Betrayed 5.5 by D. B. Reynolds

Author:D. B. Reynolds [Reynolds, D. B.]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Fantasy
ISBN: 9781610261098
Publisher: ImaJinn Books, Inc.
Published: 2012-08-12T21:00:00+00:00

Chapter Four

Malibu, California

“What day is today?”

Cyn glanced up at Raphael’s muttered question. It was their first full night home, and they were sitting in his office, both of them going through a week’s worth of accumulated mail. Anything urgent had been forwarded by Raphael’s staff, but that still left substantial piles of mail and messages to wade through.

Half of it went right into the shredder to be recycled. She’d only heard Raphael’s mutter because it had fallen into a lull in the whirring blades.

Cyn thought for a moment. “Wednesday, why?”

Raphael was flicking a formal invitation between his fingers. The heavy white stock and gold framing looked familiar, and she realized she had an identical invitation in her own mail. She picked it up and slid a fingernail beneath the envelope flap, then eyed the invitation it contained.

“You want to go to a charity ball?” she asked in surprise.

“Not really,” he admitted. “But this is one of Dakin Corporation’s pet charities. Their entire board will be there, including Marty Holdrige, who’s heading up the new slate at the shareholder’s meeting. I wouldn’t mind meeting him in person to get a better feel for his character.”

“As in, you want to read his mind to see if he’s a crook or not.”

Raphael looked up and flashed her a devastating grin. “That, too.” He seemed to notice for the first time that she held the same invite. “You’re a shareholder, my Cyn?”

“Apparently. Probably one of those family trust things. If you’re nice to me, I’ll vote my shares with you.”

He gave her a smoldering look—and no one could smolder like Raphael. “I promise to be very nice to you.”

Cyn’s heart fluttered in her chest, and she suddenly wished they were downstairs in the privacy of their bedroom.

Later, Raphael’s expression seemed to say, then he swiveled around and checked the calendar on his iPad.

Cyn propped her head on her fist and fought the urge to laugh at the sight of a 500-year-old vampire lord flipping pages on his iPad.

“This Sunday,” he murmured, then glanced up at her. “Would you like to dress up this weekend, my Cyn?”

“This Sunday?” she repeated, checking her own invite. “Is that—”

But Raphael had already picked up his cell phone and hit speed dial. “Jared, we’ll be attending the Dakin event this Sunday evening. Make the appropriate arrangements, please.”

“What about Luther Mars?” Cyn asked when he hung up. “He’s still out there somewhere. We’ve barely started the search for him, and I’m of a mind with Juro. I know you need to prove a point, to flip the finger at Klemens, but it doesn’t need to be at a crowded venue like this. It would be too easy for him to come at you.”

Raphael tossed the phone onto his desk. “It’s actually the perfect place for me to be seen with minimal risk. A private affair, invitation only. Mars can hardly walk in and request a table. With all of the money and politicians in evidence, security will be tight, and I’ll have my own security with me, as usual.

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