"What did you want me for, anyway?" Maria asked Gabriel.

Gabriel sat on the chair next to the desk as he started to explain the events of the previous day to Maria. He said they went to the biker bar and asked if any of them had seen anything suspicious. They had, one girl had been approached, although she’d managed to do a runner before anything happened. He then started to explain about their trip into the forest.

"I know some of what happened yesterday, it was on the news. You called the cops?" Maria asked.

Gabriel nodded, and it appeared the news reporter said more than he’d expected. What the press hadn't mentioned was… what happened while they were in and amongst the trees. That would be the most exciting part.

"Well, Tanya changed into her wolf and ran off ahead to try and catch some small prey. I was walking up the trail toward the area where we faced off against the hunters." Gabriel looked at Tanya who was in a world of her own. "Well, I got so far, and I noticed the ferns were trampled flat. This caught my attention because I know a wolf would never leave a trail so obvious. I followed the flattened undergrowth and came to a clearing. Strewn across it were all the poly boxes from the hospital robbery, and bags of blood were laid all over the forest floor."

Maria nodded as she listened intently. "Carry on."

"Anyway, as I was looking through the boxes, I heard a snap of a branch. I thought it was Tanya, but when I looked up there was someone stood there, just watching me. I saw a flash of white before it vanished. I set off giving chase, the bushes whipped at my face and I screamed to a halt as I reached a drop to a stream below me," Gabriel explained.

"And what happened with the mysterious figure?" Maria asked, hoping for more insight.

Gabriel shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea, they couldn't have jumped down into the stream, and it looked to be a good thirty-foot drop, at least. They either ran left or right, either way, I would’ve seen them."

"Could they have jumped across?" Maria asked, confused.

"Tanya, do you think you could clear that distance?" Gabriel asked. "Tanya… yoo-hoo."

Tanya turned her head. "Sorry, I was miles away. What did you ask?"

"The ravine where the stream was, could you clear that?"

Tanya shook her head to signal a no. "Not a chance. I don't even think Declan could clear it. At least not fighting your way through the undergrowth."

Maria looked puzzled. "Which way do you think they went then?" she asked Tanya.

"Up."

"What do you mean, up?"

"Well, when we got back to the clearing and took another look around the boxes from the hospital, it was weird. We heard a large crack and a branch fell onto all of the boxes and the bags," she explained.

"So, what was strange about that?"

Tanya frowned a little. "At the time, I thought nothing of it because the branch was rotted, it was only when Gab said there was a boot print on the branch I thought that something could’ve kicked it from the tree."

Maria leaned on the desk. "And you saw someone do this?"

Gabriel joined back into the conversation. "Well; it was hard to tell. We think we did but the light started to fade as the rain closed in, we just got out of there as quickly as we could. Either way, someone had been watching us, for sure," he explained.

"Hmm. Very interesting. Dustin has some info for us in a while too, it seems. He has been up all night watching Kelvin, who received a major smack on the head," she explained.

"Fuck! Kelvin was attacked?" Tanya asked, sounding more worried.

"Not at all. Apparently, there was a car… I better let him tell you. I'll get it wrong somewhere. Let’s just say that it gives a little more depth to this conundrum."

"Tell her Gab, tell Maria what the old dude in the bar said to us."

"A stranger has been talking to you about this?" Maria asked, obviously concerned that others knew about their situation.

"No, he offered information about me, and how to get my wolf back," Gabriel said.

"How did he know you were once a wolf?"

"We have Shadow (the biker gang leader to thank for that), he basically yelled it at the top of his voice."

Maria leaned across the desk. "You have to be more careful, you know. Look at the situation you’re in now," she said, unimpressed.

"Yeah! I know, but it was out of my control," he replied. "Anyway, this old Indian said I could never be turned back the same way that Declan was. I need assistance from the spirit world."

"Yeah, I bet he asked you to buy him a drink, too."

Gabriel looked a little embarrassed and he thought he had been scammed. "I think he was legit," Tanya remarked. "He was open and honest, and he looked wealthy enough to buy his own drinks."

Maria looked at Gabriel. "Go on, tell us what he said, maybe he was telling the truth."

"He said I had to find a shaman, they are the only ones who can turn me back, apparently."

"An Indian shaman?"

"Oh, I dunno. He never mentioned that. I think he meant a shaman, in general. They have a connection to another realm and the spirit world."

"It sounds likes it’s taken from a book or something," Maria said with a smirk on her face. "So, what’s your plan? Something is better than nothing, I guess."

"We’re gonna head off once all this has cleared up, or at least once we know everyone’s out of danger."

"That might be a few weeks away, if not longer," she replied.

"I think it’s only fair to stick around for a while," Gabriel said. There was a knock at the door.

The door opened, and Dustin poked his head through the gap. "This a good time?" he asked.

"Sure, come on in, we’re waiting for you," Maria said. Matter-of-factly, she stood and walked toward the whiteboard. She picked up a pen and spun the board around. A web of boxes had already been scrawled onto the board. Each contained an instance of what had occurred over the past few days.

Gabriel looked at what she had scribbled. "It looks like you’ve been busy?"

"Well, I had an appointment last night and they never showed, so I thought I’d occupy my time," she replied. Her tone was a little on the sarcastic side.

Gabriel turned around and saw the huge bump on Kelvin's forehead as he walked in. "What the fuck happened to you?"

"I didn't look," Kelvin said as he rubbed his head.

"What didn't you look at?"

"The low branch the car drove under," he replied, sheepishly grinning with tightened lips.

"I don't understand, a car drove under a low branch, it broke off and hit you?"

"No."

Gabriel looked puzzled. "Where were you when the car drove under the branch?" he asked.

"I was on the vehicle and peeling the roof open like a can opener."

Tanya raised her hand and asked if they could have coffee. She had the feeling this conversation was going to last a little longer than a few minutes. Maria called Suzy at reception and asked her to bring in coffee for five. A few minutes later Suzy opened the door and place the tray on the desk. They all took a cup and sat to listen to Kelvin and Dustin as they explained what had happened.

"Long version or short version?" Kelvin asked.

"All of it," Gabriel said.

Kelvin sat in Maria's chair as she started to draw more on the whiteboard and see what was linked and what wasn't.

"Right! As you know, it was lashing it down last night. Dustin and I went out in our raincoats and had a walk around the block to make sure everything was locked down tight," he explained. "When we reached the far corner, we saw a car that seemed out of place. The streets were deserted, and it was just sitting there, wipers running and engine running too. We approached it and then it drove off and turned down a side street."

"When did you end up on the vehicle roof?" Gabriel asked.

"Later, much later. We started to walk back to the Towers as an ambulance passed us and turned into the same street the car had taken. Then, weirdly, the sirens stopped."

"What then?" Tanya and Gabriel asked together.

"We went and had a look. And we saw the car pull back out of the street and head off into the night."

"Go on, this must be the exciting part?" Tanya pressed.

"We walked down the street, and the ambulance was skewed across the road. The driver was dead. Slit throat and a young attendant was cut up." Gabriel and Tanya listened as if they were watching a good movie. They were engrossed in every single word. "We called for backup, and another ambulance arrived. They took the dead body, and Dustin drove to the emergency. I gave my blood."

"You did what?" Gabriel yelled.

"The girl was gonna die at any moment, I had to do something," Kelvin said. "So, we got to emergency, and they wheeled her in and patched her up with my expertise in the matter. Now she’s recovering," Kelvin said. His tone was overly-proud.

"And your blood was okay?" asked Maria.

"Obviously, but the doctor had it tested. He said I was a rare type and there was only one other girl who had rarer in the whole of the Creek."

"That has to be Noelle," Tanya said, plainly.

Maria scribbled on the board. Kelvin had a blood type that was almost the same. Maybe he could be at risk. "Who knows you have this blood type?" Maria asked.

"Well, whoever did the test, I guess. Then the doctor and the nurse who were given the result," Kelvin explained. "You think it’s important?"

Maria turned to everyone in the office. She had a thought. It was a stab in the dark, but if it was right then Kelvin could be in danger. "Are you a hybrid?" Maria asked as Kelvin started to laugh.

"I wish. You know they are as rare as anything."

"I was clutching at straws, but I think we need to keep an extra strong watch over you, though, and there might be a link."

Gabriel put his empty cup onto the desk. "Hang on, I want to hear about Kelvin being on the car roof."

* * *

Kelvin couldn't wait to get there. He jumped on the bus and headed over to the hospital. He just had to see how Kat was. She had stirred up emotions deep inside him, and he felt that she was a girl who he could protect. All his life he had yearned for a mate, ever since he had been turned. It was his inner wolf that had pushed him to find a mate, and he knew he’d be an alpha one day. Wild and unruly maybe, but he knew it. However, in truth, Kelvin did have a broad sense of right and wrong. He rested his head on the window and glanced across Cripple Creek as the bus headed to the far side of town and down to the hospital.

To another passenger, Kelvin appeared to be in a daydream. He had fixed his eyes on the streets. He scanned possible places where he might catch this thing that threatened the pack, whoever or whatever it may be. Kelvin always had a good memory, and since he had become a wolf, he remembered stuff as if it was crystal clear to him, even things in the distant past. Like a genius, he soaked up information like a sponge.

If only I’d been turned before I dropped out of school. I could’ve aced all the exams.

The bus stopped by the hospital. The whoosh of the door alerted Kelvin he had arrived at his stop. He jumped from the bus and had some nerves creep into his body. Kelvin had never really dated anyone before. He had lived on the streets since his mom had died and had to make do in his own way.

He walked into the hospital and spotted the doctor who had treated Kat the evening before. "Hey Doc, how’s our favorite patient?" he asked.

"I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow," he replied.

"You know how it is, see a beautiful girl and men will run for miles," Kelvin replied.

"I can't come with you, I have rounds to do. Kat’s in room two-twenty-two."

Kelvin thanked the doctor and walked toward the elevator. A cart sat next to the doors and a bunch of flowers sat in a vase. Kelvin looked around and picked the flowers. He held them close to his chest and smiled as the doors opened.

He walked down the corridor and read the numbers on the doors.

Two-sixteen…

two-nineteen…

two-twenty-two…

He paused and breathed in deeply. As he exhaled, he knocked on the door and walked into the room. He saw that Kat was asleep. He walked to the side of her bed and looked at her resting body. Tape was placed tightly onto her skin where the IV drip had been pushed into her arm. Her full lips were a dark pink and her tanned skin the color of mocha.

Fuck, she is gorgeous.

Kat stirred and turned her head. She looked startled. "Can I help you?" she asked.

"Kelvin, I'm the one who helped to save your life last night," he replied as he held the flowers toward Kat. "Here, I got these for you."

"Did you buy them?" she asked.

Guiltily, Kelvin nodded. "I sure did."

"Where is the wrapping paper and why are they dripping water?" Kat asked, smiling through her semi-cracked lips. "Can you pass me my water?"

Kelvin dropped the flowers on the bed and picked up the glass and steadied Kat's head as she sipped from the glass. He looked around the room and glanced at the machines she was hooked up to. He didn't know how to read the screens, yet everything beeped regularly, which he thought was a good thing.

"Do you remember much about last night?" he asked.

"Not really. It’s all like a dream or a movie. We turned into the street, and a car was parked sideways. The driver slowed, and then something covered the windscreen. His door was open, and he was dragged out," Kat explained.

"What happened once he was out of the vehicle?"

"I turned, and before I knew it, the rear doors were pulled open. The rain was so heavy. I heard a man’s voice, and I think it was a girl who answered. Then suddenly, I had a searing pain in my shoulder, and as I started to blackout I saw them taking the insulated boxes of blood," she explained.

“And that’s when we arrived I guess?" Kelvin said.

"I think they thought I was dead because they called each other by their names, I'm sure they did, but I can't remember."

"Well, now we know there’s two of them for sure, at least," Kelvin said.

"Who’s we?" Kat asked.

"Me and a few friends, we have a vested interest in what's going on," he replied.

"Are you a cop?"

"Far from it, I'm just a passer-by who did his good deed for the day."

"Well, why on earth are they are stealing this blood? Gosh, you should be careful."

"I'm safe. I have some good friends to watch my back. I’ve already said there are only a few people who know my blood type. The doc, the tester, and the nurse who gave him the result."

"Are you sure there’s no one else?" she asked as she propped herself up on her pillow.

"There was a nurse in the nurse’s station, but she was busy updating her social media."

"Kelvin," Kat said, "I heard you’re AB-Positive, and that's rare. Maybe they’ll come looking for you."

Kelvin chuckled. "I think they already have."

“Life is like a can of sardines… where everyone is looking for the key.”