Blood Secrets-Valorian 1 (18 page)

He couldn’t wait any longer. He had to possess her now.

Before he could step out into the street, the door to the studio opened, and the lycan cop walked out. Rage surged over him as he watched Detective Calder open the SUV door, collect Eve, put her in his car, start the vehicle and drive away.

Leaning against the wall, his breath coming in hard, raspy pants, he closed his eyes and focused on the future. He would have his way soon. A few more days and he would be able to fulfill all his dark fantasies with the woman.

And while he was doing so his fate would be fulfilled and he would become the most powerful being ever to walk the earth.

A nger fueled her movements as Eve flipped through the evidence logs, tossing crime scene photos and reports onto the rectangular tabletop in the analysis room. The employee list from Shadowwood Studios, courtesy of Detective Calder before he left the studio, was what she’d been staring at for the past half hour.

Ever since she directed Ren to drive her back to the lab, she’d been holed up in the room going over all the evidence they had. If Caine was going to keep her out of the field, she would solve the damn case right here in the lab. He couldn’t stop her from thinking.

She was holding on to her anger, allowing it to dictate her actions, because the alternative was too damn painful. Caine had hurt her with his words. He had cut to her core and flayed her to the bone. After the closeness she was starting to feel from him, his betrayal hurt even more. She had misjudged him, misunderstood the feelings she thought he had for her, and that had cost her more than she wanted to admit.

Therefore, instead of wallowing in her pain, she wrapped her anger around her like a shield. She was guarded now, steel-fortified, and no one, especially Caine Valorian, was going to get behind her defenses again.

Flipping to another crime scene photo, Eve wondered if Caine was still at Shadowwood Studios talking with his special friend, Nadja. She hated to admit it, but jealousy also fueled her anger and hurt. She’d seen the way Caine had looked at the singer.

Certainly, she was gorgeous and elegant, and had a voice like an angel, but Eve had redeeming qualities, too. She wasn’t as spit and polished as Nadja, but she was pretty when she wanted. Hadn’t Caine looked at her with desire during that evening in her hotel room?

Maybe she should’ve let him know that she was interested. Because she had a sneaky suspicion she wasn’t going to get another chance to be with him again. And however career crushing it would be, she yearned for it like a lovesick puppy.

Lyra popped her head in the door, startling Eve from her reverie. “Where’s Caine?”

“Talking with his girlfriend,” Eve grumbled under her breath.

“Did you just say he was talking to his girlfriend?” Lyra asked as she stepped into the room, a lopsided grin on her petite face.

Eve smirked. “No.”

“Okay, do you know where he really is?”

“I’m right here.” They both jumped when Caine seemed to materialize in the doorway.

“What’s up?”

“I got a name from my contact down in the Sticks. Someone has been asking a lot of questions about demonology and summoning. A vampire.”

Eve leaned forward in her chair and at the exact moment that Caine spoke she asked,

“What’s the name?”

Caine glanced down at her, and she thought she saw a twitch at his lips. Her treacherous heart jumped at the possibility of it turning into a smile.

“Melvin Howard. Around six feet tall, short-cropped blond hair, blue eyes.”

“Are you sure?” Caine asked.

Something in Eve’s mind flashed back. She knew that name from somewhere. Glancing down at the table, she spied the employee list for Shadowwood.

“Mel Howard is a paramedic out of Silent Hill,” Caine said. “I know the guy.”

“He’s also an employee of Shadowwood.” Eve handed Caine the paper.

As Caine read over the list, adrenaline shot through Eve’s body. This was it, she could feel it. They had their killer.

“Could this be our guy?” Lyra asked. “Maybe it’s a coincidence.”

“I don’t believe in coincidences. That would explain one of the reasons he was at the Red Express.”

Eve perked up. “Oh my God, he was there that night we—” She could feel her cheeks blush even as the first word was out of her mouth. Coughing into her hand, she tried to disguise it as something other than embarrassment. “—picked up Xavier.”

“Yes, he was, and conveniently missed treating Xavier in the back of Mahina’s car.”

“It would explain the heparin in Lillian’s system,” Eve offered, the thrill of the catch thrumming through her body. She was on the edge of her seat.

“It sure would.” He lifted his gaze and met hers. A zing of energy bolted through the space between them. He was as excited as she was about finally catching a break and solving the case. It wasn’t airtight yet, but Eve had a feeling it was damn close.

She wondered if Caine experienced this kind of connection with all his crime scene team members. Deep in her heart, she hoped not. She hoped that this, whatever it was, was just between the two of them. It would be something she could take home with her when she left. Something she could remember about him and their almost relationship.

“I’ll call Mahina. Tell her we’re picking him up.” Caine flipped open his phone and dialed.

“I’m going to find Jace and tell him to meet us in the garage. I don’t think anyone wants to miss it when we catch this guy.”

Lyra flashed Eve a grin, then marched out of the analysis room, leaving Eve and Caine alone. After finishing his call to Mahina, he slid the phone into his pants pocket, and turned to look down at her.

Suddenly nervous, Eve shuffled the crime scene photos and reports into a nice, neat pile on the table. In the midst of possibly finding their killer, she’d forgotten that she was furious with Caine. Now other emotions, stronger, more intense feelings were surfacing and she didn’t know what to do with them.

“Eve, I want to apologize.”

“No need,” she said as she scooped up the papers and shoved them back into the case file folder.

His hand covered hers on the table. “There is a need.”

Looking up she met and kept his gaze. The air seemed to sizzle between them. A warm sensation flowed over her skin from where he touched her. Despite her anger toward him, she desperately wanted that feeling to spread over her entire body. It felt too damn good.

He felt too damn good.

“I was completely out of line. You have earned your place in this lab. And I appreciate all that you’ve contributed to the case.”

“Thank you,” she said and smiled. Elation filled her. He did care about her. She could see it in his eyes. Maybe they could somehow make something work between them. A night, a week. She didn’t care. Was it so impossible?

“I just wanted you to know that before you went back to your own lab. I’ll make sure to tell your captain.”

Her elation faded and ended up as a hard lump in the pit of her stomach. She’d been wrong. All the man wanted was to get rid of her.

Pulling her hand out from his, she pushed to her feet, and handed him the case file.

“Right. Then let’s get it over with, shall we? Maybe I can be back home before the sun rises.”

Brushing past him and out the door, she hurried down the corridor before he could see how upset she was. She could feel Caine walking behind her but she never turned around.

She refused to let him know how he had hurt her again. It was humiliating that he had seen her cry and felt the need to apologize to her. He’d told her before that he wasn’t used to someone with so many emotions. He had been so right.

C aine stood beside Mahina, adrenaline racing through his system as she pressed the doorbell of Mel Howard’s quaint little bungalow at three o’clock Sunday morning. Eve and Lyra stood huddled together on the sidewalk, both with their kits, in front of the house while Jace and Ren were at the back.

He worried a little about Eve being on the scene. Hadn’t he left her defenseless one too many times before? Fighting back his nervousness about Eve’s vulnerability, Caine told himself to keep calm. Eve was with Lyra. She was safe. The whole team was here.

He felt they deserved to be present when they seized the perp. Or the alleged perp in the eyes of the law. But in Caine’s mind, Mel was guilty as hell. After going over all the evidence, he was one hundred percent sure the vampire was their serial murderer. Not only did he have the means, they also discovered that Mel Howard had a .38 registered to him. Therefore, the whole team was wearing Kevlar vests.

Mahina pressed the buzzer again. Putting his ear to the door, Caine could hear the doorbell echo inside, but he didn’t hear anything else. Maybe Mel wasn’t home. He wasn’t working. Caine had already called to see if he was on shift.

Mahina picked up her radio and pressed the button. “We’re going in. On five.”

As she picked up the battering ram, she nodded to Caine and counted. “One, two, three, four, five.”

On five, she swung the thick black metal cylinder at the door. The wood on the frame splintered and the door slammed open. With her gun drawn, Mahina rushed in, Caine following close behind.

“Police!”

Caine heard the back door crash open, and Ren’s twin announcement of arrival. “Police!”

Caine did a quick survey of the living room. A lamp in the corner was still on. A half-full glass of blood sat on the glass coffee table. And Caine could detect the odor of fear in the air.

Sidling up next to Mahina, he whispered in her ear, “He’s here.”

Nodding, she spoke quietly into her radio. “Be on alert. Suspect is still in the house.” She glared at Caine. “And you, get behind me. Your head isn’t bulletproof, you know.”

He motioned for her to continue the search. As she moved from the living room into the kitchen, he got behind her. She was right, his head wasn’t bulletproof and he wasn’t about to lose it. Not now, anyway.

The rest of the house was dark, but neither one of them needed a flashlight as they both possessed superior night vision. But so did their suspect.

A quick perusal of the kitchen showed dirty dishes in the sink and a leaky drip in the faucet, but nothing else. As they crept down the hall toward the bedrooms, the stink of panic invaded Caine’s nostrils. Either Mel was in one of the bedrooms waiting for them, or he had recently just run down the corridor with thoughts of escape racing in his mind.

Mahina and Ren went down the hall first, their backs to the wall. Caine and Jace lagged a little behind. On Mahina’s right, a door was ajar. Silently, she crept to it and peered in, gun pointed confidently. Glancing behind her, she shook her head indicating that it was clear.

Coming back into the hall, they continued inching their way along the wall. There were two bedrooms ahead, one on the left, and one on the right. Both doors were closed.

Taking in a deep whiff, Caine tried to determine what direction the odor was coming from. The smell was so cloying, seemingly coming from the walls themselves, that he couldn’t tell.

Mahina and Ren looked at each other just as they neared the closed doors. A nod was all that was needed between them to know exactly what to do. They had been on a few busts together before.

On the count of three, Mahina and Ren kicked open the doors and charged into the bedrooms. Caine held back as they searched the rooms. Any minute, he expected to hear shouting or shooting. However, he heard nothing but Jace’s ragged breathing as he pushed up behind him, eager to get in on the action.

After a few more minutes, Ren wandered out of the bedroom, empty-handed, and shrugged. “He ain’t up here.”

“There’s a basement, maybe he’s hiding there,” Jace offered.

Caine shook his head. “He came this way. I’m positive.”

Mahina poked her head out of the other room. “There’s an open window.”

“He escaped out the window,” Jace said. “Which way do you think he’d run?”

A scream perforated the silence of the night, giving them their answer.

Eve!

Caine swung around and ran back down the hall toward the front door, his heart hammering in his chest. Thoughts of bloodshed already flashed in his mind. Please, God, don’t take her from me now!

Eve didn’t see him come around the corner until it was too late.

Before she could react, the suspect had knocked Lyra unconscious from behind with a blow to the head, and was quickly approaching Eve, his lips pulled back in a feral grin.

Instincts kicking in, Eve held her ALS flashlight in her hand like a club, the light source on. If he was going to come at her, he was going to get an eyeful of ultraviolet and a knock in the face.

With every step back Eve took, he matched her. She knew he was mocking her, taunting her with the fact that he was so much stronger than she was. That at any time he could end this and kill her with a sweep of his hand and a bite of his teeth.

His contempt toward her made Eve angry. She was tired of being afraid. Wasn’t she exactly as everyone saw her? A scared human woman thinking she could play with the creatures of the night. Well, she was damn tired of being afraid. She was just damn tired.

“You’re going down for the murders, Mel. We have enough evidence to convict you and lock you up for life.”

His steps faltered a little as she spoke. Eve thought he likely wasn’t expecting her to talk to him, stand up to him. He expected her to cower and shrink. A fly to his deadly spider.

“Keep talking, human. I like to play with my food.”

“Maybe if you give yourself up, they’ll go easier on you.”

Mel laughed. “Honey, I’m never going to see the inside of a prison cell. He won’t let that happen.”

He? Who was he? Was there someone else involved with the murders? Eve didn’t have time to process that information. Mel leaped forward and pushed on her shoulders, shoving her to the ground. He loomed over her, his open mouth baring his fangs.

“Playtime is over. Time for the main course.”

As he pressed down on her, one of his hands on her head slowly turning it to bare her neck, she swatted at him with her flashlight. She connected twice with the bridge of his nose before he grabbed her hand and pushed it up over her head. With tears running down his cheeks from the impact on his nose, he closed in on her neck, in no obvious pain.