Allcot’s fangs extended as his ice-blue eyes pierced me. “This is not about Rhoswen, witch. I’m here for Pandora.”
My mind whirled as I tried to parse exactly what he was telling me. “Pandora sent you?” That made no sense. Why would she think someone from the Void had taken Willow?
“She didn’t send me, you fool!” Allcot roared as he picked me up by the shoulders and shook me as if I were a rag doll. I tightened my hand on the knife and tried to remain patient, waiting for my opening. “I’m here because— Oomph!”
Dax had come out of nowhere and smashed a metal chair over Allcot’s head. Link was right beside him, barking his little shih tzu head off. The vampire stumbled, and I slipped from his grip, landing easily on my feet. The vampire turned his back to me and let out a roar so loud my ears started to ring. And I knew in that moment that Allcot had lost all sense of control. If I didn’t do something, Dax was going to die. Allcot would end him and not even blink an eye.
Without hesitation, I lifted my knife and lunged forward, jamming the knife into the left side of Allcot’s back.
The vampire instantly froze, and I knew I’d hit my mark. “Move one muscle, Allcot,” I whispered, “and I’ll end you once and for all.”
7
“Jesus,” I heard Dax say from the other side of the room.
“You’re going to regret this, Kilsen,” Allcot said in a voice so low and controlled I barely heard him.
“Probably,” I said, forcing myself to act unconcerned. “But in the meantime, this is keeping you from doing anything stupid.” Like killing my partner.
Allcot snarled, and even though he was holding himself perfectly still, I could almost feel his rage vibrating inside him. And the fact that the vampire had frozen in place meant the knife was perilously close to nicking his heart.
I knew the blade had come within striking distance, but I hadn’t actually been aiming to kill him. Christ, the shit storm that would rain down on me if I actually killed Allcot—whether he deserved it or not—would be colossal. Still, I wouldn’t hesitate to do it if he went after Dax again.
Halston had gotten to her feet, and she walked up to Allcot, her dark eyes blazing as she glared at him. She looked over his shoulder at me and nodded, her frizzy gray hair bobbing with the motion. “Good work, Kilsen.”
“Thanks,” I said, feeling the warmth of Link’s body as he leaned against my leg, showing his support.
“Impressive really,” she said to Allcot this time. “The shifter and the witch took you down with the most basic of weapons and no powers. Isn’t that interesting?”
A low rumble reverberated from Allcot’s chest. If the situation hadn’t been so serious, if Willow hadn’t still been missing, I might’ve laughed at the absurdity of holding Allcot’s life in my hands while my boss taunted him. In no scenario had I ever imagined a scene like this. And to be honest, I really didn’t want any part of it. But there was no turning back now.
“What did you really come here for, Eadric?” Halston asked, her tone curious now.
“To kill you,” he spat out.
Dax’s gaze met mine, and confusion rolled between us. Why would Allcot want to kill Halston?
“No, you didn’t.” The director walked over to the window and stared out over the Irish Channel neighborhood. “You came here for answers, didn’t you?”
“Yes,” he spit out. “Then I’m going to kill you.”
“Going to? Now that’s funny.” She let out a low laugh and a chill rolled over me, settling in my bones. Allcot wasn’t lying. I sensed it with everything I had. She had to know that. Which meant this cat and mouse game she was playing with him was going to end up in a bloodbath. If all five of us made it out of this room alive, it would be a goddamned miracle.
“Tell me where they are,” Allcot demanded.
Halston let out an exaggerated sigh. “How many times do I have to tell you? I have no idea.”
“Who are ‘they?’” I asked. “Pandora and the other vampire hive?”
Halston’s brow furrowed. “What hive?”
“The one that took Willow and Tal,” I explained, trying to catch up. “One of them led me away from the gala. The redheaded vamp I’ve been tracking the past week. He’s a part of the hive. I’m sure of it.”
“Kilsen, stop talking now,” Halston ordered.
“But—” I started, and stopped when the director’s glare nearly burned a hole in my head. “What am I missing?”
“You’re a fucking idiot, Kilsen,” Allcot said, disgust in his tone. “A rival hive didn’t take Pandora. The shifters did.”
“Which shifters?” Dax asked, stepping forward, alarm claiming his handsome features.
“Like you don’t know. Fucking traitor.” The muscles in Allcot’s back rippled with tension, and he started to move forward.
“One more step, Allcot, and I’ll twist this knife so hard your heart will be in ribbons,” I said, my voice as hard as steel. Link let out a growl of support, and I smiled down at him.
“He’s playing you, Kilsen. Go ahead and ask your partner all about the Crimson Valley wolf pack.”
“He’s not playing me,” I said. “I know all about—”
“Kilsen!” Halston shouted. “Do not open your mouth again. Understood?”
I did, in fact, open my mouth but promptly closed it. Dax’s undercover work with the Crimson Valley pack wasn’t exactly classified, as Dax made no secret of the fact that he ran with them. But talking about Void business was off-limits, especially with Allcot present.
Except Willow and Tal were still missing. I couldn’t just sit back and not ask questions if Allcot had some of the missing pieces. There was no choice. I had to do what I had to do. “Why do you think the shifters took Pandora?”
Halston let out a heavy sigh but didn’t chastise me further. No doubt she wanted to know the answer just as much as I did, but she wanted to be the one asking the questions.
“I fucking saw them carrying her off. Do you understand what I’m telling you? Shifters got the better of my wife. The same fucking shifters your boy toy over there has been helping for months.”
Without warning, Allcot lurched forward and flew, actually flew through the office, and once again grabbed Dax by the throat. “If anything happens to her, I’ll rip your limbs off one by one and just stand there while I watch you bleed out. Do you hear me?”
Dax wouldn’t have been able to answer even if he tried. Allcot had cut off his ability to even breathe, much less talk. Instead, my partner kicked out, fiercely aiming for Allcot’s crotch. He missed and Allcot let out a low, sinister laugh. “You can keep— Fuck!”
The vampire dropped Dax, then reached up and pulled the dart out of his neck. He glared at Halston, who was still holding the tranq gun, and then his eyes rolled into the back of his head just before he collapsed to the floor.
Dax climbed to his feet, rubbing at his neck. “You couldn’t have done that a little sooner?”
“Why?” Halston asked. “Kilsen had a knife practically in his heart. I had no idea he was crazy enough to risk death just to strangle you.”
I stared at Allcot’s limp body and tried to process what he’d been saying. But none of it made sense. How had the shifters gotten to Pandora in the middle of all those vampires? I glanced back up at Halston. “What happened while I was out tracking that vampire?”
Her eyebrows shot up and disappeared under her frizzy gray hair. “Didn’t Marrok fill you in?”
“Not really. He was engaged in his own altercation. He didn’t see anything.”
She cleared her throat. “Well, that is unfortunate, isn’t it?”
Dax and I shared another confused glance as the director picked up the phone and ordered security to take Allcot to a holding cell.
Not five seconds later, two large security guards rushed in and dragged Allcot out.