Embraced by Blood. Laurie London

back?”

      “I’ll go see,” she said as she sprang toward the door.

      “No, wait. I can check the parking garage cameras from here.” Xian swiped his finger over the screen several more times, then made a clucking sound with his tongue. “I am afraid your red Porsche is not parked in the garage.”

      “Maybe he stopped by the Pink Salon and is spending dayside with a human woman somewhere.” Jackson popped the lid on and held it on his lap.

      “With my car? Without calling or asking? No, Kip’s not the kind of guy who would do that.”

      From the pocket of her sweatshirt, she pulled out her cell, punched in a number and held the phone up to her ear. She waited a few moments, a worried look creasing her brow, before she snapped it shut. “He’s still not picking up.”

      “Come on,” Jackson said as he jumped from the counter and jogged to the kitchen door, the container of brownies tucked under one arm. “Let’s have Cordell pull up your car’s GPS system to see where it’s located.”

      Lily followed closely on his heels. “Tell me exactly what Alfonso told you about Darkbloods looking for Trackers.”

      ALFONSO SET A HAND–PAINTED tile flush against the edge of the wet saw, lined up his black Sharpie mark, and grabbed the handle of the blade. Just as he was about to flip on the power switch to make the cut, his phone rang.

      Not Santiago again? Few others had his number. He checked the screen and his gut tightened. Damn. The Seattle field office.

      He pressed the green answer button. “Yes?”

      “Alfonso, it’s Jackson. Lily’s partner is missing.”

      Alfonso’s heart flipped in his chest and he stripped off his protective eyewear. “Lily. Where is she?”

      “She’s fine,” Jackson said.

      Alfonso leaned on the wrought-iron railing and sank to the bottom stair as his heart kick-started under his ribs again with the force of a jackhammer.

      “Your intel was accurate,” Jackson continued. “We’re thinking Darkbloods kidnapped Kip because he’s a Tracker. It happened to a Tracker Agent in San Diego as well.”

      “Isn’t Kip the new guy? He hasn’t gone through all the training yet, has he? I thought you said Lily just started working with him.”

      “Yeah, she only had him out on patrol a few times.”

      Alfonso grabbed the handrail and leaped to his feet. “Then it’s her they wanted, not him.”

      “Could be a possibility.”

      “Where was she when he disappeared? Wasn’t she with him? Tell me everything.”

      “She decided to walk home last night at the end of their shift and Kip was to drive her car back himself. Evidently, she’s done it before.”

      “Walked home alone?”

      “Yeah.”

      Alfonso groaned, rubbing his temples.

      She hadn’t walked home the night he had watched her. What was she thinking? He was a fool to assume she’d carry out her duties the same way every night.

      Jackson continued, “But this time, he never made it back to the field office. The car was found only a few blocks from where they’d originally parked it.”

      My God, it could just as easily have been her. “Didn’t you tell her what I told you? That she shouldn’t be out on patrol alone with Darkbloods actively looking for Trackers? What was she thinking?”

      “Of course I told her, but you think that made a difference? She’s not gonna change shit just because someone doesn’t think she can handle herself. Besides, we don’t have a lot of Agents here. Not really enough personnel to double up on patrols.”

      “Oh, for godsake. They were probably after her in the first place and took the trainee by accident.” The thought of Lily walking unprotected through the streets of Seattle made him want to throttle some sense back into her.

      “Thing is,” Jackson said, “she’s taking Kip’s disappearance really hard. Thinks it’s her fault. That if she’d been with him, DBs would never have been able to kidnap him. She’s going out at nightfall to track him.”

      “And who’s going with her?”

      Jackson hesitated. “No one. We can cover more ground if we split up.”

      Not if I can help it.

      Alfonso sprinted upstairs. “Was this decision discussed with Santiago? Does he know you’ve got a missing Tracker? I’ve already told him that they’re being targeted by the Alliance. Does he know you plan to allow one of the Agency’s finest Trackers to go out alone?”

      There was an icy pause before Jackson replied. No man wanted to be questioned about whether or not he’d checked with his superior for permission. “He’s in complete agreement with me. Lily isn’t just a nose. She’s an awesome fighter. Hell, she’s kicked my ass a few times.”

      Yes, but these guys had no fucking idea what she might be up against. “Fine. Then I’m going with her.” He retrieved his army-green duffel bag and began jamming a few things inside.

      Jackson laughed. “Dude, you better plan on telling her yourself because I sure as hell don’t want to. She’ll rip me a new one thinking we don’t believe she’s strong enough to do the job without help.”

      Alfonso paused. If she heard he was coming, she’d leave before sundown and deal with the resulting energy drain, rather than deal with him. “Don’t tell her I’m coming. It’s imperative you stall her as long as possible. That woman is not to go out alone, understand? When she goes, she goes with me.”

      “Wait. You’re not coming now, are you? It’s still daylight.”

      “I’m leaving in five minutes.”

      Jackson swore and muttered a few things under his breath. “You’ll be a friggin’ mess when you arrive.”

      Yeah, maybe, but he was willing to take that chance. “My rig is outfitted as a pseudo Daytran vehicle. It came in handy a few times while working undercover. I’ll manage.” With his heavy weapons bag in one hand, he took the stairs two at a time.

      “I need to clear this with Santiago, since you’re not technically an Agent.”

      “You do that,” Alfonso said and slammed the phone shut.

       CHAPTER FOUR

      LILY PUSHED OPEN THE STEEL door at the far end of the parking garage with a bang, her heart thumping madly in her chest. She was angry, she told herself. Angry and pissed off, and not at all excited.

      There he was. Just where she figured he’d be.

      Alfonso leaned against the hood of her red Porsche, his long legs stretched out in front of him, one large boot crossed over the other, looking like he owned the whole damn place. The warm smell of leather and pine filled her nostrils as she marched toward him, her heels pounding on the pavement with every crushing beat of her heart.

      An hour ago, while she’d assembled her weapons bag, the little hairs on the back of her neck had begun to tingle and thoughts of Alfonso kept filling her mind, despite her attempts to shut them down. And now, of course, she knew why. Her sensory abilities had detected him, knew he was nearby, whether her conscious self was completely aware of it or not. At least her scent memory wasn’t totally fried.

      Shoving the duffel bag behind her, she stopped in front of him, feet squared, hands on her hips. “What the hell are you doing here?”

      Calm as always, he shifted his weight to the other foot and examined his fingernails for a moment before he lazily lifted his gaze to