Daria narrowed her eyes. “What are you saying?”
Pearl’s tail swished once. “I’m saying that Elizabeth Rochester Hawthorne possessed a similar ability. One that was never formally recorded in any pack archive or Alliance document.” She paused. “Not many people know this, but Elizabeth could also manifest a humanized version of her white wolf. I would like it if that information never left this room.” Her eyes shrank to slits as shestared at Oscar.
The demon’s dominion of darkness withered a little.
My heart thumped violently in my chest.
Elizabeth Hawthorne could do what I do?!
Somehow, my wolf’s silence was even more ominous than if she’d reacted.
Victoria’s face had gone pale. Samuel’s hand found mine under the table. The weight of what Pearl had just said settled over the room like a held breath.
Before anyone could respond, a violent hissing sound came from Daria’s direction.
Finnic stared at the Alliance’s chair for a moment before scratching his cheek awkwardly. “I mean, I get the news of Abby’s new abilities constitute a full-blown code-brown situation, but that reaction seems a bit over the top even for you.”
Daria sighed heavily. “That wasn’t me.”
She bent and lifted something onto the table.
It was a pet carrier. The expensive kind, with ventilation holes and a secure latch. Something inside it hissed again.
I got instant ominous vibes. From the way the rest of the Alliance subtly recoiled, so did everyone else.
“Now, if we could move on to the matter of what to do with the Thornwick witch,” Daria said briskly. “Following the battle at the property where the Lincoln sisters were being held prisoner, Esmeralda Thornwick was transformed into a cat. It appears the combined magic of six witches channeling three ley lines, with the Hawthorne luna acting as conduit, resulted in an irreversible transmutation.”
A somber silence ensued. Oscar passed Finnic a biscuit.
The carrier made another angry sound.
Daria pushed it farther away from herself. “We have a dark witch who is likely permanently trapped in the body of a cat. One who still carries residual vampiric magic from the rite and whose bodily fluids have exhibited minor corrosive properties.”
“Minor corrosive properties?” Tatiana repeatedly worriedly.
“She peed on my Harley on the way here.” Daria glared at the carrier. “It’s going to need a paint job.” The carrier glared back.
“Wow,” Bo said with morbid glee, his tail swinging.
“From the multiple accounts I’ve recorded of the battle, she is also stronger and faster than a normal cat,” Daria continued. “Significantly so.”
“And meaner,” Bo contributed unhelpfully. “She tried to scratch my nose with her death mittens.”
Daria shot me a sour look. I muzzled Bo with a hand.
The Alliance chair drummed her fingers on the table. “Which brings us to the question of custody. She can’t go into standard Alliance containment. The vampiric element makes her a cross-jurisdictional concern. She needs a supervisor with the strength and experience to manage a supernatural feline exhibiting hostile tendencies. Someone with strong vampiric abilities.”
Every head in the room turnedtoward Barney.
The vampire went very still. “No,” he said in a deadly tone.
“Barnabas—” Daria began.
Shadows came to life around the vampire. His pupils bloomed with crimson.
“Absolutely not,” he growled.
He might as well have been talking in Klingon for all the effect this had on the Alliance members.
