Jack Templar and the Lord of the Werewolves (Book #4 of the Templar Chronicles) by Jeff Gunhus Read Free Book Online Page B

us. Jack, Daniel, Will, and T-Rex. We’re not going to hurt you.”
    Nothing in her eyes told me she had any idea who I was. It was like looking into the eyes of a terrified wild creature. I couldn’t help but wonder whether her mind was too far gone for her ever to return. I could see from the expressions on the other guys’ faces that they were wondering the same thing.
    “Eva,” T-Rex said sweetly, pushing a chunk of bread wrapped in a thin cloth. “The Ratlings made some corn bread today. It’s really good, and I know how you like… how you used to like…” His voice cracked and then trailed off as he started to cry. “We’ll miss you,” he sputtered and tore through us to get back outside.
    The rest of us said our goodbyes, but it wasn’t Eva in the cage, not really. It was a creature none of us knew. And that broke my heart. If Aquinas hadn’t sworn she would try everything in her power to bring her back, I never would have left her like that. Even so, I couldn’t fight a nagging sense that I’d let her down by leaving her behind.
    Will rolled onto his side in the seat next to me, snoring away, a little bit of drool hanging from the corner of his mouth. I looked back and saw Daniel sitting in his seat, staring out of the window. Things had been tense between us since the catacombs. He’d kept his distance from me and answered my questions in as short a way as possible. If we were to be an effective fighting team, we needed to clear the air. I jumped out of my seat and slid into the empty one next to him. He looked at me oddly.
    “What’s wrong with your seat?” he asked.
    “Will’s snoring sounds like a mating call for a mugwump,” I said, happy to see Daniel crack a smile. “Besides, I thought we should talk.” The smile disappeared.
    “Okay, you want to talk?” Daniel asked. “How about you tell me everything about where we’re going?”
    “I did already. I swear it.”
    “Yeah, just like in Morocco, right?” Daniel said. “Or your private conversation with Gregor. Or the plan you made up with Pahvi in Paris?”
    I knew all those things bothered Daniel, but each one of them was necessary to accomplish the mission. “Look, I get why those things upset you, but I’ve told you everything I know. I promise.”
    Daniel stared me down. He sniffed at me, which made a weird sound because of the fake nose worn over where his nose had once been. “So, we’re traveling across three countries, exposing ourselves to all this risk, and the only thing we have to go on is that the Lord of the Vampires, the one that tried to kill all of us, gave you a ridiculous riddle, the answer to which we’re just guessing?”
    “Well, when you put it that way, it just sounds crazy,” I said with a grin, trying to lighten the mood. It didn’t help much.
    “There’s nothing else?” he asked.
    “No, I’ve told you a dozen times. All she said was, “ Go to Omphalos, the navel of Earth. Justice and mercy establish your worth. Nothing else . ”
    Daniel looked down his fake nose at me. “And like I said before, different religions say the navel’s in a different place.”
    Xavier says it has to be the Greek navel because of all the Creach activity at Delphi,” piped in T-Rex from the seat in front of us. He turned in his seat and propped himself up on his knees so he was looking at us. “And he’s super-smart.”
    “I’m not saying he isn’t,” Daniel said. “I don’t know why people can’t just speak in plain English. All these riddles are driving me crazy.”
    “What’d I miss?” Will said, joining us.
    “Just reviewing the riddle and what it means,” I said.
    “I thought Xavier already told us,” Will said. “The legend of Delphi says that the Greek god Zeus wanted to find the center of the earth so he let go of two sparrows, one from the east and one from the west. The spot they crossed paths became Delphi, the navel of mother earth.”
    “That’d be cool if there was an actual