“How’s Wyatt?” I asked sleepily.
Christian traced his finger around the rim of his glass. “Knocked out from what Shepherd said. That’s one lucky bastard.”
“No kidding. He almost landed straight on his head; it’s a wonder he didn’t snap his neck.”
“A broken neck isn’t a sure thing.”
“I’m not going to ask how you know that. Wyatt must have spooked the girl. She took a step backward, and off they went.”
Christian chuckled darkly. “He has that effect on women.”
After finishing my tequila, I folded my arms on the table and put my head down. I heard someone sit on the bench across from us.
“It is good to hear the sound of children in this house,” Viktor remarked. “It has been many years since these rooms were full.”
Christian gently stroked my back, and it felt so damn good. “How long do you wager we’ll keep them?”
“We cannot risk them escaping or running about the house and finding weapons. Kira and Gem will watch them at all times, and that is an immense task.”
Christian shifted in his seat. “Drop them off at the orphanage.”
“Nyet. We have fifteen little ones who require special care. Shepherd will give each a health checkup in the morning, but only with Kira by his side. Just thinking about what they have been through—” He slammed his fist against the table, and I jerked up, my head pounding. When he noticed the silence in the adjacent room, he waved his hand at them with an apologetic look. “Any progress on your assignment?”
I rubbed my eyes. “I don’t have enough facts. Maybe these deaths weren’t connected after all. Who knows? Maybe all we were supposed to do was rescue those kids.” I swung my gaze toward the gathering room. “And you know what? That’s good enough for me.”
“Saysthe Shadow,” Christian quipped.
I steered my attention to my Vampire. “What did you do to that guy when you closed the door?”
Christian slowly arched an eyebrow.
“That’s what I thought. It feels good to put the bad guys behind bars, but in this case, nothing beats the death penalty. If I never figure out the mystery behind my case, at least we saved those kids. I just hope we can find them a decent home.”
“Aye.”
A little boy appeared at the table and stared up at Christian. He had ruddy cheeks and wide brown eyes. “Are you a real Vampire?”
I chuckled softly.
Christian—arms folded on the table—dipped his chin. “I am.”
“Can I see your fangs?”
Christian flashed them before I could object.
The boy scampered back into the gathering room. “I told you so!”
Christian lifted his glass. “The wee ones aren’t afraid of us like they used to be. There was a time when the sight of my fangs would make people shrink back in terror.”
“You sound disappointed,” I said.
“Little ones should be scared of monsters. They shouldn’t ignore those primal instincts.”
Viktor stroked his silver beard and cast a somber gaze into the adjacent room. “They have seen monsters—real ones.”
Switch swaggered in. His messy brown hair fell to his grey shirt, which looked like it had shrunk two sizes in the wash. “Everything’s set up. A few of them will have to share beds. I can sit at the end of the hall and make sure nobody wanders.”
“That might frighten them to see a strange man outside their door,” Viktor said, rising to his feet.
