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"Stand back" Mandenauer pointed his gun at Henri’s head
"Old man, you try my patience," Elise muttered
Confusion swept over his face "What did I do?"
"You can’t shoot someone with a soul"
"Since when?"
Her ht she was "We’ve been over this Put the gun away"
"Never" But he did lower it "What do you suggest? AI plan to let run free"
"I’m with him," Adam said
Elise stared at Henri as if he were a brand-new science experie hiainst"
Adae," I said
"I’d forgotten," Mandenauer lare
"That’s not sootten"
"I’et"
"One day you’ll forget to shoot the bad guys, and then you’ll be dead"
"Perhaps" He didn’t appear concerned "We must hurry and incarcerate Henri before the sun disappears"
A flurry of activity ensued, followed by a frantic trip to the h the swae
Not a minute too soon
I turned the key on the padlock as he caony His body bent; his clothes tore; hair sprouted froe from wolf to man; noatched as he went from man to wolf That had to hurt
His too human eyes peered at us from behind the bars When I’d seen theer was there, but the hate was gone
He paced back and forth, whining, pawing the ground, then throwing hiainst the bars until he bled
"Give him the serum, Elise," Mandenauer ordered
She’d already pulled a vial froloves onto her hands once raine she didn’t need
"What’s deOn the night of the full moon I have to run as wolf Without this," she held up the vial "I’d kill I wouldn’t be able to helpmust happen under the crescent h"
"Why is he whining?" I resisted the urge to coveronsickens him," she whispered, "but he can’t resist the desire"
Elise walked to the cage, and Henri slaht in front of her
"Be careful," I called
"He can’t hurt -fast rabbed Henri’s snout Then she poured the contents of the vial down his throat When she was through, he actually licked her hand before falling asleep
"Does Daet furry every full moon?" I asked Elise
"My touch cured him"
"But you can’t cure yourself?"
So flickered in her eyes, and she looked away "Not yet"
"And Henri? What’s his problem?"
"I’ure that out"
"No," Adam said flatly
"I can fix him," Elise insisted "I haven’t spent much time in the lab since this" She lifted her palo, I lived there I’m sure I can discover what his secret is"
"You can’t kill hiht be lifted His soul is restored"
"De only way to know is for hi to take that chance"
"He’ll be safe with nable this time"
"This time?" I asked
"Last one went boom But the olves survived the blast"
"That really sets my mind at ease," Adam muttered
Cassandra, who hadn’t said a word since we’d gotten here, ht knohy your cure didn’t work"
"I’arou through voodoo, not by science or by being bitten" Cassandra stared at each of us in turn "A voodoo curse can only be reainst the wall of my chest "You can fix him? Why didn’t you say so?"
"Not me"
"Who?"
"Only the one who placed the curse can take it away"
My shoulders slu dead"
"Exactly" Cassandra’s eyes met mine "But the dead can rise"
"Zombie"
Elise’s eyebrows shot toward her silky blond hair I was amazed that in her profession she could still be surprised
"Zoerous," Mandenauer muttered "And unpredictable"
"You’ve seen one?" Cassandra asked
"Ja"
"You know someone who can raise a zombie?"
"I did" He sniffed
"That uy," Elise said "Grandfather, sometimes it’s better to keep them alive"
"Wait a second" I held up a hand "He’s your grandfather?"
That the head olf hunter had a granddaughter as a as a little hard to digest
"Yes," Elise confirmed "Neither one of us is too happy about it"
I could iine
Ada de woman who cursed my family Could you do it?"
"Not h to perforic I’m not even sure it’s possible to raise so"
Adam’s shoulders slumped I moved closer and slipped my hand into his
"Until then, let ed
I understood why Adaive anyone power over Henri In relinquishing his grandpere, Adam relinquished control over his own and Luc’s destiny But we’d exhausted our options Protecting Henri wasn’t getting us anywhere We needed the experts’ help
Ada, because he squeezed ht passed; the sun rose; Henri becaain A very crazy et hiht The knowledge of all he’d done had sent hi If I hadn’t alht have felt sorry for hio
Cassandra decided to take a trip to Haiti, courtesy of the Jager-Sucher society
"Mandenauer wants oddess-of-the-ame"
She’d hired a local to run her store and take care of Lazarus when I refused to Cassandra and I were friends, but I drew the line at snake-sitting
"I think we’ve proved I’oddess," I said
"Maybe Maybe not It won’t hurt to look into things a little more You want Henri cured, don’t you?"
"For all I care, Henri can burn in hell"
"He probably will But if we can make certain Adam and Luc don’t follow hi," I said
"That’s what I thought I made a few calls after you traveled to Ife and spoke to Erzulie"
"Do not tell me I’m a lost priestess of the voodoo nation I’ist from Boston Period"
Cassandra’s shoulders shifted, as if so down her neck "I think I sent you to Ife"
"What?’
"I perforic caht be ood news, isn’t it?"
"Don’t tell Mandenauer He gets weird when people talk about power"
I couldn’t iine why