“We were ambushed by hunters.”
Daniel knelt in front of Liam. “How did they get the drop on him?”
“They had a sniper.”
Daniel slung Liam over his shoulder and rose.
“How did you end up on the roof?” Makoto asked, patting the head of the gargoyle hiding in the shadows of the dormers. It was an odd place for the statue, invisible to anyone standing on the ground. Even I hadn’t noticed it until Makoto called my attention to it.
“Harpies.”
Makoto pursed his lips. “That would do it.”
Daniel walked toward the edge of the roof, not pausing even when he reached the end. I jolted forward as he dropped out of sight.
“Don’t worry. They’re fine,” Makoto assured me as I leaned over the edge. “Us older vampires are pretty sturdy.”
To my relief, Daniel and Liam were fine. Daniel’s steps didn’t even show a limp as he walked into the mansion.
Makoto held his arms out to me.
“Would you prefer princess carry or being slung over the shoulder?”
“Neither.” I pointed at the window they’d climbed out of. “What’s wrong with going back through there?”
“This way is quicker. Up to you, though. If you prefer the slow method while your boyfriend is in peril, we can use the window.” Makoto’s shrug said he didn’t care one way or the other.
“Princess carry it is.”
Someone had been reading too many romances. Princess carry. Such a ridiculous name. Still, it beat being slung over Makoto’s shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
Makoto swept me off my feet and dropped over the ledge before I could react. His demented laughter echoed in my ears as I caught my breath on a scream.
Stupid, crazy vampire.
We landed with a hard jolt three stories below where we’d started. Makoto released my legs, letting them drop to the ground. I steadied myself.
Somehow, transport across the city via harpy was less terrifying than a three second fall in Makoto’s arms.
I forced my shaky legs to carry me up the stairs. “Let’s never do that again.”
“You have to admit—itwasquick though.”
I marched down the hallway. Vampires didn’t often need doctors or healers due to their quick regeneration, but every once in a while, one of us bit off more than they could fix on their own.
That’s when they were sent to Joseph. A man who reminded me of a caged tiger with the arrogance to match.
To check on Liam, I’d have to breech Joseph’s inner sanctum—and hope the tiger didn’t feel like eating me.
The low groan of pain from the room ahead had me moving a little faster. I reached the end of the hall, pushing open the door to a room I was more familiar with than I should have been considering my short tenure as a vampire. Most enforcers see Joseph a handful of times in a decade. That was the number of times I’d ended up under his care in a single year.
A vampire leaned over Liam, digging into his shoulder with a set of implements that looked more like torture devices than medical tools.
Liam flinched as the vampire dug deeper. “Easy.”
“Patients should know better than to complain when someone is kind enough to save their lives.” The vampire didn’t look up at my entrance, twisting one of the instruments a little deeper.
Veins bulged in Liam’s temples as he endured.
