So I’ll work from home, and hopefully, it’ll appear like I’ve backed off or, at the very least, taken a leave. He’s watching me, but how closely? I guess we’ll find out.
Once Marcus is in Brooks’s office, I get up and head toward the door leading into the hallway. I follow it over to the far door, which I pull open. Inside is our evidence room that contains all of the evidence from our many cases. I stop at the desk out front that belongs to a woman who is in charge of the room and what goes in and out of it.
“Morning, Li, I needed to take a look at something from Tonya Everest’s case.”
“I thought Brooks was removing you from that? At least, that was what I heard since you’re going on break,” she says.
Brooks had spread the word that I was going on break in the hopes that it got back to him.
“Yeah, I am. But before I go… last night I was thinking about a ring the second victim was wearing and it reminded me of an item the first victim was also wearing, and I want to make sure I’m right. Brooks said he’d put a call in. He hasn’t yet?”
“Not yet.”
“Just an in and out.”
She nods and has me sign in, which I do. Then, once inside the evidence room, I glance down at the paper where I’d written the number. Once I’m positive I won’t be interrupted, I move through the room to evidence from a prior case I was on. More specifically, the first case I ever worked with Marcus; the one where the humans had been drugging vampires and forcing them to attack other humans in an attempt to drive a wedge between them.
I glance at the door, wishing I had the power to hear if someone was coming like Marcus could, but instead, I just have to pray no one notices and no one checks out the surveillance camera either. I open the bag with my gloves on and look inside at the different paraphernalia. That’s when I see the case and reach into the bag for it. Carefully, I pull it out and pop open the lid when I hear a noise. The issue is that these damn vampires hear everything. If she’s suspicious about what I’m doing, she might be listening in.
The door handle turns, and I quickly shove the bag back before rushing over to where I’m supposed to be.
“What are you up to?” Briar asks as I slip the case to the back of the shelf.
“I’m getting ready to go but I wanted to check something first,” I say.
“You be careful, alright?” For a moment I think she’s noticed what I’m up to, but then I realize she’s talking about him. “The Dollmaker clearly isn’t afraid of anything, and I don’t want to see you hurt over this.”
I nod, wishing she wouldn’t call him that. That word, even in a name, just makes me feel horrid. But she has nothing else to call him because she doesn’t realize how much of a monster he is. “I’ll be careful. I promise.”
“Good,” she says as she does something an aisle over as I continue to pretend I’m busy with the evidence. When she finally leaves, I pull the case back out and flip it open before looking inside.
“Fuck,” I whisper.
There are only three bullets nestled into their padded spots. When the case had ended, all weapons were confiscated. Most things went with Wren, since the case was his and he would be able to get them to someone who could analyze what was inside the bullets that were lethal enough to almost put down a vampire as old as Marcus. When we found this case here, it got stuck in evidence with the plan to get it to Wren if they needed more but it never happened. I thought this could be it. If a police-grade bullet to the head did nothing to stop that monster, I thought these could. But Marcus was shot multiple times in the stomach, so will three help me?
In order to even slow him with these, all three would have to hit their mark, yet I shot at him six times and only one bullet hit.
“Fuck.” But it’s better than nothing.
I pull the bullets free and rush the case back over to where it belongs. Then I head back out and quicken my pace to return to my desk before Marcus begins to worry.
MARCUS
What is he up to?
And why is he keeping it a secret?
I stare at Finn who gives me a huge smile that just reeks of guilt. I narrow my eyes, not falling for it, and he cocks his head a little, like he’s going to toss in a splash of innocence.
“Ready?” I ask.
“Yep,” he says as he gathers his stuff and heads toward the door. I’m well aware this staying-home stuff won’t last long, and I don’t blame him, but we want to be smart and get some security measures in place before we continue our hunt. And with the power of technology, we can do some things at home.
While Watson assured us we could stay another night, Orin had spent the entire day making sure nothing was getting near the house without high-security alarms sounding. So I turn onto the road toward Orin’s house.
In the car, Finn’s kind of quiet and I want to make him feel better, but he’s the one who’s good at that stuff. Not me.
“Do you want to talk?” I ask.
“I stole something out of the evidence room,” he blurts out.
“I knew you were up to something. What’d you steal?” I ask.
He pulls something out of his pocket and holds it in front of me. I glance at it, the traffic too thick for me to look away from the road and get a good look. “Bullets?”
“Special bullets.”
Realization sets in. “The bullets that hit me?”
He nods as he pulls out his gun and empties it before putting three special bullets in as well as one regular. “In case the first shot I need to take isn’t for him,” he explains. “I only have three shots with it, so I’ll have to make it count. But if I ever shoot him again, I’m going to make sure it’s with one of these. I know I won’t kill him, but I want to make him hurt… I want to make him bleed. Of course the analysts finally get some blood off him and there’s no fucking DNA match anywhere because I have no fucking luck, Marcus!”
I know he’s horribly frustrated by the whole thing, but I try to do what I can to make him feel better about the situation. “I know it seems that way, but everyone you care about is still alive and we’re still together. We have to consider that luck and just keep moving forward.”
He turns to me. “Do we move at all? It just seems like we run in a fucking circle around and around while he just laughs from the fucking shadows!” he yells. Then he sinks in his seat. “I’m sorry for yelling. That wasn’t very fair of me when you’ve been so helpful and supportive. You don’t have to be involved in any of this and I’m just getting unnecessarily angry. I’m sorry.”
I reach over and hold my hand out until he places his in it. “Don’t apologize, Finn. Anyone would be frustrated with this.”
“When we get home can we just… do something else for a bit? Something to get my mind off it?”
“Of course. What do you want to do?”
He shrugs. “Mope, maybe?”
“No moping allowed.”
“Tantrum?”
“Nope.”
“Why won’t you let me have any fun?”
“I’m just mean like that.”
He smiles at me before lifting my hand to his mouth and giving it a kiss. When we reach the house, I notice Finn is a little stiff getting out of the car. I know he jarred his leg during the event, but he refuses to admit he’s sore. His goal in life is to never look weak but it’s to the extreme.
“Orin has the hot tub. What if we get in it to help your leg?” I suggest.
“But I want to do something with you,” Finn says.
“Oh… vampires don’t melt when they get wet. That’s witches.”
He raises an eyebrow. “You know what I mean, smart-ass.”
I scrutinize him as I walk up to the house. “No, sorry, I don’t,” I say as Artemus and Hela greet us at the door. Artemus just obliviously shoves Hela out of the way as Finn gives him a big hug.
“I’m so glad you’re doing better, my good boy. But you’re supposed to be quiet and not jumping around,” he says.
“That didn’t sound good. I know sometimes I want to see if I can knock some sense into you, but that sounded like he was knocking sense out of you.” I’m trying to get inside but it seems impossible with the dog barricade.
“Nope, but he can do anything he wants,” Finn says as he hugs Artemus some more.
We have them sectioned off to the entrance sitting area where Artemus’s favorite couch is so he’s not being too active, but honestly, he’s healing up amazingly well. I reach over and scratch behind his ear.
He knows he did a good job and if he didn’t before, he did after I gave him a bowl of ice cream yesterday.
“Why don’t you go soak in the hot tub for half an hour while I get some other stuff done? Then we can watch a movie or something together.” While I don’t like feeding into Finn’s insecurities, I know I have to move slowly with his stubborn ass.
Finn gives Hela a pet before standing up. “You can join me if you promise to stare at the ceiling the entire time.”
“Deal,” I say. “I’ll take the dogs out. Can you find me something to wear so I don’t have to show Orin my naked ass if he comes home early and surprises us like he’s been doing? I’m also convinced he has cameras all over the house and is watching you.”
Finn laughs. “You’re making him sound creepy.”
I pretend to be nervous as I glance around. “Shh, he can probably hear us.”
“He’s not listening to us… probably.”
“Probably?” I ask as I look up at the newly installed camera. I swear that thing is aimed right at me.
“Moon him! I bet that’ll get him talking if he’s watching us!” Finn says as he tries turning me around.
I attempt to shoo him off. “Orin currently likes me. I’m not mooning him. Vampires like me have to uphold our prestigious—”
Swiftly, Finn undoes my button and yanks my pants down before giving my ass a smack and rushing for the stairs.
“Dammit, Finn!” I yell as I yank my pants up.
Finn hesitates on the stairs before looking over at me. “He just texted and said you have a nice ass!”
“He did not!” I growl as I rush after him before remembering that I promised to take the dogs out and Finn shouldn’t be running around with his leg aching. I sigh as I glare after Finn even though he’s long gone. “Why do we put up with him?”
Neither dog seems to know, so I take them outside, keeping Artemus on a leash to stop him from running anywhere.
Once they’re finished, I head back inside and over to Finn’s room where he’s wearing a pair of swimming trunks he must have left here at some point and a T-shirt.
He gives me a cheeky smile and I fear what is to come. “I’ve looked around and found a couple of options for you. You can wear nothing and let Orin peep at your penis. Or one of Orin’s Speedos?”
“Or I’ll just wear, you know, underwear.”
“Fine, fine,” he says as he heads toward the stairs. We go to the back of the house and hang a left that leads to an enclosed pool and a hot tub. Once there, Finn waves at the hot tub. “Jump on in.”
I take my clothes off and fold them neatly before stepping into the hot water as Finn fumbles with it until bubbles start. Then he pulls his shirt off before sitting on the ground outside the hot tub. I sink to my butt before looking at him only to find him watching me.
“What?” I ask.
“Nothing. Just… staring at your overwhelming beauty.”
I narrow my eyes and question when he became such a liar. “Oh right, I forgot that I’m only allowed to stare at the ceiling,” I say as I tip my head back and look straight up. A moment later, his head pops into view, hovering above me as he grins down at me.
“Is it nice?”
“It’d be nicer if you stopped procrastinating and got in,” I admit.
He leans down and kisses me. Then he tosses his shirt over my head, and even though I think it’s absolutely ridiculous, I allow it. When I hear him step into the water, I debate pulling it off, but I know I have to let him be stubborn because that’s what he does best.
“Man, my neck is starting to ache.”
“You’re a vampire. Vampires don’t get neck aches.”
“This one does.”
“Why? Because being top bat has made you have a big head?”
“I’m not a bat,” I grumble.
He yanks the shirt off and tosses it before sinking down into the bubbling water. I’m not sure if that means I’m allowed to look at him yet or have to continue staring at the ceiling.
“Orin had this whole area added on when I was a kid all because Aria said something about how cool pools are. It was like a passing thought, and then the next day, pow. Pool,” Finn explains.
“I take it you guys were a bit spoiled?” I chance lifting my head and when he doesn’t yell at me, I sit normally.
“I’d say more than a bit. It was like he was trying to make up for our shitty childhood. Honestly, he was a wonderful dad. Tell me about your family,” he says. “I feel like we only talk about me and my problems. Whenever I ask about you, you’re all ‘I was there when they invented sticks!’”
I glare at him as he grins at me. Why people ever think I’m the mean one is beyond me. “Well… Claude and I were born to a wealthy family. My father traveled a lot, so I didn’t see him much from what I can remember of my early years. My mother was distant because she expected the nanny to care for us. We were both sickly children with an aversion to the sunlight. Later it was made clear it was because we were only eating human food. Our caretaker was the first to notice and I honestly can’t tell you how she noticed. I know there were rumors of blood-feasting children, but I can’t tell you much, I was too young. Maybe she heard the stories of other true vampires, though not called that at the time, and it spurred her into not abandoning us. Or maybe it’s because she loved us like we were her own. She began bringing us blood without anyone else knowing. But as a child, it was hard to control. And one day a servant got hurt and Claude attacked her. He wasn’t going to kill her, but the fresh blood drove him to it.
“After that, our mother was determined that we’d been consumed by demons and wanted us taken away. The woman who cared for us told us that they took kids like us to this place where they never came out again. She found a way to sneak us away as we waited for our punishment for being born different from the rest. But as she was fleeing with us, she was caught. She urged us to run and hide, so we did.
“We were around six at this point—young and terrified and used to living a life of luxury in one of the finest homes in the city. To us, it seemed like everyone was looking for us, the children possessed by demons. So we snuck into the back of a carriage and rode it for what seemed like days. When we found ourselves in a new city, it fully set in that we had nothing and knew nothing. Thankfully, we stumbled upon some other homeless children who taught us how to beg and steal. We would hide all day since the sun made us feel weak and our skin hot, and during the night we would raid the city.
“For years, Claude was all I had and all I thought I’d ever have. When we were about eight, a kind woman took us in who understood what we were and agreed to care for us anyway. Claude had befriended her, but I wanted nothing to do with her because I was already growing cold to humans. Whether we were vampires or orphan children, they wanted nothing to do with us. They’d threaten us and chase us off. I’d begun to distrust everyone because I was convinced they were all out to save and protect themselves. But, as you’ve noticed, Claude is much more of a people person. Even though he’s annoying as hell, people generally begin to like him. It’s like he wears them down until they just eventually realize it’s easier to give in to him. And soon, I trusted the woman enough to let her in my life and even began to love her,” I say.
Finn’s watching me closely as I realize that I’ve never cared to tell anyone about my u
pbringing. “Was she the woman you accidentally attacked?”
I nod, hating what I did to her trust of me. “Yes. After that point, I began to hate myself because I felt like maybe I truly was the demon my mother called us. Claude assured me, again and again, that it wasn’t my fault, but I clearly had attacked the one human who cared for us and now she feared us.”
“I’m so sorry that happened. Did she ever get over that fear?” Finn asks.
“Maybe a little. She fell in love with a man and we knew she couldn’t take us with her. Our secret could ruin her life, so Claude and I decided we’d move on. We’d visit her when we could, but by our teenage years our aging seemed to slow and it was hard seeing her growing old while I felt like we were never aging.”
“It seems like you and Claude were always very close. Why don’t you get along now?”
“I don’t hate Claude. I get frustrated by Claude. We argue about things because our visions and ideas of things are drastically different. And sometimes we fight, like full-on fight, but we always come back to each other.”
“You mentioned he tried cutting your head off?”
I shrug. “That was just dramatic Claude.”
“That was… excuse me? Dramatic, you called it?”
“It wasn’t a full trying to cut my head off. It was like a ‘Surprise!’ thing.”
“Like… he jumped out and went ‘Happy birthday, here’s a machete’?” Finn asks skeptically.
“He’s always tried to best me, Finn. It bothers him that he’s so weak compared to me, so occasionally he tries catching me off guard and I threaten to crush his skull once in a while. We have an extremely healthy sibling relationship,” I say.
Finn’s eyes narrow. “The thing is, you didn’t say that at all sarcastically which leads me to believe that you honestly think you guys do have a normal relationship, and it’s not.”
How to Elude a Vampire (VRC: Vampire Related Crimes Book 2) Page 20