Night Seeker by Yasmine Galenorn Page A

about it—while they definitely took the Indigo Court down the wrong track, the light-rage
does
incapacitate them during the daylight.”
    All of them except Grieve, who’d been given the antidote when we rescued him. Though still part of the Indigo Court, at least now the light didn’t send him into the raging madness that it did the other Vampiric Fae.
    “Yeah, but it also makes them far more vicious. The vampires might not care, but Lainule…I think she would.” Rhiannon brought over mugs of chicken soup and set them on the table as I carried a plate of toast over. Charred edges or not, the bread smelled all buttery and good.
    “Lainule will be much more apt to help us once we find her heartstone.” I dove into the food, my stomach rumbling. It felt like everything I ate just vanished the minute it went through my lips. The cold was burning up energy, the worry was eating away at us, and I never seemed to feel full anymore.
    “Do you really believe that?” Kaylin asked, turning to look at me.
    Rhiannon, Luna, and Peyton joined me at the table.
    “I
have
to believe that. We have to have
some
hope.” And then, as I looked up, my sight fell on Rhiannon andonce again the image of her strong, tall, incredibly powerful flashed before my eyes. We locked gazes.
    “Rhiannon…you need to work with Chatter. Anadey was helping you master your control over the fire and she’s lost to us now. Chatter can take over.”
    She nodded. “I’ve been thinking about that, too. I’ll find him after breakfast.”
    As we dug into breakfast, several of the cats rubbing against our legs in an attempt to cajole an extra treat or two, an alarm beeped, echoing across the incredibly high ceilings.
    Kaylin jerked his head up. “That’s the pager I gave your father.” He motioned for us to stay put as he vanished toward the front of the warehouse.
    We pushed back from the table, positioning ourselves for a fight, if need be. I glanced at Rhiannon and she gave me a smoky look, then leaned back and I could feel the lick of the flames surrounding the edges of her aura. Worry crossed Luna’s face, but then she closed her eyes and I could feel the swirl of magic surround her. I pulled out my fan, getting it ready.
    Peyton drew a nasty-looking blade. She hoisted it—a long dagger with a serrated blade. “Kaylin gave this to me last night. I’ve done some knife training.” As she tossed the blade back and forth between her hands, a feral look stole over her face, her puma just below the surface, waiting to be released.
    But it wasn’t an enemy who followed Kaylin back into the room. A tall man, as sturdy and dark as Peyton with hair that reached his lower back and was tied in a braid, walked into the room. Wearing dark indigo wash jeans, a cable-knit sweater, and scuffed cowboy boots, it was obvious in a glance that this was Rex—Peyton’s father. The resemblance was remarkable. He had something woven into his braid—it looked like some sort of herb or dried flower or something.
    Peyton stood, staring at him. As he paused, she began to tremble. “Rex?”
    He nodded. “Peyton.” And then he held out his arms andshe dropped her dagger on the floor and ran to him, weeping. He swept her into his embrace, hugging her tightly, kissing the top of her head. “My daughter. My baby. Baby girl.”
    She pressed her face against his chest, then pushed back, hitting him with her open hands. “You left me. You left us.”
    Rex didn’t flinch from her blows. He just held her, letting her smack him until she ran out of energy.
    “Oh, baby girl, I didn’t want to. Your mother wouldn’t let me stay. And she wouldn’t let me come back.” Taking a deep breath, he held Peyton’s shoulders, forcing her to look at him. “Anadey threatened to run off with you, so that I’d never be able to find you. She said she’d give you my letters if I agreed to never come back to the house. So I relented and left. But she didn’t keep her promise. I sent