a shiver ran through me. for evin's sake, i had to hope that i was imagining the worst. that she was fine and unharmed in any way.

and tomorrow, pigs might fly.

i brushed the thought aside and slipped out into the hallway. the stench of vampire suddenly seemed stronger, and though i could hear no sound, instinct warned me he was on the move.

the stairs were to the right. i stepped across the hall and, keeping my back to the wall, crept toward them. the vampire scent was getting stronger, and my nose twitched in distaste. i still couldn't hear him, but then, blake had the money to hire the best.

he'd hired kye, after all.

for the first time since i'd killed him, my soul didn't ache at the mere thought of his name. the emptiness remained - would probably always remain - but the pain and the hurt were no longer knife-edged. maybe my decision to commit to quinn had been exactly what i'd needed - what my soul had needed.

i stopped several feet away from the corner, with a hall table between me and the stairs. i reached out and carefully picked up a vase of long-dead flowers. the vamp had to know i was here - he'd hear the beat of my heart even if he was as blind to body heat as i seemed to be - and he'd come around that corner fast. so i needed something to distract him with.

i waited, breath caught somewhere in my throat, for his approach. when it came, it was lightning fast. one minute the hall was empty, the next minute there was a long, thin stretch of vampire hunkered down in the middle of it holding a gun.

i swung the vase and let it go. dead flowers and foul-smelling water flew, soaking the carpet. i jumped forward, following the vase with a kick. he ducked both and pulled the trigger. i twisted out of the way, felt the bullet burn past my hip, and lashed out, my clenched fingers taking him under the chin, throwing him up and back but not knocking him out. he hit the carpeted floor hard and his gun went flying.

i leapt for it, my fingers latching onto the barrel even as he caught his balance and lunged for me. i didn't have time to shift my grip to the trigger so i simply twisted around, smashing the weapon against his face with as much force as i could muster. flesh and bone gave way under the impact and he went down, but he was still far from out. i scrambled to my knees and hit him in his throat with the side of my hand. his eyes rolled back into his head and he went limp.

it wouldn't last long. vampires were too tough to be immobilized for very long - even by a blow that would have killed a human.

i switched the gun's safety on, shoved it into the waistband of my jeans, then took a moment to rub at my leg. there was no blood and the wound hadn't split, but the ache was deep and relentless, despite the numbness that still ringed the actual wound.

but i guess if that was the worst aftereffect of getting shot with silver for the umpteenth time, then i could consider myself lucky.

i grabbed the vamp's arms, lifting his head and shoulders off the floor, then dragged him down the stairs. the other guard hadn't come up to investigate the gunshot, so i had to presume quinn had managed to grab him outside.

indeed i have. his thoughts rolled through mine, warm and amused. it appears my acting skills are not as rusty as i thought. did the other one manage to wing you?

the bullet barely even scraped my side.

which, knowing you, probably means there's a hole the size of a fist in your body.

i laughed and hauled the vamp down the last step, then dragged him across the foyer to the open front door. quinn was standing on the porch, his arms crossed as he watched me. the other guard was propped up against the thick white columns.

"i've dealt with the first guard already." as i stepped over the door threshold, quinn took the vamp's arms and jerked him sideways, depositing him rather roughly beside the other guard. not that either man deserved any form of gentle treatment after the hell they'd put evin through. "neither of them will remember our arrival or notice their captive is missing."

"good." i glanced down at my side. my sweater was torn, but the wound was little more than a scratch and there wasn't even much blood. which was probably a good thing, considering how much i'd lost before harris had removed the silver bullet. "has either man got a key on them? lyndal's door is chained and padlocked."

he patted down both guards, then shook his head. "nothing in their pockets. check the kitchen or their sleeping quarters."

"on it." i spun around and headed back into the house. the kitchen was at the back, and it was huge. but the counters were full of crap and the sink was littered with unwashed dishes. obviously, neither of them was worried about mice or ants, because there were crumbs all over the floor and ants were currently enjoying the leftovers on several plates.

all of which was just more evidence they didn't intend to be here long, because surely any lengthy stay would have required a bit of hygiene. the wolf, at least, would have been driven to distraction by the smell - it was bad enough already.

although that could have just been the aroma of cabbage and boiling meat that was coming from the pot on the stove.

nose twitching, i hunted around for keys but failed to find anything except stacks of newspapers and betting slips. i guess they had to do something to fill up the days - and they couldn't harass lyndal twenty-four seven if they wanted to keep her alive.

i turned around and walked back up the stairs. the first room was a bedroom that had been converted into a living area. there was a tv in one corner, several lounge chairs, and a coffee table set against the side walls. to the left of the door was a bank of wires and monitors.

i stepped inside. four monitors showed slowly panning views of the sides of the house and the immediate surrounds. one was fixed on the front gate, another swept the rear garden, a third appeared to be scanning a bathroom, and the last one was in a bedroom.

i watched the pan of the camera. saw the bed, the tv, and the bucket, and felt fury sweep through me. the bastards hadn't even offered her decent toilet facilities. i should have smacked that vampire a little bit harder.

the camera finally panned around far enough to reveal lyndal. she was standing near the window, her face pressed up against the barred glass, as if desperate to see around the corner of the house and figure out what was going on. she was naked, her skin bruised but otherwise clean, meaning that while they'd not given her proper toilet facilities, they'd at least allowed her to shower. it didn't ease the anger burning through me, though.

i spun around and headed into the next room. this one was set up as a bedroom, with two single beds and a battered pine coffee table squeezed in between them. on this sat wallets, coins, cash, and keys - two sets of car keys and another ring holding five other keys. i swept them up, spun around, and ran for the padlocked room.

"lyndal," i said as i sorted through the keys trying to find the right one. "it's riley jenson from the directorate. i'm here to rescue you."

one of the keys finally slipped into the lock and it snapped open. i unlatched the door and pressed it open. a bucket came flying at me, its stinking contents splattering through the air.

"whoa," i said, jumping out of the way. "easy, lyndal. i really am here to rescue you."

"riley jenson is up in dunedan, not down here in melbourne."

so the men had told her what evin was doing and who he was minding - which was only more evidence to the fact that they never intended for any of us to live.

she stepped into my line of sight, her fists clenched and fury etching her features. her face was unmarked, green eyes spitting fire, but her limbs were as bruised as her back and there were ugly welts around her wrists and ankles. she'd been tied with silver more than once.

even her gently rounded belly had bruises, and for the second time in a matter of minutes, i wished i'd hit the vampire harder.

"what fucking game are you lot playing now?" she added furiously.

"no game, i promise you." i reached into my pocket and withdrew the phone. "you can ring evin, if you like."

i pressed the appropriate number, made sure it was ringing, then tossed her the phone. her expression was still a mix of defiance and disbelief, but she nevertheless held the phone to her ear and waited.

evin answered, and her face just about crumbled. "oh god," she said, "it is you."

i don't know what evin said, because it didn't exactly sound coherent from where i was standing. quinn, we need to get these two back together asap. any chance of your plane coming to the rescue again?

i'll have to get another pilot, but yeah, we can do it.

fantastic. i stepped over the puddle of urine and fecal matter and into the room.

lyndal's gaze jumped to mine and she backed away a step. "what does she look like?"

i paused, waiting. her gaze slipped down my body, and the tension riding her eased. she closed her eyes briefly and said, "yeah, it's her."

i held out a hand. she hesitated, then handed me the phone. "evin - "

i didn't get any further, because he was all but crying "thank you, thank you, thank you" over and over.

"evin," i said sharply, even though my heart ached for him. "we've got to go. you need to listen."

he took a deep, shuddering breath. "okay."

"we're sending lyndal to you via quinn's plane. she'll get there around lunch. but you need to carry on phoning every night as usual. they have to believe everything is fine."

"but the guards will know - "

"the guards won't remember a damn thing, and they'll believe she's still here safe and sound. as long as you and west keep up the charade, we should have a few days' leeway."

"but what if they do realize? we're sitting ducks staying here."

"i didn't say you were staying there. i just said you needed to keep phoning."

"but caller id will tell them - "

"caller id can be faked. they'll think you're still there, evin. trust me."

"i do." he paused, then said, "when you confront blake, i want in. whatever you do, i want to be a part of it. he has to pay, riley. for you, and for lyndal."

"he will. but i haven't yet decided what - "

"i don't care. just factor in my help."

"and mine," lyndal murmured. "i may be pregnant, but, by god, someone is going to pay for what these bastards did to me."

i glanced at her and saw the fire in her eyes. the need for retribution. and understood it, totally. i gave her the phone. "we need to move. say good-bye."

i turned and led the way downstairs. she talked and walked, hanging up as we neared the front door. she paused when she saw quinn, her nostrils flaring, then glanced at me and marched forward.

not at quinn, but the two men. she raised a fist, but quinn caught it before she could land a blow.

"i can understand the need to lash out," he said softly, "but leaving a bruise they can't remember might just undo the mind washing i've done."

she glanced at him, her thin face fierce, then nodded once and stepped back. "will the directorate take care of them later?"

"if not the directorate, then i will," quinn said. and he said it with such an utter lack of emotion that it was chilling - and totally believable. "they are dead men walking."

"good." she crossed her arms over her breasts, though it wasn't an attempt to cover her nakedness. "what next?"

"we've some clothes for you in the back of the car, if you'd like to climb in and dress." quinn glanced at me.

"you need to put the guards back."

"put them back how?"

"the vampire tripped on some loose carpeting going up the stairs, hit the hall stand, and knocked himself unconscious."

meaning i'd have to ensure there was loose carpet. "and the wolf?"

"before the vamp had his accident, he and the wolf had a minor altercation. the wolf was knocked down and smacked the back of his head on the tiles."

and given i'd neutralized my scent before we'd come here, no one would scent me. "neither man has appropriate bumps."

he glanced at me, his smile cold. "oh yes they have."

i snorted. "and you stopped lyndal from hitting him."

"i built my bumps into their memories."

"you could have done it to hers."

"it's not easy to account for bruising to the front and back of the head. in a case like this, where you're adding memories and forcing them not to see certain things, too many complications can risk blowing the whole thing."

"which is what happened with me."

he nodded. i grabbed the vamp's arms, dragging him back through the hall and up the stairs. i was sweating by the time i reached the landing. he might appear to be little more than a string bean, but he obviously had heavy bones.

i dumped him on the floor, knocked over the hall stand, then ripped up a little of the carpet covering the top step. then i ran back downstairs to grab the werewolf. him i dragged into the kitchen.

i locked the front door as i came out. quinn touched my back lightly, guiding me across to the car. at least the ear-splitting music had stopped. "we must find time to undo your mind restraints, too."

"as i said, that's not important right now. we need to track down our killer first then confront blake."

he opened the passenger door and ushered me inside. "you do know that this time, defeating him won't be enough."

his words had something twisting inside, if only because they were forcing me to confront what i'd long known but hadn't really admitted.

because the guards inside that house weren't the only ones who were dead men walking.

blake and whoever else was involved in this scheme were, as well.