Better my shoulders than his. But I didn’t say that aloud, because it would probably piss him off.
As Sam had promised, Jared was waiting near the entrance when we arrived. He gave me a grim smile that said that, like Butch, he didn’t expect this meeting to achieve anything. Presumably Jared was eager to get this over with, because he teleported us straight outside Marco’s containment cell. Both males then backed up, moving to stand against the wall behind me.
Marco shot off the mattress and walked to the glass with a wide smile. “Sweetheart, you didn’t come to see me last night. That wasn’t nice.”
“I wasn’t sure you’d have anything helpful to say.”
“And I suppose Sam and Jared wanted to take some time to check out what I told you.”
To be fair… “It’s not beneath you to waste our time to prolong your life.”
“No, it isn’t. But everything I told you was the truth.”
“So it would seem.” I took one step toward the glass. “You said you’d tell me more if I came back. Here I am.”
“I said I’d tell you more if you came back last night. You didn’t.”
I gritted my teeth. “We don’t have time for this, Marco. Or do you want this war to take place?”
He thought about it for a moment. “Nah. Wars are messy. People die.”
“I didn’t think you’d care if people die.”
“I care if you die.”
Recalling that Fletcher said Marco considered himself my protector, I spoke, “You can see I’m partly human now. That makes me vulnerable. I might not have asked for this life, but I don’t want it to end. Still, I’m part of the legion now. You know what that means. If there’s a war, I will be fighting in it—vulnerable or not.”
The amber tint to his irises flared.
“So help me avoid a war and tell me where The Order is based.”
“You’re not stupid, Imani. Where do you think they’ll be?”
“How the hell would I know?”
“Ask yourself this question: if you were a group of vampires who tried to blend with humans, despised your kind and conspired to destroy them all, where would you stay?”
Well, when he put it like that… “Somewhere away from vampires. Neutral ground.”
His eyes brightened. “Very good.”
“There has to be hundreds of spots all over the globe that are free of vampires.”
“Yes, but why are those spots free of us?”
“Most have already been claimed by other species of preternatural. They won’t share their territory with vampires.” Especially shifters and demons.
“So then, where will The Order be based?”
“In a place that’s totally unclaimed.”
“Good girl. In one of those places, you’ll find The Order.”
That still left dozens of possible locations. “That’s as much as you’re willing to tell me?”
“I don’t want you to die, Imani. It really is as simple as that. They have weapons that could wipe out entire towns. These people would sooner die in a blast than die at the hands of the things they loathe. I don’t want you near them.”
“And you still want to seem useful to us so that you get to live.”
“Of course.”
Jared sidled up to me, eyes on Marco. “I’ll make you a deal. I have a vampire who can sweep minds. If he finds that you didn’t inject Imani with the serum, we will free you and allow you to live.”
“If…?” prompted Marco.
“If you tell us where The Order is based.”
Marco’s gaze briefly slid to me. “She’ll die if she goes there.”
“What makes you think any of us intend to go there?” asked Jared. “If it’s true and that place is rigged, it wouldn’t be smart of us to invade it. Where is it based?”
“You’re not taking me seriously enough,” snapped Marco.
“Wrong. If you think I’d be reckless with the life of Imani or any other member of my legion, you’re very much mistaken. So, do we have a deal?”
After long moments, Marco told Jared, “If you agree to free me once your vampire verifies my innocence, I’ll give you the name of someone who knows where The Order is based; someone who will make you see why the last place Imani should be is there. He’ll make you understand.”
Jared’s lips pursed. “Deal.”
“Joel Sanders.”
I frowned. “Who is Joel Sanders?”
“One of my sources. He knows plenty about The Order. Find Joel, and then follow the rabbit trail.” Marco’s gaze moved to Butch. “You keep her safe.” Then Marco returned to the mattress. He was done.
The instant Sam took a seat, she slapped a file on the conference table. “All right, this is what we know about Joel Sanders. He’s a Keja who’s part of a very small nest in Colorado. He’s committed pretty much every computer crime there is; earns his money by hacking into company computers and selling the information to rival businesses.” She took a photo from the file and handed it to Max, who took a look before passing it on.