“And that was legit?”
“Of course not, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. A century ago, blood challenges were dog eat dog. Dad only showed me because he wanted me to recognize the scent in case someone tried it on one of ours.”
Jared growled low. “Now they have. The question is who?”
“I think we just got lucky.” Aiden stepped over one of the shattered pews. Squatting down, he looked at a large tuft of torn fur stuck to a jagged piece of pew.
“Give me something to pick this up with,” Aiden held out a hand.
Jared took a tweezer from the paramedic’s kit and handed it to Aiden. “Be careful, bro. I don’t want to carry your paralyzed ass back to Raven.”
“I’m not going to taste it, Jar. I’m going to try and pick up a scent.” Aiden picked up the grease-coated fur and turned it over to sniff the under coat. His face hardened.
“Who? Please tell me it’s not one of ours.”
Aiden shook his head. “Timothée Brodeur.” He pointed to the paramedic’s kit again. “Grab a baggie or something. We need to keep this for evidence if I don’t kill the son-of-a-bitch first.”
“And to think I felt sorry for the fucking bastard. Luke, too.” Jared handed his brother a urine sample cup. “Seal that good, bro. If we get to him first, we’re going to need all the proof we can get for a tribunal later.”
“You need to sniff it first, so you can pick up his scent, as well.”
“Ugh, that’s worse than cat piss.”
“Not just the grease, get Brodeur’s scent, too.”
“I did, now let’s get out of here before his scent goes cold.”
Aiden bagged the fur and stuffed the container in his pocket. “It won’t. Not with that crap all over him.”
“C’mon. We need to deal with the humans,” Jared said, pulling out his cell phone. “You lock the church, and I’ll text Gabby to create a mini tornado to explain the damage. In the meantime, we need to find a safe place to stow our clothes and then book it. Lord knows what the hell he’ll do with Luke.”
Aiden’s jaw tightened. “I have a pretty good idea. I think we might have to kill two birds with one stone tonight. A demon and a dickhead.”
Chapter Twelve
Gabrielle felt the place where the gash was on her head. It was still tender, but the skin was healed, and she no longer had a headache or nausea.
“You had a pretty bad concussion, cher,” Raven said from the doorway. “Not to mention a nasty contusion.”
“Listen to you using medical terminology.”
“You’re welcome.”
Gabby looked at her friend in the mirror. “You know I love you, right?”
“Yes, but Capiria isn’t going to love that you uncovered one of the mirrors in this house for vanity’s sake.”
Covering it quickly, Gabrielle turned with a finger to her lips. “No tell, motel.”
“You are such a goof.” Raven closed her friend in a hug. “I’m glad you’re okay, though. My stomach dropped out when I saw you. I nearly lost my lunch.”
Gabby stepped back, giving Ray a quick hip check. “With everything you’ve seen, a little head lac does you in. Go figure.”
“You know, you’ve lived in NOLA for years now, but you still sound like a Yankee.”
“Je suis Québécois.”
“You are and then again, you’re not. Still, wherever you are, I’m there, too. In my heart. Especially now that we really are family.”
A frown puckered for a moment. “And we weren’t before?”
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it. Jeez, pregnancy hormones much?”
Gabby laughed. “I guess. Or just nerves. We haven’t heard from the guys, which means they haven’t found Luke.” She looked at her friend. “What if that frat boy asshole took him from me permanently, Ray?”
Saying the words aloud buckled her knees, and Gabby caught herself on the back of a chair to keep from crumpling.
Raven helped her to the couch, sitting her down gently. “I told you what Aiden said for us to do. We’re to go ahead as planned. They guys are tracking the asshole. It took a while, but Luke is finally able to communicate with them in wolf form. The Brodeur pack isn’t clan, so they don’t share the same mind paths our guys do, so there’s no chance Tim can eavesdrop. Alain and Gregory know what’s happening, and they already informed Milo. His son is done.
“No tribunal. Aiden has been given full power to dole out justice as he sees fit, though I don’t want to see a life snuffed because of stupidity. If we did that, half the world’s population would be gone in a blink.”
“I wish I could be so open-minded and forward thinking. I want to fry the guy’s balls.” Gabby looked up as Tanya walked into the living room.
“Capiria wants us to anoint ourselves with the chrism Father Anton gave Luke. On our foreheads, our eyes, our throats and over our hearts.”
“Why?”
“It’s consecrated, Gabs. Protection again you know who pulling a fast one,” Tanya replied. “After that, we need to go. It’s time.”
Raven looked at Gabby. “You up for this?”
“Yes. Whatever happens, we need to rid our world of this cunning bastard. It snuck in uninvited, and wreaked havoc on our world. It’s up to us to end him.”
“What if we can’t?” Ray asked. “What if Tanya and I can only send him back from whence he came?”
Gabrielle stood, squaring her shoulders. “We can’t think that way. I know you, Ray. You have a big heart. Only this
