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was more certain than ever he was an ogre.
    I unsheathed the blade, all twenty-eight inches of hand-folded steel, and the sword sang to me of age and violence. I plopped my credit card on the counter and thanked all the half-gods I knew it wasn’t declined, because I already had the weapon slung over my back.
    “Let’s go kill a vampire, shall we?”
    If the old man understood me, he didn’t seem to care.
     
    The Columbia was one of several upscale hotels that popped up around New York from time to time. This one was owned by the Rain family and had been designed around the concept of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The walls were lined with redwood tree trunks, and light was filtered through dappled green sconces to give the impression of sunlight through tree leaves. The lobby floor was Plexiglas over river rock, with fresh water flowing under guests’ feet. Instead of music there was the ambient noise of babbling water and birds.
    It made the wolf in me very, very happy.
    My vampire half, on the other hand, was suspicious of even fake sunlight.
    I’d managed to convince an off-duty bike messenger to sell me his empty travel tube, which hid the katana perfectly. It’s amazing what you can get when you show a little cleavage. Or offer to pay twice the value of what something is worth.
    Now I was carrying a concealed weapon and brimming with murderous intent. I’d missed a call from Tyler while negotiating with the bike messenger, and since we’d already reached the hotel, I couldn’t call him back. What could I say if I did? Sorry, Detective, I need to kill someone quickly, but once that’s done, can we get to the smooching?
    I doubt he’d appreciate that.
    Holden hung back, lurking in the fringes and doing what vampires do best by being completely unseen in a room filled with people. The lobby was a mix of real guests and tourists who wanted to photograph the now-famous lobby. I couldn’t do Charlie in down here, so it looked like I’d need to go to his room after all.
    I was probably the only woman alive who was pouting about going to Charlie Conaway’s hotel room.
    Striding up to the front desk, which was made of driftwood set between two totem poles that rose up to the ceiling, I threw my shoulders back and gave the clerk a wide smile brimming over with ditzy charm.
    “Hi!” I inched closer and fixed him with a meaningful look. I might not have been able to enthrall humans, but if I focused hard enough, I could be more persuasive than usual. “I’m here for Charlie Conaway.”
    The clerk smiled in a knowing way and winked for good measure. It was then I realized my phrasing made me sound a bit more professional than I’d meant. If blushing was more than a fleeting rarity for me because of how much blood it required, I would have felt my face heat up then. As it was, I accepted this was what it took to get me past the gatekeeper.
    Not to mention, if Charlie’s victims were under the thrall, they would have used similar possessive language. I probably wasn’t the first, but I would be the last.
    “Penthouse Three.” He nodded towards the elevator bay, whose doors were rescued barn wood instead of typical gold. “Just take it to the top.”
    Holden met me at the elevator doors but stayed silent until they shushed closed behind us.
    “Who is Charlie to you?” I asked, breaking the quiet lull.
    He stiffened. Getting a physical reaction out of him was a sure sign I was on the right track. I’d suspected his attitude tonight had to be the result of something more than professional interest in my contract. The almost giddy behavior, juxtaposed with bouts of surliness, made me wonder what the two vampires meant to each other.
    “It doesn’t matter.”
    “It does matter. I’ve never seen you so moody before. I’ve never seen you happy before.”
    He smiled. “You’ve seen me happy before.”
    I stared at him, not needing words to make my point.
    “I’ll confess, most of my amusement