by Ally Shields
“Oh, it’s nothing. She’s decided Dona only likes Otherworlders.”
“A most discerning cat.” He pulled a bottle of blood from the fridge, then poured it into a tall black glass. “What do we hear from Toronto?”
“It’s quiet. Ursula must have been too busy ranting and raving to plot her revenge before daylight overtook her. She’ll do something tonight,” Ari predicted.
He chugged the contents of the glass, rinsed it in the sink, filled it with water, and drank that too. “I hope you are wrong. If she has regained her composure, Ursula may see the wisdom of conferring with the elders before taking any action. That could give us a day or two to plan and prepare.” He turned, resting his long length against the sink. “How do you feel today? Recovered?”
“Yep. My hip’s got a tiny twinge, but not much. See.” She stood and walked for him without a trace of yesterday’s limp.
“Hmm. Yes, I see. Nice shorts.”
She looked up at the tone of his voice. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m all sweaty from working out. I need a shower.”
He started toward her. “I can help with that.”
She backed away, grinning, and he caught her at the kitchen door. Ari ran her hands up his bare chest, then squirmed away and bounded up the grand staircase. Andreas was one step behind.
Chapter Sixteen
Dona hissed and growled, scrambled off Ari’s shoulder, and raced into Claris’s greenhouse. Her tail disappeared under a row of hibiscus plants as Ari’s astonished gaze followed the kitten’s retreat. “Dona! Watch the claws.” She rubbed her shoulder. “What’s the matter with you?” Ari turned back to Claris and the motherly antique dealer standing beside her. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s gotten into her. She isn’t normally like this.” Ari felt a moment of kinship with mothers of children screaming in a store. Guilty, embarrassed, as if she had committed some terrible social blunder.
“Oh, it’s all right.” By the woman’s tone, Ari could tell her feelings were hurt. “Cats can be very picky. My Abbey, who died last year, hid whenever a man was in the house.” She looked at Claris. “Thanks for thinking of me. At least I know now I want another cat. But it won’t be this one,” she added wistfully. “Your kitten isn’t likely to change her mind. Cats never do, you know.”
Ari watched the disappointed woman exit the shop. “I never expected that. Maybe you were right about Dona, but why wouldn’t she like humans?”
“She’s just different. I told you she only tolerates me. You’re the one she follows around.”
Ari turned and looked into the greenhouse. “When I move back to my apartment, I won’t have enough space for two cats. Maybe Andreas will keep her. He’s got a big house with lots of room.” She smiled as the kitten peeked out from among the plants. “Dona seems to like him, and she loves to play with the weretigers on the third floor.”
“All Otherworlders. You have a snooty cat.” Claris’s grin took any reproof away. “Now that Dona has ended that adoption plan, can you stay for coffee?”
Ari hesitated, suddenly anxious at the thought of extending her time away from Andreas. But even with the threat of Ursula hanging over them, they couldn’t spend all their time together. She’d seen him just an hour ago, and it wasn’t as if he was sleeping and defenseless. He was at the club, where Russell and Lilith and several armed guards would let her know if anything was wrong.
“Sure. Why not. I could use a little time away from Otherworld affairs.” She’d only told Claris about the current dangers in very broad and vague terms. “How was Wednesday’s plant exchange?”
“Fabulous. A customer even brought in an herb I didn’t have. This place was packed from front to back, and I had a hard time keeping track of everyone. Hernando didn’t like the activity and hid upstairs in the bedroom.” Claris continued to expound on the plant sale until they were interrupted by the cats. Hernando bounded into the room chased by his offspring; he leaped onto the table to escape, but Dona easily followed. At eleven weeks old, the kittens could go wherever they wanted.
“Oh, no. Get down. No cats on my table,” Claris ordered, laughing at their antics.
When Ari helped her push them off, Hernando strutted away, his tail twitching. Dona looked up at the two young women, her whiskers bristling with surprise that she’d been dumped on the floor.
“Now you see what rejection feels like.” Ari looked at the kitten in amusement. “No fun, huh? Next time maybe you’ll be kinder to people who only want to give you a good home.”
Dona blinked and raced off after Hernando.
Claris laughed. “I don’t think she took you very seriously. Maybe it was the grin on your face.”
“OK, so I indulge her. Which reminds me, what do you hear from Brando?”
“That was an abrupt switch. Or are you implying that Brando’s indulged?” When Ari raised on eyebrow, Claris added, “By me?”
“You certainly let him have his way. I’d never put up with him taking off all the time. Didn’t you tell me he wasn’t calling as regularly as he used to? I wouldn’t accept that. Not if he wanted to be my boyfriend.”
Claris looked at her hands. “But I’m not you, Ari. I’m afraid I’d drive him away for good, and I don’t want to make that decision yet. Maybe soon, but not now.”
“Maybe soon? Oh, Clare, I didn’t know it was that bad.” Ari felt her stomach clutch. Were her friends about to make a terrible mistake? Or was this their destiny? “Does Gabriel have anything to do with this?”
Claris shook her head. “Not really. Except it’s nice to be around someone so attentive. Gabriel has a way of making me feel like I’m important, special.”
“You are special. You’re special to Brando. And to me, to Andreas, to Hernando. To a whole bunch of people. Brando simply gets preoccupied sometimes.”
“If I really mattered, would he be so wrapped up in everything else? Look what Andreas did when you were in trouble. He dropped everything.”
Claris had her there. Even though Ari hadn’t wanted him to come rushing to Utah, it was rather nice that he had. Maybe she should give Brando a nudge. “Brando doesn’t know anything’s wrong. You haven’t told him.”
“I shouldn’t have to tell him. And don’t you dare call him.” Claris gave her a sidewise, warning glance. “It doesn’t count unless it was his idea.”
When Claris’s chin began to quiver, Ari went around the table and put her arms around her.
Damn Brando. She’d like to give him a good whack on the head.
* * *
When Ari arrived home with the kitten, Samuel met her at the tunnel entrance from the club. It was her usual route. The mansion gates and formal lawn were too imposing.
“Here, let me take that.” He reached for the box with the active, complaining kitten. “Adoption didn’t work out?”
“No, Dona was really unfriendly. Claris thinks she’s partial to Otherworlders.”
“Hmm, maybe.” Samuel nodded, looking rather distracted. “Andreas isn’t with you? Do you know where he is?”
“At the club. That’s where he was going when I last saw him. Why?” The concern on his face made her stiffen. “Is something wrong?”
“I hope not. But Russell’s at the club, and he just called looking for Andreas.”
“Have you tried his cell phone? Or called the vampire compound?”
“Russell tried both before he called here.”
She pulled out the new cell phone Andreas had bought to replace the one destroyed in Utah. When she flipped it on, she discovered he’d also transferred her contact list. Always so efficient. She punched in Gabriel’s number.
“Is Andreas with you?”
“Is he supposed to be?” Gabriel’s voice was amused. “If he’s slipped the leash, I wouldn’t want to get him in any trouble.”
“Be serious, Gabriel. No one knows where he is.”
She heard his quick intake of breath, and his next words were all business. “Where was he last se
en?”
“I don’t know for sure. I went to Claris’s about five thirty, and he said he was going to the club. I don’t know if he’s been there and left or what, but Russell’s looking for him too.”
“I’ll meet you at the club in five minutes.”
* * *
Russell, Lilith, and Gabriel’s quiet conversation vibrated with anxiety when Ari arrived.
“No one’s talked to him this evening,” Gabriel announced as soon as he saw her.
Ari’s heart raced, and she thought about all the things that could have gone wrong, their growing list of enemies.
“Let’s not assume the worst,” he added. “Andreas could be almost anywhere, talking with someone, following up on court business. What I don’t like is his failure to answer his cell phone.”
“I hope Ursula didn’t sneak into town,” Russell said.
Silence. No one even looked at him.
“It could be the witches,” Lilith said. “Maybe they teleported him somewhere.”
“I can’t imagine why, but better that than Ursula.” Ari glanced at Russell. “Let’s not panic. Where haven’t we looked?”
“We checked the house, the compound, and here. I’ve send out a couple of search parties to check around the clubs and bars.” Russell’s voice was tense, reflecting the fear that rippled in the room. “Can’t you sense him?” He cocked his head at Ari.
She looked at him blankly for a moment. Where was her head? She opened her end of the magical link and immediately found a faint, pulsing energy. “Yes, I can,” she said with relief. “But I can’t get a strong reading.” She pushed her thoughts toward him, but he didn’t respond. “I can’t reach him this way.”
“At least we know he’s out there. We’ll find him.” Russell gave her a brisk nod and started out the door. “I promise we’ll bring him home.”
She knew his words were well-intended, but he was making a promise he might not be able to keep. Why was Andreas’s energy level so low? Was he injured? Her stomach knotted, and she ran a hand over her neck, trying to think what to do next. Damn, damn, damn. If he was in trouble, she didn’t even know which enemy was after him.
She grabbed Gabriel’s arm when he started to leave. “I’m going with you.”
“Where are we going?” Lilith asked. “I haven’t heard anyone even suggest somewhere to look.”
Ari waved her back. “You stay here and call if he shows up.”
But Gabriel asked the same question as they stepped outside the club. “Where to?”
“Anywhere. As long as we’re not standing around staring at one another. If something’s happened to him…” Ari strode down the street.
Gabriel caught up and grabbed her arm. “We won’t be helping if we wander around without anyone knowing where we are. Pretty soon they’ll be looking for us instead of Andreas.”
“I have to do something,” she snapped, jerking her arm away. “So tell me what.”
“I’ve been thinking about his cell phone, why he wouldn’t answer. There is one place where there’s no coverage.”
Sudden hope surged. “The caverns.”
“You got it.” But Gabriel was talking to dead space. Ari had taken off running, and he hurried to catch her.
They sprinted through the dark streets of Olde Town, arriving at the damaged cavern entrance within minutes. A dwarf, smaller and older than the one who had been there previously, sat on a rock outside the opening.
“Why are you outside?” Gabriel asked.
“We don’t go there anymore.” The dwarf nodded toward the entrance. “Nobody wants to risk another cave-in.”
“Have you seen Andreas?” Ari was growing impatient.
“Not tonight. No one’s been around. It’s been right peaceful.”
She looked at Gabriel. “He could have used one of the cliff entrances.”
“Actually, it’s more likely,” Gabriel agreed immediately. “That’s how he’s used to entering. This is the shortest way to the Chamber of Ages, but not if he had other business.” He turned to the dwarf. “May we borrow your lantern?”
“Help yourself.”
Gabriel grabbed the handle, and they picked their way through the debris. Once they were inside the cavern, they quickened their pace. Rounding the last corner before the Chamber of Ages, Ari nearly collided with a familiar dark figure.
“Slow down.” He grabbed her. “What is the hurry?”
“Andreas.” Gabriel and Ari echoed together.
“Are you all right?” She hugged him tightly as relief poured over her. “Where have you been? Why didn’t you answer your phone?” Unbidden tears formed. Fighting to hide her emotional reaction, she pulled away and stomped back toward the cave entrance.
“What is happening?” Andreas asked in confusion. “Of course I am all right. Gabriel?”
“Come on.” Gabriel tugged on his friend’s arm. “She’s just happy to see you.”
“Really. Is there something I need to know?”
“Nothing new.” Gabriel grinned at him. “I think she’s mad because you aren’t injured or dead or at least in dire danger.”
Neither of the men tried to catch or stop her. When she reached the cave entrance well ahead of vampires, she asked the dwarf to tell them she’d be at the club. She was pissed but not enough to make them worry about her.
Ari took off running, stretching her legs, pumping her arms, enjoying the feel of the wind in her hair. She kept pushing her speed. Up down, up down. Pounding the fright and adrenaline out of her system. She didn’t slow until she was in sight of Club Dintero, then she stopped and got her breathing under control before she entered the building.
She stuck her head in the security room doorway. “Andreas is all right.”
“We heard. He phoned in.” Lilith turned toward her. “You OK?”
“Um, yes, I’m fine.” Ari gave a sheepish grin. “I guess he said something, huh?”
“Just that you weren’t very welcoming.”
Ari snorted. “Got that right. I think I ran most of it off, so I don’t plan to kill him now.”
“Glad to hear that.” Russell made a poor attempt to hide his grin. “’Cause I might not try to stop you if you did. Did you get an explanation? All he said to me was he was fine and he’d be here soon.”
“Um, I don’t know. I didn’t wait to hear one.” She looked behind her when she heard voices in the hall. “I think they’ve arrived.”
Followed by Russell and Lilith, Ari traipsed into Andreas’s office and dropped onto the couch. Andreas sat with one leg on the corner of his desk and gave her an arched brow. Russell was still on his cell phone calling off the search teams, and no one said anything until he finished.
Andreas apologized immediately. “I truly am sorry. Gabriel told me how worried everyone was, thinking something might have happened to me. I was on the way to the club when I began to wonder if the witches had gotten Ari out of town so they could search the caves again. I went there to check that everything was secure. It did not occur to me anyone would be worried about my absence.”
“Was anything wrong?” Gabriel asked. “You were gone nearly two hours, so there must have been something.”
“No, nothing unusual. I stopped to see Zylla and was not paying particular attention to the time.” He frowned. “Has something happened that set off this concern?”
“You mean like Ursula terrorizing half the continent or a black witch coven in town that’s killing people?” Ari’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “You should have taken someone with you. At least called me.”
“I think that is my cue to leave,” Gabriel said. “I’m pleased to know you’re fine, my friend. We’ll talk later.”
Andreas nodded, as Gabriel, Russell, and Lilith filed out. His hooded gaze shifted to Ari, still seated on the couch. “I admit you have a right to be angry. I should have called, and I will do so in the future.” He ran a hand through his hair, leaving it tousled. “Many things have changed in the l
ast few months, Arianna. You, my position as prince. I am still getting used to my responsibilities, but, yes, I know one of them is keeping everyone informed.” He slid off the desk and walked toward her. “I am not accustomed to reporting in or taking bodyguards wherever I go. I was merely going about my business.”
She looked up at him. “I know that. But you scared me…all of us. We thought something bad had happened. Why wouldn’t we, when you didn’t answer your cell phone?”
“There is no coverage in the caves.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“No, I was merely stating the facts.” He turned away. “If you are determined to stay angry, I have work to do.”
“Fine, then do it.”
He whirled and pinned her against the back of the couch, holding her forearms so she couldn’t take a swing. As he shifted his weight against the length of her body, the tension in the room took on a very different hue. His expression darkened. “Are you going to forgive me soon or not?”
“I don’t know that I should, but it depends.” Her pulse began to race as her fear slid into something even more compelling. She pulled against his grasp, wanting to twine her fingers in his hair, and he released her arms. He kept her firmly trapped beneath his body.
“On what?” he growled in her ear. “This?” He nibbled on her earlobe. “Or this?” He brushed his lips against her jawline.
“This,” she said, sliding her fingers into his hair and meeting his kiss.
Chapter Seventeen
Ari woke to a loud pounding on her bedroom door. Looking at the window, it was still dark outside. The clock read 3:45. What the hell? She’d only been asleep two hours.
“Who is it? What’s the matter?” She jumped out of bed and grabbed a robe. The silky thing didn’t cover much but was better than answering the door in her T-shirt and panties.
She threw open the door to see Samuel’s scowling face.
“It’s Ursula. She wiped out an entire vampire court in Canada. I guess it’s a pretty gruesome scene.”