Chapter 4

 

The next morning I awoke and saw that I was all alone. As I shifted over, the scent coming from my clothes just about knocked me out. Ugh, I smelled like shit; it was crazy how the smell of a fire could stick to your hair, your clothes, your skin.

Stumbling into the bathroom, I showered and relished in the feeling of the warm water on my skin and the orange shampoo that Becca had in here. The citrus smell was invigorating; those shampoo commercials were really onto something.

After changing into my one spare pair of granny panties, a pair of Ryder’s sweats, and a clean tank-top, I began to make my way down the hall when Jayden’s shriek tore through the house. Shit! I ran through the connecting containers, cursing myself for not grabbing my gun. Stupid Charlie! We just got attacked last night! I shouldn’t go a second without a weapon from now on.

Another scream. Fuck! Blasting through the kitchen, I burst into the common room where Jayden was shrieking … and hand flapping and jumping up and down in excitement at what looked like at least a hundred packages stacked before him.

“You bitch! You scared the shit out of me,” I scolded him, and he turned with legit tears in his eyes.

Sam and Ryder, who’d also dashed in from somewhere, were glaring at my bestie.

“Jayden, FOUR delivery trucks! FOUR! You didn’t need to order this much stuff, we’re supposed to be keeping a low profile,” Ryder said with a shake of his head.

Jayden just put one hand on his hip. “You gave a gay man with incredible fashion sense a credit card and told him to do unlimited shopping.”

Oliver, who had wandered in late to the party, clearly the only one who had known what his man was shrieking about, shrugged. “It’s true, you kind of asked for it.”

Sam sighed. “Some of this shit better be useful.”

Now Jayden had his game face on. The “I will cut you” face. He rummaged through the packages and threw five huge boxes across the room to land at our feet. They were all identical, about four feet high and two feet wide. Sam raised an eyebrow and produced a pocket knife, cutting open his box. His brows rose as he pulled out a heavy duty, army spec camping backpack, the kind with a metal cage and chest straps and even a sleeping bag tied to the bottom.

“I figured at some point we would need to run. Got us all hooked up,” Jayden said, and was glaring at Sam, awaiting his reply.

“Thisisgood,” Sam mumbled.

Jayden put a hand to his ear. “What’s that, Sammy? I didn’t hear you?”

Sam actually smiled then. “This is good. Thank you.”

My BAFF looked at all of us and we took turns thanking him. Smug bastard. I loved that guy.

What can I say, after all the shitty events of the past few days, the next two hours were like Christmas. Jayden took turns handing all of us our presents. I got some completely inappropriate lingerie, including some star nipple pasties. But I also got some cute skinny jeans, regular lacy thongs, tight t-shirts – one of which said “coffee before talkie” – and a bunch of other cool camping shit, not to mention an absolute top of the line set of throwing knives.

“Jayden, you’re the shit!” I exclaimed.

My smile broadened as I noticed Markus sitting in the corner coloring in his adult-man coloring book. It had different cars and guns in it. I hadn’t even known the Scottish enforcer liked art, drawing and stuff, but Jayden did. There was a true friend there under all the flamboyance. Jayden was one of a kind.

I was distracted by Ryder. He got some hot denim jeans and cargo pants, leather combat boots and a sexy-AF black leather jacket. We all got a set of black army fatigues with tons of small pockets for storing cool shit.

Watching Becca open her packages was hilarious. I’d never seen someone turn so red. When she opened the push-up bra, she literally inspected it like a scientist would, squeezing all the padding.

“There must be an inch of padding. That’s like … false advertisement.” She gawked and we all laughed.

Becca, Jayden, and I all got new makeup kits, and of course Becca got false eyelashes and we both got green contacts. Jayden thought of everything.

“You have a future in personal shopping. I’m just throwing that out there,” I told my BAFF.

“I know, right!” He winked, slipping on his Gucci loafers.

We had swapped out those who were on patrol duty a few times so that everyone got to enjoy their gifts, but all too soon it was time to put our shit away and get down to business. And not the fun, sexy kind. Nope, this business was going to be dangerous, scary, and there was a high possibility I was never going to get a chance to use my sexy new lingerie.

Ryder gathered all of us together, even calling the boys in from patrol. Everyone had to be here to chime in on the plan. We were going to iron it out, make sure it was concrete, and then put it into motion.

“Sam is going to take Becca, all her necessary lab equipment, and everything else needed for a month or more of lockdown, across to his secret house. Becca believes that in using Charlie’s blood she can create a synthetic cure or vaccine for the vampire virus, and that we’ll be able to use it in a mass amount to take down all the Hives.”

We were all hanging on Ryder’s words. I don’t think anyone was even breathing so as not to miss anything. Because this was it. Finally we were going to be taking action.

He continued: “I was up early this morning, and managed to get a secure, coded call through to Lucas.”

Involuntarily I lurched toward him then, my hands lifting of their own accord. Ryder noticed, and answered before I could reach out and grasp onto his shirt. “Tessa’s fine, and so is Blake.” I relaxed back again, realizing how truly afraid I’d been for her. “From what I could infer, they’re playing their part, acting as if we have all betrayed the Hive, and that they hate ash. Lucas said there’s not much he can do right now. They put him in the pit for a few days and now have him under strict surveillance. It’s only his money and power stopping them from killing him. He did have some ideas of how we could get the cure into each of the Hives at the same time.”

I was excited to hear Lucas’ ideas.

“Every three months, all of the Hives receive a shipment from the blood banks, and at the same time there’s a turnover of human feeders. The government requires all volunteer feeders be changed quarterly to keep them healthy. The new feeders all have to report to a few select hospitals across America. There they have their blood checked, catalogued, and then they are shipped out to Hives across the country.”

Damn, I knew so little about this world. Why did I not pay attention in these classes? I hated when I wasn’t as informed as I needed to be. “So the humans who we and the vamps feed from could be from anywhere?” I asked. “How is it that Tessa managed to get into Portland Hive? She never said anything about her blood being tested.”

Jayden answered me, and I realized that we actually had a very good source of information sitting right here in this room, the very ash who’d been front line in the feeding center. He did the paperwork, he would know all about this stuff. “Tessa had all the paperwork. It was correctly filed and everything. I think maybe someone in the Quorum, Fugly perhaps, forged it and rushed her through so she was always there to be used as a weapon against you. Right from the start it was all in play, even before they knew what you were.”

Fuck! Made sense, but still…

Oliver posed the next important question. “How many of these hospitals are there across the world? Because this sort of plan needs to go down on the same day. Otherwise the Hives will lock down and we’ll never get to the vamps again. Our timing must be perfect.”

Jayden answered: “Two in America: Texas and California. They transport blood and humans out to North and South America. There are three in the UK and Europe: London, Belgium, and Sweden. And finally there is one in Indonesia, which only deals in bottled blood, not humans. It’s massive though, shipping out to Australia, Japan, and China. These are the only other countries with Hives, and each only has one. Their human governments are not as lenient as the American one, and vamps were mostly killed off there, allowing only a small percent of the vampire population to live.”

Jared nodded. “Yep, my old Hive in Brisbane does not allow any more cullings or new vampires. All ash and newly changed vamps are killed upon turning, unless you can convince another Hive to take you. The vampires stay holed up in their massive compound, and only use bottled blood. So we don’t have to worry about humans going there for feedings.”

“So these shipments happen every three months,” I said. “Do we know when the next date is?”

Jayden grinned, and I took that as a good sign. “We’re in luck. The Christmas shipment is due to be processed in about three weeks. Which means if we can somehow get the cure into their blood supply and into the humans before then … well, we might be vampireless by Christmas.”

Ryder straightened. “If Becca is done by then, getting the cure into the blood won’t be too difficult. But how will it work with the humans? We’ll need to make sure it not only enters their blood but stays in there long enough for them to make it to their many destinations.”

All eyes went to the science geek in the room. If anyone was going to know about blood and stuff, it was Becca. She blinked a few times, pushing her glasses up in a nervous, awkward manner. “Uh, well, I can definitely give the cure the ability to stay in the blood, but those cells do not last indefinitely. Red blood cells last about four months and white a little longer. It’ll all depends how the cure bonds to the human cells. I need to do some experimenting once I create it. I’m going to need a vampire or two to test on.”

No one blinked or looked horrified by her suggestion for vamp testing. I for one thought it was a much better idea than testing on an innocent animal. I wasn’t planning on getting consent from a vamp.

Jared even chuckled. “That can easily be arranged. I know more than a few vamps who could stand to be poked and prodded a little.”

Nods all around. None of us were fans of our sires.

Jayden, who must have been mulling over Ryder’s previous words, piped up then. “All of the humans are required to undergo blood tests, and to receive a vaccine that covers them for the flu and some other illnesses. The vamps don’t like their subjects to get sick while they’re working for them. If we could get the cure into the flu shot, or whatever it is, then we could make sure the humans and bottled blood are covered all in one go. And I think the easiest way with the cure is to somehow infiltrate the Cellway warehouse. That’s the company who makes the special UV resistant bottles for the blood. Get the cure into the bottom of those bottles, pose as delivery drivers, then drop cure-laced bottles off. The blood will then be added to the cure without them knowing.”

He turned to Becca. “Will the cure be only a tiny amount of liquid in the bottom of the bottle, like virtually undetectable?”

She took a second to think before nodding. “Yes, it’ll be very small in quantity per bottle, and clear.”

I could feel the excitement through the room. This was all coming together, a plan we could actually work with. OMFG. My body was practically vibrating as more of our plan started to come together. It wasn’t going to be easy, and we would have to be so careful because one word of this getting back to the vampires and we’d all be screwed. But this could really work.

I could actually end this, all of this. No more vampires with no oxytocin, no more forcing ash into cullings. No more new ash at all. Life as we knew it would completely change.

“So what’s the actual plan for us while Becca is working on the cure and before we take over the Cellway bottle shipments?” I said. No way were we just sitting around here playing cards.

Ryder’s eyes were light silver, so he was dealing okay with the plan so far, even with the inherent danger to me and his men. I think the loss of all the Portland enforcers did something to him. Hardened his resolve. He was now right there with me. The vampires needed to be ended.

“We need to get a warning out to all the ash across the Hives. There’s this network which is underground and exclusive for ash. A place for information exchange. Was initiated years ago when an infamous ash tried to rise up and rebel against the cullings. He’s dead now, but the underground lived on and it’s online now. A way to share messages with other Hives and ensure that only the ash will see it. The only problem is that a single ash controls it all, and no information gets up there without his input.”

My head swung around and I nailed Sam with a look. “Are you telling me that you’re not in charge of the underground computer ash program or whatever it is?”

The silent enforcer actually chuckled, and Becca’s eyes were all a swirl of silver. “I was offered it once, but it requires you to basically drop off the radar. The informant for the underground is a heavily protected secret, a single ash who holds the key to all information. He’ll have to move around freely, and have no liabilities. I had Becca and the guys to worry about, so I passed on the position.”

“Where does this ash live?”

Ryder and Sam exchanged a glance. Sam answered me. “No one knows. Rumors circulate, but nothing concrete. Last I heard he had a brother holed up in the California Hive. The only way we’re going to be able to find out is if we go down there and draw out their enforcers. Someone will hopefully have the information. Find the brother, find the leader of the network.”

“Are we all going?” I had to ask, because knowing Ryder, he’d already decided to stash me in an igloo at the top of a mountain somewhere.

Instead, the lead enforcer surprised me by nodding. “Yes, I don’t trust anyone else but us to watch your back, and I need all the boys there in case shit goes down. We’ll travel in two groups and meet up when we’re all there.”

I nodded, okay holy shit. It was scary going back to a city with a Hive. Everyone was gunning for me. This was going to be like real life on the run.

Becca stood abruptly. “Well, I’ve been working on something for Sammy, a surprise. I only have four of them so you’ll have to share, but it’ll be perfect for your trip.” She dashed out of the room.

Upon return she had four camelbacks in her hand. They were water pouches with straws that you could hook on your backpack, but the tops had some metallic tape or panel. I’d seen hikers use these often in Portland.

Becca looked ready to bubble over in excitement. “Taste it,” she told Ryder.

He looked skeptical for a moment but put his lips to the straw and sucked. What looked like blood come up through the straw and into his mouth. He raised his eyebrows, looking impressed.

“It’s cold!” he said.

Becca smiled. “Yes, I built solar panel fabric into the top. As you hike or walk around, the panel gets charged and runs current down to the cooling element inside the fabric. Cold fresh blood no matter where you are. It holds quite a bit because I have expanded the inner lining. This should get you to California and back.”

Sam’s eyes hadn’t left her. “Thank you, Becca.” His voice was gruff.

She gave him a shy smile and handed him the pouch. When their fingers touched I saw her eyes blaze silver.

Then she got nervous and dropped her hand, mumbling, “I’ll go pack the lab.” Turning, she ran off again and the rest of the guys dispersed to begin packing their things. Sam was just staring at the door, chest heaving a bit.

“You know … some girls expect the guy to make the first move.” I patted his hard right pec, winking and walking away before he could reply.

One glance over my shoulder told me that he was both intrigued and confused. Hopefully I’d just stoked the fire burning in Sam’s chest. I wanted to see him happy, and with no more need to keep secrets.

An hour later I had completely filled my camping pack. It was stuffed to the brim with all my necessities. A camping meal kit with pan, fork and knife. A bag of dry beans, rice and spices, water packets, clean clothes, and a toiletry kit, including my new make-up. Because a girl’s gotta still try to look pretty even when sleeping in dodgy places. I was assuming we were going to be full-on camping or staying in broken down cabins.

A sound at the doorway drew my attention. Jayden, in all his Gucci glory.

I smiled. “Hey.”

He came and sat at the edge of the bed. “Hey.”

We were silent a moment and it felt weird. Things were happening fast and even though it would be for the better in the end, it was shitty now.

Jayden put a hand on mine and turned to me. “I’m going to stay back at the cabin with Becca. She’s going to need my bubbly personality to keep her company.”

I smiled. What he hadn’t said was that although Jayden could channel badass, like in the culling, he really wasn’t suited for camping and killing. Plus, he made a good point, Becca would need the company.

“I’ll keep an eye on Oliver,” I said, and all of a sudden Jayden’s eyes were leaking. He turned quickly and pulled me into a bone crushing hug.

“I love you, Charlie Bennett. You’re the best thing that happened to me.”

Now my damn eyes were leaking! I didn’t like that he was saying goodbye; it was like we were back in the culling all over again. “Jayden, there are no words for what you mean to me.”

He pulled away then and wiped his eyes.

“Now for some good news,” he told me, and I raised one eyebrow.

My BAFF was bubbling over with excitement now and it had to be something good to change his mood so quickly.

He squealed. “Oliver just asked me to marry him, so after all this shit goes down … will you be my best man?”

My jaw dropped and laughter erupted out of me, along with pure joy. My eyes were filling again. “Of course I will!” We hugged for the second time and the moment was perfect. It gave us all something to look forward to, a happy event on the horizon. I would make a damn good best man.

 

The rest of the day passed rather quickly. The boys were planning every detail of how to get us to California and get word into the Hive to draw this guy’s brother out. Sam and Becca were taking runs of equipment up to the secluded cabin. She was relieved that Lupita’s family promised to keep an eye on the main lab, although she made them promise to lay low and avoid all strangers. She was going to be hard at work on the cure; we all decided that we’d bring her vamp test subjects back with us from the California Hive. Should give her enough time to have something to test.

I was sitting in the kitchen watching Jayden. He was busy cooking banana nut muffins to see us off with.

When the true darkness of night washed away the twilight it was time to say goodbye to Jayden and Becca. They were heading to the secluded cabin now; the sexy six and I would sleep one more night here and then take the chopper to Canada at the break of day tomorrow. Or whatever sprinkle of low light was masquerading as daybreak in this part of the world. Alaska was not only freezing, it was perpetually dark. Jayden was all packed up, his bags taking up the majority of the space in their snowmobile.

I was really just grateful that they would be safe there and that Becca would have the company of my best friend.

Jared, Markus, and Kyle said goodbye and then set out to patrol with the night vision goggles – scout around to make sure Becca and Jayden weren’t followed. Sam, Ryder, and I helped with their final bags, and Oliver and Jayden shared a sweet kiss in the corner of the outbuilding, saying goodbye.

Becca entered the room then, dragging a cooler behind her, and Sam met my eyes. Kiss her, you fucking idiot! I wanted to shout at him. But he just pursed his lips and then stalked over to take the cooler off her hands, barely making eye contact with her. Ryder was fiddling with his walkie-talkie as I crossed the large area and stood next to him.

“What’s Sam’s deal?” I whispered.

Ryder glanced over his shoulder at Sam, who was strapping down the water cooler, Becca watching him with sad eyes.

Ryder looked back at me, wrapping his arms around my waist. “He was a prisoner of war. They tortured him within an inch of his life, trying to ferret out secrets. Sam’s always been good at keeping secrets. He never broke, not even once.”

Oh fuck. I knew Sam had issues but I didn’t know it was that bad. Jesus.

Ryder looked proud of his friend. “He held out through the worst torture you can imagine. They were just about to kill him when the war ended and he was rescued. But it was already too late. He was a changed man and soon after turned ash. Now, even more so, he keeps secrets and is afraid to care too deeply. He would die if someone took Becca or targeted her just because of their relationship. The thing with Lupita’s family was a huge reminder of that.”

Shit. Knowing how loyal and honorable Sam was, he was never going to act on his feelings for Becca. He would protect her forever, when it was clear all she really wanted was his love.

Jayden was strapping himself into the driver’s seat of the snowmobile, so we walked over to say final goodbyes.

Sam awkwardly held up his hand in a fist bump. “Later, Becks.”

Becca’s whole face lit up at the nickname. “Bye, Samuel.”

They had hundreds of inside jokes after a lifetime of memories together. I suddenly felt it was my moral duty to crash their two heads together and force them to recognize the blazing love and adoration they had for each other, because we all saw it. Ah, but as always, the timing wasn’t right. So I walked over and gave Jayden a long hug. “I love you, bitch,” I told him.

Becca’s mouth quirked a little, but I could see she was getting immune to our cussing.

“Love you too, bitch,” he replied, and Becca just shook her head.

“You should try it sometime. It’s freeing,” I said to her.

She just smiled and waved goodbye as they drove out of the outbuilding and into the snowy grounds. Twenty feet from us the snowmobile ground to a halt. Sam stepped forward, pausing when Becca’s head popped up and she turned, facing us.

“Bye, bitches!” she shouted, and held on to the roof bar as Jayden peeled out. I could hear his laughter echoing through the night.

Sam’s mouth was gaping open. “Jayden is a bad influence on her.”

I busted out laughing. “Jayden will make her fabulous. One month locked in a cabin with him and she’ll be wearing push-up bras and giving you lap dances.”

Well, hello. Was that a little interest I saw there on Sam’s face? Not to mention the slight grin.

Ryder laced our hands together then and started leading me toward the house. “I’m tired. I think we should go to bed.” His voice was low, like a caress. Heat curled through my belly. Bed was definitely code for sex.

There was no more leading after that. Ryder had to haul butt to keep up with me. This was our last night in this snowy wilderness and I was going to take full advantage.