Anwyn focused on Debra, driving with both hands prudently on the wheel, her hair a neat plait down her back. “Yes.”

“If he was killed, you"d know at that second. Much as a vampire knows when her servant is killed. It"s a feeling that can"t be mistaken for anything else.” Anwyn"s gaze flickered to Gideon. She didn"t want to dwell on either option. He was alive.

She wouldn"t accept anything else. “If they were strong enough to do that, Gideon, we have to get more help—”

“We"re it,” he said grimly, and filled her in on all she"d missed in Brian"s lab.

What had Daegan told her? That the vampire world was a more intense version of Atlantis, and that he was certain she was better prepared to handle it than most new vampires. She"d wanted more time to get used to that idea, but Daegan didn"t have that kind of time. And she wasn"t alone.

Straightening her spine, she tightened her chin and met Gideon"s midnight blue eyes. In the shadows of the car, he looked lean and dangerous, long leg stretched out beneath Debra"s seat, the other bent to give her something to brace against. She was sure he was armed to the teeth, and wondered if they"d had time to stop at the plane for his guns and crossbows.

“It was on the way,” he confirmed with a flash of teeth. That was fine. She trusted him in her head fully right now.

“I brought clothes, so we can fit into a club environment,” she said. “I"ll ask for a tour behind the scenes. I"m fairly certain I can get us close enough to the owner to use the weapon Brian gave us.”

“I didn"t want you to go in there. Not if there was any way to avoid it.”

“I know.” When the moonlight filtered through the window, she knew he saw the lingering trace of red in her eyes. She could feel the bloodlust simmering through her, the heated whispers of her shadow gremlins, but tonight she would use their savage madness, their absence of fear. She would take control and turn them into her weapon. “I"ll never run again, Gideon. You know why. Plus, Brian was right.” She reached out, caressing him, not an absent touch, but a deliberate, firm stroke, a reminder. “I am your Mistress. We do this together, because that"s the way I want it to be. And,” she added in a quieter tone, “as the more experienced strategist, you already know it"s the best way. Right?” He gave a reluctant nod. “No use lying.” Then he gave her a look she knew well enough to be reassured by it. “Of course, if you"re going to dress me up in something embarrassing, I"d rather leave Daegan to die. He"s not worth abject humiliation.” Anwyn"s lips twitched, but then he put his hand to her face, fingers stroking her temple, the line of her cheek. As their gazes met, she knew it was a dangerous moment, acknowledging how badly tonight could go, what they might lose. But his voice stayed firm, even, steadying her. “You still feel a little wiped out. We"ve got about another half hour on the road before we"ll stop and get ready. Why don"t you lie back down and build up your reserve? Take some of my blood, if you need it.”

Though her stomach wasn"t yet settled enough to feed, his reasoning about the rest was sound. She complied, putting her head on his bent knee as his hand fell naturally to stroking her hair. Touching his belt, she found the scabbard for one of the daggers hidden at his lower back and traced it. They were silent a few moments, but she knew his mind was in the same place as hers.

“Can you still . . . feel him?”

“No. Nothing. But he"s not dead, just like Debra said.” She closed her eyes, but not to sleep.

She tightened her fingers on his knee. “Gideon . . .”

“We"ll get him out of there. Once we do, we won"t let him live it down. That alone is worth the risk. Maybe even the humiliating costumes.”

She nodded, feeling his resolve despite his typical male refusal to speak of danger, death . . .

pain. The humor was the veteran fighter in him, instinctively soothing her nerves, helping her to relax. How many young vampire hunters had he helped this way?

Best thing is not to think about it a lot, Anwyn. We’ll go over our strategy right before. It’s not going to be overly complicated, and we’re going to have to think on our feet, because things will likely change moment by moment. We’re both good at that. Think about this as a night at your club. The way you wander through it for your own enjoyment, taking in all the new and unexpected things, but not missing a single detail, because you own the fucking place.

His insight was uncanny, as usual. When she"d been human, she"d done such a transformation every night she stepped onto the floor of Atlantis. Leaving behind the Anwyn that read books, drank tea and played with alley cats, she became Mistress Anwyn, every thought and movement aligned with the sexual energy of the club she"d built. Rubbing her cheek against his thigh, she closed her eyes to immerse herself in the images, the provocative scent of heat and arousal, lights and music. Voices raised in sultry laughter or pleasurable cries of aroused pain, just like her dreams. She let it all unfurl in her lower abdomen to compete with the nerves. If she could fool her mind into thinking it was going to a new fetish club for her own pleasure and challenge, not to rescue the male she needed more than she needed blood

. . .

“I liked the two men manacled together at dinner.”

“Yeah, I pretty much got that.”

She looked up, also liking the way the moonlight highlighted the hard planes of his face, the determined eyes. He would be hell on wheels tonight. She might be crazy, but seeing it, she wasn"t afraid. Whatever happened, they would be fighting, fighting together. She could accept that.

He met her expression then. He was concerned about protecting her, but he also believed in her strengths. That meant something to her. Still, if she might be dead in a few hours . . .

You’re still resisting your attraction to Daegan.

Gideon grunted. “Vampires are enough of a pain in the ass as it is. Don"t need to make it a reality.” Then he shook his head. You’re better at explaining things. I’m too busy avoiding thinking about it to analyze it.

She smiled then. Gideon, I love you.

A wealth of meanings was attached to the words, the new and untried, as well as the deep and always. It was that thing that had drawn them together from the first and might continue to hold them together, no matter how things evolved. When the words hit his consciousness, she felt his mind surround them like a protective detail, not certain how to handle the impact of such a missile. He caught her wrist when she reached to touch his face, his eyes deepening in color.

I had a different idea of a table centerpiece tonight. Want to hear what it was?

He cleared his throat. “I"m sure I don"t, as much as I"m sure you"re going to tell me anyway.”

“Mmm.” Turning on her side, she ran her other hand up his thigh, all the way to his inseam, raking her nails across the denim-covered curve of his testicles. “I"d have the other man bound behind you like that, only he wouldn"t be inside you. I"d just manacle you flush so you"d feel how hard he is, his cock compressed against your ass. He"d be getting fucked from behind, by Daegan.” Satisfaction speared through her at the jump in his cock, the contraction of testicles beneath her thumb.

The movements, the grunts, would stir your possessiveness for Daegan. Your ass would clench with a need you don’t want to acknowledge as you hear Daegan’s rasping breath. “By the time Daegan came, you"d want that other male gone from between you, want only Daegan behind you.” Her fingers teased him. “When Daegan finally released you, he"d hook two fingers under your collar, the collar I put on you. He"d yank you onto your knees, bend down to kiss you. Something would break loose inside you so that Daegan would have to take you rough, pin you to the ground. You"d fight him, of course. In order to give yourself freedom to touch and taste, to feel, you need to fight, to strike out first. To tell him he"s yours and you don"t share what"s yours. It"s your way.”

Gideon tugged her hair at her knowing chuckle. “Don"t be smug. It"s unattractive.”

“Not according to what I"m feeling beneath my cheek.” She rubbed him there as he scowled.

“Jesus, do vampires ever stop thinking of sex?”

“No,” Debra supplied helpfully from the driver"s seat. “And they make it damn hard for us to stop thinking about it as well.”

Gideon found it immensely difficult to place anyone in the path of danger, male or female.

Hell, it was why he"d worked solo for so long now. But being in the company of a woman, and in this case, two women, made him wish he had some of Brian"s ability to knock a vampire senseless. Even if he"d had that ability, though, he knew Anwyn was right. It was going to take the both of them. Once they"d pulled off into a quiet copse of woods to change, they discussed their plans. Debra was going to drop them at the club and wait in the car until a predetermined point of time. At dawn, when the club closed, she"d leave, return to Brian for help or further instruction. Otherwise, hopefully she might be their getaway car, as she already knew several safe places they could go to ground for daylight.

Despite his trepidation, Gideon felt renewed admiration for his vampire Mistress when Anwyn calmly instructed Debra to pull right up to the curb next to valet parking.

Appropriately, he got out first to hand her out of the vehicle. It also gave him time to assess the area.

The two working the entrance were vampires. The moment her scent was detectible from the car door, they went on alert, their eyes trained on that opening in a way that went beyond their casual perusal of the other oblivious human attendees filtering in.

Daegan would have known in the first few seconds that this club didn"t house a reckless group of bloodsuckers, but if he thought they were killing people in the local towns or choosing marks from this club—and that part might be true, the numbers disguised by Stephen for Council reports—Daegan would have proceeded with his assignment.