“Malcolm there been grumpy for days. Says it’s the full moon. I say it’s the bad meat he pulled out of that Dumpster.” Red chuckled. “But here I am, not introducing myself.” He extended a hand. “Red.”
“Rebecca.” My fingers disappeared in the calloused knuckles. He gave a light squeeze, nothing more than a love tap by Felis standards.
He frowned. “Nah. You look like a Susie.” He released my hand and jabbed a thick index finger at me. “Susie.”
I smiled. “Okay.”
Red gestured toward the side of the tent. “I got some tea here. Might be a bit strong.”
I followed him to a small clearing where a dark blue coffeepot sat over a small fire.
“Don’t want to get the place ablaze.” Red sat down on one log. “Get the firefighters here and they’ll clean us all out.” He looked toward where Malcolm was. “He done got us out of here once by setting fire to his damned tent. Don’t like losing everything and having to start from scratch.”
I sat down on a tree stump. He busied himself with two metal cups, obviously survivors from an ancient camping set.
The tea was dark and strong, searing my lips both with heat and taste.
Red grinned as I took my second sip. “A bit rough. Been stewing for a bit.”
“Nice,” I rasped.
“So.” He Changed in front of me, so quickly it took my breath away. “Let me see ya.”
The red tawny fur on his face offset the black and white in his beard and short hair, giving him a somewhat comical appearance. He smiled, displaying his sharp incisors.
I almost gave myself whiplash looking around to see if anyone had noticed. Malcolm, thank God, stayed in his own little world.
“Well?” Red leaned in.
“I—I can’t.” I cupped my hands around the metal mug. “I can’t Change.”
He frowned. “Whattamean?” He tapped his claws on the side of his mug, the clanking sound ripping at my ears. “You’re family. You’re Felis.”
“I can’t Change.” I tried not to sound bitter. “Haven’t been able to for years.” I didn’t want to even try and explain how I’d managed a Change here and there, usually when my life or Bran’s was in danger. Better to let that sleeping cat lie.
“Huh.” Red sipped his tea, accepting my disability without comment. “You’re an odd one, Susie. But you’re family.” He Changed back, the fur and claws disappearing within seconds. “Bet you were a looker when you could, eh? Have all the young boys sniffing after ya.”
I felt my cheeks burn at the compliment and smiled, despite the situation. “Thank you.” I took another drink, letting the acidic tea scorch my throat. “What Pride are you with?”
He frowned. “Now that’s a good question.” He dug in one pocket of his jacket and came up with a half-eaten energy bar. “You want some?”
“I’m good.” I watched as he nibbled on the dark brown square.
Red drank more tea, then took another bite.
I waited.
“I came from the east. By the big water.” His forehead furrowed. “I think. Been so long that I forget if it was a dream or not.” He tapped his temple with the half-wrapped bar. “Got a bit addled after a car accident. Started walking and ended up here.” The energy bar swept across the compound. “Home sweet home.”
I wasn’t sure what to make of his claim. If he was truly off the grid he was an anomaly, a rogue from his Pride. It was more likely his Pride knew exactly where he was and allowed him to live his life as he wished as long as he didn’t risk exposing the family. They should have informed the local Board of his relocation but for all I knew Jess and the others were familiar with Red and just let him be.
I put my mug down, grateful for the chance to avoid scalding the rest of my stomach lining. “I’m looking for two teenagers.”
He eyed me, the steady gaze of a hunter sizing up a potential ally or enemy. “You’re too young to have kids, Suz.”
“Not mine.” I withdrew the pictures from my pocket and unfolded them. “These two. Young lovers come to the big city.”
Red finished the bar and put the empty wrapper back in his pocket before taking the photographs. His hands moved back and forth as he squinted to focus on the images.
“Hmm.” He scratched his chin, sending a flurry of flakes downward. “This boy, he’s a Chandler. Bad blood there. Don’t know the girl but she’s pretty.”
“How would you know that?” I almost stood up before realizing it’d be seen as an aggressive move—not recommended considering my possible opponent.
“Got the eyes.” Red pointed at his own eyes and then at mine with two fingers. “I met a Chandler once. Never forget his eyes. Nasty stare. Steel under there, hard iron that don’t break for nothing.”
“What do you know about them?” I stayed still though my muscles were twitching with anticipation. “The Chandlers, that is.”
“He’s a young one,” Red murmured. “Newest generation.” He flipped the photographs, placing Lisa’s on top. “He took up with the girl here?” His fingertips ran over the surface of the paper as if he were trying to memorize their features through touch.
“Yes. And she’s a Middleston.” I watched his forehead crease. “You know about the feud, I guess.”
Red let out a low whistle. “Playing with fire, he is. Ain’t no way that’s gonna end well.”
“If you help me find them we can try to help them.” I watched him shuffle the papers back and forth, laying one on top and then the other. First Evan, then Lisa.
The impromptu exercise ended. “You know how this all started? The feud?”
I shook my head. “Before my time.”
Red glared at me. “You’re hunting ’em and don’t know the whole story? Bad form, kit. Bad form. Ain’t no one don’t know the story of this fight.”
“I missed the memo,” I offered.
Red snorted and poked the flames with a stick.
“Look, I left the Pride when I was fifteen. Give me a break.”
He gave me the stink eye for another minute before answering. “Started off as a challenge like most things do.” Red took another sip of tea. “Old Maureen Middleston. When I say old I don’t mean old like the museum lions, I mean old like me.” He patted his chest. “If she’d lived she’d be my age plus a bit. You understand?”
I nodded, trying to encourage him to keep talking. I had the sense that if he stopped it’d be like trying to pry the lid off an old paint can.
“She challenged Laura Chandler for a spot on the Board. Wasn’t anything much to it, just two women wanting the same thing. You know how that goes.”
A shiver went down my spine. I flashed back to Jess discussing how she’d lost her eye in just such a fight with my mother. “I know.”
“Ended in death.” He looked into his near-empty mug. “Death and destruction. Think Shakespeare said something ’bout that.”
“I think I remember something along those lines. The challenge ended up killing one of them? How? It was over a spot on the Board. How did it get to death?”
The mantra I’d been raised with echoed around my mind. Felis didn’t kill Felis. The idea of the challenge was to fight to the edge, to get your opponent to submit. When we were young we fought over anything and everything until we got the common sense God gave a newt and figured out to pick and choose our battles.
A few black eyes and bloody noses will do that to you.
“’Twas an accident. Damned hole.” Red poked the air with his index finger. “Rabbits’ home, exit and entrances. Take a bad step and break an ankle.”
My own ankle throbbed, reminding me of my first hunt. I’d waited for hours to be found.