While the bitch was out I cleaned up. Alarm systems were turned off. Regular power was turned on. Half the outlets downstairs didn't work anymore due to bullet holes. Kahina was unharmed. All of the broken plaster had managed to avoid where she slept. I held my wounded arm over her mouth and tried to drip blood in. Maybe it would help, maybe it wouldn't, but I felt no rage after dropping it in.

I honestly couldn't tell if she noticed. Her body didn't react. Without proper needles or anything useful I couldn't just inject it straight into her blood. There might have been some in the first aid kit leftovers, but I didn’t have time to check. Vampires could drink blood, doing it this way might work eventually.

Kahina was alive. After our little firefight that was impressive and more than enough.

I shook off some of the haze creeping over me. Adrenaline was fading. Both eyes felt fuzzy. Each missing ribbon of flesh stung like crazy. There wasn't enough gauze and bandages in my bathroom to cover half the damage. Both arms and my head were run under the shower in an effort to clean some of the wounds.

There would be time to truly check the damage later. It didn't feel like bullets were stuck under my skin. Legs and arms functioned still. Moving hurt but it was manageable. I would heal in theory.

Now wasn't the time to worry about myself. Hell. If things went right I could scare the bitch off and maybe the rest of her pack would follow suit.

The three humans were all done up in some sort of armor. I managed to pry my sword out of the third one's head. That was a mess that turned even my stomach. There was a mangled tattoo on the side of his neck that resembled a man on fire.

After some effort, I tied the female wolf up in a chair. Her arms were bound by a strange combination of duck tape and the leftover Sector handcuffs I stole from Daniel years ago. I liked having these cuffs because trying to break out or shifting would cause a huge amount of pain. Not lethal, but enough to knock out most wolves.

That took roughly seven minutes. My attempt at scrambling to get things done was interrupted by pounding on the door. At least the lock was functioning. I had closed the door earlier as part of my attempts to clean up.

Entertaining guests was out of the question due to the female wolf currently tied up in my front room. The knocking was becoming violent. Standing in front of the thin wood entryway felt like a bad idea so I peeked out the window.

It was Thomas. He decided now was a good time to bring Stacy and Dopey along. Stacy, not only a bitch but ‘The Bitch’, was the one pounding on my door. I slid my captive wolf around to the back. Hopefully, she would be out of sight.

Otherwise they would need to magically fail to notice the heads sitting scattered around, headless body on the rug, and blood all over my face. That assumed they didn’t care about the gunfire earlier or my siren that debilitated wolves. Well, the blood was mostly gone but shouting through the door would be better.

"Not a good time, Stacy," I yelled.

"Open up the door, you fucking fang-snack!" She yelled in response. I guess she recovered from our last meeting.

"Jesus, Stace," Dopey commented quietly. My head hung down for a moment while I pondered what to do. Then everything caved in. Why not open the door? Why not let them see my face at least? Maybe they would flee.

"Open up, you spineless whore!" Stacy's degrading words came through again and clinched it.

"What!?" I opened it up and let them see everything. Bullet wounds, a bleeding side that had mostly scabbed over. Another man's fresh blood all over my hands. It would be extremely easy to reach out and smear a trail of the liquid across her face and hope she retched.

"What the fuck?" She had backed up into Dopey hastily.

"I'm having a very bad day, and right now I don't want to put up with your bullshit," I shouted at her.

Dopey and Thomas stood mute behind Stacy this time. She was apparently in Alpha Bitch mode. Fine, whatever. I guess my appearance threw off the rant she had planned.

"Nothing?" I asked.

Her jaw was trying to find words.

"Good. Your problems are secondary. Why don't you drink yourselves retarded like Julianne's death only affected the Pack." My words were intended to be harsh. The bad day thing wasn't a lie. Not even remotely.

"You have no idea what she meant to us!" Stacy found her anger again. Even Thomas looked irate. It was clear he was still trying to numb everything by being inebriated. A man after my own heart. I would do the same if something happened to Kahina.

"My sister, you jackass!" Thomas slurred. "And here you are living on her property, getting shot at, setting off that..." His face scrunched up in confused while he tried to figure out what exactly I had done.

Dopey just stood there, his nostrils flaring now and then. Hopefully, the gunfire was overpowering everything else. I couldn't imagine what they might think if the other factors became apparent. My downstairs was a disaster area.

"You're some lowlife scumbag who barely knew her!" Stacy yelled.

"Look, Bitch" I stepped out and put my face right into Stacy's. There was no blinking, no hesitation, no avoiding eye contact. This was a long time coming.

"You accuse me of having no clue about her? We knew each other for years before you came along. Julianne was one of two people I trust in this world." The other being Daniel, and even that was sketchy. "She'd always been there for me." More than my parents, longer than Kahina.

"I watched the god damned life bleed from her eyes and could do nothing about it." The door hung open behind me, but I doubt anyone noticed. My arms were spread out and agitated. The muscles in my arms firing uncontrollably as I tried not to punch this mouthy woman in the face. "She was always there, helping me out, and didn't even blink when I came back! If I had a way to bring her back from the dead I would, in a heartbeat! But I don't!"

Stacy's eyes were wide and I could see the wolfish colors creeping along the edges. It would be fight or flight time soon. My care level was too damn low to worry about it. She was afraid. Stacy, The Bitch, kept trying to back up. I closed the gap and kept right in her face.

"Now you idiots are here fucking up my attempts at keeping one of Julianne's best friends alive. You're all a bunch of disgraceful animals who should be put down!" This had to be the longest rant that had ever come out of my mouth. Normally I kept things clipped, shortened. It was only the knowledge that these people were Julianne's family, that kept my rage in check.

Besides, there was a better focus for all of my anger inside. Stacy started to respond. Even Thomas and Dopey looked ready to say something. I cut them all off.

"Either help, like Janny would have, or go the fuck away." I hadn't given Stacy an ounce of space. Not once had I stopped looking at her eyes. They were kind of pretty. A green that bled slowly into brown around the outer edges. Just that moment gave me a perspective on what Julianne might have seen in her.

For once she stayed quiet. Maybe she remembered how bad things had gone outside of Kahina's property. Maybe she had never really wanted to hurt me to begin with. Maybe Stacy was looking for someone to blame. Fine. I could stand silent blame and being shunned, but having it thrown in my face repeatedly was not happening. No one wants to have their failures brought to light by other people. Life was stressful enough without the extra nonsense.

Stacy backed up again. This time, I didn't close the gap. Finally, she left followed shortly by a staggering Thomas. Dopey brought up the rear. Once they were out of sight I let out my breath. Staring down a wolf always had the potential of going either way. Three wolves would have been bad times for me.

I went inside and slammed the door shut. Thankfully I had managed to deal with the trio without blacking out. In fact, I survived the entire fight downstairs without once losing consciousness.

There wasn't a lot of time. The chair holding my wolf captive wasn't a problem. In this case, it was the lack of props. While she regained consciousness I wandered downstairs. There were three dead people that no longer needed their heads.

The first two were easy. A few quick hacks and they were removed from the bodies. I set them on my broken counter, staring directly at the unconscious wolf. It was bloody and disturbing, but everything helped. I intended to shake her up first then go from there. Stains weren't a concern since everything in the house would need to be replaced at this point.

This is my home. All things in it are mine. The violators lay dead except for one. One who didn't cross the final threshold. She may live. I feel her wake. The Pack Queen shudders. Body tenses against the bindings of tape and rope. Large inhalations test the limits. Arms flex. Careful force. Subtle movements that someone relying on eyesight alone might miss.

Clever Pack Queen.

"Don't bother," I said.

She didn't react. Chances were her next move would be to try and check Pack bonds for anyone nearby. I stepped over and looked down at her face. Hair was matted to one side by slowly drying blood. Both eyes were focusing well. The wolf would be coherent enough for what came next.

The third body was on my stairs still. I drug him upstairs by a shoulder strap. His rig was solid enough that it didn't fall apart.

This one I decapitated right in front of her. His face was a mangled mess and my work wasn't helping matters. Finally the head came off with a squish. The scene in my front room was depressing. Maybe Kahina could recommend a good cleaner or the entire place should be burned to the ground along with my clothes. There was a reason I preferred cheap shirts and pants. They were easy to replace compared to this ruined suit that was in tatters on my body.

In the back of my mind, I could hear an imaginary Daniel groaning about the suit’s treatment. A Deckard, high-powered, expensive, and now covered in gore.

With a deliberate slowness, I set the last head in its place near the other two. Lips were pursed, the head readjusted, finally I swapped them around, making the entire situation seem a little over the top. At least one of us was feeling talkative.

"Rather rude, these three." I nodded to the heads without looking at the female tied to a chair. "First they break into my home. Then try to kill me."

One of the heads made an awkward puppet as I lifted it up and danced it around.

"It was just a job!" I mimicked. "Sure."

The head was thrown in her direction. There was an overwhelming sense of satisfaction when she flinched.

"Only following orders!" The second lifeless head was waved around as it mimed talking. "Sure."

I lobbed this head in her direction as well. It wasn't in keeping with the original plan, but this felt appropriately unnerving. My gut feelings were confirmed each time her breath quickened against the bindings.

"It's nothing personal." The last head said in a detached voice before it was thrown in her direction. She tried to draw back as I came around the counter and walked towards the chair. "It never is. Personal, I mean."

She was brave enough to hold back a response. Maybe she'd been trained or was talking to some other nearby wolf.

"Except in this case. It is personal." I amended my statement. "You violated my home, threatened my woman, like I'd ever let anyone take away what is mine. I will fight tooth and nail to keep her safe." My fingers grabbed at the woman's jaw and forced her to look up. It was difficult for me to keep a mental balance. Messing with a captive like this wasn't in my nature. Normally it was one way or the other and quickly. Decisively.

Today was a very bad day. Focusing my thoughts wasn't easy. What came next wouldn't be pretty but felt necessary. Kahina was close by and danger still hung around us like a fog.

There was a short knife I had dug up from my stash. There weren’t a lot of weapons left in my home. This would have to do the job. I brought the blade over and held it up with every ounce of calm available. It shook with a rush of barely suppressed anger. Blackness threatened to overwhelm my vision while I tried to maintain consciousness.

Violent negotiations tend to follow a pattern. Pain, explain the stakes, address outside help, give a thread of hope, and offer your deal. When in doubt repeat the first step. Sometimes you linger on the first step for a long time.

"The first cut should never be personal," I repeated my earlier words with the same absent tone of voice.

The blade was pressed against her leg where the pants had bared flesh. Step one in hostile negotiation was always the same. Demonstrate a willingness to inflict pain.

"Some doubt my resolve, or think that I'm secretly a nice guy." My words felt mechanical. This speech was an old one. The type I used when talking to scum who couldn’t pay their bills. The type of violence that Julianne paid me to handle but not advertise.

Explaining my actions helped detach the moment. It was like surgeon explaining the process ahead of time. My tiny slice was sudden and a bit deeper than intended. The wolf jerked a bit but managed to regain control.

"Except it is personal," I said.

The blade was pressed against her other leg for step two. This spot wouldn’t pierce anything vital. It was more of a focus point for her attention as we moved along in the process. Blood trickled from the first wound with no signs of rapid healing. Step two demonstrated a willingness to inflict pain, again.

"Questions, to determine what’s next." I stared at her face.

It was difficult not to picture her as someone familiar. She could have been a pack member of Julianne's, or one of Malcolm's, or a friend in another lifetime. This woman could have been Stacy in another reality.

"Show me you're listening." My words were colder than expected.

The chair jerked suddenly as she struggled. It tipped one way then the other. If it wasn't for the solid weight at the base it might have fallen over. Not once during her struggle did my blade actually pierce her flesh. This was the fight I expected earlier. Finally, she gave up, gasping and glaring at me from a lowered head.

"Good." I nodded, proud that we had reached this stage of the conversation. "Death will be slow and painful should I decide it, understand?"

She squeezed her eyes shut and nodded. That brought me right along to step three, remind the captive of what's at stake for them.

"Interruptions from friends results in a painful but quicker death. Police or Pack, when they get here, will force me to kill you. Understand?" I managed to keep relatively calm.

There was a hitch of breath and her eyes flickered around. My tone hadn't changed, but her mind would try to figure out how long to stall for. Hopefully we would make it. Candy's cover up of illusions helped. Daniels handling of the police made other problems go away. Shaggy was out there breaking so many laws that people were chasing her down.

"There's no one else." The words came out of her mouth, but they sounded hoarse. Her silence was finally broken.

"Nine of your pack are dead." At least that was the last count I knew of. Three at the start, three more on the road, two more at the household while we were gone. "You're ten. I expect at least four others."

She didn't say anything in response. Her head was lifted a little bit, though. Maybe part of her was considering a quick death against a slow one.

"Today has made me unpleasant." I started.

Hacking at the other bodies, playing around with them like sock puppets, none of that helped me be clean. I probably looked worse now than when I answered the door for Thomas. All this gore just to torturing a tied up woman. I missed the simple days where my problems involved finding a drink.

"Would you like to live?" I asked. It was my final question that mattered. The problem with this question was that it might give her an incorrect expectation. Her life remained on the line. If things went right she could walk away. Killing women never sat well with me.

"Of course." She was looking up again. Her eyes were trying to pick up any signs of body language. They flicked to arms, neck muscles, the tilt of my head. I was being careful with my posture for this reason. Not aggressive, not defensive. Listen closely to me, a posture that Julianne had taught me for dealing with wolves.

Just like that we were on the final step. I had her attention, she had a way out that might be worth listening to. It was a good thing too, my mind was barely holding it together. Revisiting step one would make controlling myself difficult.

"Then listen," I commanded her, keeping my voice level. Now it was time to see if Daniel had been right. "The people who hired you are called the Order of Merlin. It's a humanity first group. They want you dead as much as any vampire."

I tried to remember all the rules from a decade of this kind of thing. The wording was important. Her eyes were wide and head tilted to the side. I had her attention and curiosity. It confirmed my suspicions. She was merely a trooper, not a trained assassin. Not really. Probably didn't expect a fight.

"The humans you're with, are they potential pack members?" I asked.

"No. Other mercs, we were told it was a joint operation." She was surprisingly open about the answer.

"They're Order members." I had no proof, only a gut feeling.

"So?"

"These people have invaded pack hunting grounds without invitation, fired silver into members defending it, and killed unturned family members." Technically a vampire had killed Julianne, but the Order had engineered the opportunity.

My captive looked properly angry and horrified at these actions. She should understand as a mercenary people died, but screwing with one's family was well outside the bounds of decency.

"Do you have proof?" She sounded skeptical. It showed that she was thinking and didn't trust me. The suspicion was valid since a sharp blade sat pressed against her leg. Not once had I smiled either. Nothing in my tone sounded friendly.

"You, if you live, can ask the pack leaders here and to the north." I wouldn't suggest going to Julianne's Bar and Grill next door. Not today, not after all the havoc we caused at my house just across the parking lot.

She chewed over the words for a minute before I launched my next question.

"Was the pay worth the death of your family?" I put the questions back on her again.

"No."

"It never is," I said with a touch more sadness than expected. Those words were becoming the mantra of our interaction. "Did you want to die for a group that hates all wolves?"

"No." This time, she said it slower, and also softer. Her voice was almost broken, but she kept it together.

"Then make a deal."

She stared at me for awhile. It was difficult for her to figure out which side of the obstinate line to be on. Sassy, sarcastic, afraid and timid? None of those. Passive with a hint of disturbed. At least she was talking. The last time I did this was over a stolen car worth a little over a hundred thousand. That guy had turned stubborn. It took a lot longer than this.

"Call your pack, cancel the contract." She was obviously waiting for my terms. We couldn't have a lot of time left so I couldn't afford to play mind games.

"Or?"

"I kill you. I kill whoever else comes after you. Then once the dust settles I come to your pack grounds and keep going." I leaned in close and kept both eyes locked on target. It wasn't a hollow threat. If these wolves managed to get Kahina then I would spend the rest of my days hunting down everyone involved.

"That's it?" She asked. I still didn’t know her name, beyond the Pack Queen name assigned by my other mind.

"It's more than enough." The deranged and blood splattered smile on my face painted a clear picture. I leaned in and let her get a good whiff of the drying blood, assuming she could pick it out from the gunpowder and other bodily fluids.

"I'll need a phone." She wasn't flinching in fear anymore. That was either very good, or bad.

"Where's yours?"

"Front pocket," She said.

I dug it out with a more force than necessary. There was a line between relaxed and ready to follow through on my threat that I was trying to walk. Too much hesitation would give away my real feelings on the matter.

I did want to kill her for invading my home. That much wasn't a lie. Letting her live might make things easier for Kahina and that was worth the sacrifice of my pride. There would be a lot of pent-up aggression for whoever was left.

She told me a speed dial number. Soon the phone was ringing. I held it up to her ear with my free hand.

"Yes." She paused. "Check orders. Who set the contract?" Another pause. "Why?" Her eyes came up to meet mine and then shied away.

"This contract’s too dangerous." The calm voice on the other side started screaming. I knew it was screaming because the wolf tried to yank her head away from the phone. There wasn't a lot of room to move, though.

"Nine down. Supporting mercs violating clause three. And I've been captured." That was the only part of her conversation that wasn't said in cold tones. "Screw distress words."

I glared at her, it hadn't even crossed my mind that there might be some sort of code for her to use. Most of my experience was with thieves and lowlifes. They were not smart or clever enough to make a difference.

"Escape? Not happening. He's staring at me with a butcher's knife." She said.

"Yes, I'm sure he knows how to use it," She said. It only took a short motion to jab the knife into her leg. Satisfaction crossed my face as her scream deafened whoever was on the other line. The woman nearly crushed the phone as her head snapped back and forth.

My knife slowly came out. There was no sense in hurting her beyond what was needed to drive home a point. Moments passed as she regained breath, huffing with painful hatred. I understood, and in a different life I would have felt bad.

"Does he believe you now?" I asked.

They had a few more lines of conversation.

"Assessment stands despite personal danger." She paused again. "Listen, you brown-nosing dipshit, this guy will fucking kill us all." She was cutting someone else off and straight talking over them. "I'm not dying for this shit contract! CANCEL IT."

Finally, there was a murmur of confirmation and a relieved look crossed over her features. I took the phone and carefully broke it in two. There was no reason to keep it around.

"Listen, you going to let me go or was that bullshit? I got the contract dropped." The woman was still wincing in pain from where I wounded her leg. The fact that she managed to keep composure after the first scream belayed just how tough she was.

If it hadn't been for the siren in my house there's no telling how things would have gone.

"Any revenge hangups?" I asked her. There was no way she could lie at this point. Too many physical twitches gave away a wolf's thoughts.

"No. Price tag was absurdly low for this much opposition, we reserve the right to cancel, and if it was ordered by some Humanity First group then we'll be having words with them. Revenge only where it's due." She smiled then winced. Being bound, bloodied, and in tattered clothes made for a grisly image.

I doubt my vestige was any better. Maybe the skulls on the countertop had been a bit much. The place would start to smell soon. Sirens started in the distance. Her ears perked up and so did mine.

"Good timing," She said. "Let me go and we can bolt."

"Not quite," I said.

The pack mercenary rattled her chair violently. "Let me go, that was the deal!"

I ignored her and walked downstairs to grab Kahina. It was time to go somewhere else, anywhere else. Where would be easier to figure out once we got away from the area. Police would show up, survey the scene, start questioning the locals. They may set up a few roadblocks nearby.

A sleeping bag, some small towels and a bottle of water along with the first shirt I came across. I needed something clean to pass a first glance. Luckily everything was out in the open.

She had finally managed to tip over the chair during my absence. While I lugged up my items and a body she was ranting incessantly. Understandable. I carefully set down Kahina and tossed keys to the cuffs towards the opposite side of the room. Slowly I approached her with the knife.

The wolf in human skin became motionless. My arms were calm, the blade wasn't raised. Each action designed to be passive in body signals. She would have heard those sirens well before I did and still worked with me. There was ample incentive.

"Hold still," I said.

She did. It made it easier to slice the bindings. The cut was enough to give her leverage and tear out of them. Immediately she started twisting out of them but it would take some time.

"The only reason you're alive is because you never made it downstairs," I said. "If you get caught ask for Agent Crumfield. Say Jay sent you." Why I went so far was beyond me. Maybe it was an attempt at redeeming myself. The last fifteen minutes couldn't have been pleasant.

I picked up Kahina and went to the front door. Behind me, the female wolf was struggling out of her bindings and surging over towards the handcuff keys. The door slammed shut behind me and the wolf's life became someone else's problem.

Outside the world was lit up in chunks by streetlights and a faded moon. Thomas was nowhere in sight, and the apartment complex still had a cheap security lock that would keep people away even after muffled gunfire. Night was a wonderful time to move a comatose body. My brain was at least used to operating on this schedule from four months of being with Kahina. The contrast between the tactile senses being home gave me and this outdoor world was shocking. It was hard being reduced to a visual element again.

I made it a block away before splashing water on my face and hands then using a towel and old shirt to mop up. The items were shoved inside a trashcan. Hopefully, the smell would cover up anyone sniffing behind me.

Each corner was greeted with suspicion. Was there another set of them watching me? Were more on the way even now? It was nerve wracking as I slinked through back alleys and tried to find my way to somewhere safe. Even if it was temporary. Windows that were still lit this late at night were avoided. If anyone was on my side of the street I stepped out of their way.

Most of my contacts were out of date. Safe houses, places to crash for the night, Kahina's list of extraneous homes. Everything was out of reach. There was a park nearby that I had frequented months back. It wasn't pack grounds, this was an elven adopted one. Best of all it was quiet. It would do for a night or two.

After that, we would be so far beyond Kahina's window of change that it wouldn't matter anyway. That would put us near eight or nine days compared to the seven maximum it should take. I paused. Had it really been that long? Was I just imagining it? Maybe we had gone over the time limit.

It wasn't until I got to the park entrance that I realized my cell phone was at home. Shaggy couldn't find me. There was no way to call Daniel or Candy. I was alone with no help and Kahina was being hunted in both the waking and sleeping worlds.