Chapter Twenty-Five
Asking Beckham to fill her in on the plan was about as fruitful as her stopping a bullet with her teeth. In fact, he wasn’t particularly loquacious the entire trip. Not that he ever was. But even the air felt bereft between them.
They traded out their SUV for a shiny black sports car once they got into the city.
Reyna didn’t even have it in her to make a quip about it being inconspicuous before Beckham punched the pedal to the floor.
Reyna quickly forgot her irritation as wonder took over.
Just like the first time she’d ridden with him on his motorcycle, the sensation of flying resonated with her.
The sheer power of the vehicle beneath her made her come alive.
“Where are we meeting her?” Reyna tried again.
Beckham took the next turn at top speed, the back wheels sliding across the road as if they were on ice. Reyna squeezed her seat to keep from slamming into the door. Questions seemed to be a no-go.
The sun had finally set by the time they swung into an underground parking garage. Literally swung. Beckham parked the car next to an elevator and sprinted around to her side to open the door. She stood on unsteady feet.
“Should we be worried about the cameras?” Reyna asked. “I can’t imagine that Harrington isn’t trying to track you or her.”
“Took care of it.”
“Of course you did,” she mumbled. “You’ve already been here?”
In response, he gestured for her to head to the elevator. He must have spent his time away scoping this place out and possibly dismantling the cameras and security system. Making sure that everything was as safe as possible.
Reyna and Beckham stepped into the elevator, and Beckham pressed a button for one of the floors near the top.
“So are we going in with guns blazing?”
“Guns are pointless.”
“Uh, right. I shot Penelope in the heart, and it put her ass on the ground.”
Beckham’s head snapped to her. “You shot her in the heart?”
Reyna grinned. “Yeah, I did, and I’d do it again if I had to.”
“It won’t come to that.”
Reyna sure as hell hoped it did. Well, mostly she’d feel better if she was packing as she walked into this unknown situation.
The doors opened and Reyna saw a row of doors all marked with the floor number and a letter.
Apartments. They must be going to Penelope’s place.
Reyna frowned, wondering which one belonged to her.
She was certain that someone like Penelope Sky had a swank apartment.
Even before she’d become the mayor, she’d lived a privileged and entitled life that Reyna had never been able to fathom.
“Stairs,” Beckham ordered.
Reyna groaned. Her favorite.
There were five more flights of stairs to the top, which ended with a locked door. As she was well aware with Beckham’s residence, the main way in and out was through the elevator. She wouldn’t have even known if there had been stairs out of his place.
Beckham produced a key and it turned easily in the hole. Before he opened the door, he faced her. “Do exactly as I say and don’t be seen or heard.”
“Uh, you want me to just stand inside?”
Beckham placed a phone in her hand. “Record what you can.”
“Won’t she know I’m nearby?”
“She’s not expecting there to be a human. I will keep her distracted.”
Then he slipped through the door without another word.
Distracted. Great.
Reyna let the door slip closed silently behind her. Beckham moved down a hallway and then into an office space. He positioned her so she had a clear view of the living room, but she was in enough shadow that she wasn’t visible.
Beckham pointed his finger at the ground as if to say, Stay here. She nodded her head in understanding. He gently tipped her chin up with his fist, his eyes penetrating deep into her soul. Then he was gone.
What the hell did that mean? After how he’d been acting, why was he being tender with her? The man wasn’t warm to begin with. And considering he’d been a frozen iceberg since leaving Graves’s place, she hadn’t been expecting anything like that.
That man.
Reyna flipped the phone Beckham had given her over in her hand, pulled up the record feature, and waited.
She only had to wait a few minutes before Beckham entered and took a seat in an overstuffed armchair.
He sprawled out, completely at ease in the place.
Her mind drifted off to all the reasons he’d been here in the past. She truly hated to think about the fact that he and Penny had been together.
Whether it was pretend or not, he’d drank her blood and had sex with her.
Those things had happened in this apartment.
And now he was here. Looking pretty damn comfortable. Her stomach turned.
Penelope entered the room wearing a sky-blue silk robe that was nearly sheer in the dim lighting. Reyna chewed on her lip to keep her disgust from erupting out of her and clicked the damn red button.
“I really didn’t think you’d come,” Penelope said. She held a glass full of amber liquid in her delicate hand. Faux delicacy now that she’d been turned.
Beckham shrugged a shoulder.
Penelope fidgeted. “Want a drink?”
“You know what I like.”
Penelope grinned like a pleased little kitty cat and strode to a bar in her mile-high heels. She poured Beckham two knuckles’ worth of whiskey and handed it to him. He took a slow sip before setting it down. So much for not eating or drinking from the enemy.
“I’m so happy to see you,” Penelope said. “When you said you were coming…”
“You didn’t tell anyone?”
“Of course not. I wouldn’t do that. I wanted to see you and make sure you were okay. After you woke up at that morgue…” Penelope shuddered. “I’ve been a wreck ever since.”
Yeah, and Penelope had helped put him there.
Reyna closed her eyes against the image of Beckham’s head snapping to the side and him slumping to the ground. It was and always would be the most traumatic experience of her life.
Penelope continued when Beckham didn’t respond. “But now you look so good. I’ve really missed you. It’s been so hard doing all of this alone.”
“Doing what alone?” he asked.
“Living this double life.”
Beckham shifted forward. “I thought you ended that.”
“Are you kidding? Of course not,” she gushed. “I still want the same thing you do.”
“And what is that?”
“Equality.”
Reyna almost snorted. She was pretty certain that Penelope wanted far from the same thing as Beckham. Let alone equality between vampires and humans. She’d been made into a vampire as payment for turning Reyna in. Her priorities were seriously skewed.
Penny sank in the chair next to him. Her robe fell open and revealed inch after inch of perfectly smooth, long lean legs.
“You have to believe me when I say that I’m still on your side.
And I’m so sorry about what happened. I know I could never take that back, but it was never my intention for you to get harmed or for anyone to get hurt.
I still want to see vampires and humans live and work together.
It’s even more important to me now that I’m a vampire. ”
“Really?” he asked, somehow managing to keep the incredulity from his voice.
She wouldn’t have been able to. She leaned against the wall and waited to hear more of the bullshit Penny was spitting.
“Absolutely. Elle has been so scattered after Harrington destroyed the headquarters. God, I still can’t even think about what happened to Sydney.”
Beckham swirled his drink in his hand and pretended not to look interested. “Sydney?”
Reyna swallowed, terrified to hear the news. Oh God. No, no, not Sydney.
“Fuck, you probably haven’t heard,” Penelope said. She stood and walked away from him as if she couldn’t bear to break the news to him. “She’s dead.”
No.
Reyna took a few deep breaths in and let them out. They always knew it was a possibility, but she still tried to slow her racing heart, and to stop the tears threatening to escape.
“In the fires?” Beckham asked. As always, completely unaffected by death.
“No. I guess they sent in a SWAT team to break the doors down to bomb the place. Sydney went to meet them, giving Elle members enough time to escape. She tried to stop the attackers, but they gunned her down until she couldn’t move and then snapped her neck.
” Penny sighed. Her voice got really soft.
“Harrington had a video and made me watch it.”
Reyna put her hand over her mouth to keep back the choked sob.
She hated to admit that she’d always held out some hope that Sydney would come charging out of the ether and save the day.
That she had been waiting for her moment of glory.
She was the indestructible leader of Elle.
The voice. The original mastermind. It was impossible to think that she was gone.
That she’d been gone for weeks, and no one even knew.
For a moment, the connection between her and Beckham opened up like a pinprick in the night.
She wanted to reach for it, but a rush of feeling hit her head on.
Calm. Ease. Comfort. Her heart rate slowed.
The tears dried up. She could make it through this.
With his touch on her heart, she could make it through.
Her entire body shuddered with the warmth of his embrace. As if he were right there holding her, calming her. Keeping Penelope from noticing that she was standing nearby.
The connection between them was a balm and then gone. She breathed out a soft breath and then released it.
“Sounds like his style,” Beckham said passively.
“It was awful,” she whispered. “And then I didn’t know who to contact. All the comm lines were down. I couldn’t reach anyone. Where have you been?”
“Around,” he said evasively.
“Just around? That’s it? I told you Sydney’s dead and I’ve been trying to reach you or the rebellion and your response is around?”
“You almost got me killed, Penelope. What did you expect?”
“I know,” she whispered, going suddenly still.
Then Reyna saw her shoulders slump and start to shake.
Oh dear God, she was crying. “That wasn’t supposed to happen.
I never would have jeopardized you. I thought we’d be together.
That’s what Harrington said. He used me, Beckham.
And he’s been trying to use me ever since. ”
“I know.”
Penelope swiped under her eyes. “I’m sorry. Really, I can’t say this enough. Tell me what to do. Tell me how to make this up to you.”
“Do you think you can make it up to me?” Beckham asked. He stood and moved across the room with the purpose of a predator. She could see the anger in the set of his shoulders. She was sure that Penelope didn’t miss it.
Penelope crossed the room to him, placing her hand gently on his arm. Her voice was low and husky when she said, “I want to try.”
Reyna held her breath and she watched the tension visibly leave Beckham’s shoulders. But his eyes weren’t on Penelope. They were on Reyna. They were staring her down in the darkness. As if preparing her for what was to come. She didn’t like that look one bit.
“I know you, Penny,” Beckham said. He faced a distraught Penelope.
“Can we move forward? Figure out who we are from here?” She looked up at him from under her lashes with a coy smile on her face.
“There’s nowhere to move but forward.”
Penelope placed her hand on his chest, looked up at him hopefully, and parted her lips. Reyna felt a dragon crawling out of her chest about to breathe fire. Fuck this recording shit. She couldn’t get through this. Beckham was doing this to get information, but fuck. He didn’t need to do this.
She was about to take a step forward when he walked out of Penelope’s touch. He returned to his chair and took another sip of his drink. “So if you’re still living this double life, then you probably have information about Harrington.”
“I don’t want to talk about him. I want to talk about us.”
Beckham didn’t say anything for a minute and then his voice was low, “Has he hurt you?”
“Threatened,” she said. “I’m fine. Roland deals with the brunt of it and I avoid that creep as much as I can.”
“That’s a smart move.”
“Yeah. I stopped counting how many Permanents he’s killed. He keeps Sophie for the sex and gets a second one for fun.”
“That sounds like Roland,” Beckham said bitterly. “And he’s with Harrington? Do you know where they are?”
“Ugh, Beckham, I don’t know. I try to stay out of the crossfire. That’s an easy way to get shot.” She spat the last word as if the very thought of getting shot was a trigger. “Let’s talk about something else. Oh, I know.” She clapped her hands together twice. “Do you want a treat?”
Before Beckham could answer, Reyna heard footsteps approaching from the direction they had entered.
Reyna slipped deeper into the shadows of the office and angled her camera to follow the person.
It was a man, probably a couple years younger than Reyna with pale skin and blond hair.
He was pretty and distinguished in black slacks and an open-collar shirt.
He stepped into the room. “You called?”
Penelope giggled. “Beckham, this is my Permanent, Lance.”
Beckham’s face was passive, but rage simmered under the surface. “You bought into the system?”
“As if I had a choice,” Penelope said. “Anyway, he’s O negative like us. You can have a taste if you like.”
“I’m not hungry,” Beckham said casually.
“I don’t mind,” Lance said.
Beckham held his hand up before Lance could step toward him. The boy was smart enough not to push the subject.
“Don’t be a spoilsport, Beckham,” Penelope said.
“Miss Sky?” Lance said.
“What is it?”
“I wish to be polite to your guests. Should we offer some to the girl in your office as well?”