Page 21 (2/2)

“One second, Sara”

“I couldn’t hear her clearly,” Janvier said as soon as she blocked the receiver, “but did she say a body connected to the dog?” At her nod, his face grew griht now, so soon after the battle It’s barely begun to heal”

“Are you offering Tower assistance?”

“No way around Tower involvement,” he pointed out “Guild would have to report this to Dether froue with hiot Tower assistance,” she said to Sara Annoyed as she was about having to fight to do her job, she also knew the Guild Director was right; she wasn’t in the physical condition to handle this on her own It’d be stupid not to have backup in case things turned to shit

“Janvier?” Sara asked

“Yes” She passed on what he’d said about the city’s psychological state

“He has a point” A faint tapping sound caainst her desk “I assume Janvier will pass on the details to Dht I’ll contact Dame plan, but for noork under the assuation needs to fly under the radar”

“So the case is mine?”

“I’ll tell the cops to hold the scene for you”

10

Ashwini and Janvier arrived back in Manhattan in half the ti ride of her life, the bikea orn channel Pure silk and steel and speed

That exhilaration was replaced by bright, hard anger the instant they reached the scene

The victim had been found in a Dumpster behind a restaurant officially located in Little Italy In actuality, it hugged up against the far edge of the Vampire Quarter One street over from this quiet one, and the clubs were questionable at best, deadly at worst

Last ti a vamp who’d skipped out on his Contract and decided to hide in the dark underbelly of the city—she’d walked into one of those clubs and come across a blissed-out junkie passed out in the lap of a well-grooe of red in his eyes He had the junkie’s sequinedher bare breast as he drank fros buried in her inner thigh

Ashwini had known she asting her time, but she’d made them stop, then waited until the woman was conscious At which point the junkie had called Ash a bitch who needed to get fucked Then she’d spread her legs lewdly to reveal she wore no panties, and shoved one of the va him to feed Her eyes had rolled back in her head an instant later, orgasmic cries torn out of her throat