headquarters here because he loved the area. When most people thought of South Dakota , they thought of the crags of Mount Rushmore with its famous presidents, and they figured the whole state looked like that. But his ranch was beautiful and green—during most of the year, anyway. His estate was over a hundred and fifty acres of rolling grasslands and mature trees, with two separate creeks running through it. It wasn’t as green as his native Ireland , of course, but in the centuries he’d been alive, he’d never been anyplace that was. He loved his ranch, though. He loved raising horses, loved riding them through his land and knowing it was his land. He had other houses throughout his territory, some in much bigger cities. But he always came back here. This was home.
And now the FBI was invading his home. He didn’t trust the police; he never had. He’d grown up on the mean streets of Dublin when they were truly mean, and the Garda had never been his friend. That was another thing about South Dakota . They left a man alone. As long as he didn’t do anything to draw their attention his way, the authorities didn’t bother him. He wished he could simply tell this FBI woman to go away, but he couldn’t do that. Regardless of his personal preferences, he was responsible for thousands of vampires throughout his territory, which spanned several states. Anything he did could redound on them in unpleasant ways. So, he would see Agent Hunter, and he’d tell her what he’d already said on the phone. He didn’t know where her brother was. Speaking of which, he found it very suspect that Agent Hunter had never bothered to mention that the man she was looking for was her brother. Did she really think he didn’t have the wherewithal to find out details like that? She had surely done a data search on him. Did she think that he wouldn’t do the same on her?
Granted, his contacts within the FBI weren’t what they’d once been. For years, the vampire community’s best and most secret asset within the Bureau had been Phoebe Micheletti , a former FBI tech and later forensic consultant. Phoebe’s loyalty had been unquestioned because she was a vampire herself. But recent events in Washington , D.C. had shown that perhaps someone should have questioned her more closely. The situation had ended with Phoebe and her longtime mate both dead and the loss of an inside track at the FBI.
But there were still some vampires employed by the Bureau, especially in the technical areas where they could work at night. They might not have the contacts that Phoebe had once enjoyed, but they were still good enough to know that Kathryn Hunter wasn’t here under official FBI auspices. As for discovering that the missing man was her brother, that took his computer guy all of seven minutes to find on the Internet. Thirty minutes more, and Lucas knew all sorts of things about Hunter.
He picked up his cell phone and rang Magda .
“ Magda ,” she answered immediately. Normally, she used his title to answer when he called, but since she was currently escorting the FBI agent to his office door, she wisely didn’t want to give away that he was the one calling.
“Reach out again to our people in the FBI,” he told her. “See if they’ve got anything more on Kathryn Hunter. Personal stuff. But make sure they’re discreet, Maggie. I don’t want to set anything into motion until I know more.”
“Yes,” she said, the one word clipped and short.
Lucas disconnected, smiling. Magda absolutely hated it when he called her Maggie. Which was why he did it, of course. He heard footsteps a few seconds later, Maggie’s heels and a nearly silent tread that he assumed belonged to Agent Hunter. Nick had been waiting in the hallway for them, and he spoke as soon as the two women were close enough.
“Agent Hunter?” Nicholas said.
“Yes.” The woman’s voice was deeper than expected, sexy. Her voice over the phone had been much more businesslike. It
And now the FBI was invading his home. He didn’t trust the police; he never had. He’d grown up on the mean streets of Dublin when they were truly mean, and the Garda had never been his friend. That was another thing about South Dakota . They left a man alone. As long as he didn’t do anything to draw their attention his way, the authorities didn’t bother him. He wished he could simply tell this FBI woman to go away, but he couldn’t do that. Regardless of his personal preferences, he was responsible for thousands of vampires throughout his territory, which spanned several states. Anything he did could redound on them in unpleasant ways. So, he would see Agent Hunter, and he’d tell her what he’d already said on the phone. He didn’t know where her brother was. Speaking of which, he found it very suspect that Agent Hunter had never bothered to mention that the man she was looking for was her brother. Did she really think he didn’t have the wherewithal to find out details like that? She had surely done a data search on him. Did she think that he wouldn’t do the same on her?
Granted, his contacts within the FBI weren’t what they’d once been. For years, the vampire community’s best and most secret asset within the Bureau had been Phoebe Micheletti , a former FBI tech and later forensic consultant. Phoebe’s loyalty had been unquestioned because she was a vampire herself. But recent events in Washington , D.C. had shown that perhaps someone should have questioned her more closely. The situation had ended with Phoebe and her longtime mate both dead and the loss of an inside track at the FBI.
But there were still some vampires employed by the Bureau, especially in the technical areas where they could work at night. They might not have the contacts that Phoebe had once enjoyed, but they were still good enough to know that Kathryn Hunter wasn’t here under official FBI auspices. As for discovering that the missing man was her brother, that took his computer guy all of seven minutes to find on the Internet. Thirty minutes more, and Lucas knew all sorts of things about Hunter.
He picked up his cell phone and rang Magda .
“ Magda ,” she answered immediately. Normally, she used his title to answer when he called, but since she was currently escorting the FBI agent to his office door, she wisely didn’t want to give away that he was the one calling.
“Reach out again to our people in the FBI,” he told her. “See if they’ve got anything more on Kathryn Hunter. Personal stuff. But make sure they’re discreet, Maggie. I don’t want to set anything into motion until I know more.”
“Yes,” she said, the one word clipped and short.
Lucas disconnected, smiling. Magda absolutely hated it when he called her Maggie. Which was why he did it, of course. He heard footsteps a few seconds later, Maggie’s heels and a nearly silent tread that he assumed belonged to Agent Hunter. Nick had been waiting in the hallway for them, and he spoke as soon as the two women were close enough.
“Agent Hunter?” Nicholas said.
“Yes.” The woman’s voice was deeper than expected, sexy. Her voice over the phone had been much more businesslike. It
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