Chapter 18

A/N: Happy Easter Sunday to everyone who celebrates today and happy belated Easter to those who celebrated last week!

About the picture above: to be mated - they haven't undergone the mating ceremony yet, mated - have undergone the mating ceremony and are officially a couple in the eyes of the werewolves, married - are officially together according to human laws, on the way - the female is pregnant.

*****

"Anything else you want to know about us before you go to bed, Riley?" He took another loud sip while I contemplated over what to inquire about.

"The Bullets... Well, some of you anyway," I corrected myself now that I knew that was the name of the whole community and not just a part of it, "sometimes consult the police; in what capacity? I mean, what do they do exactly?"

"Can't tell you that," he shook his head. "I'm not supposed to know."

"When you phrase it like that, it sounds as if you do know more than you should," I pointed out, leaning towards him. He sighed and lifted the cup to his lips, allowing the liquid to slide down his throat. I imitated him, coughing as the beverage went the wrong way. Kennedy patted me on the back and waited until I caught my breath before he carried on:

"You know that this has happened before, right?" I nodded. "It was like... I don't know; maybe seventy years ago?" He furrowed his eyebrows, white teeth biting into his bottom lip in contemplation. "Yeah, I think it's about seventy. Anyway, there was a series of murders with the same M.O. as the one the unsub..."

"Unsub?" I repeated and he recited:

"A person of unknown identity who is the subject of a criminal investigation. That's police slang; I learned it from Kelly. So, the current unsub is using the same M.O. as the people who committed the murders back then." The boy made a pause to drink some more. "Since those people were from a community like ours, we consult on what their motives might be given our way of life... Which is kind of silly, because not all communities follow the same rules. We are often considered too liberal. For example, one of the nearest such community would never, ever pick a woman for a leader; they are not even allowed to participate in their society's version of the Evaluations."

"So there are different versions of that process?" I sipped the liquid more slowly this time and managed to avoid choking.

"Yep. The process depends on each community's values; some only pay attention to strength, speed and leadership skills. I have no idea why had they decided a woman cannot possess those; Keri is doing more than just fine and mom was one of the best in her time... You know," he grinned, his eyes sparkling almost supernaturally, "many thought that mom would hold the same post as Rhys now does. They also thought that she would marry Zachary as they were close as children, were both smart and excelled in physical challenges - mom was the fastest amongst her peers, just like I am - so the community thought they'd be a good match and from a genetic point of view, they would've been; they would've produced strong heirs. But when they were teens mom fell in love with dad and Zachary with Hannah. When the time for the Evaluations came, Zachary was chosen as leader and Olivia as second in command even though mom got pretty close to that position. Olivia's advantage was her connection with Zachary; she was not only his sister, she was his twin sister. You know what they say about twins - they have a special connection." His face fell and he gulped down the rest of his cocoa, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand when he was done.

"She took Zachary's death badly - it was really hard on her; she kept crying, she lost her appetite and couldn't sleep - and that was why she stepped down. You see, when a new leader is chosen, a new second in command might be chosen if the old one cannot keep to their duties and/or if they don't get well with the new leader. Olivia's connection to her niece is strong - probably because she doesn't have children of her own; her ma... man died and she never fell in love again - but Zachary's demise was too heavy a blow for her so after Keri took charge, Rhys was took the duties of second in command."

"Which apparently includes aiding the police," I noted, finishing my cocoa.

"Even though there are some differences between the communities, we still know a lot about each other," the boy commented. "We keep in touch with those we get on with and keep an eye on those we are not on very friendly basis with. Our contacts are valuable to Callum, although he'd hate to admit that."

"Why so?" The detective - even though I'd only seen him on the TV - struck me as a serious man when it came to his job; why wouldn't he welcome help?

"He doesn't like us much," the boy shrugged. "We live by our own rules, he thinks Keri is too young and inexperienced to be in charge," he began enlisting, "and maybe we didn't approach him right. You know, he almost shot Anthony once."

"He what?" I shouted, flinging my arms. Luckily, my cup was empty and no chocolaty sprays flew across the room. Kennedy shook with laughter at my reaction, his own beverage threatening to leave a damp spot on his bed as the porcelain that held it tilted.

"We didn't know how much we could trust Callum, so Keri sent her brother to observe the detective for a while; Callum saw Anthony sneaking around, took a shot gun - apparently the guy has quite an enviable collection of firearms in his house - and bang!" I jumped in the bed. "Oh, don't worry, he missed; it was a close call, but he missed."

"But, but... I mean..." I waved again, still holding onto the china. "He's a cop! Cops aren't supposed to shoot at people without a warning!"

"He thought Anthony was an animal," the boy shrugged again.

"How on Earth can he confuse Anthony for an animal?"

"It was dark... A trick on the moonlight, maybe," he replied vaguely, covering his mouth with the cup, sipping the last drops out of it. "Besides, the guy lives on the edge of town; he's probably had his fair share of wild animal encounters."

"But still..." I sighed. "What did Anthony do?"

"Well, he wanted to kill Callum, but he had to get over it; Keri's orders."

"And he just let it go?"

"They are not first pals, I can tell you that, but they have to work together and they both take their responsibilities at heart so... Yeah, kind of."

I shook my head and gazed out the window, amazed by the fact that someone could not only overcome the horror of almost being shot to death, but actually work with the person who came close to deliver them their demise. My hand caressed the scar through my shirt. Time had done little lessen the trauma of what had been done to me. I couldn't forgive any of them; not my torturer, not the other people in the room who stood by, laughing, as he burned me. I was glad that they were in jail and sometimes, after reliving the event trough yet another nightmare, I wished that they would experience the same desperation that I'd gone through.

"Ready to go to bed?" I turned my head towards the boy. "I don't want to kick you out, but it's past midnight and I have to get up early for training tomorrow. They might cancel it, but I wouldn't know until I wake up. Plus, you seem... kind of upset."

"I just..." I looked down at the cover; soccer balls were printed on it.

"Worried about Rhys?" He guessed. I didn't want to lie to him, but I had no desire to speak about what had truly been on my mind so I nodded.

"Don't worry," he patted me on the shoulder, "they are just talking. Come on," he got up and took the empty cup from my hand. "I'll walk you to his room; I have to take these to the kitchen anyway."

I followed him into the hallway and he opened the door to Rhys' bedroom for me. I hesitated before I stepped in; I'd always thought that when I entered his room, he would be there with me.

"Want me to come and tuck you in?" The boy teased and I smiled at his way to help me accommodate.

"Maybe next time."

"If you get scared of the Boogeyman, you know where my room is," he jested once again, winking and closing the door, but not before he turned on the lights.

Rhys' room was similar to Kennedy's when it came to the way it was build and furnished. It was too small for a master bedroom, but it easily held in a single bed with a pristine white covering, a wardrobe, bedside table, desk and chair. The decorations were different though: the soccer posters were replaced by shelves with books, the action hero figurines were missing and instead of decks of cards, several maps were covering the desk; what the two places had in common were the picture frames, but in Rhys' bedroom the photos were of family members while in Kennedy they were more and also included friends or shots of him playing his favorite sport.

I walked to the bed, running my hand over the cover. It was soft and the same scent of flowers as the one I'd come across in Kennedy's room reached my nose.

Daffodils.

That was what the aroma was. Jackie must really love the yellow plants if she used a washing powder with that fragrance. Perhaps I could swing by a flower shop and get some for her the next time I visited; I was sure that she would enjoy that.

I moved away from the bed - even with Rhys' permission, I couldn't bring myself to lie in while he wasn't here - and approached the window. A view of the road we came from and Rhys' parked car outspread before my eyes. From my position I could also see the nearby houses - some with glowing windows, some enveloped in darkness, but all were inhabited, I could tell by the kept lawns and the items spread across the yards: chairs, tables and - quite often - toys.

I set the window ajar. The outer sill was wet from drizzle, but it was no longer raining and a warm breeze caressed my face.

Maybe I should go out and wait for Rhys on the porch, I thought. That way I would still be worried about him, but at least I wouldn't feel uncomfortable about using his room.

My mind made up, I headed for the door and as quietly as I could and snuck out, going down the stairs to the first floor.

"Going somewhere, son?" I startled at his voice, even though it was quiet and non-accusing, simply inquiring. He stood in the doorframe of the living room with sleep-filled eyes.

"I thought I'd get some fresh air," I told him, nodding towards the front of his home.

"Do you want some company?" Tom offered, but I shook my head, a bit hesitant as the desire to be alone battled with the fear that I might offend him.

"Want to clear your head, huh?" I relaxed as his tone showed he had taken no offence. "There is a spare key in the decorative basket over there," he pointed to the corner table next to the hanger. "Lock up when you come back in."

"Sure."

"Good night, son."

"Good night," I wished him and watched him head for the landing before I walked out the house.

Once at the porch, I breathed in deeply. The air seemed fresher at the end of town; it was probably due to the nearby forest. I sat on the knitted deck chair, leaning all the way into it - it was a comfortable old thing - and let my gaze wander around the neighborhood.

I closed my eyes. It was so quiet tonight. Not eerie quiet, but pleasantly, enjoyably quiet and I felt myself relax. I even hoped.

If the community was this silent, then Rhys and the others were indeed only going to consult; surely there would be noises if they were preparing to take some sort of action...

A sound like that of a dry branch cracking made me sit up in search of the source, the deck chair screeching as I did. A large, four-legged figure stood perfectly still with its head up and eyes large as if caught by surprise. Before I had the chance to decide whether or not this creature was hostile, it turned around and darted behind the bushes of one of the nearby houses. I shot up, my hand already over the door handle, when someone called.

"Hey, wait!"

I twisted around and saw a boy running towards me - was he buttoning his jeans at the same time? - and seeming rather alarmed.

"Hi," he greeted a bit out of breath as he reached the porch. "Have you seen a large dog around here? He ran away from me."

"Oh, that was yours?" I asked, tension lifting and heart beat steadying at the reassurance that it had been someone's pet and not a wolf as I'd originally thought.

"Yeah," he replied a bit hesitantly.

"He scared the Hell out of me," I admitted before I could help myself.

"Don't worry, Riley; no one here - two- or four-legged - is going to hurt you," he tried to pacify me with a smile, but I took a step back.

"How do you know my name?"

"Apart from the obvious - you are not one of us and you are at the Flemings' residence - we've already met." I furrowed my eyebrows. "In front of the pub the night Rhys gave you a ride after Alec... Well, did what Alec does best."

My mouth formed into an 'o' as I finally recognized him as one of the two curious-looking boys that came out to the parking lot with Rhys.

"Alec can be quite intimidating..." To put it mildly, I added in my mind.

He sighed, his face distorting into something like a frown, but not quite achieving that expression.

"I know. I tried to befriend him, but he didn't seem to like the idea. Kelly and Jasper keep telling me to drop it, but I like to think that people can change, even Alec."

"Are you their brother?"

"Yep. The youngest sibling." He extended his arm to me with a large and charming smile. "Also known as Jared."

I didn't bother introducing myself - he already knew my name - as I shook his hand. It was very warm, as if he'd been running or doing some other exercise that would get his blood pumping through his limbs.

His neck twisted to the left and his eyes narrowed as he retrieved his arm, breaking the contact with me. I looked towards the spot he was targeting, but not seeing anything, I turned my gaze back on him. A few seconds later, he exhaled and the smile was back on his face. I turned again and this time realized what had caught his attention: Rhys was coming towards us.

"A little late to be out for a walk, isn't it?" He asked Jared, his tone a tad accusatory. The boy's gaze fell to the ground just for a moment before another charming, but this time also guilty smile bloomed on his lips.

Rhys - now standing next to us with his arms across his chest - sighed.

"Sorry my dog scared you, Riley," the boy apologized again and made an attempt to discreetly leave.

"We'll talk about this tomorrow," Rhys shouted after him, unfolding his hands and climbing the few steps of the porch. "How have you been?" His voice was warm and gentle as he addressed me, his hand reaching up to caress my face.

"I should be asking you that; you seem absolutely exhausted," I muttered, closing my eyes to better enjoy his touch.

"And I am. I can't wait for us to go to bed."

My eyes shot open.

"In the same bed?"

"Unless you would feel uncomfortable," he uttered slowly, then hurried to add: "I can sleep on the couch."

"No, no, no," I grasped his hands. "I'd like that; I just thought that you might feel uncomfortable as... You know..." I blushed and bit my lip. Even with the dim light from the only lamp on the porch, I could tell his cheeks also reddened.

"We are just going to sleep." His voice shook. "It's too early for the other thing."

I'd already been introduced to his family, but he thought it was too early for sex?

In the age we lived in, it was usually the other way around: bedroom acrobatics first, meet with the parents later.

"Let's go up," I suggested, leading him inside. "I don't suppose you can tell me what happened?" I reached for the spare key, but Rhys took out his and locked the door.

"I can tell you some, but let's leave it for tomorrow."

I couldn't say no to the pleading inflection in his tone - he seemed so tired - so I nodded, already making a list in my head of what I wanted to ask in the morning.

*****

A/N: So what do you think of the chapter?

Too much info, too little info or just the right amount?

And what about the picture? Does it help you with who is who? I'll add a link to it in the comments, in case you can't see it well here ;)

VOTE if you enjoyed and have a great time on wattpad!

PS: I switched the position of the bedrooms - Rhys' and Everett's are to the right and Kennedy's and Carter's to the left - because of the view.