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“But how? This was in the middle of the day. I thought vampires couldn’t go out in the sunlight?” Panic sharpened the edge of his words.
“They can’t, but most of the powerful ones have little human workers and minions to run their errands and do their bidding during the daylight hours.”
“Fuck.” Nolan rubbed his hand across his face and slouched farther in his chair.
Sky bit the inside of his mouth, holding in comforting words. It was better if this new reality hit Nolan in the face. The shock would hopefully make him more cautious. He was lucky he got out of Phoenix alive. There was no telling if he’d survive another encounter as cleanly.
“How did you get to the point of checking out the nightclub?”
“That was Erik’s fault. He called last night in this absolute panic. The second I answered the phone, he started shouting and babbling about how Owen was gonna die. That he’d gotten this freaked-out call from my brother demanding money and a fake passport. He had to get out of the country now before the fucking vampires killed him. I almost laughed.” Nolan paused and lifted his shoulders in this helpless shrug. “Maybe I did. I nearly hung up on him when I heard the vampire bullshit. But he said that Owen was tangled up in this gang, and they were going to kill him if they didn’t get paid. A lot of it didn’t make sense. The only thing I could get out of him was that they were this couple—Colette and Aldo—and they hung out at Phoenix.”
“Naturally, you went straight down there, hoping to bail out your brother once again.” Sky placed his elbow on the table and dropped his face into his hand. Nolan was a good brother, and Owen was an utter asshole for dragging him into any mess that involved vampires.
Yes, he might be lucky enough to know a few of the good ones, but there were plenty of whispers and rumors floating in his world about some not-so-good ones.
Nolan grunted. “Most of last night is a fucking blur now. I don’t remember who I was talking to or even what I was saying. I don’t even remember drinking. The only thing repeating in my head was that these people knew where my brother was and they were keeping him from me.”
Resting his chin on his palm, Sky looked up at Nolan. “And you have no idea what kind of business he had with Colette and Aldo?”
“None.” Dark circles dug deep furrows under his eyes and lines bracketed his frown. Everything from his eyes to his shoulders made him appear utterly exhausted, as if this fiasco had drained all the energy from him.
Nolan needed help. Magical insider help. Which meant Sky needed some help from a different insider.
“All right, I can make some phone calls, talk to some people who might know something about these vampires and what kind of business they might have with your brother. But if I do this, I need you to make me two promises.”
The poor human blinked at him twice as if his fatigued brain was struggling to even keep up with what he was saying. “What…what kind of promises?”
“One,” Sky began and held up his index finger. “You agree to not return to Phoenix without me, no matter what. No excuses. Not even if your brother calls. You don’t go there without me. Ever. You’re human, making you a very delicious, very easy target.”
Nolan’s face wrinkled up, and he squinted. “I know how to take care of myself.”
Sky stared, unblinking, at Nolan. “True, but you’ve never been a target of vampires before. Please, I know this world better than you. Trust me on this.”
With a sigh, Nolan nodded once. “Okay. You’re right. I promise to not go back without you. What’s the other promise?”
“Promise me you’ll try to get some more sleep. You’re exhausted.” That got Nolan to crack the tiniest of smiles.
“I look that bad?”
“You’ve looked a hell of a lot better. Sleep will help. Let me make some phone calls and see what I can track down for you, but I probably won’t have anything remotely useful until this evening.”
“All day?”
Sky smirked. “All good little bloodsuckers are napping right now. Even the one witch I know dating a vampire keeps the same hours as his boyfriend. There are a couple of people I can reach out to during the afternoon, but most don’t stir while the sun is high.”
With one last reassuring smile, Sky gathered up their plates, knives, and his mug, carrying it all over to the sink. He snagged the plastic container of butter and placed it in Nolan’s fridge.
“I’ll leave the muffins with you. There’s a notecard with my cell number under one of the plates if you need anything. You get some sleep.”
