TWELVE
With the capture of the specimen by Operative
Cade, actual physical examination reveals A. Khorkhoi to be
a tentacle, the only visible part of a much larger creature.
However, like a starfish, the tentacles are capable of detaching if
seized, and can then grow another full-sized version of the
creature. This may be the creature’s only method of reproduction,
and it is quite laborious and slow The Khorkhoi’s lifespan
measures on a scale similar to tortoises and trees. It’s possible
the same creature has existed since the time seawater covered the
Mongolian desert, splitting off and forming new bodies as years and
centuries pass.
—Notes of Dr. Peterson Sloane, Sanction V
Research Group
THE RELIQUARY, WASHINGTON, D.C.
Griff felt a draft. The papers on the desk
in front of him rustled slightly.
The only way that could have happened was if
someone opened the hidden door, which no one else was supposed to
know about.
It shouldn’t have been possible, but he’d been at
this too long to waste time on disbelief Instead, he reached below
the desk and put his hand around the stock of the modified Protecta
Street Sweeper mounted there. The semiautomatic shotgun was
designed to clear riots.
At the bottom of the stairs, he saw curly hair
framing the cheerful, open face of a young woman barely into her
twenties, almost a girl.
Tania. Thirty-three years ago, when she was still
twenty-one and human, Cade had promised to save her. He’d
failed.
Griff had been there. He saw it all happen. He
never knew if she held a grudge against him.
Griff supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised
that she could find the secret entrance to the Reliquary. He
suspected Cade had given her access once when he wasn’t
around.
She gave him her usual bright smile, like a
cheerleader on meth. Vampires shouldn’t be cute little strawberry
blondes, Griff thought. It was just too disturbing.
“Where is he?” she asked.
“Nice to see you, too,” Griff said.
Tania smirked. “Let’s not be tiresome. I want to
know where Cade is.”
“He’s working.”
“Where?”
“Classified.”
“You think I’m going to hurt him?”
“I don’t know what you want, Tania. All I’m telling
you is, he’s not here.”
“He’s in danger. I need to speak with him. To warn
him.”
“I can take a message.”
Tania’s smile became a grim line. “Are you going to
be difficult about this?”
He cocked the shotgun’s lever back as quietly as he
could. She still heard.
She looked at him a little more closely. “That
thing between your legs won’t stop me,” she said.
Griff smiled back at her. “Doesn’t mean I can’t—”
Griff said, and then couldn’t speak.
She was behind him, her arm around his windpipe,
the cool flesh of her cheek against his ear.
“Let’s not fight, Griff. You know how Cade hates it
when we fight.”
She added a little pressure. Griff couldn’t
breathe. While he still had the strength, he shook his head.
A little more pressure. Spots danced before his
eyes. Then, as suddenly as she was there, she was gone again.
Griff sucked down a huge lungful of air.
“Stubborn,” she said, now back across the room. “So
damn stubborn. No wonder Cade tolerates you.” She sniffed. “Then
again, it’s not like you’d have a lot to lose if I did snap your
neck.”
Griff eyed her warily. “Everyone’s so concerned
about my health these days.” He reached for the drawer that
contained the holy water—something he should have done the moment
he saw her.
She saw his hand move and took an exaggerated step
back.
“I’m going. No need to be such a nervous Nellie. I
guess you’ll just have to live with it if anything happens to
Cade.”
“Cade can take care of himself.”
“You better hope so.”
She turned, and was gone up the stairs in a
second.
Griff took out the vial of holy water just in case.
It wasn’t like Tania to give up on something she wanted. She was a
pain in the ass that way even when she was human. Without the
restraints of mortality, she was a feeding frenzy on two
legs.
Then Griff looked down and realized why she’d left
without a fight.
He’d been checking the cargo plane’s flight
schedule. It was right there in front of him, on the desk. Along
with Cade’s destination: Los Angeles.
So Cade was going to have someone tagging
along.
For a moment, Griff considered going out after
Tania. She wasn’t as unstoppable as she liked to believe. He could
have slowed her down. Or, if he didn’t want to put in that much
effort, he could have run her latest current aliases through the
computer, in case she tried to fly commercial.
But for some reason, he decided to simply let her
go. Maybe it was just his own troubles, but Griff had the feeling
something bad was coming. Cade might need someone to watch his
back. Sure, she was evil, inhuman and had a body count in the
triple digits. But Griff had to admit, Tania was a hell of a lot
more capable than Zach.