I paid for lunch. I wouldn't have felt right having Dinah do it after what I did to her. I didn't really intend for her to in the first place. In the privacy of the car we'd spoken about what had transpired.

Even when Dinah explained that Taylor and any of the other wolves in the territory would sense my claim on her, I wasn't worried. What a strange thing. The clock on my desk said almost five o'clock. Dinah sat in the corner of my office flipping through a magazine that must've come from the lobby or Stein's office.

June opened the door and glared at Dinah, who ignored her.

"Your five o'clock is here."

"Send him in."

Ethan Whitesides looked like he was in his early to mid-twenties. I was surprised that he resembled his mother since Jacob had looked so much like his father. Ethan's blond hair was pulled back at the nape of his neck in a ponytail. I studied his pale face, relieved that his eyes were hazel, not brown like Jacob's. Not many people consider how difficult it is for someone to look into the lively eyes of a person that looks so familiar to someone they've lost. The only thing that didn't remind me of his mother or father was the fullness of his lips.

I stood, then rounded the desk to offer my hand. "Camila Cabello. You have my sincerest condolences, Mr. Whitesides." I stopped myself before telling him that what happened to his brother was truly terrible because we both knew it. Useless to point out the obvious to someone grieving. Ethan took my hand in a strong grip, and I returned the handshake firmly.

"You're the investigator the cops have working on my brother's case?"

I took my hand away and sat back behind my desk. "I am. Why?"

"You're just not what I expected."

"Why do you say that?" I tried to keep my expression polite.

Ethan took a seat, pushing up the sleeves of his blue-and-white flannel. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be rude or discourteous. You're just younger and a lot smaller than I expected."

I forced myself to smile. "Appearances are deceiving."

Ethan nodded, looking uncomfortably around my office and finally at Dinah.

She peeked over the magazine and said, "Howdy."

"Hey."

"Dinah is my very unprofessional assistant." I lanced her a disapproving look.

She got the hint, putting the magazine down and offering Ethan her hand. "I'm sorry to hear about your brother."

"Thanks. I appreciate it."

Dinah walked back to her seat and Ethan stared at her as if he couldn't help himself. She opened her magazine. Either she was ignoring it or she was completely oblivious to him.

"Ethan." I had to say his name twice to get him to pay attention to me and was tempted to snap my fingers in front of his face.

"Yeah?"

"What did you need to talk to me about? I'm already looking into your brother's murder." I folded my arms on top of the desk.

"I came here initially to talk to you. The other lady told me she didn't know when you'd be back."

I nodded. "Why are you trying to pull another PI in on the case?"

"I wanted to talk to you. I figured if I hired her she'd say something to you."

I crossed my legs, finding a pen to scribble notes if I needed to. I usually didn't take them because I had a pretty good memory. "What do you need to talk to me about?"

"Jacob mentioned that about you." A look of sorrow flickered in and out of his hazel gaze.

"He mentioned me?" I couldn't keep all of the surprise from my voice.

"He said you were tough and to the point. He also told me about the cops coming out to the house when that man was attacked. I was at school so we spoke over the phone. Is it true my mom threw a fit and that you threatened to take her to jail?"

"I didn't threaten to throw her in jail. The cops did."

"Oh."

"What else did your brother say to you? Were the two of you close?"

"Yeah, he talked to me. I was the only one in the house that didn't listen to everything Mom says. Jacob and I had each other's backs. He couldn't talk to our mother. I'm sure you noticed."

"I did notice, and I'm sorry," I said, because I was. I couldn't imagine growing up in their situation.

"Dad's always got Mom's back. We couldn't talk to him either. So Jacob and I, we talked a lot. He was able to tell me things he couldn't tell our parents, and he knew I wouldn't rat him out."

I thought of several things to say and finally decided to ask, "Did you know about your brother's interest in the preternatural community?"

"He mentioned it a few times. He said he tried to talk to you and you told him to drop it. Is that true?"

"True enough," I said. Those weren't my exact words, but the gist of it was pretty damn close.

Ethan laughed. "You're not the only one that tried to tell him that. I tried too. I think," he sounded uncertain, "I know something you need to know."

"What is it?"

"Jacob met a girl a few weeks ago. He told me the last time I spoke with him over the phone. She's a girl from school, Beatrice Miller. I think that's her name." Ethan sighed heavily. "Man, he thought he was in love. Said she was interested in all the things he was—role playing, monsters, video games." He shook his head. "I should've said something sooner. I should've told him it was a stupid idea. How was I to know?"

Know what?
Outwardly, I shrugged. "People make their own decisions, even sixteen-year-old boys."

"Especially sixteen-year-old boys," Dinah added.

Ethan jumped as if he'd forgotten she was in the room. When he looked back at me it was with fierce determination. "Jacob was meeting this chick at night when our parents went to bed."

"It sounds like Jacob was drawn to her because they had similar interests," she said. "Beatrice might have connections to a rogue group of vampires."

Dinah seemed to be unknowingly following my thoughts. I nodded in agreement.

"What if Beatrice is the vampire?" Ethan asked.

"You said Jacob met her at school?"

"Yeah."

I shook my head. "She's not a vampire unless she's attending night school."

"Jacob went to a public school," Ethan said, clearly disappointed that whatever scenario he had come up with regarding a vampire Lolita wouldn't work out.

"Beatrice's connected somehow," Dinah said.

I said what I was thinking. "Beatrice's connected to Jacob's sire."

Ethan had a lost look on his face. "Sire?"

I stood and closed the office door. "Ethan, can you keep a really big secret from your parents? Your brother's...life may well depend on it."

"I won't tell them anything. Why? What is it?"

I told Ethan Whitesides my suspicions about his brother. Someone in his family needed to know, and since he was the only one prepared to speak to me without a Bible and some holy water in hand, it had to be him.