her boyfriend, Arnold. Not
seeing our friends and family for that long wasn’t going to be easy, but the alternatives
were to endanger all of Royce’s people, jail, or death by rabid werewolves or White
Hats.
Staying with Clyde wasn’t appealing, but I’d take staying with the other vampire over
dying any day.
Chapter 6
Royce sent me with Sara to collect what remained of our things in the room we had
briefly shared before I went on my rampage. Sara had already packed away most of her
stuff before she went to stay with Royce’s ex-honey, the model and closet elf, Dawn
Hartley. Her dogs were still with the elf, who had kindly offered to care for them
until Sara returned to claim them.
Dawn was awfully chummy with Royce, considering they were no longer an item. Though
I often did my best not to think about Others who didn’t show any personal interest
in me or butt their way into my life, I had to wonder what she had to gain that she
would so easily accept Sara into her home.
Not that Sara had suffered for it. She looked great. Better than great. Healthier
than I had ever seen her.
And she was pointedly avoiding looking at me as she helped me stuff some things into
the duffel bag I had brought with me weeks ago. I hadn’t had time to unpack before
I went postal, so there was little for me to collect and put in the bag but some toiletries,
the Rolodex I had left on the counter, and some clothing I vaguely recalled leaving
in a pile on the bathroom floor that was now neatly folded in a stack on the bed.
“I’m sorry,” I said, once the last piece of clothing was shoved into the bag. “I didn’t
think things would turn out like this.”
Sara finally looked at me, her icy blue eyes having taken on the chill look she usually
reserved for deadbeat clients. “That’s the problem, Shia. You never think things through.
You don’t consider the consequences of your actions.”
That stung. Mostly because she was right.
“We’re supposed to be partners. You could have consulted with me before you ran off.
What am I supposed to tell Arnold? Who’s going to check on Janine? You know how unstable
she is. . . .”
Sara’s younger sister was a neurotic wreck. She would probably pitch a fit because
Sara was leaving, but Janine was perfectly capable of taking care of herself. Even
though I knew Sara was just bringing up Janine to make me feel even worse than I already
did, I couldn’t hold it against her. This whole mess was my fault, start to finish,
and Sara was the one paying the price for my foolish decisions and behavior.
Grimacing, I rubbed the back of my neck and looked away, not wanting to face her while
I spoke. “I don’t have an easy answer for you. If you want, I’ll make the calls and
give them the news. We can’t take Arnold with us—if Royce wouldn’t let him visit you
here, I can’t imagine Clyde would be any different—and Janine is probably safer not
knowing where we’re going. Maybe we can tell her we have an important case taking
us out of town or something. It’s close enough to the truth that she won’t question
it and won’t make demands about visiting or following us, either.”
My offer to be the one to break the news mellowed Sara out somewhat. She considered
the offer, looking down at her hands as she toyed with the buttons on the cuffs of
her long-sleeved shirt. When she answered, her voice had lost its brittle edge, replaced
by resignation.
“Fine. Do it. Call Arnold first; explaining to him will take less time.”
I nodded, zipping up my duffel and making my way out of the bedroom, Sara following
close behind. Analie was waiting for me in the living room, her package already ready
for me. Sara scooted past me to plop down on the couch, and I set the duffel bag down
next to the door, accepting the small box Analie held out to me.
She shifted her weight from foot to foot, her eyes wide and imploring.
seeing our friends and family for that long wasn’t going to be easy, but the alternatives
were to endanger all of Royce’s people, jail, or death by rabid werewolves or White
Hats.
Staying with Clyde wasn’t appealing, but I’d take staying with the other vampire over
dying any day.
Chapter 6
Royce sent me with Sara to collect what remained of our things in the room we had
briefly shared before I went on my rampage. Sara had already packed away most of her
stuff before she went to stay with Royce’s ex-honey, the model and closet elf, Dawn
Hartley. Her dogs were still with the elf, who had kindly offered to care for them
until Sara returned to claim them.
Dawn was awfully chummy with Royce, considering they were no longer an item. Though
I often did my best not to think about Others who didn’t show any personal interest
in me or butt their way into my life, I had to wonder what she had to gain that she
would so easily accept Sara into her home.
Not that Sara had suffered for it. She looked great. Better than great. Healthier
than I had ever seen her.
And she was pointedly avoiding looking at me as she helped me stuff some things into
the duffel bag I had brought with me weeks ago. I hadn’t had time to unpack before
I went postal, so there was little for me to collect and put in the bag but some toiletries,
the Rolodex I had left on the counter, and some clothing I vaguely recalled leaving
in a pile on the bathroom floor that was now neatly folded in a stack on the bed.
“I’m sorry,” I said, once the last piece of clothing was shoved into the bag. “I didn’t
think things would turn out like this.”
Sara finally looked at me, her icy blue eyes having taken on the chill look she usually
reserved for deadbeat clients. “That’s the problem, Shia. You never think things through.
You don’t consider the consequences of your actions.”
That stung. Mostly because she was right.
“We’re supposed to be partners. You could have consulted with me before you ran off.
What am I supposed to tell Arnold? Who’s going to check on Janine? You know how unstable
she is. . . .”
Sara’s younger sister was a neurotic wreck. She would probably pitch a fit because
Sara was leaving, but Janine was perfectly capable of taking care of herself. Even
though I knew Sara was just bringing up Janine to make me feel even worse than I already
did, I couldn’t hold it against her. This whole mess was my fault, start to finish,
and Sara was the one paying the price for my foolish decisions and behavior.
Grimacing, I rubbed the back of my neck and looked away, not wanting to face her while
I spoke. “I don’t have an easy answer for you. If you want, I’ll make the calls and
give them the news. We can’t take Arnold with us—if Royce wouldn’t let him visit you
here, I can’t imagine Clyde would be any different—and Janine is probably safer not
knowing where we’re going. Maybe we can tell her we have an important case taking
us out of town or something. It’s close enough to the truth that she won’t question
it and won’t make demands about visiting or following us, either.”
My offer to be the one to break the news mellowed Sara out somewhat. She considered
the offer, looking down at her hands as she toyed with the buttons on the cuffs of
her long-sleeved shirt. When she answered, her voice had lost its brittle edge, replaced
by resignation.
“Fine. Do it. Call Arnold first; explaining to him will take less time.”
I nodded, zipping up my duffel and making my way out of the bedroom, Sara following
close behind. Analie was waiting for me in the living room, her package already ready
for me. Sara scooted past me to plop down on the couch, and I set the duffel bag down
next to the door, accepting the small box Analie held out to me.
She shifted her weight from foot to foot, her eyes wide and imploring.
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