Her snarl of rage became a long howl of pain, and then she was running again, her black form quickly disappearing through the trees. I scrambled to my feet, grabbed my purse and the laser, and ran after her.
This time she was even faster. How that was even possible I have no idea. Maybe it was something to do with whatever magic allowed her to change her size.
I followed her scent, ducking and weaving through the trees, moving so fast they were little more than a blur to me. We were looping around, moving back toward the footpath and the river.
I found my stiletto abandoned on the footpath. The trail ended at the river.
Obviously, this particular cat didn't have an aversion to water. I scanned the dark river but couldn't see anything or anyone swimming. There were no boats moored nearby, so she couldn't be using those to hide behind. She was simply gone.
I briefly shifted shape to stop my arm from bleeding, then pressed the com-link button. "Hello, anyone tuned in?"
"I'm always tuned in," Sal said, voice dry. "Unlike certain werewolves who shall remain nameless."
I grinned. "Gee, I wonder who you could mean?"
"You're wasting my time, wolf girl. Get to the point."
"Well, I just lost the bakeneko's trail - "
"Make a habit of losing your quarry, and Jack won't be pleased."
"She decided to go for a swim in the Yarra and was gone by the time I reached it."
"God, she had to be desperate. That river is unclean."
And a vampire would know all about unclean. Although, to give Sal her due, she did wash like a regular person, and smelled rather nice for a vamp. So did Jack, thankfully. "She's taken over the identity of one Enna Free, which means the real Enna Free is probably dead. You want to get me her address, and send a cleanup team over there?"
"Hang on."
I walked back and picked up my stiletto. With the money I'd spent on them, I wasn't about to leave them. And once the blood was washed off, they'd still be totally usable.
"Kade was over there earlier to bring her in," Sal said. "She wasn't home, and he didn't report anything out of the ordinary."
"I'd say she would have already been dead by then." And a horse-shifter wasn't as sensitive to the scent of death as a wolf. "What's the address?"
"Two-nine-one Napier Street, Fitzroy - "
"She doesn't live in Toorak?" I interrupted, surprised.
"Toorak isn't that far," Sal retorted. "And that section of Fitzroy isn't exactly cheap, because it's real close to the Brunswick Street shops and nightlife."
Which was mainly human-related. No wolf clubs had opened up in the Brunswick area, so most nonhumans kept away. Except for the vampires, who didn't mind the odd bite on a consenting neck.
"Sounds as if you know the area well."
"I live there. Need anything else?"
"Warn the cleanup team that the bakeneko is wounded and probably pissed off, because I managed to stab her with a shoe. They may have to go in with guns."
"I'll let them know."
"Good. Were you able to track down Ron Cowden?"
"He lives above the restaurant, which is on the city end of Lygon Street."
"Did you find anything out about him? Has he got a brother named Jake?"
"Yes, but the system is still trying to track him down."