by Primo, Jaz
“Aren’t you glad I didn’t let you use them,” Dori prodded Caleb with a knowing look.
He blushed and caught a glimpse of Katrina’s wide-eyed look of shock from across the room.
She shook her head.
“Let’s eat,” Caleb remarked to change the subject while moving to peruse the food cart.
He smoothly commandeered a plate adorned with a cheeseburger and fries and moved over to the unoccupied end of the dining room table. Dori moved from her seat and began picking at the vegetable tray on the cart.
“What concerns me is that, despite the compelling evidence in our favor, Ambrogio’s death will probably create a suspicious stir among the attendees,” Katrina pointed out. She was convinced that the vampire was merely part of a larger scheme, though she lacked further evidence for corroboration.
“Probably true,” Alton ruefully agreed.
“Additionally, there’s the leadership angle to consider,” Katrina added.
Caleb rose from his chair and returned to the cart, searching for condiments. Finding none, he walked towards the suite door.
“Hey, where do you think you’re going?” Paige demanded.
Everyone looked up to stare at him.
“Ketchup,” he innocently replied.
“Forget it,” Paige dismissed. “You’re grounded for the time being.”
“Hello? Fries need ketchup,” he insisted.
“We often use mayonnaise in France,” Dori interjected.
Caleb’s look of horror was his silent reply.
“For Pete’s sake,” Paige retorted, slapping a palm to her forehead. “Just cool your jets, Ned McNeedy. I’ll get your ketchup.”
“Ned McNeedy? Is that some character from a Philip Marlowe mystery?” he teased.
“Don’t dis Marlowe.”
“I’m just sayin’.”
The short vampire narrowed her blue eyes.
“Watch it. And don’t be stealin’ my catch phrases, either,” she admonished before disappearing through the suite’s door.
He watched the door close and fondly reflected on his surrogate vampire. She had practically squeezed the breath from his lungs in a bear hug upon their return to the hotel that evening.
“I worried about you, kiddo,” she had whispered in his ear.
A warm, satisfied feeling flowed through him at the memory.
“Ned McNeedy,” he muttered. “What a hoot.”
When he turned back to everyone, Katrina and Alton were intently staring at him.
“What?” he asked with an innocent expression.
“As I was saying,” Katrina continued with an exasperated tone, “Ambrogio was a follower, not a leader. I doubt that he was the only one involved in things that have transpired. Recall that it was Baldar Dubravko who Caleb first saw at the dirt road leading back to the mines, not Ambrogio.”
Caleb looked up from his burger, recalling that night and how hard it had been to get anyone but Dori to believe him. He scrutinized the mysterious brunette, watching her nibble on vegetables and cheese while sipping her wine. She noticed his attention and smiled at him from the reading chair across the room.
“I wonder if there’s a relationship between the London sect that you uncovered in the train tunnels and this group,” Dori pondered.
Caleb wondered precisely how much she knew about their March exploits in London.
I’ve got to find out the real backstory on this lady.
“We should know more once my agents finish pouring over the site,” Alton replied. “We’re fortunate not to have to deal with the local authorities on this yet.”
Katrina was happy for that small blessing. At least the mines were far enough from town that nobody seemed to have overheard the gunshots.
Granted, the battle took place almost exclusively within the mines.
In what must have been record time, Paige reappeared through the suite door holding a bottle of ketchup. Caleb grinned while gratefully accepting it and created a veritable pool of it near his fries.
“Makes me thirsty,” Paige mumbled, staring at the red substance on his plate.
“Pour you a glass of ketchup?” he quipped, holding up the bottle.
She promptly, albeit lightly, smacked him on the back of the head.
“Check ya later, funny boy,” she retorted. “There’s something I need to look into.”
* * * *
Paige returned to the security office and motioned to Satish at the surveillance station. She wandered over to her desk, discreetly noting that the major’s office was empty.
“The major say anything about signing those reports?” Paige asked.
“Didn’t say anything to me, Captain.”
Paige wandered into the major’s office, picked up the reports from the out basket on his desk, and quickly extracted the digital recorder from the bookcase. It was still on, and she fingered the power button to Off. Slipping it into her pocket, she walked back out to her desk.
She downloaded the audio file to her computer and password protected it in a nondescript folder on her system. Then she slipped the recorder back into her pocket and used a headset to listen to the audio file. Within moments, she heard the major’s door shut, followed by his and Dubravko’s nearly whispered voices.
“…thought you said you could handle Turner?“ demanded Dubravko.
“…staged the vault, just as you insisted. The video surveillance snafu was damned difficult to manage, and then Taylor brought Turner down there with him. It was a stupid idea in the end; they both survived, which only made them grow more suspicious,” Pietari chastised. “You should’ve let me do things more directly.”
Paige gritted her teeth. Hatred surged through her system, and her fists clenched across the desktop.
“You’ll do as you’re told,” ordered Dubravko.
“What next then?“
There was a long pause.
“Let me worry about that,” Dubravko said. “I’m still waiting to hear back from Ambrogio. I should have a better idea by then.”
The two exchanged benign information about the conference, and both vampires departed the office. Then silence.
Paige closed the audio application and locked her workstation. Anger roiled through her as she replayed the audio recording in her mind.
I’m going to kill Pietari, she vowed.
Paige once again focused on how she and Caleb had very nearly asphyxiated inside the vault, and the major’s recorded statements replayed in her thoughts.
You bastard. Trying to kill me’s one thing. But almost murdering Caleb? There’s hell to pay for that.
“Captain?” Satish inquired as she studied Paige with concern. “Are you okay? The major’s requesting your location on the radio.”
Paige’s bright blue eyes flashed, and she deliberately struggled to regain her composure.
“Sorry, got some bad news in email,” she neatly replied. “Where’d you say the major is?”
Minutes later, Paige met the major, who was speaking with one of the uniformed vampire security guards at the loading dock area at the rear of the facility. He was studying a surveillance camera mounted on a corner of the building.
The blonde vampire suspiciously followed the major’s gaze.
“What’s going on out here, Major?” she asked.
Both vampires scrutinized her with perplexed expressions.
“You ask that as if there’s something wrong with our being here, Captain,” Pietari retorted. “Actually, I’m considering how that human of yours managed to elude our surveillance system so handily today.”
She speculated that, given all that had happened, it was probably a good thing, despite the danger in which Caleb and Dori had placed themselves. So much had been brought to light thanks to their successful efforts.
Of course, it’s easy to be cavalier when they’re safely back under our protection.
Then her anger threatened to rise again as she focused upon the traitor before h
er. She barely managed to keep her fury in check.
“Captain?” the major asked with a quizzical expression.
Paige blinked. “Sorry, just wondering about that myself. I’m sure we’ll make a better effort to track him and Dori from now on.”
“I was considering house arrest, myself,” the vampire offered.
The other guard warily watched both the major and Paige.
“You don’t have a mate, do you, Major?” she asked.
He regarded her coldly. “As you so succinctly put it not long ago, that’s none of your damned business.”
“Fair enough,” she flatly temporized, at which the guard uncomfortably looked away from them both as if studying somewhere in another area of the complex.
Paige glanced at her watch.
“I think it’s about time for Satish to be relieved at the surveillance desk,” she suggested. “Tegins, would you mind relieving her until I return?”
The guard gave the major a questioning look.
Pietari shrugged. “Fine. Go ahead.”
“Yes, sir,” the guard replied and turned to depart, visibly pleased to be leaving.
“As I was saying, Captain, we need to eliminate the blind spots back here, for one,” he noted. “I expect you’ll get on that as soon as possible.”
“Really? What other blind spots?” she inquired.
The major surveyed the exterior length of the building towards a tall, wooden fence surrounding some of the facility’s massive air conditioning units. He pointed to them.
“There are large blind spots around those units, for example.”
She considered the placement of the cameras on that side of the building, and the corners of her lips upturned slightly.
“Yes, you might be right,” she said and began walking that direction. “Still, there’s something I need to talk to you about.”
Pietari walked beside her. “Really? Such as?”
Her mind settled upon an immediate course of action, though she didn’t think that Alton or Katrina would later approve.
Too damned bad.
“I’m considering a change in my life, Major,” she offered as they got closer to the fenced area.
“That so?”
“Yep,” she confirmed, stopping next to the fence and gazing around at the nearest camera. “Oh, and you’re right about the cameras, by the way.”
“Indeed. About that life change, Captain?” he impatiently pressed while following her gaze to the camera she was staring at.
“Oh, yeah, that,” she said while gazing up at the camera with a devilish grin. “Thinking about taking a job as head of security.”
“Mm-hm,” he absently murmured. “Where?”
“Here.” Her blue eyes burned brightly with hatred. Her hand slid beneath her security blazer, grasping the hilt of her knife.
“Huh?” he asked, turning to stare at her with surprise.
She brought the blade up, slamming it down at an angle into the lower left quadrant of his chest, penetrating all the way through his heart and into his lung.
Pietari gasped and jerked towards her.
“Trying to kill me is one thing, but going after Caleb really pisses me off!”
She moved in a blur to grasp his head in her hands and twisted it around with all her speed while bearing her full weight until the major’s neck snapped with a sound like a breaking tree branch.
She brought her leg up and viciously kicked his body against the brick wall of the building, where it bounced off and onto the ground with a heavy thud.
“Rot in hell, you bastard,” she seethed through clenched teeth. Then she calmly reached under her jacket for her cell phone.
“Alton? Boy, do I have the scoop on something good,” she stated in an evil, satisfied tone as her eyes pulsed in the darkness.
As she slipped her cell phone back into her blazer, she spied Ethan Reynolds standing at the corner of the building staring at her in surprise. He warily studied her.
Oh crap, she thought. Friend or foe?
“This isn’t what you think,” she reassured him.
“I think you just killed your supervisor.”
A quirky expression formed on her face. “Well, you got me there, I suppose.”
A flash of uncertainty flashed in his eyes as he calmly observed her.
“Wait, I can explain everything in good order.”
Ethan shook his head. “Lady, I sure as hell hope so.”
Well, there goes date night, Paige thought.
* * * *
Alton, Katrina, Dori, and Caleb all stood outside around the prone, dead body of Major Pietari. Ethan stood with his arms folded before him, remarkably calm and quietly observing everything. No less than three security guards and a sergeant crowded around the periphery of the group, confused as to what had happened.
“What happened here?” Katrina demanded.
Paige calmly pulled out her digital recorder. “Everything’s on here,” she explained.
“What’s this all about, Captain? Should we mobilize the entire security staff?” one guard demanded. “Do we have an intruder on site?”
“Nope. This is one of the bad guys, believe it or not. Wrap him in plastic and get him outta sight.”
The sergeant stared at Paige as if she were insane. “You’re kidding me.”
“Do it, Sergeant,” she coldly demanded, her eyes suddenly blazing.
“Yes, ma’am,” the guard replied and ordered another guard to help him remove the body. The two other guards looked at each other and then back at Paige.
“You two, keep your eyes open for anything suspicious,” she ordered.
The two guards looked at each other before turning to walk back to the south on patrol. Ethan patiently watched, and both Katrina and Alton turned to consider him.
“What were you doing out here, if I may ask?” Katrina suspiciously asked Ethan.
“Me? I usually take a stroll during the evening, so I went by the security office to ask Paige if she wanted to join me. They said she was outside...”
“It’s okay. He’s okay,” Paige interrupted.
I hope so, anyway.
Katrina appeared dubious, but Caleb confidently spoke up, “Really, he’s one of the good guys.”
Ethan smiled at Caleb appreciatively as Katrina weighed her mate’s comments and shrugged, but nevertheless she moved to stand closer to him.
“Play it,” Alton insisted, staring at the recorder in Paige’s hand.
Everyone expectantly watched Paige as she shrugged and hit Play.
By the time the conversation between Pietari and Dubravko had finished, Katrina’s jaw was firmly clenched. Dori appeared surprised, and Caleb stood quietly, entranced by Paige’s angry blue eyes. It sent a shiver through him, which caught both Paige’s and Katrina’s attention.
Paige’s expression softened following his reaction, and Katrina wrapped one arm around his waist, pulling him closer to her.
“Well, isn’t this just a night filled with revelations?” Alton postulated.
“What do we do now?” Paige asked while tentatively surveying the immediate area.
Alton’s eyes glistened with intrigue. “Do nothing. Leave the rest to me.”
* * * *
Later, Caleb and Katrina were finally alone together in their suite for what felt like the first time in an eternity. He closed his eyes and relished his shower, rinsing the shampoo from his hair and appreciating the feeling of hot water cascading down his tired body. Then he heard the shower curtain moving.
“Kat?” he called as the water ran over his head.
He felt soft hands massage his shoulders.
“Who else, my love?” her gentle voice asked.
It had been too long since he had heard her voice sound so soft or relaxed.
“Paige, maybe?” he mischievously teased.
She loudly slapped his bare buttock with the flat of her palm, making him jerk slightly with surprise from the impact and s
ting.
“Wrong answer.”
He chuckled and finished rinsing the last of the shampoo from his hair. Turning around and opening his eyes, he gazed upon the woman he considered to be the most beautiful in the world.
Katrina’s long red hair fell around her shoulders. Her pale skin was like porcelain, and her green eyes bore into him with an almost magical intensity. His eyes panned the length of her nude body, which he found simply irresistible.
She stepped forward, passionately kissing him on the lips. His body instantly reacted, and he pulled her against him. Then time stood still.
Lying in bed together following their shower, she laid her head against his muscular chest, appreciating the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. She lightly ran her fingernails across and down his arm, and he practically purred with appreciation.
“Roll over and I’ll do your back,” she offered.
He rolled onto his stomach and immediately appreciated the sensation of her fingernails lightly scraping across his skin.
“Ohh, thanks,” he moaned.
She allowed the silence to grow between them. After a few minutes, she brought up a topic that had been on her mind all evening.
“You have to promise me that you’ll stop trying to go off on any more risky adventures, my love.”
His body tensed, and his ire rose slightly. “Only if you promise to start taking me more seriously when I bring something to your attention.”
He thought that if any of the vampires in his life had given more credibility to his suspicions early on, maybe a lot of what had happened could have been avoided.
She mulled over his reaction and finally conceded that she may have dismissed his concerns a bit too hastily due to her focus on the actual conference.
“I should give you more credit, I suppose,” she temporized. “You’re just so young and inexperienced. Sometimes it’s just easier for me to think –”
“That I’m a child?”
She frowned and stopped scratching his back. It hadn’t been that long ago since Paige had made a similar accusation over her treatment of him.
Is that it? Does some subconscious part of me still perceive him as that fragile, vulnerable eight-year-old whom I met two decades ago?
The idea unsettled her, though she doubted that there was any truth in the notion. She resolved that, if anything, it was her desire for control that was at play. Ultimately, she recognized that the heart of the matter was focused upon wanting to keep him safe from harm.