eyes were red, and the dark circles around them indicated she had not gotten a decent night’s sleep for a while. “I had hoped he was with you. Oh, God, he’s been gone for nearly a week now!” She broke off on a sob.
He furrowed his brow. “Why wasn’t I notified sooner? Why did you allow him to venture out on his own?”
Her bottom lip trembled and she looked as if she were on the verge of breaking down again. “You make him sound like a child. He’s a man now and free to come and go as he pleases.”
“Then why are you so worried?”
“Because I feel that something has happened to him. We talk nearly every day. When I didn’t hear from him for a few days, I knew something was wrong. I went by his apartment and from the looks of things, he hadn’t been there in a while. The last time we spoke, he was upset. He ... he wanted to know about you.”
“This is the first time he has asked about me?” A searing pain lanced through Niccolo’s body. It hurt like hell to know that while he thought about Jagger daily, his son gave him little thought. His eyes narrowed. “What did you tell him about me?”
“Don’t give me that look. I’ve never spoken a word against you. I told him who you were. He was shocked to learn of his powerful connections. I’d congratulate you, but you already know you and your brothers are quite famous in the immortal circles.”
“Sasha, your sarcasm isn’t helping matters.”
She sighed. “You’re right. I’m a bit stressed right now. May I sit down?”
“Since you’ve already found your way into my home, you should have made yourself comfortable. Did you teleport inside?”
“No. Actually your cleaning lady left the door slightly ajar when she was bringing her cleaning supplies from her vehicle. I hid while she cleaned.”
“If you didn’t use your powers to get in, how did you get past the guard?”
“He turned me away at first, but this older couple who lives here apparently saw me and asked me why I looked so distressed. I told them I wanted to surprise my brother with a visit and we hadn’t seen each other for a long time. They vouched for me with the security guard.” She sounded quite pleased with herself.
“What? No magic? You always seem to use that to get what you want,” he taunted.
Her face turned bright red. “I know what you’re implying. However, as you’ve pointed out, you don’t need my sarcasm, so I certainly don’t need your nasty innuendoes.”
She was right. The most important thing right now was discovering Jagger’s whereabouts.
“Are you positive he’s missing? Maybe he just needed to get away for a few days to think things through.”
“No. He wouldn’t go away without letting me know. He knows how I worry about him. There’s something else happening here.”
“What?”
“I think he wants to be more in tune with his vampire side. He was asking me questions I couldn’t answer.”
“Well, has he had his first taste of blood?”
She frowned. “I don’t know but if he hasn’t I’m to blame. I never encouraged him to explore his vampire side. But he never brought up until a week ago. I’m scared for him; he’s not quite thirty and still hasn’t fully grasped the mechanics of his powers.”
Niccolo tried to think of what all this could mean. Vampires needed to feed, and though Jagger was only half vampire, it didn’t make the need any less. The consequences of a full blood not feeding were dire but he wasn’t sure how that would affect his son. “Why have you not allowed him to learn of his vampire traits?”
“I thought if he suppressed that side of him, it would decrease the likelihood of him being tracked down by your enemies. I wish I’d done things differently. I fear I’ve left him vulnerable to…” she covered her mouth to hold back a muffled cry.
“There’s something you’re not telling me.”
“The night he came to me, he seemed ... sick.”
“Sick? We can’t get sick unless ...
He furrowed his brow. “Why wasn’t I notified sooner? Why did you allow him to venture out on his own?”
Her bottom lip trembled and she looked as if she were on the verge of breaking down again. “You make him sound like a child. He’s a man now and free to come and go as he pleases.”
“Then why are you so worried?”
“Because I feel that something has happened to him. We talk nearly every day. When I didn’t hear from him for a few days, I knew something was wrong. I went by his apartment and from the looks of things, he hadn’t been there in a while. The last time we spoke, he was upset. He ... he wanted to know about you.”
“This is the first time he has asked about me?” A searing pain lanced through Niccolo’s body. It hurt like hell to know that while he thought about Jagger daily, his son gave him little thought. His eyes narrowed. “What did you tell him about me?”
“Don’t give me that look. I’ve never spoken a word against you. I told him who you were. He was shocked to learn of his powerful connections. I’d congratulate you, but you already know you and your brothers are quite famous in the immortal circles.”
“Sasha, your sarcasm isn’t helping matters.”
She sighed. “You’re right. I’m a bit stressed right now. May I sit down?”
“Since you’ve already found your way into my home, you should have made yourself comfortable. Did you teleport inside?”
“No. Actually your cleaning lady left the door slightly ajar when she was bringing her cleaning supplies from her vehicle. I hid while she cleaned.”
“If you didn’t use your powers to get in, how did you get past the guard?”
“He turned me away at first, but this older couple who lives here apparently saw me and asked me why I looked so distressed. I told them I wanted to surprise my brother with a visit and we hadn’t seen each other for a long time. They vouched for me with the security guard.” She sounded quite pleased with herself.
“What? No magic? You always seem to use that to get what you want,” he taunted.
Her face turned bright red. “I know what you’re implying. However, as you’ve pointed out, you don’t need my sarcasm, so I certainly don’t need your nasty innuendoes.”
She was right. The most important thing right now was discovering Jagger’s whereabouts.
“Are you positive he’s missing? Maybe he just needed to get away for a few days to think things through.”
“No. He wouldn’t go away without letting me know. He knows how I worry about him. There’s something else happening here.”
“What?”
“I think he wants to be more in tune with his vampire side. He was asking me questions I couldn’t answer.”
“Well, has he had his first taste of blood?”
She frowned. “I don’t know but if he hasn’t I’m to blame. I never encouraged him to explore his vampire side. But he never brought up until a week ago. I’m scared for him; he’s not quite thirty and still hasn’t fully grasped the mechanics of his powers.”
Niccolo tried to think of what all this could mean. Vampires needed to feed, and though Jagger was only half vampire, it didn’t make the need any less. The consequences of a full blood not feeding were dire but he wasn’t sure how that would affect his son. “Why have you not allowed him to learn of his vampire traits?”
“I thought if he suppressed that side of him, it would decrease the likelihood of him being tracked down by your enemies. I wish I’d done things differently. I fear I’ve left him vulnerable to…” she covered her mouth to hold back a muffled cry.
“There’s something you’re not telling me.”
“The night he came to me, he seemed ... sick.”
“Sick? We can’t get sick unless ...
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