“I agree.” Gregory gazed at her. “We’ll write your speech and practice it before you’re put in front of the cameras. One of my parishioners is an acting coach. She’ll work with you to get your gestures and facial expressions just right while you read from the cards.”

It wasn’t a nightmare. She was wide awake. “I won’t do it.”

Gregory’s composure evaporated and he grabbed the arms of the chair, his face twisting into a mask of rage. “You will do every damn thing I say or you will tragically be found dead with a suicide note blaming the NSO. That’s not what I want. I need a live victim to parade around in front of the cameras and that’s what you’re going to be if you want to stay alive. I’ve got too much invested in this.”

Bruce reached inside his pocket for gloves then put them on. The sight terrified Vanni. It implied he was about to do something criminal and he didn’t want to leave fingerprints. They were really planning to kill her. She glanced at the door.

Think. “Bullet holes in my back isn’t suicide.”

She launched out of the chair, knocking it over, and ran to the door. The expectation of being shot, of feeling searing pain, drove her into a healthy sprint. Her parting words were the only protection she had, hoping they thought better of shooting her in the back.

The front door loomed and she managed to unlock and yank open the door. She reached inside her pocket, fisting her keys as something hit her shoulder blade. It hurt. She would have screamed but couldn’t. Electricity jolted through her body and she convulsed, hitting the floor hard. It stopped and she lay there panting.

Gregory bent down and chuckled. “Tasers really look painful. Did that hurt as much as it appeared to? She might have some bruises now.”

“We’ll blame them on that creature she f**ked. It will look better for the cameras anyway. I might knock her around a bit more if she keeps attempting to run.”

“Let’s try to avoid that since she’s been photographed a few times at her apartment by the press.”

Bruce crouched next to her. She flexed her fingers but they were slow to respond. Her body felt sluggish and everything ached. More pain made her flinch while the guard removed the darts imbedded in her skin. She was pretty sure she was bleeding. It hurt bad enough.

“Fine.”

“I mean it, Bruce. Don’t mess her up. What if a medical examination is required? How are we going to explain what you just did to her?”

“The NSO security carries the same brand. I made sure of that before I bought this one. We can blame it on them.” Bruce rolled her. He dropped the Taser and reached into the inside pocket of his blazer. He withdrew a glass vial, smiled at her and gripped her hand.

Vanni tried to jerk away but she didn’t have the strength. She watched as he pressed her fingers to the sides and lid of the small glass bottle. “What are you doing?”

“Insurance.” When he was done, Bruce pulled a plastic bag out of his other pocket and dropped the vial inside. He waved it at her. “See that small amount of liquid inside? It’s B-47.”

“You’re framing me for the drugging?” She was recovering and tried to scoot on the floor to get away. “You people are nuts and stupid. You can’t blame me too. You’re trying to pin it on the NSO. At least try to make sense.”

Gregory stood and held out his hand. “Give it to me.”

Bruce passed over the plastic bag with their so-called evidence. Gregory smiled at her. “Have you ever heard of New Species laws, Travanni?”

She struggled closer to the door.

“I do my homework on those beasts. They are vicious.” He waved the bag. “Do you want to know what would happen if you were to go against my wishes by doing something really stupid at that press conference tomorrow? I’d have this hand delivered to the NSO gates.”

Bruce straightened and reached down, grabbing her by the front of her shirt. He fisted it and hauled her ruthlessly to her feet. She almost collapsed but he yanked her forward and spun her to face Gregory, his free arm hooking painfully around her waist to keep her against him.

“They are far worse than we are.” Gregory placed the bag inside his pocket. “If I can’t use you to my advantage, I’ll put you at their mercy. They don’t have any. We’ve spent money on private investigators searching for Mercile employees in hopes of getting them to talk in front of the cameras about how brutal New Species really are and the deaths they caused when they were still chained and caged. Do you want to know what we found? Nothing. They just disappeared off the face of the Earth to never be seen again. I think the reason the NSO doesn’t allow helicopters to fly over their Homeland or Reservation is because we’d see the graveyards where they bury their victims.”

Vanni struggled against Bruce but it only hurt when he squeezed. She stopped. It was pointless. He was a brute and too strong.

“They aren’t kind or friendly. They are just good actors.” Gregory tapped his pocket, as if she needed a reminder of what was inside. “The only way you’re going to survive is to be more useful to me alive than dead. Do you understand? They’ll kill you if I send them the vial.”

Gregory paused, seemingly distracted as he watched Bruce subdue her. It was obvious he enjoyed her distress. The vile creature refocused and continued his threat, “Bruce will also have the bartender swear he saw you dump something in that beast’s drink. They’ll have all the evidence they need to believe you’re guilty. I’ll be the hero who discovered you used us to get close to them at that conference. They won’t believe I was behind it since I’ll just say I realized you were using my church. Do you see where I’m going with this? I win, no matter what. Screw me over and you’ll pay for it. I need a victim, Travanni.” He grinned at her. “Do you feel like a victim?”