the bed beside him. “Babe, it’s been forty-five minutes.”
Footsteps sounded on the landing. Fenton knocked on the door frame. “I hate to disturb you but Lally told me you were up here and—”
“You’re not disturbing us.” Augie waved one hand through the air like he was underwater, his smile still lopsided and his eyes glassy. She was okay with that. Meant the pain strip was doing its thing. “Come in, sit down. Show’s about to start.”
Fenton took a chair. “Thank you. How are you feeling, Augustine?”
“Great,” he slurred. “Doc Carlson fixed me right up.”
Harlow shook her head. “Dr. Carlson said he’ll need at least a full day of bed rest, maybe two, before the damage from the iron is completely gone.”
Fenton nodded. “Sounds reasonable. No word from the senator, I take it?”
“None.” She went to the coffee table in front of Augie’s couch and fired up her laptop sitting there, thrilled the pain in her hands was nothing more than a minor irritation now. “I’m ready to go, though.”
His brows lifted. “You can do everything you need to do with that one machine?”
She smiled. “This one machine and my fae skills.” She lifted one shoulder. “Also, I’m tapped into the computer lab at the Pelcrum. That is a serious amount of firepower you’ve got going on over there.”
“Tapped in?” His brows furrowed. “That’s a very secure system.”
“No such thing as a very secure system. Not to me anyway.” She bit her lip. “You don’t mind, do you?”
“No, of course not.” He splayed his hands on the chair’s arms. “I guess I should stop being surprised by your abilities.”
“My girl is amazing,” Augustine volunteered.
“Yes, she is,” Fenton agreed. He glanced at his watch. “I believe the senator’s hour is up.”
Harlow took off her gloves and cracked her knuckles. “Well, then, let’s get this party started.”
“Give her hell, Harley.” Augustine lifted his hand, thumb up, and grinned.
“That’s my plan.” She attacked the keyboard, sending out the video segment she’d prepared while the doctor had been taking care of Augustine. She overrode satellite feeds and streaming webcasts, local, nationwide, international—wherever and whatever she could access, becoming one with the machine. There was nothing off-limits to her.
The holovision flickered and the local newscast disappeared.
She typed one last command and sat back. “Here we go.”
The senator’s face appeared onscreen. The camera zoomed out to show more of her, revealing she held a gun. “This pistol holds fifteen rounds of specially made hollow points. Would you like to know what’s special about them?”
The view switched to Augustine. Harlow leaned in. Her edit job had been fast and dirty. She prayed it came out the way she intended. He looked so pale, but she understood the pain he’d been enduring to make this meeting happen. He spoke. “I’m sure you’re going to tell me either way.”
“They’re not really hollow.” Pellimento lifted the gun higher. Her face practically gleamed with hatred. The night vision lens did not cast her in a pretty light. “They’re filled with a mixture of tiny iron pellets and iron shavings. After this bullet hits you, it will explode inside you and dissolve your fae guts into soup. Not a pretty way to go, but it works for me.”
Harlow glanced down at the dedicated website where she’d posted the video so that it would be available even after the telecast was over. She’d also linked to Dr. Carlson’s report of Augustine’s injuries, complete with the pictures she’d asked for. The hits were climbing rapidly.
The video continued, back to Augie now. “What have you got against the fae and the varcolai? And the vampires for that matter. They’re not all bad.”
Pellimento rolled her eyes. “If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times. You’re all abominations. Unnaturals is the word you’ll soon be called.”
“Hah,” Augustine barked from bed. “This is going to finish her.”
“We’ll see,” Fenton said. He twisted his hands together nervously and shifted his gaze back to the holovision.
Pellimento was glaring at Augustine. “I don’t care if that witch did kill my son, you’re the one who’s going down for it. I’m going to make an example of you, Mr. Robelais. Just because you escaped me doesn’t mean you’re not still going to die a public death.”
Augustine stared right back at her, hands on his hips. “So you do understand that I’m not responsible for Robert’s death. But you still want to punish me.”
Pellimento’s slow grin came off as calculated and chilling. “Now you’ve got it. Truth be told, that witch