Night Light. Amy Blankenship

shifters liked him or not. This wasn’t a popularity contest by any means.

      â€œMaybe it’s best they don’t like me,” he whispered as he gazed out over the city.

      Kane nodded his head firmly and buried his hands in his pockets. He would stay long enough to help rid the city of the vampire riff-raff he’d unintentionally created. But once that was done, he would go out on his own again. That way, when he decided to take off, there would be no one that cared enough to follow.

      The thought left him on edge.

      *****

      Trevor pulled up in Envy’s driveway and shut off the car. He really wanted to talk to her and see how she was doing. Maybe she’d had time to think about what he’d told her… after all, it had been the truth.

      Glancing at the item in the passenger seat of his car, he smirked before grabbing it. He’d really done a number on the jeans he’d ‘borrowed’ earlier in the week from Chad, and now he was going to return them. This was his good deed for the day. Hopefully, no one had ever been sent to hell for having a sense of humor.

      Unfolding the jeans, he took note of the dirt and black motor oil smeared all over them. He laughed inwardly when he again saw his handiwork on the crotch. Trevor had made a special exception and shifted back into his dog form to happily rip out the crotch.

      Hanna, Mrs. Tully’s old cat who had decided to start living with him, had actually walked up and sniffed the jeans before turning around, lifting her tail in the air and spraying them to get rid of the canine scent he’d left on them. Trevor didn’t think he’d ever laughed so hard in his life.

      â€œPerfect,” he whispered.

      Getting out of the car, he approached the front door and tossed the jeans over onto the bushes, almost laughing again when they slipped off the foliage and landed on a giant ant bed. This was too priceless.

      Ringing the doorbell, he shoved his hands in his pockets and waited for the door to open. When it finally did swing in, Trevor put on his best chastised expression.

      â€œHey,” he said quietly.

      Chad sighed and leaned against the door frame, “Hey yourself, stranger.”

      â€œLook, I know I messed up and I wanted to talk to Envy… or at least try if you promise to keep the taser away from her,” Trevor explained with a small smile.

      â€œI would, but Envy’s not here,” Chad answered as he pushed himself off the door frame and stood to his full height. Jason had mentioned Trevor’s name in the same sentence as the word stalker and he hoped Jason was wrong. “She decided to take some time off and go hang out with Tabatha and Kriss. I’m not sure when she’ll be back.”

      Trevor inhaled deeply and nodded when he noticed that Envy’s scent wasn’t fresh in the house. At least Chad wasn’t lying about her not being home. “I need you to give her some information then.”

      â€œLike what?” Chad asked, looking very serious.

      â€œShe needs to stay away from Devon Santos. He’s bad news and will end up hurting her,” he hedged, hoping to drag Chad over to his side by playing on his protective brotherly instincts.

      Chad frowned at Trevor’s warning and crossed his arms over his bare chest. “Kind of like you?”

      Trevor’s complacent attitude took a nosedive, “Hey, what I did was part of my job. I didn’t want to hurt Envy with my line of work. That’s why I never told her what I do for a living.”

      He looked away and shoved his hands deeper in his pockets knowing Chad didn’t have a clue. He hoped like hell Envy hadn’t repeated exactly what he’d told her to Chad. Civilians didn’t need to know about the things that go bump in the night… especially not a cop.

      â€œI told her the night you found me at the club that I was undercover but I don’t think she believes me,” He added, watching Chad’s reaction closely for any hint that he knew more than he needed to.

      Chad sighed, “Look, I know you liked my sister but she’s moved on. I think you should do the same thing. I’m not just telling you as a co-worker or even a friend, I’m telling you as someone that’s been through it. Leave her alone and let her make her own decisions. Despite your best intentions, I think she’s going out with Devon now.”

      Trevor lifted his eyes to Chad’s face. “What?” he asked dangerously.

      â€œShe’s dating Devon as far as I know,” Chad repeated point blank.

      Trevor felt a chill race down his spine, turned around and stalked away from the door without another word. Chad frowned when he noticed a cat through the front window of Trevor’s car leaning up on the dashboard. The other man hurriedly got in his car, revved up the engine, and peeled out of the driveway.

      â€œJason,” Chad announced to the air, “You had best not be right about him being a stalker.”

      Chad knew Envy had left town with Devon to join Kriss and Tabatha for a short getaway. He wasn’t about to tell Trevor that news as Envy had sworn him to secrecy. It didn’t matter anyway, because it wasn’t any of Trevor’s business what Envy did now.

      Chad shook his head and started to go back inside when he saw something blue out of the corner of his eye. His expression lit up when he saw his jeans laying on the ground and rushed over to pick them up, grimacing at the ants crawling all over them.

      His happiness faded when he saw all the rips and tears in them and his eyes widened comically when he saw the crotch had been ripped out completely.

      Chad lowered the jeans and glared out at the street, “Dog, your ass is grass.”

      Chapter 2

      Kat had moved over to stand beside the window. She wanted to be as far away from Quinn as possible. She nearly rolled her eyes realizing her move had only brought him into her direct line of vision. She wished that Envy were here. She really needed to talk to the other woman… or just another woman in general. It would have been nice to have a little back up with this testosterone-induced conversation.

      Looking around the room, she realized that not all the main members of the cougar family were present.

      â€œWhere are Micah and Alicia?” Kat asked knowing they should be part of this… whatever it was.

      Quinn looked at Warren with an expression that he hoped the jaguar would read between the lines of and back him up on what he was getting ready to say. “Alicia hasn’t been home from boarding school but a month and we are not bringing her into this fight. It’s too dangerous for girls.”

      Kat’s expression darkened further and she looked ready to rip the head of the cougar family apart.

      â€œAnd Micah?” Warren asked before Kat had time to start a war over that last remark.

      â€œUnreachable,” The anger in Quinn’s tone had everyone looking at him curiously. “We’ve tried repeatedly but he refuses to answer his cell phone.”

      Steven sighed at Quinn’s stubbornness and interrupted, “Micah has been missing for over two weeks.”

      â€œWhat?” Warren asked suddenly angry. “Why didn’t you come to us for help?”

      â€œBecause of the stupid journal,” Kat mocked. “Obviously, he was afraid we couldn’t handle what it said because of our touchy sensibilities.”

      Michael shook his head knowing that until the two families worked out their differences, he would likely have to play referee. “Okay,