“Exactly how often does this happen to you?”

A microsecond later, he was on his feet, his hand around her throat. Her feet dangled off the ground. “What the hell are you doing here? Did you do this to me?”

“I woke you up. I didn’t knock you out.” Her instinct was to shift her metal hand into a stake and turn him to ash, but she needed him. Instead, she held her hands up where he could see them and forced herself to remain calm. “Some thanks for saving you from your drug-induced coma.”

He snarled, eyes reflecting silver. “Sounds like something you would do.”

“It does, but I didn’t.” She tried to make a sincere face. “I’m here to offer you a deal.”

“A deal? With you? You’re the one who cursed me. Why should I have anything to do with you?” He scowled. “I should run you through right now and be done with it.”

Sincere changed to pleading. “At least let me tell you why I’ve come first.”

“And give you a chance to kill me first? I don’t think so.” He squeezed her throat tighter.

“Please,” she croaked out. “I know we’ve had our difficulties in the past—”

“Difficulties?” He snorted.

“I swear on Sophia’s grave, I come in peace.”

He bared his fangs at her. “How dare you invoke my daughter’s name?”

“Our daughter’s name.” She swallowed and lifted her chin as best she could. “I would never use her name for false purposes. I swear it. I’m offering a truce.”

He stared at her for a few seconds, then relaxed his grip slightly and lowered her enough so that her toes touched the floor. His hand stayed on her throat. “Go on.”

“In exchange for your help with one small matter, I promise to leave your precious comarré alone.”

He laughed, his body language calming a little. “Why should I care what happens to her?”

Tatiana raised her brows. This was new and different. “So you don’t then?”

“No. I’m done with her.” He leaned in until his body pinned hers to the wall and all she could focus on was his face. And the hard length of his body against hers. Old, human memories surfaced. She swatted them down and tried to focus on what he was saying. “But she’s my prize to take, understand?”

“Completely.” Not at all actually, but she nodded anyway, her chin bumping his hand. So he was done with the comarré but she was still off-limits? Curious, but an opening was an opening. Tatiana slipped her hand up to cup his face. Hades help her, but she still found him attractive. Maybe more so now that she knew he wasn’t smitten with the comarré. “Malkolm, we used to be so good together. We could be that way again. Help me and I’ll restore your noble status. You can return to Corvinestri with me. Rule as my Elder. You’ll never want for anything again. Power, money, blood, as much as you want whenever you want it.”

A long moment passed. He dropped her to the ground and stepped back, his eyes narrowing as he assessed her. “What exactly do you want from me?”

She reached up to rub her throat but stopped before she showed weakness, resting her hands on her locket instead. “It’s about the child whom you and the comarré came to take from me.”

A flicker of silver crossed his gaze then disappeared. “What about it?”

“She. As you know the ancients took her from me.”

“And you want me to get her back.”

“Not exactly.” She dropped her hands from the locket, settling one on the dagger at her waist. “I want you to kill her.”

Chapter Sixteen

The thump-thump-thump of wings beating the air grew louder, but Creek was expecting Annika, so after his initial glance to confirm it was she, he stayed crouched on the rooftop where he’d set up his surveillance point.

Behind him, the sounds of her touching down barely registered. She squatted next to him, her wings now tucked away. “We have a problem.”

Creek nodded. “You have no idea.” He tipped his head toward the crime scene below. “Two murders in two days. And both pointing hard at a vampire killer.”

“That’s not what I’m talking about.”

He looked at her. “What’s up?”

The strobing blue police lights reflected off her protective shades. “Tatiana’s headed here. Might already be here. Our intelligence gathering has become a little more difficult with Octavian out of the picture.”

“Damn.” Chrysabelle would need to know that. He wondered what Annika would do with Chrysabelle’s news about Mal. Not that he was going to share that. He liked Annika, probably more than he should, and he’d even come to trust her as much as anyone could trust a KM sector chief, but therein lay the issue. She was still Kubai Mata and he was still trying not to be.

“Exactly. This could get ugly. We don’t know her intent, but it’s not hard to guess she’s here to exact some kind of revenge on the comarré. I’m sure Tatiana blames her for what went down at the Dominus ball.”

“Which we sent her to. Look, about Chrysabelle…” He hesitated, almost afraid to stir the pot further. “What’s the KM’s stance on her since she didn’t bring the baby back?” They’d threatened to strip the gold from the ring of sorrows out of her skin if she failed on that mission, which she had.