by Cathy Clamp
So, we needed to find what rock the snakes were hiding under. Unfortunately, it was pretty tough to see whether the prints matched the final product, because so many areas were still closed to the public. I shrugged after getting turned away from entering yet another door. “We’ll just have to play it by ear later.”
One of the things I noticed she was doing I had to ask her about. She kept sticking her hand in her pocket and then I’d hear a click. Then she’d do it again. I motioned to her and we turned into the hallway where the bathrooms were located so she could explain. “I have a pedometer in my pocket. It has a feature that you can hit a button like a stopwatch and flag up to ten locations on your route. Like, if you know it’s five hundred steps to the corner or a thousand steps to the store, then, if you forget the pedometer in future walks, you know how far you went. I was marking how many steps it was between emergency exits . . . you know, in case the lights go out or we sneak in after hours.”
That just amused me to no end. “Not many after hours in a casino, but an interesting idea. You never know if it’s going to come up.”
“I’m on my last click, though, so let’s go to the front entrance.” We proceeded that way, with her quietly counting under her breath. Her eyes were still on her feet when I tried to make a hasty backpedal as I saw who was coming inside. Vito Prezza, in all his glory, along with several of his goons. He didn’t smell happy and I had to make a sudden stop at the big slot by the door—the one you have to use both hands to pull the lever. Sue lost me for a moment but looked around and spotted me. Fortunately, Vito didn’t see me. He spoke with one of the security people and followed him up a flight of stairs, after moving aside a chain and sign marked EMPLOYEES ONLY.
“I need to get up there and find out how these guys are connected with Prezza.” I whispered the words out the side of my mouth while continuing to feed dollar bills into the machine.
She thought for a moment and started looking around. She apparently spotted something. “Wait here.”
She was gone for a few minutes, but I didn’t dare follow her in case they came back downstairs. Of course, there might be a back staircase, but I didn’t remember one on the prints. I felt a tap on my shoulder and spun to see something that made me blink. It was Sue, but she was wearing a waitress outfit that showed every curve. The little white priestess dress was a mini and had a tight waist and bodice. The hose were patterned with little roses down one leg disappearing into spike heels. I raised my brows and thought into her mind. Where did you get that?
She shrugged and smelled both embarrassed and afraid. Knocked a waitress over the head in the bathroom. Tahira taught me a nifty trick. We don’t have long, though. Someone’s bound to ignore the OUT OF ORDER sign I put on the door pretty soon.
Um . . . wow. And you plan to do what?
She smiled and held up the tray in her hand, filled with cups of soda. Go up the stairs, of course. You get to listen in through me. I’ll probably be kicked out soon, but I can adjust my panty hose or something for a few minutes once I can hear their conversation.
This was deeper than I wanted her to get involved and I could feel my heartbeat increase. You be careful. Get out if it gets rough.
She rolled her eyes. Yes, Dad. Now open up the door so you can hear.
Then she offered the tray to me in full view of the front door security and I dutifully took a glass. She walked over to the stairs like she owned the place and opened the chain. Nobody stopped her and I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding.
This new lack of fear was scaring the shit out of me. I was going to have to talk to one of the Sazi shrinks about this. Probably John-Boy or Betty. They’re both psychiatrists and have worked with Sue on and off since I met her. I think they’d be equally alarmed by this new trait. Still, I couldn’t deny it could be useful.
I moved to another station to sit down and stared at the video slot blindly. I’d opened the door in my mind and pushed gently inside. I didn’t want to distract her, but I did need to hear. It wasn’t enough so I pushed farther. I heard her gasp and then I was in. In fact, I was in all the way. I could see the hallway where she walked and I realized my wolf hearing had augmented her ears. She could stand perfectly still and hear what was happening in various rooms.
Okay, a little farther. No. Not that room. Keep walking. I could see her shoe tips as they came into view but her eyes were straight ahead, listening and watching. A glance to her left now and . . . terrific! There was an employee lounge. That could come in handy. Not yet, though. Keep walking, keep walking, okay, now stop.
I got the image of her knee. She’d gone to one knee to fix her shoe or her hose or something. Apparently, she was doing it okay, because the guard who walked by just looked at her chest, let out a little happy noise and moved on.
“What the fuck do you think you’re pulling here, Romero?” Yeah, that was Vito all right. “You think you can cut me out of the deal? After I pulled this many strings to get you up and running? And now I find out my messenger had his throat cut and was dumped in the ocean. What’s your fucking problem?”
The reply was English, but heavily accented. “You are my problem, my friend. We did have a deal, but you are the one who broke it. You were to distribute our product free to all your customers and now we discover you’re charging for it. And now nobody is buying it because it lacks the kick of your other products. We discovered your messenger dumping our drug in the ocean. We simply allowed him to follow it down. That is my fucking problem.”
Vito didn’t sound upset at the news. He sounded more amused. “Hey, if your drug is crap, it’s crap. I can’t help it if the public doesn’t like it. But you didn’t pay for the services my people and I provided, and I’m here to make sure you pay up.”
“Yesssss.” I heard the hiss and so did Sue. Romero was Sazi, and Vito was about to learn what it meant to cross a snake. “Yes, I believe I will pay you what you’re due.”
Sue winced and rose to her feet when a scuffle sounded from behind the door. Then the muffled sounds of screaming reached our ears, along with a hairspray can gone mad. Were there Sazi rattlers? Because that’s sure what it sounded like. The thud of a body-sized object hit the door and made Sue jump to her feet. The tiny stream of red that started flowing under the door couldn’t be good, because I was betting the snake made it hurt. While I’d like to say I was sorry, and I’d probably never find out how he knew I was still alive, Vito Prezza leaving this earth wasn’t such a bad thing. Get out of there now!
Good plan. She moved quickly down the hallway, nearly tripping over her feet to get out of sight before anyone exited the office. But she was halfway down the stairs when three people walked in the building. She froze, not sure what to do.
Ahmad, Nasil, and Tuli had all changed clothes and were looking cool and professional. Ahmad flicked out his tongue as though to lick his lips and turned his head to me. I nodded and tried to reach him mentally, but he narrowed his eyes, nudged Nasil, and whispered in his ear, making the other snake notice me as well.
What the hell was he up to?
A bright flash of red light filled my vision and I suddenly couldn’t move. Until, that is, the security guards grabbed both of my arms and hauled me behind a curtain next to the entrance and down a long hallway to a concrete room that smelled of death and pain. Geez, what is it with casinos and torture chambers? Another Sazi bad guy had one in Vegas and I barely managed to get Sue out alive.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t stop them as they tied me down to a chair with silver chains and taped my mouth. Sue got the same treatment, although the silver wouldn’t hurt her. Had Nasil managed to give Ahmad the compliance drug? Was he finally on their side?
I could hear the four of them arguing down the hallway—Nasil, Tuli, Ahmad, and Romero. Finally, Tuli’s voice cut over the others. “Enough! I will discover their secrets. I fear the rest of you would simply kill them before they can talk. The guards say they’ve been here for some time. I’m sure th
ey’ll be compliant. And if not, then I know other methods.”
Great. Just freaking great.
I heard her heels coming down the hallway, and nobody was stopping her. I glanced at Sue, wondering what I was going to do if Tuli started on her first. She’s my mate. I could easily kill myself on the chains trying to stop it. I’d wind up insane if I couldn’t.
The door opened and I let out a low growl that wasn’t stopped by the duct tape on my mouth. Tuli looked cool and deadly as she stalked toward us. She did smell of honey and nuts, but it couldn’t cancel out the thick creosote and desert that branded her as a snake. “So, you’re a Wolven agent. Yes?” I just glared at her. She ripped the tape off Sue’s mouth and she let out a little cry of pain. I struggled against my bonds, smelling the flesh burning as the chains dug into my arms. “Then you will tell me. I have little patience today.”
Sue’s mouth contorted into a sneer. “Go to hell.”
This stress wasn’t doing my wolf half much good. The moon was still too close. She ripped off my tape next and sat down at the chair next to me. “I would like to be reasonable with you. If you simply tell me who you work for, I’ll make it worth your while.”
Would it really hurt anything to tell her? I mean, it’s not like Ahmad doesn’t already know. There were no secrets left to keep once they killed us. “Sure. What the heck.” Sue looked at me like I was insane. “We’re Wolven agents. What are you going to do about it? You might as well kill us now, because we won’t be telling you any secrets.”
“Say it again.” She stared hard at me and started flicking her tongue into the air.
I really didn’t want to remember what that tongue was capable of, so I just looked over at Sue. “We’re Wolven. Do whatever you’re going to do.”
The room filled with fresh air and her entire persona changed. She let out a deep sigh and whispered. “Thank Anu!” Then to my utter shock, she produced a key and started to unlock my chains.
What the hell?
“I haven’t been in contact with headquarters for years! There are so many things that I’ve learned, and I have to get word to Jack, so he can destroy this temple.”
To Jack? “Jack Simpson?” I rubbed my arms where the silver had dug in and eased the chains off my legs to pool on the floor while Tuli repeated the unlocking on Sue’s chains.
She looked at me oddly. “Of course Jack Simpson! Head of Wolven.”
“Uh . . . not so much. Jack’s dead. Has been for nearly a year.”
Now she sat down heavily in a chair and her hand flew to her mouth. Her voice kept whispering. “No wonder he stopped calling.” She shook her head, gathering her wits and let out a fast breath. “Fine, then. I’ll contact whoever took his place.” She paused, and pointed at Sue. “Oh. And you need to scream now.” Then her voice raised. “I said TALK!”
Sue takes hints well. She let out a piercing scream of pain that would win her an Oscar in the horror category and followed it up with a few whimpers. I gave her an incredulous look and whispered, “You’re good, woman.”
She shrugged, but smiled. “Two years of drama in high school.”
“Who’s in charge now?”
I didn’t think that was a secret either. “Lucas Santiago.”
She frowned and shook her head. “I don’t know him.”
Wow. How could someone who knew Jack not know Lucas? “He’s old as dirt. They founded . . . oh, wait. He went by another name back then. Enrique?”
Sue provided the answer. “Inteque.”
Now her eyes lit up and the relief was back. “Inteque? Oh, that’s good. That’s very good. He’ll know what to do. But I have to get you out of here so you can get a message to him.”
Sure. I’d listen and participate in my own escape. No problem. “What’s the message?”
Tuli lowered her voice even further and motioned for us to come closer. Just before I did, I let out an angry growl and a sharp swear word and kicked over a chair. She nodded approval. “You must tell him that Ahmad is following in his father’s footsteps. He’s not to be trusted and must be removed from the council immediately. He’s been spying for years apparently and has come to claim Sargon’s crown.”
“Since this morning? What happened on that plane?”
She stopped and reared back like I’d lost my mind. “No, no. This has been for years. The trip here to New Jersey was uneventful, except for Ahmad and Nasil planning their revenge on Paolo. They’ve probably already killed him for removing the queen egg from the temple.”
I sighed, because apparently Ahmad had been playing the part too well. I couldn’t decide why I trusted Tuli. Maybe it was because there was no scent of deceit or maybe I was sympathetic because we . . . well, she and Ahmad, were lovers. Either way—“Ahmad’s no spy. He went undercover down there. He thinks you’re the spy and he knows Nasil was. He’s been reporting in to the council, through me, this whole time. We know everything that went on down there—” And I do mean everything, but I didn’t say that. “So, if you need a confidante, your best bet is the snake king. Trust me. I’m one of the new seers. I’ve been inside his skull and he’s playing straight.”
Her tongue was flicking out rapidly, tasting my every word. When I stopped, she started blinking rapidly, staring at the floor. Yeah, it was a lot to process, so I motioned to Sue to not speak when her mouth opened. But she spoke anyway. “I’ve known Ahmad for nearly a year now. He’s a total jerk—” I looked at her askance. The goal was not to piss off the nice lady with the key. Tuli turned to her with outrage on her face. “But he’s honest and I’d trust him with my life.”
Tuli lost some of the anger in her scent and seemed mollified. “Well, he can be an ass, I suppose.”
Sue smiled. “But he’s your ass, right?”
She smiled almost shyly, but didn’t respond. Instead, she threw herself at me and gave me a resounding kiss on the lips. Sue just sort of sat there looking stunned.
The door slammed open just then and there was Ahmad in the doorway, his face moving from fake furious to very real furious. He took in the loose chains and our rather compromising position in one glance and then slammed the door shut as hard as he’d opened it. “What in blazesss isss going on in here?” He lowered his voice until it was a sibilant hiss and stalked toward Tuli. He grabbed her by the arm and raised her to her feet. That’s when I noticed it. I hadn’t when I was in Ahmad’s head because I was seeing through his eyes. Not mine.
“Well, I’ll be damned!” I forgot to whisper, but at least I didn’t yell. “You’re mated.” Her honey-gold aura was snaking its way up his black-red, turning it nearly back to the color he was a year ago.
The announcement had a definite effect. She blushed wildly and pulled her arm from his grip. He dropped his hand, boneless, his face draining of blood until he was olive-colored chalk. My head turned toward the doorway, because I should have been listening earlier and Ahmad wouldn’t have surprised us. There were distinct footsteps coming down the hall. I pointed at Tuli and made my voice a harsh whisper. “She’s Wolven. Working undercover for Jack.” Then my finger moved to Ahmad. “He’s council, working undercover for Charles.” I moved the finger between Sue and I. “We’re screwed, not under any cover at all and about to get eaten for lunch. We need to get out of here.”
Ahmad can move quickly when he wants to. He barricaded the door with a chair under the knob and Tuli leapt onto the table to yank off the vent cover. I offered my bent hands to step on and she used them. She bounced once while Ahmad held his weight against the door. I also noticed his magic was spreading out, making a shield of sorts that would make it more difficult to get through. Once Tuli was in the duct, she reached for Sue’s hand. I lifted her up by the hips and handed her over, then stood on the table myself and jumped through the hole. Wolf aim is handy for that. Ahmad was last. He jumped from the table to the ceiling like a gazelle. I had to back up for fear of knocking heads. “The seal will last only moments. We need to move. Tuli knows the way. N
o more talking until we’re there and crawl as silently as possible.”
If I thought we were leaving the casino, I was sadly mistaken. At the first intersection, Tuli took a left. We followed and I suddenly realized we were heading down. “We’re still going with the plan?”
Ahmad gave me an annoyed look and tried to talk into my head. Wonder of wonders! It worked!
I spoke with Charles when we reached the American border, while Nasil was refueling. When we arrived, I made the excuse of going to pick up food and visited your hotel room. I reviewed the plans and brought the swords here through the sewer grates. I found the inner temple before bringing back food. I told Nasil and Tuli about the plans in your room and that I would recognize you if I saw you. It was always my plan to save you, but I thought I was going to have to kill Tuli to do it.
Wow. He was going to kill her to save us? I guess Sue wasn’t kidding about trusting him with her life. It would have killed you too, being as you’re mated.
I looked behind to see his reaction and smacked my head on a support for the trouble. His scent went from a cookie spice sort of warmth to annoyance. I didn’t know that at the time, but I’ve nearly died for lesser causes. Charles insists you’re valuable, even though I think he’s a fool. Now keep your mind on our business.
The next downslope was steeper. It was like going down a water slide with slow people going in front of you. All you can do is grab on with fingernails and heels and pray. It felt like we went down a dozen floors, but it was probably only three. Tuli came to a particular grate and slid her fingers through the expanded metal and shoved hard. The screws weren’t meant to withstand Sazi-level pressure and the grate gave way with a sharp pop. It was sudden enough that she nearly fell in, but Sue grabbed her shirt and yanked her back. She turned her head, let out a slow breath, and touched Sue’s arm in thanks.
Then she lowered herself slowly into a deserted hallway. This part of the building was still under construction. Open wall studs gave way to rough drywall and then taped and sanded walls, ready for paint. Ahmad opened a doorway next to the stub-out where a water fountain would probably eventually be installed and slipped down a dark flight of stairs.
