by Faith Gibson
Julian couldn’t believe what he was looking at. He had searched through all the contractor’s files, or so he thought. He was definitely going to turn over the lab to Landon on a full-time basis after this. The male was obviously more adept than Julian.
“Are those the plans you needed?” Gregor asked, looking over his shoulder.
“Yes. Landon was able to find them,” Julian muttered.
“Don’t beat yourself up, Cousin. You have too much on your mind to be able to focus the way you needed. Once you have your mate, you’ll be back at kicking computer ass.”
Julian didn’t tell them his plan to step down. Instead, he said, “Supper’s ready.” Leaving his plate untouched, Julian focused on the drawing on his screen. Wanting to see a larger version, Julian redirected the information to the television. Tessa and Gregor ate their meal while looking at the plans with Julian. It was a crude drawing, but the rooms were labeled. “Here…” Julian said, pointing to a row of cells on the hallway to the left. “These are the only cells shown, so Katherine has to be in one of them.” Instead of there being five halls in total as there were on the first and second floors, there were only two. The one to the left where the cells were and the one on the right where four rooms were located. “These must be where they take the prisoners to torture them,” he said, indicating those closed off rooms.
Thinking of his mate being held in those rooms and subjected to inhumane treatment, Julian lost his appetite. Instead of dwelling on what he couldn’t control or change, he focused on what needed to be done. Pulling up the first-floor schematic, Julian did an overlay of the basement to see where the steps and elevators going down were located. “Gregor, have you noticed anyone going in or out of this door here?” he asked, pointing to the one that led to the stairwell going down.
“I haven’t focused on it, because I didn’t know where it led. I can always rewind the feed if you need me to.”
“It looks like this elevator only goes down as well. Now that you know where they both lead, please focus on who comes and goes in that area only. If we don’t get much movement, we will probably want to rewind. If someone is poisoning Kat, I want to know who it is.”
“So you can do what? You’re not a cold-blooded killer, Jules,” Tessa reminded him.
“No, I’m not, but if someone has harmed Katherine to the point where she cannot recover, I am not making any promises.”
“Let’s focus on getting her out, Brother. Stay positive. Katherine’s going to need you to be strong when you get her home. Believe me; I know what I’m talking about.” Gregor ran a finger down Tessa’s cheek. It hadn’t been that long ago that the redhead was in a coma fighting for her life. The couple returned their focus to the task in front of them as Julian studied everything about the basement. According to the plans, there were only two ways in and out – the elevator and the stairs. He made note of the nearest exit on the first floor and retrieved his notes from when he’d visited the prison the week before.
Neither Rayaz or Everhart had used the back exit in all the times he’d observed them. As a matter of fact, that exit wasn’t used by anyone. All personnel came and went through the front entrance. Julian switched his laptop over to show the same feed Gregor was seeing, except where his cousin was now focusing on the area leading to the basement, Julian focused on the main entrance. He and Tessa would need to know standard protocol with regards to the prison’s security measures. Julian rewound the feed until he found what he was looking for.
Terry Everhart’s hair was short. Much shorter than Julian’s. He would need to get a haircut before going inside. Instead of flashing an ID badge, the agent stepped up to a scanner and placed his hand on the screen. It took only seconds for the machine to determine his identity. He wasn’t asked to remove the weapon Julian knew to be on the man’s left hip. “Tessa, is Everhart right or left handed?” he asked as he watched the feed for Rayaz to enter the facility.
“Hang on… He has the remote control in his left.”
“Good, I’m also left handed, so that will make things less awkward. There is a bio scanner at the entrance where the agents are required to place their right palms. We’ll need to get fingerprints.”
“I have those. I got them when I was in their homes along with samples of DNA just in case. I also wrote down Everhart’s suit size. If you can fit into one of his that would be easier than trying to find an exact match to purchase. I’ve already planned how to fill out Rayaz’s clothing. I’ve also ordered a wig, and it should arrive tomorrow. I didn’t have one that matches the agent’s hair style, but it wasn’t hard to find something similar since she wears her hair in a long ponytail.”
“Can’t you dye your hair the same color?”
“I could, but I’d have to cut quite a bit of mine.” Gregor growled low in his throat, and Julian laughed.
“A wig it is.” He didn’t blame Gregor. Tessa’s hair was a beautiful red that hung down to her waist. Katherine’s hair was a similar color, but it wasn’t nearly as long as Tessa’s nor as wavy. “How do you get all your hair tucked into a wig?”
“Very carefully,” she said and winked before turning back to study Agent Rayaz.
Julian looked over her shoulder to the monitor that showed Everhart. The man was boring. He sat on the sofa drinking a beer and watching the baseball game. He didn’t get excited when either team scored. He didn’t change the channel during commercials. If he didn’t take a sip from his bottle every so often, Julian would have thought him to be asleep. The feed from the prison showed more of his mannerisms. He didn’t walk like a man with something to prove or a chip on his shoulder. He also never smiled, which was good for Julian. He and Tessa might wear prosthetics, but as quickly as they’d put this mission together, they didn’t have time to worry about teeth. If either Agent’s teeth weren’t straight and white, that might be a giveaway.
With the help he’d received today from Gregor, Tessa, and Landon, Julian was closer to getting his mate away from the federal government. Somehow, everything was falling into place, and it wouldn’t be long before they went in to rescue Kat. Julian sent up a silent prayer to the gods to watch over his mate. He didn’t understand why they allowed the bad shit to happen, but it wasn’t his place to question. He had to accept that bad things happened to good Goyles and humans, and the trials they endured would make them stronger in the long run.
Chapter Nine
A knock sounded, and Alistair called out, “What?”
Demetri opened the door and said, “Your daughter is on the phone for you. Do you wish to speak to her?”
“Why are you answering the phone instead of watching Darian?”
“Darian is on the training field sparring. He never leaves the field while he is instructing the others. He will be on the field for at least another hour. Your daughter?” The Gargoyle sounded bored. When had Alistair lost the upper hand when it came to his Clan?
“I’ll take it, but do not go anywhere,” he grumbled. Demetri remained where he was as Alistair picked up the handset. “Kallisto, I’m rather busy.”
“I have good news, Father. I have found someone to work on the computers until we can locate Achilles.”
“If you have not figured out by now that we will not be able to locate Achilles, you are even dumber than I thought. Who is this male?”
“He’s a human, Father, but he is a capable hacker.”
Alistair groaned, not bothering to hide his disdain from Kallisto. “Fine. But if he fails at any task I set before him, I will take his head and you will watch. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Father. I–”
Alistair hung up the phone. He didn’t need to speak to Kallisto any longer. He had other matters to tend to. More pressing matters than chatting with the human he was growing tired of. Kallisto had lost his respect when she failed him while in the States.
“Demetri, I expected a full report on where you and Darian went last night and who he spoke to. Is it too much to ask to ge
t that now?” he seethed.
“No, Your Highness. We went to the pub and had a few beers. Darian spoke to no one except for me and the waitress. He only spoke to her to place his order. We left there and went to The Drake. Same as with the pub, Darian drank a few beers and spoke to the waitress. He danced with a human female, but they didn’t do much talking. Afterwards, we came back to the Villa.”
“What did he say to the human he danced with?” Alistair didn’t trust anyone, even his first in command.
“He told her how pretty she looked, how good she smelled, and how he would love nothing more than to take her home and fuck her all night long. She took offense to the crassness of his words, slapped him across the face, and left him standing alone on the dance floor.”
Alistair raised his eyebrows. “And he let her get away with the offense?” No human should be allowed to touch a Gargoyle in defiance and get away with it.
“He merely laughed, Sire.”
“And what would you have done if a human slapped you?”
“I’d have followed the bitch and ripped her head off.”
“Do you have any doubts as to Darian’s loyalties to me or this Clan?”
“No, Your Highness. He’s been nothing except diligent in training the warriors for battle. He drills the importance of loyalty into their heads.”
“Very well. You are relieved of following him at all times, but Demetri, should Darian stray for any reason at all, it is you I will come after first.”
“As is your right, Sire.” Demetri inclined his head out of respect and left Alistair alone. The Gargoyle was drab and spoke in a monotone voice, but Alistair believed him to be truthful. He was as large as Darian, but not nearly as handsome. When Darian accused Alistair of wanting to see him naked, he’d been close to correct. It wasn’t that Alistair wanted the male, but he did enjoy watching him in action with the human whores. Too bad Darian wasn’t into being watched. Alistair could demand his presence in the bedroom, but he needed the male focused on training. Now that Athena was dead, it was only a matter of time until Rafael brought war to Ithaca.
It was late when Sinclair’s plane landed. He and Rocky arrived at the manor a little before midnight. Kaya had waited up with Rafael to welcome the newest mate back to their home. Since the Goyles didn’t need sleep, Frey and Urijah were also there waiting. After everyone had said their hellos, Kaya took Rocky to the room she would share with Sin while they were in New Atlanta and left the males to talk.
“Brother,” was all Rafael said before Sin pulled him into a tight embrace. They stood for several minutes comforting each other in the loss of their mother. They didn’t have actual confirmation from anyone in Greece of their mother’s passing, but no one doubted the vision Connor had. The boy had yet to be wrong. “I called the twins, and I am waiting to hear back from them,” Rafael said as he and Sin released each other. “Neither has heard from Donovan, but they said that was not unusual.”
“How is Connor?” Sin asked.
“Dante said he is taking this hard. All his other visions have helped the Clan in one way or another, whether helping to find someone or giving a positive insight into the future. This is the first one that has been about death.”
“I can’t imagine having such a burdensome gift being as young as he is.”
“I discussed this with Connor. I told him I appreciate everything he does for our family, but still, he is only seven. Dante and Isabelle will get him through it.”
“Last time I was here, we all agreed to wait until we had more intel before storming Alistair’s compound. Have your thoughts changed?” Sin asked.
“Yes. I am tired of sitting around waiting for him to come to us, and I have no doubt he will if we do not strike first. Besides that, I want to find out what he did with Mother’s body. She needs a proper burial. I have tasked Landon with getting all information he can with regards to the layout of the compound.”
Frey added, “I called Bryce. He has some former military buddies who are now members of a covert group of operatives. The types of missions they go on are exactly what we’ll need guidance with. And before you ask, yes, I trust him as well as the humans he’s working with. Since Alistair owns all of Ithaca, we’ll need the best military resources we can get. Your uncle will have eyes and ears everywhere, so it’s going to be tough to pull off a surprise.”
“How long has it been since Bryce saw these buddies? Won’t they be suspicious of him not aging?” Sin asked.
Frey grinned. “A few years back, Bryce told them he was part of a secret experiment when he was younger that made him stronger and ageless. They wanted to know where they could sign up.”
“I think one of the first things we need to decide is how many of our Clan we need to take with us and how we’re going to get that many Gargoyles to Greece undetected,” Uri said.
“I agree. If we don’t hear from Donovan soon, someone is going to have to make a trip to the compound one way or another. Hunter offered to go, but since he’s Carter’s twin, Alistair would recognize him. We need someone else.” Rafael stood to pour them all a drink when his phone rang. “It’s Hunter,” he informed the others. “Hunter, I have you on speaker. Sinclair, Frey, and Urijah are here with me.”
“I got a message from Donovan. It was a little cryptic. Seems he got away from the compound and got a message to some female he was dancing with. It took her a while to find me at the marina. Anyway, the message was this – Athena wanted a vacation away from Zeus. The tunnels can be cleared at one twenty.”
“The first part proves our suspicions; she willed herself to cross over. Do you have any idea what he meant about the tunnels?” Sin asked.
“I spoke to Carter about that since he lived at the compound on Poros. He mentioned the tunnels running underneath where they were able to escape when they rescued Isabelle. It probably means there are tunnels on Ithaca as well. We can only guess to the one twenty reference. We believe that’s how many Goyles he has there during training.”
“That’s a lot of males to be housed in one facility,” Frey said.
“They aren’t all housed there. Most of them come and go for training. That much I’ve been able to observe with my own eyes. I’m going to continue monitoring their activities to get their schedules down as well as how many actually live at the villa. If we can get into the compound when the least Clan members are there, we’ll have a better chance of getting to Alistair,” Hunter said.
“We? Hunter, I appreciate you helping us gather the information we need, but this is not your fight, Brother,” Rafe stated.
“I pledged my loyalty to Xavier who in turn pledged his to you. I will be honored to fight alongside your Clan.”
“And we would be honored to have you,” Sin said, sending Rafael a silent message.
“We are putting together our plan to gather our troops and travel to Greece. We should have something in place within a week. We will keep you posted as to our arrangements. In the meantime, please let us know anything else that might be of help.”
“I will be in touch.”
Rafael disconnected. “One hundred twenty times two. That’s a lot of Gargoyles fighting to hide from humans.”
“We need to wait on Hunter to give us the schedule. If we can ascertain the optimum time for sneaking in, we can do it with only as many Brothers as we need to take out his males and grab him as well. This is the type of plan Bryce is working on – not a full-scale war. We don’t need to run the risk of humans seeing Gargoyles fully phased,” Frey added.
“So all we can do is wait,” Rafael said, not looking too happy about it. “Uri, plan on at least fifty males to begin with. If we need to add to or cut that number, we will. I want those fifty ready to move out at a moment’s notice.” Uri inclined his head. “Frey, as soon as you hear from Bryce, call us and we will gather again. We will give you a call if Hunter gets back in touch with us.”
Urijah and Frey said their goodbyes and left the manor to return to their
homes. Rafael and Sin poured another drink and toasted their mother in silent regard before heading to where their mates were waiting for them. As soon as Rafael closed the door, Kaya turned toward him. “How did it go?”
“There are still a lot of variables we do not know, but things are falling in place. If I am correct, my uncle will be joining my mother within the next few weeks,” he said not so cryptically. Kaya pulled back the covers, inviting Rafael to join her in bed. He quickly shed his clothes, not bothering to put them in the laundry hamper in the bathroom. He needed the feel of his Queen’s skin against his. The soothing touch only she could give him. The sound of his son’s heartbeat melding with Kaya’s as he held her close. Rafael was all for making love to his mate, but in that moment, he needed the calm she and their son brought to him more.
Julian relieved Gregor from studying the monitors so he could stretch his legs. Tessa had watched Agent Rayaz until the woman finally went to bed. Afterwards, she had finished Julian’s voice transmitter and showed him how it worked. Afterwards, Tessa used the living area to practice mimicking the human’s walk with Gregor giving her pointers. They made such a good team, and it made Julian smile. Tessa was a foul-mouthed redhead with a sassy attitude, but when it came time to get serious, she was all business.
Rafael had called Gregor earlier to inquire how things were going and to give them what little bit of information they had regarding their plan to go after Alistair. Neither had much to offer, but Julian felt he was getting closer to rescuing his mate. They had taken turns looking at the maps of the basement, studying the layout of the first floor, and reciting to memory where everything was located. Gregor had practiced with the controls to certain doors. He waited until a guard was close to a door, and he flipped the switch, shutting the man out. When the man tried his keycard again, Gregor reversed the action, and the guard was able to get through, shrugging his shoulders at the glitch.
Tessa eventually excused herself to bed. Since she was a half-blood, she needed more sleep than the males did. Instead of joining her, Gregor continued studying and monitoring alongside Julian. He didn’t offer more words of appreciation to his cousin. They weren’t needed. Up to that point, Julian had played a large part in helping rescue the other mates, so he knew it was time to be repaid. As Tessa said earlier, it’s what family did. Once Tessa mated with Gregor, her father, Xavier, had pledged his Clan’s loyalty and assistance for anything they needed. It’s the way it should be between all Clans, not just those whose mates had bonded.