Free Blood From a Silver Cross (Kat Redding) by E.S. Moore Page A

whether the Cult’s second was there or not. I’d accuse him just like I would anyone else. If he was up to something, Jonathan deserved to know about it.
    Then again, hadn’t Jonathan acted as if he knew what Nathan was doing when I’d asked about him the other night? Did that mean he was allowing his weres to hunt again? Was that even what Nathan had been doing?
    I wasn’t sure what I would do if Jonathan were letting the Cult werewolves feed. I don’t think I could kill him, but it would put a pretty quick halt on us working together. Werewolves weren’t like vampires, who could simply drink a little blood and leave their victims alive if they chose. They needed the meat too. Hard to keep someone alive when you’re eating their flesh.
    I went as far as to start in the direction of the Den, but turned for home instead. I wasn’t positive Nathan was up to anything sinister and if I were to go to Jonathan without thinking about what I planned on saying, chances were good I’d fuck things up.
    And that’s not to mention the fact that Keira might be there. I had a sinking feeling she’d been the female wolf who’d attacked me. Going to the Den now might end up in a bloodbath.
    It was a surprising moment of clarity for me. The old me would have gone straight to the Den to demand answers. I would have alienated the people who might actually be my friends, all because I didn’t know what was going on. Cooling down seemed like a far safer course of action for everyone.
    Still, it wasn’t easy to turn away from the confrontation. The beast inside demanded blood and it was hard not to give in. I’d have to feed soon or I wouldn’t be able to control myself at all. I’d probably end up hurting someone I cared about, all in a hunger-induced frenzy.
    The rain was really falling by the time I pulled up the driveway. It just added another reason to get somewhere cozy and warm while I sorted through things. If I’d gone to the Den, I would have had a longer drive to get back home and would have been soaked even worse. I had a feeling this was going to be one of those night-long rains.
    There wasn’t a dry bone in my body as I parked in the garage. I shivered and shut off the engine. I sat there for a long moment, calming myself down. I was angry. I couldn’t go inside pissed at the world. This was the sort of thing I was trying to avoid.
    It took me a few minutes before I felt like I could face Ethan and Jeremy without finding something to nitpick. I entered through the side door and peeled off my coat. Despite the leather, it felt as if my underclothes were just as soaked as the rest of me. It felt like I might never get dry again.
    I sludged my way into the dining room and deposited my coat on the table to dry. I should have asked Jeremy if I could take his car since I knew it was going to rain. There’d been no reason for me to go driving around in the downpour on my Honda when I could have kept myself nice and dry in the car.
    Then again, I might not have been able to follow Nathan if I’d been in the car. He would have spotted the black car almost immediately.
    I sat down to peel off my boots. They came away with a plop. My socks were soaked through.
    “Wet night,” Jeremy said from the couch. I hadn’t even seen him there when I’d come in.
    “Very.”
    “Find anything out?”
    I shook my head and set my boots under the table. I’d have to take them down and light a fire later so they could fully dry. Otherwise, I’d be walking in wet boots tomorrow night. The same went for my coat and leathers.
    Jeremy hesitated like he saw something in my face that said I wasn’t telling him something, which of course, I wasn’t. I didn’t want to accuse Nathan or Keira of anything until I had some proof.
    “Where’s Ethan?” I asked, rising. My socks made wet squelching sounds as I walked across the linoleum. I paused long enough to pull them off so I wouldn’t track water through the house.
    “Downstairs.”