Levi followed his gaze. “You know him?”
“Can you clear everyone out of the house?” Spencer asked, sidestepping the question.
Levi shot him a look that clearly indicated the other man knew what Spencer was doing and didn’t appreciate it. “Don’t take long.”
Spencer ignored Levi and jogged over to where Wade waited in the rain beneath a black umbrella. He wasn’t wearing a jacket but didn’t seem to mind the chill in the air. “What are you doing here?”
Wade jerked his thumb over his shoulder at the two people standing on the porch. Spencer recognized William but not the woman. “I rode out here with a couple of the god pack members after I saw the news.”
“You didn’t have to. Really.”
“How else would I get time with my favorite girl?” Wade leaned over to vigorously pet Fatima on her head. “Anyway, the god pack members are on guard duty at most vampire locations. When we got here, the street was blocked, so we hopped some fences and came through the backyard. William said there’s been no ransom call for Alyona. He’s not sure one will come.”
Spencer’s gaze flicked past Wade to where William and the werecreature stood on the porch, watching them. “Do they anticipate packages with body parts showing up?”
Wade wrinkled his nose. “You go for the worst-case scenario, just like Patrick. No idea, but everyone’s hoping that doesn’t happen. Apparently, Alyona is Takoma’s favorite human servant. I feel like going after her would be like if someone was stupid enough to go after Carmen.”
“She’s not like Carmen.”
“Doesn’t matter. Vampires don’t like it when people touch what they consider theirs.” Wade’s flat tone had Spencer looking back at him, seeing a hardness in his brown eyes that had no room for humor. “Things get messy when that happens. Trust me. I know.”
Spencer nodded in silent acknowledgment of Wade’s past. He knew the edited version that Patrick had shared with him in London, respecting Wade’s privacy as much as possible. So he understood why Wade wasn’t exactly happy palling around with Seattle’s Night Court, but he’d been helpful so far. Spencer just knew if he sent Wade home damaged in any way, Patrick would read him the riot act.
“I need to finish the search, and then I’m heading to the morgue. I’ll be at the field office for the rest of the day after that,” Spencer said.
“I’m playing mediator between werecreatures on guard duty and human servants. I’ll let you know if any news comes through. We can meet up tomorrow morning and swap notes. I’ll come to you, so don’t worry about picking me up.”
Spencer nodded again and turned away, shivering a little from the cold wind. He had a body to see to.
CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE
Spencer leftthe field office late in the evening after hours spent in meetings, beginning the tedious process of cataloguing the evidence, and working with Legal to ensure the body of Caitlin’s ancestor remained under their control. By the time he made it back to the condo, Spencer was ready to get some sleep. Except a red Acura NSX with a familiar vampire behind the steering wheel was parked out front of the lobby doors, and he knew sleep was out of the question. Spencer groaned when his cell phone dinged with a text as he pulled into the garage.
Haitao will pick you up.
He glared at the screen, wondering what Takoma would say if he didn’t show up to be driven around like a kept man. “He thinks I’m going to listen to every demand he gives me.”
Fatima lifted her head off her front paws to stare at him.You have a proven track record of being agreeable to what he wants.
“Now you’re just being rude.”
You should sleep.
Spencer should do a lot of things; number one beingdon’t fall for a master vampire. Yet there he was, leaving his locked car behind in favor of the one Haitao drove. The passenger-side window of the sports car rolled down a crack at his approach, Haitao watching him with a neutral expression on his face. “Get in.”
Spencer leaned his elbow against the roof of the car and peered through the window. “I’ve had a long day. What if I just go upstairs to sleep?”
“You wouldn’t make it to the front door” was Haitao’s bored reply. “Takoma wants to see you.”
“I’m not discussing casework with him.”
“I don’t think he’s in the mood to use his words.”
The implication of what Takoma was probably in the mood to use made Spencer roll his eyes and try to tamp down on the clench of desire in his gut. Rather than argue, he got in the front passenger seat, ignoring the judgmental look Fatima shot him.
This is not sleeping.
“It will be,” he muttered under his breath. “Eventually.”
