CHAPTER 6

What do we know?

Ms. Teo and Tyrel joined Eliot and the others in the living room after they'd gotten Gemma settled.

"Tha' poor chil' 'as had it rough." Ms. Teo sighed as she settled into her chair. She took a sip of her tea and made a face. The tea had gone cold in the time it took to doctor Gemma.

"More than just tonight you mean?" Eliot said without moving his ice pack.

Hardison got up and took Eliot's mostly melted ice pack and Ms. Teo's cold cup of tea and headed for the kitchen.

"At least fifty percent of her back is scarred. Most of them look like fang or claw marks. Most are pretty old but a few of them are from sometime in the last year or so." Tyrel slouched into the other armchair.

"Where is she now?" Eliot knew she hadn't left. "And where's Quinn?"

"I put 'er up in Tyrel's ol' room." Ms. Teo yawned. "It be da only other one on dis floor."

"Quinn was looking…off. I sent him to bed." Tyrel yawned. "Hardison and Parker can share the room upstairs and you can have the cot in the basement. I'll take the couch."

"I'm surprised Gemma stayed without a fuss." Eliot nodded thanks at Hardison who handed him a new icepack.

"Oh, thank you chil' tha' be jus' what these ol' bones need." Ms. Teo inhaled the steam from her fresh cup of tea.

"She didn't have much choice." Tyrel sat a little straighter and rubbed a hand over his face. "I gave her a sedative. I told her it was an antibiotic." Tyrel looked appalled at his own actions.

"Is the hellebore out of her system then?" Hardison asked as he settled back on the couch.

"No. It'll be at least another day or two. She's going to feel weak and probably a little achy for a while." Tyrel sighed. "The skin around the injection site is in bad shape. I'm pretty sure that most of it is going to slough off in a week or so. It'll probably leave her with another scar."

"I got some ointments might help wit' dat part." Ms. Teo sipped at her tea.

"So in the morning we find out what Gemma knows and then we go vampire hunting!" Parker practically bounced with excitement.

Hardison reached across the back of the couch and gave the back of Parker's neck a gentle squeeze. "Easy there killer." He smiled. "Let's get some rest first and then you can tell us the rest of the plan."

~~o0o~~

Everyone had settled into bed except Eliot. He'd insisted on doing one last check of the house. All the doors and windows were locked, and everything outside looked peaceful. However, everything inside was not. He could feel Quinn struggling with a nightmare. He hurried to Quinn's room and flipped on the lights.

Quinn's eyes opened but Eliot could tell that mentally Quinn wasn't in the room yet, he was still in the grip of the nightmare. "Quinn, come on man. Wake up." Eliot put a hand on Quinn's shoulder.

Quinn swung his arm out and Eliot barely dodged claw tipped fingers. Quinn sat up with a gasp. "I'm sorry." He gulped air for a moment.

"It's okay." Eliot sat on the edge of the bed. "You want me to guard the door again?"

"Yah, that helped before." Quinn's breathing was still a little ragged and he ran a hand through his hair. He stared at Eliot for a moment.

"What?"

"Are most Alphas like you or like Will?" Quinn looked away. That hadn't been something he'd meant to ask.

"Will make almost everything he said a command? Expected absolute obedience?" Eliot raised an eyebrow.

Quinn nodded.

"Yah, I thought so. Most Alphas I know are like that. Some are good enough at what they do to make their orders something that a person would have done anyway, and they give their packs a little free will." He smiled when he thought of Nati. She was one of the good ones. "Others don't care, and they shackle their packs with obedience." He was pretty sure that most Alphas landed in that second category. "It's one of the reasons I stayed lone wolf."

"I really didn't understand that part of being a werewolf before I became one. Will explained things but that was something that I only thought I understood." Quinn resettled under his blanket. "It's one of the reasons I was always looking for the next job. When I was out on a job I could do as I pleased pretty much."

"Get some rest." Eliot leaned against the doorframe. He waited until Quinn was asleep again before he stripped out of his clothes and shifted to his wolf. If he was going to spend the night guarding Quinn's door and the rest of the house, might as well do it in a form that was comfortable laying on the floor.

. ͽϿ Ѻ Ͼͼ .

When the first rays of sunlight started to brighten the sky, Eliot started to drift to sleep. The vampires either didn't know or didn't care where they were and that was a piece of news he could live with. The rising of the sun meant that his people were safe from the vampires.

A door down the hall creaked a little as it opened. Gemma, with her shoes in her hand, stepped into the hallway. She took a couple of steps before she noticed the big tan wolf laying partway into the hallway. "Uhm… Good doggy."

Eliot looked up at her in mild surprise and thumped his tail on the floor like a good dog. The part that had surprised him was that she seemed to think he really was a dog. How could the woman know about vampires and not recognize a werewolf when she saw one?

She crouched down and scritched between his ears. "You be a good doggy and don't make a fuss when I leave. Okay?"

He got to his feet and blocked the hallway.

She scrambled to her feet with a little gasp when she saw how big he really was. She eyed him and then looked down the hall toward the kitchen and the backdoor.

As she started to creep in that direction, he threw his head back and howled. She froze with a momentary look of terror that melted into irritation. "Traitor!" She hissed.

"Land a Goshen!" Ms. Teo cried and a moment later appeared at the other end of the hall with her crossbow. Quinn spilled out of his room looking rumpled and confused but not opposed to hitting something. And the sound of feet from upstairs and a thump from the living room announced the imminent arrival of the others.

With a glare at Eliot, she turned to appeal to Ms. Teo. "I'm sorry I didn't mean to upset your dog. I was just going to head home."

"Dog?" Ms. Teo looked momentarily confused before she really grasped what was going on. "Oh right. I think we need ta talk befo' ya head an'awhere." Ms. Teo rubbed a hand over her face and headed for her kitchen.

"I'm fine really." Gemma sighed and followed Ms. Teo.

When Gemma disappeared into the kitchen Tyrel, who'd come up behind Eliot and Quinn, looked at Quinn. "Did she say dog?"

"Yep. Apparently, Fido here spoiled her escape plans." Quinn smiled at Eliot.

Eliot sneezed at Quinn before he went into the bedroom and shifted back to human. By the time he had his clothes on everyone else had made it to the kitchen. As he walked in, he pulled his hair back into a tail and snagged one of Ms. Teo's aprons off the cupboard doorknob near the stove.

"But I feel just fine." Gemma protested.

"Tha's as may be, but ya shouldah still needin' tendin' to." Ms. Teo looked at Gemma across her cup of coffee. She could see the young woman was favoring the shoulder and the bruise that made up her black eye was in full bloom.

"I don't even know what happen to my shoulder." Gemma craned her neck trying to get a look for herself. "Granted, I wasn't feeling so good last night but I feel better now."

"Why don't you let me take a look at your shoulder after breakfast?" Tyrel pulled a seat up next to his mother.

"Why don't you tell me why it's so important for me to stay and for you to look at my shoulder again?" Gemma was obviously becoming annoyed with the cosseting and cajoling.

"You were poisoned last night, and we want to make sure you're really okay before you leave." Eliot spoke while he poured batter onto a griddle.

"Poisoned?" Gemma looked surprised and then suspicious. "By who? Did you give me something at the club?" She glared at Eliot.

"Me!" Eliot turned to glare back. "I would never! Listen I don't need to roofie girls, not for any reason. And if I was that kinda asshole…" He looked at Ms. Teo. "Sorry." He focused back on Gemma. "…if I was. Do you think I'd have got you medical attention and brought you someplace safe? If I was, I certainly wouldn't have hung around or let you know where I was stayin'."

Gemma glared but everyone could see that Eliot's words had made sense to her. "So how'd I get poisoned then?"

"The vampires shot you with a dart full of hellebore. They weren't really after you though. They were after Eliot." Parker said as she leaned against the cupboard near the hall door. She noticed Eliot's shoulders tense. "What? You said she already knew about the vampires."

Gemma looked around at everyone obviously waiting for some kind of censure.

"You told us last night just after you regained consciousness. It's perfectly normal if you don't remember." Tyrel used the comforting tone he would with any of his patients.

"And you believed me?"

"I been huntin' vampires since befo' you was born chil'." Ms. Teo set her coffee to the side. "Mos' all of us 'ere delt wit' a vampire at some point o' anothe'."

"Really?" She looked around and saw nods from pretty much everyone.

Eliot set a plate with a pancake and bacon in front of her and one in front of Ms. Teo. "The rest of yall line up at the stove." He was sounding a little surly after his last exchange with Gemma.

Soon everyone got their plates and moved to the dining room table where there was room for everyone. Eliot was the last one into the room and saw that the only place left at the table was between Gemma and Ms. Teo. He pulled the chair so that he was sitting slightly closer to Ms. Teo.

"I don't bite." Gemma said quietly with a half-smile.

"But apparently you think that I do."

"I'm sorry. Can we start over?" She held her hand out.

He snorted but shook her hand.

"I'm Gemma. Thanks for helping me last night."

"I'm Eliot, and you're welcome." He smiled a little and was happy to see a smile in return.

"So, Gemma, what do you know about the vampires?" Parker asked.

"Uhm…." Gemma glanced at Parker but mostly kept her eyes on her plate.

"Why were you trying to follow the vampire last night?" Eliot asked.

"I was planning on killing her." Gemma hunched her shoulders.

"Always a quality goal ta be sure but is there a reason ya be afta dis vampire?" Ms. Teo cut her pancake into bite size squares.

"She…She's part of my sister's sanguinary." Most of the explanation was whispered to her plate.

All of the werewolves easily heard what she said, and Quinn turned abruptly in his seat. Eliot flashed yellow eyes at Quinn and let power roll from him to the others. Quinn sat but stayed turned toward Gemma. Quinn and Hardison had both tilted their heads exposing their necks for just a moment. "I'm sorry." Eliot said when he saw the show of submission. He had wanted to stop Quinn from doing something rash, he hadn't meant to force submission.

Gemma, thinking the words were for her, since she hadn't looked up from her plate, shrugged one shoulder. "Missy was one of my sister's best friends." She sat a little straighter and looked at Eliot. "She's the one that gave us to the vampires." Gemma hugged her arms.

Eliot put a hand on her good shoulder. "You are safe here."

"How long ago was that?" Tyrel asked.

"Eleven years ago." She glanced at Tyrel and away. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"We won't ask about the past." Parker smiled and held Hardison's hand under the table. "Do you know where the sanguinary is now? Eliot's already been to the factory where it used to be, but it's not there anymore."

"Yes." Gemma frowned as she looked around the table. "You guys can't be serious? You're planning on taking on the whole sanguinary?"

"Not the whole sanguinary. The vampires took someone, and we need to get him back." Eliot nibbled at his bacon. "If we can get him out without taking on every vampire in the place that would be best."

"If the vampires have him it's too late." Gemma swallowed hard.

Quinn, not wanting to touch her sore shoulder, laid a finger on her forearm to get her attention. "It wasn't too late for you, or me, or Eliot. We've all gotten away from the vampires." He did his best to sound encouraging. "Now we can work together to help get someone else out. Okay?"

Gemma nodded.

"I'd like you to work with Parker and Hardison after breakfast. If you feel up to it." Eliot slid her cup of orange juice a little closer to her plate.

After breakfast Tyrel and Ms. Teo decided that Gemma needed another treatment for the hellebore poisoning before she could help with planning the raid on the vampires.

Eliot rounded up his pack in the spare room Quinn was using.

"We need to keep the werewolf thing under wraps." Eliot looked face to face. "She knows about the vampires but somehow, she doesn't know about or at least doesn't recognize werewolves."

"Since she already knows about one group what's wrong with her knowing about the other?" Parker looked thoughtful.

"Hardison, what have you been able to find out about her?" Eliot decided to wait on answering Parker until he heard what Hardison had on Gemma.

"Gemma Segen, 29, currently working as a waitress here in New Orleans. Interesting history. Her and her twin sister were reported missing the day after their 18th birthday. She turned up in Christ Church Cathedral four years later, raving about vampires. Spent two years in a mental institution. After that I guess she learned to keep a lid on the whole vampire thing 'cause life's been pretty low key. Until about a year or so ago when she got picked up on an assault charge claiming the person, she assaulted was a vampire."

"She's been through a lot." Quinn commented.

"Which is why I don't think we need to push her with the whole werewolf thing. So keep a lid on it." Eliot pointed at them all.

. ͽϿ Ѻ Ͼͼ .

Parker and Hardison set themselves up at the dining room table and waited on Gemma to give them a starting point. Before long she came up from Ms. Teo's basement and, wincing as she bumped her shoulder against the back of the chair, she joined them at the table.

"Ms. Theriot reminded me that you still wanted to talk to me." She blinked a little sleepily.

"Are you sure you feel up to it?" Hardison asked. He'd heard Ms. Teo tell her that she would probably need to sleep for a while.

"I'm fine." She tried to smile but it turned into a yawn. She started to rub at her eyes but winced as she touched her black eye. "You said you wanted to know where the vampire sanguinary is?"

"Yes."

"I don't know the exact address but there's this big building on Gravier St. I think it used to be an apartment building or something."

"Is that enough for you to find it?" Parker leaned over Hardison's shoulder and watched him work.

"Pretty certain." Before long he flipped the laptop around so the Gemma could see the screen. "Is this the place?"

Gemma's face went pale, and she nodded. "You guys really believe me?" She looked at Parker.

"We do." Eliot came in from the kitchen with a cup of tea. "Ms. Teo says you need to drink it all and then we need to let you get to bed." He slid the teacup in front of her.

She sipped the tea but kept her eyes on Eliot's face. "Did you really escape from the vampires?"

Eliot rubbed a thumb over the scar on his lip. "I did. If Ms. Teo hadn't come along when she did though, I probably wouldn't have survived."

"How did you get away?" She held her hands around the mug as though she were cold.

"I was lucky. They were moving me from one room to another and I saw a chance to run, and I took it. By then I was in pretty bad shape and three of the vampires caught me just as I made it onto the loading dock of that old factory. They would have killed me there, in the alley, but Ms. Teo came along with that crossbow of hers and that's the only reason I'm still here." He nodded at her hands. "Drink your tea."

"How did you get away from the vampires?" Parker asked Gemma as she settled onto a chair next to Hardison.

"I…" She couldn't seem to find the right words, so she took a long drink of her tea. "I ran away. The way that they control people doesn't work as well on me." She pulled her knees up resting her heels on the edge of the seat. "I was pretty messed up, but I made it into a church before they realized I was missing." She shrugged and curling forward slightly she set her empty cup on the table.

Eliot watched as she drifted to sleep right there at the table. "You were able to find the sanguinary?" He asked Hardison as he got up from his chair.

Hardison nodded and kept typing.

Eliot picked Gemma up and carried her back to her room.