"Just general questions," Peter said. "They wanted to know when you'd joined the FBI, where you'd trained, who your previous partners were, that sort of thing."
Brittney cursed. "What'd you tell them?"
"I didn't," Peter said. "I asked what it was about, and asked if I had to answer their questions. They said I didn't. I got the feeling the investigation was off the books."
"Alright," Brittney said, her mind reeling. "Who were the officers? Was one Ryan Moore?"
"No," Peter said. "There was a woman and a man; Detectives Livingston and Grady. They were very interested in everything to do about you and they weren't happy when I wouldn't answer their questions. What should I have said? I don't know the right answers to that stuff."
"I'll let you know," Brittney said. "You did the right thing, Peter. Shit, what if they call mom and dad? Okay, I have to go. If someone else starts poking around, do the same thing. Tell them you're not going to answer and then get hold of me right away, okay?"
"Okay. Are you in trouble, Brittney?"
"I'm always in trouble," she muttered and hung up. She stuffed her phone back in her pocket. She quickly ran back to Afterlife. The DJ was setting up for the night and waved at her. She returned the wave, unlocked the back room door, and found Harper sipping at a ginger ale and reading a book about the fey.
"That was a quick run," Harper said, setting the book down. "Why are you back so soon?"
Brittney quickly told her about the conversation with Peter.
"Damn it," Harper said. "If they start poking around our families, they're going to realize we're not real FBI agents. We need to get our stories straight about why our parents wouldn't know what's going on."
"And why is that?" Brittney asked. "It doesn't make sense, and they're going to know that, Harper. What are we going to do? This is all crumbling around us. If they find out we're impersonating FBI agents, we're going to get arrested, and Agent Eklund's going to be on the hook too."
"I know, I know," Harper said. "I'm thinking."
Brittney hesitated and then said. "I think it's time to tell our families. Your mom and dad are out of town, but mine aren't. We need to go talk to them."
"We're waiting for Marissa," Harper said.
"She won't be back for a few hours," Brittney said. "Come on, let's go."
"Are you sure about this?" Harper asked. "They're not going to like what we have to say."
Brittney nodded. She'd just been thinking how nice it would be if her parents could know about her other life. Now it was time for them to know just that.
"We'll deal with the cops later," she said. "They're running the investigation off the books which means we have time to figure out how to handle them."
Harper nodded. The two of them got up, and went out to Brittney's SUV. They went home, changed, and grabbed their badges and guns. Then, with a fair amount of trepidation, they headed towards Brittney's parents' house. Brittney wondered how they''d react.
They might not believe her, of course. If someone had asked her a year ago if she believed she'd someday be doing what she was doing... well, she would have thought they were crazy. Maybe, she thought with a smile, she still would.
It didn't take them all that long to get to the Conley's house. Brittney knew she should have called first; they might not even be home. Then she saw their cars in the driveway, glanced at Harper, and nodded. They went inside together.
Alice Conley was the one to come to the door when Brittney opened it. She beamed at her daughter and at Harper.
"Oh, what a lovely surprise," she said. "I didn't know you two were dropping by. How delightful, though. I was just telling your father that you don't come by enough. Wasn't I, Craig?"
Craig nodded, joining them. "She was, just a couple days ago. Come in, come in, sit down." He hugged both of them tightly and then they went to the sitting room.
"Actually, Mom, Dad, we need to talk to the two of you. It's actually really important." Brittney said.
She looked over at Harper again and saw that her friend was nervously clutching a throw pillow to her chest. She wanted to tell her to calm down.
"Certainly," Alice said. She sat across from them, next to her husband. "What is it, girls? Are you in some kind of trouble? You don't look well."
"You don't," Craig agreed. "What's happened? Is one of you pregnant?"
"No!" Brittney said quickly.
Alice let out a relieved sigh. "It's not that I'd mind being a grandmother, but you both are far too young to be thinking of starting families. You should wait another five years."
"We're not starting families, Mrs. Conley," Harper said with a ghost of a smile. "We're actually here to talk about our jobs."
Craig blinked and then chuckled. "Tired of waitressing already, are you?"
"Bartending," Harper corrected quietly.
"Whichever," Alice said. "I knew the two of you would come around. Now, what is it? Did you get fired? Did you quit? Are you looking for new jobs? Your father and I can help both of you find something respectable. Unless you want to go back to college?"
Brittney shook her head. "Actually, mom, it's none of those things. Harper and I have been lying to you. We haven't actually been bartending. Or waitressing. We had another job we've been working at for the last year."
Alice and Craig exchanged looks and both of them sat back in disapproval at being lied to. Her father gestured for her to continue.
"We couldn't tell you," Brittney said. "We were part of an intensive, four-month training group for the FBI."
Craig actually laughed out loud. He looked upset though while doing it. "Alright girls. That's enough. I want to know what you've really been up to."
"She's not lying," Harper said. She pulled out her badge, ID card, and gun. She slid all three onto the table in between them. Brittney did the same.
Alice hesitated and then leaned forward and picked up the certification. She read over it, put it back, studied their cards. Then she looked at the girls for a long moment. "Why couldn't you tell us?"
"We're not supposed to be saying anything now," Brittney said. "But Peter got into some trouble and we had to smooth it over. They've opened an internal affairs investigation against us, and they're questioning our families. We thought you'd want to hear it from us, not them."
Craig frowned. "What kind of trouble? Does this have to do with that money he owed to those men?"
Brittney nodded.
"You won't be in too much trouble, will you?" Alice asked.
"I don't think so, mom," Brittney said. "But if they come by, asking questions, just turn them away. They can't question you without a subpoena."
"I see," Alice said.
Craig leaned forward and picked up Brittney's gun. He examined it for a moment and then put it back down. "It's a nice piece," he said.
"Thanks Dad," Brittney said. She glanced at Harper.
"I just hate that you lied to us," Craig said. "You never even told us you were considering a career in law enforcement. What brought this on?"
Harper cleared her throat. "We'd been considering it for awhile. We just didn't want to say anything until we knew if we could pass the course. Then they wanted us undercover, so we couldn't say anything to our families until we finished a case we were working."
"You're already working cases?" Alice said. "This is a dangerous career, girls. Are you sure this is what you want?"
"I've never been happier," Brittney said.
"Well I suppose that's what matters," Craig said. "I'm proud of the both of you. The FBI course isn't something that's easy to pass. And I'm sorry that you got into trouble helping Peter out. If there's anything we can do to help, you let us know. We can get you a lawyer if you need it."
"I don't think it'll go that far," Harper said. "But we appreciate it, don't we, Brittney?"
"We do," Brittney said.
Alice smiled at them. "Let me get you something to drink and you can tell us all about the course. We want to hear wh
at you had to go through, and we want to hear about this case you were working on."
Harper shook her head. "Actually, Mrs. Conley, we have to get back to work. We wanted to stop by and talk to you about this, but we don't have time to stay. We'd love to come by for dinner sometime soon though, and then we can discuss it."
Craig sighed. "Of course you'd be running off. Right in the evening too."
"Work keeps us busy," Brittney said. "And our boss is a real hard-ass. He loves working nights."
Harper laughed.
Brittney flashed her a grin and the two of them stood. They collected their things, hugged Alice and Craig, and then left.
"Well that didn't go so bad," Harper said.
"Not at all," Brittney said. "Now we just need to research FBI training courses. Figure out what it is that we need to have gone through. I suppose it's not so bad lying to them about this."
"You know we can't tell them about the supernatural world," Harper said. "It's too dangerous. It's bad enough letting them know about the FBI."
"Necessity," Brittney said. "Come on, let's get back. Marissa will be there soon, and we need to wake the others up."
FIFTEEN
"Okay," Conner said to Samuel. "We have the information we need. Now it's time to confront these women."
"You're sure they're all women?" Samuel asked.
Conner held up the case files. "All of these people report being duped by women. Besides that, women are the only ones with the Sight."
Samuel frowned. "I didn't know that."
"I researched after I met Harper," Conner said. "Come on, they should be at this hotel." He pointed at the map marker on his GPS. "It's only half an hour away."
The two of them took Samuel's car again, but Conner drove this time. He knew Las Vegas a lot better than Samuel did, and was able to get them there without being caught in too much traffic. He was pretty proud of this fact, considering it was rush hour.
Once there, they parked and discussed their plan.
"Okay, so they're pretending to be fortune-tellers," Conner said. "At first, I thought we could go to them and pretend to be tourists because that's who they're targeting, but they have the Sight. They'll recognize me as an incubus."
Samuel nodded. "What if go up alone? They won't recognize me unless I shape-shift. I can go up as a tourist, pretend to get swindled and you can come up afterward and we can--"
Conner shook his head. "There's no reason to try and trick them if I'm going to come up in the end anyway. Let's just get them alone and give them the chance to back off."
Samuel cocked his head, thinking of a solution. "What if we trick them? I can lead them somewhere private. Then you come in, transform, and we threaten them. Make them realize that Vegas isn't the place for them."
"Alright," Conner conceded. He didn't like the idea of Samuel going in alone, but he had to admit that the shape-shifter had handled the police station just fine. "How are you going to get them alone?"
"I'll wing it," Samuel said.
"I don't like this," Conner said.
"I'll be fine," Samuel assured him.
Conner sighed and nodded. He didn't see that they really had another choice. He couldn't exactly threaten them in front of a bunch of tourists. "Go on then. I'll get a room and text you the number. You get them up there. Think you can handle that, Sam?"
Samuel nodded. "It's going to be fine, man. Alright?"
"Alright."
Samuel walked off, and Conner watched him go before entering the hotel and renting a room. He got the card, and then texted Samuel the room number as planned. He made himself comfortable inside the room. There was a small mini-bar in the fridge and he calmed himself by taking a shot of rum. He knew it was an expensive shot but he didn't mind paying for it.
Minutes ticked by. Every one that passed left Conner feeling more and more uneasy. He realized he didn't know Samuel as well as the members of the Afterlife crew. Had he made a mistake in involving him? What if he couldn't handle it? He should have brought Alec along, or Sarah, or...
There was a knock on the door.
Conner jumped to his feet, relief washing over him. He went to answer it. Samuel flashed him a grin, and four women filed into the room after him. Samuel immediately closed the door behind them as they studied Conner.
"Incubus," one of the women said suddenly. She turned to Samuel. "You tricked us."
"Yes, well," Samuel said. "Sorry about that." He transformed into his bear form and let out a loud roar. The woman backed away. Conner didn't hesitate. He immediately became demonic and came at the women, attempting to frighten them.
To his surprise, it didn't work. One of the women actually laughed -- then she transformed. Then the others did as well. They were in a room with four vampires.
"You think we'd come here unprotected?" one of the women asked, her black eyes flashing in the lamp light. "You even waited until evening when our powers were stronger. How kind of you."
"I thought you were gypsies," Conner rasped out.
"We are," the woman said. "We asked a vampire to turn us years ago, though. Having the Sight and eternal life? It's like a dream come true."
"You won't be able to kill us," Conner said. "We're stronger than you."
"There's four of us and two of you," one of the other vampires said. "You don't stand a chance against us."
Conner shook his head. "He's a bear! Good luck using your powers on him. As for me, well..." he approached one of the women. He didn't think his powers would work on her but he touched her arm anyway. She hissed and drew back. As he expected, her eyes didn't gloss over.
He thought of the first time he'd been in this position, with that one car saleswoman. She hadn't killed him, but these women would have no qualms about doing just that. He was a lot more in shape now though, and he wouldn't go down without a fight.
And that's what it was. The vampires attacked suddenly, all of them coming at him at once. They ignored Samuel, which turned out to be a mistake, because he was powerful in his own right. Conner used his brute strength to snap the first one's neck. She fell to the ground in a heap and then turned to dust.
Samuel knocked the second one over and tore out her throat. The blood coated his muzzle, and the floor around the dead woman. Then it vanished, leaving only sprinkles of ash where she had been.
The second two were harder and the fight went on for several long minutes. All of them fought their hardest, and at times Conner wondered if someone was going to walk in on them. Surely someone must have called security with all the noise. Furniture broke, and screams and howls burst throughout the hotel room. In the end, though, Conner and Samuel were the ones left standing. Conner let out a relieved sigh. Then he saw Samuel. He'd transformed back into a human and was staring down at his left arm.
"No," Conner said. "No, Sam. I'm sure it won't..."
"She bit me," Samuel said.
"It won't matter," Conner said. "Your blood, you're a shape-shifter..."
Samuel swayed on his feet. "You know what this means, Conner."
"No," Conner said. "We'll get you help, Sam. Come on, let's get back to Afterlife. Alec will know what to do."
Samuel shook his head. "You know there's no cure. After Phoenix, you know that."
Conner looked panicked. "There's got to be something I can do. I got you into this."
"I got myself into this," Samuel said.
"We didn't know they would be vampires," Conner said. He was struggling for words. "I didn't know, Sam. I would never have... I wouldn't have... you have to believe me. I wouldn't have suggested we come here alone if I'd known."
Samuel put a hand on his shoulder. "Breathe, Conner."
Conner sucked in air. He looked around at the room. It was destroyed and there were piles of ash on the floor. He turned back to Samuel. "Sam..."
"Let's go back to Afterlife," Samuel said in a false bravado. "I'm going to be fine, Conner."
Conner grabbed two more mini-bottles of rum fr
om the mini bar and handed one of the shots to Samuel. They took it together and then threw the bottles over their shoulders. "Should we clean up?" Conner asked.
"Nah," Samuel said nonchalantly, but Conner noticed his hands were shaking. The bite on his arm looked bad. It was still bleeding. "Let's just get out of here."
"Alright," Conner said. They walked back to Samuel's car and climbed in. Conner drove, but he couldn't avoid the rush hour traffic this time and the ride to Afterlife took twice as long as it should have. They were silent as they sat in stalled traffic. Conner couldn't imagine what Samuel was thinking.
When they got there, the line out front was long. Conner took Samuel through the back. Before he unlocked the door, he paused and looked over at his friend. "I'm so sorry, Sam."
Samuel didn't respond for a long moment. His eyes were fixed on the bite on his arm. Finally he looked up at Conner. "This isn't your fault."
But it didn't matter what Samuel said. Conner knew the truth. He had led someone into a trap, and the price was something his Afterlife card couldn't pay for.
SIXTEEN
Sarah and the others were all gathered in the conference room, waiting for Marissa, when Conner and Samuel walked in. She stared at Samuel. He was shaking, white, and there was something wrong with his arm. It was bleeding everywhere.
She'd been a pre-med student before realizing she was a shape-shifter. She grabbed the first aid kit from the drawer she kept it and walked up to Samuel.
"Sit down," she told him. "Chloe, grab some water. What happened?"
"Sarah," Samuel said.
"You'll be fine," Sarah said. "Just sit. It looks bad, but you'll be fine. You might need stitches. I can do that if you want. You don't need to go to the doctor."
"Sarah," Samuel said again.
Conner cleared his throat. "It's not what it looks like, Sarah."
Sarah glanced between them and then at the rest of the Afterlife crew. Alec shrugged noncommittally, and the others just stared at Samuel and his wound. Samuel sank into one of the seats.
"Okay," she said. "It's not what it looks like. What does that mean? What happened? Chloe, where's that water?"
Six-Spot (Afterlife Book 7) Page 8