Atreides raised a brow. The guys were smiling. "A crow, bat, wolf, fog."
"Fog? Oh, that would be so cool. So how do I do it?"
"It takes practice. And it can take a long time before you can shift into something else."
"What's your preferred shifter form?" she asked.
"A wolf, though I've been known to be a bat or a crow," Atreides said.
"A bat," Colt said. "It seems more…traditional, as far as fiction literature goes. But like Atreides, I've shifted into all of them. You know, it can really be great. One minute you're a wolf, a hunter comes along, and you vaporize into mist or fog. Makes it damn hard on hunters."
"Oh, I like that."
"For me, it's the wolf," Renault said. "It's much more…wild and beautiful at the same time."
"Oh, I can't wait. How do I do it?" she asked.
"Think about becoming one with the wolf, concentrate on only that thought, nothing else. Like I said, it might be a while before you can shift." Then Atreides changed the subject. "So tonight, we'll have the same plan in place, vampiresses walking along the street toward a vampire club, or even leaving one, and the rest of us will be lying in wait to protect them."
"When the two women were attacked by the rogue vampire, he waited until he found a huntress who was alone. Were the vampiresses with each other or alone?" Selena asked.
"Hell, alone," Atreides said. Selena appeared to be as astute a huntress detective as Tezra was.
"Okay, so I had another idea. What if the rogue was paying the hunters back, except he wasn't killing the huntresses like the hunters were killing the vampiresses, but turning them, making them one of his own kind, an army of huntresses at his beck and call. Because once he turned us, he could have made us do his bidding. He told the two huntresses he had turned that he would give them orders later."
"And he wouldn't have known the two other huntresses were on the fringe and not League huntresses, but you were with the League. He could have gotten you to go along with whatever he wanted, within the League. He could have done the same with the fringe huntresses, but they wouldn't have been in the League, so no access there." Atreides was so glad Quail had killed the rogue vampire. But who was he?
“But there’s another rogue vampire. He bit me first,” she told him. “And another appeared, tossed him aside, and then he bit me. Quail, the wolf, shifted and killed the second vampire and the other rogue vanished.”
“Hell,” Atreides said. “And he’s the one who must have wanted you dead. He wouldn’t have been the one who attacked the huntresses because he hadn’t wanted them dead either. The second vampire had to be the one turning them, and you.”
“The guys who stole my car said that both men looked similar. Black-haired and six feet tall. They could have been brothers.”
“Okay.” Atreides got a call from his brother and he took a deep breath. "Daemon," he said to Selena. "Hey, how's it going in paradise?"
"I didn't realize how badly we needed this getaway. Is everything going all right with the clans?"
"Absolutely. Minor vampire fights as usual. Nothing big. I visited the fringe groups, and everything seems to be going fine with them."
"No other problems? Nothing major?"
Atreides was afraid Daemon had heard something about what was going on. "No, I would let you know otherwise. I'm glad things are going well for you though."
"Yeah, Maison and Voltan needed this too. We'll be raring to go when we get back."
"That's good. I'm glad, though I've enjoyed the increased scope of my duties while you've been gone, I'll be ready to turn over the reins when you return." Atreides did love being second in command. But he loved taking charge of the whole of the clans too. It gave him a chance to prove to his people that he had what it took to lead should his brother ever perish or want to step down.
"Tezra said you needed this too, to lead without Maison and Voltan watching over things."
"Yeah, thanks, Daemon. We've been good."
"Okay, I'm glad to hear it. I'll check in with you later then. Keep up the good work."
"I will. Thanks! Enjoy your vacation."
Then they ended the call and Selena raised a brow.
"He doesn't seem to know what's going on."
"That's good, until he returns, and you have to tell him what happened. All of what happened, including about me."
"By then, we'll have everything resolved." He hoped. "I'm sure he will be glad to see all the changes—I mean with you working between the hunters and us. You're a valuable asset and that works in all our favor." But he was damn angry a rogue vampire was still out there who had bitten her to kill her.
"The hunter that goes by the name of Cliff is in the red-light district," a voice telepathically said to Atreides.
"Who is this?" Atreides didn't recognize the vampire’s voice.
"Quail. I don't know if he killed my sister, but he's the one who killed Charlene, isn't he?"
"We believe so. I'm headed there now."
"With hunters."
"Yes, they can take him down. Did you kill the rogue who wounded Selena?"
“Yes, but his twin brother, Gorgio, got away.”
“Why didn’t you come to us with the information right away?”
There was silence and Atreides knew the vampire was no longer listening to him.
Then Atreides told Selena what was going on and she called her brother and Rosa. "They're meeting us over there."
"It would be faster if we take them with us."
"As vampires?" she asked for clarification.
"Yes. Otherwise, Cliff could get away before we get there." Atreides told Colt and Renault what was going on.
"We'll get the others and meet you over there," Renault said.
"No going after the hunter. Only the hunters can take him down—but he'll need to be turned over to the League. Unless he puts up too much resistance and it's a fight to the death. Then the hunters will deal with him." But if Selena or her siblings were overwhelmed, the vampires would fight—swords out, no teeth though. Even though he told his friends not to fight, if he got embroiled in it, they would follow his lead.
When they arrived at the red-light district, they saw several females soliciting passersby either walking to the human clubs or strip joints, tattoo parlors, or cars driving through looking for a pick up. At first, they didn't see any sign of Cliff.
"He won't be alone," Selena said. "He always goes with his friends."
"That will make him easier to spot," Atreides said.
Colt and Renault were scouting the area up ahead, moving as mist. It was a misty night already—which allowed the vampires to move through it without being noticed, streetlamps shedding light into the streets, lights on in all the establishments making the night seem more eerie than it would have otherwise.
"Should we split up too?" Rosa asked.
"No," Atreides said. "Since you're Selena's sister, Cliff and his buddies might believe you'll be here for his head also. And Daniel too. Any number of hunters might have leaked the word to them that we're coming after him."