Page 61 of Born Wicked

It doesn’t matter, though. That’s her job to worry about the details. I just have to keep her doing what she’s supposed to.

So I don’t ask any questions as we walk outside. Teresa climbs into a cruiser, and the four of us pile back into the limo.

“Stay right on her tail,” Elena instructs Patrick. He simply gives a nod and pulls away from the curb, right behind Superintendent Day.

It’s not that far as the crow flies. But with the traffic, with the pedestrians that have to be dodged, it takes us thirty minutes.

“I thought that went surprisingly well,” Elena says, just a hint of sarcasm in her tone. “She didn’t immediately whip her gun out when you broke out the fangs and eyes.”

Mason just shrugs, a smirk on his lips.

Finally, we pull into a parking lot. Teresa gets out of her car, and in two seconds flat, the four of us are flanking her.

“Paperwork doesn’t usually go through this fast,” Teresa says. Her voice is shaking with nerves. “The release order should be there to them now, but without a court hearing yet…” She clears her throat and rolls her shoulders back. “You’ll have to wait in the release area. Give me twenty minutes.”

“Fine,” I answer. Gosh, I’m practically bouncing on the balls of my feet. Every second right now feels like an hour.

We step inside to find a maddeningly bland room. Dirty laminate floor. Walls that were probably white fifteen years ago. Not a bit of personality or piece of artwork hanging.

“What is your deal?” Elena asks, her voice low as Mason takes a seat in a plastic chair. Tabitha stands at the door, looking out, as if expecting an attack at any second.

“What do you mean?” I demand, my brows furrowing. My eyes are fixed on the window in the door that shows a hallway and another window with a bored looking man sitting there at a computer.

“You’re acting like you’re two seconds from exploding in anticipation,” she says, her eyes confused. “You haven’t been able to sit still since I woke up. I mean, I know you’ve had a lot on your plate, but you’re acting really weird.”

“I’m not normal, Elena,” I point out, raising my eyebrows in exasperation. “Pretty sure you knew this about me from the get-go.”

She simply shakes her head and takes a step back to sit beside Mason.

I don’t look away from the window. My heart is racing, and I swear I’m going to jump two feet in the air in nervous anticipation the second someone walks toward this door. My fingers are picking at the hem of my scrubs, and I know I’m pacing faster than I should be.

But everything in me calms the moment Roman turns down the hall. His eyes fix on mine, and I feel something inside of me… lighten. It’s like there’s been this suffocating vice that’s been wound around my body since Roman got locked up, and finally seeing him again… it loosens for the first time in days.

Roman’s gaze remains fixed on me as he walks down the hall. His hands are bound by handcuffs, but he doesn’t seem to notice. A guard walks behind him, alert and attentive, as if he’s expecting Roman to lash out. Right behind them, Superintendent Day follows.

They all stop at that window, and the bored man finally has a purpose in life. While the guard unlocks Roman’s handcuffs, the other man enters some information into the computer, then disappears for a moment. Through the walls, I hear him scrounging through boxes. Finally, he walks back to the window and hands Roman this little plastic tray, from which he removes a cell phone, wallet, a watch, sunglasses, and some change.

I’m pretty sure my heart is going to beat out of my chest when he turns from the window and the guard pushes the door between us open for him.

Calm the hell down, Juliet, the thought floats through my mind, but it’s barely more than a misty cloud.

Roman steps into the room, and the world finally settles down, as if the hurricane has instantly ended.

I don’t know what to do with myself. I think most people would hug in this circumstance, but that’s definitely not me, and that’s certainly not Roman. Plus, it’s Roman. If you had asked me three months ago, I would have said he was the last person on the planet that I’d ever voluntarily hug.

“Kill anyone while you were in there?” I ask, reverting to my default sarcasm when I don’t know what else to say.

“Only the ones who deserved it,” he says. But there’s a spark in his eyes, a hint of a smile in the corner of his mouth that gives him away. “You gave them some evidence?”

But right then, Superintendent Day steps into the waiting area. She looks… nervous. She should be. She’s standing in a room with five vampires. She folds her hands over her lap and clears her throat.

“Sebastian Vincent’s case is being closed,” she says, her voice growing more hoarse. “I’d like to talk to him if he ever returns to Chicago.”

“Us too,” Mason says darkly.

The smile that curls on Elena’s lips is enough to chill even my blood.

Teresa clears her throat again and quickly looks away from the Godfreys. Her eyes skip past Roman, and I guess I’m the least intimidating one in the room, because she addresses me. “You all are free to go. And let’s just hope we don’t have to cross paths ever again.”

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