"Do you really believe that we need to have our hearts ripped out?"
His answer was automatic. "A flower can't grow without rain."
"Too much rain and it drowns."
"And yet the most beautiful of the lotus flowers are the ones that grow in the deepest mud."
She snorted at his words. "You're not going to let me win this one, are you?"
"There's nothing to win, Danger. As John Lennon once said, 'life is what happens while you're making other plans.' It is messy and heartbreaking, but at the same time, it's a thrill ride."
She shook her head. "It amazes me that you know so much about our culture and icons."
He shrugged. "I have a lot of time on my hands."
Danger felt for him. There were times when her life was monotonous... she could only imagine how more so his was. But since it was obvious that the two of them had differing views about how much strife humanity needed, she returned to their original topic.
"You know, I've always wanted to go in and see Elvis's birthplace museum."
"Why haven't you?"
"They close before dark. But they do have an Elvis Festival in June. That's a lot of fun and there's usually a Daimon or two in the crowd."
He laughed. "The way you say that it makes me wonder which part is business and which is pleasure."
She smiled. "I like being a superhero. Not many people are lucky enough to help others."
"Very true."
As she drove, Danger got a strange feeling. "Are we being watched again?"
Alexion shook his head. "I don't know why, but Stryker seems to be on hiatus."
Still, her precognitive powers kept ringing, telling her something weird was going to happen.
It wasn't until they reached her house that she understood why. In her driveway, waiting for them, was a black Aston Martin Vanquish.
That was a car she'd never seen in her neck of the woods before.
"What in the world is Viper doing here?" she asked.
Alexion frowned. Viper was a Dark-Hunter assigned to Memphis, Tennessee-two hours from Tupelo. "That's a good question."
As Danger pulled in and parked beside the Aston Martin, a tall, handsome black-haired man got out of the car. Even though they were banned from sunlight, Viper still had an olive complexion that looked nicely bronzed-something he'd inherited from his mother's Moorish background.
One of the original Thirteen of Glory who had gone with Pizarro to the Inca city of Tumbez, he'd come to America almost five hundred years ago in search of gold and fame. The Incas had written of Viper and his party, "These men were so bold that they did not fear dangerous things... the strangers traveled across the sea in large wooden houses."
To this day, Viper feared nothing.
Danger couldn't imagine what had brought him so far from home. She'd only met him once in person, but had spoken with him online and over the phone a few times.
Like most Dark-Hunters, the Spaniard was dressed all in black. He had on a pair of pleated black slacks and a skin-tight T-shirt. His hair was short and stylishly trimmed. As he waited for them to leave the car, he pulled his sunglasses off and tossed them into his seat.
"Hola, Viper," she said in greeting as they left the car. "Como esta?"
He didn't answer her. Instead, he headed straight for Alexion. Without a word, he buried his fist into Alexion's stomach, then backhanded him.
"Stop!" Danger snapped as she ran to them.