Page 27 of My Master
“But she should have told someone what was happening!” Antonio screamed in frustration. “We know how to take care of ourselves! We have the coven’s protection, we know how to fight! Isis should have trusted us enough to tell us!” He flung the picture to the floor and then ran a hand through his hair.
Marco narrowed his eyes at his son and for a moment, his voice went all ice around the edges. “You are not seeing this from her point of view. You are being narrow-minded, Antonio. Imagine, having lost everything to one vampire, your family and everything you held dear. And suddenly, he returns, threatening your new family. Would you honestly expect them to fend for themselves? Or would you prevent danger from falling upon them, no matter the cost?”
Antonio’s eyes met Esmeralda’s for a split second and then it ended. He swallowed and nodded, understanding what his father meant. “So, what do we do?” he whispered softly. “How do we save her? Do we even know where she’s at?”
“We don’t know anything,” Marco said. “But, if we could get a tracker on her tail, it might be easier to go from there.”
Ezzy thought for a moment. For a second, she remembered the shared dream she had had with Antonio, the way Damien had looked at them, so sure and so confident, as if he knew everything, and had told them to get Victoria Phillipe to help them. She thought of Victoria now, with her long blonde curls and tall model figure. The woman was crazy, a bit unorthodox, she knew, but once Victoria started an assignment, she seemed most desperate to finish it. Her way or no way.
“I think,” Ezzy bgan. “We need to talk to FBSI agent Victoria Phillipe.”
14
The police station was busy. People ran in and out, making phone calls and rushing around frantically. Esmeralda had asked herself what it was that had happened to make them all act like this, or if it was just another normal day at the office.
It’d been hell to get in but when they finally did, she spotted Victoria on the third floor of the building, wearing black pants and laced up boots and a black turtle neck, her FBSI badge hanging on a chain around her neck. She was talking to a bear of a man that Ezzy recognized was her chief officer, and another man who was tall and dark and handsome, who was staring at Victoria with his hand in his chin. He seemed to be listening attentively.
“Victoria!” Ezzy called out. The werewolf turned around but didn’t smile when she saw Esmeralda and their little group. She waved off the two men and went to meet them half way.
“Ms. Ortiz, Mr. Santiago.” She nodded at them both in a formal greeting. “Is there something you need?” She glanced over her shoulder. “I’m kind of busy…”
“What happened here?” Antonio looked around.
Victoria sighed. “Someone broke in and let all of our prisoners out,” she said.
Esmeralda gasped.
“Yeah,” Victoria nodded. “They destroyed all of the security cameras so we can’t even see who it was that did this. We have a tech group trying to fix the problem, but they’re taking too long. We’re waiting for directions.” Another sigh. “But what are you guys doing here? Is there a problem with Rogues again?” She sounded genuinely concerned and it made Ezzy beam inwardly. This was a cop she could count on, no doubt.
“The problem is our friend is missing.” Esmeralda worried at the hem of her clothes. “You met her at the Santiago building?”
Victoria thought for a moment then nodded. “Yeah, I remember. Sarcastic dark skinned vampire? Missing in what way?”
“Missing as in kidnapped,” Antonio said. “We were hoping you could help us, get a tracker to help us pick up her scent, stuff like that.”
“Please?” Ezzy added, because she knew Antonio wasn’t polite enough to do so.
Victoria looked around. Though she didn’t say it out loud, her facial expression said everything. ‘Iamkind of busy…’
Ezzy’s hopes deflated like a balloon. OfcourseVictoria was busy with other matters. But who else was she going to ask? There weren’t many people she could trust or anyone she really knew to help her with a task this important.
“Phillipe.” The dark-haired handsome man had come behind Victoria before she could answer Ezzy, his hand rested lightly on her shoulder, his gaze indecipherable.
Victoria turned and looked up at him with a smile on her face that Esmeralda recognized too well. It was the kind of smile that she had given Antonio thousands of times, the smile of someone in love. It made her wonder if there was something going on between the two.
“He woke.”
Victoria bit her bottom lip and turned back to them. “Look, I’d be happy to help, you know that.”
Esmeralda feared she would turn them away, so she reached out on impulse, gripping Victoria’s wrist and felt tears falling down her cheeks. Victoria looked down at her wrist then back up at Esmeralda, her eyebrows lifted in an unasked question.
“Please, you have to help us,” Esmeralda begged. “Isis is my best friend, I don’t want anything bad to happen to her and—and I’m scared.”
Victoria’s gaze softened into something similar to sympathy. She closed her eyes and met the dark haired man’s eyes for a moment before looking at Ezzy, sighing. “Okay,” she said. “I’ll help you, but first I have to speak to a very important witness. Come with me.”
Ezzy let her go and followed both officers through the station, Antonio, Maria and Marco followed at Ezzy’s heels in silence. By the chaos happening around her, Esmeralda assumed that there had been a lot of prisoners locked away. She wondered who in their right mind would let a bunch of criminals loose on the streets and she hoped that they hadn’t been Rogues.
Victoria led them into a small office; where there was a man slumped in a chair, an ice pack pressed against his bleeding forehead. There were blood stains on the front of his shirt and on his neck, where he had probably been stabbed but had healed just the same.
