Red Dawn (19 page)

“I guess,” I say, biting a nail as I mull over his words. His logic is solid, but it still doesn’t sit right with me. “Okay, so that building, that safe. They weren’t designed to protect something this valuable. That safe was meant for everyday valuables: money, passports, documents, that sort of thing. So why did Jacobs have the research? What did he want with it?”

“Who knows?” Nik looks as puzzled as I feel, but unlike me, he’s willing to let it go. “What’s important is that we’ve gotten it back. We need to turn the hard drive over to the Elder’s Council and get back to Crossroads before Pratt expels us both.”

“Not until we figure this out,” I tell him defiantly. In comparison to matters of life and death, expulsion hardly seems like a threat. “There’s something bigger going on here and I intend to find out what it is. I refuse to believe that Jacobs was working alone with some personal agenda. It doesn’t track.”

He gives me a look that is disturbingly close to pity and I feel compelled to continue arguing my case even though I know I should shut up. Like
right
now.

“You heard Blaine,” I rationalize desperately. “Jacobs left The Dwyer Group on good terms.”

“Maybe there’s something that’s not in the file,” Nik says gently. I narrow my eyes at him. I’m not buying it.

“Katia,” he cautions, joining me on the bed. “That isn’t your responsibility. You’ve done more than enough. I can’t allow you to take any more risks.”

I ignore him. There’s no point in arguing anymore. Nik may be stubborn, but I’ve got that in spades. My mind is made up and nothing he says is going to change it. I begin sifting through the files from Jacobs’ safe.

“Katia,” Nik says, gently grabbing my wrist. His next words give me pause and when I look up to meet his eyes, I nearly fall off the bed. “I think we should talk.”

“About what?” I ask in strangled tones, my mind racing with possibilities.

“You could have been killed tonight,” he says, lacing his slender fingers through mine. Nik’s hands are soft, warm even. “It got me thinking.”

“Oh?” I respond evasively. What the heck is going on here? Is this it? Finally? Is Nik going to…
DTR
?

“I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you,” he says smoothly, his free hand reaching for the wet, tangled mess that’s passing for my hair tonight.

“Nothing’s going to happen to me,” I return lightly. It occurs to me that maybe my priorities are a little screwed up. After all, he’s got a point. I did take a bullet tonight and whether I’m willing to give the experience serious thought or not, it doesn’t change the fact that it happened. It’s possible I’m not quite as indestructible as I’d thought previously. On the other hand, I’m perfectly fine now. No permanent damage, so why dwell on it? I quickly push all thoughts of my own mortality from my mind. I’ve got bigger problems at the moment. “I can take care of myself and I happen to have an excellent self-defense instructor.”

“It’s not enough,” Nik tells me, cupping my chin in his hand and rubbing my cheek softly. God, he looks good. His eyes are dark tonight and swim with emotion. I can’t tear my gaze from his full lips which beckon me relentlessly. The tension between us is insane.

When I can’t bear it another second, I lean in and kiss him. It’s impossible to hold back what I’m feeling. I want Nik more right now than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life. It’s a deep, ravenous kiss, the kind that leaves us both breathless and panting when it finally ends.

“I want to be more than just another instructor, another friend,” he tells me fiercely. “I don’t want to share you with anyone else. I want you to be
my
girl. I want you to be
mine
.”

His
? What do I even say to that? The intense look on Nik’s face, combined with his possessive tone, suggests it’s not up for discussion. Not that I’m complaining. This is, after all, exactly what I wanted. I just can’t believe it’s really happening!

“Katia?” he asks, looking unsure of himself. For the first time I wonder if Nik might truly feel exactly as I do.

“Was there really ever a doubt that I was your girl?” I ask, squeezing his hand reassuringly. It’s the closest I can come to a verbal commitment.

Unsure of what else to say and unnerved at the prospect of being in an exclusive relationship with Nik, I return to sifting through Jacobs’ files. At first it appears to be a dead end, but then I pull out a file labeled The Order of the Red Dawn. It’s got a simple logo imprinted on the front with a red sun cresting over a black horizon. It’s outlined with a thin gold triangle.

I flip through the file, skimming its contents. There’s not much to it: a sheet of codes that could be anything, an anonymous memo authorizing Operation TDG, and an old email inviting Jacobs to join ‘the movement’ and fulfill his obligation honorably. Like the memo, the sender is anonymous.

“Look at this.” I hand Nik the file. “Have you ever heard of this group?”

He studies the file and hands it back to me. “Never heard of them, but it sounds like a secret society, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah. And Operation TDG sounds like The Dwyer Group, meaning we were right.” I’m barely able to contain my excitement.

“And the plot thickens,” he says cryptically. I ignore his sarcasm. He’s not going to make light of this and I’m not going to ignore it.

“Nik! This proves Jacobs wasn’t alone. He had help planning the theft. We have to find out more about The Order of the Red Dawn.”

“And how do you propose we do that?” he counters. “It’s called a secret society for a reason.”

He’s got a point. I chew on my thumb thoughtfully as I mull it over. “We go right to the source.”

“Jacobs isn’t going to talk to us,” Nik argues. “And, as you’ve pointed out to me repeatedly, we’re kind of pressed for time. Shaye could be running out of time,” he finishes gently. As if I need reminding.

An idea starts to form at the back of my mind, taking shape almost of its own volition. And even as I shy away from it, the idea blossoms, taking root. It’s firmly planted and try as I might, I can’t think of a viable alternative. Truthfully, I don’t even know if it’s possible, but if it is….

“We only have one option,” I decide. Whether I like it or not, maybe it’s meant to be. I take a deep breath to steady my nerves as I come to terms with my decision. “I’ll bite him.”

“Excuse me?” Nik balks at the suggestion. But he won’t if I explain it to him better. I know he trusts me.

“If I feed from Jacobs, I’ll be able to see his thoughts. It’s our best chance.” I forget to mention that I don’t exactly have the best track record with this skill. It’s not exactly helpful information at this point and isn’t going to win me his confidence. “It will be faster and more efficient than trying to beat it out of him. And let’s be honest, our investigative skills leave a lot to be desired. I just have to get close to him.”

“Assuming I was to go along with this plan, how do you propose we do that?” Nik challenges. “After blowing the safe, his guard will be up and we’ll probably be facing even more security.”

“I’m still working on that part.”

“Katia, this is absolutely insane. You wanted to save Shaye, and against all odds, you’ve done that.” He takes my hand in his. Nik’s eyes plead with me for understanding. He’s relentless. “We have to turn this over to your uncle now.”

“Not going to happen.” How can I make him see this my way? How can I make him see that I have to do this? I have to finish this. I
have
to. “Nik, if we lose Jacobs then we’ve got nothing. He’s our only lead to The Order of the Red Dawn and whatever it is, it’s big and it’s dangerous. We can’t ignore it.”

Nik rises from the bed and begins to pace, hands locked behind his head. His face is drawn and as he thinks it over, his expression becomes clouded. His eyes are darker now, stormy even. I can see the turmoil behind them. He’s wrestling with his desire to do the right thing. It’s a start. If he’s going to join me, he’ll have to balance his sense of duty with his protective nature. I don’t know how hard to push him. If he’s not with me, well, I’m not leaving. Nik can take the hard drive and go, but I have to get to Jacobs.

“Alright. What’s your plan?” Nik asks. The look of resignation on his face says it all. He’s with me all the way.

“Don’t die?” It’s the best I’ve got right now. Nik looks less than impressed. Actually, I think he might have a stroke.

“You’ll have to do better than that Katia.”

“Okay,” I say as I kick some ideas around in my head. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. We just have to find it. “How about this… We crash.”

“Crash?”

“There was an invitation on Jacobs’ desk for a formal dinner. It’s tomorrow night,” I explain, trying to remember the details. “I think it was at some place called The Brownstone. It had the same logo as this file,” I tell him waving The Order of the Red Dawn file in the air. I’m pretty impressed with myself for remembering.

Nik hesitates before answering. “So we just show up uninvited and ambush the guy? That’s your plan?”

“Pretty much,” I shrug.

Big surprise. Nik looks skeptical. So maybe the plan has some flaws. I’m still working on the details.

“Do you have a better idea?” I ask, giving him a healthy dose of sass. He just stares at me incredulously. “That’s what I thought.”

“You do know that your smug attitude is not one of your better qualities, right?” he asks looking amused.

“You do know I don’t care, right?” I pull him down onto the bed and give him a light kiss on the cheek to show I’m kidding. I really do care what Nik thinks. “I know it’s dangerous, but it’s probably our best chance. Even if Jacobs is expecting a second attack, he won’t expect it so soon on the heels of the safe. And the place will be crowded,” I reason. “We can blend in and get close.”

“The place will be full of vampires,” Nik says, shaking his head disagreeably. “They’ll be on us at the first sign of trouble. We’d be outnumbered and overwhelmed. We wouldn’t get out alive.”

He’s probably right. I hadn’t thought of that. Still, there has to be a way for us to get to Jacobs.

“Then we’ll have to be more creative, won’t we?”

Chapter Twenty-Five

We decide to hit The Brownstone early in the day, but not until we’ve rented new wheels. Given the agenda for the evening, Nik’s opted for a sport bike. It’s a cherry red Ducati and it turns out, it’s ideal for navigating the city traffic. When we arrive at The Brownstone, the caterers are hard at work getting ready for the evenings event. No one pays us much attention as we let ourselves in. There are too many people coming and going. City living at its finest. No one really knows who belongs and who doesn’t.

As we make our way across the first floor, I’m nearly run down by the florist. She’s a petite woman and can barely handle the large arrangement of red and white amaryllis she’s carrying. Nik, being the gentleman that he is, offers to take the flowers off her hands and graciously carries them to the second floor for her. Smart. She’s probably worked here before and can give us the lay of the land. From what we’ve seen, the first floor houses the kitchen and other staff areas. It doesn’t look like it’s used for entertaining at all, other than the foyer.

“Thanks,” the florist gushes, patting Nik on the arm and smiling broadly. My spine bristles. She doesn’t have to touch him like that. “The caterer’s tend to be pretty territorial with the elevator. My girls and I end up running up and down the stairs. It’s easier than arguing with them and helps us stay in shape.” She cocks her hip and gives him another too friendly smile. I swear she’s practically undressing him with her eyes. She doesn’t seem to be bothered by the fact that she’s ten years his senior. Forget ‘Floral Delights’. Her apron ought to say ‘Cougar in Training’.

“No problem,” Nik tells her as he examines the open ballroom. It’s a flurry of activity. “Really, it was my pleasure.” I roll my eyes. Way to lay it on thick. “So will the whole second floor be used for the party tonight?” he asks.

“Yeah, the entire second floor will be open. There’s not much to it really. When they renovated, everything was opened up. Ballroom,” she waves over her shoulder through the open door, “restrooms down the hall and the manager’s office. Lila’s office is the only area closed to guests during an event. She’s pretty religious about it. Are you thinking of renting the place out?”

“It’s a definite possibility,” Nik tells her as he pats my stomach. “We heard they can put a wedding together pretty fast, if you know what I mean.”

Oh. My. God! He did
not
just say that. I seriously consider stabbing him. It seems justified this time. Nik catches my hand as I reach for the knife.

“What about the third floor?” he asks the florist, ignoring my razor sharp glare. “What’s up there?”

“Not much. Just storage.” She’s lost interest now. I guess the tour’s over. “Well, I’d better get back to work. Thanks again for the assist,” she tells us, wiping her hands on the front of her apron. She ducks into the ballroom where ‘her girls’ are busy arranging flowers.

“Was that really necessary?” I ask crossing my arms over my chest indignantly.

“No,” he laughs, putting his arm around me, “but it was kind of fun! You should have seen the look on your face. Priceless!”

“I’m so happy I can entertain you. Can you focus now?” I ask. “What do you think? Can we make this work?”

“Maybe,” he replies, ducking into the ballroom. It’s a lot bigger than it looked from the outside. A room like this could hold a lot of vamps. “If we’re going to have any shot at this, we have to get Jacobs away from the party.”

“Any ideas? I’m fresh out.”

“How much time do you need with Jacobs?”

“Only a minute or two,” I tell him. I don’t plan to waste a lot time with words. I expect Jacobs is going to fight back and that may pose a minor problem, but I’ll deal with it.

“Let’s go meet the catering staff,” Nik replies mysteriously. I wonder what he’s up to. Hopefully he’s on to something.

We enter the kitchen and try to stay out of the way as the staff hustles to do the prep work for the evening. A lot of it is garnish. They’ve devised a lot of creative ways to dress a glass, but interestingly enough, there’s also a fair amount of food. I watch the symphony of bodies rushing around the room in harmony. Chipping, chopping, slicing, and not a drop of blood is spilled. Nik watches the room more carefully.