Now if your average person is asked to locate the nearest ley line, he’s going to have some trouble. Same with supernaturals. So there are about a hundred “hot spots” that get passed along among practitioners. When supernaturals flock to these sites and conduct rituals for a century or two, mystical or not, you’re going to screw with the mojo of that place. It becomes spirit-blocked, which is great, because then you don’t have to worry about unwanted guests. Which means the places become even more popular.

There were six spirit-blocked sites within a four-hour drive of Indianapolis. With that list, and staff familiar with the areas, plus researchers analyzing satellite photos, we soon found our spot.

Karl was out of surgery. He’d survived, but now the surgeon was saying it would be a miracle if he made it to noon.

After she left, Clay said, “Bullshit. You know what she cares about? Same thing everyone else here cares about. One, impressing the boss. Two, not pissing off the boss.”

“They do appear to be erring on the side of caution,” Jeremy said. “Extreme caution. Before you arrived, I tried to get more details of his injuries. I may not be a doctor, but she knows I understand the terminology. She stayed vague, which suggests his condition wasn’t as bad as she feared before she started operating.”

“She just doesn’t want us to know that,” I said. “If she says the bullet wounds weren’t critical, and he dies, she’s in trouble. If she pretends he’s at death’s door and she saved him, she gets a big bonus.”

“Either way she’s motivated.” Adam glanced toward the ward. “Is Karl still sedated?”

Jeremy nodded. “He should wake in an hour or two, but I’m considering asking them to keep him under until we have news. Preferably good news.”

“Yeah,” Clay said. “He wakes up and Hope’s gone? He’s not staying in that bed. I wouldn’t.”

“He’ll kill himself going after her,” Elena said. “I say keep him under.”

Jeremy nodded. “Agreed.”

Elena drew Clay aside for a moment. She whispered something to him, and he whispered a response, and then she stepped back to us, turning to Jeremy.

“I’m not going to Indiana. Karl should have someone here who knows him, to speak for him if things go wrong. As Alpha, you need to lead the rescue. As Alpha-elect, I should stay with Karl.”

“No,” Jeremy said. “You’re more capable of taking an active role in the field. You’ll go in my stead.”

Elena shook her head. “I don’t bring any skills that Clay doesn’t have. You do. If Hope’s in an underground compound, your kitsune powers are going to be a lot more useful than my nose.”

Jeremy looked uncomfortable, as he always did when someone brought up that side of his heritage. “They didn’t help when you were trapped in an underground cell, and I’d really rather—”

“Elena’s right,” Jaime cut in. “We know the place is warded, and that was the problem when Elena was captured, too. Maybe your powers will work this time; maybe they won’t. Point is that it can’t hurt to have you there.”

“So it’s settled,” Elena said. “Now, please go. In order to keep Karl calm when he wakes up, I really need good news.”

FORTY

Three hours later, we were in the middle of freaking nowhere.

“It’s not nowhere,” Adam said as we paced outside the crumbling farm house the Cabal had declared mission headquarters. “It’s Indiana.”

“It’s a cornfield,” I said, waving my arms. “Even the people who lived here had the brains to bail.”

“The land is owned by a farming conglomerate,” Adam said.

“The farmers sold their fields—”

“I’m venting,” I said. “Not looking for a lesson in modern agriculture.”

“Believe me, I feel your pain. And I’m going to do something about it.”

He pointed past the tent they’d set up as a base. There was a decrepit shed twenty feet away. I glanced around, then cast a quick blur spell over us. When we were behind the shed, Adam caught me up in a big hug. I hugged him back, and waited for phase two. When it didn’t come, I pulled back to look him in the face.

“We’re hugging,” I said.

“Were you hoping for something else?”

“Um, kinda. Yeah.”

He grinned and kissed me. A smack on the lips that lasted about two seconds.

“Better?”

I glowered at him.

He laughed. “Personally, I’m with you on the whole distraction idea, but I have a feeling it’s going to be about three minutes before someone notices we’re gone and phones us, which really isn’t going to help the frustration issue.”

“True.”

“So this is the best I can offer, as lame as it might be.”

“It’s not lame,” I said and put my arms around him, buried myself in his neck, and closed my eyes, listening to the slow beat of his heart, the tension sliding from my back as he rubbed it.

“I was sure I heard them.” Paige’s voice drifted over.

We disentangled fast, but it was too late. Lucas was right there, with Paige behind him.

Lucas looked from me to Adam. His gaze stayed on Adam.

“We were …” Adam began.

“I can see what you were doing.” Lucas’s voice was so cool I shivered, but it wasn’t me he was staring at.

“There’s a conference call,” Paige said. “Trouble with the Boyds. We’d like Adam to help explain a few things.”

“It’ll be under the tent,” Lucas said. Then to Paige. “I should—”

“Good idea.”

They exchanged a look, and he walked away, ramrod straight. I felt like I was fifteen again, caught letting a guy in the house while they were out. From Paige, I’d gotten a long talk about personal safety and the expectations that could be raised by inviting a guy into an empty house. From Lucas? Silence. Disappointment, I think, but confusion, too, as if he really had expected better of me. Smarter of me.

“Shit, I’m sorry,” Adam said to Paige when Lucas was gone. “I’m really sorry.”