Black Mountain Magic (Kentucky Haints #1) Read online

  Jack sat in the passenger seat, shotgun across his lap. “That thing wouldn’t have come where the fire was, and his kids know not to wander off. It come up on you two ‘cause you were separated from everyone else.”

  “They’re a damn sight more desperate than we thought, taking risks like that.”

  “I don’t reckon we need to be hiding indoors after dark so much as they say. But maybe some of us ought to have enough sense not to wander off to mess around.”

  Deacon glanced sidelong at him.

  “I hope it was worth risking your neck,” Jack said.

  “It sure was.”

  Jack grimaced and shifted. “I ain’t sitting in nothing, am I?”

  “Nah. We didn’t get that far.”

  Jack relaxed against the seat. “Grammy’s coming over today to help Mel put a ward up on our land. I expect I ought to get to work on that fence, too. Need to put them palings in and get it extended, fix up what’s already out there. It’s sigogglin’ as hell.”

  “Grammy still don’t like Mel, does she?”

  “No, but she’s gonna have to get used to her, cause she’s my wife. They’re gonna have to get used to each other.”

  Maybe Grammy would teach Lorena too, take her under her wing and instruct her from those handwritten books. No. Lorena would be gone before he knew it. He pushed the thought out of his head.

  “Reckon it won’t matter much soon,” Deacon said. “They’ll bring the exterminators in and wipe the mess of them out. Things will go back to normal, much as they ever are.”

  When they pulled up to the big white farmhouse, Lorena and Holden stood on the porch. Holden was all pinched-lipped and glaring, bundled up in a black pea coat and scarf. Lorena leaned against one of the porch posts. She looked lovely in the morning sun, her hair pulled up, her slim black leather jacket and boots on. Her gun hung off her hip. She wore sunglasses. Stylish and countrified at the same time. He liked it.

  Deacon and Jack got out but left their guns in the truck.

  “I hope you understand,” Holden said as they approached, “there are some rules you’re going to have to follow during this excursion. We have to assure your safety.”

  “Morning to you too.” Deacon grunted and focused on Lorena. Even from a distance, her perfume carried on the breeze, and the natural scent of her, enough to drive him crazy.

  Holden ignored Deacon’s jab at his manners and issued them a long and self-righteous spiel that spelled out the “rules” they had to follow. They were to obey any order he gave to stop or stay put. If they were set upon, they were to retreat and not engage except in a situation of extreme danger. Wolvites were not to be provoked or coaxed out of hiding. They were not to interfere with any collection of evidence.

  Deacon listened patiently, albeit bemusedly.

  “That’s all well and good,” Jack said. “Here’s the thing. Wolvites don’t come out in the day if they can avoid it, so we’re fairly safe.”

  “I know that,” Holden snapped. “But it’s not a guarantee.”

  “And I know that,” Jack answered. “But with all due respect, we’re the Lycans here. If we do get set on, it’s y’all who better get out of there while we take care of it.”

  Lorena pushed away from the post. “We just want to assure no one gets hurt. But we have every confidence in your skills, and of course, your bloodline. Don’t we, Holden?”

  Deacon smiled. She smiled back. He could have reached out and dragged her off the porch, threw her over his shoulder. Damn she distracted him in those jeans. They hugged every inch of her long legs and curvy hips.

  Holden sighed. “We will follow the rules, all of us. Let’s get this over with. The sooner we know where they are, the sooner we can send in the exterminators.”

  Deacon tried silently to will Lorena to get in the truck with him, but she went with Holden. Holden drove and followed Deacon and Jack. Deacon led them on a series of heavily wooded back roads that led out to the holler. The area they aimed for sat about five miles outside of Blue Ditch. One of the first things Deacon learned from his Daddy was how to follow the Wolvite trail, and it almost always led out to the holler. It was their preferred habitat.

  “So I reckon I owe you fifty bucks,” Jack said as they trundled over the dusty, bumpy road.

  “I expect you’ll get it back soon enough for one thing or another.”

  They stopped at a pull off situated above the holler, from which several paths led down into the trees. The spot was well-worn, as it was the starting point for hunters. No one else was around. People in town liked to tell Lycans how foolish they were, but in times like these, they all suddenly wanted to stay away and let them do the work.

  They parked the trucks and climbed out. Deacon had his sidearm on him and pulled his shotgun out as well. No particular scent hung on the air, neither the greasy, foul scent of Wolvites, nor anything they might have killed. He only caught the scent of damp earth and turning leaves.

  “A lot of hunters come out here,” Jack said as they converged between the trucks. “This is where we start our hunt, too.”

  “C’mon over here.” Deacon motioned to Lorena. “I’ll show you something.”

  She followed him, over to an area where the trees split open and provided an unobstructed view into the holler.

  Deacon’s home was beautiful all year round, but nothing matched the majesty of autumn draping itself across the land. The trees on the drooping slopes presented a blazing patchwork quilt of red, yellow, orange, and vibrant neon green. Black Mountain rose in the distance, gentle and sleepy. The sun hung high in the bright blue sky and rained down golden light, and nothing, not even a postcard, could be more perfect. Hard to believe a scene so idyllic could hold such nastiness, that evil things lurked under those colorful branches.

  “Wow.” Lorena slipped her sunglasses off. “It’s beautiful. You sure don’t see things like this in Chicago.”

  “That there’s Black Mountain.” He pointed. “Lot of tourists around here usually, especially this time of year. They like to go off-roading, hiking, camping, use their ATV’s. They ain’t letting them in right now, though. It’s been closed off.”

  “I know. Our agency has a contingent stationed in Lynch. I’m surprised you can get down there this way.”

  “Ain’t no one but us fools trying to get in this way. They put a restriction on hunting, though. Regular hunting, that is.”

  “This is amazing country. Have you ever been up the mountain?”

  “A bunch of times. Especially when I was younger, we’d go up it, me and Jack and Zeke. Amazing view. You can see all the way to Tennessee and North Carolina on a clear day.”

  “Sounds like Willis Tower. You can see four states from the top of it.”

  “Maybe I ought to visit someday.”

  She stepped closer to him and her scent wrapped around him like a warm blanket. “Coal mining is still a big thing around here, isn’t it? That’s why it’s called Black Mountain?”

  “Oh yeah, and they still argue about it. No one wants to see the top of that peak taken off, even though they tell us there’s a bunch of coal underneath it. But coal’s always been big here. Once upon a time, it was pretty near the only job you could get. My Grandpa worked in the mines for a time, when he was younger. My Daddy, too.”

  “It would be a shame to see this stripped away.”

  “It sure would. Now you see why I don’t move.”

  “There’s a lot of danger, though. A lot of bad things.”

  “Always has been. Wolvites ain’t the only thing dangerous out there. There’s black bears, too.” He grinned.

  “It’s a natural habitat for Wolvites,” Jack said behind them. They both turned. “Lots of cover, lots of little animals to eat. Lots of caves that stretch under the mountain, gives them a place to make lairs.”

  “Yep.” Deacon nodded. “We come out here a couple times a month and pick off any we come across, keep the population down. When they started swarming,
we saw more than we’d ever seen. We figure this is where the worst of it is, they like it here.”

  “If they’re coming out of their habitat and invading Blue Ditch,” Lorena said, “something serious is going on. It’s unusual for them to invade en masse a populated area. Either their food supply is compromised, or there’s too many of them to be supported by the local ecosystem.” She gazed out toward the mountain. “Or, there’s another reason.”

  “They did this when we was kids.” Deacon didn’t feel speculating on it would matter much. “It wasn’t like when my Daddy was younger and wildfires drove them out. The second time, we don’t know what it was. But we put ‘em back. We will this time, too.”

  Lorena took a deep breath. “It’s the ‘other reason’ hypothesis we’re worried about.”

  Holden cleared his throat. “They could have just developed a natural aggression. They’re tired of being hunted. That’s one possibility we’ve put on the list.”

  Deacon narrowed his eyes. “What else is on that list?”

  Lorena looked at Deacon. She hesitated a moment, then spoke. “We think…there might be a rabies-like virus affecting the Wolvite population.”

  “Lorena!” Holden spoke sharply.

  “We have to at least tell these guys, they’re dealing with them directly.” She turned toward Deacon. “They first discovered it in a Wolvite corpse in South Carolina, seven months ago. It could explain their new aggression.”

  Holden glared at her.

  Deacon didn’t know how to respond. This seemed the sort of thing the government shouldn’t be keeping a secret.

  “So we got us some mad dogs,” Jack said. “Why the hell ain’t we heard about this until now?”

  “We’re not sure about it.” Lorena gave Jack a beseeching look. “The thing is, Deacon was bitten, and he’s not rabid.”

  Deacon extended his arm. He’d taken the bandages off as the bite had healed into bright pink scar tissue, a half moon on his forearm.

  “Lycans are immune to Wolvite venom,” Lorena said. “But I don’t see why you’d be immune to a completely separate virus. That doesn’t seem plausible.”

  “But maybe we are.” Jack put his hands on his hips.

  “That would certainly be a scientific discovery of interest.” She fell silent.

  “So you think they might be rabid,” Deacon said. “When was you gonna tell the people who live here?”

  “We’re not mouthpieces for our agency. It’s not our place to make the announcement. They don’t want unnecessary panic. If it’s not true, why start a big scare?”

  “But if it is true,” Jack raised his voice, “we got a much bigger problem on our hands.”

  “That’s why you’re here.” Deacon clenched his jaw. “You ain’t here to rout them out. You’re here to find out if they’re rabid.”

  “They will be exterminated,” Holden said. “Whether or not.”

  “Our only concern is the safety of the people of this town.” Lorena’s eyes were wide and worried. “We will find out what’s happening, and fast, and we’ll take care of it. You’re not going to spread this around, are you? We could lose our jobs if it gets out we leaked this to you.”

  Deacon struggled to think straight and act rational. He couldn’t help but be pissed. If not the townspeople, this was certainly something the poor bastards hunting them down needed to know, long before this.

  “You’re puppets,” Deacon said. “They got you on strings. I don’t see how either of you can justify that.”

  Lorena’s expression hardened. “I told you why I do this.”

  “You’ve been a big help.” Holden cut in. “You brought us a corpse to look for the virus in. You were also bitten and haven’t suffered any effects. That’s pertinent to our research. If they are rabid, and you’re immune to it, you’ll be paid handsomely for your role in our research; that is, if you keep your mouth shut.”

  Deacon turned an icy gaze on him. “My role in your research?”

  “If they are rabid,” Lorena spoke gently, “and you are immune, that’s going to make Lycans even more important than they already are in the quest to create an anti-Wolvite venom vaccine. Think of all the people you’ll be able to save.”

  He couldn’t get entirely mad at her, because she was probably thinking of her mama. He couldn’t blame her for that line of thinking, either. She had a noble goal, even if her route getting there was kind of shady.

  “Great.” Jack huffed. “We’re gonna be famous. So what the hell are we doing out here, if you already got your dead dog to experiment on?”

  “We need to see their habitat,” Holden said. “If they’re rabid, they’re going to be attacking each other as well. We need to see if there’s evidence of that.”

  Deacon slung his rifle onto his shoulder. “If they are rabid, maybe the problem will take care of itself.”

  “There’s a possibility of that.” Lorena slipped her sunglasses back on. “It could be a blessing, a plague that wipes them out. As long as it doesn’t spread to humans.”

  “Well if you’d tell people, there’d be less a chance of that.” Deacon turned to the trees. “C’mon, then, let’s go see if they’ve been tussling with each other.”

  “You haven’t noticed an excess of corpses, have you?” Holden asked.

  “Only the ones we make.”

  * * * *

  Lorena simmered with shame. Holden glowered silently beside her, but his anger didn’t matter to her. He could report her if he wanted to. She shouldn’t have kept the information from Deacon and Jack at all.

  They descended a tree-covered slope, the path they followed wide enough they could walk two shoulder to shoulder. The sunlight barely penetrated the thick canopy of autumn leaves, the world beneath the branches shadowy and orange.

  “We’ll show you where we do our hunting.” Deacon walked in front of them. “We gotta go down into the holler a piece.”

  They reached the bottom of the slope. A clearing opened and several paths shot off from it. The warm, stuffy air beneath the tight-packed trees seemed to make it hard to breathe. Lorena loosened her scarf.

  “This way.” Jack pointed down a path. “It’ll take about ten minutes.”

  They had to walk single file this time. Lorena followed behind Deacon, Jack in the lead. The way was mostly flat and didn’t meander. She kept an eye out for any sign of danger; also, for signs of past struggle. She didn’t note anything remarkable in the thick carpet of leaves. Holden took pictures with his phone.

  Eventually, the trees parted and the mountain rose in front of them, towering above the walls of the valley. A fresh, loamy scent hung on the air.

  As they passed into the valley a powerful sensation swept over her, like her chest and head had opened up to let the world in. The backs of her arms and neck tingled, the hair standing on end. The sensation grew stronger as they advanced and made her dizzy.

  Her powers had activated.

  This rush came on much stronger than any of the times she’d experienced it before, however. She’d only had brief flashes in the past.

  Deacon looked around at her and raised his eyebrows.

  She nearly stopped a few times, as the distraction became overwhelming. Not having her wits about her could be dangerous. She walked on though, and tried to ignore it. Deacon and Jack were Lycan, after all. In theory, they could protect her.

  They stopped next to a little pool beneath a rock shelf. A series of ledges jutted out of the wall and created natural steps. Water trickled down the rock face and into the pool.

  Jack pointed upward. “You can see the cave mouths from up there. Good place to pick them off.”

  “They like to come snuffling around here,” Deacon said. “They drink out of this pool.”

  Holden tilted his head back. “I’ll go up and see what I can see.”

  Woozy and discombobulated, she didn’t offer to join him. She couldn’t climb right now. “I’ll look around down here.”

  Jac
k led Holden up the wall, leaving her at the bottom with Deacon. She inspected the pool. Nothing in particular stood out. The shallow murky water reflected the sky. Green slime clung to the rim.

  Deacon sat down on a wide rock next to the pool and propped his rifle beside him. “Find anything?”

  “No.” She stuffed her hands in her jacket pockets. “Haven’t noticed any signs of fighting, either.”

  She walked over and sat down on the rock next to him, and stared at her feet.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you the real reason we’re here. I’ve been really, really hoping I wouldn’t need to.”

  “I guess you gotta do what you gotta do.”

  “I told you before, I don’t always agree with the choices my agency makes.” She looked up at him. “But I do agree with what they’re trying to accomplish.”

  His eyes weren’t angry, like before. His expression was passive. He rubbed a hand over his chin and throat. “I have an older sister.” He gazed off into the distance. “Had. I don’t know.”

  She furrowed her brow.

  “When I was eight and she was eleven—that was the last time these monsters tried to overwhelm us, the last time you guys came in—she disappeared.”

  “Disappeared?”

  “We don’t know what happened to her. We never saw her again.”

  His family was “affected,” he’d said that at the diner.

  “You think it was Wolvites?”

  “Don’t know. My Daddy and uncles combed every inch of this holler. Never found a trace of her.”

  “I’m so sorry. I would definitely assume Wolvites in that situation, though.”

  “Yeah, but they don’t tend to pick a corpse clean and then eat the bones too, so seems there should have been something to find. Maybe they drug her off into some hole. Or maybe it wasn’t them at all. Maybe she got snatched up like eleven year old girls sometimes do.”

  “How did she disappear?”

  “She went to a friend’s house and walked home. Never made it. It was the middle of the day in the middle of town, that’s why my Mama always refused to believe it was a Wolvite. My Daddy wasn’t so sure.”