The Vampire and the Goth Ch. 18

With an ironic smile, Patrick said, "Father Clem is thrilled to have the extra guest. But now he has two vampires to keep Carlos in check. So that's good."

"You know the priest?" Elizabeth asked.

Patrick chuckled. "Yeah, I know him. We all know him. He's something of a lycanophile."

Alex laughed. "He's really into werewolves, huh?"

"It's not sexual, but yeah. He thinks we're noble," Patrick said with an exaggerated eye roll. "His church is named after the patron saint of wolves."

In a shocked voice, Elizabeth asked, "There's a patron saint for wolves?"

Honoria smiled. "There's a patron saint for everything."

"Anyway, Father Clem is sheltering David and Carlos while Carlos completes his change into a vampire. He considers it his 'Christian duty' to protect our pack, but that won't last forever. I have to admit, I'm grateful that he's doing this for us. I don't relish the thought of having a newly sired vampire around a bunch of wolves."

Alex nodded. "Our best bet is to find Janek and get Carlos out of there as soon as possible."

"So where should we start?" Honoria asked, just as we heard a knock on Patrick's office door.

Patrick said, "It sounds like we might have our first lead. Come in!"

The door opened and a young female wolf came in.

"Alpha, we have the results from the search on that car tag Angus and Stosh saw the other night."

"Thank you, Jessica," Patrick said, as she handed him a piece of paper.

"Hi Jessica," William said, in a flirtatious tone of voice.

Jessica giggled. "Hi, Willie," she said breathily and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Honoria scoffed. "Willie?"

"Jesus Christ you move fast," Skye said, in an exasperated tone. Angus and I managed to suppress our chuckles.

Patrick looked at the paper and said, "The car that ran over Stosh's foot is registered to someone named Derek Jay Browning."

"Oh, you mean DJ," Alex said.

We all looked at him.

"My coven's been keeping an eye on Brother Humble's ministry. DJ is one of his little Kool-Aid drinkers. But what would he be doing with your brother?"

Brother Humble was a well-known preacher famous for his moral crusades, which always got a lot of money out of believers. His latest fund-raising scheme was fighting what he called "the glorification of evil", namely popular culture involving vampires, witches, and other supernatural beings - basically, anyone other than Jesus Christ and Brother Humble.

"I have no idea," I said.

"How do you know this DJ person?" Honoria asked.

Alex shifted in his seat. "Mateo's brother, Carlos, works for Brother Humble as kind of a 'double-agent'. Or he did, until David had to sire him. Carlos kept an eye on these people and reported back to us regularly."

I nodded. "That's how Jadwiga met him. She came down here to keep an eye on Brother Humble for her Janek's coven up north."

Patrick sighed deeply, and said, "Okay, let's start with this DJ."

Alex immediately pulled his phone out and started texting. "I've got my people on it. Once we get DJ, we can find out where your brother is, Stosh."

"Assuming DJ hasn't been drained," Angus muttered.

Alex nodded, then said, "I doubt he's dead. Stosh's brother isn't stupid, he's probably already figured out that DJ is more valuable alive than dead."

I knew Alex was right, but I still wanted to do... something. I clenched my fists tightly in frustration, then I noticed Angus looking at me.

"You okay brother?" he asked.

"Yeah, I just feel kind of ... useless doing nothing but sitting here. I need to do something," I said.

Patrick stood up. "I think we all feel that way. Why don't go for a run?"

Elizabeth looked at me strangely. "A run? As in, jogging?"

Honoria laughed. "Yes, it's a great way to clear your head and get rid of excess energy."

I thought for a moment. "I haven't been on a run in years."

Alex laughed. "Well, no time like the present. I could use some fresh air, too. Good, crisp winter air, no frost or snow... yes, let's go for a run!" he smiled.

I looked over at Elizabeth and realized she wasn't able to run with us.

"Guys, I think I'm going to stay here," I started to say, but she cut me off.

"No, go running. I'll find Laura and we'll spend some sister time together," she said, with a smile.

"Really? You don't mind?" I asked.

"Not at all," she said.

Skye smiled. "I think Laura's in the library. She wanted to read up about the history of the pack."

"Awesome! I'll find her and we'll curl up with some hot chocolate and a couple of books," Elizabeth said. She stood up and kissed me. "Come find me when you're back and I'll warm you up," she said, with a wink.

The wolves disrobed and shifted to their wolf forms in Patrick's office. When we went outside, I was astounded at how clear the night air was. The moon was just a little past full and was still shining brightly. The feel of the wind in my hair and the sound of my feet hitting the earth was amazing. The run was invigorating, and I was soon in a much better mood.

When we got back to the alpha house, Father Clem was sitting on the steps waiting for us with Marcia. I heard Patrick growl as he shifted back to his human form.

"Father Clem. Nice to see you. To what do we owe the visit?"

Father Clem stood up and offered his neck to Patrick to sniff. "I have something to discuss with you about my... house guests..." he said, as he eyed the rest of us.

Patrick nodded. "Let's go back to my office. Once everyone is dressed, we can talk about your visitors in private."

"With everyone?" Father Clem asked.

"Yes, with everyone."

A few minutes later, we were back in Patrick's office. Once all of the wolves were dressed, Patrick introduced everyone. Finally, he got to Alex and me, the only vampires in the room.

"This is Stanislav Szymanski. He's called Stosh. And this is Alex... What is your last name, anyway?" Patrick asked.

Alex smiled. "My last name is Östersjön."

Father Clem looked at us doubtfully, but before he could say anything, Patrick spoke up.

"Stosh is known among my kind for having lived with a pack in Europe. Angus considers him a brother, and the sister of Stosh's mate is joining our pack. That makes Stosh kin. Alex is new to us, but if Stosh is willing to vouch for him, that's good enough for me."

Father Clem relaxed a little, then he turned to Alex and said, "I understand from Mateo that you lead the local coven."

"Yes, I do."

"And I understand from David that you're also a friend of the wolves."

Alex gave a slight smile. "I believe that werewolves are worthy of respect. I won't tolerate their harassment or mistreatment by anyone in my coven. Unfortunately, that attitude seems to be sorely lacking among my kind."

Father Clem nodded, then he sighed deeply, and said, "I received a visit today from a man calling himself DJ. He works with a protestant minister here in town who seems to have a personal issue with vampires."

"Brother Humble," Patrick growled, and Father Clem nodded.

"Please continue," Alex said, his face betraying no emotion at all.

"This man has created a small media empire based on human fears of the other. Lately, he's been targeting the parents of teenagers and young adults who admire and dress like vampires - scared people will always give money to anyone who promises them a solution, especially one they don't have to actively participate in.

However, he's come to suspect that he's being targeted by vampires and he wants to do something about it before it's too late. He thinks the best way to keep the vampires from interfering with his business is to bring back the war between the vampires and the wolves."

Honoria said, "That strikes me as a bad idea."

Alex said, "It is a terrible idea. I've lived through hundreds of years of open warfare between werewolves and vampires. It doesn't bring anything but misery on both sides. But if we're trying to kill each other, what a great way to keep everybody distracted."

Father Clem gave a tight-lipped smile. "I think that's the point. It's known among local religious leaders that I have a soft spot for wolves, and Brother Humble knows that the area around my parish includes a large pack. Also, DJ knew that a young female wolf had been killed by a vampire last night."

Alex turned to me. "I guess we know who your brother is working with."

"I guess we do," I said.

Father Clem looked surprised. "The vampire that murdered the female is your brother?"

"Yes. We're not close," I said.

"I should hope not!"

"Well, duh," Angus said.

I looked at him strangely. "You've been spending too much time with David!" Everybody else chuckled.

Father Clem continued, "Your brother was tasked with giving the wolves a reason to attack the vampires."

I nodded. "That sounds like something he'd do. Do you know where he is now?"

"I'm sorry, I don't," Father Clem said. "But DJ is supposed to come back to the rectory tonight."

"Why would he do that?" Patrick asked.

Father Clem blushed. "I may have left him with the impression that I was on his side. I'm supposed to be talking to you about the death of the female and to persuade you to attack the vampires in retaliation. And I am supposed to say that you," he said, pointing at me, "were the one who killed the female wolf."