“Why?"
"Our vampires are on the loose again. There's been a triple murder in Highgate Park."
"When did this happen?"
"They figure about ten this evening.” Jake grimaced and walked into the small kitchen. “But the bodies weren't discovered until two. The cops are still crawling all over the place."
"You've been there?” Nikki said, surprise in her voice.
"No. I asked Mark to let me know if anything like this happened.” He glanced across at Michael and added. “Mark's the crime reporter for The Mail ."
Michael nodded. Jasper had been hungry when he'd left the hotel, so these murders had to be Monica's doing. He met Nikki's gaze and saw she was thinking the same thing.
"We have to stop her,” she murmured.
He shook his head in exasperation. Did she never learn? Jasper was still out there, and no doubt waiting for such a move.
Her gaze was defiant. “You can't find her without me."
Maybe they could, and maybe they couldn't. It wasn't worth jeopardizing her safety to find out.
"You'll slow us down,” Jake commented into the brief silence. “You're a liability, Nik. Trying to protect you might well get us all killed."
"We'll be moving in the daylight—we'll have the advantage, remember?"
"The zombies can still get around during the day,” Michael reminded her. “And Jasper has proven he can move at dawn or dusk."
She lifted her chin, though he could hear the unsteady pounding of her pulse. “I'm going. I refuse to let fear rule my life."