50. Co-Conspirators
Chapter 50
Co-Conspirators
Poway Rustic Ranch Inn—Later that night
A fter capturing Callistus and Gabriel, Tig’s crew didn’t have time to drive home before dawn, so they reserved rooms online at the nearby Poway resort they’d stayed at during the day. They sneaked the prisoners past the hotel desk clerk while Zeke flirted with the young woman, keeping her distracted. Tig and Liza carried Callistus in his sleep pod right past the clerk’s nose, and Jayden escorted Gabriel under threat of locking him in the sleep pod with Callistus. Kaitlyn offered no resistance and seemed more in shock than anything.
Once they got to the rooms, Jayden drank a couple of doses of Tig’s blood and she checked his stomach. A slight bruise had formed at the point of impact, but her blood would cure any deeper internal damage, if there was any. Still, she checked on him throughout the night until dawn dragged her to sleep.
The next night, they returned to the Hill a little after midnight. She spoke to Marcus during the drive home. He’d posted the two-week notice for trial last night and promised to leave a copy in the jail cell Callistus would occupy. He’d also arranged for Christine to act as defense counsel for Callistus until the perp could hire his own attorney. That way, Tig could question him without violating his rights.
Once she finished with Marcus, she phoned a couple of reserve officers to meet them at the police station and take over guarding the prisoners.
By the time they lugged Callistus’s sleep pod into a cell and triggered the remote release, everyone’s exhaustion prevented them from doing much more than locking up Gabriel and finding housing for the other mortal. Plus, she didn’t want to question Callistus yet, even though Christine was on standby. She’d rather let him stew in his juices.
Kaitlyn had done nothing illegal. Rather than put her in a cell, Tig moved everyone to the squad room and called on Gaea to help them out. The vampire matron was known for adopting strays and happily agreed to house Kaitlyn until after the trial.
“Hey, chief.” Ari waved to get her attention. “I can take Kaitlyn to Gaea’s. I’m headed that way.”
“Hold on.” Tig covered the phone with her hand and side-eyed him. What was he up to now?
“I’m a deputy—”
“A reserve officer. We’re police, not sheriffs.” Although his phrasing was invited error—under the pressure of the moment, saying deputize was simpler than swear you in as a reserve officer .
“Whatever,” he said with a shrug.
“Have you ever fired a gun?”
If Ari had rolled his eyes any harder, they’d have hit the ceiling.
“I’ll take that for a yes. Schedule your firearms test with Jayden for after Callistus’s trial, and he can take you through the paperwork. Until then, you’re not authorized to carry a gun.”
He gave her a two-fingered salute, then left with Kaitlyn in tow.
Tig moved her hand away from the phone’s microphone and explained the plan to Gaea.
With Kaitlyn taken care of, Tig left Florence and Vishon guarding the jail, with instructions to shoot to kill if Callistus attempted a jailbreak, and everyone went home for the night.
Tig got a good day’s rest—although she couldn’t recall a time when she didn’t sleep well. Thirty minutes after the sun set, her phone rang.
“My dear,” Gaea said, “we have a problem.”
“What’s happened?”
“Callistus is tugging on the bond, calling Kaitlyn to him. The poor thing is in agony. I have her locked in her room, but I’m afraid she might try climbing out the window and hurt herself. Whatever should I do?”
“Will she allow you to take over the loyalty bond?”
“The poor dear isn’t sane at the moment.”
“Can’t you override—”
Gaea let out an impatient huff. “Yes, I’m old enough to bind her to me, and that should wipe out Callistus’s bond, but I don’t want to force the decision on her. I’d prefer her willing consent.”
“Hmm.” Tig had already showered and dressed and, with the phone still pressed to her ear, grabbed a few blood bags from the refrigerator, then headed out the kitchen door into the garage. “Bring her to my office. I’ll meet you there.”
“You think that’s wise? Putting her closer to Callistus will only make matters worse.”
“I have something that may help.” Tig put the car in gear and backed out, closing the garage door. “Trust me.”
“All right. I’ll see you shortly.”
When Tig arrived at the police station, she carried the blood bags in a cloth sack and stopped by the jailer’s desk to speak with Florence. “Any problems?”
“None.” Florence looked up from her phone. “I tossed a blood bag through the bars to Callistus, and Jayden ordered food for Gabriel.”
For a few minutes, Tig watched the video feed on the wall-mounted monitor screen. Callistus paced in his cell. Gabriel lay on his cot, reading a paperback book.
“Let me know if any problem develops. I’ll be in the squad room.” Tig left Florence at the desk monitoring the prisoners and found Jayden working on the arrest report, filling in all the details, including those of Callistus’s attack. Attempted murder of a police officer would keep Callistus in jail for a long time, even if they couldn’t prove he murdered Petar.
“How are you feeling?”
“The bruise isn’t too bad.”
“If you need to see the doctor…”
“Nah. I’m good.”
She walked over to the small refrigerator and unloaded the donor bags onto a shelf. She’d drink her breakfast later. Rummaging through the other shelves, she finally found the clear glass bottle containing a dark blue liquid behind a half-eaten sandwich and slipped the medicine into her pocket. She really needed to remind the mortal officers to clean out leftovers regularly, as some containers were growing fuzz.
Jayden stopped typing. “What do you need that for?”
“Kaitlyn. Do you remember what Cerissa said about the dosage?”
“Hmm. Let me check.” He opened his email app on his phone and searched. “Here it is. One teaspoon per hundred pounds. So for Kaitlyn, maybe one and a half? Cerissa didn’t seem concerned if we went over a little.”
“Perfect, thanks. I’ll let you know how it goes.”
The outer door buzzed, and Tig went to greet her visitors, palming a plastic teaspoon from the small collection in the cupboard along the way. She found Gaea in the lobby doing her best to keep Kaitlyn from dashing deeper into the police station.
“I have to go to him.” Kaitlyn squirmed, trying to wiggle from Gaea’s grasp. “Where is he?”
“Come with me. We’ll put you in an interview room. After we talk, if you still want to see him, I can arrange a visit.”
Gaea guided the mortal along, following Tig into the larger of the two interview rooms.
“Take the seats across from me.”
Kaitlyn’s gaze darted around the room, and she clutched her opposite arms so hard her fingernails appeared white. Gaea eased onto a chair, pulling Kaitlyn into the one next to her.
Tig placed the vial and teaspoon on the table. “I have something that should help you. It’s an antidote to the loyalty bond.”
Gaea’s eyes widened. “What?”
“Cerissa developed a drug from one component in fang serum. It’ll neutralize Callistus’s bond. A cure, if you will.”
“Are you sure it’s safe?”
“You know Cerissa wouldn’t give it to us if it wasn’t.” What they didn’t know was how well it would work.
“Oh.” Gaea tapped a finger on her chin dimple. “That’s a dangerous thing to develop. I mean, a mortal could take the cure, then leave the community and tell the whole world about us.”
“Don’t worry. Cerissa is working for the police department, and won’t provide the medicine to anyone except me for official use. This is the first time we’ve needed it.” Tig swung her gaze over to Kaitlyn. “Do you want to be free from Callistus?”
The look of fear in her eyes about broke Tig’s heart. “He’ll be so mad—he’ll kill me if I do that.”
Tig reached a hand across the table and took Kaitlyn’s trembling one. “Callistus will never hurt you again. I’ll make sure he doesn’t. Anna got away safely, and so will you. But the choice is yours.”
Kaitlyn’s eyes scrunched closed, like she was fighting the bond. When she opened them, Tig recognized the look—Kaitlyn had made up her mind. “Do it. I can’t… I can’t resist his call any longer, and I don’t want to be bound to him. I want to be free.”
Tig passed the vial and teaspoon over. “The dosage is by weight.”
“I’m a hundred and forty-five pounds.”
“Then one and a half teaspoons.”
Kaitlyn’s hand shook so much that Gaea poured for her. After she swallowed the full dose, she took a deep breath, then another, and suddenly, her trembling stopped. “Oh my God, that’s amazing. He—he’s gone from my head.”
“Good.” Tig nodded. “Now, I was hoping you might tell me what you know.” After seeing Kaitlyn’s rapid improvement, it struck Tig there was no reason not to be efficient and conduct the interview now.
“Um, know about what?”
“Everything you know about Callistus’s recent actions.”
“Uh, I’m not sure what you’re looking for.” Kaitlyn averted her eyes. “But I can tell you this: ever since Anna left, he’s been on a rampage. Angry all the time. Violent.”
Tig clenched her jaw. When the loyalty bond was in place, Kaitlyn couldn’t leave, even if she wanted to. The treaty between the North American communities included many protections for mortals because of the potential to use the bond to trap someone. But when the leader was a domestic abuser, like Callistus, there was no one in an oversight position to stop him. Tig would have to send Zeke and Liza back to investigate the entire community, to ensure the remaining mortals there were safe.
She cleared her throat and caught Kaitlyn’s gaze when the mortal looked up. “Has Callistus been trying to find Anna?”
“I think so. He and Gabriel talk all the time about it. But they often whisper together when I’m in another room.”
“Did they ever discuss Petar Petrov in front of you?”
“You mean the client list they stole?”
Tig tapped her fingers on the table. Being indirect wasn’t working. “No, I mean his murder. Do you know why Callistus wanted to kill Petar?”
That was the only missing piece. Having the motive would help fill in the complete picture.
Her eyes widened. “He killed Petar?”
“We have sufficient evidence to prove he did. But we’re not sure why.”
Kaitlyn paused, scrunching her brow in thought. “Well, Petar was Anna’s bookie. I know that because Callistus had heard a rumor from one of the community members who gambles at Petar’s casino that Petar was taking bets from a woman in witness protection, someone the Hill had protected. Callistus put two and two together. And he figured Petar wouldn’t take the bet without knowing Anna’s location.” Kaitlyn glanced around the room. “Oh my God, that’s where he went when he locked me up. He and Gabriel—”
“Locked you up?” Tig interrupted.
“Uh, yeah. He locked me in my room with packaged food and water—there are metal bars on the windows—and placed cameras watching me, with one of his friends watching the video feeds. But that was better than when he came back. When he returned, he was so angry…he almost put me in the hospital.”
That fucker .
Tig suppressed the anger crawling up her throat. “I’m sorry.”
Kaitlyn blinked at her before nodding. “Uh, thanks.”
“When was this?”
“Right—that’s why I mentioned it. Callistus and Gabriel were gone for a few nights on the dates you asked him about. He lied when you came to ask. I just didn’t connect his absence to Petar. But not too long afterward, he decided to steal Petar’s client list. He’s the one who met with the thief.”
“How do you know that?”
“He took me with him. He rarely leaves me in the house alone, even locked up. Which was why it was so unusual that he spent three nights away and why the dates stand out in my mind.”
Tig shook her head. Yeah, that and the fact he’d returned and beaten Kaitlyn. That had to stand out, too. “Why did he take you to meet the thief?”
“I…I…” Kaitlyn stammered. “I, ah, I tried to kill myself once. In desperation to get away.”
Tig reached out, placing her hand over Kaitlyn’s. “I am so sorry.”
“Thank you. He saved me but wouldn’t leave me alone in the house or let me out of the house without him after that. He made sure either he or Gabriel kept an eye on me. Anyway, I saw him meet with the thief and heard how much he offered to pay if the guy delivered the list.”
Gaea clasped Kaitlyn’s arm. “Tig, this poor child has been through enough. I think you have sufficient evidence to charge Callistus.”
Tig couldn’t agree more. “Just a few more questions and then you can go back to Gaea’s and rest, Kaitlyn.”
The poor woman nodded, her chin wobbling. “Go ahead.”
“You’ve been with Callistus eleven years?”
“Yes.”
“Has he always hit you? Or did that start only after Anna left?”
Kaitlyn wilted, slumping over.
“You have nothing to be ashamed of.”
Kaitlyn kept her head bowed and her gaze fixed on the tabletop. “Always. He always did. He said he was protecting me from the world.”
What a total load of bullshit. It wasn’t to protect her—it was just Callistus’s sick need to be in control. “He’s an abusive asshole, and you did nothing wrong. Understand?”
Tears rolled down Kaitlyn’s face. “I guess.”
“There, there, dear.” Gaea patted her back. “We’ll see if Father Matt can see you tonight.”
“A priest? Why?”
“He’s a trained therapist and vampire. He’s helped others process trauma. Come along, let’s go home.”
“Wait. What about Gabriel?”
Tig answered before Gaea could. “What about him? Did Callistus beat Gabriel too?”
“He blood-bonded Gabriel without his consent as soon as Anna left. I’ve never seen Callistus hit Gabriel, but he constantly bullies him. The night you first showed up at our house, you triggered one of the security cameras. Callistus saw you in the driveway and figured out you’d followed Gabriel from the bar. He threatened to kill Gabriel, told him if he didn’t take the blame, he’d rip his heart out. He was always threatening him like that.”
Tig looked at the blue liquid and wondered if Gabriel could use a dose. “We’ll take that into consideration when the council deals with Gabriel.”
Gaea tilted her head in the door’s direction and cleared her throat.
Tig got the message. Time to wrap up. “You’re free to go, Kaitlyn. Thank you.”
Kaitlyn squirmed in her seat, hesitating. “You’re really going to protect me from Callistus?”
Tig sighed. The poor thing was petrified. “Yes. We’ve protected others—we will protect you.”
“Then there’s something else you should know.”