Sharkbait Ch. 46-50

"I'm glad James said something to me. I was a lot like that as a kid." I helped her get more things out of the fridge, and we joined the men and their wives and girlfriends in the yard. I had a lot of fun, and Mark's smoker put out good food. The party started to get wilder after sundown, and around eleven, James asked me if I was ready to go. "You don't want to stay?"

"This is the part where the heavy drinking and manly posturing begins. I'd rather get you home."

"You can come back if you want," I said. At eighteen, I couldn't drink with these guys without getting them in trouble. Our age difference ate at me at times like this.

"I'd rather spend time with you."

Good answer. We said our goodbyes and put on our leathers for the ride back home. It was a beautiful night, the full moon high over the surf as it came in on the beach. I hugged him from behind as I thought about what I would do tonight. I had the house to myself, the hot tub would feel fantastic, and I might ask him to stay over.

A pick-up truck accelerated and moved into the left lane, slowing as it came up next to me. I looked over at the light tan F-150, seeing the shadow of a driver through the tinted window. It sped up again, then swerved hard right into our lane. James braked and swerved to the right, but the truck forced us off the road.

The Suzuki's front wheel hit the soft sand of the shoulder, sending us flying. I landed painfully and rolled, coming to a stop in the scrub brush and rocks. The pickup truck stopped for a second, then drove off.

It didn't have a license plate.

I crawled over to James, who had slammed into some of the larger rocks near the road. He wasn't moving.

I called 911; when the patrol car stopped near us, I called Hammer.

Someone tried to kill me.

Ch. 48

The first police officer to arrive knelt next to me. "Are you all right, Ma'am?"

"I'm all right," I said. I'd landed on the sandy shoulder and James. "Help him," I said as I pushed myself to my hands and knees. The ambulance wasn't far behind.

My body hurt as I moved into a sitting position and removed my helmet. I checked my limbs, and it didn't feel any sharp pain, and I could take a deep breath. That was good; no broken bones. I looked at my helmet in the flashing lights; the paint was trashed, and the visor cracked.

Better than my head.

The EMT's arrived, and I waved them off to help James first. He still hadn't regained consciousness, but he was breathing. They brought over a backboard, controlling his neck as they rolled him carefully onto it. They taped his helmet to the board and put a collar around his neck, then lifted him onto the gurney.

As I was watching them, I gave a quick statement to the policeman. I hadn't gotten a good look at the driver, but I did provide a detailed description of the truck. "It was intentional. The pickup sped up to come alongside and look at us, pulled ahead, cut us off, and then slowed to make sure we had no choice but to go off the road."

"Was it road rage?"

"We had just pulled onto the highway up at Lincoln Housing and hadn't passed anyone. We never saw him before." The gurney was almost to the road. "I have to go with him," I said to the officer.

"Do you think you can walk?" I nodded, and he helped me to my feet. I was bruised but could walk. "A detective will visit you at the hospital and take both of your statements," he said.

"Catch that fucker," I said. The guys helped me into the back and closed the door. "Where are we going?"

"Sharp Coronado Hospital," the EMT said as we took off with lights and sirens.

"He's a SEAL, active duty. Doesn't he go to the Naval Hospital?"

"It's not the closest. The doctors will evaluate him in the ER first and transfer later if he needs it." He was busy attaching leads to his chest.

I took hold of my boyfriend's hand, praying to Luna he would be all right. My phone picked that moment to buzz. It was Hammer. "Where are you?"

"In the ambulance with James, heading to Sharp ER," I said. "I need you to go to his CO's place on Saipan Road." I gave him the address.

"I've got his phone number; I'll call him instead. I think I can see you up ahead. We'll be in the doors right behind you."

"Who is with you?"

"Susan and Amy. We left Luke and the twins at the house. Call your Mom and let her hear your voice."

"I will. Thanks, Hammer." I hung up and called my Mom back. "Hey, Mom. I'm all right," I said as she started crying. I only had a minute to talk before we arrived at the hospital, and I had to hang up.

I watched as they took James away, then a nurse helped me down. I had my helmet still, and she sat me in a wheelchair with it on my lap. She wheeled me into an exam room and closed the door. She helped take my riding gear and clothes off, leaving me in my underwear, then she gave me a gown to put on. I looked down at my lacy underthings and let out a laugh. "What's so funny," the nurse asked.

"It's the old Mom saying. 'Make sure you're wearing clean underwear in case you get in an accident.' Now the Doctor gets to see my lingerie before my boyfriend does."

She laughed and pulled the cart over. After taking vitals, history, and symptoms, the doctor came in. She looked at the helmet and my leathers sitting on the chair; they were dirty and scratched from the crash. "I'd say your gear paid for itself," Doctor Thompson said as she shook her head. "You're still safer when you don't ride a donorcycle."

"How is my boyfriend?"

"He's with the attending," she said. "Let's make sure you're all right first." It took about twenty minutes to check me out. "I'm going to send you for an X-ray as a precaution. I'll check back soon." The x-ray was clean, and she told me to rest and take Advil for the soreness before signing my discharge.

Another nurse stopped me as I was gathering my things into a bag the nurse gave me. "Your friend is asking for you," she said.

I followed her to another room, where James was in a hospital bed with an IV and monitors. His left wrist was in a brace where it lay on the covers. "JAMES," I said as I dropped my gear and ran to his side. Leaning down, I kissed him as my fingers ran softly across his face. "How are you?"

"Concussion, two broken ribs, and a broken left wrist," he said. "You?"

"Bruises. I landed on a big SEAL, and he broke my fall." I leaned down and kissed him again, this time taking more time and tongue.

"Ahem." I broke free as his doctor came in. "Ortho will be here shortly to cast your arm. Once that is done, we'll transfer you to a room so we can keep you under observation overnight."

"I can watch him at home," I said. "I've done it before."

"Tomorrow, perhaps. Mr. McFadden took a hard blow to the head. He'd be dead if not for his helmet."

"I understand." The doctor left, and the nurse came back in. "The police would like to speak to you before you leave, Miss Lawrence. His Commanding Officer wants to see him, and only one person can be back here at a time."

"Go," James said. "Come see me in the morning."

"Visiting hours start at nine," the nurse said.

I grabbed my stuff and walked out to the waiting room, where my people surrounded me. "I'm fine. Sore, but fine." I told them about James as a detective waited to get my attention. "I'll give my statement over there," I told him as I pointed to the far corner of the room. "I want my Aunt Susan with me." The three of us walked over and sat down. I told him everything I knew, which wasn't much.

"If you saw the truck, could you identify it?"

"I think so," he said.

"We found a truck matching your description abandoned in Chula Vista. It's now in impound. I'd like you to look at it."

"Let's go," I said. Susan took my gear with them while I drove with the detective to the lot. It was the one that had run us off the road, a fresh scratch on the passenger door showing where his mirror hit. I focused on the driver's scent, sorting through the other smells. I recognized it, and my anger boiled. I was going to kill that fucker, and the Master Vampire who ordered the attempt. Alexander dared to hurt someone I cared for, and for that, I could not forgive.

I couldn't say anything to a human about THAT, though. "This is the truck that ran us off the road," I said.

"It was reported stolen yesterday. Hopefully, our crime scene guys can get something out of it."

I thanked him and got into Hammer's car. We didn't say much on the way home; I was tired, and I needed sleep.

I didn't see the text that came in until the morning. I almost choked on my eggs when I saw it.

"Unknown Number: Don't do anything stupid before you talk to me. Say nothing and come alone. Meet me at the Dallas-Ft. Worth Airport tonight at six PM, Pappadeaux's Seafood Bar, C14 if you want the truth. Emily"

Oh, I was ready to do something stupid.

I just hadn't decided which of several stupid things I was going to do.

I was still debating when Susan grabbed her keys. "Ready to go?"

"I am," I said. I grabbed my purse and followed Susan out to the car. The visit with James went well, but he wasn't going home. An ambulance was coming to take him to the Naval Hospital, where they would keep an eye on his concussion symptoms for another day or two. Since I couldn't bring him home, that made my decision easier.

I couldn't just run away on my own; I'd made promises too. In the car, I laid out what I knew and showed Susan the text. "Emily was the assassin Alexander said was 'hired' to kill me. Alexander was behind this, but why would Emily send this text?"

"It could be a trap," Susan said.

"It's in the secure terminal, in a restaurant open to the terminal and cameras everywhere," I said. "It's a lousy place for a hit. Emily picked it because she knows I'd think it was safe."

"Or that's the perfect way to get you to relax enough to come," Susan said. "Still, a vampire will sense a werewolf four gates away. You can't take any of us with you, not even from another Pack. You could take Hammer?"

I shook my head. "They've been watching us, so they know who he is. What we need is a human to watch over me that they don't know."

"IF you go," Susan said. "We know Alexander was involved now. We can turn this over to Leo and Adrienne, and let them take care of it."

"I have to go," I said. "Emily knows something. For some reason, I trust her." I had a better feeling around her than I ever did around Alexander.

"I'll head for the bridge, you call Hammer and ask him if he knows someone he can trust to watch you. They need to be in law enforcement so they can be armed on the plane and in the terminal."

As Susan drove us over the Coronado Bay Bridge towards San Diego, I talked to Hammer. Hammer's friend Ben was in the Drug Enforcement Agency and was willing to help out. There was a flight leaving at noon; I bought a ticket and texted the info to Ben so he could get his own. Susan waited with me until we saw his Uber drop him off, then I opened the door.

"Be careful," Susan said as she dropped me at the terminal. "If it doesn't seem right, turn around and find Ben."

"I will. Thank you." I went inside through the TSA line and found a pizza place in the terminal. Ben sat down a few tables away, pulling out one of those old-fashioned paper books as he waited. I looked at my phone and texted James. "Short notice business trip, I'll be back late tomorrow. Rest up and heal."

"I miss you already," he sent back.

We landed in Dallas at four. I went to a ticket agent and bought a return flight to San Diego, leaving at eight. Ben was sitting close enough to hear the flight number, and he went to a different agent to get his ticket while I sat down again. We were both seated in Pappadeaux's by five, me facing the terminal with him seated farther back.

As I finished my seafood platter, I smelled the vampire approaching.

Ch. 49

I looked up to see Emily approaching. She looked young and successful; pencil skirt, white blouse, and three-inch pumps. The vampire smiled and hurried over like I was an old friend. "Thank you for meeting me," she said. She spoke in barely a whisper, knowing I would be able to hear her clearly above all the background noise.

"I probably shouldn't have," I said just as quietly. "Your boss tried to take out my boyfriend and me. He's in the hospital, and I could have died."

"I wasn't a part of that decision. When I found out about it, you were already in the hospital," she said. The waitress came over, and she ordered a vodka martini. "I wish you weren't in the middle of all this, but Alexander is like that. When he sees something he wants to add to his collection, he does whatever it takes to get it."

"He wants me," I said knowingly.

She nodded. "If there is a 'type' Alexander looks for in a woman, we are both it. It's why he turned me and kept me as his lover for so long, and why he keeps me around long after I've moved past being in his bed. You are young, beautiful, and powerful. Once he tasted you, nothing else mattered. You were going to be his."

Stupid mantle blood! My life would be SO much simpler if I were a Beta. "I'm not like you," I said.

"That's part of the attraction. Your blood makes Alexander all-powerful when he drinks it, and the forbidden fruits taste the sweetest. If either Council objects too much, he can turn you into one of us," the beautiful vampire said. "It has happened before. You lose your wolf, but gain our powers and immortality."

Like hell. "Couldn't he just send flowers or jewelry or something?" Emily giggled at my reaction; Alexander was the creepiest stalker EVER. It didn't make sense. "Why send Detective O'Meara out to California if he was trying to lure me into his bed?"

"Two big reasons. The first is that Alexander is possessive; he doesn't like you getting close to another man."

"I'm NOT HIS WOMAN," I said a little too loudly.

A few people looked our way, but a glare from Emily had them turning their eyes back to their plates. "Alexander is insanely rich, attractive, and used to getting his way with women. If there is competition for a woman he wants, he doesn't compete; he eliminates the competition. If James had moved, O'Meara would have shot him."

"I'd have killed him if he got out," I said. Even as I said it, I knew I was talking trash. Motorcycle racing suits didn't tear when you shifted like most clothing, and I could barely sit up after I stopped rolling.

"Get in line. Alexander wasn't happy James survived, and he was furious about how close you came to getting killed. He was supposed to kill your boyfriend and scare you into thinking you were the real target."

I was going to fucking KILL this vampire. "Is James in danger?"

She nodded her head. "Hospitals present challenges, but a man like O'Meara can still get to at target. If he doesn't, he'll end up in his hotel room with a bullet in his brain by Sunday. A Master Vampire can always find more familiars."

I needed to tell Susan and make sure he got a protective detail. Holding up my hand to Emily, I sent a quick text to her, telling her my boyfriend was still a target. "And the second?"

"You turned down his deal, and with that, his leverage with the Werewolf Council. The second part of the deal was just as important as the first. He didn't think you'd call his bluff, and now he's got a big problem."

We were right. "Alexander had Timothy and Traci under his control before he even contacted me."

Emily's eyebrow raised along with her glass, and she slipped me a grin as she realized we figured it out. "Yes. Alexander has contacts in the supernatural world, and he knew the pair was rogue. When they moved to the Boston area, he had Maximillian and Louis capture the pair and put them deep underground." It was my turn for an eyebrow to go up. "Louis is another vampire in our Coven, forty years turned. You know a coven is limited to five vampires, right?"

"Yes, that's what Adrienne taught me."

"Alexander runs the coven. Maximillian's turn was in 1864; he was one of Alexander's familiars during my time as a newly turned vampire. When I survived my first ten years, Alexander received permission to turn him. He brought our coven up to five. Maximillian is smart and ambitious, and Alexander has been playing us against each other for a long time. We both want to take over the Coven and are equally powerful, but he has Alexander's favor right now. Maximillian is doing everything he can to see Alexander wins the Supreme Vampire position so he can take over in Boston."

"The one that Alexander is planning to challenge for on Halloween," I said.

"Yes. I was able to plant a listening device in Alexander's office, and I know their plan. They are collecting as much blood from the werewolf pair as they can before it becomes too dangerous to keep them. When that time comes, they will drain them dry and dispose of the bodies. Alexander gets the blood from Timothy, while Maximillian gets blood from Traci. Both of them will be strong enough to win their challenges after ingesting the stored blood."

Stored blood? "Why would they use stored blood? Why not keep the rogues alive as long as you need them?"

Emily took a sip of her drink. "The offer to you was a desperate attempt to get the Werewolf Council to accept the idea of Alexander keeping werewolves, even if they were rogues. Adrienne made it clear to him that the Council would NEVER allow it, no matter the circumstances. The Vampire Masters will destroy our entire Coven if they find out, as it risks war with the Werewolves and is against our Laws. The longer they stay alive, the higher the chance of discovery. Alexander is betting he can keep them hidden for another month or two. That is long enough to store six to eight pints of their blood. That would give each of them enough power boosts to withstand any challenges that may arise in their first year in power."

I despised Timothy for rejecting me, and Traci was a rank-climbing slut, but I'd never wish this on them. Imprisoned and drained by vampires while you are pregnant? Horrible. "Timothy is mantled Alpha blood. Why isn't his blood enough? Why me?"

"Timothy's damaged goods. Even among mantled Alphas, there are grades of power. His blood is better than Beta blood, but it's not as good as yours. In wine terms, Timothy's blood is Boone's Farm in a box, while yours is Beringer Private Reserve. Both are red wines, but one is far superior."

I couldn't believe how they thought of blood as we thought of wine, but I understood what she was saying. "Why tell me this? You must be putting yourself in danger, going against your Coven leader and rival."

"The only way for me to survive is to have the Council take out Alexander and Maximillian, without destroying me along the way. I can't talk to the Supreme Vampire without Alexander sending me. Instead, I'm sending you."

I just about choked on my dessert. "You think I'm going to walk in and demand an audience with the most powerful of your kind?"

"Exactly. You might want to bring Adrienne along, but that's up to you." She reached into her purse and removed a memory chip. "These are the recordings I made in Alexander's office. It is proof of what he has done and what he plans." Emily handed me a small card. "The first address is Maximillian's hideout in South Boston. He'll have the two hidden there. The second is the Supreme Vampire's home in New Orleans."

I thought about the risks to me. "I want something in return for the risks I'm taking, both in believing you, and going into that nest of vipers," I said.

"What do you want?"

"When Alexander is gone, I get half of the antiques and artwork in his office. I'm sure you'll be redecorating, and you won't miss the money. After all the time he's owned them, they will be untraceable." Alexander was a billionaire, after all, and she would inherit his kingdom.