The Bonding Ritual (Girls Wearing Black: Book Four)

by Spencer Baum

  “I’ve gotta tell you,” Zack said one afternoon, “this is the most boring show I’ve ever watched.”

  They were on the couch in his apartment, looking at footage from the previous afternoon at Thorndike. Jill had connected her tablet to Zack’s TV and they were watching a scene from the courtyard, as viewed through the cameras in Jill’s earrings.

  “So that girl’s the one who is winning in your game,” Zack said, pointing at the screen.

  “Yes, that’s Samantha Kwan. She thinks she’s going to be the next immortal.”

  “But she’s not, because you’re going to figure out this missing number and change everything.”

  “Just be quiet and watch, will you?”

  “But I have so many questions! Like this girl. The bubbly one. What’s her deal?”

  “Jenny? What about her?”

  “She’s with this Jake guy, right?”

  “Yes, they’re together.”

  “But she’s not really that into him.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Watch,” Zack said, taking the tablet from Jill and swiping his finger across the screen. He scrolled the video back a few frames. “Right here,” he said. “She’s gonna look across the yard when her boyfriend’s talking to her.”

  Jill hadn’t paid any attention to Jenny the last time through. Watching again, she saw that Zack was right. Even as Jake was trying to talk to her, her attention was on something else entirely.

  “It doesn’t matter,” said Jill. “Jenny doesn’t know anything. We’re watching this section because Art and Rosalyn are about to walk by.”

  “Who are they?”

  “Two people from my list. Right here. Watch and listen.”

  On the top of the screen, Art and Rosalyn appeared, entering the frame as they walked the diagonal path through the courtyard.

  “The microphone wasn’t able to pick up much of what they’re saying over all the noise,” said Jill. “Watch their lips. See if you can glean anything.”

  They watched as Art and Rosalyn moved from the top to the bottom of the screen. Rosalyn was talking the entire time they moved. Jill couldn’t make out a word of it.

  “Grape jelly tastes great on roasted pinto beans,” said Zack.

  “What?”

  “I’m trying to read her lips. That’s what I get. Watch, play it again.”

  Jill rewound the footage and started playback where Art and Rosalyn appeared. This time, as Rosalyn spoke, Zack said the words that might be coming from her lips.

  “Grape jelly tastes great on roasted pinto beans.”

  It was a perfect match.

  They started laughing. “This is a total waste of time, isn’t it?” said Jill.

  “Seems that way,” said Zack.

  “How the hell am I supposed to get the numbers from these people? None of them are willing to talk.”

  “Have you tried bribing them?”

  “Yes. No takers. Nicky even tried flirting with Art, which worked last semester, but not so much now.”

  “You mean that guy we were just watching?”

  “Yes. Last semester Nicky had him in her pocket, but this semester he doesn’t want anything to do with her.”

  “That’s because he’s getting laid,” said Zack.

  “Art Tremblay? Hardly.”

  “No, seriously. Play the scene again. I want to show you something.”

  Jill shook her head. “Fine, but after this we’re done watching this garbage. It’s giving me a headache.”

  She rewound the scene, bringing Art and Rosalyn back to the top of the screen. She let it play and they watched as Art and Rosalyn moved across the courtyard. When Rosalyn started talking, Jill said, “Grape jelly tastes great--”

  “No, no, look at him this time,” Zack said.

  Jill shifted her focus from Rosalyn to Art, who stared straight ahead as he was walking, saying nothing as Rosalyn talked.

  “They’re not a couple, are they? Or really old friends?”

  “No.”

  “Then he’s totally getting laid. Did you see how oblivious he was to her?”

  “I suppose he did seem kind of oblivious.”

  “A pretty girl like that, talking about grape jelly on pinto beans or whatever the hell she was saying—I’ve been there, Jill. When a good-looking girl is talking to you, you at least make it appear like you’re trying to listen.”

  “Art and Rosalyn don’t have any reason to-”

  “It doesn’t matter! It’s not something conscious. If you’re a guy who isn’t getting any, and a pretty girl is talking to you, you automatically act like she’s the most interesting person in the world. You can’t help it.”

  “But what if she’s really talking about grape jelly on pinto beans.”

  “Then that dude should be all, ‘Oh my God, yeah, I love grape jelly on roasted pinto beans!’ Unless, and this is the big caveat here, his needs are already being taken care of.”

  “His needs? You’re creeping me out here. I don’t know if I want to talk about Art’s needs.”

  “You should. You’re looking to get numbers from three ladies and a dude. Of that crew, the dude is the easiest to figure out and manipulate. You want something from a guy like Art, you get a pretty girl to ask him for it. The fact that Nicky asked him and he told her nothing speaks volumes.”

  “Art and Nicky have a history, though. It’s complicated.”

  “I’m telling you that none of that matters. When a pretty girl offers a guy what he wants, he doesn’t give a shit about history. The only explanation is that the guy doesn’t need what you’re selling. That’s what I see in this video. Look how loose he is as he walks. He’s on cloud nine, Jill. Your friend Art Tremblay is getting laid.”

  “Great. A brilliant but worthless insight. I need to know Art’s number, not his sex life.”

  “I don’t think you’re going to get his number by watching this video. Are you hungry? I’m hungry.”

  “I could eat,” said Jill.

  Zack grabbed the television remote and powered down the TV.

  “Let’s get out of here,” he said.

  *****

  Hours later, Jill was asleep on Zack’s couch.

  She was dreaming about fingerprints.

  More specifically, she was dreaming about something her mother said to her.

  I saw your fingerprints all over the operating system.

  It was meant to be a criticism of Jill’s distinctive programming style, but in the dream, Jill saw actual fingerprints left behind in the computer code, and wanted desperately to change them.

  “They’re going to find me with these fingerprints,” Jill said to her mom. “Help me change them.”

  “What? And leave my fingerprints? No thank you. You should have thought about this when you wrote the code. A good hack isn’t just about what you take. It’s also about what you leave behind.”

  A kiss on Jill’s cheek woke her up. She opened her eyes to see Zack hovering above her.

  “What time is it?” she said.

  “Eleven-thirty,” he said. “I’ve got to go to my gig now. You should stay here tonight. The bed’s waiting for you. I’ll be home around three.”

  Jill rubbed her eyes. There was a flickering light in the room. Half-awake, she couldn’t figure out what it was.

  “I should go home,” she said. “I’ve got school tomorrow.”

  “That’s cool,” said Zack. “Can I walk you to your car?”

  As she continued to wake up, she realized the flickering light was coming from her tablet, which was on Zack’s coffee table, still playing video footage.

  She grabbed it, intending to turn it off, until she saw what was on the screen.

  “Oh my God,” she said.

  “Everything okay?” said Zack.

  She blinked her eyes rapidly, trying to clear her vision, then she looked again.

  Daciana was on the screen.

  Jill pressed the pause button and
took a closer look. No doubt about it. The video footage had looped ahead several hours, and was now showing scenes captured with Nicky’s jewelry. The current scene had Nicky looking directly at Daciana Samarin.

  “You go on to your gig,” Jill said. “I’m going to stay here for a little bit before I leave.”

  “Whatever you want to do,” said Zack. “And seriously, the bed’s waiting for you. If I can’t walk you to your car, I’d feel better if you stayed here tonight.”

  “Okay, maybe I will.”

  Zack kissed her goodbye and left, locking the front door behind him. Jill pressed play on the tablet and started watching.

  It was a scene from Nicky’s car. Daciana was in the driver’s seat. It looked like they were driving through a forest. They came to a gate and Daciana stopped the car.

  “This is where I say goodnight,” she said. “Thanks for the ride, Nicky.”

  Watching the scene from the cameras in Nicky’s earrings, Jill looked on as Nicky stepped out of the passenger seat and walked around the front of the car. She had a clear line of sight to the numeric keypad on Daciana’s back gate. Daciana punched in a few numbers and the gate opened.

  “Is this for real?” Jill whispered.

  She reached for her phone and dialed Alvin.

  “What’s going on, Jill?”

  “Remember when I called you all excited about trying to hack into Daciana’s computer?”

  “Of course I do.”

  “Well, I’m excited again. I want to hack Daciana’s computer one more time. And this time, I want to get it right.”

  Chapter 35

  The next morning Jill got in her car and drove to Richmond. She arrived at the farmhouse shortly after noon. Before she got out of her car, she opened the glove box and pulled out the two Ping-Pong balls Eve had stolen from the chapel more than a month before.

  Eve greeted Jill at the front door and brought her inside, where she found Winnie seated on the couch.

  “Welcome back,” Winnie said. “What brings you to Richmond?”

  “A couple things,” Jill said. “First, I should give you these.”

  Jill handed both Ping-Pong balls to Eve.

  “Is it time for me to break into the chapel and return these to the bin?” Eve said.

  “Not yet,” said Jill. “But soon. We have three of the four numbers of the combination figured out, and we’re getting close on the fourth one.”

  “How close?” said Winnie.

  “Mary’s number is either 4, 20, 49, or 71,” said Jill. “Those are the only four numbers that aren’t assigned to specific names on my spreadsheet.”

  “So I’m taking it, that, in addition to Mary, you have three other names on your spreadsheet with no numbers attached,” said Winnie.

  “That’s right. Art, Rosalyn, and Andrea.”

  “What are you doing to attach numbers to their names?” Winnie asked.

  “Everything we can,” Jill said. “But that’s not why I’m here. I want to talk to you about something else.”

  A puzzled look came over Winnie’s face, as if to say, what else could we possibly have to talk about?

  “I want to try the hack again,” Jill said. “I know a way we can get into Daciana’s computer when she isn’t home.”

  Her words were met with silence, so Jill said more. “And I know a way to get past the problem that ruined the hack last time. It will be so much easier now that I know exactly what we’re looking at.”

  Winnie and Eve looked at each other, then Winnie said, “I thought you and I were in agreement about our priorities on this mission, Jill.”

  “We are,” said Jill. “We can do the hack in a way that it doesn’t interfere with our goal of getting Sergio into the Bloom mansion and killing him.”

  “Okay. I’m listening,” Winnie said.

  “We do it on prom night,” said Jill. “Daciana won’t be home, and a few hours into prom, when the new immortal doesn’t arrive, everything at school’s going to be chaos anyway. It’s the perfect time to strike. It’s also our very last chance. After prom night, Daciana’s going to know who we are and what we’ve been doing.”

  “You’re talking about sending a team to break into Daciana’s house at the same time we’ll have another team waiting in Bethesda to kill Sergio?” Winnie asked.

  “Yes.”

  “I think you overestimate our resources.”

  “We don’t have to take away anyone from the primary mission to do this,” said Jill. “All the assassins you want to put in the Bloom mansion get to stay there. I just need two experienced operatives and the same group of volunteers and friends who helped us clear out Renata’s house. I was thinking maybe you could help me with the break-in, Winnie.”

  “I’ll be in the Bloom mansion, waiting to take my shot at Sergio with the rest of the hunters.”

  “Then what about Eve?”

  “I’ll also be in the Bloom mansion,” Eve said.

  “Well Alvin’s already on board,” said Jill. “I just need one more person who’s experienced at doing a break-in like this.”

  “A break-in like what, Jill? What are you planning to do?”

  Jill leaned forward. When she spoke, it was in a quieter voice. “Something Daciana would never expect. We sneak someone into the house as part of a regular delivery.”

  “A delivery?”

  “Daciana’s got a whole room full of crates from this place called Safari Freight and Storage,” said Jill. “I looked them up in the TPM database. You know who they are?”

  “No,” said Winnie.

  “It’s Daciana’s own shipping company!” said Jill. “For months now, she’s been using her own company to bring in all sorts of stuff from Italy. New manifests almost every day.”

  “She’s emptying out Falkon’s mansion,” Winnie said.

  “Right, and if a crate arrives on prom night,” Jill said, “her slaves won’t think a thing of it. They’ll just take it to the utility room with the rest of them.”

  “Your plan is to sneak someone into the house in one of these crates,” said Winnie.

  “It would be so easy,” said Jill. “We know what the label looks like. We could make a perfect replica of it, right down to the bar code.”

  “And then what? You’re sending someone into a house full of servants who are trained to repel invaders.”

  “The crate will go straight to the storage room,” said Jill. “Once we’re certain Daciana has left to go to prom, our operative gets out of the crate, walks over to the air conditioning unit, which is in the same room, and opens up a canister of Addonox, spreading it into every room of the mansion.”

  Eve smiled. She liked the plan, Jill could tell. Winnie, however, still wasn’t sold.

  “Okay, so you put everyone in the house to sleep,” Winnie said. “Then what?”

  “Then a second operative cuts the wire to the alarm system at the telephone pole behind the house. With the alarm disabled, and the servants asleep, breaking into the crypt is just a matter of shutting down the power for a few seconds.”

  “What about the verification code that tripped you up last time?” said Winnie.

  “I’ve figured that out too,” said Jill. “Daciana hates cell phones, and has a strict rule that they all must be checked at the door. At prom, her phone will be at the coat check station, like everyone else’s.”

  “Guarded by one of her servants,” said Winnie. “Let me guess. You think you’ve found a way to steal it.”

  “I’ve already looked at the blueprints for the whole building complex in the TPM database,” said Jill. “Prom is held in the old gymnasium. The coat check room is the old concession stand attached to the lobby. There’s a back entrance to that room. You get there through the same door the Coronation loser uses when she enters the gym.”

  Winnie held her hand up.

  “I’m going to stop you right there,” she said.

  “Why?”

  “We’re not going through with t
his plan,” said Winnie. “There are too many opportunities for it to go wrong.”

  “I disagree. I think we can do it in a way where we minimize the risk.”

  “What if Daciana’s servants open your shipment before stowing it away?” Winnie said. “What if they put it in a different room and our operative has to go through the house to reach the air conditioner unit. What if Daciana doesn’t check her phone in the lobby like you’re expecting?”

  “These are the kinds of things that can go wrong on any mission!” Jill said. “But that doesn’t mean we don’t try.”

  “We’re not talking about any mission, Jill. We’re talking about a mission you want to run on the same night we are trying to kill Sergio. Look, I appreciate your excitement about hacking into these bank accounts, but if even one thing goes wrong with your plan, it puts our larger mission in jeopardy. If this was happening after the mission to kill Sergio was already completed, it would be a different story.”

  “It has to happen at the same time,” Jill said. “It’s the perfect opportunity. Daciana will be at prom with everyone else.”

  “I recognize that, and as much as you hate to hear it, I need for you to accept that we cannot do this hack.”

  Jill shook her head. She was shocked that Winnie was taking this stance.

  “It’s all the money in the entire clan,” she said. “I can empty the bank accounts of every vampire in America if you’d just help me do it! Imagine what a blow that would be to our enemies! All their money gone, every single penny, and not just that! I’ve been thinking about what gets left behind when you do a hack. The fingerprints. And I’ve got an idea for some software-”

  “We’ve already had this conversation,” said Winnie. “As big of a prize as their money is, it’s trivial compared to Sergio. You’ve done great work for the Network for four years now, and it has all been in service of getting Sergio into a house where we can kill him. You can’t lose sight of the prize as we near the end.”

  “We don’t even know if we’ll have Sergio,” said Jill. “At this point, we’re counting on a lot to go right with Daciana’s safe in order for Nicky to win Coronation.”

  “Which is precisely why you don’t need to be distracted with thoughts of another operation. You only have a few weeks left, Jill. Make them count. You’ve been working on this mission since you were fourteen years old. Finish it strong, without distractions.”