18. Finley #2
The sound of a vehicle pulling up caught our attention.
It seemed they were closer than Morwyn assumed, or this really was a trap.
I held Rath’s face in my hands and kissed him deeply, letting all my love for him overwhelm his senses so he had no doubt how I felt about him.
“I will be back with answers and you will be sleeping right next to me tonight. Something tells me you won’t get any rest otherwise.
” Another quick kiss and I was flying down the stairs to deal with a certain someone.
I didn’t go to the front door. Instead, I raced out to the second-floor balcony and climbed up onto the roof that overhung the front entrance.
I crouched low in the darkness, the branches of one of the trees lowering to offer me cover.
Learning the perks of having a forest listen to your request was surprising and always came in the moments I didn’t know I needed them.
Peering over the edge of the roof, I saw Tabitha get out of the passenger side door of the vehicle.
Drawing a dagger out of the sheath on my low back, I pounced.
As I hit Tabitha knocking her to the ground, she reacted instantly, the problem was she was still human.
I twisted out of the way as she kicked out and rolled into my tackle.
The moment she paused to figure out who or what was attacking her, I was on her again.
Knocking out her feet, she dropped to the ground, and I flipped her on her stomach, wrenching her arm up behind her, making her scream in pain.
“Hello, Tabitha,” I whispered in her ear. “I’m going to take a quick peek inside your head for just a moment. The less you resist, the easier it is on you and me.”
Replacing my knife, I placed my free hand on the side of her head and closed my eyes as my magic flooded into her.
Ignoring what’s happened most recently, I moved into the older memories back to when she would have left the Organization.
Everything came to a screeching halt when I saw her talking to someone who looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t place why.
So I decided to listen in to what this person had to say in case that might help me place them.
“Tabitha, did you get the information I need?”
Tabitha handed over a file, and I caught a glimpse of the name on the tab. It was mine. “Tell me again why you need this information? She was found in an orphanage just like the rest of us.”
The man waved her off. “You’re not being paid to understand why I’m doing this. All I need from you is to make sure that you keep an eye on her. They have you doing this next mission together, right? Find out if she’s as good as they say she is.”
“None of this makes sense,” Tabitha challenged. “You don’t need her. You have me.”
The man whirled on her grabbing her by the neck, flashing his fangs.
“You have no idea what I need, human. Now go do what I told you to do before I decided you’ll be a better meal than my mole.
That bastard Ellisor won’t know what hit him when I steal the only thing he’s cared more about than Tiriana.
He put that goddamn baby in her arms, not me!
” The vampire spluttered, spit splashing on Tabitha’s face before he tossed her away.
“That bastard stole everything from me. Now it’s time to return the favor.
Has no idea I’ve been manipulating the whole business right under his nose for years.
I can’t believe he’d think I’d let him thrive when I’ve become a monster. ”
Then it hit me—I knew exactly who this man was…
James. The last of my mother’s nos that was still living and apparently trying to ruin my father and me.
This certainly made things more interesting.
I moved forward in her memory, watching as James was the one who manipulated the system to send me after Delilah.
It seems the Senate really did want her dealt with, but he was the one who ensured I was the one sent on the mission.
It was clear Tabitha believed James was working for the Senate but when the mission with Vicky and Blakely went down, she learned differently.
Vicky was a true Senate lackey, whereas Blakely was a double agent for the Dark Ring.
Now Tabitha chose to work with Morwyn, knowing she was trying to take down the whole system.
It would seem Margaret told her when Tabitha tried to come back into the fold but was turned away.
I was surprised about that, but at the same time, not since she’d been MIA for so long. There was no way they could trust her.
Backing out of her mind, I got off her and reached out a hand to help her up. “You have terrible judgment,” I announced.
“That’s the understatement of the century,” Tabitha agreed, letting me help her to her feet.
“Would someone like to tell me what the fuck is going on and why your woman just leaped off a roof to take out Tabitha?” Peter demanded, glaring at my men who’d gathered at the bottom of the steps.
Mason let out a bark of laughter. “What makes you think we know? Finley is her own person, and if that’s the Tabitha I think it is, she had her reasons.”
Peter turned his angry gaze at me. “Care to enlighten the rest of us?”
“Not particularly,” I answered with a shrug.
Peter’s jaw dropped at my response, clearly not used to someone disregarding his orders.
“There is no reason for you to know what’s going on since it doesn’t pertain to Morwyn.
Even if I told you, none of it would make sense, and I don’t have time to explain it all to you.
Now, is there anything else before we get going? ”
This seemed to bring Peter back to the situation at hand. “No, whoever’s going that isn’t Zander, get in the fucking car.”