Shadow Born: Book 1 of the Shadow-Borne Chronicles (35 page)

They finally found a restaurant that had free Wi-Fi and an alleyway they could kind of hide in.
 
If any weirdo or thug happened to show up, Alec could handle them.
 

Alec sat quietly, thinking while Steven typed away on his computer.
 
Alec didn’t know how Steven was going to hack the file and was afraid that even if he explained it, it still wouldn’t make any sense.
 
His mind drifted to what had happened.
 
Why would five vampires come after the two of them during the day?
 
Did they just run out of time, or lose track of time?
 
They never once tried to run, not even when Steven had pulled the boards off of the windows.
 
They just shielded their eyes and kept fighting even while their hands were smoking and blistering.
 

What were the Senator and VonBell up to?
 
Why was Taylor siphoning off money from the blood bank?
 
What was the other account for?
 
Steven said it was for some sort of facility, but what type and why steal Federal money?
 
What was Taylor giving money to VonBell for?
 
Was he being blackmailed?
 
There were just too many damned questions and not enough information.
 
Maybe Silas could figure it out.
 

They had been sitting in the alleyway for several hours when Steven finally let out a whoop of excitement.
 
For the most part they had been left alone but Alec looked to make sure that Steven wasn’t drawing attention to them.

“Got it!” Steven said pumping his fist excitedly.

“What is it?
 
Can you tell?”
 

Steven typed on the keyboard again, pulling information up.

“Hmmm.
 
From what I can tell, this is an email of some sort.
 
If I’m looking at this right, the email will be sent if the Senator doesn’t type in a password every twenty-four hours.”

Alec leaned over so he could read the screen and as he read his eyebrows rose higher and higher.

“Oh boy,” Alec said quietly.

Steven read along and frowned.

“What is this, some sort of journal entry?”

Alec nodded.
 
“I think so.”

There was information here about the vampires, and the Senator’s dealings with them.
 
He had listed everything he could think of in as much detail as possible.
 
The Senator had detailed what he knew of the hierarchy of the vampires, the council, Protectorates, everything he’d heard was there.
 
Attached there were also documents to create a paper trail to the blood banks in use by the vampires.
 

“I don’t understand,” Steven said reading.
 
“Why write all this stuff out.
 
Why not just tell someone.”

Suddenly Alec understood.
 
“That’s what Taylor meant when he threatened Silas.”

“What? I’m confused.”

“Okay, last night when Victor had Chris hostage the Senator demanded that Silas get him out safely or else.
 
He said something like ‘if anything mysterious happens to me, let’s just say you won’t like it’.”

“Threatening vampires.
 
That’s smart.”

Alec nodded.

“I still don’t understand why an email?”

“Remember the email that Chris sent the Senator about the vampires?
 
He told his father ‘Do what my therapist told me, write it out, writing is a different process’.
 
Looks like he took it literally.
 
The Senator has been compelled so that he can’t
talk
about the vampires or what he knows.”

Steven typed in some more information and whistled quietly.

“This email is set to go out to CNN, all the news agencies, the Senate.
 
Hell it’s even set to go to the President of the United States.
 
There are names here that I don’t even recognize.”
 
He typed some more.
 
“With the attached documents, he could expose the whole operation
and
the vampires.”

Alec pulled at his lip while he thought.

“Is there any way you can stop the email from being sent without the Senator knowing it’s been tampered with?”

“Of course,” Steven said, offended by the question.

“Okay, go ahead and do that.
 
We don’t want the Senator getting frisky and sending out an email that might cause the world to come unraveled.”

“You got it, boss,” Steven said and winked at him.
 
“Done.”

“Are there any other contingency plans on his computer?”

“Not that I can see, but there are a lot of files I haven’t read over yet.
 
I just went through the main ones where the word vampire stood out.
 
I haven’t looked at the other files too closely.”

“Hmmm.
 
We may have found a way for you to be useful to the vampires and maybe keep you safe.
 
Someone has covered up your involvement in this whole mess.
 
I wonder how Chris and the Senator are handling all this?”
 
Alec laughed.

“Chris can rot in hell for all I care.
 
That man and his friends bullied me all through high school and then started harassing me in college,” Steven said bitterly.
 
“Vic wasn’t the only one that got picked on.”

“I know the feeling.
 
I had a bully in high school too.
 
He was relentless calling me names, making fun of me.
 
It was the biggest nightmare.”

Steven looked shocked.
 
“But you’re a jock.”

Alec really did laugh then.
 

“I didn’t always look like this.
 
I used to be really overweight and I was a big nerd in high school.”

“No way.”
 
Steven looked incredulous.

“Yep.
 
It wasn’t until…later that I changed.”

“When you were ‘turned’ or whatever?”

“Yeah.
 
Then suddenly I lost weight, gained muscles and even grew taller if you can believe that.”

“So, vampirism changes how you look,” Steven said thoughtfully.

“To make you a better predator.”

“Makes sense actually.
 
The stronger and more attractive a specimen, the more likely they will attract attention.”

Alec nodded.
 
“I’ll have to show you a picture when I get my wallet back.
 
You won’t believe the changes.”

“Nice.”

“Okay, I need you to look up another number.
 
Silas Montgomery’s.
 
I’ll call the mansion and see if I can get ahold of the head of Silas’s security.
 
Dorn should know what to do.”

“Here you go.
 
Do you think it’s a good idea to talk to this Dorn guy?”

“I trust him completely,” Alec said nodding his head.
 
“We just need a pay phone.”

“Hold up.”
 
Steven clicked on the number and then clicked another box when it opened up.
 
Suddenly Alec could hear a phone ringing.
 
“Voice over IP,” Steven said and winked.

Alec hoped that someone picked up and that it didn’t go to voice mail.
 
A moment later a familiar voice answered.

“Xavier, thank god.
 
This is Alec Carson.”

“Mister Carson, are you okay?
 
We’ve been worried sick.
 
Silas called and told us what happened in case you called here.”

“We are in a bit of a predicament here.
 
I don’t have my wallet and we are stuck
 
somewhere in Chicago.”
 

“If you’ll give me a moment, sir, I will have VonBell’s driver pick you up?
 
Where are you?”

“No,” Alec said a little too quickly.
 
He hadn’t meant for it to come out like that.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yes, everything is fine.
 
We just have a few…issues.”
 
Alec didn’t know how much to tell the butler.

“Of course, sir, say no more.
 
I can have a car pick you up and take you anywhere you need to go.”

“You can do that?” Alec asked surprised.

“Of course, sir.
 
There are services that we call on when needed.
 
They are discreet.”

“Okay fine.
 
That would help out a lot. We are at the corner of Madison and Wabash.”

“I will also wire you some money.
 
Do you think five thousand dollars should be enough?”
 
Alec was shocked to hear this and Steven’s eyes were huge.

“More than enough, Xavier, but I don’t have my ID with me.”
 

“I will take care of it.
 
The driver will know where to go and I’ll wire the money in his name so he can pick it up for you.
 
Is there anything else?”

“Yes, please text Silas to let him know I will be at VonBell’s tonight when the sun goes down, but please tell him to keep this to himself and Marcus, please.
 
Was he okay when you talked to him?”

“Yes, sir.
 
Why?
 
Is there a problem?” Xavier sounded worried.

“I’m not sure yet.
 
I just wanted to know if he sounded…normal.”

“Yes sir.
 
He sounded fine, other than being very concerned for you of course.”

“Thank you for your help, Xavier.
 
You are a life saver.
 
Can I speak with Dorn please?
 
Is he around?”

“Yes, he’s standing right here actually and would like to speak with you a moment.
 
And Mister Carson, you’re welcome and I’m glad you’re okay.”

That brought a lump to Alec’s throat. He wasn’t used to having people worry over him.

“Alec?
 
Are you okay?” Dorn asked in his deep voice.

“I’m fine, Dorn.
 
Listen I have a problem.”
 
Dorn listened quietly as Alec detailed everything they had found.
 
Alec wasn’t sure Silas would want Dorn knowing all of the details but he didn’t know who else to turn to.

“Doesn’t sound good, Alec, but you’re right.
 
Something is going on there.
 
Do you think there will be any problems when you confront VonBell and Taylor?”

“I honestly don’t know.
 
But if you don’t hear from us, you’ll know why.”

“Surely he’s not
that
stupid.”

“I don’t know any more Dorn.
 
There seems to be something big going on here.”

“Alec, do you trust this Reynolds guy?”
 
He either didn’t know or didn’t care that Steven could hear the conversation.

“Yeah, I do Dorn.
 
He’s the one that’s found most of this information.”

Dorn grunted.
 
“Okay. Be careful Alec.
 
If you need anything else, just call.”

“I will, thanks.”
 
Steven hit a button and they were disconnected.
 

“Wow.
 
Nice to have friends with power and money,” Steven said in surprise.

“Yeah, really.
 
That was not what I was expecting.”

They sat and chatted for a bit and then after about thirty minutes a black car with tinted windows pulled up to the curb outside where Alec and Steven were hidden.
 
They walked around from the alleyway towards the driver.

“Alec Carson?” the driver asked.
 
He was in his late twenties with brown hair and eyes.
 
He had pulled his sunglasses off when he started speaking but held them in his left hand.
 
When Alec responded he said, “I’m Jon, I’ll be your driver.
 
I’m instructed to take you to pick up some money and then anywhere else you’d like to go.
 
The car is yours for the day.”
 
He held the door open for Alec and Steven to get in the back of the car.

It was dark and cool in the interior of the vehicle and Alec was glad to be sitting on a padded seat instead the hard ground.
 
There was a glass partition that separated the front from the back.
 
The driver’s voice came over a speaker just beneath the glass.

“Is there anywhere you need to go before we pick up your money?”

Alec reached over and pressed the red ‘Talk’ button.
 
“No, thank you.”

“Very well, sir,” the driver said and the car pulled out into traffic.

“I hate all this ‘sir’ this and ‘sir’ that.
 
It’s unnerving.”

Steven laughed.
 
“You’ll get used to it after awhile.”

“I don’t want to get used to it.”

They drove for about ten minutes and then pulled up to the curb in front of a bank.
 
The driver said he would be back in a moment and then walked inside.

“What next?” Steven asked Alec while the waited.

“Food, then clothes.
 
I’m starving and we need to get cleaned up some.
 
I figured we could kill some time before we go to VonBell’s.
 
I don’t really want to sit in a prison cell at VonBell’s until Silas and Marcus wake up.”

Steven nodded his head vigorously at the idea of food.
 
He agreed that spending time in a cell waiting didn’t sound good to him.

The driver Jon walked out of the bank and got in the front of the car.
 
Before they drove away, he pressed a button to open the window between them, and pulled out an envelope from his jacket and handed it Alec.