She heard the council chamber doors open and turned to see Tobias walk out of the room. He came toward her, his face troubled. “Nix—”
“Did you tell them about the demon scent?” she asked, hands on hips.
“They told me word had come to them. I wasn’t going to lie.”
“Of course not, because that would be against the rules.” She exhaled and shook her head, her emotions going from angry to sad. “You think that living by rules is the only way to go, even when those rules make you a slave. Sometimes rules are made to be broken. Chaos can be good. Sometimes it’s even necessary.”
“Now you sound like Natchook.” His expression hardened. “Can you seriously tell me that if our situations were reversed you would jeopardize your job, your integrity, by lying to them?”
“I might for you,” she said. Then she sighed. If Tobias had only confirmed what they already knew, that was different than if he’d volunteered the information without being asked. But, still, he did what he’d always done—made a decision without talking it over with her. Once again he had brushed her aside as if she were too trivial to matter. Maybe she should have paid attention to that little inner voice earlier this morning when it had whispered that perhaps they were rushing into things.
Tobias stared out the window. He wasn’t exactly her favorite person right now, but she had to admit if only to herself that she loved his profile—strong and masculine, handsome with just a touch of ruggedness. “There is something else I should tell you, though,” he said, his voice low. He kept looking through the glass. “They told me yesterday they were going to kick you off the case.”
She blinked. “And you didn’t tell me?” She went back to hating him a little. God, he fit right in with these sniveling, sneaky, slick SOBs.
He turned toward her then and put his hands on her shoulders. “They specifically ordered me not to. I almost did last night, before we…”
“Before we took a tumble in the sheets?” she finished for him. “Or after you spun me a fairy tale?” She snorted. “I can’t even say we made love now, knowing what I know.”
He tightened his fingers. “We did make love, Nix. I meant every word I said last night.”
“Right.” She shrugged away from him, so angry her vision had taken on shades of yellow. Her forehead felt like thousands of fire ants were biting her skin. A tear rolled down her cheek and she swore, wiping it away with fingers that trembled. “You tell yourself whatever you have to so you can sleep at night, but don’t you dare lie to me. Again.” She met his eyes. “I spend half of my time thinking about how much I love you,” she whispered, not bothering to swipe again at the tears streaming down her cheeks. “And the other half wishing like hell you’d never come back.” She started to leave, her only thought to get out of the building before those two tattletale guards blabbed to the council that she’d lost it in the vestibule.
Tobias grabbed her arm and stopped her. Dragging her with him, he walked over to an office and opened the door, then pulled her inside the empty room and pressed her against the closed door. “Don’t you dare try to lessen what I feel for you,” he said, his voice a fierce rasp. “I walked away from you five years ago because I loved you, because I thought it was for the best—for you—and it was a mistake. One I’m not about to repeat by letting you walk away from me now.” He gave her a little shake. “Whatever else you may think of me, Nix, you know I’ve never lied to you. Never.”
Nix met his gaze, a little shocked to see his eyes were moist. He was always so strong, so tough. So proud. Yet he was a caring and sympathetic man, one with strong principles and even stronger passions. She shouldn’t be so surprised.
He was right. He’d always been honest with her, sometimes brutally so. The fact that he’d thought about disobeying orders on something that wasn’t life threatening said a lot. She just wasn’t sure it was enough. He knew how much this job meant to her, knew it was the best way she had to prove her worth to herself. After so many years of being rejected by family, this job was all she had. All she was.
The pheromones rolled off him in undulating waves. As a tear dripped off her chin, he muttered a low curse. He brought his hands up and cupped her face, then slanted his mouth over hers.
Her eyes fluttered closed. Lightning traveled from her lips to her core, tightening her nipples along the way. With a moan of surrender, of longing, of desperation, she wrapped her arms around him and held on.
Nix ran her palms across his ribs and over his broad chest, letting her thumbs brush across his nipples. He groaned and pulled her closer, one strong hand just below the small of her back, pressing the knife scabbard into her flesh and her belly against his erection. The kiss deepened, tongues dueling, and she threaded her fingers through his soft hair, holding his head where she wanted it.
She had the hard door behind her and an equally hard man in front of her. She shivered, her arousal climbing another notch. He pulled back a fraction, slid his tongue over her bottom lip and then sucked on it. She moaned again. He nipped her lightly and drew back. “We should get going.”
Nix sighed and rested her hands against his chest. The council hadn’t fired her. She’d continue to do her job, just not on this case. “Don’t you mean you should get going?”
“I said what I meant.”
Surprise shot through her. “You still want me to go along.” The words came out flat, more of a statement than the question she’d intended. “Isn’t that against the rules or something?”
“Someone I greatly admire told me not all that long ago that sometimes rules are made to be broken.” He pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose. “Something tells me this is all wrapped up with that rift device, Nix. I need you on this. So let’s get out of here, okay?”
“Okay.” She stared at him, searching his eyes. Maybe he had changed, after all. The old Tobias would never have allowed her to participate in something the council had declared was off limits to her. She swiped the moisture off her face with her fingers, then wiped her hands on her jeans. “Do I look like I’ve been crying?”
“You look beautiful.” He cupped her face between his palms and pressed his lips to hers for a long, lingering kiss. “Let’s go.”
Chapter Fourteen
As soon as they exited the building, MacMillan hopped out of his truck and sauntered over to them. “You weren’t in there as long as I thought you’d be,” he said with a glance at his watch. He lifted his hand to shield his eyes from the sun.
“I’ve been kicked off the case,” Nix said.
“Join the club.” One edge of MacMillan’s mouth kicked up in a wry grin. “Captain told me to take the day off and dig back into my other cases tomorrow.” He peered more closely at Nix. “Have you been crying?” He shot a dark look at Tobias. “You been giving her a hard time?” His expression hardened. He looked like he was ready to take Tobias on.
“No.” While he appreciated the other man’s protective instincts toward Nix, Tobias didn’t want to go into details about their personal troubles. As much as he liked the detective, what happened between Tobias and Nix was none of the other man’s business. He pulled his sunglasses out of his pocket and slipped them on. “Let’s get going.”
“Ah, I just told you I’m no longer on the case.” Spreading his feet apart, MacMillan hooked his thumbs over his belt.
“And I’ll tell you what I told Nix.” Tobias gestured toward his SUV. “I need you on this case.” At the detective’s look of surprise, Tobias said, “You’re a seasoned investigator, MacMillan. You’re familiar with the case to date. I’m not too proud to say I need help. I’d like your input.”
“Well, okay then, chief. My captain told me to take the day off; he didn’t tell me what I should do.” As they walked toward the vehicle, MacMillan put an arm around Nix’s waist. “Are you okay? I’ve never seen you cry before.”
Tobias fought the urge to rip the other man away from her and toss him into a nearby cactus. He should be glad the detectiv
e was solicitous of her feelings, but seeing MacMillan with his arm around her brought out all the possessive instincts Tobias had.
“I’m fine, Dante.” Nix apparently caught the glare Tobias sent their way, because she scowled at him but then eased away from MacMillan. “I’m just upset at being kicked off the case.”
“Uh-huh.” MacMillan studied her. “Not buyin’ it, sweetheart. What’s going on?” He looked at Tobias.
“Nothing.” Tobias hit the remote, opened the door, and climbed behind the wheel.
“Right.” From his hardening tone, MacMillan wasn’t going to let it go. “Somebody tell me what’s going on, right now.”
“Oh, God, men can be so dense sometimes.” Nix’s tone was exasperated and a little embarrassed. She opened the front passenger door and paused. “It’s personal between Tobias and me, okay?”
MacMillan opened the back door and hopped in as Nix climbed up into her seat. They both swung their doors closed at the same time. As he fussed with his seat belt, MacMillan said, “Well, you must’ve gotten something resolved, since you’re wanting to sit up front with him.”
“Shut up.” Nix said it without any real heat, but her cheeks were pink.
“I just want to say, if you hurt her again, you’ll answer to me.” MacMillan met Tobias’s gaze in the rearview mirror, his face set, eyes blazing with determined chivalry.
Tobias turned in his seat to look at the detective. “You and whose army?” he couldn’t resist asking. He could take the detective down with the flick of a wrist, and the other man knew it.
“Just me.” MacMillan’s tone softened. “But only when you’re knocked out, tied up, or otherwise helpless.”
Nix rolled her eyes with a muffled “Men.” She snapped her seat belt together and said, “Dante, I appreciate the sentiment, but I can look after myself. Now, if you two are done, can we get going?”
Tobias twisted the ignition. The SUV purred to a start and he engaged the drive. “Let me fill you in on what we know,” he said to MacMillan. By the time they’d merged on to the expressway the detective knew what they did, including the rift device and the interdimensional communications.
MacMillan wore an expression of shock. “So, do you think your friend Amarinda was involved in this mess?”
Nix twisted in her seat to look at him. “You mean…involved?”
“Well, I don’t necessarily mean she sat there with one finger pressed to the on switch, but yeah. Involved. Was she in the middle of what was going on?”
It hadn’t occurred to Tobias, but now that he thought about it… “I honestly don’t know. Do I think she would have gotten mixed up in this out of malicious intent? No.” He glanced at Nix where she sat in the passenger seat next to him, chewing on her lower lip. God, she was so pretty. And he wanted to be the one nibbling on that courtesan mouth. He forced his eyes back to the road. “But could she have gotten involved out of boredom or curiosity? Absolutely.”
“You really think so?” Nix stared at him, her lovely eyes dark with so much confusion it made him ache. When this was all over, he’d show her how much he loved her so that she’d never doubt it again.
Tobias cleared the rasp from his throat. “She’d been around a very long time. Lived all over the world. It wouldn’t be a stretch to imagine her hooking up with a bunch of hooligans for a break from the monotony.”
“I just don’t see that. I mean, I know she could be frivolous at times. I actually used to envy her a little for that.” Memories of a lonely, hard childhood reflected for a moment on her face. “But she wouldn’t be in cahoots with the bastards behind this rift device. Being bored is one thing, but inviting total chaos into the world? Nope. I don’t see it.”
Tobias stared at her.
“What?” she asked. When he continued to stare, she muttered, “Eyes on the road, Caine. Tobias!”
He growled a curse and corrected the drift of the SUV into the other lane.
“Now, what was that look for?” Nix asked again.
“What you just said. That she wouldn’t invite chaos into the world.” He glanced into the rearview mirror and saw he had MacMillan’s attention as well. “It’s something Natchook would do.”
“Who’s Natchook?” MacMillan asked.
“Tobias, you don’t think…” She blinked, horror building in her eyes. “Could it be him behind all of this?”
“I wouldn’t put it past him. He’s brilliant and charismatic. A deadly combination. And he’s very fond of chaos,” he added in a dry tone. He tightened his hands on the wheel. It was just Natchook’s style to kill his own kind but lay a false trail pointing the authorities toward someone completely innocent of any wrongdoing.
“Who’s Natchook?” MacMillan asked again.
“It’s the guy Tobias followed through the rift,” Nix told him.
“Oh.” He leaned forward and braced one forearm on the back of Tobias’s seat. “The douche bag who killed your leader.”
“You know about that?” Tobias asked, a little surprised.
“Yeah, Nix told me.”
“Oh, she did, did she?” He shot her a look. While it wasn’t exactly a secret, his story wasn’t widely known and he preferred it that way. How he lived his life was nobody’s business but his.
“It’s not like it was classified or anything. He deserved to know he wasn’t going to be working with a criminal.” She leaned her head against the headrest.
“Fair enough.” Leaning forward, Tobias turned on the audio system. Soon the strains of Vivaldi filled the vehicle. He settled back in his seat and the rest of the drive was accomplished without anyone speaking.
When he started up the road to the observatory, Nix broke the silence. “How do you want to do this? Should we split up?”
“No. We’ll stay together to question Sahir, like before.” Tobias wanted to watch her reactions. Sometimes the way she processed information gave him a new direction to move in. MacMillan, too.
He drove through the gate and parked the SUV. They all climbed out and headed toward the observatory. He saw MacMillan turn up the collar of his jacket against the cool air of the mountain. When they walked inside the main building, Tobias took off his sunglasses and stopped the first person he saw. “We’d like to talk to Dr. Sahir.”
“Yeah, good luck with that,” the young man said. His freckled face turned disgruntled. “He didn’t show up for work today.”
Tobias raised his brows. “Is that so? Is that normal?”
“No, not at all.” He stopped and frowned. Suspicion laden in his voice, he asked, “Hey, just who are you?”
Tobias reached into his pocket and pulled out his ID. “I’m Tobias Caine, this is Nix de la Fuente and Dante MacMillan,” he said, motioning toward his colleagues. He replaced his holder in his pocket. “We’d like to ask you a few questions.”
“O-kay,” the other man said slowly, looking unsure and more than a little nervous. It could be because he was young and being approached by law enforcement for the first time, or it could be because he had something to hide. It was time to find out.
“Did you know Amarinda Novellus?”
The young man gave a nod. “Amarinda? Yeah, sure. I knew her.” He stared down at the clipboard in his hand. “It’s a damned shame, what happened to her.” He looked up at Tobias. “You found out who did it yet?”
“That’s why we’re here.” Nix had pulled out her notebook and held pen poised to page. She peered at his name badge and scribbled something down.
“Uh, what’re you doing?” The young man’s nervousness increased. His eyes drifted from her notebook to the gun at her side and back to the notebook, neck craning as he tried to see what she was writing.
“Just noting your name for now. Charles.” She stared at him with raised brows. “Is that a problem?”
“Oh, no. Of course not.” He gave a sheepish grin. “My friends call me Charlie.” One eyelid dropped in a wink.
Even in an uncertain situation here the guy w
as flirting with her. Tobias curbed his inclination to smash his fist into the little numb nut’s face.
Charlie went on. “I’m just not used to… This is my first interrogation.” He looked equal measure scared and excited.
Tobias sighed. There were just too many damned cop shows on television these days. “This isn’t an interrogation. It’s an interview. There’s a difference.”
“Really?” Charlie gave Tobias a wide-eyed stare.
Tobias leaned forward as if imparting some deep dark secret. He waited until Charlie moved closer a few steps. “If this were an interrogation, you’d be at council headquarters in handcuffs. Surrounded by vampires and shape-shifters and all sorts of things that go bump in the night.” His voice came out more gruffly than he’d intended, and it clearly startled Charlie because he quickly put space between them, eyes even wider and youthful face a couple of shades paler than before.
“Tobias, behave.” Nix rolled her eyes and turned to Charlie. “What do you know about what Rinda was working on?” When the young man’s attention stayed glued to Tobias, she prompted, “Charlie?”
He gave a start and looked her way. “Oh, uh, not much. She was studying the rift, but I don’t know anything more specific than that.” He snapped his fingers. “You know who you should talk to? Dr. Sahir.” He gave a definitive nod.
“You said he’s not here today.” Nix tipped her head to one side, her expression conveying much more patience than Tobias had with the little nimrod.
“Yeah.” Charlie’s face fell. “No, he’s not.”
“Do you know where he could be?” She brushed a wayward curl from the side of her face. It popped right back where it had been.
Tobias clenched his hands against the instinct to tuck it behind her ear. If he touched her, even just her hair, he wouldn’t want to stop there. He was more professional than that, and so was she.
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