“Admirable.” The president handed the profile to Caprese.
“So not only did he wake up Undead, but he lost thirty-nine years of his life?” Abigail asked. “That must have been traumatic.”
Gregori shrugged. “He’s a Marine. From what I hear, he adjusted quickly to all his new vampire capabilities.”
Caprese scanned his profile, then set it on the table. “These two men appear to be excellent choices. I’ll have to vet them, of course.”
“Of course. As vampires, we won’t be able to do much during the day.” Gregori refrained from saying they were actually dead. It was a vulnerability they didn’t want the government to know about. “We don’t want to leave Abigail unprotected while we sleep, so we’re bringing a few day guards.”
He lifted the next profile. “This is Howard Barr. He was a defensive lineman for the Chicago Bears.”
President Tucker took the paper and frowned. “I can see why you might need some humans, but why not take Josh and Charles?” He motioned to Charles, who stood by the door.
“Or some operatives from the Agency,” Caprese offered. “They have experience in this sort of mission.”
“Yes, but they’re not going to have abilities like our day guards.”
Caprese snorted. “I say we go with a few of my men. It’ll show that you Vamps are willing to work with us.”
Gregori winced. “I’m afraid we have to insist on our own guys.”
“Why?” Caprese sat back. “What’s so special about them? Do they crap golden eggs?”
“Something like that,” Gregori muttered. He and Angus had debated this for an hour. The shifters expected the Vamps to keep their secret. But if Abigail traveled with them, she’d have to know. And if she knew, then her father should know. If he found out after the trip was over, he’d be understandably angry that they had withheld the information.
Gregori leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. “The information I’m about to tell you is top secret even in the vampire world. I’d like your word that it never leaves this room.”
The president and CIA director exchanged looks, then nodded.
“There is another group of . . . people, supernatural like vampires, but different. They wish to remain secret for obvious reasons. I need your word that you will never attempt to hunt them down or harm them. They have trusted us to keep their secret, and it would be dishonorable for us to betray them in any way.”
“You have my word,” President Tucker said, then gave Caprese a pointed look. “If you can’t keep a secret, leave the room now.”
Caprese arched a brow. “I was quiet about vampires for six years. I can keep my mouth shut.”
“All right, then.” Gregori glanced at Abigail, whose face had turned pale. “Howard is a shifter.” When he was met with blank looks, he explained further. “A shape shifter. He changes form at will.”
She gasped. “You mean like a werewolf?”
“The majority of shifters are werewolves,” Gregori admitted.
Caprese scoffed. “I don’t believe it.”
Abigail shook her head. “I don’t see how it’s physically possible.”
Gregori gave her a pointed look. “There are a lot of things that can be possible.” Like a relationship with me. Her cheeks blushed, so he assumed she’d understood his point. “If you need proof, I could bring Howard here and let him shift. He might rip the sofas in two, but—”
“Wait.” The president lifted a hand. “If he turns into a beast, will my daughter be safe?”
“Yes.” Gregori nodded. “He has complete control. And even in human form, he has super strength and speed and heightened senses. He can protect Abigail better than any human.”
“He’s a werewolf?” she asked him.
“Actually, he’s a were-bear. A Kodiak bear. Nobody’s going to mess with Howard.”
She stared at him with a stunned expression.
“The second day guard is Rajiv.” Gregori picked up the last profile.
“Do you know Maxim?” Abigail interrupted.
Gregori blinked. “Who?”
“Maxim. He’s a werewolf.”
The president stiffened. “Abby! You know a werewolf?”
“No! He’s the hero in Mom’s book . . . but I guess he’s not real.” Her face flushed. “Sorry. I hardly know what’s real anymore.”
Gregori refrained from smiling.
The president’s face softened as he regarded his daughter. “I understand how you feel, sweetie. We’ve had a lot thrown at us these last few nights.” He took a deep breath and exhaled. “Werewolves and were-bears—who would ever believe this?”
“You can add were-tigers to the list.” Gregori passed him the last profile.
Abigail gasped. “Tigers?”
Gregori chuckled. “Wolves, tigers, and bears, oh my!”
When the others continued to stare at him with stunned expressions, he cleared his throat and assumed a serious expression. “Rajiv has been working for MacKay S and I for a year. His tribe is from Thailand, but they originated in the Yunnan province. Came down the Mekong River, and then settled in northern Thailand. Apparently the were-tigers like to have a set territory for each tribe, and they ran out of room in Yunnan. The good news is Rajiv has relatives there, and he knows one of their local dialects.”
“And he shifts into a tiger?” President Tucker passed the profile to Caprese.
“Yes. He can shift at will.” Gregori closed his now-empty folder. “I’ll be going, too. And Abigail. So you have the six members the A-Team.”
“Why only two day guards?” Caprese asked.
“We’ll be teleporting around,” Gregori explained. “Three vampires means we can safely transport only three—Abigail plus the two shifters.”
Caprese gathered the profiles together in a stack. “I’ll let you know if I approve of these . . . men.”
Gregori gave him a wry look. “Try to do it within a few hours. The men are already in San Francisco. As soon as the sun sets in Hawaii, they’ll teleport there. Then they’ll move on to the MacKay office in Tokyo. In twelve hours they could be in the Yunnan province setting things up.”
Abigail sat up with an alarmed look. “They’re leaving without me?”
“You and I will follow as soon as everything is ready,” Gregori said. “The other four will establish bases around the province. Since the terrain is fairly mountainous, they’ll be looking for caves or abandoned buildings away from populated areas. They’ll set up beacons in these bases that only Vamps and shifters can hear. We use the beacons to know exactly where to teleport. And each base will be stocked with supplies: food, water, synthetic blood, sleeping bags, and so forth. I’m afraid we’ll be roughing it.”
She nodded. “I was expecting that.”
Gregori shifted to face the president. “The plan is this—careful and thorough preparation, everything set up, and then when it’s time to take Abigail in, we do a quick strike. Get her in and out as fast as possible. Two or three nights at the most. No one will ever know she was there.”
The president smiled. “I like it.”
“Laurence,” Caprese said, “I hope you realize the ramifications if your daughter is discovered. The Chinese could hold her prisoner, claiming she’s a spy.”
“I’m counting on the Vamps being able to teleport her out at the first sign of trouble,” the president replied.
“What if the Chinese realize she’s stolen some of their plants for research?” Caprese asked. “She could be in serious trouble, and your career would be over.”
“If I can save my wife, I don’t give a damn what people think of me,” President Tucker said. “I’m on my second term, so my career’s over anyway.”
“If I discover something useful with one of the plants,” Abigail said, “I’ll find a way to synthesize it so we won’t have to go back. We should only have to go once.”
“Exactly,” her father agreed. “What’s important right now is managin
g Abby’s trip without putting her in any danger.” He turned to Gregori. “I’m counting on you guys for that. Don’t let me down.”
Gregori nodded. Personally, he didn’t know how he could live with himself if something happened to Abigail. And if something bad did happen and the president blamed the Vamps, then they could all be in serious trouble.
He adjusted his tie. “If Abigail can give us some information on the plants, we’ll do our best to locate them ahead of time. Then we’ll take her in, grab them, and leave.”
She removed a short stack of papers from her portfolio. “I have the information here.”
“Great.” Gregori smiled at her, then turned back to her father. “Our first priority is your daughter’s safety. That’s why we’re trying to minimize the time she’ll be in China. But it would be seriously remiss of me if I didn’t suggest letting our men take care of the entire mission. With enough information, we should be able to find the plants she wants.”
She gasped. “You would go without me?”
Gregori winced inwardly at the shocked and injured look on her face. “I’m sorry, but it’s something we should consider.”
She pressed a hand to her mouth, then to her chest. “I can’t believe this. You know how important this is to me.”
Her father gave her a sympathetic look. “He has a valid point, Abby. The best way to protect you is to keep you safe here.”
Her eyes glistened with tears. “There’s more to life than always being safe.” She glanced at the Secret Service man. “Everywhere I go, everything I do, I’m watched so I’ll be safe. We’ve had bodyguards since you first entered Congress. It’s been going on for fifteen years!”
“It’s all right,” the president said gently. “I’m sure they can locate the plants without you.”
“No!” She shook her head, and tears tumbled down her cheeks. “Don’t tell me I can’t do this! I’m always being told what I can’t do. You can’t wear that. It doesn’t look classy enough. You can’t have those friends. They’re not prestigious enough. Don’t frown like that. You can’t look unhappy in public. Don’t say anything in front of the media. They might print it. I had to go into hiding to get a life!”
Gregori sat back, stunned. He squeezed his hands into fists to keep from reaching out to her. He glanced at her father. President Tucker looked equally stunned.
“Abby,” her father whispered. “I—I didn’t know . . .”
“Oh God.” She wiped her cheeks. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to . . .” She stuffed her papers back into the portfolio, her hands shaking. “I’m going on the trip. I won’t share my information until you agree.” She rushed toward the door and stopped in front of Charles. “I want to leave.”
The Secret Service man glanced at the president, who nodded, then he opened the door and Abigail ran out.
President Tucker slumped in his chair, rubbing his forehead. “I didn’t realize my career was so hard on her. She never complained. Not once.”
Gregori shifted on the couch. The CIA director was just sitting there with a blank face. Charles was expressionless as usual. “Sir, I’ve only known your daughter a few days, but I can tell she loves her family very much. She would do anything for you.”
The president nodded with tears in his eyes. “She’s so brave. So smart.” He leaned forward suddenly and grasped Gregori’s shoulder. “Give me your word you won’t let anything happen to her.”
He gazed into the president’s eyes. They were hazel like Abigail’s. “You have my word. I’ll defend her with my life.”
The president watched him closely, then nodded. “Good.” He sat back and took a deep breath. “You were right to suggest she stay here. It occurred to me, too. But you can see how strongly she feels.”
Gregori nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“She’s very passionate about this mission. She hopes it will save her mother. I have the same hope, or I would never put her at such risk.”
Gregori rose to his feet. “Then it’s settled. We’ll take her.” And God help them if anything happened to her.
Chapter Nineteen
Abigail slammed the safe door shut and twirled the combination lock. She’d tossed all her plant information inside. It was her personal safe at the lab, and only she knew the combination. Of course, the info was also on her computer, but no one could access it without a password. If Dad sent Gregori and his buddies to China without her, they wouldn’t know what to look for.
She groaned. This act of rebellion could condemn the mission to failure. And condemn her mother.
Tears burned her eyes. The trip had been her idea, dammit. How could they decide she shouldn’t be allowed to go?
She’d been afraid this would happen. Her whole life had revolved around two lists—what was allowed, and what wasn’t allowed, and the second list had always been ten times longer than the first.
She paced across the lab, still angry. Still hurt. Still mortified. She’d completely lost it. Years of frustration and resentment had erupted all at once.
She’d been too upset to remain at the White House. Her poor father had looked so shocked. And hurt. He’d worked so hard over the years, and she was proud of him. It wasn’t his fault she’d never adjusted to public life. Madison and Lincoln thrived on it. Even Mom had loved it before she became ill.
She couldn’t face her mother, either. She sure didn’t want to hear another lecture about keeping away from vampires. One more item to add to the not-allowed list. Good Lord, her parents would have a fit if they knew she’d kissed Gregori. They’d want to kill him.
They’d have to wait their turn. She was ready to clobber him herself. How could he kiss her one night, then betray her the next? She’d thought he was on her side.
Her mother didn’t want her to go to China. Her father had originally rejected her request. He was only going along with it now because he thought the Vamps could sneak her in undetected and keep her safe. It was bad enough to have both parents opposed to the idea, but then Gregori had to join in?
She strode to her desk to boot up her computer, then changed her mind. She was too upset to work. The stress ball from Gregori sat on her desk, mocking her. How dare he betray her! She grabbed the ball and gave it a squeeze.
“Et tu, Brute?” She tossed it back onto her desk and strode to the black-topped table where she’d started examining the plant he had given her. No, she couldn’t concentrate right now.
She paced across the laboratory. It was small, but it was all hers. She stopped by the window and looked out. The parking lot was mostly empty, but the soldiers were still at the entrance gate. She spotted another soldier walking along the perimeter of the chain-link fence topped with barbed wire. The grounds were well lit and dotted with security cameras. And there were more military personnel in the lobby. The installation was so well guarded, she didn’t need a Secret Service agent here. They dropped her off and returned to the White House.
With a sigh, she closed the blinds. She didn’t want to see the soldiers, see the proof that she merely moved from one prison to another. The room was dim now, the only light coming from the lamp on her desk. She wandered over to the long, black lab table. The epoxy resin surface was cool to the touch and bare right now except for her microscope and the plant at the end of the table. She’d cleared away all her work in anticipation of her trip to China.
How could Gregori recommend she not go? Didn’t he understand how important this trip was to her? She ought to give him a piece of her mind. Vent, then maybe she could relax.
She paced over to her desk, then dug his note out of her portfolio.
“Feel my wrath,” she muttered as she punched in the number.
He picked up the call right after the first ring.
“I am so angry with—”
“Where are you?” he interrupted.
She huffed. How dare he not even let her finish a sentence! “I’m at work because I’m too upset to sleep. But I’m too upset to work, so I—”
“Are you alone?”
“Of course I’m alone. I can’t chew you out in front of an audience. I’m so angry that you could kiss me one night and betray me the next! You know how important this trip is to me!”
“Yes, I do.”
She glanced at her cell phone. It didn’t seem to be working right. “Did I mention how angry I am? Feel my wrath, Gori!”
“I’ll feel yours if you feel mine.”
She gasped. “Pig!” She disconnected, then heard a chuckling sound behind her. She whirled around and gasped again. The phone tumbled from her hand.
Gregori lunged forward in a blur of movement and snatched the phone before it hit the ground.
She stumbled back. His speed had been amazing, but she was not in the mood to compliment him. “Did I give you permission to come here?”
“I don’t ask for permission, remember?” He set her phone on her desk, then looked around. “So this is where you work?”
“What are you doing here? I don’t want to see you. I’m still mad at you!”
A knock sounded at her door, and her heart lurched up her throat. How on earth could she explain Gregori’s presence here when he’d bypassed all the checkpoints? She dashed to the door to make sure it was locked. “Yes?”
“Miss Tucker?” A guard called from the hallway. “Are you all right? I thought I heard yelling inside.”
“I’m fine! I was just talking on the phone.”
There was a pause.
She glanced over her shoulder, hoping that Gregori had teleported away. But no, he was still there.
“If you need anything, just call us on the intercom,” the soldier said.
“All right. Thank you!” She listened to his footsteps fade away, then she peeked through the closed slats on the blinds that covered the window portion of her door. “Okay, the coast is clear.”
“I guess you’re not too angry,” Gregori said softly. “You didn’t turn me in.”
She spun around to face him. “You know good and well I can’t explain how you got here. And I’m not finished being angry with you.”
“I know you’re upset. It nearly killed me to see you crying. And it hurts to think about how much you’ve been suffering over the—”
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