Page 43 of Don't Bait Me (Nora Jacobs 3)

Director West looks pleased that I’d keep her in the loop, but Henry’s not as thrilled. He opens his mouth—most likely to continue arguing with me—but I’m not in the mood for his drama, so I cut him off. “Do you have anything useful you can tell me?”

He clenches his jaw and closes his hands into tight fists. “I have nothing. None of the murders have taken place on my property. I’ve interviewed all of my employees, but I have no suspects, and I can’t figure out why someone is targeting my staff. It’s why I came to the Agency for help.”

I shake my head. “They aren’t targeting your staff.”

Henry stiffens. “What do you know?”

I want to be petty and not tell him anything, but we need to stop these killings. I won’t work with Henry, but if he wants to try and find the killer, too, well, I’m not too proud to share what I know. I glance at Parker, then give Henry a small nod. “We think we’re dealing with human hunters gifted with the sight.”

Henry rears back in surprise, and Director West’s eyebrows climb her forehead. Her face lifts as if she’s not just surprised but impressed with my report. “That would make sense why all the victims have been fey.”

I nod to her, then look to Henry again. “They’ve figured out that your casino is a fey hotspot, and they’re casing it to find their victims. You need to warn your fey employees as well as your clientele of the problem. They aren’t safe there until we stop these guys.”

I’m surprised by the concerned nod Henry gives me. Even more surprising, he agrees to do as I ask. “I will. And I will give my fey employees the time off until the problem is solved. But we need to figure this out quickly. Is there anything else you can tell me that might help?”

“Not much.” I sigh. “You’re looking for two men driving a black SUV with dark, tinted windows. One of them looks like he’s in his twenties. He’s got—”

“You’ve seen him?” Henry gasps.

I nod. “Got a face from an imprint off one of the victims at the Riverfront. The man I saw was probably around six feet tall, and he’s lean with short dark hair and brown eyes. Oh, and he’s got a tattoo on his neck.” I gesture to my neck where the man’s tattoo was. “It was words, but they weren’t in English. I didn’t get a look at the other man.”

Henry’s face glazes over with a strange kind of hunger. “Show me.”

When he reaches toward my head with both hands, I slap them away. “Don’t even think about it,” I hiss. “No way am I ever letting you in my head again.”

Henry’s face turns almost fanatical. “But if you’ve seen the killer…” He steps closer to me and lifts his hands again.

“No,”I snarl, scrambling behind Parker. Do I feel bad for using him as a vampire shield? No. No, I don’t.

Parker puffs up his chest and pulls his shoulders back, ready to defend me from Henry should the obsessed vampire make one more move toward me.

When Parker blocks me from Henry, Henry becomes enraged. His eyes glow bright red, and his fangs descend. “I spared your life once, for Nora’s sake,” he hisses at Parker. “I will not be so forgiving again.”

Parker matches Henry’s aggression, letting his vampire nature come out to play, too. “You will not touch her.”

Nick is suddenly there, stepping between the two vampires, who are seconds away from killing each other. “Enough. Henry, you should leave. Nora will contact you when she has more info.”

Parker backs down immediately, but Henry turns his anger on Nick. Wrong move. One hiss, and Nick transforms into that partially shifted creature I’ve seen a couple of times before. Black scales appear on his arms, and the pupils of his eyes become vertical slits. The scariest thing about him, though, is the power he radiates. It oozes from him, saturating the room with some kind of energy that spikes fear inside me, and the temperature rises. “Do you really want to get into it with me?” he asks Henry.

I know I sure as hell wouldn’t. Nick is the most badass badass I’ve ever met. If he ever went all bestial like that on me, I have no doubt I’d piss myself.

Henry is livid, but he holds his tongue, glares at Parker, and storms out of the office with his two enforcers trailing him. The door slams behind him.

“Asshole,” Nick mutters, glaring at the door.

I turn to pat his shoulder. “Thank—” I gasp mid sentence. I can finally feel the type of shifter Nick is, and it’s shocking. “You’re a dragon!”

Nick chuckles and shifts back to his human form. “You should see your face right now.”

“You’re adragon!” I can’t seem to move past the mind-blowing revelation. “Those are supposed to be myths!”

Nick smirks. “So are sirens.”

He may have a point, but still. A dragon! “Do you shift all the way?” I ask. “Like into an actual dragon, with wings and a spiky tail? Do you breathe fire? How big are you?”

Everyone in the office laughs. Nick grips my shoulder and gives it a gentle squeeze. “I’ll show you sometime.”

My eyes grow wide at the thought of seeing him in his dragon form.

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