Dorian joined me. There was limited space, so his leg pressed against mine. The contact sent an excited thrill through me for half a second. I hoped that in another life, I would be able to act on feelings of desire before discussing matters of life and death.
“I’m frustrated as hell,” I blurted. I needed a proper vent session. “I have no power. No real purpose. I couldn’t go after that shooter today. I couldn’t help Louise. I couldn’t get anything out of the board. There’s nothing I can do.”
His jaw twitched with his own frustrations. “‘Nothing’ is better than actively making the situation worse. We might have caught the shooter if I’d just held it together. I managed with the crowd, but then this huge dark presence came out of nowhere. It completely overwhelmed me.” He shook his head with glazed eyes, probably recalling his deranged chase to Arthur’s Seat. “I could feel the shooter getting away, but their darkness was so strong it incapacitated me. And the speed was too fast to be human.”
“Unless they had some kind of transport close by?” I wondered aloud. Silence fell between us. I didn’t want to blame him for losing control, but anger burned me up from the inside out, seeking a target. I took a deep breath. Get a grip. No one expected a shooter today. But everyone else had been prepared to the best of their ability. “The Bureau won’t let us help, either, because it would be a conflict of interest. It’s not just the Scottish government or Congress.”
He glanced over at his desk. It was low enough that I could spot an atlas open on the desk. He’d circled the Canyonlands.
“I’m itching to get back to the Immortal Plane,” he confessed. “Even before what happened to Castral and the rumor about a vampire group in hiding, I knew we needed to get back there and search for ways to fix this. To end this. The tear is getting bigger each day. We have no idea how much time we have before the planes merge and explode.”
I thought again about the shooter. “Could the immortal allies Alan mentioned be responsible for the shooting?” I asked. “He said he had nothing to do with it, but he could be lying.” I shook my head tiredly. “Honestly, I have no idea why I thought any of them would tell me anything true, let alone useful. They’re determined to be as unhelpful as possible.” Jones’s ominous warning about his allies made me scowl bitterly. Most frustrating was that while Jones had admitted he didn’t know everything, that suggested he at least knew something. Unfortunately, whatever intel he knew had convinced him vampires were evil.
“Immortals can’t cross through the circles any more than you can,” Dorian assured me, slinging his arm across the back of the couch behind me. “They can only come through the tear, and even if they did, they would starve very quickly and have no way to feed. They can’t survive without the ambient energy of the Immortal Plane. I doubt they’d be able to cross the ocean to find us.” He dragged a hand down his sharp jawline. “I’ve got some other news. Morag is on her way back. They patched her up, and she should be back in the barracks tonight. She, Bryce, and I had a video call, and we agreed that she should contact Fenton. There will be a meeting with him tomorrow. I don’t know what Morag and Bryce will be hoping to achieve, but my goal is to get as much information out of the revamped Bureau as we can.”
“Revamped,” I echoed, and cocked a smile. “Interesting choice of words.”
The corner of his mouth tugged upward. “I’m adding to my vocabulary. Sike tells me puns are funny to humans. He said they’re charming.”
“Are you trying to be charming?” I laughed, shaking my head. “Keep that up, and you’ll have the heart of every poster-holding fangirl in the world.”
His glacial eyes sparked with interest as he lifted a brow. “Worried that I’ll leave you for a woman who pledges her undying love to me through arts and crafts?”
I suddenly registered that he still wore his human clothes. He’d removed the overcoat and unbuttoned the top two buttons of his white shirt, the once-crisp material now marked with grass stains and mud. My mouth went dry.
I didn’t want to talk about the world outside anymore. I gave him a wicked smile.
Dorian tensed as I moved toward him. “It’s not exactly under the best circumstances, but it’d be a shame to waste our time alone,” I told him.
He slowly smirked and wrapped an arm around my waist as I climbed into his lap, my dress sliding up my thighs. “Great minds think alike. Sitting around moping won’t help, so why not… release some stress?”
I kissed him hard, relishing the knowledge that nobody would walk in. My head buzzed softly with pain, but I ignored it as Dorian pushed off my leather jacket, then skimmed his hands softly down my sides. I moaned, enjoying the feeling of him pressed against me. This was the benefit of him starving himself, the flip side of the earlier disaster. Was it worth it? The selfish part of me said yes.
I wanted to kiss away all the worries of today. If I could touch him, I knew he was real and safe. Nobody could take him from me in this moment. There was no danger here except the rising tension between us.
He bit my bottom lip softly, and I smiled against his kiss, enjoying the swelling desire inside me. I ran my hands down his powerful arms, fingertips tracing the corded tendons and curlicues of shadow. He brought one hand up to press against the back of my head, deepening our kiss. His other hand skirted the hem of my shirt. I pressed the wandering hand against me, inviting him farther in.
My head felt light, but I melted beneath his touch. His fingers, feather light, traced a line on my naked skin beneath the shirt, rising slowly but surely toward my breast.
The pain inside my chest spiked. My head spun. I gasped, pulling back and nearly sending myself off his lap. His hands grabbed me firmly around the waist to keep me from falling. The humor and desire on his face had vanished, replaced by concern and guilt.
Seriously? Even when he’s this weak?
“Are you okay?” he asked, stroking my hair gently.
I nodded, trying to ignore nausea as I felt my strength return. Dorian maneuvered me onto the end of the couch so I could lean against the cushions, putting a safe amount of distance between us.
“I guess our truce only partially works,” I said and rubbed the skin over my heart in slow circles. It did nothing to help, but the dizziness gradually disappeared. The burning in my chest faded to the original buzz.
I sighed and glanced at the bed. “I’m guessing cuddling is out of the question now?”
He shook his head firmly. “We can lie next to one another,” he said with a wink. “But if you try something, and Zach catches me dragging your unconscious body back to your room, I’m sure the Immortal Plane will look like a safe haven.”
“Hands to myself,” I promised, then eased onto his bed. He took the opposite side, staying as far away as possible on the narrow frame. I leaned my head against my arm as I reclined. It was strange to see Dorian like this. It felt even more intimate than kissing. What would it be like to wake up to him every morning? My breath caught at the thought.
“Do humans always like to cuddle?” Dorian asked suddenly.
“Many do,” I said, managing a shrug. “It feels good to be close to people.”
“It’s a bit like pack animals huddling together,” he said, amused.
I rolled my eyes. “What? Vampires don’t cuddle? Are you too tough for it?”
“We embrace,” he replied easily. “Obviously, vampires are much too tough and deadly for such things as cuddling, though. There are other ways of showing affection beyond cuddling.” He winked.
I stared at him, wondering what other things besides cuddling he’d done before. And who he’d done them with.
“What?” he asked. “I see those studying eyes, Lyra.”
I might have been new to relationships, but I was pretty sure asking about exes was a no-fly zone.
“Do you want to learn how to cuddle?” I teased. “I mean, do you guys even know about big spoon and little spoon?”
He raised a brow. “I’m sorry. Why are we talki
ng about silverware?”
I laughed so hard I had a coughing fit. He patted my back gently with a mocking tut. I smacked his hand away, still laughing. When I got my breathing back under control, I explained.
“It’s usually when the taller person lies behind the shorter person. Basically, the big spoon holds the little spoon, and it’s comfortable and kinda cute.”
He stared. “I’ve never thought of you as a spoon. But you are very cute.”
I pressed a hand over my embarrassed, warm cheeks. “Never mind.” I peeked at him through my fingers. “It’s always good to expand your skillset, you know.”
We talked for a while longer, about everything and nothing, ignoring the dinner bell when it rang, preferring to stay in our quiet little bubble of contentment. If he was going to starve to be with me, it was only fair that I returned the favor. The soldier part of my brain wanted to use this opportunity to ask about the vampires’ enemies in the Immortal Plane, but I knew that it would spoil the moment. I’d asked before, of course, unable to contain my curiosity after the revelation on the Bureau rooftop. But Immortals were painful for the vampires to talk about. Dorian had tried to give me details, but apparently it was hard to know where to start, and the attempt always darkened his mood for hours. Right now, I just wanted to rest instead of prying.
He told me about the letters that had begun to arrive for the vampires from fans all across the world. The Scottish government wasn’t happy about all the fan mail that had been pouring into their office, so they’d apparently set up a special address for people to send letters to. The first three sacks had arrived the previous day. Impressed and amused, I was nevertheless slightly concerned about the growing vampire craze and said as much.
“It could benefit us,” Dorian reminded me. “I’m assigning people to write back.”
“Sure, sure,” I said with a yawn. “You just love being a celebrity.”
He smirked and gestured to his face. “I was made for fame, obviously.”
I snorted a laugh. “You’ve been watching too many trashy reality shows.” I yawned again and sat up reluctantly. “I should probably head back to my room and actually go to sleep.”
He nodded and feathered a kiss on top of my forehead. I slid off the bed, and he followed me to the door, keeping a perfect distance between us. Neither of us wanted to part ways, but it would be difficult to sleep next to one another.
“Goodnight, Dorian.”
His eyes were soft, a sweet emotion I treasured. “Goodnight, Lyra.”
I left him and felt the pain fade as I put distance between us. The pain was strong even though he was so weak. That was something to consider. I sucked in a deep breath as my body returned to normal.
Louise’s empty bed greeted me when I got back to my room. I faced away from it, staring at the wall until I fell asleep.
Chapter Six
The next afternoon, we gathered for the meeting with Fenton in the communications trailer. He arranged to call after three p.m. to accommodate the time differences of the various Bureau offices. I helped Zach connect the flat-screen TV to the computer we would be using for the conference call. Everyone felt Louise’s absence as we wrestled with cables and tried to sync the software.
“It’s this blue one,” Zach insisted and waved the end of the wire in front of me with a grin. “Man, do you remember when we spent six hours setting up our Christmas gift when we were kids?”
His chipper energy was infectious, earning a smile from me. “Then let’s try it,” I said as he fiddled with the TV.
Bryce cast a sympathetic look our way, but computer tech wasn’t one of his strengths. Morag flipped through her notes again and again. The bandages on her arm peeked out from the cuff of her purple button-up shirt. She pushed her reading glasses up on the bridge of her nose and scowled, underlining something on the page.
As the time for the call drew closer, those who had been invited began trickling into the trailer, gathering around the weathered conference table. The Bryce siblings were front and center since they were in charge of the details. Dorian, Kane, and a few other vampires, including two I had met briefly and knew as the elder lore-keepers of their group, sat on one side of the table. Dorian reintroduced them as Dorsa and Torran.
Dorsa appeared to be in her sixties, but knowing little of the vampire aging process, I had no idea how old she really was. She looked a little like Arlonne—they had the same copper-toned eyes and rich brown skin. She wore her thick dark brown hair braided in a circle around her head, and she was friendly enough despite her tendency to purse her thin lips. Torran looked to be in his seventies. He wore a thick blue wool sweater he’d adopted from the collection of donated clothes, one of the only vampires to abandon their classic cloak in favor of human clothes. The color offset his silvery hair, grayish skin, and long white beard. He stroked his mustache occasionally, the heavy lines on his concerned face adding a serious edge to his aura.
I settled into my seat beside Zach. Everyone was a little tense as the software connected us to Fenton and the rest of the meeting.
When the audit of the Bureau began, a panel of congressional representatives had appointed trusted government workers to review the Bureau’s conduct. Because of the CIA’s collaboration with the Bureau, although it was apparently only limited to a few individuals, Congress strived to select the auditors from as many varied sources as possible to ensure increased accountability.
They had appointed interim board members inside the Bureau during the reformation. Fenton had also gotten Congress to reinstate many of the members who had been fired by the original board for their pro-vampire sympathies. We would be meeting with the resulting interim board today. Among their ranks were Bureau middle managers that had been promoted and rising stars from various Bureau branches outside of Chicago. They’d appointed Captain Clemmins to the board, but I didn’t see his face on the call.
On the TV screen, several boxes showed different people, along with their respective time zones. I studied the new faces.
Captain Abbas, a Middle Eastern woman from New York in her early forties, wore a Bureau uniform and a black hijab, her expression alert and pleasant. Next to her, Captain Ruiz from the California office stared into her computer with confidence, the large cup of coffee on the desk beside her betraying the fact it was barely eight a.m. there. She was a Latina woman with her dark hair sharply cut into a bob. I pegged her at late thirties. The FBI had agreed to transfer her to the Bureau, though there were rumors that she was a spy and serving as a government oversight plant. Not that more oversight from the Bureau would be a bad thing.
The rest of the faces—from Phoenix, DC, and a few other regional offices—blurred together in a sea of hazy memory. I recognized many of them from various meetings I went to before coming to Scotland, but so many people had changed positions, it was difficult to keep track.
Fenton, in the Chicago office, occupied the main screen. After the usual exchange of pleasantries, Fenton dove straight into the main issue at hand.
“We haven’t been able to apprehend any of the original board members yet,” he announced. “After the majority of them escaped in the first helicopter, they disappeared. Many have gone abroad, with the last trace of them being at airports or accessing their bank accounts to empty them.”
“Guess we were lucky to get three of them, including Director Sloane,” Bryce said, drawing his arms across his chest.
Morag scrawled something in her notes with a neutral frown. “|Do you think they could be responsible for the latest attack?” she asked bluntly.
“It’s possible,” Fenton admitted. “There are warrants out for their arrest, but it’s not impossible that one of them made their way to Scotland. Or hired a professional.”
“It would be irresponsible if the Scottish police weren’t able to keep the ex-Bureau board members out of the country after everything that’s happened,” Captain Ruiz broke in sharply. Morag lifted an eyebrow a fraction. “It’s more l
ikely they’re trying to maneuver behind the scenes and are dispatching people to do the dirty work for them. We’ve frozen their accounts, but as Fenton pointed out, many of them emptied those accounts before we could reach them. And I imagine they have the ability to secure funding elsewhere.”
Captain Abbas cleared her throat. “Several are independently wealthy, either from other positions they held in business or through inheritance.”
“I wasn’t the only person on that board with a trust fund,” Fenton added wryly.
“Perhaps we should look into local sources for the sniper first,” Ruiz added. “Vampires have many enemies among the human public. Someone in the criminal sphere over there could be responsible.”
There was a subtle buzzing on Fenton’s desk as his phone rang. Fenton, slightly embarrassed, snatched up his phone. A shadow of tired worry crossed his face. “I have to take this,” he muttered as he answered it. His shoulders sank.
I drummed my fingers on my knees anxiously. It was important.
“Yes,” he said. “I’ll connect you right away.”
A new box appeared on the call. The text display introduced the newcomer as Director Runyard from the Bureau office in Fort Worth, Texas. His wispy brown hair and glasses gave him a stern look. If I recalled correctly, the office in Fort Worth was one of the largest in the Southwest. He was currently in charge of organizing the ground forces near the tear.
“I don’t mean to interrupt,” Runyard apologized. The subtle alarm in his voice made me sit up straighter in my chair. “It’s been quiet for a few days, but last night something new came through from the Immortal Plane. I’m at a loss for how to handle it. Moab is in serious danger. The rest of Utah and western Colorado might not be far behind if we can’t figure out how to stop these things.”
I leaned closer to the screen. Runyard looked like he hadn’t slept all night. Whatever came through the tear, if the Bureau couldn’t handle it, had to be bad. This is what we’d warned the government about. There would be more creatures as long as the tear kept growing.
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