Blood Before Sunrise

Mercedes, Bentleys, Aston Martins-the high-end cars drifted by like a parade of self-important aristocracy. Some of Atlas’s clientele hadn’t come by car, however. I felt the presence of others approaching in the shadows, like a dog pile of energy resting square upon my shoulders to send me steadily to the ground.

Under the cover of darkness, I ventured near the warehouse that housed the private club. It was buzzing with the energy of the inhuman. I couldn’t risk being recognized: I got enough attention as it was. This was a good old- fashioned stealth mission. Though invisible to most, I had no idea what I might encounter should I venture inside the supersecret supernatural club. Delilah could see me in my shadow form, and she was as blind as a bat. So, with curiosity raging inside me, I waited outside the warehouse-and watched.

For an hour I stood guard, invisible to the human eye and crouched atop a stack of shipping crates. All I could think about was the monumental waste of time the whole stakeout was, and how I could be curled up in bed next to Tyler, feeling his bare skin against mine. And then my mark made his appearance.

Alone. I don’t know why it surprised me. I guess I assumed Moira would be with him. From the looks of them at the PNT Summit several months ago, I’d doubted one went anywhere without the other. I’d seen Moira alone at The Pit, though, hadn’t I? I couldn’t shake the feeling that Moira’s appearance at the bar was more than coincidence. Had she been staking me out? Or perhaps aiming an arrow at my head?

Reaver pulled up in a very classy light blue Mercedes AMG. The sports car paid homage to an elegant era long forgotten with its short cab and elongated body. But it also looked like it could kick some serious ass in a street race.

The driver’s-side gullwing door opened, and true to its name, it looked like a bird about to take flight. Reaver stepped out into the night. When I’d first met him, he’d issued a silent challenge. Without so much as wiggling a toe, he’d tried to impose his will on me, as if placing invisible hands on my shoulders to push me to my knees. Unlike Fallon, Reaver forced his will with a sort of telekinesis. Fallon’s power was like an urging. A natural impulse I didn’t know how to fight.

Tall-almost as tall as a Lyhtan-and unusually thin, Reaver walked with the grace only the nonhuman possess. His suit must have cost more than a couple grand, tailored to his body in a way that accentuated his natural endowments and made his very thin form seem more lean than too skinny. He paused before entering the warehouse and looked in my direction. I remained shrouded under the cover of darkness, but as his empty sky blue eyes scanned the area where I stood, I didn’t dare draw a breath. His lips rose in a sardonic smirk as his attention was drawn to a black Porsche Cayenne pulling into the parking lot. He waited, the smirk spreading into a warm smile as he waited for the driver to join him.

Interesting. Apparently Reaver wasn’t the coldhearted bastard I’d chalked him up to be. A second Fae approached with a spring in his step, his eyes sparkling with adoration. He took Reaver’s outstretched hand and pressed his lips to the Sidhe’s fingertips before the two disappeared inside the darkened doorway of the warehouse and Atlas.

Waiting is so much harder when you’re aware of every single second. Curiosity burned as I wondered what the secret playhouse of the supernatural looked like. Was it truly underground? Hidden beneath a stack of metal crates? Or did a mysterious doorway open up, allowing the patrons to party the night away in some mystical realm? The mystery enticed me; yet I had no choice but to wait for Reaver to grow bored and leave for the night.

At three in the morning, he’d finally reached his fun quota. It could have been worse. Every minute waiting on Reaver was a minute lost with Tyler. Lucky for me, Reaver didn’t seem interested in what might be hiding under the cover of darkness. His companion walked through the door, arm in arm with Reaver, both heading for the Mercedes. Good for me. Great, in fact. If Reaver was occupied with his date, he’d be less on guard, which would make him easier to trail. And since I no longer had Ty’s motorcycle, I had to hope he’d travel the city streets slowly enough for me to keep up.

My ears filled with the sound of the wind as it rushed over me, through me. As my shadow self, I followed Reaver in a winding path, in some cases backtracking, circling blocks over again and backtracking some more, before he finally felt safe enough to stop masking his route. The Sidhe was either especially paranoid, or he could feel my presence nearby. I hoped to hell it was the former. I could deal with paranoid. It took all of my energy to keep up; I pushed my preternatural speed to its limits. The city melted away, the houses becoming larger and more scattered as we ventured into Capitol Hill. I recognized the area well. Xander’s house wasn’t far from here.

Reaver pulled the Mercedes into the garage, and I followed, unsure of what I might find. Three additional cars offered plenty of cover, though I had a sneaking suspicion Reaver would be able to sense my presence if he happened to pay attention. Fortunately, his boyfriend kept him more than occupied. I crouched behind a Maserati while the pair paused near the hood of the car for some heavy petting. Good God, but I was getting some serious soft-core shows these days. Free porn, right here! Reaver paused long enough to make an open sweeping gesture with his hands, and I felt a vibration in the air.

Wards. Most supernaturals didn’t have much use for expensive alarm systems. Not when you could cast impenetrable magical protection on your property. This posed a problem. As my incorporeal self, I could easily slide in and out of anywhere with ease. But I’d never tried to infiltrate a magic barrier. The first kink in what was beginning to feel like a much-knotted plan.

Fallon was out of his mind if he thought this was a fair and equitable trade. But occupied or not, I didn’t feel like traipsing around Reaver’s house while he and his boyfriend got busy in the next room-or in the same room. So, I waited for the two of them to enter the house before I slid soundlessly through the garage door, out of sight.

Dawn was fast approaching when I reached my studio. Gray skies smeared with light blues, oranges, and pinks welcomed the sun in the eastern sky. Ty sat in the living room with Dimitri, playing poker. Nothing like a game of Texas hold ’em to cure what ails ya.

“Having fun?” I tried to ignore the fact that Tyler looked worse.

“Sure,” Ty said a little too sarcastically for my taste. “I’ve made a haul. How was your night?”

The question was flavored with accusation, and I averted my gaze. I should have been turning the city upside down looking for whoever was making Tyler sick, not playing thief for Fallon. “Oh, you know, boring for the most part.” At least that wasn’t a lie. Watching Reaver hadn’t exactly been action packed. “How are you feeling?”

“Great.” Sarcasm aside, he tried to put up a nonchalant front. “Well, Dimitri, I guess we’re done here.” Ty stretched and folded his hand. “You can try and win it back from me some other time.”

“I’ll take you up on that offer,” Dimitri said, clapping Ty on the shoulder. “Good morning, Darian.” He nodded and made his way to the door.

Tyler settled on the couch and held his arms out for me. Smiling, I sank down next to him, sighing at the pure bliss of relaxing in his embrace. God, if we got out of this with my sanity intact, I swore we were going to take a long and much-deserved vacation.

“You’ve been gone awhile,” Ty whispered into my hair. “I missed you. I was about to go out looking for you, but since you decided I needed a babysitter, I had no choice but to sit here and take Dimitri’s money.”

I balled my hands into fists, my fingers slick and clammy with the evidence of my mounting guilt complex. He was so onto me. “I missed you too.” His lips brushed my temple, and then my ear. “How are you really feeling?” Shivers followed the path of his mouth.

“Tired,” he said, “but not too bad. Really. It’s just exhausting to put up such a strong shield. I’m getting better at identifying the assaults when they happen, though.”

“Ty, are you sure this”-I racked my brain for the right words-“magical attack is aimed at me? I mean, how can you tell?”

“I can tell. I told you, the bond flows through you into me. Since I can feel you, I know where the attack is coming from.”

Jesus Christ, the whole “bond” thing confused the hell out of me. “Maybe someone’s using me to get to you?”

Tyler shifted and sat up a little straighter. “It’s possible, I suppose. But I doubt it. Something to look into anyway. All I know is that whatever this is, it triggers all of my protective instincts to the point that it’s all I can think about. Anyone who’s close to you is suddenly a potential threat. When I find out who’s responsible for it-the bastard is as good as dead.”