Opal

He had been with Nancy Husher the day the DOD showed up, while Daemon and I had been at the field where we’d fought Baruck.

Officer Lane.

Then I saw his Expedition parked farther down the street.

I swallowed thickly. “What is he doing here?”

“I don’t know.” Blake’s breath was warm against my cheek, and I gritted my teeth. “But he’s obviously looking for something.”

A second or so later, movement at Daemon’s house caught my eyes. The front door opened, and Daemon stepped outside. To the human eye, he vanished from the front porch and reappeared in my driveway, a few feet from Officer Lane. But he just moved so quickly that he couldn’t be tracked.

“Is there something I can help you with, Lane?” His voice carried over the distance, even and without emotion.

Surprised by his sudden appearance, Lane took a step back and pressed his hand to his chest. “Daemon, God, I hate when you do that.”

Daemon didn’t smile and whatever the Officer saw in Daemon’s eyes got him straight down to business. “I’m doing an investigation.”

“Okay.”

Lane reached into the breast pocket of his suit and pulled out a small notebook, flipping it open. His jacket got stuck on his gun holster. I wasn’t sure if it was on purpose or not. “Officer Brian Vaughn has been missing since before New Year’s. I’m checking all possible leads.”

“Crap,” I muttered.

Daemon folded his arms. “Why would I know what happened to him or care?”

“When was the last time you saw him?”

“I haven’t seen him since the day you guys showed up to do your checkin and you all wanted to eat at the disgusting Chinese buffet,” Daemon responded, his voice so convincing that I almost believed him. “I still haven’t recovered from that.”

Lane gave a reluctant grin. “Yes, the food was terrible.” He scribbled something down and then slid his notebook back into his pocket. “So you haven’t seen Vaughn at all?”

“Nope,” he said.

The other man nodded. “I know you two weren’t big fans of each other. I didn’t figure he’d make any unauthorized visits, but we have to check every avenue at this point.”

“Understandable.” Daemon’s gaze landed on the trees we were hidden behind. “Why were you checking out the neighbor’s house?”

“I was checking out all the houses,” he replied. “You still friends with the girl we saw you with?”

Oh, no.

Daemon said nothing, but even from my prone position, I could see the way his eyes narrowed on the Officer.

Lane laughed. “Daemon, when are you ever going to loosen up?” He clapped him on the shoulder as he headed past him. “I don’t care who you

spend your time with. I’m just doing my job.”

Daemon followed the Officer’s movements, twisting toward him. “So, if I decided to exclusively date humans and settle down with one, you wouldn’t report me?”

“As long as I don’t see undeniable evidence, I don’t care. This is just a job with a good retirement, and I hope to make it to that point.” He started for his vehicle but stopped, facing Daemon. “There’s a difference between evidence and my gut. For example, my gut told me that your brother was in a serious relationship with the human he disappeared with, but there wasn’t any evidence.”

And of course, we knew how the DOD found out about Beth and Dawson: Will. But was this guy insinuating that he knew nothing about Dawson?

Daemon leaned against Lane’s SUV. “Did you see my brother’s body when they found him?”

A tense moment followed, and Lane lowered his chin. “I wasn’t there when they said they found his body along with the girl’s. I was only told what happened. I’m just an Officer.” He raised his head. “And I haven’t been told any differently. I’m nothing in the big scheme of things, but I’m not blind.”

I held my breath. I felt Blake do the same.

“What are you saying?” Daemon asked.

Lane smiled tightly. “I know who’s in your house, Daemon. I know that I was lied to-a lot of us have been lied to and have no idea what’s really going on. We just have jobs. We do them, and we keep our heads down.”

Daemon nodded. “And you’re keeping your head down now?”

“I was told to check on Vaughn’s possible whereabouts and that was about it.” He motioned at his car door, and Daemon stepped away from it. “I know not to address anything unless told so. I really want that retirement plan.” He climbed in, closing the car door. “You take care.”

Daemon moved back. “See you around, Lane.”

Tires wheeled and kicked up gravel as the Expedition pulled back onto the road, puffing out exhaust.

What the heck just happened? Better yet, why was Blake still on top of me?

Throwing my elbow back, it co

He rolled to his feet, eyes sparkling. “You like to hit.”

I scrambled up, glaring. “You need to get out of here. Right now, we don’t need to deal with you.”

“Good point.” He backed off, his grin fading. “See you later tonight.”

“Whatever,” I muttered, turning back to where Daemon was walking up the driveway. I trotted out of the woods and over to his side. “Is everything okay?”

Daemon nodded. “Did you hear any of that?”

“Yeah, I was heading back when I saw him.” I figured if Daemon didn’t know about Blake being all Creepy McCreepsters before we raided Mount Weather, it was a good thing. “Do you believe him?”

“I don’t know.” He dropped his arm over my shoulders, steering me toward his house. “Lane has always been a decent guy, but this doesn’t sit well with me.”

I wrapped an arm around his waist and leaned into him. “Which part?”

“All of it-this whole scenario,” he said, sitting down on the step one from the top. He tugged me into his lap, keeping his arms around me. “The fact that the DOD-even Lane-knows damn well that Dawson’s back, and that they have to realize we know they lied. And they’re doing nothing.” He closed his eyes as I pressed my cheek to his. “And what we’re doing tonight-it can work, but it’s so insane. Part of me wonders if they already know we’re coming.”

Smoothing my thumb along his jaw, I pressed a kiss against his cheek, wishing there was something I could do. “Do you think we’re walking into a trap?”

“I think we’ve been inside the trap the entire time and we’re just waiting for it to spring closed.” He captured my dirty hand in his and held on.

A breath shuddered through me. “And we’re going to still do this?”

The determined set of his shoulders was answer enough. “You don’t have to.”

“Neither do you,” I reasoned softly. “But we both are.”

Daemon tilted his head back, eyes meeting mine. “That we are.”

We weren’t doing this because we had a death wish or that we were stupid, but because there were two lives at stake, probably more, that were worth as much as ours. Perhaps this whole endeavor was sacrificial, but if we didn’t go through with it, we’d lose Beth, Chris, and Dawson. Blake was an acceptable loss.

A tendril of panic seized my chest, though. I was scared-frightened out of my mind. Who wouldn’t be? But I’d gotten us to this point and now it was bigger than me, bigger than my fear.

Drawing in a shaky breath, I dipped my head and kissed his lips. “I think I’m going to spend some time with my mom before we leave.” My throat felt thick. “She should be awake soon.”

He kissed me back, his lips lingering. The touch was part yearning with a hint of desperation and acceptance. If things went badly tonight, there really hadn’t been enough time for us. Maybe there’d never be enough time, though.

Finally, he said in a rough, raw voice, “That’s a good idea, Kitten.”

When the time came to pile into Daemon’s SUV and start the drive to the Blue Ridge Mountains, the mood was strained. And for once, it really had nothing to do with Blake’s presence.

There were outbursts of laughter and curses, but everyone was on pins and needles.