by Katie Reus
“She’ll be going in with Niko. They work well together.” Jayce reached for a couple laptops, which would likely be their work stations. Before Aldric could respond, Jayce continued. “If you can handle yourself, the three of you can go in as a threesome.”
“Okay.” And he would keep his emotions in check. There was no excuse for his behavior tonight, but now that he knew for a fact that Natalia and Niko weren’t together, he could force his primal nature to behave.
He hoped.
* * *
Arthur kept his eyes closed and his breathing even when he heard the scraping sounds. So far, he knew he was in a silver-lined cage in a dungeon of sorts.
And completely naked.
Whoever had constructed his prison knew how to contain vampires.
But people always made mistakes. When the time was right, he would escape. Or die trying.
He wasn’t sure how long he’d been here or who had taken him. Other than that one female voice he remembered hearing before going unconscious in the woods, he hadn’t heard anyone speak again.
He’d woken up in the cage with a mattress and pillow. Nothing else. He’d received a couple small bags of blood, but hadn’t drunk them. He’d scented drugs in them so he’d emptied them under his mattress, letting the mattress soak up the liquid. Not the best plan but there was nowhere else to dispose of the blood.
He’d thought someone might come into the cage to retrieve the empty bags, giving him a chance to attack, but so far no one had.
Now, he heard something new. A metallic, dragging sound. Like…the sound of chains along a concrete floor. And groaning.
He slowly opened his eyes and tilted his head to the side. He had visibility of two other cages next to his and a brick wall in front of them. Dim track lighting lined the low ceiling over the wall but he didn’t need it to see. Not with his vampiric senses.
A hooded figure with gloved hands was dragging a groaning male along the floor. Even with the hood, Arthur could see the tall individual was female. It was in the lithe way she moved.
When she opened the cage next to his, the male kicked out, slamming his booted foot against her knee.
She cried out in surprise, but moving lightning quick with the speed only a supernatural creature possessed, she brought a weapon up and shot two darts into the male, who quickly slumped to the floor.
Arthur’s blood chilled as he recognized the male. Darius Clifton. Elian’s nephew.
After that the female unhooked his chains, and stripped him naked, neatly wrapping his clothing up and tucking it under her arm. Then she patted his face almost…adoringly. Arthur filed that away. Something tickled his nose. Another scent, a familiar one. He couldn’t place it though. It was in the recesses of his mind but he couldn’t make the connection.
As if the female sensed him watching, she looked over and he saw only a gold mask beneath the hood, covering her entire face. He couldn’t even see the color of her skin because of the turtleneck visible under the hood.
She could be wearing a mask because she planned to let them go and didn’t want to be recognizable. Or more likely she was wearing one in case they escaped. They wouldn’t be able to identify her.
There were always other ways to identify someone though. Unfortunately she wasn’t a big talker. Now that he wasn’t drugged he hoped she said something again.
Instead she raised her weapon and fired at him through the bars.
Moving on instinct, he rolled off the flimsy mattress, easily dodging the dart that flew past him.
She shot again and again. Left, right, he dodged as more darts tore through the air. At one point he jumped high in the air, using his claws to attach to the ceiling.
Just as quickly he let go, as the silver coating started to burn his skin. Ignoring the pain, he twisted in midair as another dart would have hit him.
Letting out a sound of frustration she let her weapon hand fall to her side. She stared at him for a few long moments. Picking up the chains in her gloved hands she turned on her heel. With the exception of the rattling chains, her movements were whisper quiet.
Tense, he waited for her to return. As he did, he scanned the cage once again. His neighbor wasn’t waking up any time soon so he couldn’t ask him if he knew who’d taken them and why.
He thought about trying to escape through the floor. The concrete floor wasn’t lined in silver but it could be rigged with explosives or sensors.
Deciding to wait until Darius regained consciousness so they could devise a plan, and to find out what Darius knew of their kidnapper, he lay back on his mattress and conserved his strength. He could go a long time without fresh blood but it would still drain his energy reserves.
Resting now was the smartest thing. He might be old, strong and hard to kill, but he was in a fucking cage right now. He had to get out, get back to his mate. He’d been forcing back thoughts of her as much as he could so emotion wouldn’t cloud his mind. He needed to focus on getting out.
And discovering who the hell was stupid enough to take him in the first place.
Chapter 7
Aldric stared at the ceiling, knowing sleep was a joke. After listening to those audios and watching some of the recordings, he and Jayce had made notes of various people to follow up with. Then they’d had to get some downtime in order to function the rest of the day.
But right now, all he could think about was Natalia. It didn’t matter that he should be focused on the investigation.
She consumed him. When he closed his eyes, the night they first met replayed over in his mind. He hadn’t learned her name that night, but her scent had been embedded in his brain.
Arms crossed over his chest, Aldric stood in front of the vintage elevator, waiting for the fucking thing to open so he could get upstairs into the supernatural club and take care of business. He just wanted to do his job and get out tonight. He glanced over as a petite female headed his way.
Dark hair, dark eyes and…sexy. He looked away quickly, dismissing her. For the first time in centuries his wolf woke up. He wanted to lean over and drag in the stranger’s scent.
She didn’t stand too close to him, but a subtle cherry blossom and vanilla scent teased the air, making him edgy—hungry. She was also watching him intently. Though he noted that she was careful to stay out of his personal space. Still, he didn’t like being on the receiving end of such intensity.
When he clenched his jaw, she immediately snapped her gaze forward. The elevator halted on the bottom floor. The doors opened to reveal a sleek, modern interior despite the vintage exterior.
The female’s boots clicked on the flooring as they entered together. And he noticed that she was watching him again.
“You look… Have we met before? Did you go to Duke?” Her voice was soft, sultry.
He snorted, realizing she was hitting on him, and glanced at her. He preferred to be the pursuer and he never went after someone who looked as fucking innocent as her. She even smelled innocent. “Not interested,” he muttered.
Her big eyes widened even more. Then to his surprise, she laughed right in his face. “Go fuck yourself. I wasn’t hitting on you. You just look like my friend’s mate, Jayce, but…okay then, whatever.” Rolling her eyes, she turned to face the doors.
At the sound of his estranged brother’s name, his entire body jolted. He turned to her again as she pulled out a cell phone and started texting.
On instinct he pressed the emergency stop. He needed to know if this female knew his brother.
She glared at him. “What’s the matter with you?”
“Did you say Jayce?”
“I swear to God, if you don’t release that button I’m going to flay you alive.” Temper flared in her dark gaze, her body language edgy, as if she was ready to attack him right then and there.
To his surprise, he felt a smile tugging at his lips. “You’re quick-tempered for such a little thing.” Even in her heeled boots she was barely five feet, five inches.
&nb
sp; Her canines and claws descended. “You want to find out what this little thing can do?”
For some reason, the sight of her all worked up got him hot. That alone disturbed him, should have been enough to tell him to back the fuck off. He hadn’t let his guard down with a female in centuries, didn’t want a female in his life. Not after he’d spectacularly failed his mate. Realizing he might be frightening the female, he let the button go. “Were you referring to Jayce Kazan a moment ago?” He kept his voice civilized, polite.
She sniffed haughtily in a way that had his cock coming to full attention. “So what if I was?” Turning from him, she shoved her phone back in her pocket, clearly ignoring him as she watched the numbers move by on the elevator.
“He’s mated?” The news nearly knocked him on his ass. His brother, who he hadn’t seen in centuries, was mated? God knew Jayce deserved the happiness. Aldric scrubbed a hand over his face. He wished he could get over his fear, the terror of reaching out to his brother.
The female lifted a shoulder as the elevator stopped on level nine. The music from the club pulsed around them as the doors whooshed open.
“So what are you doing here by yourself, little wolf?” He tried to keep his voice steady, deciding to take a different approach. He’d been rude to her and needed to remedy that if he was going to learn anything about Jayce. The truth was, he didn’t like the thought of this female here by herself. She should have packmates watching out for her.
Too many things inundated him at once: the music, scents and so many damn voices. Aldric rolled his shoulders. This place was supposed to be owned by someone supernatural. Normally supernatural-owned places kept the music at a lower decibel because of shifter and vamp hearing. The noise grated against him but he ignored it, focused on the female.
“I’m not by myself.” Again with the haughty sniff as she strode toward the entrance where a security guy stood next to a roped-off entryway.
Yeah, his wolf wanted her and wanted her bad. He felt as if he could crawl out of his skin as he kept pace with her.
The vampire bouncer subtly scented them instead of carding them, then lifted a heavy, velvet rope to let them pass.
“Let me buy you a drink.” He needed to know if this female truly knew Jayce, and okay, he wanted to talk to her. Find out her name.
“No, thank you.” She glanced away from him, clearly looking for someone.
This part of the club was on three levels. The first floor had three bars and a dance floor, which she was currently scanning. Looking for a boyfriend maybe? He nearly snarled at the thought, but caught himself.
What the fuck was wrong with him?
High-top tables surrounded three sides of the dance floor, and the second floor—which was actually the tenth floor of the building—had reserved areas. Curtains were pulled back on the empty booths that reminded him of opera boxes, while others were hidden for privacy.
Flashing strobe lights flicked around the place, giving him a headache. “Listen, I just…do you seriously know Jayce Kazan?”
She looked at him again, her expression filled with mistrust as she shrugged. “Kind of. I met him a while ago. It’s not like we hang out or anything. What’s your deal? And what’s your name?”
She was lying, he was certain of it. He stared at her for a long moment. The female hadn’t actually answered his question, had more or less evaded in answering. “My name’s Aldric.” He watched her, waiting to see if there was a spark of recognition in those dark, beautiful eyes.
She raised her eyebrows, clearly not impressed.
Stepping back, he nodded once at her. “I’m sorry I bothered you. Enjoy your evening.” Before she could respond he blended back into the crowd.
He wasn’t sorry he’d met her, not one little bit. Deep down, in a place he didn’t want to admit existed, he was certain he’d see the female again. It disturbed him on the most primal level that he actually wanted to see her. But he would make it happen.
Chapter 8
Beyond frustrated, Natalia punched her pillow and got out of bed. The bed and breakfast had incredible insulation but some things couldn’t be masked. She didn’t hear anything but there was a subtle scent of mating in the air.
Someone, and she didn’t have to guess who, was having sex right now. It was making her wolf even edgier because the one male she wanted was under the same roof. Not that it mattered.
She was so angry at him, and concerned about the mission. She desperately wanted to be an asset, to prove that she could help. Now his presence threatened to ruin what she’d been trying to do. Those two missing vampires needed help. Not only that, they had to stop the Kinley pack and Clifton coven from starting a war and putting all other supernaturals in danger. Including her own pack. Her sisters and cousins had been through enough in the last year. She wouldn’t let anything else happen because of a bunch of supernaturals who couldn’t get their shit together.
Gah, why did Aldric have to be here at all? After that ridiculous display at the party she knew he had to be somewhat attracted to her. But it didn’t matter. That was just biology. He wanted her. So what?
It was too early to be awake but she wasn’t going to be able to sleep so she took a quick shower and changed into jeans and a dark blue cashmere sweater. She’d gone running in wolf form earlier and it hadn’t helped get rid of her frustration. She couldn’t stay cooped up in her room any longer. As she made her way downstairs in search of food, the sweet aroma of coffee trickled up.
Inhaling deeply, she picked up her pace. The swinging door to the kitchen was propped open and she could see Niko inside, pouring a mug at one of the beige granite countertops. “I didn’t know vamps drank coffee.”
“I got hooked on Starbucks when they first came out. Can’t get enough.”
“I can’t tell if you’re kidding.”
Sliding an empty mug to her as she approached, he lifted an eyebrow. “Sadly, I am not.”
Laughing lightly, she poured herself a mug. “When did you get back?” She’d seen him heading out on his motorcycle a few hours ago when she’d been out running in wolf form, trying to expend some energy.
“Ten minutes ago.”
They still had an hour or so until sunrise. “So?”
“So what?” He took a sip of his coffee.
“What’s the club like? Is it super kinky?” She’d never been to a sex club before. Had never wanted to. But just because she was a virgin didn’t mean she wasn’t curious.
He lifted a dismissive shoulder. “Like all the other ones.”
She blinked, though she wasn’t sure why she was surprised. He was hundreds of years old and a vampire. Of course he would have been to a sex club before. “Oh.”
“You’ll get to see firsthand later tonight. But I can say this one was… Classier is the wrong word, but it’s lusher than some others I’ve seen.”
“Do you go to them often?”
“No. Just when I’m working.”
“What exactly do you do for a living anyway?” Niko worked with Jayce on occasion but she knew he didn’t need to. Kat had mentioned that the male felt he owed Jayce—a debt for saving his life once—but had more money than some small countries.
He gave her a wicked grin. “Lots of things.”
It was clear he didn’t plan to expand on that so she rolled her eyes. “Fine, be that way…” She trailed off as Aldric’s scent filled the air.
Her gut tightened even as her wolf pushed to the surface, eager to get closer to the male. Annoyingly traitorous bitch. She hated that her wolf wanted to run around and preen for this male when she should just punch him in the face.
A moment later he appeared in the entryway of the kitchen, his body stiff.
Niko cleared his throat, nodded once at Aldric before he leaned over and kissed Natalia on the forehead. “I’m gonna enjoy my coffee outside.” Then he was gone before she could blink, shutting the door to the back porch behind him in a soundless whisper.
When she loo
ked at Aldric his jaw was clenched tight and his eyes were pure lupine. At least he hadn’t attacked Niko, but he could get the hell over himself already. Even though she’d planned to make some really early breakfast, coffee would have to be enough for now. Maybe she’d go for another run, burn off all her excess energy. It would be a long run.
Not bothering to give the male even a tight smile, she started to leave but he held up his hands briefly. “Can we talk? No threats from me, I promise.”
Part of her wanted to simply leave but she was too curious about what he had to say. “Fine, talk.”
“I’m sorry about the way I reacted last night at the party.”
“And this morning in my room?”
Jaw tight, he nodded. “Yes. I lost control. My behavior was unacceptable.”
“Huh. We agree on something.”
He rubbed a hand over his face. “I’m also sorry for my disappearing act the last five months. I…” He cleared his throat.
A small part of her ached to reach out and comfort him because it was clear he was struggling. But that was just stupid. She hated that he affected her like that, made her care for him after the way he’d ghosted, as if she meant nothing to him. She didn’t have many friends. Her pack was tightly-knit, and even though she’d gone to college and had some human friends she still kept in contact with, her pack were her people, her inner circle.
She’d let Aldric into that circle and he’d thrown her friendship back in her face. Which pissed her off beyond belief. There might be chemistry between them, but that would never erase the fracture between them, what he’d done.
The back door opened and Niko stuck his head in at the same time Felicity, the proprietor, entered through the swinging door.
“Ursula’s here to speak to you,” Niko said to Aldric.
The petite jaguar shifter who ran the B&B scanned the three of them, her expression neutral. “Visitors are allowed, but I need to be informed how many and a general time frame of their arrival, for security reasons. I need to be able to keep my guests safe. I knew about you,” she said to Aldric, “from your brother. Feel free to use doors from now on.”