“All right, if there’s anybody there, they aren’t making any noise, and they didn’t seem to notice the big doggo running around their house. I looked in several windows and couldn’t see anybody. It’s a one story house, as far as I can tell. The lights that are on inside appear to be dimmed, and I think that they’re just trying to keep burglars at bay. They’re stupid, though, because if they have an alarm system, they’ve screwed up. I saw an open window, leading into what appears to be a den. I also saw a staircase going down. So there’s a basement.”
“Okay, let’s give that a try. We don’t have time to be particular,” I said.
“What are we looking for?” Orik asked.
“Signs that Mark was here? I’m not sure. Just…something that might tell us what they did with him.” I paused, then grimaced. “Other than draining his insides.”
Dante led us along the edge of the fence to the room with the open window. Then, motioning for us to wait, he turned back into his wolf form and easily—with a single jump—managed to fit through the space between the sill and the frame.
I held my breath, waiting. A few moments later, he opened the window the rest of the way and we all crawled through.
“What about the alarm?” I asked as I crawled through the window.
“It’s not actively armed. Hell, it might be for show only, as far as I can tell. You can have cameras without them being attached to some security alarm,” Dante said.
Orik helped Penn in, and we took a moment to look around the den. The house was tidy, with very little mess. But I quickly realized that the place felt barely lived in. There was a bookcase, but only a few books on it. A computer at a desk, but the desk was almost clear of papers and pens. Seating, but nothing looked used. In fact, the place felt staged.
“This is odd,” I said, peeking out the door. As we spread out through the house, the entire place felt empty, and—as a home—soulless.
“I don’t sense much here,” Penn said. “But…there’s something beneath the surface. I can’t quite pick it up, yet.” She looked around, holding out her hand. “Over here,” she said, heading toward the staircase that led to the basement.
As we approached, my stomach flipped and I tensed. Something was very wrong. My solar plexus was warning me that something was up—in a bad way. Something magical, and yet—not.
I followed Penn down the stairs, with Dante behind me and Orik standing guard above. Tapping her on the shoulder, I motioned for Penn to get behind me.
“I’m stronger than you,” I whispered. “It’s safer that way.” The basement door was shut, with a padlock on it. I reached for the lock and tugged on it. “I don’t think I can break this. I wish I’d brought my lockpicks with me, but I didn’t expect we’d be out in stealth tonight.”
“Will a hairpin help?” Penn asked, pulling one from her air and offering it to me.
I took the pin. “Do you mind if I bend it?”
“Be my guest.”
I bent it and then, stripping the plastic off the tip, inserted it in the lock and began jimmying it. A moment later, I heard a click and the padlock opened. I quickly pulled it off the hook and pocketed it. Thank gods the skirt had pockets. That was another thing—I wasn’t dressed for this, but it would have to do.
“Dante, do you have a flashlight?”
He nodded, pulling one out of his pack. “Get ready—hey, you don’t have any weapons,” he said, handing me a dagger. He motioned for Penn to get behind him. “All right, ready.”
Holding the dagger in one hand, I eased the door open as he shone the light inside.
The first thing that hit me was the smell. The stench was so rank it made me gag. What the hell? It smelled like a fish factory. Or…
Dante gasped. “What the hell?” He pointed his flashlight toward the back of the basement. There were three cells there, and two of them held some sort of creature. They both looked like a cross between a short Godzilla and the creature from the Black Lagoon. Both were wincing, trying to fend off the light. The third cell was open, and the door looked broken.
“What on earth?” Penn advanced to stand beside us. “Who…what…are they?”
“I don’t know,” I said, crossing over to the cells. Neither of the creatures in there looked remotely human. “Hello…can you understand me?”
One of them looked directly at me, and in those soft, golden eyes, I saw fear and bewilderment. Then, along with the other creature, it backed up toward the wall, cowering against the bars. What the hell was going on here?
“Kyann, look,” Penn said, her voice trembling.
Dante and I turned to where she was standing by a desk. A large box sat beside the desk. Penn was looking in it, a horrified look on her face. She pointed to it, shaking her head.
“What is it?” I peeked in, then froze. At first, I thought it was a deflated balloon, but then—I realized it wasn’t. “No…”
“Yes,” Penn said. “I’m not touching it but that looks like a skinsuit.”
