Blood and Blade (Goddess with a Blade #6) - Lauren Dane Page 0,70
with Roderick, the Blood Front and this big bad we haven’t found yet.”
“I’m sorry. I got defensive.”
“It’s okay. Defensive is my middle name,” Rowan told her. “What about the other one? You said there were two? Vanessa hasn’t found anything on either witch yet so they’re smart enough to avoid detection from me anyway.”
“Dead. It’s looking like he could have been connected to this whole mess because he disappeared about four months ago. He lived in Portland, Oregon, for the last fifteen years. Worked at a private college. He was a member of the Conclave but never participated in any events. Didn’t hang out with other witches. He had lovers on and off. Liked Vampires.”
“Well, you know, some of them are really good in bed,” Rowan murmured.
Genevieve snickered. “If you say so.”
“Where are these Vampire lovers today?”
“We hit walls with that. I thought perhaps you and your Vanessa might be of some assistance.”
Something Rowan hadn’t told Clive and didn’t plan to unless her hand was forced was that Carey had found a way into the Vampire Nation’s archives and computer system. That information had been passed along to Vanessa, who could hopefully track someone down so they could get more information on the dead witch and whatever he’d been up to.
She hadn’t told Genevieve either nor did she plan to. What she was doing was highly problematic and should the Vampire Nation find out, there’d be a whole political thing. So they kept it close and if it did come out, Rowan had a plan to just boldly claim she’d done it and didn’t regret it. Truth was, if they could get into Hunter Corp.’s systems, they would too.
Hell, it looked as if the Vampire Nation had gotten into Hunter Corp.’s system with the help of the traitors inside. But fortunately Roth and his traitor friends hadn’t had access to the highest levels of their system and those remained accessible to only a very small group.
Rowan had David get the information about the pseudonyms to Vanessa so she could get working.
“Thanks for sharing this.” Rowan tipped her chin toward her computer screen. “I’d probably have found it. Eventually. But every minute these magic users are out there unchecked is an opportunity to hurt those I’m bound to protect.”
“Me as well.”
Rowan pulled up the map she’d been looking at when Genevieve arrived. “Because a lot of the disappearances and drainings happened out here in the west, Vanessa created this for us. It’s a map of reports that might be connected to paranormal activity over the last twelve months. Compare it to the map for two years before.”
There were still reports, but far less within a hundred mile radius of the plot of land Patty owned.
“We should take a drive out there. Check out the land. See exactly what sort of domicile she’s got going on there,” Rowan said.
“It’s three hours’ drive.”
“I’m driving so let’s say two and some change. Unless we end up behind a bunch of RVs—and you never know when that might happen—the road should be fairly uncongested.”
Rowan looked at her screen. “It’s not quite three. We can be there and back by midnight even if we spend some time chitchatting with Patty. Even if there’s nothing there but empty dirt, we’ll know something we don’t know now.”
Elisabeth managed to pack them some snacks and drinks by the time Rowan had spoken with David to keep him on track with Vanessa and the Hunters in Los Angeles, who’d need to be updated about what had happened in London.
It was...nice to be able to trust him to take care of things when she couldn’t. And while she had brought him out in the field with her far more often than she had before, this wasn’t about shielding him from field work, but sharing the load.
As she’d told Genevieve, the road, a two lane ribbon of asphalt that wound its way into the horizon, was fairly uncongested. There were others that were fewer miles to their destination, but this route was far less commonly full of tourists.
Which meant the ability to open up the new luxury SUV her husband had insisted she use, and speed down the road, eating up the miles. Star had insisted on coming along so she was in the back. Occasionally giving Rowan a cold nose against her neck to say hello.
“There’s a particular kind of magic in the air here,” Genevieve said.
“There are plenty of legends about this whole region. Plenty of tragedy and loss.”