it started to open before he was even close to it. He was the one who had made the fae spell, though.
I didn’t pull into his garage, parking my car in the drive at the front door. His Phoenix area butler, Leith, was already there, looking at my car in barely disguised shock.
“Madam Sahni,” he said, not quite covering up the shock in his voice as I got out of the car and waved at him. I was pretty certain there was glass and shit in my hair, but I hadn’t had time to worry about that an hour and a half ago when I raced away from my own house. “We weren’t expecting you.”
“Are you expecting anyone?” I asked, genuinely curious to see if Cassius was about to arrive, or if it was just me they were shocked by.
“No, madam. Lord Cassius hasn’t contacted us—”
“Lord?” Raphael sputtered as he got out of the car as well. “You don’t have many friends, but one of them is a Lord?” He was looking at me, not the butler, thank the gods. His eyes were still red, which would scare the poor man at the top of the stairs, waiting at the door.
“His parents were a lot more important than him, and his uncle is very important. He’s a Tribunal Investigator with a little more money than the rest of us. Calm down. You’re showing.” I motioned to my own eyes, hoping he understood. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes. It was like he was trying to meditate. When his eyes opened again, they were warm brown again. Looking above him at the butler, I gestured at my car. “As you can see, Leith, there’s been a bit of trouble.”
“Why don’t both of you come inside?” Leith’s face twitched a little, and I wasn’t sure if it was because of the state of us or my using his name. He preferred just being called Butler, but I was never going to do that. It felt strangely degrading and impersonal. Leith made him a living thing, a normal thing, a guy who just worked in the household—him and one maid, little miss Annie-Lyn. The cook, a cranky werewolf named Terry, only came in when Cassius was in residence.
I nodded, jumping up the steps in silence, letting Raphael decide whether he wanted to come in or not. The smart man decided he would and followed once I was at the top of the stairs. Leith held the door until we were both in, and I didn’t miss that he locked it the moment Raphael passed the threshold.
“You didn’t call ahead,” he said immediately. “Madam Sahni—”
“Sinclair and a couple of his friends attacked my house looking for this one,” I explained, gesturing to Raphael. “Wasn’t able to grab any of my shit before leaving. We weren’t in the best position and had to get out.”
Something flashed in Leith’s eyes.
“The vampire, Sinclair, is in Arizona?” he asked softly. “Does Lord Cassius know?”
“I called him…yesterday morning before daybreak and explained everything to him. I think. The timeline is a little fuzzy right now, but he definitely knows. Hasn’t been twenty-four hours since I told him.”
“Good. I take it by not having your ‘shit,’ you don’t have a cellphone on you. No worry, I can have a line set up, and you can call Lord Cassius from the kitchen while I make you something. Tea…yes, tea is good.”
There was a reason I called Leith by his name. He had his own history with Sinclair. He, Annie-Lyn, and Terry were all once Las Vegas residents. Thirty years ago, Cassius and I had tangled with Sinclair, and Cassius had ended up taking both fae and the werewolf with him and brought them here. They were still in an environment they liked, the desert, but they were far away from Sinclair—until now.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, reaching for Leith. “I’m positive he won’t come here—”
“Vampires aren’t allowed on the premises,” Leith said, anger in his voice. “If he’s foolish enough to try to attack here, he will burn the moment he tries to cross the property line.”
“Good,” I said, patting the butler’s shoulder.
“Tea,” he snapped, then marched away. I grabbed Raphael’s shirt and shuffled after the man, knowing if I told him no thanks, Leith would just try to pour it down my throat.
“Are you okay with me leaving my car out there?” I asked.
“Yes. Lord Cassius will want to see it, and there’s no space in the garage currently.