her face showed shadows compassion and sadness.  She patted the couch and swung her legs up Indian style to rest her back against an armrest.  “Tell me about life before the wolf attack.  I'm curious as to just who Detective Daria McQueen used to be.”

We spoke late into the afternoon.  I found the private memories and thoughts of her youth fascinating.  But only half as fascinating as everything she has witnessed of the world in the past century.  I couldn't fathom going from horse drawn carriages to man on the moon to the Internet, where all the information from almost every source in the world is at one's fingertips.  The things she has seen...

I don't remember falling asleep, but when I did stir a bit, I could feel her intense heat cradling me.  I smiled and went back to sleep realizing I had cuddled into her on the couch.  I caught that intoxicating wild scent of hers as I drifted back off.

The next few days were spent coordinating with the mayor's office, Red, and the police commissioner.  Getting everything in place for the planned three-day talks at Slater Mining.  We were uncomfortable that Slater's headquarters in the Northern Cascades was not walled.

Our inquiries revealed that most of the workforce were infected, and worked for cheaper than the few Clean Bloods on the payroll who retreated back to the walled city of Vancouver, Canada during the full moon cycles.

We weren't as concerned about it as we could have been, mostly because it would be mid lunar cycle during the talks. Though we wouldn't have to worry about wolves, it was still nice to know that the lodge that was on the property where we would be staying, had FMBs and silver lined panic rooms in it.  The lodge also served as Alister Slater's residence as well.  We were not able to determine if Slater was among the cursed or not, he was secretive and we didn't even have pictures of the man.  There was no record of him ever visiting a walled city.

Chief Mendez was dead set on torturing us with this mind numbing duty.  The couple homicides that popped up during this time, he assigned to other detectives so we could... “Keep your focus on the mayor's protection detail.”

Mayor Beatrice Fleming I liked.  I had never met the woman before, and I hadn't voted for her, an oversight on my part I learned.  The fifty-something redhead looked to be in her forties with frosted highlights in her hair.  She had a razor wit and zero patience for idiots.  She still couldn't believe the City Council insisted on having a protection detail for the talks.  It wasn't like it was during a full moon.  Since Seattle seemed to be under this inexpiable siege the past few months she called it, “A waste of taxpayer's money that could be used to secure more silver for the city's protection.”

We shared some of Red's concerns over the meeting, leaving out Marcus and his possible connection to me.  But voicing her findings of Slater Mining and all the shell companies forming a silver monopoly and her belief that the silver shortage had just been engineered by Slater.

Beatrice was not amused and set the wheels in motion to have the congressional subcommittee in charge of lupine defense to do an inquest.  AFTER, of course, she secured contracts for a new silver supply for Seattle. 
Fucking politicians.

Once we had our plans solidified for the following week, we sent our security requirements to Slater Mining's in-house security so they could coordinate with us and stay the hell out of our way.

That freed me up to do some discreet investigation into the possibility Red was right about someone inside the wall working with Marcus and targeting me.  I didn't want it to be true since only my fellow officers would have inside information as to when I was assigned to perimeter patrol during Howler Duty.

Maireni had pretty much moved into my apartment for the duration of this assignment.  I felt squeamish knowing she was always out there, somewhere close, watching over me.  It was better just to keep her close.  She had turned my living room into a sort of camp.  This unfortunately meant I had to suffer the endless teasing from Victor.  He'd always call Maireni 'Miss Damaschin' when he was teasing us instead of Mari.

If I were to be completely honest with myself, I found myself getting closer and closer to that amazing woman.  Just being near, she excited me in ways I had never felt before.  I'm pretty sure I'm obsessed with her lips lately and the wild woman knew it too.  She teases and flirts endlessly just to watch me squirm.  But we always seemed to wind up on the couch sharing our hopes, dreams and fears every night.

I wake up with the comforting heat of her body against mine every morning.  She sometimes absently rubs her lower jaw across my shoulder or the top of my head.  She would never comment on it, or seemed surprised she had done it.  I did some discrete research on lycanthrope behavior and blushed pleasantly when I found that is how werewolves laid claim to something like they were scent marking their property.  I grinned, it was better than the other way they scent marked.

The next morning I awoke to her curled around me protectively on the couch again.  God, the things this did to me.  I was beyond embarrassed that I knew she could smell my arousal with her super sensitive nose but resigned myself to the fact.

I stretched which caused her to tighten her grip slightly on the arm she had slung across my belly this time.  I looked back and just had to smile at the content look on her face.  It didn't show the strain of over a hundred years of stress and killing when she was like this.  Her ice blues fluttered open, for some reason I loved the animalistic look in them before she focused and came fully awake.  It was beyond sexy to me.

She smiled and said, “Good morning.”  Looking around and inhaling deeply, taking air in through her nose and mouth, tasting and smelling the morning like she always did.  “Sorry, we fell asleep on the couch again.”  Liar, she wasn't sorry at all, I could feel her fingers lightly brushing my belly over my shirt.

I smiled and was about to get up when she almost delicately started moving her jaw toward the top of my head.  I made an exasperated hiss as I came to a decision.  I pulled back before she could rub her jaw on me and said in a perturbed manner, “If you are going to lay claim to me, at least do it right, Red!”

And I leaned up and captured her lips with mine.  Good lord they were hot and soft and... hungry.  I felt my toes curling and then pulled back with a smile I tried to hide away.  She looked stunned for a moment then the corners of her mouth turned up into a gleeful smile as her eyes sparkled, and I swear to God she growled in satisfaction, the tremors from the low sound vibrating into my soul.

She leaned down again just to meet my finger I pressed against her lips to stop her, even though, my body was on fire.  I doubt I had ever been that aroused in my entire life.  Something about her was just so... exciting, in a primal way.  I smirked. “After the negotiations are over.  You've just been driving me insane with your scent marking.”

She exhaled almost explosively, nodded, but then smiled and hopped up from behind me far too gracefully for a human.  She took a couple slow steps toward the bathroom, her eyes flickering between me and the hall and said, “I need a cold shower then.”  I realized she was angling to get to the bathroom before me.  I started to jump up but then she was gone almost faster than my eyes could follow as she giggled.  I heard the bathroom door shut and lock.

I rolled my eyes.  Damn it, for not being a girly girl, she took forever to get ready in the morning.  She always spent close to twenty minutes in the shower.  She says she loves the feel of flowing water. Then I exhaled and fanned the excess heat from my face.  That one kiss almost did me in.  It took all my self-control to stop us before we... well... you know.

I took a moment to think about what I was doing.  I tried to stay out of relationships, they could only end badly, but I had never had the same physical and emotional reactions I have with her.  This could never work out, she was a Hunter, she went where the wolves were.

Part of me realized that if her suspicions were correct, if Marcus were involved and she could kill him.  The lycan curse would be destroyed.  It would be a different world with no werewolves.  A world that didn't need Hunters.  A world where only I would need the sexy Red Hood.  Maybe she could stay in Seattle then.

I shook these thoughts from my head and muttered, “Getting way ahead of yourself McQueen... take it one day at a time.”

After we were ready for the day and ate breakfast, I cocked my head at her.  Our eyes hadn't left each others the entire morning like we were circling each other in a great dance.  I asked something I had been curious about, “Why do you wear the red cloak even when there is no full moon?”

She shrugged and furrowed her brow in thought. “I don't know.  It is like a part of me.  Part of my identity.”  She nudged her chin at me.  “Why do you wear your gun in the shoulder holster as soon as you get dressed?”

I looked down at my blouse with the shoulder holster strapped over it, my nine mil tucked into it.  “Huh.”

She smiled and stepped away from me as I pulled up my cell phone as she teased, “Yeah, huh.”  I looked at her and then my phone and smiled.  She was always considerate about that around me, whenever I was using any kind of electronics she gave me an eight to ten foot buffer.  If she stood behind me, then all I got was static and any computers would just lock up.  I liked that it seemed to be an automatic reaction that she didn't seem aware she was doing for me.

I stopped as I checked my email.  “Son of a bitch!  We got the bastard!”

One of her eyebrows arched in interest and I said, “I finally got something from my inquiries about who on the force might be working with Marcus.  Harrison from the motor-pool had fifty thousand dollars deposited in his bank account the day before the attack in the alley.”

She looked impressed. “How did you get that information?”

I shrugged. “I sweet talked Tanya down in records to discretely do a check on the top five on my list.”

Her eyes darkened.  “Tanya?”

Oh this is beyond priceless, she's jealous!
  Being the evil person, I am I played with her.  “Yeah it's amazing what a few sexual favors can get a girl.”  I more felt than heard the low rumble coming from her.  I couldn't keep my straight face as I broke into a chuckle.  “Lighten up, Red, she's happily married, she just owed me one.”

She rolled her eyes and stepped up to me and my cell screen went all static.  She scrunched her nose in a sour “so there” gesture, which only got me to chuckle again at her.  I laid a reassuring hand on her chest just below her throat and tilted my head with a crooked smile on my face as I shut off my cell.  We kept eye contact for five long heartbeats then turned to the door, almost in perfect sync, to hunt down Harrison.

When she got in the back seat of my car, my cell buzzed and I answered as I got into the driver's seat.  The call was a little static as I answered, “McQueen.”

Victor was on the other end.  “Get your butt to the station.  There's been a homicide...”  I almost asked why I had to be there until he added, “...a cop.” 
Shit!
  I know all murders are tragic and none should have more precedence over any others but when it was a cop, it was personal to all of us.

The entire department was about to be mobilized, that's why even O'Neil and I were going to get involved even though we were on special assignment.  Hell even if we could just bring coffee to whatever detectives got assigned the case, it would help.  I could hear the husky tone of my voice as I said with a dry mouth, “Who?  Anyone we know?”

There were over nine thousand police officers in Seattle, inside and outside the wall, and the odds of us knowing the victim were... I cut off my thoughts and my blood ran cold as he said, “Harrison.  From the motor pool.” 
Son of a bitch!

I ended the call with, “On my way.”  And I shut off the phone.  I looked in the rear view mirror to an innocent looking woman in red.  “You heard?”  Of course, she heard with that freakishly wolf-like hearing of hers.  She dropped the act and nodded once.  I punched the steering wheel and muttered, “God damn it!  Our one lead!”

She caught my eye in the mirror and said carefully, “Not your only lead.  This means there is someone else in the city that is cleaning up loose ends.”

I froze for a moment and voiced a new fear, “You don't think that my inquiries prompted his murder do you?”  She shrugged and I punched the steering wheel again.

She stayed in the break room down the hall from the station room as I joined Victor there.  The Chief stepped out of his office and he looked pissed.  He cleared his throat and all the murmuring settled down.  “Last night, we lost one of our own.  Daniel Harrison was found dead in an alley by his home earlier this morning.  Hicks and Laramey have point on this.  I need everyone giving them anything they need to catch the son of a bitch who did this.  Am I clear?!”

We all murmured agreement and he made a shooing motion and walked back in his office and slammed the door.  The glass walls of it wavered, on the verge of cracking.  Everyone broke into motion.

I closed my eyes and turned to O'Neil then exhaled and looked up at him as I pulled my cell out and powered back on.  I pulled up the email I got this morning and showed it to him.  His eyebrow raised.  “Why do you have this McQueen?”

I shrugged apologetically. “I was sort of investigating who assisted the breach the other night.   Damaschin had a gut feeling I had been targeted.  I was on my way to talk to Harrison when you called this morning.”

He slapped his forehead and continued the motion to run through the stubble on his head.  “God damn it Daria, this will come out in the investigation.” Then he looked around in thought.  “Ok, get with  Hicks and Laramey on this.  Better to be pro-active than look like you were hiding it when they find out.”

I nodded and then squinted an eye at him. “Yeah.  Sorry old man.”

He just gave me his O'Neil stare.  “Yeah yeah whatever.  We're partners Daria.”

I nodded, feeling sheepish.  “Sorry?” I offered up again.  He shook his head with the look a father would give a misbehaving child that he loved and shoved my shoulder lightly towards Hicks' desk, then followed me over for support.

That was a pain in the ever-loving ass.  I had to go over and over with them why I was investigating officers and off the record.  Once they and the Chief, who they involved in it, were done with me, I felt like the skin had been flayed from my body.  I'm not sure how many apologies I made to the three.  None of them were happy about me having suspicions about fellow officers, but were placated with my admission that I didn't want to involve the weasels in Internal Affairs with the suspicions.  None of them could ignore that the “gut feeling” Maireni seemed to be showing some merit now.