15. Arch
ARCH
My head was muddled with memories of sex with Manny and Oz, not to mention worry for Manny’s safety, so it was hard to bring my focus back around to where it should be, on the leak in the Hunters.
If the leak and sabotaging wasn’t intentional, how were we supposed to hold someone accountable for that?
I supposed that was Dominic’s area of concern, but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to trust the Hunter again, even if it wasn’t their fault.
Fortnell, Simpson, and Kraus—who were all on my suspect list—were in the office that morning, so I messaged Ross to find out when he could hop on a call with us. Soon we were in the conference room with a video screen up so Ross could see all of us and vice versa.
The first thing I did was ask each of them to discuss their experiences with past rescues, particularly the most recent one, and discuss what would’ve made their jobs easier or more effective.
Fortnell, who’d triaged the rescued Wonders for medical issues, had some suggestions about supplies and adding more team members.
“Maybe one of the wolves who’s been helping Lee out with the Mexico relocations.
They’d be able to scent any open wounds or infections so my visual exams could go faster.
” He grimaced, his prominent forehead wrinkling.
“My nose is pretty good, but I don’t have a ton of experience using it that way.
There were so many other smells, especially since none of the abductees had had baths recently, I wasn’t able to sort out what was coming from the Wonder right in front of me or from everyone else.
” Shit, that was a great idea. I noted it on the white board.
Kraus had been in charge of clearing the warehouse, and he also requested the assistance of the wolves for the exact same reason.
“Lee and I split the building, and we each had two other Hunters with us, but if we’d missed a storeroom or bunker door in the floor, we could’ve been overrun with traffickers before we could blink.
” That gave me the opening I wanted to discuss what I’d learned over the weekend at the warehouse thanks to Cassandra, and Harrison.
Everyone appeared impressed at the wolves’ effectiveness but horrified about my “theory” of a magic carrier being in charge of the auctions and trafficking.
I didn’t get any unexpected reactions from any of them.
Simpson had been responsible for coordinating transportation and housing for the rescued Wonders. He had nothing but praise for the wolf pack and Wonderhaven. A meeting with Alpha Rafferty was high on my priority list once I’d run the auctioneer to the ground.
Lastly it was Ross’ turn. I addressed him on the screen. “What about the interviews? What would help there?”
He let out an aggrieved breath. He was older than the members of the team who’d moved to Houston with me, and this early on a Monday he appeared tired.
“Lee and Kraus both helped me, but we could’ve used more people doing interviews.
Even with only forty-odd Wonders, the conversations took longer than just the questions on the form.
They all wanted to know when they could call their families, could they borrow my phone, what day was it, stuff like that. I felt terrible for them.”
Kraus’ leaned forward. “Yeah, I know we pared the questionnaire down to the absolute minimum number of questions, but if we add more in the future, we need to calculate the amount of time it’ll take for each abductee to answer them and then increase the number of people doing the interviewing to compensate.
” Both Ross and Kraus appeared relaxed, confident they’d done their jobs properly.
Had they both been mesmerized into thinking they’d interviewed the rescued Wonders when they hadn’t?
Exactly how powerful was this magic carrier?
I waved the dry erase marker at him. “Good point.” I wrote a note to evaluate more questions and the time needed to ask them.
“Okay, I’ll compile all this. Kraus, you’re the point person for acquiring the supplies we’ll need for another rescue of the same size, including what we should keep in backup in case we have even more abductees in the next one.
The rest of you, get your lists to Kraus by the end of the week.
Ross, thanks for joining us. It’s good to see you.
” Everyone said goodbye, and the meeting broke up.
After transcribing the notes from the whiteboard, I retreated to my office to pretend to work until I could reasonably leave for lunch and call Dominic to update him.
I collapsed into my desk chair and stared blankly ahead.
How many Hunters had been compromised, willingly or not?
Hell, was I sure I hadn’t been compromised?
Bile rose in my throat. What if the auctioneer got hold of me now?
Dominic and I were the only ones who knew what was going on.
I needed to put a failsafe in place, and fast.
I made a mental list: burner phone, throwaway email account, email summary of what’s going on to Dominic plus Simon in case Dominic gets compromised. Shit, I never checked with Simon. I pulled out my phone.
Me:
Can vampires be mesmerized by another vampire?
Simon:
No. We’re immune.
Me:
Even to the magic carrier mate of a vampire?
Simon:
It shouldn’t make a difference, but it’s not like we’ve had the opportunity to test it
Well, fuck. Something else to worry about.
Me:
I’m starting to suspect multiple members of my team have been mesmerized and either forced to divulge information or to sabotage part of our operations. I’m going to copy you on a list of what I know to date in case I get compromised too.
Simon:
Got it. Fyi, a vampire at full strength can mesmerize around ten people at a time if they’re all in line of sight.
Me:
That’s useful to know but scary as fuck. How do we avoid being mesmerized?
Simon:
Don’t make eye contact.
Me:
Well, one day when we know what this guy looks like that might be helpful
Simon:
Sorry. Let me know if you need me to come to Houston now vs. later
Me:
I’ll keep it in mind, thanks
Up to now I’d been diligent about keeping information regarding the auctioneer off my phone, but I’d bet money the guy wasn’t using technology to access what we knew.
Fuck, was it fair to the team not to tell them what was going on? That the auctioneer was using them? Based on what Simon had said, even if they all stayed together, going everywhere in a group, they were still vulnerable. I’d discuss it with Dominic when I called him.
And, to be on the safe side, maybe I should stay away from Manny and Oz until this was over.
My brain stuttered to a halt, and a roaring sound filled my ears. Manny. If the auctioneer got hold of me, he’d know about Manny. Hell, if he got hold of anyone in the wolf pack, he’d know about Manny.
What were the odds I could get Manny to stay at TWIST in the Texas Hill Country with Dominic until the auctioneer was found? Hah. Zero. More likely he’d volunteer to be bait.
My phone rang then, and it was one of the rescued Wonders I’d tried to reach on Saturday.
Their story matched Oz’s and the others.
No one had asked any questions after the rescue, but they were glad to have the chance to tell me about the auctioneer and his vampire pet.
Just more confirmation that either I had multiple people actively and consciously sabotaging our investigations, or somehow the auctioneer had interacted with everyone doing the interviews the day of the rescue.
Or maybe they’d interacted with everyone, period.
My stomach roiled with the possibilities. Fuck.
It was time to talk to Dominic. Getting myself under control, I mentally walked through everything I wanted to tell him before leaving the office.
None of my team were in the lobby, but Lester and Niall from the wolf pack were sitting in the guest chairs.
“Hey! Are y’all waiting for Lee? I can track her down for you.
” I thought she’d have arrived by now. Worry curled in my gut. Lee was nothing if not reliable.
Lester held up his phone. “She said she’ll be here in a minute.” Whew. My relief was stronger than it needed to be for someone running a little late, but it wasn’t like we could all huddle together in a group until we caught the auctioneer. Still, why was she late to begin with?
“Okay. Thanks for coming and have a good meeting. I’m heading out to lunch.”
“Good to see you, Captain.”
As soon as I was out the door, I palmed my phone to text Lee. Couldn’t hurt to check.
Me:
You okay? Anything I can do?
Jessica Lee:
Sorry, I was working at the coffee shop near my apartment and lost track of time. I’ll be there in five. It won’t happen again.
Oh, fuck. Don’t panic. Don’t panic.
Me:
It’s not a problem. It was just unusual for you. I’m going to lunch. See you this afternoon.
I practically sprinted the last few feet to my truck.
It was clear I couldn’t leave the team in the dark anymore.
Even if it alerted the auctioneer that we were on to him, I had to let them know so they could take at least some precautions.
And I still needed to update Dominic and email everything to Simon.
I drove to a burger place I liked, parking in the back of the lot so I could see if anyone approached. First I texted Lee, Simpson, Kraus, and Fortnell to meet me at my house at 6:00 p.m. for an informal but mandatory meeting. Then I called Dominic.
He was, as anticipated, horrified by my assumptions about the auctioneer’s access to and control of my Hunters. I told him about Lee’s lost time.
“That’s fucking scary.”
“Yeah, I called a meeting at my house tonight. I’ve got to tell them what I think’s been happening. Though I don’t know how we can protect ourselves, other than catching this asshole.”
“Would it help if I came down there?”
I stared out the windshield, considering. “No. It would only put you at risk too.” I rubbed my head. “I need to tell you something else.” I didn’t have Manny’s permission, but he was in danger, and Dominic needed to know. I’d apologize later.
“Fucking hell, what now?” He sighed. “Okay, hit me.”
“Do you remember Manuel Moreno, Rory Blackbourne’s friend who was injured by the vampires last year?”
“Yeah. Jackson healed him. I remember. Why?” The last was said with a large amount of suspicion, which I couldn’t say was unwarranted.
“The magic Jackson put into him never went away. He doesn’t have a magical core, though. It’s more like... his entire body is infused with magic.”
Another sigh. “I’m really not going to like what you’re going to say next, am I?”
“Nope. But the wolf pack has known about it for months. I confirmed it yesterday, and if I were the auctioneer, well...”
“Shit. What can he do?”
“He’s a healer. He can heal wounds and illnesses on anyone with magic.”
Dominic gave a long whistle. “That’s definitely something people would pay for. He can’t heal humans?”
“No. It would take more magic than he has or something.”
“Got it. But, fuck, he’s a huge target. Even if the auctioneer doesn’t want to sell Manny to the highest bidder, he’s a magic carrier. He might want Manny’s skills to heal himself.”
“Or for his pet vampire.”
Dominic grunted in agreement. I explained the security guards the wolves were providing. “But enough people know about him I’m sure it’s only a matter of time until someone with bad intentions comes after him, whether it’s the auctioneer or not.”
“Shit.” He was silent for a moment. “I don’t see how we can help keep Manny safe without also exposing him to the auctioneer.”
“I agree. Hell, Dominic, I’m worried I’ve already exposed him to the auctioneer. I mean, how would I know?”
His only response was silence.
After we hung up, I texted Oz and Manny.
Me:
Manny, have a good shift at work. Oz, what are you doing this evening?
I stared down at my phone. What I really wanted to say, which was shocking at this stage, was that I missed them.
I missed them and worried about them in equal measures.
I focused my gaze to look at my connections, admiring the two new romantic connections I had with Manny and Oz.
They weren’t terribly strong yet, but they were bright, so bright.
I put a finger against them, one at a time.
I couldn’t feel their emotions or anything, of course; our relationship was too new for that.
But it was nice to imagine I could. Manny feeling mischievous while he thought of a suitably bratty reply to my text.
And Oz, who’d act shocked at whatever Manny came up with while secretly admiring him.
Manny:
It’ll be amazing because I’ll be there. When can we see you again? I have naughty bits you haven’t touched yet.
Oz:
OMG, Manny!
Oz:
I’m working on starting the process to get my electrician’s license in Texas. My Wisconsin license doesn’t transfer so I have to go through “training” all over again.
Manny:
Hold up. I have many questions. I think we all need to have lunch tomorrow so Arch and I can grill you in person. Grill being a euphemism for both “interrogate” and “fuck”.
Me:
I second that. On both counts. And congratulations, Oz. I can’t wait to hear all about it.
Oz:
Thanks and count me in! See you then!
Would it be wrong to wait until after we had sex tomorrow to tell Manny he was in even more danger than I’d originally thought?