“There’s no life in the immediate vicinity,” he said.

“But plenty of the dead if that smell is anything to go by,” Jackson muttered. “I wonder if this was one of the feeding areas for the red cloaks.”

“Feeding areas?” Sam’s question was somewhat remote. His attention was still on the building’s interior.

“Luke was using animals of various kinds to feed his army—a fact we discovered when we tried to rescue the three witches he’d kidnapped,” Jackson said. “And it strikes me as odd that there was no outcry, given the number of animals that must have gone missing over the past year or so.”

“Vampires can go a fair amount of time before the need for blood becomes all consuming,” I said. “If it’s the same for the cloaks, then the disappearances could have been spread out.”

“It is the same for the infected.” Sam’s voice was clipped. “And people did notice. We just managed to keep it out of the mainstream press.”

“PIT seems to be doing a lot of that lately. And yes,” Jackson added, “I know you have no real choice.”

I sidestepped the puddle of metal and stopped beside the two men. My arm brushed Sam’s, and awareness surged again; this time it was an all-too-brief flicker that contained far more heat than the flames that towered above us. Rather surprisingly, he made no attempt to pull away. Maybe almost dying for a second time had mellowed him somewhat.

And maybe tomorrow vampires would fly.

I peered into the gloom. Beyond the wall remnants and the gently swinging fittings and wires, there was little else to see but rubbish. There certainly weren’t any bones or bodies. If the building was another of Luke’s feeding areas, then it was happening in another portion of the structure. I doubted it, though. The smell might be potent, but it still wasn’t strong enough for the source to be anywhere close.

“I can’t sense any additional magic,” I said, “but given the strength of the main spell, I might not. Are you familiar with the building’s layout?”

“I’ve been here once or twice.” Sam handed me the flashlight, then grabbed the windowsill and very quickly hauled himself up and into the building. Dust bloomed as he landed, a choking cloud of black that briefly snatched him from sight. “Em, you’re next.”

I handed him the flashlight, then stepped into Jackson’s cupped hands. In very little time, I was standing next to Sam. Jackson joined us a heartbeat later.

“This way.”