Blood Song

“Magic is harmful to vampires—to most of the monsters real y, but especial y the bats. At a guess, I’d

say that the ability to sense it is a trait that passed to you from your sire when you got drained. Sensing

magic would be one of the abilities that would keep a bat alive long enough to become a sire.”

He opened the box. The knives gleamed. The wooden handles were polished to a warm glow, but the

blades gleamed with a cold fire. When he passed his hand over them there were no rainbows. Instead

white light, blinding as a magnesium flare, burst to life. I flinched back, shielding my watering eyes with

my arm. I couldn’t see a thing, but I could hear the pride and satisfaction in Bruno’s voice.

“Oh yeah. Best thing I’ve ever done. Maybe the best thing I’l ever do. I hope not, but you never know.”

The light died. I had to blink a few times. Tears were running from my eyes and my retinas were stil

overloaded. I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand.

“Those knives saved my life the other night, bought me enough time for Kevin and Amy to come

charging to the rescue.”

“That’s why I made ’em.” Bruno rol ed back his left sleeve to expose a forearm laced with fine white

scars.

Before I could ask what he was going to do, he had picked up the first knife. With a practiced

movement he sliced into his flesh. Blood wel ed up from the wound and traced the silver and steel of

the knife blade. He muttered words in a language I didn’t recognize. There was a hiss of power and the

air seemed to thicken and heat. I watched the blade absorb the blood and the wound on his arm scab

over, then heal, until al that was left was another delicate scar line.

He set the knife back into its case and reached for the second blade. “I have to tel you, Celia, if it

had been anybody else … but Vicki swore to me back in col ege that if you didn’t have the right

weapons in that al ey, you’d die of that vampire attack and your body would never be found. If she’d

known the exact day, she’d have stopped you from taking the job. I know it.”

She knew? Even back in col ege? “She never told me.”

“She didn’t tel Kevin, either. She only told me that she knew I could make the knives, and that it would

make al the difference if I would.” He gave me a drol look. “She did not tel me that I would have to

bleed myself every damned day for five flipping years to get them finished.” He grimaced. “There were

some days I real y wanted to give up and say ‘screw it.’ Especial y after we broke up. But if anything

had happened to you, I’d never have forgiven myself. Not even when I was angry enough at you to

strangle you myself.”

I winced. Slicing yourself open every single day for five years? Ow. I didn’t even know what to say in

the face of that kind of dedication and effort. “Thank you” didn’t seem to be enough, but it was al I had.

So I said it. “Thank you.”

He smiled, and it softened his expression, bringing the usual warmth back into his dark brown eyes.

He leaned in close, giving me a quick kiss on the forehead. “You’re welcome.”

The level of emotional intensity had risen to the point where I was getting uncomfortable, so I

changed the subject. “You said the hotel. Does this mean you’re actual y going to rest?”

“Only a catnap. I’m going to try to meet up with my brother Matteo before sunset—see if he’s gotten

any leads on that demon I was tel ing you about. But I need a ride. Kevin drove me here.”

“I’l grab my keys.” I shook my head in halfhearted disapproval and made a decision. I was not going

to tel him that the demonic was involved in my mess. Not yet. He might not be my lover anymore, but

he was and always would be my friend. I was worried about him. The days when we were close enough

for me to have any say or influence as to what he did were long gone—if they’d ever existed in the first

place. But if I could delay tel ing him a few hours until he was in better shape, I would. “Hope you don’t

mind my stopping by the drugstore on the way? I need to wrap my knee.”

There was a tap on the door. We turned in unison to find Dawna standing in the doorway, looking

distinctly uncomfortable.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m sorry, Celia, but you’re not going anywhere for a while. Detective Gibson is downstairs with a pair

of men who keep scowling and muttering to each other in some foreign language. And the three of

them are staring daggers across the coffee table at the FBI guys from yesterday. They al want to ask

you questions. Now. In fact, they’re being pretty insistent about it.”

Crap. “Wel , doesn’t this just suck?”

“You shouldn’t talk to them without an attorney present,” Bruno advised.

“I’ve already met with Gibson. But you’re right about the Feds.” I doubted an attorney would help much

with the other two. Unless I missed my guess, they’d probably been sent here by Rusland’s king. I was

actual y kind of glad they were here with the police. Otherwise I might just have been taken off

somewhere for a very private interrogation. Maybe even one that involved a certain level of …

unpleasantness and ultimately my untimely permanent disappearance. Lucky for me, I had absolutely

nothing to hide. It was unlikely any of my visitors would believe that. But if I disappeared there’d be lots

and lots of uncomfortable questions and bad publicity. Bruno would see to it, even if Gibson didn’t. The

king didn’t need bad press, even if his retainers did have diplomatic immunity.

And of course I said I’d cooperate fully. Hell. Don’t think about it, Graves. At this point if they want

to kill you, they’re going to have to take a number. Just get through the meeting.

I pasted a smile on my face that I hoped would fool Dawna. I couldn’t fool Bruno. He knew me too

wel . “Dawna, do me a favor, put them in the conference room and order us up some coffee and rol s.

I’m going to cal my lawyer.”

“Ron’s got the conference room.”

“Of course he does.” I felt my smile wilt around the edges but tried to sound unfazed. God, why did

this feel like every other weekday? “Fine. Give them coffee and tel them it’l be a few minutes, we’re

waiting for my attorney. Then order rol s. We’l meet here in my office once the attorney arrives.” I

turned to Bruno and tried to keep the frustration in my voice to a minimum. After al , none of this was

his fault. Mine either, if it came to that. “Looks like you’l be taking a cab.”

“I’m not leaving.”

I started to protest, but he silenced me with a look. “Consider me your supernatural advisor. Federal

law dictates you can have one when you’re not ful y human.” There was no arguing with him when he

was wearing that expression, so I didn’t bother to try. Mol ified, he closed his laptop, put it in the case,

then got up and moved to the other side of the desk, settling into a chair in the far corner.

Dawna was shaking her head in amusement as she ducked out the door. Let her laugh. She’d never

tried to budge Bruno when he was in one of his moods. Besides, considering what he’d gone through to