CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

“ A nswer.” Xander snapped as the video conferencing app began calling. He was pacing back and forth on the mat in his office as the large digital screen on his wall lit up with three faces.

He turned and lifted his whiskey to his lips.

“Good evening, Mr. Tomassi. I hope you have good reason for this urgent call.” Joe Nutler, Secretary of Homeland Defense, said in a low growl.

“Mr. Secretary,” Xander replied.

“Mr. Secretary. Xander.” Cash Waltmore, Director of BioZen, said. “I hear we had some excitement in Seattle today. I presume that’s what this is about.”

Xander wasn’t in the mood for official niceties, so he got straight to the point. “Yes. I have bad news. Our test subject from Project Callan has escaped. He had assistance from the Moretti vampires.”

“Do we still need him?” Cash asked. “And what risk does he pose? He’s been out of it most of the time he’s been with us. Am I right?”

Idiots.

It was foolish to underestimate these powerful beings.

Callan may not have been able to escape or overpower them, but Xander had reason to believe he was more cognizant than he’d made out much of the time.

He took a long sip of his whisky and swirled it in the crystal tumbler. He knew he was a confident, cocky asshole, but today had given him pause. All right, yes, it had shaken him.

None of the vampires had directly tried to contact him before, and the one thing he’d had control over was their passionate and fearful desire to remain anonymous.

Ari Moretti made it clear he played by different rules.

Without Diego to speak to he’d had to cast his net wider to find out who the vampire was. Until then, Xander was staying in Baltimore. Right now, he had reason to believe they didn’t know where he was. The fact he was breathing was a good clue.

“Cut to the chase, Tomassi. I have a briefing with the president in twenty minutes,” Joe demanded. “Do we have a reason for concern? Will this delay the next phase?”

“No.” He then added. “Perhaps.”

Whoever this Ari Moretti was, Xander knew the vampire wasn’t bluffing when he’d said he would rain hell over the planet, or at least Seattle, until he got her back. Stefano Russo had given them enough information about the mating of vampires to know they would kill or die for their mates. It was why he’d ordered Douglas to let Sage go.

Xander may not love his wife, but he knew the tone in a man’s voice when he was protecting those he loved most. He’d heard it in his own while he screamed, night after night, helpless as he watched his father beat his mother.

He may have only been a boy, but the essence of his screams was the promise of death. And he had killed his father.

Just not straight away.

And not with his bare hands.

But death was death.

And he had heard an undeniable promise of death in Ari Moretti’s voice.

“I had a phone call from one of them today,” Xander said, and updated them on the situation.

“Animals,” Joe growled. “We need to take control of this situation. Having them loose across the planet like this is a danger to us all. We’re vulnerable and I don’t like it.”

Xander didn’t care what they did once they purchased the BioZen protocol. He’d long suspected the US government, and others, would create a bio army with what he was developing.

That wasn’t his responsibility.

“We need to find out who Ari Moretti is. Russo never mentioned him, even though he shares the same surname as their royal family,” Xander said. “He seems like the most dangerous one. I say we eliminate him and work our way through these senior vampires.”

The three men nodded.

“I’ll get my team to investigate him. Now listen, I know we’ve held off doing this, but I think it’s time I brief the president,” Joe stated. “With threats like that, I’m obligated.”

Fuck.

Xander remained silent. He may head up the project, but at the end of the day, Cash Waltmore was one of the directors of BioZen and it was his call.

“Mr. Secretary, we understand your position, but do you really think James Calder would be happy with what we’ve been doing here? He’s an ethical man, not a man of science,” Cash said. “Let’s hold off a while longer.”

Xander threw back the last of his drink and dropped it on the coffee table. “I agree. The last thing we want is for POTUS to freeze the program. Other countries around the world are progressing. Do you really want the United States to be left behind?” He knew full well he was pushing the man’s buttons.

“Watch yourself, Tomassi,” Joe replied. “This is a good partnership, but don’t try to manipulate me. I won’t put up with that bullshit.”

Whatever. He’d been threatened by someone far more powerful than the secretary of Homeland Defense today.

“I’m sure the billions of dollars we could all lose if Calder stops us might be more of interest to you then,” Xander replied, not willing to be intimidated by the Secretary. “Give us a couple more months. If anything further happens, I will let you know immediately.”

Joe gave him a dark look through the screen, then nodded and signed off.

Xander waited for his video to disconnect and then turned his attention to the president of BioZen.

“We need to proceed carefully. How much risk does this new Moretti pose?” Cash asked him.

Xander shook his head.

“I have no doubt he would have been a deadly risk to all of us if we hadn’t returned Sage to him. Vincent and his brother Brayden are well known in global elite circles as influential billionaires. I’ve never heard Ari’s name mentioned. He’s an unknown and I don’t like it.”

“They’re all dangerous,” Cash said.

“More so when they have nothing to lose,” Xander said. “But they do. They love their women, so now we just have to work out how to use that to our advantage.”

Still, he had one ace card up his sleeve, and that was his next call.