“Sorry. This has to be pretty hard for both of you.”
“It is. And I can’t really say more, but she let me know that if things don’t go well with the fae, there could be consequences.”
“I’m not surprised. The Venari tend to be about as understanding as the vampire council.”
“That’s comforting.” She ran both hands through her hair, scratching her nails over her scalp. There was work to be done. Whatever happened with Cammie was out of Donna’s control. Unless Donna chose to skip the raid. But how could she? Rico’s time was running out. “Let me get my coat from the office, and we can go meet your contact. I don’t want to be late and screw this up.”
“He’ll wait. He’s very interested in meeting you.” Temo got up. “I already pulled the car around.”
“Okay.” She went to the office and put on her Ferris & Coven coat.
Charlie pointed to it. “The vials you asked for are in the interior breast pocket, and I sent you an email with a link to the banking app you’ll need to install to pay this guy if he wants money. The account number’s in the second email.”
“Thanks, I’ll install it in the car.”
Charlie frowned. “Everything all right?”
“No.” Donna smiled. “But then, what’s new?”
Chapter Six
The ride to the bus station took them into an older neighborhood that could have used a couple million for a rehab. But then, maybe neighborhood wasn’t the right word. Calling it a commercial district might have been closer, since quite a few of the buildings looked like they’d been used for industrial purposes. Those industries were gone now, leaving behind empty warehouses with broken-out windows and brick walls darkened by age and grime.
At least the graffiti added a pop of color.
Temo slowed as they approached the bus station, one of the only brightly lit buildings in the area, along with a bodega, a small neighborhood convenience store, and a liquor store across the street. Proof that there was some residential life here. He did a U-turn at the light and parked near the bodega.
“Is the car going to be okay if we leave it?” She didn’t want to risk losing their way out, should things turn bad.
“Should be.” Temo unhooked his seat belt. “I’m going to give Alvaro a couple bills to keep an eye on it. He owns the bodega.”
“So you’ve been here before?”
“The bus station is where we usually meet.”
“Good. That makes me feel better.” She took her seat belt off as well.
He smiled. “Don’t worry, boss. I do my homework.”
“I know you do. I’m not worried about that.”
“Nervous to meet the fae up close?”
She nodded as she took a breath. “Very. Despite everything I’ve been through in my life, the fae freak me out. I’ll be okay, though.”
He held out his fist. “I know you will be. You’re Belladonna Barrone. And I’ve got your back.”
She laughed softly and bumped her fist against his. “Thanks. I appreciate that.”
“Plus, there are two sentries inside the station, according to LV.”
“Right. I wonder if we’ll be able to tell who they are.”
“I guess we’ll know when we get in there.”
“You lead. I’m ready.”
“Then let’s do this.” They got out. He locked the car, then ran into the bodega to quickly speak to the owner. He came out nodding, indicating that the deal to watch the car had been handled. Together, they headed across the street.
She couldn’t shake her nerves. “You think this is going to go all right?”
“I do now, boss. After speaking to my contact, I mean. He seemed eager. And that’s not a reaction I’ve gotten from him before. For some reason, this whole situation is very interesting to him.”
“I’m sure he has his motivations.”
“I’m sure he does. No idea what they are, but I’d guess they go beyond just what he stands to make by doing this. Maybe we’ll find out. Or not. Fae aren’t known for being overly chatty about personal things.”
“Fine with me.” The trash cans outside the bus station were overflowing, and people stood around smoking. “I’m not looking to get chummy with this guy.”
“I hear that.” Temo pulled the door open for her.
Inside, the bus station retained all the trappings of the year it had been built, which was probably in the late ’70s based on the abundance of avocado green. The yellow-tinged lighting didn’t help, highlighting the years of wear evident on the hard plastic seats and dingy linoleum floor.
Didn’t seem to be keeping anyone away, however. More people filled the station than she’d expected, but then, last time she’d traveled by bus, she’d been in college and trying to get home for the weekend.
Some people sat, while others stood looking at the arrival and departure boards. A few browsed the selections at the newsstand. Most had a weary air about them. As if they’d rather be anywhere but here. She understood that. She studied the ones who appeared to be paired off, trying to discern any wolfy traits in them.
But they all seemed human to her. Maybe that was her inexperience showing. Or maybe werewolves were really good at blending in when they needed to. She wondered if, in a less-crowded situation, she’d be able to pick them up by their scent. Right now, all she smelled was cleaning fluid, body odor, and smoke.
“This way,” Temo said.
She kept up with him as he threaded through the small crowd and took them to the far side of the station, where banks of lockers stood in little alcoves. An overhead grate diffused the light. He went a little farther until they were in another section of lockers marked with a sign that said Long-Term. One of the lockers had a missing door, and another had a hole where the lock should have been.
This alcove had lockers on three sides and a single row of the same hard plastic, avocado-green seats in the middle. On the other side was a sign for the restrooms.
A man rose from the seats as they entered. He was lean and tall enough that his long coat must have been custom made, since it reached nearly to his ankles. A wool newsboy cap was pulled low over his eyes, and a thick scarf swathed his neck, but none of that could hide the dusky skin or angular ears that peeked out.
She couldn’t see his back, but she wondered if the outline of his wings was visible through the fabric of his coat, or if it was as specially made as hers was.
Temo nodded at him. “Sorry if you had to wait.”
The man’s nostrils flared as he inhaled deeply. His nose wrinkled a second later. Had he smelled the iron embedded in Donna’s coat or the bracelets she’d slipped on? “I haven’t been here long.”
Temo kept himself slightly between Donna and the fae as he spoke. “Governor, this is Ishalan.”
The fae’s eyes narrowed, and he smiled without opening his mouth, which made the skin over his sharp cheekbones wrinkle. “Governor. What a pleasure.”
Donna couldn’t bring herself to smile. Not yet. “Ishalan. It’s kind of you to help us.” Although she knew kindness had little to do with it. But it wouldn’t hurt to give him the benefit of the doubt.
His smile broadened with amusement, and he chuckled. “I believe we both understand that if I help you it has nothing to do with what can only be described as the weakest of human emotions.”
“Yes, we do.” She didn’t like him already. Being kind did not make a person weak. In fact, it took great strength to care about others. It required a person to think about more than themselves. But then again, he was fae. Was the word kindness even in their vocabulary? “What do you want to make this deal happen?”
“You realize what a dear thing you ask of me.”
“Your blood is dear? Then what is my blood?”
Temo bristled, shifting into a much more protective stance. She was sure he didn’t like the direction this was going, but Donna had to let this fae know she wasn’t a soft target. That was something she’d learned from life
in the Villachi family. Soft targets got hit first.
Ishalan’s tight-lipped smile turned bitter at having his words turned around. “Fae blood is much more powerful, Governor.”
“Maybe it is. Maybe it isn’t.” She shrugged like the whole matter was quickly losing its importance. “If you aren’t interested in making this deal…”
Ishalan dropped his patronizing smile. “I’m only saying that I expect you to understand that the compensation must be equivalent.”
So much buildup. His ask was going to be big. She could feel it. The mob often worked the same way. “Why don’t you tell me what you want, and we can discuss it? How can I say yes or no when I don’t know what you’re asking?”
“Very true.” He looked at Temo, who’d relaxed slightly. “She is as smart and direct as you said she’d be.” His attention came back to her. “There are two things I desire.”
“And they are?”
“I am in need of funds. As I’m sure Temo told you, I have been cast out.” He held his hands up. “For the unforgivable sin of disagreeing with so much of what my brethren do. But being on my own is hard. Some financial help would make that easier.”
What was Rico’s life worth to her? There was really no amount too high, but the negotiation had to be done properly, or the fae would believe he had the upper hand. “What figure do you have in mind?”
“Perhaps you’d like to offer what you think is best.”
She hesitated as if she hadn’t given this any thought. “Ten thousand.”
He hissed. “Do you think I am a charity?”
“Hey,” Temo said. “That’s good money for someone with no skin in the game.”
“Said like a man who knows where his next meal is coming from,” Ishalan snapped.
Donna didn’t believe Ishalan was destitute. His clothes didn’t bear that up. Even his shoes looked new. And expensive. After being married to Joe, she knew men’s shoes. This was just a game to the fae. “What’s your counteroffer?”
The fae scrubbed a hand over his chin like he was thinking. “Fifty thousand. In cash.”
She shook her head. “Twenty-five, and we don’t have time for cash. I need the blood right now. If you can’t accept a direct deposit, then we’ll go talk to the next fae on our list.”
Ishalan groused under his breath. “Fine. I’ll take the deposit. But since I am forced to compromise, I can’t accept less than forty.”
Donna looked at Temo, thankful he was smart enough to play along. “Your other contact didn’t even bring up money, did he?”
Temo barely moved. “Nope.”
Ishalan grunted. “Twenty-five is not enough.”
“Thirty, and I’m done negotiating the number.”
The fae frowned but nodded. “I accept. But I now want two more things from you instead of one more.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. Gently. The vials were glass, and she could feel them through the leather. “What else?”
“I want to go with you when you raid the stronghold.”
“I’ll think about it.” But at first blush, that seemed like a bad idea. “What’s the second thing?”
“I want a favor from you that I may call in at a later date. A future favor, it you will.” He smiled, revealing a mouth full of pointed teeth.
Donna didn’t like that. He could ask anything of her. At any time. She shook her head. “Too open-ended.”
“I promise it will not be anything you’d find distasteful. But you are asking me to betray my kind. Giving you my blood could get me killed.”
“And you’re asking me to trust you, the fae willingly doing that betraying.” It was a precarious position to put him in. But he could have said no. “I’m not forcing you to do anything. And I’m paying you a considerable sum.”
“I realize that. But let’s be honest. Time is of the essence, is it not? Besides, you’d be hard-pressed to come by what I’m offering anywhere else.”
Was he calling her bluff about the other volunteer? “I’ll need seven vials from you.”
“Seven?” The word screeched out of him, turning heads in the main waiting room. “You ask too much, vampire.”
“Five, then. And you’ll have your favor and your money.”
“Three, and I’ll still have my favor, my money, and my place at the raid.”
She stared at him long and hard with the kind of stony face she knew Big Tony had used when he wanted the person across from him to question their decisions. The longer she stared, the more Ishalan’s look of fierce determination faded.
When he spoke again, there was a softer tone to his voice. “I am not your enemy, Governor.”
That’s exactly what he was, but she said nothing and continued to stare. Finally, she spoke. “Temo, text your other contact. Tell him we’re on our way.”
Temo pulled out his phone. “You got it, boss.”
Ishalan sighed in harsh frustration. “Four vials. But I want all three things.”
“Four, and you’ll have your money and your favor with my right to deny that favor if it would cause me trouble. As for including you in the raid, why should I allow that? I don’t know you, and I certainly don’t trust you. This deal doesn’t make us friends or allies.”
“I swear to you that if you allow me to come, I will not get in your way or do anything that could hamper the rescue of your friend.” Such earnestness in his words. “In fact, anything I do will only be to your benefit.”
“Why should I believe that?”
“Because…” He hesitated, shaking his head and looking away. “I would not lie about this.”
“I don’t know that. I need a reason to trust you. Something more than promises and platitudes.”
“I know things. Things that could be very useful. I know the layout of the stronghold. I can take you straight to where they’re holding your friend.”
“That would be useful, if I needed that kind of help. But I don’t, and it’s still not a reason to trust you.”
Temo put his phone away. “She’s right. You want the vampire governor to trust you? You need to be upfront now. Tell her the truth about why you’re willing to go against your own kind. I’ve been dealing with you for years, and I still don’t know.”
Ishalan let out a whistling sigh. “Dredward is a terrible king.”
Donna uncrossed her arms. They were getting nowhere. “He seems equivalent to the beings he rules.”
Ishalan frowned, pulling the skin taut over his knife-edged chin. “It’s true. The fae are a harsh breed. But Dredward only encourages that.”
She leaned in slightly. “Harsh? The fae hunt down my kind indiscriminately and drain us of our blood. And you’re asking me, a vampire, to trust you, a fae, without any concrete reason beyond King Dredward sucks. I already knew that.”
He lifted his cap to rake his long, slender fingers through his shaggy hair. “You have to take my word. I am…on your side.”
“Why? Tell me now, or we’re leaving.”
A muscle in his jaw ticked, and he shifted as though he was in pain. “Because. Dredward is my brother.”
Chapter Seven
Donna hadn’t been expecting that. From the look on Temo’s face, neither had he.
Ishalan leaned closer. “You understand now?”
She nodded. “I think so. Your own brother cast you out.”
“Yes. Well, no.” Another sigh. “I left because he tried to kill me. Any threat gets eliminated, but then, you already knew that.”
Did she? “I suppose I did.”
“Well, you’re harboring the dhamfir. Why else would you give her sanctuary?”
“Because she’s a child, half vampire, and the fae were searching for her with the intention of returning her to a life of servitude. Hunting my kind. What other reason is there?”
Ishalan’s slim brows rose as his mouth pursed in a sort of cat-with-the-canary expression. “You don’t know.”
“Know what?”
“Jus
t that…Dredward wants her dead.”
“Of course I know that.” She also knew he was lying. He’d suddenly decided not to tell them whatever he’d been about to share. So what was it? Did she really care? This didn’t feel like the time to call him out on that. Not with Rico’s time ticking away. She pulled four vials from her interior coat pocket and held them out. “Fill these, and I’ll have your money deposited.”
He took the vials and glanced at the sign for the men’s washroom.
“No,” she said. “Here. Where I can watch you.”
“You don’t trust me.”
“I believe we already established that.”
“I don’t fault you for that distrust.”
“I’ll sleep better at night knowing that.”
Temo snorted.
Ishalan sat down, uncapped the first vial, then put his finger to his mouth and nipped the skin with his jagged teeth. Blood welled up. It was nearly purple, and the rich, metallic scent was so powerful Donna’s fangs descended like the dinner bell had been rung. What would fae blood taste like? What would it do to her? Had any vampire tried it? They must have. Seemed only fair since the fae drank of them with abandon.
Whoa. She was spiraling into a deep hunger way too fast. Enough.
She swallowed the saliva pooling in her mouth and turned slightly to face Temo more. He kept his eyes on Ishalan, as if understanding the battle Donna was fighting. He probably did know. He’d been around vampires long enough.
Seconds ticked into minutes, but before much longer, the vials were filled. Ishalan stayed seated as he held them out, sucking on his fingertip.
Temo took them, saving her from feeling the warmth of the blood through the glass.
Ishalan took his finger from his mouth and inspected it. There wasn’t a trace of the puncture. So the fae healed like vampires did. Interesting. He looked at her, his brows disappearing beneath his cap. “My money?”
Donna nodded. “Right.” She pulled her phone out and opened up the banking app Charlie’d had her install, which Donna had done on the ride here. She logged in and clicked on the link to transfer money. “Your account number?”
Sucker Punch: A Paranormal Women's Fiction Novel (First Fangs Club Book 3) Page 5