Black Magic Rose (14 page)

Fergus remained where he stood, watching, unblinking. “This is not a decision I make lightly, but we must have the information. Laurent, you will personally supervise the interrogations.”
 

“Of course, Fergus. It will be handled with complete consideration and respect for the wolves.” The tall, blond vampire bowed his head.
 

Fergus stepped around the table, and though he spoke to Laurent, his focus was on Joachim. “I’ll expect nothing less. No wolf should come from the experience violated. And any information ascertained not related to Bas Dubh will be guarded with the highest levels of care.” Fergus’s hands flexed and curled.
 

Sofia swallowed and choked. She hadn’t breathed since before Osgar moved, and now the air seemed too heavy for her lungs. She’d just seen her first killings and already she couldn’t remember what had transpired.
 

Fergus stalked to the other end of the room. Anger poured from him.

Sofia’s heart pounded in anticipation of what horrible thing would happen next. With each step Fergus took, her heart sped a furious beat.
 

“You have my word. No harm will come to these wolves.” Laurent rose, and his guards gathered behind him. “We begin tonight with the victims who arrived today.”
 

“I offer my team as well, and I request Sheila and Cristof participate. They and their wolves will be able to calm the victims while we work,” a petite female vampire with a vicious scar running from below her right eye to her jaw said.
 

“Very well, Rosemarie. But remember, any missteps will cost the ultimate price.” Fergus’s eyes darted toward Rosemarie.
 

She nodded and followed Laurent. Three women, equally as short as Rosemarie, followed the interrogators from the room.
 

“This meeting is adjourned until the interrogation team has a report.” Dr. MacDuff brought his hands together, motioning for everyone to exit the room.
 

Sofia stood.
 

“Sit,” Dr. MacDuff said. Sofia froze at the harsh order. Dr. MacDuff closed his eyes for a moment. “Please stay, Sofia.”
 

She sat and watched as only the vampires left. All but Dragomir and Noelle. The wolves remained.
 

“Joachim, you have yet again disagreed with the decision of this Board,” Dr. MacDuff said.
 

Joachim strained under the hands of Osgar and Rick. He twisted his head to peer down the table at where Sofia and Dr. MacDuff sat. “You have what you want.” His cold stare centered on Sofia. “All that matters is pleasing The Master.” His gaze locked with Sofia’s. “Remember, your life is his.”
 

A cold hollow pit opened in Sofia’s stomach and fear rippled through her. She bit back a scream. Her life was her own. It had to be. From the corner of her eye she watched Dr. MacDuff. He sat unmoving, watching the action across the room.

Taking his attention from the scene unfolding in front of them for one brief moment, he glanced at Sofia. His cold, harsh stare didn’t linger, nor did it tell her anything about what he thought. As quick as he looked at her, his attention snapped back to the men at the opposite end of the table.
   

Sofia waited for what would happen next, terrified of how this would end.
 

Joachim fought to break free of his captors, growling and clawing at the table. Osgar and Rick jerked him to his feet, holding him to face Fergus.
 

“We know you spend time with a known Bas Dubh sympathizer. That you’ve attended meetings.”
 

Joachim’s eyes widened for a second, then his lips curled back and an angry growl ripped from his chest. “Kiernan is right. We are supreme. We should not hide in the darkness while weaker beings control our fate.” His jaws snapped and he attempted to lunge for Fergus. “Bas Dubh will take control. Kiernan’s plans have already begun. Soon The Alliance will be no more.”

“Take him down to the cells. Chain him in silver and leave him to wait for Laurent. We’ll learn what we can then dispatch him.” Fergus turned his back to Joachim.
 

Joachim’s eyes bulged in his fur-covered face. “I will not be mind fucked!” He thrashed against Osgar and Rick, who yanked him off the ground. “Fools! He’ll only use you for his own benefit. We’ve been pawns for Jankin’s desires.” His screams were cut short when Dr. MacDuff’s intense stare caught his eye.

Their gazes stayed locked together for several minutes until finally Dr. MacDuff broke the connection. The somber, intense expression could not mask the fury ravaging within him.
 

The dazed look left Joachim’s face, replaced by terrified recognition. His focus left Dr. MacDuff and he gaped at Sofia.
 

Through all the energy levels pulsing in the room she felt horror emanating from Joachim. At the same time a savage rage rolled over his energy, swallowing him. Sofia followed the flow to its source. Her gaze met Dr. MacDuff’s blazing green eyes.
 

As if from thin air, Dr. MacDuff drew a sword and thrust it into Joachim’s heart. “Fool. No one takes what is mine.”
 

 
Sofia swallowed the scream rising within her. Dr. MacDuff was no different than the others. He might even be worse.
 

Chapter Thirteen

Tea sloshed from Sofia’s cup. She couldn’t stop her hands from trembling. They more than trembled. They shook like a can of paint being mixed at the hardware store. She tried to put the cup on the countertop but ended up breaking it against the Formica.
 

Tonight she had watched four killings…murders…executions. Whatever they were, she didn’t care. The fact was she’d been forced to watch four people die.

“I want my old life back.” She used a dishtowel to push the glass and spilled tea into the sink. It might not have been the greatest life, but at least no one got hurt and she was able to fit in.
 

This worrying about big secrets like vampires and werewolves only made life much more difficult.
 

“There’s no going back,” Dragomir said.
 

She glared at the kitchen window. He stood outside the house, leaning against the wall, occasionally glancing in at her.
 

She still hadn’t acquiesced to letting any vampires into her house, and she’d revoked Dr. MacDuff’s invitation as she was leaving Cader. Actually, she’d done something she’d never, ever done. Too shocked and afraid to tell him face to face, she’d called him from her cell phone as she drove. Neither the talking nor driving had been a good idea, but she refused to allow anyone not human to get into a small space with her so she drove herself, followed again by Dragomir driving Osgar’s monster truck.
 

“Stop eavesdropping.”
 

“You opened the window and asked me a question. I thought we were still conversing.”

She had done that. Of course, his response was what made the shaking worse. Apparently the occasional death at board meetings was not unusual. If this was the case, why in God’s name had Dr. MacDuff asked her to attend? He knew she was not a fan of violence. He had to know death involving swords, werewolves, and vampires fell into the violence category.

It was going to be virtually impossible to change the culture of this organization regarding workplace violence if board members killed each other at meetings, especially if the head of the organization was leading the pack.
 

She was completely out of her league. She did not belong with them. She belonged in a nice company where everyone respected each other, and nobody got killed as part of the disciplinary process. There was no point in talking to Dr. MacDuff. He couldn’t understand her perspective at all. She’d simply look for other employment, find another suitable job and then if Dr. MacDuff wanted to send someone to stand guard outside her new job, so be it.
 

“That’s what I’ll do.” She reached for the bottle of coconut rum in the cabinet and had to use two hands to steady it enough to get it to her mouth. She didn’t often drink and never straight liquor, but this was a different situation that called for drastic measures.
Liquid courage.
She gulped a couple mouthfuls and ended up coughing and wheezing and trying desperately to swallow away the burning sensation running from the back of her throat straight to her belly.

Dragomir watched. “Do you think that will sharpen your skills tonight?”
 

“Shut up. I’m taking the night off. Go sit in the woods or in the truck. Just leave me alone.” She swiped her sleeve over her mouth.
 

He nodded. “If you think that’s the best use of our time, fine. However, I suggest we practice. You need to learn to disengage yourself from situations.”

“I’d like to disengage myself from this situation. Got any suggestions?” She took another swig, then breathed out, expecting to see fire shoot from her mouth.

“Your best bet is learning to sense trouble and how to get the hell out of the way before it finds you.” He stood square in front of the window. He’d tied his dark hair back at the nape of his neck and moonlight lit the left side of his face.
 

He had the darkest eyes, well, eye. Sofia squinted at him. She couldn’t exactly see both, though she knew plain and well they were the same. Two of the darkest eyes she’d ever seen. He was clean-shaven tonight and the cleft in his chin looked very inviting. Her hand twitched, ready to touch it, to just graze her finger around his chin and along that line, then down his neck to his chest.
 

She bit her lip.
 

Dragomir cleared his throat.
 

Her eyes snapped up from the middle of his chest, where the first buttoned button lay below a dark swirl of hair.
 

His eyebrows crept upward. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were just undressing me with your eyes, Ms. Engle.”
 

She glowered at him. “I most certainly was not.” The next swig of rum went down fast. It didn’t taste that bad anymore and barely burned.

“I’m fairly certain that sort of behavior would be in direct violation of your Sexual Harassment Policy.”
 

“I was not harassing you, not undressing you. Not at all.” She turned away from him, fumbling for the cap.
 

“Not that I’d mind you doing that sort of thing, though truthfully, I’d much rather you did it in person, not in your imagination.” His voice held a clear note of amusement.
 

“For your information, I was not undressing you and second, it is not harassment if the recipient is not offended by the behavior.” She took one last sip before capping the bottle and smacking her lips.
 

“Well, then I’m not harassed, but I am intrigued. Did you stop at my shirt or did you have my pants off, too?” He smiled.
 

“I was not undressing you.” Sofia stomped to the door. “Let’s just get this over with.”

Of course, now that he thought she had some sort of interest in him, which she most certainly did not, she’d need to be on her guard. Everything she’d ever read about vampires, the ones in horror novels and romance novels, indicated they were all sneaky, doing everything they could to get their prey. She was nobody’s snack. She pulled on her sweatshirt, licked her rum-flavored lips, and marched out to learn how to disengage.

Disengage. I’ll disengage him. Damn vampire.
 

Dragomir was, after all, dead, and since accepting the actual, real existence of vampires and werewolves, Sofia had added them to the list of men she did not date or do anything else with either.
 

Unable to see him, she stood in the driveway staring into the darkness.
Shadow man.
She shook her head.
Show off.
She closed her eyes and inhaled. His scent wafted on the breeze all around her. The woodsy scent of clean, crisp air and soap. His bold presence emanated from the side of the house near the kitchen window.
 

Sofia opened her eyes and saw him. He still leaned against the wall, a luminescent outline surrounding him. He wasn’t wearing his duster tonight, just a white shirt, sleeves rolled to his elbows, and jeans with combat boots. Even as a shadow he looked delicious.
 

The longer she watched him, the sharper her vision became. The top three buttons on his shirt were open. His arms folded over his chest, and for whatever reason, it made his shoulders look broader than she recalled.
 

Her gaze wandered lower. His shirt was tucked into his jeans, which appeared to strain against the muscles of his thighs. She wished he’d turn around so she could see if they were having the same trouble on the backside.
 

She hated to admit it, but he was the type of man she liked. Muscular, tall, broad. She guessed he’d have a nice ass. She sighed. And his eyes—they were like none she’d ever encountered. Thoughtful and deep, like they hid the answers to every question she could ever think to ask.
 

The first time she’d met him in Fergus’s office, she nearly fell into the depth of those eyes. She’d felt him size her up and would have, should have reported the incident to Dr. MacDuff. But she hadn’t. Because she liked it. The way his gaze lingered on her face as if he was seeing a woman for the first time felt so good. She’d noticed him focus on her lips and the way his tongue slid across his own, like he was thinking of tasting her, made her nearly melt. When his attention wandered lower, she hadn’t felt at all violated. In fact, he was so tender, so interested, she couldn’t help but turn a circle for him.