Fire Storm by Ally Shields Read Free Book Online Page B

contented herself with reminding him to be careful now that he was within reach of the O-Seven. Their conversation ended when Andreas’s appointment arrived.
    She slipped the phone in her pocket and headed for the outer doors again, nearly colliding with Ryan as he dashed in.
    “Hot damn, it’s wet!” He stomped his feet, then stopped when he saw her. “Hi, I didn’t know you were coming by.”
    “I can’t stay, but I wanted to tell you about a little arrangement I made.” They stepped away from the door, and Ari explained about Mangi. “I don’t think anything will go wrong. Zylla has the situation under control, and Gabriel is aware, but it’s always good to know when someone like Mangi is around.”
    “If he doesn’t start a fight or hurt someone, I guess I don’t care. Appreciate the heads up.” He wiped the water from his hair with both hands. “Did Andreas get away OK?”
    She nodded. “He just called. It’s bright and sun-shiny in Italy.”
    “Figures.” He stomped his feet again. “I’d ask you up for coffee, but I’m kind of tied up with a homicide.”
    “Yeah, I heard. A double, huh?”
    “Looks like a murder-suicide. But we still have all the interviews and paperwork. I’ll be busy with this for a couple of days, unless we get something more urgent on the Otherworld side.”
    “Good luck.” She waved a hand and stepped into the pouring rain.
     
    * * *
     
     
    Busy at the office the rest of the day, Ari didn’t have time to think about Andreas or take a break until late in the afternoon. She’d handled a number of drop-ins that could have been disposed of by the front desk and suspected the clerk was still making a point about Ari’s past absences. Fine. She had dues to repay. But she wasn’t an Otherworld information desk. If the trend continued the rest of the week, she’d have to find a way to make her peace with the clerk. Possibly with a large box of chocolates.
    She stood staring out the windows near her conference table with a coffee cup in her hand. Her thoughts drifted to Italy. What was Andreas doing? It would be 11:00 p.m. there. By now he should have a good idea of the problems at his estates. What had the overseer said about the vandalism? Strange they were having trouble so suddenly. And what had the exam of the body revealed?
    It wasn’t just idle curiosity on her part. If there was trouble, that could put Andreas at risk. But surely not while he was surrounded by his weretigers. They had been protecting him and his secret life as a vampire for two hundred years.
    It occurred to her she knew nothing about the laws in Italy. If vampires weren’t recognized, did that mean legal authorities would be a threat to him? Were there still vampire hunters in Italy? She’d heard some European countries weren’t as accepting as the United States, particularly those countries who’d suffered the most from centuries of furtive attacks. America’s shorter history meant the fears and the need for retribution were not so deep.
    Ari set her cup on the table and hurried to the computer, spending the next half hour reading everything the internet could tell her on Otherworlder recognition in Italy. She finally closed her laptop. Current laws seemed to skirt the issue. While Otherworld races were not specifically mentioned in their statutes, there were civil and criminal laws that prohibited harming any sentient being or hunting wildlife without a special species specific license. Since the list of licenses did not include vampires or lycanthropes, Italy seemed to have found a way to provide protection without recognition. It was an odd way to do it, and she’d check with Andreas when he called about what it really meant to the Otherworlders there. Or maybe she’d talk with Samuel instead; he wouldn’t skirt the truth.
    She tapped her fingernails on the desk, back to thinking about Zylla’s warning. What if Andreas wasn’t the one at risk? It could be Ari herself or any of her