Night and Day (Book 2): Bleeding Sky (46 page)

I
looked at her. “You know, Lita, you ask a lot of questions.”

“It’s
how you find things out, Mr. Welles,” she said.

“Yeah,
well, put a sock in it for now, sergeant,” I said. “We’ll let you know
what’s happening with your stripes. Until then, enjoy the evening and the
end of what Miss Takeda called a successful assignment.”

“Yes,
sir,” she said.

Twenty
minutes later, I heard the rotor blades of Bain’s helicopter in the distance
as it approached from the north. Takeda came out of the trailer and went
past us without a word.

“Make
yourself scarce, unless you want to hob-nob with General Bain,” I said to
Martinez.

“I
think I’ll go help First Platoon load up,” she said with a grin. She gave me
a quick salute. “Sir.”

I
watched her limp away, then stood and followed Takeda. They’d cleared a
landing zone in the square not far from the statue of Stonewall Jackson. As
I stood beside her, waiting for the chopper to land, I said, “I’m surprised
there are no municipal dignitaries here to greet the general.”

“He
has come to see Dr. Heymann,” she said. “They were not invited. Or
informed.”

The
small two-seater helicopter came over the buildings to the north, hovered
for a moment, then slowly dropped down into the square. The blades were
still turning as the door opened and Bain climbed out.

He
was wearing a suit, not the jumpsuit he’d been wearing the last time I saw
him. He ignored the salutes of the troopers watching the landing and walked
to where Takeda and I stood.

“Miss
Takeda, Mr. Welles. Is the ambassador ready to see me?”

“He
was informed you were coming and when,” she said.

“Good,”
Bain said. He looked at me. “Leave your cell phone and area ID with Miss
Takeda when you say your goodbyes. The clock on this case stops at midnight
for your office. I’ll have a check for forty-eight hundred dollars
hand-carried by Brenner’s replacement tomorrow night.”

And
so ended Brenner. One trainee leaves in a body bag, somebody else takes his
place. Business as usual. “Sounds good, sir.”

“You
performed well on this assignment, Mr. Welles. As I expected.”

“We
aim to please.”

He
stared at me for another moment, then nodded. “Let’s go see Ambassador
Heymann.”

Clay
stood by the ramp as we approached. He snapped a quick salute. “Captain
Ronald Clay, United States Army,” he said.

Bain
didn’t return the salute. “Is Russ Kirk still in command over there,
captain?”

Clay
nodded. “Yes, sir, General Kirk is Commander EUCOM.”

“We
were at the Academy together,” Bain said. “If you see him, give him my
regards.”

“I’ll
do that, sir. If you’ll come this way, the ambassador is waiting for you in
his living room.” Clay climbed the ramp and opened the hatch. He stepped to
one side as we went through, then closed the hatch behind us.

Takeda
led the way to the living room, Bain behind her, me behind him. Heymann was
in his usual chair, Anna standing beside him wearing the clothing she’d worn
the first night we’d met her.

Heymann
stood when we came in. “Deputy Area Governor Bain,” he said with a smile.
“Miss Takeda. Mr. Welles. Please, come in and sit down.”

Bain
walked forward and shook his hand, but made no move sit. “Dr. Heymann,” he
said.

Heymann
settled back in his chair, and waved his arm at the couches and chairs
around him. “Please, sit.” He nodded at Anna. “This is my associate, Anna
Thodberg.”

Anna
smiled. “Mr. Bain. Miss Takeda. Mr. Welles.”

Takeda
was on Bain’s left side, as far from Anna as she could be. She wasn’t
looking at Anna, and though she seemed a little uncomfortable, she was
handling it a lot better than she had the first night. Maybe her meditation
was working.

Bain
studied Anna, his face without expression. She stared back, the hint of a
smile at the corners of her mouth.

Then
he turned back to Heymann. “I think we’ll stand,” he said. “This isn’t a
social call, Dr. Heymann.”

Heymann
frowned. “Excuse me.”

“About
Miss Thodberg,” Bain said. “I understand that her position on your staff is
something you call a sentinel?”

“Yes,
that’s correct,” Heymann said. “The current situation requires us to be
vigilant against...” He paused, searching for an acceptable word. “Against
threats.”

Bain
smiled. It was about a friendly as a wolf’s smile before it rips into your
throat. “Yes, I certainly understand,” he said. “But I also understand that
your sentinels are kept in virtual slavery. That vampires were seized and
forced to work for your government and others. That some have been used in
medical experiments, losing their lives in some cases.”

“Who
told you that?” Heymann said. He looked to his left at Anna.

“Not
important,” Bain said. “Is it true?”

Heymann
was searching for words again. “Well, of course they are segregated from the
human population,” he said.

Bain
turned to Anna. “Miss Thodberg, is it true?”

“It
is,” she said firmly. “We were taken from our homes and imprisoned in small
cells, where we stay at all times, allowed out only when we are needed by
the humans. We are not paid for our services, we cannot leave our cells, we
have no contact with others of our kind, and if we dare to complain, we are
used in their medical experiments, which include having poisons introduced
into our blood and vivisection.”

Heymann’s
face was getting redder and redder as he watched her speak. When she
finished, he shouted, “Those are lies!” He turned to Bain. “And what right
do you have to question our internal policies, Mr. Bain?”

“I
speak for Governor General Christopher Austin,” Bain said, his voice soft.
“He has been fully briefed about this. The vampires of Europe, of the world,
are our people. Your treatment of them is unacceptable.” He paused, then
roared, “Unacceptable!”

The
ambassador recoiled at the sound of Bain’s voice. His eyes were wide, his
mouth gaping. He looked at Anna, then back at Bain, and slowly composed
himself. “I will share your concerns with my government when I return,” he
said stiffly.

“You
will do more than that, Dr. Heymann,” Bain replied. “You will contact your
government tonight. You will tell them that their mistreatment of vampires
ends, right now, immediately. They will instruct other governments,
worldwide, that any hostile action against vampires in their population will
be considered a hostile action against the United States and will be treated
as such.”

“You
cannot dictate to the world,” Heymann said angrily.

“We
can and we will,” Bain said. “We have no interest in how the rest of the
world conducts its internal affairs, as you call them. But we will not allow
our people to remain in servitude or worse. We will take all necessary
actions to prevent that and punish those countries that mistreat their
vampire citizens.” He paused. “Let me make myself brutally clear, Dr.
Heymann. It took us five weeks to overcome the might of the United States of
America, the most powerful country on earth. How long, exactly, do you think
it would take to do the same in Europe?”

The
color started to drain out of Heymann’s face as anger was quickly replaced
by fear.

Bain
turned his head to Anna. “Miss Thodberg, with your agreement, we will return
you to Germany tonight. I have a military transport aircraft at the airport
for your use. Upon arrival in Berlin, you will confirm that my instructions
have been received and understood by the German government, and that those
instructions have been disseminated to other world governments. You will be
accompanied by a human communications team. The team will set up an
encrypted satellite radio system for your use. You will establish contact
with the Governor General’s Office and report to him as necessary. Is this
acceptable to you?”

“It
is, Mr. Bain,” Anna said.

He
looked back at Heymann. “Let me add a warning, Dr. Heymann. If anything
happens to Miss Thodberg’s plane, or if anything happens to her after she
reaches Germany, our response will be swift and irrevocable.”

“Perhaps
I should return home as well,” Heymann said. There was a slight tremble in
his voice.

Bain
shook his head. “You will not,” he said. “Your mission here is an important
one, a necessary one, and will hopefully lead to normalized relations
between the countries of the world and the United States. Perhaps in that
way, misunderstandings like this can be avoided in the future.”

“But
I have no sentinel if Anna leaves,” he said.

“You
need no sentinel, Ambassador, nor does anyone else. If we come, it will not
be as solitary individuals in your halls of power. It will be as a wave that
will crush you.” He paused. “Thank you for your time. Enjoy your visit to
the United States.”

Bain
turned and walked out of the room, Takeda at his heels. I gave Heymann and
Anna a last glance. Anna was smiling. Heymann looked like he need some
brandy. A lot of brandy. I turned and left.

By
the time I got outside, Bain was halfway to the helicopter. He raised his
arm and made a circular motion, and the pilot started it up. Clay gave me a
smile, then went up the ramp and closed the hatch behind him.

Takeda
stood a few feet from the bottom of the ramp, watching. I stopped next to
her.

“General
Bain knows how to put on a show,” I said.

She
nodded. “Indeed, Mr. Welles. Thank you for the information you provided. I
do not feel as strongly as Governor General Austin and General Bain, but I
believe this was the correct course of action.”

Bain
jumped into the helicopter and it shot straight up, then turned and headed
north, disappearing over the buildings. Behind me, I heard the hatch
open.

“Charlie!”
Anna called.

I
turned. Takeda continued to stare out across the square.

Anna
ran down the ramp and stopped in front of me.

“Thank
you,” she said.

I
smiled.

She
leaned forward and touched my cheek with her cool lips. Then she quickly
turned and ran back up the ramp. She went inside and closed the hatch behind
her.

“You’re
quite the gallant, Mr. Welles,” she said.

“Yeah,
it’s a gift,” I said. “Let’s get out of here.”

Epilogue

We
were on our way to my apartment so Martinez could pick up her gear. Takeda
was in the passenger seat of the Jeep, Martinez in the back seat. I’d already given Takeda the cell phone and ID case.

When
I collected Lita to get her stuff, Takeda had said, “I will accompany you,
if you don’t mind, sergeant.”

“Of
course not, sir,” Martinez said. I think she figured Takeda was going to
give her the word on her sergeant’s stripes. Which was true. More or
less.

I
pulled the Jeep to the curb in front of my apartment and got out. When I
reached the top of the steps, I unlocked the door and waved them
in.

By
the time I got inside, Martinez was already on her way to the closet to grab
her duffle bag. “I’ll just be a minute,” she said.

“Why
don’t you have a seat on the couch, sergeant,” I said. “We’re not in a
hurry.”

She
stopped, turned and nodded. “Yes, sir.”

Martinez
went to the couch and sat, hands on her thighs, staring expectantly at
Takeda.

Takeda
ignored her, looking instead around my apartment. Her head slowly turned as
she checked out the small TV set, the bookcase sagging under too many books,
the couch and chair. “Your apartment is somewhat impersonal, Mr. Welles. I
am surprised.”

“My
old apartment had lots of personality,” I said. “Unfortunately, it was
uptown and when I got out of Camp Delta-5, somebody else was living there. A
vampire. With a bad attitude about humans. I didn’t ask him if he’d kept my
stuff.”

“Unfortunate,”
Takeda said. She glanced at the closed door next to the couch. “Your
bedroom?”

I
nodded.

“May
I see it?” she asked.

I
grinned. “Make it easy on yourself. But if there’s anyone in there, please
don’t use the sword. Blood is really hard to clean up.”

She
smiled and went into the bedroom.

“I
guess you’ll be glad to get back to your regular duties, Lita,” I
said.

Martinez
had watched Takeda go into the bedroom. She turned back to me. “Yes, sir,”
she said. “I’ve enjoyed my time as your aide, but it’s not exactly what I
signed up for.” She paused. “If you know what I mean, sir.”

I
nodded.

A
man stepped out of the bedroom and looked down at her. “A sergeant,” he said
softly. “The last time I saw you, you were a lieutenant.”