Old Habits

Tish: down the rabbit hole

Tish

We finished eating and headed back to an abandoned SUV. We climbed in and sat for a while in silence as if hoping that Jackson and Mike were going to appear magically. After ten minutes, I was pretty sure we weren't going to see them.

"Okay, so do we want to take Jackson's credit card and find a hotel, or do we want to sleep in the car?" I inquired. "I bet we could find somewhere really fancy. With a hot tub."

Conor yawned. "I'd rather not wander away and then be hunted by some vampires," he pointed out.

"Better than staying were some hunters can arrest us," I countered. "Aggie and her son won't stay like that forever. And she knows where we are headed."

Conor shrugged. But I didn't want to go head to head with Agatha and her whole family. Conor was used to Peter protecting him, but I was sure that wouldn't matter to Phillip and his brothers.

"Humor me?" I asked, not sure how to explain the problem to Conor.

"What if Jackson comes back and we're not here?" he asked. "He could call Lacy and she..."

"He's not going to kill our pack because we wandered off," I told him. "But we're sitting out here in a lit parking lot and I don't think we want to be here when the hunters are. Come on. I want to sleep in a bed."

"Oh, if it's for your comfort," he teased, but pulled me out of the back seat in his arms, setting me down on the concrete. I looked up the nearest hotel and we, hand in hand, walked down the street once more.

"It's like our first date," I told him.

"I would have been all right if we had managed a date a little closer to home," he replied.

"For sure. Next time."

The hotel was a good choice. I was glad I swiped Jackson's card and we got a decent room. I took a hot shower and slept well. I knew that Conor wasn't sleeping, but there wasn't anything I could tell him to make him relax. I would just have to be rested enough for the both of us.

We happily ate the breakfast at the hotel and then headed back out to our SUV which was still untouched. Conor frowned.

"Something is quite wrong out there," Conor said.

"We're going during the daylight and we are going to be as careful as possible," I told him. "Come on."

He shook his head and slipped into the SUV, coming back out a moment later as a wolf. He sniffed once and bumped my leg.

"If it makes you feel better," I grumbled. "I'm going to grab your pants when you inevitably need them."

He laughed at me and began to sniff the area. I caught up and we wandered around the rusted tin walls, the strange creaking chains, and padlocked doors. It didn't seem like anyone should be out here, or maybe, at least some guard or such should be out here.

Conor wasn't as chatty as a wolf so I had to pay attention as he weaved through the buildings. I breathed in, trying to smell with my wolf nose like Conor had taught me. It smelled like stale water and rust. Conor whined and snorted when we hit a particularly foul stench.

"I don't know what you expected; it's gross out here," I grimaced. "What are we tracking? Vampires don't have a smell, I know."

He trotted around the building and we were right in front of a rundown building. It wasn't as tall as the others and the windows had all been blacked out. A large grate sat in front of the main doors. Conor barked at me when I stepped closer and I crossed my arms, frowning at him.