"This one, I think," the young man said, pulling a door open. Tony was already sliding the rack out; the body inside was covered with a sheet. He flipped the sheet back and stared at Lissa's face.
"Get a body bag. Right now," Tony ordered. The assistant and the three agents stared at him as if he'd lost his mind. "I know what I'm doing, I promise," Tony insisted. "I'll sign whatever needs to be signed but I have to take this one with me. Pronto."
"Well, I don't know," the assistant mumbled.
"You'll do it and you'll do it now. Do I need to get the FBI involved? I talked to the President this morning. Do you want me to get him on the phone?" Tony was trying to keep himself from having a full-blown meltdown. He had to get Lissa out of this place. If they put even part of her in sunlight, the results would be disastrous.
"What's going on?" A police officer stepped into the room.
"I'm Director of the Joint NSA/Homeland Security Department," Tony pulled out his identification for the officer. "We need to take possession of this body. If you think to stand in my way, I'll have the California Bureau of Investigation here in ten minutes and you can argue with them."
"We work for him," Dusty nodded toward Tony and produced his own ID. Arthur and Bill followed suit. "We have to take this body, it's important to our investigation," Dusty went on. The officer, figuring he was outmanned and outgunned, shrugged his shoulders.
"Find a body bag," Tony snarled at the assistant, who trotted to the other side of the room and came back with a bag. "Be careful," Tony instructed as he and the three agents loaded Lissa into the bag. Tony zipped it up himself, making sure the whole thing was lightproof.
"Thank you for your help. If you have questions, call this number," Tony handed cards to the assistant and the officer. Dusty and Arthur hauled the body out between them (it wasn't heavy) while Tony led the way and Bill came behind, a hand on his pistol grip—just in case. They loaded the body bag into the back of the SUV.
"Boss, that may be the craziest thing I've ever seen you do," Arthur grumbled, taking the keys from Tony and climbing into the driver's seat. "What the hell do you plan to do with a dead body anyway?"
"You'll see," Tony mumbled. "Just get her up to my room. Around seven tonight, you guys come see me. Get some rest between now and then, okay?"
Arthur didn't answer. He merely put the car in gear and drove back to the hotel. "Special weapons," Dusty waved his badge at hotel security as they hauled the bag through the back door of the hotel. Tony walked ahead of them, ID in hand. The hotel security team recognized him and stood aside.
"Boss, you'd better have a really good explanation for all this or I'll call the VP myself and tell him you're certifiable," Bill whispered to Tony before he left Tony's room. They'd dumped the bag onto the floor as Tony asked. Dusty and Arthur had already left; they were exhausted and looking for a bed. They'd worry over what the boss wanted with a body later.
"Trust me, Bill," Tony patted Bill's shoulder. "Come back at seven."
Bill nodded and wandered toward his own room. Tony closed and locked his door, then went to kneel down by Lissa's body bag. "Let's get you out of this thing," Tony crooned and pulled Lissa from the bag.
* * *
"She looks like she's sleeping," Dusty said, looking Lissa's body over. He and the others showed up as instructed, right at seven. Tony had cleaned Lissa up and dressed her in pajamas. Most of her bruises were gone and Dusty, who'd seen her body when it was found, didn't have an explanation.
"Boss, this is ludicrous," Arthur said. "Being this close to a dead woman, well, that's not normal."
"Give me a few minutes," Tony said. "Actually, give me until seven-fifteen."
"What time is it now?" Arthur glanced at his watch.
"Seven thirteen," Dusty said, consulting his cell.
"Go ahead, sit down if you want," Tony smiled a little. "And I want you all to remember the oath you took and the promise you made to keep state secrets. If you leak this, I promise you'll regret it."
"Boss, what are we leaking? That you have a dead girl in your bed?" Arthur grumped.
"Seven fourteen and forty seconds," Bill consulted his watch. Outside, the sun was slipping below the horizon.
"Fifty seconds." Bill counted. "Fifty-five. Seven-fifteen, on the nose." They all looked expectantly at Tony. They were still staring at him when Lissa drew her first breath of the evening.
* * *
I kept my eyes closed for a few moments, savoring the feel of a soft mattress beneath my body and cool sheets over it. The last thing I remembered was decapitating a vampire and I wondered how I'd gotten into a bed somewhere in between. I might have contemplated that puzzle a little longer—until an unfamiliar voice interrupted my thoughts, that is.
"What the f**k?" The sound of that voice had me off the bed and against a wall in less time than it takes to blink, my claws and fangs out. My hiss had several people shouting amid a bit of commotion on the opposite side of the bed. The brass lamp on my side was now in pieces on the floor; I think I sliced it into thirds on my way off the bed.
"Lissa, calm down, baby." Tony's voice. I blinked across the bed at him. He stood there, Bill, Dusty and Agent Jefferson right behind him, all with expressions of shock and disbelief on their faces. I might have considered punching Tony right then; the idiot had displayed me like a prize ewe.
"Tony, I may kill you," I said, drawing my claws in and pulling my fangs back. The three agents stood there, eyes still wide and mouths open in surprise.
"You know you won't," he grinned.
"But I feel like it," I grumbled. "What are these yahoos doing here? Don't you know that letting them see this could get me killed?"
"That's a vampire." Dusty was the first one to speak, his words containing near-hysteria.
"Yeah. Nice to see you, too, Agent Howell," I said sarcastically.
"Are there more?" Agent Jefferson asked.
"More what?" I turned to look at him, now.
"More vampires?"
"I'm not at liberty to say," I snapped. "Tony, I'm in my pajamas, here. Would you like to explain that or do you want me to come over there and slam all of you into the wall a time or two?" Yeah, I was grumpy. And really hungry on top of that. No way was I going to drink my meal while three agents stood by and watched.