Part 27 (1/2)

”Why didn't you?”

She looked thoughtful, and sad, and then shook her head. ”I don't know.” ”We don't have time to worry about the why? Edward said. ”Agreed,” Lillian said. I just nodded. ”The wererats still aren't a hundred percent, Anita. You did a real number on them. We can't afford for you to do the same to the were-hyenas.”

”Not a problem. Narcissus is sooo not on my to-do list.”

His lips twitched, almost a smile, and then he gave in and laughed. ”I've met him now, and ...” He just shook his head, and said, ”I wouldn't want to do him either, but he did come through for us. He let us have all the werehyenas that we asked for.”

A thought occurred to me. ”If most of our muscle were knocked out, why didn't the Harlequin attack us?”

He nodded. ”I don't know why they didn't attack.”

”They're supposed to be this uber-fighting team. Sort of you as a vampire-they should have attacked.”

”Asher and the other vampires have speculated a lot why the Harlequin didn't push the advantage. I'll tell you all of it later, but right now ...” He made a movement as if he'd take my hand, and then his hands fell back. ”Do you trust me?” he asked.

I frowned at him. ”You know I do.” ”Then I've got the defenses covered, Anita. But only you can channel enough energy to Jean-Claude to keep the little vampires alive.”

I wanted to ask so many things, but he was right. I had to trust Ed ward to do his job, and I did, but. . . ”There aren't that many swan-manes in the city,” I said.

”We asked the werelions first, but their Rex refused.”

”Joseph refused to help us?” I was shocked, and let it show.

”Yes.”

”We've bent over backward for the lions. h.e.l.l, I saved his life once, or twice.

His wife said he wasn't having s.e.x with anyone but her.”

”This isn't about s.e.x, Edward.”

He shrugged.

”The lions would let the vampires die.” I said it out loud, because I needed to hear it. I couldn't quite believe it. ”That's how I'd take it,” he said. We looked at each other, and I felt my eyes go as cold as his. I think we were thinking the same thing. The lions would suffer for this. Un grateful b.a.s.t.a.r.ds.

”Less than two hours, Anita,” he said.

I nodded. ”Which means we don't have time to be wrong, Edward. Are the swans enough energy?”

”Donovan Reece is the king of every swanmane in this country.”

”I know. He has to travel from group to group, looking in on them, settling problems. He's also begun talking to other cities about how well our furry coalition is doing here. He's not trying to start another coalition, just talking about it. We've actually had some phone calls from other cities, wanting details about how it works.”

”A politician,” Edward said.

I nodded. ”Being swan king is an inborn power; I think you actually do come with the skills you need. Donovan says that usually a swan queen is born in the same generation, so they rule together, but for whatever reason there was no baby born with the birthmark, or the power to help him. It means he has double the duty.”

”He says that he leaves his swan maidens in the care of your leopards when he's gone for a while.”

I nodded. ”There's only three of them in town.”

”They've stayed over at your house,” Edward said.

”Yeah.”

”Why?”

”They need someone to look after them sometimes.”

”Donovan said that, that you took care of his people. He says you rescued them once, and almost got killed doing it.” ”Yeah,” I said. ”He says that if you risk your life for his people, he would do the same for you, so what's a little s.e.x between allies?”

”He didn't say that last part,” I said.

Edward grinned and shook his head. ”Okay, but he did say, 'I would risk my life for Anita and her people. This is a small thing you ask of me.' ”

”That sounds like Donovan,” I said.

”He's offering to let you feed on every swanmane in the United States. There's maybe one to six in most major cities.” ”I had no idea there were that many of them.” ”I don't think anyone did but Donovan. He gave up a lot of intelligence, Anita. He didn't make me promise not to use it against him if I got a contract from someone who wanted me to go swan hunting.”

”Edward . . .”

He held up a hand, stopping me. ”I'll promise you, if you ask.”

We looked at each other a second, and then I said, ”Promise me you won't use anything you've learned against any of the animal groups.”

”I won't hunt any more swans,” He said.

”No, Edward, I mean it. You're going to have to learn things about vampires and the shapes.h.i.+fters that you could use against them. I need your word of honor that what you learn won't come back to haunt them, or me.”

His face went to that cold, empty look. It was almost the look he used when he killed, except for a hint of anger in his eyes. ”Even the lions?” he asked.

”They're members of our coalition.”

”That mean they're off limits?”

”No, it means we have to kick them out of the coalition before we do anything to them.” He smiled then. ”So honorable.” ”A girl's got to have standards,” I said. He nodded. ”As long as the lions answer for it, I'm cool.” ”One crisis at a time, but yeah, they'll answer for it.” He gave that cold, pleased smile. It was Edward's usual smile, the real one. The smile that said the monster was home, and happy to be there. I didn't need a mirror to know that the smile I gave back was al most a match for it. I used to worry about becoming like Edward. Lately, I counted on it.

CHAPTER 26

WHATEVER WE WERE going to do with the local lion pride had to wait. One emergency at a time. Funny how when Edward comes into my life, or I come into his, we're almost always running from one emergency to the other. The difference this time was that the emergency couldn't be handled at the point of a knife or gun barrel. A flamethrower wouldn't even help, though Edward had probably brought one. How would he get it through airport security? It's Ed ward; if he wanted to, he'd manage to get a Sherman tank through security.

I had less than two hours to feed. Less than two hours to keep Willie McCoy, with his loud suits and louder ties, alive. The love of his life, Candy, tall and blond and gorgeous, and so in love with the small, not-so-handsome vampire. I thought of Avery Seabrook, who I'd stolen away from the Church of Eternal Life. Avery with his gentle eyes, so newly dead that even to me he still felt alive sometimes. I thought of so many of the lesser vamps who had jumped s.h.i.+p from Malcolm's church to us in the last few months. I couldn't let them die, not if I could save them. But I so didn't want to have s.e.x with Donovan Reece.

There was nothing wrong with him. He was tall, pale, and hand some in a preppy, clean-cut sort of way. He was an inch shy of six feet, broad shoulders tucked into a baby-blue sweater that complemented a milk-and-cream complexion so perfect it looked artificial, but it wasn't. The faint pink blush on his cheeks was just his own blood flowing under that white, white skin. He was as pale as a Caucasian vampire before they'd fed. But there was nothing dead about Donovan. No, there was something incredibly alive about him, as if at a glance you could tell that his blood ran hotter. Not hot as in pa.s.sion, but hot as in hot to the touch, as though if you spilled it into your mouth it would be hot, like sweet, metallic cocoa.