House Rules - Chloe Neill Page 0,81

there in one hour. And tell no one, Ethan or otherwise, about this. Consider this your first RG assignment—preventing the destruction of Cadogan House.”

Instead of increasing the weight on my shoulders, which it should have done, it just made me feel more determined.

“I’ll see you there,” I assured him, and put on my seat belt. My baserunning might not have been pretty, but all that mattered was the final score.

* * *

It was late, and the Loop was relatively quiet. I parked on Van Buren, farther away than I’d have liked, then followed the El tracks back to State Street and the Dirigible Donuts location our reticent GP member had selected.

The chain’s silver logo shone through the darkness: a gleaming blimp with “Donuts” in script across its side, the letters blinking in neon pink.

I opened the door and was hit by the scents of sugar and yeast. The restaurant was small and empty except for the tired-looking teen behind the counter and Jonah, who sat at a pink table in the corner, looking at his phone.

He looked up and nodded, then rose to meet me.

“She should be here any minute.”

I nodded, my palms suddenly sweaty with nerves. This woman could make or break Cadogan House with a snap of her fingers—or perhaps the right words to Darius West.

Actually, by the look of her, she could make or break a lot of dreams.

Lakshmi Rao walked statuesquely through the front door. Like most other vampires (thanks to their selection process), she was gorgeous. Tall and lithe, with long, straight dark hair and caramel-colored skin. Her eyes were wide and hazel green, and she wore a printed designer wrap dress and stiletto heels beneath a long cashmere coat.

I’d seen her at the House, in formation with the rest of the GP members, but there she’d been one of many. Here she was a standout. She was obviously a vampire, and obviously a strong one. Even with no obvious vampiric features—fangs and silvered eyes hidden—she radiated magic in undulating waves. I had a natural immunity to glamour, but I felt it slip across the room and just touch the boy at the counter, who dreamily looked away and began counting aloud the donut holes in the bins behind him.

But most interesting? When Lakshmi caught sight of Jonah, she stared at him as if he were the first glass of water she’d seen after months in the desert.

His expression, on the other hand, was utterly businesslike.

So Ms. Rao, a member of the GP from Darius’s home country, had feelings for Jonah, the guard captain slash member of the secret organization assigned to keep an eye on her. And he, by all appearances, wasn’t feeling it.

How very Lifetime.

She looked at me, giving me a brief appraisal. “You must be Merit.”

I had no idea of the etiquette. What was I supposed to call a member of the GP now? Without a better answer, I opted for a simple “I am.”

She smiled gently. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m sorry it’s under such unfortunate circumstances.”

“Were you followed?” Jonah asked.

“I seriously doubt it. And if I was, I’ll lose them on the way back to the hotel. Unfortunately, I don’t have much time. I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do to help.”

In a moment, my hopes were shattered. “Nothing? What do you mean, nothing? They’re going to take away our House.”

“Inside voice,” Jonah murmured, casting a glance at the cashier, but he was still counting away.

“I am only one member of the organization, Merit, and I am by no means in the majority. Darius’s punishment is much too dire, but I do not have the power to challenge him. I’m sorry.”

“He’s going to incite a war,” I said.

“Only if Cadogan fights back, and we all know Ethan won’t allow that. Not if it would bring harm to his vampires . . . or to you.”

I suppose word about my relationship with Ethan had traveled among the GP members. “We cannot lose the House. It would be an insult to Peter Cadogan, to Ethan, to every other House that’s tried to do its best since Celina forced us out of the closet.”

Lakshmi looked at Jonah, who nodded at her. “Merit,” she said, “please believe me . . . I have asked questions—surreptitiously, of course—but there’s simply no way to steer Darius from his present course.”

There was obvious regret in her eyes, which made me feel only minimally better.

“I’m sorry. But it’s impossible. I don’t have the power to override him.”

“What