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She swallowed hard at the harsh truth behind his words. “But?—”

He sighed. “Do you really want to air your emotional laundry in front of Adam?”

“Why not?” She tried to push through his shields, to force him to let her sense his real thoughts, but it was impossible. “Your quarrel with him is obviously far more important than your partnership with me!”

“This is Otherworld business.”

“This isbullshit!”

He averted his gaze. “I’m sorry, Ms. Walsh. I’ll be far better off without your ‘help. ’ Goodbye.”

“Wait!”

It was too late. In a cloud of black feathers, Vadim disappeared.

Even as she registered his loss, she realized Adam hadn’t gone anywhere.

“What the fuck do you want?”

His smile was so much like Vadim’s, it hurt. “I think you know.” He stretched out his hand. “Goodbye, Soul Sucker.”

She fired at him, but wasn’t quick enough to avoid his outstretched hand. With a cry, she fell back onto the bed and everything went black.

* * *

There wassomething on her face. She lifted a hand and batted whatever it was away from her cheek. Damn feathers got everywhere. Who knew that swan shape-shifters molted so much?

Ella opened her eyes.

Black feathers.

Vadim.

She sat bolt upright and wrapped her arms around her knees. Had she dreamed him leaving her? His clothes were neatly folded on the chair, but there was no sound from the bathroom. Tentatively, she searched for him within her mind. There was nothing, just a horrible sense of loss like the whining static after an explosion.

He’d definitely left her.

“Bastard!” she screeched. “If anyone’s going to kill you, it’s going to be me! How dare he walk out on me? How dare he suggest I’m a liability?”

She stomped into the bathroom, just to make sure he wasn’t hiding in there, and caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror.

Hell, no.

Black hair, blue eyes and cheekbones to die for.

Vadim in feminine form.

Had he sacrificed himself for her, or was this Adam’s idea of a joke? She scowled at her beautiful new face. How long did she have until he came back to persuade her to kill herself? Would he wait until he finished off Vadim too?

She focused on her face and considered trying the spell Vadim had given her for cleaning things up. He’d said it might make her look like she’d had plastic surgery, but what could be worse than this?

“What was it again?” She said the words out loud and watched her new mouth shape them.“Gey-ei-landah?”

Her face quivered like Jell-O and then reappeared in all its black haired, blue-eyed glory.

“Damn.”

She threw Vadim’s toothbrush in the trash and showered away all evidence of his lovemaking. He’d been incredibly gentle with her, bringing them to new heights of pleasure and a sense of being one that she’d never imagined existed. So why had he left her? It didn’t make sense. She’d started to believe they were truly partners and that he trusted her. For years she’d been treated like an unstable bomb, and he’d changed that, had made her feel valued andloved.So why the hell had he lied to her and chosen to fight alone? Had he been saying goodbye? Her tears mingled with the water, and she let them flow. No one needed to know how she felt inside. Anger would sustain her through this time. At least she knew she could count on that.