I smiled weakly over at him but shook my head. “I’m sure we all appreciate your offer, but if they have a warlock or a witch on hand, it’s likely they would be able to sense your powers. You’d be quickly labeled as one of the ‘others’ and they might not accept you. In addition, there is a chance they already know about me, and if that’s true, then it’s likely they know about you, considering our frequent association. It’s a wonderful offer and idea, but I don’t think it would work.”
“Unfortunately, I have to agree with Mira,” Barrett said. “It’s known throughout all of Savannah that you’re not exactly human. If it’s common knowledge among our people, then we have to assume that the Daylight Coalition is aware of it as well. We need someone who is simply human.”
“And that’s where I step in,” Daniel said with a heavy sigh. “I’m driving up to Atlanta tomorrow morning and renting an apartment. I’ve already told my wife that I’m going on an undercover assignment and that I’ll be out of communication for a while. I’ve taken some time off work and—”
“Absolutely not!” I declared, springing to my feet. “This is nonsense. You are not to go anywhere near that damned headquarters.”
“He’s our best and only option at this point,” Barrett patiently pointed out.
“Daniel also has a wife and kids to think about,” I countered.
“He’s also a trained cop. He knows how to handle himself in a dangerous situation,” Danaus said, earning a dark look from me. I wasn’t expecting him to immediately side with Barrett and the detective. “He knows the workings of the lycanthropes and enough about the nightwalkers to know what he was looking for once he got into the headquarters.”
“It also doesn’t hurt that I genuinely dislike nightwalkers,” Daniel added, grinning up at me.
I shook my head at the human, ignoring his teasing. “I don’t like this at all, Daniel. You’re taking a big risk. I know we would all greatly appreciate it, but with just a little more time we might be able to find someone else.” I jerked my head over to Danaus. “What about one of the hunters you trained for Themis? Are any of them loyal enough to you that they’d be willing to infiltrate the headquarters for us?”
“Maybe, but I wouldn’t trust any of them to choose loyalty to me over loyalty to Ryan,” he said. “I don’t want to push my luck with the warlock now, considering we’re not exactly on speaking terms. He may not want to risk the secret, but I don’t want to imagine how he could potentially twist this situation to his advantage.”
I sighed, pushing away from the desk, but there was no room for me to pace so I fell backward against the front of it, crossing my arms over my stomach. At that point I was willing to risk the life of a human I didn’t know just so I didn’t have to face the fact that Daniel really was our best choice. He had an understanding of both the nightwalker and lycanthrope peoples. He was grumpy and cranky enough to convincingly appear to be a disgruntled human looking to exterminate the two races. If they did a background check, they would discover that he was a detective, and that would make sense, explaining how he knew about the lycanthropes and the nightwalkers. It all added up perfectly.
“I hate this idea,” I admitted.
“But . . .” Daniel prodded.
“It’s the best one we’ve got, particularly since we’re short on time,” I continued. “We need to get this under control before the next full moon so the local packs can hunt and run without fear.”
“Then I leave tomorrow,” he declared. “Barrett and I have already developed a reliable way to communicate that should be untraceable. Otherwise, I’ll be completely out of contact until I return to Savannah.”
“And when you return, you will be under constant protection,” I proclaimed.
“That’s ridiculous!” he snapped.
I shoved away from the desk front and grabbed the arms of the chair where Daniel was seated, leaning in close enough for the tip of my nose to nearly touch the tip of his. “Is it? What if they find out you were a spy? What if they find out exactly who you are and where you live? Do you really know what you’re in for? If the Daylight Coalition discovers that you’re a spy, they will strike back at you. I can’t allow that. Lycanthropes will watch over you during the day and a contingent of nightwalkers will guard you by night until the Daylight Coalition has been permanently eliminated.”
“Mira—” Daniel began, leaning back as far as he could so he could see me more clearly.
I jerked my attention over to Barrett, who sat beside him. “Am I wrong?” I demanded.
The Savannah pack alpha shook his head slowly. “No, you’re not.” Then, addressing the detective, he said, “We recognize the great risk you’ll be taking for both our peoples. You and your family will be watched over while you’re gone and following your return.”
“And what if I don’t come back?” Daniel threw out.
I straightened, took a step back and, frowning, gazed down at Barrett. The lycanthrope spoke up before I could. “Your family will always be taken care of,” he said to the detective. “They will be considered a part of the Savannah pack and given all the privileges thereof.”
“I don’t want my wife and kids to know about . . . about . . . all of this,” Daniel growled, throwing out his arms to encompass both Barrett and myself. “They don’t need to know about this world if it can be helped.”
“They won’t know,” I quickly said. “Barrett and I have ways of helping. Your wife and daughters will have nothing to worry about, whether it be money or protection from the Daylight Coalition.”
“That’s all I care about,” Daniel said with a slight huff as he pushed out of his chair, followed a moment later by Barrett. “If you don’t mind, I need to get home to my wife and girls. I’d like to spend a little time with them before I leave town.”
“I understand,” I said, showing them to the front door.
“I will keep you updated on any information Daniel sends to me,” Barrett offered as I pulled the door open.
I nodded, my hand tightly clenching the doorknob. This was my last chance. Daniel was going to walk out and disappear within the Daylight Coalition in Atlanta. I could stop it all right now with the right suggestion, a brilliant idea that would keep him from sinking even deeper into our world. But I said nothing as both men left. I shut the door then and stood facing it, staring out the glass front. I didn’t see them chatting, making plans, as they descended the stone steps. There were only my own swirling thoughts.
Danaus came up behind me and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder, squeezing lightly. “He’ll be fine,” the hunter said, but I didn’t hear his usual conviction embedded in those words. Neither of us thought Daniel was going to be fine. He was willingly walking into the devil’s lair because we were desperate.
“I hate this,” I said one last time, letting my eyes fall shut, because there was nothing else I could do that wouldn’t risk his life more than we already were.
Seven
My only warning was a surge of power filling the air in the narrow hallway. Flaring out my own powers, I twisted around in time to see Jabari pop into existence behind Danaus. The dark-skinned nightwalker grabbed a fistful of the hunter’s thick hair and jerked him backward, holding him close with his neck exposed.
“It’s good to see you, my Mira,” Jabari growled. I lurched forward, grabbing for Danaus, as I felt the rise of power, but came up with only empty air and fell flat on my stomach on the hardwood floor as Jabari and Danaus both disappeared. They were gone. Panic filled me as I searched my brain for a way to quickly reach the hunter when the two finally reappeared.
Backyard, Danaus whispered in my brain a second later, sending a wave of relief through my frame. I had expected the Ancient to drag Danaus back to Venice and the Main Hall of the coven. Unfortunately, that relief was short-lived, as I sensed a sharp stab of pain slice through Danaus.