CHAPTER ELEVEN

“ C ome in, Piper.” Roger Stevens, the editor of The Seattle Times , waved when he spotted her hovering in the doorway.

“Mr. Stevens, hi,” she said to her boss.

“Sit. I have five minutes. What have you got for me today?”

She heard the touch of impatience in his voice. It was true, she was in there weekly with a pitch for some story or another, but she was driven.

She planted herself in the chair in front of his desk and opened her laptop. “This is going to sound crazy—”

“No less than last week’s, I imagine.” He laughed.

“Okay, fine. The idea of a global pandemic that locks down the entire human population wasn’t my best work and is highly unrealistic, but this is different.” When he stared at her, she cleared her throat and tapped a few keys.

“So, my sister works, or maybe worked for BioZen—”

“The large pharmaceutical company?”

“Yes, and she recently got a promotion to a top-secret division called Project Callan,” Piper explained. “I’ve been doing some research today and made a few calls. No one has heard of it.”

Roger leaned back in his large black corporate chair and shrugged. “Nothing new there. They’re known for their tight security, and they pay well enough to keep lips closed.”

Piper nodded.

“Right. Except my sister has been missing for two weeks. And in one of her recent diary entries she mentions the existence of vampires.”

Roger’s eyes widened and then he laughed.

“You’re joking, right?”

“No.”

“You want to do a story about vampires?”

“I mean, there was that thing a few months ago,” she said with her brows raised.

“Which was a bunch of conspiracy theorists out of their pot-smoked minds,” Roger said, shaking his head.

“Was it, though?”

“You think your sister has been kidnapped by vampires?”

“Well, no...”

“Have you filed a missing person’s report?”

“No, my mother says they’re on holiday.”

“They?” Roger asked.

“Sage and... well, her new boyfriend.”

“So she has a new boyfriend, and he takes her on holiday, and she doesn’t contact her family. But you think vampires are involved?”

Piper clenched her teeth.

“No. Yes. Please, let me explain.” Piper held up a hand. “Sage is a scientist. I read through her diary, and it appears she overheard some of her colleagues talking about vampires. She believes they’re right. Then a few weeks later she meets these two, well, anyway, this man, and he’s suddenly in her life.”

Roger stared back at her.

“You met him.”

“I, yes, I think so. I mean, it’s foggy.”

“Foggy.”

“I think... shit, I know I sound crazy, but I think someone is messing with my memories.”

Roger’s brows slowly rose.

“Let me finish. So she gets this job in the new secret department and suddenly she disappears. The day she apparently went on holiday, I spoke to her. She was in an Uber heading to her boyfriend’s house. Then boom, she’s gone for over two weeks.”

“Boom,” Roger repeated.

“I went to her apartment and her belongings were gone. Today I contacted her bank to find out if there has been any activity on her account and the last one was about ten days ago. A final payment on her entire mortgage.”

“Someone paid her mortgage?”

Piper nodded.

“Did you find out who?” Roger asked.

“No, but I have some contacts, so I’m going to keep digging.”

“You should call the police.”

“The first thing they’ll do is call my parents, who insist Sage is on holiday with her boyfriend. But trying to get the details from them on where she’s holidaying is weird. It’s like talking to a machine. My mother does not compute.”

“Weird,” Roger said, leaning forward.

Gotcha.

Piper knew he was interested, even if the story was odd.

“So what’s the angle? Because vampires stole my sister is not going to cut it. We’re not that kind of tabloid.”

Piper nodded. “No. I think there’s a bigger story here. I want to investigate BioZen. I think they’re doing some vampire research. Or, did they create vampires? Heck, stranger things have happened.”

Roger let out a rough laugh. “Fuck, have they?”

Good point.

“I think there are enough questions here to go digging, at least. If my sister isn’t back in forty-eight hours, I will call the police, but meanwhile I’ll tap into all my sources and with your permission, speak to BioZen.”

Roger frowned.

Yeah, that was why she was here.

If it was any other company, she would have just fired ahead. But the pharma industry was powerful and influential. She had enough experience under her belt already to know which toes to step on without permission, and it was not these ones.

“Shit, Roberts. Couldn’t you have chosen POTUS instead or something?”

She grinned.

“At least if we find something, it’ll be the biggest story we’ve ever had.” As well as finding her sister, which was exactly what Piper was hoping for. Then Daddy dearest would have to acknowledge just how fucking amazing she was.

Sage could cure cancer for all she cared—and she hoped her sister did—but if Piper exposed the existence of vampires to the world, not only would it be the most shocking discovery for the human race, she would be the most awarded journalist in history.

“Don’t get too excited, and tread carefully. I want you to keep me updated regularly and... don’t piss anyone off.”

She only just stopped herself from racing around the desk and hugging the older man.

“Thank you, sir.” Piper stood and hugged her laptop to her chest. “I’ll do my best.”

Roger groaned as she almost danced out of his office.

“I’m going to regret this; I just know it,” Piper heard him mumble, then he called her back.

She swiveled and stepped back into the doorway. “Set up in Marlene’s old office. I don’t want anyone overhearing your calls. Keep this between us.”

Woohoo. Her own office. Things were looking up.

“Yes, sir.”

Piper headed back to her desk to pack up.

“You get fired?” Kara asked with raised brows.

“Ha-ha. No, I’m working on a secret project, so Roger has given me Marlene’s office.”

“That’s awesome. So jealous,” Kara said.

“The office with the great view? We are so having lunch in there from now on,” Jeremy declared.

“Deal.” She grinned.

“Also, spill.” He stood and leaned his elbows on the partition wall. “What’s the secret project?”

Piper filled a box with all her things and dropped her pot plant on top. “No can do. Not this time.” This was way too important. She was now a serious investigative journalist.

Technically. And one day soon it would be her real title. And hopefully she’d have her sister back.

“Help me move this stuff,” she said, and while Kara jumped up to help, Jeremy flopped back down into his chair.

“Honey, these muscles are to impress the boys, not for a career in furniture removal.”

Piper laughed.

A FEW HOURS LATER, Piper’s grin had faded to a frown. Not that she’d expected BioZen to open the doors and send her case files, but she’d hit brick wall after brick wall.

All her contacts had responded, saying they’d never heard of Project Callan. They also weren’t interested in digging further. So, she decided to take matters into her own hands.

Literally.

Well, tomorrow at least.

Right now, she had a little problem to take care of. One she’d been ignoring since she woke up and needed some serious relief before she exploded. One that would need to wait until she got home and pulled out her now-overused vibrator.

PIPER WOKE UP THE NEXT morning and the first thing she did was check her phone.

No messages from Sage.

She texted her mom.

I’ll see you tonight for dinner. Chicken. No gluten. Any word from Sage?

Okay, darling. No, she’s on holiday with her boyfriend. You know that.

Jesus.

Two weeks and two days.

Why was she the only one concerned about this? Usually, her mother was a total control freak about these things. Had her mother met Ari—

Pain sliced through her head.

Oh God. Not another migraine.

See you at seven.

She climbed out of bed and spotted her vibrator on the bedside cabinet. Ugh. Her batteries were going to die soon with the workout it was getting. Night after night she dreamed of the man with brilliant blue eyes who set her body on fire.

All day yesterday she’d felt as if she’d been left unsatisfied by a lover. Her nipples had burned to be touched, and it felt like she’d been wet all day. Sitting in her office she had constantly squeezed her thighs together wondering whether she needed some sex toys to put inside herself to keep the horniness at bay.

Did people actually do that during work?

Wasn’t it more to play than deal with arousal?

Maybe she was ill.

When she got home, she had come twice. By herself.

“I need to get laid,” she muttered and hit the shower, getting ready for another day of vampire research.

AN HOUR LATER SHE WAS standing in the lobby of BioZen.

She refused to be intimidated by the clinical feel of the enormous space. Around her, aside from people making their way to their offices, there was white everything. White tiles, white walls, and white escalators which were only accessible if you were staff.

On the large three-story wall behind the long reception desk was a huge BioZen logo. She stood staring at it, waiting for assistance.

“Yes, can I help you?” One of the three receptionists finally spoke to her. She was standing, not seated, with an earpiece she had pressed, which Piper assumed connected her to the phones.

Clearly, she was well paid by the looks of the designer clothing on display. Piper knew her sister had received a healthy salary. She was able to purchase a home of her own while Piper still rented.

Something their father regularly reminded her of.

“Yes, hi. I’m here to see Sage Roberts,” she said, and then lied. “I have an appointment.”

The woman, of similar age to Piper, frowned and tapped on a keyboard.

“Sage Roberts?”

“Yes.”

“Sorry, we don’t have an employee of that name working here.” The woman glanced behind her as if she was about to be dismissed for admitting such a thing.

“What? There has to be a mistake.” Piper raised her voice a little and got the wide-eyed response she was hoping for.

Nobody liked a scene.

“Perhaps you have the wrong company?”

How could they have zero record of her sister who had worked here for years? Wait, had Sage left? Pain sliced through her mind. Did she know that?

“Then I need to speak to a manager. Sage worked here for years,” Piper said, pressing her fingers to her temples.

The woman’s eyes darted to the side as she clicked a few keys, looking irritated and a little stressed.

Good.

“Darlene, hey, it’s Maggie. Is Rebecca available?” she said. “No, I have someone here asking for Sage Roberts.”

Silence.

“Oh. Yes. No. Dr. Phillips. No, I mean yes.” Maggie’s nervous eyes darted back and forth.

Piper took note of the name, recalling it from Sage’s diary. The woman tapped her earpiece and her eyes returned to Piper.

“Sorry, it looks like Sandy is also unavailable,” Maggie said.

“Also? So Sage did work here?” she asked, immediately picking up on the nuance.

The woman swallowed.

“No. I mean, she’s unavailable and so is Dr. Phillips, the head of the department,” she stumbled.

“Are they on holiday or just unavailable today?”

“Dr. Phillips is currently working in another location,” Maggie answered.

“I can go there. Where is it?” Piper pushed.

“No, he’s in California so... why don’t you leave your number, and I will get someone to call you.” The woman handed her a notepad and pen. She clearly just wanted Piper gone and out of the building.

California? She could totally go there and continue her research if this Dr. Phillips was a key person. BioZen had offices in locations all around the United States and the world.

She scribbled down her name and number, then dropped the pen. “Thank you, Maggie, you have been very helpful.”

“Piper Roberts? You’re related?”

She nodded.

“Yes. You can tell your employers that I want to know where my sister is. And I will not stop looking until I find her.”

Maggie swallowed again.

“It might be of interest that I am a journalist. Or not.” She lifted a shoulder. “I look forward to their call.”

She smiled and walked out of the building.

Looks like she was heading to sunny California.