"Why?" Zoey asked uncomfortably.
"Do as you're told." Heidi was armed and dressed as if for battle in her urban fatigues. "She's in her office."
Zoey rolled her eyes but went grudgingly towards the hallway lined with offices of ranking Sucubatti. Before this week and Declan she didn't give a shit about being called in to be yelled at.
She knocked and entered.
Olivia was alone and seated at the other side of a massive desk, rendering the experience uncomfortable from the start. Zoey had the sense she had been called into the principal's office.
"I have two issues, one that's quite urgent," Olivia said. She, too, was dressed in battle fatigues.
Zoey waited, uneasy with the sight of Olivia fully armed. Her make-up was subdued, her high heels replaced by sturdy boots.
"Grab some energy drinks. You'll need them today," Olivia directed, indicating a small tray of the thumb-sized cans. "Take a couple for Vikki. We can't find her."
Zoey took four and tucked them in her pocket. She said nothing about knowing where Vikki really was. Olivia put the device in her hand away in a cargo pocket, attention on Zoey.
"You were late again this morning," Olivia said.
"I usually am on Friday mornings," Zoey said with a shrug. "I like to sleep in."
Olivia evaluated her for a brief moment, her mind clearly elsewhere, or Zoey didn't stand a chance of lying.
"First, we are expecting the Cambions to attack us this morning. Heidi got the intel less than an hour ago. We've put everyone on alert."
Zoey froze.
"We've evacuated the Council already and are prepping to do the same for the Benefactors and other ranking members of the Sucubatti," she continued. "There are rumors of some sort of civil war brewing among the Incubatti, and the bastards have managed to drag us into it. At this point, there's no telling who's on whose side."
Fear flew through Zoey. Hadn't she just spoken to Declan about this very issue?
"You were with Declan last night?"
Zoey nodded.
"Let's hope he's on our side." Olivia studied her. "Zoey, there is something I feel like I should tell you now, in case things turn nasty." Her magic surrounded Zoey, once again battling Declan's to influence her. "You, Vikki and the rest of the Team R girls ..." she paused.
Zoey stepped back, not expecting to see the doubt on the face of the Succubus charged with the security of the society. Dread settled low into her stomach, and she found herself thinking of Declan to keep from running.
"You are all my ... offspring. Twenty three years ago, I donated my DNA to the surrogates who bore you. I placed you all in foster homes with humans who are allies of the Sucubatti," Olivia spoke with difficulty, her jaw clenched, as if she didn't want to tell Zoey what she did. "I've kept an eye on you your whole life. I have a standing order for Team R to block the transfers every Halfling gets when they turn twenty-two."
Zoey shifted, uncertain she was hearing this. She'd never once thought it was a possibility. Rather than blindly trust Olivia, she vowed to ask the Professor, who wouldn't keep a truth like this from her.
"I knew you would be strong, and I knew you were destined for an Incubus. I didn't expect you to fall prey to an Incubus like Declan. He's savvier than the rest of those brutes, which concerns me. I warned you yesterday against trusting him, and I'm telling you this again: Right now, he is not a threat to you. But soon, he may become one. Our intel indicates the Enforcers know you are my daughter, which means they may use you to get to me."
"How?" Zoey asked. "I didn't even know!"
"They've watched you and me for a very long time, and we've swapped captured spies many times over the past few years. There are records of this that you can view to verify as soon as we evac everyone and are safe," Olivia said. "We have the same eyes, you and I, and similar temperaments. Haven't you ever noticed?"
Zoey wasn't about to look in the mirror to compare eye color. Neither did she believe Olivia had her best interests at heart. The timing or the claim itself felt off.
"In any case, Declan will use this knowledge to manipulate you against your own family."
Family. Zoey had none three days ago and suddenly, she had a mother, sisters and husband. She always felt a connection to Vikki, who was her best friend for ten years. The idea that Vikki and the other girls on Team R were her sisters was gratifying. The idea of Olivia being her mother terrifying.
Olivia seemed to be waiting for her to speak. For once, Zoey had nothing to say.
"Don't let anyone hurt your family, Zoey. You belong with the Sucubatti. You weren't recruited, because we always knew where you belonged. When this is over, I plan on putting you in charge of the operations arm. You've more than earned it."
"A Halfling?" Zoey managed, astonished.
"Not any Halfling, but one with the advantages of a human and the power of a Succubus. You are my greatest creation." Olivia's eyes glowed in a way that left Zoey inching towards the door again. "Right now, I need you to secure the Benefactors, starting with the Professor. They are vulnerable outside the fence."
The Professor was in danger. This, Zoey understood. She nodded, mind swimming with magic and revelations she couldn't quite swallow.
"We'll talk later," Olivia said with a smile.
Zoey fled. She barreled towards the locker room. Overwhelmed by all she learned, she was barely aware of changing clothing and grabbing her lucky knives. The world seemed to be trying to crush her. Panting, she didn't come out of her daze until the cool, drizzly air of spring in the DC area hit her lungs.
Signs that the campus was on alert were clear, from the guards in black pacing among the numerous headquarter buildings. A steady stream of Hunters were moving to and from the armory housed under a parking structure. Some took up positions at the gates, others around the headquarters.
None went for the Benefactors. Irritated, Zoey trotted through the gates to the external side of the campus. Almost immediately, she sensed the Cambions. Desperate to escape the oppressive revelations, she was dressed in her sparring gear and armed with only her normal assortment of weapons and no radio. The leggings were padded at the knees and inner thighs and the water-resistant, structured tank top snug beneath a padded vest.
Unconcerned with facing a horde of Cambions, Zoey tracked them to the edge of campus. They were moving between the Victorian houses belonging to the Benefactors and a few Succubae elders located along one rode outside of the compound. When the Cambions reached the forest edging each side of the campus, they fled.
She circled one of the houses. The Cambion magic lingered, even when they did not. There was another scent in the air, this one chemical, as if they'd trailed some foul-smelling liquid behind them. She found the trail and knelt over it. It wasn't anything she recognized. Sharp gaze taking in the surroundings, Zoey pulled out her phone to text first Vikki, then the command center.
Waiting a few seconds for the picture she took to finish sending to Vikki, she instinctively kept alert for any Cambions.
She followed the trail down the block of houses. Jogging along it, she circled the campus to find the same strange liquid around the dorms lining the outer edge of campus. She continued following the trail.
Her phone rang. She saw Vikki's number and answered.
"I'm with Liam, at their Incubatti command center," Vikki started. "Something really weird is going down. I'm so fucking frustrated no one will tell me what exactly, because I'm a Sucubatti Halfling. I think it's bad, Zoey."
"He doesn't know what this liquid stuff is?" Zoey asked. "It's nothing I've ever seen before."
"Not exactly. It's probably explosive, though. What else did you notice?"
"It trails the gas line all the way around the block. If it's explosive, does it have to be lit? I've found no remote detonators, and when I went around again, it had already soaked into the ground. I have no idea how it might be ignited, unless it's something else entirely?"
"Wait one."
Zoey paced, hearing the sound of Vikki moving around.
"Kay. Here's what I think. The Cambions are prepping to attack. I think Liam and his brothers are working with Olivia against the Cambions, because there's like something brewing between them and a lot of other Incubatti," Vikki's voice was quiet. "Only I think it's all hush-hush."
"Hmmm," Zoey said, mind on what Declan shared with her.
"I, um, lifted a few things from Liam's mind. I know I'm horrible, but I've been so worried about you."
Zoey smiled, happy her friend cared so much. She wasn't sure she could steal secrets from Declan. He was too strong not to notice.
"Hey, V, did you have a weird conversation with Olivia?"
"Weird? The woman terrifies me."
"Yeah. She pulled me aside to tell me some stuff today." As she spoke, Zoey trotted towards the Professor's.
"Like what?"
"Um, like you and I and everyone else on Team R are her daughters via surrogates."
"What?"
"I'm assuming you didn't have that conversation," Zoey said. "Anyway, she said not to betray the family, yadda yadda."
"Did you say daughters?"
Zoey started to laugh. Suddenly, she heard a boom. She whirled, facing the dorms at the northeast corner of the campus. The trail had started there and wound around the campus. Another boom, then another. The dorms imploded then caught fire, falling like dominoes. Stunned, Zoey watched them crumble. The screams were delayed, starting several minutes after the first dorm went down. Her thoughts went to the Professor.
"They're blowing everything up," she said into the phone. "I gotta go."
"Be careful, Zoey."
Zoey hung up and raced around the perimeter of campus, aware of the buildings around the edges falling. Alarms went off from the center of the compound, and the gates were soon lined with armed Sucubatti and Hunters. She threw open the Professor's door and hurried to his study.
"Alexander!" she cried. "We have to leave. Now!"
He looked up, surprised.
"Now!" She was at his side and hauling him to his feet before he started moving. She rushed him across the room and out of the house to the street, away from the area where she found any of the strange liquid. "Stay here."
Two more Hunters were running door-to-door to drag elderly Benefactors and Sucubatti elders out of their homes. Zoey went to the neighbor's and beat on the door, ordering evacuation before running to the next house. She went down the block, helping and warning people, shepherding them to gates, where Hunters led them onto the central compound.
The Professor leaned against his car, waiting for her. For the first time since meeting him, Zoey sensed...weakness. Or maybe, age. He had been unable to balance her magic the past few months, and she began to wonder if he was ill. His smile was just as charming, but something in the tightness of the smile hinted at discomfort. Pain?
She made a mental note to ask him, once this mess was behind them. Zoey returned to him and took his arm, leading him gently onto the campus. The emergency gathering point for evacuations was the swath of parking lot behind the central parking garage.
"Zoey!" A male voice called.
She turned towards the garage, surprised to see one of the Incubatti Enforcers on their compound. He was the first who tried to read her during her disastrous hearing yesterday. Wes, Declan had called him.
He motioned her over to two other Hunters: the new girl, Lydia, and Ginny, both from Team R. Like Vikki, Ginny's exposed arms and shoulders were covered with tattoos marking her kills. Lydia's porcelain skin was like Zoey's: free of tattoos.
"We're sitting ducks here. Can you shoot?" he asked briskly.
Zoey nodded.
"Sniper posts on top of the garage, until evacuations get here." He pointed to the corners of the parking garage towering above them.
Zoey looked between Lydia and Wes, sensing the crackling connection she experienced the night she ran into Declan for the first time. Lydia looked uneasy and Wes grim. Zoey rolled her eyes, recalling what she learned about the women on Team R. Ginny had a knowing look on her face.
"Lydia, is it?" Wes asked, his gaze on the blonde girl. "You stay with me."
Ginny laughed. Zoey glared at her.
"Why am I always the last to know everything?" Zoey muttered.
Wes glanced at her. "Guess that second date took place after all."
"What the fuck are you doing here?" she demanded. "Aren't these your Cambions attacking us?"
He held out an earpiece. She glared at him, one hand on her gun. Lydia took the earpiece and placed it in Zoey's hand.
"I was confused, too," Lydia said. "Heidi said to deal with it." She grimaced.
Grudgingly, Zoey put in the earpiece, expecting to hear Heidi.
"Hey."
Her insides melted at Declan's purr.
"Hey," she replied. "So, this is awkward."
"You remember what I mentioned this morning over breakfast?" he asked.
"Yes." Zoey glanced at Wes and crossed her arms.
"Wes is coordinating with Olivia's people to evacuate everyone."
She hesitated. "Alright." It was the same thing Olivia mentioned earlier, before warning her against trusting Declan.
"Trust me?" he asked.
"We'll see."
"Good enough, kitten," he said with a smile in his voice. "I'll see you later. Behave."
Cursing, she moved away then glanced towards the parking area where people milled. Wes was right. If the Cambions intended to pick them off, they'd be easy, with the emergency gathering point located in an exposed area. Her instincts at a wail, she made her way through the crowd, until she reached the Professor.
"Come on," she told him quietly. "You're going with me."
"My dear, I "
"No. You're safe with me," she said.
"Very well." He chuckled and stood, entertained by her concern.