Oh, well. I’d just have to cope. Gritting my teeth against the sting, I gripped the silver cross and chain and yanked. The latch broke, the necklace fell into my hand. The itch of the silver against my skin turned into a burn.
“What are you doing?”
“Making sure Hardin’s all right. You’ll let her go, too? She doesn’t know what she’s dealing with.”
“She won’t even remember what happened.”
“I don’t want to be your lackey.”
“I don’t want a lackey, I want a partner I can trust.”
Hands at my sides, clenched into fists, gritting my teeth against the searing pain of the silver, I moved toward the bed, my gaze downcast. I would not look into his eyes.
My mother still slept. Arturo’s touch was so light, he didn’t wake her. I stared at that hand. I put my own on the edge of the bed, like I was preparing to surrender, to hand myself over to him. This had to work.
“I think,” I said slowly. “I think you should leave my mother alone.”
I put the cross on his hand.
Like a snake had bitten him, he flinched away, jerking his hand back and cradling it to his chest. The cross spilled onto the sheet covering Mom’s chest. I picked it up and let it dangle, so he could see what it was, ignoring the pain it caused.
“Get out,” I said, still not looking at his face, those eyes. I had to assume he was glaring at me. When he didn’t move, a rage bubbled within me. Weeks of frustration, fear, and pain boiled. Damn the ones who had made me live in fear.
“Get out! Get out of here!” This came out as a growl, and Wolf stared out of my eyes, flexed inside my hands, my fingers curling like claws. I would Change right now and leap on him. Maybe he’d be able to stop me. And maybe he wouldn’t.
He moved toward the doorway, and I followed. I watched his shoulder, not his face. A rumbling in my chest felt like the start of a growl. I wanted to rip his throat out. My mouth hurt from wanting to grow fangs.
His lips turned in a careful smile. Lowering his gaze, he gave a small bow, his hand still clenched to his chest. The gesture was courtly.
Then he fled before me, like anyone would before a ravening wolf.
Actually, as much as I would have liked to see him run from me, he merely turned to the doorway and vanished with a breath. I shook my head, convinced I’d seen it wrong. He’d managed a vampire’s exit, the moment of shadow and the disappearance.
I clutched my stomach and felt like the luckiest girl in the world. He’d left me and Mom alone.
And my hand felt like it was going to fall off.
“Gah!” I dropped the cross and chain onto Mom’s bed. That was where I wanted to leave it, with her, in case he came back. I stretched my hand—a rash severe enough to show raised welts covered my palm. “Shit,” I muttered.
“Kitty? Hm . . . what time is it? It’s dark.” Mom turned her head and mumbled, sounding very small and lost.
“Sh, Mom. It’s okay. Everything’s okay. Go back to sleep.” I touched her hand, her forehead, brushing aside strands of ash-colored hair. I tried to sound soothing and not rattled. “Just go back to sleep. I’ll come see you later.”
“All right.”
“I love you.”
She smiled briefly as she drifted back to sleep. Still drugged out on painkillers, she’d never really woken up.
Relieved, I sighed. She was safe. She’d be safe. Could I collapse yet?
“Where is he? Where’d he go?” Hardin appeared in the doorway again, crossbow in hand, her gaze wild.
“He’s gone. You still want to arrest Denver’s Master vampire?”
“Jesus Christ,” she hissed. She rubbed the back of her neck, where the chain had broken off.
“Detective, could you do something for me?”