‘Polar don’t like talking to people he don’t know,’ Jasmine said, putting away the phone. ‘Fact is, Polar don’t like to talk, period. His daddy beat him every time he opened his mouth, so pretty soon he learned –keep quiet and you keep out of trouble.’ She gave Kate a look. ‘He’s choosy about who he talks to. So I took a message.’

Kate crossed her arms. ‘Well?’

‘Some old guy came around the hangout. The guy Tom’s been looking for. Zhi …’

‘Jicaque. Go on.’

‘He wanted to see Tom. Left instructions to meet on Gun Hill bridge out in Baychester. Nine o’clock tonight.’

‘That’s it? Nothing else?’

Jasmine went sour-faced and shook her head. ‘Ain’t that enough? What more do you want, faxed confirmation and a map?’

Kate was seething with anger. ‘I just would’ve liked to talk with him about this, OK? You don’t have to be such a bitch.’

The girl’s eyes widened in outrage. ‘Me, the bitch?’

‘Look, could you just call him back please?’ Kate took a deep breath. ‘You’re right, Jicaque is the man Tom and I came to New York to see, but the ’wolves know that too. They could be using him to trap us or …’

Jasmine was shaking her head, looking around like she was bored.

Kate bunched her fists, feeling suddenly helpless. ‘What is your problem?’

‘I’ll tell you about my problem.’ Jasmine stood up and jabbed a finger into Kate’s chest. ‘I don’t want you talking to my friends, OK? We got enough sweat on. Something must’ve freaked Polar pretty bad to get him talking – and I don’t want the people I care about mixed up in your shit the same way Tom is.’

Kate knocked Jasmine’s hand away, suddenly furious. ‘It wasn’t me who got Tom involved in all—’

‘Save it, honey. Not interested.’ Jasmine’s dark eyes blazed into Kate’s. ‘However you dress it up, it seems to me that boy was turned ’wolf because of you. You’re trouble. Stuck up, skinny-assed trouble, whatever dumb colour you put in your hair.’

Before Kate could open her mouth to utter another word, a nurse poked his tired head around the curtain. ‘You two –take any fights outside, please. You’re disturbing the patients.’

‘We’re done,’ said Jasmine. With a last filthy look at Kate, she stalked away, pushing past the nurse.

Kate listened to the click of her neat little footsteps dwindle down the corridor.

Only when the noise had stopped altogether and the nurse gone back about his business did Kate allow the tears to fall.

g

Tom awoke from a familiar nightmare, sweating and itching inside. He’d been running in his lupine form, chasing after something that was always just out of view; never allowed to quit, his hunger building and building.