Page 39 of The Vampire and the Case of the Perilous Poltergeist

‘Papers.’ Just like Danny had said. I drew out a bunch of files; stamped on the first one in big block letters wasTOP SECRET. A cursory glance through the rest showed the same labels. I look at the words beneath; the group granted top-secret clearance was the MIB: the Magical Investigations Bureau.

I showed the first folder to Sidnee and she reeled back like she’d been slapped. For her, the MIB was the bogeyman she’d been told to be scared of for her whole life. ‘What the hell is going on?’ she whispered.

I licked my dry lips as I opened the first file and read the first few sheets. ‘This is much bigger than embezzlement,’ I breathed. ‘Look.’ I showed her and Danny the line that almost made my slow heart beat in time with Sidnee’s. It read:A plan to extract and experiment on supernatural entities through the use of the Alaska State Troopers.

Fuck me sideways with a cucumber. This wasnotgood.

Chapter 29

Whilst our eyes were fixed on the papers, Thorsen was struggling to sit up. His hands being cuffed behind him made it hard for him to gain purchase – but not impossible. His eyes fixed on the papers that we were poring over. ‘Put those down! Our papers are not meant for your eyes!’

Ourpapers? Things were going from bad to worse. I dropped the files back into the case. ‘You’re MIB?’ I asked incredulously. Suddenly it made sense: he could be an ass and a bully because he wasn’t attending the academy as a recruit, he was a freaking spy! That’s why he was never told off properly for his bullshit: he was from one of the alphabet agencies.

His terrible temper seemed real enough, though, so clearly that part wasn’t pretence. His face mottled purple again, except for the nice swollen part that was already starting to show a sizeable bruise where Sidnee had decked him.

He sneered. ‘Don’t you dare talk to me! Don’t you dare even look at me! I am worth a hundred of you! You’re little more thanbeasts,and like any animal population spiralling out of control you need to be monitored – and then culled.’ He smirked. ‘I’m all too happy to do the culling.’ He met my gaze. ‘And I’m more than happy to start with you.’

My fangs dropped. They still had a mind of their own but for once they were appearing at the right time. I bared them in a fake grin. ‘You want to say that again?’

His gaze flicked down to my protruding canines and I saw his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed. Even so, he kept up the bravado. ‘You drinkbloodto survive. You disgust me – you, and the others like you. You should all be wiped off the face of this earth.’

He had a set of brass ones, that was for sure, and he was as stupid as two planks of wood, but he was certainly bold.

I looked at Danny’s angry face, then back to Thorsen. ‘This extraction plan. Is that what happened to Liam Smith?’

Thorsen looked blank. ‘Who?’

‘The recruit that went missing last cohort,’ Danny snarled from between clenched teeth.

Thorsen smirked. ‘Aw, was he your little best friend?’ He shrugged. ‘I didn’t know him, but if he was a filthy supernatural then yeah, he’ll have been taken for some experimentation. Like you guys will be. You’ve sealed your fate now.’

‘Is Liam alive?’ Danny pushed.

The twat shrugged. ‘How should I know? Each course has different MIB operatives enrolled on it. We can’t have people cottoning on to what’s happening. The MIB targets someone supernatural, usually a species that’s been requested.’

‘And who’s your target this time?’ I asked.

Thorsen grinned. ‘Why, it’s you, my little rodent. You and your charmed necklace that tells anyone in the know that you’re afilthy vampire. I knew what you were from the moment I set eyes on you – I didn’t even need to be told you were supernat.’ He stared at us. ‘Now, untie me and I promise I won’t arrest your families and loved ones and take them to a detention centre. Leave me tied up for one more fucking minute and I’ll personally see them all in chains.’

He said it with absolute authority and my stomach knotted. For most supernats that would be a crippling threat, but I didn’t have family in the US and I wasn’t scared of him. I pulled out my phone out, thankful that I had a signal even down here, and called Connor.

‘What are you doing?’ Thorsen asked, his voice growing shrill as he realised I wasn’t kowtowing to his demands.

Connor answered promptly. ‘I need your help,’ I said before he could speak. ‘Can you talk me through how to mind control someone?’

Thorsen’s eyes went wide. ‘No! Don’t you dare!’ Danny cut him off by putting his large hand firmly over his obnoxious mouth.

‘We call it mesmerising,’ Connor said. ‘It’s not usually something we teach on the fly, but I’m assuming there’s an emergency since you’re calling me at one in the morning.’

‘You bet.’

‘Okay. Is your target human or supernat?’

‘Human.’

‘That’s good.’ He sounded relieved. ‘Humans are a lot easier to mes because they have virtually no defences to speak of. The process starts with you. You need to search inward. Close your eyes and turn your attention inside your head.’

I closed my eyes and did as he directed.

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