Viktor

by Teresa Gabelman

  “Viktor?” Lacey frowned. “What is it?”

  He let her go and headed for his jacket, not answering her. The ringtone he had never heard rang again. Every VC Warrior had this ringtone programmed into their phone. The meaning behind it sent dread through anyone who heard it. No one ignored this call.

  A Warrior had been taken out.

  Chapter 29

  Lacey had never in her life seen someone look so horrified then she did when Viktor’s phone rang. His frantic search for his phone and then him slamming out the door to answer it shocked her. She quickly adjusted her clothing, then took off her boots and started pacing. Something was terribly wrong; she could feel it. Actually, she saw it in Viktor’s expression.

  The door swung open as Viktor stormed in, his face a mask of rage. “Get dressed. We have to go.”

  Not even arguing at his order, she ran into the bedroom, grabbing whatever she could find quick enough, and dressed. Rushing back out, she swiped up her bag as he grasped her hand, leading her outside. He actually picked her up and ran down the steps—so fast her head spun—to the back of the tavern. There was a truck. Viktor opened the door and placed her into it before running to the driver side and jumping in.

  It wasn’t until they were on the road speeding and running red lights that Lacey spoke. “Viktor, what’s wrong? You’re scaring me.”

  “A Warrior’s down.” His response was tense and short.

  “Oh no!” Lacey gasped. She didn’t know them all, but still, her heart broke for Viktor and the others. And then a horrifying thought came to her. “Not Bishop?” Oh God. Please not his brother.

  “I don’t know yet” was all he said as he slammed on the brakes when someone pulled out in front of them. Whipping around the car, Viktor focused on the road.

  Lacey scooted over and placed her hand on his leg, giving him comfort the only way she knew how. They pulled up to the compound. He keyed in the code and the gate opened. Skidding to a stop, they got out. The door was open with Blaze and Ronan standing at the bottom of the steps.

  “Who?” Viktor asked them; his voice was filled with rage.

  “The only ones not accounted for are Steve, Jared, Damon, and Jill.” Blaze’s eyes were black, his fury evident on his face.

  Viktor took Lacey’s hand, leading her inside. Warriors stood rigid, their faces the same as the two outside. Thick anger pressed against her.

  “Slade, we don’t even know where they are. Their tracking isn’t working.” Sloan’s voice carried from what appeared to Lacey to be an office.

  Bishop rushed up to them before he grabbed Viktor in a tight hug. “Fuck, man, I thought it was you.”

  “Same,” Viktor said, pounding Bishop on the back. “Who sent the signal? Who’s down?”

  “We don’t know. The whole system is fucked.” Bishop glanced toward the office. “Duncan is trying to get it back up, but Slade is about to lose it, man. Jill is missing.”

  “I heard.” Viktor’s hand tightened on hers.

  Lacey glanced back at the office, but she was listening to everything that was being said. “What kind of tracking?”

  “Each Warrior has a program in our phones. We can send distress calls as well as give up locations of each Warrior on duty,” Viktor explained. “That call I got at the apartment was a distress call meaning a Warrior is down.”

  “Down as in needs help or down they are past help?” Lacey was careful how she presented that question.

  “Past help,” Bishop answered as they all looked toward the office. Slade came out, his eyes meeting hers briefly. The fear flashing in his eyes felt like a punch to her stomach.

  “Have you tried to call them?” Lacey heard a woman cry out. Her eyes went that way to see Tessa, Jared’s mate, break down in tears.

  “Of course we’ve tried to call them,” Bishop hissed at her, then shook his head. “Sorry.”

  “It’s fine. I understand.” Lacey turned when someone approached.

  “The system is locked,” Sloan growled. “I don’t want anyone leaving until we find out what the fuck is going on.”

  “Bullshit, man.” Sid walked up, his hands fisted at his sides. “We need to be out there trying to find them.”

  “None of this is adding up.” Sloan glowered. “For all we know this is a setup.”

  Biting her lip, she went to look at Viktor, but caught sight of a terrified-looking, but beautiful blonde girl who stood next to a tall guy who was watching Sloan with a strange smirk on his face. She looked back at the girl, who quickly shifted her eyes to the ground.

  Okay, that was odd.

  Glancing up at Viktor, she frowned. “Call Bishop, but give me the phone.”

  “What?” Viktor leaned down, looking at her.

  She repeated herself, then held out her hand. “Hurry up.” He did as she asked, then handed her the phone. She put it to her ear and listened before handing it back. “Now call Jill’s phone.”

  Sid pulled out his and then handed it to her. She frowned as she handed him the phone back. “What?” Sid asked, glancing down at his phone then back at her.

  “Call another one,” she said, glancing back at the tall guy who stared right at her. A cold chill ran up and down her spine. When Sid handed her the phone back, she heard the same quick clicking noise she heard on Jill’s but not Bishop’s line. “Something or someone is interfering with those two lines, and I suspect the others as well.”

  “Magic?” Viktor glanced at Bonnie, who stood pale and quiet.

  “I don’t know,” Bonnie replied, glancing at Bishop, then at Lacey. “Is there anything you can do?”

  “I need a computer.” Lacey hoped there was something she could do to help.

  “Come on.” Sloan led her toward an office. A large man sat behind a computer with an angry frown on his face. “Duncan, anything yet?”

  “I’m locked out of every-fucking-thing.” Duncan slammed his hand on the desk.

  “Did you try to bypass?” Lacey leaned over and looked at the screen. When she saw Duncan glaring at her, she stepped back. “Sorry, I’m Lacey. I’m a programmer/hacker—legal hacker—and may be able to help.”

  Duncan stood quickly and held the chair. “Please, whatever help you can give is appreciated.”

  She felt eyes on her as the room filled. She glanced at Viktor who gave her a nod of encouragement. “Okay, what phone service do you use?”

  “We don’t,” Sloan replied as Duncan leaned over her and typed something in. “We have our own for privacy and safety reasons, which we’re going to have to upgrade obviously.”

  “Can help with that also, but first things first.” Lacey frowned at the screen, familiarizing herself with what she was seeing. “I need a phone with a loudspeaker. I may be needing a little help on this one.”

  When no one moved to assist, she sighed. “He’s very discreet and trusted. I’ll vouch for him.”

  A large hand turned the phone and picked up the receiver, hitting the intercom button. “What’s the number,” Slade asked in a tone daring anyone to say a word.

  Rattling off the number, she continued to stare at the screen until she heard the familiar voice.

  “Hello.”

  “What’s up, Jinx?” Lacey said, loud enough for Jinx to hear her over the loudspeaker.

  “Well, hey there, beautiful.” Jinx’s deep voice rang out into the room. “Where you been hiding that sweet ass of yours?”

  A low growl sounded behind her. “Just to let you know I’ve got you on loudspeaker and there’s a room full of people listening in.” Lacey cringed at the silence on the other end. “Sorry, Jinx, but I really need your help.”

  “You’ll owe me, Lacey.” Jinx’s voice was serious; she knew his tones well. She glanced at Viktor and shook her head, but responded to Jinx totally different. “You got it. Whatever you want.”

  “You may regret that, babe.” Jinx chuckled, and it sounded a little evil. “So what do we have?”

  “Possible phone tamper
ing as well as a tracking system malfunction. I wanted to see if we could change the numbers to make the calls to the phones we think have been tampered with,” Lacey said, then frowned, hitting the loudspeaker button quickly so Jinx couldn’t hear her. “I have to bring him into your system so he can see what I’m seeing. I promise you I will make sure your system is impossible to hack after we are done. Is that okay? If not, this will take a lot longer. Maybe hours longer.”

  “Do it,” Slade answered for everyone.

  With a nod, she turned the loudspeaker back on. “Sorry, Jinx.”

  “Thought I lost ya,” Jinx replied. “What’s the phone company they’re using?”

  “I’ve got it up on the screen so I need you to come on remotely,” Lacey said as she typed. “Whenever you get there, the code is TGF565.”

  “What the fuck is this?” Jinx said.

  Lacey frowned. “It’s a private phone system for the VC Warriors.” Lacey knew she needed to tell him in order for him to see the urgency. “This is crucial, and we need to get this done as quickly as possible, Jinx.”

  “Holy fucking shit, Lacey,” Jinx hissed. “What in the hell have you gotten yourself into now? No, don’t answer that. I don’t even want to know. That last time almost landed me in prison.”

  Snorting, Lacey rolled her eyes. “Shut up, that was your own damn fault and had nothing to do with me.” She moved the mouse around, then typed again. “Okay, I think I’ve got the first number. I’m going to take you off loudspeaker for a second and try while you do another one.”

  “Got it, babe,” Jinx said just as she silenced him.

  Glancing at Viktor, she saw the anger in his gaze. She’d deal with that later. Right now she needed to figure this out. Hitting an open line, she dialed a number and picked up the receiver. She listened and said a little prayer.

  “Yeah,” Jill’s voice came over the line.

  “Jill?” Relief coursed through Lacey’s body. The phone was practically ripped out of her hand as Slade grabbed it.

  “Where are you?” Slade said into the phone. “Are you okay? No, stay there. I’m coming.”

  Hanging up the phone, he looked down at her. “Thank you.”

  Lacey nodded as she watched him rush out the door. She hit the loudspeaker. “Okay, that one worked. You got the next one?”

  “Already working the third, greenhorn.” Jinx laughed. Lacey frowned glancing at Viktor.

  “Try this number,” she instructed Viktor as he took out his phone and punched in the number she gave.

  “Damon, are Jared and Steve with you?” Viktor looked toward Sloan. “Jared is with him.”

  This time she glanced at Bishop. “Call this number.” She rattled the number off.

  “That’s Jared,” Viktor said, just as Bishop began talking on his phone to Jared. “You guys need to get back to the compound now.”

  “You got that last number?” Lacey watched the screen as Jinx worked. She could see everything he was doing.

  “Got it,” Jinx said, then the line went silent.

  “Somebody call triple five, double five, double five,” Lacey called out, then waited.

  “Are you sure that’s the number?” Sloan asked, his voice gruff with frustration.

  “Yes,” both Lacey and Jinx said at the same time.

  “There’s no answer,” Sloan announced. The room became silent.

  “Okay, we need to get the tracking system unlocked.” She turned to look at Duncan, who was already heading her way. She moved so he could reach the computer easily and as she did, her eyes fell on the tall guy with the blonde girl. He was wearing the same smirk, but his gaze looked angrily at her.

  “You find this amusing?” she said, not caring who he was. She didn’t like the way he was glaring at her.

  “No, not at all,” he responded, his tone even and the anger wiped from his gaze as if it had never been there in the first place, but she saw it.

  Before she went back to the computer, she caught sight of Charger staring at the tall guy. Then he looked at her. He saw it too. She was sure of it. Not able to waste any more time, she went back to work as soon as Duncan moved.

  “Okay, Jinx,” she said as she quickly looked over the screen. “Let’s see if you really know what the hell you’re doing.” Lacey knew the exact words to use on Jinx to get him working quicker. She had a feeling Steve’s life depended on it.

  Chapter 30

  Viktor stood close to Lacey while she worked with some asshole called Jinx who he’d like to punch in the fucking mouth. He appreciated the dick’s help, but if he even thought he would be getting any favors from Lacey, that asshole would be real surprised when Viktor himself showed up just to put a boot up his ass.

  Relieved that at least they had located Jill, Jared, and Damon, Viktor looked toward Mira, who held her daughter, looking terrified. Steve was still not accounted for, but Lacey and dickhead were working on the tracking system now.

  Watching her work, Viktor had to admit he was damn impressed. He knew she worked with computers but had no idea at what capacity. Duncan, who mostly dealt with their computer and security issues, stood over her, watching intently. Lacey even explained things in detail to Duncan as she worked.

  “What was that about?” Bishop stepped next to Viktor, nodding toward Pike.

  “I don’t know. I wasn’t paying attention to him, but something set Lacey off.” Viktor glanced at Charger, who stood with his arms crossed, their gaze meeting. “I know Charger don’t like him.”

  “That’s because he wants the girl.” Bishop’s response was blunt.

  “Someone has definitely locked you guys out of the system,” Lacey said, drawing Viktor’s attention toward her. “And whoever it is wants to make damn sure you can’t get back in. Can someone try that number again for Steve? If it doesn’t work, I might try another number since this may take a while to get the tracking system back up and running.”

  “Nothing.” Sid cursed. “I’m going out looking for him. This standing around is bullshit.”

  Sloan, who had been silent until now, replied, “Go on. Take Ronan and Adam with you. Check in often.”

  “Help!” It was Nicole who screamed the word. Viktor was out the door along with the rest of the Warriors. Her screams continued. Viktor reached inside his coat pulling out a blade, but when they reached the drive, no one was there. Movement near the gate drew his attention. Nicole stood with her hand over her mouth, tears rushing down her face.

  His eyes followed her, and he actually gasped. Chained to the gate leading into the compound was Steve, naked, his skin in shreds. Blood dripped in a slow trickling river of wounds onto the concrete. Running toward him, Viktor and Sid reached for the chains at the same time, then hissed.

  “Silver.” Sid roared as he once again tried to unchain him, but the silver charred his skin.

  “Oh God.” Viktor heard Lacey cry out but kept his focus on the unconscious Steve. “Get him down.”

  “It’s silver. We can’t. We need something to cut the chains,” he ordered, fear for Steve evident in his voice.

  Mira and Kira chanted something behind him; Mira’s tears and sobs making the words garbled.

  “Something is blocking our magic,” Kira said, her voice cracking. “Wait, keys are around his neck.”

  Bonnie pushed past them, looking up. “Lift me up.” Which Bishop did right away.

  Carefully, Bonnie took the rope from around Steve’s neck, then unlocked one of the chains around his wrist. Bishop moved so she could unlock the other.

  “Wait, let me get his legs first.” Lacey reached toward Bonnie for the keys. “Then they can lower him down carefully after you unlock his other wrist.”

  Lacey took the keys, finding the one for each leg as quickly as she could. Viktor also saw her cringing each time she touched one of his wounds. She was trying to be careful, but quick. Once both legs were released, he joined Sid, who was already holding Steve against the gate. She gave the keys back to Bonnie,
who finally released him, but not before he noticed that something was carved in his stomach.

  “Wait!” He looked closer, as did Sid. Then they both looked at each other and cursed. Someone had carved the word CALL and then underneath was an arrow. Sid took Steve underneath the arms and held him against him. The word DADDY was carved down his spine.

  “No!” Bonnie’s anguished scream rang out around them. “That bastard!”

  “Call Slade!” Sid shouted. He shook his head at Viktor who tried to help. “No, man. I got him.”

  They followed Sid who carried Steve back to the compound just as Slade and Jill, followed by Damon and Jared, pulled up. Nicole and Tessa took off toward their mates as Slade rushed toward Sid with Jill running behind him.

  “Steve!” Jill cried out. “What did they do to him?”

  Viktor’s eyes met those of Charger’s, who shook his head. They both knew along with Bishop exactly what was done to Steve. He was scourged with a whip made to flay the flesh. And by the looks of it, no skin was left unmarked.

  Everyone followed where Sid carried Steve, except for Sloan, who looked ready to kill, and Bonnie, Bishop, and Charger.

  “When my Warriors get attacked, it’s time to go back to our old ways.” Sloan’s voice was deadly. “I’m going to the council to proclaim war. Something that hasn’t been done in hundreds of years.”

  “What if they don’t go for it?” Bishop asked what every one of them was thinking.

  “Then I resign and go to each branch leader to ask them to do the same.” Sloan didn’t hesitate with his answer. “We cannot fight under the rules that have been set forth, and I was one of the founding members who proposed those fucking rules.”

  “Get me on the Dark Web, now!” Bonnie’s furious voice took his focus from Sloan to Lacey.

  Viktor turned to see Bonnie standing in front of Lacey. “Of course.” Lacey nodded, then glanced at Viktor before following Bonnie back into Sloan’s office. He saw her eyes shift to her hands looking at Steve’s blood. Lacey was definitely getting a realistic look into his life. Selfishly, he wanted to take her and run off. Not only to keep her safe but to keep her from seeing the horrors his life sometimes produced.