“How’s your night?” he asked, nuzzling my neck. His arms cooled me off, since I was way too warm.
“Good. But these shoes!” I’d kicked one off, trying to get the circulation
moving again.
“No headache?”
“No, not so far,” I said, squishing my toes back into the stilettos.
“Good.”
I turned to look at him, a slight grin hanging on his mouth. What?
Nothing. Just enjoying the view. He glanced down; I followed his eyes.
“Oh, crap!” I said loud enough that a few heads turned toward me. I quickly turned away, redoing the top two buttons that had sprung open to expose my one black lacy bra. I shot him a look. Why didn’t you tell me?
And spoil my view? He kissed my now frantic hands. Easy now, it just happened.
Still. My entire face now bright red.
The CEO was wrapping things up when Geoffrey’s head jerked to the side. His eyes went wide as they swept the crowd, and the link blistered with anger and
menace. His senses revved into high gear.
What’s going on? I asked across the link.
He didn’t answer me, but spoke out to the others. “Mitch, Robert—our exit. NOW!” No matter where they were I knew they’d hear him. “Tracy, locate them and redirect, if you can.”
Redirect? What’s happening? I pushed on the link.
He took my face into his hands and explained in quick bursts. “Ravens, Inc. is a cover. They’re here. The Inner Circle. They’ve sent a dispatch and they’re already inside. You must leave now!”
Chapter 29
As the applause grew louder, I glanced around at the hundreds of people celebrating. Fine. If they brought it here, then we had the advantage of knowing the layout. I blinked and Pepper was at my side; looking up, I saw Tracy through the pulsating lights. She stayed motionless, her eyes closed. Her lips seemed to be moving, but I couldn’t hear her over the crowd.
“Pepper! Get her out of here—now,” Geoffrey ordered.
“Leave? Oh, I don’t think so,” I said. But she had his keys; she took my hand and we turned to go… only to find Chase blocking our way.
Chase? Where had he come from?
“Where are you taking her?” he asked.
Geoffrey’s face had become stone; anger was rolling off him in waves. “Not now, Chase.” Pepper pushed by him, but Chase’s hand flashed out and grabbed her arm, stopping her. A snarl crossed Geoffrey’s clenched mouth, and both of them glared at him.
“Chase? Not now! I’ll catch up with you later,” I insisted as the dance floor came alive again. His long sleeves were rolled up and I could clearly see his tattoos. The symbols were moving. Geoffrey and Pepper saw it too, because both of them stepped between Chase and me.
“Geoffrey Drake, Pepper Montgomery,” he addressed them formally. “Who’s here?”
“My kind,” Geoffrey seethed.
“How many?” Chase asked Pepper, never taking his eyes off Geoffrey.
“Too many for you, Guardian.”
Guardian? What the hell?
The pressure building across the link was reaching my endurance level. I wanted to stand our ground, but he wasn’t going to go for it.
“Geoffrey?” My adrenaline had kicked in as the crowd began to converge on top of us.
“Move, Guardian—or I will do it for you,” he hissed, but Chase didn’t flinch.
None of this was making sense. The clock struck midnight and the celebration reached a frenzied level. I looked around; Ian was at the bar hugging someone, Ashleigh was lip-locked with Luke. Suddenly, I sensed something—or someone—who shouldn’t have been there in the crowd. My anger was building and I couldn’t control it. “Geoffrey, we are not running. I won’t do it.”
My grip was slipping… and he knew it. “Megan, this isn’t the time. You cannot be here; they will take you whether you go willingly or not. Please, trust me.”
He showed me what could happen to me across the link, and my resistance crumbled. “Let’s do this, then.”
He took my hand, and with Pepper’s help, pushed past Chase. We made our way through the crowd to the downstairs passageway, Pepper bringing up the rear. The others were already waiting there. When we reached the back wall, he pressed his palm against a panel, which slid back to reveal his entrance. Flashes of the collapsed tunnel made me falter.
Hang on. I swallowed down the fear and looked at him.
Shh. Megan…you need to trust me. I could feel his strength and tried to find mine. He took my face, his lips crushing down upon my own. The instant the venom flowed, the link expanded. His strength and speed became mine.
Our lips parted the same instant the second set of security doors to his
private entrance opened. My eyes quickly adjusted to the welcomed darkness. We took that first step, but then his head snapped up. He slammed the keypad, closing the entrance instantly. I remained confused for only a split second as across the link I could feel a new sensation…one of a cornered animal, preparing to fight.
I’d taken too long to escape, and now they were here. The crowd upstairs had started to empty out, but the DJ still had the bass line going, which bounced off the walls down below with us. Robert and Mitch flanked Geoffrey, while Tracy and Pepper were suddenly standing in front of me, effectively shielding me from the strangers who now stood in front of us. Chase stood next to Geoffrey, his stance clearly defensive, with his hands balled into fists.
I glared at Chase, and mouthed, “Why are you here?”
Three cloaked vampires blocked our only exit, and their collective scent was that of death. I recognized one of them as the hulking vampire that had paid us a visit. He looked even more menacing now, even without his booming voice. The
second one’s face looked alarmingly familiar. Crap! He was my stalker with the fedora. I was the one who had led them to us; how stupid could I have been?
The third vampire was clearly their leader, and he stepped forward now. There was something unnerving about him that made him seem almost… familiar; the way he strutted forward, as though he knew that he had us. He eyed us casually, tilting his head to the side like he was deciding something. At the same time his hood dropped, he spoke.
There was an audible gasp—and I realized it had come from me.
“Hello, brother,” he said, his voice dripping with arrogance. A shiver ran up and down my spine, and I could feel goosebumps popping out all over me. The voice, the body, the movements—they all belonged to Geoffrey. The complete blackness of his eyes was painful to look at, but just as frightening to turn away from.
“You!” Geoffrey growled through clenched teeth as Pepper and Tracy moved in tighter around me, like a fortress.
“Yes, it’s me. We meet, at last.” His voice conveyed disgust at having to address us. The other vampires flanking him were clearly waiting for his cue. “Careful, Angelo, Liam. There will be no fun tonight, unfortunately. We’re here to deliver a message only. Pity, that.”
He looked us over—Geoffrey, in particular, with superiority. His causal stance stood in complete contrast to Geoffrey, whose arms and fists were tensed for any movement from the trio. I tried to take a step forward, but wasn’t allowed even an inch by the others. With as much energy as I could summon I rushed the link, searching for answers. I expected Geoffrey’s resistance, but met none.
His memories showed me all the answers I needed. I saw him playing as a toddler with his mother nearby, an empty cradle always in the scene. The family portrait, the unexplained tears on his parents’ faces when he spied upon them one day. Then they fast-forwarded to his early years with Marco: the frequent trips, the strange glances from others that Geoffrey didn’t understand, and the letters that he wasn’t allowed to open with handwriting on them that looked surprisingly similar to his own.
T
his was no stranger. Everything about him—his voice, the planes of his face, the hair that fell just off-center and tucked behind one ear. Even the grin was similar… but not in a pleasant way. It was a sadistic smile. This suave character that clearly found pleasure inflicting pain was Geoffrey’s identical twin—the twin given up at birth by his parents on Halloween, the once-pagan holiday. The twin who was raised by Marco far, far away from Geoffrey.
“Get to the point,” Geoffrey snapped. “What’s the message?”
“What’s the rush? I see you’re here with your family of misfits,” he continued, completely ignoring Geoffrey’s request. “I recognize most of you. The infamous Bobbsey twins, Robert and Mitch Galloway. The lovely Tracy Debouix, voodoo witch—and, of course. Marco’s cast-off lover, Pepper Montgomery.”
He strolled back and forth, like a teacher giving a lesson. “Is that everyone?” he asked, staring at Chase with a quizzical look; he seemed just as confused about him being here as I was. “But you—Guardian. What brings you here in the midst of all this family drama, Mr. Chase Wellington?”
“As always, I’m observing and learning about your kind. I’m sure you know that’s nothing new for me, Alexander Drake.”
So now I had a name to go with the face I didn’t want to know.
Finally, he looked at me, tucked behind Geoffrey and Chase. He craned his neck to peer at me. “You there! Yes, you—the short little round one they’re trying so desperately to hide. Who might you be?” He took a step closer, and the others drew tighter around me.
“I could be your worst—” but Chase stepped forward, cutting me off.
“She’s his pet.” I noticed the disgusted edge in Chase’s voice.
I was seething, spoiling for a fight, I wanted to get my hands dirty. Across the link Geoffrey cautioned me, but I ignored it and kept staring at Alexander.
“Ah. A pet. That’s rare these days.” He turned to look at Geoffrey. “Especially for someone who supposedly has… what do they call it? Food issues?” His nose crinkled in revulsion. “Still, she has a unique scent about her, I must say. I wonder—”
“Alexander!” Geoffrey thundered.
“Goodness! Someone’s a bit touchy about their pet. Well, no matter. We have no need for such things.” His eyes lingered on me, then he turned back to Geoffrey. “As I’m sure you can surmise, Father demands an audience with you. And no—it’s not a request. Our orders were to fetch you, little brother… though I must say Marco will be so interested to hear that you’re all still together—and very much alive.”
I could feel Geoffrey’s hold on his temper slipping as he stood his ground. “How dare you, Alexander! You’ve encroached on my territory, you have no authority here—and you know it!”
Alexander made a point to stare at each of us in turn. He took one step towards us, and his two companions shadowed his footstep. That’s all it took. Pepper and Chase both covered me, my back up against the wall.
“Let me go,” I wailed. They both rolled their eyes at me.
“Another time, Meg. Trust me,” Pepper whispered.
Chase’s mouth fell open at Pepper’s suggestion that I might fight at all.
The tension broke loose in a wild instant as Angelo and Liam both lunged at Geoffrey. Robert and Mitch slammed into them, tackling them both to the ground as Tracy began mumbling in a strange language. The two thugs seemed to buckle underneath the weight of Robert and Mitch.
Robert had Liam in a chokehold, and Liam’s neck stretched tight, his arms flailing around, not able to get a grip around Robert’s lean torso. Mitch pinned Angelo easily on his stomach, pulling his arms so far backwards I thought they’d crack off.
Alexander and Geoffrey were in a stare-down, circling each other, mirror images with hatred plainly visible on their faces. Then they tried to pin each other down, but each grasp came up empty for both of them. They each knew what the other’s moves would be. It was a stalemate, with no winner or loser.
Finally, Alexander stepped back, clearly displeased with his performance. I suspected he had never left an opponent alive before now.
Robert, Mitch, and even Chase closed ranks around Tracy, Pepper and me. Geoffrey backed up, never taking his eyes off of Alexander. He extended his hand backwards, grabbing mine. The link was alive with the overwhelming emotion of protection towards me and his small family.
Alexander looked at his watch, seemingly bored, until his friends were released by Tracy. “Time to go, everyone. We don’t want to keep Father waiting now, do we?” He stared at each of us, Geoffrey last. His evil eyes narrowed. “Consider yourself served. This isn’t over!” The other two disappeared as Alexander stood staring for a moment longer, the heavy bass line from above still playing.
I blinked and they were gone—for now.
Pepper finally stood down and I ran to Geoffrey. “Are you all right?”
“Yes. I’m fine,” he said, but his eyes revealed his true stress. He held me in his arms until my adrenaline surge came down. I shook my head, trying to clear the water from my eyes.
“Megan?” he whispered in my ear.
“I’m fine.” My vision began to tunnel and I swayed unsteadily, stepping out of his hold and finding my feet. “Who the hell was that? What did he mean—you’ve been served?” I began to bottom out and knelt down with my head between my knees, breathing as deeply as I could. The scene fluctuated from gray to black as I tried to stand.
“Megan, let’s leave that for another time. Here, take my hand.” The coolness of his flesh jump-started my system as we held each other, my fighting rush all but gone. Then I looked at Chase. Why is he still here?
“Geoffrey? Pepper?” he said urgently. “You must tell me—is she turning, or detoxing?”
I felt Geoffrey close off every sense through the link as he concentrated on me, sending energy across the link.
Geoffrey, I whispered to his mind. It was all I could manage. Slowly I opened my eyes, seeing him.
“Everyone—let’s go,” he said as he picked me up, ignoring Chase’s request.
“Geoffrey Drake!” Chase’s voice was tight with a nervous undertone. “Tell me what’s going on—now!”
I felt Geoffrey’s body stop abruptly. “I’ll deal with you later, Guardian. Your answer for now is neither. She isn’t turning or detoxing.”
The haze lifted from my eyes long enough to see Chase’s confused look.
“Clearly, you know more than I thought you did—but that’s for another time. My family and I need to return home, and no—you’re not invited.”
We left Chase to his own bafflement. I was sure we’d meet again, and soon.
I heard the side panel slide open again, and cool air flowed over us. The DJ’s bass line faded away as we raced home, literally flying through the tunnels. Within minutes we were there, and I heard concerned voices floating around me as he set me gently down in bed.
He cradled me in his arms well into the night; I woke and slept in fits and bursts. With the glow of the dawn sky I opened my eyes to see his staring back into mine, filled with longing. His hand slid under me, wrapping around my waist to pull me closer to him as we greeted the New Year—and our new challenges—together.
The Link Lives On in:
Exit, Stage Left
Catherine Russell Biography
Catherine Russell grew up in Puyallup, Washington. After many years of avid reading, her own characters could no longer be ignored. Her family indulged her creativity with love and patience while she found her way through her first attempt to bring The Stage to life, and she is now working on other books in the series. You can find out more about Catherine and her books on Facebook, Twitter and at her website:
www.TheStageChronicles.com
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Exit, Stage Left
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The Stage Page 33