A Tale of Silver and Roses

Chapter 2: The Park

I walked home a little annoyed from the evening, don't get me wrong, it wasn't that I'm not excited to make the money, it's because the likelihood of me receiving the money is minus nil. I lived in downtown New York for most of my life, with my parents when I was young but that was long ago. Now I lived even further down, in an even crappier building.

Muscle memory carried me to a big apartment building, I used my code to get in I walked down the end of the hallway and opened the door to the staircase, I lived four flights up and I hated the stairs, but the elevator was usually broken. I took the stairs two at a time and kept my head up as I went, windows with bars signaled each different floor as I went up and I looked out into the night each time I passed one until I reached my floor.

I walked into the hallway and listened for noise; it sounds a little paranoid, but you never know. New York is known for its crime, and you could never be too careful about someone or something being in your home.

I looked around and then leaned my ear against the door, listening, before turning my key in the lock and walking in, closing it behind me and setting all three deadlocks behind me. I go over and drop the file on my table. It's a small space, but there's a living room, a kitchen, a bathroom a bedroom, and even a small little balcony. The balcony was the reason I picked the place. The broken elevator was a bonus.

I look over to the back wall and smile, the large wooden cabinet I put in myself, I open it and look in, this is where I keep all my weapons. Unfortunately, not a lot of these weapons are going to help me very much with this assignment. Werewolves only have one weakness and that is silver, and silver can also kill them, even small amounts if it enters their blood stream for long. I look over at my silver stakes if I stab him in the leg with it will keep him down for a little while. I have four of them and I figured I should bring them all. If I can just keep him down and then drag him somewhere else…I nod to myself and grab the rope that I have and a silver chain.

I grab my cell phone, it's a piece of crap old flip phone. It's the only one I use and the only one a certain someone would take calls from. I hit my speed dial.

A sweet male voice answers on the first ring, "Hello. Code Please."

I roll my eyes and smile a little "The Deadliest enemy is one which you do not see."

The voice chuckled "Hello Valerie, what can I do for you?" I sat down on my couch and opened the file to the first page there with Wade's demographics.

"Ollie, I hate being called Valerie and you know that that's one. Two, I need help, I got a job and I need to find someone."

Ollie sighed and started to speak "Is this an actual job or something completely ridiculous that you are just going to waste my considerable talents on again?"

"Oliver James Garson, you know very well that I only use your talents on things that are the most important." I couldn't keep the grin out of my voice.

Ollie chuckled "What is it?"

"I need to find a Lycan deserter. From what I can see from the file given to me by Ronan, he seems to be your regular old werewolf that is wanted for murder and is also nephew to the clan leader, so you know, fun." Ronan had said that this guy was family but neglected to mention that he was his nephew, I wondered what else he might be leaving out.

"Oh, well now, this is juicy. Look at you coming out with an actual real job. Tell me the job comes with a real bounty."

I laugh "Yeah it does. Fifty grand if I bring him in to Ronan alive. Nothing if I kill him or the more popular outcome, he kills me."

"Why is it that there is always a catch?" Ollie said, I could hear him pacing in the living room of his apartment smoking a cigarette with all the windows open because he always said as much as he loved to smoke, he hated the smell. I had known Ollie for years; he was the closest thing to a best friend.

"Well, I figured that would be where you would come in, listen all I have to do is get him down, if I can stab him somewhere not vital with one of my stakes, I think that it would work. I can't run the risk of shooting him, the bullet could get lodged."

Ollie cut me off "Yes, I understand the predicament but what do you need me for? Stabbing is much more your department."

It was my turn to sigh "I need you to use some of that voodoo that you have and see if you can locate him, you know, put that little ear of yours to the ground."

"Are my ears little?" he said in a squeaky voice, and I laughed, looking through the file before I came to a picture of him, Wade. He looks handsome, his hair is long and goes to his ears, its curly and brown but in refined way, it looks like milk chocolate and his eyes are bright green, I imagined they looked even brighter in person. I placed it on the table face down.

"Your ears are fine. Can you, do it?"

At first there is silence and then Ollie says softly "Give me 20."

An hour later I am walking into the Central Park, right by the zoo and I decide to go and walk through it. Ollie called me back in exactly twenty-two minutes and told me that people had been saying there were sightings of a wolf in central park. The police didn't know if it was a werewolf or if it was just a big dog, but I was sure that they knew it was a werewolf and didn't want anything to do with it.

I didn't blame them.

Ollie said that he would meet me here with a gadget that would help without telling me what it was. That was signature Ollie. Whenever I needed something, he always had a new invention that would help me. I studied more of the file while he was getting back to me. Wade Markham, 32, he had several degrees from several different colleges, and he was currently being trained to be the clan Liaison for the human world, it would mean a very well-paid government position, so why would he go and murder his uncles right hand man? And why did it take so long for him to get situated with the position?

I shook my head as I thought about it, I was in the middle of the zoo now, having scaled the gate and made my way through with ease. The animals all seemed quiet the only sound was the rushing water from the seals pond, it was oddly calming. I stood near it as I waited for Ollie to arrive. If Markham was hiding here, I would understand why.

Ollie appeared out of the shadows, and I shook my head smiling, one o'clock in the morning and he arrived in a full suit. Granted, the suit was deep purple and the bow tie he wore was silver, but still a suit at this hour was a bit much for me.

"I never liked this zoo much, I liked the Bronx Zoo more." I smiled as he walked over to me and grabbed the black bag, he was extending toward me. I had already strapped two of my stakes inside of my leather jacket, and one in each boot holster. The rope and chain were hooked to my belt.

"What do you have for me?" he grinned as I asked and crossed his arms, his clear glasses shone in the moonlight, and he ran his hand through his receding hairline. “This is going to help you sniff out Wolfie in there."

In the bag is a black machine that looks like a bull horn. "What am I supposed to do with it?"

He sighs and snatches it from me. "If you would just give me two seconds, I will tell you what to do with it." And I put my hands up in surrender.

He holds it up right as you would a bull horn and holds his fingers over the trigger that is on the handle. "Here, you push this button, and it emits a sound that only dogs, and wolves can hear. He will bark or howl or whatever."

"So, it's a giant dog whistle is what you are saying?" I said with a smirk.

He glares at me, and I laugh again "You are the one that called me asking for help." He says simply handing me the bull horn and folding his arms across his chest.

"I appreciate it Ollie I really do. Listen you know I am going to give you some of this money when I get him." I did a quick stock of my weapons, including the gun that I had hidden in the back of my pants holster. I didn't want to have to kill him, but if it was going to be him or me, I was choosing me.

"Obviously you are giving me some! My giant dog whistle is going to be what helps you find him. It is not only just a sound, but also going to draw him to you. I calibrated to make it not only the high-pitched call but one that would bring him to you."

I grinned wide then and hugged Ollie with one arm he didn't hug back but I caught a small smile. "Thanks Ollie, really appreciate it."

Ollie was already walking towards the shadows he had slipped out of. You could now see the long tail peeking out of the bottom of his suit jacket. I didn't know what kind of creature Ollie was, in all of years I had known him he never told me. "Good Luck!" he called before disappearing.

Now I was alone, I picked up the fancy Dog bull horn smiling as I thought about it and pressed the button, I heard nothing, but I turned and scanned it across the surroundings in front of me and then the ones behind me. Nothing.

I frowned and started walking through the rest of the zoo trying to keep quiet and trying to keep a look out, The sounds of honking and tires zooming fill my ears as I keep moving through. I lift the bull horn and hit the button again, waiting for five minutes before moving on.

I end up on the walkway that leads to Bethesda fountain. Where the hell is this guy?

I walked over and sit on the edge, coins glisten in the moonlight and my reflection shimmers back and forth distorted by the ripples in the water. I see my frown deep set in my face in the ripples. Clearly if he was here the call of this thing was not strong enough to draw him out, I splashed my hand through the water right as a shadow covered the waves and two bright emerald eyes came into view. I whipped my around to come face to face with a wolf and my breath caught. He stared into my eyes and I back into his and I felt rooted to the spot. Right as I was about to move, he howled and ran off into the night.