“I’m sure it will be,” I agreed with a look at Caroline.
The plane touched down a short while later, saving me from any further conversation. Taxiing went by in the blink of an eye and before long we were pulling into a medium size hangar. Outside, a motorcade of black SUVs waited along with what seemed like practically an army standing by.
“It looks like they rolled out the welcome committee,” Anton observed, retracting his gaze from the window.
“You know what to do,” Thomas said.
Anton nodded, jerking his chin at Daniel. The two stalked toward the front of the plane as soon as the hatch was open.
“Aileen, Connor, there’s been a slight change of plans. I’ll need you to remain beside me once we deplane.” Thomas aimed a suppressive glance at the two of us. “Try not to act like you hate me while we’re here.”
“Is there a reason you want to keep up appearances?” I asked.
“While the owner of Vegas isn’t a vampire and thus less familiar with our customs, it’s still never wise to give an opponent more information than necessary.”
Reasonable and not far off what we’d done in the past when there had been visitors we didn’t trust in our city.
“We’ll be on our best behavior, Thomas,” I promised.
“For now,” Connor added.
“I guess that’s all I can expect,” Thomas murmured. To Caroline and the wolves, “It might be best for you to disembark last. You’ll draw less attention that way.”
Caroline and I didn’t miss the implications of his last sentence. Thomas knew, or at least suspected, that the wolves didn’t wish for anyone to know they were here.
“We’ll keep that in mind,” Caroline said with a glance at me.
I kept my face blank as Thomas rose and donned the suit jacket laid across the seat next to him. After smoothing the lapels, he handed off his briefcase to the companion with the sunny disposition.
Thomas glanced at the rest of us. “Let’s get this over with, shall we?”
Connor and I followed as he strode toward the hatch and the stairs. Deborah came next. Drake and his fellow companion last in line. Caroline and the rest would wait before disembarking thanks to Thomas’s lovely warning.
Connor and I flanked our sire like perfect bookends as we stepped into the hangar to find a large group waiting for us. At their center was a man whose power signature eclipsed everyone else’s.
Their leader, I took it.
Despite the pointed ears that I could just barely make out, he wasn’t Fae. He was something entirely else. Shadows wrapped around his torso and arms in my other sight. Thickest around his legs, to the point that his lower half was almost entirely veiled from view. They moved, almost dancing as we came to a halt in front of him.
“We were supposed to do this later tonight,” Thomas said.
“Why wait? Once the formalities are over, you’ll be free to enjoy your stay.”
The stranger was handsome. Black hair artfully styled away from the strong features of his face. A well-trimmed beard shadowing his jawline. Even with my limited knowledge, I could tell the suit he was wearing cost a fortune. Its deep plum color right at home in this city.
“It’s customary for the supplicant to visit the territory’s owner,” Thomas responded.
“Are you complaining that I saved you a trip?”
“Just curious over what may have enticed you to leave your territory. From my understanding, the djinn rarely step foot outside of their domains.”
No wonder there had been something about him. Something I recognized. Those shadows, or ones very similar to them, were awfully close to those I’d seen in the company of a friend of mine. Someone who was also a djinn.
The shadows must be a marker of their species. The same way fangs were for a vampire or howling at a full moon was for a werewolf.
Unlike Dahlia, this djinn didn’t put much effort into blending in with humans. He’d never be mistaken as anything other than a spook. If the ears hadn’t given it away, his predatory nature would have.
Any human facing him would be left feeling uneasy and afraid. They’d know there was something unnatural about him. If they didn’t freeze in terror, they’d flee. Or fight. That good ol’ instinct kicking in.
