He studied her face. “All right. Call Kyra. I’d like to get you settled, so I can take care of things in Olde Town.”
“Wouldn’t they call if it was bad?”
“Of course, but Gabriel and our club staff are just waking. They need to be brought up to date, and I want to discuss some changes at the club with Russell. Samuel will be anxious about the weretigers. He wasn’t pleased I left him to guard the house.”
While Ari spoke with Kyra—who urged her to come—Andreas stepped outside to check on the tigers. Kyra said she’d get her grandfather’s approval and call right back. While Ari waited, she called Merlin to explain where she was and give him the details of the hellhound fight. “Did everyone else get back OK?”
“We did. We heard the hounds but never saw any, and once you left, the birds settled down. You appear to be their main interest, and yet the crows are still outside.”
“Yeah, we’re puzzled by that too. But I had another reason for calling. I’m leaving town for a few days. Andreas doesn’t feel it’s safe for the baby and me to be here. I guess I have to agree.”
“Will he go with you?”
“No, he has too many responsibilities here. His court, the club and staff.”
“I thought that would be the case. I suppose your leaving is for the best,” he said, after a moment.
She picked up on his undertone of doubt. “Is it? You don’t sound so sure.”
“I don’t think you have a choice. But that may explain the crows’ behavior—to drive you from town and force Andreas to stay.”
“To divide and conquer, you mean? But he can’t leave his people when they’re in danger.”
“Exactly the point. Be very careful, Arianna. Cover your tracks well. The enemy may be hoping to isolate you.”
“I won’t be that far—”
“Don’t tell me anything about where you will be. The less anyone knows, the better.”
Ari disconnected and stared at the phone, taken aback. Was he being paranoid? Oddly enough, it sounded as if he was making really good sense. She might be playing into the hands of the O-Seven, but that was no reason to give them a greater advantage than they already had. She remembered Moriana’s warning. Trust few. Ari shivered at the thought.
A few minutes later, she repeated the wizard’s theory to the others.
Andreas narrowed his eyes. “A clever strategy. Manipulating the situation so our only course of action is the one they want.” He stared into space and seemed to be sorting through the possibilities in his head. “Perhaps I can keep them busy enough in Olde Town they won’t have time to look for you.”
She laid her hand on his arm. “I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you. Don’t do anything rash.”
He looked down, a reluctant smile tugging at his lips. “In other words, don’t do what you would do.”
“I’m not rash, just expedient.”
“Then you should not object if I also do what is necessary.”
They exchanged looks for a silent moment, and she hugged him. Sometimes there just weren’t any good options.
* * *
An hour before sundown, Ari kissed her husband good-bye, and he returned to Olde Town. The vampires were starting to wake, and he’d just spoken briefly with Gabriel by phone. Although the birds hadn’t attacked anyone, they had strengthened their numbers around the vampire compound, Club Dintero, and the De Luca mansion. The positioning fit with Merlin’s suspicions of the enemy’s intent, but it didn’t alter Ari’s plans or Andreas’s responsibly to his people.
Ari, the wolf leader, and his girlfriend climbed into Jena’s Subaru and headed south, exited the suburbs, and drove past fields of beans and corn that stretched over gently rolling hills. They were going far out of their way to shake off pursuit. After dark they’d double back to the forested areas along the Mississippi River. A few crows had been spotted around Steffan’s house, and they were taking no chances. Jena sat in the backseat and kept watch on the skies behind them with a pair of binoculars.
“I still don’t see crows or anything else suspicious,” she said. “Not since we left the city limits.”
Ari frowned. That should have been good news, but it made her uneasy. Why hadn’t they been followed? Did their enemies have some other means of tracking her?
“Can you pull over here?” She pointed toward the side of the road.
Steffan tensed but hit the brakes. “Why? Did you spot something?”
“No. But we should check the car. They might have planted something as ordinary as an electronic bug.”
Steffan swore softly as he got out and slammed the door. “I should have thought of that.”
But their search of the interior and exterior turned up nothing. Steffan crawled underneath and poked around while Ari also checked for magical markers. Nothing. Jena continued to scan the skies.
“It doesn’t make sense.” Steffan took a last look around and opened the car door. “Not a bird in sight. Why are they letting you go? To focus on Andreas?”
Ari’s breath quickened. She snatched her phone and hit Andreas’s number on speed dial. “Are you OK?”
“Yes, why the sudden anxiety?”
“No one has tried to follow us.”
“That’s good.”
“Not when I don’t know where they are or what they’re doing. Maybe I should come home.”
“No. Absolutely not.” He took an audible breath and softened his tone. “I thought we had agreed on this.”
“We had, but—”
“No buts,” he said. “You must keep our child safe.” Andreas fell silent, not belaboring the point.
Ari automatically rested her hand on the baby bump. “I know,” she said softly, turning away from the listening werewolves. “I hate being separated from you.”
“It is only for a while, cara mia. I’m not going to miss the birth of my only child.”
She smiled at that. “You better not.” She walked back toward the car. “I’ll talk with you tomorrow.” She disconnected and looked at Steffan. “Nothing’s changed, so I guess we’re still going to Kyra’s.”
By the time they reached the area where the nymphs lived, it was dark. They’d taken the back roads, and Steffan navigated the last ten miles by wolf vision rather than use the headlights. Low hanging clouds cut off most of the moonlight, and the roads were tricky to maneuver. He parked, and they walked the last mile.
The Montreys—Kyra, her grandfather, aunts, uncles, and cousins—swarmed out of the hut and welcomed Ari to their community. Although Kyra and her grandfather lived alone, the other clan homes were only minutes away.
Steffan and Jena declined an invitation to supper. He was anxious to get on the road, fearing his pack might be attacked in his absence.
Jena hugged Ari. “If you need anything, call us.” She flashed a quick grin. “We’re really only ten minutes away as the wolf runs.”
“I have you on my contact list,” Ari assured her. She watched them leave and walked back toward the hut. She stiffened at a rustle from the trees and searched the dark foliage. A breeze stirred the leaves again, an owl hooted, and she relaxed. For the first time in days the trees around her weren’t filled with crows.
CHAPTER NINE
After leaving Steffan’s home in the suburbs, Andreas sped toward Olde Town, his feet barely touching the ground, his senses hypervigilant. What was happening to his city? It had to be the elders, but what were their intentions?
Crows stirred restlessly in the trees around him. Even though his speed hid him from sight, they must sense his passing. His neck prickled with awareness. He could defend himself, but other residents, including his own vampires, didn’t have his level of strength, speed, or healing rate…and they didn’t have the magic. A large murder of crows could bring down almost anyone.
Then there were the hellhounds. No one—including a master vampire—was immune to their venom, and they could tear apart humans or younger shifters and vampires in a ma
tter of seconds.
He slowed his pace as he approached Club Dintero and dropped into a walk. The building looked normal, except for the bird netting on the roof and the lack of a long line waiting to be admitted. Business had dwindled since Monday, especially with the curfew that kept humans inside at night. A very good thing. Fewer soft targets for the enemy.
He found Lilith and Russell in the security office.
Lilith immediately stood, stiff, tense. “I apologize, Andreas. I should have been with her—”
Andreas cut her off. “Ari already explained. You should not have been assigned to her protection under the circumstances.” He quirked an eyebrow toward Russell, not sure how freely he could speak.
“It’s all right. I told him,” Lilith said.
Russell gave him a big grin. “I still can’t believe it.”
“Congratulations.” Andreas looked at Lilith, his expression softening. “I do not have Arianna’s expertise in reading auras. You have to tell me these things.”
“I…I wanted to be farther along before I told anyone, but Ari insisted.”
Russell put his arms around his wife. “I’m glad one of you was thinking clearly. Don’t ever again try to keep secrets like this from me.”
She sighed and nestled her head in the crook of his neck. “I promise.”
Andreas looked away, feeling like an intruder in their tender moment. Under other circumstances he’d be throwing a party to help them celebrate, but unfortunately, there was no time. Not yet. He cleared his throat. “Perhaps we should discuss security measures.”
The couple looked at him as if startled to find he was still there. They immediately stepped apart.
“Of course.” Russell put on his business face.
Andreas hid a smile. The lion’s eyes still gleamed with excitement. Andreas understood completely.
It didn’t take long for an update. The club had remained quiet, and when Russell last talked with Samuel an hour ago, nothing had changed at the house. To obtain the latest on the vampires, Andreas called Gabriel at the compound.
His second in command answered on the first ring. “Did Ari get away safely?”
“Yes, but now she’s worrying that the crows didn’t follow her. Any new developments on your end?”
“The filthy things are everywhere, except on our building—thanks to the wards. Other than the mess, they aren’t doing much.”
“I’m concerned about another round with the hellhounds. When you have a chance, stop by and let’s talk.”
“Already on the way. In fact, at the club’s side door.”
“We’re in Security.” Andreas disconnected.
Gabriel, whom Ari had dubbed the blond Adonis, walked in the door seconds later and flashed them a grin. It was hard to dampen his spirits. He often handled the worst situations with humor, even slipping into the exaggerated formality of the Regency period of his youth.
He swept a hand toward the werelions. “Ah, my lord has gathered his minions for a council of war. And now the court jester has arrived.”
His effort at levity was lost on Andreas today. “Are we prepared for a hound attack? With Arianna out of reach, they may attack the compound or any vampires on the streets. They will grow stronger as night deepens.”
Gabriel shrugged. “We’ve done what we can. I’ve advised them to stay inside. Many have gone to the caverns. The compound is guarded by shifters with flamethrowers.”
“Good work. I hope the humans are taking similar precautions. I wonder if Lt. Foster realizes the threat will increase the closer it gets to midnight.” Andreas tapped the police shield on his phone screen.
Ryan sounded harried. “What’s up? It’s crazy over here.”
“Did Arianna warn you about the hellhounds? And that their strength peaks at midnight?” Andreas put the phone on speaker.
Ryan sighed. “Yeah, I got the good news.”
“Is the public ready?”
“I passed on her advice. Stay inside. Fortify the doors and windows. Our men have a few flamethrowers but mostly assault rifles. SWAT is patrolling the streets.”
“She mentioned the venom?”
“That it’s deadly? Yeah. She said something about an antidote.”
“There is one, but it has to be administered within thirty minutes. You should check with the Magic Lab on how much they have and where victims should be taken.”
“Are you guys immune?”
Andreas hesitated. “Most of us can recover from a single dose without assistance. Multiple bites, no. The antidote is different.”
“More of that master vampire spit?”
Lilith snorted, and Andreas cracked a smile. Ryan never minced words. Even Arianna was squeamish about the healing properties of his saliva, but reversing the effects of hellhound venom demanded more—something he couldn’t provide in large quantities. “I wish it were that easy, but it requires infusions of a master vampire’s blood. Since you won’t have to endure it, let my people worry about that, Lieutenant.” He paused, thinking over the list of precautions Ryan had recited. “Your officers understand they’re not safe in their patrol cars?”
“I told them, but I’ll reinforce it. SWAT is using military-issue Humvees.”
“Then they have some protection, but nothing will hold out for long if the beasts attack as a pack.”
“They know. Anything else?”
Andreas looked a question at his companions. They shook their heads. “I think you’ve covered the basics. Let us hope you don’t need them.”
“Amen to that.” Ryan disconnected.
Andreas turned to the werelions. “Now for the club. I’m closing for a few days or weeks, whatever it takes. We don’t need the added responsibility of protecting patrons. Despite the curfew, I saw a few humans in the dining room. I want them escorted home. Alert our staff and start making arrangements. When Gabriel and I are finished talking, I’ll join you to announce the closing.”
Russell and Lilith hurried out the door. As soon as it clicked shut, Andreas sighed and raked his fingers through his hair.
“Give me your assessment of what’s happening.”
Gabriel frowned and dropped into a chair near the desk. “The O-Seven are at it again.”
Andreas gave him an impatient look. “Yes, but why crows?” He paced across the room, too edgy to sit still. “The elders have much more devastating power.”
“You’re not asking me to figure them out, are you?”
“You spent two years in their court. Surely you learned something in all that time. Give me your best guess.”
“They’re unpredictable.” Gabriel shook his head as if he considered Andreas’s request an impossibility and added, “With a malicious sense of humor. Maybe they’re toying with us. Nothing like creating a little panic to spice up their day.”
“Before they come in for the kill?”
“Possibly.” Gabriel sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “But now that I think about it, it’s more likely that they can’t agree on what to do.”
Andreas stopped pacing. “Why more likely?”
“They rarely work as a team, mainly because they can’t reach a consensus. Think about it. Seven dominant vampires, arrogant, dictatorial, set in their own ways for centuries. Each of them convinced they are more clever than the others.” Gabriel spread his hands. “I suspect you only have one or maybe two involved in this attack, which would limit the variety of abilities they have to throw at us.”
“They didn’t seem to have any trouble agreeing on my kidnapping or the bounty they placed on our heads last year.”
“True, but that didn’t take any real action, just a yea or nay. The elders have grown lazy. They can sit around drinking wine and blood, dallying with their human donors, and still turn thumbs down on somebody’s fate. But most of them wouldn’t dream of exerting themselves to come over here to fight us.”
“If you’re right, we’re back to figuring out which one can call crows and
command the hellhounds.”
“That’s about it. I’d suspect Porbius—because he hates us the most—but he doesn’t have the skills to pull this off. There’s someone else.”
Andreas raked his hair again. “Daron doesn’t know who. Nor you. Nor Zylla. Who can tell me?”
“Maybe another elder.”
“Bastian?”
“Why not?”
Andreas thought about it. “He has no reason to tell me.”
“Are you sure? He’s done some unexpected things over the last year, including his recent phone call. Maybe he’s waiting for you to ask the right questions.”
“To what purpose?”
“If I knew that, we wouldn’t need this discussion.”
Andreas took up his pacing again. He hated to give Bastian the satisfaction of asking him for help. His lips formed a grim line. The elder was too willing to call in favors. On the other hand, he might be their sole source for information. And he had initiated the recent contact. Why? Somehow it benefited Bastian, but he was always vague about what he wanted. Every conversation left Andreas more wary. It was hard to trust the elder without knowing the ultimate price he’d ask them to pay.
“Why the warning? What’s he want?” Andreas shared his doubts with Gabriel and repeated part of the elder’s last call. “Why does he care what happens to us or our child?”
Gabriel spread his hands.
Andreas glanced at the door. His staff was waiting to close the club. “Keep thinking. I’ll take care of the announcement and be back. You might call Daron again. No one knows his sire better.”
Although Prince Daron, the vampire leader of Toronto, had been estranged from Bastian for centuries, the blood ties between an elder and his First Son ran deep. Daron had studied his sire’s behavior from afar, and Andreas felt sure Bastian had done the same. Over the past year, there had been a few unprecedented contacts. Daron must have wondered what they meant, but he was a private person, hesitant to share anything personal, even with friends. This time Andreas needed to be inside his head. He’d let Gabriel make the first call. Daron was no fool. He would anticipate hearing from Andreas next. By that time perhaps he’d be prepared to talk.