by Alicia Ryan
As the cab crossed the Queensboro Bridge onto Manhattan Island, Ariana leaned closer to the plastic divider. The city glittered through the front window, and she realized she’d missed it.
At the townhouse, the cab sped away, leaving Ariana on the sidewalk fumbling for a moment with the purloined key chain. She considered her choices and opted to try the big brass key on the iron gate that now barred her way.
A mere second of jiggling and the heavy grated door swung inward before her. Ariana’s shoulders sagged in relief. One down, one to go, she thought.
She wasn’t as lucky on the next door, taking three tries to get the right key, but eventually it too succumbed. She pushed it open and stepped inside.
There were no lights, so she dropped the keys into her bag, turned, and searched out a switch with her left hand. Finally, a small table lamp in the foyer flared to life.
She shut the door behind her and headed for Ash’s study.
Halfway down the hall, she froze in her tracks when she heard the faint but unmistakable sound of Ash’s front door swinging slowly inward on its metal hinges. Could he have followed me so quickly? No. She’d barely made it onto the last flight out of Heathrow for the night. He would be at least a few hours behind her, and probably more.
Ariana drew in a sharp breath, and the raised hairs on the back of her neck gave her the split second of warning she needed. As she spun out of the way of her attacker, she let her own fist fly out. It connected with something hard, hurting her already injured hand.
The hard thing was a black-clad woman. Ariana knew instantly she was a vampire. “Ash,” she said quickly. “I know Ash. Samson. He’d be very angry if you killed me.”
“I doubt that,” the woman smirked. Her eyes roved over Ariana from head to toe, and she smiled darkly. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I promise not to kill you if you tell me who you are.”
Ariana said nothing, and the woman moved closer, studying her intently. “I want you to tell me who you are,” she said with a voice like a silken razor.
Ariana coughed nervously. “That’s the $64,000 question, I’m afraid.”
The woman stopped short when she got close enough to look Ariana in the eye. Ariana was surprised to see a flash of recognition.
“Are you her?” the woman asked bitterly. “Is it really Delilah come to grace us with her presence after all this time?”
Ariana understood instantly that this woman wanted Ash for herself. Tricky. What would Delilah do?
“I see you’ve heard of me,” she said with a smile. “Good.” Ariana raked the woman with her gaze. “Guess you didn’t get the other memo. Goth is out this year.”
The woman opened her mouth and hissed. Long white fangs glimmered in the darkness.
Okay, no more channeling Delilah, Ariana thought, taking a nervous step back from her rival. She was no match for this woman, but she didn’t want her hanging around getting in the way either.
“Do you know James?” Ariana asked.
“Who?” the woman asked, her eyes narrowing.
“My husband, James,” Ariana said slowly. “I think he’s been turned recently into...” she couldn’t say the word, “…one of you.”
The woman’s tight body relaxed somewhat as she considered Ariana’s question. “And if I could bring James back to you?” she queried guardedly.
“That depends,” Ariana hedged. “Who are you?”
“Toria,” the woman replied. “Ash and I are old friends.”
“Hmmm...” Ariana forced herself not to point out that Ash had never mentioned her. “And you know what happened to James?”
“That depends,” Toria replied, giving her a knowing glare.
Ariana shook her head. “I don’t have designs on Ash, if that’s what you’re asking,” she said. “Can you take me to James?”
“But does Ash have designs on you?” Toria asked.
Ariana hesitated before answering, but that was all the answer Toria seemed to need.
“That’s too bad,” she muttered as she drew back her fist and let fly.
Ariana hit the floor at Toria’s feet with a muffled thud.
CHAPTER 40
He just had to be patient, Ash told himself again as he stared at the wall in his study. He still couldn’t figure out how she’d escaped, but it didn’t matter. He would get her back.
The electronic jangling of his cell phone startled him, but the brief flash of hope in his eyes died when he saw that it was Justin’s number.
“What?” he barked into the tiny device.
“Hi to you, too, Ash,” Justin said, sounding offended. “What’s got you in such a foul mood? Is Ariana okay?”
“Yes.”
“Well, you’ll forgive my concern,” Justin insisted. “You did kick me out of the manor rather abruptly, and I never saw her before I left.”
“She’s fine,” Ash said, hoping it was true. “Look, is this important? I really need to go.”
“Well, I don’t know. Is finding out who broke into your company important?”
Ash sat back in his chair and forced himself to focus on the matter at hand. “Okay, what did you find out?”
“Thomas really came through,” Justin began. “He took all the surveillance video and matched each entry to the electronic access logs. There was an unauthorized entry a few weeks ago.”
Ash was pleased to have a result so soon. “So who was it? Do we know?”
“Well, the access logs say it was you.”
Ash wasn’t sure he’d heard him right. “Me? That can’t be.”
“I know,” Justin said, “but I saw them myself. Someone swiped your keycard at the gate, but it definitely wasn’t you.”
“We got a picture?” Ash asked eagerly.
“Yes, I’m emailing it to you right now.”
Ash jiggled his mouse and waited for his laptop screen to come back on. After an impatient few seconds, he opened the file and watched a tall, dark, green-eyed vampire walk through the access doors at Hemogen.
“I’ll be damned,” Ash said softly. “Keller.”
“So you do know him?” Justin asked. “How do you want to proceed?”
“Don’t worry about it,” Ash said. “I’ll get the next plane to New York and find out first hand what Keller’s up to.”
“Okay,” Justin said hesitantly. “But let me know if you need anything.”
Ash laughed. “I said not to worry. Whatever Keller’s twisted brain has come up with, he’s no threat.”
Justin said goodbye and hung up, still sounding to Ash’s ears a little too motherly.
Ash pressed the intercom call button and within moments, Nancy appeared at his study door.
“What can I bring you, sir?”
“Nothing, Nancy. I will be leaving for New York immediately. Can you get packed and come over on a flight tomorrow?”
Nancy’s eyes lit up. “Yes, sir. I’d be delighted.”
Ash gave her a puzzled glance. “Really? You normally aren’t any more pleased than Ben to have to leave here.”
Nancy smiled. “Well, it’s getting to be that time of year, sir. I can start my Christmas shopping in the city.”
Ash frowned. What was it about shopping that turned women into totally different people? And who Christmas-shopped in June?
CHAPTER 41
Unlike Ash, Luc liked to live amidst the bustle. He kept an apartment down in the East Village, but Toria wasn’t headed for his apartment.
Across the park, on the west side of the city, Luc rented some warehouse space behind a string of car dealerships. Not many others knew what he did there, but Toria had found him out when she’d first gone searching for James several weeks ago.
Luc’s little setup was disgusting, but harmless enough. And the holding facility would be the perfect place to store this kitten out of sight for a while.
At this hour, there weren’t many people out on the streets Toria chose to traverse. The few people she did pass couldn’t be
bothered to inquire about one unconscious woman—and if they could, a scalding glance from Toria made them think twice about interfering.
The heavy door to the warehouse was locked and, from all appearances, long unused. Toria flipped open the door of what looked like a fuse box. Inside a tiny screen flickered. A face appeared on it, a chiseled, masculine face surrounded by hair the color of desert sand.
“Toria. Did you find James?”
As Toria watched his lips move, she wished she’d been the one to make this fabulous creature into a vampire. She wondered who had. They certainly did have an eye for it. She thought briefly about Keller’s pronouncement that Luc was part human, but dismissed it as so much gibberish.
“No,” she answered into the speaker, “but I have a present for you.”
“A present?” Luc’s suspicion was evident. “What’s the occasion?”
“I need a small favor,” Toria answered honestly. “But it’s an opportunity for the right male. I immediately thought of you.”
“Don’t bullshit me, Toria.”
“Look,” she said, patience wearing thin, “I need a favor. I figured if it was also a chance to stick a finger in Ash’s eye, you wouldn’t exactly mind. Was I wrong?”
Luc grinned, lighting up the little screen. “Hell no. Why didn’t you say so?” A buzz sounded from behind the door. “Come on in.”
Toria closed the video phone and grabbed the large handle of the warehouse door. She gave it a quick upward push and pulled it open with a grunt. The door was weighted so no human could open it, and with her precarious package still draped over one shoulder, even Toria found it a little difficult.
She opened it just enough to slip through and walked to the back of the cavernous space. The heavy door rolled shut behind her, cutting off the beam of light from outside. She didn’t need it to see, of course, but she, like most vampires, preferred some light. Lack of light meant lack of color.
Not that there was much color to this place, Toria thought as she pressed the button on the far wall. A whirring sound started somewhere below as the freight elevator rose.
Toria shifted Delilah’s weight on her shoulder once more before yanking open the grated metal door and stepping in. The woman moaned.
“Not much farther now,” Toria murmured.
Light began pouring in around her feet as the elevator made its way to the lower level. With all the lights he kept burning, Toria half suspected Luc was afraid of the dark.
“So, to what do I owe the pleasure?” Luc said by way of greeting as he opened the grated door. “I thought you were looking for James.”
He, like Toria, was clad all in black. He sported no leather, though, just jeans, a button up shirt, and cowboy boots.
Toria stepped out of the elevator and shoved the still-unconscious Delilah into his arms. “Thought the place could use a woman’s touch,” she mocked.
***
Luc laughed out loud, as his eyes roved over the unexpected delivery. Not bad. Not bad at all. “Who is she?”
“Who isn’t she,” Toria grumbled. “She’s James’ wife, for one.”
Luc frowned. James had never mentioned a wife. “I thought you said this had something to do with Ash.”
“She’s also Delilah,” Toria muttered.
“Delilah who?”
Toria shot him a dark look, and Luc’s eyes got wide. “Oh, that Delilah,” he said. This is very cool, he thought. And potentially very bad. Ash could probably kill with just a thought, if he ever really put his mind to it. Or if someone made him mad enough.
Luc looked again at his sleeping captive. What was it about her? She did seem familiar. Something danced at the edge of his consciousness but wouldn’t stand still long enough for him to sort it out.
“And just what did you have in mind that I do with her?” he asked, turning to Toria once more.
“Relax, Lucas, you don’t have to kill her,” Toria said. “Yet. Just keep her out of sight for a while. I need a little time to get Ash back here and talk to him. Plus, we need to find James.”
Luc walked over to the couch, knelt, and placed Delilah on it, carefully positioning the cushion under her head. Then he smoothed her hair away from her face and heard Toria give a loud grunt of disgust from somewhere behind him. He didn’t care. He wanted her to open her eyes.
“Oh, for pity’s sake, Luc, she won’t break. Believe me.”
Luc turned around. “How long?” he demanded.
“What? Oh. I don’t know,” Toria shrugged. “As long as it takes, I guess. What’s your rush?”
“You obviously intend for me to keep her in one of the cages down below,” he said, coming over to where Toria stood with one hand on a precocious hip, “but I’m not running a home for wayward girls here. I use those for business, and I think I should get reimbursed for my troubles.”
Toria pursed her lips and grabbed him by the chin. “Careful, Lucas. If you were even a little less gorgeous, I might take offense.” She released him and turned to go. “But I have other matters to see to tonight, so do whatever you want with her for a couple of weeks. I’ll have found James by then.”
Luc raised a brow. “And if you haven’t?”
Toria shrugged. “Well, maybe then I’ll consider making an investment in your little operation.” She stepped into the elevator and closed the gate. “Just don’t let anyone find out who or where she is and don’t turn her.” She thought about this for a minute, pushed the grate back open and stuck her head out. “I mean it, Luc. If you make her a vampire, I’ll kill you both.”
With that she was gone as quickly as she had come, and Luc was alone with his new ward.
CHAPTER 42
Luc moved over to the yellow polyester-covered sofa and knelt again beside his sleeping beauty. He smiled at the cliché.
She was beautiful, but this was no fairy princess. This was a flesh and blood woman, the wife of his friend, the obsession of the most powerful vampire alive, and she was asleep on his couch.
He reached out to touch her hair again. This was why light was good, he thought. Not because of color, but because of shine. Nothing shone in the dark. Not the way her hair glimmered and caught the light from the lamp on the desk. Or the way her skin warmed and radiated back the light from overhead.
“Open your eyes, darlin’,” Luc whispered. “Let’s see what all the fuss is about.”
Not even a whimper.
Luc reached for her left arm and pushed up the loose sleeve of her shirt. He began to rub his hands vigorously back and forth over her skin.
As he did so, he caught a whiff of something, a scent he recalled from long ago, and the memory rocked him back on his heels. Holy Mother of God, he thought. A breeder.
His mother had been a breeder. The Verses said there would be others, but most vampires thought those were just legends. Even he, when he knew it was true, had never thought to find another.
He took a deep breath. Not something he was used to, it sent him into a fit of coughing.
***
The noise penetrated the fog of Ariana’s brain, and she slowly opened her eyes. A bolt of pain rammed through her left temple, causing her to groan. Suddenly a face appeared above hers. For a moment, she thought it must be an angel.
“Hi there,” he said.
It registered with Ariana that angels probably wouldn’t have Southern drawls. Then again... She smiled even though it hurt. Maybe in her heaven they would. She struggled to sit up.
A hand reached for her upper arm, but never made contact. She righted herself and stared down at the man in front of her.
He returned her smile, and Ariana sucked in her breath. Whoever he was, he was easily the most beautiful person she’d ever seen, with his chiseled cheek bones and blue eyes. Men shouldn’t have eyes like that, she thought dazedly. They looked back at her, clear as an afternoon sky on the Fourth of July. And just as bright. She wondered at their intensity and why she felt like she had seen them before.
An
d God help her, she’d always had a thing for blonds.
“Good to know,” the man said, his smile growing a notch brighter.
“Oh shit,” Ariana blurted. “You can do that too.” She tore her gaze away from his lovely, but too-perceptive face and made a show of studying her surroundings. The couch on which she sat occupied most of one wall of what appeared to be an office. The rest of the room had the usual office trappings—two wooden desks, several cheap office chairs, a couple of metal file cabinets—but the floor was cement, partially covered with a ragged piece of Astroturf. Sitting on the yellow sofa, she felt like a guest at a lawn party.
“Where are we?” Ariana asked, puzzled. “And who are you?”
She raised her hand to her throbbing temple as memory came rushing back. Toria.
She eyed Luc warily. “I guess Toria is responsible for me being here?”
“That’s right,” he said.
“And ‘here’ would be...?”
“You’re in my office, in my warehouse.”
“And you are...?” This is like pulling teeth, Ariana thought wryly. Or maybe it was more like pulling fangs.
Luc chuckled. “Maybe having you around won’t be a total bore. My name is Lucas.” He rose from his squatting position and went to lean against the desk to her left. “But you can call me Luc.”
“I’m Ariana Chambers. I—I work for Ash.”
Luc laughed again. “Oh, I bet you do.” Luc’s eyes roved over her from head to toe and back again. “And just what ‘work’ do you perform?” he asked.
Ariana frowned. “I’m a money manager, to put it in the simplest terms,” she said. “Are you a friend of Ash’s?”
Luc snorted. “Not exactly. Other vampires are beneath him. Especially us young ones.”
“But you are a friend of Toria’s?”
He twirled a yellow pencil between his fingers. “Friend is a strong word among vampires,” he said.
Ariana raised one eyebrow.