Release, book 3 of The Angler series (8 page)

Red was there when Colby
had pulled me out of the liquor bottle. He knew why I’d been drowning myself. “Ya call if you need me. Ya don’t need to be alone, babe.”

I clung to his big shoulders and inhaled his cheap cologne. “Thanks.” The urge to ask him to come with me almost won over my common sense. It would split his loyalties
, and I couldn’t do that to Red. He’d been too good to me. I couldn’t be a slayer and date vampires. I’d made my choice a while ago, and so had Red. Pushing from his arms, I gave him a sad smile.

“How do you plan to find him when a whole city of slayers can’t?”

“I don’t have to. He’ll come for me.”

Anthony and Red argued in the next room as I prepared to leave the building. They had left my wad of cash in my pocket so I could take a cab back to my hotel. Kam might be waiting. If not, then I’d travel back to the orphanage. How long did I have before the Nosferatu heard of a vampire hunt in Rome and added up all the facts?

Time raced against us. We should
leave the city ASAP. Maybe hiding in the mountains would be best.

I hurried to
the front door, passing empty dormitory-like rooms, but Anthony stepped in my path. “You should stay and rest for the night.” He crossed his arms over his chest.

“I’ll rest in my hotel. I have confidence in your people keeping the streets safe.” I patted his beefy bicep and scooted around him. “Thank you for patching me up. I appreciate it.”

“If you did then you would remain here and not risk my people’s lives by stirring this vampire again.”

“I’ll be leaving the city in the morning. I promise.”

Red leaned against the wall. “I told you it wasn’t any use in arguing with her. Connie can take care of herself most of the time.”

I blew Red a kiss. “Love you
, too.”

He grinned. “Stay in touc
h.”

I closed the door on Anthony’s stern face and flagged a cab quickly. It was getting late and the streets were empty
, so it didn’t take long for us to reach my hotel. I paid the cab driver but kept my attention on the street. Neither male would be in my room. They didn’t know the number or what name I’d used to register so I waited outside the door in the light and listened to the noises of the night.

My limbs weighed heavy. The blood helped
, but it wouldn’t replace my lack of sleep. I’d been awake since the afternoon and last night I’d been unconscious—not the same thing. I leaned against the wall and searched the shadows. If Kam were out there, he wouldn’t hide. His absence left my chest hollow. I wrapped my arms around myself afraid to shatter in public. When this night was over, I’d fall apart in private. What if Rurik didn’t come looking for me? I groaned and hung my head. I wanted to scream and shout and rage at the world, but it would waste what energy I had left.

Seeing Red again had stirred old heartaches. The slayer team had treated me well and in return
, I’d betrayed them by running off with a slick vampire lord. Could our present situation be karma? I sighed. Didn’t matter; I wouldn’t change a thing even if I could. The Rome slayers had been very accommodating in comparison to Colby’s team. They never would have let me go after an attack. Living in a city devoid of vampires could soften a slayer, I guess. Even Red hadn’t put up much of a fight.

A figure strode toward me, the dark clinging
to him like an old friend so I couldn’t see his face. The wide set of the shoulders and predatory grace seemed male.

My limbs froze. All the things I
’d learned during my sparing sessions with Kam vanished with a pop. The light grenade and wooden stake remained untouched, and my love for Rurik had nothing to do with it.

The shadowed man stood just outside my circle of light and loomed over me. A hand shot out and caressed my bruised face.
It was smaller than Rurik’s but just as firm. “That looks painful.” Tane’s voice swept the tension from my body and left me sagging against the building.

I stepped out of the light
on rubbery legs and drank him in. He still wore the suit from the meeting. It was wrinkled with a torn seam along the side.

He gave me a timid smile as if shy. “You’
ve never looked at me like
that
before.”

I rushed into his waiting arms and rested the injured side of my face against his solid chest. “You’ve the best timing
ever
.” He smelled of rescue and hope. It was the finest thing I’d ever breathed.

“I heard your call for help. Where’s—” He cut off sharply and tensed. With a smooth swipe of his arm, he drew me behind him.

I peeked around his side. “What is it?”

Red confronted of us
, gripping a wooden stake in his hand. The tools of his trade hung from his belt and he didn’t look like a slayer on vacation. “Tane? I was expecting Rurik.”

I clenched my fists. “You
followed me?” Like a lightning strike, the reason behind my easy release from the slayers dawned on me. They had used me as bait. “I’d expect that from Anthony, but you, Red? You’re supposed to be my friend.”

“And as your friend, I’m doing what’s best for you.”
He extended his hand. “They’re killing you, Connie. Don’t wait until it’s too late. Come back to New York with me.”

Other
people moved on the street around us. Their predatory grace exposed them as slayers and not common pedestrians.

Tane frowned, his gaze traveling from
me to Red. “You called Colby? Of all the silly things you could have done.” The heat of his words scorched my ears.

“I didn’t call anyone. They rescued me.” I eased away from Tane.
The anger on his face stung. There was a time I would have ran to Colby at the first sign of trouble, but over the years I’d given Tane more than my heart. I’d given him my trust as well. “Rurik tried to kill me. The local slayers stopped him. Red is here recuperating from some injuries he got on the job.”

“I know of Red’s situation. Who do you think is paying his medical bills?” Tane shot Red an accusing glare. “She belongs to me
, human. Don’t start a war because of ignorance.”

My heart skipped a beat. War? Geez, Colby’s group had a truce with the Nosferatu but if Red betrayed it
, they were all good as dead. The Nosferatu took guarding their existence seriously. The only reason Colby and his men lived was because of their help in killing Dragos.

Anthony approached us, his eyes growing wider
as he stared at Tane. “Holy shit. Is that what I think it is?” He pulled out a second stake. “I thought they were just myth.”

“Red.” I ground out his name between my clenched teeth.

“How was I supposed to know he’d be here? We came looking for Rurik.”

“And you would have killed him in front of me?” I swung my hand but before it made contact with Red’s face
, something stopped it.

Tane held my wrist. “Enough.” He kept his eyes on me. “Rurik really tried to kill you.”

I nodded, unable to speak.

He spun and stared as the slayers. I sensed the shields collapse from his mind and create a small bubble around me. All the humans on the street stopped moving as if
under a trance. Red and Anthony’s eyes glazed over. As one, the group turned and left the area, marching quietly away from us.

A chill ran down my spine. “Did you do that?”

Tane’s shields were back up, and I’d been released from his protection. “Of course I did. I can’t leave a bunch of slayers alive with knowledge of my existence.”

I startled. “You’re not going to kill them
, are you?” I stepped toward the retreating slayer zombies, but Tane scooped me against him.

“Rabbit, if I wanted them dead
, they’d be corpses. Unfortunately, it takes time to bury that many bodies. I wiped their memories, which took considerable effort since they’d all been trained against such tricks.”

“Oh.” I watched Red shamble away. “What will
he remember?”

Tane’s eye narrowed. “That I’ll kill him if he ever makes such demands from me again.”

I closed my eyes and rested my head on Tane’s shoulder, trying to soak in his strength. “He didn’t mean to insult you. He’s just worried about me. All he sees are bruises and bites. He doesn’t know the whole story.” Only Colby knew of my bond to Tane, so Red thought I’d been rolled into some kind of sex slave. I ran my hand over Tane’s muscled back. I could think of worse fates.

“What’
s been going on? Where are Rurik and Kam?” He squeezed me tighter and nudged at my mental shield, asking to enter my memories. He could ram his way in like he did the slayers but with me he always used a gentle touch. He hadn’t never forced his way in since Budapest. I opened my recent memories and let him view what had happened since I’d left his side in Monte Carlo.

He sighed. “I wasn’t ex
pecting this change in him.” He pulled away and paced, setting his hands on his hips as he concentrated. “First, we’ll return to the orphanage and see what has happened to Kam. His alpha will want to tear into my hide if something happens to his only son.” Tane grabbed my hand and led me toward the garage.

“The cabs are that way.” I pointed behind me.

“No cabs. We need to move fast if we want to catch Rurik.” He started to check the vehicles.

“Can you sense where he is like you do me?”

He shook his head. “I’m bonded to you, so that was easy. Finding Rurik is more difficult, especially if he’s grown stronger. He can shield against me and my brothers.” The door to a white work van opened. “Good. It’s an old model. It’ll be easier to hot wire.” Bending under the steering wheel, he began to tear things apart and look for wires.

I blinked and drew closer to him. “You’re a man of many hidden talents.”

He snorted. “What do you think I do with my time?”

“Plot.” I grinned at his sharp
look. The truth hurt, and I knew I hit a nerve. Tane watched his nation very closely and always had a scheme up his sleeve.

The van started. “Ge
t in, belt up. If I scramble your brains in a crash, I won’t be capable of healing that kind of injury.”

I climbed into the passenger seat. “You do realize I still experience pain when injured. No crashing of any kind.”

He gave me a familiar evil smile. It should have turned my marrow to ice. Instead his smile sent a wave of warmth through me. Tane, master plotter and liar extraordinaire, was back in action. He attached my seatbelt. “We have to find him before someone else does. Who knows what kind of trouble Rurik is causing.” He pulled onto the street, squealing the tires and tilting the van in alarming manor.

I clung to the chicken bar.

“Where is this orphanage?”

I pictured the directions in my head. It seemed easier than guessing street names. Som
etimes the ability to speak with Tane using my mind came in handy. Learning to build stronger shields and open them at will had provided a challenge for both of us. Tane had proved he could be a patient teacher though.

We drove to the
orphanage and parked at the end of the road. The tree branches creaked and their leaves swayed in a breeze. Darkness cloaked the forest surrounding us, and I turned on my little flashlight. I did my best not to cling to Tane’s arm. This place sucked.

A s
hadow moved in the forest out of the corner of my eye. I halted and searched between the trees but couldn’t make out anything. It was the motion that had caught my attention, not the details..

Tane
returned to where I stood. “What is it?” He peered into the woods as well.

“I thought I saw something move.” I shrugged. “Must have been an animal.”

Slipping his arm around my waist, he pulled me toward him. “Stay close. I don’t like this.”

Those simple words electrified my pulse to a standstill. My limb went stiff as I tried to look in all directions at the same time. If this turned into one of Tane’s asinine pranks, I’d rub habanero
pepper pulp on the inside of his underwear before he wore them.

Tane twisted to face me and his eyes went wide.

My stomach dropped so fast I got vertigo. Slowly, I made a one-eighty and came face to face with Rurik. “Hey, sw—sweetie.”

He towered over me, his gaze dark with hunger. “Rabbit.” The way
he surveyed me sent my prey genes screaming to run. I’d seen jaguars stalk through the jungles of Brazil with similar looks in their eyes.

“What is wrong with you, Rurik? She was almost drained.” Tane moved between us. “Let us go hunt together. Once your hunger is satiated then your mind should clear.”

I could only hope, but he’d fed less than fifteen hours ago and seemed worse.

Like a baseball bat aimed at my head, an idea struck me. “
Maybe it’s my blood that’s making him worse.”

Tane glanced at me over his shoulder.
“Why do you say that?”

Rurik didn’t give me a chance to answer. He tackled Tane, fangs extended. They tumbled to the ground and rolled toward the edge of the forest.

I gasped. Once I saw them next to each other, I finally understood what was happening to Rurik. He’d been only drinking my blood for the last few weeks. Before that, he’d used donors as well, which must have diluted my blood in his system so the changes were less drastic. His change had grown quicker, and I’d been so stressed I hadn’t really examined him close enough.

The light from my penlight shone on Rurik’s balding head and the slightly pointed tips of his ears. Vampires didn’t go bald
…
except
Nosferatu. They lost all their body hair.