Page 27 of Mortal Heart

“The vamps who don’t take it call it the Scourge. They’re so dramatic.” She shrugged. “What the addicts themselves call it, I don’t know. Farrell was too busy chewing on my neck to say much.”

Ronan envisioned his Valkyrie lying in an alley, pinned beneath a drug-crazed vampire as he savaged her beautiful neck, and had a nearly irresistible urge to transform into his full angelic form. He might have done so if he still had that form—his rage was that overwhelming.

And then his thoughts came to a screeching halt. Wait…hisValkyrie?

Arkady was so laughablynothis that he almost scoffed out loud at himself. In any case, he’d better be real damn careful not to say those words out loud anywhere near Arkady or he’d probably lose a body part he’d miss.

“How did you survive this attack?” he asked. He managed to keep his voice calm and even, despite his fury.

“I stabbed him with my silver blade until he was holier than Palm Sunday, not that he noticed. I had my mandate from the Court not to kill him, but I figured it was going to be either him or me. I have a DNV on file with the Court, but I trust them to honor it about as much as I trust a rattlesnake not to bite.”

“A DNV?”

“ADo Not Vamp.” She gave him another humorless smile. “It’s the vampire equivalent of aDo Not Resuscitate. In other words, if I croak, don’t turn me. All employees of the Court must make their wishes clear.”

“But they don’t always honor those wishes?”

“Exactly. Legal or not, if it’s to the vamps’ advantage, sometimes important documents or records go missing.” She got up, walked to the wall opposite the couch, and crossed her arms. “So, anyway, I decided I’d had enough of being Strung-Out Harry’s chew toy and pulled my stake…and that’s when the Hunters showed up.”

He read her expression and felt himself go cold. “The Court used you as bait.”

“Yup. And I think they wanted him to kill me ‘accidentally’ so one of them could turn me.” She leaned against the wall. “Charles Vaughan and another member of the Court, Amira, said more than once that I would make an ideal Hunter or vampire. I think they meant it as a compliment, but to me it was a huge warning to watch my neck.”

“And a good reason to believe they might not honor your DNV, as you called it.” He absorbed her words. “I assume the only reason you haven’t found and staked Farrell is he has the Court’s protection?”

“You assume correctly.” She flexed her hands. “Farrell belongs to David Noble’s line, and Noble is a longtime member of the Court. I can’t stake Farrell for biting me. If he’s involved in other criminal activities, however, especially human trafficking not sanctioned by the Court because that’s super-duper illegal, he might end up on the sharp end of a stake for that. And the vamps will let that slide.”

“Because the truth would reflect poorly on them,” Ronan finished. “And this endearment Mora used?”

“That’s what Farrell called me all the time he was biting me:my sweetness.” She took a deep breath and let it out. “I don’t believe in coincidences. I think Henry Farrell is mixed up in this trafficking thing and Mora knew him at least well enough to pick up that phrase.”

“As well as a deadlygeasto prevent him from talking about Farrell.” Ronan nodded. “It’s a strong lead.”

“Yes, it’s a lead. So yeah, technically you won our wager.” She watched him. “No one outside the Court but you knows about what Farrell did. I expect it to stay that way.”

“No hint of this will ever pass my lips.” He pulled a knife from a sheath on his belt. “I will swear a blood oath if you wish it.”

“Shit, dude, and here I thoughtMalcolmwas dramatic.” She went to him and raised her right hand. “Put your knife away. I’ll take a pinky swear.”

He hooked his pinky with hers. “Dude?” he asked with raised eyebrows and released her finger.

“Ugh, embarrassing.” She winced. “I picked that up from Malcolm.”

“He’s a good man and an even better ally.”

“And friend.” She sighed. “He’s a pain in the ass but I love that bratty little ghost. Don’t you dare tell him I said that.”

“Our secret,” he promised. “So, where do we find Henry Farrell?”

“He’s still manager of Nyx, so I bet he’s there. We’ll have to be careful. The moment he hears we’re looking for him, he’ll probably go to ground, if he hasn’t already. He might have heard about Mora and decided to make himself scarce in case someone’s on his trail.”

Ronan considered her words. Surprise was almost always the best route, but there were exceptions to the rule. The way Farrell had come at Arkady the first time indicated the young vamp thought the best defense was a good offense. Ronan tended to think the same way.

“Not necessarily,” he said finally. “That rather depends on what he’s expecting, does it not?”

“Fair point.” Arkady grinned. Rather than upsetting her, talking about Farrell’s attack seemed to have rekindled her impatience to get back to work. “So, what’s your plan?”

“Another trap.” Ronan gave her his own hunter’s smile. “If you’re up for it, that is.”

---