"I promise, Damian," Jonny said quickly. "She'll be safe."
The Black God looked like a love-struck teenager, and suddenly Damian understood why Sofi suggested sending Jenn. Jenn crossed to Jonny's side. The Black God wasn't able to take his eyes off her. While uneasy, Damian suspected Jenn was seasoned enough to handle the boy for a month.
There was nothing remotely friendly or soft about Charles. The vamp crossed the room to Damian and stood. Gazing at the vamp, Damian couldn't help thinking he got the shitty end of this deal.
"Does it eat something beside humans?" he asked Jonny.
"I can survive for a month off of small children and animals," the vamp growled in response.
"Small children are humans. You'll have to stick with animals," Damian replied.
"Very well." The vamp didn't look pleased.
"We good, Jonny?" Damian called to the Black God.
"Yes, Damian."
"Let's go, Charlie," Damian said and offered his hand to the vamp.
"Charles," the vamp corrected him.
"Whatever."
* * * Jule sensed the intruder shortly after dozing off. He couldn't tell the time in the windowless room, but he gauged it to be after midnight. His senses tingled, and he dwelled on how his defensive powers almost seemed to work when nothing else did. The only explanation was that the Others weren't as ready to see him fail as they claimed to be.
The Watchers really wanted him to execute his mission.
He left the room and ascended to the main floor. The manor was silent, except for the ticking of the grandfather clock in the foyer. He couldn't sense the Other and paused at the foot of the sweeping, grand staircase leading to the second floor. The manor stretched into three long wings. His instincts told him he needed to find the woman, and he closed his eyes.
When she'd touched him in the alley, she'd left a piece of herself within him. He'd never heard of anything like this happening, but he felt her within the house. He concentrated on the sense. Finally, it spoke to him. He opened his eyes and trotted silently up the stairs, rolling his shoulders back in preparation for a fight with the Other.
Jule chose the center wing and kept to the side of the hallway. Someone else moved silently down the hall ahead of him, and he slowed his stride. The shadowy figure disappeared into an alcove. Jule crept up to the place where the figure had taken refuge and heard the person shift. The hidden stranger lashed out at him. He ducked a fist and maneuvered around a kick, snatching the intruder's body and shoving it into the wall. At once, he felt the brush of her soft curls against the underside of his chin and smelled her amber-vanilla.