Page 71 of Fanged Embrace
She was speaking now, nodding at a stack of papers splayed out in front of her on the desk. “Thanks to Ursula, we’ve got the witches working with us, and they’ve located four additional facilities within the five-borough area.” She listed the locationson one hand. “Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island.” Her eyes slid to Jordan, who had her fingers laced under her chin where she sat behind the desk. “But there could be more we don’t know about yet.”
The flaming redhead was quiet for a beat before she sighed and rubbed at her temple. “Locating the rest of them won’t be easy. Our best bet is to figure out where they’re picking up their victims and following them from there.”
“What about Mr. Mysterious? The vampire who was stealing people from bars?” the blond boy, Ethan, piped up from his perch near the window. “If he shows up again we could follow him.”
“He hasn’t shown up at any of his usual haunts.” It was Arlon who answered him, clearing his throat nervously when all sets of eyes turned his way. “Ever since you guys broke into that facility, that man has been lying low. He’s probably spooked—he knows his method has been compromised.”
“So we’re back at square one—again,” Hunter grumbled and folded her arms, leaning back against a bookcase. “We have no idea how they’re harvesting new victims.”
I straightened up. That was my cue. A chance to be useful.
I cleared my throat. “Actually… I might know where to start.”
Instant silence—Jordan’s level gaze, Hunter’s icy stare, Ethan’s curious head-tilt—all eyes fixated on me. I felt every pupil like a pin prick, and the words jammed in my throat. “I… Uh.”
I faltered, shrinking into myself under the sudden attention. River’s fingers settled on my shoulder, the slightest touch but comforting enough, steadying as a port in a storm.
“You don’t have to do this now,” she murmured, low enough to reach my ears only. Everybody else was watching us, watchingme. From the corner of my eye, I saw Dylan raise a curious brow.
“I…” I sucked in a breath, blinking back hazy memories and fighting to keep my head clear. “I want to help.”
It took a full minute of deep breathing and staring at the floor to steady myself, but I finally managed to get the words out, conscious of River’s hand resting lightly near the nape of my neck. “The organization… They target foster kids. Runaways, too. They send fake caseworkers into group homes, promise scholarships or medical screenings—anything a kid desperate for a break would grab onto.”
A lump climbed up my throat, throttling the rest of my statement. “That’s how they got me. I was taken out of foster care. They used a fake caseworker—papers looked official, signatures checked out. Group-home staff didn’t even blink.”
Jordan’s brows knitted together. “So they’re hunting kids who get lost in the system.”
“Exactly.” I forced the next words through the vice of memory. “Runaways, wards of the state, chronically ill teens—anyone on the fringe of society, people who won’t be missed.” I swallowed. “If we want to find the rest of the facilities, we start with the intake stream. Track bogus case files, van pickups near shelters, clinics that suddenly ‘transfer’ terminal patients.”
Jordan was already nodding along, fingers tapping a frantic tempo on the desk. “This could work. I’ll get every faction we have working on that.” Her hand stilled suddenly and she inclined her head toward me, full lips pulling into a warm smile. “Thank you, Laurie.”
I couldn’t help but cringe away from the small kindness, overwhelmed by all the attention and backing up until I bumped into River—who placed a second hand on my other shoulder.
She held me steady like that, stooping low to murmur in my ear, “It’s all right, Jordan doesn’t bite. Often.” She squeezed my shoulders lightly, breath tickling against my neck. “You did good.”
I shuddered under her touch but didn’t flinch away. I leaned into it, feeding on the strength she radiated. Jordan was speaking again, addressing the rest of the room, and I tried to follow the strategy.
“Once we’ve managed to pinpoint the rest of the facilities we’ll need to act quickly.” Her gaze swept over all of us. “Hitting them one at a time won’t work, they’ll just ramp up their security. So, we have to strike simultaneously, hit every facility at thesame time, with every supernatural faction involved—vampire, witch, shifter, elf. If we play our cards right, we can cut the head off this organization in one night.”
She leaned back, sweeping a hand out over the paperwork. “One coordinated hit to end this once and for all.”
It was a good plan, I had to admit. But did they have the manpower to manage the task? If they were to land a hit on every single facility, they needed all the allies they could get…
A memory floated back to me. A dingy nightclub where I’d worked briefly last winter, and a group of hybrid escapees congregating in the alleyway out back. They’d offered me safe houses, weapons, intel. I’d waved them off—too fixated on my solo vendetta.
I swallowed, straightened my spine a little. River’s hands stayed put, a silent encouragement like she knew that I wanted to speak up.
“I—uh—might know some people who can help,” I whispered, quieter than intended, but I caught their attention anyway. Eyes swung my way again, but the terror was duller this time. I forced the words out, one decibel louder. “Other supernaturals. Captives who got out before I did. They’re… organized. They’ll fight with you.”
Truth be told, the group I was referring to didn’t like me all that much, but they liked the organization even less. They would fight if I asked them to. It was just a matter of finding them.
Jordan looked interested, and she cocked her head to the side. “How many are we talking?”
I managed a stiff shrug. “A dozen? Maybe fifteen.” I guessed the number randomly, my memories too hazy for specifics. “Some of them are hybrids. They offered support when I escaped, but I… wasn’t in a place to accept it.”
That was an understatement. They’d offered me allyship and I’d scornfully turned them down, so hellbent on avoiding companionship lest it got in the way of my grand plan.
Look at you now, the small voice in my head muttered,working with a group of vampires when you swore to take on this mission alone.I glanced back at River, who caught the brief eye contact and offered a reassuring smile.Funny how things turned out.
