River tried to flee as far as she could in her weakened condition. She fell against people trying to regain her footing. She made it obvious that she was not well. River fell to her knees and leaned to a street lamp where she took deep breaths and forcibly rose to her feet. By leaving, River gave the Loup-garoux path into her concealed guilt. She hurried further down the street until she came to the zoo.
Police tape wrapped around each gate to forbid anyone from passing. The groundskeepers were the only ones allowed inside but that never stopped River to enter from a back alley. She climbed the narrow branches, eased lower to the concrete, and silently land. Her arms lay on her abdomen as she experienced a piercing sting. River supported herself on the tree as she bent forward with sickness. Afterwards, she wiped her mouth with her hand. She remembered feeling sick days earlier and it wasn't because of the accusations leaning toward her; it was the fact that she hadn't embraced the Change since her arrival to Bucharest. Her body wanted to ache with fulfillment.
River needed to take precaution even more. Her eyes shifted from the variance of wind howling through the trees and the hissing of the leaves upon the concrete; she had an odd sense that someone other than herself laid present at the zoo. Her eyes observed the shadows, the slumbering beasts, and streets beyond the gate.
Nightfall, River noted as a veil of black swelled overhead. She sat under the tree unable to move further. Her eyes lowered heavily as though sleep eluded her. River refused to accept the Change; she was not ready, she wanted to hold back as much as possible to clear her name. River bent over to the side again as another wave of nausea conquered her.
"That is what happens when you tangle with their world. You begin to lose who you are and what we are is nothing more what we were born to be…hunters."
With her head lowered, River lifted her eyes as they were consumed by shadow. She followed the voice to the gated tree across from her. There, lined by moonlight, a womanly silhouette. A curtain of gold hair waved fluidly in the icy wind of night. Eyes of frost blue, much like River's, rose to view the parting veil of clouds to see the moon.
"It is a constant struggle that we suffer each day to dwell in these vulnerable shapes. Does it not hurt you to refuse what you truly need and you should have known that when our kind experience the sensual act, we immediately Change; consider it forbidden though very needed."
"I am no hunter. I know my limit."
"Are you sure?" Delilah crossed over to River, crouching down to stare at her at eye level. "What was one person, no? How about two or three, maybe four!"
River shook her head. "The first was an accident. I left Bucharest as soon as it happened. I knew leaving was the best thing to regain my balance."
"But, it didn't end there did it. You attacked more people and left the evidence everywhere. I knew you were not the perfect choice to come to Bucharest; you are just a child after all." Delilah pushed River without much effort. "So, how did that woman taste on your tongue, how did the mangy Loup-garoux cry as you tore into them? Your father was pathetic to even allow you to come here."
"It was an accident; every one else was fine."
"That is very unlikely."
River opened her eyes. They resided to their natural state of frost blue. She no longer needed to struggle with maintaining her sickness; it seemed to have gone. She stared at Delilah.
"What did you call them?"
Delilah looked at River. Her brows furrowed. "What?"
"The Loup-garoux."
"Mangy, filthy dogs."
River noted that something about the letter. Her father held respect for the Loup-garoux; he never referred to them in a vulgar language. She had to recall the entire letter. She never mentioned to have revealed herself in her previous letter. In fact, her father never knew of the accident let alone the murders days later. Something was not right altogether when she looked at Delilah. Though beautiful as the woman seemed, she had her deceitful ways.
"Delilah, do believe me to be a fool? I'll admit that the first murder was an accident, a slip that should have been done better, but it didn't. However, I was not near the postal office because I came here. Rafe knew that I was here, which meant he was watching me the entire time. During that, you must have taken your chance to ruin me further by murdering those people because it seemed likely since I frightened the postal worker. The others were innocent bystanders."
Delilah shrieked. "What makes you think that it was me?"
"Who else than the woman wanting to be with my father. This is what its all about. You thought that while I'm here you would use my vulnerability. Now, the Loup-garoux will begin to think that it is I whom has been spilling the blood of their kind. The woman, Dolores, was not a Loup-garoux, they had no reason to place their heart into the investigation, but it was when the postal worker found mangled, they stepped further to hunt this murderer down."
Delilah tucked her hands into her pockets. Her face stayed passive and none too easy to read. "I'm touched that you've considered my person as the one committing these atrocities."
"You have no business here. I would never allow it because being that my mother is gone, I have taken the next rank, as would my children. You would remain the lowly mistress my father couldn't help but fancy. That is the only thing you were ever good at. But, why would you try to ruin things here, you have no power except the Change. Here, the Loup-garoux has their say." River took a breath. Her mouth twitched into a smile that faded too soon.
"A bold word for a girl refusing to accept what she is."
"No, Delilah. I know what I am and I know when it's the right place to bask. What you have done has ruined our chances."
Delilah walked over to a cage. Her eyes rolled from River's words. "And what were we going to do? Become their little watchdogs? Our ancestors would be furious with us."
"New ages come and go, this is what my father wished. You have no right to defy him; you have broken my family out of greed. What would you have done, finished me then my father? None would let you pass. You want to live as you are then so be it; don't bring my family with you because we are the pride of our kind. Our people depend on us just as the Loup-garoux depends on theirs. You see, we do have a common ground."
"You favor those mangy dogs. I pity you because we are much greater than they."
River shook her head. "No, Delilah, it is I who pity you. You had to cause this much chaos to get what you wanted and what it seemed to be was a war between them and us. Now, I must correct this and do what I was never to do while here. I have to tell them who I truly am. From this day forth, you are no longer a part of our family. We will see to it that you say nothing more."
"As I said again, bold words." Delilah turned to look at River. They shared a strong glare without speaking. River advanced very little.
"My question is simple. Why?"
"Because I wanted you dead. I assumed that while here in Bucharest you'd bury yourself into your grave but you avoided it. You are a smart girl." Delilah abruptly turned. Her shoulders slumped and her hands gripped the security gates tightly. She forbid from Changing.
"If I was naïve then I would have. Maybe, it was because I feared what they thought of me. Spending a few days in Bucharest made me realize that it's inevitable to fight who we really are. But, for the sake of keeping ourselves from harm, we have no choice."
Delilah turned slightly. Her hair began to drain from color. It became evident that Delilah was not going to allow River to say anymore. River stood her ground at the ready. River wanted to embrace the Change when in private, now it seemed that it was impossible because now, River caught the scent of Loup-garoux thickening. They were getting closer to finding her.
"Are you scared to show what you truly are!"
River grimaced. "I'm proud to."
Now, River was not going to allow the Loup-garoux to intimidate her as they drew near. Though her fingers grew numb by the moment, her heart raced from the excitement of revealing to Rafe what she was.