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“You moved sofast,” she said quietly.
He brushed the rent in her head. “Not fast enough. A bullet touched your skin. That’s far too slow for me.”
Cat’s laugh was dryer than crunching leaves. “That’s faster than I knew any vampirecouldmove. The flying trick blew me away as well, although we can never go back tothatrestaurant. You destroyed the place and didn’t even pay for our wine.”
He had his ice; she had her sarcasm to shield herself when she felt out of control, and it was on in full force now.
“We both know who has to be behind this, Kitten. Obviously, Don decided not to trust you now that you’re dating a vampire.”
She didn’t say anything. Just looked around at the kitchen as though suddenly fascinated by the white cabinets, stainless steel appliances, and charcoal-and-white granite countertops.
“It’s not Don,” she finally said, holding up a hand when Bones drew in a breath to argue. “Think about it. Ellis said he’d originally been given the contract a week ago, so someone planned the hitbeforeyou came back into my life. Don had no reason to want me dead then. I was playing by all his rules.”
Bloody hell, she was right. Even if Don had somehow known about Bones from the moment of Denise and Randy’s wedding, it still didn’t fit the timeframe.
“I’m still so unsettled about almost wearing your brains on me that I’m not thinking clearly. Right, then. Don looks clean, but then that means there’s a traitor at your compound.”
“How?” she asked in disbelief.
Bones gave her a pointed look. “This wasn’t another contract on the Red Reaper. This was on Cristine Russell because they knew where you lived, where you worked, and that you were a ‘government employee.’ Only the people at your compound know those things, so how many suspects does that equate to?”
She looked rattled. “My entire unit, Don’s scientists, some of the guards…so, about a hundred people.”
Frustration filled him. “That’s a large number. It also means it won’t take Ian long to pick up on your whereabouts, too.”
Not with such information making the human bounty hunter rounds, where it was only a small jump from there to reach Ian’s many sources. Bones had to work fast. If only he could get the suspects all in the same place at the same time…wait. He could.
“I’ll pay a visit to your work and sniff out the Judas.”
Cat stared at him as if he’d sprouted a second head. “You can’t. That place is heavily armed and heavily guarded. I should know-I designed the security! There are only two ways a vampire can get inside there without massive bloodshed. One way is shriveled. They store the dead ones for study. The other is almost as unpleasant: inside our capsule. Don keeps some vamps alive for their blood so he can keep making Brams.”
“Brams?” he asked with a raised brow.
“Synthesized version of the healing component in vampire blood,” she said with an impatient wave. “Doesn’t work as well as the real thing, but it’s great for treating broken bones and internal bleeding.”
Don truly must fear that drinking vampire blood turned people evil. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have taken the time, expense, and effort to make a weaker synthetic version of it. But Don’s paranoia could be used to Bones’s advantage now.
Bones took his mobile out, scrolled, and then dialed. “Hallo, yes, I’d like a large pizza with extra cheese, pepperoni, and mushrooms. Mmm hmm, a two-liter bottle of Coke as well. I’ll be paying cash. Here’s the address.”
A frown stitched between Cat’s brows by the time he hung up. “Is that code for something?”
Bones snorted. “Yes, it’s code for a large pizza and soda. You never did get to eat, and I can’t have you starving on me, can I? Don’t fret, it’s all for you. As you know, I’m full. Now, tell me everything about this capsule.”
“Why?” she asked with open suspicion.
He gave her his most innocent smile. “Humor me.”
She spent the next five minutes describing an impressive mobile prison, finishing with, “We’ve had no escapes once a vampire is secured inside.”
“Too right you haven’t.” Even a Master like him would be well and truly trapped. She must have designed it when she was in a particularly foul mood.
“Why the sudden interest in the capsule?”
Bones didn’t answer. Instead, he texted Ted, frowning when he received an auto-reply. Right, Ted was away on his tenth wedding anniversary, and Ted’s husband, Bruce, had deliberately picked a place with no internet access. Smart bloke knew that staying off the grid was the only way to ensure Ted relaxed. But Ted wasn’t the only computer genius that Bones knew.
Bones texted Randy, marking it urgent. His mobile rang less a minute later. “What’s wrong, Cris?” Randy asked.
Cat’s eyes widened when she heard Randy’s voice. “You’re calling Randy while he and Denise are on theirhoneymoon?”
