Dania couldn't shake the feeling that the Night Haven welcomed Amari, Joe, and Joe's sentient plant companion, Audrey. Dania had been a little worried about the stairs, but Jake assured her that there was an elevator, and as soon as they arrived in the moonlight foyer, Dania could see the silver doors at the base of the curving stairs. She didn't remember them being there on their first visit, but what did she know?

Joe seemed delighted with his new accommodations, and he and Amari quickly picked out a pair of suites down the hallway from Jake and Machairi's apartment. Dania and Jake gave them a quick tour, they met Elarienne, and even Hush put in an appearance to meet the new arrivals.

"Dani, I think we should try and get to the other address before the night is over," Jake said afterwards, as they sat at their usual dining hall table while Amari was getting Joe settled in his room for the night. "In case we need to come back here quickly."

Dania rolled her neck on her shoulders. "Okay," she said with only a little bit of a sigh. She reached for her mug of coffee and drained what was left. "That makes sense. But then we come back here and rest for a full day, got it?"

Jake nodded. "Then let's go now, so we don't waste any more time. I don't know—I just have this gut feeling we need to move."

"Move where?" Amari asked as she re-entered the room. She'd changed clothes before they'd come to the Haven, and now wore a pair of dark jeans, a graphic T-shirt, a leather jacket and a pair of motorcycle boots. "And can we stop by Grandpa's place first? I want to get my bike."

"We're going to check out the last address on the list that we found that led us to you," Dania said. "And yeah, we'll step out of the Haven at the same point where we went in, which is your grandfather's place, so we won't have a choice."

"Perfect. When do we go?"

"Does Joe know you're leaving?" Dania asked. Amari snorted.

"He's the one who told me to hurry up and catch you before you went without me. He's good to go. He and Audrey are watching Netflix. I can't believe you've got Wi-Fi here."

"I think we have whatever Jake wants here," Dania said, looking over at her nephew. Jake just shrugged and pushed up to his feet.

"Are we ready to go, then?" he asked. When no one else said anything, he turned and strode purposefully out into the hallway and back to the foyer with Machairi close on his heels.

Amari looked at Dania with her eyebrows raised. "All business, hmm?"

"Not usually," Dania said, furrowing her eyebrows in worry. "He's got a feeling we need to move on this one. I… Gut feelings have saved my ass a few times, so we usually listen to them."

"Fair enough," Amari said. She gave Dania a tiny smile and walked out into the hallway after Jake.

Hush joined them at the huge double doors to the Haven, and together, the five of them stepped over the threshold and back into Joe's bedroom at the retirement facility.

"Ja—" Dania started to speak, but Hush stepped forward and put his long-taloned hand over her mouth, stopping her words.

"Lisssstennn," he whispered, and it sounded more like the wind whipping through the trees than anything else.

The sound of a door slamming echoed down the short hallway.

"Bedroom and bathroom are both empty. They're not fucking here, I told you!" The voice that spoke was male and carried a distinct, nasal whine.

"That's the granddaughter's bike in the driveway, and the old man's car is in the garage. They can't have gone anywhere." A different voice from the first, this one was deeper, and calm enough to sound insouciant.

"Think, dickhead. Whoever owns that black truck might have taken them out to dinner or something. They'll be back soon. We'll cap the old man then." Yet a third voice, this one filled with derision.

"Then why would the black truck still be in the driveway?"

This last sentence was softer, as the second guy had muttered it under his breath as he walked back down the hallway toward the living room. Dania waved to the others to gather around as she pulled her deck. She saw Amari's eyes widen, and Jake went up on his tiptoes to whisper in the young woman's ear.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Probably explaining how I can pull my deck without a notification, Dania thought, glad she'd swapped the Cryptid Ambush card in for Enraged Defense back at the Night Haven. She touched her mantle, and felt the familiar burn of protective fury ignite in her chest. For good measure, she drew her Beretta, and nodded to see that Jake and Amari both had weapons to hand. She hadn't seen Amari train, so she'd have to trust that Joe Phillips's granddaughter knew what she was doing.

With a flick of her wrist, Dania cycled her cards. She smirked at the resulting mix: Dire Wolf Best Beta, Dire Wolf Tracker, Tar Pit, and Polar Sanctuary.

Dania knew the Tar Pit would net her power, so she started with that, throwing it onto the floor of the room behind them and hoping none of the bad guys noticed the sudden smell of melting tar.

Then she tapped her Best Beta, bringing it out. It made every other canine in her hand 'speedy', able to be played as a free action in a round. Dania then brought out her Tracker and thought a command at it. It spiraled to the floor in a wash of tawny light, and looked up at her with a canine grin…as if it knew the Best Beta gave it an additional attack as well.

"Be ready," she breathed to the gathered group. "As soon as I open this door, this guy's gonna go straight for the nearest deckbearer that isn't us. Hush, if you can paralyze whoever that is with your psychic attack, please do. Machairi, do as much damage as you can before the deckbearer can pull cards. Jake, Amari, you guys wait till we spring the surprise and then draw your decks. Get mantled as soon as possible. And mind your fields of fire. Everyone got it?"

They all nodded, even Hush, and Dania put her hand on the door.

"Go," she whispered, and flung the door open.

The Dire Wolf and the Best Beta surged forward in a silent, deadly rush down the hallway. Dania held her weapon in front of her and followed, as Machairi flowed past her in a black and blue blur.

Deckbearer Jacob Kinley has pulled his deck. Deckbearer Amari Phillips has pulled her deck.

"FUCK!" someone screamed, and shots rang out from the living room. Dania darted a look out into the dark living room to assess the situation. Light from the streetlamp outside streamed in through the front window, showing her that her Dire Wolf Tracker had his teeth embedded high on the hamstring of the man nearest the door. Next to him, the Best Beta growled and snapped at another man, who waved his gun erratically between the snarling wolf in front of him and the one attacking his buddy.

She couldn't see the third guy.

Dania flipped her deck, pulling up the next hand of cards and immediately played her second Dire Wolf Tracker, which was still 'speedy'. With the Best Beta out, the strongest of the wolves gained plus two to its attack, and it made sense to maximize that synergy. She flicked her wrist to cycle her deck again when someone grabbed her from behind and hauled her backwards.

For the second time in twenty-four hours, Dania felt the barrel of a pistol pressed against her head.

"Neither of you two move, or I'll paint the wall with her brains."

It was the third guy, the one with the deep voice, who had doubted the apartment's emptiness. Dania felt herself hauled around, facing back the way she'd come, and saw Jake and Amari stepping out of the hallway. To her relief, they were both mantled. One of Amari's bats fluttered overhead.

She saw no sign of Machairi or Hush.

"Tell her to call off her cards!" the deckbearer screamed, as the third wolf leapt at his hand to keep him from pulling his deck.

"Why?" the gunman said next to Dania's ear. "If she kills you, I'll just take them for myself."

"Gary, you fucking asshole!" the deckbearer screamed. Another gunshot rang out, and despite herself, Dania flinched. The gunman holding her spun again, backing up so that he could see both Jake and Amari as well as his—former, apparently—friends.

The other henchman next to the deckbearer suddenly stiffened and toppled over. Dania thought she saw a flicker of shadow behind him, but she couldn't be sure. The Best Beta whirled and growled at the man holding Dania.

"Ah ah ah…" he muttered in her ear. "Keep your dogs off me or I'll take your cards too, pretty lady."

Dania swallowed and thought a command at the Best Beta. He let out a whine and turned to help his packmates in tearing apart the screaming deckbearer.

"What do you want?" Dania asked.

"Honestly? Cards and a way out of here," he said. "I'll make you a deal. You let me take his deck and I'll let you go—" His words cut off with a weirdly wet-sounding gasp, and his hold on her eased just a fraction. Dania picked up her feet and let him have her full weight on the arm holding her. As she'd hoped, the arm fell away, and she dropped to the floor. She rolled to her back, pointing her gun at him, but she was too late. He sagged and fell forward, his eyes bugging out, his mouth gaping like a fish.

Behind him, Machairi grinned at her.

"It is easy to move quickly in the shadows when no one turned the lights on."

"Dani!" Jake cried out, coming to his knees next to her. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," she said, getting to her feet. "The other two?"

You have gained 33 XP!

"Dead," Amari answered from across the room. "Your wolves got one, and Jake's companion got the other." Her eyes went unfocused for a moment, and then she grinned. "And I just made two levels!"

"Your bat provided an excellent distraction, new deckbearer," Machairi said, inclining his head. "And Hush's paralysis attack worked extremely well."

"That's all great," Dania said. "But those gunshots weren't silenced, so I think we need to get the fuck out of here yesterday. Amari, you've got the address?"

"Yeah," she said. "I'll meet you there."

"Good, don't go in without us."

"What about the bodies?" Jake asked.

"Cops will clean them up when they get here." Dania dismissed her deck, and then bent to collect the stack of cards that had appeared on the torn-open chest of the dead deckbearer. "Now let's go."