Part 20
"Why didn't you stop her?" Marissa demanded.
All eyes were on Ginger. Ginger didn't know what to say. It had been two hours since she had come down stairs, and there had been no sign of Sincerity or any sounds from her room. After knocking for a few minutes and getting no response Ginger had gone inside to find the window open and Sincerity gone.
"Did she say anything to you?" Sam asked.
"No," Ginger said defiantly. Just because Sincerity happened to be her soulmate didn't mean she knew everything there was to know about the girl. "If I knew, I'd have said so."
"Well think about it, she's just become a werewolf and she's going to want to explore her Night World power, right?" Dayna's eyes slid to Ginger.
Ginger shrugged. "I guess so."
Come to think of it, she recalled Sincerity was kind of pissed off about Meegan having Night World power and refusing to share it with her.
"So where's the first place you'd go to start exploring that new world?" Dayna continued.
"Hey, has anyone heard from Marlon?" Sam interjected. "It's a bit strange that all this happens to Sincerity as soon as he comes on the scene."
"I checked his background, you're not going to like this - he's a Blackthorn assassin," Marissa announced.
"And you waited until now to tell us?" Ginger snapped.
"I only found out myself twenty minutes ago!" Marissa snapped back.
"Isn't it weird for assassins to get people changed into werewolves?" Dayna put in. "Their job is to kill people."
"Maybe the werewolf thing was an accident," Ginger offered.
A disturbing thought occurred to her, and probably to everyone else as well. If Marlon was an assassin and Sincerity had been the target - was he still going to be after her to finish the task, if the werewolf thing really was an accident?
Ginger wanted to scream. The frustration had been boiling up inside her for days. All the worry and stress she had worked herself into after the soulmate discovery had been briefly released by Sincerity's willingness to accept the connection. They had been together and it had been strange and intriguing yet at the same time the most wonderful experience of Ginger's life. Then when Sincerity had been attacked - that anxiety and stress came flooding right back in.
"Ginger?" Sam was talking to her. He sounded concerned.
"I'm fine," Ginger snapped. "What are we going to do about Sincerity?"
An uncomfortable silence fell over the group. She would not cry. This was not her fault. It wasn't like she'd asked for this to happen. If she and Sam hadn't come here, then none of this would be happening. Downstairs, she heard the safehouse door opening.
"Where the hell is everyone?" Trent's voice was calling. He sounded a little breathless. Ginger hadn't even noticed he hadn't been there.
"We're upstairs," Marissa called to him. Trent came up the stairs two at a time. "Sincerity's gone AWOL on us," Marissa explained.
"Uh-huh. I don't know if this has anything to do with that, but there's a large white wolf roaming around town and boy is it pissed off. I heard it's attacked and killed two people already."
Silence fell once again.
"Werewolf?" Ginger's throat was very dry, a sinking feeling in her stomach was making her sick. She forced herself to stay sharp and not pass out.
"A pretty safe bed," Trent answered grimly. "The Dog Catcher and the Police are after it. If they get there first, they'll shoot it."
Ginger followed the group down the stairs and out the door. Sam took her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze, not that it really made any difference to her. Oh Sincerity, what have you done? she thought.
"Why didn't you stop her?" Marissa demanded.
All eyes were on Ginger. Ginger didn't know what to say. It had been two hours since she had come down stairs, and there had been no sign of Sincerity or any sounds from her room. After knocking for a few minutes and getting no response Ginger had gone inside to find the window open and Sincerity gone.
"Did she say anything to you?" Sam asked.
"No," Ginger said defiantly. Just because Sincerity happened to be her soulmate didn't mean she knew everything there was to know about the girl. "If I knew, I'd have said so."
"Well think about it, she's just become a werewolf and she's going to want to explore her Night World power, right?" Dayna's eyes slid to Ginger.
Ginger shrugged. "I guess so."
Come to think of it, she recalled Sincerity was kind of pissed off about Meegan having Night World power and refusing to share it with her.
"So where's the first place you'd go to start exploring that new world?" Dayna continued.
"Hey, has anyone heard from Marlon?" Sam interjected. "It's a bit strange that all this happens to Sincerity as soon as he comes on the scene."
"I checked his background, you're not going to like this - he's a Blackthorn assassin," Marissa announced.
"And you waited until now to tell us?" Ginger snapped.
"I only found out myself twenty minutes ago!" Marissa snapped back.
"Isn't it weird for assassins to get people changed into werewolves?" Dayna put in. "Their job is to kill people."
"Maybe the werewolf thing was an accident," Ginger offered.
A disturbing thought occurred to her, and probably to everyone else as well. If Marlon was an assassin and Sincerity had been the target - was he still going to be after her to finish the task, if the werewolf thing really was an accident?
Ginger wanted to scream. The frustration had been boiling up inside her for days. All the worry and stress she had worked herself into after the soulmate discovery had been briefly released by Sincerity's willingness to accept the connection. They had been together and it had been strange and intriguing yet at the same time the most wonderful experience of Ginger's life. Then when Sincerity had been attacked - that anxiety and stress came flooding right back in.
"Ginger?" Sam was talking to her. He sounded concerned.
"I'm fine," Ginger snapped. "What are we going to do about Sincerity?"
An uncomfortable silence fell over the group. She would not cry. This was not her fault. It wasn't like she'd asked for this to happen. If she and Sam hadn't come here, then none of this would be happening. Downstairs, she heard the safehouse door opening.
"Where the hell is everyone?" Trent's voice was calling. He sounded a little breathless. Ginger hadn't even noticed he hadn't been there.
"We're upstairs," Marissa called to him. Trent came up the stairs two at a time. "Sincerity's gone AWOL on us," Marissa explained.
"Uh-huh. I don't know if this has anything to do with that, but there's a large white wolf roaming around town and boy is it pissed off. I heard it's attacked and killed two people already."
Silence fell once again.
"Werewolf?" Ginger's throat was very dry, a sinking feeling in her stomach was making her sick. She forced herself to stay sharp and not pass out.
"A pretty safe bed," Trent answered grimly. "The Dog Catcher and the Police are after it. If they get there first, they'll shoot it."
Ginger followed the group down the stairs and out the door. Sam took her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze, not that it really made any difference to her. Oh Sincerity, what have you done? she thought.