21

ow can a team of eighteen get wiped out in under an hour?” fumed Alex. He sat in the briefing room within the lower levels of the estate. Pax stood at his side, arms crossed as he listened to the report. On the other side of the oval table sat Leigh and Jonathan. Upon learning of the abandoned Jeep, Jonathan steered clear of anymore news and accompanied the Redthorn Three back to the estate. He wanted badly to lead the investigating team, but that fragile job was left to little Leigh. And in her moment of failure, Jonathan knew it didn’t matter who the leader of this delicate mission was, the result would have been the same.
Leigh looked across the table, surprised by her boss’ lack of sympathy. “Not everyone was killed,” she defended, her eyes darting to Pax for help. She wanted to slap the smug look off his face.
“But eighteen men were killed,” Alex reminded, “and your targets escaped.”
“We had no idea we were walking into a war zone. The Lancaster and Forester Packs converged on the haven just as we moved in. By the time I called for a retreat, they were already dead. There was no fault with leadership, orders, or firepower. We had the upper hand until the werewolves swarmed in. One of the fur-bags took out four men in four seconds.”
“At any time did you see Gabriel or Evonne?”
Leigh sat back, her shoulders relaxing. “A car approached the haven around 8 o’clock. It was reported that the vehicle had one occupant. The tags were traced back to a Brian Lee Huntington of Kentwood, Virginia, the same town where we located the abandoned Dodge Ram. Since the drive is about three hours, he would have left before sunset. After we conferred for a moment, it was decided that if they were with him, they were hiding in the trunk. We then moved in to confirm. As we neared the haven, the car came out from the tunnel, this time with two additional passengers. I gave the order to fire, but they retreated—no stakes, just bullets. Then—”
“Was it them?” Alex pressed.
“Yes, sir. They were there.”
Disgusted, he covered his face with his hands, wiping away the anxiety. “Never in all my years have I seen such poor results. You all are not amateurs. Do I need to issue you all machine guns with silver bullets? Lancaster and Forester are forty strong each—max. And I’m certain not all were there last night. So you’re looking at fifty werewolves, give or take. And your team, armed to the teeth, were taken by surprise.”
Leigh found herself speaking before thinking. “You did tell us to refrain from standard procedures.”
Jonathan and Pax cringed at her response.
Not waiting for Alex to respond, she continued. “One of the survivors mentioned that he saw another vampire. Perhaps the haven wasn’t abandoned after all.”
“It was abandoned,” confirmed Pax. “The elder and the guards were gone. The only thing reported were some stray humans and the dead werewolves.”
“Tell me something,” Alex began. “How can well-trained hunters lose track of two vampires?”
Leigh shrugged. “I don’t know why the dogs couldn’t pick up their trail. We scoured that place after dawn. The red car was still there and the infrared picked up nothing last night. It’s like they vanished.”
“Gabriel knows how to hide his trail,” said Pax.
Jonathan spoke up. “The haven… How old is it?”
“It was built in 1952,” replied Leigh, “under the disguise of a doctor’s summer home. It was renovated in 2008.”
“Any updates to the layout? If so, were they documented on Watchtower?”
Leigh left the table to sit at a corner desk and typed into the computer.
“What are you thinking?” Pax asked Jonathan.
“Some havens have been known to have additional exits in case they were attacked. I’m thinking this haven might have been equipped with new exits.”
Leigh reported her findings from the desk. “The entry was updated in 2008, but that was when the remodeling began. I can have a team do another sweep to look for any secret passages.”
“Check near the elder’s private quarters,” Jonathan suggested. “That would be the most likely spot.”
Wanting to leave the room as soon as she got there, Leigh was more than happy to be finished with her report, even though nothing about this followed standard procedure.
Seconds after the door shut, Pax turned to Alex and spoke. “Stop. Stop before something happens and she gets killed for good.”
“I’m not stopping. Not until she’s back where she belongs.”
Pax growled under his breath. “I’m getting sick and tired of this same bullshit speech! She’s a fuckin’ vampire now! She doesn’t belong here.”
Alex glared at him. “You’re treading on very thin ice these days.”
“What? Are you going to shoot me for speaking the truth? She’s never coming back. And if I’m the one who as to take her head, then I will.”
Jumping to his feet, Alex stepped closer to him. “Don’t you even dare entertain the idea!”
“I’m a hunter. The idea was there when we first learned the truth. You’re the blind fool who refuses to yield.”
“Pax is right,” said Jonathan.
The blood drained from Alex’s face. No one was on his side. “I can’t…” he fought to say. “I can’t turn my back on her.”
“You don’t have to,” Jonathan continued. “Just make peace with what has happened. If you continue to search for her, you’ll lose more than just your daughter. You are the leader of a very powerful organization. You have thousands of people looking to you for strength and guidance. You are like a god to most of them. Don’t weaken yourself with trivial matters. Ignore Evonne. She’ll come looking for you when the time is right.”
Alex took in his words and slumped into the chair. He stared blankly ahead. “I have nothing else. She was the only thing keeping me going after Sharon died.” He placed his head into his hands, doubling over. He began to cry. “I let this happen to Sharon’s little girl.”
Pax and Jonathan exchanged glances as they heard him crying. This once great man was nothing more than a worried father and widower. Both hunters were unsure how to respond from here.
Pax forced himself to think of something poignant to say. “Things like this mark an ending to some, but a beginning to others. Look at the good that has happened. You now have contact with Redthorn, something you’ve been striving for years to accomplish.”
Slowly, Alex regained his composure. “They’ll never trust me. They still see all of this as a joke. They wish nothing more than to see me fail.”
“You don’t know that,” Jonathan pointed out.
“I agree with Alex on this one,” said Pax, crossing his arms. “They never bend on their views or policies. They’re here to search for weaknesses that they can exploit later.”
“Then what do we do with them?”
“Continue to be honest with them,” Alex said. “Their parents may not yield, but these young hunters may be easier to sway.”

“Are we really that transparent?” Riff asked, leaning in to the laptop to hear the secret conversation taking place several floors beneath them.
Jake and Danielle sat on the bed with Riff. The laptop picked up on the frequency emitted from the small microphone hidden in Jonathan’s coat pocket.
“We still have the upper hand,” reminded Danielle.
“Until they realize our real reason for being here,” Jake added.
Riff stared at the computer screen. “How do you kill an ageless man and the infection he brings?”