“How long ago was that?”
“Just over four months ago.”
“And that’s when your members started disappearing,” Darius concluded.
“That’s right.”
“Did this demon ever give you his name?” Darius asked.
“Sure. Called himself Amadja.”
Amadja. It was a name from out of the past. Son of Apep, the serpent god; Darius had faced him as recently as five hundred years ago, when Amadja had dared to attack Sekhmet. Their battle had been fierce and bitter, but in the end, Darius had vanquished him. Unfortunately, Amadja hadn’t died; he’d simply disappeared.
They’d reached the end of the block, and Ricco gestured to the right.
“I don’t suppose you ever saw a tall, redheaded male with Amadja, did you?” Darius asked.
Ricco didn’t even have to think about it. “No. He always came alone. At the time, I thought it was ballsy of him to show up at my club, making demands like he was without backup. After what you’ve told me, I guess he didn’t need backup.”
Darius agreed. “You’re lucky there was another gang in town for him to turn to. He probably figured that once the other gang grew in power, yours would eventually go away—or be destroyed.”
“Yeah. That’s a cheery thought. So—do you have a place to stay tonight?”
Darius had considered going to Lexi’s, but there was a good chance she wouldn’t let him in. “No.”
“You’re welcome to crash at my club if you want. We’re almost there.”
Darius thought about his other options, realized he had none, and nodded. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”
O’Rourke was in a foul mood, standing in the waiting room of the local police station waiting for the leprechaun to be set free. Errands like this were beneath him. As leader of the Vlads, he shouldn’t be running errands at all. As leader of the Vlads…
His thoughts trailed off. Since the appearance of Amadja almost four months ago, O’Rourke had done very little leading and much too much following. The instant that demon had swept into his place with his followers, they had taken over both his club and his gang.
Of course, he’d tried to order them out, but Amadja had been very…persuasive…when he’d gotten O’Rourke alone.
The door leading into the waiting room opened, snapping O’Rourke out of his musings. He looked over to see the small form of Paddy Darby walking out. He looked tired and worn, and there was a fresh cut above his eye.
“About time you got here,” Paddy snarled as soon as he saw O’Rourke standing there.
“Mind your tongue if you don’t want to go back,” O’Rourke warned him sullenly. If it had been up to him, he would have left the little shit in there, but for some reason, Amadja wanted him out. “Come on,” he ordered him, leading the way out of the station. “Amadja wants to see you.”
He was gratified to see Darby nearly stumble at that announcement.
“Why?”
“How the fuck should I know?” O’Rourke growled. It was the essence of his problem: Amadja didn’t tell him what was going on. He told that redheaded freak everything, but he couldn’t be bothered to keep O’Rourke, First Fang of the Vlads, informed.
“Maybe he just wants to know if everything’s ready for the initiation,” Darby suggested hopefully.
“Or maybe he wants to know why every time he turns around, you’re back in jail?” O’Rourke countered. “And by the way, the cost of bailing you out—again—is coming out of your commission.”
They’d reached the sidewalk, and O’ Rourke raised his hand to hail a cab. The sooner they were back at the club, the better he’d feel.
“No more, my pet,” Amadja cooed in the sultry voice of his female persona, Aja. Tain, his arms braced against the wall, his magnificent body raw and bleeding where strips of flesh had been peeled off, stood before her, shaking from pain and anticipation.
Aja tossed the knife aside, and it disappeared into thin air. She ran the palms of her hands down the sides of her nude body, relishing the attributes of her current form: the fullness of her breasts, the inward curve of her waist and the gentle flare of her hips.
She moved, close enough to Tain that his body heat warmed her, and she gently brushed aside the tendrils of red hair that had matted against his head. She brought her lips close to his ear and whispered, “No one loves you more than I do, Tain.” Then she placed a light kiss against his cheek.
Still he did not speak; did not beg for mercy or for release. He stood there obediently, waiting for her to decide his fate—whether it be further torture or redemption.
Already his body was healing in the rapid way of the Immortals, though centuries of this ritual had left his skin rippled with scar tissue. For Aja, the sight of it quickened her pulse and made her burn with need. Living beneath the vampire club, constantly feeding off the sexual energies from above, left her hungry all the time.
“Turn around, Tain,” she whispered, smiling at the way he hesitated. “Turn around, so that I might pleasure you—just as I caused you pain earlier.”
Slowly he turned, his wounds making movement painful. As soon as he faced her, Aja’s attention was drawn to his engorged member, jutting outward. Even after all these years, she found him impressive.
Lowering herself before him, she wrapped her lips around him and took him deep into her mouth. Though he tried not to, his groan welled up from deep down inside him and escaped. From the corner of her eye, she saw his hands clench into fists, but otherwise he held perfectly still while she caressed the long length of him with her tongue.
A fine trembling began in his legs as she brought him closer and closer to his release. When he was almost there, she stopped and, holding perfectly still, watched as his ardor faded. She didn’t want him coming too soon.
Once his trembling stopped, she began again, forming a moist, warm sheath around him with her tongue and sliding her mouth up and down his length in an ever-increasing rhythm.
The trembling in his legs started anew, this time racking his entire body. When he’d had enough, Tain uttered a primal roar and, lifting Aja into the air, turned so her back was braced against the wall. Then, in a single lunge, he buried himself in her and took control of their lovemaking.
Over and over, he drove himself into her with a fierce intensity. She rode him relentlessly, milking him for everything he could give until he could give no more. And then, together, they climaxed.
For several long moments, they leaned against the wall, wrapped in each other’s arms, too spent to move. Aja had never once in seven hundred years found their lovemaking anything less than spectacular, and it sometimes left the demon wondering who was in control of whom in their relationship.
Finally, she felt the prickle of others coming down the hallway.
“We have company, love,” she whispered to Tain, rousing him. He released her legs and let them slide to the floor. She laid her hand against his cheek in a gentle caress and gave him a smile.
Then she walked away, crossing the room to her desk. As she did, she waved her hand and changed back into her male persona, clothing them both at the same time. By the time the knock on the door sounded seconds later, Amadja and Tain were ready.
“Come in,” Tain said, opening the door and standing aside so the leprechaun and O’Rourke could enter. They both glanced at the Immortal, the leprechaun with feigned nonchalance and the vampire with barely concealed hostility.
“Won’t you have a seat,” Amadja said to Paddy Darby, gesturing to the chair in front of the large desk where he now sat. He was glad to see that O’Rourke didn’t seem to expect to be asked to sit down but went to stand off to the side, where he was available if needed.
“How are you tonight, Paddy?” Amadja asked politely.
“Very good, thank you,” Paddy answered.
“So.” Amadja let the pause lengthen. “I understand that you’ve been in jail again. After I expressly asked you to take measures to ensure you avoid c
atching the attention of the authorities.”
“I—I’m sorry, Your Eminence,” Paddy stammered. “I forgot my court date, and they sent a bounty hunter after me.”
Amadja rolled his eyes. “Are you telling me you couldn’t escape a bounty hunter? Paddy, I thought I was paying you to avoid such entanglements.”
“Of course I could have escaped the bounty hunter,” Paddy defended himself. “But she wasn’t alone.”
Tain gave a snort of disdain. “Even you should have been able to outrun two humans.”
Paddy glanced at Tain before giving Amadja a worried look. “But that’s just it, you see. It wasn’t two humans. The woman was a werewolf, and the man…” he paused;“I don’t know what he was. He was covered in tattoos, and when he touched them, they came to life. There was one in partic—”
“Darius,” Tain muttered, looking at Amadja.
“Let’s make sure.” Amadja turned to O’ Rourke. “I want to see the security tapes from two nights ago. You know the one I mean?” The vampire nodded. “Fine. We’ll be up in a minute to look at it.”
O’Rourke hurried out of the room, and Amadja turned his attention back to the little man watching him so intently. “We’ll get back to that shortly. In the meantime, I trust everything is ready for the initiation?”
Paddy nodded but said nothing.
“What is it? You seem worried.”
“I wonder if, maybe, we should”—he glanced uncertainly at Tain, as if seeking support—“slow down.”
“And why would we do that?” Amadja asked patiently, though he was in fact losing his temper.
“I don’t know how many more converts I can provide. There just aren’t that many people who want to…become a vampire,” Paddy said.
“I thought we discussed this. It’s not a matter of taking those who ask; it’s a matter of taking those who won’t be missed.”
“But the authorities—”
“Are not your concern.” Why couldn’t these creatures just do as they were told and let him worry about the consequences? “The only thing you need worry about,” Amadja continued, “is providing me with what I’ve asked for. In return, I will provide you with a new pot of gold, as I promised. Isn’t that what you wanted? A pot of gold to replace the one you lost? I know you can’t return home to see your family until you have it—so I would think the sooner, the better. Right?”
Paddy nodded miserably, though Amadja couldn’t care less whether or not the little man was happy. He wasn’t the one who’d given the man a drinking problem that resulted in his losing everything he had in the world.
A buzzer sounded on Amadja’s desk. “They are ready for us upstairs,” he announced, getting up from his desk. “Paddy, I’d like you to take a look at a video and tell me if the man who helped capture you is in it.”
Paddy scooted off his chair and walked through the door that Tain held open for them. It didn’t take long to walk through the underground passages to the doorway that took the trio into the club.
It was well after midnight, but the club was still filled with patrons. No one noticed them, however, as they made their way across the room, through the crowd and over to a door that had mysteriously appeared where a red panel of drapes had been.
Amadja, Tain and Paddy walked through the door and into the main office. O’Rourke was sitting at a control panel with six small screens and one larger one. At that moment, all six screens were showing scenes of couples having sex. Amadja ignored them, however, and focused his attention on the large screen where the frozen image of a tattooed man was displayed.
He gestured for Paddy to take a look, and wasn’t surprised when the leprechaun’s eyes lit up in recognition. “That’s him. He’s the one who took me in.”
Amadja turned to exchange looks with Tain. Darius was interfering with their plans, whether he knew it or not.
“And that’s her.”
Amadja gave Paddy a startled look. “Who?”
“Her.” Paddy pointed to the dark-haired woman on the dance floor with Darius. “That’s the bounty hunter he was with.”
Tain took a step closer. “Are you positive?”
“Yes.” Paddy squinted and leaned closer to the screen for another look. “Yes, that’s her.”
So, the Immortal had found a confederate, Amadja thought. He wondered just how close the two of them had become. He turned to O’Rourke. “Study that tape. I want to know if they came together, and who they talked to while they were here.”
O’Rourke nodded and hit the play button on the video.
“Do you know who he is?” Paddy asked.
No one answered.
“You may go now Paddy,” Amadja said. “But do us both a favor and when you’re not at work—stay close.”
Paddy nodded, then escaped as quickly as he could. Just as the door closed behind him, O’Rourke called out. “Hey, boss. I think you might want to see this.”
Amadja walked over to the monitor and watched the screen as O’Rourke moved the image in reverse. He watched as the dark-haired bounty hunter walked in the door with a much shorter but equally attractive woman by her side.
“Do you know who that is?” O’Rourke asked, though it was clear that he knew the answer, so Amadja simply waited. “Mai Groves, the reporter. She’s been here a lot lately.”
“Are you sure?” Amadja asked.
“Yeah. I make it a point to know who comes into my club—especially reporters.”
Amadja shot him a withering look for his insolence, but stepped forward to take a better look at the screen. “If she and this bounty hunter are friends, then she might be worth getting to know a little better.”
“I’ll do it,” Tain offered, a little too eagerly it seemed.
Amadja felt a twinge of jealousy, but he quickly suppressed it. Tain was right. Having someone on the inside would be best, but he didn’t think Tain would be the best choice. “I believe I’ll deal with this one,” he said firmly.
Tain looked disappointed, but Amadja didn’t care and started walking toward the door.
“Where are you going?” Tain asked.
“No time like the present,” he replied and then walked out the door.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The evening had been a resounding success, Mai thought as she sat in the back of a cab the next morning, studying her reflection in a mirror. She noticed the bags under her eyes were getting darker. If she didn’t start getting some sleep soon, she was going to look a lot older than she actually was. However, sometimes one had to make short-term sacrifices for long-term gains. At least, she hoped it was a short-term sacrifice. Going to the bars night after night and having sex with strangers was…okay, it was exciting and exhilarating, but it wasn’t very satisfying.
There were times when what she really wanted was someone to settle down with. Finding Mr. Right, however, was a bit problematic. Although, there’d been that one man she’d met late last night. He certainly had potential.
At that moment, her cell phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, she recognized Lexi’s number.
“Morning,” she answered cheerfully.
“Where the hell have you been?” Lexi reprimanded her. “I’ve been worried sick about you.”
Used to her friend’s monthly mood swings, Mai didn’t take offense. “I’ve been working on this new story.”
“Are you all right?” Lexi asked, sounding concerned.
“Of course.”
“Mai, are you telling me the truth?”
Mai sighed. “All right. If you must know, I’m a little tired, and I feel like I might be coming down with something.”
“You need to take better care of yourself.”
“It so happens that I’m on my way to see a doctor now. A Dr. Patrick.”
“Listen. I found out something important about those back rooms at the Crypt.”
Mai’s interest was immediately aroused. “Do tell,” she encouraged.
“There’s a succubus workin
g them. A real energysucking succubus,” Lexi continued.
“No kidding?” Mai asked, hardly able to believe it. “Wow.”
She heard Lexi’s growl on the other end. “Mai, this thing is dangerous. It kills people. I think you should stay away from the Crypt.”
“Not to worry,” Mai said brightly. “A succubus is female, right? You know I don’t do women.”
“Mai,” Lexi warned, “I want your promise.”
Past experience told Mai that there was no point in arguing with Lexi when she was like this. In a couple of days, after the moon had passed, she’d be back to her normal, reasonable self. “All right, hon. I won’t mess with the succubus. Will that make you happy?”
“Yes.” She heard Lexi’s sigh of relief and felt guilty for lying to her. She hoped Lexi would understand.
“Look, I’m at the doctor’s office, so I need to let you go. I’ll talk to you tonight, all right?” She disconnected the call before Lexi could object, paid the cab fare and got out.
The building wasn’t exactly what she’d expected a physician’s office to look like, but then she didn’t really know what to expect. He’d been recommended by someone she’d met at the Crypt when she mentioned feeling run-down.
The wood nymph in her hoped he was young, gorgeous and single. With that thought in mind, she went into the building and located his office.
He didn’t seem busy, but she still spent a good thirty minutes sitting in the waiting room filling out paperwork. There were a lot of questions on family medical history that Mai thought were a supreme waste of time. Instead of answering, she simply marked down she’d been orphaned at an early age. After finishing, she was shown into the exam room where she peeled off her clothes and put on the ugly paper gown that never closed properly. Then she sat down to await the arrival of the doctor.
The Darkening (Immortals) Page 13