by T. J. Quinn
“Why can’t that man leave my Jared alone?”
“It’s not just Abrams. The central government has been running a corruption investigation for the last three years on one of the large pharmaceutical companies. Abrams is just a low-grade flunky that generated leads and located test groups for the company. My contact suspects all levels of local government have been corrupted in that region. We need to make sure he doesn’t get ahold of Jared because possession is nine tents of the law.”
Selene’s voice squeaked out. “You don’t understand. If they get their hands on him, they have a million different ways to coerce him into staying.”
None of that was a surprise to Jared. It was common knowledge in the region he grew up in, that PharmCon, and by extension Abrams could do what they wanted with impunity. They were wrong about Abrams being a small fry. He was their dirty deeds guy. The errand boy they sent to lobby for things they didn’t want publicly connected to them.
Selene’s small quivering voice was giving away all his secrets today. “They’ve used the other kids against him in the past.”
“My contact doesn’t think he’s still using kids. He’s resorted to enticing low wage workers into being test subjects as of late. He wouldn’t be paying out money if he still had subjects he could use for free.”
“Thank God. “I just wish this were over.”
“It is not going to truly be over until the central government busts that big pharma corp. Then we’ll be able to rest a little easier.”
“Tell them to hurry. His birthday is in nineteen days.”
His mother laughed wryly. “Never having to look over his shoulder for those bastards again would be an amazing birthday gift.”
“Walking his spider out, Jared was interested in eavesdropping on the security team to see what kind protections they had in place for his family. Before he could manage that, there was commotion at outside.
Coming gracefully to his feet, Jared made for the door and slipped the eye in the sky outside. Sinking back, he pulled up the images it captured on his tablet and flew it towards a shuttle that just landed. Images began filling the view screen.
There was a shuttlecraft landing. Before anyone got out, he knew it was his foster-father. The shuttlecraft had the man’s family logo on the side, the same logo that had been branded into his skin as a small child.
Jared felt a jolt of adrenaline shoot through his body ending on his right buttock where his flesh had been seared. He reached over, hit his communicator and said, “My father…I mean my foster father has arrived. His shuttle just touched down, but he has not exited the craft yet.”
Dakota, Alek, and Josh sounded off. “Copy that.” Glancing up, he saw his mother and Alek coming down from the conference rooms. It was strange to see the same look of grim determination on both their faces. Selene stood looking terrified with one hand pressed open against the front of glass conference room wall. Her large frightened eyes were looking down at him.
Jared immediately touched his communicator. “Selene stay put. Don’t come down here. It’s not safe.” He’d given her protective body armor, and she was wearing it. He could see it peeking out the sleeve of her shirt. His mind rolled back over the many sparring matches they’d had and how she’d learned to shoot at his side. Even though they were both young, they’d been affected by his early life experiences. Nothing would prepare her for facing off against one of Abrams’ henchmen.
Selene alone could recognize the fear that he held carefully in check behind a wall of apparent calm. He could see her hand move slowly from the glass wall to her communicator and her small voice begged, “Jared come up here with me…where…where it’s safe.”
He smiled a smile that did not quite reach his eyes. “I have to do this. Don’t worry. I have a virtual army at my back.”
Jared met Alek and his mother at the bottom of the steps, pointed to the symbol on the side of the shuttlecraft then pulled down the back of his pants and underwear to expose the same symbol burned into his buttock. He had the stylized SA for Stephen Abrams burned into his skin, the same as the logo on the side of his shuttle.
Alek turned to the Kalian and stated angrily. “Weapon please.” The look on Alek’s face was stone cold furry. Jared wondered if it was because his father had branded him like cattle. Faran tossed him a laser pistol and then another which he tucked into his waistband before walking out to the shuttlecraft with Dakota and Jared at his back.
The shuttlecraft door slid open, and his father stepped out. He was wearing the old-fashioned suit Jared remembered him favoring and had his public face on. His public face was the snide and condescending one. Jared recalled the expression of gratification he used when disciplining him back in the day.
Jared became aware of about thirty of his hired thugs spilling out of the spacious shuttle. They lined up neatly along the front of the shuttle. The over display of force was one of his father’s oldest intimidation techniques. Jared found himself amused at the showing of force on both sides, all for a poor lost orphan.
Senol’s voice whispered in his head. Beware the serpent’s fangs, my brother. Jared was too distracted to decipher if Senol was actually mind-linked with him or if seeing his father after so many years merely brought the memory of his friend’s words forward from the dark recesses of his mind.
Stepping out of the shuttlecraft he looked past Alek, straight at him. Jared held his gaze, much as he did as a child. His mother moved closer to him, stepping slightly in front of him. It was a protective pose and warmed his heart. Abrams wouldn’t do anything stupid with so many guns on him today. This was his one in a million shot to see if he could wrangle him away from his mother legally.
If it worked, the old man would make sure he never saw the light of day again. There’d be some story about him running away or getting mauled by a bear, and the local authorities would cremate his body, and no one would know he was being held in a facility doing their dirty work.
“Son, I’ve come for you. I have a court order…”
Alek literally stepped in front of the older man. “You are either confused or stupid. Jared is not your son or your property to brand as you please. We certainly are not going to hand him over to a vicious monster like you.”
The man looked at Alek. “Who are you?”
“You know full well who I am. You’ve been stalking Dakota and myself long enough to know all about our arrangement.”
“That doesn’t concern me because you’re no one who has anything to do with this situation I think. So, it simply does not matter what you think or what you say.”
Dakota stepped forward, “Well I’m his mother, and you might just as well turn yourself right around. Jared is not going anywhere with you.”
“Ah yes, the famous hunter. Somehow, I thought you would be taller. You also look bustier in your posters. In any event, if you could just fetch my son…”
Dakota took another step forward into his personal space and interrupted him. “I think you mean my son. Funny, now that you mention it I don’t remember having sex with you, so you can stop saying ‘my son’ because we both know he’s not.”
“You’re a mouthy little thing.”
Jared saw his mother’s back stiffening, as she continued on like he hadn’t just spoken to her. “You may not have to listen to my love mate, but you will certainly listen to me. Jared is my son, and I’ll burn in hell before I turned him over to a sadistic bastard like you again. My best advice to you is to get back onto your shuttlecraft and get the hell off my property before I have you arrested or worse. Am I making myself clear?”
The older man pushed her back a step with one hand. “I have a court order saying he comes with me today.” He pulled out a court order, and a quick review revealed it gave him immediate custody.
Jared watched that smug little look turn to unbridled fury as Alek pulled out another court order. This one was from a local magistrate stating Jared would remain with his mother until proper testing cou
ld be completed to establish paternity.
Alek simply stated, “Jared is in this jurisdiction. My attorneys assure me this is the court order that will be enforced here today.”
The man stubbornly insisted, “I’m not leaving without my son.”
That was it, Dakota nailed him, and Alek grabbed her with one arm and handed her to Durk who wrangled her back a few steps.
Alek turned to the man and wrangled his anger under control before speaking. “Jared’s biological father is on his way here and will be arriving any moment.”
“It doesn’t matter. I have a court order saying that I had full custody. I don’t give my permission for any medical tests to be performed on my son. If you wish a paternity test, it will have to be done by a physician we both agree on.”
Jared finally spoke up. “I’ve already submitted blood for paternity testing. When my father arrives, he will submit a sample, and that will be the end of your court order. You rolled the dice and lost today. I suggest you take it like a man.”
Anger flared in the man’s face. “How dare you throw my own words back in my face that way, boy?”
“I’m a boy no longer.” Holding out his arms, Jared stared down the demons from his past. “I’m a grown man and far too wise to your ways, to fall haplessly into your trap. What you wish of me, I will never do. Go in peace before my vampire father arrives.”
“Vampires don’t scare me.”
“Funny, I just scented your fear. Truth be told, that’s one of the reasons you came, to lobby against vampires being allowed to function as law enforcement officers. We have good senses and can track down all your dirty little secrets. PharmCon must be eager to bar us for much the same reason. We both know they have more to hide than most corporations.”
Taking a calculated step towards him, Jared thought to himself that he would have found that intimidating when he was younger. Now it just reeked of posturing and desperation. “Leave them out of this, boy.”
“Where you go, they go. I’ll speak truth to power if you press me into a corner. Is that what you wish?”
Standing face to face, they stared at each other. The man’s eyes searched his face. Jared knew he was thinking of testing his resolve. Standing firm, he didn’t blink. Finally, his foster father spoke. His tone was low and quiet. Such was his way when speaking of things, he knew he shouldn’t.
“You wouldn’t dare drag PharmCon’s name through the mud.”
“Wrong. The broken child you cast aside wouldn’t have spoken a word. He would have crawled into a corner and prayed you never found him. Look closely, old man. See me for the person I am today. Do I look much like that boy you once knew?”
All the resolve fled from the older man’s face. “I’ll be back with law enforcement.” Though he spoke the words required by that moment in time, his tone held no hint of confidence.
Jared shot back, “Make sure it’s law enforcement with jurisdiction in this region.”
His foster father was beginning to look exasperated. It was long overdue in Jared’s humble opinion.
Another shuttle approached. Jared cautioned their unwelcomed visitor calmly. “I suggest you take this opportunity to leave and think long and hard about how much you are willing to risk to snare one stubborn man who will make it his life’s mission to expose all your dirtiest secrets.”
“How can you say that to me? I’m your father. I fed you, loved you and took you into my home. I overlooked your alien heritage and…”
“I hear my father is a ferocious hunter. He will visit trouble on you the likes of which you probably have not known. His shuttle arrives, even now.” Gesturing to an incoming shuttle, Jared didn’t have the vaguest idea if it was his father or not. He was merely playing the game. It was working, because he glanced nervously at the sky.
Alek stepped forward again. “If you elect to stay, you are not welcome anywhere except the parking lot. I also need you to move your shuttle to the back of the lot. We have a lot of traffic coming and going. I can’t have you blocking it.”
Jared wondered if Alek knew precisely how insulting that statement was to a man like Abrams, who was used to having people move aside for him and curry favor in every way imaginable.
The older man’s face went stony, as they began pulling back out of speaking distance. “Don’t you walk off from me, boy.” It was the last sad refrain from a man being left on the tarmac like a commoner. Jared turned on his heel and stalked back into the building. He walked straight up the steps and into the conference room where Selene was nervously picking through information on PharmCon.
She glanced up, and a smile immediately jumped onto her face. “Is it over?”
“Not by a long shot.”
Bucking up, she replied stoically. “We’ll just have to keep digging for information until we have enough to bury them.”
“Come, my sweet. Let’s take a break. I know my mother and Alek mean well, but they have no idea how deep this runs with PharmCon.”
“Dakota said state officials are dirty in that region.”
Nodding, he held out his hand for her. “They’re dirty all the way up to the central government, which in the process of cannibalizing their own. I couldn’t even tell you which side is going to win at this point, but I can tell you that pretty much nothing we do ourselves will matter.”
Taking his hand, she let him draw her into the circle of his arms.
“Promise me that when you get your inheritance, you’ll send some to the kids living in the mountains.”
“I’ll make sure they have a shuttle, medical supplies, and food. We’ll get any out who want to come this way. I can give you my word on that.”
“Seeing their faces when we make the blood bond makes me feel like I know Senol and his love mate, Rebecca. Not the mention all the little ones, they’re all so sweet.”
Laughing, Jared explained. “You are seeing them the way there were long ago. Surely they are mostly grown by now.”
Smiling up at him, she murmured. “I can’t believe that I didn’t think of that.”
Chapter 16
A Vampire Father
~ Jared ~
Within a few hours, another shuttlecraft landed, and Garan along with about fourteen other massive vampire warriors walked off the shuttle in standard V formation. In terms of making a shocking display of strength, his father did that just by showing up.
Garan was everything his mother had said and more. He literally towered over everyone else, at nearly seven foot tall. It was clear that he was a full blood prime with a royal lineage because he had the symbol of his house inked upon his neck. It was clearly visible for anyone who knew of such things to see. He was obviously the strongest of their kind. He was large, muscular and wearing extremely worn brown hunting leathers.
If that wasn’t enough, twelve of his men were marked out as his quorum. Was he actually following ancient vampire customs of keeping a royal house on Earth? Blinking at the sight before him, Jared drew his love mate closer. If this man was his father, Jared knew his world was about to be turned upside down.
Garan’s eyes found at Dakota and then promptly roamed around until he found Jared. A slight smile curved up his lips and made a straight line for him and Selene.
Dakota stepped out and extended her hand. “Thank you for coming right away. We have great need of you. If you follow me, we can talk in private.”
An impossibly deep voice responded crisply. “I will speak with my heir, then with you.”
“It would be better if we spoke first.”
“You are the mother of my child, and I would never disrespect you. However, I responded to aid my son, not you.”
“I understand. It’s just that this is a complicated situation and I want to…”
“I am unaccustomed to repeating myself, Dakota Davenport.”
Jared stepped out, with Selene at his back. The response was unlike anything Jared had ever seen.”
His father and his men all immediately
dropped down to one knee and bowed their heads. One arm was draped across their chest, and the fingers of the other hand pressed lightly against the floor.
“Greetings to you, my son. And to our reverend mother.”
“Our what?”
Alek sighed. “They will not stand until my daughter gives them leave. It is a mark of respect because she is destined to propagate your bloodline.”
Selene cautiously stepped forward. Cupping Garan’s face, she spoke reverently. “Rise and may the gods be with you, sire of my beloved.”
Jared vaguely recognized her words from the vampire holy scripture. He mumbled, “I’ve had just about all the surprises I can stand for one day. Mother will you show my father’s quorum to the dining room. Selene and I will speak in private with him.”
Jared led his father to a private office and motioned for him to sit down. Selene opened a mini-fridge and brought them fruit drinks.
“Do you mind if I ask what my mother told you? It will give me a jumping off point in staring the discussion.”
“She told me to come right away. That you were in great danger.”
“That’s it?”
“I was pleased that she finally found you. We have been searching for many long years. I am eager to make up for lost time.”
“You should know, my mother found me two years ago.”
He saw shock register on his father face for a brief second. “We agreed to alert the other if we had promising leads. I spent on a lot of time in the southern continent, searching through small villages earlier in the year because we heard that a missionary had found homes for some vampire children there. I was disappointed to not find you there after searching for two months.”
“I’m sorry my mother didn’t contact you.”
“Did you not think to ask for me?”
“Look, until the last couple of weeks, I thought my asshole foster dad was my biological father. I sure as hell didn’t want him back in my life.”
“I am here in his stead. Perhaps you could explain to me the nature of the danger you are facing. I am accustomed to dealing with such situations.”