There was pause. Duncan had been half asleep. “That depends. Which car?”
“Aw, c’mon, old man. Let me have a little fun.”
“Can’t you drive your car?”
He opened the garage door and looked at the row of brightly colored toys. He rubbed his hands together. “My Mustang doesn’t purr like the M6.” The sweet cherry-red convertible was calling to him.
“My M6? No, Jaden. Remember what you did to my Boxster?”
He slipped the keys off the hook and slid behind the wheel. The scent of premium leather surrounded him. “That was not my fault. That dryad jumped right out in front of me.” He started the car, damn near purring himself at the sound of the engine. Fuck, Duncan had great taste in cars.
He could almost feel Duncan’s chuckles. “Don’t you mean her tree?”
He put the car in gear and pulled out of the garage, closing the door behind him. “Leave her tree out of this.”
“Be careful, Jaden. Get a scratch on that car and I’ll take it out of your hide.”
“Promises, promises.” He hit the gate remote and drove out into the night. “I’m heading toward Charles’s place. What time do you need to be at the Dunne’s?”
“No clue. Shane said he’d arrange things with his father and call us back. By the way, you’re under family orders to attend.”
Well. Shit. So much for working through the family fun-fest. He could just picture what Sean Dunne would do to him when he found out his baby girl was a vampire’s bondmate. “Can’t we just say I’m dead?”
“Jaden. You’ll be there and you’ll like it.” He winced at Moira’s tart tone. Apparently there were downsides to this whole bondmate thing, like long distance nagging. “Jaden. You know what? Just shut up. Get your ass back home before daybreak.”
“That doesn’t leave me a whole lot of time, sweetheart.” It was already three o’clock in the morning. Daybreak was in roughly three hours.
“Doesn’t matter. You need to be rested before you deal with my family.”
He rolled his eyes. “Yes, dear.”
She snorted. How the hell did you snort mentally? “Be careful, a ghra.”
His heart freaking melted right in his chest. He hoped he never took their love for granted. The gift they’d granted him was priceless, and he planned on treating it as such. “I will. Promise. Keep yourselves safe, got it?”
“Will do.” Moira sounded sleepy. “Love you, Jaden.”
“Love you, amoureaux. Get some rest.” Duncan sounded much more awake. “I’ll keep watch now. Moira, you can have the morning shift.”
Jaden couldn’t stop the smile from crossing his face. Duncan had been pissed at being stuck in the damsel-in-distress role, but Jaden knew Duncan was not prepared for what someone toying with the Black could throw at him. It was up to Jaden to keep them truly safe. “I’m not expecting a move from them tonight. They’ve laid down the gauntlet, now they’re going to watch how you react to it.”
“Which means they might be expecting you.”
“True. I’ve got plans for that, though.”
He felt Duncan’s surprise. “What plans?”
He smirked. “You’ll see. Don’t worry, this isn’t my first job.” And it wouldn’t be his last, bondmates or no. He helped people every day, people damaged by those who sought quick and dirty ways to power. As far as he was concerned he would be a Blade until the day he died whether he worked for Robin or not.
It was the least he could do to pay back all of the gifts fate had been kind enough to give him.
Jaden pulled up outside the house Charles Malmayne was currently calling home. It was a stately mansion located somewhere between where Leo Dunne now resided and Duncan’s latest acquisition, the huge brick mansion Moira was dying to redecorate. Duncan’s home, large though it was, still managed to feel like a home. Charles’s house, on the other hand, shouted money and power. Clad in pale stucco and stone with Grecian columns and a car port larger than most hotels had, it managed to look both boorish and pretentious. A huge fountain in the circular driveway featured a nude woman pouring water out of an urn surrounded by pissing cherubs. “It’s confirmed. Charles is definitely overcompensating.”
“What?”
“Have you seen his new place?” Jaden backed the car up until the house was out of sight. He pressed the button that raised the car’s roof and locked it into place.
“No, I haven’t.”
“Let’s just say that I doubt he serves cocktail wieners. They probably give him a complex.” He got out of the car and locked it before misting through the bushes and the fence. He solidified on Charles’s property and scented the air. “So far so good. I’m on the grounds.”
“Keep me posted.”
“Will do.” Jaden glided forward, soundless and swift. Vampires could move quickly when motivated, and Jaden had lots of motivation. He reached the side of the mansion within two blinks. He began to climb up the house, heading for the roof. He doubted Charles was stupid enough to leave him an open window, but that was all right.
Jaden didn’t need something to be open to get into a house. All he needed was a tiny crack.
He reached the roof unmolested. “I’m going to try and get into the house now.” He could almost hear Duncan grumbling. “I’m being careful, old man.”
“Stop calling me that.”
Jaden’s brows rose. Duncan’s tone was difficult to decipher. “I didn’t know you disliked me calling you that.” Duncan had never mentioned it before.
“I tolerated it. Now? No way in hell will my lover call me old man.”
Jaden shivered, and his dick turned rock-hard. Just like that he’d gone from Blade to lover. “Shit. Knock it off. How the hell am I supposed to pull a B&E with a hard-on?”
“Don’t go in, Jaden. Stay outside the house.”
“No can do. I need to know what Charlie-boy has planned.” He misted through the slight gap in the weatherproofing of the window casement, solidifying in the dark and musty attic. “No one ever takes care of the attic windows. Did you ever notice that?”
“Can’t say that I have.” If mental voices had teeth, Duncan’s would be clenched.
Jaden smirked. He crawled along the wall, careful to avoid the creaking floorboards because, mansion or hovel, they all had creaky floorboards somewhere. Very few of them had creaky walls, however, and that’s what he stuck to. “Spiderman, Spiderman, friendly neighborhood Spiderman.”
“Jaden. No. Please. The last time you did that I had that damn song stuck in my head for a week.”
Moira giggled, sounding sleepy. “Spins a web, any size. Catches thieves just like flies.”
“I hate you both.”
“Look out! Here comes the Spiderman!” Jaden chorused with Moira. He bit his lip to keep from laughing and opened the basement door.
Moira’s mental voice was full of amusement. “Why are we singing that, anyway?”
He stared at the two “men” outside the door. Both of them were holding .38’s pointed right at him. They were dressed like Secret Service men, complete with sunglasses and dangling wires in their ears. Idiots. “Step into my parlor.”
“Shit. Jaden?”
He stepped down, carefully lifting his hands into the air. He smiled, showing his fangs. Their scent reeked of moldy mushrooms. Fucking redcaps. He now had proof positive that Charles was living in the darker shade of gray. Redcaps only worked at the express order of their overlord, who was firmly in the Black. He strove to keep his voice quiet so as not to awaken any other would-be guardians. “Hey, neighbor. Can I borrow a cup of sugar?”
The goons frowned. One of them lowered his gun by a hair, if that. The other opened his mouth, hand lifting to his ear.
“Thank the gods they’re stupid.” That was all the opening he needed. Jaden pounced. He had the first one in a submission hold before the other could blink. His arm was around the redcap’s throat, cutting off his air. He ripped the wire out of his ear, keeping him fr
om contacting whoever it was he wanted backup from.
“Jaden?”
“Not now, sweetheart. Daddy’s working.” They seemed to move in slow motion, making it easy to avoid their blows. Jaden shifted, moving before the redcap could slam his elbow into Jaden’s stomach. He tightened his grip, using the redcap in his arms as a shield. He kept the Black Court fucker in a sleeper hold, waiting for him to drop. The free redcap feinted to the left, but Jaden didn’t buy it, didn’t give him an opening. Once a redcap had you in his arms it was damn hard to break free. The freaks were super-strong for all they were so thin, especially if they dropped their Seeming.
Jaden hoped they didn’t do that. He did not want to fill his quota of fugly for the day.
The redcap went limp in his arms, almost dragging Jaden to the floor with him. He held up and on, waiting to make sure the redcap was down for the count before dropping his limp form. He bared his fangs at the remaining redcap. “Looks like it’s just you and me, kid.”
The redcap eyed his fallen comrade and glared at Jaden. “You’ll pay for that.”
“That’s what they all say.” He wagged his fingers at the redcap in a “come here” gesture. “Here, stupid, stupid, stupid. C’mon, boy. Come on.”
The redcap growled and charged Jaden.
Perfect. Like I said, thank the gods these guys are idiots. This one hadn’t even thought to use his “hidden” microphone to call for help, let alone his gun.
Jaden used the redcap’s momentum to get behind him, swinging until he rested on the redcap’s back like a baby monkey. He grabbed hold of the redcap’s ears. “Giddy up!”
The redcap opened his mouth to roar. Jaden clamped a hand around that huge maw. “Uh-uh. No calling in reinforcements.” He twisted the ear he still gripped, earning himself a muffled howl. The redcap shook his head in an attempt to dislodge Jaden’s grip. “There ya go.” Jaden leaned down and bit into the side of the redcap’s neck. Instantly the redcap quieted, Jaden’s vampiric mind control kicking in, keeping the creature in his arms docile. He refused to use the power that made this feel good; all Jaden wanted was quiet. He drank until his opponent had suffered enough blood loss to pass out, but not enough to kill.
Blech. Mushrooms. Jaden swiped his tongue across the puncture wounds. He’d briefly considered killing the two goons but decided not to. He didn’t want it obvious he’d been there; that might get Duncan in trouble. It would be better to let Charlie-boy think that the two idiots had fallen asleep on the job. He arranged them so that they were leaning against the attic door, posing them as naturally as he could, heads leaned back and lolling, mouths open, arms draped over knees. He entered both of their minds, erasing his presence from their memories before misting down the hallway.
He reached the staircase to the lower level and solidified, ready to check the next level. He remembered from previous encounters that Charlie-boy preferred his office on the main level of any house he owned, and that was where Jaden was going. He didn’t have enough time to case the entire house. That would have to wait for another night.
“Jaden?”
Jaden sighed. Duncan hadn’t bothered him this much in years. “Yes, dear?”
“How is it going?”
He slid a foot onto the railing, testing to see how slick it was. “I don’t recommend the mushrooms.”
“Redcaps?”
Jaden blinked. How the hell did Duncan know that? He’d never described their taste to Duncan before. “Yes.”
“You aren’t hurt?”
“Pfft. Please.” He misted down the banister. The damn thing seemed a little shaky to him, so crawling down it was definitely out. When he reached the bottom he rematerialized, panting a bit. Misting was damn tiring. “There were only two.”
“Only two? Jaden!”
Jaden winced. Damn, the man could yell. Who knew? “Shh. Daddy’s still working.”
He heard the low growl in his mind. Duncan was going to have words for him when he got back. He grinned. He couldn’t wait. This side of Duncan was one he’d never have suspected before. It gave him all kinds of tingles to know he was the one who had Duncan in full protection mode, misplaced though it was.
He made his way silently through the lower floor, misting in stops and starts. It was a power that only worked for brief periods of time and the energy drain was horrendous. He might have to feed again before leaving the house if he kept this up.
Jaden came to a stop at the last room to the right before the servants’ wing. Ah-hah. He’d finally found what he was looking for—Charles’s office.
He stepped into the room and quietly began to rifle through Charles’s desk, careful to disturb as little as possible. He didn’t need Charles knowing that he’d been in here.
Jaden had learned long ago how to perform a B&E. He’d been working for Robin almost from the start of his service in the Gray Court. Once he’d proven adept at this aspect of his job Robin himself had taken him under his wing, teaching him the finer points of how to search a home and leave no traces behind. He’d gone for nighttime forays into neighborhoods that would have turned Duncan’s hair white if he’d known about it, but Jaden had learned. Oh, he’d learned. Robin was a hard taskmaster, but he had to admit the man was fair. When Jaden had done particularly well the Hob had managed to make the once unwanted boy feel like he’d found a true mentor. Strangely enough, Duncan had never once asked where he went at night. He hadn’t cared so long as Jaden came home in one piece. It was why he’d thought Duncan wouldn’t mind him taking the job offer Robin had held out like a lifeline all those years ago.
“I cared. I was afraid if I tried to rein you in you’d leave me.”
Jaden paused, setting down the papers he’d been reading. “You never told me that.”
“Of course not. I didn’t understand it myself.” Duncan sighed. “We have a lot to talk about.”
Jaden couldn’t stop the smile that crossed his face. “This is the part where we break out the foam curlers, paint our nails and talk about our feelings, isn’t it?”
“Asshole.” The amused affection in Duncan’s voice took the sting out of the insult. “Do what you have to do and come home to me, amoureaux.”
Jaden’s cheeks heated. He put the papers back in their proper place. Damn it, he had to focus on the job, not on his lovers. The risk of getting caught got higher with every minute he spent in Charles’s house.
He closed his eyes and let his senses lead the way. Sniffing, he noticed that Charles’s scent tended to linger over by a particular chair, near the globe and at the fireplace. Hmm. He checked out the chair but found nothing of interest, no secret caches or buttons hidden as knotwork. The globe was a standard minibar. He lifted out the booze but found no hidden compartments. Finally he checked out the fireplace.
No hidden passageways, no safe behind the painting. At least Charlie boy is smarter than the Deranged Darling was. Last but not least was the computer.
Jaden took out his cell phone. He dialed a number Robin had made him memorize for just such a situation.
“Big Red here.”
Jaden grinned. If anyone could break into Charles’s files it would be Robin’s pet gremlin. “Hey, Red. This is Blackthorn. I have a job for you.”
“Bring it on.”
He made sure the computer was running before giving Big Red the information he needed to begin rifling through the hard drive. Files began to open and close faster than should be possible, the gremlin’s magic touch working on the electronics.
Jaden kept one eye on the dancing files and another on the door, a sense of satisfaction purring through him.
“Hey, Blackthorn? You’re not going to believe this.”
Jaden checked the file that opened in front of him. He smiled when he saw what Big Red had highlighted. God, I love my job. “Download it all and send it to Robin. Hey, Red? Thanks.”
“My pleasure. Good luck, and happy hunting.”
Jaden hung up the phone and began to make his wa
y out of Charles’s house. There was no way the would-be Lord Malmayne would be able to get out of this one.
Akane pulled up outside the quaint farmhouse. It was an old Victorian, with white gingerbread accents and a wide front porch. It was difficult to tell the color in the dark, but she bet it was a soothing blue color, the trim a blinding white. It would suit the landscape around it. A huge wrap-around porch with a real porch swing gave the old Victorian a homey feel. A place like this in San Francisco would go for millions.
Out here in the sticks? Probably worth less than a hundred grand.
“Personally, I think it’s worth a bit more than that.”
Akane didn’t blink. How the fuck had the stranger come up on her that quietly? She smiled, pulling out all the charm at her disposal. “Hi. I’m lost.”
The man smiled down at her, his expression knowing. “I don’t think so, darlin’. I think you’re exactly where you’re meant to be.”
That slow, deep drawl did some strange things to her insides. Blue eyes gleamed down at her, the most dazzling she’d ever seen, like the finest of sapphires. His light hair looked like spun gold in the moonlight. He had to be the most beautiful man she’d ever laid eyes on, but she couldn’t let that distract her. She had a job to do, a family to save. “Can you tell me how to get to Highway Nine?” There was always a Highway Nine somewhere around these types of places.
The son of a bitch had the gall to lean his hip against the door of her car. “Now you and I both know you’re not looking for Highway Nine.”
She blinked up at him, trying to look small and unthreatening. She’d always succeeded in the past. Big lugs like these would fall into the palm of her hand, ready to be crushed into pulp. “Of course I am. I need to get to Omaha.”
His lips twitched. “Of course you do.” His hand reached out, his fingers tipping up her chin. He studied her face. Something about his close scrutiny had her squirming in her seat like a nine-year-old in front of the principal. “You don’t need to lie to me. In fact, I’d prefer it if you didn’t.”
She laughed, hoping it sounded as confused as she actually was. “Okay. I need to go now.”
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