Shortly after Cameron did his thing with Alexis the Ravnos; which basically worked out to putting him in a box to review later on; I got a call from every Nosferatu's favorite ghoul, Knox Harrington. As far as I knew, he was supposed to be off duty. This call was entirely voluntary; I had to respect and even admire his dedication.

"I'm at the Asylum," he reported. "Oh, man; you would not believe the scene in here! Marko just left Jeanette on the dance floor like his ass was on fire, and you'll never guess who took his spot on Jeanette's dance card!"

"Wait; let me try to anyway." I replied, playing along. "Ash Rivers; he only faked his death and is now back in California to pay his respects to Isaac. He decided to cut loose in Santa Monica while he was at it." Yeah, I was making light of Knox's work. I knew he wouldn't be calling me if it was some mundane or impossible thing, but experience taught me that a little bit of ribbing keeps the guy working hard.

"Hey, c'mon, man," Knox whined. "How often do I bother you with stupid shit like that? I'm telling you this is something big, or it will lead up to something big."

"Okay, Knox; you win." I said in consolation. "You're right; I have no idea. Who filled Jeanette's dance card once Marko ran out on her like a bat of hell?"

"Aww, man; you will not believe it! I'm looking at it right now and I can barely believe my eyes! It's that skinny Tremere chick from your Super Seven group! Isn't she, like, the Tremere boss or something? My God, this is blowing my mind! They look like they're really getting into each other, too!" Knox howled like a horny teenager that snuck into a strip bar for the first time in his life. Given the ruckus I could hear around him on his end of the line, he apparently fit right in. That aside, he was dead right; the Primogen of Clan Tremere and the 'sister' of the Prince getting cozy was a big deal.

"Listen carefully, Knox." I said. "Watch them closely now. Tell me, which one is working which?" Adam turned his head, suddenly interested. With his little pinpricks of white in those hollow eye sockets of his boring into me, he mouthed the words 'What's going on?' I held up one finger to him; signalling I needed him to let me finish this conversation.

"I dunno." He replied. "It's like they're both working each other. You think they might be forming some kind of alliance or something?"

"It's hard to say." I said back. "Look, Knox, I know it's supposed to be your night off, but I need two things from you. I'll make sure Bertram knows you're going above and beyond. Is that cool with you?"

Knox cheered exuberantly; whether at my request and offer at whatever was going on there I might never know for sure. "Hell yeah, it's cool!" he exclaimed. "What do you need?"

"Great; I knew I could count on you." I answered. "First, I need an update on the whereabouts of that Toreador stripper. You know, Cammie's girlfriend. Second, and this is the big one, I need you to keep an eye Tabetha and Jeanette until I get there. Can you do that?"

"No problem there," he answered. "It's funny you should ask about Kaila, actually; I just got a message from one of our guys at Vesuvius. She just left. In fact, she got into a cab headed for that house in the hills she lives in when she's not shacking up with Cammie." He was silent for about a tenth of a second. "Whoa! Jeanette is practically dragging her to the elevator now!" He laughed lecherously. It kind of sounded like the kind of laugh Bertram would use; it seemed Knox was picking up a few of his master's mannerisms. "You want me to try to follow them?" His question was asked with a weird combination of apprehension and pleading; he afraid of what would happen to him if he got caught, but was hoping to catch a little hot action. The reality of the situation was that the scenario was far too dangerous for a ghoul; even if he was being considered for the embrace.

"Watch the elevator." I advised. "If either of them leaves, tail that one." I ended the call before Knox could make any other comment. Looking at Adam, I gave him a summary of the conversation with Knox, including the likely whereabouts of Kaila.

"How reliable is this Knox person?" He asked.

"Very" I replied. "In fact, Bertram is considering turning him over. He has this brilliant act that makes him look like a complete fool, which prompts others to let their guard down around him. At any rate, his information always turns out good enough to work with."

Adam nodded. "If this Kaila isn't at the Strip Club, then it's unlikely the Seneschal will be. He might go and visit her. While the two women are still the most likely suspects..." He stopped talking there, leaving his thought unfinished.

"What are you thinking?" I asked.

Adam shook his head. "Never mind" he replied.

I wasn't going to let him off that easy; big shot Camarilla Bounty Hunter or not. "Don't shut me out now, Walker." I insisted. "We're Nosferatu, and we share all. Besides, if I'm going to be able to help you, I need to know. Are you saying that you're putting Cameron on the suspect list?"

Adam said nothing. That was answer enough. I got why he didn't want to say it; the implications of the Seneschal of a large Domain like Los Angeles being replaced by member of the Red List were disturbing, to say the least. If he said it and was wrong, that would be bad for him. If he was right, then was bad for everyone whether he said so or not. Unless, of course, if he stopped her; then his status and reputation would be near legendary.

"You better have a damn good reason." I warned. Sure Cameron was a bit of jerk at times, but over the last ten years he and I been through lot together. He was kind of a hard ass and a cut throat in the boardroom, but he did have a sort of sick nobility to him, and I did consider him a friend; kind of. "I mean, yeah, he's been getting a bit distant lately, but then being Seneschal is probably a big job; that's to be expected. Besides, he's probably just been a little bit whipped by his girl."

"I doubt his remoteness has much of anything to do with his job." Adam snapped, irritated. He calmed himself down, and then continued. "As part of my new condition, I have a rare ability among our Clan; I've developed a natural knack with Auspex along with our normal abilities. My sire told me it was a mutation in our blood that happens from time to time. I used my abilities on Cameron and picked up on something I'm sure he's gone to length to keep out of public knowledge; his heart is missing."

If I could blink, I would have. A flood of memories came rushing back. There was the time I was checking out Cameron's emails and learned it was him who sent the Assamites after the Barons. There was the fight I got in with a Setite in his apartment building basement; the one where I staked the creep and he shrugged it off and returned the favor like it was nothing. My turn, he said. There was Cameron having that powwow with Alejandro. There was the thing with two Camerons. Could Adam be right? Had that bitch worked her way all the way to Cameron, even before any of us had any idea she was here? Any way I turned it in my head, it was possible. From what I knew about Khemintiri, it was quite possible.

"It's your turn." Adam said. "Now you're the one holding back. Quid pro quo, Ajax, that's how it works now."

I sighed. "It's just some stuff that went down with Cameron a few months ago." I told him. "Right around the time the Setites tried to move in. That was when we first learned she might be here."

"Go on" he said, sounding exactly like a cop. "Tell me everything."

I did. I told him all of it; from his part in the Assamite attacks on Isaac, Gary, Nines, and Therese to his undercover work with the Setite Priest that he later dusted. I told him about the fight I had with the Setite. I told him about the double that killed Heather. I laid it all out for him, and as I did the account seemed more and more damning. I was starting to feel sick.

Adam grinned bitterly; I couldn't tell if he was pissed or pleased. I think it was a bit of both. He cracked his knuckles. "Thank you for sharing," he said finally. "I know it doesn't feel like it now, but you did the right thing." He paused, thinking. "Okay; here' what we're going to do. You already told...Knox, was it? Good. You already told him you would go to this Asylum place to meet with him and follow up that lead. That's what you'll do. Now I need you to tell me where Kaila lives so I can follow up that lead. We will meet up again in the Warrens to compare notes and decide our next move from there."

I lead Adam to the sewer access tunnel that made the best access to the house that Andrei the Tzimizce once called home and gave him directions from there. I watched as he took the tunnel and eventually vanished from sight; off to bust some scaly-assed ancient Setite that might be either seducing or worse impersonating someone I count among my allies. Head low, I made my way to the tunnel that provided the most direct route to Santa Monica so I could spy on someone who might or might not be someone I had a great deal of respect for doing nasty things with the alternate personality of our esteemed Prince.

The night had such a good start, but now it looked like it was all but promising to have a shitty ending.