"Jenks!" I shouted, stumbling backward.

I prayed Al would start talking, but his elegant, chiseled features twisted in anger, and he leapt at me, white-gloved hands reaching.

I fell back against the sink. Arms braced, I swung both feet up to hit him square in the chest. Oh, God. I was dead. He wasn't gloating. He wanted to freaking kill me. If I was dead, no one would know he broke his word. Not only was Ceri an idiot for making charms for him, she was wrong, too.

Panic took me when my feet went right through him. Gasping, I fell, sliding down the face of the cupboards to land on my butt. My gaze went to my spell books. Minias. My new calling circle was under the counter with my books. I had to get to it.

I scrambled forward. Pain made me slow, and as adrenaline pulsed through me, Al's thick, gloved hand grabbed me by the throat and hauled me up. I choked, ugly sounds making it past my lips. My eyes bulged, and my body went flaccid. He shook me, and the scent of amber rolled over me. "You are a really - stupid - witch," he said, giving me another shake with his accented word. "Sometimes, I wonder how you expected your genes to get to the next generation." He smiled, and fear wrapped around my heart as I gazed into his red, goat-slitted eyes and saw his anger. He had nothing to lose. Nothing.

Panicking, I struggled. He couldn't go misty to avoid my strikes and still hold on to me. I had a chance. Al grunted when I scored on his shin, and he let go.

I took a gasping breath of air. My feet hit the floor. Knees crumpling, I screamed when I was jerked back upright by my hair. "I'm going to freaking kill you, Al, if you don't get the hell out of my kitchen!" I vowed, not knowing where the threat was coming from, but I was pissed. Scared. Absolutely terrified.

A velveteen arm went around my neck. A cry slipped from me when his grip on my hair tightened, pulling my head up so I looked at the ceiling. Pain struck through my neck and scalp. I reached backward, and he grunted when I got a fistful of his hair. But he wouldn't let go. Even when I yanked it out by the roots and sent my hands scrabbling back for more.

"Stop it," he said grimly, jerking me into motion. "We have an appointment."

"The hell we do," I panted, finding an ear and digging my nails in. Where is Jenks?

Al grunted, tightening his grip until I let go. I wasn't dead. I wasn't dead. He wanted me alive. For the moment. For an appointment?

"You are going to clear my name," he snarled, bending to mouth my ear as if to bite it off. I fought him until he pulled my hair so hard that tears started. I could smell blood, but I didn't think it was mine. I thought I'd broken his nose when I had flung my head back. I tried to shove against the counter, and Al dragged me away.

"I asked you nicely, but like the spoiled brat you are, you refused," he said. "I don't mind doing it the hard way. You are going to testify to the courts that Ceridwen Merriam Dulciate is limited to teaching one child how to spindle line energy. That the damage is contained. I won't do time for an ex-familiar who would be dead but for you."

My breath seemed to freeze in me. Testify? He meant in the ever-after. He expected me to stand in a demon court? "Why should I trust you?" I panted, fingertips squeaking as he pulled my grip off the counter again.

"It might make things easier," he suggested, sounding almost bitter that I didn't.

Easier? I thought. It might also make me dead. I struggled, my slippers sliding on the linoleum as he yanked me backward to the hall. My pulse leapt when the back door opened and the skittering of cat claws rasped. I tried to see, but it was hard with Al's arm around my neck.

"'Bout time, Jenks!" I exclaimed. "What were you doing? Showing him your stump?"

My bravado died at the snarl that rumbled slowly to life and vibrated to my very nerve endings, reaching deep into my psyche and clenching around my primitive brain to reduce me to fight or flight. Cormel? That ugly sound was coming from him?

"Holy shit!" Jenks shrilled, and Al's grip on my hair loosened.

Taking a gasp of air, I twisted, falling away and smacking the flat of my foot square across the demon's right cheek. Al rocked back, his eyes never leaving Rynn Cormel, who was standing in the threshold to my kitchen.

"Get back!" I shouted at the vampire, but he never even looked at me. Al, too, was a hunched shadow ignoring me. Mostly.

"Rynn Matthew Cormel," the demon drawled, a brief shimmer of ever-after cascading over him to leave his nose unbloodied and whole as he straightened. "What brings you slumming here?"

The elegant vampire loosened his coat. "You, in a roundabout way."

I flicked my gaze between them and felt my neck for the new bruise that was bound to show up. Jenks hovered beside me, spilling red dust that puddled on the floor.

"I'm honored," Al said, tension in his voice and posture.

"You're dead," Cormel said. "Morgan is mine. You will not touch her."

Oh, that's nice. Maybe.

Al laughed. "As if you have a say in the matter."

That was even freaking better. My breath came in sharply and I scrambled back when Cormel jumped at Al, arms reaching and an ugly sound erupting from him. A muffled curse slipped from me, and my back hit the fridge. I watched, shocked, as the two grappled, both moving incredibly fast. Al blurred in and out of existence, making the vampire look like he was trying to catch moving sand. I couldn't take my eyes away, and my pulse hammered. If Al won, I was going to be bail money. If Rynn Cormel won, I was going to have to deal with a master vampire hyped up on fear and anger who thought I was his.

"Look out!" I cried when Al got a grip on him, but the vampire twisted with an inhuman bonelessness, dislocating his own shoulder to fix his teeth on Al's neck.

Al screamed and went misty, re-forming to push Rynn backward into the sink. Mr. Fish's bowl teetered, and when the vampire launched himself at Al, his fangs sheened with blood, I darted to rescue the Betta.

Water sloshed as I retreated. Not looking at what I was doing, I shoved the fish onto the back of the counter. My gaze went to the books hiding my scrying mirror. Minias. I could call Minias. Yeah, one more demon ought to make this farce complete.

Al hit the wall beside Ivy's computer, and the lights flickered. Gathering my courage, I darted forward, fingers slipping on the cold glass as I found the mirror.

"Oh, God, oh, God, oh, God," I whispered, not remembering the word to invoke the charm.

"Rachel!" Jenks cried.

They were coming right at me. Eyes widening, I curled my body over the mirror and dove out of the way. Al and Cormel crashed into the fridge. The clock above the sink fell, shattering to send the battery rolling into the hall.

Al had Cormel's face in his hands and was squeezing with a supernatural strength, but the vampire's teeth were red. I watched, unable to look away as Cormel reached up and dug his ugly fingers into Al's eyes.

Screaming, the demon flung himself back, but the vampire was after him. The two rolled on the floor, both struggling for control. They were going to freaking kill each other in my kitchen. And wouldn't Ivy be ticked at me for that?

"Jenks?" I said, seeing him hovering at the ceiling, just as captivated as I was.

His face was white, and his wings made a high-pitched whine. "I'll get them apart, you set the circle," he said.

I nodded and shoved my sleeves up past my elbows. The simplest plans were the best.

My heart pounded and Jenks hovered over them. They had regained their feet, struggling like wrestlers, Al's green frock making an odd statement against Rynn's elegant business suit.

"Hey, demon-ass!" Jenks shouted, and Al looked up.

A burst of pixy dust sifted down. Al screamed and went misty. Rynn's hands scrabbled on air, and when Al re-formed, he was hunched over, still rubbing at his eyes.

"Damn you to hell, you burning firefly!" the demon shouted.

Rynn gathered himself, and I sprang into motion. "Get out of the circle!" I shouted, grabbing the vampire's arm and swinging him into Ivy's desk with a crash. The heavy table remained standing, but the faint scent of broken technology mixed with the acidic smell of burnt amber and the rich tang of angry vampire.

The former world leader snarled at me when he found his balance. My face went cold, and I wondered if I'd fare better in the circle with Al.

"Rache!" Jenks shouted, clearly annoyed, and I slapped my hand down on the salt circle.

"Rhombus," I said with relief, and the connection to the ley line out back formed with a satisfying speed. Quicker than thought, a sheet of ever-after rose from the circle I had already scribed on the floor, made strong by my will and the salt I'd used.

Rynn skidded to a halt as the circle formed, his long coat unfurling to brush the impenetrable barrier. On the other side, Al pulled himself upright, howling. "I'll tear you apart!" he screamed, his eyes still watering from Jenks's dust. "Morgan, I'll kill you myself! I will not...You can't do this to me! Not again! You are just a stinking little witch!"

I fell back to sit on my butt, carefully pulling my feet to me so I wouldn't accidentally touch the bubble and send it crashing down. "Tag," I breathed heavily, looking around my demolished kitchen. Mr. Fish was quivering, but at least the fish - and Jenks's pumpkin under the table - had survived.

My jaw clenched in fear when I found Rynn Cormel. The vampire was completely flaked out, his pupils wide and his movements sharper and brighter than broken glass. He stood in the corner as far away from me as he could get, and I knew from living with Ivy that he was working hard to get control of his instincts. He held his coat closed, and the hem quivered as he fought his need to leap at me.

"Morgan!" Al raged, and reaching up, he pulled on the rack hanging overhead. Wood splintered and split, and I scrambled up with a gasp when the ceiling cracked, but it was the rack that broke, and stuff went everywhere, rolling until it found the interior of my circle and stopped. But he was contained, and as Al threw a temper tantrum, I worried more about Rynn.

"Are you okay, sir?" I said meekly.

The vampire brought his head up, and fear slid anew around my skull. His presence was thick in the room, his scent filling me inside and out. A tingling had started at my old demon scar, and I saw him swallow.

"Um, I'm going to open a window," I said, and when he nodded, I carefully got up.

Al threw himself at my circle, and I jumped, finding myself sweating when it held firm. "I'm going to kill you, witch," the demon said, panting as he stood before me, the rack broken and scattered over the interior of the circle. "I'm going to kill you, then mend you. I'm going to drive you insane. I'm going to make you beg for your death. I'm going to defile you, cut you from the inside out, put things in you that crawl around and burn your skull - "

"Will you shut up!" I interrupted him, and he howled, his face going red.

"You," I said to Rynn. "You just stay there, will you? I have to take care of this."

I didn't trust his silent posture, but he hadn't ruled the free world by lacking control.

"Mo-o-o-orga-a-a-an," Al crooned, and I turned from scooping up my scrying mirror.

My face lost its expression as I found him with one of my earth charm spell books. "Put that down," I demanded.

His eyes narrowed. "I may not have a lifetime of curses stored in me anymore," he said threateningly, "but I do know a few things by heart."

"Stop it," I said as he swiped an arm across the counter and everything went to the floor.

Jenks landed on my shoulder, sending the sharp scent of broken chlorophyll over me. "I don't like this, Rache," he whispered.

"I said, stop!" I exclaimed as Al sketched a rude pentagram and put my book in it.

"Celero inanio," he said, and I jumped when my charm book burst into flames.

"Hey!" I shouted, suddenly pissed. "Knock it off!"

Al's goat-slitted eyes narrowed. With a stiff motion, he dropped another book in its place. The thump of it reverberated through me. His gaze behind the sheet of black-stained ever-after was heavy with new hatred. I had bested him again. Me. A "stinking little witch."

I stared, thinking before I went with my first gut reaction of calling Minias. I could leave Al there to burn all my books, but with him in my circle, I'd know where he was and be safe that night. Or I could call Minias to drag Al's butt out of here and hope that no one summoned him again before the sun rose. But something in Al's angry expression made me pause.

Behind the fury, he was tired. He was tired of being hauled around and shoved into a little room. He was tired of trying for me and failing. And to have Minias know it, to be carted off under his leash...It was almost insulting. Maybe, if I gave Al a night of peace to lick his wounds and his pride, he would grant that same courtesy to me?

The moment hesitated. The kitchen was eerily silent without the noise from the clock, now broken on the floor. Al slowly straightened as he realized something was sifting through my brain, that I was considering just...letting him go. "Do you feel lucky, witch?" the demon growled, his lips pulling back from his teeth as he smiled. It was a dangerous smile that went right to my core. But the thing was, even though he could kill me, I wasn't scared of him anymore. As he had said, I had circled the bastard one too many times. He was tired. And by that comment earlier, maybe a little hungry for trust.

Al's eyes slid to the scrying mirror in my hand, and his gaze went introspective as he saw me weighing my options. "One night's truce?" he said inquiringly.

I bit my lip and listened to my pulse in my ears. "Get the hell out of here, Al," I said, not bothering to put any more direction behind it.

He blinked slowly. His features smoothed out, and a real smile curved over his face. "You're either really smart, or even more stupid than I thought," Al said, then vanished with a dramatic flair of red smoke.

"Rachel!" Jenks shouted, buzzing furiously in my face and shedding dust. "What the hell are you doing? He'll come right back!"

I took a slow breath and straightened. Scrying mirror in my grip, I carefully listened to the church, feeling the air for any sign of demons. My hand ached, and I flexed it, plucking a few of Al's hairs from under my fingernails in disgust. "Let it go, Jenks," I said. Something was shifting between Al and me - had shifted. I didn't know quite what, but I felt different. Maybe because I wasn't whining to Minias. Maybe me treating Al with more respect might just get me a little more respect from him. Maybe.

"You stupid witch!" Jenks was shouting. "Get your lily-white ass on holy ground. He's going to come back!"

"Not tonight he won't." The adrenaline crashed, and I found my knees shaking. My gaze slid to Rynn Cormel, standing in the corner trying to control himself, and I took another even breath to try to slow my pulse and not smell so tempting. The vampire still hadn't moved, but he was starting to look more human. Tired, I slid the scrying mirror back where it belonged between my three untouched demon books. Al had burned a mundane earth charm book.

Rynn took a step forward, jerking to a halt when Jenks got between us and buzzed a warning. The vampire was disgusted. "You let him go," the man said. "With no compulsion. You do deal in demons."

The coffee was done, and I crossed the room, trailing my trembling fingers through the plane of the bubble to break it as I passed. I settled against the counter where I could see both the man and the arch to the hallway. Taking a steadying breath, I poured a cup of coffee, and after asking Rynn Cormel with a gesture if he wanted any, I took a sip.

"I don't deal in demons," I said when the first of it slipped down my throat. "They deal in me. Thanks for trying to help, but Jenks and I had it under control." I didn't want him thinking I needed his protection. Vampire protection came at a cost - one I wasn't going to pay.

Rynn Cormel's eyebrows rose. "Had it under control? I saved your life."

Jenks huffed. "Saved our lives? Your hairy ass! Rachel was the one that saved yours. She circled him." The pixy turned to me, missing Rynn's dark expression. "Rache," he fussed. "Get on holy ground. He might come back."

I frowned at him while my free hand prodded my ribs for a possible bruise. "I'm fine. Take a chill pill before you set your dust on fire." The pixy sputtered, and I looked at the master vampire. "Do you want to sit down?"

Jenks made a burst of frustrated noise. "I'm going to check on my kids," he muttered, then darted out.

Rynn Cormel watched him leave. He gauged my fatigue, then eased across the room to sit in Ivy's chair before her cracked monitor. There was a long, bloodless scratch on his cheek, and his hair was mussed. "He was burning your books," he said, as if it was important to him.

I glanced at the pentagram Al had sketched on my counter and the second book sitting in a pile of ash. "He wanted out," I said. "He was burning my books because he was pissed I was going to call another demon to put him in custody. I'm hoping that because I gave him a night of peace he will give me the same." God help me. I'm trusting a demon to make a moral decision based on respect?

The vampire's expression shifted to understanding. "Ah-h-h-h-h. You chose the harder, riskier path, but by doing so, it told him you weren't going to rely on another for your safety. That you don't fear him." His head tilted. "You should, you know."

I nodded. I should fear Al. I did. But not tonight. Not after seeing him...disheartened. If he was depressed that a stinking little witch kept evading him, then maybe he should stop treating me like a stinking little witch and treat me with some respect.

Deciding Rynn Cormel was fully in control of himself, my shoulders started to relax. "So what did you want to talk to me about?"

He allowed himself a slow, charismatic smile. I was alone with Rynn Cormel, politician extraordinaire, master vampire, and once ruler of the free world. I pulled the sugar closer to the coffee. I was starting to shake, and I was going to blame it on low blood sugar. Yeah, that was it.

"You sure you don't want some coffee?" I said, ladling in a third spoonful of sugar. "It's fresh."

"No. No, thank you," he said, then winced, looking utterly charming. "Ah, I find I'm in the position of being embarrassed," he said, and I caught back my snort. "I came here to assure myself that you were well after your demon attack yesterday, and I see that not only are you fine, but that you're fully capable of protecting yourself. Ivy was not overestimating your skill. I owe her an apology."

Smiling faintly, I pushed the sugar away. It was nice to hear a compliment once in a while. But undead vampires don't get embarrassed. He was a young, sweet-talking, very experienced master vampire, and I watched his nostrils expand as he breathed in Ivy's and my mingled scents.

The vampire shook his head in a very human gesture. "The woman has a will like no other," he said, and I knew he was talking about Ivy besting her instinct to bite me. It was hard when we lived together like this.

"Tell me about it," I said, all of my awe from sitting in my kitchen with Rynn Cormel washed away by the panic of fighting for my life. "I think she uses me to test herself."

Rynn Cormel's gaze came back from Mr. Fish. "Is that so?"

The questioning tone in his voice made me nervous, and I watched him catalog the mixing of Ivy's life and mine. Standing straighter, I gestured with my coffee mug. "What can I do for you, Mr. Cormel?"

"Rynn, please," he said, flashing me one of his famous smiles that had helped save the free world. "I think after that, we should be on a first-name basis."

"Rynn," I said cautiously, thinking this was really weird. I took a sip of coffee and eyed him over it. If I didn't already know he was dead, I'd never have guessed he wasn't alive. "Don't take this the wrong way, but why do you care if I'm okay or not?"

His smile widened. "You're part of my camarilla, and I take my duties seriously."

I suddenly wished Jenks was here. A spike of fear plinked through me, and I became very interested in the whereabouts of my splat gun. Rynn wasn't living, but the sleepy-time charm would drop him as fast as anyone else. "I won't let you bite me," I said, the threat in my voice clear as I forced myself to take another drink of coffee. The bitter smell seemed to help.

Other than his pupils dilating, he hid the effect my fear had on him. I was impressed.

"I'm not here to bite you," he said, pushing his chair back away from me an inch or so. "I'm here to keep anyone else from doing so."

I watched him suspiciously and uncrossed my ankles - getting ready to move if I had to. He had told Al that I belonged to him. Tried to save me from Al because of that. "But you consider me part of your camarilla," I said, not dumb enough to tell him I didn't want his help just yet. "Don't you bite everyone in it?"

At that, he relaxed, leaning forward to push Ivy's keyboard out of the way and put his elbows on the table. An eager light filled him, and I marveled at how alive and excited he looked. "I don't know. I've never had one," he explained, his dark eyes fixed earnestly on mine. "And I've been told I'm charmingly eager in my efforts to start one. A politician can't - it doesn't make for a fair race."

Shrugging, he leaned back, looking very attractive, confident, and young. "And when the chance arose for me to prevent Piscary's children from being scattered, to take his well-structured, happy camarilla as my own and assert a claim on you and Ivy?" He hesitated, his attention traveling over my demolished kitchen. "It made my decision to retire very easy."

My mouth went dry. He had retired to get closer to Ivy and me?

Rynn Cormel's gaze returned to me. "I came here tonight to make sure you were intact, which I can see you are. Ivy said you were capable of protecting yourself, but I assumed her assurances were simply another one of her ways to keep me from meeting you."

I glanced at the empty hall, things starting to fall into place. "That run of hers tonight was fake, wasn't it," I asked, but it wasn't a question.

The vampire smiled, bringing a leg up to rest a foot on his knee. He looked really good sitting there in my kitchen. "I'm pleased Ivy was telling me the truth. I'm suitably impressed. You've been bitten more times than your skin shows."

Again I felt uncomfortable, but I wouldn't cover my neck. That was an invitation to look.

"You have very beautiful skin," he added, and I felt a dropping sensation, quickly followed by a tingling surge.

Damn it, I thought, reining in my emotions. I knew my skin - less than a year old and hiding an unclaimed vampire bite - was like a steak dangling in front of a wolf. Unless the wolf was very well fed, he was going to go for it.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, his voice a wisp of hollow sound. "I didn't mean to make you uneasy."

Yes, you did, I thought, but I didn't say it aloud. I pushed from the counter, needing the false security of more space between us. "Are you sure you don't want some coffee?" I asked, going to the pot to intentionally turn my back on him. I was afraid, but if I wasn't obvious about it, he'd back off.

"I'm in Cincinnati because of you," he said. "Piscary's children owe you thanks for their well-being. I thought you should know that."

My lips pressed tight, and with my arms wrapped about myself, I spun to him, ready for it. The chitchat was over.

"I heard about you and Ivy living together in this church and what she wants from you," he said, and my face flamed. "If you can save her soul after her first death," he continued, "it would be the most significant advance in vampire history since the live-video feed."

Oh...that. I hesitated, embarrassed. This was not what I had expected.

The master vampire smiled. "Lacking a soul is why most vampires don't continue past their thirty-year death anniversary," he explained. "By then, the people who loved them and have been giving them blood are either undead as well or simply dead. Blood from someone who doesn't love you is a thin meal, and without a soul, an undead vampire has a difficult time convincing anyone that he or she loves them. It makes it hard to form an emotional bond that is real and not contrived." He shifted, the scent of vampiric incense coming clear to me. "It can be done, but it takes a lot of finesse."

Somehow, I didn't think Rynn Cormel had that problem. "So if I can save Ivy's soul...," I prompted, not liking where this was going.

"It will allow the undead to continue to form auratic bonds with new people, extending their undead existence forever."

I leaned against the counter and crossed my ankles. Sipping my coffee, I thought that over, remembering that when Ivy had bitten me she had taken a portion of my aura along with my blood. The theory went along nicely with my private theory that an undead vampire needs the illusion of a soul or aura about it or the brain will realize it is dead and drive the vampire into the sun to kill it, thus bringing the mind, the body, and the soul back into balance.

"I'm sorry," I said, thinking that the pope would have a coronary at my thoughts. "It can't be done. I don't know how to save Ivy's soul when she dies. I just don't."

Rynn Cormel's gaze roved over the scattered herbs crushed underfoot, and I warmed, wondering if he knew I'd been experimenting with ways to safely curb Ivy's blood lust.

"You're the one who broke the balance of power between the vampires and the Weres," he accused so very softly, and I felt cold. "You found the focus," he continued, and my pulse quickened.

"My boyfriend - my ex-boyfriend - did that."

"Semantics," he said, waving a hand. "You brought it into the light."

"And I buried it."

"In a Were's body," he exclaimed, showing a hint of anger.

It might have been to cow me, but it had the opposite effect. Hell, I had already bound a demon tonight. I was on top of the world. "If you touch David...," I said, setting my cup aside.

But Rynn Cormel only raised his eyebrows, his anger disappearing at the amusement he found in my threats. "Don't try to bully me, Rachel. It makes you look foolish. I'm saying you broke the balance. The artifact is out. Power is shifting. Slowly, with the gentle pace of generations, but it will shift to the Weres."

He stood. I kept my attention off my splat gun, but I could feel it - utterly too far away.

"If you can find a way for the undead to retain their soul, then the numbers of the undead will grow at a similarly slow pace." He smiled, starting to button up his coat. "Balance is maintained. No one dies. Isn't that what you want?"

I put a hand to my middle. I suppose I should've expected this; no good deed goes unpunished and all. "And witches and humans?" I asked.

He looked out my kitchen window and into the dark. "Maybe that's up to you, too."

But what I heard was "Who cares?" Just wanting this to all go away, I said, "I don't know how to do it. You've got the wrong witch."

Rynn Cormel found his hat and, with a graceful swoop, plucked it from the floor. "I think I have the only witch," he said, brushing the matted dandelion seed from it. "But even if you don't find a way, others will see what you accomplished and will build on that. In the meantime, what have I lost by declaring your blood off-limits to all but Ivy? What have I spent in making sure that you and she have a chance to develop a blood relationship free of stress and trouble?"

I stifled a shiver, and my hand rose up to cover my neck.

"It's no effort at all," he said, then put his hat on.

Okay, he was keeping my butt safe from vampires. "I appreciate that," I said grudgingly. "Thank you."

A copper spell pot grated against the salt when Rynn Cormel pushed it aside with the toe of his dress shoe. "That's hard for you, isn't it? Owing someone?"

"I don't - " I started, then grimaced, rubbing my back where a cupboard knob had raked my skin. "Yes," I finally admitted, hating it.

His smile grew to show a slip of teeth, and he turned as if to leave. "Then I expect you to honor that."

"I don't belong to you," I shot after him, and he turned in the threshold, looking good in his long coat and stylish hat. His eyes were black, but I wasn't afraid of him. Ivy was a bigger threat, hunting me slowly. But I was letting her do it, too.

"I meant, I expect you to honor your relationship with Ivy."

"I do that already," I said, clasping my arms about myself.

"Then we are in perfect understanding."

He again turned to leave, and I followed him into the hall. My thoughts went to Ivy, then Marshal. He wasn't my boyfriend, but he was new in my life. And we were having the hardest time getting together to do the simplest thing. "Are you the reason Marshal and I weren't able to get together this afternoon?" I accused. "Are you going to drive him away so Ivy and I will fall into bed together?"

He was in my living room, and from over his shoulder he said, "Yes."

My lips pressed together, and my slippers scuffed the wood floor we had found under the carpet. "Leave Marshal alone," I said, hands on my hips. Kisten's bracelet fell to my wrist, and I shoved it back into hiding. "He's just a guy. And if I want to sleep with someone, I'm going to. You running off men isn't going to send me rushing into Ivy's arms, it's going to piss me off and make me miserable to live with. Got it?"

I suddenly realized I was swearing at a past leader of the United States, and I flushed. "Sorry for barking at you," I muttered as I fingered Kisten's bracelet and felt guilty. "It's been a hard day."

"My apologies," he said, so sincerely that I almost believed it. "I'll stop interfering."

I took a breath and unclenched my teeth before I gave myself a headache. "Thank you."

The sound of the front door crashing open made me jump. Rynn Cormel took his hand from the door and turned to face the hall.

"Rachel?" came Ivy's worried voice. "Rachel! You okay? There's a couple of guys out front in a car."

I glanced at Rynn Cormel. His eyes had gone black. Hunger black. "Uh, I'm fine!" I sang out. "I'm back here. Uh, Ivy?"

"Damn it all to hell," she swore, her boots clunking in the hall. "I told you to stay on holy ground!"

She barreled into the living room, almost pinwheeling to a stop. She flashed red, her short, dark hair swinging as she stopped. Her hand went first to her bare neck, then she forced it down to her leather-clad hip. "Excuse me," she said, her face going pale. "I've interrupted."

Rynn Cormel shifted his weight, and she cringed. "No, you're fine, Ivy," he said, his voice now deeper and measured. He had lightened his usual demeanor to lull me, and it had worked. "I'm glad you're here."

Ivy looked up, clearly embarrassed. "I'm sorry about your men at the car. I didn't recognize them. They tried to stop me from coming in."

My eyebrows rose, and Rynn Cormel's laughter shocked both Ivy and me. "If you bested them, they deserved it and needed the reminder. Thank you for correcting their poor interpretation of your skills."

Ivy licked her lips. It was a nervous habit I didn't see often, and my tension rose. "Um," she hedged, trying to tuck her short hair behind an ear. "I think I ought to call an ambulance. I broke a few things."

Looking like he didn't care, the master vampire eased forward and, very slowly, took her perfect hand in his scarred one. "You're too kind."

Ivy looked at her fingers among his, blinking fast.

"Rachel is a powerful young woman," he said, and I suddenly felt like I'd passed some sort of test. "I can see why you are attracted to her. You have my blessing to cultivate a scion relationship with her, if that is what you want."

My anger rose, but Ivy shot me a look to shut me up. "Thank you," she said, and I got even more mad when Rynn Cormel smiled smugly, knowing I'd held my tongue because Ivy had asked me to. Then I thought, So what? Why should I care what he thinks if he'll leave us alone?

Rynn Cormel took another step closer to Ivy, curving an arm about her waist in a familiar fashion that I didn't like. "Would you accompany me this evening, Ivy? Now that I have seen your friend, I understand better. I'd like to...try another angle, if you are willing."

Try another angle? I thought, seeing the hinted hunger in him, luring her. Working on a sequel, are we? I didn't agree with how vampire society worked, but Ivy took a relieved breath, her eyes positively lighting. "Yes," she said quickly, but then her gaze slid to me.

"Go," I said sourly, glad she hadn't seen the demolished kitchen. "I'll be fine."

She eased closer to Rynn Cormel, her lean, leather-clad body looking fabulous next to his polished refinement. "You're not on hallowed ground," she said.

"Al won't be back." I glanced at Rynn Cormel's light grip on her shoulder. "I'm fine."

Ivy pulled away from him, reaching for me. "He was here?" she said. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" I said, backing up until her outstretched hand dropped. My gaze went to Rynn Cormel, and I didn't like the smile he was hiding.

"I told you not to go onto unsanctified ground," Ivy almost scolded. "God, Rachel, I made you a sign!"

"I forgot, okay?" I shot back at her. "I took it down because it ticked me off, and I forgot. I was so flustered about your master vampire paying me a visit that I forgot!"

Ivy hesitated, then said softly, "Okay."

"Okay," I repeated, feeling my anger die at her quick admission.

"Well...okay."

I glared at Rynn Cormel, who was adjusting his hat and smiling at the exchange.

"I'll get on hallowed ground," I said, just wanting her to leave.

Ivy took a rocking step toward the door, then hesitated. "What about dinner? You can't order pizza. Al might deliver it."

"Marshal is coming over," I said, looking pointedly at Rynn Cormel as he evaluated the exchange. "He's bringing dinner."

A flash of jealousy passed over Ivy, dying fast. Rynn Cormel saw both its birth and death, and when he met my gaze, I knew he realized Ivy and I had already set up the rules for our relationship - and those rules included other people. Most vampiric relationships did, though that did nothing for my sense of morality.

"I'll see you about sunrise," she said, and the master vampire's eyebrows rose. Ivy gave me a tight-lipped smile and turned to Rynn Cormel.

"Ivy," he said, offering his arm.

"Mr. Cormel," she said back, sounding flustered as she didn't take it. "Um, could you sign your book for me before we go?"

My breath hesitated, and I stiffened. Oh, God. Not the vampire dating guide.

Ivy turned to me, her expression eager. I didn't see this side of her often, and it was kind of scary. "You've still got it, don't you?" she asked. "Is it still on your bedside table?"

"Ivy!" I exclaimed, backing up, my face hot. Crap. Now he knows I've read it. My thoughts flicked to page forty-nine, and I stared in horror when Rynn Cormel laughed at my expression. "It was so I would stop stomping on her instincts!" I babbled, and he laughed all the more.

Ivy was starting to look ticked, and Rynn Cormel took her arm to escort her out. "I would love to sign your copy," he said as he led her to the back door. "I'm sure Rachel will find it for you, and you can bring it over next time." He smiled over his shoulder at me as he opened the door and the coolness of the night slipped in. "She might want to peruse it first," he added, and my jaw clenched.

"I've already perused it," I said loudly, and the door shut behind them with a soft click.

"God help me," I muttered as I fell back into Ivy's old couch and breathed in the puff of vampire incense that I'd kicked up from the cushions. If she wanted Rynn Cormel to sign her book, she could damn well dig it out from the back of my closet herself. I didn't even know for sure if it was still there. But, staring at the ceiling, I wondered if Ivy might find happiness in a real vampiric relationship with Rynn Cormel. She seemed positively besotted.

My thoughts drifted to Kisten, and I wondered if she felt any of the guilt I did.

The quiet of the church soaked into me, and in the distance, I heard the sound of a car starting up. "Kitchen," I said to myself, and sat up. Yeah, I had told Ivy I'd get on hallowed ground, but I wasn't going to let that mess sit until tomorrow. Tomorrow I was going out with David, and once I knocked some sense into a happy band of demon summoners, I'd have my life back. Such as it was.

I stood in the threshold of the kitchen and sighed at the destruction. Maybe I could pay the pixies to clean it up. But they were tucked into the stump until the warmth of sunrise, so, resigned to the mess, I scuffed in. My back hurt as I picked up the broken clock and set it on the counter. Most of the rack was on the floor, and deciding I'd pile everything up now and sort it later, I went to the cupboard to get the broom.

It was going to be a long night.