46. Fed Following Orders
Fed Following Orders
The phone rings four times. Six times.
The voicemail clicks over.
“Fuck,” I mutter and hang up.
Then, because Nault didn’t answer, and I have protocol to follow, I dial the next number on the list.
Three rings and the call is answered.
“This better be good.” Johnson’s voice is rough with sleep and a lifetime of smoking.
I close my eyes for a second before I start. I hate this guy. “I’m calling about the Haystack Protocol watch. I got eyes on the target.”
“The woman?” He clears his throat, and I grimace at how wet it sounds.
“No. Well, I saw her leave the residence earlier this evening. But…”
“Spit it out, son.”
“She left her residence a second time.” I rub a hand over my forehead. “And she was met by, uh, the unsub.”
There’s a beat of silence. “Are you saying you got eyes on the vampire?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Well, who was it?”
“I… I don’t know. I didn’t recognize him.”
“Send me the photos.”
I wince. “Here’s the thing.”
“Taking photos is literally your fucking job,” he grits out, sounding fully awake now.
“I did. I mean, I took photos, but something— I think he was doing something with his power. The images are all blurry.”
The man grumbles something about fucking vampires. “How long ago was this?”
I press my lips together before I answer. “Thirty minutes. Give or take.”
“Thirty!” His shout is so loud that I pull the phone away from my ear. “You better have a good fucking reason for waiting to report.”
“The cell tower went out right after they went inside her place. It just came back on.” I glance out the window at the dark street. “Power is still out on this block. Maybe more of the town too.”
“Was that him?”
Another vibration rolls through the building.
It sounds like thunder.
Feels like thunder.
But it’s not.
“It’s him,” I whisper. “I don’t know if it was a targeted attack on the infrastructure or just some side effect.”
“Explain. Quickly.”
I back away from the window and lower onto the couch.
“Like I said, about thirty minutes ago, the woman ran out of her house. She was wearing what appeared to be pajamas and looked… upset.” She looked slightly possessed, but I doubt that description will go over well.
“I didn’t see him right away. I was following her attention to a group of men at the end of the block. Drunks or something.”
Sweat beads on my forehead at the fresh memory. I’d been freaking out thinking I was about to witness an assault. I’m a tech. Not a gunslinger. There was nothing I could do to help.
“They get the woman?” He asks it so casually. Like it doesn’t matter what the answer is. And my hate for him grows.
“No.” I try to keep the disgust at him out of my tone. “They were… stopped. And I didn’t notice the vampire until he was standing right behind her.”
“What happened then?” Excitement tinges his tone now. And a bad feeling rolls around in my stomach.
Humanity’s truce with Alts has lasted decades. It’s what keeps us all safe.
And with the brand-new revelation of godsdamn shifters, that truce is more important than ever.
I fear this man is forgetting that.
But I’m working. Following orders. So I tell him what I saw.
How the human men were dragged away by some invisible force. How the woman reacted to the vampire. How every photo I tried to take turned out blurry. And not just out of focus, but so blurry you can’t discern the fact that there are two people in the photo.
How they flew into her apartment.
How that was when the shaking started.
The walls. Floors. Buildings.
Car alarms blared around the city. Streetlights burst.
The power and internet went out.
I didn’t tell him about hiding under the dining table.
“Are they still there?”
Another rumble rolls through the building, and I swallow. “Yes.”
“Good. Send me the photos you took and get out of there.”
“You sure?” I reach for my laptop even as I ask. “They could leave at any moment.”
“Go. My team is ready. They’ll be there within fifteen.”
I hesitate. “Watchers?”
The man huffs. “We’re done watching.”
That sinking feeling in my stomach intensifies.
Chain of command tells me to shut the fuck up, so I do. But my gut tells me this is going to go very, very badly.