Myka, Pete and the weres go on a little jaunt to follow Christina's scent at the crime scene. Some unexpected guests turn up.
(Sorry for posting this so late; life got in the way. Next part should be up sometime around the weekend)
Myka busied herself with the reports and evidence from the crime scene the previous day. Claudia was becoming somewhat of an expert in forensic techniques these days; despite her stated desire to be Sheriff one day, Myka suspected she would gravitate more towards the science and computer side of police work. She had written concise reports which all said the same thing. Despite the evisceration of the bodies, and a wealth of physical evidence, they had nothing concrete. Zip. She sighed and wondered whether things would ever go back to normal here, in the town that was supposed to be her solace after all the madness in Colorado Springs.
Pete's Marine buddies turned up just as Myka was planning to go home. They both seemed intelligent enough and neither of them were bothered by working for a woman; Pete had checked that they had worked under female officers before and neither had ever had any complaints against them for any reason. She could tell that Liam would not be a problem in that way, as he was clearly much more interested in Steve than in any of the ladies, and while the other guy, Jeff, was clearly interested in her, he was polite and kept his eyes north of her neck at all times, something she couldn't even always say about Pete, so she was pretty pleased. She hired them both on a provisional basis, telling them to return first thing the next morning. Pete asked to see her after she'd interviewed them, so she called him in after the interviews were done.
"What's up?" she asked distractedly. She was getting her stuff together ready to go home, and her mind was already focused on Helena's arrival after sundown.
"The guys – both the guys you just spoke to – they're weres," he said, urgently.
"Okay," she said carefully. Was she supposed to know the significance of that?
"They're werewolves, Myka," he said impatiently. "Like, wolves. With wolf noses. And they've dealt with vampires before?"
She realised what he was saying.
"So, we can use them to try to track Christina?" she said, shaking her head a little at her own stupidity.
"Yeah," he said, obviously making an effort not to call her a dumbass.
She'd put it out of her mind because she figured Pete would let her know when he'd spoken to the local pack leader or alpha or whatever they called themselves; and she was distracted – more than distracted – by the thought of Helena.
"Right," she said, trying to claw back some authority and dignity. "Can they come look at the scene? Did you ask them?
He nodded.
"They can come by this evening. I figured if we met there around 9 – that gives you time to fill Helena in on what's going on, and they can meet her so they can get used to her scent and discount it at the scene. Does that make sense?"
She nodded, lost in thought.
"D'you think they'll find anything?" she asked.
He shrugged a little.
"They seemed pretty confident, Myka, and one thing we were taught in the Corps was that you never pretend – if you don't know, you speak up, or somebody dies. So I have no reason to think that they won't be able to help."
She nodded.
"Okay. We'll meet you there at 9. Call me if anything changes."
She ate a filling but unsatisfying dinner of pasta and when sundown came, felt the familiar pull of anticipation at the vampire's imminent arrival. She didn't have to look up from her book to know when Helena was there.
"Hey," she said, smiling.
"Good evening, Sheriff," Helena said, sketching a small bow in her direction before making her way at normal speed to the chair next to Myka.
"Are we so formal, now?" Myka asked, smiling as the vampire settled next to her.
Helena looked at her uncertainly.
"I must confess I didn't know how you would react, after last night. As I mentioned, some humans become addicted to vampire sex, and while I never really thought you would, I was concerned."
Myka smiled at her.
"Well, I get how it could become addictive. It was pretty amazing. But I am not infatuated with your sexual prowess, Helena. I'm interested in you."
She underlined her point by pulling her body away from Helena's and simply looking at her, letting her eyes speak instead of her body. She wanted to touch Helena, but it was more important to show her that she was interested in who she was, rather than how fantastic sex with the vampire had been.
"I…thank you, Myka. For understanding. I have unwittingly drawn many humans along in my wake, infatuated or enthralled with me because of a sexual experience. I have no wish to entertain a relationship of that kind now, any more than I did then."
Myka smiled softly.
"We don't have to do it again, Helena, if you're uncomfortable. Although I would really, really like to. But that's not what this is. I'm not using you, okay?"
Helena smiled at the sincerity in her voice.
"I would be most upset if we didn't get to do that again, Myka," she said, in a whisper that sent a small shiver through Myka.
"Well, I'm relieved to hear you say that, because it was…wow." She grinned at the vampire, who smiled back in genuine amusement. "But there's something else we need to talk about right now, if that's okay with you?
"Of course," Helena said, inclining her head in that archaic way of hers.
"Pete found some werewolves who are going to examine the scene of the murders. They can apparently tell the difference between vampire scents, which Pete can't. They need to…well, smell you, I guess, so that they can exclude you. Would that be okay?"
Helena nodded.
"I promised you I would do anything I could to help you, Myka, and I will. I want this to be over before Christina kills again."
They took Myka's car, since Helena was on foot, having travelled from wherever her sleeping place was. They were there a few minutes early, so Myka decided to spend those minutes in an energetic session of teasing, which led to Helena, after a few minutes, gripping Myka's wrists to trap her arms at her sides. It was very much like being held in a steel vice; terrifying but thrilling.
"We are supposed to be investigating, Myka," Helena growled. "Unless you want your men to discover me making you scream out your pleasure in the back seat of your squad car, I suggest you keep your hands to yourself."
Myka laughed, still trying to squirm out of Helena's grip. She wasn't usually this playful, but she knew that she didn't want to think about what she'd seen in these woods the morning before either. She stopped struggling, however, when she saw the twin beams of headlights coming towards them. Probably best if her new deputies didn't discover her making out with a vampire in her car. She straightened her clothing and grinned at Helena before opening the door and getting out.
Her new deputies and Pete were half-dressed, wearing only trousers and tank tops. Myka looked at Pete quizzically as they approached.
"We're going to have to change, boss – the sense of smell is stronger in wolf form," he said, gesturing at their clothing.
"Oh, right," she said, once again feeling stupid. "Guys, this is Helena. You need to rule her out."
Jeff and Liam nodded seriously before disappearing into the trees to change. Pete held his hand out to Helena, who took it, looking slightly bemused.
"I wanted to say thank you, ma'am, for what you did for me and the Sheriff," he said seriously. "You saved our lives and I can't ever repay you for protecting the Sheriff when I couldn't."
Helena nodded, just as seriously, and bowed slightly in recognition.
"You are most welcome, Deputy Lattimer," she said, and after a long moment they let go of one another's hands. Pete nodded again and turned to follow his friends into the dark of the woods.
A moment later, three large wolves came slinking out of the forest, golden eyes glinting in the light from the car headlights. They walked up to Helena carefully, waiting in case she made a move, and then began circling her, sniffing. After 30 seconds or so the largest one made a whuffing sound and led the others towards the site of the murders. Helena and Myka followed them in silence. They waited as the three wolves sniffed carefully at the entire area, and then, as one, the wolves began running into the woods.
"What the…?" Myka managed, before Helena lifted her swiftly and the woods around them began to blur.
"They've found a scent, Myka," Helena murmured in her ear as the trees whipped past them. Myka nodded and tucked herself closer to Helena's body. It was disconcerting to move this fast and to have no control, but she trusted Helena.
After a fairly short time they stopped, finding the three wolves walking in circles in a clearing. Helena put Myka back on her feet and they waited for a moment as one of the wolves approached them. He moved behind them and Myka told Helena to keep her eyes forward.
"I don't understand, Myka," Helena murmured, and Myka laughed.
"They left their clothes back there. I'm guessing that's Pete and he's going to change so he can talk to us."
Helena nodded, her eyes forward.
"It certainly would be useful if you could read minds clearly at the current time, to avoid the risk of accidental viewings of Deputy Lattimer's "junk" as I believe our mutual friend Claudia refers to it?" she muttered, and Myka was nodding until Helena said the word "junk". That started her off laughing and she didn't stop until she heard Pete's voice from behind her.
"Sheriff, the trail ends here. It seems like they met with some weres – no-one that any of us have met – and it seems like the weres tramped around to destroy any chance we might have had to follow the vamps."
Helena frowned and almost turned, but Myka grabbed her arm to stop her.
"Why would weres be helping vampires who are killing children in their area?" Helena asked, sounding extremely confused.
"That, I can't help you with, ma'am," Pete said. "I'm going to change and we'll head back to the car."
"Are you ready?" Helena asked, as Myka felt Pete's mind blur and shrink behind her. She nodded, and was treated to the reverse version of their earlier journey. As they approached the car, however, Helena stopped suddenly, her chest rumbling in a growl.
"What's wrong?" Myka asked, against Helena's neck.
"There are weres here. Hiding," Helena said, in a low voice. "Stay behind me."
Myka did as she was told. She could feel minds all around her, glowing redly to her other sense, and all of a sudden she remembered that Marcus Diamond's mind, that night in her backyard, had felt that same way. Marcus Diamond had been a were.
"Sheriff, you better come out here," a familiar voice called. She tried to place the woman's voice, but for once her memory failed her. "We want to talk to you…" it said, tauntingly.
"You are not coming anywhere near the Sheriff," Helena called out in her cold voice. "She is under my protection."
Myka bristled instinctively at the idea that she required anyone's protection, but she had to admit to herself that she really did need Helena right now. She didn't feel like taking on a group of wolves or bears or panthers.
As that thought entered her mind, the three wolves loped up behind them, growling deep in their throats.
"Y'all better stay out of this," the voice called, presumably to Pete and his friends. "This is a pack matter. Your precious Sheriff murdered one of our pack, and this vampire helped her."
Pete blurred quickly into his human form, stepping behind a nearby tree and pulling on his jeans quickly.
"That's not true," he called out, stepping out into the clearing by the road, holding up his hands. "I'm not part of this pack, but I am a shifter and I swear I'm telling the truth."
Animals began stepping out of the woods onto the road. They were mostly wolves but there were several panthers and one bear. The oldest (but not largest) of the wolves stepped out, blurring quickly into the form of a small, balding (and very naked) man.
"Who are you?" he demanded, ignoring his nakedness and standing close to Pete, chin thrust upwards challengingly.
"Deputy Peter Lattimer," Pete said, nodding his head in a way that was similar to Helena's archaic bows.
"Benedict Valda," the small man said, staring at all of them. "What do you mean, that's not true?"
A young woman stepped out of the trees, and Myka realised whose voice she had been hearing. Sally Stukowski, Arthur Nielsen's assistant.
"They killed Marcus and his buddy Walter. Neither of them have been seen since Friday and the last thing Marcus told me was that he was going to teach the Sheriff a lesson about who was in charge here," she said, giving Myka a look of pure hatred.
"So, what do you say to that, Sheriff?" said the small man, turning his gaze on Myka. He was clearly unperturbed by standing there naked in front of strangers. Myka thought idly to herself that it must be a were thing.
"What I have to say is that Ms Stukowski is correct. Marcus Diamond came to see me with Walter Sykes on Friday. Their intention was to rape and then murder me. Apparently that's what Marcus meant by 'teaching me a lesson'. I was alone apart from a stray dog, who it turns out was Deputy Lattimer, and he tried to defend me. Marcus shot him in the chest."
The assembled weres growled at that, and Sally Stukowski looked around nervously.
"How is it that you're still alive, Deputy Lattimer?" Benedict Valda asked, looking at Pete's unmarked chest sceptically.
"That would be where I come in, Mr Valda," Helena said smoothly. "I received a silent call from Sheriff Bering, and I heard Walter Sykes in the background threatening the Sheriff, followed by the sound of blows in the background. I returned to her home and in the backyard I found Mr Diamond kicking the Sheriff repeatedly. She had already sustained a broken jaw, cheekbone, ribs, and several ruptured organs including her spleen, but apparently that was not enough for Mr Diamond. While he continued with his attack, Mr Sykes was trying to position the Sheriff in such a way that he could remove her trousers. I believe his intention was to rape her as she died."
The assembled weres growled more loudly, and Sally Stukowski's face paled.
"You're lying, vampire! You killed my boyfriend and you're making this shit up so we won't kill you and your girlfriend!" she said, sneering.
"My relationship with the Sheriff is immaterial, young woman. However, I can assure you that I am telling the truth. I have no interest in conflict with the local pack. I am here to track a vampire who has been killing children in your area. I only defended the Sheriff and her friend Mr Lattimer from an attack. Had I known that Mr Diamond was a pack member, I would have sought you out, Mr Valda," she said, again with that archaic head tilt, which he returned. "As it was, I believed him to be an unaffiliated were. I did not think it likely that a member of a local pack would behave in such a fashion. In any case, I confirm that I did indeed kill Mr Diamond and Mr Sykes, in defence of the Sheriff and her friend, and I challenge any of you to say you would not have done the same in my position."
Benedict Valda nodded thoughtfully, and Sally Stukowski began yelling.
"You heard her! She murdered a member of our pack. She has to die, her and her bitch girlfriend!"
Pete tensed next to Myka, and the two wolves behind them began to growl softly.
"There is no need for that, Sally," Benedict Valda said. "We have witches in this area who can confirm whose story is true. Might I ask how the Sheriff and Mr Lattimer are still alive?" he asked, directing his question at Helena.
"Of course, Mr Valda. I gave them enough of my blood to save their lives. Mr Lattimer, of course, needed less than the Sheriff did, given that weres heal more quickly than humans."
Mr Valda looked at her, his eyes widening in slight surprise.
"You must care for the Sheriff a great deal, Madam, to give her your blood," he said. It wasn't quite a question, and Helena simply nodded slightly. He nodded in reply.
"Very well. We will need to use your backyard, Sheriff Bering. Tomorrow night, then?" he asked, and it wasn't truly a question – more of a demand – but Myka nodded, as did Helena. Benedict Valda blurred again into his wolf form and loped away. Sally Stukowski hissed at them and stripped quickly with her back to them, blurring into a sleek black panther. She disappeared in seconds into the darkness of the trees. Myka heard some rustling behind her and felt the men's brains change again from one form to another. After a few moments, Liam and Jeff stepped out from the trees, dressed once again in jeans and tank tops.
"Thank you for the assistance," Myka said, nodding at her new deputies.
"You're welcome, Ma'am," Jeff Weaver said, eyes forward as if he were still in the military. Myka cursed inwardly; this "Ma'am" thing wasn't going to go away, was it?
"So, tomorrow night," she said, turning her head towards Pete. He nodded thoughtfully.
"You guys okay to come along for backup?" he asked, chewing on a toothpick again. Myka wondered idly where the hell he kept them.
Both Jeff and Liam nodded, and with a nod they took their leave of one another, Helena and Myka heading to one car and the men to the other. Myka drove them back to her house in silence, and when they arrived, she heated some True Blood for Helena, and made some chamomile tea for herself. They sat in their customary places on the porch, the chair swing moving gently as Myka folded herself into Helena's cool body.
Helena stroked Myka's hair with long fingers.
"Are you all right, Myka? I was not expecting that woman and her accusations tonight."
"Nor was I," Myka said with a sigh. "I know her. She's Artie's assistant. I didn't realise she was a were. I know what to look for now, though. Their minds are different. They glow."
Helena hummed to herself thoughtfully. "I wonder if you can read them when your ability is working?" she said, almost to herself.
"I don't know if I even want it to work," Myka admitted. "The counsellor – Dr Cho – she said I should consider the benefits and the downsides. I still haven't come to a conclusion."
"I think it would be a good thing, Myka, if you don't mind me saying. Currently it is a disability. At times it almost incapacitates you. You should, at the very least, learn how to block it completely, so that you can shield yourself from the emotions of others."
Myka looked up at her. Helena's forehead was creased with concern.
"I worry that you will hurt yourself someday, that the anguish of another will overcome you as it almost did yesterday," Helena murmured.
"You might be right," Myka allowed, and Helena tipped her head down to kiss Myka. Her lips were cool and pleasant against Myka's, and Myka sat up quickly, turning to face Helena, and began to kiss her more seriously. It wasn't long before she was whisked again to her bedroom, their bodies joining frantically over and over until Helena left just before dawn.
"Until tomorrow, my love," she whispered as she blurred away. Myka had time to feel a twinge of regret that they wouldn't wake up together before sleep pulled her under.