“Or he’s just waiting to see if I turn up or if you’ll lead him to me.”
“Could be.” He had more chance of understanding the motives of the bad guys than I did. He played in their world, after all. “So what do we do?”
“You need to move. If he follows, we know he’s recognized you.”
“And if he does follow, what will you do? Take him out?”
“It’s what I do, Mercy.”
A shiver went through me at the matter-of-fact way he said that. And he would do it—without thought, without remorse. But knowing someone was a killer and actually standing by and watching them do it were two entirely different things.
“It’s broad daylight and rush hour. You can’t risk that.” I wasn’t sure whether the slight edge in my voice was fear or anger, or even a touch of both. “And it makes you no better than them.”
He snorted softly. “I don’t attack innocents. That makes me a whole lot different.”
“It’s only a matter of degree. And I won’t be a party to it.”
“I didn’t ask you to join my investigation, remember?”
“No, I asked you to join mine. For the moment, I’m the one with all the information—information you apparently need.”
“Which I now have, thanks to your pretty friend.”
I smiled grimly. “The information is coded. Just try and read it without me.”
His voice was oddly weary as he said, “Letting the bad guys live almost never works out, Mercy.”
“I don’t care.”
“You will if they get hold of you later on.”
Maybe I would. No, I definitely would. But I’d regret standing by and watching Damon ruthlessly get rid of the guard even more. Killing might be an accepted part of dragon mentality, but murder was very different to killing in self-defense. It left a stain on the soul that was hard to erase. My brother had spent the last few years of his life living close to the edge in an effort to escape it. He might not have any remorse for his part in helping hunt down the men responsible for killing his half-brother’s soul mate, but the guilt of taking a life lay deep all the same—even if he refused to acknowledge it to himself or to others. I didn’t want that weight, didn’t want the regret. I had enough problems in my life as it was.
“Question him, restrain him, do what it takes to stop him from following us. But don’t kill him.” I hesitated, then added softly, “Please.”
He didn’t answer immediately, but when he finally did, his voice was flat and filled with steel. “This once, and against my better judgment. Walk down to Fifth Street and head right. When you come to Minna Street take another right and head through to Mary. Just keep walking. If he’s following you, you’ll spot him.”
I nodded, remembered he was on the phone, not in front of me, and said, “Then what?”
“Keep walking. I’ll go out the side entrance and take care of our problem a few streets away.”
I drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. It didn’t do a whole lot to calm the sudden rush of nerves. “Okay.”
“Give me five minutes to find the exit to Minna Street.”
“Will do.”
I hung up, popped the phone back into my bag, then continued to read the paper. Or at least, I tried to. But every nerve was tingling with the awareness of the man across the road. It was hard to curb the instinct to run, and yet that was the one thing I couldn’t do. When five minutes had passed, I made a show of glancing at my watch and making a face, then grabbed my bag and left, forcing myself to saunter down the street as if I didn’t have a care in the world. Or a madman on my tail. Unfortunately for me, this part of town was either populated by office buildings or parking lots, so I couldn’t pretend to stare into storefront windows and use the glass to check for pursuit. And yet he was following me. I could feel him. Could feel the heat of him, and smell his cindery scent.
I strolled down Fifth Street, matching my pace to the couple in front of me, not wanting to feel so alone. A lazy sea breeze swirled around us, and though I shivered I wasn’t entirely sure it was due to the chill in the wind. I needed to warm up, and that was the one thing I couldn’t do right now. Even if that guard didn’t recognize me, he was close enough to know I wasn’t human, and that just might be enough to have him paying a lot more attention to everything I did. Besides, a dragon’s flame was as individual as its scent.
I came to the Minna Street intersection and hesitated. The couple I’d been following continued down Fifth Street, leaving me feeling suddenly bereft. Ahead, Minna Street tunneled through my paper’s building, becoming dominated by shadows and artificial lighting, with a bright patch of sunshine beckoning on the other side. It was the perfect place for an ambush, but it certainly wasn’t where Damon was planning his.
I swallowed heavily, my nerves crawling and sweat tracking down my back. I glanced back at the traffic, using the moment to see not only what the traffic was doing, but where my follower was.
The road was clear and the guard had paused near the parking garage’s exit. I crossed the road q
uickly. The minute I was out of my follower’s line of sight, I broke into a run, bolting for that patch of sunshine and the false sense of security it offered.