Page 101 of Smolder (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter 29)

“He never came out at night much,” Ru said.

“He didn’t have good night vision,” Rodina said.

“How do you know?” I asked.

“We attacked him at night as leopards, because we do have excellent night vision,” she said.

“You weren’t the Harlequin sent to kill Deimos,” Jake said.

“Officially, no.”

“Then why would you attack him?”

That look passed over their faces that I’d come to realize was their version of exchanging a look without having to actually do it. It was part of their physical shorthand that they used when they didn’t want me to figure something out. It was one of their few tells.

“Tell me why you attacked Deimos at night in wereleopard form?” I asked.

“We were ordered to do it,” Rodina said.

“By whom?” I asked.

“We only ever had one master before you,” she said.

“Why would the Mother of All Darkness want you to attack Deimos at night in wereleopard form?”

“She wanted to know if he was more vulnerable at night,” Rodina said.

“So, you’re letting us brainstorm and plan and you know what will work and won’t work, already,” Richard said.

Ru just shook his head.

“Answer him,” I said.

“It doesn’t work that way,” Ru said.

Nicky said, “Repeat what Richard said, but make it a question.”

I did. “We don’t know what you’re planning so we have no idea if it will work,” Rodina said.

“I order you to tell me if you won the fight that night against Deimos.”

Rodina said, “No,” as Ru said, “Almost.”

“You are Anita’s Brides; you have to tell her the truth if she asks it. We can’t lie to her,” Nicky said.

“You are her Bride completely, but she never finished the ritualwith us,” Ru said, “It’s why Rodina can do so many things that make Anita unhappy.”

Jake said, “Ask them if they know how to kill Deimos?”

I did, and they both said no.

“Ask them if they know how to defeat him?” Edward suggested.

“Define ‘defeat,’ ” Rodina said. Ru just said maybe.

I was catching on to the game. “Do you know how to defeat Deimos in such a way that he can no longer harm us or challenge us for rule of the vampires in America?”

“Yes,” Ru said, and Rodina nodded.

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