Page 41 of Vapor's Blaze
“You look angry, Mr. Siege.”
“Take her upstairs, Vapor. Do it now, the sooner we can get back to business and sort out this mess, the better.”
“Are you always this annoyed,” I say over my shoulder as Vapor leads me to the door.
“No. You’re needlessly complicating and already complex situation,” their club president shoots back.
“What are you even talking about? I don’t understand why you’re being so defensive. I’m just worried about Jamus. Can’t I just speak to him for a minute and make sure he’s okay?”
Vapor stills at my words. His eyes drift shut for a brief second, before he opens them and speaks in a calm and controlled voice. “We’ve got a lot on our plate today. We don’t have endless hours to argue the same thing over and over with you. We’re doing exactly what you asked us to do, but maybe if you hadn’t taken matters into your own hands and come here, then we could have gotten everything sorted without risking more bloodshed.”
I’m shocked Vapor is acting annoyed with me. Frowning at him, I say, “Okay. I’ll do as you say.”
Vapor tugs my arm pulling me out of the meeting room. “Let’s head upstairs. The quicker I get you where you belong, the quicker we can get down the business of negotiating a release for your friend.”
When we leave the meeting room, he glances down at me. “You didn’t trust me to advocate for your friend.”
It wasn’t a question. It was a statement of fact. And he is right. I didn’t trust him. “You’re a member of the Savage Legion. Why should I trust you to help Jamus?”
“Because I care about you and promised that I would. I also promised that we’d find a way to keep you safe, but instead you waltz in here, probably alerting God knows how many Hellfire Hounds spies to your presence. Darlin’ any chance you had of hiding out from King has now gone to zero, you realize that don’t you?”
He leads me up the stairs and into a rather nice suite of rooms. When the door closes, I turn to him. “Look, I’ve made bad decisions in the past, trusted people I shouldn’t have, and it cost me dearly. At the end of the day, I just couldn’t gamble that old man’s life on you keeping your word to me. The stakes were too high.”
He fixes me with a hard stare, “I might not be back tonight, but I will send one of the prospects with food for you. I need some time to think about our relationship.”
“I try not to think of it as a relationship because it has such a short self-life.
“That’s a shitty thing to say to the only man in the world looking out for you.”
“I’m sorry, Vapor. I really am. I honestly like you, I care more about you than any man I’ve ever met but if my grandfather taught me one thing in life, it’s that club business comes before everything else—including friendships and even family. I can’t afford to learn that lesson the hard way when it comes to someone who has helped take care of me my whole life. He’s too important to me.
“I get what you’re saying, Trix. I can’t talk about it anymore right now. I need to get back downstairs. We have a lot of things to discuss today.”
“Alright. I hope to see you later this evening but if that’s not possible, I understand.”
Before he walks out the door, he steps forward and gives me a hard kiss. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure this situation lands in your friend’s favor, no matter the price.”
“Thank you. That’s exactly what I want.”
“Just so you know, this room is off limits to everyone but me. When the prospects bring your food, they will knock and give you the tray without stepping over the threshold.”
“Am I a prisoner?” I ask, thinking yet again I’m leaving one awful situation for another.”
“No, the door won’t be locked, but don’t leave the room, please,” he says giving me an imploring look.
“So I am a prisoner,” I state.
“Until we know what’s going on and have a plan of action, we need to know where you are. Trust me, I don’t want you trapped here any longer than you need to be.”
Trust me. This time I suppose I had to.
***
When the door closes behind him, I begin to pace the room and worry about what kind of arrangements they would make for Jamus. Strangely enough, I didn’t realize how much he meant to me until his life was in danger. I’ve been panicking ever since Vapor told me he was one of the Hounds captured by the Legion.
Their club president asked if I would sacrifice myself for the Hounds. Sacrifice could mean several things. Most of the options are not appealing and I start to regret my impetuousness.
I don’t know how long I pace but at some point, there is a knock at my door. It’s just a curtesy as they can come and go as they like, but I get up and answer it anyway.