He cleaned cranberry juice off his face and rubbed his hair with it-- which made it stick straight up in the air.
If you couldn't see his eyes, you might have thought he was just a kid.
He grabbed a second towel and soaked it, too.
Then said, "Heads up," and threw it at Adam.
Who caught it in one hand without looking.
It might have been more impressive if one wet end hadn't slapped him in the face.
"Thanks," he said ...
dryly, while water slid down his face after the cranberry juice.
I ate another piece of pancake.
By the time Adam cleaned up, his eyes were clear and dark and I'd finished all of his pancakes and used Samuel's towel to mop up the mess on the floor.
I thought Samuel would have done it--but not in front of Adam.
Besides, I'd made the mess.
"So," he said to Samuel without looking directly at him.
"Do you know anything about Blackwood other than that he's a nasty piece of work and to stay out of Spokane?" "No," Samuel said.
"I don't think my father does either." He waved a hand.
"Oh, I'll ask.
He'll have data--how much he's worth, what his business interests are.
Where he stays and the names of all the people he's been bribing to keep everyone from suspecting what he is.
But he doesn't know Blackwood.
I'd say it is safe to say that he's big and bad--otherwise, he wouldn't have held Spokane for the past sixty years." "He is active during the day," I said.
"When he took Amber, it was daytime." Both of them stared at me, and, mindful of their recent dominance issues, I dropped my eyes.
"What do you think?" asked Adam, his voice still a little hoarser than normal.
He had a hotter temper than Samuel at the best of times.
"Does he know what Mercy is?" "He had his minion call her into his territory, and he staked his claim on her--I'd say that would make it a big affirmative." Samuel growled.
"Now wait a minute," I said.
"What would a vampire want with me?" Samuel raised his eyebrows.
"Marsilia wants to kill you.
Stefan wants to"--he put on a Romanian accent for the next three words--"suck your blood.
And Blackwood apparently wanted you for the same reason." "You think he set this whole thing up just to get me to Spokane?" I asked incredulously.
"First of all, there was a ghost.