Sex and the Single Vampire

All of which added up to some pretty bad trouble for Allegra the Summoner.

Beloved? Christian's voice was sleepy, but infinitely reassuring in my mind. I wasn't alone! You are frightened?

Very, I answered, twisting my fingers into my purse. I've done something stupid.

I felt his sigh even before his words caressed my mind. Foolish, perhaps, but never stupid, Beloved.

"Um, Phillippa, what a surprise. I hadn't expected to see you here."

I'm in Guarda's office. With Eduardo and the hermit I told you about. I think they want to force me to go live in their town house. They don't seem to be inclined to let me walk out of here, Christian.

His silence was almost as loud as his second sigh. I believe I will withdraw my objection over the word stupid.

"Indeed." The hermit turned to Guarda. "She is speaking to someone who is at a distance from us. With whom has she had contact?"

My eyes widened. How did she know I was talking to Christian? And could she tell who he was? The need to protect him was very strong, strong enough that I closed down my mind to him.

I understand, Allegra. It is still daylight; I cannot come to rescue you.

I swallowed hard. Christian seemed so normal to me, I'd forgotten that he couldn't go out in daylight.

I will send help.

Just the touch of his mind in mine reminded me that I was not a victim; I was a woman in charge of her life. I raised my chin a notch and stared down my nose at Phillippa.

"Really? How very interesting." Guarda looked at me with speculation, then edged around her desk and approached me. I backed up until she stopped a few feet away from me. The ward I'd sketched in the air suddenly flared to life, glowing a shimmering gold in the pale, watery light of a rainy November afternoon.

"Wards!" Guarda hissed, then shot me a look of loathing that I won't soon forget.

Phillippa walked a circle around me. As she reached each ward, it burst into light, fading when she passed its range of protection.

"She is guarded," Phillippa acknowledged. "Still, there may be a way."

Uh-oh. I didn't like the sound of that. I prayed Christian was going to summon the fire department or other emergency service, because I had a worrisome notion that whatever Phillippa was planning, it wasn't going to be fun.

"Um. You know, I think I'll just be leaving. We can talk about this whole Trust thing another day. My fiancé will be waiting for me."

They ignored me to huddle together and speak in tones so quiet I couldn't hear them. I knew as soon as I neared the door that Guarda had done something to it, had warded it so that it would not allow anyone to pass through the door whom she wished to remain within, but I gave it a shot anyway. None of the three even bothered to as much as look my way as I struggled to press through the invisible wall that denied exit to me.

"Hell's bells," I snarled to myself, and took a step back to collect myself. A ward could be undone if you studied it and determine how it was made. Every person who drew wards did so by following a basic format, then personalizing it, adding a word here, a gesture there, something that didn't interfere with the basic function of the ward, but which made it unique and impossible to remove unless you had the time and leisure to examine it closely. It wasn't actually the ward itself that provided the power; it was the belief the person drawing it had in his own abilities. That was why infrequently drawn wards, like the one I used on Christian at Joy's house, were likely to dissolve after a short amount of time. I hadn't used them enough to have complete faith in my ability to draw them.

Guarda's ward, however, glowed silver when I pushed myself into the doorway, and was of such a complex design that it would take me hours to unravel.

Allegra.

The voice was loud in my head, compelling, demanding, filled with absolute authority. It was not Christian's silken tones.

Against my will I turned around slowly. The four wards around me glowed gold, but I ignored them to blink at the scene before me. Guarda and Phillippa stood together, unmoving as they watched me with eyes that were empty, as if they were looking inward on themselves. Behind them Eduardo sat on the desk, his head tipped back, his eyes closed, his hands stretched forward to hold… I gasped and tried to back up. I couldn't; my feet were frozen, locking me in place as I stared in horror at the three of them. Eduardo's fingers were pressed to the base of both their necks.

They had formed a triumvirate, the most powerful force known to modern psychics.