Bane turned her and kissed her softly as well. "Stay here and we will come get you as soon as we're able."
She laid a hand on each of their cheeks and said, "I love you, stay safe."
She saw Thomas and Kurt step up to their side and she smiled and nodded at them. She watched as Marshall and Bane headed back up the stairs, and when they were out of sight, she followed Thomas and Kurt into the safe room.
Chapter Sixteen
When Marshall and Bane went out the front entrance, they found Tripp and Orfeo conversing with Veronica, one of the Head of Guards for the Ambrosetti Clan and Dante’s replacement. There were several men being helped into the main house that had been injured.
"What the hell happened?” Marshall asked Tripp as they approached.
"It seems that we had a bomb left at the front door, someone tried to take it as far away as they could and it went off. We have several injured from the blast and security is searching the grounds thoroughly,” Tripp informed him.
They heard a call over the radio for assistance in the back garden. They all turned and ran through the main hall and out the back. As they emerged through the patio doors, there was fighting everywhere. Shifters, vampires, all fighting assailants dressed in black. Dante yelled at Tripp and Orfeo to stay back. He began fighting with the closest man to him.
Brin grabbed Orfeo and Tripp and reminded them they needed to stay safe for the Senate. They both looked pissed, but knew he spoke the truth. Never had they backed down against a fight and it pissed them off that they were actually just standing there. Trying to at least be useful, Orfeo called to one of the guards who was coming through the door for a weapon. He would be damned if he wouldn’t try to take at least some of the bastards out the old fashion way.
The guard threw both Tripp and Orfeo a weapon and they grinned at each other, raised their weapons and fired. The Alpha of the New Council was talking calmly in their heads asking what the hell was going on. Orfeo could certainly multitask. He explained the situation and talked about adding more security while Tripp was counting gleefully in his head.
Brin had joined the fun, and together Tripp and him were picking off Rogues right and left.
‘That would be five,’ Tripp crowed.
‘Ha, I have six,’ Brin laughed and the two kept counting.
Marshall had jumped in with Bane right behind him, when they saw a group of four going around to the side of the house where the kitchen was located. They took off after them, yelling at Tripp to send more guards to the safe room door.
Shit, the little bastards were setting a trap for them, as they rounded the corner, there were more men dressed in black clothing.
The four intruders became fifteen and soon they were in the battle of their lives. Marshall shifted into his black panther form and began to rip through the men. Bane called for backup and Brin and Tripp appeared from around the house, swearing as they ran with the guns still in their hands, empty and needing refilled. The guards followed throwing more clips at them. Grabbing them out of the air, they began to defend their comrades.
Orfeo called through their connection that more Rouges were beginning to come out of the woods, keeping them divided. Marshall shifted, standing naked and covered in blood as he looked at Bane.
“Where had some of the hooded men gone?” “
"Saw some of them slinking off to the door of the villa,” Marshall called out. Just as they were going to engage them, two more dropped down from the roof. How the hell had they gotten up there?
Marshall jumped to the side just in time and faced the guy who landed to his side. He half-shifted and swung his right arm, knocking him back. Then he knew this guy was a shifter as well because he recovered too fast. The intruder lashed out with his left leg and tried to sweep Marshall's legs out from under him. Marshall moved to avoid it and then slammed his fist into the guy's face, knocking him out. Then he turned to assess what was going on around him and saw Bane had taken out his attacker and a couple of the guards had arrived to help, finally the tide may be turning. Taking the opportunity to make sure no one had actually gotten into the house, Bane and Marshall ran for the kitchen entrance.
They saw where there had been glass cut out from the French doors that led into the kitchen. They went through and saw that the two guards who had been standing at the entrance to the stairs were out cold. Marshall growled and Bane ordered one of the guards with them to get on the radio and alert everyone to what was going on.
***
When Fredi had entered the safe room, she must have had a shocked look on her face because Cat and Jax walked up to her laughing.
"Yes, we know. The guys said that while it had to be a safe room, it should also be comfortable because one never knew how long we would be down here,” Cat said as she too glanced around. "Come on, we'll take you on a tour."
The room seemed to be as large as the main hall they had just been in. It had comfortable seating all around and various TVs set in different locations. It was set up like a lounge, even with a couple of fully stocked bars in strategic corners. Then they took her through to another room that was set up like a large pantry. It was well stocked with everything that a person could want to eat or drink.
"Wait until you see this,” Jax said and pulled her through to yet another room.
This room was large as well. It was set up for the children, although there weren't that many. They had been upstairs being taken care of by volunteers so their parents could enjoy the party. There were different sections for the different age groups, even a small separate room that held cribs for the youngest of the compound.
Fredi was amazed, they had thought of everything. There were even bathrooms and separate living quarters for the adults to rest. It was very luxurious for being a safe room and she said as much to Cat and Jax.
They both agreed and then went on to tell her about the walls being made of reinforced Kevlar that was literally bulletproof as they reentered the main room. It also had an external air system and a separate telephone system, which they could see one of the guards on now talking to security above. Something bad was happening.
They heard a loud noise coming from the location of the main door. Cat and Jax began to usher the women and elders into the children's room in the back. Fredi joined them and then the three women went back through the kitchen. Cat stopped in the pantry area, went to the back section, and pressed a button hidden on a shelf. The entire shelf slid open to reveal a cache of weapons of every kind.
While Fredi stood there with her mouth open, Cat and Jax each grabbed a gun and then turned to Fredi. Cat frowned at her for a second and then grabbed a twenty-two.
"You should be okay with this. It's got kick but not so much as to knock you on your ass,” Cat told her as she handed the gun to her, the butt first.
Fredi smiled, "No thanks, think that I could have the Beretta? That's what I'm used to.” Now it was Cat and Jax's turn to look surprised, then they all laughed and Cat handed her the preferred gun. They all headed back into the main room as the guards were now looking at cameras that Fredi hadn't seen before. They were mounted behind one of the bars. A person could see all angles around the main house and in each room of it.
Cat asked the guards for a report on what was going on. Thomas was there and answered her. "It seems that some of the intruders have gotten through and are now trying to get in the main door to the safe room. If they are able to penetrate that, they would have to go through the second door as well as us. It is nearly impossible,” he said as he eyed the guns in the women's hands.
"Better to be safe than sorry,” Cat said with a grin.
‘They are coming through the vents!’ Marshall called and the women turned quickly, looking up at the air ducts.
Cat, Fredi, and Jax narrowed their eyes and waited. It only took a few moments for the scent to hit the girls, shifters. Taking a deep breath, the women waited patiently. The guards looked expectantly but none of them was going to give them a c
hance. If one of those sorry bastards stuck their head out, they were dead.
‘Just squeeze the trigger gently and firmly,’ Cloe instructed through their connection.
‘You know, I think we are going to have to monitor this connection, only certain times of the day and all that. Isn’t it past your bed time?’ Jax said.
‘Nah, we are up late packing, Cami was serious about coming over, and now that you have been attacked, the guys are coming, too. It will be a bit like old home week there in a few days,’ Ruby drawled.
‘What about the children?’ Cat demanded. ‘It is not safe.’
“Well, Kitty Cat, it is like this. We have guards, and the kids have guards, then the guys are big strong males who love to kick a little ass, and they are feeling oh so left out of this fight, especially when they kinda left you all out there with not a lot of back up and way too many people. We should have known that the magical community was in need. It was our job, and the guys feel like they failed. So, voilà, we are all coming, and bringing some reinforcement to leave,’ Cloe said.
‘Hey that was my speech, bitch,’ Cami growled.
‘Movement,’ Jax said and Fredi once again tightened her grip on the gun she held. It only took a few seconds for the vent door to pop open and one man to stick his head through.
‘Mine,’ Jax called out and fired. The man fell from the ceiling and was quickly replace by another, dumbasses, really?
‘Me,’ Cat called and she fired.
Fredi took a deep breath, she had practiced before but never actually fired on someone, so when she saw movement out of the side of her eye and one of the guards yelled a warning, Fredi turned and fired quickly. They were coming though the other vent now.
‘Shit,’ Jax said, the main vent was secure, but the one from the kitchen has been breached. They tricked them.
The guards battled as the three women continued to fire as men were trying to drop from the ceiling in two spots. When the dust finally cleared, the girls were beginning to get worried.
‘Don't worry, they are fine. The main fighting is over as far as we can tell from what Orfeo is telling Quin right now.’ Jax confirmed what she was hearing and the relief washed through her.
Cat stepped up beside her and put her arm around her. "Well, now that that's settled. You okay?"
"Fuck no I need a drink,” Fredi told her.
Jax smiled at her friends as they all kept their attention on what was going on outside.
‘You go, girls,’ Cami and the others called out and then stayed silent to listen to what was happening with the men. Apparently there was only cleanup to do now.
***
The guards had beaten Marshall and Bane down the stairs and had taken out the intruders trying to break in to the safe room, but they missed the men who were crawling through the vent, shit, this could have gone way wrong. Now all the men were in the main hall trying to figure out exactly what had happened.
"What the fuck was the point?” Orfeo said, raking his hand through his hair. It was the only sign of outward frustration he was showing. Sure there had been a lot of rogues, but they were weak and very untrained, it had taken them a short time to actually defeat them.
Tripp stepped up and placed a hand on his shoulder. "We are trying to assess that now. It seemed the front blast was a blitz attack, then the real attack came in the back. What we need to figure out is why they thought with those numbers they would win."
"There is another alternative,” Dante told them. He looked over at Orfeo and Tripp. "This was all a distraction. To what end, I do not know, but they had a plan."
"You know that Diavolo doesn't do half-assed attacks, he had a plan,” Marshall commented.
Orfeo looked around at the Senate men. "Our main objective is to find out what that was."
Brin came in the room, hanging up his phone as he walked. "I just finished speaking with some contacts in London. It seems there was also an attack where we had Mia stashed. They are moving her as we speak. Eric is there and is also helping."
Dante stepped over to Veronica, the only woman in the room and one of the Head Guards for the Ambrosetti Clan. He had trained her, he knew her to be a powerful vampire, one who was a formidable foe.
"What do you know?” he asked her as he approached.
"It is as stated, a blitz attack. There was a plan, it just needs to be found,” she told him as they joined the others.
Orfeo nodded as he heard Veronica's comment. "Let's get this place cleaned up and do a final sweep. I want to bring those up from downstairs as soon as possible."
Tripp barked out a laugh. "Yeah, our Cat is probably down there right now, cussing us. Don't forget, she has cameras,” he said, pointing to one in the corner of the room and waved.
Brin laughed, too. "Jax is with her. She is going to need help harnessing the emotions if she's not having issues already. We are going to take her to our cottage as soon as the all clear has been called.” He nodded to Dante, who agreed.
It was hours before the cleanup was done, at least on the outside, and the all clear was given. People were moving back up from the safe room. Cat, Jax, and Fredi were all helping everyone clean up the inside and settle them back in their homes. Time for falling apart for killing someone would come later, they were now at war, and they would need everyone to defeat these assholes.
Veronica and her teams had escorted the Ambrosetti Clan members back to their compound. The three women were working in the kitchen when Cat plopped down on a stool. The men wanted them to wait in there for them and until they were truly given the all clear, they were stuck.
"You look wiped out,” Fredi observed.
"Yeah, kitty, want me to get you a real chair? We can handle the rest, you sit,” Jax told her.
"You know, any other time I would argue,” Cat said with a laugh. "But this baby is making me extra tired lately and with the surprise party and all this, I'm done in,” she said with a sweep of her hand.
Jax smiled. "At least we can wait in comfort."
“Everything is done, or as done as it can be for tonight. You guys sit, too, and have a drink. I think you could use one,” Cat said as she stood. She approached Fredi and Jax and hugged them both together. "Fredi, the food was spectacular, even though we had to kill someone at the party. Where is the wine though?"
Fredi’s cheeks turned a little red. "You know Cami’s saying, ‘it isn’t a party until someone dies’, well I guess we get to adopt that motto now, unfortunately. And the wine is in the large cooler."
"Well you did a great job,” Jax told her. "Okay, red or white, what will it be?”
“I have seen enough red for the evening, let’s have white, and just grab two bottles because we can drink from them, I think all of the glasses were broken in the fight. Damn, we are totally going to have to go shopping online, ‘cause gods know we will never be allowed to leave the house again. Well without an army in tow,” Fredi said grimly.
“Things are changing, the Rogues are getting desperate, and when they are desperate, they do stupid things. I think we have been lucky until now, and we are gonna have to face the facts. Being a part of the Senate, and a woman of special blood, has put a target on our backs. We are going to have to stand to arms with the men in order to get this Senate together, if we don’t, we are not going to make it. And I don’t know about you, but that is not an option,” Fredi said grimly and held up the bottle that Jax gave her. “To the Council!”
“To the Council,” the girls echoed, as they waited for their mates to come and get them.
Epilogue
Diavolo sat back at his desk with a Cheshire grin on his face. This had worked out perfectly; the plan couldn't have gone any better. His men had done exactly as they were told. They had kept the compound busy, all of them running around like chickens with their heads cut off. He now had everything in place to get what he deserved.
His private phone rang and he knew who it was. He picked it up. "Roarke," he said into the phone
.
"Well?” Roarke demanded.
"All went as planned. Everything is set as we hoped it would be. We should start hearing soon. Our contact informed me that we were not so successful in London. She got away—again. I am now leaving that to you, it was your problem to begin with, you deal with it,” Diavolo informed him.
"Oh, I'm going to take care of it, all right,” Roarke told him.
"Make sure you do it quick, we don't want to see any issues from her father,” Diavolo warned him.
Roarke growled. "Step carefully there. I am in charge. I am the one who set this all up. You do not want me as an enemy.” The threat was clear.
Diavolo laughed, and thought, this little prick was coming to the end of his days for talking to him like that. "I am just reminding you of what and who we are dealing with. I will continue to keep you informed regarding the compound."
Roarke didn't answer, just hung up. Diavolo leaned back. He could be patient—somewhat. It was just a matter of time until he got what he wanted. Now that all was set, the Senate was about to learn he meant business.
A new plan was forming, though, in his head, maybe the time had come for him to take care of the loose ends that asshole left behind. Tina was set to arrive in a fortnight, and Roarke was moving his headquarters yet again because he had been found. Yep, it all may need to be reevaluated when he had his slave girl back, and maybe a friend or two, watching Frederica and Jax in action tonight had only made him hard. The steel look in both of their eyes. He wondered if it was part of the special blood.
It seemed all of the women who were destined to become a member of the Senate were strong and willful. Including that little bitch they were seeking. Mia may be a human, but he had seen for himself her spirit and at the time, he had passed it off as human arrogance; however, now that he had a chance to think about it, maybe it was something else.