Release, book 3 of The Angler series (4 page)

“
My pack has a bank in Rome. Sounds like a solid plan.” The shifter turned to Rurik.

Rurik took my hands and kissed the back of each of them.
“Set a course for Rome.”

Rome didn’t have a
seaport. The Thames River ran across the city and emptied into the ocean, but Kam wasn’t confident enough in his boating skills to attempt navigating the river. Running the yacht aground would draw unwanted attention. The port of Civitavecchia seemed a better and safer choice. I watched the last of the sunset from the deck while waiting for Rurik to rise.

Kam slid down the ladder
from the control room with his shifter’s grace. He pulled out his wallet and counted his cash. “I only have a couple hundred Euros. You?”

I shot him an annoyed look. “
My purse is at the hotel in Monte Carlo. Tane didn’t think it appropriate for me to carry one to that stupid meeting.” Lesson learned—the vampire king could be blindsided. At least Kam was thinking ahead. I couldn’t drag my sorry ass out of the past this evening.

My mind kept circling around Rurik’s condition. His hair loss
had started when we moved to Rio. There had to be a connection. Maybe it was an allergy? The possibilities were many, but without a lab or a specialist on vampire physiology we were shit out of luck. Vampires didn’t fall ill, so why would they have bothered to study their bodies?

“That’s enough money for a cab into the city and some food.” He returned the cash to his wallet and tucked it into his back pocket.
“Here.” He handed me a wooden stake. “I found these in the control room. Tuck it in the back of your pants and under your shirt. You never know.”

I did as he asked. Stakes worked on humans too.
“We can carry what little food we have on board.” I pulled the loose waistband of my track pants higher. Rurik and I had done some creative sewing with fishing line and hooks to resize the clothes. They still hung on my small frame but not on the verge of falling off anymore.

Kam shook his head. “I ate what we had left.”

Both my eyebrows shot up.

“What?” He shrugged. “I stress eat.”

“With that in mind, we’ll need a lot more money soon.” I wrapped my arms around myself in a hug. “How do we get through port immigration without our passports?” I’d grown accustomed to Tane wiping human minds clean of our presence in such cases. This was the worst escape plan in the history of escapes.

“No worries
.” Rurik ascended from the hull, looking fresh and rested. “I can take care of the officers.” He tapped his head. Vampires’ powers varied as much as hair color and temperament. Rurik’s ability leaned more toward sedation. Changing a person’s perception required a lot of skill, and I’d never seen Rurik attempt it before. He cocked his head to the side. “You doubt me?” It must have shown on my face. “My powers have been evolving over the last few months. I’ve practiced with Tane.”

I thumbed my ear. “Umm…is that normal or a new symptom?”
With Rurik, anything was possible.

He frowned. “It happens. Usually with age and experience
, our powers grow. I can do this.”

I nodded. What choice did I have?

Rurik disembarked from the boat first and approached the immigration officers with a charming smile. The vampire could melt a set of panties from twenty paces without effort, but the officers were both male.

W
ith hands resting on the batons hanging off their belts, they quietly waited for the three of us to approach.

Rurik’
s smile faded to a scowl.

Beads of sweat formed on the officers’ foreheads as I witnessed a silent war of wills. Most humans fell prey to vampire mind tricks. My old slayer boss had taught me how to shield my mind. It took focus and concentration. Kind of how these officers looked.

“They’re slayers,” I whispered so low that only Kam’s and Rurik’s supernatural hearing would pick it up. Darting my gaze around the pier, I tried to find an escape route. Fighting would be foolish. We didn’t need to add a city of anti-vampire crazies to the list of people who wanted us dead.

Rurik gestured for us to move. “I’ve got them.” He seemed short of breath. “They can’t move, but they’re strong. I
won’t be able to wipe their memories.”

“How long can you keep control
?” Kam pushed me ahead of him as he pulled a gun from his waistband. He scanned the pier like I just had and probably came to the same conclusion. We had to control the officers to get through the customs building and hail a cab.

“All night
, but I can’t move far.” Rurik wouldn’t take his glare off of them. How much longer before someone noticed?

“There could
be more. We need to move.” I approached the closest slayer and pulled out the baton on his belt. It was made of wood and sharpened at the other end. “They’re armed with stakes? Maybe Rome wasn’t the best idea.”

“Too late to change your mind.” Kam grabbed my arm and guided me toward the building. “Knock them out, Rurik. That should give us enough time to get into the city.”
Solid piece of advice. Rurik might not be capable of breaking their mental shields to wipe their memories but he should be able to make them sleep.

A thud of bodies hitting the ground followed our hurried steps to
the building. Due to the late hour, there weren’t many people in customs. “That wasn’t as easy as I anticipated.” Rurik waved at a waiting cab and opened the back door when it pulled up.

Kam shoved me inside and took the passenger front seat, instructing the driver in Italian.

Rurik slid in next to me. “Tell him to take us to Via Bartolomea Captianio.”

I slumped into the seat. “You don’t speak Italian?” So far I hadn’t encountered a language he hadn’t mastered.

His scowl grew deeper and he refused to answer. What was up with that? We’d been through some rough situations before and he hadn’t acted this stressed. Rome wasn’t vampire-friendly but…

Rome.

Oh my God, I could be so insensitive. The Romans had taken over Rurik’s fishing village when he’d been human. Of course he could speak Italian. He just didn’t want to. Here, I’d dragged him back through his painful past without a second thought toward his feelings. Slayers weren’t the only reason he hadn’t wanted to return to this city.

I rested my head on his shoulder, not sure what to say.
Sorry
didn’t cover how terrible I felt for forgetting, but we couldn’t change plans, no matter how much I wished.

He sighed while staring at the city lights. “So much has changed.” Had he expected it to remain the same after so many years? Maybe this would help exercise some of his demons.

The hour-long drive continued in silence until we reached our destination. Rurik spoke to the driver alone after Kam and I exited the vehicle.

I assessed our location and scratched my chin. Not a motel in sight. Then again, we didn’t really have the money to waste on a room. Why had Rurik chosen this corner? Maybe we’d grab another cab to make sure our location wasn’t so easy to find?

Rurik joined us and the cab pulled away. “I was able to wipe
his
memory at least.”

Kam rested his hands on his hips. The expression on his face mirror
ed my growing anxiety. “The slayers will be tearing apart the city, looking for you.”

“I know.”
Rurik handed me a small flashlight he pulled from his front pocket. “But it will be harder for them to find us here. Follow me.” He grabbed my hand and led us deeper onto a dark street. The old trees creaked as the wind swayed their branches. We came to a dead end, entering an overgrown property. This seemed to be the road’s only destination.

I faced what once use to be a grand four
-story building. It resembled a castle of sorts but now the glassless windows stared at us like a corpse. “What is this place?” I cringed at the tremble in my voice but I still moved closer to Rurik.

He squeezed my hand. “It used to be an orphanage.”

I sensed my eyes bulge. “You want to stay in an abandoned orphanage?” Yeah, that wasn’t creepy.

“Cool. Is it haunted?” Kam whistled
The
X-Files
tune and strode ahead.

I shuddered and hugged Rurik’s arm to my chest. The song hit its mark on my spooked
-out system. I might have reacted better in daylight but darkness set the horror-movie vibe. Not that this place needed help with being scary.

“Stay close,” Rurik whispered in my ear, his voice husky with dark promises. He slid his hand over my ass as he pulled me against him.

“Are you serious?” I elbowed him in the side. “My libido took a one-way trip out of here the moment I laid eyes on this place.”

“You’re really scared?” He grinned like a teenage goof. It was the first genuine smile I’d seen on his face in days. He rarely gave those to strangers
, and I was honored to be one of the few people he saved them for.

“Anyone sane would be.” Oddly enough, the building frightened me more than the blood
-sucking vampire or ravenous shifter in my company. What did that say about me?

“The night is still young. Maybe we could play chase?”

“No, that would require me being alone and I’m not up to that.” Every person had his or her kink. Rurik liked to hunt me in strange places. Most of the time, I indulged him because he generously rewarded my efforts. I’d need a lot more incentive to play
here
than a talented tongue. “The probabilities of my wetting my pants are pretty high and I don’t have a change of clothes.”

He kissed my forehead. “I love you.”

I leaned against him and soaked him in. “I love you too, but I question your sanity.” It was awesome to hear him express his feelings for me, even though I never doubted them. “Are we
really
going to spend the night here?”

Guiding me toward the building, he nodded his head. “It’s free and no one, not even the slayers, will suspect we’re here.”

“How did you know about this place?” I resisted entering the gaping doorway.

“During World War II, my maker and I we
re trapped here for a few weeks. We made due.” He let me go and strolled inside the rack and ruins. “I’m surprised by your reaction. Have you grown soft living with us? I thought you’d been homeless once.”

That slapped the J
ell-O from my spine. I ground my teeth. “Doesn’t mean I want to go back and relive those glorious days.” I had survived living on the streets of New York as a teenager. Miraculously, I managed to get through it without a pregnancy or a drug addiction. I hadn’t had a scrap of dignity left and I swore I’d never sleep in an abandoned building again. I glared at Rurik. Love meant sacrifice sometimes. This was mine for Rurik, but he didn’t need to know about my issues. He had enough of his own. “Fine, give me the grand tour.”

There was a certain charm about the fors
aken place. Many of the walls had crumbled into nothing and those still existing were covered in graffiti. The building’s former glory was hard to imagine in the dark and shadows. By the rays of my flashlight, I could see creepers had entered the building through windows and had taken the place by force.

“Are you sure we can’t stay in a cheap motel?” I scowled at the cold concrete floor,
stirring memories of many sleepless nights. I had left
this
kind of life behind.

Rurik made a noise of as
sent. “The Nosferatu are more powerful than you can imagine. They’re probably scanning weak human minds, looking for one who glimpsed us. I’m not certain if they’ll gather information from those slayers at the dock so I’d rather err on the side of caution.”

“Paranoid much?”

“Don’t make light of it. They are a patient clan. What is one day for them? I may have to hide in Rome for a very long time.” He led me to the back of the building.

“How long is long for you?” I, on the other hand, had only recently become immortal
, and time still sped at the same rate as when I’d been mortal. Spending more than one day in the house of horrors would be plenty.

He shrugged. “A century if I’m lucky. By then we should know what is truly wrong with me if it doesn’t kill me by then.”

I stopped in my tracks. A century? “I wasn’t planning to hide for that long.” For one thing, I’d lose my grip on reality if I didn’t feed from Tane at least once a year. His blood was what kept me sane and alive. “The slayers will find us for sure in that time frame. The fact that they can fight stronger, faster creatures and survive means they’re kind of smart. Tane should have this problem fixed soon. No?”

“No.” He cupped my face. “I forget how young you are sometimes.”

“You mean stupid.”

“Naïve. There’s quite a difference. You
, my dear, are far from stupid. Neither Tane or I can tolerate stupidity.” He placed a tender kiss upon my lips that tasted of long-lost promises. “Tane
will
help but as king, his hands are tied. The Nation has to come first. Not me.” 

“Not us,” I corrected. We were a team. If Rurik went down, so would I.

That sad smile returned to his face. “You don’t belong to me.”

“Don’t start with that bullshit. Let’s get through the next few days before we start making long
-term plans.” I started to walk ahead of him then twisted to face him again. “And I’m not staying here for a century. There’s gotta be some quiet villa we can buy. Well, once we get money.” Shit. We’d live in this orphanage forever.

“I’
ll get cash in the morning.” Kam’s voice came from the shadows.

My heart leaped, tangling with my tonsils as I screamed.

“I love this place, Rurik.” Kam chuckled as he approached us.

“How long have you been there?” I gathered what little dignity I still owned. “And how will you withdraw money without the Nosferatu traci
ng it? They know you’re my bodyguard and will track any transaction you do.”

“Ancient shifter secret.” He took my flash light and aimed it at a closed door. Actually, it was the only door I’d seen. All the other doorways were bare. “It’s locked.”

Rurik watched the shifter. “Answer her question. She needs to learn how to survive under the radar.”

Kam glanced at us. “Safety deposit box. We have them in major cities. Rome is one of them. If I empty it, we should be covered for a year.”

“Yes, there is a God.” I spoke to the ceiling. “Can you buy me some clothes that will fit while you’re in the city?”

He shrugged.
“Sure.”

“Now that’s taken care of.” Rurik gestured to the locked door. He felt along the top of the door frame and pushed something that clicked.

I aimed the flashlight at the cracked open door.
“Secret panel. Nice. How come no vandals broke through this door?”

“It’s made of steel. The kind banks use. Same with the lock. No key, no entry.
We installed it to ensure our daylight safety.” The door swung open to a stairway that descended to a large underground room. Rurik crossed to a table and lit an old kerosene lamp.

We stood in a sitting area with a sofa and a chair. Stacks of books with worn, cracked covers lined the walls.

I spun in a slow circle. So many books and one bed. I stepped closer to it. “You stayed here with…?”

“My maker.” He stood next to me, his gaze following mine to the bed. “Rabbit?”

“It’s fine. I’m just curious.” Jealousy gripped my gut with its sharp talons. “I don’t really want to know more.” They’d been hiding in this room. Alone. Together. With one bed. Rurik liked men as well as women. Who was I to judge what they did to pass the time? Yeah, maybe if I kept repeating that to myself I might start believing it.

“So.” Kam toed the floor. “I’m going to check the perimeter. Uh, leave a sock on the door or something so I don’t walk in on anything I don’t care to see.” He left the room at a trot.

I scowled in Kam’s direction. Romance was the last thing this place inspired.

“Such a severe frown.” Rurik’s words slid over my skin like velvet. The lamp light flickered, casting shadow
s over his face. It made him appear fierce. Hungry.

That c
ouldn’t be. I fed him twice yesterday. “I have a lot to frown about.”

“You heard Kam. We’ll have you back in
semi-luxury by tomorrow.” He entwined his fingers with mine. “In the meantime, I remember this bed being quite comfy.”

“I’m sure you do.” I ran my hand over the dark peach fuzz over his head. It seemed thinner than a few days ago. His hair loss had begun slowly. I’d find a few
strands on the pillow now and then. It took me weeks before I finally asked if that was normal. In the last month it had gotten worse until he’d buzzed his hair very short. The blood lust had started at the same time.

Something bumped against the back of my knees
, and I fell back to sit on the edge of the bed. Rurik had steered me. Bad boy. The bed creaked with the sudden weight being dropped on it. “I don’t know if it will hold us.”

“It always creaked.”
He whispered in my ear as he pressed me back onto it. “I find it stimulating.”

“You
—” I placed my hands on his shoulders and tried to push, but I had a better chance bench-pressing a Volkswagen, “—don’t need more stimulation.”

He
squeezed a knee between my legs, spreading them apart against my resistance. “Is this a new game you want to play? Would you like me to take you against your will?” He pinned my hand to the bed.

I gasped at the sheer force
of his strength and reflexively struggled. “That’s not what I had in mind.” My words came out strained. Rurik could be a little rough in bed, but he never frightened me.

Slow kisses fell upon the line of my neck a
s Rurik lay across my body. The material of his T-shirt didn’t mask the shift of his hard muscles against my body.

I moaned.
If Rurik could harness his sex appeal into power, he’d be capable of squeezing water from stones. His hunger for sex equaled that for blood. At least with Tane around we shared satiating Rurik. The last twenty-four hours I’d borne the brunt of this burden. Oh, the sacrifices I made for my men. 

He pressed his hard bulge against me and rocked with an expert’s skill. “Maybe a little ravaging?”

I dug my heels into the edge of the mattress and tried to buck him off me.

A low growl furled from his throat and he
pulled my T-shirt over my head. Then with one hand, he kept my wrists pinned and with the other, he explored my breasts like a pirate on shore leave.

My desire level went from too scared to exist to volcanic explosion. We hadn’
t played this game before but I could guarantee we would explore it again. Especially the pirate part, since Tane had admitted to some experience in this lifestyle. Short of breath, I couldn’t even utter his name. I bucked again, wanting him to touch me in my special spot.

He slid me f
arther up on the bed and set his fangs to my pulse.

I quieted. “You shouldn’t feed from me again
.” It came out more breathy than I wanted.

His mind caressed the walls of my mental shield like he did when he wanted to ease the pain of his bite. The sharp tips of his fangs poked with intent. I didn’t think I’d be able to stop him.

With reluctance, I allowed him in my mind. A tidal wave of fiery need washed over my consciousness.

His fang
s punctured my neck. No pain accompanied the bite, but it didn’t matter. The hunger that drove him filled my head. What I’d experienced when I’d first come to Rio was a drop of rain to his storm.

I tried to cry out for Kam. My mouth opened but darkness slid over my senses. Dear baby Jesus, Rurik would drain me dry.