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Inside ht a ly

Eli caie and I pulled my head away for a moment, already almost overcome by the smells as he pulled the Ziploc open I shook ave a little sneeze to clearie I took a s deeply as the s associations with other scents from the last tiood scent noses, and also from when I was human--nose-blind, I understood Hu of the shtless, deaf, and unable to touch at all, that isolation ht show the difference between a human’s ability to smell and a bloodhound’s ability

I learned all I could froie, and trotted back tothe door with my nose

• • •

I was sitting on the bed, firics Like mine, but different In the location of ics Close I reached in to the deeps of enetic form that was mine, that was all Jane, all huies that gloith zoohts, that sparkled like stars, and blazed like coh the flesh that needed to become my own I rolled fro burned to the bone, being branded, being dipped in enetic structure that could weld a sword and shoot a gun I found , I rolled toposition, twisted in sheets Eli stood over ht shined into the forrabbed up the sheets and tried to stand but ht-dragon is here"

Eli stepped, balanced, lifting his feet one at a ti them down in stable position, rooted, as he slowly turned "Where?"

That’s right Hued I pulled on hteen-inch, steel-bladed va on the back of the bed fraun I chambered a round, pointed to the front of the house, and followed Eli out of the room

He forced open the front door and we broke through the crime scene tape and out into the street The s The street ran ater, warics faded and disappeared

• • •

"I don’t believe in coincidence," I said, as I stuffed my face with the rare steak that Eli had cooked (if a steak this rare can be called cooked) while I shifted back "But I s in the blood that I’ve smelled before Or nearly The shooter set another look at the paintings on one of the lower levels of vamp HQ"

Eli’s mouth pursed "What does Leo have in all his basements? Soundsthe breath-freezing fear response I’d had standing in the elevator in the dark, I said, "Bring flashlights Maybe that bazooka you keep talking about"