by R. D. Brady
As Nancy strode through the halls of the West Wing, people hurried past, all with bags under their eyes. Each one seemed to be in one of two emotional states: panic or denial. Personally, she preferred the people in denial. They were continuing to get their work done, ignoring the stirrings of fear that had to be bubbling up in them.
The same bubbles stirred within herself. After the first call between the President and Elisabeta, the attacks had stopped. Slowly, the same happened across the globe as each country folded. But a private acknowledgement of her power hadn’t been enough. No, Elisabeta wanted a public spectacle for all the world to see. And she had chosen for it to happen here, in the United States. Her world coronation attended by representatives of each country in the world.
A shudder ran through Nancy. It could not come to that.
Nancy took a breath as she strode into the outer office of the Oval. She nodded at Neil. “Is she in?”
“Um, yes, but she asked not to be—”
“It’s important. I need in.”
Neil met her gaze, shaking his head. “I can’t.”
“Neil, you need to open the door.”
Neil held her gaze for a long moment before gesturing to the Secret Service agent by the door. “Let her in.”
He opened it with a nod.
Nancy stepped in, spying the President behind her desk. She didn’t turn when the door opened or when it closed.
“I asked to not be disturbed.” The President’s voice was resigned.
“I ignored that.” Nancy strode across the room.
The President finally stirred herself. She swung her chair around with a frown. “Nancy? What are you doing here?”
“We need to discuss your plan.”
The President laughed. “My plan? My plan is to hand over the reins of the country to a madwoman in the hopes that she will spare some of our people. Beyond that . . .” The President shrugged.
“Defeat does not suit you.”
The President narrowed her eyes. “In the more than two hundred years since this country has existed, we have stood up to every threat we have faced. And now I am the President when that threat is more than we can bear.”
“You had no choice. This was the only avenue left open to you.”
“So what did you want to discuss? What bow color to use for the keys to the country?”
“No, I thought we could discuss how to save the country. Along with the rest of the planet.”
The President frowned. “Elisabeta can’t be killed. We tried that, and the world saw that attempt fail in gloriously brutal detail.”
“There is one last attempt that we need to support. And I will need your help with that.”
“What kind of help?
“Help that involves trust and more than a little faith.”
“Elisabeta will unleash hell if we attempt anything. The amount of lives . . .” The President shook her head. “We can’t risk it.”
“What if I told you we have an ace in the hole?”
“An ace? What is it?”
“Not a ‘what’ but a ‘who.’ Doesn’t this country deserve one last chance?”
The President studied her. “And what are the odds of this plan of yours working?”
“I give them a forty-percent chance of succeeding.”
“Forty percent is not very high.”
“No, it’s not. But weren’t you the one who brought up Washington crossing the Delaware? What were his chances?”
“Your plan has a George Washington?”
Nancy smiled. “Oh, my plan most definitely has a George Washington.”
Chapter 92
The last two days had been a rush of activity as Laney and company tried to get everything in place for the coronation. The U.S. government, meanwhile, was clearing the streets and setting up like it was a Presidential inauguration. They were doing everything in their power to make sure that the coronation went off without a hitch.
Laney and her team were doing everything in their power to make sure they not only stopped it but took down Elisabeta as well. They had pored over plans, figuring out angles and approaches. One of Elisabeta’s demands was that no one with abilities be within two miles of the coronation site, so they worked out the boundaries where anyone with powers would have to be beyond to make sure they were not sensed, as well as the quickest way from those points to the Mall once Laney made her move. Matt was their link to the government. He’d arranged for Laney, Jake, Mustafa, and Cain to be on the dais with Elisabeta. Cleo would be hidden underneath it.
Now they were as ready as they were going to be. They’d leave for D.C. in an hour. Laney was putting the final touches on her disguise. The reflection in the mirror was disturbing. She ran a hand through her now black hair. Her eyebrows had been darkened to match. Her skin had been spray-tanned to a color so dark she could pass as mixed race. Being she could normally pass for a ghost, it was unsettling. They were leaving her eyes alone, because if someone got close enough to recognize her from them, well, the gig was up anyway.
Drake leaned against the doorway behind her. “Personally I prefer pale redheads, but I’m game to spice things up a bit.”
Laney rolled her eyes. “This is not for your enjoyment.”
“Who says it can’t be both?”
She shook her head, pulling on the black suit jacket and buttoning it. “Well? Do I look like a Secret Service agent?”
“Can’t say I’ve seen any Secret Service agents quite as beautiful, but yes, I suppose you will pass.” He stepped in and wrapped his arms around her.
Laney leaned back against him. Neither of them spoke as they just breathed together. Finally, Laney met his gaze in the mirror. “I’m nervous.”
“I’d be surprised if you weren’t. But you’ve got this. You were born for this.”
“You need to stay beyond the perimeter until the signal.”
“We’ll see.”
Laney turned to face him. “Drake, I mean it. You need to stay back. If she gets a hint of any of you, it will all be over.”
“She can’t sense me.”
“We don’t know that. With the mortus, she could. We cannot take the chance.”
He glared down at her. “I do not like that part of the plan.”
“I’m not crazy about it, either. But Cain and Cleo will be by my side, Jake and Mustafa as well.”
Drake snorted. “Cleo will be hidden, not by your side, and Cain will be taken out by the first punch.”
“I think you underestimate him. Besides, as soon as I reveal myself, I am counting on you to come running.”
“That you can count on.”
“I know I can. But do me a favor, and if you can, protect my friends.”
“You are my priority.”
“I know that. But I am asking you to make them one as well.”
Drake blew out a breath, staring up at the ceiling. “You know, I never realized how high maintenance you are.”
Laney smiled. “It’s part of my charm.”
He ran his hand along her cheek. “That it is. But if anyone hurts so much as a single hair on your badly dyed head, I will snap their neck.”
“You say the sweetest things.”
“And that is part of my charm.”
He lowered his head, and she met him halfway. Her head cleared of doubts and fear. For this perfect moment in time, there was only her and Drake.
Her watch beeped. With a sigh, Laney pulled away from him. “Time to go.”
“Then let’s go finish this.”
Chapter 93
The National Mall was filled with about half the crowd of a normal presidential inauguration. With her dark hair pulled back and sunglasses covering half her face, Laney surveyed it from her position on the dais located on the western side of the U.S. Capitol Building. She tried not to cringe each time a camera pointed her way. She knew she was unrecognizable. At the last minute, she’d even added some rubber to change the shape of her cheeks. Prob
ably unnecessary, but she did not want to tip anyone off.
So far, no one had even blinked at her. Matt had added them to the security detail. The IDs he’d provided to her, Mustafa, Cain, and Jake had gotten them right through. The guests had begun to arrive and make their way down the long red carpet that covered the steps leading to the podium. The senators and congresspeople had been slowly filtering in and taking their spots. None looked happy. A few looked downright ill. But their attendance, like the President’s and other world leaders, was non-negotiable.
The wind whipped the flag above her, sounding like a rifle shot. The senator from Michigan nearly jumped out of his skin at the noise. She couldn’t blame the poor man. No one’s safety could be guaranteed today.
A laugh sounded from the crowd milling below, drawing her attention. A man who couldn’t be more than twenty jostled his friend next to him with a grin. The laughter was an oddity. Most people looked terrified. But Elisabeta had demanded a crowd, so some brave souls had come out today. Most were military or law enforcement in plain clothes, but Laney knew some citizens had arrived as well. Some to watch, some to protest. The protestors had been corralled to a far-off point. She prayed the protestors didn’t draw too much attention to themselves. Laney wasn’t sure what Elisabeta’s reaction to them was going to be. She hoped she simply didn’t care, too focused on the bigger picture, but she had not demonstrated an ability to ignore slights, no matter how minor.
Cain stood next to her, his dark eyes covered by sunglasses. He had cut his long hair for their mission to make sure no one recognized him. Keeping his gaze on the crowd, he spoke quietly. “You all right?”
“I’m good. You?”
Cain smiled. “Right as rain.”
She looked up at him, realizing how far they’d come. When she’d first learned of his existence, they’d been enemies. But since that time, he’d grown into one of her closest confidants. “Thank you for doing this.”
“Thank you for letting me.” His hand brushed hers gently for a moment before he turned his gaze back to the crowd.
Cleo, you all right? Laney asked.
Small. Hot.
I know, but it shouldn’t be for much longer.
Cleo grumped, and Laney tried not to smile. It was odd being able to sense her grumpiness.
“The motorcade is ten minutes out,” Matt’s voice said through her earpiece. She and Cain were not tapped in to the Secret Service channel. Matt would relay any information they needed.
Laney kept her voice low. “Is everyone staying beyond the barrier?”
Matt’s response was delayed for a few seconds. “So far.”
Laney tried not to groan. She was pretty sure Drake was giving Matt fits. “Roger.”
She turned her gaze back to the crowd before them. Ten minutes, and then the show would begin.
Chapter 94
Crowds lined the streets as Elisabeta’s motorcade drove toward the National Mall. Unlike during Presidential motorcades, the crowds lining these streets did not cheer. Nor did they jeer. They simply stood in silent witness to her passing.
But that was all right. They would cheer for her soon enough. The limo slammed to a stop. Elisabeta’s head jerked up as a fire burst across the street in front of them. The fire was small, nothing that could do much damage. A Molotov cocktail, no doubt.
“Who?” she asked through gritted teeth.
Artem sat across from her, holding one finger to his earpiece before speaking. “They have the man who threw it.”
“Where?”
“They’re bringing him to the car.”
Grasping the door handle, she opened it and stepped out. The street was silent except for the sounds of a struggle in the distance. Two of her men pushed past the barricades, dragging a man with them. No, not a man, a boy. He couldn’t be more than sixteen or seventeen. When the crowd caught sight of him, they started to yell.
Elisabeta ignored them as the boy was dragged to her. Her men held him tightly between them.
He had short blond hair, dark glasses, some sort of trendy T-shirt, and a flannel thrown carelessly over it, although Elisabeta was sure he’d spent time making sure he had the right look. His clothes were too clean, professionally faded, not faded through wear.
For a moment, she imagined ripping through his chest. But no harm was done, and she was in a good mood. Besides, mercy was often as effective a tool for controlling people as strength.
Elisabeta smiled in response to his glare. “You are a child, so you don’t understand. You should be honored that you are alive at a time to witness greatness. This will be a day you will tell your grandchildren about. And you will tell them of my mercy.” She waved her hands at her men. “It is my coronation day. He is free to go.”
The men released their grip on him. The young man stood hunched there between them, like he was waiting for the trick.
“It’s all right. You may go.” She waved him toward the crowd.
The boy lunged for her, swinging wildly and managing to connect with the edge of her chin. Anger roared through her. She grabbed him by the shirt and hauled him toward her. “I showed you mercy and you strike me?”
He spit in her face.
With a roar, she slipped her hands around his neck and twisted. His eyes bulged, and his lips parted before he dropped to the ground like a stone. “Apparently you don’t deserve mercy.”
The crowd went silent. Then with a roar, everyone was in motion. In a wave, they pushed against the barricades, rushing toward Elisabeta. The police tried to stop them but got trampled in the effort.
Artem grabbed Elisabeta’s arm and hustled her back to the car. Elisabeta dove in, not in fear for her life, but in fear her outfit might be damaged.
“Ingrates,” she muttered, grabbing a wipe and cleaning her hands.
Artem nodded toward the windows. “Um, the men are killing the spectators.”
Elisabeta nodded. “Good.”
Chapter 95
There was a collective gasp in the command room as everyone took in the scenes of violence on the street in response to Elisabeta’s latest stunt—the public murder of an American citizen. Drake gripped the back of the chair in front of him, breaking the plastic.
“Nobody moves,” Matt barked into his mic, his gaze raking the members assembled in the room in front of him. Everyone in the room was either a Nephilim or a Fallen, and everyone looked as if they were going to bolt for the door.
Dozens more were scattered at the very outskirts of city, half moving into place to close up the net around Elisabeta.
“More will be hurt if we move now.” Matt gestured to the screen. “Horrible as that is, it will be acted out all over the city if we move before Laney gives the signal, so everyone stays put. Clear?”
Everyone in the room nodded, albeit reluctantly. Drake could hear the replies over the earpiece coming in as well. But Matt didn’t relax, no one did. Instead, he contacted Laney.
“Laney, there was an incident on the road. Elisabeta killed a young man, and the crowd in that section is now rioting. Elisabeta’s men are fighting back.”
Drake saw her close her eyes on the monitor, and he knew that she was piling on the guilt for these deaths as well.
It’s not your fault, Laney. None of this is.
But even if she could hear him, he knew his words would have no effect. He’d never met someone who embraced responsibility the way Laney did. Even as Helen, she’d put duty well above her personal wants.
Drake lived by a slightly different creed. He was more of a “there’s no time like the present” kind of person when it came to his personal desires. And Delaney was what he desired more than anyone or anything, which meant the rest of his wants were placed on the back burner. The funny thing was, the more he placed them there, the less important they actually became.
Drake took a deep breath, releasing the chair. This was why he never got himself involved with humans beyond shallow interactions. Everything they felt and d
id was intense. And once you spent time around them and began to care for them, everything you did became just as intense.
He stepped closer to the screen that showed Laney on the inauguration dais. Cain was right next to her. Mustafa and Jake were somewhere nearby, although Drake couldn’t see them in the sea of bodies.
“I’ve got the police trying to cordon off that area to keep the violence contained, but there’s a chance it could spill over to here when word gets out,” Matt said.
“Take out the network,” Laney ordered. “We can’t let word spread until we have Elisabeta handled.”
“The President is arriving, and Elisabeta is just three minutes behind.”
Drake didn’t take his eyes from the screen. Just a few more minutes and it would begin. By the end of the day, he would either begin to plan for his future with the woman he had loved for thousands of years, or he would lose her.
And losing her was not an option.
Chapter 96
A ripple of excitement tinged with fear wafted through the crowd. “The President has arrived,” Matt said in Laney’s earpiece.
“Here we go,” Cain said quietly next to her.
Laney scanned the crowd. She still couldn’t believe people had shown up. She could pick out the law enforcement and military members in the crowd. They kept glancing around, unsmiling. But there were hundreds of others who were less stoic. They smiled, laughed, or cried. The criers tended to have signs announcing the end of days were upon them.
Laney wasn’t sure they were entirely wrong, although one of the characteristics of the end of days was absent: country fighting country. Through Elisabeta’s actions, the countries of the world had come together, joined in their fear of this one threat. There were still pockets of resistance in every country proclaiming that they would fight back if Elisabeta attempted to take them over. Laney knew that if today went poorly, those people would be the first to die tomorrow. They didn’t understand what Elisabeta was capable of. She would sacrifice anyone and anything to get what she wanted.
