Page 79 of Claim of Blood
They watched as Kenneth moved through the crowd with practiced ease. First, he spoke to the bear shifter behind the bar, whose massive shoulders tensed at the instructions. Next came the witch, her tattoos shifting like liquid shadow as she nodded. Finally, Kenneth approached the wolf shifter, whose calm expression belied the tension in the set of his jaw.
“Shall we begin?” Maja’s voice held an edge that made the air itself feel sharper.
Adam nodded. The plan unfolded with practiced precision. The witch’s flaming cocktails created a spectacular distraction, drawing every phone and eye. The bear shifter moved with surprising speed, cutting off two hunters’ exit routes. The wolf shifter began steering another toward the back, a friendly conversation about IDs turning steadily less friendly as the hunter realized he was trapped.
Kenneth’s influence drew the fourth toward the service hallway, while Adam and Maja moved like shadows, their compulsion subtle but inexorable. The last hunter stumbled directly into Maja’s waiting gaze, his will folding almost immediately.
One finally realized the situation. He reached for something under his jacket—but the bear shifter’s hand closed over his wrist before he could draw. “Let me take that,” he rumbled, smiling too widely. “Wouldn’t want to violate our weapons policy.”
The wolf shifter’s low growl sent another hunter stumbling into Maja’s influence. The witch’s power rippled invisibly, ensuring no one’s camera captured anything they shouldn’t.
The back room door clicked shut with quiet finality. The witch returned to her station. Both shifters posted themselves by the exits, ready in case any of their guests made a last, desperate mistake.
“Now then,” Kenneth said, his voice stripped of all public charm, “perhaps you’d like to explain your rather obvious attempt at hunting in my bar?”
The would-be hunters exchanged glances, bravado crumbling under three vampire stares. The youngest, barely more than a teen, cracked first.
“It was supposed to be a test!” he blurted. “Take out the vampire owner and his bear shifter enforcer. Nobody said anything about additional vampires—or witches or wolves!”
“A test,” Maja repeated, her tone cold enough to frost glass. “For what purpose?”
“To join the clan,” another admitted, sweat beading on his temple. “They said we’d be welcome if we completed the task.”
Kenneth scoffed. “I feel insulted. An easy task.”
Adam gave him a look. Kenneth lifted his hands, as if to say, What?
“Which clan?” Maja cut in, all humor gone.
“The Walkers,” they said in unison.
The name dropped into the room like a stone. Adam stilled, centuries of experience warring with a flicker of alarm. Maja’s posture shifted, her mind already parsing the implications.
“Where did they approach you?” Adam asked, voice deceptively soft.
“Chicago.” “Baltimore.” “PDC.” “Memphis.” “Salt Lake.”
The overlapping answers made something cold settle in Adam’s chest. He and Maja exchanged a look, the kind that only centuries of partnership could produce.
“The Walkers are a West Coast clan,” Maja said slowly. “California-based. No rights in any of those cities.”
Adam’s jaw tightened. “Hunter clans don’t cross boundaries without explicit authorization. This level of coordination...” He trailed off, the implications enormous. “It’s been centuries since I’ve seen anything like this.”
“Council-level orders,” Maja finished, her tone flat. “Has to be. The Vatican wouldn’t sanction this movement lightly.”
The realization hung heavy. Adam rubbed his forehead, feeling the weight of their own ignorance settle like lead. “We run a global intelligence network,” he murmured, “and we missed a coordinated operation spanning half the continent.”
Maja’s expression darkened. “Which means they’ve found channels we don’t monitor. Or worse—channels we think we do.”
She turned to the terrified teens. “Were there other families recruiting in these cities?”
“We... we didn’t ask,” one said. “But there were rumors. Other clans moving around, setting up in places they’d never been.”
“Systematic deployment,” Maja said, her voice clinical. “If the Walkers are recruiting in five major cities, how many others are doing the same?”
Adam felt the familiar chill of clarity. “And to what end? This isn’t random expansion. This is preparation.”
“The timing is suspect,” Maja continued. “The Rothenburg withdrawal. Now this. Someone is coordinating.”
