he opened the refrigerator and retrieved two bags of blood. He handed her one, but when she peered down at it with bewilderment, unsure what to do with it when her fangs weren’t out, he moved closer and set the other bag on the counter behind her. Much to her surprise, he then caught her by the waist and pulled her against him as he lowered his head to nuzzle her ear.
Allie bit her lip and leaned into him at the caress, a little distracted by the knowledge that Victor was just twenty feet away staring out the window, and then Magnus nipped at her ear and whispered, “When I get you back upstairs I’m going to lick every inch of you, from your toes to . . .” One of his hands slid between her legs and rubbed her gently there and Allie gasped as shock and pleasure ripped through her. Distracted by the excitement he’d stirred and the awareness that Victor was just across the room, Allie didn’t notice the shifting in her mouth as her fangs dropped until Magnus stepped back, snatched away the bag she held, and popped it to her fangs.
As she stared at him wide-eyed, he placed her hand gently over the bag, and then winked at her and turned away to open the refrigerator again.
“When the girls checked on you earlier, did they mention that the trap worked?” Victor asked.
Allie glanced toward him with surprise and then back to Magnus as he stilled and then glanced over his shoulder to ask, “They caught Abaddon?”
“They think so,” Victor said. “They got all six vehicles and caught thirty-six rogues in all. One of the men has short hair and fits the general description of Abaddon, but Basha and Marcus are the only people still living who have actually seen the bastard and can identify him for sure.”
“And?” Magnus asked, straightening and turning now to look at the man.
Victor shook his head. “Lucian and Mortimer still haven’t been able to get ahold of them.” He ran a hand wearily around his neck, and admitted, “We’re starting to worry that they ran into something in California that they couldn’t handle.”
Allie’s eyes widened slightly at this news. She recalled the couple being mentioned when she was at the Enforcer house. Lucian had seemed to think it was important that they be in on the search. Now she knew why. They were the only people who could identify Abaddon. But this was the first she’d heard that they hadn’t been able to contact the couple.
“I thought they were checking out a rumored sighting of Abaddon in California,” Magnus said now, reclaiming her attention as he grabbed a tray that rested on the counter and moved back to the refrigerator.
“Yes,” Victor agreed. “Obviously that was wrong if he’s here. But it doesn’t mean there wasn’t a different rogue nest there that they stumbled into.”
Magnus stood with his hand on the fridge door as he considered that, but then shook his head. “I met Basha the last time I was here, and I have known Marcus for centuries. They can handle themselves.”
“We both know sometimes that isn’t enough,” Victor said quietly.
Neither man spoke for a minute, and then Victor turned to look out the window again. “Anyway, until we have verification that Abaddon is among the immortals they got, we’re still on the alert.”
“Right.” Magnus opened the refrigerator door to poke around at the contents. Allie frowned from one man to the other and then, looking down at the bag at her mouth, saw that it was empty and tore it from her fangs. “Can’t you just ask the other rogues if it’s him? Or better yet, read their minds? It sounds like they’re all new turns, so should be easy for you to read.”
Her question made both men turn to peer at her as if her question surprised them. She couldn’t tell if they’d just forgotten she was there, or the idea really hadn’t occurred to them. But then Victor said, “There’s no one to ask. They’re all dead.”
When Allie gaped at him at this news, Magnus explained, “Rogues are rarely taken alive. Knowing they will be judged and executed, they usually fight to the death to escape.”
Allie turned to look at him, and then back to Victor. “So Lucian wants Basha to look at the bodies?”
“Something like that,” Victor muttered, and looked back out the window in what she suspected was a bid to avoid her gaze.