He ran his hand along my neck, palming the nape, pulling me close until his mouth hovered above mine. I could feel the heat from his body. It always made me warm. “See that your fingers stay out of my brother’s hair. I’ll begin growing mine immediately.”
I nodded and then Dev was back at his brother’s side as though nothing had happened.
“I did not try very hard,” Declan admitted. “The next time, I shall attempt to make her melt as well. She is lovely, brother. I do envy you. Her body reminds me of that woman we shared in Paris when we snuck away to the human brothel.”
Dev smiled wistfully. “She had beautiful breasts as well. They bounced, but not as nicely as Zoey’s do. Come, brother. We’ll have lunch and I’ll regale you with stories of my amorous adventures with my mistress.”
They walked out with Zack trailing behind, and I shook my head at Marcus. “I know we’re supposed to talk this morning, but I think I should go and monitor that little discussion. Afterward, we need to talk about what happens when you leave me alone in a damn vampire club.”
“I am sorry about that, cara. I didn’t think.” Marcus held up a newspaper advertisement. “But I can make up for my mistake. I think you’ll find what I have for you to be even more compelling than Devinshea’s conversation with his brother.”
The ad was half a page and invited all of the Metroplex to come to the Kimbell Art Museum starting on July fifteenth for the opening of a new exhibition. “Treasures of Ancient Rome” promised to be spectacular.
So Halfer thought the Strong Arm of Remus was going to be on display and he planned to steal it. There was only thing to do—steal it first myself.
I sighed and looked back at Lee. “We’ll have to get that lunch to go. We’re going to Fort Worth.”
Lee watched as Dev and the others left the room. When he was sure we were alone, he turned on Marcus. He moved forward in two quick steps and his hands were on Marcus’s lapels. He picked up the vampire, lifting him high into the air and slammed him onto one of the tables with a violent force. I was surprised the table held up under the pressure. He pressed Marcus against the wood with one hand and the other became a wickedly sharp claw right above Marcus’s heart.
“Lee, what the hell is going on?” The suddenness of his violence shocked me. He’d moved almost faster than I could see, and Marcus had no chance at avoiding him.
“Yes, I would rather like to know myself,” Marcus added blandly, though his fangs were out and his body tense. “Are you a hunter or an assassin?”
Lee’s eyes were dark as he stared at the vampire. “Like I said to my brother, I’m responsible for her now. I want to know if you’re the vamp who left the marks on her wrist. Healing skin smells different even when the process is shortened because the victim is on vamp blood. Those marks might not be visible, but I know they’re there. She can’t hide them from me.”
“She’s married to a vampire,” Marcus pointed out logically. “He does feed from her.”
“Not from her wrist he doesn’t,” Lee snarled. “Donovan likes it from the neck or the groin on his wife. It’s the neck or the wrist from the faery. I know my employer’s habits. Zoey’s a good girl despite the whole bigamy thing. She doesn’t cheat on her boys. So if it wasn’t Donovan then some vamp forced himself on her. If that was you, then we’re going to see what you look like with your heart on the other side of your chest.”
“It wasn’t Marcus, Lee.” I wished his senses weren’t so damn good. There was no way Zack would have caught that. I’d told Dev everything, but we’d decided to leave that part out when discussing the night with Daniel. I was afraid no amount of good sense would have stopped Daniel from marching back into the club and confronting Marini if he knew. The sight of that little box in Marini’s hand made me keep my mouth closed. “Daniel was called to the club last night. While he was in a meeting, one of the vampires cornered me and had a little snack. It was no big deal. It’s nothing I can’t handle.”
“Name, Zoey,” Lee said through clenched teeth as he took his hands off Marcus.
Marcus sat up and straightened his clothes. “I believe you will find it was Louis Marini. I wondered why he was thirty minutes late. He said he was with his companion. I should have been more suspicious since he’d obviously showered and changed clothes. He didn’t want Daniel to smell Zoey on him.”
“Where will I find him?” Lee asked, his voice tight.
I shook my head. “You can’t kill him, Lee. He’s the head of the Council, and if you kill him, it brings hell down on all of our heads. We aren’t ready for that yet. We just need another couple of months and then he won’t bother us anymore.”
“I don’t like politics, Zoey,” Lee growled. “I don’t want my hands tied because your husband would rather let you get assaulted than handle his business.”
“Daniel doesn’t know and he’s not going to,” I stated implacably. “I understand that it’s your job to protect me, but this is not negotiable. If you can’t allow me to handle this then you need to go back to Nevada. You won’t have to worry about politics again. I’ll find someone else to guard me.”
Marcus watched the two of us. “I believe, wolf, that if you had been with her Marini would have found it difficult to assault her. They made a mistake sending her in without a dedicated guard. It’s too easy to separate her from Devinshea. He must play the political game. And Zoey is right to keep this from Daniel. He would likely behave poorly. Daniel might not be ready for this fight, but neither is Louis. If you stay at her side Louis may still corner her, but he will find it difficult to force himself on her.”
Lee stared, obviously unhappy with his choices, but he finally relented. “Fine. You don’t go into a place like that again without me. He gets anywhere near you and you give me a 9-1-1. I’ll be there before he can sink his fangs in. Is that understood?”
I nodded. “I’ll call you, but Lee, you have to understand that this is the nature of the game we’re playing. It’s too important. It’s not like we’re doing this for fun. Our lives are on the line and so is the freedom of every wolf you know. If I need to sacrifice to keep us all free then that’s what I’ll do.”
“I believe you, and that’s why I’ll protect you,” Lee replied. “Now go make us some sandwiches because it’s thirty damn miles to Fort Worth and I’m hungry.”
I started toward the kitchen. “You’re a crappy employee, Lee.”
“Yeah,” he admitted. “But I’ll be damn good at keeping you alive.”
Chapter Fifteen
Having really good intelligence is important to any job but crucial when it comes to being a thief. While a guy robbing a random house might be comfortable picking up anything that catches his eye, the real professionals want to know exactly where the object of their desire is kept and how much crap they’re going to have to get through to get it.
Casing a place you intend to rob is completely necessary, though there are certain precautions you should take. When entering an establishment ripe with security measures, a modest disguise is called for. It doesn’t have to be anything along the lines of Mission Impossible. A hat will do to hide the color of one’s hair, and it is easy enough to make sure your face doesn’t get caught on camera. In most places, the security measures are out in the open. They’re meant to deter the casual thief and, in the case of an art museum, to discourage patrons from getting too close to the masterworks. This open security is a big mistake when dealing with someone like me. It just lets me know exactly what I need to take out in order to get my prize.