Free Shadowed Threads by Shannon Mayer

good amount of time.”

Chapter 8

    T he armory was cool, bare bulbs incased in metal screens hung from the ceiling at five-foot intervals making the room overly bright. I squinted and blinked at the sudden glare.
    Here was a veritable treasure trove and I couldn’t help but stare at all the weapons. Most were too modern for me to use. But there was a good chunk of old school weapons that would work just fine.
    Will handed me a crossbow. “Here, this is very similar to yours.”
    I took the weapon, went over it, letting my hands feel the curve and flow of the grips and the weight of it. Slightly heavier than mine, it was otherwise identical down to the simple firing mechanism.
    “This will work,” I said, slinging it onto my back. I wore only my long-sleeved shirt and that was still damp from the flight here. I rubbed my arms. “What about coats, jackets?”
    He bent down, grabbed a long leather trench coat from a pile. “Here, this is mine; we’re close to the same height, so it won’t drag.” Holding it out for me like a real gentleman, he waited for me to do the girly thing and slip into it. I let out a sigh and turned my back to him, sliding my arms into the coat. The chill of the room disappeared with the weight of the coat. Longer and heavier than I was used to, it would be better than my own jacket when it came to flying.
    Will pointed out straps on the inside of the coat. “Those you can wrap around your legs to keep the side panels close to you. Should help when you’re up on Eve.”
    “Thanks. I should get going. I don’t think Denning would be too happy with me if every time I visit I drag along some new supernatural creature.”
    “Isn’t Deanna doing something for you?” Crap, his hearing was better even than Alex’s.
    “Yes, but she said it would only take a few minutes.”
    Will’s eyes softened and he lifted a hand to touch my shoulder, brushing off dirt that didn’t exist. “Are you sure you don’t want help? I can come with you; Eve could easily carry us both.”
    The room suddenly felt much smaller than it had just a moment before and I recognized the look in his eye.
    Nope, that was so not going to happen. “Yeah, I’m good. I’m used to working on my own. Pamela will be pissed that I left her behind, but I think maybe the Beast did us both a favor. O’Shea’s after witches, Pamela’s a witch, there’s too good of a chance he’ll go after her.” I was rambling, I knew it, but I couldn’t escape the look in Will’s eyes, the look that I was trying to avoid.
    “What if you can’t bring him back, what then?” Will swallowed, looked away and then back at me, his eyes that soft hazel with flecks of green that I had no doubt women swooned over. Shit, Pamela was gaga for him and she was only fourteen.
    “I’m bringing him back,” I said, my voice firm as I tightened the straps holding my weapons.
    “You don’t know that. He might not be the man you knew. He’s been a wolf for a long time now.”
    Oh, that’s a good kitty, piss off the Tracker.
    “Fuck you, Will. I will bring him back one way or another. Alive, dead, still a wolf. Whatever the case, O’Shea is coming back with me.” I turned my back on him and left him standing in the armory. I didn’t want to question why he was suddenly so worried about O’Shea coming back. Sure, we’d had a few meals together, but that had been all of us, Pamela, Alex, Jack, Deanna and Will. Not exactly what I would call dating. But shit, if he thought for one instant that I would turn my back on O’Shea, the kitty cat really had no idea—
    “Adamson, good to see you here. We need to talk.” Agent Valley, his short squat body moving at a speed I still didn’t comprehend how he managed with his stubby legs and rotund gut, was just there at my side, his fingers tightening around my forearm.
    “Well, Agent Valley, I thought you would have gone home by now.” Our last meeting hadn’t gone so well. A screaming match, a barking