“Joaquim,” he answered.
“Sire, the sorcerer has departed the compound, accompanied by the three human females who guard him.”
“Excellent. Return to the Fortalesa. You know what to do.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Xavier expected his security chief to hang up after that. There was nothing further that needed to be said, and Xavier was in the field and didn’t want his attention diverted from the target. But he could almost hear Joaquim’s reluctance in the silence as he waited. “What is it?” he asked finally.
“Only . . . take care, my lord.”
Xavier was paranoid enough, or smart enough since the two were identical when living in vampire society, that he mentally stopped to consider Joaquim’s response. Did the caution mean Joaquim was aware of a flaw in their plan? Was there some enemy movement against them that would make it unworkable? An unforeseen threat to the Fortalesa itself? He shook his head. No. Joaquim’s loyalty was unquestioned, but the security chief had expressed doubts about this mission from the start. His concern had to do with that, nothing else.
“We shall,” Xavier assured him. “And we will both be up on comms, if you need us.”
“Yes, my lord. I will stand watch until your return.”
“Problem?” Chuy asked, turning to meet Xavier’s gaze when they stopped at a red light.
“No. Sakal is on his way with the usual three bodyguards. There may be more when we enter his lair.”
“Humans,” his lieutenant said dismissively.
“Yes, but well-trained and probably prepared to deal with vampire assailants, as Layla noted.”
“Understood.” Chuy drove into the building across the street from Sakal’s lair, taking the ramp to the parking structure on top of the modest building. He followed the narrow up-ramp all the way to the last covered level, and slid into a spot overlooking Sakal’s front entrance.
Xavier stared at the temple-like edifice of the building and wondered idly if the overwrought design had been a factor in its selection. The sorcerer had always had an inflated view of himself, which was why it had irked him so when he’d been reborn as a weakling vampire. Well, that and the loss of his power, of course. Even so, Sakal had never come out and said it, but Xavier was convinced the bastard had expected to wake up not only with his sorcery intact, but with the power of a vampire lord. That would have made him a super lord of sorts, first among them all, able to command not only other vampires, but other vampire lords.
Fortunately, that hadn’t happened, and Sakal had been forced to reconcile to his new reality. Which thanks to Josep’s unending ambition, had turned out well for Sakal, but not for Josep.
“Looks like a fucking temple.” Chuy’s mutter echoed Xavier’s own thoughts so closely that he chuckled.
Shifting uncomfortably in the small car, Xavier did a quick but thorough scan of the area, and finding no other minds nearby, said, “Let’s go, before this fucking car steals every bit of feeling from my legs.”
“Yes, my lord.”
And Xavier would have sworn there was an, “I told you so,” hiding under the respect.
They opened their car doors at the same instant, and by the time Xavier got around the vehicle, Chuy was already sliding back the door of a white panel van that was the only other vehicle on this level, given the early hour. The open door of the van, which was parked on an inside row, away from the half-wall of the street view, revealed an interior that was not just comfortable, but a secure daytime resting place should they need it. This mission had too many variables that Xavier couldn’t control and couldn’t anticipate. For starters, they’d never been inside the damn building and didn’t know who else might be hiding in there. Xavier’s earlier scan had detected no vampires, but there had been humans. The number had been difficult to pin down, which meant they were underground and shielded from detection—most likely in a below-ground vault, like Xavier’s own. Regardless of what story Sakal told his bodyguards to explain his vampire habits, he would have needed a secure daylight resting place.
Xavier hadn’t liked this plan when he’d come up with it, any more than Joaquim had, but there’d been no other option. At least not one that didn’t involve using his vampires to slaughter a bunch of lost teenagers whose only crime was having been conned by a homicidal sorcerer posing as truth-seeking philosopher. Chuy, on the other hand, had liked the idea of taking Sakal’s lair by surprise, but he’d favored taking a squad of vampires himself, and killing Sakal when he arrived, also by himself. Since the only vote that mattered was Xavier’s, and since he wasn’t about risk vampire lives unnecessarily any more than he was human teenagers’, his opinion had ruled.
Besides, he had to be the one who killed Sakal. He had to be certain that the sorcerer was dead this time.
“Let’s go.”
They didn’t run, didn’t make any attempt to conceal their approach to the building. They knew Sakal wasn’t there, but Xavier kept his power up and scanning as they climbed the broad, cement stairs. “I’ll enter first.”
Chuy didn’t object. Most vampire lords always led the way. Their power was so much greater that when confronting a dangerous enemy, it only made sense. Especially since Xavier happened to be the only one resistant to magical attack.
He grabbed the stylized handle of the metal door and tugged. Nothing. For all his strength, the damn door didn’t move. He scanned the entrance from side to side, then stepped out to the sidewalk and scanned the building itself. “No windows,” he commented as he walked back to the door. “Guess we’ll have to do this the noisy way.”
Bracing one hand on the frame, he pulled the handle once more, but this time sent a wave of power rolling up and down the connection between door and frame, measuring resistance, looking for weak spots, for vulnerability. His grin when he found it was more of a grimace as every muscle in his arms and chest strained, every tendon corded. The first squeal of metal tearing sped into the dark of early morning, breaking windows somewhere down the street. Xavier swallowed the roar of triumph that wanted to follow. No need to attract more attention, although the shredding metal was making enough noise that any humans inside would have to be deaf not to hear. But he wasn’t worried about a few humans, no matter how well trained.
Recognizing signs of imminent give in the door, he tempered his hold so that when it finally surrendered to his strength, he wasn’t knocked into the street like a hapless dummy.
“See what you can do with that, Chuy,” he ordered as he strode into the building, every sense on alert. His lieutenant wouldn’t be able to fix the door, but he could repair it sufficiently that it would function, and at first glance, would appear undamaged, especially in dark of early morning. It would open when pulled, and Sakal was far too weak to detect Xavier’s presence, especially since once they were inside and the ambush set, he would shield himself completely.