Elise smiled in return as the air rippled in the vacated space. She wasn’t sure if she despised the ruler of Second Earth or really liked her.

Duncan approached them. He extended his hand to Elise and she took it. He covered that hand with his own. He had beautiful green eyes, but something in them looked rather lost, very alone. Maybe it was a warrior thing. “Welcome to Second, Elise. I know you’ll be happy here. It’s not an easy world, but you’re obviously built for it in many ways. Congratulations.” His smile was warm.

A growl sounded beside her and probably by instinct, Duncan withdrew his hand and took a step back. He lifted both hands, the universal surrender signal. “Just showin’ the love, Gid.” But he laughed. “And to quote our fearless leader, ‘Well, kids, I’m outta here.’” He offered a bow, rose up, lifted his arm and vanished.

She was sort of getting used to that. Sort of.

She was left with Gideon and an unsettled feeling that everything had just changed.

He put his hands on her shoulders. “You’ve been through a lot and it’s late. You must be exhausted.”

She met his gaze. “You’re right. I am.” But there was something more, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on.

“Let’s get you home.”

She looked up at him. And there it was, but it made her smile. “And where would that be?”

He laughed. “You’re right. How about for tonight we go to my home in north Scottsdale Two?”

“I’d like that.” But she couldn’t quite escape a sense of unease.

Using his slim warrior phone, he contacted Jeannie and the strange folding vibration began, followed by that quick slide through nether-space. Her feet touched down on hard rough gray stone.

Gideon’s house.

She glanced around and her eyes popped. She didn’t know what she had expected to see, but not this, not a house that was so interesting and well-designed. The man made war, yet he lived here. “This is yours?”

“Every last bit.”

From the large living room on the left, she could see scattered lights from a long bank of windows. She turned in the other direction, and saw landscaping lights that shone up into a rising slope of desert cactus, creosote, and spindly trees. “You’re on a hillside.”

“Yes.”

“So this is your home on Second Earth.” She glanced around. “This stone is beautiful.” Some of the walls were curved and she could hear a fountain in the distance.

He waved a hand and lights came on, shining down from a tall, beamed ceiling.

A castle in the desert.

She looked around. She liked the strength of it but she saw something else as well, a place well-fortified, a reflection of the master, perhaps even a reflection of his heart.

Gideon stood three feet away from Elise. He felt the distance; he could taste it. Something had changed for her.

She looked around and marveled. She appreciated the architecture; she even smiled. But as she turned toward him and faced him, a deep sinking sensation pulled once more at the base of his heart.

“I know we left in the middle of things to go to the palace,” she said, her gaze flickering to and away from his, then back. “But I think I would prefer to sleep alone. I didn’t expect to feel this way.”

“What way?” He needed to know, wanted to know what thoughts crowded her mind right now. His heart took to thudding a heavy cadence and not in a good way. Jesus, sweat broke out at his temples. He took a deep breath.

“I have such a pressing sense of destiny. I can’t explain it. I know I’m meant to work here, near Endelle. I feel it like a geyser in my chest. So what I said earlier, about San Francisco Two and Paris, isn’t going to happen. I think you should know that, be prepared for that. I’m not leaving Phoenix Two.”

He nodded. He glanced around the stone foyer. The space seemed so cold—strong but cold. His gaze shot back to her. The description fit, but which one of them did it describe? Hell, maybe both of them.

“Where will you go?” Then it hit him that he thought of her here, in this house, with him, that these thoughts had been dogging him from the moment her earlier phone call had set him on this journey. “You can stay here as long as you like.”

Forever, rippled through his mind. He crossed his arms over his chest. Part of him wanted to make the offer, even to ask her not just to stay but to bond with him, take the ritual of thebreh-hedden as far as they could, which right now looked likeall the way.

Elise stared at his arms, now a protective interlacing over his ribs, his chest, his heart, his lungs, his breath, his soul, his everything. Her throat ached for no good reason. She wanted so much more from him, yet she wanted nothing.

Her gaze dropped to the beautiful stone floor. Her eyes traveled and traced patterns, slight dips and ridges, an entire geographical world beneath her black heels. The scent of him, toffee and male, permeated the foyer. Her nostrils flared and desire teased her everywhere.

This would remain unchanged between them, her desire, his, and back and forth. She drew in a breath and released a sigh. She wanted to move forward, but she wanted to go back as well. She wanted all those nights with him at the Blood and Bite returned to her, in full measure.

Yet she needed to be sensible more than anything. She couldn’t keep having sex with Gideon. Sex had bound them together for two years. Now she belonged to Second Earth just as he did and given her sense of destiny, her need to stay in Phoenix Two, she would no doubt see him from time to time. But he would be with other women, and she would have to learn to be dispassionate and objective with him, not to feel jealous or possessive.

Her heart hurt, like a fist had started punching at it. She didn’t understand why, not really. Sex was great, but just how much of a relationship could it sustain?

“I think I should sleep in your guest room tonight.” She finally lifted her gaze to his.

His mouth worked. He nodded. “That would be for the best.”

So his thoughts must be mirroring her own.

He turned and moved across the foyer to stand in front of what looked like a study. When he faced her, he gestured to his left. “This way.”

Once Gideon left the guest room, he made his way through the somewhat meandering home, into what he always thought of as his armory. More swords stood upright in lit glass cases along the north wall, a second ancient coat of arms hung over the huge gray stone mantel, and a gleaming suit of armor stood in sentinel readiness to the right of his fireplace.

He crossed to the bar near the armor and poured a Glenlivet and took a first big swallow. The burn felt good. He sat down in his favorite black leather chair and took another swallow. He repeated until some of the heaviness in his chest disappeared.

Better. Until he took a breath and a whiff of strawberry scent drove through his nose, straight into his brain, and sent desire once more through his veins and into his groin.

Damn. This would never change between them. Anytime he was around her, he knew he would catch her scent and want her just like the first, second, third, and hundredth time at the Blood and Bite.

If he could do it all over again, if he could go back to that first moment, he would have folded out of the club and never gone back because what he felt right now, without the ability to bust down her bedroom door and take her, was a kind of agony new to his Second Earth experience.

One thing for sure, he needed to get Elise out of this house by morning.

The strawberry scent grew stronger until finally he sat up, then stood up. The hairs on the nape of his neck rose.

Shit, something wasn’t right.

He folded straight into Elise’s room and the moment his feet touched the stone floor, he drew his sword into his hand.

Elise sat up in bed, her arms spread wide, her fingers splayed and tense. She stared at nothing, as though caught in the grip of what? Another vision.

Finally, she blinked. She looked at his face, then his sword, then she nodded, a quick stream of jerks. “Everything has changed. The timing of the vision of Rachel has changed. Gideon, the attack will take place in, oh, God, three minutes.”

“What?” he cried.

She continued, “It’s dark, the death vampires are on the way. Rachel and her friends are all sleeping in tents. You’re there. So is Duncan. Battling.”

His thoughts ran swiftly, the following actions swifter still. He called Duncan and told him to get his ass over to his Scottsdale Two house, master bedroom. He folded off his formal tunic and folded on flight battle gear.

He watched Elise change into her jeans and tennis shoes.

“You can’t go with us,” he said.

“Fuck that. I’m supposed to be there. I’m in the vision, too.”

Now how the hell was he supposed to argue with a Seer prophecy? “Fine. Whatever.”

A few seconds later, Duncan folded into the room. Gideon brought him up to speed.

Duncan looked at Elise. “How many death vamps?”

“Three.”

“So where are we headed?” Duncan asked.

Elise stared at both men. She took deep breaths. The clock shouted at her:Two minutes, thirteen seconds. Two minutes, twelve seconds.

She didn’t know what to do. She dove inward and pictured Rachel. She concentrated very hard and she felt a strong tugging sensation like she was being pulled in her direction, almost as though she could fold directly to her. She tried harder, focused on folding, but nothing happened.

“I can feel her presence, almost like I could fold to her, but I can’t.” She turned to Gideon. “Can you use your mind-link? Find out where she is? But tell her to make sure everyone stays inside their tents.”

“Hell, yeah.” He closed his eyes and a moment later his body twitched, a soft jerk. He nodded. His eyes grew pinched. “We’re coming,” he said aloud.

He opened his eyes. “Rachel’s in Northern California all right, redwood country, not far from the ocean. I told her to gather everyone in the most central tent and to have swords ready in case they need to do battle. A couple of them are former Militia Warriors.” He scowled. “Shit, I can feel her as well, but I can’t get to her.”