My consort laughed and rolled her hand in a regal gesture. “You are ever so welcome. I’m curious, though. If you haven’t been able to catch her, what brought her out of hiding? Especially with you here?”
Parris pointed at the back door of the hotel and answered for Marcus. “The kid. There’s clearly something special about him. The council will be able to figure it out. But if he’s attracting masters, it’s even more important that we get him the fuck out of here.”
Normally, we would do our best to convince humans to come with us willingly, but we didn’t want to risk attracting any more nightwalkers. So, when he walked outside, Marcus took him out with chloroform, and we teleported back to the council building.
Mira awaited us on the front steps.
She looked nervous and was wringing her hands, but when she saw us, relief washed over her. She waved Marcus and Parris—who were carrying the kid—inside. To us, she said, “I’m sorry, but I need to send you out on another mission tonight. We found a consort a few hours from here and need to get to her immediately.”
Mira handed Callie a notecard with an address on it, and when I peered at it over her shoulder, my eyebrows shot sky-high.
“Isn’t that a hospital?”
Mira nodded. “She has terminal cancer.”
“Do you know who her mate is?” I asked. If she was dying and they didn’t already know who her destined consort was, there might not be a way to help her.
She shook her head. “She still has several months, and we’re hoping to find him soon.”
“What’s the rush?” Callie asked. Nightwalkers avoided hospitals. There was too much blood, and they couldn’t control themselves.
“There’s a very, very old nightwalker stalking her. He’s spent more than two millennia as a vampire and has perfect control of himself.”
Callie gasped. “He approached her in the hospital?”
Mira sighed. “Yes. And he’s convinced her to let him turn her. She has an ailing grandmother and a little brother who she cares for. It’s why she didn’t get checked until her cancer had spread too much to be able to help her. She’s incredibly vulnerable, scared to die, scared to leave her family, and just the kind of mark he looks for. He’s supposed to come tomorrow night, so I need you to get her out of that hospital discreetly tonight.”
“Consider it done,” Callie said firmly.
Two hours later, I carried a sleeping woman into one of the rooms in a council medical center. I placed her on the bed, and Callie sat in the chair on the opposite side and took her hand.
“Sadie told me she’d teach me how to work in the lab,” she murmured. Sadie was another member of the council who ran the DNA center in our area.
I raised my brows, surprised to hear her talk about something other than going on missions. “As a backup?” I asked.
Callie shook her head as she continued to gaze at the unconscious woman. “It’s been on my mind since she gave me a tour last week.” She raised her eyes to meet mine as she continued. “Working with you tonight was amazing. Everything I ever wanted. And I’m not saying I want to give it up completely. I’d like to go on missions from time to time. But…”
I rounded the bed and crouched down in front of her. “Baby, you know I will support you in whatever path you choose.”
She smiled and placed her palm on my cheek. “I know, and I love you so much for it. And honestly, that’s just it.”
“You’re not considering working in the lab to make me happy, right?” I frowned at the possibility that she might be choosing something she didn’t want because she thought it would make me happy. I knew she would do it, but that was the last thing I wanted.
“No. You’d just pester me until I changed my mind,” she teased. She wasn’t wrong, so I didn’t say anything. “I love you more than anything. And I’m constantly amazed that I get to spend eternity with you.” She glanced at the woman destined to be some daywalker’s consort. “She deserves that, too. I can’t stand the thought of her never experiencing it. And worse, her mate being doomed to walk this earth alone forever. I want to help them find each other and get their happily ever after.”
I was speechless for a few moments, then I shook my head to clear the daze. “You’re amazing, you know that? Do you have any idea just how much I love you?” I grasped her hand and brought it down so I could kiss her palm.
“Probably as much as I love you,” she replied with a soft smile.
A nurse came into the room just as I stood and pulled Callie up from her seat. “Let’s go home, my love,” I whispered. She nodded, and with a pop, we were standing in our bedroom.