eighteen.
I returned the grin. "Feel free to join the party. I'm glad you left the vampires at home."
"Who said I did?"
I followed her line of vision to the other side of the road where I had stood a few minutes ago. Of course, Aidan and Amber were there. They must have teleported, but they wouldn't have found me if Cass didn't reveal my exact whereabouts.
"What happened? Did you finally decide to get a sniffer dog?" Amber asked as she reached us.
"Don't mind her. She isn't always this insufferable," Aidan said. "Let's find the girl. Where is she?"
I pointed vaguely down the street. "Follow me. I hope you're fast because I'm not slowing down for you."
"You sound like my brother." Aidan laughed. Cass joined in, and I wondered whether she cracked up at his joke or the fact that she knew something he didn't. I sprinted through the dimly lit streets without paying attention whether the others followed behind. Sofia's scent grew stronger, enveloping my senses. My heartbeat sped up when it never did. No physical extortion ever bothered me—or provided much of a challenge—but this run did.
"We're there," I whispered, stopping in front of an old building not far from the beach.
"She's inside?" Amber's voice sounded hopeful.
I nodded.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's roll." Cass grabbed the large doorknob when Aidan held her back.
"You can't just barge in there. She's a mortal. You're going to scare her to death."
"I'll lure her out," I said.
"How?" Amber eyed me carefully.
"Just trust him," Cass whispered.
For a moment, the vampires fell silent, weighing my words. And then Aidan nodded.
I took a deep breath and pushed the door open. The entrance hall looked like no hotel I had ever seen with its faux-exotic theme in the form of carpets covering both the floor and the walls, and old lamps set up to illuminate the corners. Behind the counter, the night receptionist—a dark haired guy in his twenties—slept soundly. I inched closer and inspected his features, paying attention to the fine details because fine details were my specialty.
My tongue flicked over my lips as I concentrated. I pictured myself, from the snake tattoo across my entire chest and abdomen to my green eyes and dark hair, and then the picture slowly started to shift. My body became thinner and lost a few inches in height. The jeans and shirt I had been wearing all day changed into black slacks and a blue blazer with barely visible grease stains covering the front.
Even though I felt the same inside, I had shape shifted so many times before that I didn't need to look at myself in the mirror to know I looked exactly like the guy still sleeping in his chair. Time to make sure he'd stay that way. With my thumb and index finger, I touched his shoulder and pushed in the pressure point that would knock him out for a while, giving me enough time to persuade Sofia to leave her room. Without so much as a groan, his shape slumped into his chair and his head rolled back. I hid his thin body behind the desk.
My shoes made a squishing sound as I started up the stairs, following Sofia's scent to her room. I stopped to listen in front of her door. My demon ears picked up her shallow breathing. She was alone and asleep though something told me she was afraid of the pictures inside her mind. There were two options: either knock and risk waking up the other guests, or take her by surprise and not give her a chance to think clearly. Option two made sense to me so I picked the lock and opened the door slowly, then closed it behind me.
My eyes adjusted to the sudden darkness instantly and I looking around me. The room was small and tidy, the faintest scent of fried chicken hung in the air. Sofia lay on the bed to my right, pale legs peering from under the covers where her nightshirt had rode up her thighs. Her dark hair framed her face with high cheekbones and soft lips. I inched closer, my fingers reaching out to touch those lips, to see whether they were
I returned the grin. "Feel free to join the party. I'm glad you left the vampires at home."
"Who said I did?"
I followed her line of vision to the other side of the road where I had stood a few minutes ago. Of course, Aidan and Amber were there. They must have teleported, but they wouldn't have found me if Cass didn't reveal my exact whereabouts.
"What happened? Did you finally decide to get a sniffer dog?" Amber asked as she reached us.
"Don't mind her. She isn't always this insufferable," Aidan said. "Let's find the girl. Where is she?"
I pointed vaguely down the street. "Follow me. I hope you're fast because I'm not slowing down for you."
"You sound like my brother." Aidan laughed. Cass joined in, and I wondered whether she cracked up at his joke or the fact that she knew something he didn't. I sprinted through the dimly lit streets without paying attention whether the others followed behind. Sofia's scent grew stronger, enveloping my senses. My heartbeat sped up when it never did. No physical extortion ever bothered me—or provided much of a challenge—but this run did.
"We're there," I whispered, stopping in front of an old building not far from the beach.
"She's inside?" Amber's voice sounded hopeful.
I nodded.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's roll." Cass grabbed the large doorknob when Aidan held her back.
"You can't just barge in there. She's a mortal. You're going to scare her to death."
"I'll lure her out," I said.
"How?" Amber eyed me carefully.
"Just trust him," Cass whispered.
For a moment, the vampires fell silent, weighing my words. And then Aidan nodded.
I took a deep breath and pushed the door open. The entrance hall looked like no hotel I had ever seen with its faux-exotic theme in the form of carpets covering both the floor and the walls, and old lamps set up to illuminate the corners. Behind the counter, the night receptionist—a dark haired guy in his twenties—slept soundly. I inched closer and inspected his features, paying attention to the fine details because fine details were my specialty.
My tongue flicked over my lips as I concentrated. I pictured myself, from the snake tattoo across my entire chest and abdomen to my green eyes and dark hair, and then the picture slowly started to shift. My body became thinner and lost a few inches in height. The jeans and shirt I had been wearing all day changed into black slacks and a blue blazer with barely visible grease stains covering the front.
Even though I felt the same inside, I had shape shifted so many times before that I didn't need to look at myself in the mirror to know I looked exactly like the guy still sleeping in his chair. Time to make sure he'd stay that way. With my thumb and index finger, I touched his shoulder and pushed in the pressure point that would knock him out for a while, giving me enough time to persuade Sofia to leave her room. Without so much as a groan, his shape slumped into his chair and his head rolled back. I hid his thin body behind the desk.
My shoes made a squishing sound as I started up the stairs, following Sofia's scent to her room. I stopped to listen in front of her door. My demon ears picked up her shallow breathing. She was alone and asleep though something told me she was afraid of the pictures inside her mind. There were two options: either knock and risk waking up the other guests, or take her by surprise and not give her a chance to think clearly. Option two made sense to me so I picked the lock and opened the door slowly, then closed it behind me.
My eyes adjusted to the sudden darkness instantly and I looking around me. The room was small and tidy, the faintest scent of fried chicken hung in the air. Sofia lay on the bed to my right, pale legs peering from under the covers where her nightshirt had rode up her thighs. Her dark hair framed her face with high cheekbones and soft lips. I inched closer, my fingers reaching out to touch those lips, to see whether they were
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