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"You’re right I’ couple of days Listen, I haven’t even been in LA the past week I got back an hour ago"

"Well, that’s so you, there’s no way in hell Raphael would tolerate one of his own killing hu’s it been going on?"

"You know I’ed to keep it out of the papers because the vics have been all over the county and, for theon the street But it’s only a matter of time"

"You wouldn’t have called hed, re over his next irls in under a month"

"Jesus! He’s a busy little fucker Luci Shinn’s been trying to get ahold of o to the press if we don’t do so"

"Have you talked to her?"

"It’s notto anyone so far"

"You know, if you’d take the few ht actually help you out And has anyone bothered to call Raphael? He’d know if--"

"Like I said, not ht for a minute "Can I see the bodies?"

"What?"

"Can I see the bodies?"

"What the hell for?"

"Because I can tell you if a vamp really did theirls don’t make headlines He sees a neck bite and blood and says vaht be able to help, and you know I can talk to the va silence on Eckhoff’s end "Okay But it’ll have to be on the do I’ll talk to uy in the coroner’s office and see what I can work out You’ll be reachable?"

"I’m pretty much stuck until sunset--"

"I don’t even want to knohy Stick close to your cell I’ll call you when I’ve set soood-bye

Cyn stood and brooded for a few , pissed that she was trapped in this stupid hangar Dauilty What if all those calls from Raphael’s nu? What if it wasn’t even Raphael calling, butwith the hu away for her, after all And didn’t that just suck big ti to have to call And not only about theto stay in California, which probablyThe va on ceremony and tradition Mirabelle would probably have to swear so blood, she was sure All terribly gothic and portentous, but whatever it was, it had to be better than living as Jabril’s private kick toy None of which changed the fact that Cyn had to call Raphael Maybe she could reach Duncan instead "Fat chance," she hts of the eroaned Hours yet to kill She climbed the steps back into the plane and settled in to wait

By the tiar, Cyn couldn’t get to the door fast enough It had been nearly an hour since she’d spoken to Eckhoff She had tried s to do, lists of clues to follow up, lists of people to talk to, lists of faht were dead She’d even tried sleeping, for about twoshoes and had started doing laps around the interior of the stuffy building When Luci arrived, she shifted her pattern and jogged over to the door to let her in, then stood there panting like a dog, one hand on her side which was beginning to ache

Luci took in Cyn’s sweat-soaked face and shook her head in a else to do with your time?"

"I couldn’t sit still," Cyn panted "Too ot everything you wanted and I brought soing to look down her wrinkled nose, even though she stood several inches shorter "You ht want to clean up before you eat"

"What’d you bring?"

"Sandwiches fro at you, but it’s cold outside and I thought soood Is there a shower around here?"

Cyn grinned "Are you suggesting I stink?"

"I would never be so crude" Luci stepped past, giving her shining black hair a quick toss She looked around the elance fro over dark, al in there?"

Cyn laughed and nodded "It’s pretty nice actually, and there’s lots of cold drinks Let me wash up" She started toward the wo around to walk backwards and say, "Dean Eckhoff called riet any of those bastards to talk to me My kids don’t mean shit to them"