“No, but he overheard one of the guards say all the women will be brought in at some point before the party. Teague’s calling the builder to get the blueprints. After everything’s in place, we’ll have a better idea as to the rest of our covers.”
“Speaking of covers, Sebastian Beam’s going to need a costume for the occasion.”
“I’ll have one of our guys set you up with something. I wanted to give you a heads up on the credit card Lawrence used to pay for his hotel room. It’s linked to an LLC, some shell corporation operated by Malcom Von Scrivner. He has quite a laundry list of felonies, including money laundering and kidnap. He’s your sire?”
Garrett gritted his teeth. “One and the same I’m afraid.”
“There’s something else you should know. Joe Tate sent me the coroner’s report. He found traces of paint and wood chips under the nails of the last vic.”
“It sounds like our killer could be a handyman.” Garrett pulled his notebook from his pocket. “I’ll check the address of the Macheo girl and see if there was any remodeling going on in her building.”
“Good idea. Hold on a sec.” Alex swore under his breath. “I need to pull over, visibility’s shit. I’m driving and it’s coming down hard.”
Garrett used the interruption to tune into the sounds coming from upstairs. He could only hear the storm raging outside. He couldn’t detect Gillian’s heartbeat anywhere in the house. “I have to go. I think Gillian took off. I need to find her.”
“Call me back when you do,” Alex said, ending the call.
Taking the stairs two at a time, Garrett called her name over and over again, but it was useless. He could tell by the icy sensation filling his chest, he was too late. She was already gone.
* * *
Garrett searched the neighborhood, but Gillian was nowhere to be found. He tried to pick up on her scent, but it was lost in the rain. She’d stopped answering her phone. God, if something happened to her he would never forgive himself. Shaking his head, he refused to let his mind go there.
Between the agents and his partner, they’d called all of the witches from the coven to see if they’d heard from Gillian, and so far, no one knew of her whereabouts. He reached for his cell out of his pocket and dialed Alex’s number again. He answered on the first ring. “Garrett? Nothing on this end. Any word?”
“I still haven’t found her. She was angry when she left,” Garrett said, making his way back up his street, praying she’d turn up.
“What happened?” Alex asked, sounding concerned. “Did you two get into a fight?”
“Gillian said I didn’t understand her cabin fever, and perhaps that’s true. She’s insisting on coming with us to the party to sever Brooke from her blood bond. According to her, the potion only works using her blood, and Gillian must perform the spell at the same time, but it’s one hell of a risk. And it doesn’t excuse the way she’s behaving, taking off and acting reckless, putting herself in danger—worrying me sick.” Garrett picked up his pace, his fear mounting with every step.
“Gillian is a ballsy witch. Look what she did to Greystone? And what about the flunky who came after her outside her shop? She messed him up with her hairspray trick. Like it or not, she can handle herself, Mulroney. We need to consider her help if there’s even a chance she can break Brooke from her blood bond. We can find a way to get Gillian into that party and keep her safe. I’m not about breaking the rules, man, but this time, we can make an exception. Take it from me, if you care about this girl at all, and I know that you do, stop acting like a prick. Put your pride aside and let her in. I made the same mistake with Willow and I almost lost her.”
His words struck a chord. Panic gripped Garrett like a vice around his throat. “I’ve got to go. I need to find her.” He couldn’t let his mind contemplate the alternative. After he shoved his phone back in his pocket, his gaze darted up the block in search of her, but with the storm raging on, the streets were empty.
When his phone remained silent, he started to imagine the worst. He decided to drive around the neighborhood to cover more ground and headed to his Jeep. With his keys in hand, he jogged up the block and spotted Gillian sitting on his front stoop.
With his heart in his throat, he wanted to run to her—crush her in his arms. But he stopped in his tracks and stared, hoping she was real.
She got to her feet when she saw him. Regret and desire burned in those gorgeous brown eyes of hers. “Garrett?”
“Where did you go? I’ve been looking all over for you, calling you every five minutes and you don’t pick up.” Did she know he’d been going out of his mind? If she had any idea just how much he cared, she’d probably run again in the other direction.
“I needed some time alone, and then I came back to talk.” She pushed her soaking hair off her face. “I’m sorry about not answering my phone. I didn’t mean to worry you. I guess it would suck if something happened to your star witness,” she joked, looking miserable.
“You think I was worried about you because you’re my witness?” Saying the words out loud filled him with pain.
She shook her head. “No, that’s not what I meant. I’m sorry for running away. It was selfish and childish of me. And I’m sorry for those things I said to you earlier. I didn’t mean to hurt you. My words were spoken in anger, and a whole lot of fear. I got frustrated. I realize now that you’re only trying to protect me and Brooke, but that’s not the only reason I ran.”
He took a tentative step closer and remained on the sidewalk while the rain continued to pound down on them. “Why did you run?” he asked in a choked voice. “What was the other reason?”
“I want to get close to you, and you won’t let me in. I’ve been trying to fight this thing between us.” She swallowed hard, and his gaze darted to the pulse point pounding at her throat. “And the truth is I’m not sure I want to fight it anymore.”
Without conscious thought, his feet seemed to move through the gate to the bottom step. He gazed up at her wet, tear-streaked face, and guilt surged in his veins. For the first time in over a century, he felt alive again, and all because of her. Even if she didn’t know it yet, she was the one in control. She held all the cards in her hands. And it killed him that he’d hurt her enough to make her cry.
“What are you saying, Gillian?”
“When I close my eyes, it’s your face I see, your kiss I crave, even in my dreams. No matter how hard I try, I can’t stop.”
