Bloody Broken (A Bloody Series Book #2) (10 page)

    “That’s fair. Will you hear me out first? Give me a chance to explain?” She asked softly. Dom was helpless under those doe eyes. It was enough to make him wonder if he looked like that when she talked.

    “Yes. Go ahead.” He moved to sit down. Claude came in next, Gloria trailing behind. He skirted around Victoria, eyeing her wearily.

    “You’re Claude?” She asked. He jumped.

    “Yes, ma’am.” He kept an eye on her as he sat down.

    “I apologize about last night. You guys caught me off guard is all. I’ve been on the run for so long; getting caught isn’t in my nature. Hi, I’m Vic.”  She held her hand out to Gloria. She actually shook hands with her.

    “Gloria McElroy. You got a mean right hook I hear.” So that’s what it was. Females sizing each other up. Curious.

    “Yeah, I throw punches when I get nervous.”  She laughed. She sat down on the couch next to Adam and looked at them. “Are we waiting on the Weres?” She asked Dom.

    “Yeah, they took off as soon as they heard…things,” he answered awkwardly. She glanced over at Adam then away with a small smile. “Oh, I think they’re coming back,” he said, ear turned toward the door. Sure enough they strolled in a few seconds later. Vic took a deep breath and stood up. Chris stopped dead in his tracks as soon as he spotted her.

    “Miss Lizzy?” He whispered. This was news to Adam. Lizzy?

    “It’s Vic now Chris. But yes.” She answered. He walked up to her, looking her up and down. Then he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her in for a hug. The guys all looked at each other. They looked to him and he shrugged. He didn’t know either.

    “Everybody said you were dead. I can’t believe it’s you. Wait a minute; does your father know the shit you’ve been into?” He asked.

    “No, and I’d like to keep it that way.” She gave him a significant look. “Sit down guys, I owe you all an explanation.” When they were all seated, she sat and went into everything that she had told him last night. From the disappearances, up until he picked her up last night, excluding the romantic parts. Every once in awhile Chris would try to interrupt with something, and Vic would shut him up with a look. Adam didn’t comment, but he sure as hell wasn’t missing these looks. They were going to have a talk later.

    “So, Devin is the leader even though you started all of this and did most of the work already?” Claude asked.

    “Yes, but it’s not like that. He’s a better leader than I am. He’s gotten us farther in the five years since he joined than I did in the previous fourty five.” She managed to look humble.

    "How sure are you that the group from Columbus was the Beta's idea? Couldn't they have developed independently?" Dominic wasn't satisfied with the connections, it was clear from his posture.

    "Very sure. I followed the link from Boulder itself to Columbus, after a tip from another insider that he was stirring a rebellion. I won't name names, but what more evidence do you need? Wasn't it clear to you when Master Orleans sent none of his own men to help investigate in October? The Beta has been intercepting most decisions and twisting facts to serve his own agenda. He has only a few trusted members inside the Mansion and those he won't part with even to save his own ass. I'm sure Stephan was cocky enough to think the idea was his own, but I guarantee there was another pulling the real strings. I never pin pointed who it was.You must have killed the only connection between the two in the melee." She explained. Dom looked up at Adam.

    "It's possible." Adam said. Dom looked down, pensively scrunching his eyebrows.

    “I have to ask. Why was Pauly brought in? You had to know he was an accident waiting to happen.” Chris asked after the pause in conversation. Adam had thought the same thing.

    “I know, but you have to admit, he gets the job done pretty well before he manages to get caught. It was Colin’s idea actually. We needed a guy who knew how to smuggle things. Our last guy got caught in Kosovo and was executed.  He’s only been in the group six months. His sister Marie was taken two years ago. When Colin found out he thought we could use his certain expertise and he would maybe keep on track with us better than his other partners because he wanted his sister back. I forgot all about your truth serum Chris.” She laughed.  He laughed too.

    “You heard about that, huh?” He puffed up.

    “Yeah, Colin told us about it. You started doing it before he left with Devin,” she said, but before anyone could ask another question Matt's phone went off again. She dug it out of her pants pocket.  It must have been Colin because she answered in Inuit again, then quickly switched back to English when Colin started ranting.

    “Whoa! Slow down. You can’t do that! It’s suicide! You called me a suicidal idiot last Friday for wanting to go to the café!” Adam would have a few choice words to say to Colin when they met. “No, you stay right there until I get there. Ten minutes. Don’t move.” She hung up. Everybody had heard but he asked anyway.

    “What is it, Victoria?” Adam asked.

    “Beta Orleans has Colin’s wife. He wants me meet them at the Consulate or he’s going to kill her. We have to go, now!” She was already up, searching for Matt's coat. He grabbed it for her and ushered her out. Everybody followed behind. They met at the rental van and piled in. The three Weres got into their rental, a BMW he noted. Highly impractical in this weather. He got behind the wheel and took off.

    “Where am I going? The pizza shop?” He asked her. She turned away from the window to look at him.

    “What?” She wasn’t paying attention.

   “Where am I going? Did he say where to meet?” He asked again.

    “Orleans Headquarters. It’s on Hanover. The Consulate is inside.” She turned back towards the window. “It’s all my fault. My fault,” she was whispering.

    “Stop that. It is not.” She didn’t say anything. “You know I saw those looks you were giving Chris. We’re going to have a talk about what you’re hiding,” he said, mostly to get a rise out of her. It worked.

    “Yeah, right after we talk about what Dom meant about you ‘Fucking everything that walks by.’” She spit out, then turned back to look back out the window. Instant regret swamped him.

    “I believe his words were 'Sleeps with everything with a pretty face,'” he said.

    “What she said works too,” Dominic put in from the backseat.

    “Dom, so help me God, I will stop your heart with my mind if you don’t shut up,” he ground out through his teeth.

Chapter Eight

    Vic’s thoughts were racing a mile a minute. Everything she had worked for for fifty years could come crashing down around her in the next hour if she fucked up. Colin, Devin, Matt, everyone could get killed. Even Adam. She glanced at him as she gave the directions to the Headquarters building. His profile was so beautiful. Even with his jaw clenched in anger and his lips thinned out and pressed together to keep from arguing with Dom. She had just found this guy. Was she going to lose him already? Even if they all survived this encounter, what then? Were they going to live happily ever after? They were two different species, for crying out loud. She had known some Were/Vamp couples of course, but it almost never worked out. Just because they were both long lived, both lived in the night, both were special, it wasn’t enough. There was no way she was living to see her eight hundredth birthday either. Were’s were lucky to see five hundred. Their bodies effectively reset every time they shifted, meaning if they were injured or sick it was healed. But they aged almost normally while in human form. They were practically human while in that form other than slightly heightened senses, agility and strength. And they were practically all wolf in that form too, other than retaining their human minds. Vamps were almost still human, but for the need for blood instead of food and drink, and the light sensitivity. Their heightened senses and abilities were actually just what any human could do if they had the brain and physical capacity. She realized she was blocking out what was to come by rationalizing her and Adams differences.

    “What’s the plan, Victoria?” Adam asked her while she was mentally berating herself.

    “I’m not sure. I didn’t get that far in the conversation with Colin.” She was so furious with him. But understandably he was scared for Cora’s life.

    “What do
you
think we should do?” He really wanted to know? They should get out while they could. But she wasn’t going to tell him that. He wouldn’t go, she knew.

    “I think you should protect yourselves as best you can, and let me negotiate with Orleans,” she said realistically.

    “He isn’t going to negotiate, Victoria. He wants you dead, remember?” He growled.

    “I know. But I won’t trade Cora’s life for my own. I’ll figure something out.”

    “Well, please do it quick. I’d like to be apprised of the plan before we jump in, and you’re playing it by ear.”

    “Has anyone told the King about what’s going on?” She asked, turning to face the Vamps behind her. They all shook their heads. “Well, someone call him now. Even if it takes backup three hours to get here, I’d like some witnesses to see what Beta had planned. If I don’t make it out, let your King know everything I told you. Find Devin or Colin. They’ll confirm everything.” Adam was growling. She ignored him. “I guess I’ll just head in. He’s not going to blow my brains out in the lobby. Too many witnesses. I have to find Colin. I hope he hasn’t done anything stupid.” She pulled out the cell and tried to get an answer from Colin. He didn’t pick up. Dominic was on the phone with the King, at least she assumed that’s who he was talking to. Adam was pulling up to the corner where the Were Consulate was located.

    “Just find somewhere to pull over here. I don’t want them to see us just yet,” she told him.

    “If they were smart, they would have this place crawling with Weres. If it were us, we would have known when someone of interest pulled up five blocks away.” Claude mentioned from the backseat.

    “Thanks for that. That’s very comforting,” she said.

    “I’m just saying,” he mumbled.

    “We still have our vests, and all of the weapons back here Vic, if you need anything.” Gloria told her. She was glad the female Vamp had her back.

    “Thank you. That’s good news. You have any R.P.G’s back there, by any chance?” She joked.

    “Yeah. What do you prefer? H.E.’s or H.E.A.T.’s?” She glanced behind her seat to dig around.

    “What?! We have R.P.G’s? Since when?” Claude asked. He turned around too to see.

    “They’re mine from home. I picked them up in Russia last time I was there.” She pulled one from its case and showed Claude. He was stroking it like it was a wild tiger. Adam had circled the block a couple times, but since they didn’t spot anybody watching, he pulled over and parked the van. He rested his head on the steering wheel and let out a long sigh.

    “I don’t think they understood I was joking,” she told him. He turned his head and smiled at her.

    “Huh? Why can’t we use them?” Claude whined.

    “Because if we go in there, guns blazing and shooting off rockets, Beta Orleans is going to get exactly what he wants. He wants us to start a fight, so the humans will see.” Adam explained for her. She reached over and squeezed his arm.

    “Oh. Well shit,” Claude said.

    “That’s not to say we should go in unarmed, is it?” Dominic asked.

    “Hell no. I plan on taking at least three handguns if you got ‘em,” she told him. She opened her door and hopped out, walking to the back double doors. Everyone followed. The other guys had followed behind in their BMW and parked a couple cars down from the van, but were walking up now. She grabbed a Kevlar vest hanging from a hook and turned to Adam.

    “Help me out?” She asked him. He took the vest from her while she took off Matt's jacket. When she pulled her t-shirt over her head he frowned at her. She just smiled and held her arms out so he could put it over her head.

    “So, you have a plan yet?” He asked quietly.

    “Not really. I know that no matter what, I can’t shift in there. Nobody on our side can. I’m not giving that bastard what he wants. Hence the vest. It might buy me some time.” She turned so he could adjust the straps.

    “So I’m not going to get to see you in action? I was looking forward to that.” He smiled down at her.

    “Oh, you’ll see me in action all right. Just not as a wolf. After this is over, we’ll go out to Middlesex Fells and run together.” She hoped there was an “after this”.

    “Really?” He asked. She nodded. “While you were talking to Colin in the pizza parlor, I overheard you ask him if his wife knew about you two. What did you mean?” He asked it so casually she had to smile. She was still peeved that he had spied on her, but it was nice that he seemed to care if she were still seeing Colin.

    “I told you, Colin and I dated a long time ago. It’s been over for a long time now. He was my guard in Canada. He lived with my family for as long as I can remember. When I told you that a friend helped me escape from Colorado, it was Colin. He was the only person who knew I was alive for a long time, and he’s always had my back. He’s more of a brother to me now. Over protective and all. He’s not going to like you, that’s for damn sure.” They smiled together.