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Mae’s obvious disappointment at this turn of events irritated Justin She certainly hadn’t seemed that miserable around hi;torian I’"

Her eyes looked , and he saw a flash of anger in them It reminded him of the passion he’d seen earlier I wish she wasn’t so hot, he thought wistfully

You have to help her, said Magnus She has gods swar around her and no way to stop theods anyetting nus Besides, what do you think you’re going to be dealing hen you return?

Mae said nothing to Justin’s comment and directed her attention to the others as she stood up "Do you need anything else fro a yawn "You’ve doneearly" He paused and laughed "Ah, you don’t sleep, do you? Well then, do whatever you want You’re young Maybe you can find so"

Mae didn’t even blink "I’ll just stay in my room, sir There’s no one worth my time in this place"

She turned withan attitude that refused to acknowledge those people--or rather, the one person--she considered beneath her As Justin watched her go, he barely heard Francis diso fetch his "provincial girl"

A haughty, lethal bodyguard An assign to accrue a hefty price tag

You still want to pay it? asked Horatio

Absolutely

CHAPTER 6

GENIUS, CON ARTIST

Tessa wasn’t asleep when someone pounded on the front door

She wasn’t supposed to be awake Her mother would kill her if she found out, but Tessa couldn’t help herself Her father had acquired a reader fro She kneas old technology for the that trickled into Panaht device that contained hundreds of books Some were old, some were current Most ritten in Mandarin, which she couldn’t read There were still enough frolish as well as she could Spanish Her father had made sure of that

The reader became irrelevant when she heard the noise, however She froze where she sat, tense and wide-eyed It had been years since gangs regularly raided the houses of their rivals, and her father wasn’t even involved in anything that would attract attention or retaliation Still, the drills her parents had made her and her sisters practice over and over were still fresh in herAll it would take was one shout frouards, and Tessa would be out of her rooed on the door again, and several ed in so of feet No gunfire

Tessa waited a little bit longer, but when the noise didn’t stop, her curiosity got the better of her It was a proble out of bed, she found her robe and tied it tightly over her floor-length nightgown Out of habit, she nearly pulled up her hair but then decided to leave it down to save time She moved quietly and slowly as she left the room, still cautious of any possible threat, and prayed the old wooden floor wouldn’t creak The closer she ca down, the nized the voices There would be no raid tonight

She made it downstairs and paused just outside the doorway to the foyer, keeping out of sight but still ood view Her mother stood there in a similar robe, arms crossed, but she’d taken the time to pull up her hair Marta Cruz would never be seen with her hair down, not even in the ht Tessa’s father stood nearby, and his clothing suggested he hadn’t even gone to bed yet Two of the fa ht Tessa’s attention It was the sight of Justin March, standing in front of the door, thattime After her mother had insisted he move out, Justin had only been by a few tis were now to restaurants and clubs, places that were inaccessible to Tessa She’d neverhilamorous and worldly to her, and most important, he never talked down to her He always spoke in a frank, open way and wasn’t afraid to discuss the topics no one else would "He has no sense of propriety," her mother had once told Tessa "But what can you expect frola was soaked from the rain, and the hair he usually kept so carefully styled was equally wet and disheveled There was a bright, alnized He was drunk or high-- "You aren’tperfect sense," Justin insisted He raked a hand through his wet hair and began pacing back and forth, a habit she recalled froed in soio This is my out Don’t be a fool and waste this chance It’ll never happen again"