Werewolves: The Gravediggers pt. 8

This story features Dena's father, Jaci, and takes place several years before the events of 'Werewolves: Haven Rising.' 

[If you haven't yet read parts 1-7, click on the Collections tab and select 'Werewolves' to find the previous installments of this story.]

Jaci stared at the recording on computer monitor in horror as Colonel Williams watched Sahale writhe in agony for several seconds before stepping closer and pulling the trigger again at almost point-blank range, putting his friend out of his misery. There was blood everywhere. The video stopped.

 "So much blood…" Jaci said under his breath.

 "Are you...crying?" Kaylen asked, looking up at him from her chair. "You're not really military, are you?"

 He didn't bother responding. If she knew enough to ask, then she'd know if he lied. Sometimes it was better to say nothing.

 "Christ." The tech closed out the video and got out of her chair. She took a quick look toward the only door out of the room. "You're not gonna kill me, are you?"

 "What?" Jaci mumbled. He looked up at her, embarrassed by his display of emotion. She was only a human. How could she ever understand the pain of losing a packmate? "No. I'm not going to kill you. I just needed to know what happened to him."

 "So you're one of them?"

 He nodded sullenly, confirming what he was sure she already knew. Gods damn it! He thought. She'd seen his face! She could identify him! He couldn't let her leave, but he also couldn't kill her. It wasn't his way—that's why he surrendered with the rest of the pack back in Yellowstone. That's why he was here in this gods-forsaken place instead of dead and buried with the rest of his kin. His convictions left him in one hell of a conundrum, though. He suddenly wished Delsin were here; he was always able to make the tough decisions when he was caught between a rock and a hard place. Jaci was a keen hand at survival and logic puzzles, but Delsin had a unique talent for reading people, at least when he wasn't stoned out of his mind on Nurse Shaw's drugs. It must have been in his blood—his son was already turning into one hell of an empath.

 He gave himself a shake. He was just sitting there when he needed to be doing something, but he couldn't get the image of Sahale's body lying on the floor surrounded by a widening pool of blood out of his mind. Maybe it would be better if the pack all went to join him. He held back a sob. No. He had to be strong. How many times had his friends told him that without his optimism they'd already have given into despair? But what had it gotten them in the end? Four bullets in the brain and an ocean of—

 "—you listening?"

 Jaci jerked his head back up. "What?"

 "I said you need to get the hell out of here before my supervisor realizes you're talking to me."

 "You're just going to let me go?"

 Kaylen gave an exaggerated sigh. "You said you weren't going to kill me, right?"

 "Yeah."

 "Well then why would I do that to you? I know what they do to werewolves who step out of line in this place. I literally just watched the evidence with you. If I tell them that you were here and that you saw what you saw, what do you think they're going to do to you?"

 Jaci took a deep breath and tried to get his emotions under control. "You're right," he said. "They'll either kill me or use me in their next experiment."

 The tech nodded. "Come on. I'll head out first to make sure the way is clear."

 He could barely feel his legs when he started following her, but somehow he managed to keep himself upright. "All the bodies I've had to bury," he muttered. "Why didn't they make me feel this way?"

 Kaylen looked back at him as she wove her way through the racks of servers toward the exit. She was taking a circuitous route, making sure to keep the line of sight from the door at least partially obscured until they were ready to leave. "They make you bury them?" she asked. She sounded horrified. "They experiment on you and then make you clean up their mess?"

 "That's about the size of it," Jaci said. They were almost to the door. Just a few more feet now. "I think it's just another experiment. They want to see how we can handle psychological stress. Delsin says I'm crazy—that they're just lazy and can't be bothered digging the holes—but I can see that kind of stuff clearer than him. The scientists want to know how far we can be pushed before we break. That's what they did to Sahale."

 "Sahale…" Kaylen said. "The werewolf in the video?"

 "Yeah," Jaci said. "He was one of my best friends. Part of my pack."

 A sharp knock came from the door, startling both of them into silence. Kaylen waved Jaci back and the wolf complied immediately, ducking behind a shelf loaded with discarded scrap tech pushed up against the wall. The door opened a second later, admitting a tall man in a pristine army uniform. For a second he thought it was the colonel, but getting a closer look through the small gaps between stacked PCs, he realized he was mistaken. This man was much younger, but he had a certain air about him, like a thundercloud laced with crackling electricity. He noticed Kaylen immediately.

 "You're done with your work?" he asked with a voice that matched his appearance, a calculated calm that somehow managed to suggest the promise of an immediate violent shift if the winds were to change.

 The tech froze uncomfortably, twisting her fingers through her long, dark hair with nervous energy. "Not quite yet," she said.

 "What's going on," the soldier asked, stepping into the room. He looked back and forth, taking in the portions of the room he could see from his vantage point. "The job was supposed to be done half an hour ago. They're going to have a fit if they think Nova's double billing them again. Finish up so I can escort you off the base."

 "I need to use the bathroom, Jones," Kaylen said, working an angry note into her voice that may not have been entirely for show. "I'd rather not need to waste time filing harassment charges against you, but I will if you make me."

 The soldier looked like he was going to argue for a moment, but he quickly relented and stepped back toward the door. "I'll be at the front desk when you're finished." He grabbed the doorknob and then paused again, nostrils flaring. "What's that rancid smell?"

 "What did I just say about harassment charges?" Kaylen replied, stepping into the space between the soldier and Jaci's hiding spot. "You're really going to stand there and comment on a woman's hygiene after harassing her on the job site? Really? That's your play, here?"

 Jones seemed to deflate and his shoulders sagged as he turned back to the door and let himself out. "Just get it done," he said before the door slammed shut behind him.

Jaci was safe. For now.