Jared filled them in on what they’d missed so far, a quick and thorough rundown of an incredibly boring session. In a nutshell, Pirozzi wanted to expand his very successful manufacturing operation, and since Raphael was his biggest, and only other, shareholder, he needed the big guy’s approval. Yawn.

But she managed to appear reasonably alert and interested, managed also to remain, if not friendly, then at least polite to Jared. And not to cheer out loud when the meeting ended.

Raphael gave her a discreet wink, knowing her too well not to understand what she was thinking. She gave him wide, who-me? eyes that fooled no one, least of all Raphael, then watched as he stood to bid Pirozzi farewell, accepting the other vampire’s slight bow of obeisance. There were some vampires in Raphael’s circle, those closer to him, with whom he’d shake hands in greeting, or even, in Lucas’s case, exchange hugs. But then, that was Lucas. He was a very huggy guy for a vampire. In any event, Pirozzi was not of the inner circle and definitely not a friend. He was simply one of the many vampires who called Raphael master. Raphael ruled his people absolutely, but fairly, and they accorded him both respect and fear. That’s how it worked among vampires.

When Pirozzi and his assistant were gone, Raphael took Cyn’s hand and pulled her to her feet, draping a possessive arm over her shoulders as he walked her out of the conference room and down the hall to his office.

“Work?” she asked.

“An hour’s worth. You can go downstairs if you want.”

“No, I’ll stay with you. I’ve got some catching up to do, too.”

Raphael settled behind his desk, while Cyn sat on the couch with her laptop. She still did private investigations, but most of her clients were vampires now, and almost all of her investigations were done remotely. She hadn’t sworn off field work; she liked the adrenaline rush too much. But just as Raphael had promised to keep her in the loop, she’d promised him not to take the kind of crazy risks that had almost gotten her killed. So lately, the only time she’d been in the field was with Raphael, and her on-line research skills were getting better with every job.

“When is that thing in Chicago?” she asked. She’d received a new e-mail job request, but the time frame was short.

“The first week in December,” Raphael said absently, then looked over at her.

“December in Chicago?” she asked unhappily. “We’re going to freeze our asses off.”

He shrugged. “Probably, but the Midwest needs a new lord, and we can’t delay any longer.”

“Do you have to be there?”

“It’s tradition. The presence of the Council lords helps keep violence to a minimum. We will be stopping in South Dakota first, however.”

Cyn scowled. “South Dakota. That’s kind of like stopping in Fairbanks to warm up before the Arctic.”

Raphael shot her an amused look. “I need to consult with Lucas, and, against my better judgment, you’ll be meeting Kathryn.”

“Kathryn?” Cyn grinned happily. “Can Emma and Sarah come, too?”

“No.”

Cyn just laughed. But the first thing she did was dash an e-mail off to the rest of the Mates Club, giving them the good news. The name wasn’t ideal—too nautical by half—but that’s what Sarah had suggested they call themselves for now, since “spouses” didn’t work and Colin’s participation ruled out anything gender specific. Their first official get-together was supposed to be at the upcoming Chicago Council meeting, and now Cyn was about to get the full scoop on their newest member. She hit send and glanced up to find Raphael studying her suspiciously.

“I don’t think I want to know what you just did.”

“Aw,” she cooed, getting up and walking over to slide onto his lap. “You’re a tough guy. You can take it.”

“Kathryn is with the FBI, you know. She’s very law abiding, according to Lucas.”

“I know,” she said, giving him a comforting pat.

“She’s still active. Working in the Minneapolis office.”

“I know,” she repeated in the same soothing voice.

He eyed her narrowly. “Cyn.”

“Yes?” She gave him her best angelic smile.

He sighed deeply. “I’m going to regret this.”

“Don’t be silly. We’re gonna have fun!”

Chapter Three

South Dakota

They flew to South Dakota by private jet—Raphael and Cyn, plus their security. Cyn’s personal team consisted of Elke and Robbie, the former Army Ranger who was her daytime bodyguard and friend. She loved Robbie. He’d gone through hell and back with her, and that was a bond not easily put aside. Raphael’s team was much larger, of course. Not that he couldn’t defend himself, but vampires were very big on appearances, which meant Raphael had to travel with a suitable security cadre.

Juro was with them, naturally, since he was Raphael’s Security Chief. Cyn got along just fine with Juro. The big Japanese vampire had been the only one of Raphael’s inner circle who’d argued in favor of telling her everything about their plan to bait the assassin last March.

Jared was with them, too, but he was another matter. Cyn would have liked to ignore him altogether, but as Raphael’s lieutenant, he was constantly around. And she knew the distrust between them troubled Raphael, so she made the effort to be civil.

There were three SUVs waiting for them when they landed in Rapid City, which was the closest airport able to handle Raphael’s Learjet. Lucas had provided drivers along with the vehicles, but being the hyper-paranoid personalities they all were, Juro immediately replaced Lucas’s people with his own. Not surprisingly, Lucas’s people were prepared for that eventuality, and all piled into a fourth vehicle. The team leader lingered, offering to lead the way back to Lucas’s estate, which Juro accepted. Cyn had done her homework and knew that Lucas lived in the back end of nowhere, so a guide was a good thing. That didn’t mean Juro wouldn’t double-check everything, though.

Raphael led Cyn over to the middle of their three SUVs, which was kind of predictable if any bad guys had plans to take Raphael out on the road. But then, if any bad guys tried to ambush Raphael’s convoy, they’d be in for a few surprises. And not the happy kind.

Juro slid behind the wheel, and Cyn hid her grin as he immediately reprogrammed the in-dash Nav system. His fingers flew over the screen’s keyboard in a blur of vampire speed as he replaced whatever data Lucas’s people had already put in there. Trust among friends, Cyn thought to herself. It was touching, really.

They made good time once they left the city behind. There were very few cars on the road. The only light was from the nearly full moon overhead, the only sound the hum of the tires on the road and the occasional murmur of voices from Jared or Juro in the front seat. Cyn sank back into the comfort of Raphael’s embrace, her eyes closing almost of their own accord. The days leading up to this trip had been unexpectedly busy. Two days ago, she’d had the fortunately rare pleasure of participating in a big meeting with the legal team managing the Leighton Family Trust, a meeting which naturally included her grandparents and her father. Cyn usually proxied her vote to one of the lawyers she trusted when it came to such things, but this particular meeting had required her presence. Seeing her father had been especially stressful, since he was still pissed off about Raphael buying the Karcher property out from under him last year. He was convinced Cyn had something to do with it, and she supposed indirectly she had, since it was her father’s disregard for her that had motivated Raphael to buy it. But the truth was, Karcher or not, she and her father didn’t have much in common. So there had been that charming encounter, and then several other business matters, all of which had to be handled during daylight, and, of course, Raphael continued to claim her nighttime hours, which was not exactly a hardship. But it did mean she’d gotten very little sleep, and as they sped through the black night, she drifted off to the familiar sounds.

It was a break in the familiarity that woke her. She sat up, abruptly wide awake, every sense on high alert as she tried to figure out what had changed. One of the security SUVs was in the lane next to them, and then sliding past as their SUV sped up and the security vehicle dropped back to trail behind them. She frowned and leaned forward to look out the front window. There had been two SUVs in front of them, one with Lucas’s people and the other with their own. There was now only one, which meant the threat, whatever it was, was coming from the rear.

“What’s going on?” she asked no one in particular.

It was Jared who answered her. “Trailing vehicle thinks we have a tail.”

“Who’s that in front of us?”

“That’s our people. Lucas’s team is dropping back to check out the unknown.”

Cyn turned to stare out the back, but could see nothing, not even headlights. With the bright moon out here, the vampire drivers had all turned off their lights, but what about their uninvited visitor? She strained to see something, her hand automatically creeping to the 9 mm Glock that rode in its usual shoulder holster, touching it like a talisman for good luck. Although she didn’t really believe in luck. She believed in being prepared and kicking ass.

Raphael’s hand touched her thigh, his fingers squeezing lightly. “They know their jobs, lubimaya.”

She grimaced unhappily, but scooted back and settled close to him. “I know that,” she muttered. “Doesn’t mean I don’t worry.”

“You wouldn’t be you otherwise.”

Cyn scowled, not sure she liked that idea either. But she pretended to relax while listening avidly to the murmured conversations in the front seat and wishing she’d worn her own ear bud.

Finally, Jared turned around to say, “They’re gone, my lord. Whoever it was saw us reacting and took off across country. No lights.”

No lights. That meant … “Vampires?” she asked.

“Not necessarily. The moon is bright tonight, and locals would know the terrain well enough to travel in the dark and conceal themselves successfully.”