Page 96 of The Rogue's Curse

“I saw it,” Olivia said numbly.

“Are you okay?” Dani asked.

Olivia nodded, though she tossed a scowl toward Paris as if he was somehow responsible for the bad news. “I’m okay,” she said.

“Is there anything I can do?” Danielle asked.

Paris cleared his throat and said, “I’m going to step out. We have more work to be done.”

Guilt washed over him as he left Olivia behind. Misha frowned at him. “This complicates things,” he said quietly.

“You think?” Paris shook his head. “I’m sorry to be snarky. You should get some rest. I’ll deal with this.”

After stealing a quick kiss, he watched Misha retreat down the hall. Paris had a long list of tasks that needed his attention, but instead he walked into his office and closed the door.

If I had only…

What if…

Could it be different if…

The voices seemed to gang up on him, singing that same song of uncertainty that had haunted him endlessly since Carrigan Shea arrived in Atlanta. There was a part of him, reckless and wild, that wanted to take Georgina’s stupid fucking medallion, drive right through the damned barrier, and challenge Shea one-on-one. To hell with the consequences.

And it would end just as it had before, if not worse. Then his court would have the same problems they had now, with one less ally.

Still, it felt wrong to sit still, to calculate and scheme while innocent people were getting hurt. Months ago, Jean-Michel had shaken them all up with a simple statement of truth. Even before they realized Shea was behind all their recent troubles, Jean-Michel had grimly pointed out that their enemies did not play by the same rules they did. And as long as the Auberon valued humanity, as long as they were hesitant to shed innocent blood, they would always be at a disadvantage.

Objectively, he knew that the deaths of the doppelgangers—poor Andrew and Tanya—were not his fault. They lay squarely at the feet of Carrigan Shea and his murderous followers. But if he had been successful in killing Shea weeks ago, or if he had left Misha behind to chase down Lilah and Kieran, or perhaps if he had been willing to hand himself over…

Shoving down the darker thoughts, he spent the next few hours poring over their rosters. He made half a dozen sketches, grouping their veterans and newbies differently. This time, he would take Sasha or Nikko as backup, so that if he failed, they would finish the job. There would be layers of contingencies this time.

He was visualizing their movements through the building when someone rapped on his door. Before he could answer, the door flew open, and Danielle Pierce stormed inside. She smelled faintly of wine, although she wasn’t drunk. Maybe she’d been comforting Olivia the best way she knew how.

“I want you to make me a vampire so I can help you fight,” she said, plopping down in the chair across from him. Her heartbeat was quick and noisy, betraying her agitation.

“Hello, Danielle. Good afternoon to you, too. I’m well, thanks for asking,” he said.

“Fuck off,” she said, managing in her uniquely Danielle way to make it sound friendly. She reached over his desk and put her hand on his notebook, covering his sketch. “Turn me.”

He set down his pen and pushed back from his desk. “Tell me why. Why should I risk the wrath of your sister?”

“First of all, I’m an adult, and Olivia isn’t in charge of me,” she said.

“True, but considering how much she runs around here, I’m not particularly interested in upsetting her unnecessarily while the world is burning down,” he said.

“Fair enough. If it helps, she’s already super pissed at you,” Danielle said.

“I know,” Paris said. “Is she being obedient, at least?”

“She said she’s letting Nikko sleep but not because you told her so,” Danielle said wryly. A faint smile tugged at her mouth, but it evaporated quickly. “They’re going to keep hurting people. I think they want Nikko himself.”

“I know they do,” Paris said. “When we encountered them at the Mausoleum, they said as much. Their motives are not mysterious.”

Dani shook her head. “Turn me. I could go with him and pretend to be Olivia. We could set a trap and draw them out,” she said eagerly.

Maybe she was drunk after all. “You don’t know what you’re asking.”

“Gee, I thought I was asking you to turn me into a vampire,” she said. “What was I asking?”

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