"Shame, because it's someone you've had a long association with."
I knew who he meant in an instant, and my stomach curled. Why the hell would he be meeting my pack leader? "Not Blake?"
"The very man."
"You could have done me a favor and shot him."
"And why would I do that? Unless, of course, you pay me to do so." Again his grin flashed. He was obviously feeling mighty fine this morning. Whether it had anything to do with our marathon last night or the meeting with Blake was anyone's guess. "And from you," he added, "I'll accept a currency other than cash."
I just bet. "He's tried to hurt me once before. We both know he want to do so again."
"True. And believe me, if he does anything that threatens your life, then I will kill him, and free of charge." He paused. "You are mine to kill, Riley, no one else's."
"Kill me and you kill yourself," I snapped back. "And you don't seem the suicidal type to me."
Crazy, yes. Suicidal, no.
He laughed. There was nothing warm or comforting about it. "You really have no idea what I'm capable of, Riley."
That was certainly true. "Was Blake behind the bug you placed on me last night?"
"Maybe. And it wasn't a bug but a deadener." He paused again. "Why do you need to use the cameras and bugs at the club? Is Dante a suspect?"
I countered his question with one of my own. "Why didn't you put the bug somewhere more subtle?"
He smiled. "Maybe I wanted you to know what Blake was up to. Or maybe it was designed as an earring so I had no choice. Your turn to give an answer."
"At this point of time, everyone is a suspect."
"Even me?" Amusement laced his tone. "Riley, I'm hurt."
I snorted softly. "We know there are two people involved in these killings, so there's no reason why you can't be one of them."
"That's true," he said cheerfully. "So, are you coming to arrest me? Perhaps we can get hot and heavy with the questioning."
"Sorry, you'll have control your deviant fantasies a little longer. I've got a club to bug."
"You never did explain why Dante and his club are suspect."
"No, I didn't. Shame," I added cheerfully, then hung up, climbed into my car and drove to the Directorate.
Jack glanced up as I walked into the otherwise empty sguad room. "Any luck on the bugs?"
"Which bugs are we talking about? The one found on me or the ones Kye placed? Have the labs said anything about that bug?"
"Only that it's black market and not something we've even heard whispers about." His expression was grim. "Which makes me wonder why he left it on you."
"He said it was a warning. And that he couldn't conceal it better because it was designed as an earring." I wasn't entirely sure I believed either reason.
Jack grunted. "And the surveillance equipment he placed at the club?"
"He says his target has moved on and that he's removed them."
Jack raised his eyebrows. "Is that a sarcastic note I hear in your voice?"
"Me? Sarcastic? Never." I walked over to the coffee machine and poured myself a cup of the horrid stuff. Beans had been packed and this was better than nothing. But only just, I thought, wincing as I took a sip. "I just think it's a little convenient. Either he's made the kill and is covering his ass so we won't arrest him when and if we find the body, or something else is going on."
"You don't think he's involved in these murders, do you?"
"Honestly? I have no idea. The fact that he's been so helpful suggests not—and we have absolutely no evidence pointing to the fact that he is—but he's a twisted sort of soul and he may be getting an inordinate amount of pleasure seeing just how close we get."
"The other man your ghost talked about wasn't a vampire, so it's possible that he could be a werewolf."
"But it's also possible he's a shifter of any other make and model." I took a sip and wondered why I was defending the man. It wasn't as if I actually wanted to help him out. But I didn't want to see a possibly innocent man accused either—even if he was as rotten as Kye. "So, what's next?"
He grimaced. "Kade talked to the woman whose car was stolen, but she didn't give us anything new. He's now downstairs now collecting the appropriate bugging gear for the club. We've arranged for an electrical outage to happen—" he glanced at his watch—"at twelve forty-five. We'll divert their call to ensure our people are the ones phoned and tell them we have people in the area. Lunch seems to be a busy time for them, so they won't be looking too closely at what the electricians are doing when they've got a room full of people to cope with."
I frowned. "Dante will more than likely be there at that time, and he doesn't miss much."
"I know. Which is why you're going to be there at twelve forty to interview the man."
Oh, great. "Boss—"
"Don't 'boss' me, Riley. You will go talk to him." Meaning the one thing I'd been trying to avoid was the one thing I was now being ordered to do. He continued, "We need those bugs in there—and this case solved—as soon as possible."
My frown deepened at the tension in his voice. "So why do I suspect there's more than the usual urgency behind that order?"
"Because the Melbourne council—what remains of them—is meeting tonight as usual—against our advice, I might add—and that just makes them a very juicy target."
"Why on earth would they do that? I thought they were all high-tailing it out of the state until the crisis was over."
His expression was grim. "They were ordered not to by the high council, who plans to use them as bait."
I blinked. "Talk about a blood thirsty method of getting your man!"
"And if they get the wrong man, things could get very nasty for all of us." He pointed his pen at me. "So you will wear something pretty to Dante's and distract the hell out of Starke."
I glanced at my watch. It was after eleven, so I really didn't have time to go home and clean up. "I'll need some fresh clothes if I'm going to distract Starke. And you need to let me know the minute Kade and his people have finished so I can get the hell out of there."
"We will. Now go. And don't expect the Directorate to cough up huge amounts of money for the outfit. Think budget sexy."
"I'll try." I gulped down the last of the horrendous coffee, then headed up the stairs and down the street to the Direct Factory Outlet center to find something suitable to wear.
It was just after twelve-thirty by the time I arrived at Dante's. I climbed out of the car then adjusted my skirt, smoothing the tight material over my hips. I'd been tempted to just wear jeans and a t-shirt, but Jack had ordered a complete distraction.
The tight black skirt with the teasing split that went high up my right thigh and the dark green, button-up top was almost—but not quite—see through, was certainly that. And there were just enough buttons undone to reveal the slight hint of breast. A tease, not a full on show.
Now I just had to survive the full force of his 'distraction' and try to avoid getting laid.
Of course, the outfit made the knife and its protective sheath sitting at the base of my spine somewhat obvious, but I wasn't going to go into that place without some sort of weapon at hand. In fact, I had several, because my purse held my laser as well as my keys—and in the right hands, those little bits of metal could be quite dangerous indeed.
Especially when they had the power of a dhampire behind them.
I glanced at my watch, saw that it was time, and strolled towards Dante's. The guard at the door was new—to my knowledge, at least—and he eyed me intently, his face giving little away.