“If you truly don’t want that to happen, then take her back to her grandmother’s house in Scotland and think about what comes next.”

Torija nodded, then pulled up her sleeve. “Do you know what the green in my veins is? Is it poison?”

The Reaper looked at it closely. “Ask Sybil. She will tell you everything.”

“Thank you, Reaper. I’m—”

He grasped her arm, and Torija noticed the green was creeping further up her arm. “I don’t need empty apologies, Vampire, none of your victims do. They need to see action. Now go and try to think only of Daisy MacDougall.”

* * *

“Yes, we are all fine,” Amelia said. “I’m just worried about Daisy and you.” Amelia paced up and down her bedroom. She’d been not so patiently waiting for Byron to call for hours.

“I’m sorry for not calling sooner, mia cara. We have tried all the places Victorija might have taken her, but nothing yet. I don’t know why, but I have a gut feeling Victorija won’t harm her, or at least not yet.”

“Why do you think that?”

“She’s not at the Dred castle, and our information says that Drasas and Anka are looking for her, too. In any event, we’ve met up with an old friend called Brogan who can help us track her.”

“Brogan? Doesn’t sound very French.”

Byron laughed softly. “She’s not, she’s one hundred percent Irish werewolf, but she’s an excellent artist, so Paris suits her well.”

“So what is Brogan going to do?” Amelia asked.

“She works as a private investigator, tracker, fixer of sorts.”

“Brogan doesn’t work on the right side of the law, then?”

“Hmm…treads a fine line, I’d say. Anyway, her wolf is the best tracker I know. I’m sure we’ll find Daisy. I better go—tell Sera to keep on her toes.”

“I will. Bye, sweetheart, I love you.”

“I love you too, mia cara.”

When she hung up the phone, there was a knock at her door.

“Knock, knock, can we come in?”

It was Sera and, she presumed, Katie. “Yes.”

They came through the door with big smiles. “We’ve come to distract you from worrying,” Sera said. “Well, we need to distract Katie, too, because she’s pining for Alex.”

Katie gave her a mock glare. “I am not. It’s just the first time Alex has been away on a mission like this.”

“I’ll keep both of you occupied. We brought Monopoly.” Sera held up the box.

“Come on then. Byron’s just called.”

“What did she say?” Katie said as she sat on the bed.

“They’re all fine, and Byron says you’re to keep on your toes, Sera.”

Sera rolled her eyes, sat on the bed, and set the Monopoly box down. “She never trusts me. So, what did she say?”