Lost in Magic (Night Shadows Book 4) (11 page)

Chapter Eighteen

Three fitful hours of sleep and one delivered breakfast later Mick still wasn’t sure what the best course of action should be. Yes he was tired, but more than that he was worried. Worried about the horrendous advantage their enemies had over them. He knew now that they were facing only two vampires. That should have been good news. But Boris was worrisome. Mick had met some impressive characters since he’d been cleared for active duty over a decade earlier. He wasn’t sure he’d ever met a vampire so steeped in power that it oozed from him even while he relaxed in an armchair.

A frightening thought had occurred to him sometime while Ali had slept at his side. A thought—more a fear—that he still couldn’t shake. He had to acknowledge the possibility that, although the ship had departed from
Maryland
, Boris was connected to the First Family. Certainly every witch worth their title knew the First Family traveled. More than most vampires, actually. The First Family “policed” their younger, smaller branches all over the planet. Hell, while he’d been in California recently he’d met a vampire the First Family employed as an
enforcer
.

So the question is … what role does Boris play with them?

He had to play some sort of role. A vampire with that much power
not
from the First Family would be a threat. Or at least he assumed as much.

Allison stepped out of the bathroom, fresh from a shower and donning one of his shirts over her short shorts. She was still towel-drying her light brown hair and Mick’s mouth went dry.
Damn.
What had he just been thinking about?

“What? Do I have something on my face?” Ali asked, staring at him as a slow flush darkened her cheeks.

Mick stood and crossed the room into her personal space. “Just my attention,” he assured her, hearing the thickness in his voice. What the hell had he been thinking, anyway, not insisting on showering with her?

Allison laughed against his lips as he claimed her mouth in a hard kiss. He slid one hand around her jaw, weaving it into her slick hair, while his other arm locked around her waist. He held her tight, letting her feel his arousal while he stroked his tongue over hers. She was moaning in moments and her arms came around his neck, the towel falling to the floor.

He devoured her mouth slowly, mapping out the crevices and drawing every moan he could from her throat. He kept his arms in place until she was squirming against him, her hips grinding over his with blatant desire.

There was so much that needed to be dealt with on the other side of the door. So many people whose lives depended on his focus. On his victory. And all Mick gave a damn about right then was tearing the clothes off the beautiful woman in his arms and having his way with her. He remembered their previous night together, and how neither of them had had the energy to make love the night before. And it was time to rectify that lost opportunity.

Mick slipped one hand beneath his borrowed shirt, spreading his fingers over her smooth, moistened skin. She was still warm from the shower. Or maybe that was her desire for him.

Ali scraped his scalp as he caught her ass and tugged her against his erection.

“Mick,” she said breathlessly as he pulled away, bowing his head and trailing his lips down her throat.

He nipped at her skin and released her hair in order to release her bra. The sooner he got this woman naked and in that bed the better.

Which was probably why her bra straps fell apart at the same time as rapid tapping sounded from the other side of his sliding glass door.

Ali jumped, startled, and Mick bit back a groan. That could only mean one thing.

“Who—?” Ali stammered, her widened gaze flicking between him and the covered door. “What?”

Releasing a heavy breath, Mick dragged a hand through his hair and willed his body to settle down. “Rhea,” he said quietly. It had to be Rhea. Making an awkward entrance.

Ali sucked in a breath and immediately began fumbling for her hanging bra straps. “Seriously? How is she at
that
door?”

Mick grinned with as much humor as he could muster and waved her hands out of the way, refastening the bra himself and whispering, “She probably did something ridiculous, like swam up to the boat.”

Ali paled. “And what, jumped? From the water?”

Letting his fingers trail down her sides as his arms lowered, Mick rumbled, “I honestly don’t know. Most of us avoid her.” But he could only imagine how close her outrageous suggestion really was. And it was best not to keep the almighty Rhea waiting, lest he incur her temper. So he planted a kiss on Ali’s temple, gave her hips a squeeze, and turned for the slider.

Calm,
he reminded himself as he pulled the curtain aside.

It was only the third time he’d ever even seen Rhea in person, but he recognized her immediately. She still had long, straightened hair as black as it came and eerie blue eyes the color of the sea. She could have been beautiful, he supposed, if she didn’t usually introduce herself with a glare and haughty attitude. He imagined the witches persecuted during the infamous Salem Witch Trials weren’t so obvious as Rhea.

“What took you so long?” Rhea demanded as the door slid open. She shouldered her way inside despite her shorter, smaller frame. “It’s freezing out here.”

Releasing a breath, Mick let her in before pulling the door shut. “I don’t want to know how you found my room from
outside
, do I?”

“Probably not.”

“Well,” Mick began, moving around Rhea and gesturing toward the sofa in the adjoining room, “you have good timing. We met the vampires last night.”

Rhea didn’t budge. “We?”

Polite, feminine throat clearing assured Mick that Ali was listening.

“Who’s this? A civilian?” Rhea asked, her tone full of judgment.

“My name’s Allison,” Ali said, holding out her hand. “Mick’s girlfriend.”

Mick fought the cringe as he realized, all of a sudden, what detail of a witch’s life he’d completely forgotten to educate her on.
Too late now.

Rhea looked down at Allison’s hand, back up to Allison’s face, then slid an eyebrow over to him. “Mick?” she repeated. “So that’s your name.”

Fighting the sigh of exasperation that suddenly wanted to rush from him, Mick said. “Could you please be polite, Rhea? And yes, my name is Mick. Now about the vampires?”

“I’m being
polite
,” Rhea replied pointedly, “by not just throwing you overboard right now. Don’t tempt me.” She shouldered past Allison, ignoring the outstretched hand, and moved to claim a seat on the sofa. “I smell breakfast. I haven’t eaten in hours. Feed me while you fill me in.”

Allison sputtered as she turned sideways and Mick stepped up to her side, resting a hand on the small of her back.

“I think we’re dealing with the
First Family
, Rhea,” Mick said.

This finally seemed to get her attention and she sat forward, eyes narrowed. “You’re sure?”

“No,” Mick acknowledged, guiding his self-declared girlfriend to the opposite corner of the couch. And he was quite pleased with her choice of introduction, too. He just didn’t have time to dwell on it. “But this guy’s
old
, I’m sure of it. I’ve never met a vamp more intimidating. Or full of himself.”

A slow, dangerous smirk curved Rhea’s lips. “Maybe this will be fun after all.”

****

Though he’d obviously been reluctant to do so, Mick had left Allison and Rhea alone in order to take his own shower.

And Ali
really
wished they’d just shared hers. For more than the obvious reason.

“Staring is rude,” Rhea declared between bites of her omelet.

Ali tried hard not to scoff and wound up making a sort of choking sound. “I’m sorry,” she said, “that’s pretty rich coming from the woman who snubbed my handshake.”

Rhea looked up and arched a thin, dark brow. “Oh, I’m sorry, did I hurt your feelings? Are you that brittle?” She shook her head, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and took another bite before saying, “Listen, sweetheart, we’re not friends. I’m here to take your boyfriend into
custody
, so we never will be. Just accept it.”

Allison huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “About that,” she said. “What’s his crime? Does this Council you serve really insist their people have no
lives
?”

Rhea paused and lowered her fork. Her stare was cold and unexplainably ominous. “Tread carefully, Allison. Some of us consider the Council sacred.”

“You don’t strike me as the kind of woman who considers
anything
sacred, actually,” Allison replied. This woman might have been obviously older than her by several years, but better was another matter entirely.

The blue of Rhea’s eyes darkened and the water in her glass swirled unnaturally. “You know nothing of me. And I intend to keep it that way.” She turned her attention back to her omelet, then, and forked off a large bite.

Ali released a breath. If she wanted information from this woman perhaps that wasn’t the best tactic.
Then again…
Was there anything she needed to know badly enough to warrant small-talk with this woman?

Someone pounded on the door then, startling Allison so badly she actually jumped.

Rhea merely lifted her head. “Expecting company?”

Swallowing heavily, Ali pushed to her feet. “No.” And with Mick in the shower she supposed she ought to be the one to handle this.
Please don’t be Boris. Or Nico.
She moved to the door while Rhea finished off her small meal. Leaving the security latch in place, she opened the door and angled her head around to the opening. “Yes?”

Across from her stood a man in a security guard’s uniform. “Good morning, ma’am,” he said. “I’m sorry, but, I’m afraid I need to come inside. I’m looking for Mr. Mick Darringer.”

Allison frowned, remembering Jude’s story the day before about someone trying to bully their way into the room. Could this be the same guy? “Mick’s in the shower, actually,” she said. I can send him out to meet you in a minute, but I’m not comfortable letting you in.”

The guy clearly wasn’t prepared for that response because he blinked at her for several seconds before saying, “Ma’am, I promise you this isn’t a joke. I need to search this room.”

“Then tell me why,” she challenged, narrowing her eyes at him. “The last time we had to allow our rooms to be searched the Captain gave us all notice.” She felt like puking, just a little, even mentioning the poor Captain.

The guard cleared his throat. “Yes, well, this search … that is, we’ve got another missing passenger. We’re looking for her.” He paused. “In fact, I’ll need to see your ID as well.”

Pursing her lips briefly, Allison said, “No, you don’t. Not without sufficient notice. This isn’t my room, as you well know, and my ID’s
in
my room. I’m not letting you in and leaving you here with Mick while he’s showering. But feel free to check my room without me present. My name is Allison Drake.” She paused, fumbled around in her back pocket with her free hand, and extended her keycard. “Here’s the keycard. But you’d better return it or I’ll complain to the highest authority I can find. And nothing had better be missing, either.”

The man held up his hand to rebuff her offer. “I can’t take that, ma’am,” he said. “I can’t search a room without the occupant present.”

“Then you can’t search this one,” Rhea declared from over Ali’s shoulder. She was just tall enough to be easily seen, Allison was sure. But she felt oddly comforted when the other woman stepped up to her back. “Because the designated occupant of this room is indisposed. Or do you want us both to scream rape?”

The guard paled and took a step backward. “I’ll, uh, just come back shortly, then.”

Allison shut the door after he’d turned away and managed to smile at Rhea. “I didn’t need the help,” she said. “But … thank you.”

Rhea shrugged one shoulder and moved back toward her place on the couch. “He was pissing me off.”

Taking a deep breath, Ali reclaimed her former spot and said, “May I ask you … that is, why didn’t you know Mick’s name?”

Crossing one knee over the other and leaning back into the sofa, Rhea replied, “Witches don’t use their real names for work. Names, like words, are power.” She smirked almost conspiratorially. “I should thank you for that.”

Flustered, Allison shook her hands defensively. “I had no idea!”

“That makes it better,” Rhea replied, letting her head tilt back and closing her eyes. “I could grow to tolerate you, probably,” she continued. “If you weren’t going to become a problem.”

Dumbfounded now, Ali repeated, “Problem?”

Rhea cracked an eye at her. “Unless you’re going to just sit back and
let
me take off with your lover?”

Oh.
She had to give it to Rhea, the woman was as clever as she was abrasive. That was going to be a problem, too.