Stealing Fire (Bad Boys Of The Underworld Book 5) (4 page)

Ella took a step back at the sight of Cade and bumped into Lucian. No big surprise. Cade was almost as tall as him, and the severe buzz cut was enough to put anyone on edge.

More than that, humans in general were uneasy around myotis. Some buried instinct told them to be afraid. It grew tiresome at times, but he was grateful at the moment. It was hard to be upset when Ella stood so close to him. He took a deep breath, savoring her scent, and resisted the urge to pull her more fully against him. He bit his lip as he summoned up all his self-control.

“Cade, this is Ella. Ella, this is Cade, my...brother.”

Cade grinned at the lie and approached Ella, hand outstretched. Lucian could sense her apprehension, but she met Cade’s handshake.

“Ella’s father went missing and his car is parked on the border of our property. Ella saw the cameras and is hoping we might be able to help.”

Cade nodded as he stared between Lucian and Ella. “I’m sorry to hear about your father. Why don’t you follow me to the security room?” Cade shot Lucian a pointed glance as he headed up the stairs, leaving Lucian and Ella to follow.

“So, why do you guys have a security room anyway?” she asked as they turned down the second-story hallway.

Cade opened his mouth, but Lucian answered first. “We both work with high-value defense contracts. We have very valuable information stored here.”

“You work on defense stuff in Maine?”

Lucian squeezed in front of Cade and opened the door to the camera room. “We like the peace and quiet.”

Ella walked into the darkness, lit only by the twelve black-and-white monitors. Her eyes widened. “This is peaceful?”

“To each his own,” muttered Lucian.

Cade pulled out a chair for Ella. “Have a seat and I’ll get some of the archived footage pulled up.”

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wenty minutes later, Cade pulled Lucian into the downstairs kitchen. “What the hell is going on?”

Lucian looked to the stairs, making sure Ella was still upstairs searching through useless video archives. “This could be the break we’ve been waiting for.”

“What break? You have her father locked in the basement, but you just waltz her in here to look for him? She never should’ve been able to make it past the barrier spells.”

Lucian shook his head. “Think about it. How long ago did Kalger make the doctor work for him?”

Cade thought for a moment. “Sometime in the eighties.”

“Murray wasn’t married and didn’t have any kids. I saw the original file Kalger had on him. Now, he suddenly has a daughter who isn’t affected by our barrier spells and doesn’t know who her mother is. How old do you think she is?”

“Shit,” muttered Cade. “She’s got to be mid-twenties.”

“The thing that’s been bothering me about Murray is why he’s even alive. Kalger was a dick. If Murray failed him, he’d be dead. The only reason he’d let the doctor live was if he still thought he was useful.”

Cade nodded. “But if he was successful in genetically modifying a living embryo, it would be a waiting game to see if it worked.”

“Exactly. But Kalger was no dad of the year. He wouldn’t want to babysit some kid for over a decade, just hoping she’d work out. I think he let Murray escape, fully planning on collecting Ella when she was old enough. I killed him ten years ago. Probably just before she hit puberty.”

“You think that’s why Murray hasn’t helped us?”

“If Murray said he didn’t know or told us he failed Kalger, that would be one thing. But he’s refusing to talk at all. He is hiding something or someone, and I’ll bet you anything this girl is it.”

Cade leaned against the counter and narrowed his eyes at Lucian. “So what are you going to do with her? Forced breeding doesn’t exactly sound appealing.”

“Do you think that’s something I’d do?”

“You’ve done a lot of shit to get to where you are.”

Lucian decided it was best to not directly respond to that. “Besides, it’s going to take more than one girl to replenish the coven. We need to know what makes her different. How she could get onto our land and if she’s really the doctor’s daughter.”

“So we’re going to force her to undergo medical experiments?” Cade shook his head and held up his hands. “This is too creepy, even for me.”

Lucian looked out the doorway once again to make sure the coast was clear. “We aren’t going to force her to do anything. She’s going to volunteer.”

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E
lla’s eyes drifted shut as the same old trees played in front of her for the thousandth time. She’d long ago established that the camera next to her father’s car wasn’t facing the road whenever he’d arrived. His car just appeared during the sway of the camera as it swung from its perch in the trees.

Just to be thorough, she reviewed all the footage taken that day, hoping for some sight of Dad. So far she’d gotten nowhere. Lucian and his brother were apparently both bored enough that they left her on her own after only half an hour. She should go home. It was late enough. A glance at her phone showed it was already ten thirty.

She didn’t want to leave until she found something that could lead her to Dad, but her exhausted eyes wouldn’t be able to detect anything in the endless sea of black and white.

As though on cue, Lucian opened the door. “Hanging in there?”

Ella rubbed her eyes and shook her head. “Not really. I don’t think I’m good for much at this point.”

“You’re more than welcome to grab a nap in one of the spare rooms. I know you have a long drive home.”

The last thing she needed to do was to sleep here. “Thanks for the offer, but I really can’t take advantage of you any more than I have.”

He nodded. “At least come downstairs. We aren’t the best cooks, but we have some delicious frozen burritos. I should’ve offered sooner, but I’m not used to company.”

“You’ve already done so much.” Ella pushed herself up and found herself just inches from Lucian.
How did he always manage to get so close without her noticing?
“I don’t know how I can thank you.”

He looked down at her and quickly turned away, heading to the door. “I’m sure we’ll figure something out,” he said over his shoulder.

She frowned. The words seemed sexual, but his tone was completely innocent. She decided the exhaustion was playing tricks on her.

“Where’s Cade?” she asked as they entered the empty kitchen.

“Around here somewhere.” He opened the freezer and examined the contents. “Let’s see...we have the aforementioned burritos, some sort of chicken bake thing and a pretzel sandwich.”

Ella grinned at the bachelor pad menu. “Whatever is easier.”

“They go in the microwave for three minutes. There really isn’t a difficulty scale in question here.”

“A burrito is fine.” It was obvious the brothers didn’t cook much. The house itself was decadent and well maintained, but most of the kitchen was dated. The stove was probably at least ten years old. The only newer-looking appliance was the microwave.

The small table and chairs in the corner were in the same Victorian style as the outside of the house and the cabinets were a dark chestnut.

There were a few windows, so maybe the kitchen looked better when some sunlight got in. Lucian had just popped the burrito into the microwave when Cade appeared in the doorway. He must’ve been somewhere on the first floor because she hadn’t heard the stairs creak. “Lucian. Aleksander’s on the phone. It’s important.”

Lucian shot Ella an apologetic glance. “I have to take this. I’ll be right back.”

Ella nodded and tried to imagine who Aleksander was. Someone important in the defense game apparently.
Did Cade and Lucian work for him? Was he high up in the US government?

Or some
other
government?

A metallic clanging sounded from below her and Ella jerked around at the sound.
What the heck was that?

She shook her head at her own jumpiness. Just because the house was old and slightly creepy didn’t mean she needed to jump at every strange noise.

Then she heard it again.

The lingering uneasiness she’d felt ever since she entered the strange house now reached fever pitch. She took a deep breath and told herself it was nothing. This was an old house and old houses made strange noises.

Metal clanged against metal.

“Lucian? Is that you?”

No answer.

She approached the hallway, moving closer to the origin of the sound. She looked left and right but saw no one. Not that she expected different. The sounds came from beneath her. The clanging metal sounded again and Ella estimated it was right below her.

“Cade?” she called.

Again, no answer.

She should go back in the kitchen. Lucian would be there and he would take her back to her car.

It was probably an old furnace or water heater. The noise sounded again and Ella couldn’t take it anymore.
No furnace made noises like this!
She would just peek downstairs and see what it was so she could calm her frayed nerves.

She turned down the hallway, trying to see whether Cade or Lucian were anywhere nearby, when she stopped in her tracks. The open door led to a darkened staircase.

That door wasn’t open a second ago. She was sure of it.

Ella took a deep breath.
Stop imagining things. This house isn’t haunted, and there is a perfectly reasonable explanation for all this. Just go down the stairs and see for yourself.

Upon closer inspection, the stairs weren’t as dark as she thought. A faint light shone at the bottom. At least she wouldn’t have to fumble for a light switch. Houses like this one tended to be covered in cobwebs.

She assumed. She’d never really been in a house like this before.

Ella didn’t consider herself scared of spiders, but she still wouldn’t want to sneak up on one.

Each stair creaked and moaned as she stepped; she paused. It wasn’t as if she were sneaking anywhere. If Lucian or Cade came around, she’d tell them the truth. She’d heard strange noises repeatedly and hadn’t been able to get either of them to check it out.

Really, she was doing them a favor.

She grinned at her logic as she made it to the end of the stairs. Looking around, her heart dropped out of her chest.

She’d expected to see normal basement stuff: storage boxes and the ugly appliances no one wanted on the upper levels.

She found a dungeon.

Her breaths came in short pants as she stared down the dark, narrow hallway. Two doors on either side, each with a small, barred window. She should go. Turn and run. A mile wasn’t that far. If she left right now, she could probably make it to her car before Lucian did. Probably.

She twisted back to the stairs before a sickening realization filled her. Dad’s car was right outside Lucian’s property.

Flooded with the urgency to escape, Ella pushed past her fear and ran to the doors. The first two cells were both empty, containing only a depressing-looking bucket and a bare, metal bench.

The third one was exactly the same, except for the small man huddled in a corner. All she could see was messy, white hair and a tattered brown sweater, but she knew exactly who this was.

Lucian had her dad locked in his basement dungeon.