came across his face. "Why do you say that?"

"...mom's gone." Blaize said. "I tried to find her, but... no luck. No one's seen her in several days."

"...that's not good." Balto said. "...Alyse?"

"...gone too." Blaize said. "As best as I can tell they disappeared together."

Balto thought for a moment. "....Tiembe?" He asked.

Blaize sighed. "He was gone when they disappeared."

"...what?!" Balto cried. "Where is he now?" "...last I knew he was at the boat with Shanaea. He got back yesterday. I don't know where he went, but I don't think he did it."

Balto shook his head. "No... no, it doesn't fit his profile does it?"

"...not unless Mom and Alyse fell in love with him."

"...not likely." Balto said.

Blaize shook his head.

"...any other theories, anything else strange happen lately?"

Blaize sighed. "Dad... Gemeni was murdered."

"...what?" Balto asked.

"Josh found her this yesterday morning." Blaize said.

"...how?" Balto asked.

"...looked to be a canine." Blaize said.

Balto stepped backward as if in a daze. "...but... but who would..." He fell silent and looked at the snow.

"I'm sorry dad." Blaize said. "...I know how close you and mom were to her."

Balto nodded. "She was a good friend." He said.

Suddenly his mind found the answer, like a light in the darkness. Suddenly he knew where Jenna was, and who held her.

"I'm such an idiot." Balto said.

"...dad?" He asked.

Blaize, I know where she is." Balto said.

"...dad, you're not making much sense. " Blaize said.

"...listen, stay here." Balto said. "...if I'm right then this will be dangerous, and it's something I have to take care of myself."

"...but I've looked all over for them for the last week and I have nothing." Blaize said. "How can you possibly know something I don't."

"...because I do." Balto said. "I'll tell you when it's over, okay?"

Blaize nodded. "...whatever you say dad. What do you want me to do?"

"Go check on Shanaea." Balto said. "...if Tiembe disappeared and then showed back up with no reason it could be trouble. I want to trust him... but she is in love with him."

Blaize nodded. "Okay, I'll go check on her, but I'm sure she's fine."

Balto nodded and turned, looking toward the shadowy outlines of the outskirts in the distance.

"...dad..."

Balto turned to look back at his son.

"...be careful." He said.

Balto nodded.

"...you too son." He said. Then he turned back around and sprinted down the street.

 

Blaize hadn't noticed anyone out on the way to the trawler. "...of course there's no one

out." He thought. "It's gotta be at least two in the morning. I'm just going to get there and make Shanaea angry because I woke her at this hour."

He sighed. "...but if something is wrong..."

He was approaching the ramp up to the top deck of the trawler and he stopped and looked around. He didn't see anyone, so he began to walk up the gangplank. He kept low to keep his profile small and below the line of sight. He felt kind of stupid crawling up the gangplank like that. any minute Shanaea herself would probably pounce on him thinking he was an intruder. He reached the top and peaked over the edge.

He sighed. "...how does dad always know?" He asked himself. A large dog stood just outside the cabin door which was shut. "...does Tiembe have friends?" Blaize asked himself.

He began to stand up and then he sensed someone behind him. He stood up and turned around.

A large black dog stood behind him.

"Ah.... hey there..." Blaize said.

The dog growled.

"...just a... checking the place out." Blaize said.

The next thing Blaize knew he was in the air. It was a long drop off the edge of the boat, so he twisted his body and reached out with his forelegs. His claws caught the edge of the gangplank and he stopped for just a moment, then his momentum caught up with him and he swung out under the ramp. Blaize lost his grip and fell the rest of the way to the ground. He hit it with a solid gasp and rolled over onto his side, trying to get air back into his lungs.

After a few moments he stood up shakily and looked up at the top deck of the boat. "Well... can't go that way." He thought.

Blaize shook the snow off himself and walked around the back of the trawler.

 

Kale was getting hungry.

He was also getting very tired of sitting in front of this blasted door. He had half a mind to just go through the door and kill the feisty husky in there and just be done with it. Josh wouldn't be happy, but screw him. Kale and his buddies would take care of that loser soon anyway.

The dog got up and pushed the door open. There she was, curled up in the corner.

He grinned. "Hey sweetheart, I've decided I don't want to guard ya anymore. So I'm just going to negate the situation. Now this can be fast and easy, or slow and hard, all depends on how much you fight me."

"Leave me alone." Shanaea said.

The dog shook his head. "One quick nip in the neck is all it takes, then I'll leave. If you want to fight me it gets.... messier."

"Josh will kill you." Shanaea said.

The dog shook his head and smiled. "Your brother has no idea who he's dealing with. We aren't some dumb animals he can command to do his every wish and whim. We're just waiting for a good time. Sure, he'll kill that mate of yours, but after that he must be insane to think he'll make it out of the outskirts alive." The dog grinned and growled. "Now, just hold still and this will all be over in a second." He pulled back his head and Shanaea closed her eyes.

"Leave her alone!" A voice called.

Kale turned just as Blaize barreled into him through the open back door.

Kale smiled. "You messed up now O Keeper of the Law. We have a pact, you don't mess with us and we don't leave the outskirts."

Blaize growled. "You're not in the outskirts, and you're under arrest for assault."

The dog laughed and threw Blaize across the room. He slammed into the wall and rolled back up to his paws. "You intend to resist then?" Blaize asked.

The dog caught Blaize across the jaw with his paw. The strike picked Blaize off his paws and threw him sideways into a pile of blankets and toys which clattered across the room.

He stood up and shook off a bit. "I'll take that as a yes." He said. He growled and charged Kale.

The black dog backed up and Blaize jumped up, latching onto the dog's back with his jaws, digging his claws into his sides.

Kale howled in pain and tried to buck the dog off him. In the process of doing this he backed closer to the open window in the left wall of the Trawler. He stopped when his paws hit the edge of it.

The dog bucked up and Blaize's back was through the window.

"Uh-oh, not exactly what I had planned." Blaize thought. He dug his claws into the dog's side and spun around, coming up on top of the dog's belly, then he kicked hard off the dog and both dogs went flying. Blaize rolled across the floor and Kale tumbled out the open window.

Shanaea winced as she heard the muffled crunch of snow and bone as the dog landed far below.

Blaize stood up.

"...Blaize!" Shanaea cried. She ran over and nuzzled him. "Thank God you came... I think he was going to kill me."

Blaize nodded. "I think so too. What happened?"

Shanaea sighed. "Josh showed up. He pulled this group of vigilantes together."

"...what?" Blaize asked.

Shanaea nodded. "They took Tiembe. I think they're going to kill him."

Blaize sighed. "I told him not to do anything stupid." He said.

"...what?" Shanaea asked.

"...nothing." Blaize said. "Come on, we've got to get you out of here."

He looked around. "It'd be better if we didn't leave anyone to rush off and tell Josh I'm coming.

Shanaea nodded.

"...we go out the front." Blaize said. There're two rather large dogs there, stay behind me. The first I'm going to drop quickly, the other one we need alive, we need to talk to him and find out where Tiembe is."

Shanaea nodded.

Blaize backed up and then looked at her. "...ready?"

She nodded.

"Here goes." He said. Blaize ran at the door. He and Shanaea hit it at the same time and knocked it open. The dog on the other side of it went rolling and before he had stopped Blaize was on top of him. His jaws clenched around the dog's throat and then he sprang off him, knowing that one was finished.

He could taste blood in his mouth. He hated that taste, hated to have to resort to violence, but sometimes that was the only way.

The black dog that had thrown him off the side of the boat earlier looked at Blaize, with blood dripping out of his muzzle, then looked at his friend who was struggling to regain his paws amidst the spreading pool of blood.

Shanaea stepped up and smacked the dog in the face.

The black dog turned and ran toward the end of the boat.

"..crap." Blaize said. Then he was off after the dog, Shanaea close behind him. Blaize caught the dog and jumped on him, but barely missed his target. His forelegs caught the dog's hip and both of them went rolling. Blaize toward the railing, the black dog toward an opening in the rail at the nose of the ship.

Shanaea shot past Blaize and slid toward the dog. Just as the dog started to slide over the edge she clamped her jaws on his tail, holding the rear half of the black dog's body on the deck of the ship. She started to pull him back up but Blaize's voice stopped her.

"Hold him there Shanaea." He said. He stood up and shook himself off. Then he trotted up to the nose of the boat.

"Please have her pull me up!" The black dog said. "...please, I don't want to die!"

"Now that's a coincidence." Blaize said. "...because I need to know where a friend of mine is, perhaps we can help each other."

"...man, they'll catch up to me and skin me alive." He said. "I can't help you, please just pull me up!"

Blaize smiled. "...I don't know

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