Night Unbound (29 page)

Lisette forced a smile. “David volunteered to take your calls for a bit. I think he saw how on edge Zach was and decided he could use a break.”

“Ah.”

Zach grunted. “That reminds me. I learned a couple of things from one of the new breed of vampires tonight.”

Seth frowned. “I thought I told you not to engage them.”

“You told your
Immortal Guardians
not to engage them. And they didn't. We came across one of the new vampires traveling with seven of the usual vamps. I ordered Lisette, Richart, and Jenna to remain on the roof nearby while I dispatched the psychotic vamps and confronted the new one myself.”

Seth raised his eyebrows and met Lisette's guilty gaze. “Did you remain on the roof?”

“No,” she confessed, “but the danger had passed. Zach had already taken out the insane vampires and incapacitated the newbie when we joined him.”

Seth shook his head. “There could have been—”

“More lurking downwind. I know. Zach and David already read me the riot act, so stop looking at me like that. I won't make the same mistake twice.”

“David read you the riot act?” Seth asked, lips quirking.

“In his quiet, gentle, don't-make-me-lose-it-like-the-Hulk way,” she said.

Seth smiled and returned his attention to Zach. “What did you learn?”

“First, that even with the dosage upped, the drug won't affect you or me, although it
is
strong enough to make David groggy.”

“Will it knock him out?”

“One dose won't, no.”

“Good to know. What else?”

“The immortal you're looking for is definitely an elder and very powerful. Yet another reason to delve more deeply into Aidan's mind. Because your immortal enemy doesn't just erase the memories of the vampires in his army. He plants commands in their subconscious to get them to do what he wants.”

Lisette had never heard of such a thing. “You mean like hypnosis?”

“More like hypnosis times a hundred,” Zach confirmed. “These are impulses so deeply implanted that the puppet couldn't ignore them no matter how strong his will to do otherwise.”

Seth took a bite. Chewed. Considered Zach's words. “That explains how the vampires can carry out duties without revealing anything about the one commanding them. But such behavioral modification would take great power.”

Zach nodded. “If I didn't know how loyal he was to you, I would suspect David.”

“David would never betray me.”

“I know. The big question is who would?”

Seth sighed. “A question for which I still have no answer.”

“But we've narrowed it down.”

“To one of the elder telepathic immortals. Aidan is the most powerful.”

“And is harboring secrets. If he's strong enough to bend someone's will, he may be strong enough to keep you or me from finding what we seek in his mind. That barrier I encountered may be too strong even for
us
to topple. At least not without destroying him.”

Lisette looked from one to the other. “Even while he's sleeping?”

Both males nodded.

“Then how can you find out who it is?”

“Did you plant a tracking device on the vampire?” Seth asked Zach.

“No. His brain was Swiss cheese by the time I finished with him. Have you pissed off Aidan or any of the other elder telepaths recently?” Zach asked.

“Actually, yes,” Seth said. “But I didn't think their anger had lingered.”

“You have?” Lisette asked, surprised.

He shrugged. “Rumors of the recent marriages that have taken place here have circulated the globe. Like other immortals, the elder telepaths have become suspicious regarding the unusually high number of
gifted ones
that seem to populate North Carolina.”

Lisette looked from Zach to Seth. “I admit I've been a bit curious about that myself.”

Seth sighed. “David and I always steer
gifted ones
toward areas that bear network headquarters. It makes it easier for us to keep them safe in the event their advanced DNA is discovered.”

“Ahhhhhh. No wonder.”

“Aidan requested a transfer a few months ago.”

Because he had hoped to find love and happily ever after himself?

Zach grunted. “A transfer you denied.”

“Yes.”

“So we have motive.”

Lisette knew well how lonely this existence could be, but . . . “Do you really think your denying Aidan a chance to meet and fall in love with a
gifted one
—something that would still be a long shot, even if he were here—would drive him to retaliate by trying to destroy us all?”

Seth shook his head. “You've only been immortal for two centuries, Lisette. You don't know how wretched it can be to live thousands of years without love.”

Zach nodded. “It is.”

“Yes, but . . .” She looked at Seth. “You make it sound like you're a marriage broker or something and have intentionally denied Aidan and the other elders spouses.”

“I decide which immortals are stationed here. And I'm responsible for guiding
gifted ones
to the area. Even David suspects there are immortals out there who think I'm playing favorites. I'll have Darnell look into comments made online, see if he can differentiate between the disgruntled and the furious. Aidan's wasn't the only transfer I denied recently.”

A sobering thought. Lisette had heard of men killing for love. She supposed killing for being
denied
love wasn't so far out of the realm of possibility.

“Down With The Sickness” interrupted them.

Zach growled. “I
hate
that
fucking
song!”

Laughing, Seth retrieved his phone. “I guess this means David is off the clock.” He took the call. “Yes?”

“Is this Zach or Seth?” Bastien asked on the other end, voice taut.

“Seth. What's up?”

“Cliff tagged one of the new vampires.”

 

 

Seth vanished.

Zach touched Lisette's shoulder and teleported, following Seth to the field that used to support Bastien's lair.

Lisette staggered to one side as her feet connected with the ground.

Zach steadied her and bit back a grin when she glared up at him.

“Next time at least let me stand up and set my fork down first,” she demanded. Her angry words lost much of their impact, however, when she raised the forkful of pasta she held to her mouth and stuffed it in.

Smothering a laugh, Zach turned to Seth and the others.

Bastien stood facing them, his feet braced apart in a warrior's stance and his face set in stone. At his side, Cliff shifted constantly, as if he couldn't bear to stand still, his features pinched with anxiety.

Seth addressed the young vampire. “Are you injured?”

“No,” Cliff answered.

Seth looked to Bastien. “I thought we had decided it would be too dangerous for Cliff to try to tag one of the new breed.”

A muscle jumped in Bastien's jaw. “I changed my mind. We needed information. I thought it worth the risk.”

“Bullshit!” Cliff exclaimed, mirroring Zach's thoughts.

If Zach had learned nothing else about Bastien, he had learned that the immortal black sheep was fiercely loyal to those he loved. And he loved Cliff like a brother. No way would he have let the young vampire, who clung to sanity by his fingertips, try to tag one of the new breed of vampires and risk being captured again.

Bastien shot Cliff a warning glare.

“I did it myself,” Cliff said. “On my own. Bastien didn't know about it.”

Leaden silence.

“If you did it on your own,” Seth said, “how did you get your hands on a tracking device?”

“I gave it to him,” Bastien answered.

“No, he didn't,” Cliff denied. “I stole it.”

“He's lying to protect me,” Bastien continued. “He knows I went against your orders—that we had agreed not to do it—and doesn't want to see me punished.”

Seth looked to Cliff. “Is that true?”

“No, sir, it isn't. You can read my thoughts if you don't believe me.”

Bastien turned on Cliff. “Would you shut the hell up?”

“No! I'm not going to let you take the fall for this, Bastien, not after everything you've done for me!”

Bastien swore.

Cliff turned back to Seth. “And after all the Immortal Guardians have done for me, I wanted to help. I wanted . . . no, I
needed
. . . to do one fucking good thing in my life before I lose my mind and have to be put down like a rabid dog.”

“I've been in your thoughts,” Seth said, more calm than Zach would've expected when faced with such insubordination. “You've done
many
good things, Cliff, both as a mortal and as a vampire. You have already helped the Immortal Guardians in countless ways for which we can never fully repay you. Humans, too.”

Lisette nodded. “The night the mercenaries attacked network headquarters you saved dozens of human lives and put yourself in harm's way to do it. You're a hero, Cliff. Even mortals at the network, who are leery of vampires, think so.”

He shook his head. “Don't say that.”

“It's true. We immortals couldn't have fought the mercenaries
and
saved the network's employees. Most wouldn't have made it out alive if you hadn't rescued them and helped them evacuate.”

Zach's heart went out to the young man, who so badly wanted to be known and remembered for something good rather than the bad they all knew lurked just over the horizon.

“Anyone would have done that,” Cliff murmured.

“Joe didn't,” Bastien said. “Joe ran.”

Silence.

“Where did you get the tracking device you planted?” Seth repeated.

“At the network,” Cliff admitted with a miserable glance at Bastien. “They don't keep them guarded and locked away the way they do the sedative and antidote. It was actually pretty easy to sneak one out.”

Seth sighed. “Chris is going to freak.”

“Then don't tell him,” Bastien came close to pleading.

Seth shook his head. “The rules are there for a reason, Bastien. After all Chris does for us, I won't undermine his authority by lying about a security breech.”

Again Bastien swore.

“Don't panic. I'll suggest leniency this time.” He gave Cliff a stern look. “But you're on notice, Cliff. No more bullshit. No more following Bastien's example and breaking the rules. No more putting yourself at risk because you think you have nothing to lose. You'll follow protocol and abide by our decisions, or I will revoke your hunting privileges.”

Cliff nodded. “Yes, sir.”

“Now tell us what happened.”

“I found a group of vampires over by the Morrisville Walmart.”

There weren't that many places open twenty-four hours a day in North Carolina. Those that were, like a select few Walmarts, tended to be vampires' second-favorite hunting grounds. College campuses being their first.

“There were half a dozen nutcases who were really far gone and three huge guys I could tell had only recently been turned. All three of the big vamps carried tranquilizer guns and looked like friggin' marines, so I knew they were the new breed. While the crazy ones were running their mouths the way they do, I sidled up to the other three and asked if they were all together.”

Bastien grumbled something indecipherable.

Cliff ignored him. “They said they had just met the crazy ones and figured they should band together for safety's sake. Hunt in larger numbers, you know? A couple of the crazy vamps started fighting. I pretended to try to break it up and let them push me out of the way. I stumbled into one of the stoic vamps, planted the device on his tranquilizer gun, told them they might want to think twice about hooking up with the psychos, then got my ass out of there.”

“Did any of the vampires follow you?” Zach asked.

“No. The older ones were too busy scrapping. The younger ones must have thought they would have a better chance of running into an Immortal Guardian if they hung out with vampires guaranteed to go on a killing spree.”

Bastien nodded. “I heard no signs of pursuit when he caught up with me.”

“Could they have tagged you with a tracking device?” Seth asked Cliff.

“Vampires have tracking devices?”

“They haven't used any thus far. But, since they have the drug, we can't rule it out.”

“If they did, I didn't feel it.”

“I shall return momentarily.” Seth vanished.

The swish of tree leaves rustling in the breeze was the only sound for many long minutes. That and the frogs, insects, and other creatures that embraced the night.

Zach studied the vampire.

Cliff seemed to be calming a bit. Perhaps he had feared Seth would execute him for disobeying.

“You did a good thing,” Zach told him.

A faint smile curled Cliff's lips as relief that
someone
thought so crept into his features.

“Don't encourage him,” Bastien snapped.

“I believe
you
are the one who encouraged him.”

“I didn't tell him to do this!”

“Are you not his mentor?” Zach studied the irate British immortal. “How many times have you broken, trampled upon, then set fire to the rules by which the other Immortal Guardians live, as well as the rules Chris Reordon has painstakingly created to keep those at the network safe?”

“
You
would lecture
me
on following the rules?” Bastien demanded incredulously.

Lisette nodded her agreement. “It
is
sort of the pot calling the kettle black.”

Zach shrugged. “I don't pretend to be a leader. I'm just saying, if you want to protect your vampire followers, then lead by example.”