“If she does, I know it’ll take you about one second to reach her. Don’t worry; I haven’t forgotten how fast you are.” There was an almost mocking tone in Gabriel’s voice, and Zane didn’t appreciate it.

He cursed under his breath. “Why am I even your second-in-command when you never consider any of my suggestions?”

“I always consider all your suggestions,” Gabriel disagreed.

Zane tossed him a disbelieving look. “You never adopt any of them.”

“Really?” Gabriel gave a crooked smirk, his scar nearly jumping off his face. He pulled out his cell and pressed speed dial before he held it to his ear.

“Gabriel?”

Zane could hear both sides of the short conversation.

“We’re in position.” Then Gabriel flipped his phone shut and pocketed it.

“What was that?”

“Insurance.”

Before Zane could ask what he meant by that, he noticed more figures emerging from behind another building. Others yet came out of an alley. Reinforcements.

Zane raised an eyebrow in inquiry.

“They’re all Scanguards,” Gabriel replied without taking his eyes off Francine and the warehouse. “You didn’t think I was going to leave Yvette’s life in the hands of one witch and just the six of us?” He tsked, then chuckled to himself.

“I’m glad you find that funny,” Zane snapped. The humor of the situation was lost on him.

Gabriel shrugged. “Francine only knows about the six of us. So if she is trying to communicate with Haven and warn him, he’ll think it’s just six and prepare accordingly. But if we come at him with a force of another dozen, he’ll be overwhelmed. They’ll be surrounding the building as soon as Francine is inside.”

“And what if she can’t get inside?”

“She has sufficient powers to open a door. So, have a little faith.”

“And may I ask why you’re letting her go in the first place?”

“Haven might recognize her. Since she was friends with his mother and knew him as a child, he might not perceive her as a threat. She’s the only one who’ll be able to get close enough to him to use the potion to disable him.”

Zane hated to admit it, but the theory made sense. But he kept his mouth shut. He wasn’t one to praise others. Besides, it was too early to tell if the ploy worked. He closed his eyes for a moment and took in his surroundings with his remaining senses. Over a dozen vampires were in the vicinity as well as one human, Oliver. He recognized several of the other Scanguards vampires, all well-trained bodyguards who would do anything for their colleagues.

While the inner core—Samson, Amaury, Gabriel, Thomas, Eddie, Yvette, and Zane himself—were like a close-knit family, the other dozens of vampires who worked for Scanguards were the relatives who surrounded them. When push came to shove, they could be relied upon.

The sound of a door closing made Zane look back at the building. The witch was gone. She was inside. At Gabriel’s signal, everybody moved closer, stealthily gliding through the night. They approached their target without a sound, slowing their breaths, quieting their steps. It was like an army of shadows descended upon the dilapidated warehouse which looked like it had been abandoned and slated for demolition years ago and then forgotten.

They waited for several minutes, giving Francine enough time to do what she needed to— immobilize Haven with the potion. Once he was out of commission, they could storm in and get Yvette and Kimberly out. But instead of going in after Francine, the entrance door suddenly opened—and Francine stepped out!

“What happened?” Zane hissed, startling her.

“Shit, you scared me,” she huffed out.

He spotted the potion vial in her hand—it was still full and unbroken. “What the fuck happened?” he growled. Had she ratted them out to their enemy?

“Wards.”

“What?”

“He’s put wards around several rooms. I can’t get in any further. I could sense he was there, but I’m not sure where. I went as far as some sort of living room, but it was empty. But I could feel the witchcraft in the building. It was all around.” She paused and took in a breath. “We need a dog or a cat.”

“A what?”

“I thought you had superior hearing, so why do you keep asking me to repeat myself?” she bit out through clenched teeth. It appeared he was getting on her nerves, as she was on his.

“What do you need a dog or cat for?”

She glanced first at him then at Gabriel, who’d sidled up to them. “Animals are unaffected by magic. They can get through wards.”