by Rayne Reilly
"That's just great now, isn't it? We don't need them interfering. It's like I said...if they find out that I am a vampire or that vampires are involved in this case, it will be all-out war." Xander sounded angry. He stared straight ahead as they began walking again.
"We'll tell Jake what we were told by the witness and nothing more right now. Don't worry about your secret at the moment. He doesn't need that added to his list of problems today." She smiled when she noticed a grin on Xander's face. They reached the car and got in.
***
Back at work, Julie and Xander approached Jake's office. His door was closed, and he was on the phone, his voice slightly raised. Julie looked at Xander, who pursed his lips. Jake sounded pissed.
"Maybe we should come back in a while. Let him calm down," Xander whispered.
"Sure thing. Let's get some lunch," Julie said
Without saying a word they both walked away from Jake's door. They barely made it a few steps when the door opened, and Jake called out to them.
"I'm off the phone, guys," he said.
Julie and Xander turned. Jake looked serene; there was no sign of the upset they pretended not to overhear moments ago. They strode into his office and stood before him.
"Have a seat," he motioned to them. They both sat down, avoiding eye contact with one another.
"I'm sorry if you heard me on the phone. I was speaking to my contact at the S.A.C. They want all information on the case to go through them first. I don't understand why they're suddenly blocking us. It's like they're afraid of us finding out something. They almost sound afraid." Shaking his head, he placed his folded arms on his desk and leaned forward.
"Just between us, I don't like the way they think they are in charge. This case is as much an F.B.I. one as it is an S.A.C. one. We should be sharing information freely," he growled.
Julie nodded. She placed her arms on the chair in which she was seated and took a deep breath. Xander sat quietly beside her.
"Well, I am happy to share what I found out today," she said. "You can choose what to do with the information."
Julie filled Jake in on what they had learned from the witness, the club owner and the Medical Examiner. When she concluded, she turned to Xander. He was pulling on one ear and nodded at her.
Jake looked a little puzzled as he asked. "Was there something else?"
Julie waited a moment and then stood. "No. I think that's about it for now. Can I get the name of the S.A.C. interviewer who took the initial report about the first abduction?"
"Okay. Why?"
"I have a hunch. I'll let you know if it pans out."
Jake pulled out a file from the stack on his desk and passed it to Julie.
"You'll find everything I have on the kidnappings in this file."
***
With the file in hand, Julie and Xander left the office.
"Let's get something to eat; I'm starved," she said as they headed into the elevator.
Xander was happy that he had trusted her. She had chosen to keep his secret from Jake and he was grateful. He wanted to do a little quiet investigation of his own before they told Jake about Dimitri.
He stood next to Julie and stared at the closed elevator door. He hadn't had the chance to tell her much about his vampire side and he hoped to fill her in a bit more so that she would feel completely at ease with him.
Standing so close to her, Xander felt himself thinking about her in ways that he wasn't sure were appropriate. Especially given the fact that their species weren't meant to be together romantically, let alone be friends. He wondered how she felt about him, now that she knew he was a vampire. She didn't seem overly concerned about it, so things looked promising. Carefully, he turned his head to gaze upon her beautiful profile. Her delicate nose twitched, causing him to suppress a grin.
Julie turned her head and looked up at him. She flinched with surprise when she saw him staring back at her. She tucked some hair behind her ear and smiled.
"I take it you eat food like the rest of us?"
"Very funny...we've eaten together before...yes, I like food" he grinned.
Julie made a funny face and playfully slapped Xander's arm as the doors opened and they stepped out of the elevator.
***
After ordering lunch, Julie and Xander began to discuss the file that she had been handed back at the office. Julie munched on a roast beef sandwich while she read through some of the contents of the file. She wiped her mouth with her napkin and swallowed before she spoke. Xander sat in silence, swirling a spoon around in his bowl of minestrone while she read.
"It says here that we weren't told about the kidnappings until four shifters had gone missing." She took a healthy bite of her sandwich and looked at Xander.
"Why do you think they didn't call in the F.B.I. right away?" he asked, finally sipping a spoonful of soup.
Julie had finished half her sandwich by then and wiped her mouth.
"I'm not sure. Let's ask them," She smirked.
She pulled out her phone and entered in a number. Placing one hand on the table and the other holding the phone, she winked at Xander. His eyes went wide when he realized what she was doing.
"Hello. This is Special Agent Julie Williams with the F.B.I. Shifter Task Force. Am I speaking with Trey Fields?"
"Yes. How can I help you, Agent Williams?"
"I'm calling about the shifter abduction case. It looks like there were four victims before we were told about it. Can you tell me why that is?" she glanced at Xander and smiled broadly.
There was a pause, and the man cleared his throat.
"I'm not cleared to discuss the reasons with you. Suffice it to say, you have the case files now. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
Julie continued her line of questioning. "Yes. Is there a reason that the S.A.C. don't want the F.B.I asking questions about the kidnappings?"
"As I just told you, we have handed the case files over to you. I'm not sure what you are insinuating. Is there a problem?" The man's voice took on a defensive tone.
"Did you investigate the earlier kidnappings yourself?"
"Yes."He stated.
"What conclusion did you reach? Do you think shifters are responsible?" she was persistent in her questioning.
"As I said-" He began.
Julie nodded as she spoke. "Yeah...I know...you gave us the file. Look Fields, I am just asking, investigator to investigator. Is there anything you found out that isn't in the file?"
Again she was met with silence. The man cleared his throat once more.
"Can you please hold on a minute?" he asked.
"Sure," Julie responded.
The phone went silent for a moment, and she wondered if he had taken another call or hung up on her. After waiting for about five minutes, she was about to hang up when he came back on the line. In a nervous voice, he said, "Meet me in person, and we can talk."
Julie smiled and gave a thumbs-up to Xander. Xander tilted his head and gave her two in return.
They were going to find out what the S.A.C. was withholding. She would make sure of it.
CHAPTER TEN
After a long day of investigating and learning that Xander was a half pure ancient vampire, Julie was ready to see what other secrets the S.A.C. investigator would reveal. Julie and Xander waited at the agreed location, a nature park.She had insisted upon the meeting taking place the same day; she didn't want to give the investigator time to get cold feet.
As they sat in her car waiting for Trey to arrive, she watched the park area carefully.
Xander broke the silence by clearing his throat before he spoke.
"What do you think this guy is going to reveal anyway?"
Julie turned to face Xander and shrugged.
"I think that the S.A.C. have their own agenda," she speculated, "and I want to find out what it is. I think someone has told this guy to meet us. He was gone too long on the phone for it to be anything else. It's like you said earlier today, the
S.A.C. can't be trusted. I just feel it in my bones. There is more going on here than meets the eye."
Xander nodded once and grinned. "You have a great intuition about things. It makes you a brilliant agent, and a slightly scary girlfriend," he joked.
Julie laughed and scanned the park one more time.
"Girlfriend? Maybe that's why guys don't stick around," she said with a chuckle.
Xander looked her in the eyes. "I don't mind. It keeps me honest," he said.
Julie felt her cheeks flush. She waved her hand dismissively. "I tend to trust my gut over what people tell me. I think that's partly why I gave you such a hard time about what you are. I knew you were keeping secrets and I just wanted to know what they were. Now that you've told me and I have some idea of what is going on with the case, I can relax a bit and focus my energy elsewhere. You understand?"
Xander beamed. "I think I do. I'm glad I was able to finally tell you. You have no idea how hard it's been-"
He was cut off when a car's headlights reflected on the pair, entering the parking lot.
Xander and Julie got out and stood next to the car. Trey parked a couple of spaces over and walked toward them. He was short and stocky in build. He wore a baseball cap that was pulled down, shielding his eyes from Julie and Xander.
When he approached, Julie could smell the fear coming from him.
"Agent Williams?" he said, as he fidgeted with his hands.
"Fields?" She nodded at the short man that stood in front of her.
"Were you followed?" Investigator Fields asked.
"I doubt it. No one knows I called you."
She looked around and back to Trey. She shoved her hands in her pockets.
"Tell me what you know about the first four abductions," she said. "What is the S.A.C. hiding?" She didn't want to waste time and settled on being direct with him.
The man shifted his weight from one foot to the other and shoved his hands in and out of his pockets. He looked back and forth between Xander and Julie.
Taking her hands out of her pockets Julie folded her arms across her chest, while Xander stood close to her with his hands at his sides. The park was quiet; the only sound was the low hum of traffic in the distance.
"I was sent out to the location of the first shifter abduction," offered Fields. "I found only tire tracks and no sign of anything helpful. After three more cases had been reported, I was called to my superior's office. I told him I found nothing to help solve the case. He advised me that my clearance level was raised and said that the S.A.C. had a serious problem and that the abductions were likely part of it.
"I didn't understand what he meant at first. He ordered me to keep the crimes quiet since I couldn't find out what was taking the shifters. He mentioned a doctor that had been caught experimenting on shifter inmates at a rehabilitation facility here in Portland. They suspected that he had defected to another group before they were able to apprehend him." The man tugged on his baseball cap and coughed nervously.
"What group would that be?" Xander asked sarcastically. Julie unfolded her arms and stood up straight.
Trey gazed at Xander and took a couple of steps back. A look of surprise came over his face. He rubbed his nose vigorously. "I am not allowed to discuss this...you have to understand; the S.A.C. have kept this information to themselves, presumably to protect the rest of us," he said in a defensive tone.
He continued to scrutinize Xander.
"Protect us from what? The truth, perhaps?" Julie's tone was sharp.
Trey's eyes darted back to Julie, and he shrugged. "I don't pretend to know the will of the council; I just know that they are concerned about what the doctor is up to...They believe that he joined the Vampire High Council," the man stammered.
He stared back at Xander, watching for his reaction.
"Let me guess. To continue his experimentation?" Xander asked bitterly.
"I guess so. He's missing. No one has seen him since he took off from the rehabilitation facility."
Trey continued to play with his hat, moving it back and forth and fidgeting wildly.
"If the S.A.C. knew he was experimenting on the inmates, how did he get away in the first place? He should have been caught and imprisoned." Xander sounded extremely annoyed.
Trey piped up in a surprised tone. "He's human...and a renowned geneticist. I'm sure they didn't expect him to run."
Julie turned her head toward Xander.
"The S.A.C. isn't allowed to punish humans. They are meant to turn them over to the human authorities," she explained.
He nodded in response and curled his lip in disgust.
She turned back to Trey. "I still don't understand; why bring us in on the kidnapping cases at all?"
He answered quickly. "The S.A.C think that you will have more luck finding the doctor."
Julie nodded in agreement.
"Who is this doctor anyway?" Xander prodded.
"His name is Doctor Henry Green." Trey's voice trembled slightly as he responded.
"What is the S.A.C. up to?" Julie asked, narrowing her eyes.
Trey put up his hands. "I don't know what you mean. I am telling you what I know, just like you asked."
Xander stepped a little closer to Trey and asked, "What do you know about this Vampire High Council?"
Trey stepped back, putting some distance between himself and Xander. He shook his head vigorously and made a clicking sound with his mouth. With his hands in the air, he stammered, "That's above my pay grade. I was only told to find out anything I could about Doctor Green. I haven't been able to track where the laboratory is, but I know that the creatures that are doing the kidnapping are not human or shifter. They're leaving the scene in a vehicle. Surely the F.B.I. has access to street cameras? The S.A.C. are limited on how much they can find out without alerting the human law enforcement."
He looked toward Julie for a response.
"So that's it! The S.A.C. want to use us to do what they can't! I knew they were up to something," Julie scoffed.
"Does the S.A.C. know what type of experiments Doctor Green is doing?" Xander interjected.
The man shook his head again.
"I've told you everything I know. You don't seem surprised about the fact that vampires are real?" he asked nervously as he looked at Xander one more time. Xander took a couple more steps toward Trey.
"How long has the S.A.C. known about vampires?" Xander asked.
"I'm not sure. It sounded to me like the elders on the shifter council have always known."
Julie looked at Xander, and both of them turned back toward the car. They had learned all they needed to know.
"Thanks for the information," Julie said over her shoulder.
The man scurried to his car as Julie and Xander drove away.
Xander smoothed his hair as they drove out of the parking lot. He had heard enough to know what needed to be done. He was ready.
"I think it's time to tell Jake everything." He said firmly.
"Good. We'll do it first thing in the morning," whispered Julie.
***
Xander headed home for the night to take care of a small detail before the morning. He wanted to tell Jake everything that he had told Julie but he needed to make one call first.
He sat on his sofa as he dialed his mentor's phone number. A deep voice answered.
"Good evening, Xander" Oroc said.
"Hello, Oroc. We have a problem and I need your help." Xander hoped Oroc would listen to what he had to say. Oroc and Dimitri had known one another forever and even though they did not always see eye to eye, Xander knew that Oroc was a loyal friend. Xander sighed and continued to speak. "I found out today that Dimitri is allowing experimentation on shifters. Do you know anything about this?"
Oroc's response was immediate. "No, I do not. Though I wish I could say I am surprised. He has been telling the council for years that we need to do something about the shifters. He thinks they are planning to start another war. I do not agree with h
im...What do you need me to do?"
"I want to know where the lab is and what he is planning. You know some of the secret locations of his facilities don't you?"
There was an audible long sigh before Oroc answered. "Your father guards his thoughts well around me. Some of the other council members are a little less diligent. I may know of one or two locations that he uses to make medications. I will check them out myself tonight and let you know what I find out. I will also contact my allies on the council and see if they know anything.
"Thank you, friend." Xander smiled. He felt relieved to have his mentor on his side.
Oroc quickly added. "Be careful, Xander. Your father is a dangerous man with dangerous allies."
"I will be careful. You as well."
Xander hung up. He knew that things were about to get very messy and hoped that the S.A.C. would not find out where the lab was before the F.B.I. did.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
"You're a what?" Jakes' head shot back as he spoke in a slightly raised voice. He eyed Xander with a look of astonishment.
"A vampire," Xander repeated and glanced sideways at Julie. They were sitting next to one another in Jake's office. Julie sat silently with her arms folded against her chest.
Jake ran his hands through his hair and eyed Xander suspiciously.
"I knew there was something about you that was different," he said. "Dayna told me to trust you, so I did. You should have told me what you were right away. Why wait until now?"
"I was put on this team to see that no one found out about us. Now that I know the S.A.C. know that we exist it seems pointless keeping it quiet. I didn't mean for anyone to be harmed. I didn't know what Dimitri was up to this entire time," Xander said calmly.
"So are you telling me that you were placed on our team to spy on us? How can you expect me to trust you now?"
Xander sat up tall, his hands on his thighs.
"I understand how you feel. I withheld the truth from you and I deserve to be fired. My father is behind so much of this and has lied to me for a long time. We've told you everything now. I assure you. All I ask is that before you fire me, give me a chance to bring down my father's operation. He has all but admitted his involvement in the experimentation, and I want to solve this murder case and shut him down."