Free Christian (Vampires in America: The Vampire Wars Book 10) by D.B. Reynolds Page B

maybe she could make the feeling go away before it was too late.

Chapter Three
    MARIANN WAS unusually quiet when Natalie finally returned to the office. She’d been gone longer than planned, but she’d needed some time to come to grips with what she’d seen, and what she suspected. She never made the mistake of underestimating Anthony. And she didn’t know if she could face him without him reading the truth on her face, or in her thoughts.
    MariAnn looked up when Natalie walked in from the hallway. She didn’t say anything, but stared intently at Natalie, her gaze shifting sideways and back a couple of times, as if to indicate the closed door to Anthony’s office. Natalie frowned, but didn’t hear or see anything amiss. His door was almost always closed, whether he was alone or not.
    She paused, then leaned over MariAnn’s desk, and under the guise of writing a note, murmured, “Is someone in there?”
    “He’s alone,” MariAnn whispered. “But a few minutes ago, he threw a fit. And I mean threw . Stuff was crashing all over the place in there.” All of this was said with many furtive glances at the closed office door, her fingers clenched around her pen as if it was a lifeline. “He called Noriega earlier, but no one’s called or anything since then, so I don’t know what set him off.”
    Natalie’s stomach clenched. She knew what had set him off. Anthony was Noriega’s Sire. From what she knew, that meant he’d have felt Noriega’s death, and now she knew, for sure, that he’d talked to Noriega just before the fight with Christian. She’d suspected as much, but . . . had he ordered Noriega to confront Christian? Or had he been trying to talk him out of it instead? Maybe that’s why he was so upset.
    The door to Anthony’s office opened and both women jumped in surprise. MariAnn was suddenly intent on her keyboard, typing away like a madwoman, while Natalie jolted upright and started for her own desk. But Anthony’s next words stopped her.
    “I’ve received some bad news,” he said, without preamble. “Terrible news.” He looked away, as if fortifying himself to say it. “Noriega is dead.”
    MariAnn stared at him, her eyes filling with tears. “But I just spoke to him,” she whispered.
    Anthony nodded. “He was murdered.”
    Natalie gasped, not having to pretend her shock, since she knew he was lying.
    “It was that new vampire, Duvall, who was here earlier,” Anthony explained, with a convincing show of grief. “He must have found out that Noriega was joining the challenge, and decided to take him out rather than face him in a fair fight. They ambushed Noriega—Duvall and that lieutenant of his—caught him completely unaware and all alone. He was dead before he knew what was happening.”
    Natalie blinked, trying to figure out what to say. She didn’t know why Anthony was bothering to lie to them, but she did know that she couldn’t let him realize she knew the truth. He might pretend to be her benevolent ancestor, even call her “cousin” apparently. But he wasn’t. She had lots of uncles and aunts, and cousins, too. She knew what family felt like, and Anthony wasn’t one of them. His goodwill was a fragile thing and it came with a price. As long as you did what he wanted, as long as you were helpful, he was a great guy. But if you crossed the line, he never forgave you. And Noriega’s death might just be the line she shouldn’t cross.
    “I’m very sorry, my lord,” she said finally. “Is there anything we can do?”
    Anthony drew a deep breath through his nose, visibly gathering his strength. It was a masterful performance, and it made Natalie rethink everything she thought knew about him.
    “Not right now. In fact, MariAnn, why don’t you go on home? I won’t be seeing anyone else tonight. I need some time alone to deal with this loss.”
    “Of course, my lord,” MariAnn murmured. She stood and gathered her things, but made no move to leave. “Are you coming,