Noble Blood

He stepped down, carefully lifting his hands into the air. He smiled, showing his fangs. Their scent reeked of moldy mushrooms. Fucking redcaps. He now had proof positive that Charles was living in the darker shade of gray. Redcaps only worked at the express order of their overlord, who was firmly in the Black. He strove to keep his voice quiet so as not to awaken any other would-be guardians. “Hey, neighbor. Can I borrow a cup of sugar?”

The goons frowned. One of them lowered his gun by a hair, if that. The other opened his mouth, hand lifting to his ear.

“Thank the gods they’re stupid.” That was all the opening he needed. Jaden pounced. He had the first one in a submission hold before the other could blink. His arm was around the redcap’s throat, cutting off his air. He ripped the wire out of his ear, keeping him from contacting whoever it was he wanted backup from.

“Jaden?”

“Not now, sweetheart. Daddy’s working.” They seemed to move in slow motion, making it easy to avoid their blows. Jaden shifted, moving before the redcap could slam his elbow into Jaden’s stomach. He tightened his grip, using the redcap in his arms as a shield. He kept the Black Court fucker in a sleeper hold, waiting for him to drop. The free redcap feinted to the left, but Jaden didn’t buy it, didn’t give him an opening. Once a redcap had you in his arms it was damn hard to break free. The freaks were super-strong for all they were so thin, especially if they dropped their Seeming.

Jaden hoped they didn’t do that. He did not want to fill his quota of fugly for the day.

The redcap went limp in his arms, almost dragging Jaden to the floor with him. He held up and on, waiting to make sure the redcap was down for the count before dropping his limp form. He bared his fangs at the remaining redcap. “Looks like it’s just you and me, kid.”

The redcap eyed his fallen comrade and glared at Jaden. “You’ll pay for that.”

“That’s what they all say.” He wagged his fingers at the redcap in a “come here” gesture. “Here, stupid, stupid, stupid. C’mon, boy. Come on.”

The redcap growled and charged Jaden.

Perfect. Like I said, thank the gods these guys are idiots. This one hadn’t even thought to use his “hidden” microphone to call for help, let alone his gun.

Jaden used the redcap’s momentum to get behind him, swinging until he rested on the redcap’s back like a baby monkey. He grabbed hold of the redcap’s ears. “Giddy up!”

The redcap opened his mouth to roar. Jaden clamped a hand around that huge maw. “Uh-uh. No calling in reinforcements.” He twisted the ear he still gripped, earning himself a muffled howl. The redcap shook his head in an attempt to dislodge Jaden’s grip. “There ya go.” Jaden leaned down and bit into the side of the redcap’s neck. Instantly the redcap quieted, Jaden’s vampiric mind control kicking in, keeping the creature in his arms docile. He refused to use the power that made this feel good; all Jaden wanted was quiet. He drank until his opponent had suffered enough blood loss to pass out, but not enough to kill.

Blech. Mushrooms. Jaden swiped his tongue across the puncture wounds. He’d briefly considered killing the two goons but decided not to. He didn’t want it obvious he’d been there; that might get Duncan in trouble. It would be better to let Charlie-boy think that the two idiots had fallen asleep on the job. He arranged them so that they were leaning against the attic door, posing them as naturally as he could, heads leaned back and lolling, mouths open, arms draped over knees. He entered both of their minds, erasing his presence from their memories before misting down the hallway.

He reached the staircase to the lower level and solidified, ready to check the next level. He remembered from previous encounters that Charlie-boy preferred his office on the main level of any house he owned, and that was where Jaden was going. He didn’t have enough time to case the entire house. That would have to wait for another night.

“Jaden?”

Jaden sighed. Duncan hadn’t bothered him this much in years. “Yes, dear?”

“How is it going?”

He slid a foot onto the railing, testing to see how slick it was. “I don’t recommend the mushrooms.”

“Redcaps?”

Jaden blinked. How the hell did Duncan know that? He’d never described their taste to Duncan before. “Yes.”

“You aren’t hurt?”

“Pfft. Please.” He misted down the banister. The damn thing seemed a little shaky to him, so crawling down it was definitely out. When he reached the bottom he rematerialized, panting a bit. Misting was damn tiring. “There were only two.”

“Only two? Jaden!”

Jaden winced. Damn, the man could yell. Who knew? “Shh. Daddy’s still working.”

He heard the low growl in his mind. Duncan was going to have words for him when he got back. He grinned. He couldn’t wait. This side of Duncan was one he’d never have suspected before. It gave him all kinds of tingles to know he was the one who had Duncan in full protection mode, misplaced though it was.

He made his way silently through the lower floor, misting in stops and starts. It was a power that only worked for brief periods of time and the energy drain was horrendous. He might have to feed again before leaving the house if he kept this up.

Jaden came to a stop at the last room to the right before the servants’ wing. Ah- hah. He’d finally found what he was looking for—Charles’s office.

He stepped into the room and quietly began to rifle through Charles’s desk, careful to disturb as little as possible. He didn’t need Charles knowing that he’d been in here.

Jaden had learned long ago how to perform a B&E. He’d been working for Robin almost from the start of his service in the Gray Court. Once he’d proven adept at this aspect of his job Robin himself had taken him under his wing, teaching him the finer points of how to search a home and leave no traces behind. He’d gone for nighttime forays into neighborhoods that would have turned Duncan’s hair white if he’d known about it, but Jaden had learned. Oh, he’d learned. Robin was a hard taskmaster, but he had to admit the man was fair. When Jaden had done particularly well the Hob had managed to make the once unwanted boy feel like he’d found a true mentor. Strangely enough, Duncan had never once asked where he went at night. He hadn’t cared so long as Jaden came home in one piece. It was why he’d thought Duncan wouldn’t mind him taking the job offer Robin had held out like a lifeline all those years ago.

“I cared. I was afraid if I tried to rein you in you’d leave me.”

Jaden paused, setting down the papers he’d been reading. “You never told me that.”

“Of course not. I didn’t understand it myself.” Duncan sighed. “We have a lot to talk about.”

Jaden couldn’t stop the smile that crossed his face. “This is the part where we break out the foam curlers, paint our nails and talk about our feelings, isn’t it?”

“Asshole.” The amused affection in Duncan’s voice took the sting out of the insult. “Do what you have to do and come home to me, amoureaux.”

Jaden’s cheeks heated. He put the papers back in their proper place. Damn it, he had to focus on the job, not on his lovers. The risk of getting caught got higher with every minute he spent in Charles’s house.

He closed his eyes and let his senses lead the way. Sniffing, he noticed that Charles’s scent tended to linger over by a particular chair, near the globe and at the fireplace. Hmm. He checked out the chair but found nothing of interest, no secret caches or buttons hidden as knotwork. The globe was a standard minibar. He lifted out the booze but found no hidden compartments. Finally he checked out the fireplace.

No hidden passageways, no safe behind the painting. At least Charlie boy is smarter than the Deranged Darling was. Last but not least was the computer.

Jaden took out his cell phone. He dialed a number Robin had made him memorize for just such a