Dax stared at the door, unable to process what had just happened. Had he really demanded Phoebe choose between him and Allcot? Jesus, what a fucking idiot he was. Of course she’d chosen the vampire. He was powerful with plenty of connections and Dax had just behaved like a controlling ass, not the type of person Phoebe Kilsen was willing to suffer.

The shifter stormed back to the desk where his partner had been working when he’d arrived. He glanced around, searching for any clues, anything that would give him more insight into what she’d learned at the Void. All he found was a leather-bound book that appeared to be filled with handwritten notes about an old case and a single piece of paper that had fallen to the floor. He picked it up, noting the name at the top—Carter Voelkel. After a quick scan, he realized it was a dossier on the redheaded vampire Phoebe had tangled with the night before.

He wasn’t sure how the old case fit into the current one, but he did know that whatever Phoebe had been working on when he’d arrived had haunted her. He wasn’t so arrogant as to think that she’d suddenly decided today was the day she wanted to climb back into bed with him. Something had spooked her, and she’d dealt with it by trying to lose herself in a fleeting moment of passion.

After tucking the dossier and the notebook into his pocket, he texted Phoebe a short apology, then went to fix the damaged front door, cursing the vampire the entire time. An hour later, he locked up and checked his phone. No response from Phoebe.

“Fuck.” He ground his teeth together and sent Bandu a message. He needed to know if the shifter leader knew anything about Asier.

---

“What’s the lead? Where are we headed?” I asked Allcot. We were in his car, Link in the back seat as we headed south out of town.

Allcot’s cool demeanor was a sharp contrast to my shaky limbs. I was still upset from my altercation with Dax. How had we gone from almost tearing each other’s clothes off to my walking out on him? It was inconceivable that he’d forced me to make a choice. He worked with a shifter pack I didn’t fully trust, and yet I’d never laid a guilt trip on him for his association. Willow was far too important to put personal feelings on the line. I’d work with the devil himself if it meant finding Willow before anyone harmed her.

“River Road. Nicola did her own tracing spell on Pandora,” he said.

“And it worked?” I asked, turning to give him my full attention. Tracing spells were rarely successful when they involved vampires. Witches had a hard time connecting with their distinct energy. However, Nicola and Pandora were half sisters, so that would give Nicola an edge while working the spell.

“Yes and no.” He sped up, his impatience obvious in his jerky movements. “Nicola couldn’t connect with her mentally, but she did see an image of her in a house—a house I recognized.”

“That’s… fortuitous,” I said.

His lips curved into a ghost of a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Sometimes being a century old pays off in ways one wouldn’t expect.”

It was strange to hear him refer to himself as being a hundred years old. My research had told me he’d been turned when he was only twenty-two. Only, the vampire didn’t look a day over seventeen. If it hadn’t been for his enormous ego and commanding presence, he could’ve ended up one of those vampires doomed to repeat high school for eternity. Instead, he was the head of the most powerful vampire organization in the country, perhaps the world.

“River Road, huh? I assume that means one of the old plantations then?”

He nodded.

“That doesn’t seem a little careless to you?” I asked, trying to figure out why anyone would hide a notorious vampire in a house on a road that was heavily traveled by tourists. River Road was home to a dozen plantations that were open to the public for tours. “I assume this one is a private residence?”

“It was. It’s been empty for the past forty years. Or it was empty.” That chilling expression was back on his face, and I had no doubt he was imagining the slow death of whoever had abducted Pandora.

“Did Nicola see anyone else with her?” I asked. “Willow or Talisen?”

“No.”

My heart sank a little, but I wasn’t surprised. Willow hadn’t seen Pandora either.

Allcot yanked the wheel, and we turned onto River Road. He sped up, taking the curves as if we were flying around a speedway.

I tightened my grip on the door handle and secretly wished he’d go even faster. The vampire’s reflexes were legendary. If anyone could maintain control of a car, especially one as nice as his BMW, it was him.

Suddenly Allcot took a left turn down a tree-lined gravel road. The vegetation was overgrown, and when the house came into view, it was no surprise to find the paint was peeling, the porch was sagging, and most of the windows were broken. The grand old dame’s glory days were definitely behind her.

Allcot slammed on the brakes, causing the car to skid to a stop. A second later, he was out of the BMW, moving so fast toward the house he was little more than a blur. I let Link out of the back seat. He immediately ran off to inspect the grounds while I took my time, glancing around at the surroundings. There were partial tire tracks in the mud at the edge of the gravel drive. Someone had left an empty forty-ounce bottle of Bayou Reserve, the malt liquor heavily favored by the New Orleans shifter population, on the porch, and there was a pile of cigarette butts in a bucket in the neglected raised flowerbed. The place might appear to be deserted, but shifters had definitely been here in the recent past. The cigarettes and the beer bottle said it all. Vampires didn’t smoke, and if they drank they indulged in red wine and fine spirits.

I paused on the porch, my skin prickling. Something wasn’t right. But I couldn’t put my finger on what it might be. An eerie feeling washed over me, and I scanned the area one more time.

Nothing. No shifters. No vamps. No witches.

Still, the feeling only intensified. I reached for my dagger, which was tucked into my waistband, with one hand and grabbed my sun agate with the other. If a shifter, vampire, or fellow witch came after me, I was prepared.

“Link,” I called.

The wolf appeared from behind the house and jumped up onto the porch.

“Keep guard on the house. If you see anyone, warn us.”

The wolf started to pace the porch, and I took that as a sign he’d understood my instructions.

I strode into the house, the spongy wood floors creaking under my weight. It was easy to see the place had been beautiful in its day, with the delicate floral wallpaper and sweeping grand staircase. Only now the discolored wallpaper had turned yellow and the moth-eaten pink velvet couch had more holes than a honeycomb. Trash was scattered in one corner, and there was so much water damage mold was growing around the windowsills.

Careful not to touch anything, I quickly made my way from room to room. When it was clear the bottom floor was empty, I climbed the creaky stairs. The second floor was just as empty as the first. I eyed the second set of rotting stairs that led to the third floor and prayed they wouldn’t collapse under my weight.

It didn’t take long to find Eadric. He was standing in the doorway of one of the bedrooms, his head bowed. I made my way to him and pressed my hand to his back, knowing he would have heard me long before he felt me.

“What did you find?” I asked.

“She was here. Now she’s not. They knew, Kilsen. They fucking knew Nicola cast the tracing spell.”

Fear seized my heart as I thought of Willow. “They knew? How?”

“Fuck if I know. But look.” He dropped his arm, giving me access to the room.

I stepped around him and let out a gasp as I read the words on the far wall.

Welcome to your living hell, Allcot. Pinned below the spray-painted words was the see-through lacy black bustier and skirt Pandora had been wearing the night before at the gala. I’d recognize the outfit anywhere. That slit was so high it was indecent. Only a vampire would have enough gall to try to pull it off.

“I’ll fucking kill them all, Kilsen,” Allcot said, his body vibrating with agitation.

“Not if we kill you first,” a muffled voice sounded from somewhere overhead.

Both of our heads snapped up, searching for the voice. I spotted the tiny speaker mounted in the corner just as Allcot let out a growl that ricocheted off the walls. I ran out into the hallway, quickly checking each of the rooms for whoever appeared to be listening in on us, but found no one.

Allcot was right, they’d set us up and were likely watching us from somewhere nearby. But the bayou was vast and had many remote areas. They could be just about anywhere, and finding them wouldn’t be easy. I walked back into the far bedroom and found Allcot carefully removing Pandora’s outfit from the wall. Her stilettos were at his feet along with the diamond pendant she normally wore. The one Nicola had likely used as a catalyst for her tracing spell since the pair of them wore matching pendants. Son of a bitch. That was going to make this a fuck ton harder.

“Goodbye, vampire,” the ominous voice boomed. “It’s too bad you brought the witch. We could’ve used her for our cause. But we all know how sacrifices have to be made. May you once again be reunited with your soul as you rest in peace.”

I tightened my fingers around the hilt of my dagger and shifted into a fighting stance, more than ready to kick some ass. But instead of an army of paranormals coming after us like I’d expected, the door slammed shut and out of nowhere fire started to climb the walls.

A spell had been activated, likely by the distinct wording of the message Pandora’s kidnapper had conveyed over the speaker.

Allcot didn’t hesitate. He instantly turned toward the large bay window, grabbed an armchair, and swung. The legs of the chair broke clean off the frame, but the window miraculously stayed intact. The blow didn’t even produce a crack.

“What the fuck?” Allcot stared at the sheared legs for just moment even as the smoke turned thick in the room. The fire was spreading quickly, and we were going to be crispy fried in a matter of minutes. Fire wasn’t something a vampire could survive.

I coughed and ducked down under the rising smoke. “The windows have been spelled. They aren’t going to budge unless I can break the curse.”

Allcot let out a roar and swung again, this time putting the entire weight of his body behind the motion. He bounced off and came perilously close to the fire.

“Allcot!” I cried. “Move!”

He quickly scrambled back to my side, his eyes red and his fangs bared. “What are you waiting for, break the damned curse.”

“Gladly. Just keep your ass away from the flames.” I climbed to my feet, closed my eyes, and concentrated with everything I had. “Power of my blood, blood of my veins, I call up my strength and command thy will.” Magic rushed through my limbs, my hands lighting up with blue light. “Power of my blood, blood of my veins, cut through the binds, let us cross the line.”

“Kilsen, now!” Allcot demanded.

I rushed toward the floor-to-ceiling windows, my dagger raised, and let out a cry of determination as my dagger pierced the magical barrier. The glass shattered right along with the spell. Suddenly there was nothing to stop my forward motion, and I sailed headfirst through the third-story window.

Time seemed to slow down as visions of Willow, Talisen, and even Link flashed in my mind, followed closely by an image of Dax smiling down at me. The surge of pure emotion called up a swell of magic, but it wasn’t focused and I had no way to channel my power to cushion my fall. My magic didn’t work that way. The best I could hope for was a landing on the grass where I could tuck and roll.

Unfortunately, the gravel was coming fast. Acting on instinct, I spun my body in the air, made sure my feet were aiming for the earth, and did my best to remain relaxed. Once I hit the ground, my best option was to tuck and roll after the initial impact. It would hurt like a bitch, but I’d be damned if I was going to die today.

Barking filled the spring air, and before the ground rushed up to meet me, strong hands grabbed me and we shot up in the air, hovered for a moment, then slowly came back down to earth.

Allcot. He’d caught me.

“Thanks,” I said as he let me go and the two of us stood there, staring at the inferno blazing before us.

“I think maybe I’m the one who should be thanking you,” he said. “Fire isn’t my favorite element.”

I snorted out a humorless laugh. “I’d say that’s an understatement.”

“Perhaps. I owe you one, Kilsen.” He turned and stalked back over to the car.

I glanced down at Link. He was pacing in front of me, still in wolf form. I placed a hand on the top of his head, soothing him. “Let’s go, Link. Looks like our chances of finding any clues just went up in smoke.”

My boots crunched on the gravel as I made my way to the car where Allcot was waiting. But Link didn’t follow. Instead, he ran over to the side of the house and barked once.

“What is it, boy?” I asked him, squinting through the billowing smoke.

He barked again, and this time he ran flat out, disappearing into the haze.

I glanced at Allcot. “Looks like the wolf’s found something.”