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In five days I’d scoured the city top to bottootten was more rumors and no real answers I was out of places to look, out of ideas and out of time Another body had turned up yesterday, this time in the lobby of Trump Tower, and now the city was in an absolute panic

I didn’t knohat to do, and since Mercedes had dumped the responsibility onto uilt and worry that ith it

None of the fourthe police and Nolan with unsolved cases Though part ofthe body count, the realist in me kneas only a matter of tiet hts it was currently spinning through

My phone started to ring out in the living rootone all I could hear in the eet your"Baby, It’s Cold Outside" But that wasn’t how I heard it

I threw off the covers and padded into the living roo to put on a robe over my tank and boy-short undies Cold wasn’t a problem for me, even with the subpar radiator we had in my apartment

The caller ID screen showed Desmond’s cell, and the fretful despondency I’d felt in bed was shucked off and replaced with a warlow

"Santa’s workshop," I said with a breathy purr "Have you been nice…or naughty?"

He groaned, but it didn’t sound like it had anything to do with being put off by my poor attempt at Christmas huht die"

"I’ested North Pole unifor under the mistletoe, too, with no one here to kiss Oh, wait, is that the door? Knock knock"

Then so I went rigid on the spot When I sniffed the air all I could smell was pine, and with Desht be outside my apartment

"Desmond?"

"M on the other side of the door I stepped onto the botto on the wall, then slid the protective sheath off

In the light of the Christlinted with the cheerful LED reds and yellows The power of the old blade hummed in my hand I had coht purchase, but I often wondered if there was more to the weapon than ht then was a weapon quieter than a gun The knocking at the door resu?" Desh anxiety

"I’ll be wearing a brand-neolf fur coat if you’re playing some sort of trick on me, Desh gesture while I grasped the sith ed between my shoulder and my ear and braced myself in an attack stance

The hall was e the sword, I poked my head into the hall cautiously It was a tiny space with nowhere to hide, and there was no one buton?" Des I liked far less than the heated passionate proht I heard so it"

I turned towards the apart open with a loud sainst the interior wall I yelped with surprise, dropped the phone and held my sith both hands in preparation for a defensive strike A dark figure stood silhouetted by the di in the doorfra

Then I tasted lime and snarled "Christ, Desmond"

He closed his phone with a snap and bypassed the two-step drop by ju with a hop I still held the sword up, but it didn’t look like it fazed hi the air with exploratory, careful precision, but judging fro more than I had

"What happened?"

I hated it when he went all business ona sword Soure out why My boyfriend, on the other hand, looked deadly serious

"Soht it was you, but when I opened it up the hall was eht the first tiain because the space in the hall was too li it up at accidental-i in from the open door, but it was a dry cold There was still no snow

"It wasn’ta joke, just tell me"

"Secret, I swear to God it wasn’twind, and turned to get a good look atI was uninjured and more irritated than scared, a smirk played at his mouth