Lucas grimaced. “Kade and I have met. Once.”
Cody held up his hand and examined it. “Was I just made?”
Lucas met his gaze. “Demeti is still alive. And he”—his voice broke—“likes me. I could use your muscles.”
Aria’s heart twisted. What had Demeti done to Lucas? Both here, and in that building in the bog? But surely Lucas didn’t need Sabre DNA, when he had hers?
Lucas shot Cody the briefest flash of a smile. “Never pass up an opp to harvest DNA. It’s a Morph motto.”
Cody snorted a laugh. “Yeah, well, if I’m arrested for stealing, I’m coming after you, dude.”
Lucas acknowledged the half-veiled threat with a nod.
“When did you meet a Sabre?” Aria asked him. Considering the Morph was a thief, Aria wondered just what that meeting had entailed.
Lucas seemed to read her mind. His eyes flared emerald. “I don’t hunt in this realm. Kade was merely checking on that.” His gaze flashed to Cody. “He wouldn’t shake my hand, though.”
It surprised Aria that Lucas would call stealing “a hunt”, but Cody seemed to get the reference. “I should hope not,” he said with a grin. “The boss doesn’t miss much. And you wouldn’t want to run afoul of him.”
Aria lost interest in the conversation. She found herself staring at the open door, longing to follow the Watchers and Nikolai.
“Do you have somewhere else to stay?” Cody asked Lucas. “We’ll do cleanup here, but now that Demeti has gated into this apartment—I wouldn’t advise staying.”
“He won’t come back, will he?” Aria couldn’t believe the Torshin would try again.
Cody shrugged. “Now that the Watchers have this Perditor out of play, who knows? Demeti is one crazy Torshin. More power than sense.”
“He was after me.” Lucas’s voice sounded strained. Aria finally looked right at him. He now leaned against the wall, as though he no longer had the strength to stand free of it. The tension in him was obvious in the way he held his head, and the tightness around his eyes. He also refused to meet her gaze.
“Maybe we should go back to the bed-and-breakfast,” Aria suggested.
Cody’s eyes lit up. “Ah. Betsy’s?”
Aria nodded.
“Might be an idea to stay there for a while, with Demeti still in the wind.” He pulled his lips back from his teeth. “Gotta say I kinda wish they’d let this Perditor fry that bastard before they stepped in. He’s on a lot of hate lists, including mine.”
“You’ve been trying to catch him?” Lucas’s expression was unreadable.
Cody’s grimace turned into a snarl. “Oh, yeah. Believe me, Demeti’s got no fans among my friends. But with his ability to gate, he’s been impossible to track down.”
Another form darkened the doorway—a guy not quite as tall as Cody, but just as good looking although more muscular, and with auburn hair streaked with darker brown. Many of the Sabres she’d seen over the years were ruggedly handsome, and these two were no exception.
“Hey, dude,” the new arrival greeted, his eyes drifting over Aria and Lucas. “I heard there’s stuff to be picked up here?”
“Yep. Cleanup required on aisle seven.” Cody said cheerfully. “This is Aria. And that is Lucas. Don’t shake his hand.”
The auburn-haired Sabre stared at both Aria and Lucas before replying easily, “Okay.”
Cody moved aside so his friend could view the remains.
The others’ eyes flared gold. “Ugh. You weren’t kidding.”
“I never kid,” Cody chided.
His friend rolled his eyes and yanked heavy-duty bags out of his pocket.
Cody addressed Aria as he took one of the offered bags. “I suggest you guys go back to Betsy’s. If we need you, we know where to find you.”
