Before I could answer, Niko strode in. He had an interesting manner of entering a room, and I knew he was counting steps and mapping out his location in his head. He must have been able to see our energy and used that to navigate around our chairs. After he circled around to my left, he leaned against the desk, his black hair styled in a single braid that drew attention to his face. Niko was ancient, and his Asian features looked mixed in a way I couldn’t define.
“I thought I might find someone up here,” he said.
Wyatt ran his fingers through his messy brown hair. “We were discussing theories.”
“I have one,” Niko began, the timbre in his voice smooth and controlled. “I didn’t go near the first victim because of the obvious.”
The obvious being Niko was blind and couldn’t provide any visual insight.
“You weren’t the only one,” Wyatt said.
Niko gripped the edge of the desk, causing the cords of muscle in his arms to tighten. “Claude and I are concerned about Gem. He scented her fear, and her light kept shifting. Viktor wants her to get more involved, but I disagree.”
I furrowed my brow. “Why? She has a lot to offer.”
“Yes, but everyone has a place on the team. Don’t let Gem’s skates and wild ways fool you; she’s extremely knowledgeable. Wyatt and Gem are intelligence, and you don’t put them on the front line of a battle.”
Wyatt snorted. “The battle was over.”
Niko cocked his head. “It could have been a trap. That’s why Viktor wanted someone like Raven on the team. As we grow, we need to reconsider where our resources belong. He’s sending you two on dangerous missions when your skills are better served here. Gem is sensitive; she shouldn’t have to see such things.”
My chair squeaked as I swiveled between the two men. “You’re getting sidetracked. What was your theory?”
“I don’t believe the victims were human.”
Wyatt’s jaw unhinged.
I rolled my chair back. “That’s quite a theory, Niko. Where did you come up with that idea?”
“I only saw the one, but there was residual energy coating her body. It’s something I usually see on a dead Mage.”
“Holy Toledo,” Wyatt exclaimed. “If that’s true, you just raised the complexity of the case to a whole new level. Maybe it was the killer’s energy.”
Niko raised his left leg higher, sitting all the way on the desk. “I don’t think so, unless a Mage died on top of her. But we can’t eliminate any possibility, no matter how unlikely it may seem.”
Wyatt waved his hands. “My mind can’t process that. Let’s break it down. Can a Vampire kill a Mage just by draining their blood?”
Niko nodded. “A new Mage is easier to kill, but I’m more confused that no one mentioned bruises or scratches.”
“If she was a Mage, she could have flashed out of the way,” I said. “There would have been a fight, and I don’t think a Mage would be dumb enough to look a Vampire in the eye. Maybe the energy means something else. They were both blondes.”
Wyatt turned his mouth down. “I don’t think they were Chitahs. They didn’t look tall enough, and besides, Shepherd got a look at their eyes. That’s the first thing he checks on a body.”
My gaze drifted to the laptop. “Could she have been another Breed?”
“Only if it’s one I’m not familiar with or haven’t seen dead,” Niko said.
I tilted my head to the side. “Exactly how many dead bodies have you been around?”
Niko rose from the desk and squared his shoulders. “I’m over a thousand years old, so I’m not sure if my estimates will be accurate. There’s one thing I’m sure of: she wasn’t a human.”
“Yeah, but if that’s true, then it sets us back,” Wyatt pointed out. “Glass sent a message that none of the reports matched her description. People go missing all the time in our world, but someone usually reports it. A girl like that would have had a job or a lover.”
I rubbed my face and leaned back. All these new theories were making my head spin, and now that my hangover was gone, I was itching to leave the mansion. “I need to return a coffeepot. Anyone want to drive me to the store?”
“I will,” Niko said, his expression deadpan.
I laughed and stood up. “Now that I think about it, Christian’s off somewhere on his bike, so I don’t think he’ll miss the Honda.”
