“Why did you leave? It’s not as if dawn would have threatened you.”
He grimaced. “No, but hunger could.”
I raised my eyebrows. “And you couldn’t have taken blood from the pros?”
“I could have, but I prefer not to.” His smile touched his eyes again and damned if it didn’t make my knees go weak. “I only bite someone while making love, and I do have a preference for women who are not in the game.”
The thought of him biting my neck while thrusting slow and deep made me all goose pimply and hot. Man, I was really going to have to take this vampire for a test run before he disappeared out of my life
“So Rhoan disappeared after you’d left?”
He nodded. “Rhoan was dressed like a hooker so he didn’t stand out on the streets while hunting information. I was in the shadows watching, and reading thoughts.”
Meaning they might have suspected that Rhoan had a guard, because they’d only snatched him once Quinn had left. Either that, or they’d thought Quinn was a watchful pimp. I walked to the windows and stared out. We were only ten floors up, so there wasn’t all that much to see but more buildings. I let my gaze drift to the southeast. The reason for Rhoan’s capture wasn’t really important. Getting him out of there before they realized he wasn’t
I swung around. “We have to go.”
Quinn didn’t try to stop me, which was good, because right then I probably would have tried to flatten him. I say tried, because I very much suspected he was one vampire I
And if Jack was wary of this vampire, then I sure as hell should be
All Quinn said was, “We have to prepare first.”
“I can shadow. They won’t see me.”
“They have infrared. You said that yourself.”
I stopped at the door and took a deep breath. He was right. But it did little to ease the anxiety suddenly knotting my insides
I glanced over my shoulder. “What do you suggest?”
He retrieved the chip from the desk, then rose and walked toward me, all grace and beauty in a lean and powerful package. “A little game of dress-up.”
I could think of a lot of games I could play with this vampire, and dressing up was certainly up there on the list. But I very much doubted he meant the type of dressing up
“Meaning, if Moneisha is looking for prostitutes, why don’t we give them an easy one to snatch?”
“Wouldn’t they be a little suspicious of a pro suddenly appearing on a quiet suburban street?”
He gave me the chip, then pressed a hand into my back again, guiding me toward the elevators. “Not necessarily. There’s a working brothel one street down from Moneisha. Hopefully they’ll think you’re just walking to work.”
I slanted him a sideways glance. “And how would you know there’s a working brothel one street away?”
“A good investigator discovers what he can about a target area.”
“Yet you said only moments before that you preferred to avoid prostitutes.”
“I do.” He gave me another of those grins. “I’m a billionaire. Women throw themselves at me all the time. I have no need to pay for it.”
Which didn’t exactly answer my question. “And do you not-pay-for-it often?”
“Quite often. I have needs, like any other man.”
I was hoping he’d assuage some of those needs with me. And as soon as I got my brother out
The doors closed behind us and the lift dropped. My stomach flirted with the idea of puking, then decided to settle again. “So where are we going?”
“To buy camouflage.” His gaze slid down my body. “The skirt is nice, but it doesn’t quite stretch into pro territory.”
Well, no, but all I had to do was take off the coat and sweater, reveal the torn shirt, and you had come-get- me material right there. “It’s nearly midnight. There are not going to be any shops open.”
“When you have the money, the shops are always open.”
The glass front doors slid open as we approached and the cool evening air swirled in. It was thick with the aromas of smog and humans, but underneath it lay something else. Musk and mint and man. The same combination that had been on the wolf who’d shot me
I stopped and heard something else. A scream of air, as if something fast and deadly was tearing through the night toward us
I threw myself sideways and knocked Quinn out of the way. He cursed, his arms going around me, instinctively cushioning my body with his as we fell to the ground. He grunted as we hit, and his eyes widened. Air hissed, and I twisted around to look. Something cut through the night just above us, something that was wood rather than metal, with a deadly pointed end
An arrow
The fact that it was all wood suggested it had been aimed at Quinn, but the reality was, an arrow in the heart wasn’t going to do
It hit the glass behind us and ricocheted harmlessly away. Footsteps whispered across the sounds of the night. Our attacker, on the run. I broke away from Quinn’s embrace, flung off my bag, coat, and sweater, then shifted shape. In wolf form, I bounded after the bastard
“Riley, wait!”
It was a command, one I ignored. The would-be assassin was running toward South Bank, perhaps hoping to shake any pursuit in the crowd gathered near the casino. Meaning he either didn’t realize I was a wolf, or he had no idea just how keen a wolf’s hunting sense was
He kept running, looking over his shoulder as he did so, barreling into people and thrusting them out of the way. I loped after him, lithely avoiding the idiot humans who screamed or stepped into my path rather than out of it. The man ahead was another Gautier, right down to the long, greasy ponytail. He was obviously aware that he was being pursued, but he was looking over the wrong shoulder and I was drawing closer and closer. His scent was cloying, the minty smell barely covering the growing odor of death and decay. I wrinkled my nose and resisted the temptation to sneeze
He didn’t head over the bridge, as I’d expected, running instead into the Clocks poker machine venue. I shifted shape, retied the shirt, then strode in after him
He weaved through the machines, not quite running. I kept back, out of sight. His scent lingered in the air, a trail I could follow anywhere, even in a venue layered with so many conflicting odors
Another aroma joined the throng—sandalwood. I smiled and glanced over my shoulder. Quinn was three feet behind me, my bag slung casually over his shoulder
His dark gaze was filled with anger as it met mine. “You could have gotten yourself into trouble running off like that.” He handed me my sweater, and I put it on as he added, “It might have been a trap.”
It still could be. Who knew where Gautier’s double might lead us? “That arrow was aimed at you, not me.”
“It would have got me, too.” He reached out, catching my hand and raising it to his mouth as we walked. The brief caress of his lips across my fingers was unlike anything I’d ever felt before. Sweet, and yet at the same time, erotic. “Thank you,” he added softly
I took a deep breath, trying to control my suddenly erratic pulse
Ahead, our would-be murderer ducked through a door and disappeared. I looked up at the sign above the door and smiled. He’d gone to the toilet. Perfect
“You mind the door.” Quinn handed me back my bag and coat. “I’ll have a little talk with our friend.”
“Anyone else in there?”
His gaze narrowed slightly, and I knew he was using his infrared vision to check. “No.”
“Good.”
I followed him in, but stopped just inside, leaning back against the door as it closed. I have to say, the smell
