Vampires Among Us [Vampires Among Us 1] (Siren Publishing Classic)

what Kevin does while he is away on a mission, and the inner workings of the team,” Charles stated calmly. “I also have that field trip scheduled for this afternoon, and Kate mentioned you had offered up a good suggestion for our seniors that I need to listen to.”
    “Oh, yes, I would love to!” Erica replied, as she let out a gush of air she had been holding in her lungs.
    “Well, come on down to my office when you are ready,” Charles replied as he turned on his heel and left her.
    She hurried through her remaining research, and then headed downstairs to meet Charles in his office.
    Over the next few hours, Erica was given a full tour of Charles’s office. She had known this man had some very expensive and sophisticated equipment in his office. However, she was still blown away. Every computer company in America would be green with envy over this office set up. She was certain some of the equipment she was being shown was not available to the average business. Charles was very patient, and went into detail about what each system was used for, how it worked, and how it was essential to the team.
    “Does the team have another setup at the office, or do you handle everything from here?” she asked him at one point.
    “Most of the equipment is all housed here, for numerous reasons. First, someone is almost always in this house twenty-four hours a day, so for security reasons, it is safer here.” He glanced up at her for a second before continuing, with a slight smirk on his face. “I would sincerely hope that even the most ignorant of criminals would know better than trying to break into a house full of vampires.” He stopped, and threw Erica a grin, then continued on. “Second, when the team is on a mission, most of the time the entire team goes as a unit. If the equipment were set up at the office, a team member would always have to stay behind to run the equipment. That is where I come in,” he explained.
    “Okay, that makes sense. So, all communications go through you?” Erica now asked him.
    “Yes, I am much more comfortable in my own office anyway.” He grinned over to her.
    He quickly spun his chair around and started typing at the keyboard now sitting in front of him. Within seconds, the large wall screen lit up with a map grid that displayed the current location of the team. This also included a projected path as to where they were headed. The team was in the air at the current moment.
    “The team took the company plane. They wanted to include the dirt bikes, so taking the company jet became the logical choice of travel. It’s about a hundred miles from the airport to their destination, so the bikes will come in handy.” Charles explained as he continued bringing information up on the large wall screen.
    He glanced over to Erica with a grin. “Would you like to say a quick hello to Kevin? They are on the plane, so you wouldn’t be interrupting anything.”
    “Are you sure I won’t be disturbing him?” she asked, with a concerned look on her face.
    “I am sure. I have an extra earpiece I’ll let you borrow, just remember that everyone on the team has this same earpiece, so whatever you say to Kevin will be heard by the entire team.”
    “Okay, thanks,” she replied a bit nervously, as she took the earpiece he offered her, and gently inserted it into her ear.
    Charles held out his hand in front of him, indicating for Erica to hold a minute before saying anything.
    “Alpha one, do you have a minute?” Erica heard Charles speaking through her earpiece. Charles was sitting across from her, speaking into a microphone sitting on the desk.
    “Sure, what do you need?” She now heard Kevin’s voice coming through the earpiece.
    “I have someone here who would like to say a quick hello. She has spent the past several hours getting the grand tour of the communications center. I may have a new assistant on my hands.” Erica glanced over to see him grinning and eyes dancing with merriment.
    Kevin knew exactly whom his dad was speaking about, as he felt a smile tug at his lips. “Hey, baby” he growled in a low, sexy voice.
    “Hey, stay safe, okay?” Erica now asked, and although it sounded ridiculous to her own ears, she couldn’t think of another thing to say.
    “Always do. I’ll be back home by the weekend,” Kevin replied, and although he was just as kind and gentle as ever, Erica knew instinctively his mind was on the mission. Even so, she could almost hear the longing to