“That’s good, because I like you, too. You don’t take anyone’s crap, even my Secret Service agents, and I respect that quality in people I work with.”
“And I respect a leader who isn’t afraid to do what it takes to get things done.”
“Okay, now that we’ve established the lines of respect, can we please get down to business?” Holbrook said irritably.
“Holbrook, take a chill pill. We’re just chatting,” Karma told him and stuck her tongue out.
Dylan rolled his eyes and chuckled at her childish display.
“Karma, I hate to say it, but Holbrook does have a point. We have a lot to discuss tonight and its already past dinner time.”
“Well, let’s just order in and get to work,” President Isaac suggested.
“Sounds like a plan,” Karma agreed and everyone else agreed too.
After dinner was ordered, they sat around and discussed the ins and outs of the laws they had written regarding vampire. Karma told him her concerns about some members of Congress, and he reassured her they would be spoken to about their foolishness.
Two hours later President Isaac turned to Dristen.
“I have one question. How are we going to make sure every vampire willingly registers?”
“The same way you do with the Sex Offender registry,” Dylan told him. “Make it a law and hope they obey it. We do have a few ways of our own to track down vampire who try to avoid registering.”
They talked for a little while longer before Karma and Dylan walked to the back corner and sat down.
“I’m ready to get out of here,” Karma told him as she laid her head on his shoulder.
“I am too, baby,” Dylan agreed.
They sat there for just a few minutes before President Isaac and Dristen shook hands.
“Time to go you two. We have a lot to do over the next two days,” Aleyn said as he walked up to them.
“Yes, we do, and I’m ready for it,” Karma said and smiled. She was always ready for a fight.
****
“I love you, Karma, and I am so proud of you.”
“Mom?” Karma said in awe at seeing her Mother again. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to warn you. He’s coming for you and he wants to kill you.”
“Vincent? I already know about him.”
“No, not Vincent. There is another. He is older, stronger, more powerful than Vincent ever dreamed of being. He is the one who turned Vincent. Stay alert, my beautiful girl. You can defeat him, but you must stay alert and be careful who you trust. The ones we believe are on our side aren’t always who we think they are. Stay safe, Karma, and stay alert.”
When Barbara started fading away Karma ran toward where she’d been standing only seconds before. “Mom, please don’t leave me again. I need you. Please don’t go.”
“We will meet again, Karma. Never forget that I am always with you. Never forget that my blood runs through your veins too. I love you.”
Karma woke with a start and sat straight up in the bed.
“Mom,” she whispered quietly in the dark room. When she felt a hand on her leg she looked over and saw the face of the man she loved. “It was only a dream,”
“Baby, are you okay?” Dylan asked, and she shook her head no. “Want to talk about it?”
“My Mom came to me to warn me that someone wants me dead. Someone other than Vincent. She said, ‘the ones we believe are on our side aren’t always who we think they are’. I’m not sure who she’s talking about, but until I figure it out, you’re the only one I’m going to be alone with.”
“I’ll always be with you, no matter what,” Dylan promised. “I’m assuming the one she’s talking about is whomever sent those six vampire after us yesterday.”
“I’m assuming the same, but who was it?” Karma asked and stared at the wall, lost in thought. When a knock sounded at the door she jumped.
“Who could that be at this hour?” Dylan murmured almost silently.
Karma shook her head and sniffed the air.
“Vampire.” She mouthed and grabbed her weapons belt. After grabbing three daggers and handing three more to Dylan, she silently walked to the door and sniffed.
“Harrison,” she said and opened the door to Dylan’s Father.
“What’s going on?” She asked immediately when the smell of blood hit her.
“I was feeding with a couple of my men and we were attacked. There were twelve of them. We killed nine and two got away, but I brought you a gift.”
One of his men stepped forward holding an unconscious vampire in his hands and Karma grinned.
“Very nice gift,” she said and hugged Harrison. “Now I just need a place to interrogate him without anyone hearing.”
“I got that covered, too,” Harrison said. “Get dressed and follow me.”
Within three minutes Harrison was leading them down the back stairs of the hotel and into an unlit basement.
“This is perfect.” Karma grinned, and they could see the sparkle in her eyes through the darkness. “No one will hear him, and no one will see him, except vampire of course.”
“You have fun with him,” Harrison said and gently kissed her cheek. “I’m going to get some sleep now. It’s been a really long night.”
For the next two hours Karma and Dylan worked the vampire over. When he finally told them two names, they were both surprised, hurt, and angry at the betrayal, but they knew what had to happen now.
Chapter Thirty
Two days later, Karma and Dylan sat in the Congressional hearing room and waited. They already had the names, but they hadn’t shared the information with anyone except Harrison and Jackson. They had killed the vampire Harrison and his man brought back, and no one except the five of them even knew about him.
“You ready to find out who the traitor is?” Holbrook asked, and Karma nodded. “Then let’s get this party started.”
When they walked out of the small room and up to the podium, Karma looked around. When she spotted the two she was looking for, she smiled wickedly. She knew there was going to be a fight and she was ready for it.
“Three days ago Karma and Dylan were walking through the city, minding their own business, when they were attacked by six vampire who were determined to kill them, or die trying. All six died trying,” Holbrook began, but Karma was only half listening as she watched the one who betrayed her. “Now I must ask if any of you had anything to do with, or has any knowledge of this attack?”
Karma grinned when one of the two she was watching shifted in his seat. This was going to be fun.
No one responded, which didn’t surprise any of them, so Langley motioned for his friend to come out. As soon as she stepped out the door, she looked around the room and smiled.
“There are two. One vampire and one human,” she announced.
As soon as the words left her mouth, Vice President Henley bolted from his seat and ran at full human speed to the back doors of the room.
He wasn’t fast enough, and Karma was waiting for him when he reached the doors. “Going somewhere, Henley?”
He stopped in his tracks and all the color faded from his face. “I..I..I can explain.”
“No explication needed,” Karma told him. “No matter what reason you have for doing it, you betrayed your country. That’s treason and you will face charges for it.”
“So, you aren’t going to kill me?” He asked quietly.
“If I wanted you dead, you would be already,” Karma told him.
“Matthews made me do it,” Henley confessed, but when he looked up Matthews was already surrounded by the elders.
“I know. I’ve known for two days,” Karma told him with a grin. “Now, let’s go.”
“Where are we going?”
“You’re going to jail,” Karma answered as she handed him over to three Secret Service agents.
“I’m going to have some fun with Matthews,” she said and darted away.
“Nice o
f you to join us,” Dylan said with a grin and ran his hand down her long braid.
“For your safety, we need everyone to please leave quickly through the back doors,” Eduardo announced loudly, and everyone left except the other five vampire in Congress.
“How could you betray us like this, Matthews?” Johnson asked and shook his head.
“I had to. If her laws were passed as they stand and as quickly as Isaac wants them to, I would have been one of the first in prison and executed.”
“Killing her and Dylan wouldn’t stop or delay this. President Isaac wants it passed so it will be,” Johnson told him.
“I was going to take care of Isaac, too, and Henley would have stepped up and stopped it to save his own ass. As a matter of fact, the vampire I hired to take care of Isaac should be on their way there now,” Matthews said with a grin.
“He’s in his office here,” Johnson told Karma. “Go, we got him.”
Karma, Dylan, Aleyn, Ramsey, and Dristen were out the door before Johnson finished his sentence. They dashed up the stairs and through the doors of the Presidential office just as the six vampire took out the Secret Service agents in the outer office.
“Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?” Karma yelled out and all six vampire turned to face her.
“Oh, look, it’s the Halflings and they brought some elders with them. You wanna play, little girl?” One of them said and flashed his fangs at Karma.
“Why do vampire think their fangs are gonna scare me? Don’t they realize I have a nice set myself?” Karma asked no one in particular, then flashed her fangs at the vampire in front of her.
“Mine are prettier.” She told him then flipped up and over his head.
“You guys take care of them,” She yelled over her shoulder and ran through the door to the President’s office.
There were three more vampire inside, and she had to save President Isaac.
“Hello, boys,” she said from behind them as they stalked toward Isaac, who was surrounded by agents.
“Wanna play?” She asked, and they all shifted and started moving toward her.
Just as they moved to attack, Dylan stepped through the office doors. “Thought you could use some help,” he said and shrugged his shoulders.
“I always need your help,” she replied and grinned.
“And I always have your back,” he reassured her.
“How sweet. Lover boy joined in and now they can die together,” the big vampire in the middle said as they slowly stalked toward Karma and Dylan.
“You’re the ones who are going to die,” Karma told him and grinned.
“Show me what ya got, Halflings.” The apparent leader taunted, but Karma held back.
“Let the cocky son of a bitch make the first move. He’s taunting because he wants us to attack first,” Karma told Dylan, not bothering to try to whisper.
“She’s a smart one,” the big vampire said and grinned. “Let’s see if she can fight as well as she runs her mouth.” With that he leaped and landed a punch to Karma’s chest.
She felt her ribs crack, but didn’t react to the pain as it radiated though her body. When he went to hit her again, she dropped to her knees and punched him in the nuts with a powerful uppercut. He doubled over for a second, but it was just enough time for Karma to grab a silver dagger from her belt and slice him across the face with it.
“You bitch,” he yelled as blood oozed from the cut.
“Damn right I am,” she said and sliced him with the silver again.
As she was fighting him the other two leaped at Dylan, but he was ready for them and staked one quickly. The other one turned to flee, but Dylan caught him by the hair and snapped his head back with enough force it ripped from his shoulders.
“Well, that’s new,” he murmured as he held the head in his hand.
Karma grinned as she stabbed the vampire she was fighting with the silver again.
“Way to show him whose boss, baby,” she said to Dylan and the large vampire roared with anger.
“Oh, what’s the matter? Don’t like seeing your friends killed? Well, I can take care of that for you,” she snagged a wooden dagger from her belt just as the vampire hurled himself at her. When he landed on top of her his teeth snapped close to her neck, but he wasn’t fast enough. She slipped the dagger between his rips and heard it pierce his heart just as his fangs found her skin. They brushed across her harmlessly as his eyes rolled back in his head.
“A little help here,” she said as her body was pinned to the floor by the vampire’s bulk.
Dylan moved the vampire off her and she sat up gingerly.
“Thanks,” she said and tried to stand. When she collapsed back to the floor Dylan wrapped his arms around her.
“You okay?” He asked with concern in his voice.
“Yeah, just a couple of cracked ribs. I’ll be fine in a few minutes,” she answered just as President Isaac walked over to them.
“You saved my life,” he said in awe.
“Just doing our job,” Karma answered and rose to her feet. “You can repay us by getting these laws set in place.”
“Consider it done,” President Isaac said, and Karma grinned.
“There are a couple of things we have to take care of. We found the traitors and you aren’t going to believe who it is,” Karma told him and grinned again.
****
“Today I want to address the Nation and personally let everyone know that my close, personal friend, and our Vice President, has been arrested for treason. If found guilty, he could face many years of imprisonment, or even death. To make matters worse, I also regret to inform you that Senator Matthews, Democrat from Arkansas, has also been arrested for treason. They plotted together to over throw me and take over the government. Rest assured, the entire Presidential staff and all members of Congress and the Cabinet are being investigated by Secret Service agents and by a special task force that has been put together, and we will find and arrest anyone involved with these two in their plot to take over the United States. Believe me when I tell you, we will not be lenient on them. They will face the full brunt of our legal system. Thank you.”
President Isaac stepped away from the microphone and Victoria stepped forward. “If there are any questions regarding what President Isaac just told you, please feel free to ask them now.”
As questions were being asked and answered Karma, Dylan, and the elders were questioning Matthews in a secure location in the White House.
“Tell us about what illegal act you’re committing,” Karma ordered him.
“Go to hell, bitch,” he responded through clenched teeth.
“Have it your way,” Karma grinned and pulled a small, silver dagger from her belt. “I have ways of making you talk. Just ask Demetri over there.”
“She’s a brutal bitch,” Demetri yelled as he tried to pull free of the silver cords binding him. “She knows exactly what she’s doing and how to inflect the most pain with the least amount of effort. She’ll make you talk.”
Karma grinned at Demetri. She’d finally gotten him to admit he’d lost contact with Vincent and had no idea where he was. He had also told her Vincent would most likely come to the press conference when she made the announcement about vampire and try to kill her to make a statement. She wasn’t scared of him any longer though.
“See, Matthews? I’m very skilled with my knife. Want to do this the easy way or the fun way?”
“Go to hell, bitch,” he said again, and spit in her face.
“The fun way it is,” she grinned as she wiped her face on her sleeve. “Want to know the funny thing about silver? Even though it can’t kill a vampire, it can make them wish they were dead.”
She slowly trailed the silver dagger down his shirt, cutting it open and baring his chest to her. “I could stab you through the heart with this, and you wouldn’t die. How fun does that sound?”
She took the point of the dagger and carved a small x in his chest, right over
his heart and his screams echoed around the room. “Oh, did that hurt?”
“Fuck you!” He spat.
“No thanks,” she said with a grin before she made several small cuts across his stomach. “You see, I don’t fuck traitors.”
“I will kill you, bitch.”
“You can try. Go ahead, try to get up,” she taunted, and he started struggling against the silver cords she had him bound with. “It’s harder than you thought, isn’t it? You see, silver weakens full blooded vampire, but has no effect, whatsoever, on Halflings. I guess that means we’re stronger than you are. Now, tell me why you wanted to stop these new laws from passing so bad.”
“Karma,” Holbrook said from the doorway. “Henley turned. We know why they’ve been trying to stop everything. We know what Matthews has been hiding.”
“You’re bluffing. Henley would never talk,” Matthews said viciously.
“He was a plethora of information once we got his family to safety. It seems you were threatening his wife and kids. That violates the vampire code. Even without the new laws, you would have been executed. With the information we got from Henley, you have no chance,” Langley told him and grinned. “Karma, leave him there for now. We have stuff to talk about.”
“Harrison, can I borrow a couple of your men to watch him for me? I don’t think he’s going anywhere, but you never know.”
“Got three standing right outside,” Harrison told her with a grin.
Once Harrison’s men were in place Karma, Dylan, and Harrison followed the elders up to President Isaac’s office.
“The President has been expecting you,” the guard at the door told them as soon as they walked up. He opened the door and they all filed in without any questions.
“Mr. President, we know what Matthews and Henley were hiding,” Eduardo said as soon as they walked through the door.
“How did you find out so quickly?” He asked and looked at Karma.
“It wasn’t me. I had just started having fun when these guys interrupted me. Apparently, Henley sang like a canary.”
“He always was a bit yellow,” President Isaac said, and Karma burst out laughing.
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