Nothing of investigative or revenge nature was done within Hive walls now. We'd taken to using encrypted computers up on the roof. Sunlight hated vamps, so it was our best weapon against the mole. For some reason we were all sure it was a vampire. Probably one on the Quorum, because they had the most money and power. More than enough to tempt Sanctum.
Today I was on the roof with Oliver and Kyle. I was never alone any longer after my "two guard assignment" started.
Ryder hadn't been back in my bed yet, but somehow he was always part of the Charlie night watch shift. Four nights in a row now we had sat on my couch and watched movies, the sexual tension between us pretty much killing me. I wasn't sure I could do it another night. Unfortunately, with two enforcers assigned to me at all times, having enough privacy for me to jump his bones was not readily available. I was also getting the gentleman vibe from him, like he was waiting for me to take the lead.
My dirty thoughts were cut off by a low voice.
"I think I've traced the entire network of his company and Deliverance." As always when Sam spoke, we all paid attention. "I'm preparing the virus. We have our own set of numerous offshore accounts ready for the funds. The cash will land there before my program divides again. Then it'll shoot between eighteen countries and multiple bank accounts, before wiring the cash to the charities we decided on. It would take them years and a supercomputer to follow the trail."
We all grinned. Hells to the yeah. You shoot up my boyfriend, I take your Mercedes, your private jet, your fluffy dog, and whatever else your money buys.
I wasn't sure what happened then, but all of a sudden Sam was staring at my eyes in an intense way. It was making me kind of nervous.
"What?" I asked, but he quickly shook his head.
My laptop screen beeped with an instant message from Jayden.
Tessa is here and she is hammered. I locked her in room 23, way in the back.
"Shit!" I popped to my feet and took off running. A quick glance back told me that Sam had remained seated, but Oliver and Kyle were already up and pounding across the track behind me.
"What's wrong?" Oliver asked, sounding worried.
I flew through the double doors and down the hallway. "Tessa," was all I said.
The sexy six knew enough about my current situation with her to know that she was a handful. What human wanted to be a bloodsucking, allergic-to-the-sun monster? Only my bestie.
I nearly slammed into a vamp exiting the feeding center while I was trying to enter. I managed to dodge the bloodsucker at the last minute, nodding at Jayden as I dashed past. He tossed me a key to the room. When we reached 23, I turned to my bodyguards.
"Give us a second, will ya? This chick needs some real talk and it's not going to be pretty."
They both nodded, and as I was about to turn the knob I heard her banging against the door.
"You can't keep me in here, you blood-loving assholes! I want to see my best friend." Her words were so slurred that I only understood them because of my years speaking drunk Tessa. I heard a crash, and with my heart in my throat I jerked open the door and she almost toppled onto me.
"Oh, Tess … " My hand flew to my mouth.
She swayed once, and then crumpled to the floor. Her normally pristine appearance was … that of a homeless lady-baggy sweatpants, a loose t-shirt, mismatched shoes, her hair in a ratted ball at the nape of her neck. She wasn't wearing make-up and was superbly drunk.
Her eyes locked on mine. "You!" She pointed and tried to stand.
Her shirt lifted and I saw a peek of her abdomen. "Is that a tattoo!" I shrieked. "You hate tattoos. You said they were trashy."
Tears rimmed Tessa's hazel eyes. "They are trashy! This is what happens when your best friend becomes a hot immortal ash and your only friend options are Valarie! I'm a mess."
She broke down.
Oh Tess. I knelt on the floor and tried not to wince at the reek of alcohol coming from my bestie. In moments like these, advanced ash senses were not good.
The second I opened my arms, she fell into them sobbing. No words needed to be said. I knew how abandoned by me she felt and I was feeling like the worst bitch of a friend. Not that it had been a party-time picnic for me, but I had met so many amazing people in here, and while I missed her like crazy, I should have known she would have a tougher time. Tessa's father was the only good thing in her life. After he died when she was young, her mom didn't pick up the slack. I was her family.
My chest tightened then. "I'm always here for you," I choked. "Fuck the Hive and their rules. If you need me, then I'm there."
I pulled her face from my chest and made her look at me. Her eyes burned a brilliant green, the brown tinge to her hazel almost completely faded away. Her lips quivered.
"Charlie, I don't know who I am anymore," she moaned. "You and Blake are the only things real to me."
My body shook. Seeing someone I loved making such a desperate plea for help ripped open my insides. I pulled myself together, holding her firmly.
"You're Tessa Grace McNair, my annoying best friend who generally wouldn't be caught dead out in public like this." I touched her hair and she laughed.
"I drank a bottle of tequila. Now the room is spinning." She lay her head on my lap and I stroked her hair.
"How dare you get hammered without me." I joked, and she laughed before promptly rolling over and vomiting. A blond curl bounced out of her ratty bun and I snagged it, pulling it back as she puked. Because what are friends for if not for times like these.
"Oh good," I said, trying not to gag as I laughed. "The one thing your homeless look was missing was the smell of vomit."
Despite the dry heaving, she laughed with me then. It warmed my heart to know that in a few days I would be stuck with my mom and this crazy chick for Thanksgiving. I wouldn't have it any other way.
I sat with her for longer than was usually allowed in feeding times, but eventually she had to leave the Hive. Jayden called my mom to pick her up and Oliver and Kyle helped me get her into the car.
My heart felt both overfilled and fractured at the sight of my beautiful mom. I used to see her at least once a week, and now we could go a month with nothing more than a few emails. It's not as if I couldn't arrange to meet up with her on rare, secret, occasions-like the upcoming Thanksgiving trip. Ryder would definitely figure out how to get around those rules. It's just that it felt wrong to drag her into this dark world-people chasing me, trying to kill or kidnap my ass, knowing I was the cure and it was only going to get worse. How could I keep her close when she could easily become a possible victim or target in all of this?
I couldn't. So distance was the key. But that didn't make my heart ache any less.
Just before she left, my mom gave me a tight hug. "I can't wait to see you for Thanksgiving. Remember to be there early so we can cook together."
I nodded. We would have this day together, me, Mom, and Tessa. Just like old times, one last perfect holiday memory. It was so hard to release her; she smelled like home, like everything good and familiar, and I relished the close contact.
"Take care of Tessa, she's just having a hard time adjusting to this."
My mom nodded, and for the first time I noticed the strain in her face. "We all are, dear. I wish the rules were different. I wish the ash were allowed to come home. It's not like you're contagious."
She kissed my cheek and got in her car, but what she said replayed in my head long after she drove off.
"Oliver, why don't the humans let the ash live among them? Only the vampires risk spreading the virus, and surely many of the ash families would prefer they stayed with them rather than being killed off in the culling."
Oliver gave me a side glance. "It wasn't the humans that made that rule. I think the vampires like having us around to do all their dirty work. They declared that once the ash transformation took place, they were no longer classified as human and had to follow the rules of the vampire world. The humans were powerless to fight against it."
My stomach threatened to bring up my lunch. WTAF! I thought there were no choices, that the humans wanted nothing to do with ash and that the culling was the best chance at survival. Were they seriously telling me it was the vampires keeping all ash from being with their families? From me possibly having my mom and Tessa permanently in my daily life, all so I could work for them, fight and kill for them? Oh hell no.
There's only one word for the feelings that were rising up inside of me. Anarchy. Fuck the vampires and fuck the Hive. How many years had this been going on? Killing their offspring, using us as their foot soldiers? They kept us weak and scared, killing off most of us in the cullings and then making the survivors think they were lucky to be part of the Hive world. Mind-screwing bastards.
If the humans never rejected the ash, or relegated them to the Hives, then we should be joining forces with them, rising up to demand that the vampires stopped their barbaric practices. My head was aching with all of these thoughts and questions, the anger smashing inside until I felt like I was going to go crazy.