"Zoey." He actually shrank back a bit. "You were supposed to stay with Dev."

"I need to talk to Daniel." At least he was speaking to me and not shutting me out with a flippant wave of his hand. "And I definitely need to talk to you. But before we get into that, I have to tell you something. I don't want you to hear through the grapevine. I kind of shot your dad."

Neil perked up at that. "Really? Is he dead?"

I shook my head. "No, but he probably wishes he was. I sort of shot him in a spot most guys don't want to get shot in."

Neil smiled wistfully. "Thereby fulfilling many a childhood fantasy. I wish I could have been there, Z."

"Hey, it happened at Ether so it was more than likely caught on Dev's security tapes. We can have a watching party."

"Cool," Neil agreed. "You didn't happen to shoot my brother, too?" I responded in the negative. "Next time."

At least he wasn't distraught. I could move on to other painful conversations. "Now, where is Danny?"

Neil is possibly the worst liar on the planet. Most of the time he knew better than to lie and, when faced with a situation that required fabrication, merely kept his mouth shut and allowed those of us with skill to handle it. He was up s.h.i.t creek when he was left to his own devices, as nothing that came out of his lying mouth sounded believable. He couldn't just stick with a little lie. Once Neil started talking, everything s...o...b..lled. I watched as he tried really hard to come up with something, anything, that might make me believe.

"There was a Council thing, and he forgot that he was supposed to go," he spat out finally.

The Council was in Paris. Danny had up and gone to Paris? I just stared at him knowing that the longer I kept him pinned with that look, the worse a hole he would dig. Neil never met a silence he liked. He just had to fill it with something.

"Marcus called and said he was late," Neil continued, unable to stay silent while I stared. "And that there was a big vampire emergency and all the vampires had to go to this meeting because of the emergency. It was a very important meeting but Daniel finished what he was doing, 'cause you know Daniel, he's all 'n.o.body tells me what to do' and then he decided to go ahead and go anyway because..."

"It was a vampire emergency," I finished, sarcasm dripping. I looked down at my still-lime green carpet. The boxes of flooring hadn't been touched and his tools were right where he'd left them. "Neil, he didn't even start the project. Where is he? Is he out finding more little wolves to feed to his vamps? Is he at least getting a finder's fee?"

Neil's mouth dropped open. "Oh, s.h.i.t, you know about that. I told him you would find out. Zoey, you don't understand."

No, I didn't and somebody had better start explaining it to me. I stalked through my house, searching for my secretive vampire husband. He was playing some sort of game, and I wanted to know what it was. His truck was still parked outside, so despite Neil's sad efforts, I knew he was here. Neil followed behind me, begging me to wait.

"Daniel is going to explain everything, Z."

It wasn't until I got to the kitchen that I realized just how much explaining Daniel would be doing.

I looked out the window in my back door and saw Daniel talking to Chad in the moonlight. They stood in the yard, and Daniel had one hand on the smaller man's shoulder. It looked like Daniel was giving the other man some advice. I say "looked like" because I was so deeply wrong.

In the next second, Daniel's free hand stabbed a knife straight through Chad's heart.

Chapter Ten.

I was out the door and flying across the porch before Chad's dead body could hit the ground. Daniel stood over the corpse, but I was pleased to see a look of pure terror cross his handsome face when he realized I was coming his way. He let the knife drop and actually tried to back away.

"Daniel Donovan," I screamed without thought. It didn't matter. My nearest neighbor was a mile and a half down the road. Of course, that neighbor was Chad, and he wouldn't be calling the police any time soon. "You murdering son of a b.i.t.c.h."

I swung and caught him in the chest, and he had the very good sense to try to look wounded. Neil stood in the background with plenty of distance between himself and whatever violence I was about to visit on my husband.

"Zoey, it's not what you think." Daniel's voice was calm, his breathing steady.

"Not what I think? You stabbed him through the heart! He's dead on my lawn, Daniel. What are you going to tell me, that he committed suicide?"

"Would you believe me if I tried?" he asked, his voice slightly hopeful.

I slapped at his chest again. "No, I will not believe that he ran at the knife you just happened to be holding out at the very exact level his heart was at. I can't believe this. What the h.e.l.l are we going to do with that body?"

The trouble with human bodies is that unlike most supernaturals, they decompose very slowly. Most vampires will turn to ash if hit by enough ultraviolet light, or they have been known to explode from time to time when staked. If you're going to stake a vampire, don't wear your best clothes because no amount of dry cleaning will ever get that s.h.i.t out. Werewolves and other shifters decompose very quickly, so if you take one down you really only have to keep prying eyes out of your kill zone for a day or two. Chad would not be going down so easily. Chad would hang around for years just waiting for some snotty CSI wannabe to solve his untimely murder.

"Don't worry about the body," Daniel said with a.s.surance. "I got that covered, baby."

I laughed a little hysterically. "Good, I'm really glad you thought this out. I wouldn't want you to go around murdering our neighbors without a really good plan in place."

Neil tried to interject some reason. "Zoey, if you would just let us explain."

I turned on him, and he shrank back. "You stay out of this. You don't want to be on my radar right now. I already shot one wolf in the b.a.l.l.s tonight. Don't think I can't make it two."

Neil gulped. "You're on your own, Daniel."

I rounded on my husband again. "Yes, you are because I am so not taking the fall for this one, Danny. Those guys earlier this year in the hotel room I will concede deserved to die."

They'd tried to kill all of us, but Danny and Neil took them out. Luckily a nice group of fairies took care of those bodies since we'd been too busy to do our own cleanup. I didn't like having to deal with bodies. Bodies were messy.

"I'm glad you approve." Daniel was far too calm for the situation. I knew he'd been forced to do wet work for the Council as part of his parole, but now I wondered just how much it was affecting him.

"I do not approve of this. He didn't do anything, Danny. He tried to kiss me once." I whirled on Neil. "And you! I thought you liked him. He makes one mistake and you let Danny murder him? No one is going to be hot to date you after this makes the rounds."

Daniel laughed outright. "You think I killed the kid because he kissed you? Seriously? I sent you off with Dev, who was obviously h.o.r.n.y out of his mind, so I could murder some gay dude who kissed you and then spent the rest of the night salivating over me and Neil?"

Put like that, it did sound stupid. However, there was still a dead lawyer at my feet. I sidestepped the ever-growing pool of blood, praying I didn't track it back into the house. I remembered something Michael had said a couple of days earlier. "I believe the term is righteous kill."

It was the term the Council used for legal executions.

Danny actually bent over laughing. "This is not a righteous kill, Z. Dev, who flagrantly screws my wife at every given opportunity, would be a righteous kill if we hadn't reached an agreement. Chad here is an idiot who didn't know better. The Council doesn't let us run around killing every human who happens to hit on our wives. I know you haven't met any other companions, but as a cla.s.s of females, you tend to rate high on the hot scale. There would be a lot of male bodies piling up if we did that."

He'd said a lot, but I really only caught one part of it. "Agreement?"

Vampires really can pale when they get scared. "Yeah, I agreed to not kill him."

There was way more to that story. "That was our agreement, Danny. What was your agreement with Dev?" And why the h.e.l.l hadn't Dev mentioned it?

Daniel crossed his arms and frowned. "You couldn't just expect me not to talk to him. I had to find out what his intentions were."

"If I know Dev, he was ridiculously, vulgarly detailed in describing his intentions to you, Danny." The man had no sense of self-preservation.

"It really wasn't like that, Z," Daniel said defensively. "We both care about you. I love you, and the truth is I can't watch over you during the day."

"Son of a b.i.t.c.h! He hired a PI to follow me, didn't he?" That was how he knew everything.

"I couldn't be sure Halfer wouldn't come back. You hurt him last spring, Zoey. You hurt his pride. He's not going to let that stand. I can make sure he can't get to you during the night, so Dev takes the day shift or he makes sure someone does. You can't expect us to just let you walk around with a big neon sign on your back saying get your revenge here, can you?"

"How about discussing the situation with me like adults?"

Daniel rolled his baby blues. "Yeah, 'cause you're so reasonable. It's why I didn't tell you I was gonna kill Chad."

"f.u.c.k me! That was really horrible." A low moan rose from the ground. Chad coughed, sitting up.

I screamed and jumped behind Daniel. Even in my line of work, I don't deal with a whole lot of reanimated corpses. "He came back."

Neil moved from behind me, reaching toward Chad.

"Not yet, Neil. He's not ready." Daniel placed himself between me and Neil and the reanimated corpse.

Chad managed to get to his knees, and he patted the hole in his chest. "You were right. I should have picked strangulation. Anything would be better than that."

Daniel shrugged. "n.o.body ever listens to me about strangulation. You think the whole knife thing will be quicker, but I promise I could have cut off that oxygen pretty d.a.m.n fast."

"Fine, next time I get my pick of method of death, I'll listen to you." Chad caught sight of me. His fangs lengthened for the first time, hunger etched on his face. "I want her. She glows. It's so pretty."

Daniel walked over to Chad and pulled him up roughly by the back of his shirt. Daniel's fangs were fully out, a savage look on his face. Chad struggled in Daniel's grip, but couldn't break the hold.

Daniel turned his eyes to me. "Zoey, I have things I have to do. There are certain rituals that must be performed. You should go inside."

I stood my ground. The importance of what Daniel had done, what he was doing, wasn't lost on me. I wasn't sure how he'd known Chad would survive his b.l.o.o.d.y murder, but I was d.a.m.n sure Danny wouldn't call the Council to take Chad for training. This was the dangerous game Alexander had mentioned. "Not on your life, buddy. If I'm in this mess, then I'm in it one hundred percent. I won't let you shut me out. Am I your queen or just your companion?"

"You are always my queen, baby," Daniel said. "But don't say I didn't warn you."

Neil came over and slipped his hand into mine. He took a deep breath as though steeling himself.

Chad flailed, arms and legs thrashing as he strained against Daniel's hold. His face was no longer recognizable, just a blur of fangs and eyes and need. His hands reached out, grabbing for me. Prey. I was prey, and he wanted to drain me. Neil stepped in front of me, not obscuring my view but placing his body in the way should the hungry vampire manage to get free. Instinct told me to flee, to put as much distance between us as possible. Trust kept me rooted in place. Daniel would never let him get close.

Daniel's hold on Chad became brutal. Sharp claws sprung from his right hand, sinking into the flesh of Chad's throat. He spoke in guttural tones. "I know you're hungry. You will not feed until I will it, do you understand? I'm your master and you will obey me."

Chad didn't look like he was big into obedience. He looked like he was going to fight tooth and claw against anything Daniel said. This was a monster that would tear up everything he could get his hands on. He was a ball of hunger, destruction, and violence. It was utterly unlike the way Daniel was on the night of his turn, and I finally understood what Marcus had tried to explain to me. Daniel was different. His strength went far beyond the physical. The turn was violent and twisted, but Daniel had been unaffected. A new vampire always kills, and he doesn't stop killing until he's trained. But Daniel hadn't killed that first night. He'd risen and retained his personality. He'd fed but left that first victim alive. Then he came home to me. He'd taken me gently, and we made love after. There was nothing in Daniel that first night that vaguely resembled Chad.

"He's done this before," I whispered more to myself than anyone else.

"Yes," Neil replied. "But this is only the second time he's tried it on his own. The other times, Marcus was there to help him. Chad seems stronger than Justin."

Long, sharp fangs gleamed in the night as Daniel struck, piercing Chad's throat with a sickening force. His throat worked, draining Chad of what the knife had not taken. The lawyer who'd sat cordially at my table for dinner spasmed, his legs kicking, trying to fight the inevitable. When he finally stilled, was finally calm, Daniel released him, blood dripping from his mouth, tongue working to save each precious drop. Daniel let him slip down, and Chad fell back, no strength left to even hold himself up.

The still of the night was broken with Daniel's low words. "Do you make your oath to me?"

Chad could barely make his lips form the word. "Yes."

"You will protect me and mine?"

"Yes."

"Yes, what?" Daniel demanded.

Chad didn't seem to understand for a moment, but then the words came. "Yes, master."

Daniel judged him ready, and with those magnificent fangs, tore a hunk of flesh from his wrist and spit it to the ground. He held his wrist over Chad's limp form and let the blood, his unique, precious blood, flow from his body into the new vampire's. It didn't take long for Chad's need to overcome his weakness. He pulled himself up through sheer force of will and attached himself to Daniel's wrist, drawing hard on the flesh. After what seemed an eternity, Daniel forcefully detached the fledgling from his arm, and Chad was able to steady himself enough to stand.

I thought about stepping back because Daniel was no longer holding the fledgling. Yet now Chad seemed steadier, more in control. What the Council achieved with months of force-fed ancient blood, Daniel had done with two minutes of himself.

"Welcome to the night, Chad," Daniel said quietly. "I am your master, but I will never force myself on you. In return, if I find you've forced yourself on someone else, I'll be your executioner. I require your loyalty, but offer my protection from all that would harm you. Do you understand?"

"I do." Chad took a long, steadying breath.

"You hungry?" Daniel asked, but it was my Danny's voice again, just a hint of teasing behind his words.

"So f.u.c.king hungry," Chad replied, but he made no move to acquire his meal.

Daniel motioned, and Neil dropped my hand, walking forward. Neil winked back and smiled. There was no fear in his eyes, just a hot antic.i.p.ation.

Daniel placed a hand on Neil's shoulder. "Chad, this is my servant. He has agreed to feed your hungers this night. You need blood and you need s.e.x. If the turn has changed your preferences, tell me now and I'll find you a female."

Chad shook his head, his eyes on Neil. "No. I'm happy with Neil."

"Chad, if my servant is damaged, I'll be angry."

"I understand."

Neil rolled his eyes at Daniel but looked at Chad with a welcoming smile. "I'm hard to damage, honey. You don't listen to him. You do your worst. I promise I'll like it."

Neil took his hand and started back into the house. They walked by and before they managed to open the door, they were kissing, eating each other's mouths, hands finding new places.

Daniel fell to the ground, exhausted by his efforts. His chest heaved as he tried to calm his own emotions and relax. I'd just witnessed the birth of a new vampire. It had been a brutal and powerful experience. It deserved the quiet contemplation Daniel was giving it.

I'm not a contemplative girl. All I knew was the whole ritual thingie was over, and we could fight again because Chad's turn had interrupted a very important a.s.s kicking.

I walked over to my p.r.o.ne husband and straddled his waist, falling to my knees so I was over him. He looked up and his hands went to my waist. A slow, s.e.xy smile crossed his face, telling me he completely misunderstood my intentions. I made them clear by using my thumb and middle finger to thunk him strongly on the forehead.

"You're a dumba.s.s." It was so obvious.

He'd just performed a ritual that was sacred to the Council. If they found out, he would be declared an outlaw and hunted. It was more than Daniel's life on the line. If Daniel was declared an outlaw, I would be sold to the highest bidder, Neil would be without protection and at the mercy of his temporarily castrated father, who probably wasn't in a good mood. And Dev, well, Dev would be righteously killed. Then there was the question of a bunch of baby vamps Daniel had apparently decided to lead into I didn't know what. I had questions, and he was d.a.m.n sure going to answer them.

"Oww," Daniel said, rubbing his head. He flipped me over and my back was. .h.i.tting the ground as he loomed over me. "I know, Zoey. You don't have to point it out. I've had a rough night. I need a drink."

He got up but not before hauling me along with him. He stalked off toward the kitchen, leaving me no choice but to follow.

Daniel was opening a bottle he pulled from the refrigerator. He always kept a supply of blood at my place. It wasn't mine since he had gone through his stash a couple of nights ago.