Chapter Two
“I’ll have Konrad brought directly to the interview room. We’ll go together and meet him,” Clive said, inviting himself along.
The elevator opened and they headed through the various levels of security together.
Before they arrived at their destination, he pulled her to the side, backing her into a doorway for privacy. “Stop flirting with me,” she said, totally not meaning it.
A whisper of a smile skittered over his mouth. “I don’t trust these witches. Be careful. Kill them before they can kill you. Are we clear?” Stepping back, he gave her a severe British reproof and all her sex parts went warm and a little soft. Except for her nipples.
Still. Bossy. “Easy there, Scion. I can’t handle another thing on my plate at the moment. We both know if I go killing any Procella there’ll be so much political bullshit I’ll drown. At this stage anyway. There’s always tomorrow.” Rowan gave him a bright smile. “I don’t trust Hugo either. But I do trust myself and my cane and all the strength in my general vicinity to handle this without execution. Unfortunately. If anyone needs to be wiped off the face of the planet, it’s a predator like Hugo.”
He straightened his cuffs and then shook his head at her. “It’s impossible to stay angry with you.”
She laughed hard at that one. “I don’t think anyone else who knows me would agree with that point. But I’m smitten enough with you I’ll let you get away with such blatant flattery.”
They moved through the next set of doors, and she caught sight of their guest.
Konrad tipped his chin slightly as he approached. The tall, broad-shouldered witch looked like a sexy, silver-haired architect or lawyer in his early sixties. He wore a smoke-gray three-piece suit with a black shirt open at the neck and walked like he was hot shit. Fair enough, as the warlock was a thousand years old and the magical equivalent of the king of witches worldwide.
He was also Genevieve’s father, so it was more than the murder attempts in full view of cameras, tourists, a sage, and a magical dog. More than using coercive magics against others in violation of Conclave law and the Treaty Rowan and the rest of Hunter Corp. were charged to enforce. It mattered that the object of Hugo’s obsession was Genevieve. All the crimes he’d committed were in some way motivated by that. Konrad Aubert was very motivated to be sure Hugo faced justice for what he’d done to her.
“The Procellas have formally asked for permission to have Felix present as we question Hugo,” Konrad told her.
Rowan thought that over. “Why not? I don’t know what he thinks he can do. He has very limited authority in this situation. I’m absolutely certain about the parameters of this entire arrest, which means I’ve already gone over every possible way he might try to get out of culpability.”
Konrad bowed slightly. “I’m certain you have. Whatever you decide, the Conclave will support it.”
Good to know. “I’ve got no real opposition to letting Felix sit in on our interview. But we’re starting in like,” she glanced up at the wall clock and then back to Konrad, “two minutes, so he’d better be here already or move his ass because I’m not waiting.”
It was going to take her a bit of time with the witches she had in custody to find all their fault lines and weak points. Then she’d know how to unravel them and get answers. While violence certainly had its uses, torture was ineffective. Mentally and emotionally breaking them? Well, that was very effective.
Spells could compel cooperation, but they needed to know what to ask before they compel someone to speak. There’d been multiple crimes and only some of them seemed connected. Rowan knew she and the others were only seeing a small part of the whole. There was more. The clues were all there, she just had to find them.
They looked toward the interview rooms where Hugo would be. “His type always gets high on entitlement. Gives them what they feel is permission to brag when an attorney is present. It’s an added bonus when the lawyer knows shit is going left and they try to get their client to shut up. Everyone starts to panic. The entitled ass can’t shut up, the lawyer is stretched thin attempting to manage a slow-motion car crash.”
Suddenly, Rowan’s day got a little brighter at the prospect of fucking so many people’s shit up. “Chaos is a dam breaker,” she said with a shrug. And super amusing to watch.
Konrad nodded. “It seems to be forever so. Do you have an order you prefer after Hugo? I imagine you’ll want to speak with Sergio as well?”
Sergio was the patriarch of the Procella family and Rowan knew he’d been part of the first hit put out on her life. There was more skullduggery for certain and she couldn’t wait to hang it around his neck.
“We do Sergio after. We’ll most certainly learn new things from Hugo we can then use on grandpa. Genevieve should be arriving soon, so I think she should be part of his questioning.” Rowan wanted to be sure to send the message that not having Genevieve in the room with her stalker was strategy, not punishment. None of this was her fault.
During those four minutes they’d given Felix—which he barely made as he jogged in, sweaty and out of breath—Hugo had been brought from his cell and placed in a room to await their arrival.
“You need to assure me you understand your role here,” Rowan said to Felix before they opened the door.
“I’m here as a legal representative of Hugo and Sergio Procella.”
Rowan told him as coldly as possible, “Neither have a right to legal representation at this point. This is not human law enforcement. His crimes are not human crimes. You are allowed into the process at the sufferance of Hunter Corp.”
“Now see here.” Felix got that expression men often did right before they leaned into some long lecture about their importance.
She held up a hand, palm out. Not in peace, but in warning. “No.” Rowan’s one-word sentence seemed to echo outward with the underline she gave it. “Hugo Procella violated the Treaty. Multiple times. I’m within my rights to execute him at this very moment for his crimes. As you’re aware. Many of his crimes were committed in full view of witnesses. His guilt has been decided by both Hunter Corp. and the Conclave of Witches. What remains is judgment and sentencing. The severity of which, as I’m certain you understand, will be measured by cooperation of Hugo Procella during interviews. Do not mistake your place in the timeline as well as the process. This isn’t a parking ticket. He didn’t shoplift from Chanel or rough up a server at a casino. We are not in the county courthouse where you can sway humans with cash and good shoes. I’ve got plenty of my own. You are allowed in the room at my sufferance. That’s it. Were our positions reversed, I’d attempt to help Hugo understand where he is in the process as well. Things will go much smoother if we all know our place.”
Felix’s eyes widened and Rowan waited for him to accept reality or push back. Either way, her path was clear.
Konrad cleared his throat before adding, “Precisely so. In or out?”
Felix sighed before straightening his spine and nodding to Rowan. “I will do my best to help Mr. Procella navigate the situation as it exists.”
Konrad added, “And dissuade him from cleaving to any fantasies where he walks free and gets to go back to living his life as if nothing happened. Imprisonment will be Hugo’s reality for some time to come.”
Rowan really liked Konrad Aubert.
Along with David, Rowan’s valet, and the person responsible for managing the US operations for Hunter Corp., and Genevieve—who’d arrived only scant minutes before—Clive sat on the other side of the wall facing monitors with the camera feed from the interrogation room Rowan had just entered.
He settled in, stationed in front of several monitors feeding cameras recording the interview. Some of them were of a modern, technical variety, measuring things like body heat and pulse rate. Rowan was a far more accurate detector than any machine he’d ever seen. To her cells, she was made for the job she did.
Die Mitte , the casino and hotel they were in, served as the base of Vampire Nation operations in North America. His court. His ground. Clive had offered up use of its secure facilities to hold some of Rowan’s prisoners, certainly to be helpful because they had the space and ability, but also because like all Vampires, he was nosy and loved to watch his wife at work.
“Felix looks defeated already,” David murmured. “Rowan has spoken with him.”
Clive withheld a laugh, but the boy was right. If she hadn’t been using a walking aid and wasn’t still recovering from multiple attempts on her life, he might feel more amused. At that point though, he rather looked forward to watching his wife eviscerate the witches on the other side of the table.
Rowan didn’t address him at first as she got settled and looked through some of her notes. Clive knew she’d memorized exactly what it was she wanted to confront him with long before she’d even walked into the building.
His rather delightfully devious wife was toying with Hugo. Letting him know in no uncertain terms he was not in charge.
After two or three minutes, Hugo leaned forward a bit and began to speak. Rowan put a finger up. “Quiet.” Said without even looking up.
At Clive’s side, Genevieve laughed quietly.
Finally, Rowan turned to Konrad. “Are you ready to proceed?”
Aubert kept a bland expression as he nodded.
“Go on, then,” she said to Hugo.
“I demand you release me this instant. I was influenced by magic and can’t be held responsible for my actions.” Hugo put a hand over his heart. “I would never harm Genevieve outside duress. Everything that happened was beyond my control.” He paused. As if that settled anything. A few breaths later, he asked, “Is Genevieve well? I’m sure once I can speak to her to explain myself, she’ll understand and forgive me.”
Konrad flicked his wrist and three slices appeared along Hugo’s cheek, crimson drops of blood beading against pale, pale flesh. Well. Clive approved of him more by the second.
Rowan breathed in deep and a bolt of desire hit. She was taking in all that pain and fear, like a Vampire would. He added it to his encyclopedia of reasons he adored his wife.
Felix opened his mouth to speak, Rowan sent him a look and a cocked head—a snake watching a bird—and then he closed his lips without a word.
Konrad said, “If you must reference her, she is Senator Aubert . However, I’d suggest it’s best not to bring her into your mouth at all.” The words were full of sharp teeth and pain and even on camera, the way they seemed to slice through Hugo was impressive.
“Focus, Hugo,” Rowan said, and rapped the table three times.
Genevieve sucked in a breath at that. Rowan simply knew things like very old magic. A combination of the goddess who lived within her and that spark that was inherently Rowan and her magic. Genevieve had seen a lot of magical practices over her three-quarters of a millennia, but none quite like Rowan’s.
“What?” Clive asked.
“There is magic in ritualistic gestures. Old magic. Knocking wood. Rapping three times. It’s a connection to the time when everyone accepted magic as real. Humans instinctually fall back to it because it’s as much a part of them as fight or flight. Sadly, they’d rather be angry or scared than believe in the magic of small things these days.”
Rowan spoke again. “Let’s talk about the way you’ve attacked me using magic. Now’s your chance to explain yourself.”
“ As I said , I was under the influence of coercion spells.” Hugo’s condescension was only going to make it worse in the end and Genevieve really couldn’t wait to see what Rowan had in mind to punish him with. Her friend was so delightfully spiteful and Hugo was so absolutely dreadful it was therapeutic just watching.
Rowan caressed the head of her walking stick—that was new—for a moment before she said, “You have quite the history with this type of behavior. Before your weak-ass spells blew up in your face. This time, I mean, because it looks like you fail a lot. Amateur.” Her sneer was magnificent theater. “Explain yourself. Or don’t. But the only possible way for you to get out of this mess is to give us context. Because all we do have makes you look like a cock who thought he had better magic and more charisma than he did. Boo-hoo.”
Rowan fisted her hands and made a parody like she was crying and wiping her tears. Hugo’s face darkened at the—accurate—insult and there was more than one person in that room snickering.
“I was under the influence of magic! You know this. He,” Hugo pointed at Konrad, “was the one who removed the spells.”
“Tedious that you’d imagine us not seeing you clumsily dodging the issue. So. Let’s talk about werewolves, shall we?” Rowan lobbed into the room.
Hugo flinched. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Oh, I’m sure that’s not true at all. I’d probably have gotten caught just like you if I’d used a bunch of dudes with the combined brainpower of spray cheese to do my dirty work. Honestly, who kills someone with a crew that big for half a million bucks? The overhead alone would have eaten up a huge percentage. But then you went and double-crossed the dumb, vicious hired killers with paper spelled to look like money. And , in what is the absolute karmic cherry on this shit sundae, you went and fucked over some Dust Devils by attempting to breach their village with the intent to do harm to their priestess. You could have lived your rich-asshole life, but instead, you made so many new and excitingly powerful enemies because your ego is bigger than your brain or magical talent.” Rowan shrugged. “Great news for me and all. But for you? Your schedule will be busy, busy, busy. And for what? Why did you hire the Shanks to kill me?”
Even via video it was obvious that question had caught Hugo and he began to panic.
“I have nothing to say to you. I want to speak with my attorney,” Hugo sputtered.
Rowan remained as she’d been, outwardly relaxed. She tipped her chin. “He’s right here with you, sport. And he hasn’t said boo. He’s got nothing to save you with. Goddess. I did a basic background check on you. Good schools from the cradle. But you’re fucking useless, even though they graded people whose parents gave the school big fat checks—more than you paid to have a Hunter killed in broad daylight in the middle of Las Vegas—far more leniently than the rest who had to work for it.”
“I want to speak to my attorney. In private. ”
Rowan waved a hand. “No.”
“No?” Hugo’s tone dripped with incredulity.
“Well, that was a mistake,” Clive murmured, clearly amused.
Rowan sat forward; all her easygoing energy gone now as her attention lasered onto Hugo. “As you should certainly know since I’ve told you several times, I’ve researched your whole life. You’ve heard no enough from women over the years. I’m advising you to get yourself used to hearing it outside that context too. No. You’re not in charge. You’re not even in the same universe as being in charge. I’m in charge. The Treaty is in charge. You? You’re fucked.”
Hugo twisted to face Felix. The other witch looked pained, but he echoed Rowan. “You’re in violation of the Treaty’s most inviolable laws. You’re in violation of the Conclave’s laws for the same. You have been found guilty already by both.”
Hugo was petulant when he asked Felix, “What good are you, then? Why am I still here?”
“Because your sentence hasn’t been agreed upon yet. Hunter Corp. and the Conclave are still negotiating.” Konrad spoke that time. “You are part of a conspiracy to hire shifters to murder a Hunter. In the presence of human witnesses. In the full view of cameras. You are similarly responsible for the attack on a Hunter last night. In a public parking lot full of cameras. You made multiple physical and magical attacks on a Senator and fellow Conclave witch. You have attempted to breach a Dust Devil village.” Her father visibly shuddered at that.
Genevieve filled with pride and love because these beings who evoked such—rightful—fear had given her a real home. Safety. Acceptance. And more power than she’d ever imagined.
“I was under compulsion. They were keeping her away from me.” Hugo’s voice had gone thready.
Rowan snorted and then shook her head. “The Devils have made a formal request to recommend a sentencing suggestion for you.”
Hugo spun to face her, his eyes wide, but not with nearly enough fear. “It has nothing to do with them!” he yelled.
“I know you’ll lower your voice right now, you stalker piece of shit,” Rowan said, leaning closer to Hugo. “It has everything to do with them. She is their priestess! One of them in a deeply integral way. You attempted to harm her. Repeatedly. Maybe you’re as ignorant as you’re acting. Doubtful. But maybe. So, let me explain. You sent a human armed with what was essentially a magical chemical weapon to breach their village. After you attempted to attack Ms. Aubert at her place of employment, which is also protected Devil ground.”
“It has nothing to do with them,” Hugo repeated faintly.
With the entire surveillance room watching the screens, Rowan continued, “And then last night, you attacked me and Ms. Aubert in a public parking lot. In the presence of a Dust Devil and on Dust Devil ground.”
“Which has now involved the Vampire Nation, as Rowan is the wife of the Scion of North America and the daughter of the First,” Konrad said. “So much trouble from so many powerful players.”
Rowan sipped her water and got back to Hugo. “So. Step one is you learn your motherfucking role. You’re in a listening place. An obedience place. No one cares to hear your demands. Your feelings are irrelevant.”
“You’re twisting what happened,” Hugo said.
Rowan sighed and Genevieve bet the Hunter was thinking of how many ways she could strike Hugo with her cane. “Go on, then, tell me how it was.”
“I am not responsible! You will let me go. I can’t be held accountable for something outside my control. You know it was compulsion magic that bled onto me.”
Her eye roll dripped with disdain. “The compulsion magic that bled onto you? That was yours . You created it to use on someone else. You’re responsible for where you ended up because you put all this in motion. Before your magic rebounded on you. The fact is, you expected to control another person against their will. Magic you’ve used multiple times in the past. So, you’re not going anywhere, Hugo.”
Rowan counted off on her fingers. “You used coercive spells on her multiple times before you were infected.” Another finger. “You and your grandfather hired shifter assassins to kill me before you were infected. You moved up the timeline and told them to go ahead and make it public. Also, before you were infected.” Then she flipped him off. “By the time you attempted to send forbidden magics into a Dust Devil village to harm their priestess, you’d already gotten yourself exactly here. That bit in the parking lot last night? Icing. You’re a danger to everyone around you and you’re not going anyfuckingwhere.”
Rowan got to her feet and Konrad followed suit.
“You’ll remain in custody here,” Konrad told Hugo, who attempted to stand until the chain holding him to the cuff in the floor prevented it.
“Surely he’d be better off in Conclave custody,” Felix said.
Rowan’s tone was icy when she replied, “What’s better for Hugo Procella is pretty near the bottom of my priority list. He’ll do well to be grateful. Be of use. Otherwise...”
“I can’t be held—”
In a dizzyingly fast move, Rowan swung her cane up and twisted it, hooking the handle around Hugo’s throat and shoving him back against the wall. In a snarl loaded with venom, she said, “I swear on all I hold dear in this world that if you try to say you can’t be held responsible for what you did before your own shitty magic blew back into your stupid , weak , inept face, I will make you bleed.”
No one said anything, because not a being on Earth would doubt that promise after witnessing it.
Hugo blinked quickly and closed his mouth, tearing his gaze from Rowan’s to stare at the floor.
“That’s my bride,” Clive murmured softly, making Genevieve smile. The Vampire was—like all Vampires—snotty and in everyone else’s business. But his greatest virtue was how much he obviously admired and adored Rowan.
“Thank goodness he won’t be roaming free to do this to anyone else,” David said quietly as he stood.
The relief that he wouldn’t see the outside of a cell for decades, and most likely would never be given his magic back, left Genevieve a little lightheaded.
Then with a slight pop of energy, the air changed slightly and suddenly Darius was in the room at Genevieve’s side, bending to check in with her.