Kitty's House of Horrors (Kitty Norville 7)

“What if you didn’t follow a plan? What if you just ran, got out of here, and went for help?” Jeffrey said. “Even if you didn’t remember what you were doing as a wolf, you’d remember when you woke up, right?”

“Assuming I didn’t run up against silver razor wire or get caught in another insane trap.” The whole lodge had become a trap, of course.

“I keep expecting them to attack the lodge,” Grant murmured. “We don’t have anywhere else to go.”

That, more than any other reason, was why we had to do something. If we didn’t, they would.

“I don’t have to be a wolf to flush him out,” I said. “But are we scaring him, catching him, or killing him?”

Nobody answered until Conrad said from the sofa, “Do we have a choice?”

I had killed to protect me and mine before. I could do it again. I drew the handgun from my pocket, checked the chamber and safety one more time. Loaded with silver bullets, of course, which made me twitch. But Provost and his party hadn’t brought along any other kind, apparently. I felt horribly ostentatious doing the checking—bad action-film girl, right here.

“Distract him,” I said. “Keep him looking out front. Make him think he can get a shot off.” Then I’d s

neak up from behind. It was a Cormac-grade plan.

I left them and went to the back door. Quietly opened it. Didn’t make a sound. Stepped out.

And fell back as the wall beside me exploded. Another gunshot blasted as I slammed shut the door and hunched on the floor.

Grant, Tina, and Jeffrey came running.

“Cabe,” I said, picking myself up, checking myself over. Some scratches from flying splinters marked my arm, but I could handle that. Just as long as nothing silver touched me, I’d be fine.

Tina huffed, turning away in a show of frustration. “So they’re waiting us out.”

“We have to think of something,” Grant said. He started pacing, slow, moderate steps. He winced with pain.

Jeffrey was looking at the front door. “I want to try something. Kitty, can you stay out of sight?”

“What are you going to do?” I said.

“Just don’t let Provost see you through the window.”

He went to the front door and opened it.

Tina gasped and reached after him. “Jeffrey, don’t!”

Jeffrey called out, so the man in the trees could hear, “Joey! We want to make a deal! Let’s talk!”

Grant joined Tina by the front door to listen. Still holding the gun, I crouched nearby, under the window.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Grant demanded.

Jeffrey kept calling. “You’ve made your point! Cabe just shot Kitty out back—”

I thought I saw where this was going. I ducked and listened.

“Except for the vampire in the basement, the monsters are all gone. The rest of us are human. We know this is all about the monsters. If you let us go, the four of us will walk away. We’ll leave the vampire to you.”

It just might work.

The thing was, Provost and Cabe couldn’t let anybody walk away. They’d already killed their witnesses, the show’s assistants. But maybe he didn’t know that we knew that. Jeffrey was good with people. Maybe he really could lure him into the open. All I needed was a clear shot…

“Conrad and Odysseus are hurt. We need to get to a hospital. We just want to talk to you, Joey. Stay there if you want, but talk to me.”

A long moment passed. This wasn’t going to work. Provost was in communication with Cabe, who might or might not have seen whether he actually shot me. I wanted to yell to Jeffrey to get back inside.