Fortunately, Manny didn’t know how the drug was created, so the Enforcers hadn’t made the connection. Yet.
Eventually they would, it was just a matter of time, but William wanted to forestall that eventuality as long as possible.
Manny told them about Samuel’s place and how they were administered the drug there after being “trained” at Dawson’s.
The vision changed again and he saw Page and Loni alone together in what must have been Page’s home. He watched as Page kissed the human female and began removing her clothing, and then the images vanished.
William stared into nothing for a long moment. He wanted Page, wanted to kill him like he’d killed the male’s father—
But not before he took Page’s ability to mimic…and kept the drug for himself.
And the relationship between the two of them could work in his favor.
Get the woman and the Enforcer would come to him.
Chapter 13
Loni rubbed grit from her eyes and blinked as she tried to focus. She was in the soft bed in Alec’s guestroom. The last thing she remembered was falling asleep in his arms. She looked at the empty pillow beside her. Now she was alone in bed.
The bed coverings fell to her waist, revealing her breasts, as she sat up in bed. Air felt cool on her naked torso and she looked out the window. It was overcast and she wondered if rain was in the forecast for the day.
She slid out of bed and went to her suitcases to find something to wear. Her leather outfit was folded in a neat pile on a chair but Alec’s clothing and his boots were gone. She smiled to herself as she picked out jeans, a blouse, pink panties, and a bra to wear, then went into the bathroom to take a shower.
As the warm water flowed down her body, she thought of last night and how amazing he had been. She’d never had sex like that before and it had blown her mind. Her body felt so good and she could almost feel what it had been like having him inside her.
In the book there hadn’t been any magic when Marie and Alec had sex. From what she’d read it had been good sex, but nothing like what she and Alec had experienced last night… At least not for her. She supposed he might not have felt the same way she had about it. Something told her, though, that it had been good for him, too.
After she’d showered and put on her clean clothes, she walked barefoot down to the kitchen and saw that Alec wasn’t there. Something smelled good, though, and she peeked under a silver domed lid on top of a platter. Beneath it was a plate of muffins—it looked like blueberry, bran, and her favorite, chocolate chip. Her stomach rumbled and she got out a plate and served herself a muffin. She grabbed a glass from a cabinet then brought the milk out of the fridge and poured some before putting the milk back.
It was noon according to the wall clock. What was it? Tuesday? Wednesday? She wondered what Alec had meant when he’d told her that her absence from work had been taken care of. She took her plate and glass to the kitchen nook table and ate her breakfast as she thought about how much her whole world had changed since she’d read the book.
When she’d finished eating and had cleaned up what little mess she’d made, she headed back up the stairs. There were three doors on the second level, one of which was the guestroom. She lightly knocked on the door across the hall from the guestroom and peeked in when there wasn’t an answer.
It was what appeared to be the master bedroom. It was masculine in appearance with heavy furniture made from some kind of dark wood. The colors were black, royal blue, and gold. Considering how neat and clean the rest of his house was—the parts that she’d seen—it wasn’t surprising that his room was the same.
Amazing. A man who cooked, cleaned, and looked as hot as Alec did, was a rare find. From what she’d read as well, he seemed to be a real keeper.
The thought made her smile as she backed out of the bedroom. She tried the third door and opened it to see that it was a workout room filled with weights and exercise equipment including a treadmill and an elliptical machine. So he had to work for his sexy muscles.
Unless he had left the house, he had to be up on the third level, where he’d said his study was. She slid her fingers along the wooden banister as she climbed the stairs. A couple of the stairs squeaked before she reached the top. There was only a single room that took up the length of the floor, and she stood in the doorway and saw Alec.
She had a side view of him, but he didn’t raise his head as he pored over something on a table that tilted at a forty-five degree angle. Even though he didn’t look at her, she had the feeling he was completely aware of her. He wore a white T-shirt and Levis that shaped his backside perfectly. Just seeing him made her body hum and her heart beat a little faster.
The room was magnificent. There was no ceiling and it felt like the room soared up to the rafters. Countless shelves lined the walls, the shelves filled with books and collectibles. Near a desk was a large old wooden telescope set up to point out the window to the stars. An old world globe in a hardwood stand was near a huge mahogany desk with a leather chair behind it.
The table that Alec stood in front of was huge. He had his hands braced on the table and his face a study of concentration.
“Hi,” she said from the doorway.
He glanced up at her. “Come on in.” He didn’t smile and she wondered at what he was apparently so serious about right now.
She walked up to him and saw that he was looking at a map of the Phoenix area. Only it wasn’t an ordinary map. It had things on it that as far as she knew didn’t even exist.
“What is all of this?” she asked as her gaze lingered on it. “A map of the valley?”
“There are paranorm hangouts that can’t be seen by the human eye,” he said. “I know the metro Phoenix area backward and forward—it’s the homes and buildings that we need to study in more detail.”
He touched a building on the map and suddenly the image grew as if it was on a giant computer screen—only it was on paper. Her lips parted in surprise as she studied it. It looked like a three-dimensional blueprint of a house.
“Wow.” She looked at Alec. “How did you do that?”
“These maps are specially created by sorcerers, commissioned by the task force for paranorm law enforcement, and they change as the city changes.” He touched the image and it rotated so that they got a 360-degree view of the house.
“Only paranorms can make the maps come to life like this, so to speak.”
“This is awesome.” She leaned over the map table beside him. “So what is this place?”
“Our next assignment.” He studied the blueprint-like image. “This is the home of the Propara dealer that the human told us about last night.”
She raised her brows. “This is really detailed. How can you have this when you only learned about this guy last night?”
Alec straightened, no longer leaning over the table and he looked at her. “The magic the sorcerers used to make these maps allows details to be called forth as they’re needed.”
She tilted her head to the side. “There wasn’t a map like this at the meeting room before the warehouse operation.”
He reached for the holster at his side and pulled out his cell phone. “That’s because I sent it to everyone ahead of time.”
“Oh…” She nodded in sudden understanding. “That’s why everyone looked at their cell phones as you were talking and knew what you meant when you told each person where he or she needed to be. I thought perhaps you were already familiar with the warehouse.”
“No, it was as new to us as it was to you,” he said as he held up the phone and photographed the map.
She glanced at the map. “Why didn’t you tell me about it then?”
Alec shook his head as he pressed keys on his phone, probably sending out the photograph to his team. “You were still getting used to the idea of paranorms much less introducing you to something like this.”
“True.” She gave him a smile. “Well, you don’t have to hold back on anything with me n
ow.”
She had hoped for a smile from him but he just glanced out of a window. “I have an errand to take care of,” he said as he turned back to face her. “Will you be all right here alone? I can guarantee you’ll be safe.”
Alone? The thought made her stomach flip, but she nodded. “I’ll be fine.”
“Good.” He started out of the room and she followed him down the stairs to the second level and then the first. When he reached the front door he turned back to her. “Don’t try to leave, Loni. You won’t be able to—the locks will only respond to me.”
She frowned as he opened the door. He looked at her one last time before walking out and shutting the door behind him.
Loni stared at the door for a long time. He had never acknowledged their night together in any way. He had acted like it had never happened.
She had the irrational urge to cry and she found herself angry with him. He was the one who had come into her room. Yes, she had wanted him and had made that clear, but he had taken that step that allowed them to spend an amazing night together.
How dare he treat her like this? She swallowed down a lump that had gathered in her throat and shook her head.
No, she was being irrational. It had just been sex, after all. It had just been sex.
* * * * *
That evening, after Alec returned from his errands, he took Loni with him to the next Enforcer meeting.
“Sonofabitch.” Strike put his feet up on the coffee table of the meeting room in the back of the Bar None. Like the rest of the Enforcers, he was outfitted for a busy night. “So Dawson’s been behind this human-paranorm crap that’s been going on.”
Alec crossed his arms over his chest, his mind turning one thing after another as he continued to think over the problem: stopping the sorcerer. “The human we interviewed last night gave us rock-solid information.”
Petra leaned forward and her red hair slid over her bare shoulder. “It makes perfect sense. Dawson has dealt just about every drug imaginable that affects paranorms.”
Dani moved her wheelchair in a little closer to the other Enforcers. “Only this one affects humans.”
“What’s it called?” Lyle asked.
“Propara,” Alec replied.
Rider stood as usual with his shoulder hitched up against the wall. He narrowed his green eyes. “What’s the plan?”
“The human gave us the name and address of one of the sorcerer’s head dealers.” Alec leaned his hip against an overstuffed chair. “I’ve done a preliminary check on this Samuel Rogers and he’s managed to keep under the radar.”
Jazz, who’d been standing near Holden, sat on the couch beside Loni. “We’re going to shake him down?” Jazz asked.
Alec nodded. “From what we’ve gathered from initial surveillance starting late last night, humans and paranorms come and go from the house Samuel owns until the early hours of the morning.”
Petra leaned back on her chair and crossed her legs at her knees. “Is the whole team going in?”
“No.” Alec pointed to Rider, Lyle, Petra, and Loni. “Only those of you who I sent the information to. I sent schematics to your phones along with a sorcerer’s rendering of Samuel’s image. The rest of you will go about your duties as normal and be on call to back us up if necessary.”
“You’re gonna have all the fun?” Strike smirked. “Doesn’t seem fair.”
“Time to get to work,” Alec said. “I want those going with me to Samuel’s to stay a moment. The rest of you can head on out.”
When only the five of them remained, they sat on the couches as Alec spoke. “We’ll wear the earpieces and observe a while before we go in and have a talk with Samuel.”
“And bring him in?” Petra asked.
“Likely,” Alec said. “It all depends on how cooperative he is.”
Loni sat quietly, likely wondering what her part in this would be. He planned for her to stay at his side. He would keep her safe.
Alec went to the wall to the left and put his hand up to a sensor pad. It read his handprint and then the wall opened up from the middle. The divided wall slid open to either side, revealing a host of weapons and combat gear among other things, including earpieces. He handed the three Enforcers and Loni each an earpiece then took one for himself.
Again, like the Enforcers, Loni was wearing black leather from top all the way to supple leather boots that had been procured for her. She looked so damned beautiful.
As their gazes met, his thoughts turned to last night, a monumental mistake. He’d been so stupid to go to her and take her the way he had. A human. He’d taken a human.
Her gaze looked troubled and he wondered if she regretted it, too. Then he had to admit to himself that the way he’d treated her today, avoiding her as much as possible probably had something to do with the way she looked at him—like she’d been betrayed.
Damn. He had to force himself to get his mind on the job. He and Loni would need to talk later and he’d apologize and hope that she’d forgive him.
Hell, he didn’t deserve to be forgiven.
He turned away from her and sensed her feelings that vacillated between confused and angry. Anger was good. He could deal with that. He deserved that.
He faced the others. “This should be pretty straightforward. Once we’ve made sure Samuel is alone, we’ll grab him and take him in.”
“You got it,” Lyle said.
The others nodded and Loni stood by quietly.
Time to roll.
Chapter 14
Raindrops landed on Alec’s face but he ignored them as he eased through the lush backyard to the backside of Samuel Rogers’s house. Lightning cracked the sky and thundered followed close behind.
Flowers lined pathways and a fountain stood in the back, water trickling from one bowl to the next. A slow jazz tune floated from the house, the music smooth and almost as tranquil as the fountain sounded.
Loni kept close behind Alec. She had barely said two words to him since they’d left his home before the meeting at the Bar None. He felt the tension between them but had to put it aside for now.
He peeked in through a gap at the bottom of drawn wooden blinds and saw that he was looking into a kitchen. Someone sat at a table close to the window but the space Alec was staring through was too small to tell who it was.
Alec moved through the rain, up the back stairs, and onto a sun porch. One of the steps squeaked but the jazz playing inside the house would have covered the noise. No sounds came from the other side of the door other than the music.
He reached the backdoor and pressed himself to the wall beside the door. Behind him Loni did the same. She was holding the dagger that he’d given her earlier.
“Everyone in position?” he said as he touched his earpiece and the others respond in the affirmative. He unsheathed his sword and looked over his shoulder at Loni and said, “Stay back. There might be gunfire.”
She nodded but looked at him with a question in her eyes. If there might be gunfire, why would they bring a sword and a dagger to a gunfight?
Alec braced his shoulder against the backdoor, gritted his teeth, and then shouted, “Now!”
He rammed the door with his shoulder, his sword raised. He burst into a huge marble, wood, and tile kitchen. Immediately the blond male scooped a gun off the table and fired. Lead pinged against metal as Alec blocked every shot with his sword.
The male, who was an identical match to the picture of Samuel Rogers, dropped the gun and started to shift into an animal form. Alec had his sword to Samuel’s throat before the paranorm got much past his features beginning to transform.
The other Enforcers made sure the house was clear as Alec handled Samuel. He took the firearm and slipped it into the back of his pants where it would stay out of the drug dealer’s reach. Alec instructed two of his teammates to remain outside while the third covered the front door. Loni stood by the open back door, watching.
“Just stopped by to talk, Samuel.” Alec sheathed
his sword and pushed the dealer up against the wall and patted him down. “But now that you’ve shot at an enforcer of the law, we’re going to drag your ass down to task force headquarters.”
The male’s features shifted back into his human form as Alec cuffed his wrists behind his back then forced him onto his knees. They were near a table covered with small vials of liquid and a host of syringes. Someone shut off the jazz.
“Don’t take me in.” Samuel’s voice sounded rough from smoking the type of tobacco paranorms preferred. “He’ll have me killed.”
Alec braced one hand on a chair as he looked down at the shifter. “Who will have you killed?”
Samuel clamped his mouth shut and shook his head.
Alec gave him a grim look. “There’s no way out of this. So you might as well tell me what all of this is.”
“Nothing,” Samuel said. “It’s just a placebo. Makes paranorms think they’re on something.”
“Right.” Alec picked up one of the little glass bottles of clear fluid. The bottles were much like those used in the medical profession where syringes could be inserted through the top and only what was needed would be drawn out. “And the humans that have been seen coming and going from your house?”
Samuel licked his lips. “What humans?”
Alec crouched in front of Samuel so that they were at eye level as he held up one of the bottles. “We’re going to have these tested and then we’ll see exactly what’s in them.”
The dealer gave a nonchalant shrug that wasn’t as casual as he tried to make it appear. “Go ahead. You won’t find anything.”
“We’ll see.” Alec stood, still gripping the bottle in his left hand. “For now we’re going to take you in with us while we wait to find out exactly what it is.”
Genuine fear crossed Samuel’s face. “Don’t,” he said in a harsh whisper. “He’ll kill me if he thinks I talked.”
“Who is ‘he’?” Alec asked again.
A movement at the back door had Alec turning his head. A male with wicked hazel eyes and a mass of dark hair stood where Alec had expected Loni to be.
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