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mayor being turned, but after I explained the KM to him and what we’re planning, he agreed to sit tight. He wants to be included on whatever we do, though.” Creek shrugged. “The kid
is
his. I can’t say I blame him or disagree. Her name is Mariela, by the way.”
    “Whose name?” Annika asked.
    “The child. Preacher called her Mariela. Also, he told me the mayor wanted him to meet with her at her office. I told him to go but keep our meeting a secret. Who knows, maybe we’ll get some info off him the next time I visit.”
    She turned to Octavian. “Or you can find out what she wanted with him, assuming it went well with the mayor.”
    He almost laughed. “It did. Easier than anticipated, actually. The intel was dead on. She ate up the story about my past and hired me on the spot for the assistant job. As long as she perceives me to be loyal, I should be fine.”
    Annika nodded. “Good. Both situations are controlled, then. How much longer before you find out who sired her?”
    “She needs companionship and seems very willing to confide in me. Twenty-four hours. Maybe less. I can confirm her sire was House of Paole.”
    “I knew it.” Creek shifted to lean on his elbow. “When I saw her that first night, it was like she was a blank space. Couldn’t sense a thing. Preacher told me she tried to get him to sire her, but he refused her. I believe him. He has no love for her.”
    Something buzzed. Twice. He realized it was his and Annika’s phones. She reached into her jacket and pulled hers out as he did the same. She held the screen up so he could see the matching alert scrolling across the front. “New police scanner app. Part of the last KM upgrade to all communication systems.”
    She pressed her index finger to the screen, then scanned the message, shaking her head. “Not good. A body’s just been found in an alley off of Biscayne Boulevard. Time of death is within the last two hours.” Creek followed her words on his screen, surprised to be getting the same info she was at the same time.
    He nodded. “Cause of death appears to be puncture wounds to the neck and exsanguination.”
    She made eye contact with him as he looked up. “There goes the quiet. We’ve got a rogue vampire.”



Chapter Eight
    F i’s driver brought the car to a stop in front of the pride headquarters private entrance. On the way, she’d made a call to Chief Vernadetto about getting more background on Remo. Pete had been happy to help, even offering to meet over lunch to discuss his findings. Such a nice guy. She felt fortunate to have met him. There had to be something she could do for him in return.
    Her driver opened her door and she slipped out, leaving her bodyguard behind to discuss her schedule with the driver. She moved on autopilot, her thoughts turning to Chrysabelle’s news. Fi’s heart broke every time she thought about it. She couldn’t imagine being pregnant
and
Doc not loving her, or worse, stalking her like she was a snack. Poor Chrysabelle. After everything she’d endured, now this? Fi resolved right then to stick with her and be there for whatever Chrysabelle might need. Besides, what good was being the pride leader’s mate if she couldn’t help a friend?
    She sighed with the realization that Chrysabelle’s secret was now her secret too. How was she going to keep it from Doc? That was going to be tough. She told Docevery—she smacked into a hard, warm body. A step back and she looked up into the eyes of…
    Remo.
    He grinned at her. “Hello, Fiona.”
    Barely controlling the urge to shiver, she looked behind her, but her driver had already disappeared and apparently her bodyguard had gone with him. She forced a smile to cover her nerves. “Sorry for running into you. I have a lot on my mind and I wasn’t paying attention.” She started to move around him. “Good night.”
    He stepped into her path. “What’s got you so flustered?”
    “Nothing. I’m fine.” She made the smile bigger, causing