It starts with a whisper. (Private - Xeph)
LT stood in front of the Piper's command center wall sized monitor and scrutinized the map of Nachton that was bathing his stoic features with a faint green light. With a finger on the control panel, he cycled through the information for each red circle. His jaw clenched as he tried to make sense of the random placement, looking for a pattern when there very well probably wasn't one.
Behind him the Commander entered and stood next to him, his face looking up at the monitors. LT could hear the slight rustle of paper in his uncle's hand, but neither spoke until the door opened again.
Lifting his other hand, LT pointed at each circle. 'There are three incidences; a total of five bodies, three of which were human.'
All the corpses were human, but LT knew a Kadzait when he saw one. He put up two pictures of white male and a black female. The Commander made a face, a curious squint in his eyes coupled with a disgusted snort. LT knew the question without having to hear it.
'Two kin. Jacob Withers and Melissa Jackson.'
LT took the paper without a word and read the short paragraph. Brig not only felt LT’s body heat rise, but could smell the angry sweat that had beaded on the younger one’s top lip.
‘He claims the three humans, but not our two.’ LT folded the paper into fourths slowly beside him. ‘Let's concentrate on the fallen brethren before the humans. Let the boys in blue deal with him and his crew.’
Leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord”.
The Left Hand of God
Tossing the paper onto the control panel, LT grit his teeth angrily. ‘Leave it to that sadistic ass to take the Lord’s scripture out of context.’
LT felt his anger begin to grow exponentially. It was the Jameson part of him that tried to temper the anger down, but for as cold and unfeeling the Hammerthynn's were, that part of him was begging for blood. The Commander was right in ignoring Ringo's taunts and focusing on the two Kadzait killings. Reaching out to the control panel, LT cycled through the information gleaned from the County Coroner and samples taken from the Piper's search of the area.
'There are only two types of blood present. Withers and Jackson's. There were trace amounts of bile and other particulates indicating other bodily fluids, but nothing conclusive. Whatever it was, it covered its trail perfectly.'
The possibility that their assailant was human was just as plausible as it being another wolf or vampire. The situation could not be any worse. An unknown assailant killing Kadzait members. Random? Probably not.
'Should I notify the Beta?'
'He's no doubt digging into a mountain of scrambled eggs with the Alpha. I have a message to them both to meet us down here when they are finished.'
Boy, he couldn't wait.
'Don't knock the eggs, Brig. Protein is good for the soul.' With as much humor as he could muster, which was basically a slight glare in his cousin's direction, Hammer waited for the Alpha to pass through before following him in. Once they were all gathered in front of the presentation of monitors on the wall before them, Hammer cycled through the blinking red dots with a confused look on his face. 'What's this about?'
The LT picked up a piece of paper off the panel and handed it to him. He opened the note and held it out so he and the Alpha could both read it at the same time. Despite his normal lack of expression, Hammer's eyebrows went up in surprise.
'Ramsey is here? In Nachton?' Hammer looked back down at the note. 'And is quoting the bible out of context again?'
"I hate that name."
He read the next note Hammer supplied him with, feeling oddly as if they were on a scavenger hunt. His lips curled up in disgust and he paid attention the monitor while he thought.
"Are they all his?" He nodded his chin in the direction of the blinking dots. "That's impressive, even for Ramsey. He's been a busy boy."
He turned his mismatched eyes to Brig, glanced back and forth between him and LT while he waited for an explanation. He knew they'd have combed over the information by now, and he wanted it yesterday.
This enraged LT beyond measure. With a controlled voice he repeated what he had just told the Commander.
'Five corpses were found within the past 24 hours. The first three were found together in the Industrial area alley ways twenty two hours ago. The last two were found within the past six. These two members were Withers and Jackson – habitually hunted together. Middle aged, experienced hunters who favored the Park area where they were found. The County Coroner’s office has it on their back burner as a possible murder-suicide, but there are only two types of blood present. Withers and Jackson's.
‘There were trace amounts of bile and other particulates indicating other bodily fluids, but nothing conclusive.'
The Commander interrupted at that point. ‘That’s what we have at the moment.’
LT finished his speech with a nod. ‘We can gain access to their files and have our own samples. What was left of any evidence, at least. The earlier three murders by Ramsey,’ he could not help but sneer as he spoke the name, ‘isn’t a high priority with the Nachton P.D. and are probably insignificant, except for the loss of life.’ LT shrugged.
'They’re just a calling card.’
Brig did not like implying that the three other murders were insignificant. That just wasn't his way. Hammer would have no problem ignoring them and already Brig could see Hammer concentrating on the information provided by the Pipers on Withers and Jackson. The other three murders, thugs as far as he could see, were already cast aside. As far as LT was concerned, Brig knew the murders were already weighting heavily on his shoulders. With the return of Ringo and the Nakubili, LT's fury might be a liability, but it was not unjustified.
Jake and Melissa; he knew both of them. Jake was a good guy. He'd made his home in the Den and he'd been working as the Den's resident IT geek, helping to set up the computer room to Xeph's specifications. Melissa, a friend of Jake's and a little more on the shy side, lived in an apartment in Nachton. She danced with the ballet for part of the year and gave piano lessons in her spare time. Neither was the violent sort. Neither one was involved, as far as Xeph knew, with any sort of dangerous person. They weren't in debt, weren't drug addicts... he couldn't think of any reason anyone would want to kill either of them. They weren't lovers; they attested to mere friendship, but they had spent a great deal of time together.
Neither one, as far as Xeph knew, had much if any ability to control themselves during the full moon, and he couldn't discount the fact that last night had been a full moon. They had hunted together often, that was true, but accidents happened. With only their blood at the scene, was it possible they had turned on each other?
"And Ramsey says he did the humans, hmm?" He was talking out loud and to himself at the same time. "Our brother and sister - they aren't his style are they? What were their injuries like?"
He nodded to LT. "Get those reports. Get them quietly. We can't risk this as an isolated incident, and I don't want our poking noses to lead someone into the Den that we don't want here. Let the coroner's office handle it." His voice was rough; he didn't like saying those words. Jake and Melissa's bodies should be handled by their brethren, not by people they didn't know. But he had a Pack to watch out for. Until he knew exactly what had happened, he couldn't step in with guns blazing. "I'll notify their families myself." Both of them came from were families; they would want to hear from Xeph personally. "I'll tell them we're investigating."
Turning to Brig and getting a handle on his voice, he said, "Follow the lead on Ramsey. Where, why... get your eyes on him and try to keep them on him." But he knew the Pipers would be doing that much already, as closely as they could.
Finally he said to Hammer, "I want to see where Melissa and Jake were found. We might find more clues. Has anyone been out there yet?"
Tonight was another full moon. The full moon, to be exact. getting a close look at the scene of the crime would be difficult. They needed a team that would be in its right mind as much as possible and that might not even be feasible until tomorrow night. The idea made Xeph fidget with irritation. If this was more than an accident, whoever it was was clever. Knew its prey. The scents at the scene would all be growing colder by the moment, and they couldn't examine as they needed to during the day.
‘Random.’ Hammer shook his head. ‘Those two were definitely not by Ringo or the Nabukili.’
He nodded in agreement with the Alpha’s assignment. They would be better served by the LT taking lead on the Kadzait deaths and far enough away from anything related to Ramsey. If LT disagreed with the command, he knew better than to show it. Brig taking lead on Ramsey’s kills would make it easier for everyone.
‘There’s only been a cursory inspection of the crime scene in the park. The city is there cleaning it up as we speak. Reports will not be that hard to get – there’s no one for them to chase after with a murder-suicide. They’ll be quick to close it.’
‘It’ll be night soon, and another full moon, Brig and I can survey the area…unless you had other ideas?’ Hammer watched Xeph, a hint of a rare smile forming on his lips. ‘Feel like getting dirty, Doc?’
Tonight was a full moon. Brig and Hammer would be unable to help him search the crime scene. Xeph could go, but he too would be fighting to stay focused. Moreso than the rest of his Pack, he could keep on task while the moon was out, but it was easier to do the nights before and after.
"Damnit," he swore angrily. "I can't believe this homicide-suicide thing. We're being led. And if that's the case, they're good."
He stabbed a finger at Hammer and Brig. "Tomorrow night. You two be in the Park when the moon comes out. I'll find you and we'll see what we can discover. Hopefully the trails won't be cold by then, if they're there at all."
Thoughtfully, he said to Hammer alone, "Bring mother with you. We can use her help."
Lily's senses were keener than average; Xeph knew that. She might be able to pick up something the rest of them couldn't. Xeph knew it was within his capabilities to keep three wolves under control. Being the Alpha had its advantages.
Hammer had not been in wolf form with Lily in years; since whatever they had between them and she became pregnant with Xeph. It changed things, Liam's return and subsequently Liam securing his birth line. It brought up feelings so suddenly in Hammer that he almost stammered his response.
'O-Of course. She's strong in detection and her ability to ride the tide, so to speak. I'll make the necessary arrangements for tomorrow night, then.'
It took everything to control the thin sheet of sweat that threatened to break out. Hammer avoided looking at Xeph and instead his gaze fell on his cousin. Brig looked at him and gave him a small grin - it confused Hammer for a moment, making the situation that much worse, but it wasn't like Brig to gloat and besides, he had no clue. No one did.
Maybe that's what made his betrayal worse.
Words of reassurance would have been useless and embarrassing though, so Xeph just took his leave with a nod.
"Let me know when you have those reports," he said, and went off to find his mother. She should have some warning of what happened. And then - he sighed. He'd have to call Jake and Melissa's families.
((ooc: Xeph out))
The Alpha mentioning Mrs. Stafford wasn’t all that much of a surprise. He was aware of what she was capable of and capable she definitely was – it was the Beta’s reaction that was odd. The fact that he reacted at all was what was surprising. The slight stammer in his speech made both him and the Commander look at the Beta. LT’s attention was refocused as the Alpha made a point in reminding him of the reports, and with a respectful nod, made a note to have those to him as soon as possible.
The Beta and Commander began to talk quietly, which meant LT should collect any information needed and leave. Eavesdropping was not LT’s thing, but how could he not overhear what followed next?
‘It’s…been a while since you’ve been with Lily.’
Hammer had turned away from the Alpha and was stepping past Brig to the other door leading into the Barracks – not unusual but clearly in the opposite direction of Xeph. The second Brig uttered his thought out loud, Hammer stopped and glared at him.
‘What’s that suppose to mean?’ Hammer barked at him, his good eye wide in surprise, if only for a second.
‘Hunting. It’s been a while since you, or I, have hunted with her.’ Brig watched the unusual expression of shock fight with the usual expressionless glare his cousin normally sported. Stepping closer to Hammer and turning his back to LT, he said in a softer voice. ‘Just mentioning it. It’s been since…before Xeph was born. I bet you’re looking forward to it. I know I am – she’s a beautiful woman and single…’
Now, Brig knew better, he really did, but something in him pushed the inquiry just a tad further than he should have with that last statement and the second he said it, Hammer reacted with a fury he had not seen in a long time.
‘She is NOT single; she is widowed and the mother of your Alpha.’ Hammer felt his hackles rise and the anger welled in him so quickly that he felt the tell-tale sting of the change at the base of his neck. ‘You will show her the respect she is due, Commander. Is that clear?’
He pushed back on his cousin and managed to stare down at him with the slight one inch advantage he had. Then it hit him – the full force of his change threatened to take over and it gave him an odd sense of clarity, realizing what he had just done.
Hammer had reacted – not just angrily but with intense jealousy, but the mere fact that he reacted at all finally released the thin sheet of sweat he had been struggling to keep within, letting the embarrassment of his actions show through. Brig and LT looked at him with startled, wide eyes – as if they could see the stain of his betrayal showing through. That was not the reaction of a Beta, but of a lover. Straightening his shoulders, Hammer reigned in his emotions, with great difficulty, and swallowed.
‘I apologize, Brig. Just remember who you are talking to and about. I’m the Beta first, then your cousin.’
Brig did not reply.
Turning back toward the exit, instead of the barracks, Hammer took his leave before the silence suffocated him.
((OOC - Hammer, LT, Brig out))