Caine returned the vampire’s glare. He desperately wanted to grab Laal’s finger and snap it in half. “I didn’t assault him. I actually stopped him from striking Eve.”
Laal let out a deep breath and backed up from the desk. “You know what, I don’t care what happened. What I do care about is that their captain called Mistress Ankara and she in turn called me, yelling and screaming.”
“The usual,” Caine retorted as he turned on his laptop.
“She wants me to fire you, Caine.”
Leaning back in his chair, Caine shook his head. “She always wants to fire me, Laal, and knows she can’t. So tell me something new.”
“All right.” Laal sat down in the opposing chair across the desk from Caine. “The human woman is to be your lead on this case.”
That brought Caine forward to lean on the desk, now acutely interested in the conversation. “I have a lead. Jace.”
“Instead of being on the side, we want her on scenes collecting evidence firsthand.
Mistress Ankara thinks it would be best all around if Ms. Grant is a more prominent investigator in this case.”
“As in, best for her political aspirations with the human community.”
Laal just gave him a tight-lipped smile. The baron didn’t need to confirm or deny the statement. Caine knew exactly what Ankara Jannali was all about—domination and control.
“Eve is out of her element here. She almost got snacked on at the crime scene, for Christ’s sake.” Caine shook his head. “She’s not ready to be the lead on this case, or any other for that matter. I’ve seen her personnel file. She only has two years’ experience, and that is in the lab. She’s still green in the field.”
“Nevertheless, she is to be—”
“Jace is lead on this case,” Caine interrupted. “He’s earned it, and I won’t take it from him to satisfy our illustrious Mistress’s hard-on for politics.”
Laal smiled as if he was pleased that Caine refused the suggestion. “Then I’m taking the case from you and giving it to Montgomery to head up.”
“What? You can’t be serious.” Caine balled his hands on his desk into fists. “Monty is an incompetent ass.”
“Oh, don’t be melodramatic, Caine.” Laal leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs, in apparent joy at rattling Caine’s cage. “He’s done some good work. And he’s always cooperative, unlike you.”
“I cooperate when the suggestion has merit. This one does not. It’s a bunch of bullshit to rein me in.”
“It is what it is.” Laal tilted his head and smirked. “Now, do I transfer the case over to Monty?”
The baron knew all too well Caine’s weaknesses. The lab was his baby. He’d spent months setting it up, getting it organized, buying the equipment. All funded by his own sizeable fortune. A vampire didn’t live as long as he had and not amass some wealth. And when a man was as intelligent and inventive as Caine, that man became so rich he had more than he could logically spend. Caine had sunk nearly all of that extra money into the lab. Whether the law dictated it or not, Caine felt like he’d created the lab out of nothing, like giving birth.
Sighing, Caine slumped back into his chair. “Fine. But if she dies out there, I will tell Captain Morales that you sent her out there ill-prepared and defenseless. And your political aspirations will be destroyed.”
Rising to his feet, Laal smiled. “Well, I guess it’ll be your job to keep her safe then, won’t it?” He brushed at his suit jacket as if flicking off dirt. “Pleasure to see you again, Caine. We miss you at the Club. You should really consider rejoining, you’re looking a little tense, on edge. Nothing like a little vigorous sport to cure that.” After tipping his head, Laal headed for the office door.
“Screw you,” Caine grumbled right as the baron passed over the threshold.
He knew Laal had heard him by the way the vampire’s shoulders flinched. But he kept on going as if Caine had said nothing.
Rubbing a hand over his face, Caine leaned on his desk, suddenly exhausted. Sure, he’d been running purely on fumes for the past six hours. He hadn’t had a decent sleep, or any sleep in the past thirty-six hours due to this case. But what exhausted him was figuring out how to explain to Jace that he was moving Eve, a human, ahead of him on the case.
He could explain the politics to the lycan, but he knew that Jace couldn’t care less. All Caine’s fiercest team member wanted was to follow the clues. By nature, Jace was a tracker, born and bred to follow his nose. Now Caine was going to put a barrier in front of him.
It wasn’t going to be pleasant. Jace wasn’t the most even-tempered person Caine knew.
He could be volatile in certain circumstances, and those circumstances had now appeared.
He picked up the phone and punched in Jace’s beeper number. No time like the present to engage in deadly combat with a one-hundred-and-ninety-pound lycan.
Within minutes, Jace appeared at the open door. “Hey, Chief, what’s up?”