We knelt in a patch of grass before a large wide hedge, crouching in a meticulously landscaped lawn. I was panting excitedly from the thrill of Shadow Walking, but my eyes assessed our surroundings out of habit. No one was near, so I squeezed Nate’s hand in gratitude for showing me such a beautiful piece of magic, before I let go.

Nate murmured to me in a soft voice, crouched down low. “Feel free to share with Roland, but keep quiet about it around others. The skill loses strength if everyone knows it.”

I nodded absently, something bothering me about the statement. “Thank you,”

Then it hit me. I remembered that this was the way Roland had transported Claire and I to my front lawn the first night we had met, when he had saved me from the vampires. But he hadn’t shown it to me since. Curious. But Nate — a stranger — had shown it to me, of his own free will.

Nate grunted at my thanks, peering over my shoulder to stare at a large mansion on the outskirts of town. “That wasn’t so hard, was it? Much better than driving.” He was smiling as he said it. Still, I punched his arm for good measure, earning another light laugh for my efforts.

“Will they know we arrived?”

Nate shook his head. “No, unless they saw us appear here. But their guards should be on the opposite side of the house if my timetables are right.”

I blinked at him. “You’ve been here enough to scout their timetables?”

He grunted. “Of course. No need to go in blind. I needed to be sure they were here, see how many guards they had.” He shrugged. “I had nothing else going on today.”

“What if you were caught?” I hissed in a low tone, but I felt a slither of guilt. While I had been sipping coffee with my dad and going on a date, Nate, the supposed worthless, untrustworthy playboy, had been working.

“I wasn’t caught,” he grinned. “I’m practiced at this kind of thing.”

“And if they had caught you earlier, I never would have known,” I muttered, my guilt shifting to mild anger that he had gone ahead without me while I was out with my father. It made me feel incompetent. I hadn’t considered scouting the place first. Well, I had thought that was what we would do right before invading their fortress. Surprise attack.

But I couldn’t help feeling like I had made a rookie mistake, and that Roland would have been disappointed.

Nate grasped my shoulder. “Don’t worry. I didn’t have any doubt, I just wanted to check everything out first. To keep you safe.”

“I don’t need protection.”

He studied me thoughtfully, no doubt remembering Roland’s accusing eyes, and the silent warning that I be kept safe. But he nodded. “Okay. I won’t do it again.”

I grunted. “How many guards are there?”

“A dozen,” he whispered back, studying the house as he pulled out the small bag Gunnar had given him. I frowned down at it.

“How do we handle a dozen guards without waking up the vampires?” I could feel the plan falling apart in my head already. One pull of a trigger, or one shout, and everything could fall to pieces. He pressed his fingers into my hand, and I almost flinched. I looked down to see he had placed six marbles in my palm.

“Throw one within a few feet of a guard, and it will send them to the drunk tank at the jail.”

“How in the hell?” I said, eyes wide.

He grinned. “A prototype from my new company. It Shadow Walks them wherever I program it. In this case, I had Gunnar program it.” He shrugged.

I shook my head in wonder, but then I thought about it. “We’re going to send a dozen armed guards into a cell, and, what, hope the police are paying attention? What if they talk?”

Nate grinned like a wolf. “Oh, the police will have a lot of questions for them. Twelve men suddenly showing up in the drunk tank? But they wouldn’t dare talk. Their masters,” he pointed a thumb at the house, “would make the rest of their lives a living nightmare of pain. And who would believe them if they did talk? Hey, I was guarding a vampire’s house and suddenly I wasn’t there anymore. Can you let me out, please?” he grinned at me.

“And their guns?” I hissed.

“The marbles won’t take the guns. I tested them already. It will leave anything metallic behind, quite forcefully.” Then he chuckled. “Let’s hope none of them have fillings.” Then he was suddenly moving, darting to a tall hedge closer to the house.

I blinked in disbelief. But I hadn’t thought of fillings. I had thought of screws and pins inside an old broken arm or leg. But I didn’t have time to worry about that as he darted ahead again.

Scanning the gardens, I pursued him swiftly, eyes out for any of the guards, palms sweating on the marbles, hoping sweat didn’t set them off. I didn’t want to end up in jail, especially not with a dozen guards.

I quickly reached his side to find him frowning down at his watch. “Any second now,” he whispered. “Get ready.” He motioned towards my marbles. “Make sure it breaks on contact.”

I nodded nervously, watching the corner of the house, realizing we were right next to a path circling the building. The minutes stretched, and the sun crept closer to the horizon. I began to grow antsy, shooting a quick look at Nate.

“Where are they?” he murmured under his breath. “Even if my timing was off, we should have seen someone by now. Follow me.”

He darted across the path, and was suddenly leaning against the house itself. My stomach threatened to climb out of my throat. He was standing in plain sight!

But I followed him, not wanting to be left behind. He waited for me, then let out a breath. He jerked his head around the corner, no doubt searching for guards. But instead of pulling back, he let out a grunt, and boldly walked out into the open.

I tried to grasp his arm, but he shook me off and disappeared.

I crouched, leaning around the corner to find him kneeling over a body.

My eyes widened, but I saw two more bodies not further along, one tucked under a bush. They were all concealed from obvious view to anyone looking out from inside the house, but since we were right on top of them, they were perfectly visible to us. Nate looked troubled as he glanced back at me.

“We aren’t the only ones here,” I whispered, creeping closer.

He nodded, tight lipped. “Maybe you should hang back. Let me—”

“No,” I said stubbornly. “You’re the sidekick here.”

He stared at me, face incredulous. Then he let out a weak grin, and dipped his head. “Let’s go check out inside. If we see a vamp, don’t use the spheres.”

“Spheres? You mean your small balls?” I smirked at him.

A momentary look of murder flashed across his face, but he nodded. “Yes, those. My tiny, fragile, deadly balls.”

“Got it. I can handle a vampire.”

“How about a kiss?”

My heart suddenly double-timed, wondering if I had heard him right. Had he just casually asked me for a good-luck kiss? Really? I kept my tone neutral. “A kiss?”

He frowned at me. “Kiss. A group of vampires. They’re called a kiss. Like a gaggle of geese. Rampage of rhinos. A murder of—”

“I get it, nature boy,” I said, feeling my cheeks redden. “Just never heard it before. Roland calls them a coven.”

“Covens are witches,” he snorted, eyeing me again, as if suddenly doubting my ability to help.

“Kiss, coven. Doesn’t matter. They all die the same.”

Those words seemed to reassure him. “That they do. Stake to the heart, holy water, fire, decapitation, or a religious gizmo if you’re into that sort of thing.”

I nodded. “Let’s do it.”

We stalked around the edge of the house, keeping our eyes out for any guards. Just because we had seen some down, that didn’t mean that the rest weren’t guarding the rest of the house, and suddenly wondering what had happened to their friends.

But we saw no one as we came upon the back door. Nate nodded once at me, then glanced up at the sky. We were getting close to sunset. We wanted to be well gone by then. If there was anything left to find here, since someone had obviously beaten us. A shiver of fear raced down my neck, imaging the Demon jumping out of the bushes to kill us. But I smelled no rotten eggs.

Nate darted through the door. I counted to five, quickly, and followed him in. Darkness enveloped us as we crept through a kitchen, staying close to the walls. Not a sound could be heard. No fighting, no footsteps, not even the smell of blood. What was going on? As we moved, I began to hear the faint sounds of classical music from deeper in the house, as if coming from the basement. Where the vampires would be found.

We crept on, following the music, slipping through the halls, and for the first time, I realized Nate was still barefoot. I blinked at that, and almost burst out laughing. Here we were, creeping through a vampire’s house, with guards already dead at the scene, trying to rob them, possibly kill them. And the dangerous billionaire wizard looked like a homeless hippie, and the non-religious church secretary was terrified out of her wits on her first real solo hunt for the Vatican.

Fucking ridiculous.

But I kept that to myself, following Nate. He glanced around a corner, leaned back, and frowned at me, motioning me closer. I did, reaching his side. “There are six dead bodies in the living room ahead. Not a bullet fired, although they’re still armed, and if I’m the luckiest man alive, the spear is sitting on the table right next to them.” He shook his head. “It’s a trap.”

I grabbed his arm. “We can’t leave it here. Even if it is a trap. If we can grab even one of the pieces, the rest will be useless. Then this whole thing can be finished.”

“Or we could both die. Roland won’t like that.”

I smiled at him, ignoring my racing heart. “If that happens, you’ll be dead. No need to be scared of the old man.”

He grunted, and let out a sigh. “Just stay behind—Callie!” he hissed as I darted past him into the living room.