The Marradith Ryder Series, Part 67

Justin put the blindfold over Marradith’s eyes, and whispered into her ear. “Hold still.”

“How long does this last?” Marradith asked.

“It lasts as long as it takes,” he said, tightening the knot at the back of her head.

He kissed her cheek, and gave her a nudge forward.

Justin was gone. She felt the movement of air as he left.

Pausing, she stood, listening.

The woods were full of tiny movements. Branches swaying in the breeze. Birds cooing in the distance.

Leaning into the wind, she could sense Justin. Picking up the trace of his scent, she turned to the left.

The sound of a howl stopped her in her tracks.

A howl that was not Justin’s.

She ran.

Without the benefit of clear vision - she could barely see shapes of trees from beneath her blindfold- she moved swiftly, but clumsily.

The clearing was up ahead of her. Just on the edge of it, she paused.

The movement of air was different here, the scent of the Wolf stronger.

Marradith turned her chin upwards.

The Wolf hurtled down from the trees. She was knocked sideways. When she hit the ground, she pulled the blindfold off her eyes.

The Wolf growled, his pale fur shining like bristles in the sun.

His jaws opened and she saw the shiny maws of his red mouth.

She jumped forward, thrusting her knife into his stomach.

The creature cried out.

Marradith watched as the Wolf grabbed the handle and pulled it out of his stomach.

The animal fell to his knees, and began to shiver.

His snout began to recede, his claws curl under.

“Marradith.”

She jumped at the sound of her name. Justin stood behind her with a grin on his face.

She punched his arm.

“Ouch! Ryder, what…?”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

He laughed. “Well that would have ruined the point of the exercise, wouldn’t it? Turn around, give him a little privacy.”

Marradith shook her head and glared at her husband. She could hear the sounds of the Wolf behind her transforming back into a man: gurgling, cracking, and a long rattle from his throat.

When she heard the sound of steady, deep breathing, she turned around.

The man looked a good four inches taller than Justin, which would make him 6’5. He was fair with pale blue eyes. She guessed he was probably a blond, but his head was shaved.

Everything about him was thick: thick neck, muscular arms, a chest like a football player.

He extended a hand to her. “Marradith. My name is Cord. It’s nice to meet you.”

“I’m sorry about the…knife,” she said, and flashed Justin an angry look.

Cord shook his head. “Well, that was part of the plan. We replaced your knife with one that wasn’t silver, so,” he shrugged, patting his stomach where a scar had already formed. “No damage done.”

“Cord’s a Sojourner,” Justin said. “And a very old friend of mine.”

“I’m going to help out with some of your strength training,” he added. “Justin wasn’t lying when he said you’ve got a good start. But we could work on some things.”

“What things?” Marradith sighed. “And how old is old?”

“You should trust your instincts enough to know where I am by feeling your prey, not by seeing. Trying to see a form through that blindfold cost you a few seconds. And once I came down, you let me knock you off balance.” Cord said.

“Well, I disagree.”

Cord smiled. “Uh huh. Justin mentioned that, too. Well. It’s going to be a couple weeks before we start, I have another assignment I have to complete first. It’s nice meeting you.”

He turned and was gone back into the woods, just as quickly as he came.

“What’s this about?” she asked Justin.

“I could use some extra help getting you trained up, that’ s all. Besides. I never intended to be your only teacher.”

Justin’s cell rang before she could protest further.

It was Fiona.

***

Jenny was awake.

Syd knew because he could hear what she was thinking.

Could anyone love pop music so much? Syd wrinkled his nose as the water sent clouds of steam around him in the shower. She kept that one song in her head so much that he caught himself humming it:

 I got problems with authority/the right/the wrong/and the majority/ain’t got nothing right to do with me/ oh I go down down down/ until I get up get up again again.

 
 
Syd closed his eyes. He should be pleased. But somehow, he was in a mood. He wasn’t happy it all. Jenny’s eyes seemed increasingly vacant to him. And though she did whatever he asked, it just was not satisfying. Maybe, he should draw back some.

There was no fun in control if she wasn’t fighting him, just a little . He wanted to see fear there.

She just held herself stiff as a board and looked into space, with that damn song going through her head.

He was just about to turn off the water when he realized that he hadn’t heard anything for a few moments.

The silence was loud. And then a click.

He stumbled out of the shower and emerged from the bathroom naked.

The door of the room was wide open, and Jenny was nowhere to be seen.

Fumbling with the pants he’d tossed aside the night before, he ran out into the hall just as the elevator opened and she slipped through the door.

The doors closed before he reached them.

He took the stairs.

Syd had made it down to the third floor when he stopped.

She hadn’t gone all the way down. In fact, his senses told him she was going up…

He turned and started back up the stairs when he felt air rush into the stairwell behind him.

“Hey, Syd.”

He turned, and was faced with the business end of a gun.

“Will….?”

“That’s right mother…”

Syd never heard the rest. The gunshot cracked like thunder in the stairwell.

The world went black.

_____

The Marradith Ryder Series, Part 66

Daria waited on the rooftop for almost twenty minutes.

It was starting to rain, but it didn’t bother her. The sounds of the city below were like a discordant symphony, converging beats refusing to become one.

She smiled. It wasn’t just the sounds of the city, but the movement of the humanity flowing below.

Heartbeats. And blood.

“How was your flight?”

She turned on her heel. Rafael smiled and came to stand beside her.

“My flight was excellent. I have never been on a private jet before. Do we always travel in such style?”

“Not always, but as often as it can be arranged.”

“If that’s the case, I have always wanted to go to Dubai. Thoughts?”

He grinned. “Next assignment I have there, I’ll be sure to send you, my dear. So. What were you able to find?”

“A few things. We definitely have a Wolf problem here.”

“And the vampires here have not driven them out?”

“No. In fact, there are very few of my kind left, in this part of the city. The humans are driving them out.”

“I see.”

“Rafael… you knew that already, didn’t you?”

“I wanted independent verification.”

“Okay. You heard about Tom Stark?”

“Yes. The Wolf that was killed a few weeks ago.”

“His wife moved . Should I pay her a visit?”

“No. Granthem already has. He doesn‘t think that she‘s the person we‘re looking for.  Justin always said that she and Tom were… nomads.”

“Whoever is doing this is organized. This Pack is well entrenched. I think they have been here for a while.”

“Pack? We’re dealing with a Pack hunting in the city?”

“Yes.”

“No wonder Miranda is fit to be tied. It has been years since things have been that bad.”

“Maybe we underestimated Pablo Vega’s influence.”

“It has to be more than just that,” Rafael pondered.

“Well. Not to overstep, but….is there something else that you haven’t told me about this assignment ?”

“Possibly,” he said with a dry smile. “I have something for you to do tomorrow.  We’ll meet again the day after. I should have more to tell you then.”

 *******

 Jenny woke.

At first, she was not sure where she was. She stared at the thick, gold draperies at the windows.

On the bedside table, there was a tablet with a fancy name scrawled in cursive:

Last night, he must have dressed her in it.

Syd was in the shower. She heard the water running.

How long would he be in there? She wondered.

Standing up, she hummed a tune under her breath.

In her bag, there was a pair of jeans. She pulled them on, and shoved the gown into them.

Snatching Syd’s jacket off the back of the chair, she grabbed her sneakers and opened the door.

She heard the bathroom door open behind her.

Jenny took off running. The hall seemed to go on forever, but at the end of it there was an elevator.

Pressing the down button frantically, she waited. It seemed to take forever for the doors to open.

The doors slid open with a pleasant ding just as Syd’s form entered the hall.

Jenny screamed, pounding her fingers against the buttons.

 ****

Fiona didn’t say much that morning.

She was quietly happy.  Will did not want to disrupt her mood. They’d had breakfast in bed, and a long shower together afterwards.

He was pretty sure no one would miss him back at the house, but Fi was another story. Whenever Rafael was gone, she was in charge. Sooner or later someone would ask for her.

They decided to leave about six in the morning, before the other guests started checking out. Their car would be waiting for them at the curb.

Standing next to her in the hall, he was aware of how good she smelled. He touched her arm with his forefinger. She gave him a sidelong glance.

“I don‘t guess it‘s not too late to not check out,” she teased. “Could another twenty minutes hurt?”

The elevator doors opened.

The woman inside pressed the down button right in front of them. “Hey,” Will said, and pushed the door back open just before it slammed in his face.

“Excuse us,” Will said.

“Jenny? Are you Jenny Winslow?”

“Yes! Please help me! There’s someone after me.”

Will and Fiona looked at each other, and said one word in unison.

“Syd.”

 ___________________

 ©2009 Lori Titus

Green Water Lullaby, Lori’s collection of short stories, is available for pre-order:  http://www.sonar4publications.com/green.html