Justin’s sombre tones didn’t improve his mood. “We need to find this slippery fucker, Hughes. Big problem this time.”
“Lemme sit up, hang on.” Grimacing at the crusty feeling of dried bodily fluids across his chest and belly, Gethin swung his legs off the bed and headed to the door.
“I’m awake,” Sorley mumbled from the depths of his pillow. “What’s up?” He too sat up.
“Putting you on speaker, Justin.” Gethin swivelled and came to perch on the edge of the mattress. “Go on.” He had a bad feeling about this.
Justin sighed heavily. “A human male, in hospital in York. He was initially thought to have been suffering from a psychotic break, but there are way too many similarities for this not to have pinged our radar. We’ve had two separate reports of the young man. There’s also a query over an unrecognisable substance in his blood that is impossible to ignore as a big red flag pointing to our culprit.” The Head Wolf sounded defeated. “According to his flatmate, he started acting strangely after a night out, refusing to eat or drink anything. It got steadily worse over the next forty-eight hours to the point the flatmate called the guy’s family. That went about as well as a glitter ball at a funeral — apparently the lad’s relationship with his parents is the reason he no longer lives at home — but, ultimately I suppose it doesn’t matter as he’s now currently unresponsive. He was already being held for a psych evaluation due to his increasingly loud and violent refusal to take any nourishment. The last I heard, he’d passed out. He was then restrained and forcibly set up with a drip and all sorts of medical interventions to prevent him leaving, and to get some fluids into him. Half the nurses don’t want to attend to him as he packs a decent punch for a skinny guy.”
Sorley made a strangled noise in his throat and his eyes were heavy as he glanced at Gethin. His gaze tracked around the bedroom as he asked Justin, “Do we have any pictures of this man? Because if I recognise him…” He sounded resigned, but also as if he’d like nothing more than to run far, far away. Gethin sympathised.
Justin muttered something neither man heard, then came back to say clearly, “I’ll get something to you asap. His name is Bradley Chen. I don’t know if that rings any bells?”
Gethin looked at Sorley, but he shrugged and muttered, “I’ve fucked a lot of guys.”
“We’ll wait for a photo, Justin. Assuming this is another man connected somehow to Sorley, what do you want us to do now? Sorley’s got a…substantial back catalogue of conquests—”
“He means I’m a slut,” Sorley snapped. “Which is true, but it’s always been consensual. I don’t know what this arsehole thinks they’re trying to prove. It’s not like I’ve promised true love to anyone then waltzed off into the sunset leaving them broken-hearted.”
“Nobody is suggesting you’re to blame for this, Sorley,” Justin said soothingly. “But—”
Whatever he was about to say was cut off by the shrill tones of Sorley’s mobile. He snatched it up and his eyes widened.
“Good morning, Dalziel.”
“We can’t sort this out with everyone in different places,” the UK’s most senior vampire barked, his Scots accent stronger than Gethin had heard it for a while. “Get yourselves to my place. We need to work out the motive behind the attacks if we’re to stand a chance of stopping them.”
He watched the way Sorley reacted to his sire. He didn’t think he did it consciously, but he sat up straighter, every muscle, every last eyelash attuned to the vampire on the other end of the phone. Gethin found it fascinating and, for reasons he didn’t want to think about too closely, rather irritating.
Sorley flicked his gaze once again towards Gethin, then beyond the room as if he was looking through the walls. “Sire, I will come. But I won’t leave Melody alone. I’m frightened she could be attacked. I know she doesn’t frequent the clubs, but whoever this person is, they know a worrying amount about my movements: Manchester, Sheffield, York…” His expression was pure misery. Gethin assumed defying his sire, even if this was at the moment a suggestion rather than an outright refusal, wasn’t something that sat easily with Sorley.
Dalziel made an impatient sound. “Bring her then.”
“She won’t come. And I won’t leave her alone.”
Gethin cringed as Dalziel’s sigh echoed through the bedroom. “Call Baxter,” Dalziel said finally. “I presume Melody does have internet?”
Sorley snorted. “She’s reclusive, not archaic, Dalziel.” He echoed his sire’s sigh. “Baxter’s going to moan.”
“She’ll do it because she’s needed. I’ll expect you within forty-eight hours. Preferably sooner.” The phone went dead. Gethin told Justin they’d be in touch and also hung up.
“Someone Scottish got out the wrong side of the bed this morning.” Gethin looked pointedly at Sorley. “I need a cuppa. You’ll get hold of Baxter?”
“Of course. Then I guess you’d better get whatever shopping you need for today and tomorrow. I’ll get some more sleep, to be up for Baxter arriving.” He hesitated. “You should switch to vampire hours if you can.”
Gethin grunted. “Like I haven’t already.”
* * *
Gethin couldn’t immediately understandhow two such different people were firm friends, but he had to admit, Baxter Wragg was a good influence on Sorley. He seemed lighter in the presence of her chirpy, extrovert nature and smiled more readily; perhaps it was simply long familiarity. The despondency that had leaked out of him since confirming that Bradley Chen was a previous hook-up of his had now been replaced by optimism and calm. Baxter had parked her car and jogged into the centre of town, not a hair out of place, arriving at Sorley’s doorstep some time after three a.m.. She dumped her bags on the floor, hugged Sorley, then a wide grin split her face as her gaze flipped between her friend and Gethin, who had only previously met her over video calls. Her nose wrinkled up and finally she shook her head, resigned disbelief the uppermost emotion Gethin could read coming from her.
“If this is the way vamps are moving on, I’d better find myself a wolfy man asap.” Her grin widened even further and she held out a slightly cautious hand to Gethin. “Hughes, I guess it’s nice to finally meet you in person, seeing as you’re banging my mate. Try not to break his heart. He’s a sensitive little bugger, even though he pretends he’s got no soul.”
That earned her a glower from Sorley and shocked a guffaw out of Gethin. He grinned at the vampire, admiring her smooth brown skin and stunning, slightly androgynous features. He was learning to accept he was gay, but he wasn’t blind, and Baxter was a beautiful woman.
“It’s good to meet you too,” he said warmly. “Although I’m not sure you need to worry too much about his heart. I’m fairly sure it lives in an ice cave somewhere in the wilds of Antarctica.”
Baxter echoed his laugh back at him, then slapped him on the back, the power in the blow making his eyes pop. “I might have to reconsider my views about shifters if you’re typical of your kind. Reckon I’ve been misled.” She headed for the kitchen and helped herself to a blood bag, throwing it in the microwave. “Guess I’d better not get too cosy if I’m heading next door.” Her gaze narrowed and she tilted her head to regard her friend. “How come I’ve never met this Melody girl? Keeping her to yourself, Sor?”
