Part 16 (1/2)

”You know him?” Zach asked.

I shook my head.

”Well then, that just wasn't polite, now was it?” Zach said, voice low and menacing.

I could see where this was headed. He was still wound up from Johnny's, and a confrontation would suit him just fine as a way to blow off steam.

”You know it's getting late. I should be getting home to check on Mercutio.”

”That wildcat? Like he needs you babysitting. He'll be taking down livestock in a couple weeks.”

I opened my mouth to explain that Mercutio was just a baby, but I never got a chance to speak because Bryn Lyons walked up.

”I need to speak to you,” Bryn said.

”She's busy. Having dinner with me,” Zach said through clenched teeth.

”Dinner?” Bryn asked, glancing at the wings dismissively.

”That's right. Sometimes us poor folk have bar food for dinner. Now, why don't you take your rich a.s.s back to Dallas and pick up another deb with a price tag hangin' from her nose, and leave the real women in town to the real men in town?”

”If she prefers your company to mine, that's her unimaginable choice. But I do need to speak to her, if, that is, you're not too insecure to let her do that for five minutes.”

Zach laughed. ”Still sore that the prettiest girl in town never gave you the time of day? Can't say as I blame you.” Zach paused. ”You can talk to her if she wants to talk to you. It's a free country, after all. Plenty of my family died to make sure of that.”

Bryn rolled his eyes and leaned toward me, sliding a hand under the booth's table. He pressed his hand to mine, and I felt several small cool objects fall into my hand.

”They're here,” he whispered, making my spine tremble. Then he turned and walked away.

I glanced down into my upturned palm where several silver bullets lay. From the look of them, they were .38 caliber.

A memory of the b.l.o.o.d.y muzzles of those wolves from the witches' meeting flashed in my head, making me as scared as a turkey on Thanksgiving morning.

”Zach, what kind of gun do you carry?”

”Thirty-eight, darlin', why?”

”No reason,” I said with forced cheer, ”except that I'll maybe need to borrow it.”

He cast a speculative look to where Bryn Lyons had sat back down. ”Someone you need me to shoot for you?”

”Oh, I don't think so. I just want it for show. Maybe I'll have to wave it around and act fierce. That'll do the trick.” I hope.

I craned my neck to look around. If the wolves were around, where exactly? I spotted the guy who'd made such a point of checking me out when he walked by. He was sitting at the bar, and when he caught me watching him, he gave me a hard look. Definitely not looking at me because he thought I looked cute in my ponytail. Plus, he had a suspiciously long face. The kind that could turn into a muzzle faster than you can say canines.

Zach got up, drawing my attention to him as he strode around the bar, right up to the guy.

Uh-oh.

”Got a problem, friend?” Zach asked, shoulders square, stance wide and solid.

The man shook his head.

”Want one? Seems like you do, since you keep staring at my girl.”

”Just leaving,” the guy said, standing up.

Zach's eyes never left the guy as he moved around him and walked to the door. I watched him leave, feeling better. I glanced over to Bryn to see if that put him at ease, but he's always got a poker face, and, as usual, I couldn't read him.

Zach grabbed another beer and slid back into the booth. ”You comin' home with me?”

I shook my head. ”I have to give my cat his medicine.”

”Then I'll come home with you.”

I considered his offer. Burglars and werewolves running around town, Mercutio too drugged to keep watch, and the only gun I was likely to get ahold of came with the good-looking man sitting across from me. The choice was easy, so I nodded.

”I'll finish this one, and we'll go. I want to talk to you about what Lyons said that has got you so worried.”

Great. Couldn't wait.

I glanced at Bryn again and noticed he'd gotten up and was leaning over saying something to Georgia Sue. Then he walked to the back of the bar and through the doorway that led to the kitchen.

”Now why does he need to go out the back way?” Zach asked.

I wondered the same thing but quickly turned my eyes back to stare straight across the table.

”You want to talk to the man? Go ahead,” Zach said, but I knew him saying that was just like me saying ”You want to watch football all day instead of coming over? Go ahead.”

I shook my head. ”Finish up, and let's go home.”

Chapter 16.

You'd think that all that rain would've cooled things off, but it was hot and muggy when we walked out of Jammers. I wasn't happy that it had gotten dark, and my gaze darted to the sky. I could see about half the moon.

I followed Zach around the building to the lot behind it. I paused, feeling something strange, a thickness in the air, like it was about to storm, but different. My heart thudded in my chest.

Zach slowed his pace too and looked around. I squinted, scanning the cars, and stopped walking. Anything could be scrunched up behind a parked car, waiting. The air caught in my throat, and I had to take a deep breath, but it didn't help. It was like I couldn't take a big enough gulp.

Faint ringing in my ears made me start to run. ”Zach, honey,” I gasped. He turned just in time to catch me as I slammed into him.

”What?” He slung one arm around my waist, holding me to him as he looked around.

I dug through my purse, only coming up with a couple of the silver bullets. ”I want you to put these in your gun,” I whispered.

”My gun's loaded, darlin'. And you can stop shaking. There's nothing out here for you to be afraid of. But it does stink to high heaven. Smells like something foul overflowed with all the rain.”

I licked my dry lips as I turned my head from side to side. It didn't smell like a sewer to me, but there was something rank. I heard a scratching sound and felt Zach's muscles tense. He reached lazily to his gun holster and unsnapped it. ”You go on and hop in the truck,” he said, handing me his keys.

I took them with trembling fingers, but didn't move. I didn't want to leave him all alone with a werewolf if there was one. I had the silver bullets.