"Athena, it's been 2 hours, and he still hasn't called back. We need to get into his office and see if there is anything in there we can use," Enyo nags me.
"I've left him voicemails. He'll call back soon. He always does."
"Athena, get the hint. He is not calling you back. So, let's go around to the back door of his office and see if we can get in."
I cave and get out of the truck and go around to the back of the building. I find the back door to Derek's office and try the door handle.
"It's locked, just like the main door. What now?" I ask Enyo.
"Do I really need to answer that? Break it down!"
I take a step back and kick the door in, and I walk into Derek's office, but stop immediately. The whole place is empty, besides some furniture.
"What the fuck?" I say, surprised.
"The bastard has taken off!" Enyo yells.
"We don't know that, Enyo. It looks like there's been a struggle."
"Or he knew we'd be coming for his ass, and he's cleared out!"
I take a few more steps into the room to look around. Every drawer of the filing cabinet in the corner is completely open, and there are random pieces of paper spilled on the floor. The coffee table has been pushed over, and the plant that was sitting on top of it has been shattered on the ground. Taking one of the pieces of paper in my hand, I read it aloud.
Nicholas Teresi.
Male, 28 years old.
Member of the Red River pack.
Current Location - Red River pack, Arizona
"It's mostly redacted. Why would Derek have files that are redacted?" I think out loud.
I look around at the other bits of paper. "Athena, your name is at the top of that one," Enyo says, and I bend down and pick it up.
Athena Argos.
Female, 17, almost 18 years old.
Member of the Blood-Moon pack.
Current location - Billings, Montana
"It's probably just because I'm a client."
"Then why is it redacted?" Enyo asks.
I walk over to another piece of paper and pick it up.
Leo Watkins.
Male, 15 years old.
Member of the Moonstone pack.
Current location - deceased.
"The rest of the page is redacted as well," I say, taking a moment to think. "Isn't the Moonstone pack in Arizona, like Red-River?" I ask Enyo.
"Yeah, it is. So why in the hell does he have information about packs from there? I thought Derek was from Montana?"
"Well, Uncle Alex is the one that told me to use Derek. So maybe he knows something."
I get my phone out of my pocket and call Uncle Alex, my father's best friend, who is acting as Gamma in my absence.
"Hey, Athena! Happy Birthday!" Uncle Alex says when he answers.
"Hey, Uncle Alex. Thanks." I respond. "I have a quick question for you. Do you know anyone from the Moonstone or Red River pack?"
The line is silent for a moment before I hear him clear his throat. "I know the Alpha of the Moonstone pack..."
I wait for him to continue, but he doesn't. "And?" I ask.
"This isn't a subject we should talk about over the phone. Where are you?"
"I'm at Derek's office, which is another reason why I rang."
"Meet me at your motel room. I can be there in 20 minutes."
"Is that really necessary? Why can't you just tell me?"
"Please, Athena…"
"Okay, I'll see you in 20 minutes," I say, and the line goes dead.
"Is he getting senile? What the hell was that about?" Enyo says.
"I guess we're about to find out," I say as I go around the room and pick up the rest of the papers on the floor.
#
I get up from sitting on the bed when there's a knock on the door. I open it slowly and see Uncle Alex, so I open the door further to let him in. He rushes past me and tells me to lock the door.
"What's this all about, Uncle Alex?"
"Why are you asking about the Moonstone pack?" He asks, seemingly agitated.
"Well, first I need to tell you about what happened today…," I say, motioning for him to sit at the small round dining table. "Derek called me this morning and told me he had a lead. He said that he had found an old hunter living close by who might know why we were attacked. So I went to see him..."
"YOU WHAT?! You went and saw a hunter ALONE?" He shouts.
"If you can't keep your temper under control, then I'm not going to tell you...."
Uncle Alex takes a deep breath and tries to calm down, motioning for me to continue.
"Now, this hunter told me it was a rogue pack that attacked us."
"What? That's impossible. Rogues don't form packs. They refuse to follow anyone but themselves," he says adamantly. "That's why they're rogues."
"It gets worse. He told me it was a mix of both lycans and werewolves."
"There's no way, Athena." Uncle Alex interrupts me. "We might have peace, but there's no way werewolf, and lycan rogues would work together."
"Someone went to a lot of trouble to get not only lycan and werewolf rogues to trust each other, but he told me that the pack was working alongside hunters as well…."
"I'm sorry, what?" Uncle Alex says, perplexed. "This hunter has fed you lies, Athena. There's absolutely no way. How can you possibly believe anything he said?"
"Think about it, Uncle Alex. Daddy wasn't the only one shot that day. So it makes sense that hunters were involved somehow."
"This is crazy, Athena. Even if it is true, why would they work together?"
"The hunter spoke of a threat that was too great for them to ignore."
"What threat?"
"I don't know. But he said that everything was set up by a third party and that we should ask Derek about it."
"But now Derek is missing?"
"That's what it looks like. His office is a mess, and all of his files are gone, except the few that were dropped," I explain, showing him the papers.
"And this is why you asked about the Moonstone pack?" He asks, looking over the information I found.
"Yes. What can you tell me about them?"
"Around five years ago, there were five packs attacked all around the same time in Arizona. Moonstone was one of the last before the attacks stopped."
"Were the attacks connected?"
"We thought it was a pack in the area trying to start a war. A few northern packs went down there to intervene after the Rock River pack was attacked, and there were no survivors. But by the time they got down there, whoever was behind the attacks had disappeared. They couldn't find them, and we never found out who was responsible."
"So it is possible that what the hunter said is true."
"I guess so, but none of it makes sense, Athena. And why would Derek be involved? He knows about us, but he's never been involved in anything to do with the packs, besides when we've asked him to do work for us," he states.
"I don't know. But right now, I don't know where he is, and the only leads I have are in Arizona."
"You're not thinking about going down there…."
"That's exactly what I'm thinking. Derek had these files for a reason, Uncle Alex. So they must be important."
"This seems like it's getting messy, Athena. Maybe I should send some warriors with you for protection."
"I need to do this alone, Uncle. I appreciate the support, though," I smile at him, placing my hand on his forearm.
"Please be careful, Athena," He says as he stands from the table. "Your father was my best friend, and I've always thought of you as my daughter, too. If anything was to happen to you…" he trails off.
"I promise that if I get into any trouble, I will call you. But nothing is going to happen to me," I tell him and give him a big hug.
He returns the hug and then pulls back, his hands on my shoulder as he looks down at me. "I'm proud of you, Athena," he says with a smile.
"Thanks, Uncle Alex," I say, returning his smile.
He walks to the door, about to leave, when he turns and asks, "by the way, what happened with the hunter?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, how did you get out of there alive?" He asks, looking at me curiously.
My face pales, and I start wringing my hands nervously, "I can't tell you," I whisper.
"Athena, you can tell me anything," he says, concern now filling his voice.
"Not this. I need to protect you."
He sighs and nods. "I see. I just have one question. Was it you or Enyo?"
"Enyo," I say, not able to look him in the eye.
"Will it pass as an animal attack?"
I nod, "I think so."
"Give me the address. I'll get some warriors to go out and make sure." I nod and write down the address for him. Then, he gives me another hug and says, "delete anything and everything regarding the hunter. I'll make sure this is taken care of." He then kisses my temple and leaves.
I sit back on the bed and massage my temples, a headache forming from all the day's emotions.
"So… Road trip?" Enyo asks.
"I think it's our best bet. We can question those that are still alive."
"Okay, let's do it."