Unspoken (Shadow Falls: After Dark #3)(46)

“Got it.” Chase tucked the extra cartridges in his pocket.

“Be extra careful of the weres. Tomorrow’s their night and they’re at their strongest. If one gets out, don’t hold back. They are planning on killing you and you best be planning to do the same. They’re all on death row anyway.” Leo shook his head. “Seriously, kid, we’ve lost two guards and a visitor this year. You sure—”

“They have visiting privileges?” Chase asked.

“Yeah. The visitors sign waivers and pay for their burial before they go down. And it’s nonrefundable. I always take my wife something nice when we get anyone stupid enough to visit.”

Chase smiled. “Then I’m sure she wishes there were a lot more stupid people in the world.”

Leo nodded. “Didn’t you say it was Douglas Stone you were looking for? The same one the council is looking for, right?”

“Yeah,” Chase said.

“Then you are wasting your time, they already checked out that lead.”

“What lead?” Chase asked, unaware there’d been a lead.

“One of the guys had a cousin come see him. He put his last name down as Jones, but I heard the prisoner call him Stone. After he left, I recalled a Stone on the wanted list. I called it in, and was told they would look into it. Later, when the same dude came back, I called again and they said this guy had checked out and wasn’t our guy.”

“Really?” Chase asked. “Who did you talk to on the council?”

“I don’t know for sure, but maybe the blond guy?”

“Kirk Curtis?” Chase asked.

“Yeah, maybe. It’s been a while.”

Chase tried to wrap his head around that information. If Kirk had a lead, he would have told Eddie. Or maybe he didn’t because it didn’t check out. Still, something about this didn’t feel right.

“How often does this guy come to visit?”

“Not that often. He came a couple weeks ago, though.”

“What’s the inmate’s name?”

“Edward Pope,” Leo said. “He’s in cell number eleven. Ugly bastard. He likes to bite.”

“Thanks for the warning.”

“There’s one main corridor. Cells on both sides. Stay in the middle, some of those guys are like octopuses and have tentacles with a long reach. They get you, they choke you to death if they don’t have a makeshift knife to do the job.”

“In the middle,” Chase repeated.

Leo exhaled. “Don’t get me wrong. I’ve heard you’re badass, kid, but there’s nothing but mean sons of bitches down there.”

“I’m told I’ve got a mean streak in me too,” Chase said.

Leo put his hand on a lever. “You step in; as soon as I lock this door, I’ll unlock the second gate. To get out, you have to lock the second gate. I have a peephole here.” He waved to the metal flap. “When I confirm it’s just you behind the gate, I’ll open this exit.”

“Got it,” Chase said.

Leo frowned. “I’ve got cameras, but I’ll have to cut them off or I’ll get my ass in a jam for letting you in. So I won’t know if you’re in trouble. You’re on your own.”

“Don’t worry.”

The door groaned as if it weren’t accustomed to opening. Chase moved in and a wave of cold washed over him. A chill ran up his spine. Was this just the normal cold, or the deadly kind of cold?

The iron door closed with a loud, bone-chilling clank. He supposed this place had seen its share of deaths. But even the dead weren’t going to stop him.

The noise rang louder. The second set of bars creaked as the last gate slowly opened. The smell of filth filled Chase’s nose and he had to concentrate on not gagging.

Leo’s voice echoed from the peephole. “Welcome to Hell’s Pit.”





Chapter Twenty

“Is she gonna talk or take a nap?” Miranda asked.

Della raised her head. She didn’t know where to start, but then the words just fell out. “My dad knows I’m vampire.”

“Damn,” Miranda said.

“Crappers,” said Kylie.

“I’m going to lose them.” Emotion tightened her throat. “He’s going to tell my mom and sister and then they’ll never want to see me again.”

“I don’t think that would happen,” Miranda said. “You just prove to them that being vampire doesn’t make you a bad person. Everyone’s scared at first. I’m a witch and I was frightened, and look at Kylie. You used to make her cry whenever you were in the same room.”

“I didn’t cry,” Kylie said.

“They’ll never understand,” Della said.

“You don’t know that for sure,” Kylie said. “What did he say to you?”

“He didn’t say anything.” Della told them about the Chis’ murder and how her father looked at her as if she’d done it. Then she told them what her mom had said about him being hospitalized after his sister’s murder. “Why would he need to be hospitalized if he hadn’t seen anything?”

Miranda made a face. “Because his sister was killed. I mean, that could be upsetting by itself.”