Page 52 of Property of Crypt Keeper

“I thought it was exaggeration,” she coolly corrected. “Supernaturals disappear all the time.”

Fair.

“What changed your mind?” Mako asked.

Her eyes slid briefly toward me. “Zara.”

Silence settled heavily over the room.

“What about the kid?” Spook asked.

Hack and I glanced at each other. My jaw clenched, and then I gave him the go-ahead to fill everyone in. I knew he had told Boomslang and maybe Killswitch.

“Well, at first, we wondered if maybe she was Crypt’s. I sent him to a small and discreet clinic and lab I trust. I also asked them to look into her specifically. Crypt thinks Madame L might’ve sent her to him because she’s not just a wolf shifter. He thinks she might be a Rougarou.”

There was a lot of mumbling that went on before Boom slammed the gavel. “Let Hack finish!”

The room went quiet, and all eyes went to Hack. “The child has certain genetic markers that don’t make sense.”

“So is it your kid?” Clutch asked me.

My teeth clenched as I could feel my jaw muscle ticking.

“That’s what doesn’t make sense,” Hack continued. “She could be, but it seems like there’s not enough of a percentage for her to be Crypt’s child.”

“Maybe his dad’s kid?” Spook asked.

“Not according to the genetic testing,” Hack replied.

“His brother’s?” Zeus offered, his thick brows pinching in the center.

“No.” Hack ran a hand through his hair. “It’s like it’s Crypt’s kid, but yet, it’s not.”

“What the fuck?” Dexter muttered.

Killswitch dragged a hand down his face. “Jesus. Yeah. That kid changes a lot of things.”

Boomslang’s fingers drummed slowly against the table. “So we find the facilities.”

“Not easy,” Hack warned. “Whoever runs them keeps them deliberately well hidden. Layers of shell operations. Black sites. There were a few people that I found who mentioned believing these places existed. Every single one of them disappeared trying to find them.”

Bugsy grunted. “Sounds familiar.”

We all knew he was referring to the Crimson Auction. The few people that believed they were in operation again vanished after trying to track them down. We had been able to save Lily and some of the others from the last one, but we knew we hadn’t shut it down.

I leaned back slightly, mind already moving ahead. “We split up.”

Boomslang looked at me immediately. “How?”

“Katalina talks to her contact.”

Her gaze snapped toward me. “I don’t have a contact,” she denied.

“You have better access than we do,” I corrected. “Someone tied to your old channels. Someone who hears things.”

She hesitated. That was answer enough.

Boomslang noticed too.