Moon Sworn (Riley Jenson Guardian 9)

"And it hasn't. Which to my way of thinking means the request never went through."

"Unless they're just a slack outfit over in Perth. I sent the information to them about the murders, and I haven't had a response back from those, either." He took a sip of coffee then added, "And according to you, these types of murders would have been red-flagged as a priority."

"They should have been." So why had no one contacted Harris? That's what I couldn't understand. I took another drink of coffee, then added, "It might be a good idea to actually phone them again."

"You mean, right now?"

"Why not? We have a dangerous vamp who's connected to an organization that's hiring out killers for revenge purposes. The Perth staff don't know I'm here or that I'm Directorate, so they should be getting their butts out here ASAP."

"True."

He reached sideways, pressing the speaker button on the phone before punching in a series of numbers. The phone began to ring, the sound echoing across the brief silence.

But before it could be answered, the line went dead.

"What the fuck?" Harris picked up the receiver and pressed several buttons, then glanced at me. "Nothing. It's as dead as a doornail."

Evin rose and walked across to another desk. "So's this one." He put the receiver back down. "Christ, you don't think Denny and his friends would be stupid enough to try to attack us?"

"Intelligence was never his strong suit, but even Denny and his friends aren't that stupid." Harris glanced at me. At that moment, the lights went out.

"Down, get down," I hissed, dropping out of the chair and hitting the floor on hands and knees. My coffee went flying, spilling across the carpet as the cup rolled even farther away from my fingertips.

Then I felt it.

An energy, a presence, that sang to my heart, wrapping me in warmth and passion and making me feel safer than I'd felt since I'd woken in the desert.

I couldn't recall his name, but I knew him. Loved him.

I scrambled to my feet and ran for the door. It opened, revealing only the darkness of the night. But he was there, hidden in the shadows, and I launched myself at him.

The darkness wrapped me in a hug that was fierce and joyous, pressing me against a body that was so very real.

"Thank God," he whispered, his cheek pressing against mine as he hugged me ferociously. "I really thought I'd lost you for a while there."

"You almost did." As the shadows hiding his body began to dissipate, I kissed him, with every ounce of the love and relief that was surging through me.

Only to be practically torn out of his arms and into the arms of another. A man who wore the masculine version of my face and who was the other half of me. The brother that Evin wasn't.

"Oh, thank Christ," he said, his hug every bit as fierce as my vampire's. "I was going crazy with worry."

"I take it," Harris drawled from behind us, "that you know both of these men and that I should drop my weapon."

"If you don't," another voice said from the very back of the room, "you might just get shot yourself."

I twisted out of my brother's grip and saw another vampire standing in the cell block doorway. I knew his face, knew he was my boss, and was both relieved and surprised to see him here. But I couldn't damn well name him, and that was frustrating.

He was holding a laser aimed straight at Harris, and the whine of the weapon firing up indicated he was very close to pressing the trigger.

"Everyone, relax. Harris is the cop here, and Evin is a friend. They're both on our side."

The whine of the laser shut down. Rich green eyes met mine. "What the hell is going on here, Riley?"

Riley. The name fit. It felt right. Riley Jenson. That was my name. I wanted to dance with the joy of finally knowing me.

But right now, there were more important things to concentrate on. Celebrations could happen later, when the mess surrounding me and Evin had been cleaned up.

"A truckload of shit is what's been happening," I replied. "But the first thing you need to know is the fact that there's whole chunks of my memories missing. I know who you all are, but I can't for the life of me remember your names. In fact, until a moment ago, I couldn't even remember my own name."