Nick turned in his seat, frowning as he looked between me and Black.
“Preoccupation?” he said. “What preoccupation? What obsession?”
“With his wife,” Brick glanced at Nick, arching one eyebrow. “You might not know it to look at him, but he thinks about her pretty much constantly. He thinks about fucking her, in particular, pretty much constantly.”
Nick grimaced.
He opened his mouth, as if to speak, but Brick went on as if he didn’t notice.
“…Moreover, he is insanely jealous. I had some suspicion before, in New York, that my friend Quentin suffered from possessiveness issues. His insecurities around his wife seem to have blossomed exponentially since that time, however, reaching truly alarming levels. Do you suppose it’s because she left him for a few months?”
Glancing around the back of the van, as if taking a poll, Brick smiled at the frowns aimed in his direction.
“Well,” Brick said with a shrug, when no one spoke. “Whatever the reason, he is indeed more jealous now. So jealous, he can barely think straight, between his attempts to control it and his corresponding attempts to try and objectively assess the threat level his mind perceives.”
Black clicked in open annoyance under his breath, looking out the window.
I felt the anger on his light worsen.
Even so, I couldn’t help but feel what Brick was pointing out, too.
Brick laughed, almost like he heard me.
“Even now, after being called out on it, he can’t bring it under control,” the vampire said, grinning. “He is jealous of me, of that seer in the back…”
I followed his eyes as he nodded towards Jem.
“Of that human there…”
He nodded towards Cowboy, on Black’s other side.
“…Even of you, Detective.” The vampire smiled at Nick, motioning towards Black and me with one pale hand. “Look at him! He’s got her crammed into the corner of that seat like he might fight all of us, if we so much as stare at her tits. I almost wonder if our recent brush with death heightened this instinct in him even more.” Smiling, he shook his head. “Your species really is so very fascinating. I have so many questions about it, about what makes you tick. How this whole ‘essence-sharing’ of yours really works…”
Clucking his tongue reproachfully, he shook a finger at Black.
“That being said, your timing for cracking up about your mate really isn’t ideal, Quentin. You should have fucked her out in the gardens. Like she wanted. We need you rational. Not sex-starved and paranoid.”
Nick grimaced a second time, glancing at Black.
He aimed his glare at Brick a second later.
“We’re probably going to die,” he said, his voice openly annoyed. “All of us. You get that, right? Vampires. Humans. Psychics. We’re going to fucking die, if we don’t get this right. We’ve got the United States military after us. Not to mention Charles’ army of religious fanatic seers. That’s assuming we can trust you not to kill us, or any of the bloodsucking assholes you have working for you…”
Nick trailed when the vampire sitting next to him, the same tall, African-American looking female I’d seen out in Brick’s garden, turned. She stared down her nose at Nick, a decidedly humorless expression in her red-tinted irises.
Nick glanced up at her, and scowled.
“No offense,” he muttered. “I’m just saying… this isn’t a productive use of our time. For any of us.”
The lights went out in the back of the van.
I glanced out the windows and realized Dorian had reached the end of the dirt road by the cemetery. Despite the sudden lack of illumination from the overhead light and the floorboards, I could still see everyone. I wondered at how clear all their faces were, then realized how wound into Black’s light I was.
He’d told me more than once that we would take on each other’s skill sets to a degree, as a function of our being mated.
He also told me he’d operated in low-light combat situations since he was a kid. As a result, he could more or less see in the dark.
Well, what humans considered the dark, anyway.
Still, it was strange to be able to see all their faces so clearly, and without the need to wait for my eyes to adjust.
Black was glaring at Brick.
Orange light from streetlights banded his face periodically from the windows, tinting his gold eyes nearly white in those brief flashes.
Brick himself was still smiling, still looking between the two of us. From the vampire’s expression, he was clearly feeling things off Black’s mind from the feeding earlier––or pretending to.
Black growled, “Are you going to tell us what the fuck you learned before those missiles hit? Or are you going to spend the whole drive trying to piss me off?”
Brick barely blinked.
Leaning heavily on the back of the van bench where he sat, he continued to study Black’s face. Looking at him, it struck me that he could probably see in the dark a lot better than me or Black. I was still watching his face when the vampire’s smile faded.
“You are correct, of course,” he said, his voice turning clipped, businesslike. “I apologize… it looks like we are all really partners in this thing now. I will endeavor to adjust my remarks accordingly.”
I gritted my teeth at the “partners” part of what he’d said, but didn’t voice my irritation aloud.
The vampire gave me a bare glance before he went on, speaking directly to Black.
“I’ll tell you everything I’ve been told so far,” he said.
Despite my lingering annoyance, I found myself listening more attentively. I’d never heard or seen this demeanor on Brick before. His speech bordered on the cadence of a military report, his words stripped, concise, to the point.
From what I felt off Black, he had seen this side of Brick before.
I felt his light shift, adapting to the change seamlessly.
“It appears you were right,” Brick said, still speaking directly to Black. “There does seem to be a larger plan behind all of this, not simply one of opportunism, although an element of opportunism may have contributed to the timing.”
He glanced at me, then around at the rest of the occupants of the van.
His eyes lingered longest on the seers sitting in the back row.
“According to my source,” he continued, returning his crystal-colored eyes to Black. “There are indications the framework for all of this has been in place for some time. My contact believes something changed recently, however. Some kind of precipitating event triggered a sudden rollout. Whatever that something was, it either accelerated the original timeline, altered it in some way… or, possibly, simply presented the open window the plan’s architects had been waiting for.”
“What is that plan?” Cowboy said, frowning. “Your ‘friend’ tell you that?”
Brick swiveled his glass-like eyes towards Cowboy.
“She doesn’t know,” he said.
His gaze narrowed as he studied Cowboy’s face.
“…She has been given tasks and orders that seem connected in some way,” he conceded after a beat. “But she’s received no concrete information, despite her repeated questions. None of her close associates have. She tells me it has grown increasingly obvious that such a plan exists, however. Particularly in the past twelve or so hours.”
He leaned against the side of the van, swaying back and forth from the motion of the vehicle on the uneven road. As he did, he frowned, his eyes growing distant.
“Apparently there are murmurings all throughout the Pentagon and the White House around this, and what it might mean. The signs of a larger rollout have many in the military nervous. The Joint Chiefs have been told none of the particulars. Despite this, they have been commanded to maintain a state of readiness throughout the military command structure. They’ve also been pressured to express approval over a number of smaller deployments––such as this one, presumably. Several other mid-sized op
erations are in progress, as well.”
The vampire glanced at me, then back at Black, that frown still etched on his lips.
“My contact believes only a very few persons do know the particulars.” He visibly gritted his teeth. “It is damned frustrating, I confess. She is quite highly placed. Given how little she has been told, I suspect she is right about how small that circle of confidantes truly is. This is the first time she has been unable to give us information we needed, more or less within a few minutes or hours of our asking.”
There was another silence.
Angel, Cowboy, Nick and I exchanged looks.
Watching us look at one another, Brick added, “She thinks this larger plan is close to full execution, however.”
Looking over our faces, he added,
“She tells me, via conversations she’s been a part of in the Oval Office, that the President has likely been aware of this long-term strategy for some time. Given how it’s unfolding, as if by a pre-designed sequence, much of the preliminary work was done months, if not years, in advance. It is definitely not trickling down through the normal leadership structure, however. Nor is it anything approaching official policy.”
“What can you tell us about your contact?” Black said, frowning. “She obviously has a high security clearance, if she’s sitting in on national security meetings at the Oval Office.”
Brick didn’t hesitate.
“Quite,” he said. “And yes. She does. In fact, I’d be very much surprised if you weren’t familiar with her. She is the President’s current National Security Advisor. In all but this, she has operated as a close confidante to our current Commander in Chief––a near-constant member of the President’s inner circle. Historically, they have enjoyed a very good personal relationship, as well, which is why all of this has been so surprising to her.”
I stared at him.
Looking between him and Black, I bit my lip when no one else spoke. “The National Security Advisor… and war hero… Talia Maulkin, is a fucking vampire?”
I glanced at Nick, who looked vaguely sick.
Manny, who sat in front of him, was staring at Brick like he’d just sprouted horns.
Brick looked at me, sharp.
“No,” he said, motioning in negative with a finger. “No. She is not vampire, Miriam. She is, however, the long-term lover of one of ours. She is sympathetic to our cause. Moreover, she has proved herself a valuable ally and champion over the years.”
At what must have been a grimace from me, Brick glanced around at all of us, frowning.
He looked between me and Black, and his frown deepened.
From his expression, I almost got the impression he was offended.
“It is quite a willing arrangement, I assure you,” he said, that offense reflected in his voice. “They have been together for over two decades. Talia is genuinely sympathetic to our aims. Particularly in terms of keeping our existence a secret from the vast majority of humans. She emphatically agrees that outing our presence here, alongside humans, would not be…”
He motioned with a hand.
“…beneficial. To either species.”
Black spoke up, his tone indicating he didn’t much give a shit about Maulkin’s loyalties.
“Can she tell us anything about this plan of theirs?” he said, blunt. “She must have some inkling of the goal, if the signs of a rollout are that obvious.”
Brick looked at him, his glass-like eyes growing harder.
“Yes. Talia believes some kind of major crisis will be announced in the media soon. Perhaps a wholly fabricated crisis. Perhaps one they are creating as we speak. Perhaps it is even a naturally-occurring crisis they are capitalizing on for this purpose.”
His voice grew darker.
“Or perhaps we are the crisis, friends… meaning vampires. Or you.” He nodded towards Black, then around at the others. “Or some combination.”
He glanced at the female vampire sitting next to Nick.
“It certainly strikes me as a convenient coincidence, that this would be happening now,” he muttered, his eyes returning to Black’s. “Talia agrees. She emphasized that the feeling behind these meetings is one of genuine urgency… something apart from them merely taking advantage of my escape.”
Hie eyes met Black’s.
“Or your supposed ‘murder’ of your friend,” he added.
“A friend you killed,” Black said, a colder anger rising in his light.
I gripped his thigh, even as he tensed.
Brick looked between us, his eyes cautious.
Shrugging, he conceded Black’s words with a nod and a grimace.
“Yes,” he said.
Hesitating, he seemed like he might say more about that.
Then didn’t.
“…Anyway,” he went on instead. “All of these recent events are moves they themselves initiated or directly orchestrated, meaning our presumed band of conspirators. I think it is safe to assume that Charles and his human allies, including the president, are behind all of it. That includes the Colonel’s death. My escape. Your being accused of murder and treason. These strike me as the opening gambits on a game board. I do not believe any of these events engulfing our small group are the precipitating event itself. They were put in motion after the decision to go forward was made.”
I felt Black dialing his light back with an effort as Brick spoke.
I also felt him thinking about Brick’s words, almost like he couldn’t help himself.
“You still think this is primarily Charles?” he said, gruff. “You think he’s been behind this from the beginning?”
Brick looked at him, his smile growing cold.
“Don’t you?” he said.
When Black didn’t answer, Brick shrugged.
“Yes. I do. More now than ever, friend,” the vampire said in a more neutral voice. “Apparently, Charles has been sitting in on many of these meetings in the Oval Office.”
That got a reaction out of me again.
“Charles has been sitting in on meetings in the Oval Office?” I gave Black a disbelieving look, but he didn’t return it. My hand still on his thigh, I shifted my gaze to Brick. “Since when? And how could he be in national security planning sessions without anyone noticing or ID’ing him publicly? How has the media not asked about him? Isn’t he still a person of interest in intelligence circles? How did he get security clearance?”
My frown deepened as I thought about my own questions.
“Who is he representing?” I said, focusing back on the vampire. “Some kind of special interest group? Private contractors? A foreign government? Lobbyists? What?”
Pursing his lips as he looked me over, Brick shook his head.
“I do not know for certain, Miriam,” he said. “I have suspicions.”
The van went over another gentle bump, then began to accelerate, running along a frontage road. I glanced out the window to see the highway running to the left of our road, and realized we were about to merge into its three lanes of traffic.
My eyes returned to Brick.
“What kind of suspicions?” I said. “Am I supposed to guess?”
Brick exhaled, leaning deeper into the van’s bench. His body swayed slightly as Dorian switched lanes, accelerating again as he drove around a eighteen-wheeler truck, pulling ahead of a beat up minivan before switching back to the right lane and hitting the gas.
“I suspect Charles has been cultivating connections in and around the White House for some time now, Miriam,” Brick said, matter-of-fact. “The way Maulkin behaved when she was questioned closely about Charles makes me think she’s seen him in there before… and that the memory was erased. The same was true of several other contacts we have inside the Pentagon. If I am right, Charles has been a presence inside this administration for some time.”
I glanced at Black.
His gold irises remained on Brick, a harder look on his face.
From the distance in his eyes, he was doin
g something in the psychic space––either strategizing around what Brick was saying, or talking to someone.
I glanced over my shoulder at the thought, frowning faintly at the seers sitting there.
My eyes returned to Brick, my lips returning the vampire’s frown.
“So Charles knew,” I said. “He knew Maulkin was working on behalf of the vampires. Why else would he bother to erase her?”
“Possibly,” Brick conceded, arching an eyebrow over those glass-like eyes. “It is possible he knew she was ours, yes. That, or he simply erased all of them, Miriam––meaning all humans who are not yet part of his conspiracy. It is possible he wanted to keep his presence there unknown until the time was right to go public.”
Black spoke up, jerking my eyes back to him.
“That suggests he’s embedded,” he said, blunt. “Heavily embedded. As in, not just him. To do what you’re suggesting, he’d need a whole team working out of D.C., probably in more than one branch of government, and at the highest levels. He’d need another team specifically overseeing the White House from the Barrier, likely from a distance.”
Brick quirked a dark eyebrow. “Barrier?”
“Psychic space. It’s how we work. To keep something like this under wraps to the extent you’re suggesting, they would need a full time team monitoring that space for leaks, and to make sure no one noticed the influx of ‘newcomers’ who couldn’t be traced back to traditionally vetted sources. Presumably Charles isn’t the only new face on the Hill. He may not even be the only new face in the White House… or the Oval Office.”
At Brick’s frown, and sharper stare, Black added,
“You’re talking about seers erasing not only members of the N.S.C., but members of the Cabinet, staffers, media, secret service, housekeeping, and whoever else might witness them spending time there. You’re talking about potentially having lobbyists, aides, even military commanders who have no history on the books, if someone were to look them up… and no media presence to fact check who they are. That would have to stretch back to a period of time prior to whenever Charles started infiltrating actual personnel. No way Charles could do any of this on his own. You’re talking about a deep cover infiltration op.”
In Black We Trust Page 29
