Curiosity Killed the Wolf - Chapter 9

...

"So, to sum up, this guy, Riley Bear -"

"Biers."

"Sorry. Biers. So this guy disappeared last year."

"In April. Yeah."

"And then nobody knew he was missing until his sister filed a missing report in May?"

"That's it."

"Wow. And then this other guy, Fred… Andersen?"

"Petersen. You really have a problem with names!"

"I know. My bad. So, Fred went missing three months later."

"Right. He was also a student and he was working on his thesis on the Pacific Northwest wildlife and the consequences of the 2004 tsunami on the ecosystem."

"Sounds… Ecological."

Leah rolled her eyes and grabbed a piece of her sandwich. She didn't know why she bothered talking to him about that. She was hoping that things would fall into place if she had someone else's opinion on the cases, but as she stared at her interlocutor, she was wondering if she'd made the right choice with him.

"Anyway, Andersen was reported missing three weeks after the last time they saw him," she explained.

"Coincidence."

"How about the weird things with the search dogs around their last known position?" she asked, frowning.

"Also a coincidence. Birds and dogs are crazy, it's a scientific fact."

"Ok. Let's say you're right. How about the Tiffany Michaels' case?"

"What about her?"

She took Tiffany's file, sighing.

"Well, Tiffany Michaels, 17 years old, found dead four weeks ago on the Shilshole Bay Marina. She'd called the police, saying that she felt she was being followed, but they thought she was joking since she couldn't exactly say where she was. They'd found her by accident, because they were called for a case of noise pollution. The dogs of the area were screaming bloody murder, and apparently nothing could calm them down."

"OK, so dogs have a sixth sense about a dying girl. Does it mean that the others are also dead?"

"I don't know, but the weirdest part is yet to come. The dogs all disappeared the day after Tiffany's death, and two days after, her body vanished from the mortuary. Nobody knows who took it and Mrs Michaels wants to sue The Seattle PD for having lost her daughter's corpse."

"When was that?"

"Umm… Let me see… She died on May, 1st."

"When did the body disappeared?"

"Three days after that, so in May, 4th. Why? What is it, Old Man?"

Leah watch as Billy tensed on his wheelchair and she instantly felt worried.

"Are you alright? You look pale… Did you take your insulin? Billy? Do you want me to call someone? Billy!"

"I'm fine!" he lied, apparently annoyed. "I'm trying to find a link between those cases as you want me to, but I just can't find anything. Go ahead. Did something similar to the girl's case happen after that?"

"Well, my boss sent me another case, a boy reported dead whose body vanished at the mortuary three days later, but he committed suicide, so that's all he had in common with Tiffany."

"When was that?"

Leah hesitated, but Billy's hard stare made her rummage through her files.

"Here it is!" she exclaimed finally. "Date of death: May, 4th. May… 4th?"

"I think we need to have a break," Billy stated, the edge in his voice clearly audible.

She nodded in agreement. Her mind was reeling with that new piece of the puzzle and she looked closer to the dates of the disappearances or death reports. She was so obsessed with the newfound pattern of the serial killer that she didn't even register that Jacob came back home.

"I need to talk to Dad, right now. Alone," he pressed, obviously upset.

"Sure. I need to work on my paper, by the way," she said absentmindedly as she gathered all her belongings on the table. "Can I use the community center's computer for an hour or so?"

"I thought that you were taking a break," Billy scolded.

She was about to argue but Jacob beat her to the punch.

"Let her go, Dad. It's important and it can't wait."

In other circumstances, she would cuss at Jacob for dismissing her so harshly, but she was so eager to explore the new lead she'd found to write an alert bulletin that she would let that pass… For now.

"OK," Billy finally gave in. "Joy Ateara is on call today. Tell her that you need to use the computer in priority and to call me if she has a problem with that."

"Thanks, Billy! Later, Casanova!"

"Do not call me that!" Jacob growled.

Leah skipped outside, laughing at her lame nickname for him. They spoke a lot during the last two days, about Bella among other things, and she almost choked with her drink when he told her that the first thing he managed to say to Bella when she came back was 'I'm Jacob Black. You bought my dad's truck' with an attempt at being sexy. It was so comical that she couldn't resist to remind it to him anytime she could.

She was glad that she could joke around with Jacob, though. She missed her banters with her brother and Jacob distracted her enough for her not to dwell on that fact. Somehow, the Black family filled the blanks of her idea of the perfect family, the one she had before Sam's drama.

She arrived quickly at the Community center and greeted Mrs Ateara politely before requesting the access to her computer, not knowing that she was about to step into a very dangerous territory.

...

Jacob and Billy came into Sam's house, where the pack was gathered for lunch. Jared and Quil weren't there, the first because of his patrol and the last due to his Leah protection duty. Emily welcomed them warmly, as usual, but the Blacks weren't receptive to her thoughtfulness, too preoccupied with the news they were about to deliver.

"We have a problem," Billy proclaimed.

The room went silent, every member of the pack waiting for the chief of their tribe to continue.

"Actually, we have two problems," his son corrected, making the Elder roll his eyes.

"What is it?" Sam asked carefully.

"I talked with Leah about what she'd found out in Seattle, and I strongly believe that there is more than a single vampire activity over there," Billy explained. "In fact, with all she told me, I think that something is creating a lot of Cold Ones in the area."

"What?"

"How would it be possible?"

"Why would they do that?"

"I don't know why, but I know that there are cases of dead people vanishing three days after their death," Billy answered truthfully.

"Three days?" Sam repeated incredulously."So, they…"

"I have a really bad feeling about that, Sam," Billy confessed. "From what Leah told me, she's in the middle of something beyond herself. We have to take drastic measures to protect her."

"And by 'drastic measures', you mean…"

"We have to tell her what's going on over there, and we also need to take the matter in hand."

"Are you really suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" Paul intervened, a hopeful gleam on his face.

"I know that you're entitled to protect the reservation, but we can't overlook what is happening in Seattle. Wolves spirits have to protect every single human they can. That's why you agreed to do more patrol to save Bella Swan's life in the first place, even if she's not one of our tribe. So, as the chief of the Quileute tribe, I grant you the permission to leave the reservation and clean Seattle from the Cold Ones."

A low rumble unsettled the pack's rank as they became aware of what Billy was implying. They knew how to fight in their territory. The trees, the rivers and their knowing of their localisation was a great asset against nomadic vampires. But in a big city like Seattle, it would be difficult to keep a low profile while fighting Cold Ones on an exposed area.

"It's a tricky situation," Sam sighed as he fell on his chair. "You're right, we can't let the vampires spreading so close to our boundaries, especially since LeeLee… Um… Leah… Is after them. But it's not that simple! We can't go over there and kill them all, especially knowing that there is a vampire wandering around the reservation!"

"Actually, there might be more than one," Jacob precised. "That's why I wanted to talk to all of you. Bella called me earlier and it seems that some vampire broke into her house and took some of her clothes."

"What for?" Embry inquired.

"The leech thinks that it needs to have her scent to track her down. I told the leech that we would keep an eye on her and we agreed that she should come here tonight while they're hunting. I told her we would have a bonfire tonight, with the imprints and the elders."

"What gave you the right to make plans like that? You refuse to have the authority over the pack and still, you're giving us no choice on the matter!" Sam seethed.

"Somebody has to do something to protect her!"

"Oh come on!" Paul whined. "Can't we all have a break from the leech lover's drama?"

"Watch it, Lahote," Jacob growled, baring his teeths at his pack brother.

"I don't care what you want to do for Bella," Seth cut in, breaking the tension between his pack mates. "If you want to protect her, do your things. I'll probably help you with the bonfire, but that's not the most important for now. She has the Cullens to protect her right now, but my sister is also in danger. So, what are we going to do for her?"

"I don't think we'll be able to clean Seattle without revealing our secret," Embry pointed out. "The more reasonable thing to do would be to let her know what's going on, so that she could stay willingly here until we find a way to solve the Seattle problem."

"We can't do that," Sam retorted. "I know Leah, she won't stay put knowing that there's something dangerous lurking around Seattle. She'll try to say something to the press and our secret will be compromised."

"I know my sister probably better than you do, Uley," Seth shot back. "If she knew that we have a treaty with the Cullens and that she would put us in danger if she talked about our condition, she… She wouldn't say anything that could hurt me."

"You don't know that for sure, kid," Paul remarked. "She hates our guts. She doesn't want to be here and she made it clear that she would ruin our lives if we tried to make her stay."

"She's upset, but she won't do that once she'll understand why we acted like we did!" Seth insisted.

"Sorry, bro, but I won't take the risk of being used as a lab rats just because you can't stand the fact that Leah is mad at you," Paul replied harshly.

"That's not the point!" Billy stated, putting a restraining arm on a furious Seth. "Leah has the right to know how dangerous her quest is. She's a daughter of the tribe and she'd suffered enough from being apart from our secrets. It had cost her her happiness, her family, and I'm not willing to let it get to the point where it would cost her her life."

"With all due respect, Billy, she isn't the only one involved in that case. You're going to expose all of us!" Sam said.

"Plus, we can't protect Jacob's girlfriend and Seth's sister at the same time. We'll have to make a choice, even if I'd prefer fighting leeches for someone who hates me rather than defending someone who wants to become a leech…"

"Can it, Paul!" Jacob yelled, trembling with anger.

"I think we should talk about that with all of the elders and put the matter to vote," Embry suggested.

Billy weighed up all the arguments and sighed for the umpteenth time of the day.

"You're all right. You're risking your lives and you have the right to have a say in what you want to do, for the tribe and for yourselves. But we need to take a decision quickly, so I suggest that we all meet and talk about it tonight."

"Looks like you're going to have your bonfire tonight, Jake!" Seth sneered.

…

"Why can't I just stay here?"

"Because that's where the council will meet. You know how it works, the one who calls the meeting hosts it. Your father will be here, along with the Protectors of la Push."

Leah made a face as she thought about Sam and his gang. She didn't want to see him but she also didn't want to go back to her parents' house, even if it was just for one night.

"That's what I thought," Billy chuckled.

"Why did you have to call this meeting?" she whined.

"I wish I could tell you right now. I probably will, whether the council agrees or not, because it's time for you to embrace fully your place in our tribe, but you'll have to trust me and to be patient. It's really important. Can you do that for me?"

The softness of Billy's voice was laced with certainty, leaving Leah no choice but to nod at him. She was aware of the fact that he knew how tensed her relationship with her mother was. After all, he welcomed her with open arms in his house and never forced her to face her parents. He also encouraged her in her investigations. She owed him a lot and it was time to show him her gratitude.

She was about to reply when she heard Jacob's startled voice.

"Bella? I thought I was picking you up later!"

"I know, but Charlie needed to come here, so I thought it would be okay if I went with him. Do you need any help for the bonfire?"

Leah frowned as she understood that Bella was attending the tribal meeting and she couldn't help but feel hurt for being left outside, once again.

"Hey, Charlie!" Billy greeted him warily. "You've come at a bad time. We were about to leave for a meeting."

"I know, but I need to speak to Leah quickly. It's really important," Charlie replied sternly.

"What's going on?" Leah inquired, feeling his anxiety.

"Let's talk somewhere more… private…"

She stared at Billy and Jacob, whose faces showed nothing else than concern, and shook her head.

"I have nothing to hide from them."

"Ok…" Charlie scratched his head and started. "I just received a call from a Seattle PD colleague. He stated that someone claimed that you disappeared and he needed to contact your family to inform them about it."

"What?" she exclaimed, totally confused.

"The PD went to your apartment and they found it completely torn down," Charlie went on. "Since there was no trace of you and nobody in your job knew where you were -"

"Wait! My boss knows that I'm in Forks," she retorted.

Charlie cleared his throat, visibly uncomfortable.

"What? What didn't you tell me?" Leah pressed, her heart pounding with worry.

"Your boss… He was killed in a car accident, two days ago."

"It… It's impossible!" she stuttered in chock. "It can be!"

"I'm sorry -"

"No! It can't be true! He sent me an email yesterday!" she insisted, shaking her head in disbelief.

Jacob and Billy tensed and stared at each other, probably thinking the same thing. If Leah's boss was dead, the killer might know who she was.

"What did your email say?" Billy asked finally.

"It… He told me that there had been a break-in and that all the hard drives were stolen, so he couldn't work on the case anymore, unless I sent him the files I had in my possession."

"What did you reply?" Jacob questioned.

"I said… That I had them in a flash drive, at home…"

"Home… in your apartment?"

"No, here."

"Did you tell him where you were?" Billy pressed.

"No, he just knew I was going to investigate in the Forks area, but he did ask me to tell him my location so that he could come and get the files if I couldn't send them-"

Reality dawned on Leah as she began to understand the true meaning of their questioning.

"You think that the serial killer is the one who sent me the email, don't you? To know where exactly I was staying and… And..."

"He probably killed your boss and destroy your apartment to find a clue about your current location," Billy pointed out.

"And since he couldn't find anything, he filed a missing report about me so that he could know where I was through my family…" Leah breathed.

"And he might know where they live, since the Seattle PD investigated on the case."

"Guys, let's not get ahead of ourselves," Charlie tried to temper.

"I have to go and warn them! They might be in danger!" she yelled, rushing to the exit door, only to be stopped by Jacob's warm body. "Get out of my way!"

"Leah, you need to calm down."

"Calm down? How can I stay calm when there's someone out there who wants to hurt my family because he wants me dead?"

"We won't let anything happen to them," Jacob swore. "We won't let him get to you either. He won't be able to cross our borders, I promise."

"You can't do that! Do you really think you'll be able to protect me and my family from a skilled serial killer with your scout squad? What will you do, huh? Put a tribal roadblock around the reservation and regulate the passing cars?" she spat, still trying to push him out the way.

"I'll keep an eye on them, too," Charlie assured. "But before we put the cart before the horse, Iet's sit down and analyse the situation."

"What's left to analyse?" Leah growled.

"We don't know for sure if it isn't one of your co-worker who filed the missing report," he insisted as he held out a piece of paper. "I've asked my colleague to give me a description of the woman who came to the station."

"A woman?" she gasped.

"Yeah, around 5 feet 5 inch tall, red-haired…"

Leah shook her head and gave the report back to Charlie.

"Sorry, but I don't know any Victoria, let alone a girl with red hair…"

Bella's father sighed loudly and nodded.

"Well, I'll keep you posted. Be careful for now, and I suggest you to stay here until they sort this out."

"Thanks, Chief."

Without further ado, he walked out the room, leaving an anxious Leah, a concerned Billy, and two equally horrified people starting to put two and two together.

A/N: Here it is! The moment everyone is waiting is coming on the next chapter! How do you think that Leah will react? Will the Elders really tell her the truth? You'll know it soon, I promise!

Until then, I want to thank Inosolan, Black's Wolfgirl22, GymnastQueen, contentiousprincess, ShadowCub (even if you aren't reading the story anymore) Sunshine-Midnight123, Scented Hairpin, RUNOS SISTER, rocklesson86, lytebrytehybrid88, brankel1, Tara Maria and the two Guests who reviewed the last chapter.

I can't wait to read what you're thinking about this one, so don't hesitate!

Much love from France!

Leilani.