Born In Blood (Born Hunter Book 1) (7 page)

              The vampire was now standing directly in front of them. He dropped to one knee and bowed his head. “Liege.”

              Aiden’s body tensed and he growled beside her. Clearly something the vampire did agitated him. “The next person who does that, you, Dorian or Asad, I swear to the Gods I am going to impale.”

              The vampire grinned but swiftly got to his feet. “Just following protocol,” he said, the picture of innocence.

              Aiden raised his eyebrow. “Protocol also permits me to rip the heart out of all those who annoy me.”

The vampire shrugged his shoulders, unaffected by the threat.“ You could, but you wouldn’t. You’d miss me too much. Admit it.”

              “I am sure I could make do,” Aiden good-naturedly bantered back.

              This was a new side of the Dark Prince Cara had yet to see.  She was sure most people never would
.
Even when flirting with her he still retained an air of absolute power and threatening authority about himself. Even though he seemed to suppress the monster when interacting with her, it was always there and visible just below the surface. With the wrong word, the right provocation, or the unforgivable offense Cara was sure he would release it without hesitation. She knew how frightening a monster it was from their very first interaction and she had no wish to ever have it directed at her again. Cara knew with every fiber of her being that she had only escaped with her life by some unexplained twist of fate that made him think she served a purpose better alive than dead. Cara also knew that if they ever found themselves in that same situation again, there would be no walking away in a draw a second time. Only one of them would leave alive. This knowledge did nothing to diminish the desire she felt for Aiden. It may have even contributed to it. As a hunter and the best there was, Cara did not come up against many men who were truly her equal. She was always stronger, faster, more powerful, more resilient. It did not lend itself to a long standing positive relationship when most men’s egos would not let them accept a woman who could best them. As a result, while Cara was no virgin, she had not had many meaningful relationships either. Most of her experiences with men over the years consisted of casual flings that fizzled out just as quickly as they started.

              Cara curiously wondered who this newcomer was. As if on cue his attention turned to her. His eyes traveled the length of her body as he took her measure. He did not bother to hide his disdain as the knowledge that she was a hunter dawned on him. It was not hard to figure out if you knew what to look for. Upon successful completion of intake training all initiates received their hunter’s mark. The mark was different for each hunter as they chose it based on the one principal they held above all else and drove them to become a hunter. But it was always tattooed in the same place, arguably in the most painful spot their was to receive a tattoo, on their right collar bone. Cara’s mark was an ancient tribal pattern of intricate swirls and long forgotten hieroglyphs that meant
vengeance
.  She remembered every painful dig of the artist’s needle into her bone, but she sat in the chair without batting an eyelash. She simply stared stone-faced ahead and repeated the same mantra over and over in her head:
I will have my vengeance.
The neckline of the cotton sweater she wore beneath the open short-leather jacket was low enough that her hunter’s mark was easily observed.

              “I’m not so sure you could make do without us, considering the present company you’ve decided to keep. I know you’ve always liked to indulge in
eccentricities
when it comes to lovers, but seriously Aiden a
hunter.
It’s beneath you.”

              “You may be one of my Circle, but thread lightly,” Aiden warned.

              He was about to say something else to the vampire but Cara did not give him the chance. She had had about all the insults she was going to take and had no problem defending herself. She stepped out of Aiden’s hold and let her hand hover near the blade concealed at her hip. “Present company is about to remove your head from your shoulders,” she gave the smug vampire a sickly sweet smile.

              He took a step closer to her and his amber gaze glowed gold around the edges. Pure hatred burned in his eyes for what she was. She let her own eyes reflect the same level of hatred back into his, a silent challenge she hoped he would answer.

              “Oh I’d love to take that challenge on Hunter. I’ve never had the pleasure of dancing with your kind before but I know what you do to my kind. Hunt us down like rabid dogs. Tell me Hunter, how many of us have you targeted, stalked, hunted down and massacred?  I’d love to repay the favor in kind.”

              “Not nearly enough, but I can do the world a favor and add you to the list,” Cara spat out. She did not bother with the twin daggers at her back. They killed much too efficiently and she wanted to savor this particular fight. Instead she unsheathed the serrated blade at her hip and crouched low into a fighting stance.

              The offending vampire looked to Aiden for the green light.

              Aiden laughed. “No permission needed. You talked yourself into this one all by yourself, Rafe.”

             
So that is his name,
Cara thought. She always liked to know the names of those she killed. It felt more personal that way.

              Rafe crouched down into a fighting stance of his own. Cara shifted to an offensive position rather than a defensive one. She had no qualms with striking the first blow. With a speed and strength most hunters spent a lifetime of training to achieve Cara struck out at Rafe and opened a wound across his torso. It bloomed crimson then immediately stopped, repairing itself quicker than the human eye could track. Rafe struck out at her in return and landed a hard-fisted blow to her gut. She pretended to double over in pain and he chose that moment to come at her again just as Cara expected. Vampires fought dirty and they
always
kicked you when you were down. Cara did not fault them for it. She fought the same way. An honorable death was still death. Instead of letting Rafe land another blow while she was doubled over she dropped to her knees at the last minute and struck out with her foot. He crashed to the ground beside her and she buried her blade to the hilt in his left hamstring. It would not kill him but it would hurt like a bitch. She took pleasure in the visible pain that contorted his features as he yanked the blade out. He moved to throw it at her, aiming for her jugular, but she caught it mid-air blade first.

              “Thank you for returning that.” She smiled viciously the way she always did whenever her opponent’s death was imminent. She unsheathed the blade’s identical twin and lunged herself at the vampire.

              Aiden could not take his eyes off of Cara. She was a beautiful force of fury, power, and strength. In battle, her steel gray eyes raged with uncontrollable storms and a need for blood that rivaled even the most bloodthirsty of vampires, himself included. She fought offensively, rather than defensively, letting Aiden know that she was the type to strike out hard and fast at potential threats before they could strike at her. It was as if she refused to allow herself to be put in a position of vulnerability or fear, no matter the cost. Aiden guessed it was the result of the trauma of her father’s death. Aiden would bet that Cara took an offensive stance in every aspect of her life, always needing to be in direct control of a situation. She was a born hunter. Those qualities would have made most men, especially human men, shy away from her. Their egos and ideas of male superiority unable to handle her strength. But strength and power were revered in vampire society regardless of one’s sex. Might equaled right. Male or female, the amount of respect you were given depended on the amount of power you were able to wield. Watching Cara fight Rafe only served to increase Aiden’s level of respect and the desire he had for her.

              Rafe put up a good fight, but he underestimated Cara’s strength and skill. He lay subdued on his back as she straddled his torso. She held a poised above Rafe’s heart. “Condescending notions of vampire superiority will get you killed every time,” she tsked down at him.

              Cara moved to drive the dagger through his heart, but Aiden stilled her hand.  “While I admit he had the ass-kicking coming, I cannot allow you to kill him my dear hunter. The action would be regrettable.”             

              She whipped her head to the side to glare at him. Aiden had to forcibly restrain himself from reaching down to run his hands through the sultry mess of vibrant auburn curls that had come loose during the fight. It would only infuriate her more. 

              “And if I kill him anyway?” she challenged.

              “Then I would be forced to act,” he responded coolly.

              “Is that a threat?” she growled back.

              “It is a word of caution.” The smile Aiden offered her was blinding. He was not above using charm to talk her down.

              “This vampire,” she asked, “it sounds as if he means something to you?”

              “Although he can be an ass, as he was tonight, he does. He is one of my Circle.”

              That got Cara’s attention. “What’s your Circle?”

              “If you let him go, I will tell you about it as I drive you home.”

              Cara knew a bribe, however subtle it was, when she heard one. Like always, her curiosity got the better of her. She re-sheathed the dagger and stood up. “Fine. Let’s go,” she said to Aiden.

              Aiden helped a flabbergasted Rafe to his feet with a smirk on his face.

              “How in the hell did she…” Rafe began but Aiden cut him off.

              “Save it and be thankful I saved your ass. I will let you know my terms of repayment later…And my terms of secrecy. It would be a shame for the rest of the Circle to find out you were taken down by a human.” Aiden offered him mock salute then turned with Cara to leave.

Eleven

             
“S
o,” Cara probed as they raced across Manhattan, finally heading towards the one destination she had been trying to get back to all night, “the Circle?”

              “What about it?” Aiden said simply to grate her nerves. She was magnificent when she was angry.

              “What is it?” She demanded.

              “As the Vampire Sovereign, my father, Viktor, has his Council of Lords who act as advisors and enforcers of his will. My Circle is something like that. Only it is made up of three individuals not seven and they act as my advisors though much more than my advisors at the same time.”

              “Okay that was not at all a convoluted explanation. Elaborate please.”

              “The vampires that comprise my Circle are much more than the pawns jockeying for political capital and favor as is the case with my father’s council. We grew up together and have known each other since childhood. They are the closest thing to friends a vampire can acknowledge having. They are unwaveringly loyal to me and my agenda, even if it means going against my father, their Sovereign. They answer to no one but me for their actions and their job is to both help me carry out my duties as Enforcer and Heir. They will bleed and die for me just as I will for them.”

              “So they are like your security team slash advisors slash best friends slash henchmen all rolled into one?”

              Aiden nodded. “Something like that.”

              “What a cute bromance you have going on.”

              “A
what
?” Aiden choked on his words.

              “A bro-mance.” Cara said it slowly and enunciated each syllable for clarification.

              Aiden cringed. The action made her smile. “I heard what you said, but do not
ever
refer to my Circle as that again.”

              “And if I do?”

              “Then I might just have to place you over my knee and spank that amazing ass of yours,” he winked at her.

              A blush crept into Cara’s cheeks, which was precisely the reaction Aiden was looking for. He chucked low and deep.

              “What is so damn funny?”

              Cara was just as magnificent when she was defensive as she was when she was angry. “You are. You have no problem removing someone’s head from their body or carving out a man’s heart with those twin daggers you sadistically love so much, yet you blush crimson and tense up uncomfortably every time I throw an innuendo your way or mention sex.” Aiden’s eyes were no longer on the road again. They bore directly into hers, challenging her to look away.

              Cara held his gaze. “I am not sadistic.”

              Aiden’s features contorted into a deadpan.

              “I am
not
sadistic,” Cara repeated.

              “Do you take joy in inflicting pain on others?”

              Cara narrowed her eyes at him. “Only when they piss me off or when they are overly cocky, obnoxious vampires.”

              “Then you are sadistic,” Aiden said as if affirming something he had already stated at fact.

              For the second time that night Cara marred the soft leather on the inside of Aiden’s McLaren with one of her knives. A blade buried itself in the seat between his legs.

              “What in the hell woman?!” He growled at her. His emerald gaze was rimmed in the fiery gold that vampires’ eyes glowed when they experienced any kind of intense emotion. The look akin to murdering rage on Aiden’s face made it clear which emotion he was currently experiencing.

              Now
that
was the reaction Cara had been looking for earlier in the night. She smiled sugary-sweetly over at him.  “Just proving a point. If I were sadistic the blade would have landed a few inches in very
precious
territory. The fact that it did not proves I am not.”

              As quickly as Aiden’s rage ignited it vanished, replaced by outright indignation. “Did you have to ruin a very expensive custom leather upholstery job to do so?”

              “You sound like
such
as man right now. Send me a bill if it will put a stop to your pouting.”

              “So now you acknowledge your wealth?” he probed, seeing how much of the story behind why she never mentioned it or seemed to use it he could get out of her.

              “I do not ever
not
acknowledge it,” Cara plainly stated. “I simply choose not to use it. My stipend as a hunter is more than generous enough to take care of any want, need, or desire I may have.” Cara’s face closed off making it clear that was all she would say on the matter. Cara had a trust fund in her name worth hundreds of millions of dollars that she had access to but refused to touch. Acknowledging the Cavanaugh trust meant acknowledging why she had access to it in the first place. She was a Cavanaugh because her father was a Cavanaugh. The only way to stay sane and not slip back into the grief-induced, guilt-ridden existence that consumed most of her younger life was not to think about, acknowledge or do anything
that reminded her too keenly of her father. Cara’s mood turned somber and they rode in silence for the remainder of the ride.

              Aiden regretted bringing the subject up. He felt
uncomfortable
seeing her like this. He mentally kicked himself for being the cause of it.

              ---

              Cara slid the deadbolt closed to her apartment in the part of Hell’s Kitchen that lay just beyond the boundaries of the Upper West Side. The earthy neighborhood was not the place one would expect to find a massive loft apartment that spanned five floors, but it was the only Manhattan neighborhood she and her roommates could agree on. She wanted a trendy neighborhood, Reyes wanted to be close to the entertainment and nightlife of the Theatre District and Reiya wanted a place that was not over flowing with tourists. Hell’s Kitchen had been their compromise. It had a reputation for being a tough area in the 1930s and 40s, but had since transformed into an up and coming trendy area of town that was both close enough and far enough away from the more crowded, popular areas. When they could not find an apartment large enough to accommodate all three of their lifestyles and needs they decided to go the customized route. They found a property they wanted in a suitable location and made the owner an offer he could not refuse. They tore the existing building down and rebuilt their apartment from the ground up. Each of them had their own level that functioned as private quarters and the remaining levels consisted of shared living space and a much needed personal garage.

              The last six hours had been exhausting. All Cara wanted to do was make her way to her pillow-top bed and fall face first into it as the sun rose. She turned around to see both Reiya and Reyes staring at her from the couch and silently cursed herself for not taking the elevator on the garage level up to her personal space.

              Reiya was the first to start in on her. “Jesus, Cara, where the hell have you been? I’ve called your phone like a million times and it keeps going straight to voicemail. And when some vampire delivered your bike but you never showed I almost launched an assault on the coven house. The only reason I did not was because the Ford assured me that his vampire contact assured him that you were not in any danger. Still I was giving you about another hour to make it home or call me or Reyes and I were storming the coven house.”

Cara instinctively reached into her bag for her phone and realized it was off. “Shit, I’m sorry Reiya. The battery is dead. This night has been one unbelievable event after another. I forgot to check-in in midst of all the craziness.” She really did feel bad. Reiya was like the mothering hen of their trio and she made it her personal duty to look out for Cara and her twin brother and make sure the two of them stayed out of too much trouble. Cara did not like to worry Reiya more than necessary, seeing as how their chosen profession automatically brought with it a certain level of constant worry. As hunters they lived a life much more dangerous and with a much sooner expiration date than most.

              Reyes rolled his eyes at her from his spot on the couch. “You always forget to check-in. That’s why we make it a point to check-in with you instead. Keep your phone charged to make it easier on us will you?”

              “I will. I promise.” Cara nodded at them both.

              Reiya stood up from the couch and walked over to Cara.  She wrapped her arms around her, needing to hug her best friend to ensure to herself that she was alive and well.

              “I’m okay,” Cara assured her.

              Reiya finally accepted that she was and released Cara from the embrace.

              “I really appreciate your worry for me guys, but I’m exhausted. I am going to head to bed and we can talk about what happened in the morning.” Cara attempted to move past Reiya but she caught her by the arm.

              “Not a chance Cair,” Reyes chastised her from the couch. “You will park your butt on this couch and tell us every last detail of the last six hours.”

              She started to protest but Reiya gave her a hard look that spoke volumes.

              “Fine,” Cara sighed. “At least you can be useful and find us something sweet and sugary. If I have to stay up for longer than another minute, I need sugar to keep me going,” she said to Reyes.

              He threw a decorative pillow at her face, which Cara caught before impact, but obligingly got up and headed for the kitchen.  Ten minutes later they were all spread out on the brown leather sectional munching on kettle corn, day old pizza, brownies and Cokes. The three of them shared a love of junk food. Cara told them about Michaelson’s attempt to kill her and Aiden’s reaction. Reiya was pissed and said that if he were not already dead he would be before the next sunset. She also told them about the vampire Viceroy murders and Aiden’s theory that they were connected to her father’s death. She left out the part about the wolves. She told them that she had agreed to work with Aiden to track down the culprit in hopes that it would lead to her father’s murderer. Reyes thought it was a good idea. Reiya did not like it because of the possible danger it posed to Cara but she said she understood her need to do it and supported her decision. Cara then told them about the sangue party hidden in the middle of the Meat Packing district and how she kicked Rafe’s condescending ass. They all had a good laugh over that one. She deliberately left out the parts about her unwanted attraction to Aiden as well as his attempts to seduce her. That was a topic she refused to breach, even with the two individuals closest to her in the world. They talked until long after the sun came up. When Cara finally made it to her bed she really did fall face first into it.