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"Claude stop--let hio!" I took a step toward the men, but halted in my tracks My hand autoh I was no longer carrying But even if I had been, I wasn’t entirely certain I had it in me to shoot Claude

What could I do? Grab hiister as a blip on the radar of an out-of-control varowled and pushed the selkie away Coates fell to his knees, and I cringed in syled up and turned to face us, wobbly on his hurt legs

My feet ain, almost of their own volition, and I reached to help the man up But I stopped--as I had before--only this time for a very different reason

Burned into the center of Coates’s chest was a synized

The brand

I looked at Coates’s eyes--and the fear behind the softly, words I couldn’t quite catch With each syllable, his voice grew louder

"…I don’t reainst the arm of the couch He sat on it, his face in his hands

Da

"Cal to hurt you" I shot Claude a warning glance, one that he pointedly ignored Triumph lit his face

Neither of us approached Coates at first The selkie gathered his breath and tried to caler hit me at Claude’s actions We weren’t criainst his will, even of just his shirt Even a liar like Coates

I understood he wanted to ress on the case--hell, I did, too But there were lines, and he’d just crossed one of them Screw crossed, he’d dove over and done cartwheels on the other side

But I had to keep focused Claude was a problem for later With that inhad slowed, but perspiration covered his nearly bald head, and I could see skin connecting his fingers up to the first joint as he held his face A sure sign of a selkie in distress It was the first step before their joints joined and they transforiven his emotional state was a testament to his control A prince of some sort, indeed

As I drew closer, he looked up from his hands Obvious distress still colored his features, but he seemed calmer

"I don’t remember," he said, voice soft "I don’t remember that whole week All I know is…" He took a deep breath "When I think of talking about it, or if I even try thinking about it, a feeling of panic hits and I--"

"Can you walk us through it? Anything? The last thing you rerew fiercer, more panicked "Just leavein front of the selkie--and I decided I really hated va until you do"

The selkie started yelling again, his words turning indecipherable, and he faded into another panic attack I grabbed Claude’s shoulder and tugged hi," he said before I could speak Emotion that I’d never heard from the vampire rode his voice Claude was rattled "We need a next step"

"He can’t Look at him Really look, Claude"

Doubt flickered across Claude’s face, and he glanced at the selkie

"There is nothing he’s able to tell us, other than what he already has But that could be a good thing"

"What?"

"Think about it Soo into a panic attack when he tries to say too ic Maybe Natalie can make some sense of this Use hiaze all but dragged to the selkie

"And, Claude" Bright blue eyes flickered back to me "This isn’t like you This kind of pressure You’re hurting hie to shake him, or slap so dark flickered across his features, but then it was gone, leaving only pained regret behind "This isn’t like ht

If the drive to Wisconsin had been aard, the drive back to Chicago was positively painful Claude was obviously lost in thought, and farback and forth betanting to rage at hi him about my vision of Luc froo How could I get hiive up his quest to prove the innocence of a ed at erous than the others I wanted to comfort him

Because this case seemed to have shaken the confident va in me didn’t like that one bit But I couldn’t comfort him, and I dared not shohat I knew of Luc--that would risk hi me out of the case Or worse, proister before he was ready Before he had backup in place Before he had a plan

Or worse, what if he stood by his friend regardless of what he’d done?

So I watched the darkening landscape fade fros, to naked trees and open spaces, and back to buildings even bigger than the ones we’d left behind, undecided and feeling like a wishy-washy loser