Jericho waits for him to continue, but he doesn’t. “Am I supposed to know who that is?”
Kaine stomps a boot into the dirt. “Oh, for fuck’s… You really don’t know who Orem is? He was released from Irongate Prison about two years ago. He’s extremely gifted in memory charms and mind control. There’s even a conspiracy going around that he charmed his own way out of prison by playing with the guards’ minds. But no one can prove it, of course, so he’s still walking around. A free agent.”
Jericho hesitates. “Why is he working with Foxx?”
“Foxx hired him to protect the place,” Kaine says.
“But why? What does a mage get out of protecting a group of vampires? And why is Foxx doing all of this in the first place? What’s the fucking point?”
Kaine raises a hand in anare you kidding megesture. “Isn’t it obvious? He wants the power. That’s all. That’s why he turned himself. He wants to create the strongest coven in the area, or the state, or goddamn country for all I know. So, he’s being meticulous in who he lets in. Which, if you look at his history as a human, is no surprise.”
Grant tilts his head. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, Foxx was a serial rapist before he was turned. He chose his victims deliberately. Stalked them for weeks before making a move.” He lowers his gaze. “He stalked my mom for weeks! She went to the police, of course, but they said she didn’t have enough evidence. They blamedherfor not being more careful. Two days later, she was dead.”
Kaine’s anger penetrates my heart. I’d felt the same anger when Jericho first told me what happened to him. I’d asked him to go to the police, but he didn’t see the point. He was convinced they’d say he put himself in that position, then lock him away for being a new vampire.
“That’s something we can all relate to,” I say quietly. “Foxx has hurt all of us here, in ways very similar to yours. But how can we know we can trustyou?”
Kaine’s eyes are a strange, glacier shade of blue. A cold and distant iceberg isolated in the middle of the ocean. “You can’t,” he says simply.
I turn to Jericho. Years of friendship make it easy to know what he is thinking. Hewantsto trust Kaine, even if it means bringing another vampire into the mix. But he also fears for me, and for my mom. He fears for our friends. And so do I. We both care about these shifters now, and in a big way. Inviting another vampire in is a huge risk.
But Kaine has also given us more information than we ever would have hoped for on our own, and he did it willingly. That needs to count for something.
“What do you know of the recent victims?” Grant asks, as if trying to get every piece of information from him before we make a decision.
“Which ones?” Kaine says simply. “There have been many.”
“We’ve noticed a pattern the last few nights where a certain number of people gointhe club, but there are less that come out. Six people each night. What can you tell us about that?”
Kaine’s eyes widen a fraction. “You have someonecountingtheir attendance? Shit, that’s smart. Why didn’t we think of that?”
“We?” Jericho asks.
Kaine hesitates. “Willow and I, which, as I’ve already said, is why I’m here. Willow was one of those taken two nights ago, and I want your help getting her back.” He narrows his eyes at Jericho. “You owe her as much.”
Jericho grinds his teeth before asking, “Is she okay?”
“I don’t know. She…” Kaine sucks in a sharp breath. “Willow went in there without me knowing, trying to get some information, but something happened and now she can’t leave. They must have jinxed her or some shit, because she can’t get through the fucking door.”
Jericho snarls. “It’s like we thought. They’re keeping the humans there.”
“But why? Are they feeding from them?” Grant asks.
“Hell if I know!” Kaine says. “I haven’t heard from her in two days. I don’t even know if she’s alive.”
Jericho turns on his heel, raking a hand through his hair.
“Which is why you need to help me,” Kaine says, his voice growing frantic.
“We can’t,” Jericho says.
“What do you mean you can’t?” Kaine snarls. “I just watched you spit fire all day long. Why can’t you go after them!”
“Because I don’t know how!” Jericho roars. He lifts his hands helplessly in front of himself. “I don’t knowhowto do what I do, Kaine. I can create fire, but that’s it. And it’s useless against Foxx unless I learn how to strike!”
Outraged, Jericho turns to throw two balls towards the line of tin cans. One of them topples over, but more from the gust of wind as the fireball flew by than the actual fire. The bushes behind it smoke and crackle, but thankfully, it doesn’t ignite.
