Laughing, I threaded my arm through his and forced him to start walking again toward the hotel. “I knew you’d finally come around.”

“Mira,” he said in a low, warning voice. I was pressing my luck.

“Joke,” I said, but still snuggled a little closer to him. Not only was he radiating wonderful body heat, but his powers flared out around him as he constantly scanned the area. “How many?” I asked when we were only a few yards away from the hotel.

“Three within a block. Another dozen are scattered throughout the city. Most seem to be a distance from here. To the north, lower elevation, possibly.”

“They’re already at Machu Picchu,” I confirmed. “It’s going to be interesting to see if they let us set up an outpost at the lodge. It rests at the foot of the Incan retreat.”

“How exactly are we going to do that?”

“I’m sure it can’t be too hard. I mean, we will have a talented naturi and an earth witch with us. I’m sure between the two of them, they should be able to figure out something that would keep us all protected.”

Danaus stopped walking again and glared down at me, less than patiently waiting for the real response. I sighed heavily and pulled him along until he was finally walking toward the hotel of his own accord.

“Stefan also knows a couple interesting tricks,” I said, “though I would never say as much to his face. The bastard has enough of an inflated ego, and at the moment, I truly doubt that I am his most favorite person in the world.”

“Old boyfriend?”

An unladylike snort escaped me before I could stop it, and I clenched my free hand at my side. I didn’t like Stefan. I didn’t like his kind. He believed that anything weaker than him was put on this earth for his amusement; that included both human and nightwalker. Lycanthropes were a temptation, but since they tended to travel in packs, it was more difficult to pick off just one victim. But that didn’t put the occasional shifter beyond his reach.

“Hardly,” I sarcastically snapped. “Stefan is nearly an Ancient. I have no doubt that he can practically taste that one-thousand-year mark and it’s now eating him alive that I have claimed the open seat on the Coven—the very seat I know he planned to claim for himself.”

“So we have a new reason not to trust him,” Danaus murmured, gazing down at my upturned face.

I smiled at my companion, feeling silly for enjoying this quiet moment. It was one of the rare times when we weren’t yelling at each other. Danaus wasn’t cursing me for what I was while we plotted to kill each other. We were a team with a single goal ahead of us—stop the naturi from opening the door. It made me feel as if we were unstoppable. I knew that it wasn’t the truth, but at least it was a comforting feeling as we walked together down the cold, dark cobblestone streets of Cuzco with naturi surrounding us.

“Normally, I would agree with you, but at the moment, Stefan is going to be my greatest protector. He’s got a direct command from the Coven to protect you and me. Destroying one of us right now isn’t going to earn him any points with the Coven. If anything, it’s going to get him killed for failing to complete his duty.”

Danaus stopped walking and turned his body so he was facing me. The wind flew down the narrow street, slamming him in the back before flowing around him to hit me in the chest. My hair danced about my face as if it had taken on a life of its own, like Medusa’s snakes.

“The Coven,” he said, and then stopped again. He raised both of his hands, closing them into fists before lowering them back to his sides in frustration. “Why? I mean, couldn’t there have been another way? Or could I have…” His voice faded as he tried to put into words the maelstrom of feelings that were swirling around inside him. It was tempting to just close my eyes and creep along our connection to try to get a clearer picture of exactly what he was feeling, but I decided against it. There were some things that were better if they remained unknown.

I slowly reached forward and laid my hand over his heart. Its beat was steady and even, a heartbeat that I could spend centuries listening to, letting it lull me into peaceful rest. “There was no other way. Joining the Coven may have been a mistake, but I’m stuck with it now. I’ll find a way to make the best of it, without being a puppet for Jabari.”

“Or a target for Macaire and Elizabeth,” he said, laying his hand over mine. “You promised that one day we would finish our dance. I still mean to kill you, nightwalker.”

A sad smile drifted across my lips as I rested my forehead against his hand, which was still covering mine. “Afraid of a little competition?”

“It seems like half the world wants you dead.”

“Yes, but only after I’m done risking my life for them,” I said, lifting my head again. “Let’s get going. We need to check on the girls.” I stepped away from him and started walking down the street again, ending our brief moment.

“Why are we going to Ollantaytambo?” Danaus inquired, at my side again, his hands shoved into his pockets. He had no obvious weapons strapped to his body, but I had no doubt that he probably had a number of knives. It was on the tip of my tongue to ask how many naturi were now close to our location, but I swallowed the words. The hunter was on edge already, his eyes continuously scanning the area. If we were being threatened, he’d tell me.

“Even since you mentioned Ollantaytambo, it’s been ringing in my head. The name keeps teasing at some memory in the back of my brain,” I said, not bothering to filter the frustration from my voice.

“What?”

“I don’t know,” I sighed. A bitter wind whipped through the city, pulling at my hair so that a few tendrils danced across my face. I hooked a bit of loose hair behind my ear, but it refused to stay put. “I’ve been to Peru just once, and I thought only at Machu Picchu. But I feel like I should remember something about Ollantaytambo—maybe I’ve been there or they mentioned it. I don’t know, but I want to check it out.”

“So this is just a side trip while we wait for the others to be taken to the lodge?” Danaus replied.

“Possibly,” I admitted with a shrug. “Get the van organized with Eduardo. I’m going back to the hotel to get our ‘things’ and talk to some locals. Maybe I can get some information about Ollantaytambo.”

“Mira…” he started. I could guess what he was going to say. Something about the number of naturi lurking in Peru, in Cuzco, or in our hotel. They would always be close, but I didn’t think that Rowe would be willing to make a move just yet. Or at least, I didn’t think that Nyx would allow him to risk the life of her sister. Unless she really did want Cynnia dead, and then I was about to be proven seriously wrong.

“Is one standing behind me?” I sharply asked before he could continue.

Danaus furrowed his brow and frowned at me. “No.”

“Then I don’t want to know. Don’t tell me how outnumbered we are until I ask.”

With a nod and half smile, he headed back toward Hostal Loreto to find Eduardo. I trudged back to the hotel, my hands in my pockets and my head down against the wind. I didn’t want to tell him that fear twisted in my stomach whenever I heard the word “Ollantaytambo.” There was something I was supposed to remember about that place. As best as I could recall, I had woken up one night on Machu Picchu after being in Spain the night before. I don’t know how I had gotten to Machu Picchu and I never asked. Pain quickly accompanied consciousness during those long nights, and petty thoughts about how I’d traveled a long distance were unimportant.

Had the naturi spoken of Ollantaytambo during my imprisonment? Or worse? Had I been there but couldn’t remember? I had to know. It probably had nothing to do with the sacrifice and the opening of the door, but I knew I would never have another chance to find out. If we were lucky, we’d zip in and out of Ollantaytambo without being noticed and then be flown to the lodge. Of course, Lady Fortune had given me the cold shoulder for much of the past few months. Why change now?