Chapter 372
Jamie continued to explain what he thought Holland might do in order to kill off all of the Guardians. “If Hines has figured out what we know about how to turn Guardians back into humans, then he could do that, and then kill us. It wouldn’t be quick, but it is a possibility.”
Those were my thoughts exactly. If we had cracked that code, and it seemed like we had, although we hadn’t done any trials yet, why not think that Hines could, too?
Christian was shaking his head. “There’s no way she could figure that out so quickly. Hines can’t possibly know as much about genetics and our DNA makeup as Dr. Morrow, and it’s taken him decades to get this far.”
Dr. Morrow was a Guardian from Roatan, and Christian had recently started working with him to finish off the formula. It was Christian who’d messed the whole thing up enough that Aaron almost killed himself trying to use it. If Christian was half as smart as he thought he was, maybe I could give him a little credit, but the fact that he thinks he knows so much when he’s often wrong drives me insane. So I asked, “Why can’t Hines know?”
“Because Dr. Morrow is at the top of his field. He’s a genius. Hines is a quack.” He was smirking at me like I was just a stupid teenager.
I fully turned to face him now, leering across Brandon and totally forgetting there was anyone else in the room. “And Holland can read minds, you moron!” I spat at Christian whose eyes widened. Brandon pressed on my shoulder, and my bottom hit my chair. But I wasn’t done. “What makes you think she couldn’t just go for a little stroll around Morrow’s head—or yours—and come up with whatever information she needed?” Brandon’s hand was still firm on my shoulder, and Jamie had my other arm, pulling me back into the chair. I continued to glare at Christian, but Alex cleared his throat, and I glanced over at him. His eyes were even wider than Christian’s, and I realized I’d done precisely what I had been trying not to do—let my dramatic teenage-self rear her impulsive head.
Christian’s response was about the only thing a person could say in that position. “We’d know,” he insisted.
I didn’t have to answer. “We wouldn’t know.” I turned and looked at Aaron, and if there was any chance that Christian had been considering a counter argument, it had to stay trapped in his throat. Aaron’s eyes made a point no one could argue with, even if they had no idea that Holland had been camping out in the Guardian Leader’s mind for at least a month.
There was a long pause while everyone tried to remember how to breathe. The thought that Holland could just visit our minds whenever she wanted to and take what she needed wasn’t pleasant. I heard Jamie’s voice before I realize he was talking to me. “Would it be possible for Hines to do that? Could he get into someone’s head and figure out what we know?”
I shrugged and thought for a moment before I answered, trying my best to sound more civil now that I was no longer addressing the idiot on the other side of my boyfriend. It was a legitimate question and one I’d asked myself a dozen times. “I don’t see why not. I think all Vampires can do it. They just don’t all care to.” It wasn’t easy walking around in someone else’s thoughts. It was draining and scary. There was no reason for Hines to do it when Holland could easily do it for him.
“All right, we’ll have to be particularly careful when Paul’s team moves in, make sure he knows the risks.” Aaron seemed to have decided this conversation was about over with. “If anyone will understand that necessity, it’s him.” He was right of course; Paul was the first, and hopefully only, Guardian to be caught and tortured by Hines.
“Maybe they should wait. Maybe we should get ourselves back over there first.” Elliott’s voice caught me off guard. He’d been so quiet thus far. Normally, if I get into it with Christian, he’s one of the first ones to jump in and shut us up. But today, he’d been a little off. I wondered if it had anything at all to do with the situation Brandon had been worried about the last few days. Or maybe he was still mad at Aaron for packing his stuff up.
Cadence answered him. “Holland could be back any moment. It would be better for Paul to go before she returns.”
My sister was right. Elliott nodded and then returned to his solemn state, and I silently wondered if he was okay. It crossed my mind that Holland might be messing with him, but I didn’t think that was the problem. It was something else....
Aurora’s voice had heads turning again. “Do we know where she is or why?”
I was really hoping no one would throw this one at me because I had no idea. When Aaron nodded, I let out a sigh of relief. “We know she’s somewhere near Linz, or at least that’s where her planes still are. What she’s doing there, we have no idea, though we were hoping maybe Alex could provide some insight.”
So many questions popped into my head at the same time, I wasn’t sure where to start. I was glad they’d been able to track the planes since I hadn’t been able to help with that. But why was she in Linz? That’s where Lucy, Emma, and I had tracked Giovani. Was there something there that kept attracting these goons? And what would Alex know about any of this?
He was wondering the same thing. “Me?” he asked, looking around at all of us as we peered in his direction. “While I am flattered, I’m not sure why you may think that. I’ve hardly any dealings in that part of Europe.”
Cadence cleared her throat. “We were hoping maybe some legend, some legacy would come to you.” My sister’s eyes flickered to Christian, and I bit back a smile. He was the one who usually had the role of enlightening us with his theatrical presentations from history, and here my sister and Aaron had gone and recruited someone else.
Unfortunately, the idea didn’t seem to be panning out. Alex replied, “I’m afraid I won’t be of much use to you. But there is someone who might be able to help.” He was up out of his chair, and Aaron and Cadence exchanged bewildered glances.
“Who might that be?” Aaron asked. At least it wasn’t Christian he was referring to....
“Fellow by the name of Schmitz,” Alex replied with a nod. “He’s older than me. A gentle soul, that one. Grew up near the Austrian border. I’ll fetch him.”
There was no question Alex was headed out of the office now, regardless of what my sister or Aaron had intended to happen next. The door opened and closed quickly, and Alex was off, leaving the rest of us looking after him. Clearly, he hadn’t been comfortable here, and I wondered if there was something I could’ve done to make him feel better—like maybe not attempting to rip Christian’s head off.
