“And most likely never had the virus,” Carmen continued.
“But don’t you want to know what’s behind them?” Jake pressed.
“You’d better believe we do.” Rick didn’t bother to keep the impatience from his voice. “And we will find out, eventually. What matters right now is the virus. It’s out there somewhere. We’ve got to find it before it’s released into the general population and starts an epidemic.”
“Meh. I’m skeptical.” Jake directed his words to Carmen. “One body with a virus doesn’t prove the existence of more, am I right?”
“Well, it’s highly unlikely to mutate on its own. Plus, we’ve already confirmed that someone fed the virus to the victim, most likely in a drink or meal he ate at a restaurant right before he became ill.” Carmen sighed. “So unfortunately, while I like the way you think, we pretty much are guaranteed that someone, somewhere, developed this virus.”
“And has more,” Rick said.
“Exactly. And has the capability of making a large enough supply to cause a pandemic.”
Pandemic. Even nonscientific types like Rick hated that word. Maybe he’d seen too many movies, but the thought made him shudder.
Especially since they didn’t have an antidote.
“Rick,” Carmen said, touching his arm. “I’m going to call the CDC again, just to make sure they don’t need me.”
“Okay.” He didn’t tell her that he’d already checked, before recruiting her. She might be one of the top biological disease specialists around, but there were others. And some of them had connections. The CDC considered their staff full. Who knew—perhaps something had changed.
“While you do that,” he said, “I need to make a few calls and find out what my boss wants me to do now that we’ve left the group. I haven’t given a full report yet anyway.”
Already scrolling through her phone, Carmen waved at him as he stepped outside onto the apartment balcony to talk privately.
As Rick had suspected, his boss wasn’t happy.
“You what?” Special Agent in Charge Olson Ferring roared. “Do you know how long it took to get you set up for this undercover assignment?”
Then, without giving Rick a chance to answer, he continued. “You get back in, make contact with them. Come up with some sort of plausible story for doing what you did.”
“Just a minute,” Rick interjected. “You haven’t heard the full story.” And he proceeded to tell him the lab hadn’t truly been used, that the biologist named Sheldon had been murdered, and someone named Ted had run off with vials that supposedly contained the actual virus.
Olson went silent for a full five seconds. When he spoke again, he’d lowered his voice. “Do you believe that he might actually have it?”
“We’re not sure,” Rick responded. “It seems highly unlikely, but there’s still a minute chance.”
“In that case, I want you two back in the group. Back undercover immediately. You need to hunt down and find Ted and those vials. Being part of the Sons of Darkness will afford you better protections in that world than if you go on your own. Understand?”
Rick allowed that he did and ended the call. He turned to go back inside, but Carmen stepped out onto the balcony instead and closed the door behind her.
“You look glum,” she commented. “I’m assuming your work wasn’t happy with you?”
“Nope.” He relayed the conversation.
“Seriously? That’s not so bad.” She shrugged. “Especially since we’d planned to do that all along.”
“No, we just involved that reporter,” he said, jerking his head toward inside the apartment. “That human reporter.”
When she put her hand on his arm, his entire body tightened. “It’s okay. Maddie will make sure he stays protected. Let them search, too. The more eyes out there looking the better.”
“Maybe. Though we need to let them know it’s dangerous. Since Maddie’s a Shifter, I have no doubt she’ll be all right. But that poor human. He’s already been jumped on by two Protectors in the alley outside Broken Chains.”
She grimaced. “I heard about that. But this case will get him away from all that, at least for a little while. And if Maddie is willing to work to keep him safe, why not? You know as well as I do that sometimes reporters have ways to access information outside regular channels.”
She did have a point. “Fine,” he said. “Let’s go back in and inform them. Then you and I need to get on the road. I’m going to have to call Gus and grovel in hopes he’ll take us back.”
“Oh, he will.” The confidence in her voice made him smile. “Especially when you tell him what we discovered in the lab and that we want to go after Ted. I can pretty much guarantee that.”
Side by side, they headed back into the apartment.
Still seated next to each other on the couch, Maddie and Jake looked up when they entered.
“That looked like a serious discussion,” Maddie observed. “Is everything all right?”
Rick explained, careful to keep from focusing too much on Jake. He didn’t like working with humans and preferred to work with other Shifters as much as possible, especially on dangerous cases. Humans were too...fragile. They slowed him down and distracted him, especially if he had to worry about keeping them from getting killed. They could be headstrong and impulsive and unpredictable.
Maddie needed to understand this, as well. Rick would talk privately with her before he and Carmen left.
By the time Rick finished his explanation, Jake practically vibrated with excitement. Rick had to like the guy’s enthusiasm.
“Sounds good.” Jake rubbed his hands together. “My favorite kind of investigative journalism. I’ve got to get busy and do some research. I assume you don’t want me to directly contact the CDC?”
“No.” Both Rick and Carmen answered at once.
“Okay. I have back channels.”
Though they glanced at each other, Rick and Carmen let that one pass for now.
“Do you have a moment?” Rick asked Maddie.
Though she lifted one brow in surprise, she nodded. “Out on the patio?”
Once there, he reiterated what he and Carmen had discussed. “Not only will you have to keep an eye on him, but you’ll have to keep the two of you safe. Do you think you can do that?”
She grinned. “I relish the challenge.”
“Good luck.” The words came out gruffer than he’d intended.
Instead of taking offense, she laughed and hugged him. “You’re a decent guy, Rick Fallin. I like you.”
Not sure how to react to that, he simply nodded and turned to go back inside.
But she wasn’t finished. She grabbed his arm. “Carmen likes you, too, I can see.”
Hounds help him, but he fell for the bait. Turning slowly, he eyed the female Shifter. “Sometimes I have to wonder if she does. Because with all that Vampire aloofness, sometimes I have my doubts.”
Her grin widened, telling him his casual tone didn’t fool her at all. “You make a great team. I think with you two as partners, you’ll solve this case in no time.”
Partners. Now he really felt foolish. Glad she didn’t know he’d been thinking romantically while she meant in a working relationship, he nodded. “Good to know. I’m hoping we will in time.”
She laughed again before pushing open the door and stepping inside, with him following right behind her.
Carmen and Jake were deep in conversation. As he approached, Carmen looked up and winked. “I was just telling Jake how the CDC works. I took a tour there and did quite a bit of research when I was thinking about seeing if they would hire me a few years ago.”
Rick made a big show out of checking his watch. “Sorry, but we need to get on the road.”
“Give us just five more minutes,” Jake pleaded, finally looking up from his notes. Apparently, he’d been scribbling furiously into a spiral notebook the entire time Carmen had been talking. “This information is really going to be beneficial in
writing the story.”
Rick frowned.
“It’s fine, Jake,” Carmen said, her voice as cool as the icy glare she directed at Rick. “I don’t have to ask his permission to do anything. You’ll have your five minutes and more if I feel it’s necessary.” Her tone contained a warning.
Since Rick didn’t want to start this leg of their assignment off on bad footing, he didn’t even attempt to argue. “Let me know when you’re ready,” he told her, escaping again to the balcony, where he could breathe the fresh air. Her mercurial mood change confused him. He didn’t know if it was because she was a Vampire or if it was some feminine thing. Either way, he had no clue. He just wanted to get on the road. Like ten minutes ago.
Though maybe some alone time would do him good. Hopefully, Maddie wouldn’t feel a sudden urge for more conversation.
To his relief, she didn’t follow him. A quick glance back showed she’d joined the discussion with Carmen and Jake. Good. Because right now, Rick needed to get his head back in the game and stop obsessing over the gorgeous and sexy Vampire when he needed to figure out a way to relate to her only as a teammate, a partner. Nothing more, nothing less. Now was definitely not the time to allow himself to get distracted.
* * *
The one thing Carmen would never permit was for a man—any man—to boss her around. This was why she’d set up the working dynamic with Rick in the beginning. Her nature would not allow him to be in charge. She wasn’t sure when this strong belief had taken place, but because she’d spent nearly her entire human life under first her father’s then her husband’s heel, she’d spent nearly a century after being made a Vampire exploring her strength. She’d vowed to remain independent and strong and so far, she had.
Damned if she’d let a bit of sexual attraction cut the legs out from under her.
After Rick’s directive, she stretched things out and kept talking to Jake for fifteen more minutes rather than five. From the corner of her eye, she could see Rick standing out on the balcony, his back to the room while he gazed out into the darkness. For whatever reason, this made her feel vaguely guilty.
Finally, she took pity on him and wrapped things up with Jake. “Good luck,” she said, uncoiling herself and pushing up off the sofa. She squared her shoulders and lifted her chin as she made her way to the balcony.
Stepping outside, she waited for Rick to turn. When he didn’t, she touched his arm. “I’m ready now.”
He swung his head to look down at her, the tightness of his expression revealing his leashed emotions. “I don’t like playing games,” he told her.
“Games?” she drawled, her tone mocking, unable to help herself. “I wasn’t playing a game back there. I told you up front early on that you weren’t going to be the one in charge. You can’t come and interrupt my conversation—it was important, too.” Surely he could see the validity of her point.
A muscle worked in his jaw. “We needed to get going.”
“Did we? Please. A few more minutes wasn’t going to hurt anything.”
She had him there and he knew it. But that didn’t mean he liked it. She’d lived long enough to understand how it was with men and their pride.
“Look.” Placing her hand once again on his arm, she felt the way his muscles bunched and tensed. There was power there, leashed yet fierce, and she liked that. “Don’t take this personally. It’s more my thing than anything else. I find it difficult to let a man call the shots.”
“Ever?”
Judging by his incredulous tone, he found this hard to believe. And she had to admit, it did sound kind of ridiculous.
She shrugged to cover her confusion.
“Carmen,” he pressed. “Are you saying that you always have to be in charge? Every single time?”
His question made her frown. Put that way, it made her seem both egocentric and bossy. Not to mention far too controlling. “I don’t know. Aren’t you making too much of this?”
He sighed. “Maybe,” he answered, much to her surprise. “And I think you are, as well. If we’re going to be partners, there’s got to be a give and take. I promise, there will be times when I’ll know or see something you don’t, and I’ll bark out an order. I’d do the same whether my partner was male or female. It isn’t sexist. It’s survival. Teamwork.”
“There’s no I in team,” she joked.
He didn’t even crack a smile. “I’m serious. I know for a fact that I won’t be able to work with you if you’re going to do the exact opposite of anything I say, just because you have control issues.”
Since she wasn’t sure how to respond to that, she did the only thing she could think of to distract him. She pressed her body up against his and kissed him.
As usual, instant sparks combusted. Except after a few seconds, she realized they were all on her end. Rick didn’t react at all. In fact, after the first initial shock, he closed his mouth and took a step back. “Not fair,” he said quietly. “You no longer get to play that card.”
For whatever reason, this made her want to cry. Which infuriated her. She’d gone centuries without shedding a tear over a man and she wasn’t going to start now.
“You are absolutely correct.” Her clipped tone revealed her emotions, though she figured he didn’t know her well enough to realize how truly upset she was. “From now on, we’re just partners.”
Her declaration didn’t appear to impress him.
“Just partners?” he repeated. “Only if you tell me you understand that we have to be equal. Sometimes you might have to do as I say. Other times, it will be reversed. Unless you can see that, I don’t think we can work together at all.”
Stunned, she took a moment to swallow her injured pride. Intellectually, she knew he had a point. “I agree,” she finally managed, wincing as she spoke. Then, she tried to lighten her eat crow moment with a bit of humor. “What do you know? It seems you actually can teach an old Vampire new tricks.”
He laughed at this, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Come on, then. Let’s hit the road. My SUV is parked nearby.”
The rush of warmth she felt in her chest at his smile was like nothing she’d ever experienced. In fact, if she hadn’t been a badass Vampire, she would have been frightened at the things this Shifter made her feel.
They rushed through their goodbyes, though Carmen hugged Maddie a bit tighter than usual. “Be careful,” she whispered.
“I will,” Maddie whispered back, her gaze sliding past Carmen to land on Jake. “And I’ll do my best to keep him safe.”
Carmen peered at her friend, wondering if the warm glow in Maggie’s eyes meant she had strong feelings for the human man. She bit back the urge to utter a warning, still stinging from her earlier conversation with Rick.
Heading out, she caught herself shaking her head. Ever observant, Rick eyed her but didn’t ask. He led the way to his vehicle and opened the passenger door for her. Once she’d climbed inside, he went around and got in, then started the engine. He backed out of the parking space and pulled out into the street.
“Now, what’s the plan?” she asked. “How are we going to get back in with Gus and his guys?”
“I’m hoping a phone call will do it,” he said. “But I need to buy a disposable phone. I can’t take a chance on them tracing my number, especially if they decide we have to pay for running away.”
“Why would they decide that?” Perplexed, she stretched. “They need us more than we need them.”
“How so?”
“Think about it. How many biologists like me do they have access to? They need to recreate the virus, especially if they can’t find Ted. Or worse, if they find Ted and learn they never had the virus after all.”
“Which means they’ve been played.”
“Or someone is pulling their strings still,” she continued. “The question is who.”
“Another possibility,” he said, glancing at her sideways as he drove. “They could be aware that they’re pawns or a shell for whoever is behind the
big picture. Their little terrorist cell really hasn’t done much other than funnel some guns to other terrorist groups. They’re on the ATF’s radar, but they’ve held back at the FBI’s request. We’ve been hoping they could inadvertently lead us to whoever is pulling the strings.”
Carmen nodded. “And all of this has something to do with West Latvia. Someone wanted a war with them, for whatever reason.”
“Exactly. That is another bit of info we need to find out. Why?” He grabbed his cell, keeping one hand on the steering wheel. “I’m about to call Landers. Even though he pulled a gun on us and you bit him, he’s the only one I have a number for.”
“He won’t remember much,” Carmen promised.
“Good. I’ll put it on speakerphone so I can drive. Feel free to chime in if you come up with anything you think will be helpful.”
“I will.”
But it turned out she didn’t need to. As soon as Landers learned it was Rick calling, he put Gus on the phone.
“Where the hell are you?” Gus demanded. “Landers told me some bullshit story about you hightailing it out of here after seeing the lab.”
“Was he acting on your orders when he confronted us at gunpoint?” Rick asked, his voice hard. “Or when he told Carmen to get to work while he intended to hold me hostage?”
Silence.
“So, yeah,” Rick continued when it became apparent Gus wasn’t going to answer. “And when we saw your lab had never been used, we figured it was in our best interests to go.”
“I see.” Gus had now become a man of few words.
“Were you aware?” Rick pressed. “About the lab, I mean? And if you were, then is it safe to assume Ted stole worthless vials?”
“I wouldn’t assume that,” Gus said. “It’s entirely possible he and Sheldon had the virus, even if they weren’t actually the ones to develop it.”
Carmen perked up at this, though she didn’t speak. Not yet.
“Explain,” Rick prodded.
Finding the Texas Wolf Page 15