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“Nothing left, huh?” His hand whipped out and snared mine. His grin was devilish as I tried—without success—to pull away. “So the racing pulse, and the desire that stirs the air, is nothing more than my imagination?”
“Nothing more,” I said, and wished it was. Wished the past would just leave me the hell alone. But then, I’d invited it—and him—back into my life, so I had only myself to blame.
“And if I leaned across the table and kissed you,” he said, in a voice so intimate it felt like a caress, “you would feel nothing more than the press of lips against lips?”
My gaze dropped to the lips I’d once known so well, and then I closed my eyes, drew back a foot, and kicked him. Hard. He yelped and released me, and I shifted out of immediate reach.
“Well, it’s safe to say that was not the response I was hoping for.” His grin was somewhat rueful as he rubbed his shin. “But do not think me defeated. If I breached your defenses once, I can do it again.”
“Jak, give it up and just concentrate on business.”
“I can’t. I love a good challenge.”
“Yeah, almost as much as you love a good story, and that’s what wrecked our relationship in the first place.”
“That is undeniably true.” He caught the attention of a passing waitress and ordered a couple of beers. “So, business. I’ve been asking around about the murders of Frank Logan, his ex, and his secretary, and I’m afraid I’m getting nowhere fast. No one is talking.”>“Would that explain why he has no features on the plane? Because he’s never actually seen his face?” I asked.
She frowned. “Not really, because while he may not see it, he can feel it. He would know the shape of his nose, mouth, and face, at the very least.”
“Then why are his features missing on the field? I thought your soul wouldn’t allow such deception.”
“Normally, it doesn’t. However, he may not be concealing it. What he may be doing is changing your perception of what you’re seeing.”
“Which means we’re dealing with a very powerful individual indeed.” Rhoan thrust to his feet. “Damn it, Ris, I like that you’re involved in this even less.”
“And you think I’m any happier?” I shook my head. “Trust me, if I could go home and leave you to it, I would.”
“I know. It’s just frustration speaking.” He made a sharp motion with his hand. “Until we get our phone call, there’s not much more we can do. I suggest you go home and catch some rest while you can.”
I wished I could, but I still had a meeting with Jak to get to. I downed the rest of the Coke, then said, “He wanted me to chase the leads, not you.”
“He can’t get into this place, not even astrally, so he’s not going to know who is doing what straightaway. And if he’s as clever as I think he is, he’ll know we’ll be beside you every step of the way, regardless of what he orders. He simply doesn’t think the Directorate is a threat. That’s evident enough from his taunting phone calls.”
I finished the last of the protein bars, then licked the chocolate off my fingers and got slowly to my feet. The room did a slow turn, so I pressed my fingers against the wall and said, “Have all his victims so far been women?”
Rhoan nodded. “Different ages, but all women.”
“And they’ve nothing in common?”
“Other than the fact that they’re all vampires, no.”
“What about their makers?”
“Again nothing in common.”
Meaning Stane’s search for information on Dorothy’s maker would be fruitless, because he wasn’t the connection. Which, in turn, meant there was nothing to even remotely suggest who his next victim might be. Frustrating, to say the least. I pulled off the monitors and got dressed. “You’ll ring me the minute the phone call comes?”
“I’ll ring the minute we uncover anything useful. You, in the meantime, will get some rest. Promise?”
I nodded. He grunted, then swung around and offered me his arm. “Come on, let’s get you out of here.”
He escorted me back upstairs, then dropped a kiss on my cheek, reminded me to ring Riley, and left. I glanced at Azriel as I made my way out to Spencer Street. Though he walked beside me, he kept a careful distance between us. It didn’t erase the awareness that stirred within, or the flow of heat that caressed my skin.
“How can the Directorate stop someone from entering that building astrally, and yet none of their devices even reacted to you?”
“Because I am not human. All the devices and magic are aimed at catching abnormalities in or on flesh-based rather than energy beings.”
I frowned. “So it should have reacted to you.”
