Agent Peters drove quietly along the roads that lead out of Seattle and toward the small town of Moon Lake. The town was presently the best hint at a possible location for where Dymixious could be hiding, given the reports that they'd been given and found. Namely the fact that Dymixious had Akane no Tachibana's number posted on the Drake family's yacht and that their call to check on that connection revealed information on a "pregnant wife" and seeking medical attention. From that, if this Dymixious truly cared for his wife, he might in fact be in Moon Lake to allow her treatment, but they had no concrete proof of that. That was a whole part of the present trip, to secure the cooperation of the Moon Lake Police in the hunt for Dymixious, which could be expected, and tie up some of the lose ends from what they'd already found.
"What are the odds that he is there...?" Detective Smith asked as they drove along.
"That we can't tell for certain," Agent Peters answered, "but it is a possibility... however, given what we've found and the amount of highly toxic poison this guy had... the list of supposed or suspected criminals that have all turned up dead or have been missing that he had taped to a wall... the thing that I hope for is that if he is there, that the police DON'T try to grab him on their own. It's been my experience that such people tend to fight and that won't help us one bit."
Both the Seattle detectives nodded as they rode along. From what they knew based on Google Maps, it would take them about an hour to reach Moon Lake. Hopefully things would go well from there.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Meanwhile, outside the small home that Dymixious had been given to stay in, Ryan Connor hung up his car's radio and then looked across his car's interior to the house beyond. He wasn't parked directly in front of the house, but he was close enough to keep an eye on it. He watched it and noted that the Twist house was right next door and on the other side of the Twists was where a new family had moved to town before the start of the school year. Ryan privately felt some frustration with many of these events, as he did remember the hunt for Yvette Smith in the past weeks had also included keeping officers posted in the area to deal with the rogue vixen. In this, it presented far more excitement than he would have preferred.
And the present "excitement" was in dealing with Dymixious directly, with the knowledge that the FBI was also hunting him and had learned that Dymixious had Akane no Tachibana as a contact and would thus lead them to Moon Lake as part of their investigation. Dymixious was likely to fight regardless of the action of law enforcement, and if they waited until the FBI arrived to learn of Dymixious's presence that would risk the secret of not only the existence of weres being revealed but that Moon Lake was a were sanctuary. In this, the decision had come down that they would force the arrest now and have Dymixious arrested before the FBI could arrive. That way, if he fought, the only normals that would know of the battle were those who already lived in Moon Lake and thus had reason to keep the existence of weres a secret.
Bringing his hands up to the walkie-talkie that he had to speak with his partner for the moment, Ryan lifted up the plastic device and pressed a button before speaking, "Any sign of activity in the back?"
"No... I think he's stayed inside," came the answer, "probably worn out from Halloween last night... all the trick or treaters and so forth."
"They weren't too bad," Ryan commented.
"Maybe, but something tells me this guy isn't real keen on all that," his partner replied, "and while our surveillance didn't allow for trick or treaters to bother him... he could probably hear them going to the other houses."
Ryan nodded before he answered, "Anyway... the orders have come down. The plan is get him in custody before the FBI can arrive. Three officers will be coming with me to the front door and another three will be joining you. You will monitor the back door to make sure he doesn't run. If he fights, move in from the other side... Though also be careful. We do not want to harm his wife."
"Roger," came the answer.
With that, Ryan put the walkie-talkie back on a specialized holster for it and then looked back at the home. Like many other things in Moon Lake, it didn't look like something one would expect a serial vigilante to be hiding out in. It looked pretty much like any other small suburban home in America. It had only one floor and its windows were darkened, but it didn't dark or like what one would think to be a hideout. About the worst that was seen with the home was some small spots of chipped paint, but that wasn't much.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Inside the home, Dymixious was quietly going about the morning and preparing some breakfast for his wife. The pair had slept in fairly late, but then, some of that was understandable given the joyful shrieks of children as they went door to door for candy the previous night. In many ways, Dymixious really didn't care about Halloween one way or the other. The thing that really continued to irritate him was the fact that the Moon Lake police continued to monitor him as though HE had done something wrong. Had Lionel Ulysses lived, he likely would have gotten a lengthy prison sentence, and even if the State of Virginia or the Federal Government applied the death penalty for his murder of Jeff Decker, America's policy of making the execution as "humane" as possible would mean that Lionel Ulysses could have sat on death row for YEARS before they'd finally get to executing him. All of that would expose weres, and Dymixious knew it, and he expected Moon Lake to know it as well, and thus go out of their way to protect him and divert attention away from him. But the Moon Lake police DIDN'T do that.
"Ungrateful wretches," Dymixious thought to himself as worked to scramble eggs for his and his wife's breakfast. The eggs did smell good, but that didn't fully distract him from his thoughts, "I've done them a huge favor... can't they see that?"
"Something smells good," came his wife's voice as she came in from the living room and looking toward the stove where Dymixious was standing.
"Just today's breakfast," Dymixious answered, managing to keep calm, "Did you sleep okay? The trick or treaters didn't bother you?"
"No," his wife gave a small smile, "I watched some things from the window. It actually looked like they all had fun."
Dymixious looked over his shoulder to see wife stroke her swollen middle through the cotton fabric of the nightgown she was still wearing. She had a small smile as she looked down and then looked up to finish her comment.
"I'd actually hope that when our little one is old enough... he or she could have plenty of fun like that as well," she finished.
Dymixious only shrugged and checked the eggs again. With that he backed up and carrying the pan with him. His wife had a nice sentiment, but he had every intention of training his children to be were hunters, just like his father had trained him. That way there would always be someone to hunt down any rogue were, particularly in places that weren't were sanctuaries, like Moon Lake. That would require a very business like demeanor and a lot of focus, as technology was advancing and Dymixious knew that. He'd done a lot to make sure no one could recognize him, and he was still at a loss for how the Seattle Police had even figured out his name.
"The eggs are done," Dymixious announced as he moved toward a side counter where two plates were waiting. He carried the spatula he'd been using to prod the eggs while they cooked and was soon dividing them up between the two plates. One plate was for him and the other for his wife. "Do you want any toast? Or juice?"
"Yes, please," his wife answered with a smile.
Dymixious smiled back and nodded. He was about to turn toward a drawer where a loaf of wheat bread was when both of them heard a knock at the front door. That made him frown.
"Likely the police still trying to impose things on us," Dymixious grumbled in irritation.
"This murder of Lionel Ulysses has them on edge," his wife told him, "they're bound to have interest in making sure that no one connected to it... real or imagined... would do anything to attract more attention."
Dymixious sighed and nodded and took a deep breath. His wife knew that his work was to "protect the were secret," but she didn't know the full details of what that actually involved. In this, while she was aware of the FBI's search, she didn't outright know just how right they were to suspect Dymixious of the crime of committing the murder. On many levels, Dymixious knew his wife was smart enough to know what "protect the were secret" actually meant, but in a way there was enough code and separation that Dymixious had to give his wife some "plausible deniability" on the issue and keep it separate from their time together. Much of that was also something that he remembered from his own upbringing. His father had been quite open with his mother with regard to his actions to protect the were secret after they had visited the island of Komodo and were turned by some of the werekomododragons there. However, the levels of violence that often followed this hunts unnerved her and she ultimately left his father for parts unknown. Dymixious had no intention of really describing what he did and thus potentially ruining his marriage. That didn't mean, however, that he wasn't irritated by what was likely the police knocking on his door.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ryan didn't have long to wait before his backup arrived. Three more Moon Lake PD cars arrived and parked up behind his, and three officers got out of each, the first officer, Samson Carter approached him.
"Here is your back up," Officer Samson Carter reported, "Ready and able. Chief O'Hara gave us the plan over the radio. It's up to you on which three go with you and which three go with you and which three go and join your partner."
Officer Ryan Conner then nodded and looked at the newly arrived officers. All of them were standard uniformed officers, though they had also added bullet proof vests to their normal patrol uniforms, likely a result of what the Moon Lake PD knew about Dymixious and the potential danger that he posed if confronted. He pointed to the first three and gave them their instructions.
"You three go around the back, and go between the Twists and Andersons," Ryan instructed, "if Dymixious fights... we don't want to give him full warning that the arrest is coming. The more surprise we have... the better."
"Right," those three officers spoke and soon jogged off, their boots/shoes thumping on the sidewalk.
"The rest are with me," Ryan said to Officer Carter and the others, "If Dymixious doesn't fight... good... but if he does... lethal force HAS been cleared."
There were understanding nods, and Ryan did glance back. The team that he'd sent to join his partner had just gone in between the Twist and Anderson houses. For the moment, he'd have to wait a bit longer when another voice spoke up from the other side of the car. It was a fairly quiet morning and there weren't too many people out and about, but someone had spoken, which Ryan Conner could easily guess who it was.
"And what of us?" came a male voice.
Ryan turned to see the two werewolves that had recently shown up with "permission" to help watch Dymixious, Gustavus Amehr and Quentin Fives. From what he knew, the two claimed to represent a watch-dog group they called the Luna Brotherhood, but were rather cryptic about its make up, origins, or its legal powers. They seemed just as interested in dealing with Dymixious as the FBI did and as Chief O'Hara did within Moon Lake, but they weren't keen on sharing much. Ryan had no problem letting them help "watch" Dymixious, but their cryptic answers were enough that the instructions Ryan had were to not allow them to participate in the arrest. For as far as they knew, the Luna Brotherhood was nothing more than a were's version of "Neighborhood Watch." And in that, Neighborhood Watch's only role with regard crime was to report it or the suspicion of it. They were NOT supposed to go after the criminals themselves, usually because a "concerned citizen" usually lacked training and that situations could then easily escalate with lethal consequences.
"My instructions are that you may observe," Ryan Conner spoke, "but you are to remain on the far side of the street and are NOT to be involved."
"But dealing with these sorts of things is our job!" Gustavus said with some irritation.
"And what law enforcement agency is your Brotherhood connected to? The FBI? The Federal Marshalls?" Ryan asked, "All we've gotten are vague answers that don't actually answer the question."
"The Brotherhood's means are a bit more indirect than being part of law enforcement," Quintin commented, "mostly given to many of the deals that it has orchestrated over the years that have secured weres cooperating with governments..."
"Including with George Washington and allowing for this town to even exist as it is," Gustavus added.
Ryan blinked. An old girlfriend of his had commented that the college had a collection of journals and documents in its archives that went into great detail on Moon Lake's origins beyond the first were settlers arriving there. It had sounded like a deal had been made with Washington that had gotten a group of werewolves to fight in the Continental Army, but from his former girlfriend had told him, many of the circumstances were so vague that Washington probably didn't know the deal was made with weres and that he was dealing with frontiersmen who had gained a strong reputation for skill in battle. That sort of vagueness seemed to sit with what these two Luna Brotherhood agents had stated, but the time frame of the American Revolution had long past and many of the things that could be done back then could not be done now.
"And suppose I let you in... and things go bad..." Ryan said slowly, "you two could be killed and I could lose my badge for allowing civilians to involve themselves in a law enforcement operation."
"The Brotherhood DOES maintain influence through lobbyists and other agents that would protect you and Moon Lake in case something goes wrong," Gustavus assured him, "and we are not some random bumpkin looking to shoot a criminal... but those means and measures are also something that must be kept vague, in order to protect the were secret... which isn't an issue here in Moon Lake."
"All the same, my instructions are clear," Ryan Connor answered, "You observe from the other side of the street, but you are NOT to involve yourselves."
With that, Ryan pointed across the street to the non-descript car that the two Luna Brotherhood agents had arrived in. Both grumbled in protest but did oblige him.
"We'll give you backup," Gustavus told him as they walked away, "If you can bring Dymixious down on your own... or if he doesn't fight, that's perfectly fine. If he fights and you're overpowered... we will take him down."
Ryan sighed and turned back to the house in question. He figured he had the numbers to bring Dymixious down and their "backup" wouldn't be needed. He'd given his warning based on the instructions given to him. He'd only be repeating himself if he spoke again. He then took a deep breath and looked to the other officers that were with him. By now, the others had to be in position, and it was time to move in. They walked up the path to the door and then knocked on it firmly. From there all they could do know was see how Dymixious would respond...