Chapter 7: Secrets

"I cannot believe we're on our way to see the king of the damned," I said as Duncan drove us to the compound. He glanced over at me and grinned.

"I never thought I'd live to see the day."

"We need to figure out how we want to approach this. If we get in to see him, and admittedly that's a big if, we will need to handle the situation delicately. We can't go around insulting the local royalty," I said, only half-joking. He was a vampire, so I couldn't let him boss me around, but at the same time, he was a powerful vampire. If I made him too grumpy, I had a feeling my life would get very difficult, very fast.

"I say we wing it."

"That sounds like a terrible idea, but I don't have another one. So full speed ahead."

I stared out the window, watching the bustling city give way to fields and farmhouses. The compound was on the outskirts of town, surrounded by wheat fields. It would seem an odd choice to be out of town as a king, but I figured it would be very easy to secure. The guards would see any company from miles away. Not to mention that the vampires would easily hear any sneak attacks.

No matter how hard I tried, my mind kept drifting to the vampire. Ezra, he'd said his name was. I was supposed to be focusing on the task at hand, but still, in the moment of silence, a pair of bright blue eyes danced in my mind. I wondered briefly if I should be worried that I couldn't seem to stop thinking about him. And what's more, I wasn't sure if I wanted to.

"Are you doing okay?" Duncan asked, breaking the silence that had filled the car.

"Of course. Why do you ask?" The question had seemed to come out of nowhere. Plus, it was very out of character for Duncan to even ask that question. I couldn't remember the last time he'd bothered.

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, you've been acting a little out of it since this morning. I wasn't sure if it had anything to do with what you saw in that alley."

"I didn't see anything in that alley," I said quickly. Too quickly, judging by the sharp look Duncan threw at me.

"That line might work on Andrew. Hell, it may even work on Bobby. But I know better, Ems. We've gone through too much together for me not to be able to tell when you're full of it."

I sighed as I looked out the window again. Duncan always could read me like a book. Even when we were just teenagers and I was trying to hide something as simple as an extra cookie from Bobby, Duncan always knew. He'd gone to bat for me enough times that I felt guilty hiding Ezra from him.

"Fine. I might have seen a pair of eyes watching us this morning. I'm not entirely sure, but it's got me a little jumpy."

"What do you mean a pair of eyes?"

"I mean a pair of eyes," I said, remembering why I hadn't wanted to tell him in the first place. He'd ask more questions than I wanted to answer. Particularly since these questions would just lead to even more questions about the hallway, and that was definitely not something I was willing to discuss with him. "I sensed something above us and then thought I saw a pair of eyes. Of course, it was about three in the morning, so it could have been a cat for all I know."

Duncan pulled the car onto a long gravel driveway and stopped. I looked at him in surprise to find him studying me much too closely. Whatever he saw in my gaze didn't seem to reassure him.

"And what about at the vamp's penthouse?" He asked suddenly, his brown eyes serious. "And don't try to lie to me this time, Emily. I'm not in the mood for it."

I chewed on my lip as I tried to buy myself time to come up with a decent story. I didn't care what he did to me. There was no way I was letting my encounter with Ezra come out in the open. I couldn't even explain it to myself, so how the hell was I going to explain it to someone else?

"I had a run in with a vampire in the hall outside the penthouse."

Duncan scoffed. "And when were you planning on telling me or Andrew about this?"

"Um, let me think… Never."

"Jesus, Emily! We're supposed to be a team! That doesn't mean you can face vamps on your own and hide it from us."

He was right, though I definitely wasn't going to tell him that. It wasn't that I felt like facing a vampire on my own. If any actual fighting had happened with Ezra, then I wouldn't hesitate to call my team in with me. But what had happened in that hallway… I don't think I could stand the looks on their faces if they thought I was falling in with the enemy.

"Last time I checked, Duncan, I am the one leading the team. That means that I can do what I want." My tone was angry, but I felt nothing but heavy guilt for throwing that in his face. I needed him to change the subject, and quickly.

His mouth shut with an audible snap, and his eyes sparkled with anger. "That is where you are mistaken. You may lead the team, for now. But know this: one foot out of line and we both know you're going to be out on your a**. I won't have to do a single thing to make it happen, either."

I glared at him, this time actually feeling the anger that I had been faking just a moment ago. I wasn't angry at him for what he said. Rather, I was angry at the truth behind his words. I knew the truth in them to my bones. Somehow that hurt worse than anything else; the knowledge that I wouldn't just be kicked out of the agency. I'd probably be put to death.

"I get it, Duncan," I said softly. And I did. Get it, that is. Duncan may want my position on the team. And who could blame him with our upbringing? From the second Duncan moved into Bobby's house, we had been pitted against each other. If he ran an extra mile during training, it wasn't good enough because I did it faster. If Duncan lifted twenty extra pounds, it wasn't good enough because I could lift twice that.

Never mind that my genetics made it so that I had trained a bit easier than him. Duncan was always measured against me and found wanting. It made for a few tumultuous years. But in the end, almost in spite of Bobby's meddling, we became siblings. He may be angry with me, and he may want my job, but he loved me.

"I promise I'm not up to anything nefarious. I just had some words with the vampire and attempted to find out if he knew where Amos was."

He nodded and pulled the car back onto the driveway.

"In that case, let's go have our interview with a vampire."