"Sweetness," Phineas whispered back, "When it comes to you and Phil, I'm up to my eyeballs in secrets. But my lips are sealed."
"Thank you." Vanda clinked her bottle against his. She turned when she heard the bathroom door open.
Phil exited, wearing his MacKay uniform of khaki pants and navy polo shirt. "Okay, Phineas. Let's go."
She gave Phil an encouraging smile as he teleported away with the young black Vamp. And then she immediately felt lonely without him. How quickly and thoroughly he'd invaded her heart and her life.
She sipped from the bottle and wondered what kind of secrets Phineas was keeping. There was no way he could know her darkest secrets. She'd never admitted them to anyone. So he had to be referring to Phil. Was there something about Phil she didn't know?
She thought back to when she'd first met him. He'd been a tall nineteen-year-old college student with beautiful blue eyes, a quick wit, and a charming smile. Even then there'd been an aura of earthy sexiness to him, a strong hint of the man he was to become, and she'd felt attracted to him from the start.
Now, as a twenty-seven-year old man, he'd far surpassed that earlier hint of manliness. He exuded masculine power, strength, and confidence. He drove her wild with desire. He inspired trust and a sense of security. But how well did she really know him?
A few memories flitted through her mind. Phil discovering a bomb in her file cabinet without actually seeing it. Phil capturing Max in her club and having enough strength to pin a vampire to the floor. Her bouncer complaining that he moved too fast.
She shoved those thoughts away. Phil was a sweet and wonderful man. She shouldn't doubt him. She ought to be grateful he was so strong and fast. If he hadn't detected that bomb, she'd be dead. If he hadn't killed that snake, she'd be dead.
His love for her was genuine and beautiful. And she was falling in love with him. That was all that mattered.
The atmosphere in the war room was grim. Phil took a seat at the conference table next to Connor. He nodded at the others sitting around the long table: Jack and Lara, Austin and Darcy, Howard, Phineas, Emma, Laszlo, Gregori, and Carlos, the Brazilian were-panther. Some additional chairs had been brought in to line the walls. Hugo, the ex-bouncer from Vanda's club, was sitting beside Robby and Jean-Luc, who must have teleported in from Texas. Angus paced around the table, deep in thought.
In the corner of the room, Sean Whelan was sitting alone. As head of the CIA Stake-Out Team, Sean's mission was to identify and terminate vampires. That mission had grown a bit complicated when his daughter, Shanna, married Roman Draganesti, and even more complicated when his team members, Austin and Emma, switched sides. Sean's gaze darted nervously about the room.
Phil scanned the room once more and realized Shanna and Roman were absent. He leaned close to Connor and whispered, "Did Angus send the Draganestis into hiding?"
"Nay," Connor replied. "He wanted to, but they insisted on staying here. Dougal and Zoltan are teleporting the injured Vamps here, and Roman and Shanna are in the clinic, patching them up."
"How did the Malcontents manage to infiltrate the Romatechs?" Phil whispered. "I thought Angus tightened security."
"I did," Angus grumbled, overhearing. "We doubled security on the ground, but they attacked from the air. Rockets fired from helicopters."
"Army helicopters?" Phil asked.
"We think so," Angus said as he continued to pace. "They must have used mind control to infiltrate nearby military bases."
"I'll alert the military," Sean Whelan said. When a dozen heads turned to him with alarm, he lifted his hands. "Don't worry. I won't tell them about vampires. I'll just say there's a radical group of psychic terrorists on the loose, using mind control to infiltrate bases. I'll recommend a lockdown, no visitors allowed on base after sundown. Any strangers will be shot on sight. Maybe that will help."
"Thank you, Whelan." Angus paced down the length of the table. "Let's get started, then. As ye all know, two of our Romatechs were destroyed tonight. One of our top priorities is resuming production as soon as possible in Texas and Colorado. Gregori is working on that."
Gregori nodded. "We're already looking at some rental properties. We still have all the daytime mortal employees, so we hope to be producing again in two weeks."
"Good. Another top priority is keeping the remaining three Romatechs safe. To that end, we have enlisted the help of Shanna's father." Angus motioned to Sean Whelan. "Ye have the floor, Sean."
"Thank you." The CIA operative stood and gazed warily about the room. "As much as it grieves me to associate with your kind, I am convinced an alliance with you is in the best interest of living Americans."
"Thank you, Sean." Emma smiled at him.
He scowled at his former employee. "I've contacted the army, and they've agreed to provide extra security at your facility here and in Ohio and California. They'll also provide antiaircraft missile launchers, radar equipment, and the necessary personnel to man the equipment. They'll start setting things up tomorrow."
"How did ye explain this to the army?" Connor asked.
"I told them it was a routine exercise to combat domestic terrorism," Sean replied. "Which is true, in my opinion. Those damned vampires are the worst terrorist threat our country has ever faced. If there's anything else I can do to wipe the Undead off the face of the planet, just let me know."
An uneasy silence pervaded the room.
"Well, we're verra grateful for yer help, Sean." Angus shook hands with him. "Now, perhaps ye'd like to visit yer grandchildren? They're across the hall in the nursery with Radinka."
Sean gave him a wry look. "I'd rather stay here and see what your plans are."
A flicker of annoyance shone in Angus's eyes before he motioned to a chair. "Of course. Have a seat."
Angus resumed his pacing. "Roman's busy taking care of the wounded, so he canna report on his most recent project, discovering the formula for Nightshade. Laszlo, do ye know if he's made any progress?"
The small chemist sat up. "Yes, sir. He's completed two test serums. The problem, of course, is finding a test subject. At best, the serum will paralyze a vampire. Worst case scenario…" He grabbed a button on his lab coat and twisted it. "It could be fatal."
Connor leaned back in his chair. "Och, luckily, we have a volunteer. He's waiting in the silver room."
"The prisoner?" Laszlo plucked at his button. "That—That doesn't seem very humane."
"He's not human," Sean Whelan hissed. "He's a monster."
Angus sighed. "I'm actually in agreement with you there, Whelan."
"Hell must be freezing over," Connor muttered, then raised his voice. "We might as well put the prisoner to good use. He doesna appear to have any more information for us."
"And I hear ye've been working on something new, Laszlo?" Angus asked.
"Ah, yes." The chemist tugged at his button. "You see, I was talking to Jack last night at the party, and he told me about a device the FBI put into a hair weave for Lara in order to track her. Unfortunately, Jack could hear it, so he had to remove it. But then the Malcontents kidnapped Lara, and he was unable to find her for days."
"Aye, we know," Angus grumbled impatiently. "Get on with it."
The button popped off onto the table. Laszlo grabbed it and stuffed it into a pocket. "I started work tonight on a tracking device that would be completely undetectable to vampires and shape shifters. Then we could all be tagged, and if anyone gets kidnapped, we could rescue them quickly."
"Sounds like a great idea, buddy." Gregori gave the small chemist a thumbs-up.
Laszlo blushed. "Well, I was kidnapped once myself, so I know how frightening it can be."
"How exactly would ye tag us?" Connor asked.