KACELA
He answered on the second ring. He sounded mildly curious, but not irritated that someone was calling him so late. I wondered if it was a regular occurrence.
“Mr. Jones. Kacela Thompkins returning your phone call.”
“Ah, yes, Miss Thompkins. Thank you for getting back to me so timely.” He was polite and there was nothing that set off any red flags for me. “I’m sure your assistant filled you in on the situation?”
“Not really,” I said. “I was traveling so he just texted me your name and phone number and told me that he thought we could help each other out.” I paused, weighing my words before continuing. “I hear you need a pack eliminated?”
“Yes,” he said. “I’m a business owner and I. . . “
I interrupted him. “Mr. Jones, I don’t particularly care about your reasoning. It sounds like you think you have a problem. I can help.”
He sounded wary. “I really would like to explain myself, Miss Thompkins. I don’t want you thinking I’m doing this because I get some sort of weird kick out of it or something.”
I picked up a pen and began to doodle. “Sir, if you need to justify it to yourself, that’s fine, but find a counselor or a priest or pay some stripper to listen to your preplanned speech with your excuses. I don’t care. I think werewolves are vile and the world becomes exponentially better with every wolf that is erased from existence.” I didn’t mean to sound so harsh, but I was starting to get tired. I should have waited to call in the morning.
“I see,” he said slowly. I didn’t think he really did. “Do you hunt any other creature, Miss Thompkins?”
“Kacela, please.” I said, weary of the formalities. “You mean like vampires and witches? No. Just werewolves.”
“I mean Lycans,” he said. I sat up slowly in my chair.
“I thought the Lycan population died out thousands of years ago,” I said. “I didn’t think that there were any members of that species surviving.”
“What would you say if I told you there was an entire pack of them?” Stephen said. “An entire pack that is stealing enterprise right out from under me.” He sounded bitter. I gave a short laugh.
“Is that what you think you have, Mr. Jones? Lycans? I would be willing to bet you have overgrown werewolves. The north tends to grow them big and thick. And that’s not a problem for me. I’ve taken on worse.” I let those words sink in. “There’s no such thing as Lycans. Not anymore.”
“Fine,” Stephen said, suddenly all business again. “I would like to hire you to eradicate an entire pack of overgrown werewolves that don’t know one ounce of business etiquette. What are your fees and when can you start?”
I leaned back in my chair, once again relaxed. “I will have my assistant send over a contract tomorrow. You can show it to your lawyers if you want. It’s a standard contract and does not mention specifics, just refers to them as ‘pests’. Sign it and send it back if it’s in order. If you send it by the deadline, I’ll be there the next day. If you choose to wait, I may take another job and yours doesn’t maintain priority.”
Jones sounded better now that we were talking business again. “Fine,” he said. “I’ll have my lawyers check over it and get it back to you right away if it’s acceptable.”
We exchanged the requisite pleasantries and then disconnected. I put my phone on the charger and continued to think. I wasn’t too sure about Stephen Jones, and I was really curious why he thought the werewolves were Lycans.
Before going to bed I powered up my laptop again and typed in LYCANS into the search box.
I read that Lycans much like werewolves, being their descendants. They had evolved and mutated, though, and were larger and more formidable than the werewolf. They were bigger, faster and could heal better more quickly a werewolf. The saliva and blood of a Lycan contains healing powers which enables them to help heal others.
I was fascinated and kept reading. One of the major differences is that a Lycan keeps their human personalities when shifted and tend to work with the Lycan part of themselves. In werewolves, the wolf and the human can communicate, but the wolf can take over, especially when shifted. In my mind, that’s what made werewolves so dangerous. The Lycan half works with the human half, and they are one personality. Lycans have also been extinct since the sixteenth century. That was a long time ago. Stephen Jones was wrong.
The next morning I ate a quick breakfast of some overnight oats with blueberries and took another shower. I always felt dirty after traveling and it took me some time to wash the greasy feeling out of my hair. I tied it back into a long, thick braid and put on my favorite hoodie with my jeans. Everyone around here has seen my facial scar, but I always feel a little self-conscious and try to give myself a way to cover it if I need to. The hoodie also helped to cover the numerous scars I have on my body, especially my arms and hands. They were usually the first things that were sliced by the wolves’ claws.
I ran down the stairs, through the door leading outside and then walked down two offices to a small one in the middle. There was a modest sign on the door that stated: “Thompkins Exterminations.” We didn’t advertise nor do I pay G****e for a listing, but Emmett still got two or three phone calls a week wanting to know if we would take care of a squirrel in the attic or mice in the basement. He usually just told them we were booked out and recommended someone else.
Emmett was sitting at an oversized desk in an oversized table. He was an oversized man who needed the oversized furniture. He stood up, knocking over the chair and coming at me, arms outstretched.
“Kace!” he said. I laughed and threw myself into his arms. He is one of the very few people in my life who makes me feel short.
He pushed me back and looked me over from top to bottom. “Can’t see much of you but what I can see looks pretty much the same. No scars.”
I nodded. “No scars. This one was pretty easy. He didn’t see it coming until it was too late.”
“We got paid already. The employer saw the news story on social media and didn’t wait for proof of completion.” Emmett turned to go back to his computer.
“Cool,” I said. “Do me a favor and send a contract to Stephen Jones. I think I’m going to take this one.”
Emmett nodded. “I figured you would. I have one up already. Since he’s not entirely sure how many are in the pack, I think you should charge per kill. And ask for a pretty sizeable upfront fee because you’re going to be there awhile. I think you’re going to need to rent an apartment, even.”
“You’ve been doing research,” I said, impressed. He nodded. “Never had this come up before and it’s not exactly something you can g****e to see how others do it.” He looked at me sideways. “Don’t be mad, Kace. I called your dad and asked him for advice on how to charge for this.”
I shrugged. “Not mad. Indifferent. How did he sound?”
Emmett wouldn’t meet my eyes. “Jealous, I guess. Asked how come you’re getting so many contracts. Sounded pissed that you have more clients than you can handle. Sounds like they’re hurting for business.”
I picked at a piece of lint on my sweatshirts. “Give them some of the business that calls in while I’m taking care of Jones’s problem. That should help them out a little bit.”
Emmett nodded. “Will do, boss.”
I walked through the office into the back where my desk was housed. I sat down at the computer to write up a report for the clients on my last case, attaching the photo I had taken as proof. Even though they paid, I wanted them to have my report. I worked hard, pounding at the keys, refusing to think about my family.
WYATTI was sitting at my desk in my office when my assistant pushed through the door and stood quietly, waiting for me to finish my conversation with one of my lumber suppliers. I smiled at her and acknowledged her presence. She bowed and waited.When I was done with the conversation, I hung up the phone and looked at her, waiting for her to speak. She had a few files in her arms that she brought forward and lay on the desk.“Sire, the head of your security would like to have a word with you. He is waiting.” I nodded and took the files, opening it up. The top file was thicker than the one on the bottom. I recognized the one on the top as a businessman in the town near my village. He was crooked and someone we had been watching for quite some time. The second file was thinner. Curious, I opened it and saw a full-page photo of a beautiful woman.She had glossy black hair that was pulled to the side in this photo. She was laughing at something someone said off camera and her
KACELAThe contract came back quickly, and even though I felt that something was off with Stephen Jones, I signed my portion and had Emmett file it. I knocked off early for the day, ordered some takeout and went upstairs to pack. Emmett had looked up the average temperature of the town I was going to be staying in and it looked like hoodies, leggings and jeans were going to suffice. Three flights and twelve hours of travel time later found me in the back seat of a car Jones had sent for me. It was a three-hour drive from the airport to the lumber mill. I was going to meet Jones first, then be taken to my little apartment that Emmett had procured for me. I was ready for a shower and a nap; traveling is my least favorite part of my job.“Are we almost there?” I leaned forward to talk to the driver. So far our trip had been very quiet. He had started to make small talk, but I discouraged it and just watched the scenery as it sped by. I found it exhausting to try to talk to someo
WYATTI was tapping my fingers impatiently, waiting for the phone calls that were supposed to be coming. I was usually a lot more patient, but these phone calls were thirty minutes overdue. Earl was sitting in the chair opposite my desk waiting with me. We were trying to figure out how to deal with this threat.The phone finally rang and I switched it to speaker. “Nellie?” I asked.“Yes, my king. I also have Jason here.” Jason was the driver for Stephen Jones, also one of my subjects. “Hello, Jason,” I said. “Hello, My King,” he answered. “I’m happy to serve you.”The kid was so formal. I looked up to see Earl smirking. He rearranged his features when he saw my glare. “Please report on the girl,” I said. Jason cleared his throat.“She’s pleasant enough, but untalkative. Most people jabber my ear off or want to talk the entire time. We sat in silence. No radio, nothing. She didn’t even wear earbuds.” I smiled. Jason was one of my younger Lycans, still aging in appear
KACELAI was dropped off at my new apartment by the driver of the car. While I signed a few papers and got a key from a nice older lady, the driver unloaded my suitcase and the trunk that contained all my weapons. “Just leave them there,” I said. The driver frowned at the stack on the sidewalk. “Mr. Jones said to help you get them into your new place.”I shook my head. “You got them here. Leave them.”He nodded, tipped his hat to me and then got into his car, slowly driving off. I looked around and then put the key into the lock, opening it.I stepped into a small foyer that contained a landing and a steep set of stairs. My apartment was located above a small florist shop, one block off from the main road. My entrance was to the side of the main entrance of the floral shop, located in an ally. It was quiet and private. No one would be able to observe me going in and out. In a large city, this entrance would be dangerous but in a small sleepy town, it was ideal.I dragged m
WYATTAfter Dr. Burst had left, Earl and I sat in silence, him tapping on the computer looking for more information about Kacela. I just sat. His phone rang and he answered it speaking briefly to the person on the other end. He disconnected and spoke to me.“I put a couple warriors on the girl. Alec is watching her tonight. He just called. She’s left for the diner.”I looked at Earl. “Do you want to. . . “He nodded and stretched. “Let’s go.”We took off our clothing, stuffing it into a backpack and then we shifted. Earl put on the backpack, and we took off, running for town. By car, we lived an hour outside of town. Running in Lycan form got us there in seventeen minutes. We shifted back, dressing quickly, and then I blocked the view so that Earl could pick her lock. He was quite handy, using one of his claws instead of tools. I mind linked Alec to let us know when she was on her way back.We relocked the door at the bottom but left the one at the top of the stairs ajar
KACELAI was pissed off that someone had searched my apartment already. I needed to change the locks, at least the one at the top of the stairs, as soon as I could. It wouldn’t happen tonight, though. Everything was already closed, one of the quaint things about small towns.I curled up on the couch with the files and started with Wyatt’s. His profile was pulled out for a reason, and I wanted to figure out why. There was just the basic information, his address, phone number, basic demographic information and a schedule that he tended to follow. There was nothing really remarkable about his file, though I saw that he visited the local nursing home every Thursday at noon. That was interesting. Tomorrow was Thursday. I knew where I was going to be at noon.I usually took some time to observe my marks before making any moves. Often, the client will give me poor or incomplete information and I liked to make sure I wasn’t walking into a trap. The rest of the week will be me gath
KACELAI could feel Wyatt’s eyes on my back as I stumbled away, trying to keep control of myself. My wolf was going crazy in my head. I haven’t felt her presence in over a year, and she was suddenly back, freaking out on me. She kept yelling ‘mate’. I was trying to silence her, not knowing if Wyatt’s wolf had alerted him. The effort made my nose bleed.The four-block walk was excruciating. Dali was getting stronger, and she was trying to take over. I had blood gushing from my nose, and I had a splitting headache. I finally made it back to the apartment and about fell into the door. My hands were shaking, and I had to try twice to get the key in before I could turn it. The door opened and I yanked the key out of it, stumbling in and slamming it behind me. I noticed I left a smear of blood on the back of the door. I would have to deal with it later. I locked the door behind me and looked up the stairs, putting one foot in front of the other. I made it up three steps before
WYATTEarl handed the zippered pouch to Kacela and I watched as her wolf refused to let her open it. I could see that it was important to her, so I opened the case and handed it back only to see her pull out a syringe and inject herself with an odd, green substance. I caught a whiff of the smell and realized what she had done. Wolfsbane. I watched in horror as she passed out. I looked at Earl, unsure what to do. He also looked horrified by what he just saw. “She needs a doctor,” he said.“Sure,” I said, sarcastically. “I’ll just drop her off at the emergency room and tell them that she took wolfsbane.” He shook his head impatiently. “She needs to be treated by our doctors.” I lost it. “I can’t very well bring her to our clinic, now can I? She’s been hired to kill us. All of us in case you forgot. Your profile was in that file, too. And you heard what Dr. Burst said. She could be alpha strong if she harnessed her wolf.”Earl shrugged, inspecting the case. “Looks li