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“Don’t you get hot under that mask? Oops, that was a question. I mean, you should take that mask off, it’s gotta be hot under there.”
With vampire speed, he backhanded me, and I fell to the floor. I put my hands to my face and scowled up at him. “Asshole.”
“Shut your fucking pie hole. I won’t tell you again, bitch.”
I stood and followed him down a hallway. He led me to a room that had a bed, dresser, computer station, and an adjoining bathroom. After pushing me inside, I almost lost my balance and fell again. The stinging on my cheek persisted but would be gone soon, thanks to the quick healing. “Stay in here and shut up. Get started on building that website.” He pointed to the computer.
As he was about to close the door, I said, “Wait. Can’t you please untie my hands? I can’t work like this.”
I saw his brown eyes move down toward my hands. With a huff, he pulled out a pocketknife and sliced through them.
“Thank you,” I said, rubbing my red, raw skin.
He slammed the door in my face and locked it from the outside.
I searched the room for cameras and only saw a webcam on the computer. I quickly pulled out the phone and powered it on. I had a quarter battery power left. I shot off another text to Parker: I’m inside this mansion, they have me in a back room. There’s a computer here so I’ll try to make contact that way.
I went to shove the phone under the mattress, and it buzzed before I could power it down.
Parker: We’re on our way. Hang tight, beautiful.
Tears welled up in my eyes. I couldn’t believe he cared that much for me. He said we, so I assumed he was bringing a couple of guys with him. Smart. I powered down the phone, went over to the computer, and sat in the chair. After booting it up, I quickly checked the internet access and smiled when I saw WiFi. I went to the settings and wrote down the IP address with a pencil and pad of paper I found in the top desk drawer.
A message box popped up on the screen: We’re watching everything you do, Frank. You do anything but build that website, we’ll see every keystroke and site you visit. There’s a credit card in the drawer if you need to buy software. No funny business. We’ll be monitoring purchases as well.
I laughed. I could clone this computer faster than they could blink and then do anything I wanted, and they’d see nothing. They were lucky there was no reply option because I had a few middle-finger emojis I’d love to send back. I ripped off a scrap of paper, licked it, and stuck it to the webcam in case they wanted to watch me through it. “Screw you.” I flipped off the camera.
I pulled out the phone and texted Parker the IP address, thought maybe it could help him find me faster. After powering it down again, I put it under the mattress and went to work.
Chapter 22
Search & Rescue
Face
We landed at the small airport at three a.m., and quickly deplaned. Jerry was ordered to stay put. An unmarked shuttle van awaited us, and after we all piled in, the driver asked us where to.
I looked down at the text I’d gotten from Devon right before we landed. It had been too easy to track her exact location from my tablet using the IP address. “Twenty-three Crown Mountain Road. But… you can drop us nearby and we’ll walk the rest of the way. It’s a, uh, surprise visit.”
He eyed our tactical clothing and said in broken English, “Uh, sure. That not too far from here, be about ten minutes.”
We rode in silence. My stomach was a ball of nerves. Every lieutenant but Andy had come, and I was overwhelmed with gratitude. They didn’t have to risk their lives for me—for Devon. But they were. We had no idea how many men or vampires were in the house.
After a few minutes, the driver stopped the van on the side of the road and said, “It’s up the hill, about three houses. Can’t miss it.”
“Thanks,” Viper said, handing the man cash. “Stay here and wait, we’ll be out in less than an hour. Kill the lights, please.”
“You got it, boss man,” he replied, turning the engine off.
The five of us huddled up in front of the van. “Did she say where in the house she was?” Viper asked me.
“She just said a back bedroom.”
“I say the two of you go in, the three of us will surround the house, front and back,” Shadow said.
“I agree,” Phoenix said. “You guys locked and loaded?”
Rolling my eyes, I held up my pistol. “Yes, Rambo.”
