Page 207 of Golden Eagle

“Which are?” Nikita prompted. Perspective shift or no, he only had so much patience.

Dante took a breath. “The Institute is in the business of research. They’re trying to distill a miracle cure for every kind of human disease. Yes? Probably, more likely, they’re trying to figure out how to become immortal without requiring blood. And how to fight and contain us, how to kill us. They do believe in the war – the threat of Romulus is very real to them.

“But Gustav…Gustav isn’t thinking about defeating Romulus for the benefit of the world, but of himself. He was a true believer when he served the Kaiser – in truth, I think he was more ambitious than Wilhelm. His head is full of dreams of grandeur a la Alexander the Great and Mehmet the Conqueror.”

“Jesus, why does everybody want to take over the fucking world?” Lanny muttered.

Dante looked right at Nikita. “Gustav is after power. He’s playing the long game, and he’s going to remove any player from the board who stands in opposition.”

“I thought he wanted revenge against my family,” Alexei said.

“He does, darling. Revenge…and then the world.”

~*~

A small, second-floor balcony on the rear of the townhouse, just off the kitchen, offered a view of the small, tidy backyards lined up to either side of Colette’s place, and the alley beyond, the rows of trash cans and recycling bins. A canvas awning shielded it from the rain, fat drops pattering overhead and dripping off the edge; a breeze stirred two sets of windchimes, one tubular and clear-sounding, the other made of spoons, its tinkling discordant, but charming.

Lanny stood with his back to the rail, rainfall silhouetting him in silver, smoking a cigarette. “You’ve got that look on your face like you’ve decided something,” he observed.

Trina pulled her feet up into the papasan chair and curled her legs beneath her, settling deeper into the cushion. It smelled faintly of lavender, and something darker, sage, maybe. She felt guilty for taking up space in Colette’s house – for bringing more problems to her heavily-warded door. But she felt safe here, too; hidden from anyone or anything hunting for them.

“Yeah?” She sighed. “You’re not wrong.”

“You believe Dante?”

“Do I believe the same place that kept Val locked up in a basement took Dante prisoner? Yeah. What about you?”

He made a face. “I don’t want to – the guy’s been lying to us. But my gut read right now is that he’s being honest. It’s hard to fake being that kind of upset. And” – he laid a finger alongside his nose – “I’ve got the sixth sense these days, you know.”

“You can smell honesty?” She fought a grin.

“Totally.”

She chuckled.

He grew serious again. “So what is it?”

A decision that made her stomach hurt, but one that, once she’d come to it, she’d known was right. “The Institute’s got to go. We’ve got to get rid of it.”

He nodded, like he’d expected as much.

“And honestly? I think it could do great work. If there’s a way to cure cancer and every other disease known to man, using vampire blood or antibodies or whatever is actually a genius idea. That kind of research is going to save the world one day – it’s the only reason the human race has lasted as long as it has. Scientists are gonna save the planet one day.

“But the way they’re doing it – capturing, and torturing, and testing people against their will like lab rats. That’s not – that’s so many kinds of amoral it makes my head spin. They’re turning people into drooling monsters and siccing them on civilians. They’remurderingtheir own failed test subjects. They’re doing more harm than good.

“I thought we could just mind our business, and let them do their thing, but we can’t ignore it anymore. The Institute needs shutting down. If I thought I could play whistleblower and get them shut down, I’d do that – but I kinda think that’ll just get me disappeared.”

“Let ‘em try,” he said fiercely.

Dear sweet, violent Lanny. She smiled at him, fleetingly. “It’s going to have to be us. Maybe Val and his crew will help. Maybe Will and Much can stick around a little longer – maybe bring in more of their guys.”

He frowned. “Speaking of: why haven’t they shut them down already?”

“Something I’m planning on asking Will the next time we see him, believe me.” The morning’s violence and chaos seemed to catch up with her all at once, helped along by the weight of what lay ahead. She propped her elbow on the edge of the chair and rested her temple against her fist. “There’s a lot we don’t know, still. And talking about Romulus, and the end of the world, and a war–” Her heart lurched just at the mention. “That freaks me out in a way I never thought possible. We’ve got to do something, though.”

“I think so, too.”

That surprised her, though maybe it shouldn’t have. “You do?”

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