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to puke.

"Thanks," Shane said. His voice was neutral, and very steady. "I'm taking my girl home."

"Her? She's one of them. One of the Renfields. Works for the vamps."

"No better than the vamps," another put in.

"I heard she worked for Bishop," said a third, who had a tire iron resting on his shoulder. "Carrying around his death warrants. Like one of those Nazi collaborators."

"You heard wrong," Shane said. "She's my girl. Now back off."

"Let's hear from her," said the leader of the pack, and locked stares with Claire. "So? You working for the vamps?"

Shane sent her a quick, warning glance. Claire took in a deep breath and said, "Absolutely."

"Ah hell," Shane breathed. "Okay, then. Run."

They took off, catching the minimob by surprise; alcohol slowed them down, Claire thought, and an argument broke out behind them over whom they should be chasing, humans or vampires. Shane grabbed Claire's hand and pulled her along, running as if their lives depended on it. The streetlights were all out, and Claire had trouble seeing curbs and cracks in the pavement in the dim starlight.

They made it almost a block before she heard a howl behind them. The pack was following.

"Come on," Shane gasped, and pushed her faster. It was harder for Claire; she was a bookworm, not a runner, and besides, her legs were about six inches shorter than his. "Come on, Claire! Don't slow down!"

Her lungs were already on fire. Need to exercise more, she thought crazily. Note to self: practice wind sprints.

Something hit her in the back, and Claire lost her balance and hit the pavement hard. Shane yelled, stopped, and turned to cover her. In seconds, the pack of guys was on them, and Claire saw Shane taking a bat away from one guy and using it to smack the tire iron away from another attacker.

A shadow loomed over her, and she looked up to see a guy who looked about ten feet tall raise a baseball bat over his head, aiming straight for hers.

Claire grabbed him around the knees and yanked, hard. He yelled in surprise as his legs folded, and he fell backward. The bat hit the ground with a clatter, and Claire picked it up as she climbed to her feet. Shane was swinging with precision, taking out weapons and maybe breaking an arm here and there if he had to. All she had to do was stand there and look threatening.

It was over in a few seconds. Something turned for the pack, and they'd had enough. Claire stood there shaking, bat still cocked in the ready position, as the last guy scrambled up off the pavement and lurched away.

Shane dropped his bat and put both hands on her shoulders. "Claire? Look at me. Are you all right? Anybody hit you?"

"No." She felt shaky, and she had some skinned knees and palms from her fall, but that was all. "My God. They were going to kill us. Humans were going to kill us. Because of me."

"It wouldn't have mattered," Shane told her, and kissed her forehead with burning hot lips. "They were going to go after anybody they came across. The vampire thing is just an excuse. God, Claire. Good job."

"All I did was hold the bat."

"You held it like you meant it." He put his arm around her and picked up both bats, slinging them over his left shoulder. "Let's get home."

When they got home, after getting the third degree from Michael, then Eve, they had to answer to the Founder. Not by choice; Claire was all for making a quick phone call to the police and letting it go through channels, but Michael thought Amelie might want to ask more questions.

He must have been right, because as soon as he hung up the phone, a wave of sensation swept through the house - like a gust of wind, only psychic. Claire actually felt the locks she'd put on the portals snap, and the connection open.

Amelie was coming in person.

Michael realized it, too - he and Claire seemed to be more connected to the house than Shane and Eve, generally. "That was fast," he said. "I guess we'd better go up."

"Up where?" Shane asked, frowning.

"Amelie," Claire sighed. "I was hoping for a hot bath, too."

The four of them, in the spirit of solidarity, trudged upstairs to the hidden room. The Tiffany lamps - minus that one pole lamp casualty - were blazing, filling the walls with color and light, but somehow none of it fell on Amelie, who