Lucas opened his mouth to reject her offer, but stopped and eyed her curiously instead. “You can do that?”
“Yes, Lucas,” she said patronizingly, “I can do that. You’re just like all those assholes at the Bureau who think women only know how to type or play hookers.”
“No,” Lucas said slowly. “I never thought that.” He considered his options for a long moment. “Have you ever killed anyone?” he asked bluntly.
Kathryn blinked. “No,” she admitted.
“Ever shot a live human being?”
“Once. Not with a rifle. It was up close. Small town. My partner and I were passing through, actually aiming for one town over in an investigation of what looked like a home-bred terror cell, when four assholes robbed a bank across the street from the coffee shop where we’d stopped for lunch. Locals were outgunned and more than happy to accept our assistance.”
“You shot a bank robber?”
She nodded. “One of the four tried to make a break for it while his buddies went down, guns blazing. He was wearing a vest. Body armor,” she clarified. “I could have gone for a head shot and made it.” She shrugged. “But he’d already tossed his weapon, so I shot him in the leg instead.”
“That was good of you.”
“I’m an FBI agent, Lucas. I try to apprehend suspects, not kill them.”
“Another reason you shouldn’t come with us tonight. You can’t shoot a vampire in the leg, Kathryn. It’ll just piss him off.”
She regarded him steadily, her jaw tight with anger, but her gaze thoughtful. “What about you guys?” she asked.
“What about us?” Lucas replied, puzzled.
“Are you going to kill everyone you meet tonight?”
“Well, not everyone,” he joked, then sobered at her look of irritation. “The simple answer is yes. Any vampire who meets us in battle tonight will die. Some might surrender. Klemens is not an easy master, and not too many of his vampires will be sad to see him go. Unfortunately, the Sire/Child bond will drive even most of those who hate him to defend him. They’ll die along with the others.”
“That’s a pretty brutal way of life.”
Lucas nodded. “That’s what it means to be Vampire.”
“Will there be any humans at all?”
“Not on our side, but Klemens is expecting a visitor, a local mob boss who won’t want to be seen. Klemens will probably permit the human to bring a few of his own guards with him, and they’ll be human, too.”
“Will you wait until the humans are gone before attacking?”
“Definitely not. That mob guy is my distraction. But you shouldn’t worry too much about him. He and every one of his guards have probably killed, or ordered killed, more people than either one of us. Well, you anyway. I’ve lived a long, bloody time.”
Kathryn stared up into his eyes, clearly trying to decide if he was joking about his own death count. He wasn’t.
“All right,” she said, in the tone of one who’s made a decision. “Find me some high ground. I can at least take down any guards this mob guy brings with him. I won’t kill them unless I have to, but there are other ways of making certain a man stays down. Humans don’t have your tolerance for pain. I’ll also do my best to cover you against your vampire enemies. What’s the best way to disable a vampire?”
“You don’t disable a vampire,” Lucas said bluntly. “You kill him. Hit the heart if you can. If not, aim for the head. Depending on the ammo, it might at least take him out of the game long enough for you to get away. Assuming you’re as good as you say.”
“I am.”
“Okay,” he agreed, smiling at her look of surprise. “I keep telling you, Kathryn. This is war. I won’t turn away a weapon just because it comes wrapped in a very sexy package.”
“A package you won’t be unwrapping again anytime soon,” she retorted.
Lucas laughed. “Tell Nick what kind of gear you need, and if we don’t have it here, he’ll have it waiting for you when we land. But you follow my orders, Kathryn. No questions asked.”
“Hey, that’s what we do at the FBI. We follow orders.” She strode past him, slapping away the hand he reached out to her. “I have to finish my shower. And I’ll need those clothes.”
* * * *
Kathryn leaned over the private jet’s conference table and studied the amazing array of photographs and schematics from Klemens’s Chicago compound. They’d taken off from Rapid City in Lucas’s elegant private jet—apparently it really was good to be the king. She doubted too many invading forces travelled in such luxury. They were no sooner in the air than Nick produced his files on Klemens and started discussing their battle plan for the night. She wouldn’t have thought it possible for a private citizen to accumulate this kind of data, but she was probably being naïve. In the era of Google Earth and the million other Internet sites where one could farm data, a first rate hacker could work miracles. And like everything else, when it came to hackers, there was apparently nothing but the best for Lucas.
“Tell me again how you know Klemens will be there tonight?” Kathryn asked Nicholas.
He glanced at Lucas for permission, then said, “That’s a bit of good luck on our part. Klemens has some unsavory human allies in Chicago, including Hector McKinney, who’s one of the major crime bosses locally. That’s who he’s meeting tonight. Now, normally, you’d expect that to mean increased security, but the thing is, Klemens is no fool. He doesn’t trust his mobbed up ally and limits the number of soldiers he can bring to their meetings. Of course, McKinney doesn’t trust Klemens either, so Klemens makes a big show of limiting his guards, too.
“Like I said, it’s mostly for show on Klemens’s part. His vamps are all there, but they’re out of sight, mostly in the basement.”
“So they just hang out in the basement for a few hours?”
“A vampire’s basement is not what you think, Agent Hunter. Especially not in the headquarters of a vampire lord. It will be fully built out, with every comfort. But it’s still a basement, and it puts the majority of his guards in one place when we attack.”
“I see. What about this house?” she asked, pointing to Klemens’s nearest neighbor, near being a relative term in this case, given the size of the lots. Klemens’s house was huge, with a lot size to match. His neighbor’s house was just as big, but it had one big advantage from Kathryn’s point of view—it was three stories, where Klemens’s was two and a dormer attic. That put the neighbor’s roof at least ten feet above Klemens, and that was ten feet Kathryn could use to her advantage . . . assuming she could get there.
“That’s where you’ll be,” Nick confirmed. “The owners are in Florida. They leave every year after Thanksgiving and don’t return until late April.”
“Every year?” Kathryn asked. “How long have you had this guy under surveillance?”
Nicholas shot another glance at Lucas, who was sitting next to her.
“Vampires live a long time,” Lucas commented cryptically.
“Whatever that means,” she muttered. “Okay, so the owners are in Florida, but a place this big, they must have housekeeping staff, gardeners, even guards. What about them?”
“The housekeeper only stops by twice a week. They do have a security system and a drive-by patrol that follows a regular schedule. Their company policy is to vary their patrols for obvious reasons, but they don’t. Also, they literally drive by, so unless you’re planning on standing on the roof and waving, there won’t be anything for them to see.”
“So, I’ll have the place to myself, then.”
Nick jerked his head in agreement. “As soon as we hit the ground in Chicago, you’ll be going directly to Klemens’s estate. One of my guys will drive you and help you get set up inside the house. Lucas and the rest of us will proceed more cautiously, but I need you up and ready to go by the time we get there. Once Lucas arrives at the estate, there won’t be any time to climb over walls and sneak into houses. We’ll have to attack immediately.”
“You do realize, Kathryn,” Lucas drawled, “that you’ll be breaking and entering the neighbor’s house in order to get up on the roof. You being an FBI agent and all . . . ”
Kathryn scowled. She hadn’t even considered that aspect of the night’s activities, but Lucas was right, damn him. She was breaking the law just by walking into that house. She glanced up and saw the laughter in his eyes at her predicament.
“Smart ass,” she muttered. “Okay, what am I doing there?”
“Just what you suggested,” Nick said simply. “Overwatch. Klemens’s estate is too big for us to cover every possible angle. But if you find the right spot, you should be able to see all but the side farthest from your position. If you see anything wonky, you let me know, and I’ll direct the response.”
Kathryn nodded. This was good, and she could do it with a clear conscience since it wouldn’t involve killing anyone. Hopefully.
Nick shifted his attention to Lucas. “How do you want us to proceed with the assault, my lord?”
“How many warriors do we have total?” Lucas asked pensively, studying the satellite image of Klemens’s house.
“Minneapolis is fielding almost their full contingent. They’re on the ground in Chicago by now. I also brought in fighters from Kansas and Missouri. They both left last night and arrived during daylight earlier today. With your guard, that gives you at least fifty seasoned warriors.”
“And Klemens?”
“Because of his visitor, his visible numbers are limited. No more than ten in evidence, including his personal guard and the team on the gate. But he’ll have at least another ten close by, most likely out of sight in the basement. It’s possible that with the recent hostilities, he’ll have upped that number, but I’ve got eyes on the compound and expect to have a more accurate count by the time we land.”
