Ivy spent the two hours between the party and midnight walking the grounds of the Rothschild estate. The gardens were immaculate even in October, with pathways lit by antique lampposts that cast golden pools on the gravel. Security cameras tracked her movement from hidden positions among the hedges, but no one approached her.
Apparently, wandering the property after hours was acceptable behavior for overnight guests.
She'd checked into the small guest cottage behind the main house, a space that probably cost more per night than most hotel suites. The cottage came equipped with everything she could need—Egyptian cotton sheets, a fully stocked bar, even a selection of designer clothes in her exact size hanging in the closet.
Someone had done their homework.
The pendant Clarke had given her felt warm against her skin, tucked beneath her black sweater. She'd changed out of the cocktail dress into something more practical—dark jeans, boots with good tread, clothing that wouldn't restrict her movement if things went sideways.
At 11:58 PM, Ivy stood outside the main house's back entrance, studying the heavy wooden door that led to the library wing. No guards visible, but that didn't mean they weren't there. The vampires she'd met tonight moved like predators—silent, controlled, always aware of their surroundings.
She tried the door handle. Unlocked.
The library was exactly what she'd expected from a family that collected priceless art like other people collected bottle caps. Floor-to-ceiling shelves filled with leather-bound books, some of which looked old enough to be handwritten manuscripts. A massive fireplace dominated one wall, with dying embers casting flickering shadows across Persian rugs that probably belonged in a museum.
But it was the scent that stopped her cold. Cedar and cold iron, just like she'd noticed during the party. Stronger here, mixed with old paper and something else. Something that made her think of winter nights and Danny's dorm room and the way he used to smell when he held her close.
"You came."
Ivy didn't jump, but it was close. Dimitri stood in the doorway she'd just entered, moving with the kind of silence that shouldn't be possible for someone his size. He'd changed out of his tuxedo into dark slacks and a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, looking more like the college student she remembered and less like a vampire crime boss.
Almost.
"You asked me to." She kept her voice level, professional. Katherine Mills meeting with a potential client, nothing more.
"I asked Katherine Mills to come." Dimitri closed the door behind him with a soft click. "But I'm not sure that's who I'm talking to."
There it was. The challenge, thrown down like a gauntlet between them.
Ivy turned to face him fully, keeping the leather reading chair between them as a barrier. "I'm not sure I know what you mean."
"Don't you?" Dimitri moved into the room with fluid grace, his fingers trailing along the spine of a book as he passed the nearest shelf. "Katherine Mills is an interesting woman. Lives alone in Manhattan, works with very exclusive clients, has impeccable references from people who are surprisingly difficult to reach for verification."
Her cover identity. He'd been checking up on her.
"Successful business requires discretion," Ivy said. "My clients value their privacy."
"I'm sure they do." Dimitri's smile was sharp around the edges. "Tell me, Katherine, what do you think of our little community here?"
"Community?"
"Come now. You're too intelligent to pretend you didn't notice." He gestured around the library, encompassing the estate beyond. "Everyone at tonight's gathering was rather... exceptional, don't you think?"
Ivy weighed her options. Play dumb and risk insulting his intelligence, or acknowledge what she'd seen and reveal how observant she was. Either choice was dangerous.
"Your guests were very attractive," she said carefully. "Well-educated. Cultured."
"Attractive." Dimitri repeated the word like he was tasting it. "Yes, that's one way to put it. We do tend to be blessed with good genes."
The way he said 'we' sent a chill down her spine.
"You're talking about vampires," Ivy said. Not a question.
"Am I?" Dimitri moved closer, close enough that she could see the way his pupils reflected the firelight. "That's a very specific conclusion to draw from a party full of attractive people."
"The way everyone moved. The way their eyes caught the light. The fact that none of them seemed to actually eat any of the food." Ivy kept her voice steady despite the fact that he was now within arm's reach. "Plus you're moving around me like you're hunting something."
Dimitri stopped. "Hunting?"
"Circling. Testing my reactions. Trying to figure out whether I'm a threat or prey." She met his eyes directly. "Which am I?"
For a moment, his composure cracked. She saw surprise flicker across his face, followed by something that might have been admiration.
"You're very observant, Katherine."
"It's my job to notice details."
"Yes, I imagine it is." Dimitri leaned against the desk, crossing his arms. The casual pose should have made him seem less dangerous. Instead, it reminded her of a big cat pretending to relax. "Tell me, what else have you noticed?"
"About what?"
"About me."
The question hung in the air between them, loaded with ten years of history that neither of them was acknowledging. Ivy felt like she was walking across ice that might crack at any moment.
"You're younger than I expected for someone with your reputation," she said finally. "Either you inherited early or you're older than you look."
"Older than I look," Dimitri confirmed. "Much older."
"How much older?"
His smile was enigmatic. "Old enough to know better. Young enough to make the same mistakes twice."
What the hell did that mean?
"You're speaking in riddles," Ivy said.
"Am I? I thought I was being quite direct." Dimitri pushed off from the desk and moved to the fireplace, staring into the dying flames. "You know, you really do look familiar. Are you certain we haven't met?"
Here it was again. The opening, the chance to blow her cover and acknowledge their past. But something in his tone warned her off. This felt like a test.
"I'm certain," she lied smoothly.
"Hmm." Dimitri picked up a poker and stirred the embers, sending sparks up the chimney. "That's unfortunate. I have a very good memory for faces. Especially beautiful ones."
The compliment shouldn't have affected her. She was a trained federal agent, not a teenager with a crush. But her cheeks warmed anyway.
"You're very charming," she said. "I imagine that serves you well in business."
"Some businesses more than others." He set the poker aside and turned back to face her. "What business are you really in, Katherine?"
"Art authentication. I told you—"
"No." Dimitri's voice was gentle but firm. "What business are you really in?"
The way he asked the question made her stomach drop. He knew. Somehow, impossibly, he knew exactly who she was and why she was here.
But how?
"I don't know what you're talking about," Ivy said, but even she could hear how weak it sounded.
"Don't you?" Dimitri moved closer again, and this time she didn't back away. "Because I'm starting to think that Katherine Mills is a very carefully constructed lie. And I'm wondering who would go to such elaborate lengths to get close to my family."
"Maybe you're paranoid."
"Maybe I have good reason to be." He was close enough now that she could feel the heat radiating from his body, smell that intoxicating scent that reminded her of everything she'd lost. "People have been trying to destroy us for a very long time, Katherine. Government agencies, rival organizations, religious fanatics who think we're an abomination."
Government agencies. He'd said it so casually, but Ivy felt like he'd just dropped a bomb between them.
"That must be difficult," she managed.
"It is. Especially when the people hunting us send someone we..." Dimitri paused, his eyes searching her face. "Someone we care about."
The words hit her like a physical blow. He knew. He absolutely knew who she was, what she was here to do, and he was telling her so without actually saying it.
"I think you have me confused with someone else," Ivy said.
"Do I?" Dimitri reached up and traced one finger along her jawline, the touch so light it was barely there. "Because I'm looking at someone who broke my heart ten years ago, and I can't decide if I want to kiss her or kill her."
Ivy's breath caught. There it was—acknowledgment, confession, threat, and promise all rolled into one devastating sentence.
"I don't know what you're talking about," she whispered, but her body was betraying her. She was leaning into his touch despite every instinct screaming at her to run.
"Don't you, Ivy?"
Her name on his lips after ten years of silence was like being struck by lightning. Every carefully constructed wall she'd built around her heart cracked and crumbled.
"My name is Katherine," she said, but the words sounded hollow even to her.
"Your name," Dimitri said, stepping back and letting his hand fall away, "is Agent Ivy Novak, FBI. You graduated from Northwestern with a degree in criminology, joined the Bureau straight out of college, and you've been working undercover operations for the past three years."
Each fact hit her like a slap. He didn't just know who she was—he knew everything about her life since he'd left.
"That's quite a story," she said. "Very creative."
"Your father was Detective Paul Novak, Detroit PD. He died in the line of duty when you were seventeen. You wear his ring on your right hand, and you twist it when you're nervous." Dimitri's voice was gentle now, almost sad. "You're twisting it right now."
Ivy looked down at her hands. He was right.
"Stop," she said quietly.
"You have a scar on your left wrist from a knife fight in Detroit. You drink your coffee black with two sugars. You hate spiders but you're not afraid of snakes, and when you're really angry, you get very, very quiet."
"Stop." Louder this time.
"You used to have nightmares about your father's death, and the only thing that helped was when someone held you until you fell back asleep."
"Stop!" The word tore out of her throat like a scream.
Dimitri went silent. The only sound in the library was the crackling of the dying fire and Ivy's ragged breathing.
"Why?" she asked finally. "Why tell me all this? Why let me know that you know?"
"Because I needed to be sure," Dimitri said. "And because you deserve to know what you've walked into."
"Which is?"
"A trap." His smile was sad and sharp and completely without humor. "The question is whether it's a trap for you, or for me."
Ivy stared at him. "I don't understand."
"Your boss sent you here to gather evidence against my family. To build a case that will put us all in prison or worse." Dimitri moved to the window, looking out at the dark lake. "What he didn't tell you is that we know he's coming. We've known for months."
"That's impossible."
"Is it? We've been surviving government persecution for decades, Ivy. We didn't manage that by being naive."
The way he said her name, like it was something precious he'd been saving up, made her chest ache.
"So what happens now?" she asked.
Dimitri turned back to face her, and for a moment he looked exactly like Danny again. Young and lost and heartbroken.
"Now you have to decide who you trust," he said. "The government that sent you here to die, or the man who left you to keep you alive."
Before Ivy could respond, before she could process what he'd just said, Dimitri was moving toward the door.
"Wait," she called after him.
He paused with his hand on the doorknob. "Yes?"
"You said people hunting your family send someone you care about. Past tense." Ivy's voice was barely above a whisper. "Do you still? Care about me?"
Dimitri was quiet for so long she thought he wouldn't answer. When he finally spoke, his voice was rough with emotion.
"Some secrets, Ivy, are worth dying for. Others will get you killed just for knowing them." He opened the door, letting in a draft of cold air that made the fire flicker. "Be very careful which ones you choose to keep."
And then he was gone, leaving her alone in the library with more questions than answers and the terrifying certainty that everything she thought she knew was about to change.
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End of Chapter 4