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“Yeah. But there’s only one of him.”
“That we can see,” she muttered.
The plan was for me and Twilight to go ashore in the dinghy. Brien and Cain would swim in our wake, still in the shadows, to observe the exchange. If the SOBs hadn’t brought Eden, Brien would stay with me and Twilight while Cain slipped off to search the island.
I lowered Twilight into the dinghy. She pretended to resist, keeping up the fiction that she was my prisoner. I gave her a small shove and jumped in after her, undoing the tow line and tossing it onto the deck. The short distance wasn’t worth firing up the dinghy’s small motor, so I rowed us to shore.
The man had moved closer. He waited on the rocky shore, legs braced apart, his long black hair pulled into a ponytail, his sinewy body clad in an expensive suit.
I stiffened in recognition. “It’s Pascal,” I said in an undertone.
“You know him?” Twilight said.
“Yeah—a QCS soldier.”
“Lemaire,” she breathed.
“Looks like it.” Our intel had linked Pascal to Lemaire and Fleur, but since he hadn’t been part of their coven, we hadn’t followed up on the connection. I’d been racking my brain, wondering who wanted Twilight so bad they’d go to so much trouble. “Although I didn’t think Lemaire would be stupid enough to go up against us after we destroyed his lair.”
I palmed a switchblade and hopped into the surf, dragging the dinghy onto the rocky shore. Taking Twilight by the upper arm, I pulled her out of the boat.
Pascal came forward. “I’ll take her.”
I pressed the switchblade’s catch, released the long silver knife. “The thrall, first. That’s the deal.”
Pascal flicked me a look. I had the impression of a sharp mind, ticking through the possibilities. “You’re not in a position to bargain.”
“Then we’ll leave.” I moved backward toward the dinghy, bringing Twilight with me.
A pointed silver dagger jumped into the other vampire’s hand. “I don’t think so.”
I flashed my fangs. “Try and stop me.”
Cain would already be searching the island. The longer I kept this asshole engaged, the more time he’d have to find Eden.
“The thrall is pregnant,” Pascal said. “With your spawn. Oh, yes, we know. Even if you feel nothing for the thrall, I imagine you won’t want your spawn harmed.”
It was as I’d thought—they knew too much about me and Eden. My guilt turned to a cold fury. “Then you know I won’t leave without her.”
Without warning Pascal lunged at me, dagger out. I knocked it aside and released Twilight. He stumbled past me and I lowered my shoulder and slammed into him, knocking him to the ground. I straddled his waist, pinning the hand holding the dagger to the beach. With my free hand, I ripped open his coat and dug my own blade into the sweet spot beneath his rib cage. One hard shove, and the sharp silver point would be in his heart.
“Where is she?” I said between clenched teeth.
He had the balls to sneer at me. “Stake me and you’ll never find her.”
Twilight grunted. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw she’d broken the cuffs apart.
“Key’s in my back pocket,” I told her.
Pascal’s gaze darted between me and Twilight.
“No worries.” She already had the cuffs open, an open switchblade in her hand. She dropped the cuffs on the beach and crouched beside us. Wrapping an arm around Pascal’s head, she touched the knife point to his right eye.
“Tell us where we can find the thrall or I’ll carve your eyes out. They’ll regenerate, but I hear it’s a long, painful process.” She pursed her lips in mock sympathy. “Meanwhile, you’ll be blinded. I wonder how long you’ll last if we toss you to the sharks.”
Pascal was no longer smiling. He moistened his lips. “You’d risk your spawn?” he asked me.
I growled and pressed the point deeper. Blood oozed, staining his white shirt. “If Eden dies—hell, if you motherfuckers even put a bruise on her—I’ll carve off your goddamn balls. Slowly.”
