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  “I’m so glad I caught you,” Pearlie said. She twisted the handle of her shopping scooter and inched it forward. “I’ve been meaning to call and see how you were holding up.”

  Emily’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Fine. Why would you be asking?”

  “Well, with all that unpleasantness down in Jefferson—isn’t that where Stephen and Alex moved?” She plowed ahead, not giving Emily an opportunity to respond. “Of course it must be. How many towns in Mississippi can be named Jefferson, after all? Anyway, with those awful murders going on, I thought you might be—”

  “Murders?” Emily’s voice was louder and shriller than she’d expected. A few nearby shoppers turned and looked at her. “What murders?”

  Pearlie blinked rapidly, and her jowls flapped as she tried to get the words out. “Three vampires were killed. Staked and beheaded.”

  Emily gasped and had to clutch at her cart to keep from swaying on her feet. Her mind reeled and raced in circles. When had she last spoken to Stephen or Alex? Were they okay? Was Alex investigating? Were these murders somehow connected to Bernard’s? When had Stephen last called her, one or two weeks ago?

  “Are you okay? You don’t look so good.” Pearlie patted Emily’s arm. Her eyes widened, and her hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, my stars. You didn’t know, did you?”

  Emily shook her head, unable to speak.

  “My grandson works for one of the television stations in Memphis. He told me about it. I just assumed, with Stephen and Alex being there, that one of them would’ve told you about it. Alex is an Enforcer, right? Why wouldn’t she tell—”

  “I’m sure Alexandra has her reasons,” Emily said quietly. A shiver traced down her spine, jolting her into action. “I have to go.” She pushed her cart away, heading for the line of registers at the front of the store.

  “I’ll call you later,” Pearlie shouted.

  Emily hurried to the checkout stand, searching her purse for her cell phone before she realized she’d left it at home to charge the battery. She had to get home. She had to know if Stephen and Alex were okay. Her foot tapped the floor and her fingers drummed the handle of her cart as she waited for the cashier to ring up her purchases.

  If something had happened to one of them, she would’ve been notified, she thought. No one had knocked on her door. No one had phoned her. Uneasiness quivered in her belly. She had to be certain her family was safe.

  She snatched the receipt from the cashier’s hand and rushed for the door with images of caskets and flower-draped funeral homes flashing through her mind.

  Tasha reached Maggie’s Diner and was greeted with a chaotic scene of ambulances and fire trucks, as well as police cars from city, county, and state agencies. Medical personnel scrambled across the parking lot, performing triage on the wounded. White sheets stretched across temporary posts dotted the pavement and marked the victims who wouldn’t be needing transport to Jefferson Memorial Hospital. Sheets were no longer draped over bodies in order to avoid cross-contamination of forensic evidence.

  In total, she counted five dead on the scene and at least a dozen more wounded, including the most critical, who’d already been taken away.

  Harvey Manser, shouting orders and chain-smoking, stood in the center of it all.

  She made her way over to him, mindful to step carefully around the pools of blood that seeped from beneath the makeshift fences and filled cracks in the deteriorating asphalt. “What the hell happened?” she demanded once she’d reached Harvey’s side.

  “Gunman parked on the side of the southbound on-ramp,” he answered, pointing toward the interstate with the glowing tip of his cigarette. “Damn fool shot into the crowd. It’s a miracle none of the gas tanks exploded.”

  “Call came across the wire with an officer down.”

  Harvey nodded, drawing on his cigarette. “Sabian took one in the arm.”

  Tasha glanced around at the remaining ambulances. “Where is she now?”

  “Inside. All this blood was bound to set her off, so I had a couple of my deputies haul her in there for the EMTs to check her out. Didn’t want her attacking the survivors.”

  She couldn’t believe her ears and gaped at him.

  “Don’t give me that look. She’s a fucking vamp. I wasn’t going to stand by while she either attacked the survivors or fed off the dead.”

  “Are you stoned or just stupid, Harvey? I can never tell.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “It’s ignorant bastards like you who create events like this in the first place,” she shouted, flinging her arms wide.

  “Now wait just a damn minute. You can’t—”

  “Oh, shut up, Harvey.” Tasha stormed away. “Just shut the fucking hell up!”

  Officers stopped in their tracks to stare at her. Harvey hurled obscenities at her back, but she kept her eyes focused on the entrance to Maggie’s Place as she walked. Her hands shook, and she curled them into fists at her sides.

  Drive-by shootings. Mass murder. Beheadings. These were crimes associated with larger cities, with somewhere else. With the exception of the rare suicide by handgun, the only shootings recorded in Nassau County for nearly fifteen years were hunting accidents. Senseless violence on the scale they were now experiencing wasn’t supposed to happen in Jefferson. Not in her hometown.

  Tasha entered the diner and found Alex seated at a table with a paramedic at her side. She passed the two deputies who stood to either side of the door and kept their hands on their service belts, sidearms within easy reach.

  Alex looked up as Tasha approached the table. Her normally green eyes were dark amber, and small specks of dried blood dotted her face. Her gaze flicked over Tasha’s shoulder and back. “I don’t suppose you can convince Harvey to call off his goons.”

  “He seems to think you’re going to start biting people.”

  Alex snorted and rolled her eyes. “If I did, he’d be the first.”

  Tasha heard the two deputies shifting behind her. She pulled out a chair and sat opposite Alex. “How badly are you injured?”

  “Just a scratch.”

  The paramedic rummaged in his kit for more gauze. He glanced at Tasha. “She needs to go to the hospital for stitches but refuses.”

  Tasha peered over the paramedic’s kit. A long, seeping gash cut diagonally across Alex’s right biceps. She met Alex’s gaze, silently questioning her apparent decision to forgo further medical attention.

  “The bullet only grazed me,” Alex said softly. “It looks worse than it is. I’ll be fine in a few days.”

  Vampires didn’t heal instantly, as they did in the movies, but they did heal quickly. A broken arm would have a human in a cast for a minimum of six weeks. A vampire’s body would mend the same break in one. If Alex said she’d be as good as new in a few days, Tasha believed her.

  Alex winced as the paramedic applied pressure to the wound and began the process of dressing it.

  Raised voices outside drew their attention. Tasha stood and stepped toward the door as Varik burst through it with a red-faced Harvey on his heels.

  “Who the fuck do you think you are?” Harvey demanded. “You can’t—”

  “Varik Baudelaire,” the vampire shot over his shoulder. “Director of Special Operations, Federal Bureau of Preternatural Investigation.”

  Tasha’s eyes widened. Varik had neglected to give his full title to her during their first meeting. She glanced at Alex, but the wounded Enforcer kept her own gaze resolutely on the tabletop in front of her.

  “I don’t give a shit if you’re the fucking Pope,” Harvey shouted. “You can’t waltz into an active crime scene and claim it as yours!”

  Varik reached Alex’s side as the paramedic was applying the final strip of tape. He glared at Harvey with eyes the color of molten gold. “I just did.”

  Harvey squared his shoulders and puffed out his chest. “Those are humans lying under those sheets out there. You don’t have jurisdiction in this matter”—he jabbed a finger at
Alex—“and neither does that bloodsucking whore!”

  The diner erupted in a flurry of movement and shouted curses. Varik lunged for Harvey. The bewildered paramedic sprinted for the door as Alex sprang to her feet. She grabbed for Varik’s arm, but he moved too fast and avoided her grasp. His hands closed on Harvey’s shoulders and his momentum carried the two of them across the room, where they crashed into the jukebox.

  “Get your claws off me!” Harvey fought to free himself.

  Tasha found herself scrambling to intercept the two deputies reaching for their guns. “Secure your weapons! Do not draw your weapons!”

  “Her name is Enforcer Sabian, and you will respect her,” Varik snarled.

  “Damn it, Varik,” Alex said, as she tried to separate them with one hand. She grabbed a handful of Varik’s hair and pulled. “Let him go!”

  Harvey stumbled away from the two vampires, glaring at them and groping for his sidearm.

  Tasha stepped between the sheriff and the vampires. “Harvey, no!” She held her hands in front of her to ward off his advance. “Don’t do it. Don’t do something you’ll regret.”

  Unbridled hatred and anger contorted Harvey’s features. “Attacking humans carries a death sentence. Believe me, I won’t regret a damn thing.”

  “Death only applies if the human is bitten,” Alex said from behind Tasha. “And you aren’t.”

  “She’s right,” Tasha agreed softly. “Unless you’re willing to draw down on two Enforcers and open up a whole new world of trouble for yourself, I suggest you walk away right now, Harvey.”

  “I’m not giving up the scene to fucking bloodsuckers.”

  “A federal officer has been shot,” Varik said. “You don’t have a choice.”

  “You have proof she was the intended target?” Harvey countered. “I don’t, but I do have five dead humans. I say that beats a clipped arm any day of the week.”

  “You stubborn son of a—” Varik began, and Tasha cut him off.

  “Harvey’s right. There isn’t anything indicating Alex was the shooter’s target. She may have simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  “I agree,” Alex said, and earned an exasperated sigh from Varik. “Until there’s hard evidence showing either that I was targeted or that this is somehow related to the other murders, this isn’t our rodeo.”

  “Fine,” Varik said, and headed for the door. “I’ll be outside when you’re ready to leave.”

  Tasha watched him exit the diner and felt the tension level drop once he was gone. Harvey remained on edge beside her, but he no longer had his hand on the butt of his revolver. The deputies, at a silent command from Harvey, followed Varik outside, no doubt to keep an eye on him and prevent him from tampering with any evidence.

  Alex picked up her jacket from where it’d been draped over a chair’s back. She met Harvey’s hard stare with one of her own. “I’ll send you the write-up of my account ASAP.”

  “Yeah, you do that,” Harvey muttered, and lit a cigarette.

  “Alex,” Tasha called to her as she turned away. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay with that guy?” She nodded toward the parking lot, where she could see Varik pacing beside his Corvette.

  Alex smiled wanly. “There was a time when I would’ve questioned it myself, but given recent events, I think I can honestly say that my staying with Varik is in the best interest of all of us right now.”

  Tasha didn’t know how to respond and stood silent beside Harvey as Alex joined Varik outside. She caught a glimpse of Varik holding the passenger-side door of his Corvette open for Alex, and moments later, the two Enforcers were gone.

  “Good riddance, if you ask me,” Harvey said, tamping out his cigarette’s remains in a tin ashtray. “We don’t need their kind around here anyway.”

  “‘Their kind’?” Tasha repeated. “We could’ve used their help. They’re cops, same as you and me.”

  Harvey wagged his finger in her face. “No, they most certainly are not like you and me. It’s time you understood that their kind don’t always play by our rules.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “They’re vampires. Sure, they claim to follow our laws, but they have their own. Humans are nothing more to them than forbidden fruit waiting to be plucked.” He stepped closer. “If you asked my opinion—”

  “I didn’t.”

  “—I’d say one day soon someone was going to put those uppity demons in their place.”

  Tasha’s eyes narrowed. “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “Nothing. Just a prediction on my part.”

  “What happened to your oath to protect and serve all citizens of Nassau County?”

  “I safeguard the good God-fearing humans.” He backed toward the exit. “The vampires can all go to hell.”

  “With talk like that, you could make someone wonder if you aren’t a member of the Human Separatist Movement.”

  Harvey smiled, his hand on the door. “Maybe I’m just someone who sympathizes with their point of view.”

  “Are you telling me you buy into their ‘separation by any means necessary’ bullshit?”

  “Take a look outside here, Lieutenant, and ask yourself what you would think if that was one of your loved ones lying under a sheet.”

  Tasha made no move, but something stirred within her. A familiar tightness uncoiled in her belly. Fear slithered up her spine and made her shiver.

  “Ask yourself that, and then you tell me it doesn’t make sense.”

  The blaring whoop of a siren assaulted her as Harvey opened the door and slipped out. She watched as another ambulance sped away, carrying the wounded to the hospital. She stood in the center of Maggie’s Place, staring at the congealing drops of Alex’s blood on the floor and wondered when her world would stop spinning out of control.

  five

  AS VARIK DROVE HER THROUGH THE STREETS OF JEFFERSON, Alex thought of when she moved to the tiny Mississippi town. The population had been roughly half of what it boasted now, and more human than vampire. It was the destruction of New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast that swelled the ranks of vampires in the town, as many sought to escape the hardships post–Hurricane Katrina. She was the first Enforcer ever assigned to the region, and gaining acceptance hadn’t been easy.

  The vampire community had welcomed her, especially since she’d moved quickly to close several small Midnight drug-manufacturing operations in the county that sprang up as a result of the rapid influx of new inhabitants. The largest bust she’d made was two years ago. Working in conjunction with a task force from the Drug Enforcement Agency, she’d shut down a major supply line for the region and arrested more than a dozen manufacturers, transporters, and street dealers. Even though the main distributor had evaded her grasp, it had been a boost to her career and to her popularity among Jefferson’s vampires.

  However, the humans hadn’t been so open.

  Stephen had left his job as regional manager for the Vlad’s Tears Corporation when construction began on Crimson Swan. Humans had circulated petitions to protest the bar’s opening. Picketers tried to block construction crews. Threats were made against Stephen and the bar. She’d investigated all the threats, made a few arrests—both humans and vampires. She’d worked with the Jefferson Police Department to minimize the disruption caused by the protesters.

  In the end, Crimson Swan had been built and opened in May. By working with the JPD and the DEA, she’d solidified her position as an Enforcer willing to work with both vampires and humans to keep the fragile peace between the two communities. However, that tenuous harmony hadn’t come without a price. She’d pissed off a lot of people, on both sides of the argument.

  “Don’t be mad at me,” Varik said, as they paused at a red light.

  Alex sighed and shifted in her seat, pulling her mind out of the past. She flexed the fingers of her right hand, trying to loosen the stiffening muscles in her arm. “I’m not mad.”

  “Yes, you ar
e.”

  They were on their way to meet with Doc Hancock regarding Eric Stromheimer’s autopsy results. She’d left her Jeep at Maggie’s Place as part of the crime scene. The investigators would need all vehicles to remain in position until they’d documented their locations to aid in the reconstruction of the shooting. Until she was able to reclaim the SUV, she would have to rely on someone else for transportation, and at the moment, that someone was Varik. “I’m not mad at you. I’m mad at the son of a bitch who shot me.”

  “Is that why you’re giving me the silent treatment?”

  “Okay, maybe I’m a little pissed off with you.” The light turned green, and they slowly accelerated through the intersection. “It’s hard to gain the respect of a lot of the humans in Jefferson. The vampire community is growing, but it’s still a small town. Change doesn’t come easily. Having Harvey in an uproar doesn’t help matters, either, so when you started in on him, I knew it was only going to make my job that much harder once all this is over.”

  “I realize that now, but that’s not what I was talking about.”

  “Then what?”

  “When you left Louisville—”

  “Don’t.” Alex shook her head and altered the position of her arm to lessen the pain. She glanced at him over the top of her sunglasses. “I’m not having this conversation. Not now.”

  “Why? Why don’t you want to talk about what happened?”

  “What’s the point? There’s nothing else to say.”

  “The point is that you haven’t said anything at all. You left Louisville without so much as a good-bye or kiss-my-ass.”

  “Would it have made a difference?”

  “You could’ve at least given me a chance to explain what happened.”

  “I think what happened was pretty damn obvious.”

  Varik glanced at her. “I’m trying to apologize. Again. I want us to work past this. I want us to—”

  “To what? Get back together? Not gonna happen.”

  “Why not? We loved each other once.”

  “Loved—past tense.”

  “Can’t you just let it go?”