Dirty Blood (30 page)

When I was done, my hands fell limply to my sides and
I stared at Jack, without really seeing him. I vaguely felt the
paper being slipped out of my fingers as the others passed it
around.

“Tara?” Fee called, gently, after a moment of
silence.

I shook my head, vigorously, from side to side. “I
don’t understand. How could she just…?”

Fee tilted her head to the side in a sympathetic
expression and led me from the room by my elbow. She led me up the
stairs and into the same guest room where I’d woken up on morphine.
She nodded to my duffel bag which was sitting on the bed already.
“You should get cleaned up. Take a few minutes for yourself,” she
said.

That brought me out of my haze. “No, I’m fine,” I
argued. “We need to make a plan, go get her back.”

“And we will, but you need to take a few deep breaths
first. You won’t be any good to us, or your mother, if you fall
apart in the middle of the mission. Besides, we’re still waiting on
Cord to get here. So take a shower. You’ll feel better.”

Something in her tone made me glance down and I
stared in surprise. My shirt was ripped along my rib cage, and my
jeans had dirt and grass stains on the knees. I could only imagine
what my hair looked like. “I jumped the fence,” I explained.

Fee’s lips curved. “I don’t doubt it. See you
downstairs.”

After the door shut, I went to my bag and unzipped
it, curious to see what clothes Fee had managed to grab for me; my
room, and its contents, had been pretty destroyed from what I’d
seen. There wasn’t much in the bag; a pair of faded gray sweatpants
that I’d forgotten I owned, a pink thermal tee, and a pair of black
leggings that I’d borrowed from Sam and never returned.

I showered quickly; still antsy to get going and
search for my mother, but knowing deep down that Fee was right. If
I was going to fall apart, I better get it over with now, or at
least be sure it wouldn’t happen later.

I just couldn’t believe my mother had gone willingly.
I thought about the possibility that Leo had made her write the
note but I wasn’t so sure. There was a small part of me that got
angry just thinking about the line she’d written about doing this
to protect me. It seemed everyone else knew better than I did,
about what was best for my safety, even if it meant putting
themselves in more danger to do it. Which only made me think of Wes
again, and how he hadn’t answered his phone.

My anger turned to a sadness that left a physical
pain in my chest as I shut off the steaming water and stepped out.
My mom was out there somewhere, a prisoner, all because of me. I
towel dried my hair and threw on the thermal shirt and sweatpants.
I ripped a brush through my wet tangles and then pulled my hair
back in a loose ponytail as I hurried back down the stairs.

Everyone else was already assembled in the living
room when I got there. Miles sat behind Jack, in the chair by the
window. It reminded me of Wes sitting there, playing chess with
Fee. I shook the image away. Bailey sat in the chair beside him,
looking sullen. Derek was in the chair I’d sat in, that first day
I’d come. His back was to me. When I walked in, he glanced at me
once, and then turned back to Jack. Fee was on the couch, wringing
her hands, and looking just as stressed as I was. Cord came in
behind me, her heavy boots clomping on the hardwood, and leaned
against the railing, near the stairs. Jack was in his usual chair,
by the fire. Instead of his usual pose which included his feet
propped up on the coffee table, he was leaning forward on the edge
of the cushion, with his elbows propped on his knees. Worry lines
creased his forehead and he was staring intently into the
flames.

A harsh rap on the door cut the silence and I turned
to answer it. Cord rushed past me, glaring in disapproval, and
threw open the door. Vera stood there, looking sleek and
business-like in a black pants suit. She strode past Cord and me,
without a word, and went straight to where Fee sat, on the couch.
Fee rose to greet her with a relieved expression, and took Vera’s
hand in hers.

“Any visions?” Fee asked, quickly.

Vera shook her head. “Not yet, but I had to keep it
closed off while I drove. Let’s do it together, to keep it focused
on what we’re looking for.”

Fee nodded and they sank onto the cushions together,
hands still joined. They bowed their heads and Vera’s lips began
moving in some sort of silent chant. I glanced around the room for
some clue as to what they were doing but everyone else just sat and
watched them, expectantly.

“What’s she doing?” I asked Cord. I was hesitant to
even speak to her, considering the way she always glared at me like
I had some communicable disease I was trying to infect her with,
but she was the only one close enough to whisper to.

“Trying to see your mom,” she said, her tone letting
me know the answer should have been obvious.

I tried to be patient while I waited for Vera to
finish whatever she was doing but I kept shifting my weight from
one foot to the other; my body itched to
move
, to take
specific action in searching for my mother. Inevitably, my mind
wandered to her; where she was, if she was okay, if I would ever
find her. From there, my mind drifted to images: her smile, the
color of her hair, her perfume. My fault. My mind kept sending me
back to that. This was my fault. Whether I agreed with her twisted
and faulty reasoning of doing it to protect me or not… the fact
was, it was still my fault. The familiar pang in my chest sharpened
and I shifted again, needing movement.

Finally both women looked up and opened their eyes,
immediately focusing on me.

“I can’t see where she is,” Vera said, sounding
frustrated. “Not completely. Something’s blocking me. But she’s
alive and unharmed, at least.”

I had no idea how she knew this but my heart soared
at the news.

“I sensed a closed in feeling,” she continued.
“Underground, maybe. But that’s all I could get.” She frowned and
looked away, obviously not happy about whatever was preventing her
from seeing further.

“What do you mean ‘you sense it’?” I asked.

“Vera’s visions can sometimes be focused to a
specific person or event,” Fee explained. “It’s unpredictable, at
best, though and doesn’t always work, even with a great deal of
focused energy.”

“So what are we supposed to do? She could be
anywhere,” Derek put in.

“We’ll use our contacts,” Jack said. “Someone has to
have heard something.”

“Alright, I can ask around,” Derek said, slowly,
obviously unconvinced.

None of them moved from their spots, and I wanted to
yell at them all to get going, already.

“It may be slow going but it’s all we’ve got for
now,” Jack said, picking up on everyone’s hesitation.

“In the meantime, I’ll keep trying to get a better
read on her,” Vera added.

“Fine, then let’s get moving,” Cord snapped. For
once, I didn’t mind her impatience.

“We need to stay in pairs,” said Jack. “Cord, you and
Miles-”

“I’ll go with Tara,” Miles interrupted, rising from
his chair by the window. I’d almost forgotten he was here, he’d
been so quiet.

“Okay then,” Jack said, nodding once. Beside me, Cord
snorted.

Miles turned to me and I shifted under his unreadable
gaze. I wanted to argue but Jack continued.

“Cord and Derek, you two stick together. Fee and I
will go together, and Bailey-”

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll be here to hold down the fort, blah
blah blah,” said Bailey.

Derek grinned.

Jack’s mouth tightened. “I need you to stay with Vera
incase she gets any more information on Elizabeth. If she does, you
can take her wherever the vision leads.”

Bailey did a small fist pump in the air, a grin
spreading across his face.

“But don’t forget to call us so we can meet you,”
Jack added, sternly.

“Jack, do you think it’s a good idea, letting him
help like that?” Fee asked, giving Bailey a motherly frown.

Bailey’s grin disappeared and his face fell.

“No. But we’re shorthanded. I don’t have a
choice.”

Fee sighed and nodded and Bailey’s smile reappeared,
a little smaller.

Miles rose and stepped over Derek’s sprawled feet,
coming to stand in front of me. “Ready, then?”

I nodded and pushed off the doorframe I’d propped my
shoulder on, not excited to be paired with Miles but willing to
make do, if it meant action.

Everyone shuffled to their feet and started getting
ready to leave, then. Cord and Derek huddled together in the
entryway, making hushed plans about where they would go, and whose
car they would take. Jack and Fee disappeared into the weapons room
in the back of the house, and Vera rose, saying something about
making some tea and heading for the kitchen.

“We can take my car,” Miles said, placing his palm on
my back and leading us to the door.

“Don’t we need to wait for Jack and Fee to give us
weapons?” I asked, sidestepping so that his hand dropped away.

“I have a stash in my trunk. We should get moving. I
have an informant in Lake Anna who might be able to tell us
something.”

I moved to follow him and he pulled the door open,
ready to follow me out. I took a step and then pulled up short,
realizing someone was blocking my exit. My pulse sped when I saw
who it was.

~ 31 ~

“What the hell is going on?” Wes demanded, glaring
past me at Miles.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

His gaze flickered to me and then around to the rest
of the faces. He pushed past me and stepped up to Miles. “What do
you think you’re doing?”

“Leo took Tara’s mother. I’m helping Tara find her,”
Miles answered, evenly.

“She’s not going with you,” said Wes. Without waiting
for an answer, he rounded on Derek and Cord. “Where’s Jack?”

“In the weapons room,” Derek answered, eyeing Wes
warily. Cord just looked bored.

Wes stalked off in search of Jack and I stood in the
open doorway, staring after him, trying to figure out what to do
next.

Cord and Derek shot me a glance and then went back to
their planning. Miles was still holding the door open, watching me
expectantly. Raised voices were coming from the weapons room.

“Um, I guess we should wait,” I said, stepping back
into the entryway.

Miles just nodded and closed the door, leaning down
so that his mouth was closer to my ear than it needed to be. “I’ll
be in the kitchen.”

As soon as he disappeared around the corner, the door
at the end of the hall opened and Wes came out, his face grim but
determined. He stopped in front of me, his gaze searching my face,
and his expression softened slightly.

“Are you okay?” he asked, quietly.

“I guess,” I answered.

He turned back to Jack, who’d come up behind him, and
began talking about strategy and weapons and my head cleared enough
to remember why we were here AND why Wes wasn’t here until a moment
ago.

“… So she’ll need some way to protect herself,” Wes
was saying.

“I know, I just haven’t had time to train her on the
metal tips,” Jack said.

“Well, give her something,” Wes said, impatiently.
“We need to get going.”

“Wait a minute,” I interrupted. “You think I’m going
with you?”

Behind us, the rest of the group fell silent,
watching our exchange.

“Of course,” he said.

I shook my head. “Unbelievable. Of course you do.
Well, sorry to disappoint, but you missed the pairing off, and I’m
going with Miles.”

Miles, who’d wandered back in from the kitchen at the
sound of our voices, raised his eyebrows, but he didn’t contradict
me.

Wes stared at me, obviously surprised that I was
rejecting his offer. “Tara-”

“Don’t.” I made my voice as cold as possible and
glared at him for as long as I could, without letting myself be
sucked in. Then I turned to Jack. “Miles has weapons stashed in his
trunk. We’re leaving, but we’ll check in soon.”

Jack nodded slowly. “Fine, but Miles, I haven’t
trained her on the silver tips yet, so don’t give her those.”

“That’s all I have,” Miles admitted.

“I have something else.” Jack crossed to the
bookshelf and pushed a small black button I’d never noticed before.
When he did, the bookshelf slid aside with a wooden groan,
revealing what looked like a large walk in closet. He flipped a
switch and the space lit up. Rows of weapons lined the wall,
covering every inch of space. Long wooden stakes, with gleaming
metal tips, and crossbows were mixed in with rifles and handguns of
all shapes and sizes. Jack grabbed a small handgun and two plain,
rough stakes and handed them to me. “Take these.”

I took the stakes and stuffed them into my boots,
like I’d seen Cord do. Jack nodded, approvingly. I hesitated over
the gun. “I don’t know about that.”

“Take it,” he said, firmly. “It’s probably not enough
to make a kill, but it’ll definitely slow them down long enough to
get a stake in the right place.”

I looked over at Miles, still unconvinced. I’d never
even held a gun before, much less fired one.

Miles nodded at me, encouragingly. “I’ll show you how
to use it.”

Reluctantly, I took the gun from Jack’s outstretched
hand. It felt lighter than I’d expected and ice cold against my
clammy palm. I held it awkwardly, careful to keep my fingers far
away from the trigger.

“Safety’s on,” Jack said. “Here. Extra clips.” He
handed those to Miles, who slid them into his inner pocket.

“Ready, then?” Miles asked me. I nodded and turned to
go, avoiding Wes’ burning gaze.

“Check in every hour,” Jack added.

“Tara,” Wes began, stepping forward. “I’m sorry. I
just want to help.”

“Feel free,” I said, without stopping on my way to
the door. “Call if you find anything.”