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She wrinkled her nose as she glanced toward Valen. “If she’d been infected by the magic, wouldn’t we have noticed?”
“It might have the ability to disguise its power,” he suggested.
“Maybe.” It seemed hard to believe that so much power could have remained hidden from both a mage and vampire. “Or it’s possible the magic reappeared after we left,” she added. “It might have infected her then.”
“And instead of going home as she claimed, she came here. Why?”
“She might have been passing by on her way to somewhere else.”
“Yes, but why stop? And why come into the bar?”
Peri considered the question. “She must have been searching for something. Or someone.”
Valen glanced down. He wouldn’t see the outlines of the footprints created by her magic, but he looked as if he was searching for an unseen clue.
“I should be able to detect her,” he abruptly announced.
“Destiny?”
He nodded. “Her scent should be here, but it’s been overpowered by the stench of human blood.”
Belatedly Peri realized that she’d been doing her best to avoid breathing in the thickening reek that filled the bar. It wasn’t just blood that was splattered across the floor. With a shiver, she met Valen’s steady gaze. Was he wondering if the miasma had caused the violence between the drunken guests in a deliberate attempt to cover its tracks? The thought was unnerving as hell.
“Let’s see if we can find some answers in the upstairs apartment.”
Valen abruptly turned to head out of the bar, leading her around the side of the building to the steel steps that led to a door on the second floor. Peri followed in silence, not unhappy to be leaving behind the public area of the bar and its floor stained with violence.
The lingering sense of evil was like a palpable taint in the air.
Valen reached the small landing at the top of the stairs and pushed the door. It slid open without resistance.
“Unlocked, but it’s doubtful anyone in town bothers to lock their doors,” Valen murmured, peering into the dark space. “It doesn’t look like the place was searched.”
Peri moved to squeeze past Valen, an electric burst of awareness zinging through her as she brushed against his rock-hard body. She clenched her teeth. Being around the vampire was like standing in the middle of a vicious storm. Thunderous power swirling and eddying with the constant threat of being struck by lightning.
Pretending she wasn’t acutely aware of the male eying her with a scorching intensity, Peri entered the cramped space and glanced around. The apartment was composed of one narrow room that had a pullout couch under the window and a dresser that doubled as a TV stand. On the far wall a sink had been builtinto a cabinet alongside a stove that looked like it’d been brought there by the original pioneers. There was one door that led to a miniscule bathroom.
Peri hoped the bartender didn’t have to pay rent on the place. It might be an upgrade from sleeping on the street, but not much.
Halting in the center of the apartment, Peri bent down and touched her fingers to the fur rug. With a soft whisper she released her magic, watching it spread across the floor. It didn’t take long for Peri to determine the only recent visitor to the apartment was a Wiccan and a human. Probably the bartender’s boyfriend. Or girlfriend.
“Destiny—” Peri bit off her words as she moved to search through the dresser. She was jumping to the conclusion that the witch was her former coven mate. A dangerous assumption that would blind her to other possibilities. “Or whoever entered the bar, wasn’t up here.”
Once convinced there was nothing but clothes and cheap makeup stuck in the drawers, she wandered toward the small altar that had been erected near the north wall. Lifting her hand, she touched the shallow bowls and carved wood statue before moving to the large candle.
“Harmless earth magic,” she concluded, turning back to see Valen standing near the doorway. He appeared as icily composed as ever, but she could see a tension in his shoulders that revealed he was on full alert. He was expecting trouble. “I don’t see any obvious connection to my mother or Wisdom Ranch,” she told him.
He dipped his head in acknowledgment. “It’s getting late. We need to return to Denver. We can spend the day with Gabriel and return tomorrow night to continue our search.”
Peri stiffened. She’d been too eager to get to this small town and discover what had happened to think about the comingdawn. Even with a helicopter waiting to take them back to Denver, they would never reach Valen’s private jet at the airport before the sun started to rise.
“I think I should stay here,” she hedged. Spending time with Valen in the search for the evil magic was one thing. Being trapped in some fancy mansion with him and another absurdly powerful vampire? Nope. No way. That was the stuff of nightmares. “It’s possible the witch is hiding in the area.”
He made a sound of impatience. “You can’t face the miasma alone.”
Peri narrowed her eyes. “I can’t?”
“If you don’t succeed in overpowering the witch, then she’ll escape. Along with the magic. Worse, the miasma will know we’re hunting it.” He kept his tone reasonable, as if he wasn’t thinking about tossing her over his shoulder and putting an end to the argument. “Isn’t it better to wait until we can combine our powers and bring an end to the threat before it can spread more death?”
