Jobias Thompson cocked his head to the side at the same moment Tolbert, who'd been running through video feeds on his laptop across the room, stood abruptly. Both looked out the window at the trees bathed in bright morning sunlight.
"What is that?" the elder Hunter asked, glancing over at the hulking blonde telepath as he sat down his computer and slowly moved towards the door.
"Not sure," the other said slowly, his raspy voice catching as his eyes narrowed. "But something...there's a crowd heading this way. Lycans and...something else. And they're pissed."
The leader sighed and stood, pushing his chair away from his desk, running a hand through his silver hair. A junior Hunter burst through the office doors, eyes wide, expression bordering on panic.
"Sir! There's a whole pack of Lycans heading up the main drive! What should we do?"
"Let me see them, Tolbert," Jobias sighed, nodding towards his lieutenant. The big man nodded, typing in a command on his laptop.
On the big screen across the room, cameras lining the winding drive up to the organization's rural North Carolina base displayed what appeared to be an entire Pack of Wolves roaring up the mountainous road on their bikes. There were at least fifty cycles, many with more than one rider; all looked angry. Looking at the lead bikes, Thompson shook his head slightly.
"Oh, shit," Tolbert murmured.
"I see her," Thompson replied, feeling a shiver run down his spine.
"That's not possible," the blonde muttered, shaking his head and taking a step forward, squinting at the image. "It's full daylight. She should be a fireball."
"Is that Talera?" the junior Hunter asked, mouth falling open, eyes showing real fear now.
"Looks like it. Pershing too," Jobias said with a nod. He retrieved the coat hanging on the back of his chair and moved towards the door, pausing to let his second fall in behind.
"Where are you going, sir?" the young woman asked, mouth agape. "We need to head to the cellars."
"I'm going to see what they want," the ancient Hunter responded, glancing back at her. "If she'd wanted to kill us, this complex would be a crater already."
"Is this a good idea?" Tolbert asked quietly as they strode through the big house towards the front door. "If she can show herself in daylight, we have big problems."
"They're not here to fight. You know that."
"Oh, I forgot I invited them for brunch." Tolbert shot back. "I'll get Tara and the cooks working on a nice quiche and some finger sandwiches—"
"We are not walking out there looking for trouble. Just stand there and read them. Let me do the talking."
"I'm going armed," the other man grumbled, pulling a shotgun from the closet by the door. Stepping out the door, he cocked it loudly just as the Pack roared to a halt at the front steps of the stone house. He pointed it firmly at Talera as she flipped down her kickstand and climbed off the imposing black Harley.
Her expression unreadable behind her dark glasses, white skin gleaming in the sunlit drive, she stood for a moment, facing the Hunters on the front step, the leather of her pants and jacket creaking in the silence. Tolbert let out a rumble of dark laughter as the Alderman kid, fully Lycan and looking dangerous as hell, nodded a greeting to the Hunters, but otherwise remained impassive in place on his bike behind Pershing's.
Pershing stayed astride his bike as well, arms crossed, observing for the moment, simply an escort for an ally. Thompson noted Talera's two pets in the mix. The Asian, very obviously now a Dark Succubus with her violet hair and eyes, sat behind Pershing. The black sylph sat behind Kevin Alderman, dark eyes sparkling, face pinched with anger and hurt.
The supernaturals looked on with vague amusement as the entire compound of Hunters assembled all around them, guns drawn. Talera crossed her arms as if waiting patiently, glancing at Pershing, who shrugged minimally.
After they'd had a moment to settle, Talera vanished, then returned, holding a small, blonde woman aloft by the back of her collar. Thompson's eyes widened as he realized Talera had discovered the spy they'd been wondering about. The Alderman kid raised his chin in challenge, clenching those giant fists.
"Morning, Jobias. Did you lose this?" Talera called, deep throaty voice carrying across the stillness.
"No, Lady Talera," he replied, shaking his head and coming down the steps. Tolbert's aim never wavered as he came down behind his leader.
"Just checking," she replied, smiling sweetly, baring her top fangs.
"Whose is she? NSA?" the Hunter asked, coming to a stop a few feet from the vampire, looking up at the girl, who whimpered softly, terrified eyes darting about, though she seemed otherwise paralyzed.
"FreakOps," the immortal snorted, now baring all her fangs, which, Jobias noted, numbered at eight. She let the girl drop.
"You broke her?" Jobias asked, squatting next to the prone captive. He lifted up one sleeve of the girl's camo jacket, seeing the solid black line, two inches wide that encircled her wrist. Slave Mark.
"Little bit," Talera said, smirking.
"Well, she knew better when she got into it," the Hunter sighed, standing, looking at the vampire intently. "You're out awfully late."
"Working on my tan."
"Right," he chuckled. "We heard you'd been Turned, but information is sparse. You're surprising me."
The vampire simply shrugged, brows lifting, lips curving faintly.
"What do you want me to do with her?" the Hunter asked with a shake of his head. "Most of your kind would have killed her."
"I respect the talent. It's hard to deceive me, and she did exceptionally well. If her people get ahold of her again, they'll finish her for me."
"So you're gifting her to me? Wrapped up with a neat little black bow around the wrist?"
Talera bowed her head in a chuckle, hair falling over her eyes.
"I'm not letting her off with no repercussions. The Mark is a reminder."
"That you can snuff her out with little more than a thought at any time for the rest of her life? I've seen that Mark before. It's a little more than a reminder."
"Everyone's past catches up with them sometime, right?"
Several of the Wolves snorted in laughter behind her as she said the last, baring their fangs in grins. The vampire looked down at the girl, lifting one finger slightly. The broken agent immediately climbed to her feet, peering with terror at her new Master.
"Nicolette Cassidy," the demon said, voice flat. "I release you from my side, but never from my service. Even think about harming me or mine again, and your life is forfeit. Do you understand?"
"Yes," the girl whispered, blue eyes trembling with tears.
Thompson felt a fleeting stab of pity for the girl as she looked over at each of the friends she'd betrayed, pleading and remorse in her gaze. The Alderman boy and the Dark succubus stared back with heat in their eyes. The human stared back for a moment, then buried her face into the tangled waves of Kevin's hair, her arms tightening around his waist.
With a nod to Jobias, Talera turned and got back on her bike, graceful as air. And with a roar, they were all gone, the rumble of their Pack echoing through the mountains for several minutes more.
"Shit," Tolbert muttered again.
*
"What did you get from her?" Thompson asked a few hours later, barely looking up from his computer screen as Tolbert came back into the office, rubbing his temples.
"I don't know what that thing did to that poor girl, but her head is...something else," the big man grumbled, dropping to the couch. "I get nothing other than terror and...I keep seeing just blackness. Pure black. And then...the biggest damned pair of eyes, full of...I don't even..."
Thompson looked up sharply, eyes narrowed.
"Black and crimson fire?" the lead Hunter asked, standing and coming over to his second.
"Yeah, actually. How did you know?" the big man asked, looking up at his boss in confusion.
"Show me," Jobias demanded, closing his eyes.
Frowning, Tolbert took his hand, closing his own eyes. After a few seconds, Thompson drew back, eyes wide, hand over his mouth. Very slowly, he turned and moved to the window, looking outside, but seeing nothing beyond his own thoughts.
Tolbert knew better than to try to read Thompson's mind, but the jumble of emotions coming from the man was nauseating. Several minutes later, the lead Hunter returned to his desk, still rubbing his chin.
"Pull all surveillance on her and her Line," Thompson said softly.
"What? All? Are you serious?" Tolbert stammered, standing up, coming to the desk, putting both hands on the wood to bend down and look his boss in the face.
"I am," Jobias said with a solemn nod. "Do it."
"Why?"
"She's not a threat, and I'm not going to irritate her. Leave her be."
"What the hell did you see? What is she?"
"She's a...Guardian."
"A what?"
"Just do it, Tolbert. Everything gets shut down now. Send teams out to collect equipment at first light tomorrow. Maintain surveillance on the House, but drop her friends and familiars. Drop Pershing too. If she approves of them, we don't need to watch."
"Are you—" Tolbert began, then shook his head, moving to the door. "Okay, I'll have it taken care of right now."
*
