Bitten to Death

use.”

Vayl’s slumped shoulders and crossed arms made him so resemble a honked-off teen that Dave laughed. “This is serious!” Vayl declared.

“Of course it is,” Dave said soothingly. “That’s why I am not signing her yearbook.”

Vayl shot out of his chair. “You are incorrigible!”

Dave held up his hands. “Whoa, calm down, buddy, I’m just teasing. Plus, I don’t even know what that means.” He glanced at me. “Do I?”

“Constipated?” I guessed.

Dave shrugged. “I would’ve said it had something to do with my top-notch spitting skills.” He hawked and blew a wad of jaw-juice right into the fountain. “Did you see that?” he demanded. “Nothing but net.”

“I’d point out how disgusting that was, but considering the state of the water, you’ve probably just dramatically improved the pH. Speaking of which, you’re in a good mood.”

“I finally got a hold of Cassandra.” He gave me a significant look. “She doesn’t hate me yet. Plus”—he gestured to his black T-shirt—“I finally got time to change.”

“Good deal.” I looked at Vayl. “You know, Disa not hating you could be a point of strength for us. If you’d care to use it to your advantage.”

Vayl had gone to the bookshelf, where he was alternately picking up and putting down doodads. “I want nothing to do with her!” he said, setting one of the little statues down so hard that it broke. “Now see what you made me do?”

“Actually, I felt something when that happened,” I told him. I went over and picked up another figurine, a fat naked chick with gigantic mammaries. My hands tingled as I held the piece. It oozed power. They all did. Even the books. Just like the masks I’d seen in the villa’s entryway, only not enough for me to sense until one had broken and sparked a response in the others. When I told the guys about it, they tried to feel what I meant. But neither of them reacted as I had.

“Okay, so you can’t perceive the power directly,” I said to Vayl. “But this is more proof of what we’ve been talking about. It could even be the source of that itch. What if the binding Disa set on you is powered by the objects in this villa?”

“What are you suggesting?” asked Dave. “That if we smash everything in this mansion we break the Mating bond?”

I sighed. “No. I don’t know. I’m just saying.”

Vayl nodded. “This is good,” he said. “We might be able to do something with this.” He considered the broken pieces with a look so piercing I almost expected them to disintegrate. He nodded. “Excellent work, Jasmine.”

Before I could stop myself, I put my hand on his arm, let my fingers wrap around the smooth curve of his biceps. His eyes tracked to mine, their icy blue interest making me blink, as if I’d just walked out into a blizzard. “Thanks. You . . . you hardly ever compliment me. And I like it when you do.” I dropped my hand. Holy crap, was that ever hard. I think I’d rather chase a murderer through a ghetto full of gangbangers!

The corners of his lips rose. “Then I will be sure to do it more often.”

Dave clapped his hands together, making me jump. Vayl just looked at him inquiringly. “Now that we all know what an ace assistant Jaz is, can we review the plan? I’ve got places to go. People to see.” He patted his pockets again and checked his watch. He figured we’d think he was joking. But I could tell he still wanted to snag himself some liquid Valium. My first reaction? Kick him, hard, in the shins.

Instead I said, “I’m free.”

Dave took a seat by the fountain, where we joined him. He gestured to Vayl. “It’s your baby. You start.”

Vayl bowed his head slightly as he said, “Unwisely, Hamon allowed Samos to dictate the details of their first meeting. It is set for one hour after dusk, to occur in a place called the Odeum. Hamon must have felt safe in agreeing to the spot, since it is somewhat in his territory, but Disa tells me it is an ancient amphitheater. I do not need to tell you how vulnerable we would be once Samos had us sitting on that pit of a stage with a stone backdrop on one side and seating marching up a steep hilltop on the others.”

“You act like we’re really going to negotiate with this guy,” Dave said.

“Not at all,” Vayl replied. “But we have to be able to terminate him in such a way that everyone in the Trust can escape unscathed.”

There it was again, one of those words that reminded me that Vayl had never quite moved beyond his past. I admitted to myself that I partied a little every time I recalled that fact. Because he’d held on to a lot of the good stuff. And some of the bad. But now, watching him work, I felt something vital was missing that had been a part of his long march through history.

Vayl went on. “Because eliminating him at the Odeum would be too dangerous, we must force Samos to a different location. One that we can control. Once we have accomplished that, our mission should run smoothly.”

“And that’s where the dog comes in,” Dave put in.

“Indeed,” Vayl agreed. “We must gain possession of it well before tomorrow night’s meeting. And when I say we . . .”

“You mean Jasmine and me,” Dave finished.

Vayl nodded. “We did agree the wisest time to take Samos’s malamute would be when its master and his strongest people are at rest, leaving only his human guardians to contend with.”

“And here’s where you lose me,” Dave said. “Because I just don’t get why a guy as villainous as you say Samos is would risk his power play to get a dog back.”