Bound to Shadows (22 page)

And with good reason.
Damn it, Quinn, just how long have you been concealing this little ability
from me?
I was born with it. It is a gift
—he paused, then added
darkly—
or a curse of my Aedh heritage. I do not use it much, because it has
severe consequences
.
Yeah
. I was looking at the dripping remains of them.
And yet … I’ve seen you do something like this before?
He hesitated.
Yes. A while ago, when you first started dating Kellen. One of
the chameleons from Starke’ underground labs came after you
.
Chameleons are a rare breed of nonhumans who can take on any background and literally become a
part of it. They are also ferocious flesh-eaters and extremely hard to kill.
How come I’ve only just remembered it? Or is that a stupid
question?
Our relationship was still very tenuous
, he said gently,
I did not wish to scare you away
.
I told you to keep out of my head
.
And I have. As I said, this was a while ago. Before you civilized
me
.
I snorted softly. As if there were
ever
a hope of civilizing this
particular vampire. He might have an urbane and polished front, but underneath he was still very
much a powder keg—and just as dangerous if handled the wrong way.
And yet I felt safer with him than I ever would with Kye.
I kept striding forward. Vinny was attended by her usual passel of toga-clad teenagers, but this
time the clothing of those nearest the curtain bore the splattered remains of what had once been
human. Or nonhuman. Their faces were positively green, and I guessed it was only Vinny’s
influence that was keeping them in the room. There was no caressing of their master’s skin, no
languid eyes or secretive little smiles. It had all been annihilated by the show of Quinn’s
power.
Vinny had definitely paled, and her normally seductive lips were little more than thin slashes,
but the abject terror I’d glimpsed earlier was gone. She met my gaze squarely and there was now a
hint of steel in the brown of her eyes.
She might still be scared shitless, but she wasn’t about to let on to her fledglings
or
us.
And for that, I had to admire her.
I stopped several feet in front of her, with Quinn standing just behind me, his breath stirring
the little hairs on my neck.
“I told you once before never to mess with the Directorate, Vinny. Now you know the
consequences.”
She glared balefully at me for several seconds, then pointed with her chin at the man behind me.
“He’s not Directorate.”
“He’s an advisor, so that makes him one of us.” I hesitated, then added, “One fledgling dead is
better than the whole nest. And trust me, that is currently an option if the Melbourne council is
informed of your recent activities.”
“I have no idea what you mean.”
She was lying. I could taste it, even if I couldn’t see it in her expression. And while there was
little to be seen in
her
face, the toga-clad teenagers behind her
rustled nervously. Pale fingers reached out and began to caress Vinny’s arms and shoulders, and a
gentle hum of energy tinged the air.
I wondered if they were reassuring themselves or Vinny but didn’t really care enough to ask. Not
when there were more important questions.
“I’m talking about your association with the man calling himself Carlos Martez.”
“I have no idea who—”
“Vinny, he was seen leaving your building last night, and we all know no one can get in here
without your permission.”
“He was merely here paying his respects. There is nothing sinister in that, guardian.”
She changed tack as swiftly as a tiger snake, and was probably just as deadly. Or would have
been, if Quinn wasn’t standing behind me.
“Except for the fact that Martez has just tried to kill a Directorate employee.”
“He wouldn’t do that. You’re mistaken.”
“I was there, Vinny. I saw him.”
Amusement flared briefly in her eyes. “If you were there, you should have stopped him.”
“It’s hard to stop someone when they can escape through mirrors.”
“If you’ve come to me for information about how to destroy such a person, I’m afraid you’re out
of luck. I have no idea.”
Quinn didn’t move, but his power whipped out again. This time it was the barb of telepathy.
Somewhere behind us a door slammed, the sound echoing across the silence.
“Do tell your people not to try and sneak up behind us,” Quinn said mildly. “I’d hate to kill any
more of your concubines.”
Vinny’s fingers clenched. With a visible effort, she flexed them again. “I’ve already said I
can’t help, so I don’t understand why you are still here.”
“Vinny dearest, we haven’t even started.” I stepped forward, grabbed the front of her gown, and
yanked her out of her chair and away from the caressing, calming influence of the teenagers. She
yelped and briefly struggled, her pale arms flying. I ducked the blows and shook her a little
more. “Carlos Martez died over five years ago. Tell me who has assumed his identity.”
“I don’t—”
I shook her again, hard enough to rattle her teeth. “One of your fledglings was a witness, so you
knew
Martez was dead. Who did you deal that information
to?”
“I can’t,” she said, fury mixing with fear in her eyes. “He’ll kill me.”
“And the Directorate will kill you if you don’t,” I commented. “So choose which side of the bed
you want to lie on, Vinny, because these games of yours are getting a little tiresome.”
Something flickered through her eyes. The snake was twisting yet again. “He is my creator. I had
no choice in doing what he said.”
Is that true?
I asked, without turning to look at Quinn. Without my
full attention, the serpent I held just might strike, even with Quinn at my back.
To a degree, yes. The power of the creator over the fledgling lessens with
time, but Vinny is not old enough to be totally free of his influence
.
“Give me a name, Vinny.”
She hesitated, then said, “Ammon Nasser.”
The man the council had all but destroyed. He obviously had to be similar in looks to Martez to
be able to maintain the fraud for so long. “And why did he come here?”
“Because this is my territory. It is considered polite to state one’s aims when entering the
territory of another.”
Also true, up to a point
, Quinn said.
Vampires
tend to tolerate other vamps within their hunting grounds if they are not causing
problems
.
I knew you guys were territorial, but I didn’t think it actually meant
having defined territories
.
Why do you think there is such a wide spread of vampires? Unlike werewolves,
we cannot easily live in each other’s shadow
.
Which had to make life in a nest interesting. Obviously, though, emo vamps had no such problems.
To Vinny, I said, “Would you even have a say in him setting up another nest, given you’re one of
his creations?” Surprise flitted through her eyes, and I smiled grimly. “Yes, we know all about
it. The council is not so staid and set in their ways that they wouldn’t feed the Directorate
information when someone is killing them off.”
Yeah, they totally wouldn’t
, Quinn said, his amusement running
through my mind—a river of warmth that made me want to smile.
“I did warn him of that danger,” Vinny said, her sincerity almost believable. Almost. “I tried to
talk him out of his plans, but to no avail.”
“Then why did he wait six months to begin his revenge?”
She snorted softly. “Why do you think? If he’d begun straightaway, the culprit would have been
obvious. He is many things, but a fool isn’t one of them.”
“So what was he doing in the six months since the council wiped out his nest?”
She shrugged, pulling against my grip. “I didn’t ask and didn’t care to ask. He keeps out of my
way—mostly, anyway—and I keep out of his.”
“But you know where he’s currently residing?”
“No. As I said, Nasser isn’t a fool.” Her brief smile was amused. “Apparently, he doesn’t trust
me.”
Obviously, Nasser was well aware that he’d raised a snake. “Is he a mirror wraith as well as an
emo vamp?”
She smiled. It set my nerves on edge. “Yes, he is. I’m surprised you discovered it, because not
even the council would have known that.”
“Why not?” I asked, more out of curiosity than any real need to know.
“Because he came into this country illegally, and therefore would not be listed on the council’s
books.”
Wouldn’t have mattered if he was
, Quinn commented.
The council wouldn’t have shared the information with you
.
The council are rather large pains in the butt
. To Vinny, I said, “So
why did Nasser come here last night?”
“Because he supplements his feeding by feeding off of us.”
I raised my eyebrows. “And you let him?”
“I have no choice.” She almost spat the words. “He is an old and hungry soul who cannot be
satisfied with feeding off a woman or two. He needs the energy supplied by a nest.”
Maybe that’s why Vinny’s nest has grown substantially
in the last few months
, Quinn commented.
She’s been
supporting her creator’s needs as well as her own
.
She’s using him as an excuse. She wants her own empire, and would be growing
as fast as she could anyway
. To Vinny, I added, “So he
has
fed
apart from the nest?”
“Yes.” Something flickered in her eyes. Amusement, perhaps. Or cunning.
“And is he capable of killing?”
The cunning in her brown eyes got sharper, and I suddenly realized that she wanted her creator
out of the way. She’d give us what we wanted, all right—not only to save
her
skin but to get rid of his.
“If you’re asking me if his feeding killed Renatta Bailey and Janette Crowley, then the answer is
yes. He boasted about it.”
“And why would he do that when he knows you’re as trustworthy as a snake?”
Her smile was bitter, hard. “Because it was a reminder that he could and would do the same to
this nest if I stepped out of line.”
I frowned. “How could one man kill an entire nest? Even if that man is your creator?”
It might be possible to kill Vinny, but there’d still be an entire nest to cope with, and even
Quinn with his Aedh powers wouldn’t have an easy time of that.
“It is
because
he’s my creator that he can do it. I cannot deny his
demand that we feed him, and he could, if he wished, drain us so completely that we
die.”
Hence her sudden desire to use us to get rid of her master.
“And you have no idea where he is staying?”
“No. I would give him to you if I could, but I really do not know.”
She telling the truth?
I asked Quinn.
Unfortunately, yes
.
I grunted and released my grip on Vinny. The movement was so sudden she staggered backward and
fell into the chaise longue. The toga-clad teenagers instantly began to caress her skin, and the
soft humming I’d heard earlier resumed.
“I appreciate your help, Vinny.”
It was sarcastically said, and the old arrogance flared in her eyes. “And I’d appreciate it if
you leave and never come back.”
“I’m afraid that is never going to happen. It’s the price you pay for empire-building.”
She didn’t say anything to that. I turned and walked for the door—and felt safe only because
Quinn was at my back. Had I been alone, I probably would have had a dozen silver bullets in it
long before I ever got there.
The outside guard swung the door open as we neared, but before I could exit, Vinny said,
“Riley?”
I paused and glanced at her. “What?”
“There is something else about Nasser you might want to know. Something that is vital if you’re
to have any hope of tracking him down.”
I met her gaze and saw the cunning in it. “We’re not paying you for the information,
Vinny.”
“Oh, consider this a freebie.”
I snorted softly. “Hardly, when us getting rid of your creator means we’d actually be doing you a
great favor.”
“There is that, as well.” She smiled benignly. I didn’t believe it for a second. “Mirror wraiths
have two interesting sets of skills. In vapor form, they can use reflective surfaces to travel
through, therefore releasing them from the usual restraints of blood vampires.”
Which explained how he managed to attack Sal during the day. “And the second?”
“The second will make your hunt more interesting.” She paused—just to be annoying, I’m sure. “You
see, they are flesh-shifters. They can mold their skins to resemble any person they
touch.”

W
ell, that sure puts a wrench in the works,” I grumbled,
once we were clear of Vinny’s building. “He could be anyone and we’d never know it.”
“I think you would,” Quinn said. “You’ve crossed paths with him several times now, so even if he
assumes another form, you’d probably pick up his scent.”
Maybe, and maybe not. There were ways and means of covering a base scent, and if he was an old
vampire—or wraith—then he could probably also tone down his energy “vibe” or whatever the hell it
was. “At least it explains how he managed to use Martez’s identity for so long without anyone
picking it up.”
“The obvious place to look is Dante’s. That’s where the murders happened.”
“And that’s where Martez went when I was following him last night.” I raised my face to the
morning sunshine, letting it warm my skin. “He could even be Dante himself.”
But could an emo vamp who was also a mirror wraith constantly exude the sort of sexual glamor
that Dante did? Vinny could seduce just about anyone, but it was a power she could switch on or
off and one that drained her after a while—unless she was feeding while using it. Dante was
simply “on” all the time.
“That is very possible.”
For the first time, there was a note of weariness in Quinn’s voice, and I glanced up at him. His
normally tanned skin seemed redder than usual, suggesting the sunlight was beginning to burn him
even though midday—the dangerous part of the day for him—was a ways off yet. I lightly touched
his arm. Despite his color, his skin was cool, which was unusual, considering that generally
happened only when he wasn’t feeding enough. “Are you okay?”
He nodded. “As I said before, using the Aedh skills has its consequences.”
“Meaning it drains you?”
“Depending on how much I use, it can drain me to the point of unconsciousness. Luckily, that was
not the case here.”
Meaning he hadn’t used full power and yet had still been able to pulverize that person
…
The thought had another tremor running through me. It was scary to think that one man could
contain so much power …
Jesus,
Risa
.
“Yes,” Quinn said, before I could ask the question. “Risa will have the skill, which is why I so
readily agreed to train her. If she doesn’t know how to control it, she could be a threat to
everyone around her.”
“Maybe that’s why Dia is so desperate to get your help. Maybe she saw something in her dreams.”
And hopefully, the death she’d seen for herself wasn’t at the hands of her beautiful little girl.
“Do you need to feed or something?”
He hesitated, then shook his head. “I do, but Jack will have my head if I drag you away from this
investigation right now.”
“You’re older than Jack, and more dangerous besides. I don’t think you’re in any danger from
him—metaphorically or otherwise.”
“Jack is not someone you should brush aside so easily,” Quinn said wryly. “Especially when he’s
probably listening.”
“Hey, he knows I love and respect him. He just can’t do what you just did.” And thank God for
that, I added silently. One and a half atom-splitting beings in my little world was more than
enough.
“I do not think I need to know the details of what Quinn just did,” Jack said into my ear,
confirming that he had indeed been listening. “But I agree with him that we need to start with
Dante’s and its owner. Do you think Kye still has the place monitored?”
“I have no idea.”
“Then find out and get back to me. If he hasn’t, then we’ll need to put cameras and bugs in
place.”
“We could just go in and talk to Starke.” Then the undercurrent in his words hit me, and I added,
“You have him marked as a suspect, don’t you?”
“Starke
is
the likely starting point, now that we’re dealing with a
flesh-shifter. For all we know, the real Dante Starke is a rotting headless corpse in a cellar
somewhere.”
“Someone would have smelled him by now if that was the case.” I hesitated, then added, “Would an
emo vamp have the same sort of sexual glamor that Starke has? Because the Starke I’ve been
meeting is dynamite.”
“If he is old enough, yes. And if he has refined his methods, you wouldn’t even know he was
feeding. All you would feel was lust.”
Well, I’d certainly felt that around Starke. And if he was our wraith, then he’d also paid me a
visit. Which presented another problem. “There’s one sticky point in all this—neither Renatta
Bailey nor Janette Crowley apparently had a lover, and yet Sal claims wraiths can only travel
through mirrors they’ve physically seen. How did he drain them nightly if he’s never been to
their houses?” He’d certainly never been
near mine
.
“I don’t know enough about wraiths to answer that question,” Jack said heavily.
Quinn and I reached my car and stopped. “Where do you want me to go once I find out whether the
bugs are still online or not?”
“Come into the office.”
“Will do.” I clicked the com-link off and caught Quinn’s hands in mine. “Are you going to be okay
to drive, or do you want me to drop you off somewhere?”
“And leave the Porsche sitting around here for the vandals? Bite your tongue, woman.”
I grinned. “It’s not like you can’t afford another one. Or a hundred.”
“I didn’t get rich by being wasteful.”
“No, you got rich through becoming a thief.”
“Which I did for only for a very brief period in my life. Most of my money has been honestly
gained.”
“Hey, I’ve seen the prices your airline charges for tickets. There’s nothing honest about
that.”
He smiled, then leaned forward and kissed me. His lips were light on mine, his kiss gentle and
yet potent.
“Be careful when dealing with the spirit wraith,” he said, his lips still so close that his
breath warmed mine. “Have you still got that knife I gave you?”
“It’s in the car’s weapons stash.”
“Then carry it. It works on more than just demons—and on more than those who inhabit
flesh.”
Then I’d be carrying it. Anything that gave me a slight advantage was a damn good thing right
now. I ran my fingertips down his chin. “I do love you. You know that, don’t you?”
He raised an eyebrow. “And what has bought about this sudden declaration?”
“I sometimes think I don’t say it enough.”
He smiled. “Well, it
is
nice to hear it said out loud every now and
again, even if I do know it for a fact.”
It didn’t stop him from fearing Kye, though, or what he might do to us. He might not have said
it, but that darkness was there in his eyes. And there was nothing I could say to ease those
fears, because they were mine, as well.
I gave him another quick kiss. “I’ll see you sometime tonight.”
“Make sure that you do.” He hesitated, his gaze sweeping my face, as if memorizing it. “Shoot to
kill, Riley. Don’t hesitate.”
“Why do people keep telling me that?” I muttered, even as goose bumps ran across my flesh. It was
almost as if everyone around me were having premonitions of impending doom. “I’m a guardian. I’ll
do what I’m paid to do. I think I’ve more than proven that.”
“I know. It doesn’t stop me from worrying, though.”
At least he didn’t try to stop me, or ask me to give up being a guardian. That made him a far
better man than Kellen ever was.
“Go get yourself some sustenance.” I hesitated, then grinned and added, “Just don’t go enjoying
the experience too much.”
He laughed, touched my chin lightly—almost reverently—then walked over to his car. I waved him
good-bye, then dug out my phone again.
“Well, this is an unexpected pleasure,” Kye said, his golden eyes glowing on the vid
screen.
“For you, maybe,” I said tartly. “For me, it’s all business.”
He laughed. The sound was so different from the one I’d heard only moments before and yet, in its
own way, just as powerful. “That’s what I like about you, Riley. You cut straight through the
crap.”
And yet there was still tons of it in my life. And I was currently talking to the primary
source.
“Have you still got your bugs and cameras in Dante’s?”
He hesitated. “No, I pulled them this morning. Why?”
I ignored the question and said, “I hope that doesn’t mean you’ve completed your mission, because
if it does, I’m going to have to arrest your ass.”
“What it means is the client’s wife has moved on to greener pastures.” He paused, and his voice
lowered several octaves as he added, “Although I’d really like to see you try and arrest me. That
could get interesting.”
The way he emphasized “interesting” sent a shudder racing down my spine, and it wasn’t entirely
the ice of fear.
“And I’d hate to make things interesting for you,” I said tartly. “So maybe I’ll send someone
else.” Someone he
couldn’t
seduce.
“I refuse to be caught by anyone else but you.” He paused. “I don’t suppose you feel like
handcuffing and interrogating me now, do you?”
“No,” I said briskly. Though the usual stupid part of me wished I did. “I have far more important
things to do with my time. And I thought you had a meeting with another client?”
“It’s just finished.” His smile flashed. “Don’t suppose you want to know who it was?”
“No.”
Yes
.
“Shame, because it’s someone you’ve had a long association with.”
I knew who he meant in an instant, and my stomach curled. Why the hell would he be meeting my
pack leader? “Not Blake?”
“The very man.”
“You could have done me a favor and shot him.”
“And why would I do that? Unless, of course, you pay me to do so.” Again his grin flashed. He was
obviously feeling mighty fine this morning. Whether it had anything to do with our marathon last
night or the meeting with Blake was anyone’s guess. “And from you,” he added, “I’ll accept a
currency other than cash.”
I just bet. “He’s tried to hurt me once before. We both know he wants to do so again.”
“True. And believe me, if he does anything that threatens your life, then I
will
kill him, and free of charge.” He paused. “You are mine to kill, Riley, no
one else’s.”
“Kill me and you kill yourself,” I snapped back. “And you don’t seem the suicidal type to
me.”
Crazy, yes. Suicidal, no.
He laughed. There was nothing warm or comforting about it. “You really have no idea what I’m
capable of, Riley.”
That was certainly true. “Was Blake behind the bug you placed on me last night?”
“Maybe. And it wasn’t a bug but a deadener.” He paused again. “Why do you need to use the cameras
and bugs at the club? Is Dante a suspect?”
I countered his questions with one of my own. “Why didn’t you put the bug somewhere more
subtle?”
He smiled. “Maybe I wanted you to know what Blake was up to. Or maybe it was designed as an
earring so I had no choice. Your turn to give an answer.”
“At this point in time, everyone is a suspect.”
“Even me?” Amusement laced his tone. “Riley, I’m hurt.”
I snorted softly. “We know there are two people involved in these killings, so there’s no reason
why you can’t be one of them.”
“That’s true,” he said cheerfully. “So, are you coming to arrest me? Perhaps we can get hot and
heavy with the questioning.”
“Sorry, you’ll have control your deviant fantasies a little longer. I’ve got a club to
bug.”
“You never did explain why Dante and his club are suspect.”
“No, I didn’t. Shame,” I added cheerfully, then hung up, climbed into my car, and drove to the
Directorate.
Jack glanced up as I walked into the otherwise empty squad room. “Any luck on the
bugs?”
“Which bugs are we talking about? The one found on me or the ones Kye placed? Have the labs said
anything about my bug?”
“Only that it’s black market and not something we’ve even heard whispers about.” His expression
was grim. “Which makes me wonder why he left it on you.”
“He said it was a warning. And that he couldn’t conceal it better because it was designed as an
earring.” I wasn’t entirely sure I believed
either
reason.
Jack grunted. “And the surveillance equipment he placed at the club?”
“He says his target has moved on and that he’s removed them.”
Jack raised his eyebrows. “Is that a sarcastic note I hear in your voice?”
“Me? Sarcastic? Never.” I walked over to the coffee machine and poured myself a cup of the horrid
stuff. Beans had been packed, and this was better than nothing. But only just, I thought, wincing
as I took a sip. “I just think it’s a little convenient. Either he’s made the kill and is
covering his ass so we won’t arrest him when and if we find the body, or something else is going
on.”
“You don’t think he’s involved in these murders, do you?”
“Honestly? I have no idea. The fact that he’s been so helpful suggests not—and we have absolutely
no evidence pointing to the fact that he is—but he’s a twisted sort of soul, and he may be
getting an inordinate amount of pleasure seeing just how close we get.”
“The other man your ghost talked about wasn’t a vampire, so it’s possible that he could be a
werewolf.”
“But it’s also possible he’s a shifter of any other make and model.” I took a sip and wondered
why I was defending the man. It wasn’t as if I actually wanted to help him out. But I didn’t want
to see a possibly innocent man accused, either—even if he was as rotten as Kye. “So, what’s
next?”
He grimaced. “Kade talked to the woman whose car was stolen, but she didn’t give us anything new.
He’s downstairs now collecting the appropriate bugging gear for the club. We’ve arranged for an
electrical outage to happen”—he glanced at his watch—“t twelve forty-five. We’ll divert their
call to ensure our people are the ones phoned and tell them we have vans in the area. Lunch seems
to be a busy time for them, so they won’t be looking too closely at what the electricians are
doing when they’ve got a room full of people to cope with.”
I frowned. “Dante will more than likely be there at that time, and he doesn’t miss
much.”
“I know. Which is why you’re going to be there at twelve-thirty to interview the man.”
Oh,
great
. “Boss—”
“Don’t ‘boss’ me, Riley. You
will
go talk to him.” Meaning the one
thing I’d been trying to avoid was the one thing I was now being ordered to do. He continued, “We
need those bugs in there—and this case solved—as soon as possible.”
My frown deepened at the tension in his voice. “So why do I suspect there’s more than the usual
urgency behind that order?”
“Because the Melbourne council—what remains of them—is meeting tonight, as usual—against our
advice, I might add—and that just makes them a very juicy target.”