Persephone Alcmedi 00 - Wicked Circle

“Shall we?”
    “No.” Johnny studied her. She squinted just slightly, as if she were in pain. “What’s wrong?”
    “As always, there’s a lot going on.”
    “What else has happened?”
    “I’ll tell you on the way up,” she said as she gestured at the elevator. “It’ll keep my mind off the rickety ride.”
    “Ig had everything mechanical regularly serviced,” he assured her as they approached it, “and the Omori updated everything after they assessed the security system around their Domn Lup. I swear to you: The elevator is safe. It’s just the wood gate that’s rickety.” He patted it as he held it open for her.
    “Why keep such a rotten gate if safety really matters?”
    “It’s a deterrent. Works brilliantly on non-wæres. As you know.”
    Seph boarded the lift. Johnny lifted the false top and put his thumb to the real control button. The scanner quickly read and approved his print, and they started to rise. She asked, “How are you going to make sure the wolves get to their kennels after they’ve changed?”
    “I’ll herd them into the stairwell. Remember the gates you noticed last night? They are at each level. A few of the men who aren’t going to be involved in the spell are going to lock all the gates except the uppermost and one of the kennel levels. Then they get as far away as they can.”
    “So you’ll only be able to get to the levels with kennels. Will they all know what kennel to go to?”
    “Yup.”
    “Beau’s son hasn’t been kenneling with the rest of them.”
    “Good point, but they aren’t territorial about their kennels, and it’s routine to be in them when transformed. Those not involved are supposed to head back in an hour to check on everyone. They’ll handle it if William is stubborn.” He added, “Don’t worry.”
    The elevator shuddered. “Easy for you to say.”
    “Those little bounces are no different than a car hitting a pothole.”
    Seph crossed her arms. “If a pothole knocks a tire off my car, I won’t plummet twelve stories.”
    “You won’t plummet here either.” The elevator doors opened.
    He led her past the cages where the half-formed wærewolves were kept. On one of them, the cage door was open. “One last flight of stairs to the roof.” At the end of the hall they made a right, went under an arched entryway, and saw a wide set of metal steps rising through the ceiling. Johnny opened the door at the top and propped it open with one of the cinder blocks he’d had brought up just for this purpose. Here was a cold brick room with glass-block windows and a gritty floor. “Almost there,” he said, proceeding to the final door. “Ready?”
    “Yeah.”
    “You sure? You avoided telling me what was up.”
    “Later. Let’s just do this.”
    “Any last-minute messages for the men?” Johnny asked as he picked up the other block.
    She considered it. “Stay together.”
    Johnny opened and propped this door as well.
    Atop the main building were two structures other than the one they were emerging from. The others were also brick and glass-block and, additionally, they bore colorful graffiti. In the center of the roof was a big formerly black water tower—formerly because it too wore the spray-painted lettering. The building was tall enough that drivers on the highway wouldn’t be able to see them, and far enough from downtown that people in the taller buildings wouldn’t be able to either.
    Three dozen men stood gathered around the base of the water tower. William, half formed, was sprawled at the edge of the group, unconscious.
    “There’s more of them than I expected,” Seph said.
    “The Omori all wanted in on it.”
    “They know their man-minds won’t be immediate? It’ll happen with their next cyclical change?”
    “They know.”
    She glanced up at the sky scattered with gray clouds. “All right. Have them gather in that far corner so the water tower doesn’t block the beam.”
    Johnny directed them where to stand, then had Gregor and Kirk move William. Johnny wasn’t standing with them, however. When they were in position, one man noticed and asked, “You are still going to go through it with us, right?”
    Johnny blinked. “Yup.” He’d promised to go through it with them to assure them that it was not some witch trickery. I can handle it. I’ll just change back when it’s done.
    “Of course he is,” a voice from the back said. “He won’t let his woman see all of us naked without putting himself