“Mansion,” Reidar barked. “Now.”
Eclipse nodded, but he’d already wasted too much effort. He couldn’t disappear himself no matter how hard he tried.
Didn’t matter. Even as he let gravity take him to his ass, Reidar was already on the phone making calls. Someone would come for him. Of that he was certain. And the four males now surrounding him would ensure nothing happened to him in the meantime.
“We’ve got incoming.”
Orianna finished typing the message she’d been working on. She and Miklós had been working nonstop for the past few hours, perusing the Misplaced Halos boards, dropping a few messages in the hopes of finding someone who had seen Amber.
When she looked up, she noticed Miklós’s perfectly groomed eyebrows were cast in a deep-set V, eyes narrowed.
She sat up straight, stretched out her arms. “What’s wrong?”
Miklós held up a finger for her to wait as he spoke directly into his phone. “I need a sitrep.”
He was quiet for a moment, likely while someone was rambling on the other end, but Orianna could see the concern in his deep blue eyes. When he thrust a hand through his hair, tugging the shoulder-length strands out of their neat little bun, she got the feeling the news was bad.
“What is it?” she asked, her voice soft but stern when he set his phone down and shot to his feet.
“It’s Eclipse.”
Like a jack-in-the-box, Orianna was vertical. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” There was an oddly reassuring note in his tone. “However, he is going to need to feed.”
“What does that even mean?”
His eyes dropped to the fang marks on her neck.
“No.” She grinned. “I know what it means. But why? Why does he need to feed?”
“I’ll let him tell you himself.”
When he started moving, she followed, marching out of the conference room, down the wide hallway. Zeus trotted alongside her. Every so often he would nudge her hand, a silent reassurance he was there with her. Evidently, he was the only one who seemed to sense her panic.
“At least tell me if he’s injured.”
Miklós peered over. “No, of course not. I would tell you if he was.”
She wasn’t sure she believed him, but considering she had no recourse, Orianna merely followed him down the stairs to the main floor, onward until they reached the garage. Obsidian had already arrived, clearly having received the news.
“The only reason we brought him in,” Obsidian explained, “is because he wasn’t strong enough to dematerialize. He’s not injured, but he is drained and will need to feed.”
Orianna nodded.
“On blood.”
She smiled and tilted her head to the side. “I’m rather familiar with that part.”
Although, she wasn’t sure she’d actually fed Eclipse yet. Every time he was at her vein, it seemed more as an intimacy than a necessity.
The instant the exterior door began to rise, Orianna’s gaze swung over. She watched impatiently as the blacked-out SUV pulled in and the door closed behind it but not before the cold gusts of air ripped through the warmth. She wasn’t sure what she expected, but it wasn’t to see Eclipse get out on his own or walk over to her. He didn’t look any worse for wear, merely exhausted.
Unable to resist, she walked right into his arms when he held them open for her. Her face pressed to his chest as she let his warmth seep into her, another reassurance that he was all right. She had no idea how long she stood there, her arms around him, his hand gently sliding over her hair, but it wasn’t until someone cleared their throat that she pulled back.
“Any word from Kaj?” Eclipse asked Obsidian.
“Not yet, but the sun’s coming up soon. He’ll be back.”
