Leaders of the Pack Ch. 06

Another one with no sex in it... Story is more important right? :P

Chapter 6

Tor was at a loss. He went through the list of all the men currently available to take Natalie to look for the muin farmhouse where she stashed the tapes. All the men he was willing to consider were out on Luther's orders. Those that were left he was positive would intimidate Natalie enough that it might bring them back to square one.

He was considering whether he could have looked a bit harder for someone to take the fiery redhead out house hunting. Feeling pressed for time he wondered if he should make the phone calls to his contacts in the packs now or if it really could wait until after he got his hands on the tapes. By the time he reasoned out that the information on the tapes might influence the calls he made, he was standing outside Natalie's door.

A brief smile crossed his lips as he knocked on the door. As usual there was no response from inside. He wiped the smile from his face and turned the knob. "You know," Tor said as he walked into the room, "a simple 'come in' might prevent a person from walking in on something that you wouldn't want seen."

"I lock the door when I want to prevent that," she responded shortly.

"I guess that could work too."

"Anyway, you said you were coming. I'm ready to go."

"Are you sure you can find it again?"

"Honestly, no." Natalie picked up the notepad and pen from the table. She stared at the rough map again. "I hope so. What will happen to me if I can't?"

"Not sure. I guess that would depend on whether Mira believes you truly can't find it or if she thinks you're lying. If your lying, then not only will that piss her off but there's also the fact that you would have wasted my time when there are a number of other things I need to get done."

Natalie stared at the map with concern.

"Don't worry. She's not as bad as it may seem. She's in a difficult position right now and it's wearing on her. I'm sure you'll be okay one way or another. Let's get going. We'll just have to make sure we find the place so that there's nothing to worry about."

Tor led the way down the hall. Natalie continued to stare at the map as they walked as if she could will herself into remembering some additional detail that would help out. "How far outside of town are we? In what direction? I was trying to figure out how far we'll have to go to get to highway 41."

"It will be quite a drive. But I'll see how fast I can get us there." He watched the freckles on her face wrinkle in concentration and found himself smiling again. Shaking his head at himself, he opened the door for her that led into the parking garage.

"Thanks," she said staring at him in confusion.

"What?" He asked at the look on her face.

"I guess I was thinking that I never in a million years would have pictured a werewolf or lycan or whatever opening a door for me. The general portrayal isn't that of the lycan gentleman."

A rumbling chuckle reverberated in his chest. "You certainly do speak your mind."

"Sorry, I guess I sometimes say things without thinking. I wasn't trying to be insulting." Natalie blushed as he opened the car door for her.

"I'm not offended. I find it interesting that you appear to have adjusted to dealing with this so well so quickly. Not many could go from fainting to analyzing manners so offhandedly in the space of a few days."

"I wouldn't call it a quick adjustment. I've learned a lot in the past six months. Not the least of which is that human beings are more capable of being monsters than the monsters are. That conclusion I reached long before you rescued me from that asylum."

"How exactly could you determine that before coming here?" Tor's voice was tinted with obvious interest in that particular comment.

Natalie paused before she continued, trying to put her thoughts in order. At this point I suppose the whole thing will come out when they see the tapes anyway. "The night I got everything on tape was very strange. It may be easiest to watch it as opposed to me trying to explain it all. Mostly I say that because I get the feeling you'll understand it better than I did. Ultimately it came down to what I think was a vampire rescuing me from some military types." Tor thought about that as he drove.

Sitting in the silence Natalie watched out the window as the scenery passed. They were on the south side of the city she realized after a time. It was going to be at least an hour to drive through it, depending on traffic. They would need to stop for gas and then drive the rest of the way out of town. She started to worry that they might be seen and that they might get followed. Then a look over at Tor again put her mind a bit at rest. I'm willing to bet that even the government guys with the guns would have trouble with this guy. She found it odd that while he had to be the biggest man she had ever seen. The tattoos on his face were certainly intimidating. If she had met him under any other circumstances she was certain she would have turned and gone the other way as quickly and quietly as possible. Somehow getting to talk to him even the little bit that she had convinced her that he was more trustworthy than anyone else she had known in years. It was an odd feeling.

"Natalie," Tor asked breaking the silence after quite some time driving. "What did the vampire you mentioned look like?"

"It was dark," she said and went a bit pale.

"Okay, so it was dark. You have to have seen the guy's face if he 'saved you,'" Tor said with more suspicion.

"I don't think I've ever seen anything more terrifying. If it hadn't been for the fact that the other guys had guns and were shooting at me," Natalie didn't finish.

"You still haven't described him."

Natalie could see the nightmare as clear as day. "Dark hair, black sockets for eyes, a mouthful of fangs. Nothing like the movies."

Tor went cold all over and a low growl emanated from his chest, causing Natalie's eyes to widen a bit and she turned to look at him. "Say you didn't get him on your tape."

Natalie didn't answer.

Jenna paced impatiently in the small room she had been thrown in. She was becoming far to used to the feel of prisons lately. It didn't matter whether it was her own bedroom thanks to Rafe, an actual room with bars courtesy of Cadifor, a self imposed hotel she couldn't leave, or a small room with a locked door.

Devon had been very clear about how many different torture tactics he had learned while working for Rafe. She had been given an hour to remember where the rest of the paperwork was and to become more cooperative.

She briefly considered her chances of escaping if she shifted and tried to fight her way out. They have guns and superior numbers, a superior voice growled in the back of her head.

"So you're talking to me again?" Jenna questioned sarcastically. "Just say 'I told you so' and be done with it."

I'm too busy trying to think of a way out of this to mince words. I think you're only real choice here is to cooperate with them and hope that the maniac in charge is good to his word. Give them the information they want and I suggest making it clear that the circle on Arnauk territory is more than a little helpful. Maybe we can still get out there in time to catch the birth of Aislinn's child before out chance is lost and we end up together permanently.

Jenna actually flinched as her door slammed open. Devon was pissed. "Now, Jenna. It seems that I have been given a very tight deadline to start producing quality work or my funding and backing is going to be revoked. That means in it's simplest terms that your time is up. So what will it be?"

"I get it Devon. I've got no choices here. I'll give you what you want. But I'm hoping for some help in return."

"You seem to be mistaking yourself for someone in a position to negotiate." Devon hissed. One of his apelike cronies grabbed her from behind, holding her arms down in a steal like grip and squeezing most of the wind out of her.

Jenna had never found any type of were she had seen shift frightening, until now. Devon's face elongated, his scales spread, his eyes enlarged and his mouth seemed to unhinge as he bared a set of fangs at least three inches long. A wicked hiss accompanied a flicking tongue as he stepped up to Jenna. Opening his mouth again to give her a better look at his impressive fangs, she could see venom dripping from the tips.

Devon's fang's retracted again as he spoke. "Where are the paperssss?"

Jenna stammered, "I'm gonna end up dead one way or the other. Why would I want to help you on my way out?"

Jerking his head toward the door, Devon walked out, leading the way as Jenna was dragged along by the ape-tiger man. He opened a door at the back of the warehouse and Jenna was virtually thrown inside.

Then Jenna spotted the cages at the back wall. Several of her own men who had been turned into dire lycans were locked up as well as a couple mixed weres that she didn't recognize. She took a closer look at the men in the cages. It was obvious that they weren't fairing well. They gave the distinct impression of insanity meets wild kingdom. A small twinge of guilt passed through Jenna as she realized that she was responsible for a majority of the caged men in this room. Devon watched her and waited.

"I want to be there when you change them back," Jenna said, managing to sound remorseful. She could feel Brennus' approval to her idea in the back of her mind.

Shifting back to his more human looking for Devon tried to read her intentions. He wasn't sure if she had an ulterior motive to the suggestion. Still if she was willing to divulge the location of the missing notes then it was a simple enough thing to agree to. "I suppose that is not out of the range of possibility. You tell me where we can find the notes we need and I'll see what I can do."

"The rest of the notes are hidden at the manor. I assume if you're working with the feds and they are still looking then they simply haven't been found yet." Jenna continued to stare at the man in the cage and managed to generate a tear that wasn't entirely faked. "There is a pond behind the manor and several gazebos surround it. I buried the missing notes in the ground beneath some loose boards in the floor of the northern most gazebo. It's the one that is tucked into the trees toward the back of the main property. I figured that everyone would ransack the house, but they might miss searching the grounds too thoroughly."

Devon seemed satisfied with her sincerity for the moment. "It seems you may be right. I'll send someone to locate the notes. I'll let you know how that turns out. Then we may discuss whether or not you live."

It took over an hour of arguing and reassuring to get Aislinn to calm down and accept returning to the Madadh-alluidh Saobhaidh. Aislinn rode in the SUV silently, clutching her stomach, tears running down her face. The only thing stopping her from insisting on remaining at the circle was that she realized it wouldn't matter whether the babies were born there or at the den. If they didn't have Brennus to exchange, one would die regardless. She needed to call Cullen and she would have a terrible time managing that from the reservation.

Rissa attempted to comfort her, but Aislinn simply wasn't ready to discuss what she had learned. She was afraid that if she said it out loud she might break down completely again.

The trip was agonizingly long. It was already dinner by the time they were home. Rissa held Aislinn's hand as the walked through the parking garage and into the elevator. Sarah met them as they arrived on the 13th floor.

One look at Aislinn's pale face and defeated expression had Sarah on her cell phone to Rhona. She glared at Rissa and Drake, "You should have taken her to the infirmary."

Drake glared right back. "She crying and upset, but not hurt." He looked to Aislinn uncertainly. "As far as we can tell," he added. "She won't say what happened.

"I don't need Rhona. There's nothing she can do. This is my fault. I should have listened to Cullen." Aislinn started to sob again. Rissa helped her to the nearest sofa in the great room. Drake managed to shoo most of the concerned onlookers out of the immediate area.

Sarah sat down next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders comfortingly. "Try and calm down. I need to know what's wrong so I can help."

"Is there any chance at all that Cullen and Cadifor have managed to catch Jenna yet?" Aislinn asked knowing what the answer would be.

Shaking her head, Sarah urged Aislinn, "No, but what difference does that make?"

"It's difficult to explain. If we want both of my children," Aislinn could barely say it, "to survive birth," she continued through heavy sobs, "we need to get Jenna and take them back to the Circle."

Rissa jumped up and fetched a box of tissues that was on a nearby counter. She felt like she needed to do something and that was the only thing she could see to be helpful in any way.

Sarah and all the others went cold at the statement. No one was able to speak or think much beyond what she said.

"I need to call Cullen," Aislinn added.

Rhona exited the elevator and came directly over to the group of people gathered at the couch. One look at all their faces and she immediately began checking Aislinn over.

"I'm fine Rhona. I only need to calm down," Aislinn said, almost grateful at having to deal with Rhona's fussing. It briefly interrupted her miserable thought process. "Are you able to give me anything that could calm my nerves," she asked hopefully.

"I hesitate to give you anything like that while you're pregnant. Maybe some tea and a little rest would be the best medicine for whatever has you this upset. It's not good for you or the babies," Rhona added with concern.

Aislinn nodded. "That sounds like a good idea. I'm guessing that no matter what I tell them they won't be able to find her any sooner. They're already looking for her."

Sarah wasn't sure what to do. She sounded so defeated. She could already imagine the conversation if Aislinn called Cullen with this kind of news. He was already worked up. Every time Sarah had spoken to him on the phone recently he was aggitated and wanted to know how Aislinn was. He was doing his best to fulfill his role as Alpha but it was fairly obvious he would rather be being a mate and father at the moment. Who could blame him?

"Rissa," Sarah said with a bit of a crack in her standard authorative tone, "take Aislinn for some tea and get her to her bed. Drake come with me. I need to know exactly what happened." Everyone moved to do as they were told. At least following orders broke the discomfort of standing around staring helplessly. Rhona went with Rissa to help with the tea.

Drake and Sarah walked into her office and closed the door behind themselves. "I don't really have much more to add," Drake said.

"I know. I just wanted you with me. I'm going to call Cullen."

"I don't know how smart that is. You don't really have all the information. She's holding something back."

"You're right. But I'm guessing that when Cullen gets Aislinn's call he's going to go a bit crazy. She's upset enough already. Right now she'll need him to be calm and handle it rationally at least when he's talking to her. Last thing we need right now is for her to go into labor early due to upset. If this is all dependent on the birth, then maybe we can talk to Rhona about something to delay it until Jenna is in custody. The most important piece of information for Cullen right now is to find her." Sarah nodded to herself as if she was getting all of her thoughts straight. "So I need to warn Cullen about the call that's coming. Tell him to be calm. And that finding Jenna has now become more imperative than it was before."

Drake had to admire her thought process. "This is why you got this job." He hugged her tightly. It was a rare moment when she so obviously needed outside strength to do anything.

Cullen could feel Aislinn's abject misery. Tired of meetings, uncertain what was happening at the den and feeling helpless to do anything productive, he paced the hallway outside the meeting room. For the past hour Aislinn's upset had been increasing in intensity. He had attempted to call her but was unable to get through and she had yet to return his call.

Cadifor came charging out into the hall. "You strain our friendship Arnauk," he growled. "No one walks out on Council meetings."

Menacing growling emanated from Cullen's chest. "Something is wrong."

Cadifor actually paused. In their long time friendship, he had never seen Cullen Arnauk so disturbed. "Aislinn?"

Pacing across the floor Cullen didn't answer. "She's not returning my calls. And whatever the problem is, it's getting worse."

When Cullen's cell rang he answered it without looking at the caller ID. "Aislinn, are you alright?"

"It's not Aislinn," Sarah answered. "She's okay. Upset and scared but safe and okay."

Cadifor was frustrated but sympathetic. He was torn between being a good friend and being a leader. He needed to be dragging Cullen back into the meeting whether he liked it or not. At the same time he was curious about the call. This situation certainly seemed to be moving around Cullen and Aislinn. Cadifor became a councilman not only due to his long existence but a certain intuition about the moving of the Fates. Right now, he felt that he needed to give Cullen some leeway. For the moment.

Cullen's face went deathly white. Cadifor wondered if the man was going to be sick all over the floor. "I understand. When she's able, I want to hear her voice," was all he said.

"So tell me," Cadifor snarled.

Even after several deep breaths Cullen's voice cracked a bit when he spoke. "We need to get our hands on Jenna now. If Aislinn gives birth and we don't have Jenna to send Brennus' soul back to wherever he came from, the baby will die."

Cadifor had no idea what to say to that. Frankly, Jenna had gone on the back burner when this meeting was called to figure out what to do about he human government not playing ball and then Nora Senach died and that flipped things around even more. He was already frustrated by Cullen's inconsistent unreliable behavior since he had gotten here. Now this.

Clearing his throat, Cadifor tried to be sympathetic, but he also knew that a majority of the council would be unconcerned with Cullen's home life. Right now the Council focus was on keeping the missing weres out of the human news and the druids from going back underground without a way to keep tabs on them. "Cullen, Jenna is not a current priority."

The glare that Cullen leveled on Cadifor nearly made the ancient lycan flinch. "Maybe not your priority."

"What about Mira? This other faction you suggested? We were trying to convince the Council that we needed to add that to our agenda. You want to go back in there, now that you've charged out unreasonably and tell them we need to further split our efforts to include the Jenna issue as well?"

Cullen continued to Pace. He couldn't think straight.

Cadifor stepped in Cullen's way and grabbed his shoulders. "Listen to me for a minute. The weres, the druids and the mess with Jenna are all related. It seems Aislinn is in the middle of all of it. I think we need to remain calm and deal with the situation at hand."

"I've always trusted your opinion Cadifor. But I don't know that I'm willing to risk this. I need to go to Aislinn and we need to find Jenna."

"And where are you going to start looking? I have been tracking the woman for weeks. I still have men working on it. Do you really think that if you go back to your den something magical will happen that will put her in your hands?"

Cullen growled and stepped away from Cadifor, knowing the man was right.