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“Nothing.”

“Why are you whispering?”

“Cass is sleeping.”

“Is anyone else there?”

“No.”

Silence. “I don’t like this. Something’s wrong.”

His gut lurched. “Why?”

“Your new pal Nicky hasn’t shown up yet.”

The lurch morphed into a twist. “It’s still early.”

“He’s had plenty of time to get Daddy here. He also had plenty of time to put him back together again and head out on a killing spree.”

Jackson’s right hand curled into a fist. Had he really misjudged Dominique and fallen for a ruse after all? No, he decided. He hadn’t. He let out a long breath. “If he did, you don’t think they would start with you?”

“Wise ass. Check the house systems. Call me back.”

The call disconnected. He hesitated a moment before thumbing to the house security app. When he touched the icon, his phone froze. “Fuck.”

Cassidy shifted and sighed. She lay with her head on a pillow propped against his thigh. He straightened the blanket around her and waited for her breathing to return to the even rhythm of sleep before gingerly extricating himself from his seat. “I’ll be right back,” he said in a bored tone. Something to inform her unconscious mind that all was well. Another lie. When would he stop?

The puzzle pieces added up to nothing good. Only a week ago, Dominique hacked Jackson’s phone. Now the vampire was MIA, and Jackson’s phone was hosed. Coincidences were rare bitches in his world.

His bare feet were silent on the cool marble floors as he headed for the operations center. He only got as far as the foyer when the back of his neck prickled. There seemed to be a hum in the air so low only his skin could hear it. Following it, he rounded the lavish Christmas tree and moved toward the front door. His senses, still keener than usual, told him nothing was amiss. Yet, on an instinctive level, he knew that he and Cassidy were no longer alone.

The little flashlight grew heavy in his pocket, but he didn’t reach for it. That feeble weapon would no longer surprise any vampire he was likely to encounter tonight.

When he opened the door, damp, chill air swirled in like a swarm of ghosts. He peered into the night. Nothing more ominous than landscape lighting and…a shimmer. Something out of sync, half-formed. Something he couldn’t see with his eyes so much as feel in his gut.

The shimmer became a blur and then snapped into vivid, 3D focus.

“Nick?”

The vampire stood not even ten feet away in the mellow glow of the entry lights. He looked as cavalier as Jackson had never seen him. Jeans and a simple blue T-shirt. Sneakers. Hair semi-neatly tied back. Both hands stuck into his pockets. Eyes as still and dark as mountain lakes. And just as deep.

“Bonsoir, mon ami.”

“How did you…where….” Jackson’s mind tumbled. The van was there too, sitting by the garage, Dominique’s motorbike next to it. Had they been there a second ago? He would have sworn not.

“Pardon. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Jackson swallowed the impulse to scoff. The words held no hint of smugness. If anything, the vampire looked almost as confused as Jackson felt. He willed his hand off the massive brass door handle, took a step forward, and tried to look casual despite the adrenaline pumping in his veins. “So, what brings you here?”

Dominique nodded at the van. “This was useful. Thank you.”

Jackson hesitated to think about what might be inside. “You could have left it with”—no, better not mention Garrett—“at”—or the facility—“the airport.”

“I could. If I planned to go there.”

He crossed his arms. “You changed your mind?” Surprise, surprise.

“In a way.”