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spinning through the air. Valarian leaped on top of his opponent, grabbed his head and twisted it like a
bottle cap. His neck gave a satisfying snap, but just to be certain the man was really dead, Valarian tore the
head from the body.
He rose, drenched in blood, and hurried after Jacob, who was already forging ahead into the next
room.
One by one. And when we re finished there won t be a vampire left standing.
The thermal scanner had showed more than one person in this area of the building. Jacob checked the
screen again and saw more bodies amassing.
 Five headed this direction, he warned Valarian, slipping the device back into his pocket and lifting
his blade.  Evade or engage?
 Evade. Valarian led the way through another room, moving much faster than Jacob possibly could.
They d already discussed their strategy for what to do once inside the building. Divide and search
independently so if either of them was caught, the other might still have a chance to save Akila. Kill anyone
that crossed their path, if it could be done quietly.
Valarian was soon out of sight. Jacob heard approaching footsteps and, rather than try to outrace
them, flattened against the shadowed wall behind a tall potted tree. It wasn t much shelter, but if they
weren t searching the room for an intruder, the group might move past without seeing him.
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Bonnie Dee
 He s dead no matter what. Whether it s us or some of the others, an angry voice declared.  Kaspan
has exposed us all to danger and persecution. He will suffer for it.
Jacob watched the cluster of people who entered the room two women, three men, all vampires, or
so he guessed. There might be a thrall or two among them, but it was safer to assume they had the
supernatural strength of vampires. And from the way they were chatting, it seemed they were not aware of
the intruders in their midst.
 The girl and her spawn should be killed. I said this was a bad idea from the beginning. A blonde
woman crossed the room to a sideboard and chose a bottle and glass. She poured a shot of amber liquid and
tossed it back before pointing at one of the others with the empty glass clutched in her hand.  If Overton
hadn t taken his bitch, Kaspan wouldn t have exposed him. But since it s done, she should be killed.
There s no point at all in keeping her alive.
 He s determined he can use the child. One of the men dropped onto a chair.  He won t listen to
reason. Meanwhile, Kaspan s out for blood and he ll be after all of us next.
 This is fucked. It s not what I signed up for. Another man leaned against the back of the chair,
resting his forehead on his folded arms.  A simple coup, a quiet, subtle infiltration of government. That s
what Overton promised us. Instead it s a big, bloody mess.
 Speaking of which. I m starving, the other woman said.  Let s call up whatever s on tap in the wine
cellar.
Human prisoners in the basement. Jacob wasn t surprised. It was common for vamps who still drank
straight from the source to keep living victims on hand, especially in an out-of-the-way spot like this where
they couldn t hunt for fresh blood.
The blonde slammed her glass on the sideboard and turned to face the others.  This is stupid. He s
had her for several days and hasn t even tested to see if she s pregnant. Special vampire hybrid, my ass. If
Overton can t see reason, the rest of us will do it for him. We should ve killed her before he returned.
The black-haired man lifted his head from his arms and straightened.  We can still do it. There s one
of him and five of us. Likely more, because I doubt all of his people are backing this play. We could go up
there and take care of her right now.
 I m in. She s supposed to be descended from some god, so let s see if her blood tastes special. The
hungry woman licked her lips and grinned. Her fangs gleamed white against scarlet-painted lips.
Jacob calculated the odds. Even with the element of surprise, he was outmatched. As much as he
wanted to descend on them, howling like a dervish and slashing with his blade, he couldn t help Akila that
way. He also had a few grenades he d gotten from Leah. They nestled against his leg, deep in his pocket.
One of them would eliminate this roomful of vampires. But as long as Akila s fate was uncertain, he didn t
want to stir up a hornet s nest. Better to wait and watch and learn all he could.
He held his breath and remained motionless, peering through the branches of the potted palm.
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Vampires Consort
Akila rose from darkness into light like a surfacing swimmer. She heard raised voices before she
opened her eyes, and decided to pretend to be unconscious a little longer.
 Moron. You couldn t look after one little girl for a few hours without screwing up. You might ve
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