Embraced By Darkness (Riley Jenson Guardian 5)

"Then what did it feel like?"

"I don't know."

"Fat lot of good that'll do the investigation."

"This from the man lazing about in bed feeling sorry for himself." I paused, "Why isn't Liander there pampering you?"

"He had to go to work early. The apprentices are working on the goblin masks today, and he has to supervise."

Because they'd screwed up the goblin masks previously, no doubt. Those two weren't the sharpest pencils in the drawer from what I'd seen of them.

"So what are you going to do next?" he continued.

"I don't know. There's really nothing much more I can do here. I'll need to talk to the parents of the other victims and see if there's some other connector. There's something odd about it all."

"If you add, 'I feel it in my bones,' I'm going to come up there and hit you."

I grinned. "There's nothing wrong with that saying - aside from the fact you hate it."

"Mom used to say it," he said. "Usually right before you and I got a beating for something or other."

My smile faded. "I can't remember that."

"I suspect there's a lot you can't remember, Riley."

He was probably right. That time of my life was not a place where I wanted to linger. "I remember the bad stuff."

"Which just goes to show how screwed our definitions of bad are. There weren't many good times, you know."

"I know." I scrubbed a hand across my eyes, and fought the myriad of images that battered at the blocks I'd placed in their path years ago.

"Which is why I can't understand you helping him."

"I'm not. I'm helping Mother."

"I doubt he'd actually - "

"I don't. I think he's capable of any sort of violence imaginable." Especially if it meant getting what he wanted.

He sighed. "So, are you coming home?"

"If you and Liander don't mind me leaving a few days early."

"Mind? We were taking bets on it." I could almost see his grin coming down the line. "I win, by the way. I said the guilt of letting us down would keep you there until the last week."

"So what did you win?"

"A one night free pass to go anywhere and do anyone."

"You do that anyway."

"Hey," he said, sounding highly offended. "I've been a very good wolf since we had our discussion four weeks ago. I've only had one lover, and that was work related."

So why did he feel the need to break free now? If he was happy with Liander - and I knew he was - why fuck that up by dancing with other wolves? Especially since he'd agreed not to outside of work? "Why did Liander even agree to this bet?"

"Because he was sure you'd miss Kellen so much you'd be following him home two days after he left."

"Well, I do miss him."