NOTE to my readers: I assume, if you've come this far, you might enjoy another Big O fic authored by one of us. It's entitled "A Year in the Life," and written under the penname of cloudwalker. Now, it's showtime!

Chapter 19

It wasn't Dorothy's soft laughter that roused the negotiator hours later.

"Roger, get up!"

Try as she might, the slender redhead simply could not wake Smith. She briefly considerd dragging the piano into the hallway outside her bedroom and pounding away at the keys--but there was no way the enormous thing would fit.

Frustrated, she pushed aside the black blanket and shook him carefully, mindful that she not hurt him with her great strength. "Please, Roger, wake up, PLEASE!"

It was no use. He simply mumbled and rolled onto his back. A bomb could probably go off outside the bedroom and he'd sleep through it.

"Arghh, Roger!" She grabbed him by both shoulders and pulled him upright, giving him a good shake in the process. "ROGER GET UP NOW!"

"Hmf? Wha? Dor...Dorothy?" The young man blinked confused dark eyes at her, then sleepily glanced down at himself, trying to figure out what exactly was going on. The dried blood staining his otherwise immaculate shirt shocked him into full awareness. Memories of the previous night flashed through him, and his eyes widened. His first conscious thought was that his kitten needed him.

Roger promptly looked up at Dorothy's troubled face. "I'm here, poppet," he murmured soothingly as he pulled her into his lap. "I'll always be here, it's okay." He nuzzled her pale cheek, kissing her, but she pushed herself back, shaking her head.

"No, it's not okay," she said quickly. "This isn't about me. Dastun's here and he wants to see you right now. He says it's about Snowy--Roger, she didn't come home last night, and now this--I'm worried about her!"

Roger furrowed his brows at Dorothy, surprised at her anxiety. It wasn't unusual for her packmate to be out all night, and she knew that. "But kitten," he reminded her gently, "Snowy's done this before. Maybe she had a lot of work to finish. You know she usually gets a lot of commissions before the holidays. Did you ask Norman if she called in?"

"No," admitted Dorothy sheepishly. "I ran to get you as soon as the major mentioned her. I didn't think to ask Norman." She brushed a lock of red hair out her eyes nervously. "You're right, this isn't the first time, but why would Dastun be here about her? He looks so grim."

Roger sighed. He'd been doing an exceptionally lousy job of communicating with both of his girls lately. "I'm sorry, kitten. I should have told you this sooner, but it didn't seem all that important. Dastun had asked me to help out with a case about three weeks ago. He needed a civilian companion to provide a cover story on a stake-out. I couldn't get out of a meeting with a new client, so Snowy filled in for me." He shrugged. "Maybe he needs her to help longer than he expected. I'm sure that's all this is about." Smith kissed her nose, then looked down at his ruined shirt again. "I better change out of this, or Dan will want to start investigating this too," he teased, trying to make his girl smile. Pleased that his little joke seemed to ease her, he stood up, ruffled her bright hair, and walked out.

Suddenly weak-kneed, Dorothy sat down on her rumpled bed. Roger and Snowy hadn't ditched her that fateful night--they hadn't turned their backs on her after all! She'd misunderstood everything; they were still pack, same as always. Seeing Leon had messed her up, confused her thoughts. That was the real problem.

She seized a pillow and hugged it in relief. How silly I was, she thought, to even think that they wouldn't want me any more...and then a distressing notion popped into her mind. What if Kirei had come home that night while both she and Roger had been out? What if she thought they had ditched HER?

It seemed ridiculous, and yet...she had been avoiding the older shapeshifter. She had wanted to confide in her yet was afraid to do so; it had been easier to simply stay away. Meanwhile, Roger had been so terribly busy that he never had time for anything lately.

What if Snowy had come home, only to find us both gone? Dorothy reflected. She'd prolly think she'd done something to offend us, and gotten upset. Knowing Snowy, she would have gone out for a run to think things through. What if something had happened because she was preoccupied?

"Oh!" She couldn't stand it! She had to know why Dastun was here, why he looked so serious. The little android ran down the hallway, catching up with Roger (now wearing a fresh white shirt) as he entered the living room. She decided to hang back beside Norman; his perfect composure was steadying.

The expression on Dastun's craggy face made Roger uneasy. Dorothy had been right; Dan did look grim. The negotiator felt a tiny flutter of worry in his gut. Maybe something HAD happened. He swallowed hard, silently telling himself not to imagine things. Kirei was tough and streetsmart, a good person to have watching one's back in a rough spot. No way she could be in trouble, right? He beat down the worry and greeted the major with a smile.

"Morning, Dastun. Want some coffee? Got real beans, not the synth stuff"
Dastun shook his head. "No thanks, Roger. This isn't a social call." The major briefly wondered if he'd made a mistake sending Kennedy and a small team to Whitewolf, instead of having them here for backup. Smith wasn't going to like this one bit; there could be trouble. He'd have to break the news carefully. "This is about Miss Snowolf, Roger. She--."

The young man interrupted Dan, his concern for his other girl getting the better of him: "Did something happen to Snowy? Is she okay?"

Dorothy grabbed Berg's hand and nervously squeezed it. The old man squeezed back sympathetically.

"Huh?" Dan was surprised by Smith's outburst. "Isn't she home?" Maybe sending Kennedy to the studio hadn't been a mistake after all.

"No," said Roger. "She hasn't been home since she left to meet you yesterday morning." He turned towards the butler. "Norman, did Snowy call in yesterday?"

Berg nodded emphatically. "Yes indeed, Master Roger. You were on the other line with a client. She told me not to disturb you. She then said she would be staying overnight at her studio because she had a great deal of work. I would assume she's still there now."

Dorothy breathed a silent sigh of relief. Roger had been right. Obviously, her own inner turmoil was skewing her perception of things. She was overreacting to everything.

Smith nodded, also relieved by Norman's statement. Nothing out of the ordinary had happened. This was all typical of the little brunette shapeshifter. However, he had to ask one more question, just to be sure: "Did she sound okay when you spoke with her?"

The butler's face grew thoughtful. "Hmmm...I would say she sounded a bit tired, sir. Anything else?"

"No, Norman. Thanks." The negotiator turned back towards Dastun, running a quick hand through his black hair. "So, is this about the case, Dan? You really shouldn't be so dramatic. It's not professional." He smirked.

"Roger." The major's tone was deeply troubled. "Roger, I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, but I have a warrant for Kirei Snowolf's arrest."

Norman and Dorothy gasped.

After a moment of stunned silence, Roger laughed. "You're joking, of course. Seriously, Dastun, if you need her help a little longer, you should ask her, not me."

Dastun blinked, surprised by this reaction, but held his ground. "No, I'm not kidding, Roger." He pulled a thick envelope from the inner pocket of his uniform jacket and thrust it towards the negotiator. He knew the young man would get upset, but he reminded himself that he was doing this for Smith's sake. Roger's face tightened as he read the document. There was nothing in it to directly link it to Kirei, but the description of one of the lab animals in both its human and wolf phases fit her a little too closely for comfort. This could not only explain those mysterious dogtags, but many of her other abilities as well. He found this extremely troubling. The idea that his sweet little Snowy was a government experiment gone awry was almost too much to believe. On the other hand, he knew virtually nothing of her early past. She'd always been reluctant to discuss it with either him or Dorothy, giving them both the impression it wasn't especially pleasant. That could also tie into this. He regretted not pushing her more on the topic. What he needed to do now was buy her more time, talk with her, find out how all these pieces fit together.

As Roger tried to figure out what to do, Dastun continued talking earnestly. "Now, listen to me Roger, I'm only doing this because you're my friend and I want to protect you. Snowolf isn't what you believe she is. I think she's a shapeshifter, and to make matters worse, not an ordinary one. I have reason to believe she's a trained assassin and you may be her target; Miss Wayneright could be in danger too, if she got in the way. You have to admit you've made a lot of enemies, some of them pretty powerful people. I know there's been several attempts on your life. You're just lucky they've all been so clumsy about it."

" 'Lucky,' " Smith echoed sardonically under his breath, still looking for a way to stall--a single line on the last page caught his eye. Bingo! he thought triumphantly. This might be Kirei's "get-out-of-jail" card, if he could play it right. "Dastun," he said in his most reasonable voice, "...according to this, there WAS a long-standing warrant out for the capture of these, uh, subjects--and I still don't see how you link Snowy to this--but it'd been put on hold a few years ago. This can't be valid." Roger smiled slightly, confident he'd just fixed everything. "Anyway, the idea she'd be a danger to either of us is preposterous. She's saved my life more than once--you KNOW that. As for Dorothy's safety, why, the girls are pa--." He caught himself, not wanting to say "packmates" and blow the redhead's cover. "They're practically like sisters! They'd never ever hurt one another. This has to be a mistake."

The major frowned. "So you know about her marksmanship?"

"Of COURSE I do," replied Smith, trying not to sound annoyed. "Is that what this is all about, that's she's an expert shot? Jeeez, Dan, what happened to your common sense? Did she tell you she's good with knives too?" He shook his head, his black hair falling into his eyes. "As far as I know," he added pointedly, "...neither skill is a crime in Paradigm...or is that some new law the city representatives decided to pass without telling the rest of us?"

"No, no, of course not," Dastun replied hastily, feeling his scarred vein begin to throb painfully. He was on the verge of losing control over the whole situation and he knew it. "Roger," he began, trying to regain the upper hand. "Kirei Snowolf can't be trusted. You don't know--."

"NO!" cried out Dorothy, unable to keep silent any longer. "YOU don't know! Snowy would never hurt anyone, especially not Roger! She'd die to protect him!" She glared at the major, her green eyes bright with anger. Meanwhile, the little androwolf was fuming inside. Why hadn't Leon warned her about this? He HAD to know, didn't he? He knew they were packmates, knew what that meant. To not have the decency to say something, anything--how could he have betrayed her trust so cruelly? Whatever lingering affection she felt for him was swiftly burning away with this.

Dastun interrupted her thoughts. "I'm sorry, Miss Wayneright, but that's not entirely correct. She may have attacked a boy in Paradigm Park. We have DNA samples from white animal hairs we found on him. We have to take samples from her to compare." He looked up at Smith as he continued: "That's what reopened the warrant."

The petite redhead stared at him for a moment in silent confusion, then asked, "But why can't you just take some strands from her hairbrush? Why do you have to arrest her? Why do you even suspect her?" None of this was making sense to Dorothy. It didn't fit her packmate's past behavior at all. If indeed Snowy had done this, there had to be a good reason.

The major shook his head and sighed. He hated doing this. "The fact Miss Snowolf physically matches one ot the descriptions listed is why we have to take her in. Did you know she doesn't have fingerprints? That's one of the traits specifically mentioned--none of these lycanthropes had them. If she's what we suspect she is, she's not human and never was--so she doesn't have the same rights we people do. She sorta falls between the cracks." There was an odd tightness in his gruff voice, as if he couldn't quite believe his own words. "So, this is going to be partially handled under the old rules of Animal Control still on the books. Possibly dangerous animals must be locked up by the state until things can be sorted out." There. He had said it. This was one of the hardest things he'd ever had to do in his long career.

Roger crossed his arms and looked hard at Dastun, as if truly seeing the man for the first time. "Tell me something," he said. "When did this alleged attack happen?" Smith's voice was almost frighteningly calm under the circumstances. It was the tone he used during difficult negotiations with an especially unreasonable client.

This harder attitude made Dastun even more uncomfortable. He looked down, studying the black and white floor tiles as he softly answered his former lieutenant: "The same night I took her to 'Lucky Chang's ' in your place." Part of the major deeply wished he'd never tried to snoop into Kirei's background. What a mess this was!

He glanced back up, saw Roger silently waiting for him to go on. The negotiator's sharply angled face was a sternly perfect mask, completely unreadable. Unhappily, Dan kept talking: "I walked her to the door and made sure she got in safely. Then I drove home. The attack happened less than an hour later."

Roger's black eyes narrowed. "Since you personally saw her home, why do you think she left again? What's your proof?"

Dastun's scalp tightened at that. His regret for starting all this was making him irritable. Annoyed, he went on the offensive. "Damn it, Roger," he huffed. "I'm not doing this for fun--can you prove she DIDN'T go out? You all live with her. Did ANY of you see her after I dropped her off? Do any of you know what she did? If you've got a witness to prove her innocence, now's the time, man!"

Smith scowled. "I admit you've got me there," he said reluctantly. "I got home around 2 AM that night, and went straight to bed. Dorothy couldn't have seen her either. She wasn't feeling well and went to sleep before either Snowy or I had even left that evening."

Dorothy felt a twinge of guilt at his words, but didn't dare say a thing. All she knew was that her packmate's room was empty when she'd gone in to see her. That bit of information certainly wouldn't help Kirei in the least.

Meanwhile Smith turned towards the butler. "Norman?" he asked hopefully. "Did you happen to notice when Snowy got in? Did you see her go to bed?"

Berg shook his head sadly. "I'm most sorry sir, but I was busy repairing something in the basement. I wasn't aware of your return that night either."

Roger was finally unable to hide his dismay. This couldn't be happening, not to one of HIS girls. He glowered at Dan. "It still doesn't mean she did this, Dastun."

The major shrugged unhappily. "I didn't write the warrant, Roger." While technically that was true, he felt he was responsible for what was happening. If Roger ever found out his role in this, he'd never forgive him.

"But this is my Snowy we're talking about," Smith responded plaintively. "I know who she is. I know WHAT she is, and she's not some monster out to harm me or anyone else. Dan, she LIVES here. She's had plenty of chances to kill me if she wanted to! Be sensible--this HAS to be a mistake!"

Dastun shook his head. "I don't like doing this, Roger. I understand your feelings for her, believe me--but if you try to meddle you'll only make things worse for her and maybe get yourself in trouble too. This is all more complicated than you can imagine."

The hurt evident on Roger's face cut the major's heart. He moved towards his young friend and place one leather-gloved hand on Smith's broad shoulder consolingly. "I like Miss Snowolf too, but I'm trying to protect you. Please try to understand that."

Dastun turned without another word and left. There was nothing more he could say.

Ada Wong cheerfully made her way to Whitewolf Studio, curious to see what a real-life Frankenstein Monster would be like. The driver's license photo she'd downloaded from the DOT site was of poor quality, like all such official images. It gave only the most general impression of what her target looked like: dark eyes, dark hair, pale oval face, slight smile. An ordinary face, difficult to peg as to age or ethnicity precisely because it was so unremarkable. It would match dozens of verbal descriptions, enough to cause major confusion if anyone tried to identify her from a quick glance.

It was a very good face for covert activities.

Deciding to play it safe, Ada took the small taser from her purse and slipped it into her right front trouser pocket. Her long jacket hid the slight bulge. Knowing she had faster access to her weapon didn't make her feel the least bit calmer, however. An average lycanthrope could easily overpower her--who knew what this specially created one could do?

Once she arrived, the pretty Asian paused to study the discreet black-lettered sign on the storefront. She was scared and excited, and needed a couple of moments to prepare herself for what might lie in wait inside. It was the sort of thrilling feeling she lived for. Taking a deep breath, Ada pushed open the door and entered. She blinked in surprise.

She hadn't expected the tiny shop to be so pleasant. Despite its small size, the colorful art and airy simplicity of its vaguely asian furnishings made it feel cozy, not cramped. Several pieces of jewelry caught Ada's eye immediately.

This mission was going to be even more fun than she had expected. She'd get to go shopping too!

Back in her workroom, Kirei heard the front door open. What really caught her attention, though, was the unfamiliar scent of her visitor. Beneath the soap, the powder, the expensive perfume, even the natural pheromones shouting human femaleness, was the sour odor of anxiety. It was impossible to miss.

Curious and wary, the dainty shapeshifter quietly came out to see who this person was. Kirei took another careful breath as she studied the black-haired woman (who seemed quite entranced by a case full of golden trinkets.) There was no scent of machine oil or gunpowder, which meant no gun. The woman, mere mundane that she was, wouldn't get very far if she was planning a robbery. Snowy decided to greet her and see how things progressed.

"Good morning, miss. May I help you with something?"

Ada jumped despite herself, caught completely off-guard. She hadn't heard Whitewolf's petite owner come out from behind the wall divider. "Oh, ah, yes...," stammered the taller woman. She could have taken me down and I wouldn't have know what hit me, Wong thought, frightened. Composing herself, she pointed to a yellow-gold ring set with pink cabochon gems of various sizes. "Could you tell me what those stones are?" she asked, thus beginning a careful probe of her possible quarry.

As the conversation (and the shopping) progressed, Ada decided she rather liked Kirei Snowolf. Soft-spoken, well-versed in her craft, intelligent, much prettier in person--no one could possibly suspect there was a killer wolf hidden beneath the skin of this small-boned frame. Either she was the ultimate sleeper weapon...or Leon's suspicions were wrong.

Wong decided to test Snowolf. "Do you carry any sterling silver pieces?" she inquired innocently. Lycanthropes couldn't touch the white metal. It reacted with the virus, acting almost like an acid and severely burning them immediately.

As she asked the question, Ada casually slid her hands into her trouser pockets. Her right hand grasped the hidden taser. If Snowolf said no, or put on a pair of gloves before handling the metal--that would be all the proof she'd need. She'd pounce, knock her out and cuff her.

Ada held her breath, feeling her heart pound with anticipation. She didn't realize that the pungent scent of her adrenaline rush tipped off Kirei that something was seriously amiss.

The smaller woman smiled up at her, but all her senses were now on high alert. What was it about the silver that made this woman so nervous? "Yes, I carry silver too--all high karat and sterling," Kirei said smoothly, trying to think this thing through. Bias against shapeshifters, especially werewolves, was one of the few socially acceptable prejudices. Harassment of suspected lycanthropes to keep neighborhoods "clean" of them was an everyday thing; perhaps someone had targeted her. Or maybe it was Sweet William up to his usual tricks again--he could have decided he needed her silver to forge weapons like bullets or knives to make war on a rival pack. Since neither he nor his packmates could touch the stuff directly, he'd have to use humans to steal it, shape it, and it would be just like him to use that anti-werewolf feeling to justify the theft.

Well, she'd put a stop to all that now.

She moved to another display case, careful to keep it between herself and the Asian woman.

Ada followed a few steps behind, her hands still in her pockets, watching intently. If the little brunette pulled out gloves...

Kirei opened the case and placed several boxed pieces on top of the glass counter.

Ada moved closer still. Any second now she'd know...

Her would-be prey picked up a silver cuff with her bare hand. Its surface was deeply carved with a series of dragonflies, the wings and eyes inset with citrines and garnets. Kirei slipped it onto her own wrist. "This is one of my favorites," she said. "I made myself one, but with moonstones and mother-of-pearl instead." She thrust her arm out in front of Ada, showing off the cuff.

Wong stared at Snowolf's naked arm. There were no burns, no blisters, no smoking flesh. The pale skin wasn't affected at all.

The smaller woman slipped off the cuff and offered it to Ada to try on. Ada slowly pulled her left hand from her pocket. Numbly, she let Kirei slip it onto her wrist, still trying to understand what exactly was happening. How could this be, she wondered...unless..."Do you plate the silver with rhodium to keep it shiny?"

Snowolf narrowed her large brown eyes at her. "Of course not!" she replied indignantly. "It's a living metal. Silver develops a beautiful soft patina over time if you wear it regularly, even with cloth polishing. Besides, the plating would wear off eventually and look terrible. If you want something you don't need to buff, go for white-gold. I can duplicate any of my silver pieces if you want to special order, but it'll be more expensive."

Oops! Wong thought to herself. Carefully, she let go of the taser and arranged her face into a smile. Kennedy HAD erred, big time. This one had to be human.

"I was just curious," Ada said sweetly. "I love this piece. I'll take it."

A few minutes later Wong left the studio, the beautiful bracelet on her wrist. Even though the lead hadn't panned out, the experience was worth it, she decided. The cuff felt great, as if it had been made just for her, and there was a pair of dragonfly earrings at the shop that matched perfectly. She would pick them up when she got her next paycheck. Meanwhile, there was still that other lead to check out. Dorothy Wayneright, android AND werewolf--she would have never suspected her.

As Ada paused to admire her new ornament, she noticed two squad cars quietly speed past her. She ducked into an alcove for cover and watched them both park in front of Whitewolf. Four officers came out. Two moved to either side of the front door; probably backup, she thought. The other pair went into Whitewolf with guns drawn. One of them, a blond, looked familiar. Ada squinted for a better look. "Leon Kennedy," she murmured. "Boy, are you in for a surprise."

A few moments passed; then Kennedy and his partner came out, Kirei Snowolf between them. Her hands were cuffed behind her back, and she had a quietly resigned look on her face. One of the backup officers locked the shop, then everyone got into the squad cars and left.

The report on THIS arrest is going to be interesting, Wong mused as she stepped out of the shadows. Snowolf's boyfriend Roger Smith was a powerful man. Unless Leon could prove his case, the negotiator would have his badge before this was all over.

On the other hand, all of this might provide her with enough of a distraction to get her hands on the little redhead. Ada smiled broadly. Things might turn out even better than she had hoped.