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Asher gave a very small smile. “I prefer gentler persuasions over power.”

Colin shook his head. “I have been told you are in love with her, and with Jean-Claude himself. I have been told that you are bedding them both and that is why the Ulfric seeks a new lupa.”

“If he would only cooperate, it could be a happy foursome,” Asher said.

Richard, startled beside me, stiffened. It was my turn to touch his arm and keep him from saying what he was thinking.

“I have been told many things,” Colin said. “My people have watched you from afar. We believe you are enamored of the girl and of Jean-Claude. We are aware of your history together. We even believe that a lover of men like yourself would do their Ulfric if he would let you. What we do not believe is that you are bedding any of them. We believe that this is a pathetic story to save yourself.”

I started walking to Asher. The plan was that we would put on a mild show of petting. I’d warned him it better be mild, but I never got the chance.

There was movement in the dark. Dozens of vampires appeared out of the darkness, encircling the clearing. Colin had been distracting us while the vampires moved up to flank us, and neither Asher nor I, nor any of the wereanimals had sensed them.

“Let us have Asher and the rest of you may go free.”

“You are breaking the truce now,” Asher said. He sounded calm, empty, as if Colin hadn’t just demanded his death.

Verne strode forward. “This is our lupanar. We can close it to all strangers.”

“Not without your vargamor. You left her safe at home just in case things went wrong. So protective of your human pet. I counted on it.” He raised an arm as if summoning his people. “No one you have with you is witch enough to invoke the circle.”

“If you kill Asher it will break truce.”

“I will not harm Jean-Claude’s triumvirate. I merely remove a rival.”

The vampires moved up through the trees. They didn’t hurry. They moved like solid shadows, slow, as if they had all night to tighten the circle and take us. “Asher?” I asked without taking my gaze from those slowly menacing figures.

“Oui.”

“Does this break truce?”

“Oui.”

“Great,” I said.

I felt him move towards me, but I had eyes only for the outer dark and that ever-shrinking circle. I picked one vampire out. Male, slender, youngish in appearance. He wore no shirt. His chest was a pale, almost glowing whiteness in the darkness.

“What is it, ma cherie?” Asher was standing very close to me now. I moved him to one side with my left arm and brought the mini-Uzi out with my right, swinging it around my body, shooting before I’d actually pointed so the bullets cut across the vampire’s legs, making him jerk. I grabbed it with both hands and fought the gun to spray it back and fourth across his body. I was screaming as I did it, wordless, not to sound menacing. You couldn’t hear the screams over the machine gun. I screamed because I couldn’t help myself, because the tension, the horror, something came up my hand from the gun and out my mouth.

The blood that sprayed from his body was black from distance and night. It looked like his body was torn in half by some giant hand. His upper body fell slowly to one side. His lower body collapsed to its knees.

The circle of vampires had frozen or had dived for cover. The silence was thunderous. My own labored breathing seemed painfully loud. My voice came breathy, but clear, a shout, “Nobody move, nobody fucking move!”

No one moved.

Asher’s voice broke the stillness. “We can all walk away from here tonight, Colin.”

“Impressively violent,” Colin said, “but I think you are mistaken. Poor Archie will not be walking anywhere.”

“My apologies to Archie,” I said.

“I must have payment for him, Miss Blake.”

“You can bill me.”

“Oh, I intend to, Miss Blake. I intend to take it out of your hide.”

“How many of your people do you want me to kill tonight, Colin? I’ve got lots more bullets.”

“You cannot kill them all, Miss Blake.”

“Yeah, but I can kill about a half dozen and wound twice that many. I don’t see