by Erin R Flynn
“Uh-huh, women love those kinds of surprises in their lives,” Oswalt drawled. “So you’re spanking Havers?”
“At length,” I purred, several people chuckling. I shrugged. “His heart was in the right place and it’s not like anything I would have objected to. It wasn’t supposed to happen yet and all that matters is he lived. So the conversations we were meant to have before it all took effect got flipped around and now we’re going through some other paces we didn’t know…” I glanced at Carter like I still didn’t get it.
“You’re the adopted fucking daughter of wolf royalty, Sera. Yeah, he wants to marry into the family and even on the human and US legal side he has to go through the vetting process,” he took over, getting the gist of what I was doing. “You guys want a long engagement anyway so let him take his time off learning to be a wolf to learn the fun of being a consort to a powerful Alpha and Dorcus and kiss the rings he has to.”
“Glad he’s willing because it sounds like so much fun to me,” I grumbled, shaking my head.
“Well, you had the fights to take over the packs and be boss. This is the bullshit to stand at the boss’s side,” Emilio offered with a shrug.
“‘It’s good to be the king,’” I teased, quoting a Mel Brooks movie.
Oswalt snorted. “Like women aren’t always. I’m just glad my wife doesn’t want other men. No disrespect, but I don’t think I could swallow that pill.”
I shrugged. “If we weren’t immortal, I wouldn’t either.”
“And no disrespect to your wife, but she has only one side as human,” Eugene cut in. “Sera has more needs as a wolf of her bloodline and her vast power means more than you can comprehend until you can feel it. Havers believed us but, he really did—”
“But now he believes us,” Carter finished. “It’s like color for someone who’s never been able to see. We say this not to be demeaning—as I was once human too—but there are things in a human life you experience that are the same and you simply cannot comprehend them until you’ve lived them. Sera will still have many things she will face in that way as she is still a young wolf.”
I snorted. “All the fucking time. Every time I think I got the hang of it, something else happens or my wolf matures in some fun new way. So in that way, it’s just like being a human and realizing you really never had a clue.” People looked like they might want to talk more about that, but now wasn’t the time. “Where are my volunteers?”
“We’re here, Alpha,” a bunch of supes who lived in the building downtown said.
“Thank you for coming. Emilio, take them with any help we’ve got from regular FBI and CPD. Anyone without a badge gets paired with those with badges. You are aiding them to clear people out and using your elevated senses to do it faster and safer. Let’s get this done.”
“Yes, Alpha,” they promised.
“Got it, Chief,” others agreed.
They moved out and I glanced over the map. “Nikos, take your team and check the building. I’m sure the order to evacuate was given, but I want you to make sure.”
“Yes, Chief.”
“Chief, where do you need us?” Agent Eric Corbin from the regular FBI office asked with a team of techies I knew from working with them.
“Talk with Oswalt’s command and see where they can use you,” I answered, gesturing to the group.
“On it.”
“Letting CPD lead on your case shows weakness. It’s unfitting for a division chief to—” Murray started.
I shot him a bored look. “Oswalt’s got at least ten years’ experience on me and his whole career has been bomb squad. People confer with him from around the country. Only an idiot doesn’t utilize that expertise and gives a flying fuck about the optics of who’s got the bigger dick or title. I’m here to make sure no one dies today and try to find out who’s leaving bombs around Chicago, Murray. Nothing else.”
“And that’s why you never succeed when the rest of us do.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. “We have different definitions of success, Andrew. We always have. I don’t cheat for my achievements and what I’ve gotten. You do. You always have.” I leaned in and breathed what I said next so the other humans wouldn’t hear but I knew my people did. “And you’re so fucking jealous of what I have, wanting me and all of it for yourself, you’re oozing green.
“Your bullshit never worked on me and it really won’t work on me now. I’m more powerful than whatever voodoo you use to sway others. You’re used to playing with the kids who don’t know the hacks and cheats so you win. Welcome to the real fun where we’re walking, talking lie detectors, magic smellers, and bust cheaters all the damn time before coffee.”
Rage was in his eyes when I moved away and he opened his mouth to blast me. I held up my hand with my ring on to show him I hadn’t read him. Granted, I had last time but it was a good blow to his ego and confidence.
It really was because for the first time since I’d known Andrew Murray I saw something I never had before. Doubt. Just for a second doubt flashed in his eyes. Only an instant but it was enough for me and I didn’t push it, taking the victory and wrapping it around me like a coat of comfort that things could be okay and not to be so afraid of him anymore.
He wasn’t the boogeyman. He was a human who cheated and I simply hadn’t known it. Now I did and I had a fucking army of people backing me.
Hell, I had someone much, much scarier than then all the boogeymen backing me up… And currently he was watching my interaction with Murray like he was enjoying the game afoot and looking forward to when he got to declare checkmate.
Sounded like a plan to me.
19
The FBI bus full of trainees arrived just as Nikos and his team cleared the full building. They jumped in to help the trainers and divide up the trainees and moved onto other areas of the map to systematically clear areas. I trusted them to handle that but it made me nervous how long things were taking. There was just a lot in such a densely populated area.
Not that there hadn’t been last time, but there had been some grocery stores and restaurants that went faster. This time we had the fucking Daley Center, City Hall, Circuit Court of Cook County, and several other very large and completely packed buildings.
In December in Chicago.
What. A. Nightmare.
Carter demanded to go use the X-ray scanner thing to see inside the box instead of one of the humans from the bomb squad strapping into the suit that was supposed to protect them. Yeah, well, so did seat belts, but that didn’t mean everyone survived all car accidents.
Carter could take a lot more fucking damage without the getup.
“Visual up,” someone confirmed and we moved over to the monitors.
Carter’s hands were steady as he started at the front of the package and went up. There was an array of curses and I joined in.
Because this time there was a timer. Last time there wasn’t a countdown, only a remote detonator.
“He assumed we jammed it and that was the problem,” I muttered.
Oswalt nodded his head out of the corner of my eye. “I would guess. Makes sense. He’s new and learning. The logical jump would be that he didn’t know all of the toys we have to block signals. It’s not like we make that shit public and we do have some good toys that we borrow at times.”
“What are our options for forty minutes?” I asked, trying to swallow my panic. “He’s not fucking around with that clock. That couldn’t have been more than ninety minutes he put on it total.”
“Just enough to safely get people out of the building,” Oswalt agreed. “Given the amount of explosives last time, he’s done his math. It will take down the building but not the block, though there will be other damage.”
“His goal isn’t death then. It’s taking down the structure. The establishment and literal place of failing,” I muttered to myself.
“That’s all you, Chief Thomas,” Oswalt chuckled darkly. “I just deal with the goddamn bomb.”
I gave him a wry look. “Not sure which of us has the better end of that.”
“Depends if that bomb can be moved. The last one didn’t have any motion triggers. If that thing has the connectors in solid, I’m going to recommend something one of your guys won’t like.”
I blinked at him a moment and nodded, pulling out my phone and dialing Shaw.
“What’s up, Chief?”
“Get me someone high on Coast Guard. We’ve got a clock on this bomb and we need a boat. We might be letting it blow in the middle of the lake as the best option depending what we find.”
“You can’t possibly go to that—” Murray started to bitch.
“No, we don’t know that but it’s better to get the idea rolling now than when the clock is at ten fucking minutes,” I snapped.
Oswalt snorted. “Damn right it is.” He got on the radio with Carter. “Can you hold on the X-ray for a moment? I want you to inspect the package with your amazing eyes.”
“What am I looking for specifically?” Carter asked.
“I think he set the timer and wrapped it up,” Oswalt answered.
“Meaning it can be moved after activated,” I surmised, watching the monitor as we still could see Carter’s shoulder cam feed.
“Exactly. The last one was wrapped up tight because it was a remote trigger and the lead came loose when he moved it probably. If that’s not the case this time, he should be easily be able to take off the top and show us more fully.”
“I understand,” Carter mumbled as he squatted down with the X-ray. “I’m not seeing anything touching the outer box besides sitting at the bottom. Meaning if I gently feel along the box—”
“Cut the wrapping,” I suggested, giving Oswalt a curious look. “At least slice in the middle or something. Give a better visual.”
Oswalt considered that a moment and nodded. “Yeah, do one circle with the X-ray and check it’s not attached to the middle to upper half of the box first. Then get some of that paper off the way. Don’t pull at the tape, just cut away what you can.”
“Understood,” Carter replied. He went through the steps and not a minute later we were looking at a mostly naked brown carboard box. “This is a generic box that can be bought at any craft or home improvement store. It’s one piece that gets taped top and bottom. It had to be taped and wrapped after he started the timer.”
“Then it’s moveable,” I muttered. “The question is does he risk cutting the top of that cardboard off to get a better view and make real fucking sure of that or do we try to defuse it?”
“Both,” Oswalt declared. He started barking out orders.
I didn’t understand all of it but I caught “jammers” and “bomb bucket,” which I assumed was some sort of shield should they think it was going to blow. Not sure how much good it would do but some protection was always better than none.
Kevlar was a fine example of that and the reason I was still alive many times over.
I went over the footage Carter had already taken with Sander, making the poor guy talk to me about everything he could see. One of Oswalt’s guys jumped in and helped us.
“You know so little about this sort of case and yet you made division chief,” Murray muttered, not hiding his disgust.
My blood was on fire but I swallowed it down and gave him an amused look. “And you know nothing about being undercover and speaking languages like I do and yet you’re going to run an office that does all of that. None of us can do all of it, Murray. I’m not doing this to learn as now isn’t the time to teach me with a clock counting down on a fucking bomb.”
“She’s identifying the parts we know so it gives us fewer options to figure out what might be a motion sensor or something problematic later while others are getting set up,” Oswalt’s guy defended, giving Murray an annoyed look. “It’s smart and we’re working so if you don’t mind, Agent. I’d like to not fail my job today as this is our case and ass on the line. Not yours.”
“It’s Special Agent in—” Murray started to correct.
“Like that fucking matters right now,” the guy grumbled, already focused back on the monitor, tapping the corner of the box. “I want to see this part. That could be where we disconnect the clock. This might be an easy disarm if we get that clock to stop. There’s bad and good to this guy being a newbie. This being good if he got it right.”
That made sense. Terrifying, but it made sense.
Before he started, I got on the radio and took a deep breath. “Carter.”
“Yes, Chief?”
“If you get blown up I’m going to be pissed.”
“I understand.”
“Good, because you put your name in as my vampire mating candidate to block every schmuck who would try for an alliance or treat me like their pet wolf. I do not want to have to deal with that shit again and more presents that make me lose all faith in men. So seriously, don’t make me go through that. Everyone will hate you when I turn into a complete bitch. Don’t get blown up.”
“Sure thing, Sera,” he chuckled, sounding like he was holding back a bigger laugh.
“Hey, steady hands there,” I chastised, smiling as well.
“You’re so, so special, Chief,” Oswalt teased before everyone burst out laughing.
I shrugged. I didn’t mind taking the hit if it cut through the tension for a moment before Carter started unpacking a fucking bomb we might have to race to Lake Michigan to detonate. I mean, if there was ever a need for a time-out comic moment it was right then.
Even if the counter was racing towards zero.
“Box top off,” Carter reported moments later. “No wires or connectors. Totally clear and countdown going at same pace.”
“Well, that’s something,” Oswalt sighed, several of us doing the same in relief. “All right, take every angle you can and them come back here. Chief Thomas has already started mapping all the components with help so we’re ahead of the game.”
“She always is,” Carter praised.
We moved over to the FBI command van Corbin had brought with him since there were more monitors for the images. The bomb squad guys conferred along with Sander, and even a few of Enzo’s guys chipped in knowledge. It took less than two minutes for all parties who had bomb knowledge to agree.
And then they all turned to me to make the call.
“How sure are you on this?” I asked Oswalt.
“Death and taxes is the only one hundred percent thing but this is about as cut and dry and ‘easy’ as we get,” he answered. “High nineties we get this done without so much as a puff of smoke. Carter makes the cut, timer stops or it doesn’t, and he slams the bomb bucket over it just in case and books it back to us out of range.
“Timer stops and he makes the second cut to take out the remote detonator. Either way he slams the bomb bucket over it just in case and books it back to us out of range. No boom and we go and take out the contacts and take it all apart to do a full report and analysis on. Hopefully we find something useful this time and we go home.”
I shared a glance with Carter, glad when he nodded he had this. “Fine, but don’t die. I don’t want to deal with the rest of the ancients if you aren’t around to keep them in line. I mean, all they’ll eat is pizza and never a damn veggie.”
“Yes, that sounds like us and not you now that you have a shifter metabolism,” Emilio drawled.
Carter headed back to the bomb with only his tactical vest instead of all the bomb squad gear. Honestly, it would only impede his speed and get in his way and given that was what would save him if things went wrong… Fuck protocol.
“Timer stopped,” he announced and I pumped my fist in the air, knowing I wasn’t the only one relieved.
“Okay, make the second cut. You’re clear which wire?” Oswalt checked.
“Yeah, this isn’t a complicated one like the movies,” Carter answered, amusement in his tone. Only an ancient vampire would find a situation with a bomb something to brush off as no big.
&nbs
p; Then again, Eva did the last time as well. Maybe after a few hundred years alive I could be more flippant.
Nah, I didn’t see me ever acting like that. Sure, I’d always dive headfirst into danger but I always took it seriously.
We saw him make the cut and then the feed went blurry as he moved faster than the video could keep up with as he put the bomb bucket over the device. I blinked and he was to us, shrugging that it must have been fine.
“Let one of us take the bomb bucket back off,” I told Oswalt. “Just in case. Look how fast he got back out of range.”
“I’ll take the leads out as well,” Carter added. “The device is truly simple and basic. It’s disarmed. Let’s just get it done so people can get on with their day and we get yelled at less.”
“Amen to that,” one of Oswalt’s guys grumbled.
Yeah, I could only imagine how often they got chewed out for delays and how much time they took. Funny, the one time no one should ever push people to hurry the fuck up was when working with bombs. Unless they were idiots.
Then again, there were a lot of idiots in the world.
We went with Carter’s plan and before the timer would have gone off we were giving the all clear to CPD. Oswalt promised to get me his preliminary everything before the day was out and I thanked everyone on scene.
“In a rush to set up the next location?” Murray ribbed me as I wrapped up.
I gave him a look like I forgot he was there, swallowing the urge to punch him like I wanted. “No, idiot, I want to follow up on the lead we got.”
His eyes flashed shock. “What lead?”
I snorted. “Why, so you can take credit for it? That’s the only way you get any praise, after all. You take credit for the work of others. No, I think I’ll handle this myself since it’s not your case and you’re just stalking me.” I smirked at him. “That worked well when you lied to my Beta at my building.”
“Fuck with our people again and it’s not only our Alpha you’ll upset,” Eugene warned as he moved behind me. He wrapped his arm around me possessively and kissed my neck now that work was over. “And you think you only have Brian to get out of her bed to have a place there, but your ego is inflated from the truth, human. You should look up certain laws that you clearly are ignorant on.”