Immortals After Dark 03 - No Rest for the Wicked

perceive the sting of hurt feelings from being left out, either. No, not at all. “Well, Regin, it happens that I didn’t mind ditching the phone since you’d locked the Crazy Frog ring tone into it.”
    “Me? Who? Whaa? ”
    “Tell Emma congratulations for me,” Kaderin said. “Is Myst around?” Maybe Kaderin could uncover why Myst had been so tempted by that vampire general—without revealing that she herself had been pleasured by one.
    “She’s busy.”
    “With what? When will she be able to talk?”
    “Dunno.” Another gum bubble popped. “So the Hie cranks up in two days. Are you ready?”
    Another change of subject?
    “Everything is in preparation,” Kaderin answered. All her supplies were packed and her transportation confirmed. That had proved easy enough. The Accord—a federation of twelve Valkyrie covens—had agreed that they needed the capability to move readily about the world—especially Kaderin in the upcoming Hie. So they’d established a network of helicopters and jets available on most continents.
    Pilots would be on call for Kaderin in all the key capitals. As she’d specified, they would be demons, and they wouldn’t ask a lot of questions.
    Naturally, the Valkyrie, with their lavish sensibilities, had only the best. Any competitors in the Hie worth their salt would be taking advantage of modern modes of transportation. But not all would enjoy luxury helicopters and Learjets.
    “So where’s your first stop?” Regin asked.
    “All the competitors have to meet at Riora’s temple.” The goddess Riora was the patroness of the Hie. It was her competition—she made the rules; she decided the prizes.
    “Kind of like an orientation?”
    “I suppose.” Kaderin’s first jaunt would be from the exclusive and modern jetport at the LondonCityAirport to Riora’s ancient temple, hidden in an enchanted forest. The temple had been built before humans began keeping their histories and was found only with secret coordinates.
    Kaderin might as well be going back in time, and yet she’d be traveling there in an Augusta 109, the fastest and most richly appointed civilian helicopter in the world.
    Regin sounded as if she were typing on a keyboard. “You know, the results of this Hie are supposed to be posted in real time to the Net. Which is convenient, since you’ve never sent word back to us about how you’re doing—even though we got you all those carrier pigeons. By the way, I adored and named all of them, and you... you just tossed them.”
    “Internet results will be interesting, and the birds, though beloved, preferred to be free.” Pigeon drama. Scenes like that one reminded Kaderin why she worked alone.

7
    A t sunset, Sebastian took a shower the only way he could in his castle—with melted snow water caught in a cistern and piped freezing cold into a small tiled and drained room. After that he dressed in new clothes. He shined his sword, sheathed it with a belt at his hips, and sat on the edge of the bed, prepared to test his theory.
    Everything depended on his success. I must find her to have her. His hand was damp around the hilt of his sword.
    Then he frowned. If this could work, he didn’t want to appear adversarial to her. He could just see himself materializing at a family dinner—the overgrown vampire with the very big sword. He unstrapped the belt, placed it aside, then sat once more.
    This was all about sense detail. Focus. He concentrated on her for long moments. Wipe everything from your mind but her...
    Nothing. He lay back.
    Imagine seeing her beautiful face once more. Her elfin features, the delicate chin and high cheekbones, the way she’d gazed up at him with those smoldering hazel eyes.
    He slowed his breathing. Recall how she felt beneath you. Her body was soft, giving, a perfect fit to his.
    The remembered scent of her hair and skin called him as sharply as a cry for him would. He began tracing, feeling himself leaving the cold of his castle and moving toward warmth, having no idea what he would find.

    Temple of the Goddess Riora, Codru Forest, Moldova

    Day 1 of the Twelfth Talisman’s Hie

    The usual suspects, Kaderin thought with boredom. From her perch on a balcony rail, she surveyed the assembly gathered below her in the gallery of Riora’s temple.
    As with most temples, Riora’s sported the obligatory marble Palladian style, with dishes of fire and candles to light it. Yet that’s where the similarity ended. Tucked deep within the heart