I took the purse back off him, and smiled, as genuinely as I thought I could manage. “Thank you so much! You’re terribly kind.”

He smiled back at me, and bobbed his head, then moved aside so both Corrigan and I could enter the house properly. My heartbeat drummed a relieved tattoo against my chest, and my bloodfire relaxed back into a more gentle sear in the pit of my stomach. Alex was clearly a bloody genius and phase one of ‘breach the stronghold’ was complete.

Corrigan took my hand again and placed it on his arm. “I have to admit, I’m impressed,” he said in a smooth undertone. “However, you got lucky. My shifters would never have fallen for that.”

I blinked up at him. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Of course you don’t. I am going to find out what it is you’re really after, you know, kitten.”

“Only the pleasure of your company, oh great Lord Alpha of the awe-inspiring Brethren,” I replied without a hint of irony in my voice.

Corrigan choked. I ignored him, and we moved inside to our left. A waiter approached, carefully balancing a tray of drinks, and offered them to us. I delicately picked one up at the stem and sipped from it, surveying the crowd. It was easy to tell who the vampires were. Several stood around in little huddles, discussing what appeared to be weighty matters in low voices. There were a few black-robed mages, including, I noted, His Magnificence himself, the Arch-Mage. For a moment, I panicked, thinking that he must be here because he knew what Alex and I were up to, and he was going to put a stop to it. Then I told myself to breathe. Of course he’d be here. If there was going to be a gathering of the Otherworld’s leaders, then naturally the head of the mages would be present. Telling myself to get a grip, I continued to sweep my gaze over the assembly, attempting to judge where any potential threats might spring from.

Catching sight of one surprisingly familiar face, I grinned. I hadn’t expected my old buddy Tom to be here. He bounded over happily, bowing first to Corrigan. “My Lord Alpha,” he said formally.

Corrigan nodded. “You know Miss Smith, of course.”

Tom beamed at me. “I almost didn’t recognise you without any hair! What the hell happened, Red?”

“It’s a long story,” I muttered.

“It suits you,” he said, probably lying between his teeth. “And that dress is hot! I don’t actually think I’ve seen you wear a dress before. Sexy!”

Corrigan noticeably stiffened at my side. “Where is your fiancée?”

“She’s not feeling very well, my Lord. She decided to stay at home.” He suddenly looked worried. “But she wanted me to thank you for inviting us along.”

I could bet I knew exactly why Corrigan had bothered to do just that. He was trying to throw me off my game by reminding me of my old life. Well, I was stronger than that. Irritated by Tom’s subservient attitude, even though I knew it came part and parcel of the role he’d so eagerly volunteered for, I couldn’t help myself.

“So, Tom, are you enjoying serving the Brethren or do you wish that you were still back in Cornwall?”

He flicked a nervous glance at Corrigan and cleared his throat. “Well, I wouldn’t call it serving the Brethren.”

“Tom here has been promoted,” interrupted the Lord Alpha smoothly. “Because he’s a very helpful and loyal wolf.”

I pulled my arm away from him and spun round to look him in the eye. “And of course you demand abject loyalty from all your subjects, don’t you, my Lord.”

His eyes gleamed. “For someone who spent so much time living with a pack, you seem to have a remarkably weak grasp on how all this works. The hierarchy keeps the system working. It prevents discord. Not only that but it’s in our blood and in our genes. To pretend otherwise would be to deny ourselves our true nature. Without the Way Directives and the chain of command, the pack wouldn’t exist.”

I knew that Corrigan was right. I’d wholeheartedly believed in that hierarchy when I’d been part of it. It was the life-blood of the shifters; it created the sense of family that I’d been missing so much since my departure from it. It helped to prevent rogue shifters from branching out and causing chaos, and it meant that weaker members were always protected. But that still didn’t mean I had to like it at this particular point in time. “Well, it certainly makes your life more comfortable,” I snapped.

Careful, kitten. His Voice whispered brushed my mind. Remember that you’re supposed to be my ever-so willing date. If you continue to look as pissed off as you do right now, then you’ll draw attention to yourself. And I don’t imagine that will help your plans, whatever they really are.

I gritted my teeth. Tom switched his weight from foot to foot, apprehensively watching the pair of us.

I don’t have any plans, I shot firmly back. Then smiled sweetly at him, and turned to face Tom.

“I hope that Betsy isn’t very sick.”

He gave me an uneasy smile. “No, it’s nothing serious. But she’s tucked up in bed with a hot water bottle. She’s gutted that she didn’t get the chance to come and catch up with you though.”

“And Julia?”

“She’s gone back down to Cornwall. Anton needed her for some things.”

My eyes narrowed at the mention of my former nemesis. However, I was saved from making any further unpleasant comments, by the loud clinking of a glass towards the front of the room.

“Ladies and Gentlemen of the Otherworld,” boomed a deep voice. “Welcome to Kingsway. We encourage you to sample our humble offerings, partake in our wine and use this opportunity to mix and mingle with friends. This unique event offers much scope to forge new contacts and prevent unnecessary conflict, and we are honoured to welcome you.”

“Trumped up little shit,” commented Corrigan, drily.

I shot a surprised look at him. Then the crowds cleared and I could see the owner of the voice. It was definitely a vampire, and he reeked of power. His eyes were blood red, and his smooth unlined face gave me the creeps. He raised his glass, eyes wandering over the room with the blaze of self-satistfaction. When his gaze fell upon me, his eyebrows raised in unabashed interest and curiosity. I felt an involuntary shiver run through me and, without thinking, moved an inch closer to Corrigan. Then, irritated with myself, I moved away again.

“Don’t fret about it,” the Lord Alpha drawled. “He has that effect on most people.”

Wanting to snarl back a retort that I wasn’t afraid of a stupid vampire, I pressed my lips together forcing myself to stay quiet. I took another sip of my drink instead, looking around hopefully for some snacks. A tuxedoed waiter came up and whispered something in Corrigan’s ear.

He leaned over to me. “I need to go and do some of my jumped up arrogant Lord of the Brethren stuff now,” he said, his breath hot upon my cheek. “Be good.” He raised his eyebrows meaningfully at Tom, and then me, making it clear that I had a babysitter who would no doubt dog my every move.

I smiled unconcernedly, wondering if I could persuade my old sparring partner to give me a break and let me sneak off. The flicker of obedience that Tom returned to his alpha, however, suggested otherwise. With silent confirmation of Tom’s loyalty, Corrigan placed his empty glass onto a nearby tray and lithely sauntered off.

Tom looked at me sadly. “I’m sorry, Red, he’s my alpha, I have to…”

“I know, Tom, I understand.” I sighed and looked around the room, noting several other shifters, each of them watching me with brazen unabashed vigilance. Great.

Frustrated, my hand curled around the glass I was holding. How the fuck was I going to manage finding the bloody Ancile now?

Chapter Sixteen

I mulled over my options. It appeared that I had scant few at this particular point in time. I probably should just have come clean with Corrigan and told him the truth; I wasn’t really doing anything wrong per se – in fact it could be said that I was doing the right thing by returning the statue to its rightful owner. Well, sort of rightful owner anyway.

I drained my glass of champagne and wandered over to a waiter to get it replaced, Tom trotting faithfully at my heels. Picking up a fresh glass, I felt a pair of eyes watching me. I turned, half-expecting it to be yet another shifter, and then realised that it was someone entirely different. Solus, or rather Lord Sol Apllinarius, seelie Fae, was lounging languidly on the other side of the room. He lifted his glass and toasted me lazily. Ignoring Tom, I walked over to him.

“Solus.”

“Dragonlette. Bald dragonlette. How are you?”

“Oh just peachy. How is Mrs. Alcoon?” I asked.

“Sleeping,” he answered, twirling the stem of the glass in his hand. “I’ve been concerned about you, you know.”

“And why’s that?”

“You’ve been bleeding. More than once.” He jerked his head towards the scabs on my hand. “I sensed it.”

I raised my eyebrows at him. “Well, clearly you weren’t concerned enough to come and check to see if I was alright.”

“You know I can’t do that. How is life with the witches and wizards treating you anyway?”

“They really don’t like being called that,” I murmured.

“They’re a bunch of hocus-pocus con-artists,” interjected Tom, with a note of bitterness.

I stared at the werewolf by my side. “Tom, that’s hardly fair! They’ve helped shifters out lots of times. And they don’t con people.”

He grumbled at me. “Since when were you their freaking champion?”

I rolled my eyes in exasperation. No wonder they had this stupid party every year. Someone needed to do something to keep all these idiots from each other. “You met Alex. He’s nice! In fact, he’s my – our – friend! He knows as much about me as you do.”

“Yeah, well, that was before I knew what they were really like.”

Solus ignored my ripples of outraged indignation and gracefully extended his hand. “Tom, I don’t believe we’ve officially met.”