He shrugged. “Tall, broad shouldered, crimson hair and eyes like yours.”
“Has he a port wine stain here?” I asked, running my fingers down the left side of my neck.
“I saw some dark mottling near his ear, but I couldn’t say if it was a birth mark or something else. It’s not like I was interested in getting to know him better or anything.”
“How did he contact you?” Aiden said.
“He messaged me.”
“Text or Facebook?” Aiden said.
“Neither.”
I glanced at Aiden. “Meaning the messages were sent via magic.”
It was a simple enough spell and one taught in high school, though it wasn’t something I’d ever done. To be honest, I’d totally forgotten about it.
“And did you physically meet to hand over the information or did you electronically transfer?”
“Met. He didn’t want any sort of electronic trail left behind. He even took the damn memory card out of my camera.”
Aiden’s smile held little amusement. “And you didn’t have backups? I find that hard to believe.”
“I don’t really care what you fucking believe. I had no choice but to hand everything over. He must have spelled me or something.”
“And you still worked for him, despite this?” I rubbed my arms and somehow resisted the growing urge to run into the pub, order the largest bottle of whiskey they had, and get absolutely and totally drunk. “He must have been paying you a pretty penny.”
“I’m not cheap.” He studied me critically for a moment. “How did you two spot me? You shouldn’t have been able to, given how far away I was.”
“Your employer obviously forgot to mention the convenient fact that I’m a psychic. I’ve been feeling your presence for days; I just wasn’t able to locate you until tonight.”
James snorted. “Typical of a blueblood to leave that sort of information out.”
It was actually typical, simply because to bluebloods psychic powers were of little consequence—which was why Belle had been able to overrun Clayton’s thoughts so thoroughly. He hadn’t believed her telepathy was strong enough to affect him.
He knew better now.
As Aiden continued to question James, I said, Belle—
I’m not leaving. Don’t ask me to.
I thrust down frustration and fear. Then at the very least we need to find you somewhere safe to hide.
Nowhere here is safe. Not from someone like him.
For no good reason, Maelle’s comment rose. A tiny spark of hope stirred.
No way, no how, Belle said.
You’ll be safe at Maelle’s. It’s the last place they’ll think to look, and it’s doubtful if either of them would dare attack a vampire’s abode.
Because only an insane person would willingly stay on the premises.
Maelle owes us a favor—this will fulfill that. It keeps you close while keeping you safe.
From Clayton and your father, maybe, but not from her bloodsucker tendencies.
She swore an oath, Belle. She won’t break that or her promise to help.
Are you sure of that?
Every instinctive bit of me is.
She swore softly. Let me think about it.
“I’ll go get the truck,” Aiden said, his gaze returning to me. “Will you be all right with the suspect?”
I nodded and dragged the keys out of my pocket. As he disappeared, I said, “When did Lawrence contact you?”
James shrugged. “A couple of weeks ago. He didn’t appear in any sort of hurry to chase you up though.”
He mightn’t have been, but I doubt the same could be said of Clayton. “Did you ever speak to another man?”
“No.”
So why, if my father had recently begun distancing himself from Clayton, was he now here helping to track down his escapee daughter? That really didn’t make a whole lot of sense.
“How did he initially contact you?”
James shrugged. “I guess he got my details off my website and shot me a message. It was in-person from there.”
“In your office? Or elsewhere?”
“Generally out in the open and away from any possibility of being seen.”
“Where have you been meeting him here?”
James shrugged. “It varies—the last one was up at Jackson’s Lookout.”
Which wasn’t that far out of Argyle, if I remembered properly. “Were you supposed to meet him there tonight?”
“No. He said he had other plans but he’d be in contact with a new meet location.”
“How was he going to do that? Via messages magically transported to you again?”
He nodded. “They appear in my hotel room. And before you ask, they self-destruct two minutes after I’ve read them.”
I smiled. Of course they did. My father was nothing if not cautious. “What time do they usually appear?”
“Around ten.”
I glanced at my watch. It was just after nine now, but that still gave us plenty of time to get there if we left immediately. “Where were you staying?”
“At the Albion Motel.”
Which wasn’t a place I knew, but wouldn’t be hard to Google. “Key?”
He blew out a frustrated breath. “Top pocket.”
I stepped forward, carefully plucked the key free, and shoved it into my pocket.
Belle, you want to go for a drive?
It’s a toss-up between that or drink myself into a stupor, and we do have to work tomorrow. She paused. You don’t think this could be a trap?
There’s no magic on James except mine now, and the protection disks weren’t Clayton’s or my father’s, so neither of them would have felt their destruction. Presuming, of course, they’d been close enough to do so, and I doubted it.
And if, as I suspect, you find nothing there, why don’t we then go on up to the clearing and talk to Katie? The sooner you get some answers to those questions you raised, the better.
Meaning she’d been listening in again.
I’m always listening in. It’s what a good familiar does. She paused. Well, except for personal times. Not interested in hearing any of that.
I half turned as Aiden’s truck appeared. We should be there in twenty.
I’ll be waiting with coffee, extra holy water, and the location of his hotel.
Aiden tipped James upright, cut off the cable tie, and then dragged him across to the truck, shoving him into the rear and fastening him securely before starting the truck and heading off. It took just over twenty minutes to get back
