"Now, what shall we do with this?" Wlodek toed the body with the broken neck. "We have four others just like it in the basement."
"Too bad I got rid of the bomb," I said. "That would be an ideal situation."
"We may be able to come up with something," Wlodek said, glancing at me. "What did you have in mind?"
Merrill and Gavin helped me while Charles typed the note on his computer (using gloves, of course). The note was then placed inside one of the cars the young men had driven to the site. Someone else would be getting rid of the second vehicle. Actually, Wellington, the stuffy old British vampire, had given me the idea. He'd blustered about a faction gaining popularity in Great Britain, which wanted to eliminate the monarchy altogether. Even followers from other countries were joining the movement. When the charges were delivered by vampires driving up in an unmarked van, Robert and Will, both wearing gloves, set them up.
The note we'd left in the car spelled out their dissatisfaction with the monarchy and that the five young men were planning group suicide as a form of protest. At least one member of the Council snickered a little over the whole thing.
"Who owns the building?" I asked Merrill quietly while the charges were being laid. Since this was my idea, I was going to be responsible for destroying somebody's property.
"Wlodek, I believe," Merrill was smiling slightly.
"Ah."
"Come along, Lissa," Gavin lifted me up one handed and hauled me toward his Mercedes.
"Hey," I tried to slap his hand but it wasn't working very well. Gavin buckled me into the passenger seat in no time and then came around to the driver's side. "We need to be far away when this blows," he said, putting the car in gear.
"Can we go home slower than we got here in the first place?" I grumbled, pulling the mirror down to look at my face. "Crap, why didn't you tell me I look like I've been in a hurricane?" My hair was quite windblown and I may have had a black smudge or two on my face.
"Lissa, I was afraid you were dead when we heard the explosion," Gavin said, zooming around a corner.
"He didn't explode until just before he hit to the water," I said. "I didn't know he was going to turn to mist when I touched him—I just wanted to take away the detonator." Gavin wasn't doing much in the slowing down department, so I held onto the edge of my seat as he rounded another corner at a blinding rate of speed.
"Lissa, stop talking. If I had a heart, I'd be having an attack right now." I stopped talking and drew my knees up to my chest in the seat.
"Franklin, why are you waiting up?" I gave him a hug as soon as we were in the kitchen.
"I was worried," he said, brushing strands of tangled hair away from my face.
"I'm fine, Gavin's fine and Merrill's fine, too. In fact, Merrill should be here any minute," I patted Frank's shoulder and let him go.
"Merrill's here, now," Merrill walked in behind us. "Franklin, go to bed. You look worn out."
"All right," Franklin said. "At least I know you won't want breakfast in the morning so I can sleep late." He took off toward the stairs.
"I'm worried that he's the one who'll have the heart attack," I said softly as Franklin walked away.
"Lissa, I would very much like to take you over my knee," Gavin said, changing the subject.
"And I will fight you every step of the way and most likely never speak to you again," I said.
"That's why I only said I'd like to," Gavin frowned at me. "You have no idea what I was thinking when you went off like that, and then when the others came upstairs afterward and said you'd disappeared with the bomber…" he didn't finish.
"I didn't know what else to do, Gavin. Honest. Can we leave it for tonight?"
Merrill stood nearby, listening. "We'll leave it for tonight," he sighed. "I think I'll go sit in the hot tub and forget this for a moment."
"That is an excellent idea." Gavin grabbed me up again and took off at full speed toward the spa room. That's how he and I both ended up in the hot tub, completely naked. Gavin just ripped through my clothing while I attempted to stop him. His claws were out a little and there wasn't any way I wanted to argue with those things. He dumped me in the water first, before removing his own clothing. I got to see every inch of him that night, and some of those inches were rather large and rigid. I had to look the other way.
Merrill, dressed in a swimsuit, dropped in on the other side, lifted an eyebrow slightly and never said a word. Merrill was nicely built but Gavin's shoulders were wider and there wasn't any part of him that wasn't tight or a pleasure to see.
The hot, frothing water was pure bliss as I sat there, even though Gavin held me firmly against his side. At least he wasn't pulling me into his lap; that might have been a bit much. Instead, I leaned my forehead against Gavin's shoulder. Merrill climbed out after a while and left us. Gavin began speaking in French, murmuring words against my hair. I didn't understand any of it, with the exception of one short phrase, je t'aime.
* * *
Wlodek spoke by phone with Merrill the following evening during my lesson, informing him that Weldon would arrive in a week for the execution. Wlodek expected Merrill, Gavin and me to be there when Weldon carried out the sentence against Tate Briggs, since the Grand Master requested my presence. I didn't want to go. "You must," Merrill said after hanging up with Wlodek. "It is considered an honor to receive an invitation such as this."
"Merrill, this is an execution. Remember, I've seen werewolves fight before. This is going to be bloody."
"Lissa," he held my chin in his fingers, "look away if you want. Wlodek wants you to be there and I'm sure Weldon desires your presence because you are a member of his Pack."
I blinked up at Merrill and sighed. "What should I wear," I asked, turning away from him.
"Wear something dark but tasteful."
"Because the fur and the blood are going to fly, no doubt."
"More than likely."
"I have to get used to this, don't I?"
"Yes. It is difficult to understand, Lissa, how you can fight someone so successfully, or drop the boy's companion into the water so he may blow himself up, and yet hold back from something like this." His bright blue eyes examined my face carefully.
"I can't explain it either," I shrugged. "Maybe because this is a spectator sport and not in defense of my life."