3.
2651 Words
| It’s almost noon. Looks like you didn’t get my messages.
| I’m calling Al and Bonnie’s house tonight.
| Hope you’re okay...
Besides not knowing where Rucker was, not hearing from Elgin made me completely nervous. Why didn’t they show any sign of life? Elgin didn’t have a mobile network, okay, but Al and Bonnie weren’t deep in the Pampas, they had a phone, electricity, the Internet! And Rucker… Damn it! Let him ignore me, okay, I could understand his need to isolate himself, especially if he was in a mess which I was seriously starting to consider but he hadn’t bothered to send a text message to Morel and Corwin. I was very angry with him. When I left their house this morning, I had left his brothers in a state of dreadful sadness and worry. So much so that I had promised them to come back the same evening. Little consolation. What they wanted was to see their big brother!
I discreetly put my cell phone back in my jacket pocket and tried to pick up the thread of the medieval architecture lecture. Waste of time, I’d lost it.
“Contrary to what you may think, the presence of the pelican among the chimaeras of Notre Dame in Paris isn’t without meaning. The pelican is the symbol of piety, sacrifice, and rebirth...”
I looked up at the speaker, a specialist in ornamental sculpture.
I couldn’t wait to see this class end, surely skip the next one, and meet Grigore at the Red Lion, if needed, to find out more.
When the bell rang, I got up without wasting time and stepped outside before everyone else. Surprised, I met the pack which was waiting for me a few meters from the exit. Georgia and Anneas were making funny faces, not looking thrilled to be there. And they weren’t the only ones. Etienne looked rather unhappy too, and as for Dan, Mario, Jeff, and Eddy, they were fully engrossed in their shoes. I met Tony’s shifty gaze, then John’s, silently betting that he was the instigator of this little reunion. He approached smiling and put his fingers on my shoulder as if to reassure me.
“We came to get you. We’re all having lunch together.”
I blinked.
“Is there a specific reason? I had planned to...”
“We need to talk,” he cut me off dryly.
I took two steps back and raised my eyebrows in surprise.
“What?”
He assumed an irritating superior expression.
“Can’t you guess?”
I looked him straight in the eye without blinking for a few seconds and gave in.
“All right, I’m coming with you. But then I need to find Grigore.”
“Your place is with us,” he squeaked.
I had never shown a spirit of rebellion with the pack before, I was even rather fluid, except when they crossed the line. That’s what John was doing right now. I had no idea what could be causing such excess of authority in him, but allowing him to do his little c**k act wasn’t a good thing.
“My place is where I decide to be, John.”
“You’re no longer an exploiter!”
“And you, don’t forget that you’re not...”
I broke off before adding fuel to the fire.
“Forget it!” I snapped, sweeping the air with my hand. “I only have one hour break. If what you have to tell us is so important, let’s not waste time.”
I waited for John to turn his back and lead the way, then walked over to Georgia and Anneas.
“What does he want to tell us?” I asked them discreetly.
“I don’t know, but he’s seriously starting to get on my nerves!” Georgia growled.
“It has to do with the death of the exploiter,” added Anneas.
“What else?” I quipped. “I’d like to understand why it’s he who takes the initiative to bring us together.”
Georgia somehow stifled a sneer.
“He always thought he should have been pack leader. So, when the cat’s away, the mice dance!”
“He wanted to be the pack leader?”
“Yeah, because he’s been a part of it longer. At one point, before Elgin arrived in St Andrews, Jamie had considered him. But the real problem is because his father has a lot of influence within the Garou community, John Gordon has an oversized ego! He thinks he’s better than everyone.”
I pouted. Since I knew the pack, I realized for the first time that there were tensions within the group. Sure, taunts weren’t non-existent, but I’d never seen a real conflict before. I didn’t like the way things turned out, but I refrained from making any further comments on the subject.
“Okay, okay… Look, we’re not supposed to get involved. The Council of Dark Angels is taking care of the matter, it’s their problem. Let’s stay in the background.”
Anneas chuckled.
“This is all theory, Scarlett. Because in practice, this also concerns us. The guy was slashed. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a werewolf.”
“So, you say!”
“The tensions between our two races are real, Scarlett! It’s far from being a myth! You know very well that a werewolf could put a dark angel to death without a shadow of hesitation.”
I shook my head in disagreement.
“I’m willing to bet that the culprit isn’t a resident of St Andrews.”
Anneas shrugged my little inference aside and Georgia didn’t bother to answer.
The rest of the pack were waiting for us in front of the pub where we had already met once, the day after Minah’s funeral. We entered and seated ourselves around several tables that we brought together.
In general, our gatherings were quite happy and noisy. But not this time. More questioning than intimidated, everyone wondered why John had taken the initiative of such a meeting.
We waited for him to speak to us, which he did as soon as he was seated at the end of the table.
“If I made you come here, it’s to discuss the latest events. We can’t ignore them. We must find out more about this matter.”
The authoritative tone he used made me want to throw the salt shaker in front of me in his face.
“Has anyone gathered any information?”
I saw that Etienne couldn’t hide his astonishment. Had John seriously taken on the role of the leader?
“Scarlett?”
All faces turned in my direction. No need to hide that I had spent time with Grigore, Simon and Rufus the day before. John surely knew that already.
“The dark angel found dead worked at the Red Lion.
“As usual!” Dan exclaimed. “When it smells of dung, McCarthy is never far away.”
“What was he doing on campus?” Anneas wondered.
John screwed his eyes into mine, insistently.
“Scarlett?”
I never thought I would say this about one of the pack members, but since he’d played the opportunism card, I had no confidence in him. Either way, I couldn’t make any predictions about his intentions, but I was at least sure of one thing: I wasn’t going to mention Rucker’s name and his meeting with the server.
“I don’t know anything more.”
He scrutinized me, giving me the impression of trying to find out if I had something to hide. I didn’t look away, waiting for him to do it himself.
“Very well…,” he said without conviction. “It’s obvious that given the state of the body, the suspicions will converge on us shortly. Exploiters must understand that none of us is responsible.”
Everyone agreed, nodding their heads.
“When you say none of us, are you talking about the pack?” asked Mario.
“Of course. We can’t be held responsible for the actions of the entire Garou community.”
“The Dark Angel Council can’t tell the difference,” Eddy said between his gritted teeth.
“I don’t think so,” I interjected. “They’re not stupid. They aspire to the well-being of this city as much as we do.”
Georgia cleared her throat.
“Now, will they be able to convince the entire vampiric congregation that there shouldn’t be retaliations? I seriously doubt it.”
“I suggest we go interview McCarthy. I’ll see to it if no one objects,” Jeff said.
“Me too!” Dan adds.
They all seemed to be excited by the idea and it wasn’t a good sign.
“We should be patient,” I pleaded. “Grigore said he would do it, despite orders from the Council. Let’s wait for his return.”
“Certainly not!” John growled. “It’s absolutely out of the question to collaborate with them. You, you may have the blood of betrayal in your veins, we don’t!”
“I beg your pardon? Betrayal?” I repeated, dazed.
John and Tony exchanged a knowing look.
“That’s what you’ve been doing from the start and right under our noses. You hang out with them, surely revealing vital information to them.”
Vital information? Since when did John think such a thing about me? Then I recalled the time when I was back from Minah’s funeral, John had argued with Elgin and Jamie, while I waited in the car. As for Tony, he too had shown contempt for me on several occasions. When I first met the pack, at Clobber Argyll, he openly laughed at me, along with Georgia. And then, the day we all met on the beach at the end of the Eden estuary, he made it clear to me that he didn’t find me loyal enough.
I looked around the table trying to gauge if anyone else agreed with John. Unfortunately, it didn’t take me long to spot my real friends. Etienne, Dan, Georgia, and Anneas looked shocked at John’s words.
“You don’t mean what you’re saying...”
“Of course, I do, Scarlett. The reason you’re here is that Elgin has made you his soul mate and one of us.”
He didn’t say it, but I guessed the unfortunately at the end of his sentence.
“He didn’t make me his soul mate,” I retorted dryly. “The Spirit chose us. But, indeed, you can’t know what you’re talking about, since it hasn’t touched you yet.”
I saw him swell his nostrils with anger. Soul mate was always a sensitive topic among the Garou. They considered that not having one made them half-accomplished beings.
However, feigning dignity, John refrained from answering me.
“Anyway,” Tony intervened, “we’ll not submit to the goodwill of an exploiter. Let them operate on their own. We’re not reporting to their goddamn council. I side with John, let’s do what he suggests!”
“We report to Elgin,” Georgia says.
The pack, which had been commenting in low voices for a few minutes, fell silent instantly as if called to order.
John clenched his jaw so lightly it was barely visible.
“Elgin isn’t here,” he replied calmly.
“We should consult him before making a decision,” Anneas pointed out.
John leaned casually against the back of his chair, crossing his hands on the table in front of him.
“Well… has someone managed to reach him?”
The few concerned pack members shook their heads from side to side.
“In that case, it’s settled,” John concluded.
“That’s not the way it works, John,” Etienne protested.
“Really? We need to strengthen our guard. Laxity will kill us. It’s high time that our group became a pack as it always should have been.”
Dan frowned.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Exactly what I just said. Elgin has been away for too long. Too often. The pack needs a leader worthy of the name and I’m ready to offer it my full services.”
“You’re going too far!” Georgia cried, leaping to her feet, causing the pub patrons to turn around in our direction.
“You cannot proclaim yourself pack leader,” protested Etienne, who was beginning to see red. “The choice is ours.”
John ran his hand over his beard-covered jaw while smiling eloquently, to say the least.
“Then choose.”
“Yes, let’s do it,” Eddy said.
“You see…,” John smirked, “the pack needs changes.”
I had a violent adrenaline rush. Divide and rule. He had achieved this feat that I never thought possible within the group.
“Have you lost your senses,” Georgia yelled, staring at John.
“No. We’re doing what it takes to protect ourselves, my sister.”
Georgia’s anger flared like a match.
“Don’t call me that, you stinking cockroach! You’re nothing to me. You’ve been waiting for such an opportunity for months. Look at him! He could almost let himself go in his pants, he’s so happy!”
“Georgia…,” Anneas tried to calm her down.
John smacked his palms on the table.
“Very good! Who’s with me? Now is the time to choose. And do it right, for the safety of the pack. I didn’t want to get here this way, but since I’m being forced to...”
Georgia let out a cynical laugh.
“Poor, poor John who finds himself forced to make a decision that will change his miserable life… Of course, that was the way you wanted to impose yourself! It was even your ultimate goal: to rise to the top, to be remembered. Well, you know what? I let Elgin take care of our safety, because you, you are lousy, my brother! Your mediocrity is all I’ll remember about you!”
She grabbed all her things and left the pub with a crash. Leaving the whole troop speechless.
Although my decision was obvious, I wasn’t going to leave yet. I wanted to see with my own eyes those who would deny Elgin and the choice made by Jamie almost two years earlier.
Anneas also stood up to stare at John, shaking his head in annoyance.
“You’re on the wrong track, John. The pack is a whole.”
He pretended to pick at his fingernail.
“Yes. And I suggest you follow me...”
“By ejecting Elgin,” Anneas clarified.
“Are you also in on this drama? Let’s see… you can always stay.”
“And watch you slowly destroy the pack?”
“Hmm... so I conclude that you won’t join me.”
“No. Sorry, man.”
“So good luck, Anneas. You’re going to need it. He’s not up to the task. He never was.”
Anneas shook his head without adding a word and left.
“Anyone else?” John asked us.
Etienne and Dan stared at each other for a few seconds before pushing their chairs back at the same time.
“How surprising,” John taunted them.
They chose not to answer. They turned in my direction as if they knew that after them, I would be the only one following them.
My intestines knotted. Elgin would never have let such a thing happen.
Defeated, like a slow-motion movie, I leaned on the table to get up, still in shock at what had just happened.
With a heavy heart, I looked one last time at Eddy, Tony, Mario, Jeff, and John, who didn’t seem to be affected much. Then, without looking back, I turned on my heels with Dan and Etienne.
The pack had indeed divided.
- Writer
