Prima

Chapter Six

What just happened? Daedalus rolled off Sugar and stared at the ceiling. The sound of shattering glass had spurred him to race into his bedroom. Finding Sugar naked and falling toward a mass of mirror shards was the last thing he’d expected.

And she wondered what drew him to her. He chuckled while struggling for breath. She always did the unexpected, and for a creature his age that was as good as magic.

“What’s so funny?” She laid her head on his shoulder.

“How unpredictable you are.” He twisted to gaze at her. A flush tinged her cheeks, and sweaty curls plastered her forehead. She’d never looked more beautiful. “I thought you had knocked over a vase or something. Not attacked my furniture. Next time you don’t like the décor, just ask Stephen to move it.”

She sputtered then did her best to turn her back to him.

He struggled with his grin and forced a more somber expression. Her anger was welcome. It was better than the apathy drowning her these last few months. He knew why his mirror lay in pieces. She didn’t see the same courageous and determined woman he saw.

Where he perceived strength and spirit, she spotted weakness and deformity. So her left side was feeble? He was bald and sported pointy ears. No one was perfect. Flaws made people interesting.

If only he could make her understand. Her independent streak was admirable, but would it hurt to let him help her even a little bit? He could have carried her bags to his room, but she had intervened on Stephen’s behalf.

He curled around her, gathering her in his arms. It would have been nice if she leaned on him like the shifter couples did with each other. Silken skin caressed his. When had he last seen her naked, touched her, made love? According to his hardening cock, too long. “Babe, if breaking stuff gets you naked, then you have my permission to destroy anything you like.”

She shook in his arms. Was she crying?

Glancing over her shoulder at her face, he witnessed a marvel.

She was laughing. “I’ll take inventory tomorrow. I’m too tired right now.”

His old heart expanded at the sound of her amusement. He rubbed his cock over her backside. “Tired?”

She gasped. “Already?”

“Yes.” He kissed the back of her neck. “I’m a virile male, and I’ve been lacking attention.”

She turned to face him, caressing his stiff rod with her tiny, delicate fingers. “I’ve been terrible to you.”

He thrust his hips in rhythm with her hand. “Not as terrible as I’m going to be. The things I’m going to do to you—”

A knock interrupted him.

“What?” He snapped the question, making it clear they were busy.

“Night is fading. You can fuck her later. We have business to attend to.” Pallas’s voice carried through the closed door. At least he didn’t barge in. It wouldn’t have been the first time.

Sugar sat up, pulling a blanket over her bare breasts. “Business?”

He tugged at the blanket, but she held it firm. “Pal Robi Inc. shit. Don’t worry about it.”

“Sounds like Pallas is.”

“He worries enough for both of us.” He tried to slip his hands under the blanket but jerked away as Sugar landed a sharp slap on his fingertips. “Fine, if you’re going to be that way.” He rose to his feet, closing his jeans.

She grinned. “I need a nap. Don’t be all night. I’ll be waiting.”

Straightening his T-shirt on his torso, he hid his frown. Of all the times Sugar had to choose to reconcile their differences, she picked now. He needed to focus on his rivals or he’d find a stake between his ribs.

Or worse, between hers.

She’d rolled to face away from the door, such a non-warrior habit. He cherished all of her gentle ways and sometimes wished he could indulge in her philosophies of peace. Experience had taught him the fragile needed protection, otherwise they’d be destroyed.

He should have made her stay in Chicago with the whole pack to guard her instead of a handful. Maybe he was the fragile one and she his guardian.

Outside his room, Pallas leaned against the wall, arms crossed. “That didn’t take long.”

Without breaking his stride, Daedalus swung his arm and connected his fist to Pallas's chin. The knuckles of his two first fingers popped upon contact, but it was a small price to pay.

Pallas landed on his side, blood trickling from his lips where his fang must have gouged it, and he grunted.

“Where are the shifters?” Daedalus loomed over him. His brother had always enjoyed disrupting him during sex. It hadn’t bothered him until tonight. At last, he was tearing down some walls around Sugar’s heart. He feared she would rebuild them in his absence.

Pallas leaned on his elbow. “In the kitchen, jack-ass”

Eating, of course. A sure way to a shifter’s heart was through their stomach. He ignored Pallas’s curse. During Daedalus’s residence in this mansion, he hadn’t frequented the place but recalled the location of the kitchen and made his way there.

Sam stood at the table, preparing sandwiches. “We need to make a grocery run. We just cleared out Stephen’s food for the week.”

“Fine, you can add it to the list of things I need you to do today.” He searched the room for Stephen, but he wasn’t present. Not surprising. The young shifter liked his solitude. Daedalus really should have warned Stephen of their arrival.

The others stopped eating.

“Uh…I thought I should stay here to guard Sugar and Clementine.” Sam set his knife on the table and tossed Robert a questioning look.

“What he means is that you told us you didn’t want help.” Robert rubbed the back of his neck. “Don’t get me wrong, we want to assist, but we should define our roles here first.”

“I’m not denying Sugar protection. She’s your first priority. But since you’re here, I’ll use you where I can.” Daedalus grinned at the shifters. “Like daylight espionage.”

Esther finished her last bite. “What do you need?” Color had returned to her face.

“From the information Clementine provided, I’ve narrowed my list of suspects to five people. I have their current addresses and want to make sure they’re still residing there. Get as much intel as you can gather in one day.”

“So you haven’t been mooning over your human all this time.” Pallas entered the room, placing the table between them.

Daedalus sighed and shook his head. “Once you confirm their residence. I’ll pay them a visit and destroy them. All the ring leaders have to die. I don’t want any loose ends escaping, so we have to make a surgical strike before they get wind of my return.”

“Are all five definitely guilty?” Clementine tried to meet his stare but failed. She’d been his subject for too long to break such habits quickly.

“Does that matter?” Pallas glanced at her.

“Killing innocents is tyrannical. I want my people loyal, not terrified.” Daedalus frowned at his brother. He’d never been able to lead well and why Daedalus shouldn’t leave him in charge of Pal Robi Inc.

“Fear is a good motivator.”

“But it doesn’t breed loyalty. I don’t coerce my people to follow me, but I haven’t any problem destroying those who threaten me and mine.”

Clementine nodded as Daedalus finished the statement. “I’m here of my own free will. Though I’m not sure what I can do to help.”

“You’ve done enough.” Clementine escaped Pal Robi Inc.’s grasp a few months ago and she ran to Chicago to give him a list of possible traitors. Daedalus had taken all the shifters but Spice and Sam on a quick recon mission. It had almost proven fatal for all of them. Sam had really proven his worth to the pack that night.

Robert pursed his lips as he scrolled something on his cellphone. “How do you know they’re all guilty? The information Clementine brought wasn’t completely conclusive. It narrowed down our search, but I’m not comfortable playing executioner without irrefutable proof.”

“First, I will be the one doing the executing. Second, I don’t mind your help in the periphery, but it will be seen as a weakness if I attack their homes with shifters.” Daedalus tapped his head. “Third, my Jedi mind trick will show me their guilt or innocence, but I need to be within the same room to scan their minds properly.”

Sam stiffened next to him. “You can read our minds? Dude, you should have mentioned that before.”

“I don’t have any desire to be within your thoughts, Sam.” One couldn’t disinfect memories. Tiptoeing within a person’s head could be sticky. He didn’t care to do it unless forced.

Robert rose to his feet. “We’ll separate in three groups. Esther will go with Sam, I’ll take Stephen, and the three vampires stay here with Sugar.”

Daedalus quirked his eyebrow at the mention of Stephen. “Uh…did he offer to help?”

Robert shrugged. “Esther convinced him.”

“Like you said.” She grinned. “Your people are loyal. Once I told him why we were here, he agreed to assist.”

“Will you show the traitors any mercy?” The council chose well when they picked Pallas to coerce Daedalus into action. His brother knew how to push his buttons.

“No.”

“Good, if you do, I’ll be forced to kill you, and I wouldn’t want to make Sugar cry.”