Bk 3 - Chapter 27 - The Warehouse
Trey, Cat, Thatcher, Janel, Aiden, and Kitty were all with the group that went to the warehouse. There were fifteen in all, including the witch Vilma. They went to the same clearing where Cat and Melanie were found. Thatcher and Alberto got rid of the three bodies that were still there. They snuck as close to the warehouse as possible and threw the bodies where they wouldn't be missed by anyone coming or going. They wanted people to see the bodies as a warning for what they could look forward to.
"There's evil energy coming from this place. It's seeped into the ground, making the air rancid." Vilma said to no one in particular. Cat nodded in agreement; she felt the same bad energy.
"What do you think we should do?" Cat asked Trey. She wanted to bust down the door but didn't think that was a good idea, not knowing who or what was inside.
"Thatcher and Janel, can you get closer to see if you can see anything inside? It's odd that there's no movement this time of day." Trey looked at the two vampires, who nodded before racing off. They'd left Jade at the hotel with Elicia, who volunteered to babysit.
They slowed down once they got within a few yards of the warehouse. Thatcher pointed to the roof, and they both leaped into the air, landing without a sound. The others watched as the couple ran to the center of the building and peered down through what looked like a skylight. They remained still for a few minutes, and then Janel put her hand over her mouth, shaking her head back and forth. Thatcher grabbed her, and they raced back to the clearing. Cat wrapped her arms around Janel, who was shaking like a leaf.
"What did you see?" Trey asked cautiously. He knew Thatcher and Janel were usually tough as nails, but they both looked rattled.
"At first, it looked like several men just talking. Then two men dragged a woman over and strapped her onto a table. They gave her an injection, and she immediately shifted into a panther. However, whatever they did wasn't natural. The woman didn't change from human to panther. The panther came from inside her, tearing the woman's body apart. There was nothing left of her except torn pieces of skin. It looks like they're doing some type of experimenting, but I don't know what." Thatcher took Janel in his arms as she cried. The woman had looked at them through the skylight before she died, but she was given the injection before they knew what was happening.
"I have never heard of anything like that. Have any of you?" Trey looked around at his family and the rescued shifters, who were all shaking their heads.
"I'm going to call Wesley and see if he knows anything about what they could be doing. I wonder if she was already a shifter, or did they put something in her to produce the panther?" Kitty asked as she pulled out her phone.
"I would think that she would have to be a shifter, and whatever they gave her made her panther separate from the human. I don't understand the purpose, though. Why would they want to remove an animal from their human?" Aiden asked, looking between Trey and Thatcher.
"I don't know. It seems like it would be torture for both of them. Maybe that's the reason. He could have no other purpose than to torture shifters." Trey answered, trying to stay calm. Kitty pushed the call button on her phone and then put the phone on speaker.
"Hello?" Wesley answered.
"Wesley, we're at the warehouse. Thatcher and Janel were able to see inside, and they saw someone give a woman an injection. Afterward, a panther came out of her body, tearing her to pieces. Have you ever seen or heard of anything like that?" She asked.
"I've heard rumors about people testing something that would have that effect, but I never thought it was real. Did they see Raul in there?" Wesley asked.
"None of the men we saw looked like Raul based on the picture you showed us. The man who gave the injection looked like some type of scientist." Thatcher answered him. Wesley knew it was a long shot, but he wanted to see if it was the same man that the cubs had identified.
"I'm going to send a picture to you. Tell me if this is the man you saw." Wesley took a picture of Cole Reynell's photo and sent it to Kitty.
Thatcher and Janel looked at the image and couldn't believe it. He was the same man they saw through the skylight.
"That's him. Who is that?" Janel asked, still staring at the picture on the phone.
"His name is Cole Reynell. He's a werewolf. We rescued him a few months ago and thought he was taken because his location was compromised. It appears that he was working with the traffickers all along. Lisa and Alex said that he was the man that experimented on them when they were kept in the cages. He called them his science experiments. We're lucky Saxon and Melanie got them away from Cole before they got their animals."
Everyone let what Wesley said sink in. They knew there were evil shifters out there, but who could do experiments on cubs? Cat felt the fury coursing through Trey when she took his hand. They had to stay levelheaded if they were going to be of any use.
"If this Cole guy left Rio and came here, Raul has to be into something more than just trying to get revenge on our family. This makes it seem that the trafficking in Rio is connected to Raul somehow. What do you want us to do, Wesley?" Cat asked.
"I agree there is much more going on here than we know. I would like to figure out what we're dealing with, but I also don't want more deaths while we wait. Is there any way to see how many are inside?" Wesley asked. He didn't want to put anyone in danger that didn't need to be.
"The skylight isn't that big. We could see seven men and then the female they killed. Other than that, we couldn't see how many others were in the warehouse." Thatcher tried to think of another way to see more, but the only other options were the front or back doors. "There's a door in the back in addition to the front door. We could try and breach that door and sneak in, but I don't know what's waiting on the other side."
"If you're comfortable with going inside, I suggest a few people stay outside to be lookouts while the rest go in the back door. If there's anyone inside to save, then try and get them out. I'll let you decide what to do with the men, but no one will be crying if they're never seen again." Wesley answered. Trey looked around at everyone, who nodded. None of them wanted to see any captives die, but they didn't have the same sentiment toward the captors.
"We're all in Wesley. We'll let you know what happens." Trey said into the phone.
"Alright, be careful." Wesley disconnected the call hoping that they would all be okay.
"Emily, Alberto, and Claudia stay out here to watch for anyone that comes or tries to leave," Trey could see his daughter getting ready to argue, so he continued. "I want the three of you because I know you won't hesitate to take someone out."
"Okay, but you better send some our way," Emily said with a pout. Alberto beamed at her. One thing he'd learned in the short time he'd been with Emily and her family is you never mess with the women.
Claudia bit her tongue. She had been a rogue most of her life, fighting for everything she had, yet she had never seen tougher women than the lionesses.
"I would like one person to volunteer to go on the roof and watch through the skylight for any signs the people inside know we're there." Trey looked around and saw a young woman who didn't look more than seventeen or eighteen; she stepped forward shyly.
"I can do that. My name is Nina. If I see anything, I'll make this sound," Everyone watched in awe as Nina opened her mouth and made the sound of an owl. Not like when a person says who and thinks they sound like one. The way Nina did it was long and low, sending chills up everyone's spines.
"Wow, that's perfect," Cat beamed at the girl, who blushed profusely.
"The rest of us will go through the back door. Everyone be alert and watch out for each other." Trey said. Nina ran ahead and quiet as a mouse leaped in the air, landing softly on the roof. Emily, Alberto, and Claudia moved closer to the warehouse while staying hidden among the trees. Everyone else began moving toward the back of the building.
Thatcher and Trey led their group. When they reached the back door, they listened to see if any noise was coming from inside. Both shook their heads, indicating they didn't hear anything. Trey tried the handle, but it was locked.
He was going to break the handle off, but one of the rescued males came forward, pulling something long and skinny from his pocket. After sliding it into the lock and jiggling it around a few times, the door opened. The young man returned to the others without saying a word. Thatcher and Trey watched him in shock.
Trey pulled the door open a little at a time. He looked inside when there was enough of a gap. The door lead to a storage room. There was nothing there but what looked like cleaning products. They all slipped into the room quietly and went to the next door.
Trey froze when he opened the door. What he saw made him sick. There were dozens of people and animals chained up in the room. Some looked dead or almost dead. A few looked like they hadn't been there long, and when they saw Trey, they looked at him in fear. As he stepped into the room, the door across from him opened. Trey's eyes widened when he recognized the man staring back at him. What was he doing here?
