Chapter Fourteen
After tossing and turning the entire night, Jade couldn’t take it anymore. She marched into her bathroom, took the coldest shower she could manage ,and dressed for the day. It was six o’clock by the time she was ready to go to work.
“Good morning, Dr. Cross,” Aiden greeted her, his expression turning from surprise to concern as he looked at her face.
She knew she looked awful. She’d seen it in the mirror this morning. There were bags under her eyes, and her skin was sallow. Her hair was still wet, too. She didn’t have the patience or time to dry it this morning, so she left it hanging over her shoulders.
“I’m going to work,” she said, slinging her purse over her shoulder.
Aiden got up from the couch and rubbed his face. “Sure thing. Just give me a second.”
She eyed the gun on her coffee table as he grabbed it and placed it into his shoulder holster, then put on his jacket. “Let’s go.”
Aiden opened the door, taking the lead as he escorted her downstairs and into the waiting car. She squeezed into the back with one of the Creed Security guys as Aiden slipped into the front seat. The traffic was light, and her apartment wasn’t far from Fenrir. When they got to Fenrir Corp’s headquarters, Aiden exited the vehicle, helped her out, and then walked her into the building. He hung back, though his eyes trained on her as she entered the private elevators. As soon as she got into her lab, she ran up to her inner lab and got to work, booting up her computer and reading through the texts, pouring over them in case there was something she missed. There was absolutely no time to waste.
Jade became engrossed in the readings, and she was glad because they were the only thing that kept her mind from drifting off. She had to stay focused. Study the texts. Stop thinking about last night.
“Jade!” A familiar voice exclaimed, jolting her out of her trance. “Are you okay?”
She turned around saw Meredith entering the lab, Nick right behind her.
“Dr. Cross,” he began.
“Mr. Vrost,” she said, swinging her chair around to face them.
“They told me you came in early.”
“Yes, I needed to get some work done,” she explained. “Please, tell me what happened last night.”
Nick and Meredith sat down on the chairs in front of her desk. The Beta took a deep breath. “There was a break-in in the building. Six armed men and two mages. They caught us just as we were changing shifts. They forced their way in and made it all the way to the basement levels.”
Jade gasped. “How far did they get?”
Meredith frowned. “All the way to the detention levels. I don’t know how, but they knew where to go. They went right past my cell and straight to Marcus’. They used Ognevaia to blow down the doors.” Ognevaia was a magically-powered explosive that had ten times the power of a molotov cocktail. The mages would have only needed a small amount to create a massive explosion.
“Marcus died instantly,” Nick explained. “They didn’t want to take him alive. And then they went to find Daric.”
“Did they get him?” Jade asked.
“No, our security forces came just in time. There was a fight, and we were able to take down two of their guys, but the mages and the rest got away,” he said, his jaw tensing.
Jade sighed in relief. It was a good thing they didn’t free Daric. “What now?”
“First, we keep you safe,” Nick said. “Creed seems to be doing a good job, so we’ll stick with that plan. No one in Fenrir or any of the Lycans know any details about your security plan, and we want to keep it that way, in case there are any leaks.”
“I’m going to be assigned downstairs for now,” Meredith said. “They’re putting me close to Daric, just in case. Sorry, Jade, you’ll be alone up here for a while,” her friend said sadly.
“Meredith…” She thought about her not seeing her friend and her chest tightened. The other Lycan didn’t seem too happy either. “I can come by and see her, right?”
Nick frowned, and Jade shot him a pleading look. He shrugged. “Meredith needs her downtime too, so, of course, you’re free to visit her and socialize.”
“Good,” Jade said, breathing a smile of relief and giving Meredith a reassuring smile. “I’ll come by when I can. I do have to get to work.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. Please tell the Alpha. I shouldn’t have waited so long to talk to Marcus.” She took a deep breath.
“We still have Daric,” Meredith reminded her.
“Has he started talking?” Jade asked.
Nick’s jaw tightened, his ice blue eyes going steely. “Not yet. But we’ll make him talk.”
“He might be the only chance we have to figure out how the mages are doing all this,” Jade reasoned. “I should talk to him too. Find out what he knows.”
“I’m not sure—”
“Please,” Jade said. “We’ll take every precaution. Maybe I can try and talk to him? Convince him to help us. Besides, I should really check on the bracelet. I’ve made a few improvements on the design and Lara was able to help me test it.” She got up from her desk and walked over to her 3D printer. She took out a large, metal band. The latest version of her bracelet. “This one is thicker and harder to take off. I’ve also added tracking capabilities, though I haven’t tested them yet.”
“Fine,” Nick said. “Let’s go now.”
***
Jade didn’t spend a lot of time in Fenrir’s basement levels. In fact, she’d only been there once, when Meredith broke into her lab, and she and Lara watched the interrogation. The security on the sub levels was already tight, but now they were even stricter. They had added extra guards and Nick had talked about having Vivianne Chatraine, head of the New York witch coven, come down and add protection spells.
She followed Nick and Meredith to the end of the long hallway. They passed the first door on the right, which Meredith explained was where she was staying. A few doors down, they passed another cell that looked like it had its door blown off, which Jade guessed had been Marcus’ cell. She shivered, thinking about the way the mage died. Despite what he did to her, he didn’t deserve such a gruesome death.
Finally, they reached the end of the hallway, where a burly Lycan guard was standing outside a metal door. He moved aside as Nick approached them.
Nick opened the door and entered first. “Daric,” he called.
The man sitting on the narrow bed in the corner of the room didn’t move. Jade stifled a gasp. She didn’t almost recognize the warlock, though she’d only seen him once, when she checked to make sure the bracelet was secure. She remembered glancing at him, thinking he was extraordinarily handsome. The man in the cell was unrecognizable. He had a thick beard that covered half his face and his long blonde hair hung down in limp strands. He was dressed in a dark gray jumpsuit that hung loosely from his body. His shoulders hunched over, making him look smaller than his over 6’5” frame. Thick shackles wrapped around his ankle connected to large chains bolted to the wall.
“Daric,” Nick called again.
Daric’s head turned, looking over at them. “What do you want?”
“You know what we want.”
He let out a huff. “And what makes you think I will tell you anything?”
“We have ways of making you talk,” the Beta said, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Do your best,” the warlock challenged. “It can’t be worse than what happened to Marcus. Or what awaits me if I betray Stefan and he finds me.”
“How did they know about this place?” Nick said, walking over to him. “Are you communicating with them?”
“Would I tell you if I did?” The warlock’s blue-green eyes narrowed up at the Lycan.
“Like I said, we will find ways to make you.” Nick sounded like he almost relished the idea of torturing Daric for information. On the outside, cool and collected Nick Vrost seemed like he was in control, but Jade could feel the contained maelstrom inside the Beta.
“And who do we have here?” Daric turned to Jade and Meredith. His eyes flickered over Meredith first, then zeroed in on Jade. “Ah, the good doctor.” He raised his hand, showing off the bracelet. “I suppose I should thank you for this piece of jewelry.”
Jade said nothing, her fingers growing tight on the new bracelet in her hands.
“Don’t be shy, doctor. Come here and show me your new toy,” Daric mocked.
She swallowed a gulp and walked closer, Meredith following behind her. This was her chance. Maybe she could trick Daric into telling her how the mages were controlling the Lycans. “I’m going to put this on you and remove the old one,” she explained. “It’s a new version. You won’t be able to remove it, and if you try…well, let’s just say you don’t want to know what happens if you do.” A lie, but he didn’t know that. There was no way he could remove it anyway. This version used nanotechnology to keep the bracelet sealed, and was powered by a supercharged battery that could last up to a year. The only way to remove it was by using a key fob, plus a password authorization from her computer.
Daric was silent as he held out his left hand. Jade placed the new bracelet on his wrist, securing it tightly. She took his other hand, and removed the old bracelet. This older version only required the key fob to remove.
“Will you tell us how the mages are controlling humans? And how to stop them?” she asked, looking him straight in the eyes. “It might save you a lot of pain. Perhaps we can even give you something in exchange.”
Daric gave her a sardonic smile. “And what would that be…sweet doctor?” He asked, touching his fingertip to her chin.
“Don’t touch her!” Meredith hissed, stalking closer. Nick gave Jade a warning glare.
Jade waved her friend away, her eyes never leaving Daric. “We could…offer you some freedom. Like Meredith. She’s a prisoner here, too, but she’s allowed to roam and leave.”
“So, you would hand out treats to me, like a good little puppy?” He glanced at Meredith.
“Why you—”
“Meredith!” Nick warned.
The other Lycan let out a growl but lowered her fists to her sides.
“You’d prefer to stay down here forever?” Jade asked.
“There could be worst things,” Daric said mysteriously, his eyes going cold.
“You should think about it,” Jade said.
Daric gave her a menacing smile and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I won’t be thinking about your offer, but let me give you some advice. Watch your back and stop playing with fire. You don’t want to awaken the beast.”
Jade felt her blood run cold at his warning. “What…what are you talking about?”
“You need to be careful who you give your heart to,” Daric warned.
“I don’t—“ Jade let out a cry as Daric’s large hands grabbed her by the shoulders and slammed her against the bed.
Meredith shouted, jumping into action. Her arms wound around Daric’s neck, using her body weight and Lycan strength to pull the giant away from Jade. They both ended up on the ground, with Daric rolling over Meredith and pinning her hands over her head.
With a loud growl, Nick grabbed the chain connected to Daric’s ankle and yanked it, sending the warlock flying back against the wall.
Jade ran to Meredith’s side, helping her friend stand. “Are you all right?”
Pure shock registered on her friend’s face. “Yeah…” Her eyes seemed glazed over, and she rubbed her hands over her arms as if she was cold. “That guy…he gives me the heebie-jeebies!” Jade looked down and saw the goosebumps forming over the other Lycan’s pale arms.
“Let’s get out of here then,” Jade said, putting an arm around her friend. “Mr. Vrost?”
Nick gave the unconscious Daric one last disgusted look. “Yes, let’s get out of here.”