Chapter Four

Downtown Albuquerque, Robinson Park

Saturday, 10:00 AM

Zeven found the market without any trouble but the chaos of people wandering around made it a challenge to find anyone selling goat's milk. For some reason he'd been expecting it to be nice, neat rows with clearly labeled groups of vendors. Instead, the tables and tents were scattered around vague walkways between which were too many people. The crowds seemed to have no method or purpose besides an oblivious determination to block foot traffic every step of the way.

Even his sense of smell was failing him. The mixture of scents was almost impossible to sort out.

Almost.

He couldn't make out the scent of milk, but he did smell goats and that was a smell even the humans might be able to track. At the edge of the group was an old man with a small table where he was offering goat cheese and soaps.

But no milk.

"Hello there, boy. Can I sell you some all-natural goat cheese?"

"I'm actually looking for goat milk. Do you ever sell the milk? Or do you know where I can buy some?"

"I used to sell some, but I'm getting up in years and the milking is getting to be too much for my knees. What you see here is the last of my goat farming. I'm finally giving it up."

He looked back toward the crowd and tried to pick up the scent of milk from there. Maybe he'd find another farmer and have better luck.

"Here boy, don't give up so easily. How about I make you a great deal? If you buy everything here on the table, I'll let you have my last nanny goat. She's in milk now so you can get as much as you need fresh every day."

"I was hoping to buy the milk…"

"Trust me, this will be much better. I'll even throw in half a sack of feed and some dishes and tools."

It wasn't what he'd planned. But was there any way he could make it actually work? Fresh milk would be better for his babies. Even he knew that much. And it couldn't get any fresher than having the goat, could it?"

The old man must have figured the sale was a done deal. He stood up and the sound of his bones crunching made his point about being too old to farm. With slow, steady movements he gathered a couple dozen soaps and five packages of cheese. "It all comes to one hundred and eighty-five but call it a hundred and fifty and promise to take good care of my Queenie girl."

He was still debating the decision but found his hand out with the money. Did the old fella have some kind of magic power of persuasion? He hadn't sensed anything. And it was a good deal. Wasn't it?

Then again, how the hell would he know if it was a good deal or not? But it was too late for regrets now. If it made Harley happy, and kept his babies healthy, that was all that mattered.

"Alright, let's get this goat."

He carried everything including the old guy's chair and followed along behind his careful steps. It wasn't long until they reached the edge of the market area and there in the first row of parked cars was another little tent set up over the space behind a small truck. Under it, a tiny old woman was sitting in a chair knitting.

"Martha, dear, we can pack it up. This young man will be taking Queenie today."

He set down his armful of supplies next to the vehicle and stared at what must be the goat in question. It was tiny. No taller than his knee. How was something that size supposed to feed two growing wolf pups? "I'm not so sure about this. I'm going to need a goat that can provide more milk than that one."

"Don't underestimate our little Queenie girl. She's a Nigerian Dwarf and plenty capable of keeping a whole family in milk."

"I don't see how."

"She gave birth to triplets this time but the other two went off already to be pets. She's still making enough milk for three and only has the one little babe left. You'll be the one to benefit."

The stubborn lecture from the fellow left no room for argument. He needed to make his decision and get back home. But what was the right choice?

That was when the little baby goat darted out from under the old truck. It raced straight at him in the most inefficient bouncing gait he'd ever seen. Skidding to a stop, it shoved its little head against his leg just above his ankle. Then the cute little shit looked up at him with a cocky grin and a silent bleat that looked more like a laugh.

Well, hell. Wasn't that just too fucking cute? Looked like he was getting a couple goats.

* * *

Maddie's Albuquerque Bunker

Saturday, 1:45 PM

Quinn answered the phone call on the first ring. Anything to get out of the current uncomfortable moment with Maddie. As it turned out, he was terrible at Wari, and it was getting hard to maintain his dignity after twenty-two straight losses. "Hello."

"Mr. LaFontaine," Joseph's voice carried clearly over the line. He sounded more confident than usual.

"Please, Joseph, you can call me Quinn, like everyone else."

"Yes, sir."

Sir was an improvement, he supposed. He'd noticed the boy seemed to be more relaxed with some of the other members of the family. Eventually he hoped to have a similar relationship with him.

"I found the information. I mean, I found her. The woman you're looking for flew into Las Vegas two days ago using the name Bell Fontaine."

He chuckled. It wasn't one of the names he'd asked Joseph to check for, but it was certainly Bella. The boy had done good work. "Thank you. I'm sure you have found the right person. I'll take it from here."

"Is there anything else I can help with?" Joseph's voice rose in excitement. Maybe they hadn't been challenging him enough. He'd be sure to make some changes when this newest problem was sorted out.

"Keep your phone with you and get some rest. Just knowing you're available to help is enough for now. And if something comes up, I'll call you first." After a quick goodbye, he clicked the phone off and turned to face Maddie.

She was squared up facing him as if they were about to do battle.

"Joseph found her. She's in Vegas."

"Let's go. It's a bit of a drive but we can make it in eight hours or even faster if we can take a plane. Wait…Why doesn't your agency have one?"

He let that slip. Division Eight did need better options when it came to transportation. He'd been considering an addition to the program for a while. But that particular problem wasn't the most immediate one. "It's still daytime."

"Now that we know where Bella went, I'm not waiting until night. Just because she flew into Vegas doesn't mean she'll stay there long. We can't risk waiting. We need to hit the road right away." Her eyes widened slightly. "I guess travel is a little more complicated for you."

"My agency does have a car with UV protection as well as official lights and sirens."

"Good idea. Let's swing by your place and pick up the car at least. As close as we are it shouldn't hurt our travel time much."

He was a little relieved that she had enough experience traveling with vampires that he didn't have to spell out the accommodations that were required. "I wouldn't be against a change of clothes either."

She hesitated, worrying her lower lip between her teeth.

The action made him smile. "We're in this together. I won't try to escape."

"Escape?" She shook her head. "I wasn't worried about that."

"Really?"

"Of course not." She grabbed her light jacket from the hook beside the door. "Come on. Let's get to your place and get that car."

A glance at his watch showed it was almost two in the afternoon. The direct sunlight in the peak of the day would be fatal. Could he trust her enough to even leave the protection of the underground shelter?

"Don't be a wimp. I'll move the truck up to the door. You can jump in the back. There's a cover over the bed. You'll be fine."

"Your idea of fine is significantly lacking."

"You made it here without long-term damage."

"That explains a few things." He'd been wondering about the tender areas that had signified recently healed bruising. Now that he thought about his limp body bouncing around in the back of a truck bed he had to question Maddie's level of common sense.

"If I'd known you were so delicate…"

"Madeline, please be reasonable."

"It's only twenty minutes."

"Inside a blazing hot box that could expose me to deadly rays of light at any given second." He'd managed to stay alive for a very long time by not taking risks in everyday life kind of dangers.

She frowned at him. "Fine."

He relaxed.

As her hand came into sight, he knew he'd relaxed too soon. She sprayed him in his face before he could dodge.

His knees weakened and he crumpled. Her arms came around him supporting his weight slowly to the floor. Her lips brushed his ear. "I'm sorry."

Everything went black.

Maddie hadn't planned on this option. She wanted him to willingly work together with her. Finding Bella was likely only the first step in what might become increasingly more dangerous.

She laid out a blue tarp and then moved the vampire's body onto it. And rolled him up like a burrito. He might not like the lack of dignity and certainly wouldn't appreciate the uncomfortable ride over to his home but this way he'd at least be safe.

The man was solid, and it took a little effort to get his dead weight up the stairs and into the truck bed. At least the drive back to his mansion was quick and uneventful. The tricky part was successfully swapping out the vehicles and moving his body to the new ride without getting caught in the act of auto theft or kidnapping.

Despite the time of day… or rather because of it, the mansion was silent. Surely, they had some security in place but the whole mission completed without her triggering any alarms.

In under ten minutes she pulled the sedan out of its covered parking area and sped away toward the interstate.

She'd moved Quinn's unconscious form into the passenger seat so that he was next to her for the drive. Eventually he'd wake up and when he did, she wanted to be able to talk with him more. As she took the ramp the sunshine angled in over her and Quinn. It was a shadowy kind of light as it was filtered through the protective coating on the glass.

Quinn reacted slightly. The motion shifted his weight and he sagged to the side until his head rested on her thigh.

She'd been concerned that their window treatment might not be as good as they thought. Just in case he started to smoke, she had a blanket handy and with a deft flip of her hand the light fabric fluttered over his prone form.

His fingers tightened over the edge. And like a child he pulled it up over his face to block out the light.

Damn, that was cute. Too adorable for an old-as-dirt vamp. What was it about him that drew her? She gave in and tickled her fingers through his thick hair. Then settled her hand over his shoulder. His body wasn't as warm as a human or wolf. But it didn't feel like an object either. Life of a kind filled him just as much as any human.

She'd noticed that strange familiar sensation from Bella years ago. Something akin to living but not quite the same. Was that when her belief about the nature of vampires began to change? She let her mind drift back to that day she'd met Bella.