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extraordinary powers. One of them is I can fly.”
    “None of that is new, lady.”
    “But you don’t want to hear the mating part.”
    “Ah. The eternal damnation thing again.”
    “I’m your mate, Leonard. And that does mean...you are mine.”
    “I’m afraid you got short-changed, lady.”
    Tassanee smiled. Oh. He was very fun. Fast. Quick-witted. Even more so than the eunuch that guarded her for years, teaching her not only the cut and thrust of repartee, but the basics of the Cambodian martial arts called Bokator. And her mate was handsome. Fit. Lean in the right places...hard and muscled in others. Very hard. Firm. Rigid. She dropped her gaze to the one thing he couldn’t control. Oh. He was large, all right. Immensely fascinating. And delineated by the amount of rain his trousers had absorbed. And she’d been trained in just about every art of love.
    “Oh. I don’t think so.” she replied, lowering her voice to a throaty purr.
    He jerked before lurching back a huge step. His eyes went huge and she could have sworn he gulped. And then he turned his head and yelled at the other man. Which was stupid. He was right behind Len.
    “You about done, Stan?”
    “On your six, Boss.”
    “Of course you are. Figures. Duffle bag?”
    The man lifted a hand and shook the big bag he carried. That was impressive for a human. It looked two-thirds his size and almost as heavy.
    “Backpack?”
    That must be what Stan carried in his other hand. He lifted it and shook it.
    “Then we better get moving.”
    “Why don’t you have her pick us up and fly?”
    “Because I’m not doing any vampire crap at the moment. Since you’re such a good eavesdropper, you should have already heard that part.”
    “I did.”
    “Figures.”
    “Well...it’s hard to ignore a lover’s spat in the middle of a rainstorm, in the center of Ta Prohm Temple complex, amidst a bunch of corpses. But I did try.”
    “Then, maybe since you already know the score, you’ll just sit out the rest of the game?”
    “And miss this?”
    “I liked you a lot better when you were silent, Stanislaw.”
    “I have to point out, Boss, that I do think you’re pretty lucky. She’s damn smart. And gorgeous. No offense, uh...Miss Tassanee.”
    “None taken,” she replied. Just like she’d seen in one of the movies she’d watched and mimicked.
    “Do I look like I need your help here?” Len asked.
    “Okay. I’ll shut up. But first, let me point out the obvious. We can either take a couple of hours getting out of this complex, doing our best to avoid any Hunters who might have stayed at their posts, followed by another couple of hours pedaling our asses off, and by the time we reach the hangar it’ll be almost dawn, and I’ll be exhausted. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t have much of an ass to lose. Or...we can ask your mate real nice to pick us up and take us with her to the airport. And we’d be out of Cambodia within what? An hour? And I hope you decide fairly quickly, because these bags are not getting any lighter and I’m not getting any drier standing here holding them.”
    Tassanee looked at Len. Stan looked at him. Len’s face fell. It matched his shoulders within his jacket.
    “Oh. What the hell. Tassanee?”
    She had them both and was airborne before he finished speaking.

CHAPTER FOUR
    “You’ve reached VAL Headquarters, where the contract is just the beginning. How may I direct your call?”
    “Akron?”
    The voice started laughing. Stan didn’t know why. It wasn’t funny.
    “Oh. Classic. I can’t wait to tell him that one. Wait. Who the hell are you and how did you get this number?”
    “Stan. New guy.”
    “Stan. Stan. Hmm. I don’t see a Stan on any of our lists. You might wish to disconnect before one of our associates locates you.”
    “Oh. Try looking for Stanislaw. Roger.”
    “Ah. Here you are. Roger Stanislaw. Ex-Croatian military. How can we help you?”
    “Why can’t I see you?”
    The guy laughed