She snorted. "No one cares."

  "No, I mean you can't tell anyone what you scent once I'm bleeding."

  She stilled for a moment, then frowned before groaning. "Should've known with the fucking lemon scent. You're not the only magic user flying under the radar."

  For a moment, Kage wanted to object, but there was nothing to object to. Except, what did she mean she should've known? And who else was pretending to be human? Rue. Did he too use lemons to conceal his scent?

  "Feed him. The cops never have to know, and you can keep on doing your job."

  Kage sank to his knees in the cooling blood. "How do I--"

  Alice grabbed his arm, pushed up his sleeve, and held it against Gilbert's mouth. It stung when the fangs sank through his skin, and he winced but said nothing. Alice kept him in place.

  After a few seconds, she blew out a breath and deflated a little. "What do we do with this mess?" She gestured around.

  "What happened?"

  She grimaced. "I think we should do a real debrief once we're back at the community."

  "The bullet points."

  She shrugged. "I went looking for someone to feed from. Found a security door, with what looked like an ordinary door behind it. I reached through the bars and tried the handle, but it was locked. I kept walking, thinking I could find another door leading somewhere, and ended up in the kitchen. That's when the vampire came rushing. I don't know if there are cameras or what, but he went straight for me. You know what happened next." She gestured at the three bodies on the floor.

  "Are they dead?" Kage looked around, then jumped as Gilbert withdrew his fangs only to sink them into a new spot on his arm. He winced but said nothing. Alice watched with something close to relief, then she looked around.

  "The shifters are gone, but the vamp might recover if he's fed."

  Kage would not be feeding him. "Where's the bartender?"

  Alice held his gaze for a moment, then she got up and walked out the door.

  * * * *

  Chapter 16

  Gilbert didn't know what he was drinking. It didn't taste like any blood he'd ever had before. It was rich, almost like a shifter's, and he'd only bitten a shifter once, but it wasn't a shifter. It was something else. Citrusy. Or no. It wasn't the blood that was citrusy, it was the scent.

  He forced his eyes open and took in Kage's worried face.

  "Hi there. Are you with me?"

  Gilbert was aware of holding Kage's arm and instantly let go and pulled his fangs out. Then he saw the blood welling up, not from two puncture wounds, but four. He must've bitten him twice. Fuck, he'd bitten a police officer.

  What would happen now?

  He'd have to run, or he'd be thrown in jail. He listened, trying to pick up on any sirens.

  "Gilbert." Kage stroked a strand of hair from his forehead. "Can you hear me?"

  A drop of blood trickled down his arm, and Kage tried turning it so it wouldn't fall. Gilbert sat with a hiss as his abdomen protested, then he grabbed Kage's arm again. He licked the path the drop had taken before closing his lips around the puncture wounds and slid his tongue over them until they were closed. Then he moved to the other two.

  Kage didn't move. He simply sat there and allowed Gilbert to lick him.

  "So..." Kage's gaze jumped around. "You can't tell anyone."

  Tell anyone?

  "I'll lose my job if anyone on the force finds out, and I...eh...don't know what happens when someone who's concealed their identity is found out." He looked into Gilbert's eyes. "Do they throw unregistered magic users in prison? Christopherson can't know, okay? You have to promise. Both you and Alice."

  Gilbert stared at him, then he pulled him a little closer. Kage followed easily. When all he did was look into Gilbert's eyes, he kissed him. He most likely tasted of blood, so he didn't deepen the kiss, but he lingered with his lips against Kage's.

  Once Gilbert leaned back, Kage huffed. "What was that for?"

  "You don't have to worry about Christopherson. I wish the two of you would stop drowning yourselves in scents, but I know--" He held up a finger. "You can't have anyone find out while you're working."

  Kage's eyes were wide. "What?"

  Gilbert ran a pad of his thumb over Kage's bottom lip. "Thanks for saving me."

  "It was my fault you were gutted in the first place. I don't know what I was thinking, calling your name. I know better. You were holding your own until I distracted you."

  "He's gone." Alice appeared next to them, moving fast.

  Gilbert frowned. "Who?"

  "The bartender. I think we'd better get out of here before he returns with a clan."

  Nodding, Gilbert climbed to his feet. The kitchen spun around him, but he steadied himself with a hand on Kage's shoulder. "Is Jacob okay?"

  Alice nodded. "He and Leonard are waiting for us by the entrance. We don't want a human in the middle of an attack." Then she turned to Kage. "You don't happen to have combat skills, do you?"

  Kage shook his head. "No, sorry."

  "You never do. We always hear about powerful magic users, but despite having more than should be possible, not a single one of you can be used as weapons." She moved to Gilbert's other side, helped to steady him.

  Gilbert huffed. "Ty. He's a weapon."

  She grimaced at him and moved them toward the door. "I guess, but he's useless at a distance."

  Gilbert gave a pained chuckle, then he looked back at the bodies littered on the kitchen floor. "What about those?"

  "Oh, hold on." Kage disappeared from under his hand and ran toward the bodies. He didn't go near the vampire, which was for the best. Gilbert hadn't checked if he was dead or only injured. Kage went through the pockets of the shifters and grabbed their wallets. Weird. He hadn't taken Kage for a thief.

  "Let's go." Alice pushed him against the door. "I have a bad feeling, and I want out of here as soon as possible."

  Gilbert nodded and let go of her. "I can manage on my own. The dizziness is gone." He was as weak as a kitten, but Kage's blood was working wonders. He'd be fine in a bit. Perhaps not in fighting form, but fine, nonetheless.

  * * * *

  This was insane. Kage had put Gilbert in the passenger seat where there was the most space, then Alice, Leonard, and he had squeezed themselves into the backseat of Jacob's car, and off they went. It wasn't until they'd gone for more than half an hour, and Jacob was flooring the gas pedal, that Kage wondered why the hell they'd brought Leonard. He didn't live in the community.

  It wasn't his problem. Alice had shoved them all into the car, urging everyone to move faster, to get out of there before some supposed coven would arrive.

  When they were about halfway back to Myrfolk, Kage let out a deep breath and slumped in his seat. His shoulders brushed against Alice, who sat in the middle. "Do you think we're in the clear?" He spoke to no one in particular.

  "Yeah." Alice looked over her shoulder out the rear window. "They would have caught up with us by now if they planned to come after us."

  "We left the stoves on. What if there's a fire?" Gilbert half-turned as he spoke.

  "Nah, the bartender ran. Pretty sure he didn't go far."

  Jacob cleared his throat. "Why would he run? Wouldn't it be more logical for him to run into the kitchen to help fight you?"

  They might have won if he'd had. Two vampires and two shifters against Gilbert and Alice. Kage would never leave without his gun ever again.

  "Don't know." Alice looked at Leonard. "Do you know him?"

  Leonard shook his head. "No, it's the third time I've visited, and he's been there two of the times. The second time I went, there was a female working the bar, also a vampire."

  "For being a human-owned establishment, there were shockingly few humans working." Kage flipped open the first wallet. He'd grabbed them, thinking they could come back at some point and raise the dead. Those shifters had to be able to answer at least a few questions. Especially if they acted fast. The fresher the body, the easier to get answers.

  "Gilroy Randolf." He looked at Alice and Leonard to see if they recognized the name.

  "Not a member of the Oakmouth community." Leonard shook his head.

  "Not Myrfolk either." Alice gestured for the driver's license, and Kage handed it over. "Never seen him before." She held it up for Leonard to see and got a headshake in reply.

  "The other guy was named Casper Allard."

  Alice was shaking her head before he'd finished speaking, but he handed over the driver's license anyway.

  "Do you think it's their real names?" He wouldn't be able to raise them if he didn't have their real names.

  "Most shifters keep their names through time." Alice sounded distracted and was studying the photo of Casper. "Do we know anyone named Allard, Gil?"

  Gil? Did people call him Gil? He hadn't heard it before.

  "Don't think so."

  She held the driver's license between the front seats. "I don't know him, but he reminds me of someone."

  Gilbert took it and looked at it. "Nah, doesn't remind me of anyone, but I don't meet many people. Maybe show Gertrude."

  Alice hummed in agreement and plucked the plastic card from Gilbert when he held it out. She held it out for Leonard, who shook his head. "Don't recognize the name, and I don't think I've ever seen him."

  Alice looked at the photo again. "Not someone involved with the butchery or something?"

  "No, they're all human. Jinx would know if they weren't, and I think he's met everyone there."

  Alice nodded. "I should call and let Gertrude know we're incoming. She can decide who to wake." She handed back the driver's license to Kage and grabbed her phone.

  Jacob cleared his throat. "We're going to the community?"

  "Yeah." Alice nodded and unlocked the screen on her phone.

  "All of us?"

  Kage didn't know if it was the slight tremor in his voice or what, but Alice looked up and met his gaze in the rearview mirror. "Yes, all of us. We'll talk through tonight's events and decide what to do next. I believe everyone wants to hear your take on things too. You saw what happened in the serving area, right?"

  Jacob's gaze jumped to Leonard, then back to Alice. "Right."

  * * * *

  Gilbert was feeling better when he stepped out of the car outside the walls. Conan was waiting for them with the gate door open. "Rumor is you've had an adventurous night." He was grinning.

  "There's already a rumor?" How the hell could there already be a rumor?

  Conan shrugged. "Gertrude called, so naturally the closest sections wanted to know what was going on, and then the closest to them, and the closest to them, and it circled the walls within a few minutes."

  "You started a rumor."

  Conan huffed. "Gertrude says for you to come to her place." He bowed slightly and swept out with his arm.

  Gilbert nodded and followed the group toward Gertrude's house. Neither of them spoke as they walked, and before they could reach the stairs, Gertrude opened the door for them.

  "You okay?"

  "Yeah, it was touch and go there for a bit, but Alice fed from one of the attackers, and I fed from Kage." Gilbert stepped inside the living room and swept his gaze over everyone sitting there. Jasper and Oscar were there, as were Asher and Chaton. Jinx was there, but not Namir. He guessed someone had to stay home with the girl. He couldn't remember her name right now, but she was a magic user, so he was glad someone was protecting her. Not that he believed anyone could get inside the walls to kidnap a child.

  "Noah is on his way." Gertrude pushed past them. "I'll put on some tea."

  Leonard moved closer to Jinx, and they spoke low between the two of them. Kage looked pale, but Gilbert wasn't sure it was blood loss alone. He reached out and squeezed his shoulder, and to his surprise, he stepped closer, almost leaning against Gilbert.

  Jacob looked around and fidgeted.

  There was a knock on the door, and Gilbert assumed it was Noah, but it was Ylva who walked into the room. He nodded at her and got a small smile in return.

  "Ylva." Gertrude sounded surprised.

  "I spoke to Conan."

  Alice groaned. "He's a worse gossip than Arnou, worse than Asher even."

  Asher gave her the finger, and Gilbert sighed. He didn't care if Ylva was here or not.

  Noah walked in without knocking, and a more or less sleepwalking Rue followed in his wake. There were sleep lines on his cheek, and his hair was tousled.

  Gertrude grabbed chairs from the kitchen and carried them into the living room. Noah sat and pulled Rue down on his lap. Ylva sat on the floor, and Jinx opted for standing.

  "Okay." Gertrude poured steaming tea into cups and handed them out. "Who'll start?" Her gaze moved over them.

  Gilbert cleared his throat. "I was meeting Kage and Oscar for lunch at The Garage earlier today, or yesterday now, I guess. When I got there, I ran into Jacob." He gestured at Jacob. "I know Jacob from The Virgin Drop. He was one of the regulars." A blush painted Jacob's cheeks, but Gilbert pushed on. "We got talking about where to go now that The Drop is closed, and Jacob told me about The Bloody Maiden in Wanford. I'd never heard of it, so I--"

  "In Wanford?" Jinx frowned at him. "There is no community in Wanford."

  Gilbert shrugged. "There is a vampire-themed bar. I don't know how long it's been there." He looked at Leonard, thinking he might know.

  He shook his head. "It's been there for a few months--three or four."

  Jinx exchanged a look with Gertrude. The whole butchery debacle had gone down in January, so they hadn't been there after it had opened.

  "Continue." Gertrude nodded at him, and Gilbert took a deep breath.

  "Jacob was reluctant to go alone, since it's quite a drive, and he didn't know what to expect once he got there. I figured it was something we should check out. With Kage and Oscar looking for the missing magic user--"

  "Who?" Both Jinx and Leonard spoke at the same time. Gilbert guessed Jinx hadn't heard since he wasn't a vampire, though everyone appeared to know Kage had pulled a gun on him. Leonard had been thrown into this without any knowledge, so no surprise there.

  Gilbert gestured at Kage, thinking it'd be best to let him explain.

  * * * *

  Chapter 17

  Kage wanted to run when all eyes in the room turned to him. He cleared his throat. "I...eh...I asked for a transfer to Myrfolk because I'm looking for an unregistered magic user named Pomona October. Pomona Felicia October." He looked around, but there was no recognition on any of the faces.

  "What's her skill?" Gertrude spun the mug in her hand.

  "Pomona is the Roman goddess of fruit trees."

  Gertrude's eyes widened, then she looked at Rue. "She's like you?"

  Rue looked more asleep than awake as he waved a hand. "No idea, I've never met anyone named Pomona, and I can't remember there ever being any mentioning of a slave named that." The last bit he directed at Chaton. "During all my time there, it was only the four of us who weren't human."

  Chaton shook his head. "No, not Pomona, but do you remember the group..." The color drained from his face, and Asher took his hand in his. "One night, there was a group who asked for Felicia, and they gave them us instead, saying you were like her."

  Rue narrowed his eyes, then shook his head. "No, sorry, but I might've been...in a bad place."

  Kage wanted to change the topic to spare them their memories, but Rue and Chaton were the best lead he'd had in a long time, so he pushed on. "Long black hair, wavy, curly when wet." He shook his head. It had been many years since he'd seen her. Maybe she wasn't allowed long hair as a slave, maybe they'd dyed it. "From what I've managed to dig up, she was given, sold, transferred--I don't know--either way, she ended up at The Virgin Drop, but there I hit a wall. I believed if I got here, I could access the police reports and maybe find names, leads, things not adding up, but most reports concerning the community are gone."

  Gilbert took over. "Since Oscar and Kage were looking for her, I figured I should go with Jacob and check out this new place. I mean, the chance of it being a blood bar was slim to none, but why hadn't we heard of it?" He gestured at Alice. "There aren't many vampires living here--" Kage noted Gertrude trying and failing to conceal a wince. What was that about?--but surely, they'd want to market to us. So why haven't they?"

  "You said there's only seven of you here." Leonard shrugged. "Maybe they didn't think it was worth the effort. If they've done their research, they know at least some of you are paired up." He gestured at Asher and Chaton on the couch.

  "True, but if it's a bar, an ordinary bar, where people go to watch vampires serve drinks, then..." Gilbert shrugged. "Sometimes you want to hang out with people of your own species."

  Asher pointed at him. "Right! Which means it might not be an ordinary bar, and we might not be the ideal customer since we took over a blood bar and shut it down on day one."

  Could that be it? Kage scanned the room to see the others' reactions. Was not getting an invitation a sign that things weren't kosher?

  Silence fell, and Kage watched as more than one forehead creased into frowns.

  Gertrude turned to Leonard. "Leonard, did you see any marketing for The Bloody Maiden?"

  "Yes, there were a few pamphlets sent to the community. A coupon for a free beer at the first visit."

  Christopherson leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. "They're fine with residents from the Oakmouth community, but they don't want anyone from here." He looked at Gertrude.

  "Fishy." She sighed before focusing on Kage and Gilbert. "What did you see?"

  Gilbert shrugged. "It looked like an ordinary bar. Maybe it would've been better if we'd waited for the weekend, then we might've seen more." He looked at Jacob. "But we wanted to check it out."

  "If it looked like an ordinary bar, how come you were injured, both of you--" Gertrude gestured between Gilbert and Alice. "--and you had to flee?"

  Alice grimaced. "It might look like an ordinary bar, but there was a security door I couldn't get past. And behind it, was a locked solid door."

 

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