My senses were blazing, running on high alert. I could feel them inside: two vampires. I had a feeling there were more than that. I thought of Kale, alone at Lena’s. I worried that we’d left him outnumbered.
At such a late hour, the restaurant was near empty. The real party was happening in the attached lounge. Occupying one large table at the far end of the restaurant were our two vampires. Neither of them were what I’d been expecting.
They sat together facing us, on one side of the table, a man and woman. He was middle-aged in appearance but felt like he’d been a vampire for a very long time. Long, straight dark hair and dark eyes, he was formally dressed. He regarded us with a cool, calculating expression that filled me with ice-cold trepidation.
The woman at his side was tall and thin, a model’s body. Her auburn hair was piled on her head and pinned with several gold clips. Her brown eyes fell upon me like I was the main course at a feast. Her off-kilter gaze reminded me of the vacant stare of a serial killer, the look of one truly unstable.
She merely gave me a passing look, though; Arys held her attention. The way she looked him over before licking her lips told me enough. I didn’t get the feeling this was their first meeting.
“Arys Knight … how long has it been? I remember like it was yesterday.” She turned a smug smile on the rest of us, but her gaze was locked on Arys.
“Not nearly long enough, Claire. Don’t waste time with phony chit-chat. What the hell are you doing in my city?” Arys’ tone dripped venom, and when he refused to take a seat, I followed his lead.
“Come now.” Claire gestured to the chairs across from her. “We can sit and discuss this rationally, can’t we? The faster you cooperate, the faster we can be on our way.”
The fury flowing from Arys was palpable. Gripping the back of the chair in front of him, he squeezed so hard that the metal groaned. “Start talking or we walk.”
The grin faded from Claire’s face, and she became stone. “And, kill your human friend so fast? As much fun as I recall you were to play with Arys, this is business. Don’t disrespect me.”
Jez and Shaz shadowed Arys and I. They remained quiet, but I felt their tension. They were ready for anything. I wasn’t sure what to expect. The vibes I got from the two vampires made my skin crawl.
“Then get to the f**king point.” Arys glared down at her with such hate in his eyes. “If you don’t want to play, start talking.”
Claire’s brilliant smile was suddenly pasted back in place. She was genuinely enjoying this whole ordeal. “You let your dog kill Harley. That put a little damper on business. A blood ring doesn’t operate quite so smoothly when one of its founding members and suppliers is suddenly murdered. Maxwell and I are here to give you the chance to make things right.”
Did that bitch call me a dog? Or did she mean Shaz? It didn’t matter. We’d both killed Harley, and this skank was going to shit talk us like we were common animals. I bristled as anger flooded me.
“What do you expect me to do about it?” Arys was flippant. “Harley’s business is none of mine. I want nothing to do with it.”
Maxwell was especially quiet. A tiny smile pulled at his thin lips. Something about him just wasn’t right. He hadn’t done a thing or exerted any power, but I was sure he was the real threat of the two of them. My discomfort grew as a sick sensation crept through me.
“Arys, honey. We just want what’s rightfully ours. You’d want the same, would you not?”
“Money?” I asked, struggling not to address the dog comment.
Claire looked at me like I was a child asking a stupid question. “Money is useless to us. We want only one thing.” She paused for dramatic effect, and it took all my strength not to roll my eyes at her. Looking from me to Arys, she looked far too happy. “Harley’s killers, of course.”
Arys laughed bitterly. “Come on, Claire. Be realistic.”
“Oh, but I am.” She peered at him, wide-eyed and sickly sweet. Leaning in close to Maxwell, she pressed her lips to his cheek and purred, “Isn’t that right, baby?”
“Wait,” Shaz spoke up, a growl lacing his words. “This is some vengeance scheme because of a dirtbag like Harley? You’d threaten an innocent life over that?”
Claire let her gaze wander over Shaz, but she dismissed him almost instantly. Her eyes found Jez, the only naturally born shifter among us. “Give us the leopard instead, and we’ll consider it a fair trade.”
I was all fangs. The bitch was crossing the line already. I felt Arys’ touch, light on my mind. He wanted me to stay calm. I was trying. Instinct told me that these two were far more dangerous than they appeared. The more of my friends that they threatened, the greater my need to fight back.
Arys leaned down over the table, getting in Claire’s personal space. “The leopard is not a bargaining chip. You know damn well that I won’t hand my wolves over to you. So get the hell out of my city.”