Lyla knew that the vampires could tolerate a small amount of sun at dusk and dawn but never at full height. It was too bright for them, hurting their eyes. The sun didn't kill them, but it made them weak and it burned their skin. Lennon said that they burned like a pale human under a magnifying glass. The higher the sun to the peak of the day, the worse it was. It would make them weak, sucking the energy out of them. He said it was the reason that most vampire deaths come from the sun. They get caught, lose energy and can't move. Once that happens, death doesn't take too long to find them.

She'd learned a lot over the past few days, figuring out how they did things, why they did them. It's how she knew the limits and how far she could push Carson before she broke him.

The sun was shining through the open door. Diego didn't usually trade until early afternoon, but today he'd made an exception.

Carson tried to pull his feet back as Lyla pushed his chair forward. There was only so far he could go, and he was already struggling to keep them out of the sunlight. They'd removed his shoes, ensuring that he'd feel the burn.

"Another minute ticks by," Lyla whispered in Carson's ear. "How much pain can you tolerate?"

Sick of seeing his legs pushed under the seat, Lyla asked Diego for a tray. Sliding it between the legs of the chair and Carson's legs, they tied it down and ensured the tray would not move.

"Now we're getting somewhere."

Lyla moved to the front of Carson, who now had his toes in the sunlight. She lifted a leg over his lap and sat down. With a defiant smile, she laid her arms over his shoulders.

"How much research did you do into me?"

"The information was limited."

He groaned, feeling the warmth.

"I can't tell you anything. Please," he rasped.

"But you're Gamichee's assistant. Everything that he does, everything that he wants, you're his man for the job. So, we're going to start again and maybe now that you've got warm toes, you might just answer me. I'm hoping that you don't because, in a minute, I'm going to cut open your pants and expose your little man to the sunlight. What do you think of that?"

Carson gulped hard. He had to admit, Lyla was good at torture. The fact that the information surrounding her was hard to find said that she was more than she claimed. She was hidden from the world, unseen and unheard.

"He'll go after your ex,"

Lyla pouted.

"Is that meant to make me scared?"

"We know who he works for."

"You, my foolish friend, are barking up the wrong tree. Isaac has friends in high places. You clearly know who he works for, so then you'd know that he has a friend who is in the highest of all the places in this country. If you think that anyone is going to care when you tattle on my ex-husband or me, expose him to your thuggery, you're mistaken. I'm pretty sure the prime minister doesn't give a single shit about you or your boss. I would be extremely careful about that path if you're planning on taking it. The government and the police are not very fond of vampires, and if you threaten the prime minister or one of his security detail, they're going to take you down."

Seeing Oscar walking over, Lyla pulled her arms off Carson's shoulders. Heavy hands pushed down on those shoulders, making Carson wince with the pressure. Lyla smiled sweetly as she reached behind her back, pulling out the switchblade. Shifting off his lap, she stepped back and waited for Oscar to push Carson further into the light.

"Are you really prepared to endure the worst possible pain for him?"

"No different to what he'd do if I squeal."

"I can make him talk."

Lyla looked at the group. Lennon watched on with mild horror initially but soon realised that Lyla wouldn't kill Carson. Wound him a little, perhaps, but she'd agreed to no more death aside from Gamichee. She gave him a direct nod while putting the blade back into her pocket.

Carson looked up at Lennon as he reached into the inner pocket of his jacket.

"Don't do it, Len. He'll never forgive you."

"I don't need his forgiveness, and I certainly don't want it. When the dust settles, one of us will be dead, and I can guarantee you that if Lyla has anything to do with it, it won't be me."

He pulled out the black book, passing it to Lyla. With a nod from her, Oscar dragged Carson out of the sun.

"Don't think this is over. We'll just take a poke through here and then decide whether your reluctance to say anything is worth putting you back in the sun."

Leaving Diego and Oscar to watch Carson, Lyla wandered over to the table and sat down. Lennon sat down beside her. With his arm leaning over the back of the seat behind Lyla, he leaned in to whisper.

"He will be on a timed assignment. Don't take too long."

Lennon feared that Gamichee would send someone else to storm this place if he didn't hear from Carson in time. Anyone in this place would be in trouble. Their efforts worked for the first time, but he doubted that anything else would. Gamichee was a wise vampire. If he figured out that Carson's tactics failed, then he'd ensure that the next group wouldn't.

Running her fingers over the smooth leather, the notebook was roughly the size of her hand. Lyla opened it and thought that it was more like one of those planner journals that were all the rage at the moment. A ring binder with the smallest clips she'd ever seen opened by a small latch at the end. She wasn't interested in removing any of the pages, at least not yet she wasn't.

On the inside cover was a space for business cards with a flip-up insert that allowed a lot of cards to be stored rather than the paltry four that were a part of the design. Lyla thumbed through the cards, mostly business cards of those who he clearly thought important. At the back was a list of names and numbers.

"Why doesn't he have these stored on his phone?"

"They use burner phones."

Lyla flipped the card booklet back and turned over the first page of the planner. It was filled with writing. Pages upon pages of notes about people. The notes were sectioned off by the alphabet. Curious about what he might have on her, Lyla turned to the letter L and began reading.