Lupi 06 - Blood Magic

clutch piece, and it's just a little .22."
    At some point during the fight the switch had flipped from dusk to night, but the parking lot lights glowed brightly. She had no trouble seeing the three gangbangers who emerged from the far side of the van. One was limping - and yes, there was a dark spot on the front of his jeans. One held his arm, where blood was oozing from the biceps. The third looked undamaged.
    Lily's heart was tripping along fast. Later, she knew, she'd get the shakes from unused adrenaline. Later she'd feel something other than relief that the one with the shotgun wasn't shooting at her or Cody or anyone else. Later she'd feel all sorts of things.
    Right now she felt fine. The breeze was stronger now, definitely cool. It felt good. It felt damn good. She was alive and she felt really good about that.
    Cody followed his perps with his weapon trained on them. The wolf - a gray and tan beast - brought up the rear. Cody directed his prisoners to lie down next to the driver, a suggestion the wolf reinforced with a growl.
    They didn't argue. Cody spoke to Lily without looking away from the three gangbangers on the pavement. "I thought your boyfriend's name was Rule."
    "It is." A pair of headlights raced toward them down the lane, coming much too fast. "That's not my boyfriend. Neither of them are."
    Cody's eyes widened. "Neither of... "
    Lily's lips twitched as she realized that Cody hadn't known there were two wolves. "Nope."
    The driver behind those bright headlights braked at last, tires screeching as the Mercedes shuddered to a stop ten feet away. She nodded at the car as the door was flung open. "That is."
     
    Within fifteen minutes, an ungodly number of cops had arrived. There were a pair of rent-a-cops from the mall itself - a phrase Rule was careful not to use out loud. Lily took offense, since retired and off-duty police sometimes worked those jobs. Three patrol units and one sheriff's deputy had responded. The flashing lights from their cars added a rosy glow to the surroundings, a counterpoint to the headlights from the two ambulances. A detective, he'd been told, was on the way, as was the ME.
    The man Lily had shot still lived. He was being loaded in the first ambulance now. The one Jose had jumped did not. Jose had ripped out his throat.
    Rule had heard the basic outline of events when Lily reported crisply to the first officers on scene. He'd watched as she handed over her weapon - which had angered him, but she took it in stride. It was procedure, she'd said, when shots had been fired. Besides, she'd added with a sly grin, she still had her clutch piece. Cody Beck had handed over the weapon he'd fired, too, but he still had his police-issue gun.
    Jacob had already Changed back and was being questioned by one of the officers. Jose was still wolf. He needed more time to rest between Changes.
    Rule crouched in front of Jose now.
    The black wolf sat stiffly, not looking directly at his Lu Nuncio. The smell of blood clung to him. Jose was a strong and skilled fighter with excellent control as well as the three kinds of sense a warrior needs - tactical sense, common sense, and people sense. That's why Benedict had put him in charge of the bodyguards.
    But this was his first human kill.
    "You did right," Rule said, his voice pitched low enough that none of the humans around them would hear. "You assessed the situation and did as you'd been taught. Three attackers, all armed - you had to stop them quickly or risk my nadia 's life. Taking out the one with the gun frightened the others into surrendering. Lily trusted you to guard her back. You didn't fail her."
    The black wolf's head lifted slightly. He looked Rule in the eye for one second, then away, his head dipping in a small nod.
    Rule shifted to subvocalizing - speaking softly deep in his throat without moving his lips. "You are to say that Lily signaled you to attack. She realized you were following her, and when trouble erupted, she signaled you in the same way I would have, had I been here."
    Jose's ears pricked up. Another nod.
    Rule raised his voice to a normal level. "You're ready to Change, then? The officers would like to take your statement." He stepped back.
    Rule knew Lily couldn't see what happened during the Change. He wondered if that was because she hadn't grown up seeing it, as he had. He'd read that the visual cortex of a person who'd been blind from birth was used to process the other senses, and so was not available for