13. Back to the Crescent City

THIRTEEN

back to the crescent city

The three of us sit in the living area of the beach house, mindlessly staring at the television. Alex has been next to me since getting out of the tub and sliding into an oversized T-shirt. I've kept my thoughts guarded, and I suspect Amelia is doing the same.

The sound of a car pulling under the house draws our attention. Alex sits up quickly. "They're back." He races out the front door, meeting them on the stairwell with Amelia and me behind him. "Did you find them?" he asks the lycan.

"No," Topher answers for the group. The four of them are filthy, wearing rags for clothes, and covered in blood. "I'm sorry, bud."

"The captain?" he asks, turning toward me. "I know you're shielding your thoughts. Have you heard from him? "

"No," I answer truthfully. "You'll be the first to know when I do."

Amelia wraps her arms around Topher, leading us back into the house. "Luna?" I question the young lycanthrope as she passes by. She turns, ignores me, and moves upstairs.

"She's angry," Alex states the obvious. "She feels like you abandoned her at the church." I watch her ascend the stairs without acknowledging the boy's words.

"I'm sorry, Luna." Tears fill my eyes. In the three hundred years I've been on the planet, Luna is the closest thing to a friend I've ever had. She continues to her room without responding. Her blonde hair is caked in dark blood, and her face is swollen and bruised. God, I'm a horrible friend.

"You didn't have a choice, Elsie," Alex interrupts, reading my thoughts again. My shield slipped while thinking about Luna.

"Alex. You're going to have to stop doing that."

"Doing what?" he asks.

"Reading people's thoughts. It's an amazing gift, and you have an amazing talent. But you can't go around invading other people's minds."

He looks down at my words. "I didn't realize I was invading. My apologies."

"Don't apologize," Amelia answers. "It's what helped you survive this long. But you don't need to fight to stay alive any longer. We will protect you."

Alex's face changes from the stoic creature he became when he apologized, to that of a child. "I don't know how to turn it off."

"We'll help you figure it out." Wrapping an arm around his shoulders, I pull him closer. To my surprise, he doesn't pull away.

Topher drops a plastic bag on the table. "I bought some clothes. I hope they fit."

Alex stands, taking the bag into his hands. "Thank you, Alpha."

"You can call me Topher." He ruffles the boy's hair as Alex passes on his way upstairs. Once he's safely inside a bedroom, the lycan speak for the first time.

"We took care of everything at the church," Micah says. His eyes look tired, and the pair of shorts he's wearing are two sizes too small showing every detail.

"What about the bodies?" Amelia asks.

"Most disintegrated," Fynn answers.

"We couldn't do anything with the broken glass, but we cleaned up any clue of what was there." Topher wraps his arm around his wife's shoulders. "What's going to happen with him?" He nods toward the stairs.

"He's staying," I interrupt, suddenly feeling protective.

"No one is trying to get rid of him," Amelia interrupts. "We need to figure out how to help him."

"Elsie?" Thorne rings through my mind.

"Are you okay?" I ask, sounding more like his mom than a lover .

"Aye. Still following Patrice. She stopped to feed." Even through my mind, exhaustion sounds through his voice.

Alex is by my side in an instant. "Are my sisters alive?" he asks Thorne.

"Yes. She's forcing them to feed from a man she found in an alley."

"Elsie, what's happening?" Amelia asks.

"It's Thorne. He's still following her."

"Does he know where she's going?" Topher asks.

"Can you tell where she's heading?" I ask, following orders.

"West," he answers. "She's about to move again. I'll keep in touch." He goes silent.

"Thorne?" I call through my mind. He doesn't answer.

"What did he say?" Luna asks from the top of the stairs. Her hair is wet, and she's changed into sweatpants and a sweatshirt.

"They're heading west. The only reason he was able to contact me was because she stopped to feed."

Topher pulls a phone out of somewhere on his body and begins calling numbers.

"My sisters?" Alex asks.

"I don't know," I tell him the truth. "Patrice doesn't seem like a thinker. My guess is she's flying by the seat of her pants." I soften my words for the child in front of me.

"There are thousands of places she could be heading," Fynn adds. "West doesn't give us much to go on."

Minutes later, Topher's back in the room. "I called in a favor. When the body or bodies of her meal are discovered, we'll be the first to know. That should give us an idea of where she's heading."

"She's going to replace the children we killed." Alex's words are barely louder than a whisper. "She'll use Autumn to find them."

"What about Everly?" Amelia asks.

"Autumn is older, and she's…special."

"Is she like you?" I ask.

He shakes his tiny head. "No. She's different."

"How is she special, Alexander?" Topher asks.

He looks up at the giant Alpha. "I'm Alex now." He turns toward me. "Autumn can move things."

"Explain what you mean."

"She can make things move by thinking about it," he answers, looking around the room.

"Alex?" Amelia draws his attention. "Does Patrice like to collect special children? Children like you and Autumn?"

He nods. "Yes. My sisters and I are special. Everly hasn't discovered her gift yet, but she's special, too."

"What about the ones that were chained?"

"They weren't special," he answers simply. Sadness fills his voice.

"Alex, you've been with her a while. Where will she go to recruit more children?" Micah asks .

Alex shrugs. "She likes big cities or places where there are a lot of tourists." Topher turns, answering his ringing phone. "She wants a large family."

"Do you think she'll start recruiting soon?" Luna asks, joining the conversation.

"Not until she settles. She likes to have a place to bring them when she…when she turns them."

"The bodies of two men were just discovered outside a casino in Biloxi. Both had bite marks and were drained of blood." Topher slides his phone into the torn pocket of his shorts.

"That has to be her," I announce the obvious.

"When do we leave?" Alex asks, looking around the room.

"We can't just take off and hope that we'll find her," Topher interrupts.

"She's going to New Orleans," Amelia answers.

"What makes you think that?" Micah and Luna ask in unison.

"Because it's New Orleans. Where else could an insane vampire raise a horde of immortal children without being noticed?"

"Oh, I don't know. Anywhere else?" Topher looks tired as he wipes his face. "Why is it always my town?"

"We leave tonight. Thorne is bound to be exhausted. We need to head her off." I move to the stairwell, ready to pack our small bags.

"I can have the plane ready in an hour." Amelia turns to our hosting lycanthrope. "Can you take us to the airport?"

"Of course," Fynn answers. "I wish I could join you, but my duties are here right now."

"Can I come with you?" Alex's soft voice asks from the middle of the living area. I turn, seeing large tears forming in his eyes.

"Alex, there's no way I would leave you here. Why don't you change into the clothes Topher brought and then come help me pack?" I smile, hoping to offer him reassurance. He nods, grabbing the plastic bag from the table.

"What if he…?" Luna's eyes open wide, asking the question she doesn't want to finish.

"He won't. I'll watch him." I look each of the team in the eyes. "I'll take responsibility for him."

"Elsie, he's a loaded stick of dynamite," Micah says. "We don't know when he'll…"

"When he'll do what?" Alex asks, standing in front of us, wearing his new clothes. His eyes have lost their color, turning into the familiar blackness that his monster form takes.

"Sorry, little man. I've seen what you can do." Micah shifts from foot to foot.

Alex stalks toward the lycanthrope. "I did what I had to do. I'm sure you've done the same." He moves closer to Micah, the top of Alex's head barely reaching his stomach. "My sisters are my priority. If you won't help me, I'll go after them alone." His teeth escape his mouth, and he hisses. "I will not attack any of you unless given no other choice." He looks around the room. "I know what I'm capable of."

"Alex," I call. He ignores my words. "Alexander?" He slowly turns his head toward me. "We all know what you're capable of. No one is going to hurt you, and we're not letting you go after them alone."

His teeth disappear, and his eyes regain their blue hue. "Thank you," he whispers. He moves to my side, lacing his fingers through mine. "Hurry, Elsie." This child is terrifying.

With his words, the team starts moving quickly, gathering up every belonging and evidence of our tenancy. Ten minutes later, we're all standing at the door, ready for whatever lies ahead.

"I'm ready to see Edon," Amelia whispers to Topher once we're piled inside the SUV.

"Who's Edon?" Alex asks from my side.

"Our son," Amelia answers.

"Hybrids can have children?" Alex's words aren't a question.

She laughs. "I was just as surprised as you are, kid."

"That's amazing," he whispers.

"I know," Amelia answers.

Thirty minutes later, we board the jet bound for New Orleans. "This is the first time I've been on a plane," Alex says, rubbing his hands across the leather. "Are they all this pretty? "

Micah laughs deeply. "No. Most smell like a mixture of vomit and feet. This one belongs to Amelia."

Alex turns to the hybrid once more. "You're interesting."

She laughs. "You have no idea."

The minute we're off the ground, Topher and Micah fall asleep, while Luna hasn't said more than ten words since leaving the beach house. Her eyes have lost their sparkle, and sadness covers her face.

"I'm going to go talk to Luna," I whisper for Alex's ears alone. He nods as I stand, moving to the seat across from her. "Hey." She wipes a tear before turning her face away from me. "I'm so sorry. I know an apology isn't going to change anything."

"You're right. An apology doesn't change anything."

"I know what it's like to be left alone."

"How could you?" Luna raises her voice. "Do you know what it's like to be locked in a room where people died?"

"Yes," I whisper. "When Kragen took me, I was locked in the bottom of the ship for over a century. I was surrounded by death for most of those years." I take a deep breath. "I'm not trying to negate your anger and hurt. You have every reason to feel that way. I just wanted to let you know how sorry I am you had to go through it." My words feel more profound than intended.

Luna looks at me with tears streaming down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, Elsie. I didn't mean… "

"I know," I interrupt. "I'm so sorry I couldn't stay longer with you."

She wipes more tears. "I know." She laughs awkwardly. "Hell, it wasn't even a full day. I don't know why I'm being such a baby about it."

"You're not being a baby. You're allowed to feel what you need to." When did I turn into a therapist?

"Acushla?" Thorne's voice is weak.

"Thorne? We're on our way to you." I stand, grabbing Amelia's attention.

"I'm tired. I need to eat. I…I can't keep up much longer. Dammit, I should've eaten today."

"Eat, my love."

"I can't…" His voice is full of sadness. "I've never drank from a human. I don't know if I can."

"Thorne?" Luna asks.

"He's not sure he can keep going," Alex answers for me. "He doesn't want to drink from a human."

Tears run down my cheeks, knowing the pain my words are going to bring. "You're going to have to take a life."

"Elsie…I can't." His voice trails off.

"Thorne?" He doesn't answer. "Thorne?" I stand, moving to the front of the plane and the door.

"No!" Amelia yells as I grip the handle. "You'll kill the lycan if you open it. We're almost to New Orleans."

"How the hell am I going to find him?"

"We'll find him," Alex answers. "I'll help."