LITMIR.BIZ

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least Alessande had listened to him; she was gone, and she would be safe.

      As the top of his car went flying over the canyon, Mark leaped out. He was excellent at transformation himself; in an instant he was airborne in the guise of a vampire bat. After a few seconds of intense concentration, he had increased his own size to that of the eagle. Flying ever upward, he avoided the sharp talons of his foe. Soaring above the gargantuan bird, he dive-bombed and caught the thing at the back of the neck, careful to hold it without inflicting a crucial bite.

      But even as he did his best not to kill it, he rued his own stupidity in getting this close to an Other with this size and power.

      It must have taken a lot for the shapeshifter to become such a mammoth creature, but it hadn’t been the end of the shifter’s strength. Now the thing turned into a gnat and slipped easily out of Mark’s grasp.

      Swearing, he concentrated on his own body, shrinking, then changing back into his human form. He stood next to his car, staring with disgust at the ruined vehicle.

      He’d lost his attacker.

      And he’d lost his car. Materialistic and shallow as it might be, he had loved that car.

      He swore, dug his cell phone out of his pocket and called Brodie. “Did Alessande make it back all right?” he asked anxiously.

      “Yes, she’s here,” Brodie told him. “She’s exhausted, though. Sailor has given her tea and gotten her up to bed. What happened? Did you catch him? Alessande said it was as if a two-ton crane smacked down on the car.”

      “Shapeshifter, definitely,” Mark said. “And no, I was trying to keep it alive, so—thanks to my own stupidity—it went into gnat form and disappeared. You’re sure that Alessande is all right?”

      “Yes, she’s fine. She really needs sleep. It’s a good thing she’s in exceptional shape—eats the right food, exercises, hones her skills to perfection—because the last twenty-four hours have taken a lot out of her. I’ll call impound and let them know the car needs to be towed in. I’m sure they’ll want to know what the hell happened to it. Is it fixable?”

      Mark looked at his car. “No,” he said sadly. Still on the phone, he walked over to it. With an angry shove of his foot, he used his supernatural strength and sent it over the edge, crashing down into the bracken in the valley below.

      “Don’t worry about the car. I got rid of it. It would have been too hard to explain. Come get me—I’m about two miles away on Mulholland—and we’ll head to the old studio, check it out, see what we can find.”

      “Be there in five,” Brodie told him.

      As Mark waited for Brodie’s arrival, he was worried, really worried. Someone knew that Alessande was on to something.

      And that someone seriously wanted her out of the way.

      “I know it’s nothing like your house, Alessande,” Sailor said apologetically as she got her friend settled. “I mean, Castle House is kind of Gothgone-bad compared to your place. But it’s safer for you to stay here.”

      Alessande was comfortably stretched out on the bed in the guest room, with the cousins keeping her company. She hadn’t had much strength when she had started to teleport, already exhausted from everything she’d been through, so she’d more or less crash-landed on the Castle House stairs, startling everyone who was still there. And before Sailor had led her up here, they’d been talking about her staying for days, maybe even weeks—and they hadn’t bothered consulting her. Worst of all, Mark Valiente wasn’t even around for her to blame anything on.

      “You drank enough water, right?” Sailor asked, breaking into Alessande’s thoughts.

      Teleporting could dehydrate the body to a dangerous extent. Alessande had consumed nearly a gallon of water since she’d arrived.

      “I’m good, thank you,” she said.

      “Alessande, we believe that you’re marked for extinction,” Brodie said firmly as he stepped into the room.

      She shook her head, wanting to deny the possibility. “Have you heard from Mark?” she asked. He was a jerk, but he was the jerk who had worried about her safety first. And she’d never experienced anything like the feel of being in that car when it was attacked by a ten-ton taloned something.

      “I’m on my way to get him,” Brodie said. He looked at Sailor. “You all sit tight and be careful. I don’t know if they will dare to attack this place, or if they’ve exhausted their resources for another night.”

      Barrie, sitting in a chair by the window, rose. “I’ve got to call an emergency meeting of the shapeshifters. I know it’s a rogue individual or group behind this—most of my Others would be horrified by what’s happening.”

      Rhiannon, rising from the foot of the bed, set a hand on Barrie’s shoulder. “Barrie, don’t take this on as if the weight of the world is yours and yours alone. We all know that Others, no matter what their race, are just like people. Most are law abiding and want nothing more than to lead good lives with decent people around them. No one is going to think that all shapeshifters are bad. We know better in this day and age.”

      “And,” Declan said, walking into the room, “no meeting tonight, Barrie.” He walked over to stand behind Sailor, setting his hands on her shoulders. “I just talked to Mark. He wants people here, keeping Alessande safe tonight. I’ll stay with the women. Brodie, you and Mark can rest assured that everyone here will be protected while you check out the studio.”

      “What about the Snake Pit?” Barrie asked Declan.

      Declan owned one of the hottest nightspots in the city. It was very popular with the Others, especially vampires. Since Declan was a shapeshifter Keeper, they often stayed to enjoy it after-hours, when only Others were welcome. But the rest of the time both locals and tourists were free to enjoy themselves there. Declan had a talent for getting the next up-and-coming bands to play, and Rhiannon, who was a singer as well as a Keeper, performed there regularly. She also performed at the Mystic Café, where her boss was a werewolf Keeper.

      “The Snake Pit can survive one night without me,” Declan said firmly.

      Jonquil was waiting at the foot of the bed. He barked as if to reaffirm Declan’s statement.

      “I’ll follow you down in a minute and lock the door behind you,” Sailor said. “The compound will be safe. Jonquil knows better than any alarm when someone gets near Castle House.”

      “Don’t forget Wizard,” Rhiannon said. “He guards the grounds like a hellhound. We’ll be all right.”

      Wizard did look like a hellhound, Alessande reflected. He was a mix of Scottish deerhound and something else humongous. If anyone even looked cross-eyed at Rhiannon, Wizard would take them down in a heartbeat.

      Rhiannon left the room, presumably to give Wizard his instructions, and Barrie rose, as well. “Get some rest,” she told Alessande. “I’m going online to read the news reports and try to get a better grip on this.”

      Sailor patted Alessande’s pillow. “Can I get you anything else?” she asked.

      “I have tea and a lovely bed, and I’m being protected by some of the finest women in L.A., a ghost and two ferocious dogs. I feel like a hothouse flower,” Alessande admitted.

      Sailor grinned. “Uncomfortable for you, I know. But even Achilles had his damned heel. I learned—with a lot of help from you—to handle responsibility and be brave. Now, from me, you can learn to trust in others and let them be your strength sometimes.”

      Alessande smiled and nodded. “Okay. I think I’ll try to sleep. That teleporting thing is…draining.”

      It was. Sailor left her, telling Jonquil to stay and stand watch, and Alessande found herself falling almost instantly to sleep.

      It was strange, though. She was asleep, yet she still

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