Her panic returned in a flash. An eerie, jagged sensation riddled her insides, chasing away what little bit of solace Michael had provided this evening.
Facing him, Jade insisted, “Go home and secure your door.”
He glared at her, incredulous. “Me? What about you? You think I’m going to let you wander the forest alone at night when there was clearly someone watching us?”
“Not us. Me. He’s been following me for some time,” she distractedly added.
Michael clasped her shoulders. “Who?” he demanded.
“I don’t know, exactly. But it’s time I find out.” Her pulse raged, yet she managed to speak calmly, for Michael’s benefit. “It’ll be a hell of a lot easier if I don’t have to worry about whatever’s out there in the dark coming after you too.” She couldn’t inadvertently put her best friend in danger.
He appeared stumped by what course of action to take.
“Do this for me, Michael,” she implored. “Trust me.”
Regardless of his obvious reluctance, he released her. “Be careful, Jade.”
“I will. Now go. Before he circles round.”
“Jade.” Michael remained rooted where he stood.
“I can handle this,” she vowed, giving him a light shove in the right direction. “Go. I know what I’m doing.”
She’d been battling demons her entire life, after all.
In more ways than one…
Chapter Two
Davian stormed into the castle, having left his Arabian with stable attendants. He took the steps of the sweeping marble staircase two at a time, reaching the sixth floor. He strode agitatedly along the east wing and into his study. Stripping off his riding gloves, he tossed them on the desk.
“My Lord, is there a problem?” Sheena asked as she joined him.
She’d likely been curled up in her chair in front of the fireplace in the adjacent sitting room, awaiting his return, as she was prone to do. She moved gracefully toward him, a stealthy vampire with flowing dark-auburn hair and penetrating green eyes. A striking woman, yes, yet she held no allure for him. The object of his never-ending obsession had grabbed his attention eight years ago and had not let go of it since.
“May I pour you a drink?” Sheena offered in her cultured English accent.
“A large one,” he said, his voice as tight as his bunched muscles and coiled gut.
Davian’s highly competent and overly astute assistant handed him a snifter of brandy after he’d shed his full-length cloak. He took several big gulps and she waited patiently for his next command.
When it was not forthcoming, she surmised, “Something went awry with the human?”
At that very moment, the general of his army sauntered in. “Well, she’s certainly onto us now!”
Davian glowered at the leader of his militia—and his longtime friend. “I don’t need commentary from you, Morgan. I’m perfectly aware I fucked the whole thing up.”
Instantly backtracking, the general said in a placating tone, “It was merely a reconnaissance mission, your Highness. No harm, no foul.”
“Wrong,” Davian all but growled before he drained his glass.
With a slight wince from the burning sensation in his throat, he added, “At this point, Jade knows we’re watching her and that violates the law I laid down.”
“I suspect she knew someone tailed her before this evening, when I was the only one following her,” he admitted. “She’s always looking over her shoulder, stopping from time to time to listen for footsteps.”
“She wouldn’t hear any, nor would she see you. You’re a wraith. You can take male form,” as he did now, “or you can simply disappear. Become an apparition that vanishes into thin air.”
“I still could have been the one to tip her off,” Morgan further contended.