by Amy Miles
“You don’t see it, do you?” Roseline stares back at him. Nicolae reaches out his hand to grasp the sword, but pauses. “Do you mind?”
A flicker of unease settles over Roseline’s face. Nicolae laughs. “Still having trouble trusting me, huh?”
She nods. “Yeah. I guess it’s just instinct.”
Nicolae grins. “Glad to know I’m keeping you on your toes.” He reaches out for a sword and lifts it from the velvet lining. It is surprisingly light in his strong grasp. He walks to the floor lamp and tilts the blade until the engravings appear to glow.
“I thought so,” he mutters, running his thumb over the jagged mark. “Can you bring the other sword?”
Confused by his rising pulse, Roseline snatches the second sword from the case and tosses it into his waiting hands. Nicolae turns the second blade over so that the tips of the blades curve away from each other. He crows triumphantly. “Come look at this.”
Roseline halts next to him as her jaw falls open. “How did you…I never noticed…” she gulps, tracing each half of a jagged cross that lines the blades- a perfect replica of Gabriel’s tattoo.
Her throat constricts at the thought of him. I am coming for you, Gabriel, she silently vows.
“What do you think it means?” Nicolae mutters.
“I don’t know.”
With trembling fingers, Roseline hooks the black leather scabbard over her shoulders. She retrieves the swords from Nicolae and slides them into place, crisscrossing along her spine. The weight of them feels both familiar and repulsive. She slips a full-length black leather coat over her shoulders to conceal her weapons.
“Are you ok?” Nicolae asks.
She bites down on her lower lip as she shoves her longing for Gabriel away. “Yeah, I’m fine. Are you good to go?”
“Yes.” Nicolae tucks the Brule’s dagger into his boot and rises. He casts a longing glance back at his nest of cotton in the bedroom. “Maybe we should hang on to this room for another night. Just in case we don’t find Fane right away.”
A shadow crosses Roseline’s face as she shifts to look out the window. “We will find him.”
Of that, she has no doubt. Fane has always been predictable, and loyal to a fault. If Roseline so easily discovered the rumor that Davros was hunting for her, Fane heard it too. There is only one place he will go tonight. “Besides, I doubt they will be too keen on renting this room to us after this.”
Nicolae’s head whips around. “After what?”
In a blur of black, Roseline’s foot stamps through the center of the floor-length widow. Shards of glass rain onto the street below.
“What the heck are you doing?” Nicolae cries, rushing forward. His peers over the windowsill. The lighted sidewalk is littered with sparkling fragments of glass. “Why couldn’t we just use the front door?”
Roseline steps to the ledge, her hair lashing against her cheeks. “The less people see us, the better. They will ask too many questions and we don’t have time.” She holds out her hand, listening to Nicolae’s heart stampede in his chest.
He presses back against the wall, shielding his face from the gusting winds. “Someone must have heard that crash. The police will be here any moment.”
“Then I suggest you stop blathering and get over here,” she snaps. Her fingers flinch with impatience. Each minute they delay only diminishes her chances of finding Fane alive.
Nicolae edges toward the window, his fingers walk across the textured wallpaper. “So what’s the plan?”
“I hold you. We jump.” Roseline reaches for his hand. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of heights.”
“No,” Nicolae gulps, “I’m just not a fan of falling.”
“Some fierce hunter you are,” she smirks. Ignoring his protest, she swings him up into her arms and leaps from the window. Nicolae cries out as his stomach plummets. Roseline cups his mouth, shielding any further screams. His eyes, wide with fright, latch onto hers.
The instant her boots hit solid ground, Nicolae tears free from her grasp. “Never do that again.” He sinks to his knees, hands braced against the glass-strewn concrete path.
Roseline ignores his grumbling. She searches the street for any evidence that they were noticed. A young couple rounds the corner and hesitates when they see Nicolae hunched over in a pool of glass. Roseline offers them a warm smile and they skirt along the building and hurry past.
“Get up. You are making a scene.” She yanks Nicolae to his feet.
He snatches his arm back and bends at the waist to dust off his pant legs. “Well, maybe next time you shouldn’t give me a freaking heart attack.”
“You’re alive. You should be thanking me.” She hugs to the side of the building, blending with the shadow.
Nicolae follows closely on her heel, mumbling over his mistreatment. “You’re mental, you know that?”
“Shh,” she hisses as she ducks low to enter the car park. Nicolae pauses next to her and cranes his neck to find his vehicle. The Hummer is parked two rows back and seven cars down, right next to the security guard station.
“Great parking job,” Roseline mutters, shoving Nicolae’s head down as the guard glances out of his glass cage. His eyes shift to the clock overhead. He sighs heavily and removes his ear buds, tucking his iPod into the desk drawer. Reaching for his flashlight, the young man rises from his seat and exits the shack.
“So what do we do now?” Nicolae whispers, poking his head out around the concrete bollard. The guard stoops to shine his light under the first car.
Roseline dangles his car keys in front of his eyes. “I plan to drive.”
Before he can protest, Roseline saunters out into the open, tucking her hands against her hips to accentuate her bared chest. The patrolman turns at the sound of her boots on the pavement. The light swivels up to blind her. “This lot is private property, miss,” he calls in a thick London accent. His eyebrows rise as he notices Roseline’s outfit. “Hotel guests only.”
An innocent smile curls her lips. She reaches into her back pocket and produces the room key for him to see. She easily adopts an English accent, throwing in a bit of cockney for effect. “Me mate and I were just gonna pop out for a bit. See the sights and all. London at midnight…brilliant.”
He frowns, glancing between them and the room key. “A bit late to be out on a school night, don’t you think?” Roseline smiles at the patronizing tone in his voice. He cannot be a day over twenty himself.
“You know how it is. Mum and Dad are driving me mental. I just had to get out for a bit, is all.” Roseline twirls one of the curls that fall along her cheek. She stares up at him from beneath batting lashes, sauntering forward.
She breathes out when she is less than a foot away. Her scent rides on the breeze, flooding his senses. He blinks slowly, a vacant gloss settling over his eyes. “You can make an exception, just this once, right?” she purrs.
The guard’s indecision battles with his desire. He unconsciously leans in to her. A slight sheen breaks out across his brow. Nicolae rolls his eyes. “Is that how I looked?” he whispers in her ear.
Roseline stamps down on his foot before snatching the key card the guard holds aloft. A dopy grin flits across his face as her fingers linger on his wrist. His pulse thumps madly under her touch. “Thanks,” she winks.
Turning her back on the guard, Roseline loops her arm through Nicolae’s and steers him toward the Hummer. He glances back over his shoulder. “The guard is still staring.”
Roseline’s lips twitch as she nods. “In answer to your question…yes, you looked exactly like that.”
Nicolae scowls as she climbs the driver’s seat. The engine has barely turned over before Roseline guns the accelerator. Tires squeal as she whips out of the parking space and swerves around the stunned guard.
“It would have just been easier to knock the guy out,” Nicolae grumbles, slumping in his seat.
Roseline glances at the clock. 12:32 am. He is right, it would have been faster.
“I don’t like to hurt humans, remember?” She glances over at him, grinning. “Well, some humans, anyway.”
“Ha. Ha.”
The brakes hiss as the car slides up to the ticket machine. Roseline inserts the guard’s access card, tapping the steering wheel as she waits for the gate to clear the front of the car.
Street lamp light flashes through the windshield as the Hummer slithers through London’s center, vacant of its usual manic traffic. Here and there, people cluster outside of pubs. Two police cars whizz past, probably on their way to inspect a disturbance at the Hotel Savoy.
Stunning architecture soon gives way to a seedier part of town. The pavement is slightly more uneven and grimy pollution clings to storefront windows. Near the entrance of a small park, a group of underage teens passes around contraband bottles of cheap beer. Even the air pressing through the car vents feels thicker.
Nicolae’s nose presses to the cold glass, watching the city blocks pass by. “Where are we going?”
“Torrent.” Roseline’s knuckles pop as she grips the steering wheel.
Noticing her death grip on the wheel, Nicolae frowns. “I’m guessing I’m going to regret asking this, but what exactly is Torrent?”
“A place I never wanted to see again.”
Chapter 13
Nicolae glances back over his shoulder. The movement catches Roseline’s eye. Her fingers stretch back to grasp his wrist. “Keep walking,” she whispers.
She marches forward, her high heel boots clacking against the uneven pavement. She says nothing about the person lurking in the shadows, but she does not need to. Nicolae has noticed.
Roseline caught the scent three blocks back, not long after disembarking from the Hummer. It curls around her nose, taunting her with delicious mystery. She cannot place the scent. It is not human. Nor does it belong to an immortal.
Slush rises around their boots as they cross the street. The damp wetness glides down the slick knee high leather of Roseline’s boots. Nicolae swears as his biker boot clomps down into a hole, spraying tainted slush onto his pants.
“Typical,” he snorts, brushing away the muck.
“Shh,” Roseline hisses, pulling him close. He stumbles after her, struggling to keep up with her pace. “We are almost there.”
The sound of a footfall pulls her glance backward, across the street. Her eyes narrow in on a misplaced shadow. “Did you see something?” Nicolae asks.
She nods. “Two blocks back. Crouching behind that red utility vehicle.” It shifts out of sight when Nicolae turns, as if sensing his appraisal. The muscles in his arm tense in her palm. “Should we double back?”
“No,” Roseline says, leaping over the slush plugged gutter. “I don’t think they will follow us inside.”
“Could it be Fane? Maybe he’s watching us?”
She inhales deeply. Fane’s scent leads in the opposite direction. “No. He is already inside.”
Fear begins to tingle in her core. What if they are too late? Maybe she should check around back for his…Roseline cannot bring herself to think the word body.
They sneak past the alley that leads to the rear of Torrent. She sucks in a breath as she passes. Foul city air burns her throat. Stale beer, body odor and feces inundate her senses, but Fane’s scent is not among them.
She breathes a sigh of relief as they scurry toward the edge of the building. Her hand snakes out to brace Nicolae as she comes to a grinding halt. Her muscles coil, buffeting his momentum before easing him back.
“Thanks,” he grunts, rubbing his abdomen. He is bound to have a bruise by morning.
Fane’s scent is strong now. He passed by here less than half an hour ago, but his scent is not alone. There is something more, something animalistic.
“Davros,” she whispers, her voice snatched away by the wind. Her fingers curl around the brick face, tearing off small chunks of mortar as she latches onto the new scent. Her toes curl with revulsion. Vladimir’s lackey is here, searching for her.
Fane does not stand a chance in a fight against Davros, but then again, he might not want to see the light of dawn after she shoved his heart through a meat grinder. “Suicidal jerk,” she hisses.
Nicolae peers over her shoulder at the empty road. He sees nothing out of place. “Something I should know about?”
Roseline remains silent, grinding her teeth as she surveys the space. Although the road appears to be deserted, she is not fooled. The entrance to Torrent is never left unprotected.
A neon sign flashes at the end of the street, illuminating a rusted metal door. To a passerby, it would look unassuming, but its presence raises the hair on the back of Roseline’s neck.
“That’s Torrent?”
Roseline nods and pulls him back, shielding him from sight. She drops her voice to a whisper. “You need to listen to me carefully, Nicolae. Do not underestimate this place. It is a hangout for the deadliest of immortals. Humans only enter for one of two reasons: either as blood-slaves or entertainment. Trust me, you don’t want to be either.”
The grim tone in her voice leaves no room for doubt. Nor does the fear lurking within her aqua eyes.
“Fane’s not just here for blood, is he?” Nicolae asks.
“No. He’s here for something else entirely.”
A ball of nausea festers in Roseline’s stomach. Should they enter through the front door or sneak in through the rear entrance? The back is sure to be less protected, but it empties directly into a highly populated room. She decides on the front door, which will give her a greater vantage point.
Roseline glances over at Nicolae. Guilt writhes in the pit of her stomach. Nicolae might be brave and proven himself to be an excellent swordsman, but he has no clue what he is about to walk into.
“It was a mistake to bring you here,” she whispers. “You should go back.”
Nicolae’s suspicion takes root. “I thought you needed me.”
Roseline stares past him, toward the rusted door. “What lies beyond that entrance isn’t a game, Nicolae. Every one of those immortals will gladly rip you apart just for the fun of it. This isn’t sparring class anymore.”
His eyes narrow. “You’re scared.”
“No,” she snorts. Fear dilates her pupils as she shifts her gaze back to him. “I’m terrified.”
“Then I’m not leaving.” He plants his feet. Stubborn determination locks his jaw in place. “If you’re going in, then so am I.”
Roseline sighs. She has seen this look before. “What about Sadie?”
No flicker of doubt or hesitation. “She made me promise to watch your back.” Roseline grimaces. Leave it to Sadie to make Nicolae promise something foolhardy.
Roseline’s chest clenches at the thought of her harebrained friend. If Sadie were here she would be insisting on joining in too. For the first time since she shipped Sadie back to America, she is grateful for her decision.
Counterarguments bloom in her mind but she stops herself. Along with determination, she sees budding pride on Nicolae’s face. His sense of duty, of honor, will not allow him to back out now. Roseline sighs, patting him on the arm. “Thank you.”
Nicolae grins. “I don’t think that will ever get old.”
She offers him a tight smile. “As soon as we knock on that door, you need to be glued to my hip. You got that?”
He nods. “No matter what happens, I need you to play along. No questions asked.”
Nicolae’s lips purse together, but he nods again.
Roseline quickly leads the way. When the rusted door looms over them, she raps three times and waits rigidly beside Nicolae. Seconds pass. An entire minute.
Her expression tightens at the sound of approaching footsteps. The door squeals open on rusted hinges. A giant of a man- towering nearly half a foot over the crest of Nicolae’s head- shoves through the narrow door.
“Yeah?” he questions, tossing his head aside to spit out a bloody wad onto the walk. “Wadda you want?”
Large chains, li
ke a Doberman’s choke collar, dangle from his ear and loop through a bullring in his nose. Silver spikes line his eyebrows. Jagged teeth, sawn into points with a metal file, bear down at them.
Roseline assumes a casual stance. “Just looking for a good time, mate,” she purrs.
His gaze trails down the opening of her coat, hesitating over her curves. Nicolae stiffens next to her, but Roseline reaches out to grasp his hand, applying enough force to make his bones pop. The giant shifts his gaze and sniffs the air. His pupils dilate. “A snack?”