Chapter 22 #2
“I will make a phone call and have Charlotte here within the hour. Please accept my sincerest apologies; I didn’t intend to upset you.
You have made it very clear that I need to use my head more and stop letting my own feelings cloud my judgment.
I really appreciate you meeting with me.
Your first impression of me is horrendous, and that is entirely my fault.
I will do whatever I can to make it up to you, and let me say I am very impressed with the new leadership at The Order.
Not that I disliked Ray, but I think things might have just gotten a little more to the point.
I like knowing where I stand with someone whether it be good or bad.
” His humility felt genuine, and I appreciated it.
“I find small talk and beating around the bush to be nothing more than a waste of time. It spares no one’s feelings and, in some cases, just exacerbates a situation.
It’s also exhausting trying to sugar coat everything, and it can muddle the message.
Now, I am going to get another drink and have a few bites of these amazing-smelling trays of food floating around.
You should stay here and think of all the ways that you just fucked this up. ”
I made my way to the bar and had my wine refilled. As I was walking away from the bar, I snatched a mushroom from a passing silver tray. The food was delicious, and I was starving. Apparently, being a woman with boundaries made me hungry. Maddox came up beside me.
“So, what are you thinking?” he whispered in my ear as he slid his arm around my waist.
“I’m thinking that my initial impression of him is that he’s not really bright. He thought I would just listen to all of his bullshit without a peace offering? Just because I called doesn’t mean he’s holding all the cards or that I can be persuaded.”
I was merely venting, but I needed to calm down. Being in such close proximity to Maddox lowered my blood pressure, as long as he wasn’t making eye contact. That tended to quicken my pulse without my permission; but it wasn’t necessarily in a bad way.
He squeezed my side slightly.
“I got you. Calm down. He’s an idiot, and you let him know that. His behavior will no doubt improve. If it doesn’t, then I will handle it—you warned him. The rest is up to me.”
As he stepped away from me, his fingers slid across my lower back, sending chills up my spine.
Jerome clapped his hands together and stood in the middle of the patio. “If everyone would follow me, dinner is served. Each place setting has a name car— please find your seats.”
A few individuals stepped up to the bar to refill their glasses before they found their seats for dinner. Jerome stepped off the patio and walked through an opening in a large hedge that hid a private area of the grounds.
Maddox placed his hand on the small of my back again, guiding me toward the same opening that Jerome had disappeared through.
As we came out on the other side, it revealed a hidden garden.
The high manicured hedge was thick and lush, creating a wall completely blocking out the rest of the world.
Flowering plants filled in around the base of the hedge.
The flowers were different shades of blue and purple.
In the center of the garden was a long wooden table with a green table runner; it was set with candelabras, and ornate place settings with multiple utensils and plates.
Five matching wooden chairs with padded seats lined each side of the table.
Canopies were hung beautifully over the scene to provide coverage from the sun.
Two servers stood off to the side; one holding a bottle of wine, and the other bore a clear crystal pitcher of what looked to be water.
Maddox guided me to the center chair on the side of the table facing the opening through which we entered.
I glanced down at the card on the plate to see my name embossed on the front in an elegant script.
He pulled my chair out for me. I set my wine glass next to my place setting and sat down.
He slid my chair in with ease and pulled out the chair to my right, sitting down himself.
“Did you even read the card to see if that is your seat?”
“I don’t need to; if it isn’t my name, then whoever’s name it is can sit where my name is.”
“Not even up for discussion, huh?” I asked, raising my eyebrows at him.
“No. It isn’t.”
He shot me a quick smile, and then it was gone.
I leaned over and looked at the card myself.
Jerome wasn’t going to make that mistake.
The card did indeed have Maddox’s name embossed on it.
Once everyone was seated, the waiters made their way around the table filling glasses.
When the last glass was full, they both disappeared out of sight.
A few moments later, they returned carrying bowls of soup.
After everyone had been served, the waiters disappeared once again.
I took a spoonful of my soup and was very pleasantly surprised to learn this sweet corn soup was gazpacho.
As we all settled into our sweet, cold soup, I decided it was as good a time as any to start.
“Alexander, would you like to share with me how your maker died?” He was seated directly across from me, so it was easy to look him in the eyes.
“Scott had him murdered,” he said without pausing to think about it.
“You are going to need to give me a little more information than that,” I said, slightly annoyed.
“I went to Colombia because my father called me and said that he thought something was going on with Scott. He said that he was worried he was working with someone outside of The Order. They originally went to Colombia because there were reports of rogue vampires that no one at The Order had any knowledge of. Which means they were made illegally.”
I listened intently while occasionally taking bites of my soup. Alexander went into detail about the reports of the vampires being careless and revealing themselves to people they shouldn’t, killing people and attempting to cover up the crimes.
“They had so many incidents that the situation couldn’t be ignored. It also needed to be monitored because someone was making the vampires, and whoever that was didn’t seem to mind that they were leaving utter chaos in their wake.”
He shared details of the case that he would have only known if he was completely trusted by one of the two men acting on The Order’s behalf.
The servers entered once again to collect plates and pour wine and water.
They returned almost immediately with a salad containing grilled shrimp and a light vinaigrette.
When a few bites were taken, and comments were made about how good the food was, Alexander cleared his throat, indicating he was ready to continue.
I took a sip from my glass. “Please continue.”
“Xavier had mentioned that Scott was acting strangely. He would leave the hotel that they were staying at early, before Xavier got up. Every day he would come back with food about an hour after my father woke up. It wouldn’t have been that strange, except for any other time that they did intel operations, they would go together and get food.
One of them shouldn’t be out and about without the other at any time; it’s too dangerous.
He didn’t come right out and say it, but I believe that he had a feeling that Scott was working with whatever vampire created this mess.
Xavier had never called me before about anything that had to do with his job.
He took his position very seriously and wanted me to take over once he stepped down, but he never shared information with me.
This was completely out of character. I believed every word of what he was telling me. He wasn’t a liar. He wasn’t crazy.”
“I didn’t know him, so I wouldn’t be able to speak on that, but I’m sure you are correct. He isn’t exactly here for me to ask,” I said, reminding him that Xavier wasn’t the one being questioned.
“I got to Colombia as soon as I was able to. I met with Xavier at a local place I knew we could trust. Only I was wrong—very wrong. When we parted ways, I went to a hotel, and he went back to meet up with Scott. While we were talking, he told me that he didn’t want me to jeopardize my safety by trying to be a hero.
He was scared that something really bad was going to happen, and he wanted me to know in case it happened to him.
That way, I could go to The Order and expose Scott.
The next day was when Xavier called me and told me that Scott had set up a meeting with one of the underling vampires.
He told him that he was the weakest of the bunch and was looking for protection.
He was supposedly willing to cooperate and give them the information they needed to nail down the one that was in control. ”
“I suggest we take a small break. I need to excuse myself to use the restroom.”
I rose from my seat, as did everyone else at the table. On my way into the house, I passed the waiters on their way out. I found the bathroom and slipped inside, shutting and locking the door behind me. When I emerged, Maddox was standing outside the door.
“You are staying quite close today. Is there a reason for that?” I asked him directly.
“I have one job, and while Alexander is making it easy at the moment, that doesn’t mean it will stay that way.” I patted his chest with my hand and kissed his cheek.
“Fair enough,” I said as I walked past him. “I appreciate you.”