“Don’t turn this on me. How could I? The first dinner I ever saw you at your mother’s, you know what the dinner talk was? ‘The sick should die.’ Do you remember those glib words at the party? Do you remember the laughter?” I did. It would echo in my mind every time I saw Sassy suffering.
“I didn’t laugh.”
Had he laughed among them? I hadn’t known and I hadn’t asked. I hadn’t liked to think of that moment at all. “Did you say no? Say anything at all in defense?”
His face said it all.
“You’ve said enough. Done enough. We both have. It’s time for you to go. I don’t want you here. And if you ever cared for me at all, you’ll tell no one of her sickness.”
“I never would,” he said, as if he couldn’t believe I’d think so little of him.
I knew the feeling.
He left.
And then I crumbled.
Thirty-Six
Donovan
I walked across the field, smelling her presence. That was one of the things the vampires would never understand. They always left a scent. She’d gotten here before me, was waiting for me in the shadows as if she were invisible.
I moved to the center of the field. “We doing this sometime tonight or what?”
Melinda walked out of the tree line, right where I’d expected. She came toward me at a human’s pace.
“You’ve got a problem,” I told her. When I’d reached out for this meeting, I hadn’t told her any of the finer details. Some things had to be said in person, and this was one of them.
“What’s that?” she asked.
“I’m going to kill Mallard and two of your other vampires. I’m not here for permission. I don’t give a fuck what you think about it. The only reason I’m giving you warning now is because I made a promise when I agreed to uphold the pact, and I don’t like to break my word. I’m telling you my intentions, but it changes nothing. It’s still going to happen.”
If I let Mallard continue to walk this earth, he’d always be a threat to Pen. I’d already hurt her enough in the last few days. If I could help it, I was going to eradicate anything else that could inflict pain on her.
“I’m not sure that’s a problem, but I guess it depends on how you look at things,” she said calmly, as was her way.
“I don’t like riddles. Say what you mean.”
“We might have more in common than you realize. You can kill Mallard with my blessing. I didn’t think he’d stand down too much longer anyway. If I need to lose two more, whatever it takes to make this pact fall apart so we can go back to living the way we did. Vampires are easy to replace with the line of humans waiting to be turned.
“I know you weren’t in favor of this pact, this way of life, full of political bullshit. I’m not either. I want to go back to the way things were. If I see a shifter I hate, I want to kill them.”
It was the last thing I expected to hear from one of the strongest ruling vampires in the country, the strongest voice on the council. She’d been lining her accounts with payoffs from me for problems she’d probably been behind.
“You’re stirring up the vampires to start problems,” I said.
Sometimes nothing made sense because you were missing one pivotal piece of information, and as soon as you had that, it all fell in place. I’d just found my missing piece.
She shrugged. It was as good as an admission from her.
“Answer some questions for me frankly for once. Let’s lay all our cards out on the table.”
“Ask,” she said.
“I didn’t have to pay you off to have you rule in my favor with Penelope at the council, did I? You wanted her with me. You wanted her planted in my house. Why?” It was a guess, but my gut said it was true.
“I knew about her weakness. I thought I’d be able to turn her. We approached her many times, and she refused to give us anything. It didn’t matter, though, because it bred problems in other ways. It drove Mallard crazy, caused more problems with your pack. She was throwing you off your game. I saw it the second you walked into the council meeting with her. I’ve seen Oscar winners that couldn’t act that well. You would’ve killed Mallard for her, and you were the one thing holding your pack in line. It was a win-win.”
Pen and I had been pawns in Melinda’s chess game, but I wasn’t even angry. If we hadn’t been, I never would’ve fallen in love with Pen. And I was in love with her. There was no denying it anymore, not even to myself. I knew because I’d tried heartily the last few days.
“Why plant rumors about her helping you?”
Melinda smiled. “That would be Mallard’s fault.”
“So you’re getting what you want,” I said.
“I guess I am,” she said, continuing to smile.
“I could take you down before you accomplished your goal.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. I don’t think that’s a foregone conclusion. I don’t want to, but I could raise numbers fast if needed.”
She didn’t want to, and I knew that. Too many vampires and they’d go through this population faster than they wanted. The pack would have no chance. It wasn’t an option that would work for either of us in the long term. But if I pushed for war, that was where we’d end up. We’d be swimming in vampires.
“My pack is left alone. I’m going to kill Mallard and the two other vampires who attacked my people the other night. There will be no repercussions. There are also two humans that I want protected from the fallout that ensues as this plays out.”
“The girl and her sister.” Melinda huffed, as if to imply I was predictable.
“Yes.” I didn’t give a fuck what she thought.
“And you’ll stay out of my way. If there’s a final rallying cry when the others figure out what’s happening, you won’t get involved?”
“Yes.” There was about to be a huge civil war and no one would win. I’d gladly remove my people from the fray. “I think we’re done here.”
I turned and walked away.
“You know the sister runs with the rebellion, don’t you?” Melinda said to my back. “I never would’ve touched her anyway.”
And there went another piece of the puzzle. Pen had gotten the smartphone from her sister. She’d been protecting her sister, and all her various secrets, the way I would’ve done with Huddy. God, how wrong I’d been.
Thirty-Seven
Penelope
I took a newspaper from the stack at Arnold’s, and it wasn’t even for kindling. The headline on the front page had grabbed me and wouldn’t let go.
I tucked it under my arm as I gave Arnold a wave. I hightailed it home, where I could scour the paper without catching strange looks for actually reading the propaganda.
I settled in at the kitchen table.
Mallard, a ruling member of the vampire political party, and a humanitarian, was found dead last night. Authorities are performing a thorough investigation and autopsy of the parts of his body that were recovered. As of right now, it appears to be a hit by the rebellion, which will not go unpunished. The HBE is offering a steep reward for any information leading to the arrests of the guilty parties.
It continued on for another five paragraphs, people reciting all the wonderful deeds Mallard had done for the world. They could say anything they wanted. It didn’t bother me at all. He was dead.
I could hear Sassy making her way into the kitchen, her steps slower than they used to be.
“Sassy, have you talked to any of your people?” I asked as she came in, looking like she was having one of her better days.
“Is this leading up to a lecture?” she asked, walking toward the fridge. “If so, I’m really not feeling good.” She made a fake cough into her hand as her eyes laughed.
“No. Mallard is dead and they’re getting blamed for the murder.”
“Thank God! Finally,” she said, and this time coughed for real.
“They’re blaming the rebellion,” I told her, trying not to stare too intently. It was one thin
g for her to kid about being sick, but she wasn’t one for pity. She didn’t realize I felt almost as bad for me as for her. My sister might be leaving me soon, and I didn’t quite know how to process that information.
“It wasn’t my people. Who knows, it could’ve been a neighboring group. At least that’s one less enemy that’ll be showing up on our stoop, though.” She bent down, trying to lift the large pot of broth from the refrigerator and struggling with the weight.
“Here, let me do that. Go sit.” I nudged her out of the way, getting the broth out for her. She needed to conserve every ounce of strength she had to fight this sickness.
She moved aside and paced the kitchen. “I don’t want to sit. I’ve been sitting and sleeping for days. My body might like it, but my brain is about to revolt.”
“That’s the only way you’ll get better,” I said, lighting the range.
“Pen, I’m not getting better, and I don’t want to spend my last time sleeping.”
“You don’t know that you can’t get better. No one does.” Maybe Donovan was right, and I was a liar. I hoped not.
“Pretty sure I do,” she said, as she opened the back door. I was about to yell at her about catching a chill when she turned back around with a small box in her hand.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“I don’t know. There’s no name or anything.” She put it on the table before grabbing a knife and slicing the tape sealing it.
Whatever was in there was packed in foam. I came over, impatient, and plucked off the top layer. There, on a bed of more foam, was a vial filled with a red liquid, not as thick as blood and slightly lighter.
It couldn’t be.
No, it definitely could. Mallard was dead. This was here.
“There was a note tucked in beside it.” Sassy pulled the piece of paper out. I already knew who it was from before she read it.
“‘Penelope. Give this to your sister. I hope it heals her. I hope it might help heal us as well. Donovan.’” She waved the note in her fingers. “Whoa,” she said, holding the note out to me. I shook my head, not taking it.
She tucked the note in the box and plucked out the vial.
“Should I take it? You think it’s safe?” Sassy turned the vial on its side, watching the red fluid move.
“Yes, take it.” I would hold her nose and pour it down her throat if she didn’t do it soon.
She popped off the top of the vial and downed the contents while I watched her. It had taken a few days for improvement the last time she’d taken it. I didn’t know if this was the same formula. It probably wasn’t, but it was our only shot.
Donovan might hate me, but he also might’ve given me my sister back. And for that alone, I could never hate him. If I were honest, I hadn’t hated him before.
Sassy was looking at the empty vial, turning it in her hand. “Are you going to call him?”
“He’s not asking me to.” I hadn’t read the note, but I already had the words memorized.
“Clearly if he did all this, he wants to talk to you. He killed your enemy. That’s a pretty serious sign of commitment, if you ask me.”
I shook my head, ecstatic my sister might be okay at the same time I was swallowed by misery. “We were a lost cause before we even started. Now, with all the lies that went on between us? The things that were said? No. It’s better we’re done. There was no future for me there.”
“You’re sure?” she asked. For someone who had tried to warn me away from werewolves for as long as I could remember, she didn’t look so sure herself.
“Positive.” I got up and moved away from the table, staring out the window.
“So, we save up and we buy our way out,” Sassy said. “We go to Canada and then make our way to Europe from there. They’ve got some great med schools, and maybe I try life on the straight and narrow for a while? Can’t say I won’t miss some of the excitement, but…”
Sassy kept talking, but I couldn’t stop staring at the border between our yard and the next.
“Sassy, there’s some weird guy in a suit walking around our yard.”
Thirty-Eight
Penelope
Sassy was sitting on the kitchen counter, her knees to her chest. Her skin had a rosy hue, and this one wasn’t due to a fever. It had taken three days, but she was nearly back to normal. The only problem I had with it: she was really back to normal in every way. She wouldn’t stop staring out the window over the sink.
“Stop looking at them. They’re not our problem,” I said, wishing she’d taken maybe one more day in bed recovering.
We’d noticed at least one man standing outside constantly. Sometimes we spotted several. Always around our property. I didn’t know how many there really were, as I tried to not look. Sassy didn’t have that same inclination. She also didn’t seem to have the same desire to deny the reason they were here.
I walked over and leaned up to get a better view. “He’s got his back to us. It doesn’t look like he’s watching our house.”
She huffed. “Who else would he be here for? Old Mr. McFearson? The only time you see him is when his daughter drops off food. I don’t think he’s stepped outside the house in a year.”
“I don’t want you to encourage them to keep coming. What if they think you’re looking because you like them or something?” I tried to tug her off the counter and away from the window.
I got a foot to my stomach. She didn’t kick me but made it clear she was willing to fight to keep her spot. “I don’t think how I feel about them has any bearing on anything, so back off.”
I couldn’t stand it anymore. I felt like I had Donovan lingering around, all the time. It was at the point I kept waiting for him to show up. They were going to make me crack.
“Stay here,” I said, and then grabbed the garbage from the pail.
“Where are you going? Planning on beating them with our trash?”
“If need be. Stay here.”
“I’ll wait here, but if things go bad, I’m coming out.” She grabbed the butcher knife from the block on the counter.
I took the garbage and walked out to the trash can in the backyard. The strange man turned and watched as I put my bag in the can. He didn’t make his way closer. I waved at him as if he were a neighbor and then went about grabbing some sticks in the yard. I tossed them in a pile, as if lawn care was my highest priority while I stepped over knee-high weeds.
He turned back toward the neighbor as I edged in closer, and I could just make out his voice.
“Visual made. Subject looks healthy. Hair in a ponytail and wearing a pair of pink sweatpants and white t-shirt. There doesn’t appear to be any weight gain or loss. Cheeks had healthy color.”
What the fuck? I threw down my last branch and marched over to him. He glanced my way and then jerked in my direction as if surprised I was approaching.
“Are you reporting to someone about me?” I was going to beat Donovan dead. How many details were they watching?
His jaw shifted and then he leaned his head toward his jacket, pressing something right beneath his lapel. “Subject questioning me. What’s the procedure?”
He held up a finger, as if to tell me he needed a minute as he waited for instructions. No, this wasn’t the normal goon guard that would shoot you dead in the front lawn. This was a private security team.
I crossed my arms and tapped my toe as he waited for his answer.
“Understood.” He let go of his little mic thing. “Yes, I am.”
That was the big explanation I was going to get? I thought the full extent of my curiosity had been obvious, but I’d have to elaborate. “Why are you watching me?”
“Orders from the alpha of the D.C. Pack, ma’am.”
“That still doesn’t tell me why.” I flung my arms out to my sides.
“Unclear. All I was told was that you were a critical asset, to secure your safety and report back on wellbeing on a daily basis,” he said, never losing his cool.
“I’m
in my house, safe. I don’t need anyone watching me, so you can leave.” I pointed toward the street.
“Sorry, ma’am. We have orders.”
“We?” I turned around and spotted another suited man across the street that looked like a clone. Were there more? “How many of you are here, exactly?”
“Not authorized to tell you that.”
“You tell your pack leader that I don’t need him nor want his help. He can—”
“Please, ma’am, we can’t have you disrespecting the pack leader.” He held up a hand and took a step away from me.
“Or what? You’re here to protect me. Are you going to beat me now?” I asked, taking a step toward him.
He looked quite chagrined over that. “Ma’am, if you could just please refrain from insults, I’m sure we can work things out.”
I took a few more steps, and he was forced to back up farther. “Does that mean you’ll leave?”
“Well, no, not that. We can’t leave.”
“How long are you going to be here?”
“Unclear. The mission didn’t have an end date.”
“Tell him it better be soon, or…”
Or what? Damn, it sucked when you started a threat you couldn’t back up. It was like waving around a gun with no bullets and someone daring you to shoot.
The guard held up a finger and pressed the thing in his ear again. He raised his brows, looking at me. “The pack leader asked us to convey the message that you do indeed need him.”
“Tell the pack leader to fuck off.”
I turned and walked back into the house, only to find a box sitting on the stoop that hadn’t been there when I walked out five minutes ago.
“Is this from you people?” I screamed across the lawn to the guard I was just talking to.
“Unclear. Different department, ma’am.”
I grabbed the box, which weighed a good twenty pounds, and shoved it inside with me.
“Well? Why are they here and what’s that?” Sassy was all over the box, ripping it open.
Gut Deep: Torn Worlds Book One Page 22