Page 50 of Vanessa’s Bravery

“Yeah, something about an algorithm for online advertising.” Vanessa looked at him quizzically.

“That’s what it’s sold for, yes, but it has another application.” He felt excited now, because he could help Vanessa and her family eliminate the danger vampires presented. “The algorithm can create models using only one set of data, in this case, the vampire you killed.”

“I’m afraid you lost me there,” she said. “I’m not an IT genius.”

“Scanguards has an IT department, I assume?”

“Yep.”

“If I can show them what the algorithm can do, they’ll understand it. All I need is to get my computer and my data drives from my condo.”

For a moment, Vanessa said nothing, but judging by the way she bit her lip, he could see that her mind was digesting his words.

“Let’s do it. I’ll call Thomas and Eddie; they head up the IT department.”

Cole took Vanessa’s hand, turning toward the direction they’d come from. His idea would kill two birds with one stone: removing Vanessa from patrolling tonight so she wouldn’t be in danger of getting attacked by a vampire, and helping Scanguards find and eliminate the bloodsuckers.

24

While Cole had gone into his home office to fetch his computer and data discs, Vanessa had remained in the living room and made a phone call to Thomas to apprise him of their arrival. Since they couldn’t let Cole come to the executive floor, which was accessible only to vampires and their mates—though this rule had been broken more than once—, Thomas and Eddie would meet them in the computer lab in the basement. Even though Cole knew of the existence of vampires, it was imperative that he not find out that Vanessa and most of Scanguards were vampires too. Thomas promised to inform the staff accordingly.

At the gate to the Scanguards underground garage, Vanessa swiped her access card at the card reader and pressed her thumb on the scanner, and the gate lifted to let Cole drive into the garage. She directed him to a vacant parking spot designated for visitors.

“Looks like a pretty big building,” Cole commented when they got out of the Land Rover and walked to the elevators.

“It’s half a city block long and half a block wide.” Vanessa pressed the call button next to the elevator.

“I didn’t realize a security company needed that much office space.”

The elevator doors opened, and Vanessa ushered him inside, swiping her access card again, before selecting the level for the computer lab.

“It’s not just offices. We also train bodyguards here, so there are several rooms for hand-to-hand combat, an underground shooting range, a medical facility, rooms for research and supplies, and of course the servers and the computer lab. Some of our work deals with cyber security, so we’re pretty well-equipped in that respect too.”

That there was also a lab where two witches, Charles and Wesley, concocted magic potions and worked on spells, she left out, just like she left out the fact that there was also a bottling facility. There, Scanguards bottled human blood it purchased from blood banks around the country, posing as a medical supply company. There was also a weapons vault with all kinds of weapons that worked on vampires and other preternatural creatures. Not to forget the V lounge, where vampires rested in between shifts and where human blood on tap—arranged by blood type—was served at no cost to the employees. It was meant as an encouragement not to feed off unsuspecting humans.

“Whom are we meeting?”

“Thomas and Eddie. They run the IT department. They are geniuses.”

Cole took her hand and lifted it to his lips, kissing her knuckles. “And they all know about vampires? The entire company?”

She nodded, feeling guilt rise up from her gut, turning her stomach into knots. How long could she keep from him that he was walking right into a vampire nest?

“How did you and your family find out about them? I meant to ask you earlier—”

“Uhm—” The elevator door opening interrupted him. To Vanessa’s relief, Thomas, dressed in a casual white shirt and black leather pants stood waiting in front of the elevator, saving her from answering Cole’s question.

“Hey, Nessie.” Thomas nodded and extended his hand. “I’m Thomas. You must be Cole.”

Stepping out of the elevator, Cole shook Thomas’s proffered hand. “Nice to meet you, Thomas.”

“Let’s go to the computer lab, and we’ll see what you’ve got for us.”

“Thanks for making time for me,” Cole replied.

Thomas flashed him a smile. “We welcome any help finding those rogues.” He pushed a door open and entered ahead of them.

The large room had at least two dozen work stations with multiple computers. Along one wall was a glass-enclosed office.