Page 47 of Roguefinder

He grunted, eyes half-lidded. My mate was most definitely not a morning person.

I cracked two more eggs into the bowl and reached for the salt.

“Do you want help?” he rasped between his fingers.

“We’ve been over this,” I said.

Another grunt.

Hiding a smile, I poured a mug of coffee and carried it to the table.

Caleb straightened, grouchiness giving way to something that resembled hero worship. “I love you.”

I set the mug in front of him. “Keep showing up to breakfast shirtless, and I’ll make you whatever you want.”

He wrapped both hands around the mug. “Throw in some bacon, and I’ll lose the pants.”

My snort filled the kitchen. Returning to the stove, I turned up the heat and let the butter get loud before I poured in the eggs.

“Have you heard back from Stefanos?” Caleb asked.

“Not yet.” I’d sent a text last night, giving him the bare bones of the meeting.

I dragged a spatula through the eggs in long strokes, pushing the curds to the center. “He’s probably consulting with Nin and the other elders before he communicates next steps.”

Caleb made a negative sound and muttered, “Maybe he’ll tell us to go back to London.”

“Don’t count on it.”

“I’m not.”

I finished the eggs and slid them onto two plates, then added toast and the last of the prosciutto from the market.

Plates in hand, I started toward the table.

Then I felt it.

A presence, just outside the front door.

“Human,” I said, shoving the food onto the counter. I headed for the front door, the scrape of Caleb’s chair following me.

“Stay back,” I told him as I crossed the foyer and went to the video monitor mounted next to the door. The image on the display told me what I already knew.

Alessia stood on the porch, her slender form swathed in a dark winter coat. Her scent coming through the door was so faint it was almost undetectable, her humanity worn thin by Carlo’s blood in her veins. She was close to turning and difficult to scent.

The perfect messenger.

Carlo had obviously had us followed last night. Not that I’d really tried to cover our tracks. I’d destroyed Caleb’s phone in case we needed to leave Rome without a tail, and I could only hope that escape hatch held. But I had no expectation that the villa’s location was a secret. Hiding from a master vampire in his own city was a fool’s errand.

I opened the door.

“Buongiorno,” Alessia said, extending a thick beige envelope. I took it, and she turned and quickly descended the steps. At the gate, she gripped an iron spindle in one hand and vaulted the whole thing in a single fluid motion. She dropped to the ground on the other side and strode out of sight.

“What the…?” Caleb breathed at my shoulder. “Did you just fucking see that?”

“I saw it,” I muttered, stepping back and shutting the door. “Carlo’s blood gives her a vampire’s speed and strength. She’s still human, but barely.”

Caleb’s face went grim. He was thinking of the blood exchange and Alessia’s dependency. If Carlo didn’t turn her, she would wither and die.