Hidden Moon (Nightcreature 7)

"With Josh?" I clarified. All I needed was for him to be a newfangled werewolf that was resistant to silver.

Wouldn't that be special? Running from Josh the werewolf for the rest of my life?

"Oh no. He's deader than dead. "

"Which is the best kind of dead," Grace said. "How can I help you, Doc?"

"I remembered my good-luck charm. " He reached into his pocket and held up a shiny silver bullet.

"Those of us who reached Berlin had them made the day we arrived. "

"I can't take that," Grace said. "Then you won't have one. "

Doc put his free hand back into his other pocket and drew out a second. "Ever since I left Germany I've never left home without a few. "

"Thanks. " Grace accepted the offering. "This will come in handy. "

Doc Bill left; Grace continued to stare at the silver bullet.

"How will that come in handy?" I asked. "You wouldn't actually use ammunition that's over sixty years old, would you?"

"Not in a gun, but - "

She tossed the thing at me. I had no choice but to catch it or let it hit me in the nose.

Grace lifted her eyebrows. "Nothing smoking. Guess you're clean. "

"You thought I was - ?"

"I'm going to think everyone is," Grace said, "until proven otherwise. "

Chapter 30

The rest of the day was taken up with searching the Gypsy camp and interrogating the residents. They weren't happy about it, but since Mal ordered them to cooperate, they did. Nevertheless, I heard a lot of muttering in both Rom and Gaelic that didn't sound complimentary.

Grace brought along several of her officers, whom she told as little as possible. Since everyone knew there was a wolf loose and no one trusted the Gypsies, the camp and surrounding area were searched thoroughly without complaint.

They found no secret wolf hideaway, no evidence of a canine of any type. Just the same animals that had always resided in the menagerie.

Once that was established, Grace sent everyone back to town but me and handled the questioning herself, with only Malachi present. Another smart move. How was she going to explain tossing a silver bullet at person after person? With him there, she didn't have to. I got the impression his people were a little scared of him.

What I really wanted to know was what Grace was going to do if one of them caught the bullet and began to burn.

While she quizzed yet another performer, I wandered off. I'd been ordered to keep an eye on things, though what I was supposed to be keeping an eye out for I wasn't sure.

Did Grace think the werewolf would just walk into camp and let us shoot it? And if it did, what would we shoot it with? A single sixty-year-old bullet that didn't fit in any of our guns?

Even though I'd been the only one - left alive anyway - to see a werewolf, and despite Doc Bill's claims and Grace's acceptance, I was still having a hard time believing it.

I stood outside the snake enclosure, which was slightly different from the other menagerie wagons. Since a snake could slither right out between the bars, one wall was made of glass.

Squinting against the glare of the dying sun, I counted snakes. There appeared to be a new one. Well, Malachi had said Sabina picked them up wherever she went. What a strange girl.

The sudden rise and fall of angry male voices drew my attention, and I followed the sound to the largest, most elaborate sleeping wagon in the clearing. Painted on the side was the same strange full, red moon I'd seen on Edana's cards. A hidden moon, whatever it was, must mean something special to the Rom.

Mal and Hogarth stood in front of the tableau arguing in two languages. Grace had to have finished her questioning. I should get back, but I found myself rooted to the spot by the tension that vibrated in the air. I'd never seen any of the Gypsies behave with anything other than respect toward Malachi - until now.

The big man leaned down and put his face near Mal's, spitting out something in Romani before finishing with, "You must do it, ruvanush, or all of us will continue to suffer. "