Archangel's Prophecy (Guild Hunter #11)(62)

Elena stilled. “Did he snitch on anyone who might hold a grudge?”





26




The two vampires looked at each other, then nodded in concert. A gold stud glinted in Tepe’s ear, catching the light and hitting Elena’s eyes for a flashing second.

“Jade’s not at the house anymore,” he said, his skin as dark as Vernon’s was pale. “Man was on a post-Contract job deal, but Andreas didn’t renew his employment after it expired, and I think it had to do with what Harrison told.”

“Well spit it out, then.” Phineas lightly slapped the back of Tepe’s head. “What did Harrison have on this Jade man?”

“Had to do with money.” Tepe leaned his hands on his shovel, dropping his voice as if afraid of being overhead. “Jade was stealing from Andreas.”

“Feckin’ idiot. I’m surprised boyo’s still alive.”

“He’s alive now.” Vernon shuddered. “I don’t think he was that alive the months he spent hanging in the woods with his flesh scraped from his bones on a regular basis with a fucking kitchen carving knife.” The vampire crossed himself with every evidence of true faith. “You couldn’t pay me enough to make Andreas that angry.”

That kind of torture, Elena thought, could very well make an enemy of a man. But, in her eyes, Harrison hadn’t snitched in telling his angel of fraud in his home; no, he’d been loyal despite the fear he must’ve had of the older and more powerful Jade. “What’s Jade’s full name?”

“You won’t say it was us that told you about him, will you?” Tepe whispered, his shoulders hunching in. “Jade’s mean.”

“Raphael has the best spymaster in the world. I’ll let Jade assume I got the information that way.” No one would dare threaten Jason.

Both vampires blew out relieved breaths before Vernon said, “He just uses the name Jade. Never had a last name the whole time I knew him.”

Tepe tugged at the lobe of his bejeweled ear. “I heard he hangs out in the Quarter a lot, but I think he might live outside it.” A glance at Vernon. “Remember that time Claire said she ran into him and he talked about moving out of the Quarter?”

“Oh yeah.” Vernon pulled off his knit cap to scratch at his bald head. “She was too scared to ask for details, though—and she’s in Prague on training now. You could call her. Her last name’s Vargas.”

Elena made a mental note of the detail. “Does he have money?” Wealth or lack of it would influence which areas the vampire could afford.

“Yes, I think so—I mean, he had to pay back what he stole, but I always figured he must’ve had more money stashed away. Jade’s pretty old.”

“Older than Phineas, for sure.”

Phineas pointed his shovel at the two. “I’m a young whippersnapper as far as you’re concerned.”

“Yes, Phineas.” The two grinned before Tepe returned his attention to Elena. “That’s all I can think of that could’ve gotten Harrison into serious trouble. Everyone else he snitched on only got a slap on the wrist. Andreas isn’t so bad if you’re just goofing off. He only cares about actual betrayal, like with Jade—or if you run.”

“I don’t think the money thing was snitching, to be honest,” Vernon added. “I mean I’d tell Andreas, too, if I thought someone was stealing from him. Not right to come into your angel’s home and be a thief.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re right. I’d tell, too,” Tepe said after a thoughtful pause. “But Harry didn’t stop at the big stuff. Like, he told when I took off for a couple of hours to see a friend without getting official permission. I don’t think Andreas was too impressed with him for that.”

“Andreas is a warrior under all the elegant manners.” Phineas leaned on the top of his shovel. “He’d have seen that kind of telling as disloyalty between comrades.”

“Yeah, that’s a good way of putting it.” Tepe bit down on his lower lip, frowned. “Can’t think of anything else useful except that Harrison ran soon after the Jade thing, and you know the rest.”

“Do you think he ran because he was scared of Jade?” That would put a whole different slant on Harrison’s escape attempt.

“No way.” Tepe shook his head hard. “I mean, Jade’s a psycho, but Andreas is stone-cold terrifying. Harrison could’ve gone to Andreas if he was scared of Jade, and Andreas would’ve handled it. Harry just thought he could have the near-immortal life without paying the price.”

“We even felt sorry for him after he was brought back,” Vernon admitted. “Andreas was pissed.”

Tepe said a little prayer while his friend spoke.

“I kept my head down, never knew anyone could be that angry and that icily calm. But”—Vernon’s voice dropped—“it was hard to ignore the screaming.”

“Well, the lad shouldn’t have signed on the dotted line if he didn’t want to play by the rules. Near-immortality’s no feckin’ free lunch.”

Elena moved to steer the conversation away from any specifics on Harrison’s punishment. “Anyone—other than Claire—on Andreas’s staff who might know more?”