Lupi 08 - Death Magic

sniffing it thoroughly. The black wolf quivered but didn’t move.
    Rule-wolf selected one breast, crunched a couple times, then gulped it down. Then he used his nose to push the tray toward the other wolf—who looked at him as if asking permission. Rule stepped back. It’s all yours.
    The black wolf was on his feet and devouring the chicken like he was on fast-forward.
    Rule made a single, low noise, sort of a grunt. He looked at Scott. Scott frowned, then his eyes widened. “A car. I hear it now. It’s out front.”
    Drummond? Maybe. Probably. “Quick,” Lily said, turning to Deborah. “Go see who it is. Don’t let them in. See who it is and let me know.”
    For once the woman didn’t argue. She ran. Lily spun back to Rule. “You have to get Ruben out of here. They’re going to arrest him. If they find him here like that”—she waved at the black wolf, who’d polished off the chicken and was licking the wrappings—“he won’t be able to control himself at all. He won’t understand what’s happening. God. You’ll need clothes.” She flung the next words at Scott as she hurried to the back door. “Can you go with them? With your arm?”
    He was already bending, scooping up piles of fallen clothing with his good arm. “Of course.”
    Rule nudged Ruben with his nose. The black wolf snarled but stopped hunting for another scrap of chicken.
    Lily fumbled with the lock, then flung the door open. “Make sure you’ve got Rule’s wallet and phone. Hurry.”
    Rule gave Lily a single glance, then shoved at Ruben with his whole body before loping out the door. The black wolf followed as if he’d been told to. Scott was a few seconds behind with one arm circling their bundled clothing, the other one propped uncertainly on top of it. He hadn’t taken time for clothes, but he’d slipped on his shoes.
    Lily shut the door, grabbed the tray the chicken had been in, and jammed it in the trash. She raced to the sink, turned on the water, and yanked at the roll of paper towels.
    “There’s four of them,” Deborah said, slightly breathless as she ran back into the room. “I don’t know the other three, but I know Al Drummond. He interviewed me. They’re almost—”
    The doorbell rang.
    “Pour you and me some coffee.” Lily thrust a wad of paper towels under the tap. “Not full—as if we’ve been sipping awhile. Put the cups on the table. Pick the chairs up. I dropped by unexpectedly,” she went on quickly as Deborah hurried to the coffeepot. She bent and started wiping blood smears from the floors. “Ruben wasn’t here. He left to take a walk about an hour ago, shortly before I arrived.” Neither of the wolves had bled badly, but they’d smeared it all over, dammit. Lily went for more paper towels.
    “But you’ll be in trouble.” Deborah set two half-full mugs on the table and a plate of cookies. Good touch. She broke off a corner of one the cookies and crushed it to leave crumbs on the table then righted one of the chairs. “You aren’t supposed to be here.”
    “No choice.” Rule’s car was in front of the house. If she skipped out the back door, they’d look for him. She couldn’t let that happen. “We haven’t talked about the investigation or the events at Fagin’s house. Mostly about you—how you’re holding up, that sort of thing.”
    Deborah was carrying the other chair across the kitchen. “My parents are giving me a hard time. You can tell them that. The leg on this one’s broken.” She opened a door to what seemed to be a pantry and took the chair inside. “Where will Rule take Ruben? What’s going to happen to him?”
    The doorbell rang again.
    “Questions later. Better let them in.” Lily tossed her towels in the trash, then cast a quick glance over the kitchen. No visible blood. Even if she missed some and Drummond was psychic enough to run lab tests on it, the tests wouldn’t tell them much. Not with lupi blood.
    The kitchen island still rested against the cabinets. Lily hurried over to it as Deborah emerged from the pantry. “Get the door. Hurry.”
    Deborah’s face was pale but composed. Or maybe she’d just shut down. Either would work for now. “The cup. The one I dropped. There’re pieces by the table.”
    “I’ll get it.” Lily shoved at the island. “Go.”
    Deborah did, her shoes clicking firmly on the floor. Lily left the island roughly where she remembered it being, hurried to the table, and bent to snatch up bits of broken coffee cup.