Free Burn the Night by Jocelynn Drake

out.”

    “And here I was hoping this was a friendly visit. We don’t see each other often enough, Daniel.
    How are Anne and the girls?”

    “Wife and kids are perfectly fine; oblivious to the nightmare that has soaked into Savannah.” I shook my head as I ushered the two gentlemen down the hall to the small library on the left.
    “You’re always so chipper.” I leaned against the front of the desk while Barrett and Daniel settled in the two leather chairs before my desk. Danaus simply changed doorways to the library entrance. However, he was looking a little more relaxed with his hands shoved in the pockets of his dark blue jeans. I had called down to the Dark Room already, informing the other bartender that Danaus would not be making an appearance tonight. We had darker matters that needed to be handled, and I wanted the hunter on hand for counsel.

    “I’m assuming that Barrett has told you about what happened last night,” I began, turning my attention fully to the detective when everyone was settled.

    “I have the distinct impression that I am getting a cleaned-up version of what truly happened, but I also heard from my hysterical sister-in-law and brother,” he admitted, folding his hands over his stomach. “A group of men appeared in the woods with guns and started hunting people down like animals. This will not be tolerated within my district. I won’t have my sister-in-law terrified to go outside every full moon.”

    “Then you do have a full grasp of what is going on,” I said with a sigh. “What are we going to do about it?”

    “We need to know what they know,” Barrett said.

    “Last summer, your people were able to hack into their computer systems,” I reminded him. A Daylight Coalition member had come into my territory hunting me, and managed to successfully get a picture of me on a digital camera. As a favor, the lycanthropes had hacked their system and deleted the information for me. “You got some information from them. Could you do it again?” Barrett shook his head. “We monitored their system for a few months before they finally upgraded their security. We have not been able to get back in, and we’ve been reluctant to try for fear that they will be able to trace it back to us. Their secrets have been closed to us for months now.”

    “You never discovered anything on who their potential mole might be?” Danaus inquired from the entryway.

    “I’ve spoken with many different clans during the past several hours,” Barrett wearily admitted, rubbing the bridge of his nose with his thumb and index finger. “We weren’t the only ones attacked. The packs in St. Louis, Austin, and Denver were all hit. We were the only ones that didn’t sustain any casualties. However, members of the Daylight Coalition were killed in the various attacks. The bodies of the dead will never be found, but questions will be raised about the large number of men that have suddenly gone missing. The situation is quickly crumbling around us—the police are undoubtedly going to start looking into the disappearances.”

    “The lycanthropes will be in the clear during the next few weeks,” I ventured, “but when the moon is full again, people are going to trek out into the forests to see if there is a repeat of the same incident that led to the disappearance of so many hunters.”

    “Is there anything you can do?” Barrett asked. “Anything your people can do?”

    “Like adjusting memories?” I said, arching an eyebrow at him. “There are just too many. By now, news reports have hit the air. There are search parties trekking through forests and dogs sniffing the area. It’s too much. We would never be able to reach everyone.”

    “But you managed to cover up the naturi fiasco outside of London last summer, and the human sacrifices at Machu Picchu in the fall,” Danaus interjected, causing me to frown at him. It’s not that I didn’t seriously want to help Barrett. Hell, it was in the