didn’t treat her that way, or I hadn’t thought he did. I thought they were lovers as well as master and servant. Now I was suddenly wondering if he did abuse her. In old vampire society, animals to call had no rights. Jean-Claude and I were changing that and stopping the abuse when we found out about it, but some of the animals to call had centuries of being more possessions than partners to their masters. I had thought better of Pierrot, but Pierette’s reaction let me know that better wasn’t the same thing as good.
“No one will make you have sex with anyone, Petra. We keep telling you that’s not how things work with us.” I stroked her face, my other hand still in hers. She wouldn’t meet my eyes. Her shoulders were rounded; her entire posture was huddled in upon herself. Shit.
I felt the heat of lion, smelled it like grass baked under a merciless sun. I looked at Olaf. He was watching Pierette like he’d seen a wounded gazelle at a watering hole. Crap, crap, crap. Her reaction had just made her even more his perfect victim.
49
LEDUC CAME OUT of the building, moving our way like he had a purpose. That purpose was probably to yell at us. Either Edward and Newman hadn’t been wingmen enough to keep him busy, or Edward had decided Leduc interrupting us with Olaf was the lesser evil. I hoped the sheriff hadn’t seen me kiss either of the women, but of course . . .
“What the hell, Blake? Are you going to kiss all of them? If you want a booty call, then get out of my town and go home.”
Great, just great, he’d seen at least some of it.
Edward was trailing behind Leduc, and just the way he was moving told me that he’d let the sheriff out to distract Olaf, or maybe he’d been afraid of what we’d do once we were all alone with the big guy. Did he really think we’d kill Olaf and play the “We have no idea where he went” game? Or was that what Edward was beginning to debate doing himself? I’d ask him later if we were ever alone on this damn case.
I stepped away from everyone, and when Nicky tried to follow, I said, “Stay, and that goes for all of you.”
I was pissed, so pissed, and before I’d worked on my anger issues, I’d have lashed out at Leduc and made everything worse, but I was in the wrong here. If I’d seen another police officer smooching someone while we were in the middle of a murder investigation and Bobby’s life was hanging in the balance, I’d have ripped them a new one, so what could I do? I tried for a version of the truth, because I couldn’t think of a lie that would help dig me out of the unprofessional hole I’d just fallen into.
“I’m sorry, Sheriff. I have behaved unprofessionally, and I’m embarrassed by it,” I said fast as he was drawing breath to yell at me again.
He hesitated like he was rethinking what he was going to say, which was what I was hoping he’d do. “Hell, Blake, you keep apologizing for all the over-the-top PDA, but you’re still doing it.”
“I know and I’m sorry, but . . . You have a wife, right?” I said.
Leduc frowned at me. “Yes.”
“What would you do if she showed up on the job and wanted you to give her a hug?”
“My wife would never do that. She knows when I’m working, I’m working.”
“Did she know it when you began dating?”
He frowned harder. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Blake.”
I leaned into him like I was confiding in him, and he leaned in to hear me. Let’s hear it for social conditioning. “I was unprofessional with Nicky. I own that. But then I didn’t greet the women the same way, because one stupid moment was all I allowed myself.”
“So why did you kiss both of them? I can’t even wrap my head around the fact that you’re dating this many people.”
“It’s a lot of people even to me, Sheriff, trust me.”
“Then why do it?”
I glanced back at the two women and Nicky. “Which of them would you kick out of bed for eating crackers?”
Leduc glanced behind me and got a considering look on his face. Then he grinned and started shaking his head. He gave me that guy-to-guy look that I’d gotten from a few of the police