Russell paused, then put the lid back on the arrow box. No doubt J.L. had reported immediately to his boss, and it hadn’t taken Angus long to spread the word.
“How was he?” Howard asked.
“He looked okay.” Russell returned the box to its place on a shelf. “Han was giving him an archery lesson. Patting him on the back like a proud papa.”
“Sick creep,” Howard muttered.
“Exactly.”
“Look, the next time you see Xiao Fang, give J.L. or Mikhail a call. They’ll come instantly and bring some shifters with them. We’ll help you get the boy out of there.”
“I work alone.”
Howard gave him an annoyed look. “I know you want to kill Han all by yourself, and you’re welcome to it, but this is a young boy we’re talking about. From what I hear, he could start shifting any day now. We need to get him away from Han as quickly as possible.”
Russell slipped the quiver over his shoulder and reached for the ice chest.
“Wait.” Howard strode over to the shelf where he kept the sat phones. “Take a new phone with you so you can call.”
“I have a phone.”
“I gave you that one two months ago.” Howard selected a new phone. “Take this one. It’s fully charged.”
“So is mine.”
“What?” Howard blinked. “How—”
“I’m going to the kitchen now—”
“Wait!” Howard stepped closer, his eyes narrowing. “I noticed something odd when Mikhail and I went back to Beyul-La to pick up the supplies. One of the solar-powered generators was missing. And a microwave.” He crossed his arms over his chest, tilting his head with a wry look. “Any idea what happened to those items?”
Russell returned his wry look. “Not a clue.” He teleported to the castle’s kitchen.
He unloaded the empty bottles from the ice chest and tossed them into the recycle bin. Then he helped himself to a Bleer from the fridge. He was halfway through the mixture of beer and synthetic blood when Howard charged into the kitchen and screeched to a halt.
Russell glanced at his watch. “It took you longer than usual. Been eating too many donuts?”
Howard glared at him. “I’ll take your hasty departure as a sign of guilt. I always suspected it was you, so I never reported the missing stuff to Angus.”
Surprised, Russell set his Bleer bottle on the counter. “I appreciate that.”
“We would have never defeated Lord Liao or won that last battle without your help.” Howard gave him a frustrated look. “Whether you like it or not, we’re on the same side.”
“I work alone.” Russell turned to open the refrigerator.
With a sigh, Howard lumbered toward the kitchen table. “I was alone for years, and it sucked.”
A vision of Jia flashed across Russell’s mind, but he pushed it aside and started loading his ice chest with bottles of synthetic blood. “Is Zoltan here?”
“Mikhail teleported him to his townhouse in Budapest.” Howard sat at the kitchen table and reached for his box of donuts. “The monthly coven meeting started about twenty minutes ago. It may be awhile before they get back.”
Russell paused with the ice chest half full. “Why would Zoltan go to a vampire coven meeting?”
Howard bit into a donut. “He’s still Coven Master of Eastern Europe.”
“But he’s no longer a vampire.”
Howard shrugged. “As far as I can tell, no one wants to believe it. The villagers went ballistic when he broke the news to them. That’s why I’m still here doing security. Zoltan’s in the weird position now where someone might try to kill him for not being a vampire.”
Russell frowned as he finished loading the ice chest. “Why can’t people be happy for him? It took the guy eight hundred years to get some joy in his life.”
“I know.” Howard took another bite from his donut. “But the villagers are dependent on the tours that come twice a week. Busloads of people come here to see a real vampire castle and spend money in town. If rumor spreads that Zoltan isn’t really a vampire—”
“They could lose their cash cow,” Russell concluded.
Howard snorted. “You could put it that way.” He stuffed the last of his donut into his mouth. “At last month’s coven meeting, Zoltan broke the news to all the Vamps and told them they would have to vote on a new Coven Master this month.”
“Makes sense.” Russell piled some ice on top of the bottles in the chest, then closed the lid. “I’ll be on my way then.”
Howard sat up abruptly. “They’re back. That was fast.”
Zoltan materialized close to the kitchen counter with Mikhail, an old vampire friend from Russia. The sour look on Zoltan’s face brightened when he saw Russell. “I didn’t know you were coming tonight. How are you doing?”
“I’m fine.” Russell shook hands with the only Vamp he called friend. “Thank you for keeping the fridge full of synthetic blood. I know you don’t need it anymore.” He handed a Bleer to Mikhail and a regular beer to Zoltan.
“Thanks.” Zoltan’s frown returned as he wrenched the top off the bottle. “I need a drink.”
“The coven meeting was over fast,” Howard observed. “What happened?”
“Don’t ask.” Zoltan collapsed into a chair at the kitchen table and gulped down some beer.