by Kym Grosso
A flummoxed Declan stared back at him. “What?”
“Churchill,” Tristan quickly responded. “You will learn with experience that allies are allies, no matter the species. Wars are won based on both strength and information. It is foolish to cut off areas that bring you either. Any other brilliant questions?” He was losing his patience, knowing that Devereoux was on the premises. There was no time to waste. Whatever information the vampire had, it was important enough that he was visiting the club.
Léopold Devereoux was not only ancient and powerful, well over a thousand years old, but he was quite elusive. Tristan had been surprised when Kade called him to let him to know to expect a visit. He was even more surprised that Léopold was coming to see him and not Kade. Whatever the vampire had to say must be damn important for him to travel to Philadelphia, and Tristan wasn’t waiting a minute more to hear it.
With no other questions, Tristan stood. Mira hurriedly entered the security code, unlocking the door.
“Well, then. Carry on with your orders. Anything out of the ordinary, contact Logan or me immediately. Meeting adjourned. Be safe, my Lyceum Wolves.” With those words, Tristan strode out of the conference room with Logan close behind. Mira watched as her men walked away, knowing danger awaited them all.
Tristan knocked once. A response, “Come in”, registered, before he proceeded to open the suite door. Entering, he heard the faint sound of a zipper being zipped as a man adjusted his pants, dressing in front of a long mirror. The debonair vampire turned to face Tristan, a smile on his face, quite comfortable with the intrusion. Léopold Devereoux, Kade’s maker, looked as if he was in his late twenties, with short dark hair spiked into a shark’s fin. Lethal and quick-witted, he casually and smoothly proceeded to button his tailored shirt. Admiring a naked blonde and brunette, who both slept contently on the bed adjacent to the long leather sofa, he licked over his fangs in delight. A moan escaped one of the women as she turned to spoon the other and found the warm breast she sought.
“Lovely, aren’t they?” Léopold asked nonchalantly with a slight French accent. “Your club Noir… c'est magnifique. Exquisite blood and even better sex.”
“Monsieur Devereoux?” Tristan questioned, confirming his assumption that the man before him was indeed Kade’s maker.
“Oui.”
“Monsieur Livingston?”
“Oui.”
“Please call me Léopold,” he insisted, checking his appearance once more.
“I’m pleased you’ve had a chance to enjoy Noir’s amenities but we need to speak privately.” Tristan eyed the nude women, smiling at Léopold. As much as he enjoyed viewing the opposite sex without clothing, business came first.
“Ah oui.” Léopold snapped his fingers loudly and the women on the bed began to stir. “Up now, my lovelies. Time to go. Next time in Philadelphia and all that good stuff. Now off you go.” He handed each of them a white fluffy spa robe, complementary from Noir. Each woman grabbed their clothing and shoes off the floor, sheepishly giggling as they left the room.
Tristan proceeded to sit in an overstuffed leather chaise, and propped his feet up on the ottoman. He gestured for Léopold to join him.
“Let me say that I am appreciative of any assistance you can provide with regards to finding the arsonists.”
“Nasty business, no? Kade informed me of your troubles, cowardly, indeed. Not that I mind revenge or war, when justified,” Léopold commented flatly.
“I can assure you that I do plan on revenge. And when I do, I’ll look straight into their soul when their life leaves this earth.”
Léopold let out a hearty laugh. “A man of my own heart. No wonder you and Kade are friends. Well then, I’d say you’ll enjoy this little tidbit of information I have for you.”
“I imagine I will.” Tristan grinned, tasting the justice he was readying to mete out.
“Let’s get to it then. You know Alexandra? My fille. My daughter. She runs our Philadelphia operations.”
Tristan silently nodded with an utterly emotionless expression. Did he know Alexandra? Who didn’t? She ran her vampire operations with a silk-covered, well-manicured, iron fist. Animalistic came to mind when he thought of how she lusted after anything with a cock, and provided little mercy for her enemies. Tristan considered her neither friend nor foe but generally avoided contact.
While it was true that he allowed her and her vampires to patronize his club, he’d had to refuse her sexual advances on more than one occasion and didn’t relish the thought of having to interact with the black-hearted mistress. Alexandra was interested in one thing and one thing only; Alpha blood. Alpha blood equated to power. As far as Tristan was concerned, it’d be a cold day in hell before he ever fucked her, let alone let her drink from him. He silently prayed that whatever Léopold said next didn’t involve quid quo pro.
As well as Tristan tried to hide his disdain for Alexandra, Léopold began to chuckle to himself. “Alpha, you need not conceal your feelings about her. I am not fond of the little witch, myself. But for now, she leads. And it just so happens that she’s found a toy which you’d like very much.”
Tristan raised an eyebrow. “A toy, you say?”
“Oui, a toy. If you know my fille; she sees most things or people as either food or toys. In some cases, they are one and the same.”
“So let’s say she does indeed have what I’d like to call a ‘person of interest’. Why hasn’t she come to me herself? Why send you?”
“Well, first of all, she very much likes her toy at the moment. And secondly, she’d want something in exchange for her troubles. However, when I heard you were looking for this ‘person of interest’, and I found out about her toy, I decided to force her to hand it over to you. You see, unlike Alexandra, I am very fond of Kade, and unlike most parents, I do play favorites. Sometimes she needs to be spanked a little to stay in line, no?” Léopold stated plainly as he fastened his cufflinks.
“Monsieur, I do appreciate your, shall we call it, intervention.”
“You can go do a pick up tonight. She’s expecting you. I can’t promise your ‘person of interest’ won’t be unharmed. I can, however, say that said person will be alive.”
“You sure about that?” Tristan didn’t mean to question the vampire but he knew Alexandra was nothing short of ruthless.
“Trust is a delicate thing, Alpha. You don’t know me well, so I shall let this pass. But know that my children do not cross me. For if they do, well, let’s just say that the immortal are not truly immortal. Death can come to us all given the right circumstance,” Léopold responded indifferently as he stood and put on his suit jacket.
Tristan knew his words to be true. Stake or remove a vampire’s heart or decapitate them, and a vampire would indeed die. Werewolves were nearly immortal and could suffer great injury, yet they could be killed by evisceration or broken neck. On that somber thought, Tristan stood up and faced the ancient vampire eye to eye.
“I want you to know that Lyceum Wolves is appreciative of your willingness to help. It will not be forgotten. If I can be of assistance to you in the future, do not hesitate to call on me.” He extended his hand.
“Alpha, you’ve been there for Kade many a time, no? I am only returning a favor. And I must say that after visiting your club, I see why it is so important to our upper echelon vampires. Willing donors for blood and pleasure combined with a decadent atmosphere is quite the attraction in the City of Brotherly Love. C'est une excellente.” Léopold reached for Tristan and returned his offer with a solid handshake. As Tristan opened the door, Léopold briefly raised his hand in a salute, before gathering his things to leave.
Logan gave Tristan a small grin. He’d stood watch outside, overhearing the entire conversation. “He’s quite the vamp, huh?” Logan commented. “Hard to believe Alexandra’s his daughter, although I will say they’re both as deadly as a rattlesnake in a pit.”
“That is true, my friend.” Tristan put a hand on Logan’s shoulder,
not fancying a visit to Alexandra. Nevertheless, he couldn’t contain his excitement over the possibility that the arsonist could be in his custody within the hour.
Chapter Two
Kalli slowly opened her eyes, entrenched in a hazy nightmare. Kidnapped and bled out, she could barely move her limbs, let alone try to sit up in bed. Two days ago, she’d left the hospital only to be attacked from behind by vampires. They’d knocked her out and brought her here, wherever here was. At first they’d chained her to the bed, but now her own body’s weakness shackled her. For two nights, she’d been visited by a diabolical bloodsucking mistress. The demon sucked her blood only to spit it out; something about poison, she remembered her screeching.
Kalli wasn’t naïve to supernaturals, far from it. She knew how evil they all were, and this nasty detour only proved her point. But Kalli was a survivor. She’d survived her so-called family; she’d survive this too. The effects of her pills were starting to wear off, as she could feel the beast within calling, begging to fight. She supposed she needed the extra strength it could bring her, but her brain refused to allow the animal to surface. She was human now, at least on the outside.
Looking around the opulent room, she craned her neck, struggling to identify where they’d brought her. If she didn’t know any better she’d have thought she was in a luxurious hotel. But the thousand-thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets could not mask her hideous isolation; her deafening screams while tortured beyond reason. Still no one came to her rescue. Someone would have surely heard as she strained against the blood red talons that held her down while razor sharp fangs pierced her skin.
She spied a bottle of water and saltines on the nightstand. Had they been feeding her? Keeping her as some kind of blood bag? She didn’t remember eating, but she couldn’t deny she needed water. With great effort and a moan, she reached for the bottle and opened it. She felt almost human as the cool liquid slid down her sore throat. Almost human. That was the key, she thought to herself. For now, she thanked God that she was human enough to fool them. Repulsed by her blood, they hadn’t discovered her secret. She could sense the bitch’s confusion as her medicated blood hit her tongue. Damn straight, it didn’t taste good. Yet the greedy bloodsucker kept going, probably to make her weak on purpose. She might have succeeded in draining her, but Kalli was a fighter.
Letting the beast take control was seemingly her only option for escape. She hadn’t seen or heard anyone in the hallway. She reasoned from the short car ride, that she was still in the city. If she could just get out of this house, people wouldn’t be far; refuge was within her grasp. But her medicine suppressed the beast. She wanted it that way. Being human was far underrated, yet in this situation she could not deny that being supernatural would give her the strength to at least walk, find help, and hide.
Seeing no other choice, Kalli closed her eyes and breathed deeply, searching for the one within who could save her from the torment that would surely seek her out again. Determined to find deliverance from the incubus, she let the power of the beast fill her veins.
Tristan pulled his SUV up to Alexandra’s four-story, Victorian brownstone. While she preferred her ostentatious mansion in the suburbs, he knew for certain she’d be waiting for him in the city. Alexandra’s narcissistic tendencies would drive her to make an appearance at the exclusive opening of his club. Anyone who was anyone was there tonight; she considered herself the one. It probably was killing her to have to wait for him to retrieve ‘the toy’, as Léopold called it.
Tristan conceded that she had her place in the supernatural world. Vampires needed a leader, and she kept hers on a tight leash, preventing them from wreaking havoc in the city or his club. For the past fifty years of her rule, vampire on human crime had been minimal. If someone was killed, it was with her knowledge and approval. Tristan respected her leadership toward shifters; she generally respected their existence. She never questioned Tristan’s punishments on her own vampires if they got out of hand at his club, and they’d been able to amicably work out any disagreements.
But the one thing Alexandra coveted the most, she could not have; Tristan’s blood. He’d refused her his vein many a time. The denial only fueled her desire, convinced she could seduce him given the right circumstances. But he knew that no matter how beautiful or alluring she was, he’d never give in to her wishes. She only wanted his blood to increase her power, and as far as he was concerned, she already had too much, paired with little restraint.
Tristan looked over to Logan who’d been deep in thought on the ride over to Alexandra’s. Since the attack, Logan had had more visions and Tristan was certain that he wasn’t sharing all he’d seen. He didn’t press him, understanding that it was both a gift and burden to sense the future.
“Hey, man. You ready to do this?” Tristan asked, shutting off the car.
“Yeah, sorry. Just thinking,” Logan grumbled.
“You okay, Logan? I know seeing that death wasn’t easy. I’m not sure what’s going on here, but it’s not my first time to the rodeo. Things will be okay,” Tristan assured Logan, hoping he would snap out of it.
Logan knew that whatever was in that house, more like whoever was in that house, would change things forever between him and Tristan. He couldn’t get a feel for whether that change would be good or bad, blanketing him with uncertainty. But now was not the time to tell Tristan what he’d seen. Not only would the Alpha be pissed, he’d fight fate every step of the way. It had the potential to throw Tristan off his equilibrium during this time of battle; he couldn’t risk divulging his speculation without being sure. Logan had decided, with heavy heart, to cautiously watch and wait before telling him.
Blowing out a breath and unbuckling his seatbelt, he placed a hand on his Alpha’s shoulder. “I’m okay. Now let’s do this thing. Not sure about you but I’m ready for a little action, myself.”
“Okay, here’s the game plan. We’re in and out. You know Alexandra. She’s goin’ to want to keep me there, going all Playboy bunny slash Martha Stewart on me. Sex or food, she knows what I like.” Tristan grinned; she knew him well enough to know his favorite things. “A man has his weaknesses.”
Logan shook his head disapprovingly.
“Hey, at the end of the day, I’m a man. Who doesn’t like a little cookie with their milk? Seriously though, we’re in and out. No cups of tea. No bonbons. We get the package and get out. This is too serious to waste time.”
“I’m with you.”
“One more thing. The package may be damaged. Léopold promised it’d be alive, but knowing Alexandra and the fact that he referred to it as her toy, well, let’s just say we may have to carry it out.”
“As long as we can do an interrogation at some point, it’ll be okay,” Logan commented.
“Okay, you ready? Let’s do it,” Tristan ordered, getting out of the car.
Logan followed him up the cobblestone walkway. The extravagant brownstone had been fully restored and probably looked better than it had during the eighteen hundreds. Gas lights illuminated the heavy wooden, intricately carved door. Tristan knocked hard on the stained oak, knowing full well she was aware of his arrival. Survival instincts would alert her to the powerhouse standing outside her home; she’d be waiting for him.
A well-toned young man dressed in a turquoise harlequin vest and black tights opened the door and greeted them with a blithe smile. “The mistress awaits,” he announced, ushering them into a spacious, octagonal foyer. Stained glass windows and dark mahogany moldings set against cream textured wallpaper with red swirls created an antiqued illusion for guests. Dark hardwood floors accentuated the expensive oriental area rugs.
Tristan and Logan watched the odd-looking man walk into a larger parlor where he lounged on a long, velvet sofa. He closed his eyes, ignoring them. Through an archway, they saw Alexandra gracefully navigate her way around a baby grand piano. Dressed in a red satin corset that pushed up her already firm breasts, she smiled coldly, baring her perfectly white teeth
. A tight, black leather pencil skirt hugged every inch of her bottom, leaving little room to walk in a typical stride. Her jet black hair had been swept into an intricate updo that drew attention to her creamy pale skin. She looked every bit the enchanting, but dangerous sanguisuge. And while her beautiful looks most certainly drew men like bees to honey, Tristan knew all too well that her sting was deadly.
“Tristan, darling,” she crooned, extending her arms for a hug. “Come now, I won’t bite.”
“Ah chère, but you do,” he teased.
Tristan grabbed her bony hand in his and quickly blew air kisses to each of her cheeks. It was more a gesture of peace as opposed to genuine happiness to see her. He knew she’d appreciate the thought.
“And Logan, so glad you could join us as well,” she smirked, feigning geniality, never taking her gaze off of Tristan. Her irritation with Tristan’s second was hardly a secret, since she wanted to be alone with the Alpha. Logan would only serve as a barrier in her quest for blood.
Logan ignored her comment, scanning the room for others. He didn’t give a shit if she was happy or not. There was no way in hell that he’d let his Alpha walk into that hornet’s nest alone.
“Please, Tristan, come have a drink. Cognac perhaps? And I’d be remiss not to mention how sexy you look in that tuxedo. Sorry I missed your opening. As you know I’d been planning to be there right on time, but…”
“Stop. Alexandra. You know why I’m here, and I don’t have time for nonsense. Give it to me now,” Tristan commanded, not moving from the foyer.
Alexandra ran her palms up and down the lapels of his jacket. “You mean my mouse?” she purred. “Léopold really is no fun. I was having such a good time playing with her.”
“Her?” Tristan raised an eyebrow.
“Please, don’t pretend you didn’t know. Surely Léopold must have told you.”