i never made it.

my body was slammed, face-first, into the brick wall, my arms grabbed and jacked halfway up my back. unknown hands-they felt male-patted me down the length of my legs and back up, between my thighs. in the next second, one of those hands slipped inside my low waistband, retrieving the blade i had stashed there against my hip. i jerked, struggled; i was again slammed.

"fuck!" i growled, wondering why in hell my strength didn't seem very strong at all. "what do you want?" i said, finding it difficult to speak since my face was shoved against brick.

"that all the silver you're packin'?" the voice said behind me, close to my ear. "or you got it hidden in places i can't find without a little diggin'?" he laughed. "not that i'd mind, babe. your call."

"that's it-that's all i got," i ground out. i gathered my strength; i felt it growing inside me from my toes upward. i elbowed my attacker, spun around, kneed his groin, and as he staggered back i swept his ankles. he hit the pavement with a thud. i pressed the heel of my boot at his throat.

he grinned. sexy. smug. "not bad. luc told me you were good."

i looked at him. he gently lifted a hand and moved my heel from his throat, then leapt up. he regarded me closely, as i did him.

standing at approximately my height, my attacker wore skinny ripped jeans, chunky boots, a black ripped t-shirt, and had a headful of light brown and sunbleached dreads, pulled back at the nape of his neck. he wasn't overly muscular, but he was lean and strong as shit. porcelain skin-all except for a silver scar that shot out of one eyebrow-full lips, and the strangest mercury-colored eyes i'd ever seen. i stiffened. realization kicked me in the gut.

vampire.

a slow smile, revealing perfect, blindingly white teeth, stretched across his perfect face. "ah, got a brain to go with the beauty, i see," he drawled, and it was then i noticed the defined charleston drawl. "sweet. eli's one lucky fuck." well, minus the gang slang.

i frowned. this guy-vamp-knew eli. "who are you and what the hell do you want?" i said, and rubbed my forehead. luckily, there was no blood. "and what's that smell?" i glanced at his hand wrapped around my blade. "give me my silver back."

"uh, that'd be a no, babe," he said, then inclined his head toward drayton. "no matter how fine you are, or how much dupre swears how trustworthy you are, i'll make that judgment call myself." he nodded again and pulled on a pair of dark shades. "come on. we walk. i'll talk." he peered at me over the tops of his glasses. "i didn't hurt ya, did i? eli said you were tough. he'd kick my ass if he thought i hurt you."

the image of me, kneeing eli in the nuts for putting me through a test, made me almost smile. "name."

the dreadlocked vampire laughed. "yeah. right." he stuck out his hand. "noah miles."

i was totally confused, but i grabbed his hand and squeezed hard. "well, noah miles, what the hell is this all about?"

noah rubbed his chin, laughed, and shook his head. we left the alley and started up drayton. "i called eli a few hours ago. shit's hittin' the fan in charles town, and he said you and the dupres, and some others, are headed that way to help out." he glanced at me over the tops of his shades again, those silver eyes boring into mine. "he wanted me to check you out, make sure you were up to it."

"well, i didn't do such a good job with my face smashed into the bricks and mortar," i said. this was the company eli was referring to, apparently.

he laughed. "you did fine. and yeah, we're the company. me and a few of my guys."

i walked without looking at him. "you had my blade in seconds."

noah leaned close and bumped my shoulder. "that's because i'm good, sweetheart. besides, you had only one blade stashed on you. you probably would have stuck me, had you had another one. besides, you had me on the ground and at your mercy in seconds. pretty impressive." he regarded my arms, then my cheek. "sweet tats, by the way. i've heard about you."

"oh, really? you've heard of my artistic talents as well as my ass-kicking talents? that's great." i glowered at him. although i hated to admit it-i liked him. "so, noah. how long have you been dead?"

he looked at me as we walked, and a somber expression crossed his features for a split second. "a long time, babe. since the war."

"which war?" i asked.

"england vs. america, darlin'."

i considered that. it was a long damn time to walk the earth. we walked up behind a small crowd waiting to cross bay street, and i looked at my new companion. "so, eli sent you all the way to savannah just for you to shove my face into a brick wall, feel me up, shove your hand down my pants, and pinch my blade? that's it? i passed the test?" the fact that eli knew all that while kissing me senseless irritated me.

in front of us, an elderly woman wearing a floppy straw hat turned around and regarded us over the tops of her very large white plastic sunglasses. i smiled. she glanced at my arms, her silver brows shot up, and she turned back around.

noah grinned at me. "nope. that was my own test. and yeah-you passed," he said. "after talking with eli this morning, i was told i had to bring a small group of my guys with me, ask permission from preacher, as well as monsieur dupre, then set a game plan." we started to move with the crowd. "you must be pretty freaking important, darlin'."

i didn't answer. how could i? i didn't understand any of it myself. we stepped onto the sidewalk on the other side of bay, hit factors walk, and walked the cobbles down to the riverfront. i stopped. noah stopped and regarded me. "you already know i have potent blood?" i asked. i didn't want to look like the cartoon pork chop running around on legs any more than i had to.

"hell yeah. we all do." he grinned. "always have. we're governed by the gullah-gullah, too, don't forget. pact and all, just like savannah." he leaned over and sniffed me. "barely noticeable at all anymore, babe. no worries. although there is something else funky in there." he sniffed again, and i swatted him away.

"two strigoi," i offered. "so don't piss me off."

"day-yamn," he said, dragging the word out with his drawl, admiration noticeably in his voice. "must have some wicked-ass tendencies." his grin was wide and bright white. "this i gotta see, babe."

"riley," i offered. "my name's riley."

noah barked out a laugh. "sorry 'bout that-habit." he lowered his shades and openly oogled me. "but i gotta tell you. you are a babe, babe."

at the riverfront, i stopped and rounded on noah. "so there's some big meeting at the dupres' tonight? permission slips and all that to be signed? that's all fine with me, but first i have clients to finish and a business to settle." i shook my head. "nyx is gonna kill me."

"sweet. i'll hang with you till tonight, then," noah said.

i stared at him as we headed up the sidewalk toward inksomnia. "behave yourself until eli gets here."

he grinned. "don't worry. i was raised a southern gentleman, darlin'."

i shook my head and led him up the walk. just before we reached the shop, i stopped and met noah's shaded gaze. "okay, first, what was that smell? second, why this, all of a sudden? phin just told me you guys would contact us when you needed help. he even said your group and ours don't exactly get along."

sincerity sank deep into noah's features, surprising me. "first"-he withdrew a sachet of something and dropped it into my hand-"my mask. most vampires, creatures of the afterlight, whatever, have a certain special something about them that makes them distinct from all others." he grinned. "mine is my scent. if i didn't carry this around, i'd have chicks-of all species-chasing me down. it was pretty enticing for the first twenty or so years, but then"-he shrugged-"wore my ass slap out, keeping up with all the women." he winked. "not to mention all the poodles named fee fee i had to chase off. second"-his face grew serious-"one of ours was destroyed last night."

"what happened?" i asked.

noah shrugged. "simply, we were outnumbered." he shook his head. "never seen so many newlings gathered before. freakin' out of control. we knew then we needed help."

i stuck out my hand and took his in a sincere shake. "i'm not a kick-ass vampire, but i promise to kick some vampire ass."

noah grinned. "i totally believe you."

we started up the walk again, and, at inksomnia's storefront window, i stopped once more. i still had his sachet in my hand. "okay, so wait a minute. are you telling me that if you didn't have your magic anti-want-me powder, i would be all over you?"

noah's smile was pure raw male seduction, and, for a quick second, my insides pinged with lust. he reached slowly down and pried the sachet out of my fingers, his face, those eyes, mere inches from mine. i shuddered. "that's exactly what i'm tellin' ya, darlin'."

"whoa," i muttered, amazed, still feeling as if i were in a slight horny haze. i shook my head again, and he grinned. "i hope my dog doesn't start humpin' your leg, noah." i hoped i didn't start humpin' noah's leg. god-damn.

noah burst out laughing.

"miles, sup my man?" luc's voice said, suddenly beside us, grabbing noah's hand and the two bumping shoulders in a man-hug. luc glanced at me, his brow raised in puzzlement. "ri, you okay? ah, dude-you didn't?"

"sorry," noah said, smirking. "she asked."