Chapter 21
As soon as I hit the send button, a noise grabbed my attention. I looked up to see Maddox stepping into the hall. He was wearing a pair of sweatpants, and his hair was wet.
“We can talk in your room,” I said as I walked toward him. He caught the door and held it open for me. I stepped inside and took a seat on the sofa as he sat down next to me.
“I asked Ronan if anyone ever sat down and talked to Alexander to get his side of the story. He told me no; that the entire basis on which we label him an enemy relied on a man named Scott. I told him I wanted to speak with Scott and that I was going to talk to you about setting up a meeting with Alexander.”
“So, you want me to get in touch with Alexander and set up a meeting between who?”
“I want to meet with him after I speak with Scott,” I said as I searched his face for a clue to what he was thinking. He was giving me nothing.
“Okay, I will do that. We are going to obviously need a security team in place ahead of time and a secure location for the meeting. I will personally escort you, and I will have a few guys with me, so Alexander knows this isn’t a time for games.”
“Thank you. I appreciate your willingness to assist me.”
“It is my job. You’re asking me to do my job; of course I’m going to.”
“Not everyone is quite as eager to do their job,” I responded.
Maddox laughed and shook his head.
“I am going to make a few calls to get stuff set up. You are more than welcome to stay, but I am going to be on the phone for a little bit.”
“I am going back to my room to see if Ronan did what I asked him to,”
I stood up and let myself out of his room. A few moments later, I was letting myself back into my own room, where Ronan was sitting on the couch waiting for me to return.
“Did you set up that meeting with Scott?”
“Yes, I told ’im we would be dere around noon tomorrow.”
“Okay, thank you. So, I would like to be alone if that is okay with you. I think we need to put anything that is going on with us, on the back burner. I want to stop questioning you and the job you’re doing. That’s the only way I know how.”
“If dat is ’ow ye feel about de situation, den I will respect yer wishes. Joslyn, I am sorry about my messaging Maddox earlier.”
“I know, Ronan, and I am sorry for jumping into something with you and not having all the information first. I’m sorry if I hurt you. I will talk to you tomorrow, okay?”
“See ye in de morning, Joslyn.” He smiled and went out the door.
* * *
The next morning, I woke up early, showered, and ordered breakfast. In the bedroom, I searched through the closet and drawers to find some clothes.
Looking over my options, I found a pair of white dress shorts and a matching blazer.
There was a black lace bodysuit and a pair of black heels in the closet.
I picked up the phone and called to have makeup and a few hair care items brought up.
Once the things were delivered, I finished getting ready, and before I knew it, it was time to drive to the airport and get back to Michigan to meet with Scott.
I met Maddox and Ronan in the hallway, and we all headed down to the garage.
When we reached the airport in Michigan, Scott was waiting for us.
We piled into a waiting SUV for the short ride to our destination.
Arrangements were made to have the meeting at a local restaurant with a private room.
Ronan led as we entered through the rear of the restaurant.
Once inside, we got situated, putting in our order and receiving our drinks.
After the waitress left the room, I got right to business.
“So, from what I have been told, an incident happened which caused the death of a vampire that happened to be a member of this organization. Is that correct?”
“Yes, that is correct,” Scott agreed.
“Now, from what I have heard, you are maintaining that Alexander had this vampire killed. That vampire also happened to be his maker. Does that sound right to you?”
“Yes, that is right.”
“However, Alexander is claiming that you killed the vampire.”
“I did not kill him,” he blurted out.
“I didn’t ask you a question that time,” I said, staring at him. “What I want is after the waitress comes back and delivers the food and refills the drinks, then you will recite your version of events.”
“I understand.”
A short time later, the waitress returned with the food.
She finished handing off the plates, refilled drinks, and set out condiments.
Once we had everything we needed, she set a pitcher of water on the table and took her leave.
Scott tipped his glass to his lips, taking a drink of water.
He took a deep breath, then began to speak.
“It happened quite a while ago. Some of it’s hard to recall now.
Twenty-three years ago, actually. My partner and I were investigating a case about a vampire that was trying to change humans without permission.
That is something that a lot of newer vampires try to do because they feel alone and isolated.
A lot of their makers aren’t fully committed and don’t make the time to teach and nurture them when they are turned.
What we found wasn’t a new vampire doing this; it was a fairly old one.
Alexander was rebelling against his maker and authority in general. ”
I was listening intently to everything that Scott was saying. I watched for any indication he was lying. I came to the conclusion that if he was lying, he was good at it, and I was having trouble telling one way or the other.
“When we followed the tips and evidence, we ended up at an old, abandoned estate in Colombia. We discovered a small group of vampires that were all relatively new. The Order had no documentation or knowledge of these vampires. They seemed like a pretty rough bunch that would end up giving us quite a bit of trouble in the future. We watched them for a few days, trying to figure out what their purpose was. They were running around wreaking havoc wherever they went—attacking and kidnapping people to build their ranks. Xavier got in touch with Alexander, and he set up a meeting without my knowledge.”
“Why do you think he would do that?” I asked, watching him closely.
“I would think that he wanted to give Alexander a chance to remedy the situation on his own. He loved him and wanted him to eventually follow in his footsteps. That isn’t what Alexander wanted. I think Xavier was trying to save him from himself.”
I turned to Ronan. “I thought you said he was present when Xavier died.”
“Dat is what I was told,” he said, looking to Scott.
“I was there when he died in the jungle of Colombia. I didn’t see him die, but I heard it.
I also found his body and had him brought back.
It started when he left with Alexander in a car.
They went to the abandoned estate. I stayed as close as possible without letting them know I was there.
I decided to park the car further away and approach on foot.
The estate was surrounded by dense jungle.
As I was getting closer, I could hear yelling and fast-moving creatures running through the trees.
All of a sudden, there was a lot of commotion, and I ducked down, trying to remain unnoticed and stay quiet.
While the noises seemed to die down slightly, they also seemed to be moving further away from my location. ”
“Did you ever see any of what happened?” I asked, skeptically.
“As they began to move away, I stood up slightly to see if I could get a view of who they were or what they were doing. I could see a group of vampires moving toward the estate. The same vampires that we had seen with Alexander over those past few days. The new vampires that he created illegally. He used them to kill his maker. He would never have been able to do it on his own. Xavier was older, so he was stronger than Alexander. It is practically impossible for a vampire to kill their maker. It has happened once or twice that we are aware of, but it takes a certain kind of vampire to do something like that. A vampire that you would never want to encounter. Alexander wouldn’t have been able to do it, but it didn’t stop him from creating his own hitmen to do his dirty work.
He caught him off guard and made good use of it. ”
“So how did new vampires kill him if he was so strong?” I asked, demanding an explanation.
“He managed to kill three of them before they overtook him. I saw the bodies lying near his when I found him. I also know that while Xavier and I were watching them, there were about fifteen new vampires with Alexander.”
“Have you had any run-ins with those vampires since then?”
“If I had, do you really think I would have simply let them walk away?” he said, raising his voice slightly.
“You will watch your tone when speaking to Ms. Lawson, or I will give her the pleasure of watching you draw your last breath.” Maddox remained quiet until this moment, which gave his words weight. Scott swallowed.
“I mean no disrespect. I cared about Xavier very much. He was my partner for ten years. He was like a brother. I would do everything in my power to take down any of those guys that helped kill him. From what I have heard over the years, we will never find any of them.”
“What makes you say that?” I asked.
“I have heard that after Xavier was killed, Alexander went about eliminating all of the witnesses. He either had them killed or he did it himself. There was no record of these vampires and therefore no one would know they were missing. At least not as vampires.”
“While you were doing your surveillance, did either of you happen to take any pictures of these vampires?”
This felt like a no-brainer, but maybe vampires don’t show up in pictures. I didn’t know, and I was really hoping my question didn’t sound really fucking stupid. This conversation made me realize that if I was going to commit to this position, then I needed to do some serious studying.
“Xavier did take pictures on the camera we had for surveillance, but when I found his body, the camera was nowhere to be found. Not in the hotel where we were staying, not in the car, and not on him. It was gone.”
I wasn’t sure I believed that story, but I also wasn’t sure I wanted to let him know that.
I didn’t know this man any more than I knew Alexander, and I should be willing to at least give him the benefit of the doubt.
He and I were supposed to be on the same side, and I needed to try to remember that.
“Well, if I were Alexander, I would definitely be disposing of any evidence having to do with the man I had murdered,” I said, smiling as I took a bite of food.
“I don’t think that Alexander is stupid, but he’s definitely dangerous,” he said, nodding in agreement.
We finished our meal, and the rest of the time was filled with nothing more than small talk.
I wasn’t sure if he was being honest with me.
I needed to let this conversation marinate and soak into my brain.
Ronan paid the bill and left the tip. We walked out the door through which we entered.
A second vehicle pulled up behind the first that was waiting outside the back door to the restaurant.
“This is us,” Maddox said to me as he opened the door to the vehicle. “Ronan, you will escort Scott back to his residence. Alexander has asked that you don’t come with us when we meet with him.”
Ronan looked at me for a reaction. He looked disappointed as I got into the car without a word. Maddox shut the door, walked around, and slid into the backseat next to me.
“You just had to poke the bear, didn’t you?” I asked him as the car pulled away from the restaurant.
“More like swatting at a bee. He didn’t inquire about the meeting with Alexander, so I didn’t tell him anything until it was necessary.” One corner of his mouth lifted into a slight grin. I just shook my head.