020
Pandora hopped out of my truck at home without Jo-Jo ever knowing she had hitched with us. I wondered if any of what Jo-Jo and I had discussed about Ike and Vlad meant squat to Pandora. Or related to Triton’s being in hiding. I couldn’t see how either vamp would be a big, bad threat to the shape-shifters, but if Pandora had gleaned useful information, more power to her. The indoor flying lesson with Jo-Jo was short and, well, short. Ten-foot ceilings aren’t exactly the friendly skies. I levitated perhaps six inches off the floor, and jump-hovered an entire foot on four tries out of ten. I was still a bust in the walk-fly event, but even Olympians have their specialties. Jo-Jo gave me the rah-rah talk and urged me to keep practicing.
“You must own your power, Princess,” he told me. “You can do this and more.”
“Like what?” I huffed a breath of frustration. “What the hell else am I supposed to be able to do?”
“You don’t know, Highness?”
I sighed. “The crazy killer we caught in March ranted about me coming into my powers when I was no longer, um—”
“A virgin?”
I blushed, but I wanted answers. Answers that maybe only another vampire could give me.
“Right, but here’s the thing. I didn’t wake up and, bam, I was the proud owner of superpowers. I mean, is there a check-list of powers I should know about?”
“Honestly, Highness, I’ve heard those of the House of Normand could kill with a mere thought.”
I snorted. “I never saw Normand do it. You don’t know any thing about instant powers?”
Jo-Jo frowned. “Flying is standard. Enthralling and unen thralling. Strength and speed, of course.” He shrugged. “The virgin myth aside, most of the powers just take an effort of will. You want them to awaken, and they do.”
Ah, no wonder. When it came to vamp power, I spent enough time in denial to make it a second home.
“Did I answer your question, Princess?”
“More than you know. Do you want a ride to the regional airport tomorrow night?”
“Vince and Jessica insisted on driving me.” Now Jo-Jo blushed lightly. “Princess, I know I’ve been kind of a pain, but thank you for everything. I owe you.”
“Just become rich and famous and rub it in Jemina’s face.”
I was brushing my teeth at four on Sunday afternoon, when Saber strolled into the bathroom jingling a set of keys.
“You ready to go see Neil’s house?”
“Your house,” I corrected, giving him a toothpaste grin. “Did you call an agent in Daytona yesterday?”
“Yep. She came over to see the place, and we settled on an asking price.”
“Did she mention staging?”
“She did, and I told her my lady friend is an HGTV freak who would help with that. You will help, right?”
“I’ll do anything but clean toilets and windows.”
He kissed my mint-fresh mouth, and twenty-five minutes later we pulled into the driveway of a light yellow cinder block one-story house landscaped mainly with tall palms, azaleas, and sea grapes. The wood trim was cocoa, and a large, slightly bowed front window marked the house as circa 1940s or ’50s. Inside, though, the floor plan was wonderfully open, and I saw Maggie’s touch everywhere. In the living-dining room, contemporary-style crown molding and thick baseboards in white set off warm mocha walls. The kitchen boasted granite countertops and stainless steel appliances, and it looked onto a deck with a hot tub and a beautiful fenced backyard.
The laundry room was in the two-car garage, but Saber didn’t mind that. A fair-sized full bath was down the hall, plus two goodsized secondary bedrooms and a large master suite. The bathrooms were fully renovated, too, with warm slate tile. I guess I’d been quieter than I thought throughout the tour, because Saber caught me in his arms before we left the master suite.
“Well, what do you think?”
I grinned and kissed him. “You’re right, it’s perfect.”
“You’re not ticked that I don’t want to live in your beach house?”
“The way you feel about spiders and snakes and vines? Honey, you couldn’t handle the beach house.”
He was so jovial on the way back to my place, I almost hated to bring up business. But, hey, Triton was still in hiding, a sniper was still on the loose, and something was rotten in Ike’s nest.
“Saber, what did Donita talk with you about last night?”
“Just about her concern that Laurel is out of control.”
“Not breaking news, but she may be more out of control than Donita knows.”
“Give.”
I filled him in about eavesdropping and told him Jo-Jo’s theory that Vlad was backing Ike. Saber smacked the steering wheel with his hand. “Damn it. If that’s true, I need to get a task force together to clean house.”
“Why?”