Fire Within - By Ally Shields Page 0,30

square face were twisted by misery; his cheeks were wet with tears. Ari had seen the same devastated look on Lorraine. Were vampire relationships always this intense? It was clear to her Austin needed professional help, and she knew an agency qualified to provide it.

She scanned the area for Ryan, but he’d disappeared from view, probably behind one of the vans. Ari shrugged and punched the keys on her cell. She wasn’t surprised when a live voice answered at Shale & Associates. Any agency working with the Otherworld community would have a regular night staff. Ari relayed the problem, and the female voice promised to take care of it.

“Carl, someone is coming to be with you. We’ll talk a little later. You need to wait with this officer.”

He nodded, looking lost.

She searched for Ryan again. This time she spotted him with a group of CS techs and began to work her way in his direction. Trying to get a feel for the scene, she took note of trees and park equipment near the victim’s body. She extended her senses, seeking anything that might determine what had happened here.

Ari suddenly stiffened. Pleasant shivers raced down her arms as her magic hummed in recognition of a familiar vampire power. What was Andreas doing here? She slowed her steps to a standstill, swallowing against the sudden dryness in her throat. Directly ahead of her, a tall, dark form glided smoothly toward Ryan. She wondered if she could still walk away, avoid the meeting. Maybe she could interview the crowd, get lost among the bystanders until he left. She’d almost convinced herself that might work, when Andreas’s head swiveled. He looked her straight in the eye and beckoned toward Ryan. Of course he’d known all along she was there. Ari sighed and raised her chin. Might as well get this over with. And keep it brief.

Ari watched Ryan’s face as she and Andreas approached from converging directions. Expressionless. Ryan knew there had been a serious breach between Ari and Andreas. After all, he’d talked to Andreas the night it happened, but Ari had never discussed it with him beyond the obvious death of the werewolf. He knew about that, but not about the mind link. Some things were too personal. Too awkward.

“Ari, you made good time,” Ryan said, his look speculative.

“I was close by.”

“Andreas,” he continued, “thought we might be hearing from you. But not this fast.”

“Bad news travels quickly.”

The rich warmth of Andreas’s voice nearly curled her toes. The sound of it always did strange things to her. Nice things. In spite of everything that went wrong between them, she missed his voice and the touch of his magic.

“Arianna,” Andreas said to her.

She nodded, not looking at him. “Hi.” It was feeble, but at least she spoke. She felt his eyes skim over her face, before turning to Ryan.

“What can you tell me?” he asked.

“Not much yet. Victim’s name is Patricia. That’s her boyfriend over there.” Ryan shrugged. “ME’s on his way.”

“I want in on the investigation,” Andreas said abruptly. “Like last year. Full access. Two vampire murders in a week make this the business of the vampire court.”

“Magic Council is already involved,” Ryan said neutrally, his gaze flicking to Ari. “As far as I know they still represent the vampires, and Ari’s their Guardian. I’m not saying your expertise wouldn’t be useful, but Ari has the final call on whether you’re in or out.”

Oh, thanks, Ryan. Did he have to dump this on her? Maybe he wouldn’t have, if she had told him the whole story, warned him she and Andreas couldn’t work together again.

“We don’t need your help,” Ari said bluntly. “This isn’t the same situation as last year’s case.” And she didn’t want to spend that much time around him. “I’ll make my reports to the Magic Council as usual, and your rep can keep Prince Daron informed.” She kept it formal, not looking at him. “Don’t you agree, Ryan?”

“Oh, no, Ari. Officially on the fence. Not my decision.” Ryan shook his head to emphasize his words. “You two have to work this out. I have a crime scene to preserve.” He walked away.

Coward. Ari wanted to hurl the word after him. Being alone with Andreas was the last thing she wanted.

“Do you want us running our own investigation? Outside the confines and rules of the Council?” Andreas asked quietly. “Because that will happen.”

She looked at him then, her irritation obvious. “You would do that?” She read the answer in

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