Page 84 of Warrior Unraveled

“Here we go,” Wesley murmured to Virginia and gave her a reassuring look, before opening the door and entering.

Samson wasn’t alone. Amaury was with him, leaning his butt against Samson’s desk.

Samson rose from his chair, then froze in mid-movement, his gaze pinned on Virginia. “They alerted me that you were back. They didn’t mention you brought a… guest.”

Wes felt Virginia stiffen next to him, while her eyes ping-ponged between Samson and Amaury, who was now standing in front of the desk, equally motionless.

“This is Virginia Robson, member of the Council of Nine, the governing body of the Stealth Guardians. I’ve guaranteed her safety.”

Finally Samson moved toward them. “And I’ll honor that guarantee.” He stretched out his hand to Virginia. “Samson Woodford. I’m the owner of Scanguards. Please call me Samson. We’re not very formal here.”

Virginia shook his hand. “Thank you.”

Samson motioned to Amaury, the linebacker-sized vampire who was also his best friend. “Amaury LeSang, my associate.”

“Enchanté,” Amaury said and shook Virginia’s hand. Then he grinned at Wesley. “You made it back. We were putting up bets you know.” Amaury patted him on the shoulder and winked. “I lost that one. You cost me twenty bucks.”

Wes laughed. “You should learn not to bet against a winner.” Then he looked at Samson. “Good to be back.”

Samson put his hand on Wesley’s shoulder and squeezed. “Glad you made it. We were worried.” He motioned to Amaury. “Even those who bet against you.”

“I can’t wait to see everybody,” Wes said. “Where’s Haven?”

“He’s on assignment tonight. By now Blake will have informed him that you’re back. I’m sure he’ll show up as soon as Blake assigns somebody to take over for him.”

Wes looked at Virginia. “Haven is my brother. A vampire.” Then he looked at Samson and Amaury. “I’ve told Virginia a bit about us already, but there’s a lot to get her caught up on. And there’s a lot I need to tell you about their race.”

“Judging by the fact that you, Virginia, have agreed to come to us,” Samson started, “I assume Wesley has been able to convince your people that an alliance between our two species would be beneficial to all of us.”

“Actually,” Wes said, cringing, “we didn’t get that far.”

Samson and Amaury exchanged a look, then Samson said, “You’ve been gone nearly two weeks. Without a word.”

Wes sighed. “Yeah, about that…” He glanced at Virginia. “It’s complicated. First I was locked up, then I was helping a group of them fight demons. Then Virginia showed up and locked me up again, and I was brought before the council. Then they locked me up again.”

Samson raised his eyebrows.

Wes shrugged. “I was locked up a lot. And then demons attacked and one of the Stealth Guardians’ compounds blew up. And Virginia and I landed in the Underworld and barely escaped with our lives. The council doesn’t know we’re here.”

Samson raised his eyebrows and addressed Virginia. “So, you’re not an official envoy of your people?”

Virginia shook her head. “Not right now. In fact, I’m not authorized to negotiate with you, but I’m here to ask for your help.”

“I think I’d first like to hear the long version of what happened.”

“I figured you’d say that.” Wes took a breath. “Maybe we should sit down for that.”

Samson motioned to the seating area consisting of a large couch and two armchairs with a coffee table in the middle. As they sat, Samson said, “Where are my manners? Would you like something to eat or drink, Virginia?”

“Actually, maybe something to drink.”

“Amaury?”

Amaury walked back to the desk and picked up the phone. “I’ll order a selection from the lounge.”

By the time the drinks arrived, Wesley was already retelling his first encounter with the Stealth Guardians from the Baltimore compound. It took a good two hours for Wes to fill his bosses in on the full details of his adventure. The only thing he left out was how he and Virginia had become lovers. That wasn’t anybody’s business. However, he wasn’t blind: he knew that Samson and Amaury had seen him holding Virginia’s hand upon entering the office. They could draw their own conclusions.

When Wes had finished, Samson leaned back in his chair and nodded slowly. “Demons, huh? We haven’t had any in San Francisco in a long time. I remember encountering some when I first moved here in the early 90s. But they disappeared.”