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I followed the gol den thread of a trail Lissa left behind? But why had she chosen Derek over him ? Usually the lovers were together when I came to them, often living in the same place.
    I was usually called to them at the most critical of their times together, the final test and the last chance.
    Yet instead of following Lissa , I listened to the pull of the man in the club. The music ended abruptly, following a smooth male voice. “Weather’s turning nasty out there, ladies and gents. We’ve been advised to send all y’all on your way. But don’t fret, don’t stress, more music to be had this following Saturday.”
    Voices rose up, drin ks tipped back for a final swig. Servers rushed to clean while their guests moved to the secret door. I watched as fancy cars and limos waited to pick up their important clients. A flurry of the fancy and trashy paraded past my eyes but I cared little. Too much focus right now made my head spin. I could see the heartache and trouble that filled their lives, and knew why they had all come this night.
    Time often passed me in leaps and jump s. I did not know how long I sat there, pressed against the building after the last car had gone. The sky had shifted color however, behind that thick veil of gray to a hidden dawn. Still I rested deep in my memories, the closest I could come to dreaming.
    Despair was the color of my nightmares. I realized then that I was still shivering and the recognition hit me with a cloud of terror. I could feel the cold. Staring at the vacant street in a numb shock, I was suddenly afraid to ponder why.
     
    Chloe called to him before he walked out, “Don’t be jealous ’cause the boss likes my breasts better than yours.” She laughed loudly.
    “Last chance to catch a ride with me , Chloe.”
    “And chance being stuck with you for more than ten hours? In your dreams, big guy! Later!”
    My skin tingled the nearer he came and burned with an inner fire once he stepped out the front door into the storm. Snow had caked my cloak with a fine layer of white dust. And had I not lived at the edge of the emerald sea in my human years, I would have thought to be afraid.
    From the safety of my hood I took him in, coated by a heavy leather jacket, a skin tight woolen cap, scarf and gloves he was currently blowing warmth into. Shaking out his limbs in a way that was entirely too familiar, he turned his head and froze when his eyes caught mine. Flinching, I could not understand how he saw through my cloak again and willed him to look away. But the worst of my troubles was that I didn’t want him to look away.
    Gather your senses!
    While I struggled to find my sanity, he took several more steps closer and startled me by the sound of his voice. “Miss? What are you still doing out here?” Glancing down the street he shook his head. I could feel his frustration. “You know it’s already twenty below? You’re gonna freeze if we don’t get you home.”
    Tilting my chin up to meet him, I felt the snow graze my bare skin and gasped at the sensation. Tentatively, I pushed my cloak aside and held my bare arm out to feel the wind slide through my fingers.
    “Are you wearing anything underneath that cloak?” he asked. After staring incredulously at me he grasped his head in his hands and let them slide down his cheeks with a frustrated groan.
    I kept my h and still outstretched and as though it came from a distance, I heard a voice speak, raspy with disuse. “Can you feel it?”
    “So you can talk after all, ” he said with wide eyes. His smile tugged one corner of his mouth into an upturned grin.
    Something surged inside of me and gave me the energy to stand. Before I could take another step he was there, clutching me around the waist and helping me out of the drift. I turned and found the stubble on his strong jaw with my fingertips.
    “Can I help you get a cab at least?” He sounded doubtful, as though he already knew I had nowhere to go but with him.
    Certainty