Page 35 of Love Bites (Timber Creek #2)
CHAPTER 35
SUMMER
The scent of brackish water washed over me as we rematerialized. In the dark, narrow alley, we were just part of the shadows. I gripped Max’s jacket tight, regaining my bearings after the vertigo-inducing trip.
As my spinning mind slowed, the gentle lapping of waves hit my ears, and I opened my eyes.
Venice. Another city on my bucket list that I never really thought I’d see, and here I was, not even a week after Paris. With the time difference, the sun here was already setting, and I almost regretted not arriving earlier.
But I wasn’t here to sightsee. And at least this time, I was a fully aware participant in this job.
“You good?”
I blinked up at Max, realizing I was still white-knuckling his jacket. Quickly I let go, retreating a step even if every fiber of my being wanted to hold onto him and never let go.
“Yeah, sorry. I’m good.”
He eyed me, his dark eyes unreadable in the shadows, despite the moonlight, and took out his phone. “I’ll check in with Rhain. Let him know we’re here.”
I nodded, stepping a little closer to the end of the alley to sneak a peek at the famous canals. Lights shone from the buildings lining the water, casting a glow over the rippling water.
Laying a hand on the building next to me, the stone was still warm from the earlier sun. I closed my eyes, reaching out with my senses. If there was a den of gathered elite vampires here, would I already be able to sense them? Or would their cloaking be even more advanced than regular dens, rendering them invisible to me?
My nose twitched, a sizzle of magic going through me, and I opened my eyes, ready to tell Max, when —
“If you’ll turn your attention to the left-hand side, folks, you’ll see the famed Basilica de San Marco.” Rhain said in his best tour guide impression and swept his hands towards the end of the alley. Max rolled his eyes.
“Wait, really?” I peered around the corner again, fragments of conversation drifting our way across the water, but too far away to make anything out.
“Well, no,” Rhain admitted, sliding his hands into his dark jeans pockets. “‘Dante’ here isn’t dumb enough to land you two downtown. But it’s not far from here.”
“Focus.” Max scowled. “Are they here yet?”
“Right. All business.”
“Missing Premier of the supernatural world ,” Max reminded him curtly.
“The Conclave themselves aren’t here yet,” Rhain continued. “But their lackeys have started arriving. You were right, Max — they’re clearing out the Doge Palace as we speak. Dubois and our people are gathering on a boat offshore; we need to keep our larger presence hidden from the Conclave for as long as we can.”
My eyes widened. “They’re having their meeting in the Doge Palace?”
Rhain grimaced. “I know. Bit ostentatious, but the Conclave loves a good show of force. Nothing says that like taking over a historical landmark and major tourist attraction for the night to use for their own purposes. Just because they can.” He turned to Max, one brow raised. “Have you been before?”
“Inside? No,” Max admitted. “But I’m familiar with the city.”
“We’ll get a floor plan. It shouldn’t be too hard to track one down,” Rhain said, and I was already searching for one on my phone. “There’s a room inside that was traditionally used to question prisoners — and why reinvent the wheel, right? Twenty euro says they’ll keep him there tonight.”
“Found it.” I held my phone out to Max, who quickly scanned the layout, moving the image around and zooming in.
“They’ll have the place locked down,” Rhain warned. “Not only with guards, but the witches on their payroll are some of the best. It’ll be spelled to hell and back. No one in or out.”
Max handed me back my phone. “I assume you have a plan for that.”
“Well, it’s old. There are a lot of entrances, and the Conclave doesn’t travel with that many lackeys. It’ll be warded, but still, they’re not exactly expecting to be ambushed. As far as they’re aware, the only people who know about this meeting are on their side, after all. Once they’ve settled in for their meeting, Dubois’ people will work on the wards. As a last resort, they’ll take out the guards before going for the Conclave themselves. That’s when you can go for Malachi.” Rhain’s eyes drifted from Max to me, a question lingering there.
Max slid his hand into mine. “She’ll be with me.”
My wolf lifted her head up, proud, at the words, and the slight widening of Rhain’s eyes told me she’d shown herself in my eyes.
A smirk flitted across Rhain’s face as he held up his hands. “All right.”
“What time?” Max asked.
“Typically, they gather around midnight. Stay close, but inconspicuous. I’ll let you know when we’ve been summoned inside. Once we start, wait nearby until it’s time.”
“Simple as that?”
Rhain turned his gaze on me, his green eyes glittering in the dark. “As long as everything goes exactly according to plan, yes.”
Right. And if not, Rhain and the other dukes might get killed for their treason. If not, possibly none of us would make it out alive.
None of us said it, but we were all thinking it.
“Well,” Rhain brightened, clapping his hands together. “Good luck to us all.”
He dissolved into shadow, vanishing from our alley.
My lips pressed thin, I glanced at Max. “I guess let’s just do everything perfectly, then.”
We wandered through the Floating City as it was still several hours until midnight, acting every bit the couple in love, just in case. Hand in hand, we took a water taxi to a restaurant Max knew, huddling close the whole time. Neither of us had much of an appetite, only nibbling on the bread brought to our table but downing the wine with ease.
Max’s finger tapping on the table only grew more agitated, and he kept checking the time in between clenching his jaw. I couldn’t blame him — my anxiety had sweat beading on the back of my neck, but I refused to give in to the long list of everything that could go wrong.
It couldn’t — that was the only option.
I kept one eye on him, though there wasn’t much I could do to help his stress, and another on our surroundings. No fewer than three of the Parisian vampires passed by our spot, giving us the barest nod of acknowledgment as they did.
A spark flashed from Max’s fingertips, singeing the slice of bread he tore apart aimlessly. Not a great sign.
“Let’s walk,” I suggested. Movement usually helped my anxiety, and, at the very least, couldn’t be worse than just sitting here.
Looping my arm through his, I led us down the street, no destination in mind other than killing time. Restaurants lined the street, mainly filled with romantic couples, but plenty of groups of friends and family too. Languages from all corners of the globe reached my ears, along with the melodies of street musicians from every corner.
Making our way over a picturesque stone bridge, I tugged Max to a stop on a whim and whipped out my phone.
“Say cheese, husband.” I leaned into his chest, smiling into the camera, and his arm wrapped around my waist on instinct. Examining the photo, he hadn’t quite smiled, but the look in his eyes as he gazed down at me was heady, his focus intense.
“I’ll bring you back sometime,” Max said suddenly.
“What?”
He gestured around us. “To Venice. It’s on your bucket list, right?” When I nodded, he continued. “This visit hardly counts, I think. But another time, we’ll come back. I’ll make it up to you for helping me out.”
I slipped my phone away, turning to face him. “You know that’s not what this is, right? This isn’t a transaction, tit for tat. We don’t owe each other anything.”
He studied me, brow furrowing, but didn’t speak.
“I wanted to help you, so I’m here. That’s it.”
His eyes held mine for a long moment, like he wasn’t sure what to make of that, and I didn’t even know if I could blame him. Max, I’d learned, wasn’t used to unconditional love or friendship of any kind.
He was spared replying by the loud tolling of the bell, high above the city. It was as ominous a sound as any, each clang a reminder of everything at stake.
I stood on my tiptoes, pulling his face down to mine as I let every drop of emotion I felt for this man show. Hoping he understood how committed I was not just to this task, but to making him see how loved he was.
“Max,” I whispered, three little words I’d never said to anyone but my family and friends on the tip of my tongue. “I?—”
His phone buzzed, and we both looked down at the incoming message.
“Rhain,” he said, reading it. “They’re going inside.” Nodding back towards the way we came, we turned and walked back towards the Doge Palace.
Showtime.