Cain's Identity (Scanguards Vampires Book 9) (28 page)

Thomas handed the phone to John. “Here. That’s the message.”

John stared at the screen and read it. Then his head shot up and he glared at Thomas. “What is this? Are you trying to set me up?” He stabbed his finger at the display. “I never sent that message!”

“Says right there,” Thomas replied pointing to the top of the display, where the caller’s name appeared. “John. Are you denying that’s you?”

“It must be another John. It’s not me!” John turned to Cain, his eyes pleading. “You must believe me.”

Disappointed that John still didn’t want to fess up, Cain took the phone from his hand, pressed the contact button in the top right corner of it and then the call button. “Do you need another proof?”

The phone rang. And rang.

Cain brought it to his ear, when he suddenly heard a click and somebody breathing. He stared at John in disbelief. John hadn’t moved, hadn’t pulled his cell phone from his pocket, yet somebody had picked it up.

“Hello?” Cain said into the phone, but the call was abruptly disconnected. He pointed at John. “Who’s got your phone?”

John dug into his pants pocket and pulled it out. “I do.” He swiped over the display and unlocked it with his password, then navigated to the call app, before holding the display up for Cain to see. “No call from you.” He motioned to the phone in Cain’s hands. “I don’t know who you just called, but it wasn’t me.”

“Did you change your number in the last year?” Cain asked, trying to make sense of the situation.

“My number hasn’t changed.”

Cain exchanged a look with Thomas. “How is that possible?”

Thomas sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I thought the earlier messages in this thread seemed odd.”

“What do you mean?”

“They didn’t sound like they were addressed to a king from his guard.”

Cain looked at the display once more and scrolled back up through the messages, scanning them quickly. Then he looked up. He remembered some of them. “That can’t be.”

“What?” Haven asked, stepping closer.

Cain lifted his head. “The earlier messages are from Abel.”

Several gasps echoed in the room.

Cain looked at Thomas. “How’s that technically possible?”

Thomas reached for the phone and tapped something on it. “Easier than you think.” He held up the phone, now showing the entry for the contact
John
. “You can change a contact’s name whenever you want to. Let’s say you made a typo when you originally entered it. So you just go back in, and change the name.”

“Shit!” John cursed, drawing all eyes on him. “So that’s how he did it! He got hold of your phone, cracked your password, and changed his contact info to mine so that when he sent you that message to send you into a trap, it would look like it had come from me.”

“Easy to prove, too,” Thomas continued. “The phone number will still identify Abel.” He pointed to the screen. “Is that his number?”

Cain almost bumped heads with John when they both bent down to read it.

“Yes,” Cain confirmed.

John nodded in agreement.

“He probably counted on being the first to get a hold of the phone after your death and would then have erased his message to you and changed the contact info back,” Thomas guessed. “But you didn’t have the phone with you when you walked into that trap.”

“My brother wants me dead.”

Thomas shrugged. “Wouldn’t be the first time one brother tries to kill another for the throne. The entire English royalty dealt with that kind of thing on an ongoing basis.”

“But this one is not going to succeed,” Cain said with determination.

***

Abel shoved his cell phone back into his pocket.

“Shit,” he cursed under his breath.

The call had come from Cain’s old cell phone, which Abel had always thought had been destroyed. In fact, he’d searched for it after Cain’s supposed demise in order to erase all evidence that could lead back to him. But he’d never found it and had eventually forgotten about it.

But now Cain had it. And it had been Cain who’d made the call. He’d recognized his brother’s voice.

Did this also mean that Cain was on to him? Abel had to find out, because his entire plan depended on his brother remaining in the dark so that John could execute the orders Abel had given him.

Easing the door to his suite shut behind him, Abel stalked across the corridor and into the connecting hallway that led to the other side of the palace’s underground living quarters, where the king’s and the queen’s suites were located. He treaded lightly, not wanting his footsteps to be heard by anybody.

Frustration churned in his stomach. He’d waited for this opportunity for so long, and now that he was so close to his ultimate goal, he couldn’t allow anything to stand in his way.

Silently, Abel opened another door and peered into the dim corridor. Through the sliver between door and frame he saw a guard pass on his way toward the stairs leading to the first floor. Several seconds passed until the guard was outside of earshot, and Abel could enter the hallway without being seen. Quickly he approached the double doors to the king’s suite, ready to dive into the next closet should anybody come. Luckily, several supply closets were lining the hallway.

But he didn’t have to resort to such hide-and-seek measures. The double doors were ajar. When Abel peeked through the slit, he couldn’t see anybody in the luxurious reception area, but he heard voices from the room to his left: the door to the suite of the leader of the king’s guard, which was now occupied by that interloper, Thomas, and his gay lover, stood open.

Abel wanted to snort, but didn’t dare make a sound. What a disgrace to the vampire race to have two vampire males engaging in sodomy! And under his roof! How could Cain allow such a thing? Cain wasn’t fit to be king if he tolerated such disgraceful acts in his palace.

Abel shifted to bring his ear to the gap between the two doors to listen more closely to the conversation, while holding his breath.

“Before you do anything, Cain . . .” It was John who spoke, hesitating for a moment, before continuing, “Abel has me by the balls.”

Abel jerked back, wanting to curse, but no sound came over his lips. Instead he pressed them together. John was going to betray him, revealing what he was supposed to do for Abel, despite the fact that this would mean death for his lover.

Abel balled his hands into fists. There was no time to lose now.

Change of plans.

He turned on his heel and rushed in the direction he’d come from.

He had to act quickly and save what he could. Now the gloves would come off and he’d go for the jugular.

No more being Mr. Nice Guy.

41

John dropped his head. “He’s holding Nicolette captive to force me to do his bidding.”

Cain expelled a breath. “Fuck!”

Similar curses came from his colleagues.

“I’m sorry, Cain.” John lifted his head, his eyes now displaying regret and pain. “He’s going to murder her the moment he finds out that I won’t kill you. He’s going to make her suffer.”

Seeing John’s anguish, Cain felt his heart go out to his old friend. He was willing to sacrifice the woman he loved for his king. “It doesn’t have to come to that. We’ll get to Abel before he can do anything.”

John shook his head, his hand trembling as he lifted it. “I’m supposed to kill you when the Mississippians are here. So he can pin it on them and start an all out war. As soon as he realizes that I’m not executing his orders, he’ll order Baltimore to kill Nicolette. We’ll never get to her in time.”

“War with the Mississippi clan? Are you sure?”

“He didn’t say outright, but it’s obvious, isn’t it? If he pins your murder on them, all your subjects will be behind him to avenge you.”

Cain put his hand on John’s shoulder, squeezing it. “I appreciate what you’re sacrificing by telling me the truth, John. I do. And I’ll do everything in my power to save Nicolette.”

John closed his eyes, his jaw clenching now, his chest heaving as if to hold back tears. When he opened his eyes again, they were rimmed with tears. “I’ve fought with this decision ever since I was confronted with it. Every minute since Abel captured her. She’s tied up in some hut somewhere in the bayou, scared. I promised her that nothing would happen to her. That I’d come back for her.” A tear ran down his cheek. “But that won’t happen now. Because I can’t kill a man that I’ve loved and admired ever since I met him. Because of you, I can’t save the woman I love.” John’s jaw set in stone. “And right now, I hate you for that, Cain!”

Before Cain could react to the tearful confession, John’s hand went to the inside of his jacket. In lightning speed, he pulled a stake from it.

Cain jumped to the side, but instead of John lunging at him he jerked the stake toward his own chest.

“Noooooo!” Cain cried out and barreled toward John, slamming his fist against John’s arm. The impact loosened John’s hold on the stake.

At the same time, Haven tackled John from behind, while Thomas kicked John’s legs out from under him, making him tumble to the floor.

Moments later, Haven and Thomas had John pinned flat to the ground. Cain crouched down next to him. “That’s not a solution, John! Do you hear me? We’ll get Nicolette out of there.”

“How?” John spat, anger and desperation evident in his entire body.

Cain had never seen a man in so much emotional pain and hoped that he would never have to go through what John was going through this moment.

“Uh.” Wesley cleared his throat, making Cain snap his head to him and toss him a quizzical look.

Wes raised his finger as if he were in second grade, asking for permission to speak up in class. “Is Nicolette human?”

John turned his head, an impatient look on his face. “Why is that important?”

“Well, it is, because I assume you don’t know her exact location, right?”

“When I was brought to see her, they blindfolded me and then did the same when they released me. I only know it was some hut in the bayou. Maybe forty-five minutes from the palace.”

Wesley nodded. “Well, since she’s human, it shouldn’t be too hard to find her. I can
scry
for her, which I couldn’t do if she were a vampire.”

John made a motion to sit up, and Cain nodded to his friends to let go of him.

For the first time, a hopeful glint appeared in John’s eyes. “Can you really do that?”

Wesley nodded proudly. “I’m a witch. Of course I can.”

John sighed. “And once we know where she is? We might still be too late.”

Cain reached his hand out to his loyal guard and helped him up. “At least this way we have a small chance. We can send a few guys there clandestinely, while you continue to pretend you’re doing what Abel wants you to do.”

“Uh, actually,” Wesley threw in, drawing everybody’s attention back on him. “We have more than just a small chance. Once I have Nicolette’s location, I can put a protection spell on her so that whoever is guarding her won’t be able to harm her.”

“I recall you mentioning on the way here from San Francisco that you were working on one, not that you had actually perfected it,” John said with a good dose of skepticism in his voice.

Wes rolled his eyes. “I’ve had plenty of time to work on my craft. So why does everybody here constantly doubt my abilities?”

To Cain’s surprise, Blake slapped his colleague on the shoulder, grinning. “Maybe it’s time to redeem yourself and show them all that you’re not just a fuck-up.”

Wesley exchanged a look with Blake that appeared almost conspiratorial. “Maybe you’re right. Let’s show those vamps what the rest of us are made out of. Wanna assist?”

Blake chuckled. “As long as you don’t turn me into a pig in the process.”

Wes clicked his tongue. “Speaking of pigs, Blake, do me a favor. The next time you want to borrow one of my potions, ask me first, instead of messing with my stuff.”

“Huh?” Blake appeared utterly clueless.

“Well, never mind. I see why you have the need to arm yourself with some magic to defend yourself. Next time just ask first.” Then Wesley turned away from Blake and motioned to John. “I need something that belongs to Nicolette so I can scry for her. Do you have something she wore, or a lock of hair, something with her sweat or her scent on it?”

John reached to his neck and pulled a chain out from under his shirt, revealing a small vial dangling at its end. “Will her blood work?”

“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Wes said, already reaching for it. “That’ll make it so much easier.”

Cain glanced at the vial with the red liquid inside. “You carry her blood with you? Why?”

“I need to feel her close. You understand that, don’t you?”

Cain nodded slowly. He understood. Because John had not been able to blood-bond with the woman he loved due to the previous rule that the leader of the king’s guard wasn’t allowed a private life, he’d resorted to the next best thing: to always have her blood around him to be reminded of her.

Cain took John’s arm and clasped it. “Once this is over, I promise you’ll get to make her yours if that’s what you desire.”

John locked eyes with him, and in that moment their old friendship was restored.

Then Cain turned to Wesley. “How long will the spell last?”

“Twenty-four hours.”

“Good. That should be sufficient time. Get to work. Make it quick. Blake will help you.” And he hoped that the witch knew what he was doing. For all their sakes. “The rest of us, let’s get Abel and take him down.”

The cell phone in his pocket rang, and Cain impatiently pulled it out, glancing at the display. He answered it. “Yes, Gabriel?”

“You’d better come up here.”

“Stall them.”

“I’m afraid I’ve stalled as long as I could.”

Cain cursed. “I’ll be there in a minute.” He disconnected the call and looked at his friends. “Your orders stand. Find Abel and prevent him from making any phone calls to alert whoever is guarding Nicolette. And be subtle so nobody is aware of what you’re doing. We don’t know which of the guards are loyal to my brother. I don’t want anybody to warn him that we’re on to him.”