12. Sebastian #2
Justin let out a small gasp. Sebastian understood why.
It was more like a laboratory than anything else.
There were computers everywhere, as well as microscopes and other scientific tools.
Several pieces of machinery were beeping softly in the background.
The overhead lighting was dim, and the whole room was bathed in a blue-ish glow from the various screens.
At the center, sitting on an office chair and surrounded by three monitors, was Sebastian’s mother.
Although she appeared to be in her early fifties, Sebastian knew she was actually more than a hundred years old.
When he was born, she’d been in her nineties.
She had shoulder-length blonde hair and was dressed in black pants and a black jacket.
The only color in her outfit was the red silk scarf tied around her neck.
Her head swiveled back and forth between two of the screens.
One was playing black and white security footage.
“Mother?”
“Get your ass in here,” came the reply, his mother’s voice a brassy blast. “And bring the vampire.”
Justin’s jaw clenched, and Sebastian reached over and rubbed circles on his upper back. He hoped his mother wouldn’t fuck up his burgeoning relationship. Leading Justin, they entered the low light of the office-slash-command center.
“Grab chairs,” his mother said without looking up. Sebastian rolled over two black office chairs and indicated Justin should sit in one, which he did, albeit tentatively. Sebastian plopped down as well and scooted forward using his feet until he was next to his mom.
“What are we looking at?”
“Footage of your sister’s attack. Specifically, the moment she managed to get through the gate. She didn’t break the wards; she doesn’t have the power for that. But they were keyed to exclude her, and she somehow…tricked them.”
On the right screen was grainy footage of the house’s front walk. After several seconds of nothing, his sister Veronica appeared in front of the wrought iron gate. She stood there for a moment, glaring at the house, and then, without fanfare, she reached down and swung the gate open.
She proceeded toward the house. Several figures, hooded and cloaked, followed behind her.
Sebastian’s mother clicked a mouse, pausing the video.
“What do you think?” she asked, finally turning and making eye contact with him. She was exhausted. There were bags under her eyes, and her usually perfect hair was askew. Behind her, Justin sat frozen in place, watching the conversation with a look of confusion.
Sebastian shrugged. “She didn’t cast anything. Maybe one of her people did?”
“The wards didn’t break. They let her in. One of her renegade witches couldn’t have pulled that off without us knowing.”
Sebastian didn’t say anything. She was right. Besides, the wards were the work of the entire Circle. The chance Veronica had amassed enough power to break them was next to nil.
“Someone from the Circle let her in?”
His mother rubbed her eyes. “I considered it. But at this point, I think Vee’s alienated everyone. If it’s someone inside, they are a much better actor than I believe any of my witches to be.”
Sebastian turned back to the paused video, staring at the image. How the hell had his sister gotten in?
“What about you, vampire?” his mother asked, crossing her arms and swiveling on her chair until she was facing Justin. “How do you think she did it?”
“His name is Justin, mother.” A hot flash of protectiveness flared in Sebastian’s chest. “And he is here on behalf of the Grosvenor coven, so don’t treat him poorly.”
She rolled her eyes. “Alright. Justin. And I’m Linda. Linda Walker. There, we’ve met. So, what do you think?”
“I, uh, don’t know anything about witches and spells and?—”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Sebastian’s mother said, gesturing dismissively. “Take a stab at it anyway.”
Justin’s gaze went to Sebastian, his eyes tight. Sebastian shrugged and nodded encouragingly. This was his mother. She was going to do what she was going to do. She was a steamroller. If you stood in the way, you were likely to get squashed, so he’d learned to go with the flow.
“Well,” Justin said slowly, “if she didn’t break the spells?—”
“Wards.”
“Okay, if she didn’t break the wards, then maybe…maybe you’re not looking at the right time.”
Linda didn’t say anything for a few seconds, but Sebastian knew his mother, and he knew the look she was giving Justin. She was trying to decide if he was phenomenally stupid or secretly a genius.
“Go on…”
Justin swallowed and powered through. The grit and determination he saw in Justin made him proud as well as turning him on.
The vampire obviously struggled with anxiety and doubt on occasion, but when push came to shove, he demonstrated a persistent inner strength, like a flexible willow sapling with an unexpected core of metal. It was hot as hell.
“If you’re certain no one from the Circle let her in,” Justin continued, “then maybe she set this up a long time ago. Back when you were on better terms. She was part of the Circle, right? Maybe she built something into the wards. Something allowing her to circumvent whatever you did to keep her out.”
No one said anything. Sebastian stared at Justin. He knew Linda was doing the same. If Justin was right, Veronica had been planning something like this for years. And he had a feeling Justin was right.
“Like I said, I don’t know anything about witchcraft but… ”
Linda shook her head and blew through her pursed lips. “Holy shit. Well, fuck me, I guess.”
Justin locked eyes with Sebastian, clearly confused and not knowing if Linda’s reaction was good or bad. Sebastian smiled, and Justin’s shoulders relaxed.
“It must have been subtle, if no one noticed,” she continued, then stopped. She turned back to the desk, rummaging through a drawer and ultimately pulling out a small silver bowl, a small index card, a pen, and a silver lighter, tossing them haphazardly next to the computer keyboard.
With practiced casualness, she drew a symbol on the index card and held it up.
She flipped open the lighter and set the card aflame, holding it for a moment before tossing it into the bowl.
The whole time, she muttered under her breath.
She kept doing so until the index card had been fully reduced to ash.
“We’ll see what my little spirit friend turns up.” Linda turned back to Justin. “Okay, vampire, what are you doing here, and why do you think you’re good enough to mate with my son?”