* * *
"Look, we'll be leaving as soon as," Tony's voice halted when I walked through our connecting door the following evening. We were scheduled to go with Senator Duff, who had a speech to deliver to the Oklahoma Legislature. "We'll be on our way to the airport in ten minutes," Tony said, terminating the call. It was Thursday, April twenty-ninth, I recalled as I stared at Tony. He stared back. "I have your blood," he pointed to the foam container in the floor near his feet. "Get packed up quick. We need to be at the airport in the next forty minutes."
"What about Senator Doofus?"
"Senator Doofus can go f**k himself," Tony growled. "We have bigger fish to fry right now. Pack up."
I packed up, grumbling to myself the whole time.
We were halfway to D.C. when Tony got the call. I was far enough behind him and the noise of the jet was sufficient that I could barely hear Tony's words and nothing from the other end. Bill was sitting toward the front of the plane, Tony was near the middle and I had my seat in the back. Tony cursed a little after terminating the call. He turned in his seat, then, and looked at me. "One of Senator Duff's guards was killed tonight and Senator Duff took a bullet in the arm while they were getting out of their car at the state capitol. He's at the hospital now, for treatment."
"And probably milking this for all it's worth," I mumbled. I had no love for any of them, but that didn't mean I truly wanted anyone to die. The guard probably had family and this would be horrible news for them. Now, Duff would most likely get the sympathy vote from his constituents and float right back into his Senate seat. Tony got up to come sit beside me.
"Lissa, I know you don't like him, but he's an elected official. Tell me you didn't want him dead when he did what he did to you." Tony looked into my eyes. I looked him in the eye too and told him the truth.
"If I wanted him dead, Tony, he'd be dead right now. The man has kids, for Pete's sake. Just like the poor schmuck who did die, most likely. Trust me; I know what it's like to have a parent die from violent circumstances. I wouldn't do that to anyone unless I'm fighting for my life or protecting someone else's."
Tony lifted an eyebrow while I turned away from him and watched wisps of cloud float by, leaving condensation on the window by my seat. I pulled my knees up to my chin and kept my eyes pointed out the window.
"Lissa, why are you a vampire?" he said softly, leaning over to kiss my temple before heading back to his seat. That was a question I asked myself almost daily.
* * *
Dr. Lawrence Frazier, or Larry to his closest friends, slowed the images down until they were moving frame by frame. The footage showed a lab chimp that gradually faded, his body disappearing over a period of six minutes. Larry was so happy he could have wept at the results. He'd only taken a few days off from his ordeal with the pirates after an amazing rescue, and somehow that rescue was tied to his current research. When Tony Hancock sent ash and clothing to him from California, Larry had gotten to work right away. He was a research biologist with an M.D. and multiple Ph. D.s lined up after his name. And he worked for National Security.
With the information provided by Anthony Hancock, Frazier had set about duplicating the abilities possessed by a dead vampire. The ash provided by Director Hancock had been compounded with two injectable solutions Frazier designed. The results from both were amazing, but the second one yielded the best outcome. The ash was running out, however, and he was desperate to find more. The potential applications were numerous and astounding.
The chimp gradually reappeared inside his cage after half an hour and Larry speeded up the images and then slowed them down again to watch the animal become solid again. The animal remained in the cage, which surprised Dr. Frazier, but then the chimp had been well trained. He glanced at the clock on the wall; it was nearing four in the morning and he needed to go home to sleep. The images were downloaded onto his personal laptop before Larry packed it up, making sure the lab was secure and the alarm set before he left. He couldn't wait to let the President and Director Hancock see what he'd achieved.
* * *
Tony flipped the television on in the kitchen after we were dropped off at his home, and then rummaged in the fridge for something to eat. Thankfully, he'd placed the chicken and other meat items in the freezer before he'd left, otherwise there'd be a terrible-smelling mess to contend with when he opened it up. Instead, he got spaghetti with a jarred sauce since I wasn't willing to let him eat potato chips as a meal.
"That's too much salt," I grumbled as I heated up the sauce and watched while linguini boiled. The article that came on the early news caught my attention; they'd found the last two kidnapping victims in yet another body of water. A pond this time, not far from where the boys were abducted. I grabbed my laptop case and checked my email. There was something from Weldon and from Paul, along with an email from Thomas Williams Jr., the Sacramento Packmaster. I opened the one from Paul first.
Right now, there's human evidence but my hackles are rising. Who can say if those children were drained of blood before or after their throats were slashed? The local authorities have at least two of my kind on the payroll and they've been most helpful. I haven't informed them of what I'm looking for specifically, they're just grateful for the additional nose. We'll get to the bottom of this, I promise—Paul.
He sounded like such a nice man. Maybe I could meet him someday. I tapped out a reply while Tony was slurping up lengthy spaghetti noodles. The note from Weldon said close to the same thing, adding that I'd be hearing from the Sacramento Pack soon. Thomas Williams Junior's email was next.
Lissa, we are thankful to have you as a member, Thomas wrote. Leigh may be contacting you soon; she and my mother like you very much. Teddy sends a hello as well. We and the Pack understand that you may not be able to visit often or run with us, but we welcome you at any time. Keep in touch with your Packmaster—Thomas.
He truly was a nice man. I thanked him for his note and promised that if I were ever close enough I would certainly visit and hinted that I might even find a way to go out with them if I happened to be there at the right time. It wouldn't be the first time I'd floated overhead while the Pack ran.
I cleaned up the kitchen while Tony yawned and took off toward his bedroom. "I have a ten o'clock," he grumbled as he wandered down the hall.
"If you'd sleep on the plane instead of playing with your computer," I yelled after him. He just waved me off and went inside his bedroom. Once he was in bed, I borrowed his computer printer and printed out maps of all the locations where the children had gone missing. Then I pieced them together as best I could with all my markings on them. The kidnappings and killings started out in Wales, but had gone in something of a zigzag pattern after that. I'm sure the police or the U.K. version of the FBI or whatever was keeping tabs on all of it but it made me feel a little better, seeing it for myself. The distances between were also something that interested me but dawn was rapidly approaching so I closed everything down, carried the laptop into my bedroom and dumped it on the nightstand before jumping in the shower. My hair was now nearly an inch in length, so I had something to legitimately shampoo. My follicles were waking up, it seems. Before long, I'd be completely comfortable going without a wig.