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MICAH&039;S RING TONE was "Stray Cat Strut," by Stray Cats; Nathaniel had put it on when he ild giving nearly everyone personal ring tones onfor Micah, but I hadn&039;t found anything I liked better yet, so I&039;d left it

His business ansas always, "Micah Callahan here" Tonight, to me, it was, "Anita," and there was relief in his voice, and then he recovered his tone and was businessier when he said, "I didn&039;t expect a call this early You can&039;t be done with the cri and his quick y that no aotten from me "I&039;uys would knoasn&039;t one of the dead officers" I regretted using the word dead as soon as it left ret it, because it was the truth, and then Oh, hell

I could picture hiold, depending on the light Leopard eyes, because a very bad man had forced him to stay in animal form until he couldn&039;t come all the way back to human If his deep brown curls were loose, and not back in a ponytail or braid, he&039;d be pushing them behind his ear so the phone could set better He was my size, the shortest o with it, but he&039;d putbody, and like me he made the most of what he had

"Nathaniel would have let me know if you were hurt," he said, and his voice wasn&039;t as calht tremor in it He had moved in with me at the same time Nathaniel did, so we&039;d been a happy little threesoether Micah wastometaphysical connection, but Nathaniel was my leopard to call, just as if I were a real vampire, which meant that if I died, there was a very real chance that he&039;d die with me It didn&039;t work as much the other way, because animals to call and human servants, in my case a vay, strength, which y first to stay alive longer It was the way the systeunshot wound, I hadn&039;t been that hurt If I died, though, Micah would alht until this moment how that must make him feel I was a coldhearted idiot Fuck

"I&039;m so sorry," I said

"For what?" he asked, and he sounded genuinely puzzled

I shook ain He did not need ht; one, he already knew it, and two, that I&039;d only just now figured it out would probably not earn nore me; I just wanted to make sure you told everyone that I&039;m okay"

"Of course" He still sounded a little puzzled, and finally said, "Do you have a few minutes to talk to Cynric?"

"Maybe; why him in particular?"

"He saw the special report on the news You standing surrounded by bodies He&039;s scared for you now, for you and Nathaniel"

My insight was new enough that I understood that last part Nathaniel and Cynric were close, ured out the issue with Nathaniel before I had; I felt slow

"Shit," I said

"Yes," Micah said

"Yes, put him on, but I&039;m needed to talk to the va"

"He just needs to hear your voice, Anita"

I sighed "Sure" I was dreading the next few minutes for so many reasons Cynric had been with us alh to die for his country, but I still wasn&039;t sure he was old enough to be my lover Of all the men in my life, Cynric bothered er to call Theoretically, I now had enough weretigers whose energy I could drain that ht not touch Nathaniel, if I could pick and choose whose energy I took The fact that I&039;d trade Cynric&039;s life for Nathaniel&039;s, given a choice, didn&039;tmy lover He was on the list of people that I called and texted when I had to travel for work Some of the people on my text list could have contacted me mind-to-mind, like Jean-Claude; not as smoothly, but they could feel me, sense me, we could share sensations and e in thewitnesses, so they refrained The compromise was that I texted them, and called when I could

"Anita, I&039;m sorry that the news freaked er than usual, not a kid&039;s voice, but not a man&039;s voice either He was taller thanHis hair was a deep, cobalt blue; in low light it looked black, but it so wasn&039;t Just as his eyes were two colors, the way so of blue and a darker inner ring that was alht blue All the pureblood weretigers were born with tiger eyes, not human; it was a mark of the purity of their bloodline There were occasional throwbacks to hu them, but that usually meant they were survivors of an attack and had started life as huer clans occasionallyThey liked to deny it, but when you&039;re lonely enough, you take what you can find Cynric was the last pure blue tiger htered off long ago; in fact, eren&039;t sure where he&039;d coas had found hie to squirm uncomfortably and answered hiet crie this fresh"

"And they reported two officers dead," he said

"You kneasn&039;t dead," I said, and kept my voice even

"I knoould have felt the energy drain if you&039;d died, but you shield really well, Anita Sometimes so well, it scares me, because I can&039;t sense you at all"

I hadn&039;t known that "I&039;uys know about investigations"

"I know, but it&039;s still I Shit, Anita, it scared me"

He hadn&039;t cussed when he first ca to "date" me would drive any man to curse?

"I ao question the surviving vampires"

"I know you have to work, solve the crime"

"Yes," I said