Marked In Flesh (The Others #4) - Anne Bishop Page 0,146
not leaving.’ He still believes the HFL movement is going to ‘sort those creatures out.’ And I can’t tell him the real reason this storm is going to be so bad, can I?”
“No, you can’t.” It wasn’t the storm itself that was going to devastate the city; it was what was coming in hidden by the storm.
Burke had had a quiet word with Captain Zajac and Captain Wheatley, two patrol captains in other precincts who recognized that the terra indigene held the key to Lakeside’s survival. He’d told all the police stations that they should offer shelter for their officers’ families, but the men working out of the Chestnut Street station were the only ones who really took the warning seriously enough.
“What about Ruth’s parents?” Monty asked. Looking at Kowalski’s bitter smile made his heart ache.
“When she called them, her mother said, ‘My daughter is dead,’ and hung up.” Kowalski squared his shoulders. “But the MacDonalds are on their way to the Courtyard. So is Michael Debany’s family. They’re bringing the perishable foods from their fridge and any other supplies that might be useful.”
Monty didn’t know if Merri Lee’s family lived in Lakeside, and he didn’t ask.
The back door blew open and Michael Debany stumbled into the stock room.
“Whoo! That’s a mean bitch out there!” Debany said, not seeing Simon Wolfgard coming in right behind him until he turned to close the door. “Ah . . . Sorry. That just slipped out. Is it anyone we know?”
“No. And she is a mean bitch.” Simon closed the door, then looked at the three men. “You want to wait for Captain Burke in the front of the store? There’s more room. I don’t know who’s working at A Little Bite right now, but there might be coffee.”
In other words, you’re in the way, Monty thought. “We’ll do that.”
His mobile phone rang at the same time Simon’s rang, so he hurried toward the front of the store, stopping near the archway that connected HGR with A Little Bite. “Montgomery.”
“Lieutenant,” Burke said. “Let someone there know that Commander Gresh is bringing his family to the Courtyard. I’ll be along shortly.”
“Yes, sir.” Monty ended the call. Seeing Simon coming toward him, Monty started to speak. But Simon rushed past him, checked the coffee shop, then turned around and ran for the inside staircase that led to HGR’s second floor. Judging by the look on the Wolf’s face, Simon had his own problems right now.
As Debany and Kowalski answered their mobile phones, the looks on their faces told him that Simon’s problem would be his too.
• • •
Ready to snarl and howl about idiot puppies, Simon rushed into the office, startling Vlad, who was monitoring e-mail and marking up a map to indicate the towns that were still out there.
Blessed Thaisia! Why would Sam go running off just as a storm was about to hit? And why take Skippy with him?
“Simon, what . . . ?” The phone rang. Vlad answered it. After a moment, he said, “Yes, I’ll tell him.”
Vlad hung up the phone, but Simon didn’t give him time to say anything. “Sam ran away from the Wolfgard Complex. You’ll have to deal with the humans until I find him.” Assuming he would find the pup. He’d been trying to reach Sam through the terra indigene form of communication but hadn’t received any response. That was bad. Very bad.
“Sam is fine,” Vlad said. “So is Skippy. So is Meg.”
“Meg? But Meg is . . .” Not in A Little Bite, where he had expected to find her. His fangs lengthened to Wolf size. “Where are they?”
“With the ponies and Jester in the Pony Barn. Jester thinks Meg was overwhelmed and too close to cutting, so she ran away from the other humans.”
“The pack’s nanny thinks that Sam ran off because he wanted to be with Meg during the storm.” Simon scratched behind one ear, then made an effort to shift the ear—and his teeth—back to human form. “She almost died the last time a storm hit Lakeside.”
“I remember,” Vlad said softly. “But, Simon, except for staying with Grandfather Erebus, I can’t think of a safer place for the three of them to be than in the Pony Barn with the Elementals’ steeds.”
Tense muscles began to relax, and he began thinking past finding Sam. “Did Meg pack anything?”
“No. Mist is on his way to the Market Square. Jester doesn’t have enough food for the four of them—and certainly not enough human food. We can ask