to five times he goes to the bathroom during his visit here.”
“So you want to set up in there?”
Vayl stood. “I will go check it out.” I watched him leave, wishing oddly that I could stop him.
We shouldn’t be here
, I thought, sitting back and casting my eyes casually around the room, hunting for the source of my unease. As usual, I couldn’t match it with a familiar face or a psychic scent. Couples, most of them under thirty, sat chatting and laughing over bowls of thick soup and plates whose predominant ingredient seemed to be long-grained rice. No threat there. So what the hell?
It’s this whole damn mission. Everything about it’s got me flinching at shadows
. Or maybe it was my double trip to hell that had done it. Either way, I wanted badly to click my heels together three times because, by God, there really was no place like home.
Vayl returned in a reasonable amount of time. “There is a window big enough to crawl through if it comes to that. We are — how do you say — set.”
I smiled thinly as the waiter brought our tea. Vayl began to talk, or rather gush, about Zarsa. And I meant to listen, honest I did. But Raoul chose that moment to drop in. His way of grabbing my attention is to reach into my brain and squeeze until either I tune in or black out. It had taken a while, but I’d finally learned to listen.
“Let me guess,” I said in the mental drawl I reserved only for him, “you were the fifth of eight children and your mother had you all very close together. Am I right?”
CLOSE ENOUGH.
Figures
. “You probably shouldn’t even be talking to me.” I told him about my return trip to hell and gave him my fake Matt theory. When he didn’t immediately reply I said, “So, what do you think? Is he gunning for you?”
MAYBE.
And that’s really as specific as Raoul would probably get at this distance. It wasn’t the ideal way to communicate, but hey, considering we were operating on entirely different planes, I probably came off sounding like a talking mosquito to him.
“Actually, I have a great number of preparations to make this evening,” said Vayl as I snapped back to my reality. Which currently sucked.
“You do?”
“If I am to turn Zarsa without injuring her, I must make sure everything is in order.”
Okay, this is the point where a reasonable (sane?) person would back off. Because clearly this train was headed straight over the cliff and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to stop it. Still. I raised my hands to the table. Was not even slightly surprised to see both of them curled into fists.
“What exactly do you mean by ‘in order’?” I inquired acidly. “Are you doing an HIV test on her before you dig in? Having her line up a nanny in case you goof and leave her children motherless? Is there a liability-free form her hubby has to sign before you can kill the woman he loves and turn her into a creature who will be forced to watch every single person
she
loves die?”
Vayl leaned forward. Shot the word at me like a bullet.
“Stop.”
I met him halfway. Not a smart move for anyone facing a pissed-off vampire. But anger generally puts me beyond smart moves, especially when it comes to Vayl. Knowing he could sense all of my strongest feelings, I wrapped them in a flaming ball and threw them at him with two simple words. “You first.”
Chapter Sixteen
Vayl left me at the door to the Oasis with a mumbled, “I am sure you can find your way home from here,” and disappeared into the night. I watched him go, depressed on every front, including the one where I had to admit he was right about getting back to base. I didn’t even need a map. (One of the perks of my Sensitivity.) What I did need was to talk to somebody who could help me unravel this coil. Usually Vayl was my go-to guy. But since he’d caused the biggest tangle, I was left with little choice. Too dangerous to contact Raoul. Too risky even to talk to Dave. That left the old man.
I pulled out the new stealth-communications device the DOD had issued us before leaving on this mission, stifling a pang of guilt at the pleasure that flashed through me as my fingers caressed the sleek black case. I love technology almost as much as I adore fast cars and strong, mysterious men. I opened the case, took out the trendy new eyeglasses it contained, and put them on. As soon as they settled on my face a robotic arm grew out of the earpiece. Having watched the live-action version before we left, I knew a tiny receiver was blooming from its tip, and within moments the arm would stick it in my ear.
In the meantime, using visual commands to work the menu shining across the top of my lenses, I placed my call. Then I covered my mouth with my hijab so no one could see me having a conversation seemingly with myself.
“Parks residence.”
“Shelby?” I was surprised. Usually, well always, Albert answers the phone. Finding his nurse on the other end of the line was a bad sign. Dammit, I needed to talk to my dad!
“Jaz? Did your work finally track you down?”
Shit, shit, shit. Stop talking right now, Shelby. I do not want to hear what you have to say
. “No.”
