the suits for FBI.
Whatever had happened here, Octavian was right in the middle of it, and it had been significant enough to warrant this kind of attention. The nineteen-year-old girl in her wanted to make a run for
it, but all of these grim-faced investigators with their guns and handcuffs weren’t there looking for her. Besides that, she could feel the Medusa toxin wearing off, her ability to alter her
flesh returning almost like an injured muscle regaining its limberness.
Soon, if she wanted to get away from Metzger and his team, she’d at least have a shot at making it before they hit her with another dose of the toxin. But before she took any action, she
wanted to see Octavian and find out what this was all about.
‘She has no ID,’ Sergeant Omondi told the cops barring access to the elevators.
‘Then she stays down here,’ the older of the two cops said, lifting his chin in pride and defiance, wanting to make sure they knew who had jurisdiction.
Galleti smirked, closing her eyes a moment.
‘Something funny, Miss?’ the older cop asked.
Metzger shot Galleti a dark look. She stood up a bit straighter, no smile on her face now, chocolate brown eyes very serious. Omondi and Song followed suit, perfectly grim, but Barbieri shook
his head in open pity for the uniformed policeman.
‘This should be –’
‘Barbieri,’ Metzger said, the warning clear in his tone.
Then he turned back to the cops, who had already seen the identification of each member of the team from Task Force Victor.
‘Officer, maybe you’re not aware that Task Force Victor is charged with its duties under the United Nations amended charter, and has been given jurisdictional authority over all
vampire-related incidents,’ Metzger explained, feigning patience.
The cop sniffed, shot a can-you-believe-this glance at his partner, and then cocked his head to look at Metzger as if he were an unusual animal on display at the zoo.
‘Given I haven’t been in a coma or on the moon, yeah, I’m aware. But let me tell you what we’ve got upstairs. A murder victim and a
magic
-man,’ the cop
said, waggling his fingers at the end, mocking the idea of magic. ‘There’s no vampire here.’
A chill went through Charlotte. Octavian had come to Philadelphia to reconnect with his girlfriend, now he was in a swanky hotel room with a corpse.
‘Shit,’ she whispered, ‘it’s not Nikki, is it?’
The cops both glanced at her, as did Barbieri. The soldiers did not.
‘Your victim was killed by a vampire. The investigation is yours; that’s not what we do. But you’re bound by your own government’s laws to cooperate with us. If you
impede us – ‘
‘Didn’t say you couldn’t go through, Van Helsing,’ the cop said, then pointed at Charlotte. ‘But she’s got no ID, and my orders are clear. You want to cross
swords over jurisdiction, that’s fine, but until someone changes my orders—’
‘She’s our new Bloodhound, you idiot,’ Barbieri growled. ‘She’s a vampire!’
The cop laughed. ‘Hell, that’s not going to win you any points. You want her with you, go through channels. Get my lieutenant on the line and have him order me to let her pass. Until
then, no go.’
‘Points?’ Metzger said, his patience frayed.
His nostrils flared with anger. He cast a sidelong glance at Sergeant Omondi and gave a curt nod. With a clatter, Omondi, Song, and Galleti put their hands on the butts of their weapons but did
not draw them. The younger cop, who looked like he might piss his pants, started to reach for his gun, but the older one shouted at him and grabbed his wrist to keep him from doing so.
‘You’re wasting my time,’ Metzger said. ‘Both of you step aside. One of you call your lieutenant. If he has a problem with us being here, he can damn well come up and
tell us himself. He can tell Octavian. I have a feeling he won’t want to do that. Now, cooperate or I take you into custody and we let the city of
Whatever had happened here, Octavian was right in the middle of it, and it had been significant enough to warrant this kind of attention. The nineteen-year-old girl in her wanted to make a run for
it, but all of these grim-faced investigators with their guns and handcuffs weren’t there looking for her. Besides that, she could feel the Medusa toxin wearing off, her ability to alter her
flesh returning almost like an injured muscle regaining its limberness.
Soon, if she wanted to get away from Metzger and his team, she’d at least have a shot at making it before they hit her with another dose of the toxin. But before she took any action, she
wanted to see Octavian and find out what this was all about.
‘She has no ID,’ Sergeant Omondi told the cops barring access to the elevators.
‘Then she stays down here,’ the older of the two cops said, lifting his chin in pride and defiance, wanting to make sure they knew who had jurisdiction.
Galleti smirked, closing her eyes a moment.
‘Something funny, Miss?’ the older cop asked.
Metzger shot Galleti a dark look. She stood up a bit straighter, no smile on her face now, chocolate brown eyes very serious. Omondi and Song followed suit, perfectly grim, but Barbieri shook
his head in open pity for the uniformed policeman.
‘This should be –’
‘Barbieri,’ Metzger said, the warning clear in his tone.
Then he turned back to the cops, who had already seen the identification of each member of the team from Task Force Victor.
‘Officer, maybe you’re not aware that Task Force Victor is charged with its duties under the United Nations amended charter, and has been given jurisdictional authority over all
vampire-related incidents,’ Metzger explained, feigning patience.
The cop sniffed, shot a can-you-believe-this glance at his partner, and then cocked his head to look at Metzger as if he were an unusual animal on display at the zoo.
‘Given I haven’t been in a coma or on the moon, yeah, I’m aware. But let me tell you what we’ve got upstairs. A murder victim and a
magic
-man,’ the cop
said, waggling his fingers at the end, mocking the idea of magic. ‘There’s no vampire here.’
A chill went through Charlotte. Octavian had come to Philadelphia to reconnect with his girlfriend, now he was in a swanky hotel room with a corpse.
‘Shit,’ she whispered, ‘it’s not Nikki, is it?’
The cops both glanced at her, as did Barbieri. The soldiers did not.
‘Your victim was killed by a vampire. The investigation is yours; that’s not what we do. But you’re bound by your own government’s laws to cooperate with us. If you
impede us – ‘
‘Didn’t say you couldn’t go through, Van Helsing,’ the cop said, then pointed at Charlotte. ‘But she’s got no ID, and my orders are clear. You want to cross
swords over jurisdiction, that’s fine, but until someone changes my orders—’
‘She’s our new Bloodhound, you idiot,’ Barbieri growled. ‘She’s a vampire!’
The cop laughed. ‘Hell, that’s not going to win you any points. You want her with you, go through channels. Get my lieutenant on the line and have him order me to let her pass. Until
then, no go.’
‘Points?’ Metzger said, his patience frayed.
His nostrils flared with anger. He cast a sidelong glance at Sergeant Omondi and gave a curt nod. With a clatter, Omondi, Song, and Galleti put their hands on the butts of their weapons but did
not draw them. The younger cop, who looked like he might piss his pants, started to reach for his gun, but the older one shouted at him and grabbed his wrist to keep him from doing so.
‘You’re wasting my time,’ Metzger said. ‘Both of you step aside. One of you call your lieutenant. If he has a problem with us being here, he can damn well come up and
tell us himself. He can tell Octavian. I have a feeling he won’t want to do that. Now, cooperate or I take you into custody and we let the city of
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