Tales Of The Sazi 02 - Moon's Web (16 page)

"Now— once again, Ms. Kho. How did you know that I would be arriving tonight at this airport?" She opened her mouth, but it took two tries for words to come out. "I… told you… I don't know." Greg sighed and shook his head briefly. The blaze of light intensified. The effect of his magic was startling. Asri began to sink into the couch, pressed into the springs by the sheer weight of Greg's power. Springs squeaked and then groaned. The vinyl stretched and started to rip.

Asri gasped. I could hear her heartbeat race. The scent of fear finally erupted from her intense pain showed on her face. The smell made my stomach growl. I wiped a line of spittle from the corner of my mouth. This was not the time for me to be smelling fear.

Bobby couldn't stand it anymore. He stood in a burst and advanced across the room. "Greg— Stop it. What the hell is wrong with you? This isn't like you."

"That's because it's not him, Bobby," I replied quietly from the corner. All eyes turned to me.

"What the hell are you talking about, Joe? You've never even met Greg Hamilton before. You were barely a kid when we worked together in Wolven."

Greg's eyes had narrowed as they stared at me, and once again I spotted the clear signal of recognition with just a hint of… something. Not quite fear. I shrugged and stared right back. I had finally figured out who he really was, but I didn't care if anyone else knew or not.

He forced his gaze from me and turned again to Asri. "Once last chance, Ms. Kho. Tell me what you know or I'll compress you into a puddle of tissue on the floor."

Asri's breath was coming in short, pained gasps. I couldn't say I was very sorry after what she'd done to me, but Bobby couldn't take it anymore.

"She doesn't know, Greg. Back off." He lashed out at Greg with his own magic, a whip of green energy. It didn't even dent the handsome football hero. Bobby's anger was torn from him when a second bolt of energy

— this time fully blue-white— smashed Bobby against the wall. The scent of fear now erupted from a second source.

"Stay out of this, Bobby. This is a security issue. I told no one of my plan to come to Chicago tonight. If Nikoli Molotov has a spy in our organization, I will find out!" He turned a face seething with anger to Asri.

"Now— tell me! How did Nikoli know about my plans?"

Asri's chest was compressed so that her voice was strained and hoarse. "I… swear. We did not expect you. It was Lucas Santiago who was to come tonight."

"And how did you know that?" Asri jumped as one of the springs under her broke with a sharp snap. She sunk even further down, her body bent nearly in two.

I put a hand up to shield the glare and narrowed my eyes so I could continue to watch the action. Greg noticed. But once again, he forced his attention back to Asri. But I knew he'd get back to me eventually.

"Tat… Tatiana Santiago told us. She… was arriving for a conference in the city. She called… the… Duchess and said her husband would be… joining her."

Greg released his magical hold on both Asri and Bobby so suddenly that they both let out a small yelp. He turned to me.

"And what does that mean to you, Tony?" Yeah, I figured he knew my name. It was the blue-white light that gave him away.

"The Duchess is Russian royalty and as old as dirt. The name Tatiana is Russian, and is historically a royal name. My bet is that Tatiana and Lelya are kin and you hadn't considered that particular leak, had you, Lucas?"

His voice changed. It turned deeper and more polished. His scent turned to desert grass and something fruity. The closest I match it to was watermelon. Bobby and Asri both looked at each other in shock. "What gave me away?" he asked with a smile.

"Sue told me once that she met a white wolf with blue eyes. The wolf turned into a Latino man with black hair in a burst of blue-white light. I thought I saw that man as the plane landed. But after you got stressed when Bobby attacked you, your magic turned blue-white, and then I knew."

He swore again. "You've got second sight. Damn it!" He turned to Bobby angrily. "Why wasn't that in your report, Agent?"

"Second sight? Is that what this seeing colored auras shit is?"

He shot me a suspicious look, but it quickly faded. "You didn't know? Hmm. It must be new then." Bobby was trying to recover from the series of shocks. The first words out of his mouth weren't an answer.

"You can't both be the same person. Lucas doesn't have illusion abilities. And you were the pack leader in Boulder when Greg was in Wolven."

"I have a number of abilities that I don't advertise, Agent Mbutu." Lucas's voice was filled with menace. I recognized that tone. It was both warning and threat. He blurred around the edges— that's the best I can describe it. I blinked and he was suddenly a different person. A medium-height Latino man stood in front of us where the football hero once was. His salt-and-pepper hair looked comfortable on him. He was dressed in a suit and tie, looking like the lawyer Sue told me he was. I could feel her burst of recognition and happiness in my head. Bobby and Asri were still struck dumb.

Asri was trying, without success, to extricate herself from the couch. Bobby finally had to reach over and offer his hand to get her out of the hole. I started when I saw a color shift as they touched. When Bobby's green met Asri's golden, the colors blended and the new gold-green started to crawl up both of their arms. They must have felt whatever I saw, because Bobby let go of Asri's hand abruptly, before she had her feet completely under her. She stumbled a bit on her first step and stared at her hand like it burned. I shook my head and turned my attention back to Lucas to give them a chance to recover from whatever it was I saw.

"Sue says hi," I commented blithely as Greg— now Lucas— stared from me to the two, who were now both staring at their hands. Bobby clenched his hand into a fist and then opened it more than once. Asri was busy concentrating on rubbing her fingers together like she was trying to regain circulation. She looked a little panicked.

Lucas's brow furrowed but he didn't comment. He spoke to me as though Sue were standing in my place. He must understand the connection between us better than most. "Hello, Sue. I hope you're enjoying Chicago. Sorry I had to leave Boulder during your training but, as you can see… " He spread his arms out with palms up. "I had business to take care of. I'd hoped to do it discreetly." He turned and put on a black overcoat that had magically appeared on the table next to him. "Apparently, I need to have a long chat with my wife about how to keep secrets."

I had to agree. People got killed for less in the Family. I would remember not to mention anything important to his wife.

He looked at Bobby and Asri. "Well? We might as well go. My cover's completely blown, thanks to you three."

I smirked. "What sort of cover could you possibly maintain by showing up as a dead man?" He smirked in return. "Better than appearing in two places at once." That made sense.

"The case is very sensitive, and none of your business." He ran a hand through his hair. "I'll come up with something creative to work it. I always do." Then he walked to me and held out his hand. "By the way, a pleasure to finally meet you, Tony. I look forward to getting to know you." I held out my hand in return. Asri seemed particularly interested in our exchange. "I thought you already knew everything about me."

He smiled tiredly. "I used to know a lot more. But you keep changing the rules." The moment our hands touched, a flare of magic hit me in the chest. I fell forward into a black pit. When I looked up, there was an old, Native American woman in front of me. The room was all dark wood and muted light. Thick books lined shelves along the walls. A red leather wing chair edged with brass tacks made the woman's compact frame seem every more tiny.

"The meeting will be in Chicago next week." "Chicago?" came the startled reply from my mouth, except that it wasn't mine. It was Lucas's voice that flowed from me. "But it's already scheduled for Paris. We can't change the plans of that many people with so little notice. And Nikoli doesn't have the facilities— or the security— to host a council meeting."

The lined dark face took on an ominous visage. "Then it would be advisable to make sure that his facilities—

and his security— are upgraded, and quickly, because Chicago is where the meeting will be. Charles will make sure that everyone attends. And please inform our counterpart in the city that it will be a complete council meeting, with all groups fully represented. Her presence will be required."

"A complete meeting? What does that mean?" My brow furrowed, but terror struck my heart because I— or, more precisely, Lucas— knew what it meant and didn't want to consider it.

The old woman smiled. "Just what you think it does, my old friend. We will need four extra rooms in the hotel."

The woman faded from view, but not before she gave me a look that chilled my blood. It was as though she looked through the eyes of the person I was in the image and saw me— Tony.

"Tony? Tony! You okay, man?" Bobby was trying to help me up from my knees. Lucas released my hand while giving me a strange look.

"What was that all about, Tony?" Lucas asked. I shook my head, trying to fight my way out of the vision. "I don't know. There was an office and an old woman… " Something made me stop there, not revealing anything that I heard. "I don't know. I can't… remember." Asri gave me a panicked look and gasped. She clutched a hand around something that was under her shirt near her throat. When everyone stared at her, she released her hand self-consciously and pulled up her hood. "I agree with Mr. Hamil— with Mr. Sant— with our esteemed guest. We should go."

I felt the sky clear outside. The moon was shining. It sliced through the roof of the building and raised every hair on my body. The world turned pink, cut with shades of black and grey. I heard my voice deepen into a hungry growl. "I need to hunt. I can't stand much more of the moon. It's doing weird things to my head." Lucas grabbed my chin and turned my face to meet his eyes. A snarl curled my lip. I fought the man who held me and snapped at his hand. This time, there was no connection when we touched, no flash of magic. He gave an annoyed shake of his head.

"His eyes are starting to bleed. No wonder he's blacking out. We need to get a move on. Bobby, you and Ms. Kho pull back your magic. I'll control him."

I felt the skin-ruffling scent of jungle and musty reptile disappear from my head, and warm fur, powerful and protective, take its place. Even with the effort he'd expended on Asri and Bobby, Lucas held the moon away without any visible sign.

It was only the second time I'd had the moon held at bay. Nikoli had tried to make sure that we arrived at the park before the moon was up. But now the bright orb that called to me, pulled at me, had been fully in the sky for more than an hour and I was paying the price for the delay. We hurried out of the Jet Center into the snowy night. But by the time we reached the Lexus, my leg had started to twitch so much that I almost ended up face down. I hissed through gritted teeth as I heard a sharp snap and felt a corresponding pain in my right thigh. The bone was trying to reform into a wolf leg, but the magic wouldn't let it. A second later, my arm did the same thing. I was expecting it, but it was still painful.

"Damn that hurts!" I exclaimed as my other leg went out enough that I had to lean against the wheel well. The snow had mostly stopped, but it was still slick enough that I couldn't afford to lose my balance. I felt Sue start in my mind, and wondered where she was while she was enduring the pain along with me. Some aspects of the mating are a pain in the ass— especially for her.

"What hurts?" asked Lucas with a furrowed brow.

"My bones are snapping like twigs. Can't you hear them? The moon's trying to change me, but your magic is holding it off, so the bones are breaking and reknitting in seconds. Gotta tell ya— it stings like blazes." My arm broke at that moment, and I saw the three of them wince. Asri fumbled with the push button combination lock on her door. She finally had to take off her gloves to enter the code.

"I didn't realize that popping sound was your bones, Ton," Bobby mumbled. "That's got to smart." Lucas's face looked odd. "Nobody's ever mentioned before that it hurts for me to hold off the moon until we reach our hunting grounds."

I winced again briefly as my hip popped. "You're the boss. Nobody would." An ankle went. I had to take a few deep breaths before I could speak again. It wasn't quite as bad as when Asri sliced me up, but I didn't know where the pain would be next, so it was more startling. "And you probably don't let the night get this far along, either."

"Still… it's not acceptable." I felt power flood over me. I lifted my hand. It glowed like a nova with blue-white light. The moon silenced completely and the resulting lack of pain surprised me. "That should take care of it. Bobby, you sit up front. I'll keep watch on Tony in back."

Both Asri and Bobby suddenly looked panicked. Bobby pulled down his muffler enough to yell, "NO!" Lucas was taken aback. His voice lowered to a rumble. He was reminding me more and more of Carmine.

"What did you say?"

Bobby's scent was clearly fear now, but the panic was there too, which told me that they were for different reasons. Asri escaped the confrontation by slipping into the driver's seat and starting the car. "I mean— I'll ride in back with Tony. I don't mind. You sit up front with Asri. The view's better." Lucas's eyebrows rose until they disappeared under his dampening hair. He gave Bobby a searching look while Bobby fidgeted nervously. "The view. Fine. I'm shotgun. Let me know if you start to hear any more snapping. I presume we'll be on the road awhile."

They both started to open doors when I had to interrupt. No one else seemed to notice that I was shining like a beacon.

"Wait, wait. You're telling me that none of you— nobody else in this whole city— is going to see me sparkling like a Christmas tree in the back of the car?"

"Second sight is a very rare talent, Tony," Lucas explained as he held open the front car door. "I can count the number of people in the world with it on one hand."