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“I’m parked nearby—” I led the way out. Lucas followed, and luckily Jorgen stayed behind.
“What was all that about?” He hefted Gina’s weight easily—not that she wasn’t thin, but he had no problem carrying her.
“A lover’s spat. Nothing personal, I swear. ”
“I know. ”
I stopped, and he almost ran into me. “You do?”
“Sure we do. The second I found out you were caring for my uncle I asked around. She may fraternize—but she’s damn good at what she does. ” He looked down at the woman he carried. “She couldn’t fall in love with one of us if she didn’t love us all a little bit, I suppose. ”
I started walking again, quickly in the cold. “And what did your background check tell you about me?”
“Like Jorgen said. You’re the one the vampires employ. ”
“That’s not true,” I said as we reached my Chevy. Gina was snoring. I unlocked the passenger door, and Lucas set her gently inside. “There’s just the one. She needs my help, but only for a little bit more. ”
“You are compelled?” he asked me as I rounded my car.
“No. She just needs my help. ”
“And you are good at helping people. ”
“Like a fucking Girl Scout. ”
He gave me a wolfish grin over my car’s hood. “What an interesting image. ”
I snorted, unlocked my door, and sank inside. I leaned over Gina to buckle her seat belt and reached to close her door. He held it open.
“Where are you taking her?”
“Someplace where she can sleep it off. ”
“Take good care of her. ” He stood and made to close Gina’s door.
“Lucas—” There was nothing about him that gave the vibe he’d sent attackers after me earlier. If he had, wouldn’t he have let the patrons of the bar off their leash, so to speak? He ducked down to peer inside. The winter air was misting off his skin, and beneath his tattoos moved muscles that could have torn my car’s door off. “I was attacked this afternoon. By two were-women. ”
His eyes narrowed, making
his red-brown eyes look like angry embers. “When? Where?”
“The Woodbridge Mall. At five P. M. , or thereabout. One of them wore a fur-lined parka, the other didn’t. That’s all I know. ”
“Viktor,” Lucas growled. Anger washed across his entire body. I could almost see it flow over him, the water of humanity parting to let the wolf show through. His hand clenched around my car door, and I realized that between that and the dent I’d probably just hit my deductible. “How did you survive?”
“I hit one. With silver. She might still have a scar. And then a friend of mine showed up—a vampire friend. ” Calling Dren a friend was stretching things, but I was smart enough to know that if this was a were-ploy, it would be better to seem like I had protection. “Are you sure it was Viktor?”
“His pack and mine have a long history. He can’t get to me, and now he can’t get to Winter, but you’d be easy—”
“Nothing personal, but I don’t even know you. Why would he attack me?” I interrupted.
“You know me well enough. He’ll do anything to stir up resentment before the full moon. ”
“If I’d died, I’d be a little more than resentful,” I said.
He snorted and shook his head. “We need to put guards on you, Edie. ”
“No way. ”
“My pack owes you. For my uncle’s life, such as it is. ”
“I—I don’t trust you,” I blurted out. His anger seemed real, and I wanted to trust him, but I also wanted to trust everyone, and that instinct wasn’t wise. “I want to, but I can’t. ”
His eyes measured me, I could almost feel him weighing my resolve. He released my car door and took a step back. “I’ll find out who they were, Edie. As soon as I can. I’ll let you know. ”
“Thank you. ” I nodded and put my keys into the ignition, waiting for the engine to catch and turn over before reaching for the door.
