Free The Seventh Sons (Sycamore Moon Series Book 1) by Domino Finn Page B

apologetic. "Unfortunately, my agency's role with the motorcycle club does not extend to their criminal enterprise."
    "So you can't help me either?"
    "On the contrary," she said. "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are responsible for managing werewolf outbreaks. Aside from the national interest in keeping their existence as discreet and unofficial as possible, we are also tasked with eliminating any and all threats to the populace."
    Unreal. There actually was a government initiative to keep werewolves under control. It felt like something out of a movie. As Maxim watched Nithya's nonchalant behavior and business casual appearance, however, it was clear that there was an infrastructure in place to deal with the animals.
    "What are you saying?" he asked. "You don't care about the contraband, so you let the DEA and ATF deal with that while you kill or capture the werewolves?"
    The marshal chuckled. Nithya looked to him for a second before turning to Maxim. "We have too many liberties in this country to imprison those infected without it becoming public knowledge, or worse, creating an epidemic in the dangerous prison population. No, there is no procedure in place for a werewolf's capture."
    Her emphasis on the last word was all too clear.
    Maxim nodded to show he understood but too much remained unexplained. "So if none are taken alive, why aren't the monsters all dead?"
    Nithya cleared her throat and fired a look of admonishment back at him. "They may be werewolves, Detective, but they are Americans and we are government employees. We do not simply target citizens with impunity."
    Maxim snickered but she ignored the contempt.
    "These men and women are the victims of a disease without a cure, and we afford them every opportunity to live full and productive lives. If they choose to live peacefully within society, then there is no need to hunt them. The HIDE program is the manifestation of this implicit agreement."
    "Implicit or Illicit?"
    She glared at him. "Hunt If Dangerous or Exposed. Safety and secrecy are the two primary public interests. If a werewolf is attacking others or irresponsibly flaunting its abilities in public, then the CDC issues an Order To Kill for it."
    "Sounds like 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'"
    "Only with much more permanent consequences for all parties involved."
    Maxim pondered the ramifications of what he was hearing. "Fair enough," he conceded. "Some discretion sounds reasonable if we're talking about sick people. So these werewolves, do they need to check in with you?"
    "Sometimes," answered Nithya. "In practice, my focus is much more about keeping tabs on lycanthropic populations. I let them know that they are being watched and that they are expected to behave. HIDE is just the enforcement arm of the initiative, and it gets executed whether the wolves are aware of the program or not."
    "And the Seventh Sons?"
    "They know me well. They are the most organized pack in the Flagstaff area and have a lot of influence, so I remain in frequent contact with them. I expect them to set the example for the others—even the ones we don't know about. These men and women are sick but have no hope for treatment; many believe it is in their best interests to keep their condition, and their identities, a secret."
    Maxim still had a hard time thinking of them as victims. "How do they get infected in the first place?"
    "Lycanthropy is a communicable disease," she answered. "Rabies is a Lyssavirus that, if not promptly treated with vaccine, is believed to have a fatality rate of one hundred percent. However," said Nithya, pausing to dramatic effect, "the truth is that there are outside factors, currently unknown, that propagate the condition of lycanthropy instead."
    It seemed simple enough without the science. "So if you get bitten by a werewolf and don't get treatment, odds are you'll die, but there's a very small chance that you'd become a werewolf yourself."
    "Exactly." The woman crossed one leg over the