Proditor : Book 5 of the Heku Series

by T. M. Nielsen

  Emily nodded, “Nice to meet you, too.”

  Two detectives came in and sat down across from Sean and Emily.

  “I’m Detective Tooney and this is my partner Detective Crowther. We have a few questions for you about the assault on Bruce Isaac.”

  “Ok,” Emily said, glancing at Sean.

  “He claimed you punched him after he fired you from the V.E.S.,” Detective Crowther said.

  “No, I punched him after he wouldn’t stop kissing me and pinned me to the couch,” Emily told them.

  “When’s the last time you saw him?”

  “After I hit him I left, haven’t seen him since.”

  “Do you know anyone who might want to hurt him?” Detective Tooney asked.

  Emily glanced at Sean and he nodded, “No names, but as CEO of the V.E.S., he’s pretty much made a lot of enemies.”

  “Any that might exsanguinate him after severely beating him?”

  “I don’t know what exsanguinate means,” Emily said, again glancing at Sean.

  “We found Mr. Isaac a few hours ago, completely drained of blood. Every major bone in his body was shattered, and it looked like he was alive during most of that,” Detective Tooney said, and pushed a picture over to Emily.

  Emily looked at the picture and got sick to her stomach. The sheer brutality of what happened to him was too vivid in the color photograph, the 8x10 proving to Emily what her husband was capable of. She pushed the picture away and shut her eyes.

  “No, I don’t know anyone who could do that,” she told them.

  “Can you name anyone of the V.E.S. who might want Mr. Isaac dead?”

  “I think that’s enough,” Sean said. “She’s told you why she assaulted Mr. Isaac, and as she was in jail at the time of his death, that’s all she’s going to be saying about the matter.”

  Detective Tooney handed her a business card, “If you hear anything, please give me a call.”

  Emily nodded and took the card.

  “We’ll get your things and you can go,” Detective Crowther said, and opened the handcuffs on her wrists.

  After changing, Emily met Kyle in the waiting room and they walked out to his car in silence. He glanced at her before starting the Ferrari and heading back for Council City.

  “Are you ok?” he asked, after what seemed like an eternity of silence.

  Emily nodded. Kyle glanced at her, and then pulled the Ferrari into a warehouse district. The parking lot was empty and he turned off the car and looked over at her.

  “Tell me what’s wrong,” Kyle said, watching her carefully.

  She looked down at her hands, “Do you know what he did to Bruce?”

  “Not exactly, no.”

  “They showed me a picture,” she told him, and looked out over the empty warehouse.

  “He was pretty mad.”

  “That’s not mad, Kyle, that’s… more.”

  “I’ve told you hundreds of times, he’s very protective of you, and the heku nature is violent. It all adds up to some serious damage to whomever it is we’re mad at.”

  “Did he drain Keith?” Emily asked, looking over at Kyle.

  “I didn’t ask. I was with you when Keith actually died.”

  “But that’s his MO, right? Beat the hell out of them and then drain them?”

  “Probably,” Kyle said, sighing. He didn’t like the direction this conversation was going.

  “When was Chev the maddest at me?” Emily asked, and looked out the window.

  “That’s easy, when you spent time in New Mexico with Exavior.”

  “When you all locked me in my room.”

  “Yes”

  “Was that because he was…”

  “No, Em, he’s never been that mad at you.”

  “Go to 811 Grover Street.”

  Kyle nodded and pulled the Ferrari back into traffic and returned to the city. He pulled into the small apartment complex at the address she’d given him, and stopped the car when they saw hundreds of people outside of the complex. Her apartment door was open and people were streaming in and out.

  “Whose place is that?” Kyle asked. He was glad the windows in his Ferrari were too dark for anyone to see in.

  “Mine,” Emily said, frowning. “I wonder what’s going on.”

  Emily got out and headed up to the group of people. Kyle watched from the car, they were obviously V.E.S.

  “Harold, what’s going on?” Emily asked, walking up to the closest V.E.S. member.

  “She’s here!” Harold yelled, and all eyes turned to her. The tall man had a rolling figure and no neck. His bad toupee and splotchy beard helped detract from how his bulging stomach threatened to snap the buttons on his grease stained shirt.

  Emily stopped and took a step back, “What’s going on?”

  The man grabbed her arm as the crowd surrounded her, “We know who you are… Madison, or Emily, or whatever you want to call yourself today.”

  Kyle instantly appeared by her side and towered over the smaller mortals, “Let her go.”

  The crowd backed up, shocked at the vampire standing before them. Emily moved closer to him and watched the V.E.S. as they glared at her.

  “That’s it then… you infiltrated us from the vampires? You’re a vampire loving whore!” Harold snarled.

  “Watch it, Boy,” Kyle growled, and took Emily’s arm, gently leading her back to the car.

  “You better stay hidden, Bitch! We have V.E.S. everywhere, and your picture will be in everyone’s memory,” Harold yelled. “We’ll get you and when we do, you’ll pay for what happened to Bruce.”

  “Where’s Cody and Larry?” another man asked, glaring at her.

  “Get in the car,” Kyle said, and Emily obeyed. She knew she couldn’t take on over 100 V.E.S. and wasn’t sure Kyle could either.

  Kyle turned to Harold, “Threaten her again… and you’ll have to deal with me.”

  Emily watched, in shock, as Kyle faced the crowd. His features were dark and menacing, and she could tell by his posture that he was furious. She suddenly feared for the crowd of people. He backed up and slipped into the car. Kyle punched the car into gear, almost hitting a sizeable portion of the gathered V.E.S., and spun out backwards, flipped the car around, and tore out of the parking lot at a dangerous speed.

  Emily looked at him and could tell he was too angry to speak. His hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, leaving finger impressions in the expensive leather. He was glaring ahead, angrily taking corners and flying through red lights as he made his way onto the Interstate. His rage permeated the car and grew darker as they neared Council City. The gate guards barely had time to react as he sped into the city.

  Silas and Kralen were on duty at the front door when Kyle screeched to a halt, skidding to within inches of them. When Kyle got out of the Ferrari, they both backed up out of his way, afraid to even get close to him. Emily finally got out of the car after Kyle disappeared inside. Her eyes were wide and her hands were shaking.

  “Don’t go in,” Silas said when Emily started for the door. She turned and looked at him.

  “Mark…” Kralen whispered, watching the door.

  Mark appeared from the direction of the barracks after a few moments, “Welcome back, Em.”

  Emily heard the faint hint of whispers as she watched the door, afraid it would fly open and Kyle would come out. She took a step away from the door when a loud crash sounded from inside the palace.

  Two more members of the Cavalry came and replaced Silas and Kralen at the door.

  “Come on, let’s go,” Mark said, taking her arm gently.

  Emily nodded, still shocked at how angry Kyle was. She’d never seen him that mad, even when he fought Exavior. She followed the three heku down into the city and to a building just outside of the main guard barracks.

  “Wait inside for us,” Mark said, and Emily headed into the empty building. It was one massive room, with numerous distinct sections, each individually decorated and sectioned off
from the others with short carpeted walls. It was cold and dark in the building, and she turned toward the door, wondering how long they would be outside.

  Emily shivered and walked further into the room. The building was eerily quiet, and things were left in a hurry. A book was half-open on one of the beds, a chess game was set out, the game never finished. She wondered if Mark cleared out the building before their arrival. She turned when the door opened and saw Mark, Silas, and Kralen stand in the door.

  “Just acclimating, give us a second,” Silas said, smiling slightly.

  Emily nodded and wrapped her arms around herself, trying to keep warm, “Who lives here?”

  “This is Cavalry housing,” Mark explained, stepping a little closer to her.

  “Where is everyone?”

  “In the palace… they’re… helping there for a bit.”

  “Is something wrong?” she asked, turning back to them.

  Silas shut the door behind them, blocking out the only light in the building.

  Mark sighed, “They’re helping with Kyle.”

  Emily frowned, “What is he doing?”

  “I’m good,” Silas said, and walked the rest of the way up to her. “He’s just really angry. They’re helping calm him down.”

  “I should go talk to him.”

  Mark moved up to her, “No, we should stay here for now. Are you cold?”

  Emily nodded, “A little.”

  Two of the sectioned off areas were bigger than the rest and set off slightly away from the others. Their beds were bigger, and the furniture seemed a little nicer.

  “Here, crawl into my bed,” Silas said, pulling the covers down. Emily shivered and slid into the bed, pulling the blankets up to her shoulders.

  “Sorry, there’s no heat out here,” Kralen explained, going to the other larger section and sitting down in a chair.

  “Why do you two get bigger rooms?” Emily asked, looking around at what Silas had in his area.

  “We’re Commanders, the rest of the Cavalry are Lieutenants,” Silas answered, and sat down in a recliner by the bed. Mark leaned against the wall.

  “So,” Emily started. She then hesitated and stopped talking.

  “What?” Mark asked.

  Emily sighed, “Am I out here because Kyle’s mad at me?”

  Mark frowned, “Not at all. He’s mad at the V.E.S, but he lost control, which… in Kyle’s case, is dangerous for anyone around him.”

  “What happened?” Kralen asked, leaning forward a bit.

  “After Kyle bailed me out of jail…”

  “Wait, you were in jail?” Mark asked, shocked.

  Emily nodded, “Again.”

  “What for?”

  “Assaulting Bruce Isaac,” Emily said, grinning slightly.

  “What’d he do?”

  Emily blushed and ignored Mark’s question, “When I got out of jail, I wanted to go clean out my little apartment, the one I was staying in while I was away for a few weeks.”

  “Nice deflect,” Mark chuckled. “Keep going.”

  “When we got there, there were over a hundred V.E.S. coming in and out of my apartment. I got out of the car to see what was going on and… well… they were mad, very mad. They know about Madison, and Harold grabbed my arm.”

  Mark hissed slightly, “So Kyle intervened?”

  “Yes, and they threatened me.”

  “What did they say, exactly?” Kralen asked. Emily knew that the Cavalry took her safety personally, and saw that the three heku were all getting tense.

  “They just said that all of the V.E.S. know me now, and if they catch me, I’ll pay for what happened to Bruce,” she said, and leaned back against the headboard.

  “Per Elder’s orders, we’re reinstated as your guards,” Silas told her. “I’d like to see the V.E.S. come even close to you.”

  “What did Isaac do to make you hit him?” Mark asked.

  “Mark… did you see her neck?” Silas asked, raising his eyebrows.

  Emily covered the round bruise and blushed.

  “Yes, but it’s just a bruise,” Mark said.

  “Looks like a hickey to me,” Kralen chuckled.

  “A what?”

  Emily grinned slightly, “How do heku not know what a hickey is?”

  Silas laughed, “Em, if we’re that close to your neck, we’re not in the mood to suck.”

  Emily blushed deeper and glanced away from them when she heard Kralen chuckle.

  “Tell me,” Mark said, irritated. She didn’t look, but suspected Silas was filling Mark in on the round bruise. She felt her face burning when she heard Mark growl slightly.

  “Is that where the Elder went then? To take care of Isaac?” Mark asked after a few minutes.

  Emily sighed, “Yes, and I got to see pictures, it was…”

  “Pictures? Yeah, I’m banking he didn’t think you’d see what he did,” Kralen said.

  Mark looked around the room, “Come on, let’s go.”

  Emily slowly stood up, “It’s ok to go back in the palace?”

  “No, we’re going out for pizza,” Kralen said. “I’ll go get my truck.”

  “I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” Emily said as Kralen disappeared. “The V.E.S. is looking for me.”

  “All the more reason to go out,” Silas said. “So you aren’t afraid to leave… remember… if you fall of your horse?”

  “Walk home?” Emily asked, grinning apologetically.

  Silas took her arm gently, “Let’s go.”

  Emily sighed and followed them out, then grinned when she saw the dark blue Ford F450 idling in front of the barracks. It was jacked up with oversized tires and KC light along the top and fog lights lining the front grill.

  “Now that’s a truck!” Emily said with eyes wide. She wondered where Kralen kept this truck. The palace garage was full of sports cars.

  Mark opened the door and lifted Emily into the truck, “I could have gotten in,” she reminded him.

  “I know,” he chuckled, and climbed into the back with Silas. Emily’s feet didn’t reach the floor, but she grinned and buckled herself in.

  “Sports cars are for men who can’t handle a truck,” Kralen said, grinning, and pulled out of Council City.

  “I knew I liked you, Kralen,” Emily said, laughing.

  “Hey now…” Silas warned. “You two are gravely outnumbered by sports car fanatics.”

  Emily was surprised how safe she felt with the three heku, even with hundreds of V.E.S. looking for her. She wrinkled her nose when Kralen pulled up to the Italian restaurant that she met Exavior and William in.

  “I’m not sure I’m welcome in here,” Emily said, turning to Kralen.

  “Why’s that?”

  “This is where William, Exavior, and I got into a fight.”

  Kralen chuckled, “You’ll be fine. We aren’t going to drink.”

  Emily jumped out of the truck, shocked at how far down the ground was. She staggered slightly, but Silas put a hand on her back to steady her. They went into the restaurant and were sat at a booth. Mark let her slide in before sitting next to her. She scanned the other people, looking for anyone who might recognize her.

  “Stop looking for V.E.S., that’s what we’re for,” Silas said, grinning.

  The waitress came over and handed them menus, “What can I get you all to drink?”

  “Sprite, please,” Emily said, and glanced at the others.

  “Just bring 4 of those,” Mark told her, and winked at Emily.

  “Are you feeling sick?” Silas asked.

  “No, I actually like Sprite,” Emily told him, and took the drink from the waitress.

  “What can I get for you?” she asked, watching Silas and smiling.

  Silas grinned, “The Lady’s ordering.”

  “We’ll have a large pizza, load it up with everything but anchovies,” Emily told her, and handed her the menu. The waitress glanced again at Silas and walked away.

  “She likes you,” Em
ily said, watching her. “Want me to set you up?”

  “No,” Silas chuckled. “I don’t date mortals.”

  Emily’s eyes narrowed, “What’s wrong with mortals?”

  “I’m not going there,” Silas told her, grinning.

  “Wimp,” Emily said, and took a drink of Sprite. She looked around the restaurant when the three heku stopped moving and locked eyes. She was sure they were whispering, though their lips were perfectly still, and she couldn’t hear anything.

  The waitress brought their pizza and Emily grabbed a slice. The heku were holding still and looking at one another.

  “I’m going to panic if you don’t tell me what you’re doing,” Emily said, taking a bite.

  Mark turned toward her and whispered, “V.E.S. talk is all. We’re listening, so far there are only two of them and they haven’t recognized you.”

  Emily sighed, “Perfect, they’re like gnats, swarming everywhere.”

  Mark grinned, “Kralen wanted to provoke them, but I vetoed that idea.”

  Emily glared at Kralen, “Behave.”

  Kralen shrugged and smiled, “Need some fun.”

  “I’ll give you some fun… go back to my apartment and get my favorite pair of jeans,” she said, and took another bite.

  Silas raised an eyebrow, “Really?”

  “Can we?” Kralen asked Mark.

  Mark shrugged, “Doesn’t matter to me, we’ll go after dinner.”

  “I was kidding,” Emily said, shaking her head.

  “So your favorite jeans aren’t there?” Silas asked.

  “Well, they are, yes, but you can’t go running into 100 V.E.S. over a pair of jeans.”

  “Sure we can!”

  “You’re agreeing to this?” Emily asked Mark.

  Mark grinned, “It’s not like the V.E.S. can catch us.”

  “So you’re going, too?”

  “Sure, why not.”

  “That smells disgusting,” Kralen told her, eyeing the pizza.

  “It’s not,” Emily said, grabbing another slice. “Try some, I dare you.”

  “Oh no, I heard about Kyle and the spaghetti.”

  “Mark, try it, it’ll go with the Sprite.”

  Mark grinned, “No way, that Sprite was awful.”

  “If you can keep it down, I’ll let you have my horse for a month,” Emily told him, and then took a bite.