A clan of Intuit gamblers and outlaws had every reason to avoid dealing with the terra indigene. Too much danger with little or no profit. So he’d never met any of the Sanguinati. Had heard plenty of whispers, sure. But that wasn’t the same as looking across the table and having the chance to judge your opponent.

“You had a question, Mr. Blackstone?” Tolya asked.

Parlan met Tolya’s eyes. If he were sitting across the poker table from this … man … could he bluff his way to a winning hand or would he acknowledge a dangerous adversary and fold? He had a strong feeling that it wouldn’t take more than a hand or two for the vampire to be able to spot the most subtle kinds of creative dealing—and he suspected that the response to anyone caught cheating would be lethal.

He should call Judd and Lawry and arrange another place for a rendezvous. But, damn it, this was the only viable town in the whole area that had access to the railroad as well as highways. It was one of the few towns in the northern Midwest Region that had a growing population and opportunities to own a business without any capital required. It was the only place he’d seen lately where he felt they had a chance to disappear into the rest of the population for a while—after they found the person who had connected Dalton with Cooke and Webb and was responsible for his name being on that damn poster.

“You’ve traveled around the Midwest, Mr. Blackstone?” Tolya asked.

“A professional gambler is like a professional entertainer,” Parlan said with a smile. “Moving around is part of the business. Was part of the business. I’m looking to settle down now, have my own place.”

“Running it with those other men?”

“Running it with my family. Those men were looking for an investment. I didn’t have the cash to purchase a business, so …” Parlan shrugged. “But it sounds like it’s elbow grease that’s needed, not cash.”

Tolya nodded. “I understand.”

Did he? Parlan wasn’t sure what the vampire understood.

“We’re trying to identify two men who came to Bennett recently,” Tolya said. “Would you be willing to look at pictures? Perhaps you’ve crossed paths with one or both of them during your travels and could supply a name.”

“I’ll give you what help I can.”

Tolya opened a slim leather case and removed a folder. “These are police photos. You understand?”

Parlan nodded. Had Judd anticipated the body would be found this soon?

“There is this one.” Tolya took one photo from the folder and set it on the table in front of Parlan.

Charlie Webb. Just a head shot, so there was no way to tell how he died, but that had to be Judd’s work.

“Don’t recognize him. Sorry.”

“Then there is this one. We know he attacked the daughter of a rancher who lives north of Bennett. He also threatened a young woman who lives in town.”

Parlan prided himself in having no tells—at least none a mark could detect—but he couldn’t stop himself from sucking in a breath when Tolya put the other photo on the table. The half a head positioned on the hood of the car spoke of a savagery even Judd couldn’t match.

“Do you know him?” Tolya asked.

“No.” Parlan swallowed hard. “What happened to him?”

“Namid’s teeth and claws found him.”

“What was he doing that far away from the town?”

“He wasn’t that far away. He was still within the town’s old boundaries but outside of the new boundaries. Here, you can cross into the wild country simply by crossing the street. And as soon as you cross that line, you’re prey.” Tolya tucked the photos back in the folder. “Of course, even within the town, where human law does apply to some extent, humans who misbehave are seen as prey.”

It was said so casually, Parlan wondered if Tolya Sanguinati knew who he was and was hoping he’d slip and indicate in some way that he knew Cooke and Webb—because if he knew those men, he would also know Dalton Blackstone.

Blackstone wasn’t a common name, but if forced, he could admit to some distant kin named Dalton Blackstone—someone who was a decade older and had a son named after him. But that meant his own son definitely needed to change his looks and arrive in town using an alias.

He needed time to get a feel for this place, to get a sense of what he should do. He needed to find out if Dalton was in danger of being hunted by whatever had killed Cooke.

“I’d like to take a look around and think about reopening one of the saloons on my own,” Parlan said. “I noticed the Bird Cage Saloon was open for business, so am I right in thinking you don’t object to the business itself?”

“You are correct.” Tolya said nothing else for a moment. “You’re still considering relocating to Bennett, Mr. Blackstone?”

“I am. Thaisia has changed, and, as I said, it’s time to settle down. As a professional gambler, I can make sure games of chance in my saloon are run clean, and my brother can handle the bar.”

“Would you like to see the saloons that are available?”

Parlan shook his head. “First I’d like to spend a little time in the saloon that’s already up and running, get a feel for the kind of entertainment the town is looking for.”

“Our entertainment will seem quite small to you.”

He forced himself to smile. “Perhaps. Then again, small can still be profitable for everyone.”

“I understand you have your own railroad car.”

“Yes. The men on the train moved it to a siding before the train went on to the next station, but no one working at this station knows anything about pumping out the waste tank or filling the clean-water tank.” Or so they said. Then again, he’d only seen two people working in the station—one dealing with the deliveries and the other handling the ticket counter and the little shop. “I’d like to rent a room at the hotel, if that’s all right.”

“I’ll inform the hotel’s manager that you’ll be checking in.” Tolya pushed back his chair and stood, a clear signal that the meeting was over.“Did you leave your luggage at the station? Nicolai will bring it to the hotel for you.”

“Thank you,” Parlan said as he followed Tolya’s lead.

Maybe this was for the best. The blowhard businessmen—to say nothing of their wives—would have become tiresome very quickly. If they hadn’t already bolted back to the train station, trying to buy tickets on the next train to anywhere, he’d sever their business arrangement by forgiving their debt as long as they left town. Then he would spend a few days considering the possibilities while he got acquainted with the town and its officials.

He’d consider other things too. After all, there weren’t many places for someone to run anymore.

“Is there a jeweler in town?” Parlan asked.

“There is,” Tolya replied. “His store is down the street, next to the bookstore.”

“Glad to hear it. I have a couple of family pieces I’d like evaluated.”

“It’s good to evaluate family pieces from time to time.”

As Parlan walked down the street to the Bird Cage Saloon, he had the uneasy feeling that Tolya hadn’t been talking about jewelry.

* * *

* * *

Tolya stared out the window, thinking of this latest group of ill-informed humans. How could they understand so little and still manage to survive? Or had they understood so little about Bennett because the deal wasn’t of interest to them to begin with? Was the plan to grease the right palms, make the deal, and then disappear, leaving their “associate” to run the saloon?

Might have worked if they’d been dealing with another human.

A fight for dominance. He’d seen that flash of interest in Parlan Blackstone’s eyes when that was mentioned. If Blackstone really intended to settle in Bennett, it wouldn’t take long before he chafed at the town’s restrictions and began to think, as humans so often did, that he could change things to suit himself and his pack.

If someone believed that a human form meant thinking like a human, if someone didn’t understand what would happen to this town if the Sanguinati and Wolfgard didn’t rule here …

It would be simple enough to eliminate Blackstone. The Sanguinati could slip into his room tonight and feast while he slept. But this was the adversary they could see. The other members of the pack might be harder to find once the leader was killed. And if they killed one member of that pack, they needed to kill them all.

<Yuri?> Tolya called. <A human named Parlan Blackstone has come to town. He’ll be visiting the saloon.>

<I’ll keep watch,> Yuri replied.

Tolya thought for a moment. <Is Lila Gold working at the saloon today?>

<She is.>

<Ask if any of her books or papers talk about fights for dominance in frontier towns.>

* * *

* * *

Virgil, a Blackstone human has come to town,> Tolya said. <Not the one identified from Hope Wolfsong’s drawing. This is an older male. Maybe the dominant male of that pack. Certainly a predator.>

<Is he the Knife?> Virgil struggled to keep his fangs from lengthening to Wolf size since Becky Gott was telling him about buttons and he didn’t want to scare her.

<No, I think this is the Gambler. He denied knowing them, but I could tell by the change in his scent that he recognized the two males who were killed—and the one killed by a human didn’t surprise him.>

<So we still have to find the Knife. Plenty of unclaimed places where a human predator could hide—as long as he stays hidden.> Spotting

Jacob Gott heading toward them, Virgil turned and walked away. Human pup or Wolf pup, the solution was the same: when an adult got tired of playing with a puppy, he walked away. <Where is the Gambler now?>

<He asked about Kelley’s shop and the Bird Cage Saloon. I suspect he’ll be heading for one or the other.>

<I’ll check the shop. Are you going to tell Scythe?>

<I told Yuri. He’ll watch our visitor. But someone needs to keep Abigail Burch away from the town square and our visitor. And close watch needs to be kept on our prophet pup.>

<Kane’s been staying close to the Maddie pup. I’ll tell Jana to check on Abigail and Barbara Ellen.>

<You’ll tell Jana?>

The humor in Tolya’s voice made Virgil growl. <She works for me.> And she was third in the police pack. Third.

But the wolverine was the dominant female in their pack.

Virgil sighed. Mixed-species packs were harder to handle than Wolves.

He stopped at the sheriff’s office and took Rusty across the street to her piddle spot. When he brought her back to her crate and the pup looked at him with sad eyes, he gave her a scritch. “You and I will go out on the square and have a good run before your mom takes you home.”