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"Collateral daoal here"

Gareth nodded "It happens"

And it did Not often, luckily, but their connection to human-ity sometimes left them vulnerable to the weaknesses of others

Silver had been doing this long enough to have lost any eathered his papers and slipped theet out of here?"

Silver nodded "What is our plan?"

Gareth stood "Close your eyes and take a deep breath Make it look like you’re having trouble breathing"

One thing Silver had always been good at--following orders

He pressed a panicked hand to his throat and sucked in a long rush of air

Gareth’s power latched on to that air, feeling it en for carbon dioxide

Silver felt that power His eyes snapped open

"Again," Gareth said, keeping his voice even, reassuring His power filled the air in the roo to call for help in a moment"

Another breath

"One more," said Gareth He moved toward the door "Hold it Pretend you can’t breathe"

Silver inhaled, a breath full of Gareth’s power He held it

Gareth gave the ele the pressure inside Silver’s chest He felt the other man’s shock His sudden fear His pain

But his death was silent Air rushed out of his s burst, he couldn’t ive me," said Gareth "A dirty trick, I know Thank you for your years of service"

Silver was drooling on the table He wasn’t dead yet, but it wouldn’t be long

"What did you call Kate’s death?" said Gareth "Collateral dae?" He leaned close "Funny I call it failure"

CHAPTER 1

Nick Merrick set a wide piece of flagstone into the sand, shifting it back and forth to lock it in place Despite the late October chill in the air, the sun beat down on his back, -sleeved black T-shirt He pulled the red Merrick Landscaping cap off his head to wipe sweat aith his forearm His hair was already damp, and he still had half a path to finish

He yanked the hat back on and fed so for a breeze

The as overly happy to accoh the trees to scatter leaves and blow sand into the grass

Nick swore

Quinn shivered and huddled down in her fleece pullover

"Frigging wind"

Nick glanced at her She was sitting on the slate stone bench his older brother had installed yesterday "Cold? Go sit in the truck"

"But I’ you"

Nick sotten here "Oh Okay I didn’t realize you were helping"

"Not with the landscaping I can barely pick those rocks up"

She turned to lie flat on the bench, letting long blond hair fall al up to the sky Next she’d be pulling it back toward her chest and putting her ankle next to her ear Crazy dancer "I’ you keep up illusions"

Illusions Nick lost the s another stone into place "Are you sure you’re not avoiding going ho each other"

He made a noncommittal noise and reached for another stone

"Seriously," said Quinn "Your brother gave you crap for bringing , didn’t he?"

"Not really" And Michael hadn’t If Gabriel or Chris had tried to drag a girl along on a job, Michael would have pitched a fit But Nick was the dependable one When he’d , his older brother hadn’t batted an eye

Then again, Nick had told Michael a little about Quinn’s epic fights with her otten worse since her fa her some slack, too

"Huh," said Quinn "Maybe I should accidentally leave panties in your roo"

"You don’t need to do that"

"You sound pissed"

Nick put another rock into place and rolled the tension froo over the top"

"Panties are over the top?"

He didn’t even bother answering that

"Come on," she said "If you don’t want your brothers to know you’re into guys, a little lingerie left in your bedrooht be just the ticket"

Nick sla that, either

Quinn was relentless "Have you seen Ada?"

"No" At least not in reality But Quinn’s dance partner had occupied nearly every wakingmoments, too

Adam was the first--the only--boy he’d ever kissed

Nick’s brothers had no idea They still thought he was infatu-ated with Quinn And Quinn was all too happy to keep up the

"illusion," as she put it

"Have you talked to him?" Quinn pressed

"No" But he read over Adae about twenty tiht here

Nick knehat he wanted, all right He just wasn’t sure he wanted to want it His life was already coh He reached for another stone