Blueblood: A Dark Southern Aristocracy - 27. The FBI Arrives to the Rescue

We had begun to get an office together for the agents to work out of on a lower floor. This was a room with no windows if only to protect the equipment we had in here. It was cold, almost. Computers generated heat! There would be several people working there and equipment, so there was a lot of room. Stan’s eyes grew when he saw the computers. He walked over and looked at all the computer monitors and CPUs.

“Easy, Stan.” Mark grinned as he leaned toward me. “He’ll be hyperventilating if we’re not careful.” He said quietly.

Ruben chuckled. “Agent Goddard and Agent Martin worked together a few years. They’re a good team. They have a working relationship.”

Then Stan looked at the large glass rectangular panel hung above a big black glass table. “This is a monitor!?” He waved his hand over what looked like a black glass table and the large screen activated above the table where there had been what looked like clear glass. Then Stan touched different areas both on the table and screen activating icons appeared on the tabletop now was lit with other icons. “I am in LOVE!!”

Mark laughed. “I warned ya.”

I laughed. “So, you won’t be too unhappy with what we have to work with, Agent Martin?”

Stan was busy enjoying this new screen and he only registered I said something, a little. “Huh?”

Colin chuckled. “He asked if you would be happy with this.”

Stan turned and his eyes still wide. “I LOVE THIS!”

Mark shook his head. “Now, no drooling over the keyboard.” He said to Stan. “And no other fluids.” The way he said it, we all knew what fluid he meant.

“Oh, dry up.” Stan shot back. “A least I know how to turn it on.”

“What I like to turn on is human.” Mark chuckled. Stan rolled his eyes.

“They’re more like sibling rivals,” Ruben told Colin and me. “But they get the job done.” He glared at Mark and Stan. “And well.” He said in a growl. “Don’t make me a liar.” Mark gave the look of innocence as an Altar Boy.

Shelly came over to Colin and me. “Where is the funding coming from?”

“From Holms' Laboratories,” George answered. “Why?”

“This all looks…costly,” Shelly said.

“Finding those that are suffering and stopping it is worth it,” George said logically. “If someone had invested time and money before I was turned, preventing me from being turned, I would have had a totally different life. I would be a retired doctor, or passed away after a nice life, kids, a wife… but they didn’t. Why shouldn’t we?”

She smiled shaking her head. “You missed my question. I’m not questioning that you’re doing this. I’m questioning whether you should. This is a threat that involves everyone. Why should you handle all the costs?”

Colin nodded. “Ah, I see. You think a private firm or business shouldn’t have to pay, taxpayers should handle some of the cost.”

Ruben nodded. “Well, if it makes you feel better, Agent Vargas. You’re still on the FBI payroll, so the taxpayers are helping.”

She smiled as Stan was still oohing and aahing over the computers touching various parts of the computer. “So, you two are married.” She grinned at Colin and me.

Colin nodded. “Find that out at the FBI?”

“TV.” She said smiling. “The show Lifestyles showed that mansion and part of the wedding. You weren’t hiding it. It’s common knowledge. If you didn’t want people to know, you should never have approved them putting it on the air. I say that with an understanding there is money.”

“Is there a problem with the fact we’re married?” I asked wondering if it was homophobia.

She laughed. “Not at all. Who you love is your business. The fact you are a couple is known. That you're vampires, is not.” She looked at me. “You have a past that is kept. You were turned recently.” It wasn’t a question.

Burke grinned coming over. “That was my fault.”

Colin frowned. “Well, yes, but you didn’t understand…”

I nodded. “We did it to be a spectacle. To attract attention to flush out other vampires who would connect the dots.” I explained. “We knew there were others…they would be attracted by Colin and his lack of a past.”

Colin looked at me. “I had past. I forgot my parents.” He shrugged.

“Man, this is a three-dimensional scanner!?” Stan marveled as he hit a table icon. “This is awesome!” He turned to let everyone see his happy face. “Hell! I'll pay you to work here!” He told us. “This stuff is way more than the Bureau has. It’s like twenty to thirty years ahead of anything we have!”

“Easy, boy.” Mark came over patting his friend. “Just take a deep breath.”

Ruben frowned and looked at Colin and me. “They’re really quite good at what they do. I promise.”

I chuckled. “They will fit in quite nicely with the maniacs around here.” I turned to Chuck. “You haven’t said much. What’s your story?”

Chuck smiled. “I was a jock with a brain.” He shrugged. “People always underestimated me. I was determined to show them I could think as well as tackle.”

“Brawn and brains!” I smiled. “Good combination. You must have been popular.”

Chuck smiled shaking his head. “Not really, the guys on the team just wanted to clown around. I got along with them if I clowned with them, too. The coach would get upset when I’d read textbooks during practice. I did that a lot. The smart kids didn’t understand my love of sports and saw me more like some sort of Neanderthal.” He shrugged with a sad smile. “And really, I didn’t try to be popular.”

Okay, all people are mostly nice. Some are not, but often I saw people that were not just nice, but good people. Here were some very good people. Ruben, Mark, Stan, Shelly, and Chuck were very good people. Stan and Mark were friends and I saw their interactions with each other were means to deal with having to deal with some of those people that weren’t so nice. Shelly was practical but sharp. Ruben was like a parent, keeping them on task. Chuck was intelligent and appeared to be open to everything. In his early thirties and an attractive man and content to let things happen and see what happened. These were people that really had no life outside of the FBI. No wedding rings on any of them, except Ruben who I hope had an understanding wife because it seemed he was always on the job.

I also noticed that George was not very happy. Not mad or angry, but he was looking at these new people with…while I don’t say he distrusted, but it wasn’t trust. Colin noticed it, too. He went over to George.

“What’s the problem?” Colin asked George.

George knew he was being a bit unreasonable. “I’m just not convinced this is the right course,” George said in a loud whisper. “They aren’t us!”

Colin looked surprised at George. “What do you mean? Not us?”

George had a very uncertain look. “Everyone here at Holms' Laboratory…” he looked at me. “VUN. Had some contact with us in some way. Vampires. Even Ruben had contact with Alex. These people didn’t know about us until we showed them.”

Colin looked at the others. “They didn’t react too badly. They seem to be fine with it.”

“Are they?” George asked. “They aren’t us!”

Colin looked surprised. “Do we make them us?” He shook his head. “Why is it us and them? We’re human. We have something that most everyone doesn’t even know about. Why did we start Holm’s Laboratories?”

George looked confused. “To get back our humanity.” He pointed at Colin. “Something you had a hard time even considering. Even after taking the serum, you resisted accepting others.”

Colin nodded with reluctance. “I did! When I met Devon, I realized I couldn’t go on that way anymore. I wouldn’t even touch him at first. I was so scared of hurting him. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t trust him a little bit. It was worth the chance! I was so used to hiding for so long.”

George nodded. “Your purpose to rebuild Wentworth Manor forced you to stop hiding.”

“Well, stop hiding, George!” Colin said firmly. “You want to make us more human. Why don’t you see this as a way closer to that goal? We may never be fully human again. With friends, we may increase our chances. They aren’t our enemy.”

George looked back at the new FBI personnel. “I just need to get used to it.”

Burke came up behind George taking George’s hand. “Maybe it’s time we both did.” He looked at Colin. “I saw you, Colin, as a threat. You were living out in the world, threatening exposure for all of us. I saw later that you were trying to make things better. I’m sorry I forced you two into the situation where you made Devon a vampire.” He smiled. “But I must say, I’ve seen many people who were bitten. What I saw, wasn’t violent. I’ve never seen someone converted with so much love.” He chuckled. “I sort of felt guilty watching it.”

I nodded taking Colin’s arm. “It was going to happen. You just made it possible for it to happen sooner.” I chuckled. “You’re all having trouble accepting change. For some of you…” I said pointedly about the vampires. “…it’s harder, as you have done things one way for so long, change is much harder. It’s part of being human.”

“This is just so…” George began helplessly. “…different.”

Colin smiled. “It is different. And potentially dangerous. I don’t deny that. Tell me we shouldn’t.”

“It’s unknown!” George said with the beginnings of resolve. “It could be the end of us.”

I nodded. “Or a beginning for a new us. I think it’s a risk we have to take.”

“Wow!” Stan marveled again suddenly. “These programs! The antiviral programs! This is incredible!” He shook his head when he turned to us. “What’s the memory? What’s the processor speed?”

George grinned. “The memory can be expanded. It’s in the tera-quads. The processor is our own construct.”

Stan looked back at the computer. “I have some programs on my computer at home that can be used. It would help us with the search for other vampires; where the undocumented deaths occurred, and narrow a search. Can I bring the programs here and add to this?”

George nodded. “Sure. Are you connected to a network?”

Stan nodded. “Yes, but it’s encrypted. I need to be there.”

George typed quickly. “What’s the network?”

Stan told him. George typed what he’d been told.

“Put in your address,” George instructed.

Stan did it. A whole new access showed up. “Oh, my god!” Stan’s fingers began moving and his eyes widened as he saw his home page come up. “Oh, my GOD!! I’m in!” He pulled up his menu and pulled the programs up. He hit the transfer for his programs and his eyes grew even more. “It’s so fast!! This should have taken a while to download. It’s done!” Now he looked for a chair, pulled it over and sat typing quickly. “This will allow me access to our data at the FBI headquarters and cross with police files.” He was shaking his head again watching the many files come up as they were cross-referenced with his programs.

Mark chuckled. “Well, Stan’s going to be busy with his new toy.”

“I’m never leaving!” Stan declared to Mark’s statement with a single hand going up to swear that.

Mark nodded turning to us. “See?”

“News feeds and other sources!” Stan said smiling. “Is there anywhere we can’t look?”

Mark grinned. “His MIT education is being used at last.” Then he said to us quietly. “He really is very smart. Almost too smart. I keep his feet on the ground.”

“I heard that!” Stan said with his eyes on the screens.

Mark rolled his eyes. “I keep forgetting he has very good hearing.” He grinned. “I keep him on track. Like reminding him when to take a shower!” He said loudly at Stan’s back.

Stan turned to Mark. “I get busy doing something…I forget time passes!”

Colin chuckled. “Are you two…” he asked.

Mark looked a little confused, then his eyes widened. “What? Oh, no. Nothing like that. He and I just…click.” He shrugged.

I nodded. “Okay,” I said at last. “I think this is good!”

Shelly nodded. “I think so. Stan does the research. He will go on location with Mark, but Chuck and I do a lot of leg work.”

“Are you okay with working with one of our men?” George asked. “They know how to subdue a vampire. The idea is to bring them in and find out if we can help.”

Ruben nodded. “I’m sure that will be fine. What if we find a vampire that’s…not like you? And not like those in there either. Vampires aren’t too picky about who they target.” He pointed out. “They could be former drug addicts or even criminals…”

George sighed. “We’ve never dealt with this before.” He shrugged. “I don’t know!”

Ruben frowned. “We will do our best.” He sighed. “There won’t be a holding facility that can house a criminal vampire forever. This is new for us as well.” He scratched his head as he thought. “We start here in Manhattan?”

Colin nodded. “We have to start somewhere. I knew of some vampires underground. It was the best place for us. There have to be others down there.”

Ruben nodded. “Okay.”

Colin and I let them work and went to the other wild vampires. They were one by one being ended. I didn’t like doing that. We were killing! But there was really no other choice.

It was later in our apartment that Colin came over as we were getting ready for bed. He sat beside me on the bed.

“Are you okay with all this?” Colin asked.

I looked at him. “Not all of it, but what choices do we have? They can’t be rehabilitated. They’re a threat. We’re eliminating that threat. I understand that. Understanding is not the same as accepting.”

Colin nodded leaning in on me, pushing me down so he was on top of me. “Like we said. This is new. There are no laws to guide us.” He sighed as his hands ran over me. “We’ve been busy.”

I nodded letting my hands come over his back. “Your point?” I grinned as I kissed him.

He reached around and began unbuttoning my shirt. “I just don’t want us to lose contact with each other.” He said softly as his lips went over from my lips to my cheek and then down to my neck. “I waited a long time for you. I was so lonely and now we have each other.” He said as his hands slipped inside my shirt. “I love you, Devon. I know you love me. I love how we’re together. I want us to make sure…” he kissed me again. “…we always have time to keep that connection.” He looked at me. “Does that make sense?”

He was so solid against me. I loved his warmth and love. “We won’t let us be disconnected. I know you love me. We’re married in so many ways. Not just physically, but emotionally and I feel like to our very souls.”

Colin chuckled. “Let’s connect again.” He said sitting up removing his shirt.

“My favorite thing in the world!” I said as my hands went over his chest hairs. “You mean everything to me, Colin.”

“You are my soul, Devon.” Colin said leaning in kissing me deeper, consuming and hungry for that connection humans do in that special way.