Heart of Stone (Part III)

III. Chapter 25 | Aubree

Relief flooded over Aubree when Whiskey settled down and offered his paw to Stone.

Of course, he would recognize the physical command for "shake-a-paw" without needing words. That was how she trained him, using vocal commands combined with hand gestures.

She trained him using a book Brooke recommended. Brooke's family bred Huskies, German Shepherds, Labradors, and Golden Retrievers. It was through them that she acquired Whiskey.

She walked up to Stone, still crouched before the dog, paw in hand, and gave his shoulder a squeeze. "Ready for that walk?"

"Yes," he said, letting Whiskey's paw fall back to the ground and standing. "Take the lead, Luna."

She untied Whiskey's leash and they set out down the quiet residential streets. He trotted along at her side with Stone holding her hand on the other.

"You handled him well," she commented as they paused and waited for Whiskey to sniff the base of a tree.

"What can I say? I am familiar with how dogs think."

His eyes crinkled, making her smile widen, but it faded as his face reverted to a neutral expression.

[What is it?] she asked, nervousness gripping her as he glanced over his shoulder.

[We're being followed.]

She stiffened.

Whiskey looked up from the tree, his ears perking forward before flattening to the sides.

[Relax. It's not a vampire. You're scaring the dog with the shift in your body language and scent,] he told her.

He urged her to move forward. [How far is the park?]

[Just a few blocks ahead. Do you know who is following us?]

[Werewolves.]

Her brows furrowed. [Werewolves?]

[Due to the size of Chicago, there are a few werewolf packs protecting it. Slayers cover the downtown core, werewolves the surrounding areas and suburbs, and lycans have the land outside the city limits.]

[So, we're on werewolf territory,] she summarized. [Do they know we're here?]

[Yes. Hector told all the werewolf packs that we would be floating around the city.]

"Oh?"

[Naturally, they don't like foreigners on their land—especially lycans—so I suspect they have detected our scents and are scoping us out.]

[What's our cover story?]

[We're looking for Carina.]

Aubree paused in her tracks. [You don't think she's here, do you?]

He stopped and looked over his shoulder to catch her gaze. [I don't know, Love. This would be an ideal place for her to start over and rebuild her army. We've pretty much destroyed everything she built back in Minneapolis and Saint Paul. Even then, I suspect all the good hiding places here have already been claimed.]

Aubree could feel something else nagging on his mind, but he kept it to himself.

[Stone?] she prodded. [What else are you thinking?]

He sighed, urging her to keep moving. [She's cunning, Love. She's been around for a thousand years or longer. I don't doubt that she has connections here in the city. Connections that could mean strengthening her numbers faster with more skilled vampires to fight in her war.]