“Neither was Lucien,” Saoirse retorted.
Lady Caith stilled, her attention snapping to Saoirse. “The daywalker is in Boston?”
“Wade seemed friendly with him.”
“Not really,” Riordan hastened to say. “But they know each other. Neither master vampire was happy about Niall dropping in like he did.”
Lady Caith folded her hands together and focused on Riordan. It unnerved him to some degree, but he didn’t let it show. “Niall has been testing my territory borders. Several of my guards have been harmed. One has been murdered.”
“Nothing’s made the news,” Riordan said.
Lady Caith’s lips curled fractionally. “I know how to keep such disagreements out of sight of mundane humans.”
Her words might have been an insult, but Riordan chose not to take them that way. She was here for a reason, and he rather thought he knew why, which meant he wasn’t going to muck up their chances of making her an ally, even if only temporarily. “I’ve told my clan to go to ground for the next few days. We’re buying Wade time to scope out Niall’s territory right now.”
“And do you believe he will be able to find what was stolen?”
“I don’t know, but he’s trying.” Riordan tactfully didn’t say it was more than what Lady Caith was doing, but he rather thought the words were heard anyway, judging by how she narrowed her eyes.
“Niall would not hide his hostages out in the open. That was not how he conducted himself when he was mortal.”
Some tiny kindle of hope burned in his chest, and Riordan had to try his hardest not to snuff it out. “If you have any ideas on where Niall might be keeping the god pack alphas and my sister’s skin, then tell me. I’d bargain with you for that.”
Lady Caith tilted her head, eyeing him with an unblinking gaze. “As you would bargain with Niall?”
“I won’t leave my sister’s skin with him.” She had to know the choices that left him; otherwise, he doubted she’d be knocking on his door.
“In that case, I believe we can come to an arrangement.”
“We’re not jumping from one toxic bargain into another,” Donal said sharply.
“I have no desire for your skin. What I want is Niall gone from Boston. Denying him territory is a way to box him in and push him out. Which means I will not let him have yours.”
“How kind of you,” Riordan said wryly.
“If you were leaving, I assume it was to keep yourselves out of Niall’s reach. In which case, we should discuss terms of an alliance somewhere else.”
“Your territory?”
“If you like. It would?—”
The window shattered as something crashed through it, magic exploding outward with a concussivebangthat tore through the air and the threshold, sending them all flying. Riordan slammed into the stairs, all the air leaving his lungs as he landed, knocking his head against one edge hard enough that everything spun in a sickening way.
Then, his entire world went up in flames.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Wade had parkedon the street in Beacon Hill rather than the parking garage. He had a general idea of where Niall’s territory was located from what Ella and Riordan had told him. Which meant he was fully ready to march over and break into Niall’s home and have a look around. He had a nose for magical artifacts and magic in general these days—a skill that helped with the redistribution of wealth, in his opinion—and if Saoirse’s skin was anywhere in Niall’s home, Wade could find it.
That was the plan.
So of course, Lucien had to be a bastard and derail it.
A motorcycle roared up the cobblestone street and skidded to a stop next to where Wade was walking. Both riders were decked out in Kevlar leather riding pants and jackets. The woman perched behind the driver lifted the helmet’s visor, and Carmen’s distinctive red-pupiled eyes stared out at him. “If you’re looking for Niall, he’s not home.”
“Is he dead? Tell me he’s dead and I can ransack the place,” Wade said, crossing his arms.
“What do you think?”
