* * * *

The human guards had begun to arrive for the day shift, and still Mirabelle hadn't gotten a response from her sister. She shouldn't have expected one right away, she supposed. That guy was letting Liz use his computer, but maybe not all the time. Still, Mirabelle been in and out of the chat room all night as she wandered through the manor house, laptop in tow, trying to avoid the latest group of craftsmen Alexandra had hired in her dogged search for remodeling perfection. Apparently, once the woman started something, she pursued it with a vengeance.

Mirabelle glanced at her watch. Before long, she'd have to start downstairs to her small room in the vault. The human workmen had begun to pack up, tools clattering, talking amongst themselves in loud voices. The vampire guards watched the visitors closely, aware of the coming sunrise, anxious for them to be gone.

Looking for a quiet place, Mirabelle hurried through the kitchen and outside, down the drive and across to the pathway between the two houses. It was peaceful out here, the noisy workmen and worried guards far behind her. After living as Jabril's prisoner for so many years, she relished the freedom to walk in the earthy silence beneath the thick trees and breathe the fresh air. The pale moon, low on the horizon, barely intruded, but her vampire sight easily followed the graveled path. Benches were dotted at regular intervals, small concrete constructions with fanciful gargoyles cavorting all around the backs and seats. Some sat boldly out in the open, others peered from behind or below. They'd made her laugh out loud the first time she'd seen them and now she thought of them as her own. She came out here almost every night before dawn and had never seen anyone other than the occasional guard patrol.

When she'd gone far enough that Alexandra's house was no longer visible through the trees, she sat on one of the concrete benches and logged on to do a quick survey of websites. Still nothing and there wasn't much more time tonight, less than an hour before she'd have to be downstairs and tucked into her bed, although the others would come later. She leaned back and tilted her head toward the manor, listening. Doors slammed amidst the sounds of engines, so the workers must finally be leaving. She stood, ready to head back, but a rush of noise drew her in the other direction, toward the elegant and expansive mansion where Raphael and his vampires lived and conducted the business known as Raphael Enterprises. She hesitated, torn between curiosity and the instinctive desire to get down to the safety of the vault beneath the manor.

Curiosity won, of course. She often sat in the evenings and watched the comings and goings at the main house. Most nights, there was a busy parade of vampires and humans. Some were there to do business with Raphael. Others, and Mirabelle recognized them easily, were there to offer themselves to the vampires as blood donors. Both men and women, they were ferried from blood houses maintained throughout the city, closely guarded by Raphael's vampires, escorted in for the evening and always gone before morning. Unlike Jabril, Raphael didn't keep any slaves, blood or otherwise.

She approached the final curve in the path. The main house wasn't quite visible yet. It sat several feet below the pathway here, right on the edge of the cliff. But she could see lights flashing against the dark sky. Red and blue in a rotating pattern. It seemed familiar for some reason, and she hurried forward only to duck quickly behind the trees.

Two police vehicles sat in the driveway below, one black and white, its light bar flashing silently, the other a late model American sedan with one of those portable red lights pulsing on the roof. Standing next to the cruiser were a couple of uniformed officers, their hands resting nervously on their weapons as they stared at the several large and very pissed off vampires surrounding them. The sedan stood with both doors open, the interior lights on, but no one inside.

As she watched, the double glass doors to the main house opened and Duncan emerged, followed by the two huge Asian vampires who seemed to go everywhere with Raphael. Duncan appeared to be furious. He was moving stiffly and she could see the tip of his fangs protruding below his upper lip. He jerked his head at the vampires surrounding the police vehicles and they backed away, forming a semicircle around the bodyguards and the two humans who followed them with ... Mirabelle gasped. Raphael!

A low growl of anger rose from the assembled vampires as Raphael emerged, hands cuffed behind his back, held between two human men, probably the policemen from the unmarked car. They halted at the foot of the stairs and the blocky, dark-haired policeman next to Raphael said something.

The powerful vampire lord rotated his head slowly to stare down at the man. His black eyes were flashing silver with rage and he turned that lambent gaze on his vampires, scanning them slowly, touching every one of them, drawing them into a singular, focused entity, utterly under his control, awaiting his command.

Up on her little overlook, Mirabelle too felt the irresistible pull of his will. She trembled with the strength of it, knowing with absolute certainty that she would race down the hill to his rescue, even to her own death, if he desired it. She tensed, ready to launch herself at his command, but a wave of calm reassurance flooded her senses instead. She felt suddenly as if she stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the vampires gathered below as they stepped back in a single, unified movement to permit the humans to pass with their prisoner. Raphael spoke in a low voice to Duncan, who gave a sharp nod and stood aside, his face a mask of something close to despair, watching as his Sire slid gracefully into the back seat of the unmarked car.

With a chaotic flurry of slammed doors and spinning wheels, the police vehicles spun around the drive and gunned back toward the main gate. Almost immediately two heavy SUVs roared up and vampire bodyguards piled inside, Duncan among them. The big SUVs peeled away with a scream of rubber, hard on the heels of Raphael and his police captors.

The silence in their wake was deafening. Vampires stood frozen, staring down the drive after their master, unable or unwilling to leave. Finally, one of the vamps who had followed Raphael from the house gave an order and everyone moved at once. Mirabelle shook herself. She had to get back to the house, had to tell Alexandra and the others at the manor, if they didn't know already. She hurried back down the path, laptop tucked under her arm nearly forgotten. She had to ... she had to call Cynthia!

Chapter Thirty-three

Cyn snapped her cell phone closed with a curse, all but running from the homeless shelter where she'd been following a lead on Elizabeth. She hit the street and stormed down the two blocks to her Land Rover, popping the locks and sliding behind the wheel in a single motion. The blaring horns of outraged drivers were ignored as she sped away from the curb, flipping her phone open again to speed dial Eckhoff. It rang several times before his voice mail picked up.

"Thanks for the heads up, Eckhoff,” she snarled. “You tell that piece of shit Santillo he can kiss his ass good-bye when this is over, because he's got the wrong fucking guy.” She disconnected and immediately called Duncan.

The vampire's voice was little more than a growl.

"I'm on my way,” she said.

"Do you know where?” The words were thick, forced past his anger.

"Olympic and Twentieth. I'll be there.” She snapped the phone closed and made a squealing right hand turn onto the freeway. To hell with the speed limit. It was nearly daylight. Was the para facility equipped to handle a sleeping vampire? And what about Duncan and the others, their need to protect Raphael would outweigh even the instinct to retreat from the rising sun. She pounded the steering wheel angrily. Fucking Santillo. She could hardly wait to tell him how wrong he was. She just hoped the vampires didn't get to him first.

Chapter Thirty-four

Duncan was waiting out front when she arrived, pacing up and down the narrow sidewalk. He looked up as she slammed her truck into park and all but threw herself from the driver's seat, his eyes glowing dimly in the glare of the security lights around the holding facility.

"Where is he?” she asked tersely.

He eyed her silently, his scrutiny unusually intense, even for Duncan. “Inside,” he said finally. “They wouldn't let me stay with him, but his lawyers are there."

Cyn kept walking and Duncan fell into step next to her. “Where's everyone else?” she asked. “Mirabelle said there were a whole bunch of you that followed."

"It's nearly daylight. I sent the others home. There was no point in everyone standing out here.” Duncan's cell phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and took the call. “She's here,” he said and disconnected almost immediately.

Cyn looked at him. “Who was that?"

"Lord Raphael's attorney. She's on her way out to talk to you."

"Me? Why?"

Duncan had the grace to look uncomfortable. “You've heard of Obaker?"

"Of course, I've heard of Obaker, but what—"

"Obaker vs. Oklahoma,” a woman's voice intruded. “Any vampire taken into custody has the right to designate a custodial presence in order to ensure his, or her, safety if held outside the precincts of a specifically mandated federal facility. And, fortunately for us, this delightful structure is definitely not such a federal facility."

Cyn turned to see a willowy female vampire coming down the walkway. Long white hair shone in the faint light, contrasting sharply with golden skin and Asian features to give her an exotic look that fit perfectly with the delicate fangs bared in a vicious grin. As she approached, she held out a shapely hand. “Kimiko Lorick,” she said. “Lord Raphael has entrusted me with his defense. Not that he'll need much of one since these charges are patently absurd and completely without merit.” She eyed Cyn critically. “Are you ready?"

"Ready for what?” Cyn asked, although she had a pretty good idea and didn't like it one bit.

"Duncan didn't explain?” Kimiko glanced at Raphael's lieutenant who shook his head.

"Ms. Leighton only just arrived, Kimiko. I was about to discuss the matter—"

"The sun is nearly risen, Duncan. There is no time for diplomacy.” She swung her gaze back to Cyn. “Lord Raphael has asserted his Obaker rights and designated you, Cynthia Leighton. If you will not serve, I need to know now while I can still persuade him to accept someone else. I will not leave him unprotected. If necessary—"