Page 39
He’s no dead beat baby vamp like Pete or the FHB addicts I knew when I was last here.
He’s old.
The oldest vamp I’ve been in contact with, judging from the way he moves and talks. Zephyra was a child in comparison.
Nova shifts uncomfortably in her seat under his lingering stare, even though the flush in her cheeks tells me she’s flattered by his attention. Sensing her unease, Snow lets out a warning growl. Thornfield merely chuckles in response.
“Fascinating,” he murmurs, shaking his head and looking from Mack to Snow. “Simply fascinating…”
Stepping in front of Nova, Mack sets his glass down on Thornfield’s desk.
Thornfield looks at it, picks it up, and places it on a coaster instead.
“Let’s get to business, shall we?” Mack says. “We’ve come a long way to speak with you, and you know why we’re here.” He looks exhausted, but he’s doing his best to be the Mack we all know. The boss. Taking control.
Thornfield sighs, dragging his gaze away from Nova for the hundredth time. “Yes, of course. How may I be of service?”
His tone is polite, but the mocking gleam remains in his dark eyes. He’s enjoying toying with us. I resist the urge to wipe that smug expression off his face for good.
Before Thornfield can say anything else, Mack holds up a hand. “First things first – we promised Rev news of her aunt. Miranda. She works with you, but she hasn’t been seen for several days.”
I didn’t know Miranda and Rev were related when I was last here. But then, perhaps that is how she knew my name the second I sat down at her desk in this very building.
Thornfield presses his fingertips together, regarding Mack evenly. “I have begun making inquiries about my friend’s absence, put out some feelers amongst my contacts. But these things take time.
“I’m sure with your contacts, the issue could be expedited,” Mack replies, an edge creeping into his tone.
“And I shall.” Thornfield’s voice remains smooth and unruffled. “But you have greater concerns at the moment, do you not?” He crouches down in front of Snow, tilting his head to examine him closely.
Mack’s jaw clenches, and he gives a tight nod. Snow narrows his eyes.
“Fascinating,” Thornfield repeats, steepling his fingers. Then he stands, baring just a hint of fang. His ruby ring glints ominously. “All right,” he says, sinking into the chair behind his desk. “From what I understand, you drank the Fire Bird’s blood and then you became…” He smirks a little. “Two instead of one.”
Hearing him call her Fire Bird makes my blood begin to simmer. Eve called her Fire Bird. How does he know that name?
“That’s right.” Nova answers instead of Mack, striding forward so she’s at the front of the group. Suddenly, the hold Thornfield had over her seems to have broken and she’s her again. Fierce, staring at him with a sceptical glare. “And now they’re sick. It began two days ago. Mack collapsed. He was apart from Snow at the time, and Snow collapsed too. Now, they can’t be more than a few feet apart or they start to feel…”
She glances at Mack.
“Weak,” he says. And he sounds it, too. There’s a vulnerability in his voice I haven’t heard before. And I don’t like it. Until this moment, I hadn’t really considered the possibility that this could be serious. But now I’m looking at Mack, and realizing… shit, this could be bad. Real bad.
Mack continues. “Hot, cold, fragile. Like I might crack open. The way I used to feel when I needed to shift, except now I can’t. So the feeling keeps building.” He glances at Snow. “It’s the same for him.”
Thornfield nods, then stands again and strides to a bookcase at the back of the room.
Predictable as fuck, he tugs on a large protruding book and the wall opens up. “Come,” he says, coiling his finger at us. “There are things you should see before I offer you my expertise.”
19
NOVA
The moment Thornfield touches the spine of a particular leather-bound tome, the bookshelf in front of us creaks and swings open.
As he stands aside and gestures for me to pass through the doorway first, my entire body tingles.
His presence is intoxicating.
He is scary, and creepy, and too suave for his own good. But he’s also mesmerizing. When he looks at me, every cell in my body lights up. Pays attention. Yearns to let him in.
