I Hunger for You

by Susan Sizemore

  He and Mia had been brought up a sweeping staircase with an ornately carved balustrade to this room at the end of a long hall. A heavy door had been shut behind them, and they’d come face to face with the querulous Henry Garrison.

  “Well?” Garrison demanded when he wasn’t answered immediately.

  Colin and Mia were standing side by side, like kids called into an angry principal’s office, but they weren’t touching. And Mia didn’t look at him when she took a step forward.

  “You asked me to bring you a specimen.”

  Garrison waved her words away impatiently. “I changed that plan. Weren’t you informed?”

  “I changed it back.”

  Colin almost smiled. His Mia was not one to be intimidated; he looked forward to watching the old man try to put her in her place.

  Instead, the old mortal smiled. It was a thin, grudging, brief movement of his lips, but a spark of real humor lit his cold eyes for a moment. “Apparently you inherited some of my strong will,” he told his great-granddaughter.

  “I don’t know if it comes from you or not,” was her answer. “We don’t know each other, but we do have a common cause.” She gestured at Colin. “We have Mr. Faveau’s organization in common, as well.”

  The name Faveau had been chosen at Tony Crowe’s suggestion, Tony being the mortal vampire hunter expert. The Faveau were a family that still hunted, had always hunted, and the name would be known to someone who had grown up in the hunter society of the last century.

  “Faveau?” Garrison spared Colin a long, searching look. “You don’t look like a Faveau.”

  “You haven’t seen a Faveau in three generations,” Colin answered coolly. “We don’t all marry our hunter cousins these days. Times have changed, Mr. Garrison. It’s time that hunting methods change, as well.”

  Garrison looked back at Mia. “Why have you brought him here?”

  “I wasn’t as prepared to capture a vampire on my own as you and I assumed. I needed help.” She took a deep breath before she admitted, “I would have gotten killed if the hunters hadn’t rescued me. I owe—”

  Garrison cut her off. “What you owe them is hardly my concern.”

  “They want to help,” Mia told him, “and they have skills to offer.”

  “Ms. Luchese told us about your research project,” Colin said. “We propose an alliance. We have information to exchange; we’ve been studying samples of the vampire daylight drugs we’ve managed to obtain from their clinic in Los Angeles.”

  That got Garrison’s attention. He steepled his fingers, trying not to show any excitement, but Colin could tell that the old mortal’s hands were shaking a little.

  “Oh, really,” Garrison murmured. “You have samples, data?”

  “Yes. But we don’t have the resources and facilities that Ms. Luchese tells us you do. We have similar goals, Mr. Garrison. We should work together. We even brought you a captured subject as a goodwill gift.”

  The old man sat back in his high-backed leather chair, and thought for a while. “This could prove productive,” he said at last. “The data I’d been gathering for years was recently destroyed. I’ve disliked the idea of starting over.”

  “Then let us combine our research,” Colin proposed. “The results could put an end to the parasites that prey on humanity, forever.”

  Mia gave him a brief glance that said he’d gone a bit over the top with this last statement, and Colin agreed with her. But Garrison didn’t take any note of the melodramatics.

  “I’ll think about it,” he said. “I’ll definitely think about it. We’ll talk again. It’s late now.” He looked at Mia and said, “Go to bed, child.”

  Colin wondered if the old man meant for his gruff tone to sound grandfatherly.

  “Show these two to guest rooms,” the Patron ordered one of his guards. “You did well, Caramia,” he said as the guard led them toward the door.

  Much to Colin’s surprise, Mia flashed the old man a shy, delighted smile before stepping out into the hall.

  “Thanks, Grandpa,” she said.

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Thanks, Grandpa, Colin repeated over and over with growing alarm as he paced from one side of the third-story bedroom to the other. Thanks, Grandpa?

  He so disliked being away from Mia. Disliked? Hell, he was growing close to frantic. Bondmate crap, he told himself, tempting him to be unprofessional. He had to stay on the program, follow the procedure they’d set up. So far they hadn’t encountered any contingencies they hadn’t planned for.

  Except—Thanks, Grandpa.

  What had she meant by that? Was her Garrison blood kicking in to lead her to the dark side?

  It didn’t help that he couldn’t feel her thoughts at the moment. He was aware of where she was, by the blood connection between them. He knew her scent on the air, and the sweet surge of her heartbeat from every other mortal’s in the building. But he didn’t feel the essence of her, and he missed it.

  He knew she’d be fine in a little while, that the numbness would wear off. But in the meantime, the separation made him realize just how much a part of him she’d become.

  And it wasn’t even the horniness that bothered him the most. Oh, he hungered for the touch and taste and responses of her body, as he always did. But he missed her. Her voice, her laughter, the conversations they’d been having, in between fights.

  And it seemed like the arguments were growing farther apart, the conversations closer. He missed talking to Mia. There was so much about her he didn’t yet know, despite the psychic and physical bond between them.

  For example, what did she mean by Thanks, Grandpa?

  The words grated on his senses, set off warning bells of paranoia. Suspicion.

  He should have gagged Laurent.

  And what about Laurent? Colin looked at his watch. Had the Manticore broken out of his cell yet? Even though he was only a Tribe Prime, Laurent was still Prime. He could take care of himself.

  But Mia was only mortal. And as tough and resourceful as she was, it was his duty as Prime, and his right as her bondmate, to be her protector.

  Bondmate.

  For the first time, Colin smiled. He knew it was a sloppy, sentimental smile, and was glad he was alone as the unfamiliar romantic feeling came over him. This was no time for him to show vulnerability; he had a job to do.

  Speaking of which, this had gone on long enough to give Laurent time to escape and to destroy any new research material down in the labs. Colin’s job was to make Garrison forget about vampires; Mia’s was to retrieve the laptop to give to the Manticores. Then they were going to leave. It was a simple, nonviolent, gentle, peace-loving—stupid!—plan. Colin didn’t believe for a minute that it would go down so easily, and he was sure Laurent didn’t, either. But Matri Serisa had approved it.

  Unfortunately, she was not a war matri like his own clan’s legendary Lady Anjelica, who had directed engagements against mortal Purist hunters and Tribe renegades. There was even a rumor that Anjelica had fought Nazis in the French resistance, though Clan females weren’t supposed to put their precious selves in harm’s way.

  He bet Anjelica would have authorized the use of deadly force if necessary. But Serisa was the one who approved the op. Fortunately, Serisa’s bondmate Barak was a war leader, and more practical. He understood the need for having a Plan B.

  Right now they were still on track with Plan A, but being separated for any length of time was not part of the plan.

  Colin paced some more, and after about five minutes, he decided that he’d had enough. He was going to find Mia.

  He listened at the door for a moment, and detected the heartbeat and breathing of a guard posted in the hallway. No need to go through the mortal if he didn’t have to.

  He crossed to the room’s large window. He was three stories up at the rear of the mansion, which was perched at the edge of a cliff. Not only did this provide a spectacular view, it afforded a natural security measure. There’d be a lot more t
han three stories to fall if you tried to get out the window. Which he intended to. The walls were brick, which an experienced rock climber like himself could scale. Especially an experienced rock climber who came equipped with long, strong claws.

  Mia was one floor below and to his right, on the same side of the house. It was late on a cloudy night, but Colin also had excellent night vision. He smiled. This was going to be fun.

  Thanks, Grandpa. What on earth had she meant by that?

  Mia sat on the heavily carved Victorian bed and looked at the white lace canopy that arched above her head. The room was all pink and white and girly. She was getting really sick of being tucked away in luxurious cells, to be brought out when other people were ready to make pronouncements and decisions.

  She was also thoroughly confused by her own behavior. Her hands were clenched tightly together, her stomach was full of acid-winged butterflies, and the headache that had plagued her since she mind-zapped the lawyer was still throbbing against her temples. Frankly, she was a wreck. She needed action, and she wanted Colin. Though she thought he was pissed at her, from the look he’d given her at her Thanks, Grandpa.

  Colin probably thought she was on the Patron’s side. Maybe she was a better actress than she thought, and she’d been really deeply into the moment. Or maybe there was some residual sympathy for the old man’s cause lurking somewhere inside her.

  Maybe the old man was the one telling the truth, and all the others were the ones lying to her.

  She smiled at this thought, and relaxed a little. Oh, yeah, every vampire I’ve met has been part of a vast conspiracy to convince me that my opinion of them is the most important thing in the world. Mia shook her head. And to think I pointed out to Colin that everything isn’t always about him.

  Maybe they were bonded because they were a lot alike. She hoped they were alike in the good ways as well as the egotistical bad ones. Or maybe it was just the sex—she ached for him at the thought.

  At the same instant, something tapped on glass behind her. Mia jumped to her feet and whirled toward the room’s window. She almost screamed when she saw an upside down face grinning at her wildly through the lace curtain.

  She rushed to the window, pulled back the curtain, and lifted the window. There was no ledge. Colin’s hands were braced on either side of the window frame, and the rest of his body was held up like a gymnast’s at the top of a vault. The thought of the drop he was hanging above terrified her.

  “For crying out loud,” she whispered fiercely to the vampire clinging head over heels to the outside wall. “You look like a scene from a Dracula movie.”

  His maniacal expression turned to surprise. “I do?” He laughed softly. “I hadn’t thought about that.”

  She glanced toward the door, where there was a guard posted, as he swung himself into the room. As soon as his feet hit the floor, Mia grabbed him in a tight embrace, her heart hammering in her chest. “You could have been killed!”

  “No way. That was easier than rock climbing.”

  He sounded way too smug, and far too pleased at her getting all huggy on him. Now, wasn’t that just like Colin? Which was just the way she liked him, God help her.

  She loosened her hold to tug his head down to hers. His hair was silk against her hands, and the touch of his skin overwhelmed her. She kissed him, all her tension fueling her hunger. He cupped her rear and pulled her against him, and their hips ground together in quick mutual arousal.

  Colin just wanted to get Mia on the bed, get her under him, get inside her, and feel his cock tightly surrounded by all the soft, yielding heat tha—

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa,” he said. He let her go as if he’d been burned. He was burning up, on the edge of losing his mind to his desire for her.

  “Whoa what?” Mia asked, staring at him with a stricken look in her eyes. Her desire was a perfume surrounding her, calling to him.

  Colin took another step back, shaking his head, trying to get his arousal under control. “Not now,” he whispered, motioning toward the door.

  Mia closed her eyes. She was trembling. He watched her helplessly while she got herself under control. And he kept his hands behind his back, because just looking at her was almost too tempting.

  When Mia opened her eyes, there was anger in them.

  He desperately wanted to calm her, comfort her—find out what was pissing her off.

  He said, “Laurent’s escape is overdue. We have to do something.”

  “Are you sure he’s still locked up?”

  Colin nodded, but before he could say anything, the door opened.

  Four of the guards entered, all carrying guns. Garrison came in after them with an aide at his side. The old man leaned on a cane. Colin was aware that there were other armed men out in the hall.

  He could take them out if he had to, but—

  “Grandpa!” Mia shouted, and rushed forward.

  Weapons were raised, but she ignored them, though she stopped short of touching the Patron.

  “I’m so glad you’re here!” She pointed at Colin. “He wants me to help him steal your data. The hunters don’t really trust you, and I didn’t ask for their help catching the vampire. When they surrounded your people at the airport, I couldn’t think of a way out of bringing him here. And then he showed up in here and told me he wasn’t going to wait for you to make a decision—”

  Garrison cut her off. “You are a very talkative young woman.”

  “I guess that doesn’t run in the family,” Colin said, which focused Garrison’s attention on him. Colin glared at Mia. “How did you manage to call for help? And why? Is blood so much more important than the cause?”

  She whirled to face him. “You have no right to force the issue. I won’t let you sabotage my grandfather’s work.”

  “Blood is what it is all about, Faveau,” Garrison spoke up. “Finding out what’s in their blood that makes them what they are. It’s a pity you chose not to wait for my decision. I sent for you to tell you that I would work with your people.”

  “You can’t trust them,” Mia put in.

  “So it seems.”

  “But you still need their data.”

  “You won’t get any help from us now,” Colin said.

  “Which is why you won’t get out of here alive,” Garrison calmly responded. “If we have no mutual need—”

  “But there is someone that needs him.” Mia smiled slowly, and her expression was diabolical enough to make Colin nervous. “The vampire. Why don’t you put the vampire hunter in with the vampire for a while? If the creature’s hungry…I suspect Mr. Faveau would rather share his data than become snack food for the thing he hunts.”

  “Bitch,” Colin said to her, then told Garrison, “You can’t torture what you want out of me.”

  The old man shrugged one frail shoulder. “But there’s no harm in trying. Dump him in with the creature,” he told his guards.

  As he was led out the doorway, Colin heard Garrison say, “Caramia, child, you are an asset to the family after all. Come and join me for a drink.”

  Chapter Twenty-six

  The pain was so bad, Laurent could barely stand it. The blinding bright lights far overhead burned his eyes, even though they were closed. The temperature was cranked up to the point that it nearly scalded his skin, and they’d stripped him down to his underwear so there was a lot of skin to burn. But the restraints were the worst, fastening his arms behind his back. The searing agony around his wrists was so great that he’d gnaw his hands off to get free of the pain, if he could only get to them.

  Lying on the floor, curled up in a ball and concentrating hard on trying not to scream, he almost didn’t hear the door open. Someone was shoved inside, and the door closed again before he could gather the strength to lift his head, let alone make a lunge for freedom.

  When he did manage to lift his head and pry his eyes open, it took several tortured moments for his gaze to travel up a long, lean body dressed in black and finally reach the fac
e of the newcomer.

  “Oh, it’s you,” he managed to croak out.

  Colin Foxe squatted beside him. Squinting in the hideous light, he looked Laurent over. “What happened to you?”

  “I don’t do drugs,” Laurent rasped out.

  He wasn’t sure if he was more furious at the Clan vampire who was merely inconvenienced by the things that were killing him, or at the Tribe alphas who forbade the use of the elixirs that would keep away this pain. Mostly, he just wanted the pain to go away. He wanted it to go away so badly that he couldn’t stop the moan that escaped him. But this one sound of weakness was the closest he’d come to begging.

  Foxe reached out and turned Laurent onto his stomach. “Damn. They put silver on you.”

  “I—noticed.”

  Laurent could have broken the steel handcuffs he’d worn when he entered the cell. But before he had the chance, someone had picked up an ampule from a selection on a cart and stuck a needle into his neck. When he woke up he was alone, stripped, and silver bound his wrists. Silver was a soft metal, and even a mortal female could twist off the cuffs that hooked his arms together. But the burning agony of silver against his skin paralyzed him and made the task impossible.

  Colin saw that Laurent’s skin was badly burned. The daylight drugs only offered him partial protection from silver burns, so he pulled off his shirt and wrapped it around his hands before touching the manacles. Even with the protection of layers of cotton, Colin’s skin grew uncomfortably warm before he was able to pull the soft metal apart. It took a few more moments to pry Laurent’s wrists out of the cuffs. Once they dropped to the floor, Colin stood and kicked them aside.

  Colin didn’t offer to help Laurent up, but turned his back to give the other Prime privacy to get himself together. A couple of minutes passed before he heard Laurent take a deep breath and slowly rise to his feet.

  Colin turned back and said, “We wondered why you were late.”

  “The bastards were tricky.” He gave Colin a very annoyed once-over. “Now we’re locked up together. What happened? Did the girl turn you in, too?”