Gone (Gone #1)(123)

Isabella, who had become Mary's shadow since being brought to the day care, sat cross-legged and looked over her shoulder. Mary followed the words with her finger, word by word, thinking maybe she was teaching Isabella to read a little and feeling vaguely good about that.

She heard the sound of the back door opening. Probably Quinn wandering back through. A scream.

Mary twisted around to see.

Screams, and a torrent of dirty yellow shapes piled into ihe room.

Screams as the coyotes brushed children aside, knocked them down, overturned easels and chairs.

Screams from little throats, screams and little laces filled with terror, eyes pleading.

Isabella bolted, panicked. A coyote was on her in a flash, knocked her to the ground, and stood over her, teeth bared, growling. His slavering muzzle was six inches from her throat.

Mary didn't scream or cry, she roared. She leaped to her feet bellowing a word she would never have wanted the prees to hear. She beat the coyote's shoulders with her fists.

"Get off her!" Mary cried."Get off her, you filthy animal!"

John tried to run to her aid and let loose a strangling cry. A coyote had the back of his hoodie in its jaws and was worrying it, shaking it like a frenzied dog with a chew toy, choking John with each twist.

Manuela stood frozen in a corner, hands over her mouth, rigid with fear.

The coyotes, excited and wild and agitated, yipped and jumped and snapped at everyone around them. A little boy named lackson yelled at one of the coyotes, "Bad dog, bad dog!"

The animal snapped and made contact, leaving a bloody scrape on Jackson's ankle.

Jackson wailed in pain and terror. "Mary" he cried. "Mary"

Then an aged, mangy coyote snarled and the animals calmed a little. But the children w*re all crying and wailing and John was shaking and Manuela was clutching two of the prees to her and trying to look brave.

And then Drake stepped into th? room.

"You," Mary raged ."How dare you scare these children this way!"

Drake snapped his snakeiike arm. The tip of it left a red well across Mary's cheek. "Shut up, Mary."

The whip-crack had silenced seme of the children. They stared with appalled amazement as the girl they had come to think of as their guardian touched the wound on her face.

"Caine won't like this" Mary warned. "He always said he'd keep the children safe."

"You'll be safe," Drake said. "As long as you keep your mouths shut and do what I say"

"Get these animals out of here" Mary said. "It's almost bedtime." Bedtime, like that wou.d mean anything to the dogs, or to the monster before her.

This time, the whip snapped and wrapped itself tight around Mary's throat. She felt blood pounding in her head, tried and failed to draw breath. She dug her fingernails into the scaly tlesh of the whip but couldn't budge it.

"Which part of'shut up* do you have a problem understanding?" Drake yanked her close. "YouVe getting all red in the tace, Mary"

She struggled, but it was no use. The living whip was as strong as a python.

"Now. you need to understand something, Mary: These dogs, as far as they're concerned, all these little kids are just so many hamburgers. They'll eat thtm just like they eat rabbits"

He unwrapped his tentacle from her throat. She sank to the floor, sucking air through a throat that telt as narrow as a straw.

"What do you want?** Mary rasped. "Drake, you have to get these coyotes out of here. You can have me as a hostage. But the children donV know what's happening and they are scared"

Drake laughed cruelly, "Hey, Pack Leader. You guys won't eat the kids, will you?"

To Mary's astonishment, the large, mangy coyote spoke. "Pack Leader agreed. No kill. No eat"

"Until...," Drake prompted.

"Until Whip Hand say."

Drake beamed. "Whip Hand. That's their affectionate name for me."

Isabella, who had shrunk back into a corner, came forward with her hand extended, like she wanted to pel Pack Leader. "He can talk," Isabella said.

"Stay back," Mary hissed.

But Isabella ignored her. She laid her hand on Pack

Leader's neck. The coyote bristled and made a low rumbling noise. But he did not snap at her.

Isabella stroked his harsh ruff."Good doggie" she said.

"lust don't get too close," Drake said coldly. "Good doggie may get hungry"

"He took the bait." Panda reported. "He's got some girl with him, too. She has some kind of mad powers, like . . . like I don't know what to call it. She kind of makes stuffily off the ground."

Diana Ladris said, "It must be Dekka. We predicted she would be a problem. She and Brianna. Maybe Taylor, if she's improved her skills."

They were in a home belonging to no one any of them knew. Just a house on a back stree? a block from the school. The shades were drawn, the lights were left just as they had been. No one came or went through the front door

"Right now my brother is rushing toward the day care" Caine said. He could barely contain his glee. "He fell for it. He absolutely fell for it. See, the thing is, I knew he'd try to play hero and come after me"

"Yes, you're brilliant" Diana said dryly."You're the master of all you survey."