I left them to their drinks and each other, recognizing they could entertain themselves, and focused on Cedric. We were here for a reason, after all. “I don’t suppose you have any information on a missing shifter, do you?”
Cedric appeared surprised by the question. “Not last time I checked. I don’t particularly enjoy kidnapping.”
“I’m not suggesting that you had anything to do with it. I simply heard that she spent a decent amount of time here.”
“You’ll have to be more specific.”
“Jeanie Lawrence,” Gunner stated, his tone icy. The girl wasn’t a close relative but he was obviously on edge regarding her disappearance. I made a mental note to question him about his relationship with his cousin when we were alone later.
“I’m not sure I recognize the name,” Cedric replied.
“She would’ve hung with a rough shifter crowd,” I replied. “She was underage.”
Cedric balked. “I don’t serve anyone who is underage.”
“She had a fake ID.”
Cedric worked his jaw, obviously unhappy with the conversational shift. “Is that why you’re here?” he asked. “Are you trying to bust my balls?”
“We’re trying to find a missing seventeen-year-old,” I said. “She’s not the only one who has gone missing.”
Cedric’s expression changed to intrigued. “Really? All shifters?”
I nodded.
“I hadn’t heard that.” He rubbed his jaw in thought. “Have you talked to them?” He turned toward the table where Jasmine and the others sat but they were already on their feet and headed toward the door. “That’s weird. They’ve only been here twenty minutes. Usually they stay longer.”
It was indeed weird ... and suspicious. Part of me wanted to follow, question them, or at least figure out where they were going, yet I remained seated. If I gave them reason to distrust me, they might never get past it and there was a chance I might need to tap them again for information.
“Maybe they’re afraid,” I said. “I’m sure they’ll be back.”
“I’m sure they will, too,” he agreed. “As for this missing girl, I don’t know what to tell you. If she’s a regular with the group I’m thinking of, I never had reason to believe she was underage.”
“I’m not blaming you.” I meant that. “It sounds like the girl is having a rough go of it. I just thought I would ask. Apparently she went missing last night so there’s still a chance we might be able to track her down.”
“Sorry.” Cedric held out his hands. “I don’t know what to tell you.”
“Fair enough.” I forced a smile. “One other thing before you go. Have you heard about vampires amassing in the woods, or maybe in caves or houses somewhere?”
“Are these different vampires from the ones you took down two weeks ago?”
I shrugged. “I honestly have no idea. Just vampires in general.”
“I haven’t heard anything, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything. It’s not as if vampires come in here to hang out and broadcast their plans. Since you burned a houseful of them to the ground, they’ve been rather scarce. People have heard you visit occasionally and I very much doubt vampires want to risk crossing your path.”
“That’s because I’m a badass.”
He smirked. “That’s because you have a notorious temper and aren’t afraid to kill. I can ask around, but right now, I don’t have anything to offer.”
That was disappointing. “Thanks. Anything you can come up with, I appreciate it.”
“Sure thing.” He moved to leave but a giggling Zoe caught his attention. She’d already finished her drink and had pressed herself against Aric in a suggestive manner. They seemed to be lost in each other, not a care in the world. “Another?” he asked with a grin.
Zoe nodded. “I want to see if it’s purple again.” She tweaked her husband’s nose. “I’m feeling purple.”
Interestingly enough, Aric’s drink had turned blue while I was distracted. “Do you think of blue when you look at her?” I asked, legitimately curious.
He nodded, never looking in my direction. “It’s the color of her eyes.”
For some reason, the realization that they were essentially going through some sort of public display of foreplay filled me with amusement. “I guess the fire still burns even after forty?”
Aric nodded. “Forever, if you’re with the right person.”
I glanced at Gunner and found he’d relaxed enough to sip his own drink, which had turned a shimmery pinkish yellow. “What are you thinking about?”
He merely grinned at me. “I’ll show you later. It will lose something in the telling.”
“Now that’s something to look forward to.”
Twelve
Things turned fun after the shifters departed. Gunner had exactly one drink before declaring himself group babysitter, which allowed the rest of us to relax and get to know one another. Honestly, I found I enjoyed Zoe and Aric a great deal.
“How do you not crumble under the fear?” I asked after I finished my second drink. “It sounds to me as if Sami has been a target her entire life. I think trying to keep a small, vulnerable individual safe as long as you two have would cause me to implode.”
“We were ... ill-prepared at the start.” Zoe offered up a rueful smile. “Actually, I don’t think we were prepared for any of it, even if things did ultimately get easier, and harder at the same time. Sami was a fussy baby, which probably isn’t a surprise to you guys. She refused to sleep. Aric and I were like walking zombies those first few weeks.”
Aric grinned at the memory. “I know we were miserable at the time but I look back on those weeks fondly. We used to drop wherever we were standing when she’d finally go down for a nap. We had to call our mothers to help us.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “We’d taken out rogue wolves, vampire nests, and a militant academy
