"There"s no saying they would have been here even then," I snapped, guilt and anger swirling through me. He was right. I knew he was right, but that didn"t mean I was about to put up with him ripping me to shreds. Not again. "I"ve been gone for nearly twenty hours. That"s plenty of time for someone to come in here and retrieve the notes."
"And what about Rory?"
He practically spat the name, and it made me even angrier. "He"s out for the night. And he"s probably enjoying himself a whole lot more than I am."
"Oh, I don"t know," he growled. "You seemed to be enjoying yourself just fine with that Fae."
My eyes widened. "You were watching me?"
"I told you we were." His expression closed over sharply. The darkness within him didn"t retreat, however. It was as deadly and as alluring as ever.
I s.h.i.+vered and walked over to the planter. "No, you told me Adam the vampire was watching me."
"Adam is my partner."
I paused and looked over my shoulder. "You? The man who thinks all nonhumans should be dead, with a vampire partner? Yeah, right."
"I don"t believe that," he growled. "I never have."
"Then why say it?"
He snorted, his expression dark, angry. But deep in the unlit recesses of his eyes, there were also the stirring ashes of hurt. "Because when you discover the woman you love is f.u.c.king another man, you tend to say things you otherwise wouldn"t." He paused, then made a sharp motion with his hand. "That, however, is the past, and totally irrelevant. Protecting you, and checking everyone you interact with, isn"t. And that duty, unfortunately, has been handed down to me."
I finally found the USB and swung around. "And what did you find out about my Fae?"
"Nothing yet. But if there"s anything to find, we"ll find it."
"And if there"s not?"
He shrugged. "Then you running into him like that really was nothing more than a coincidence."
I snorted softly and tossed him the USB. He caught it easily, then said, "What"s this?"
"Notes from four of the five notebooks I transcribed. Mark"s caution rubbed off, and I usually keep a copy aside just in case the files went missing in the system or something went wrong in the transfer."
"What about the fifth one?"
I hesitated, then admitted, "I didn"t get around to copying that over."
"Well, at least you"ve done something that vaguely resembles smart," he muttered, studying the USB like a scientist might a bug.
I glared at him for a moment, then said, voice flat, "Get out of my doorway."
He glanced up, surprise flaring in his eyes. "What?"
"I said, get out. Leave this building. Now," I added, when he didn"t immediately move.
He raised an almost mocking eyebrow and half turned away, then paused. His shadowed blue gaze met mine a final time.
"One thing you should know," he said softly. "I don"t believe in coincidences. Trust me, Red. The Fae is up to something."
And with that warning hanging in the air, he left.
CHAPTER 5.
Thankfully, by the time I got to bed, I was too G.o.dd.a.m.n tired to dream about anything. My sleep was long and blissful, and I woke refreshed and filled with antic.i.p.ation for the day ahead.
And not even Sam"s warning could dampen that.
Even the weather G.o.ds seemed to be on my side. After the rain and the cold of the past few days, they"d pulled something magical out of the bag, presenting Melbourne with clear blue skies and an almost springlike ambience.
Given I wasn"t exactly sure where Jackson was taking me-and to be honest, didn"t really care-I went with a swirly, flowery skirt and tight-fitting s.h.i.+rt and teamed them with gorgeous leather boots with heels just high enough to flatter my calves while still being comfortable enough to walk a fair distance. Rory still wasn"t home by the time I was ready to leave, so I left him a note, then happily made my way down to the foyer.
Jackson was waiting for me, looking decidedly s.e.xy in faded jeans that emphasized the muscular length of his legs and a black, short-sleeved s.h.i.+rt that made the most of his shoulders and arms.
His gaze skimmed me as I walked toward him. "You," he said, wrapping an arm around my waist and pulling me close, "look f.u.c.king amazing."
And then he kissed me, not sweetly, not gently, but with a fierce hunger, as if he intended to make love to me here in the middle of the foyer.
To say we were both more than a little breathless when we finally parted was an understatement.
"If breakfast is anywhere near as good as that kiss," I said, my breathing erratic and my voice little more than a husky whisper, "I"m going to be a mighty happy woman."
He smiled, caught my hand, and led me out of the building. Just for a moment, awareness p.r.i.c.kled my skin. It wasn"t s.e.xual in any way, but rather the sensation of being watched. I glanced around casually, but couldn"t see anyone obvious. But then, I hadn"t last night, either.
Jackson"s mode of transport wasn"t exactly what I"d been expecting, but it did totally suit him. It was a big red pickup truck whose nose and tail had been decorated with flames, and it looked as powerful as its driver. I couldn"t help grinning. "And here I was thinking flame decorations were so last century."
"Only for those not Fae." He opened the door, ushered me into the pa.s.senger seat, then ran around to the driver"s side.
The engine came to life, loud and growly. As he reversed out of the parking spot, I said, "Where are we headed?"
"Seeing it"s such a lovely day, I thought we might picnic in the hills."
"But not at a popular tourist spot, I gather." My hopes of seduction would certainly take a tumble if that were the case. Although with the Fae, you could never be entirely sure. According to Rory, they had a tendency toward exhibitionism.
He grinned. "Oh, trust me, we"re headed where few tourists go."
Again Sam"s warning nudged my consciousness, and again I stoutly ignored it. It wasn"t like I couldn"t protect myself-I just needed to keep aware. To not get so carried away by desire that I ignored any warning signs of trouble that might inadvertently be revealed.
"And am I allowed to know the whereabouts of this mysterious, empty spot?"
"I own some land that runs alongside the state forest not far from Woodend."
I raised my eyebrows. "Why would you own land up there? It"s not like you could create any sort of fire up there, especially in summer. The Country Fire Authority would be all over it in a flash, given how dry the state usually is. I would have thought the drier, hotter areas up near Mildura to be more your style."
"It is, and I do own land up there." He glanced in the rearview mirror before adding, "But it"s also nice to own something within easy driving distance of the city. I might not be able to enjoy the pleasure of fire very often, but I can enjoy the wild peace of the place. I"m Fae first and foremost, remember."
"So you"ve built a home up there?"
He shook his head. "That would defeat the purpose. And before you ask, there"s no toilet. But I do have plenty of trees. And loo paper."
I snorted softly. Talk about roughing it. He was looking in the mirror again, and something in his manner had my skin p.r.i.c.kling. "What"s wrong?"
"I think we might have someone following us."
I relaxed. "We do. My boss was murdered last night, and the police are worried that whoever did it might come after me."
"I noticed we were being followed last night. This isn"t him."
He"d noticed? How? While I might have sensed the vampire named Adam when I"d walked to the bar, I"d certainly had no sense of him when we"d left. But then, the Fae"s senses were pretty keen. "Well, no, because it"s a different person doing the day s.h.i.+ft."
He gave me a wry smile. "Yeah, I guessed that. But I don"t think this is your official tail. He"s way too close, and that suggests inexperience."
I flipped down the visor and looked behind us via the vanity mirror.
And what I saw was a red cloak.
Oh, f.u.c.k.
"Do you know who it is?" His sideways glance suggested he was very aware of the tension running through me.
Sam"s warning swirled through my thoughts. How the h.e.l.l was I going to explain this without giving too much away? "I ran across a couple of our follower"s companions a few nights ago. Let"s just say they"re nasty pieces of work."
"I take it from that your meeting with said companions went rather badly-for them."
"Yes. I rather spoiled a party they had planned, and they didn"t take it well." I studied the red cloak in the mirror for a moment. "I"m not sure why they"d be following me now, though."
Although the fact that they were meant that while they might be infected by a vampirelike virus, they didn"t suffer the same restrictions when it came to sunlight. So why did UV lights affect them?
"What the h.e.l.l is he?" Jackson asked. "Even in the rearview mirror he doesn"t really look human, and he sure as h.e.l.l can"t be a vampire."
I hesitated. "I"m not sure what they"re officially called, but I tend to call them red cloaks-"
"That"s a red cloak? He looks nothing like the description I got."
Something in the pit of my stomach twisted. I closed my eyes for a moment, fighting the twin surges of disappointment and anger. G.o.dd.a.m.n it, I didn"t want Sam to be right. Didn"t want to believe meeting Jackson was anything more than a coincidence.
"How do you know about the red cloaks?"
I said it softly, but there was an edge in my voice and he grimaced.
"Look, I haven"t exactly been truthful-"
Anger won the battle over disappointment. "No kidding-"
"Emberly, just listen," he snapped, then took a deep breath, visibly getting himself under control. "I am Jackson Miller, but I"m a private investigator, not an engineer. Baltimore was someone of interest to my client."
Which was why he"d been so interested in me. It was as much the need for information as attraction. Lady luck, it seemed, really had decided to abandon me this life span-at least when it came to men.
"After running into you that first time," he continued, "I did some checking and discovered you worked for Baltimore."
"And what better way is there to keep an eye on him than to seduce his a.s.sistant?" I couldn"t help the edge of bitterness in my voice.
"Yes." He sc.r.a.ped a hand across his chin. It sounded like he was rubbing sandpaper. "And no. That was my initial intention when I arranged our second meeting, but I discovered Baltimore was dead shortly after that. Theoretically, your usefulness as an information source was over at that point." His gaze briefly met mine. Those emerald depths showed little evidence of lying. "I didn"t have to meet you at the bar. I wanted to."
I stared at him for several moments, then pulled my gaze away. I wasn"t ready to forgive him just yet, and if I kept staring into his eyes, I would. "Prove that you"re an investigator and you"re just not spinning another line."
"My wallet is in my pants pocket." He glanced at me, eyes suddenly twinkling with mischief. "Of course, that means you"ll have to reach in and get it. I dare not risk taking my hand off the wheel."
I snorted softly, then reached across the car and dug a hand into his pocket. Felt the heat of his skin through the thin layer of cotton, and again the hunger rose within me. Later, later, I whispered internally. Maybe. I grabbed the wallet, tugged it free, then opened it up. His driver"s license was in a little window on one side and his private investigator"s license on the other. He was who he said he was. I closed it and shoved it back into his pocket.
"Happy?" he asked.
"Satisfied that you"re not actually lying about who you are anymore, yes. Happy, not so much." I paused, then asked, "Why is your client interested in my boss? And how do you know about the red cloaks?"
He hesitated. "Client confidentiality-"
"Be d.a.m.ned," I cut in. "In the last few days, I"ve been shot at, chased, my boss has been murdered, and, for a climax, I"ve been picked up by a Fae who"s decided seduction is the fastest method to information. If someone doesn"t start being honest with me, I"m going to get violent."
He grinned suddenly. "You"re a bit of a firecracker, aren"t you?"
"You have no idea," I muttered, and crossed my arms. "And to repeat my question, how much do you know about the red cloaks?"
"Not a lot more than the brief description of them I got from several people who"d witnessed them murder someone."
"And who was that someone?"
He glanced in the rearview mirror again, then said, "How about we take out our tail, then have an information exchange?"
"There"s one fatal flaw in that suggestion." Sam might have warned me against talking about these things, but I couldn"t not talk about them, either. Not when Jackson was planning to attack one of them. "Those things are infected with a deadly virus that may affect nonhumans as much as it does humans. You can"t let them scratch or bite you."
"Oh," he said. "Lovely."
He drove on without saying anything for a while, and I realized we were out of the city and on the Tullamarine Freeway, heading toward the Calder.
"Okay," he said eventually. "We"ll let him follow us until we get to the exit. Once we hit the forest, we"ll immobilize the b.a.s.t.a.r.d, then question him."
"Um, maybe you didn"t hear me, but those things are deadly-"
"I heard." His gaze, when it met mine, was filled with a very inhuman hunger and excitement. Fae might be sensualists, but they obviously weren"t averse to the excitement that came with danger-and that it could be deadly only made the chase all that much sweeter, it seemed.