'Just be careful when you're up there. This thing knows you're a shifter, so it might have set traps.'
She nodded and pushed away from the table. 'I'll bring back lunch.'
'Do that. And get yourself another box of condoms while you're at it. You must have used most of his supply last night.'
Heat touched her cheeks again. She might have grown up in a sexually liberated household, but her grandmother still had the power to embarrass her. Though after thirty years, she really should be used to it. 'I thought you said you were deaf?'
'Not that deaf.' Gwen's eyes twinkled. 'You'd better get going, before your wolf begins to stir.'
She left. Clouds crowded the sky, and the breeze was cool and steady. An almost perfect day for flying. She shoved her hands into her pockets and walked down through the trees toward the road. When she was sure she couldn't be seen from any of the cabins, she shifted shape and flew skyward.
She drifted toward the sea, watching the waves roll in and wishing it was summer so she could go for a swim.
Though a good soaking in icy water might be just what her tired muscles needed to revive them. But later, when she had more time. She flicked her wings and soared sideways, flying toward the mountains.
They looked different in daylight. Less threatening. She circled until she found the signpost and looked around.
There were half a dozen small farms in the immediate area. The zombies must have come from one of them, because they'd been on her almost as soon as she'd sensed them. They could run fast, but not that fast.
She dipped her wing and drifted down to inspect the first farmhouse.
An insistent ringing woke Ethan. He glanced at his watch and cursed when he saw it was well after nine, then reached blindly for his cell phone on the nearby coffee table.
'Yeah?' His voice came out little more than a gruff croak.
'Partner, you sound like shit.'
'Just tired, that's all.' He rubbed a hand across his eyes and glanced around. Kat wasn't in the cabin, though her lingering scent told him she hadn't been gone long.
Perhaps she was next door.
Mark grunted. 'Aren't we all. I went to the morgue like you asked. Seems like you weren't as crazy as I thought you were.'
'Body gone to mush?'
'Completely. They managed to freeze a couple of fingers so we can get some prints, but other than that, it's gone.'
'You searching through the database for a fingerprint match?'
'Yeah, but we both know it's going to take a long time.
And if the guy doesn't have a record, hasn't been in the military or had a government job, or didn't volunteer his fingerprints when he got his driver's license, we'll be out of luck.'
Ethan had a suspicion they'd be out of luck anyway.
'Anything else happening with the case?'
Mark hesitated. 'Your brother has posted a reward for information that leads to Janie's return.'
Ethan closed his eyes. 'How's he holding up?'
'Why don't you find out yourself and call him?'
He really should call Luke, but he didn't know what to say to him any more than he knew what to say to Kat. He wasn't comfortable with intimacy of any kind. Hadn't been for a long, long time. Luke understood his reasons, but he had a feeling Kat never would.
No, he wouldn't call his brother. Not until he had something to say. 'How's Benton taking my being in Rogue River?'
'Badly. You're dead meat if he catches up with you before he calms down.'
Then he'd just have to ensure he wasn't caught. 'The autopsy on the second kid come through yet?'
'Yeah. They've estimated the time of death to be between seven and eight yesterday evening.'
'So the kid had been kept alive five days before they killed him?' If that was the case, there was still hope for Janie.
'He was drugged and pretty much starved, though.'
'No indication of any other abuse?'
'Nothing, other than starvation. They found traces of dirt in his fingernails. They're still analysing that to see if they can discover anything unusual.'
He frowned and scratched his chin. Something about this case didn't make sense, though he couldn't exactly put his finger on what was bugging him. But if the beings behind these kidnapping were vampires of one sort or another, why were they snatching these kids and keeping them for nearly a week before killing them? Granted, he didn't know much about vampires, let alone truly believe in them, but if they did exist, that just didn't make sense.
Unless they were taking the kids for something other than feeding…
'Look, just on a hunch, will you check to see if there were other disappearances reported in the same area as each of these kids? Take it a few days either way.'
'You suspect this could be bigger than just the kids?'
'I don't know what I suspect. I could be just reaching for straws.'
'Even so, given your record with straws, I'll get it checked out immediately.'
'Give me a call if you find anything.'
'Will do.'
He hung up and walked into the bedroom. Kat's scent was stronger here, and as he glanced at the bed, his blood stirred. He couldn't remember much of last night, not until the end, but he'd certainly never felt this satisfied before in his life. And yet he knew she only had to walk into the room and he'd want her again. It was odd how attracted he was to her. Normally, he only sought out his chosen mate as the evening fell.
He cleaned up the room, picking up a still wrapped condom near the window and discarded wrappers off the floor, then got rid of all the rubbish and made the bed.
After showering and changing, he headed into the other cabin.
He knew without looking that Kat wasn't there. 'Where's she gone?' he asked when Gwen looked up from the paper she was reading.
'Out.' She patted the chair next to her. 'Grab yourself something to eat and drink, then come sit beside me. We need to chat.'
He studied her warily. 'Why?'
She sighed. 'Always questions from a cop. I promise it's nothing personal, so just relax and get something to eat.'
He didn't relax, but he did get something to eat. Once he'd warmed up some bacon, eggs and a couple of Danishes, he sat down at the table opposite her.
'What do you need to know?'
'How old was your niece?'
It wasn't the question he'd been expecting. 'Five. But you know that. You must have seen the files.'
She nodded. 'But files only give bare facts. Sometimes it helps if I get a more intimate idea of what they were like.'
'You said the opposite yesterday.'
A smile touched her lips. 'Kat tells me you hate kids, so you're not likely to blind me with emotional vibes like the child's parents would.'
'I don't hate — ' He hesitated. He'd given Kat one story, so he'd better stick to it. 'Don't get me wrong. I love Janie, and I'd do anything to get her back. But she's as close to having a kid as I ever want to get.'
'Why?'
He could feel himself shut down, but tried to shrug nonchalantly. 'I like my freedom. I like being able to walk away once the moon fever has passed by.'
'So you've never lost your heart to anyone?'
