Bad Mouth (12 page)

“I told you I’ll have answers for you tonight. I have to…do something first.” The
glow of his eyes dimmed and his voice grew husky. “The text. That’s why you were upset.”
When she nodded, he turned back toward his window. “I’m such a fool.”

The car came to a stop before she could say anything and he stepped out to hold the
door for her. The faint glow of sunrise crept over the horizon.

“Will you make it back in time?”

“Doesn’t matter.” His deadpan tone showed her more than she wanted to see. She had
hurt him maybe as deeply as she hurt. But he’d have to care about her to feel like
that. And if he did care, why would he use her and lie to her? “I’m old enough to
survive the sun. Would anyone give a shit if I didn’t?”

It mattered to her if he didn’t, but he didn’t wait for an answer. He disappeared
into the car and rode away while her words sat on her lips.

Chapter Seventeen

Sunlight still blasted through the penthouse when Kade awoke. Guess the debilitating
rays weren’t adequate to quell his anguish enough for a long sleep. Last night had
been the worst of his four hundred seventy-two years.

He didn’t want to admit he cared about his parents. He’d always loathed so much about
them, even as he fought to near death for them over the centuries, down to blood and
bones on occasion. Everything he did now was ultimately for them and for the
Dominorum
—things he did that would end in his execution now that Val knew some of the details.

And tonight he’d give her even more. She’d discovered enough information on her own,
and it wouldn’t be long before she found out the rest.
Get rid of her
. That was Ezra’s train wreck of a solution. But he couldn’t even think it without
twisting a knife in his gut. She’d dug into him deeper than his own soul.

It wasn’t her body that drew him, though he craved it like a drug. He wanted to fuck
every opening, lick and bite every inch of her skin. He’d known thousands of women
over the years just as sexy. Almost. They’d all been vampires. He’d never lowered
himself to screw a human. Humans were food.

She’d shoved a hook in him the first day. Humans either worshipped him or feared him
and nothing else. She’d done neither; she treated him like a real person. A precious
gift no one had offered him before. Even Ezra didn’t treat him that way, that beloved
bastard. After centuries, Ezra still held him apart as the royalty he was.

And he’d returned her gift with lies. He was a monumental ass, though he’d had good
reason to keep her in the dark. Would she understand his purpose, his duty, or would
she serve him up to the Ancients for execution? He leaped from his bed and pulled
on clothes to protect him from the sunlight as he moved around the penthouse. He knew
of only one thing he could do for her, to bring her peace of mind, and he only had
a few hours to do it.

He plowed through every dresser to find his spare cell phone. “Luc,” he said once
he’d gotten through. “I could use a hand. Guns with you?”

“No, but I know where he’s at. Whatcha need, leech? And what’re you doin’ up? It’s
the middle of the day.”

“Like I didn’t notice? Can’t sleep, but I can’t go out either. This is where you come
in. I need you and Guns to track down one of the deranged.” He heard a big sigh on
the other end.

“You’re not asking for much, are ya?”

“Well, I guess if you’re not up to it…”

“Hells yeah, I’m up to it. I’ll grab Guns and we’ll get on it. Anything else, oh slave
driver?”

“Yes, I need you and Guns here by sunset.”

“On top of finding this dipshi—never mind. We’ll be there.” Luc laughed. “So who’s
this deranged fellow? It’s not like there’s only one, unfortunately.”

“William Parrish. Last known sighting downtown on the roof of the World Journal.”

“Seriously? That guy’s America’s Most Wanted. Do I get the reward when I find him?”

“No, but if you don’t, you’ll get my boot so far up your ass you’ll taste the leather.”

“Roger that, boss. I’ll call when I find something.” With a snicker, Luc added, “Enjoy
the sun.”

Despite his predicament, Kade chuckled as he hung up. Lucca and Gunner had begun to
relax around him, He’d thought fighting side by side might loosen them up, but only
time had worked. They’d feared
he’d
eat them but never seemed wary around Ezra or Killian or even Declan. He’d thought
it was because he was a
Dominus
, but Ezra was one, also. Then again Ezra came across as a big pussycat. Kade knew
better. The humans didn’t.

Never at ease with humans, he’d passed his orders through Ezra, but maybe his self-imposed
distance had contributed to their discomfort with him.

He wasn’t stupid enough to believe finding Will would redeem him to Val, but he needed
to give her something. It didn’t matter if she ever forgave him—they had no future.
As a vampire, he’d live to the ripe old age of two thousand years or more if luck
allowed. She could never stomach the consumption of human blood to turn for him. She
deserved to be happy. She deserved to have a family. What the hell did he know about
that? He was crude and violent. He had nothing of worth to offer a woman like her.

Chapter Eighteen

To Val’s surprise, Ezra answered the door to Kade’s penthouse. He wore his usual Cheshire
grin, but his pale red eyes were diamond-hard.

“Welcome, Ms. Craig. Won’t you come in?”

Said the spider to the fly.
His welcoming words didn’t exactly match his tone. Maybe coming here wasn’t such
a good idea. Even if she called the VLO, the detention team wouldn’t stand much chance
against two
Dominorum
in an enclosed space.

“Good evening, Ezra. What are you doing here?”

“Kade thought you should meet the guys. Come,” he said, stepping aside.

She saw
the guys
once she passed Ezra. At one end of the sofa facing her sat a vampire who had to be
Killian. He matched Graham’s description perfectly. Beside him sat a man with hair
as dark as Kade’s; he was shorter and leaner than the others. On the other sofa were
two others with their backs toward her. Those two rose to greet her as she drew closer.

What in the hell was going on?

The darker-haired of the two offered his hand. “Valerie Craig, I’ve heard nothing
but good things about your work. I’m Gunner.”

She shook his hand automatically, her mind in a stupor. The fairer man shook her hand
as well. “And I’m Lucca, but you can just call me Luc.”

She looked into a serious set of hazel eyes. Luc didn’t seem happy to be there. But…She
looked back and forth between the two, noting Gunner’s dark green eyes.

“You’re…human.”

The whole group laughed.

“Yeah, we certainly are,” Luc said. “Guns over here works for the Washington State
Police on the Gang Intervention Unit, and I’m an agent with the FBI. I work mostly
on abduction cases.” Her eyes widened as he spoke. “This guy over here is Killian.
He’s a Legion, and so is Declan over there. They’re both Trackers.”

Killian and Declan did nothing more than nod. They looked at her with suspicion, their
expressions guarded. Her gaze swept the room to find Kade standing with his arms crossed
at his favorite position by the balcony window. He didn’t face her. She wanted to
go to him, but everyone stared like she was a circus freak.

She looked at Killian. “So you can flash.”

“Not as fast as Kade, but I do all right.”

Kade stiffened at the window.

For a moment she just stood there, not exactly knowing what to do or what to think.
She wasn’t about to become too emotional in front of this group, however. “Another
lie, Kade?” she asked smoothly.

The others looked away, shifting uncomfortably. Confusion clouded Killian’s expression.
“Why does it matter if he can flash or not?”

“He said only older vampires can flash.”

“And he’s right,” Ezra said, shooting Kade a glare. “If he were permitted to speak
of such things,” Ezra faced her, “Kade would tell you he’s the only young vampire
who has achieved the ability.”

“You weren’t supposed to tell me?” she asked Kade.

“No,” Ezra answered again. “And you never should have met us. You’re endangering peace
between vampires and humans just by being here.” He began pacing between the sofas.

She put a hand to her head. “Would someone please tell me what you have to do with
the fake bloodings?” She grasped Ezra’s arm as he passed. “Was Kade the one who flashed
at Lake Washington?”

“No,” Killian said. Her relief was so great Val sank onto a sofa, unable to keep her
legs under her. “That was me.”

She stared at him in disbelief. He’d just admitted to involvement in the murder of
a human. She glanced around at the others.

“Who were the humans with you?” But she suspected the answer.

“That would be me,” Guns said.

“And me,” Luc added.

She went light-headed, and the room spun for a moment. How could any of this be possible?
“You’re peace officers. Why were you involved, and why didn’t you call it in?”

“Because we killed the victim.” Luc said it as if it were no big deal.

“And the other victim at Gas Works?”

“Same,” he said.

“I know you’re giving me answers, but it’s only generating more questions.” She threw
up her hands. “Why would you do this?”

Kade finally turned away from the window. He looked drawn and pale, his eyes shadowed.
“The Ancients will never understand this, Val. To them, it’s fine for vampires to
harm humans, but when humans victimize a vampire, it will only end in war.”

“What do you mean by
victimize a vampire
?”

“These deranged are being created by enslaved vampires.” He stepped closer to her.
“Did you notice the bloodings have dwindled over the past few weeks?”

She thought about the dates. “We haven’t discovered a known blooding in the past seven
days, and they had been decreasing in frequency before that.”

“Nearly all of the deranged you’re searching for have been destroyed, Val. We took
care of that.” He sat on the sofa across from her. “As well as the humans creating
them.”

She frowned. “How can humans create them?”

He heaved a sigh. She startled at the movement—he was breathing. She bit her lip.
She’d made his heart beat again, which sent a sweet bliss through her limbs she shouldn’t
welcome. She caught Ezra’s knowing smirk and chose to ignore it.

“There’s a gang known to us as Slavers. This is how Ezra and I first met Guns.” Kade
glanced at his teammate, who nodded in reply. “Gangs use anything to put money in
their pockets, drug trafficking, theft, sex trade, and abductions—which is where Luc
came into this.” Luc sent her a short wave. “Humans pay exorbitant amounts of money
for transformation. Their desperation to turn is beyond reason. The Slavers saw a
market and found a way to meet the demand. They enslave adjuvants and force them to
perform transformations.”

She didn’t know that was possible. “How did you find out about this?”

“By chance. Adjuvants have an unspoken bond, innate, but unlike telepathy with other
vampires.” He shrugged. “I went for a walk, passed by an old, empty building, and
felt the pull of an adjuvant. It was distinct, and it was anguished. It takes a lot
to make a vampire, an adjuvant at that, go against the
Dominorum
. What I discovered inside…” His eyes closed, and she knew he had to be thinking of
his own suffering as a child.

“Kade freed the adjuvant and contacted me,” Ezra said. He sat next to Kade. “We brought
in our trusted friends and began fighting back. Of course, this had to be kept secret
for the reasons Kade already told you. No one could know. No one
can
know, human or vampire. Arresting the Slavers would bring it into the light. Do you
understand the implications if this became public?”

She sat back in her seat. If Olen
Rex
and Evangeline found out about the Slavers, they’d go ballistic. They each had an
explosive nature and weren’t the most rational beings. Historically, they had started
and ended wars over much less.

Her eyes went to Kade. “I would have thought you wouldn’t mind putting humans in their
place.”

Kade’s intense gaze held hers. “There are rifts among us.” He leaned forward in his
seat, strain lining his features. “There are those who resent the restrictions the
Rex
has put on the
Immortalis
. They want the freedom to hunt and kill, freedom to transform whom they choose, freedom
to feed from anyone they choose. Then there are those who are so young, they’re still
closely attached to their humanity, those who will permit no harm to humans. And then
there are those of us who know balance is the key to survival, who have been around
long enough to see the results of gluttony, who know it’ll only lead to our own ruin.”

“And where do you fall?”

A ghost of a smile crossed his lips. “Where do you think I fall?”

She considered his brutal reputation and then considered what she knew to be true
of him. Despite his deceit, she couldn’t see him as anything other than honorable.
“You’re not a cold-blooded killer, Kade.”

A flicker of emotion came and went in his expression before she could identify it,
and then he sank back into his seat with a single nod. “I’m not overjoyed with the
bow and scrape the Ancients do with humans, but restrictions are necessary. There
was a time we nearly wiped ourselves from the earth because of our greed. Some of
us learned our lesson.”

She had to do something about the fake bloodings. The public believed the killers
to be rogue vampires, and she had to maintain that perception. No humans or
Immortalis
could be connected to any of the bloodings. But the evidence was already documented.
Whatever route she took, it would be illegal. What kind of person was she to cover
up a murder, no matter the justification?

It looked like she had no choice, just as Kade hadn’t any choice but to act as he
had. She understood why they hadn’t taken the Slavers to the authorities. He wasn’t
only protecting the
Immortalis
, but humankind as well. This was a complete disaster, all the more problematic because
of complex
Immortalis
politics.

“Our labs showed the victims weren’t bitten. Why make them look like bloodings?”

“Someone,” Kade shot a deadly look at Killian, “decided the body would be easier passed
off as one of the blooding victims than a gang slaying.”

“And it was easier.” Killian returned the look. “If your sorry arse hadn’t found the
only smart blond on the planet, no one would have known those two vics didn’t match
the others.”

“No one? Right. I’d agree with you, Ian, but then we’d both be wrong. Could have at
least bitten the bastards.” Kade rubbed the back of his neck. “There’s no use arguing.
It’s done.”

She glanced at the wary faces around her as her distress mounted. She didn’t like
being lied to. She didn’t like not knowing what to believe or what to do. “I don’t
know how to proceed.”

Kade stepped over the coffee table and knelt in front of her, his hands cupping hers.
“That’s all right, Val. We’ll figure something out.”

She melted inside all over again and wanted her lips on his so badly. Instead, she
carefully pulled her hands from his. His expression shuttered, he stepped back and
eased onto the couch across from her again.

He had repeatedly lied to her and he would do it again. He was honest now, but only
because he’d been backed into a corner. He could so easily deceive and manipulate
her when it suited his purpose. But he’d also revealed
Immortalis
secrets to her. He’d gotten
Immortalis
witnesses to truthfully answer her questions about the murders. He’d exposed all of
his men’s identities knowing she could ruin him. There was nothing selfish in what
he’d done.

She needed time to think, needed more information. Val stood and headed for the door.

“Where are you going?” Kade had asked the question, but all of the men had risen from
their seats, their collective tension radiating nuclear force.

“I have some things to look into,” she said.

He jumped the couch and stalked toward her. Her heartbeat kicked up several notches
despite the calm she tried to convey. Was he trying to intimidate her? No, a hint
of alarm lurked in his eyes. “You think I’ll sit back and take your word for it? I
have no reason to trust you.”

“No, you don’t, but trust this. You hold the fate of nations in your hand right now.
Millions of people. Think long and hard before you make a move. You may hate vampires
all you wish, and you may hate me all you wish, but this has more damning consequences
than only for us. If the Ancients catch word of the Slavers, humans will have no chance.
We’ll annihilate you.”

“You’ve never been able to before.”

He recoiled as if she’d slapped him. “This is what you want?”

She blinked. Of course she didn’t want things to go that direction. She’d pushed legislation
opposing transformations, but never with the intent to cause a war. “No, I don’t.
I only want space so I can think about this and what has to be done.”

“Well, think about this. How many transformations were approved sixty years ago? How
many were approved last year? Look at your statistics and then tell me we don’t have
the capability to turn humans into cattle.”

Her eyes widened. When she’d reviewed Kade’s records, the numbers had been sporadic,
two over one month, one the next, and then nothing for several months. The last few
years there had been a steady increase to one or two per month, the maximum an adjuvant
could produce.

There had to be someone in the VLO monitoring the overall vampire population, but
what if there wasn’t? She’d been so focused on the legislation that she’d trusted
the VLO staff to work as they always had. She had to talk to Graham as well as Alice,
the only two people she trusted.

“Val?” Kade ducked his head to catch her downcast eyes. He had a tender look in his
gaze, one that made her tears burn. She blinked them back as best she could. After
only a few days, she couldn’t possible feel this wrecked over him—exhaustion had to
explain her moodiness.

“I’m not reporting any of this for now. I’m only going to look into some records.”
She glanced at the others. “I promise that’s all I’m doing. And I have to figure out
what to do about the false bloodings. They won’t disappear just because I want them
to.”

“I can try at my end to get the cases turned over,” Luc said.

She sent him a hollow laugh. “You won’t get within a hundred yards of that case. The
VLO is like a bulldog when it comes to anything vampire. It’s theirs, and they won’t
share with another agency.”

“Well, I’ve got state resources, Luc’s got FBI resources, those two dickheads have
Legion Tracker resources, and these other two bastards have the
Dominorum
,” Gunner said. “You’re not alone. We’re all here helping each other solve the problem
before it blows up everywhere. Let us know if you need anything.”