A man near the front lets out a huff. “Not the staff wing, right?”
“Every fucking inch, until these kids are found,” Evan states through clenched teeth.
“You think someone is hiding them?” the same man questions, sounding incredulous.
“I think when you signed up to work here, you understood perfectly fucking well that I run this team.” Evan glares at everyone. “You have a problem doingyour job, or howItell you to do it, find a new one elsewhere.”
No one else speaks up. A few look away from him and shuffle their feet. It’s not often Evan goes alpha bear, but when he does, it’s hard to ignore, especially for other shifters. The dominance hierarchy doesn’t allow it. The vampires in the room recognize the threat as well, most of them having gone unnaturally still. It marks every single one of them as the prey they are.
After a long pause, Evan begins assigning teams of two or three to work together. I notice none of the groups that are standing or sitting together stay together. It’s obvious he’s separating them, smart move.
When that’s done, he allocates the locations they’re to search. “I want you checking in after every room is cleared. No chatter, just what room and the status. If you find something, you call it in. Get to work.”
Quinn
The security officers filter out quickly after Evan is done barking orders. It’s easy to forget just how intimidating he is. I have to admit, I’ve started thinking of him as more of a giant teddy bear than what he truly is.
I watch as his entire demeanor shifts once it’s just the three of us left in the room. It’s subtle but unmistakable. The hard line of his jaw softens, and even his stance relaxes.
“What can I do?”
“I’m going to check out the clinic and some of the surrounding rooms, will you come with me?” Evan inquires.
“Sure, you too, right?” I glance up to include Griffin.
“Absolutely,” he tells me then looks over at Evan. “Good opportunity to see what’s been going on in the blood bank.”
“I thought so,” Evan agrees.
“Don’t you go there all the time?” I ask Griffin.
“No, I have a standing order. They deliver.”
“Oh, yeah, that makes sense.” Talking about Griffin and blood makes me think about him drinking from me. Which really isn’t where my mind should be right now.
We all just stand there for a few moments. The tension between us is new, unwelcome, and awkward. “Shall we?” My words seem to finally spur Evan into action. He lifts his hand and gestures for me to go ahead. Griffin still has my hand in his, so I let him lead the way.
I’m a little surprised when he starts up the staircase in the central building. “It’s not on the staff side?” I question as we make our way up to the second floor.
“No, the kids are much more likely to need the clinic, so it made sense to have everything together,” Griffin replies before opening a nondescript door on the left side of the hallway.
The lobby is on the smaller side, reminding me of the office at my middle school. There’s a long receptionist’s window against the back wall, like a doctor’s office, with a desk behind the glass and a door just to the left. A woman looks up as I enter. Her brows dip, but she stands quickly. I glance around at the two empty chairs in the waiting area as Griffin and Evan file in behind me.
“Headmaster, can I help you? Is there an issue with your delivery?” she queries hurriedly, then starts scooting papers around on the desk. I can tell she’s nervous, I just don’t know why. It could be Griffin’s presence. He tends to make a lot of people nervous.
“Do you have any patients?” Evan asks, ignoring her question to Griffin.
“No, should I?”
“We need to have a look around. I’m sure you’ve heard a few kids have gone missing.” Evan walks over to the door, and it opens freely in his hand. The woman hustles around to a space where I can’t see, then becomes visible when he opens the door fully.
“Shouldn’t this be locked?” Evan asks, his tone soft.
“Usually, I must have forgotten.” She steps back quickly as Evan enters the back area. Griffin holds the door for me to enter. There’s a short hallway to the left, and I can see into a door just down the hall. There are two beds set up next to each other with the heads elevated, just like you would find at any Red Cross blood donation center. My college had a fairly large supernatural population, and I tried to donate a few times a year when they had blood drives, so I’m pretty confident that’s the donor room.
The woman moves down the hall ahead of Evan. “You’re welcome to check of course, but there’s no one here but me.”
“Did anyone come in today? Were there any issues?”
