The second part of that statement was true at least.
“You’re hiding something.”
It didn’t take a genius to figure that out. I decided to give him something to distract him.
“I saw a vampire too.”
Liam’s head jerked, a small movement that I almost didn’t notice.
“I also saw a naiad and some others, but I couldn’t figure out what they were. Looked human mostly.”
“What are you talking about?”
“With the wolf. They all kind of seemed like zombies. It was actually a little creepy. They just stood there while this other guy in a hoody chanted a bunch of stuff. There was some black smoke-like thing that seemed to be feeding off some of the people.”
Liam’s gaze turned inward and I gave myself a pat on the back for distracting him from the wolf’s identity.
“Did it look like the guy in the hood forced a change on the wolf?” Brax asked, his face intent like he was bracing for bad news.
“It kind of did, actually. The wolf approached and the guy said some words. Next thing you know the wolf was in the middle of a transformation. It looked painful. Never seen anything like it.”
Even thinking about it made me hurt in sympathy.
Liam and Brax shared a long look. The kind that said they both knew something but didn’t want to share with the group.
“You know something. What is it?”
“Did you see the face of the man in the hoody?” Brax asked, his voice grim.
I shook my head. “No, he kept the thing up and he wasn’t facing me for the most part.”
“Did you feel anything? Hear anything?” Liam asked.
“You mean like him chanting?”
“She would know if she had,” Brax said to Liam.
“I agree. It’s not the type of thing that can be mistaken for something else.”
They definitely knew something.
“What’s going on? Does this have anything to do with people freezing in place all over the city?”
Liam glared at me. “What makes you think that?”
“Maybe something to do with those people all acting like they were under a compulsion once they came unstuck. The people I saw looked like they were compelled too. They just stood there staring while that smoke did whatever it did to its victim.”
Again the men shared a round of looks, a whole conversation taking place. One that seemed determined to stay a boy’s club.
“Thank you for the information, Aileen.” To the brown haired guard, Liam said, “Escort her to the vehicle and ensure she doesn’t leave. We still have things to discuss.”
What the flipper?
“I don’t think so,” I said, dodging the grab for my arm. “You know something, spill.”
“As you so eloquently put earlier, this really doesn’t concern you.”
“Bullshit. I’m the one who brought this to you, remember? People are disappearing all over the city. You know something, so share.”
