Ember (The Seeker Series Book 1)

by Ditter Kellen

  She swatted at a mosquito buzzing around her face. “He’s come more than once. He rang the doorbell and then disappeared around back. I figured maybe he was leaving a note, but there wasn’t anything there. And besides, wouldn’t you leave a note on the front door so it would be seen?”

  Shon nodded in agreement. “Sure sounds shady to me. Did you get a good look at him, Mrs. McDonald?”

  “No. I’m sorry; it was too dark to see anything other than his outline.”

  Angel took a patient breath. “How about his height? Was he short or tall?”

  “I don’t think he was as tall as you. He was closer to his height.” She nodded toward Ember’s cousin.

  “About six foot two,” Angel offered.

  “That sounds about right,” Esther agreed, glancing back at the house. “I better go check on dinner before Dale comes out here raising hell.”

  Angel took hold of her hand once more. “Thank you for your help, Mrs. McDonald. It’s greatly appreciated.”

  “Please call me Esther.”

  The flush of her skin wasn’t lost on Angel. “Have a good night, Esther.” He turned to go. He would circle back around once she made it safely inside. Apparently he wasn’t the only one interested in Alan Boyd.

  “Wait!” she called out before they made it across the yard.

  Both men jogged back to the fence.

  “I remembered something else about that man.” Esther blinked, peering up into Angel’s eyes. “There was something shiny hanging from his belt. The streetlight hit it just as he came through the gate.”

  “Like a gun?” Angel calmly prompted.

  “I’m not sure. I guess it could have been.” She paused, staring at a place beyond his shoulder. “No, wait. Now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure it was a badge.”

  “Are you certain?” So many questions ran through Angel’s mind at once, but only one was important at the moment. Why would a cop be snooping around Alan’s place at approximately the same time he’d supposedly come up missing?

  “Has Boyd ever had any dealings with the law before?”

  “Not that I’m aware of, but he’s been drinking a lot lately.” Her expression suddenly changed into one of disappointment. “Oh, dear, I hope he’s okay.”

  “Thank you once more for your time,” Shon announced with a touch to her arm. “We really do have to run.”

  “Yes. Yes of course. I’m sorry for keeping you. I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

  “No need to apologize, ma’am,” Angel assured her in a gentle tone. “We appreciate your help more than you know.”

  Chapter Seven

  Angel snatched up his cell “Do you have Harper’s number?”

  “Yes.” Shon dug out his phone. He wrote two numbers on a small piece of paper and handed it to Angel. “The first one is his office and the second is his cell.”

  After receiving Clay’s voicemail at the station, Angel pressed the End button and dialed his cell. He glanced at Shon. “It’s ringing.”

  “I wonder what the cops were doing at Boyd’s place.” Shon put the car in gear and backed out of the drive.

  “I don’t know, but hopefully they have found something that can tell us where Alan is. “

  “Hello, Angelo.”

  Angel stilled. How had the detective known it was him calling? He’d never given him any of his personal information and he would bet his life that Ember hadn’t either. “Harper. How did you get my number?”

  “That’s a good question. I happened to run my hand down into the pocket covering Ember’s luscious ass and imagine my surprise. There sat her cell with all this helpful information.”

  Angel’s eyes turned red with rage. “If you touch her—”

  “You’ll what? Kill me like you did Jenny? I don’t think so, Dimitrov. You are going to do exactly as I say, and maybe I won’t make Ember suffer the way poor Helen had to.”

  The world around Angel disappeared. Nothing remained in his mind but images of his dead sister and the love of his life. It took immense effort to speak. “How do you know Helen?”

  “Correction, Angelo. Did. How did I know Helen.”

  Angel couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “I’m going to make you suffer before you die.”

  “And risk your pretty little plaything’s life? I doubt it. Stay by your phone, Angelo. I’ll call with instructions.”

  “Wait! “

  The line went dead.

  “I heard,” Shon growled. “Where to? The station?”

  “Back to the rental house.”

  “But we may be able to find some information on him in his office. Like an address, relatives, old colleagues, or something.”

  Angel shook his head. “He’s too smart for that.” He could sense Ember reaching out to him and it killed a part of him, knowing he couldn’t get to her. “Something is blocking me from tracking her. I know she needs me, but I can’t tell in which direction to go.”

  “Has that ever happened before?” Shon made an illegal turn and headed back toward Angel’s rental house.

  “No, never.”

  “Any idea what is causing the block?”

  “Don’t you think if I knew I would be on my way by now?”

  Shon held up a hand. “Easy, man. I’m on your side here.”

  Angel turned to stare out the window. Why couldn’t he find her? He knew the Seeker would keep her alive until he had Angel in his grasp. But what had she already suffered at the psycho’s hands? Had he harmed her? He couldn’t finish the thought.

  “Who is Helen?” Shon’s deep voice invaded his mind, bringing him out of his torturous thoughts.

  Pain sliced through Angel’s heart at the mention of her name. “She was my sister.”

  Shon was quiet for a long moment. “I’m sorry.” He glanced at Angel before turning back to the road. “I know what it’s like to lose a sibling. You never really get over it.”

  Angel remembered Ember mentioning Shon’s twin brother, John, dying as a child. “True. It gets easier, but it’s always there…like a cancer, eating away at your sanity.”

  “We can’t lose Ember too,” Shon bit out, maneuvering the car onto the parkway.

  “We’re not going to lose her. I’ll die before I let that happen.”

  * * * *

  Ember sat on the bed with her hands chained behind her back once again. Something was wrong. A feeling like she’d never felt before hovered inside her body, weakening her by the hour.

  What if something had happened to Angel, or Gina had gotten to him somehow? What if he were dead? She wondered for the hundredth time.

  “Are you okay?” Laura’s soft voice brought her head up.

  Ember glanced down at her belly and shook her head.

  Laura’s eyes grew huge in her face as understanding seemed to dawn. Tears welled up to spill down her cheeks.

  “Don’t cry,” Ember whispered as she rolled off the bed to her feet and ambled over to Laura’s side. “Everything will be fine as soon as Angel gets here.”

  “We are going to die.” Laura glanced down at Ember’s still flat stomach. “I’m so sorry.”

  “No one is going to die.” Ember sat on the bed next to her best friend. “You listen to me. You are the strongest person I know. You stay strong until Angel arrives. He will come. I know he will.”

  “I love you so much,” Laura swore. “Please know that.”

  “I do, and I love you too,” Ember assured her while scanning the room with her new vampire eyes.

  The first thing she noticed was a camera situated in the corner. It would allow Clay to keep an eye on them while Gina slept during daylight hours, she guessed. Ember had that advantage over Gina since she was still able to step into the sunlight. Barely, but she could do it.

  There were no windows in the room and the door appeared to be metal, which would prevent her from kicking it in in her weakened state.

  It had to be the baby exhausting her, she thought as sh
e continued to scan the room. She also needed blood. According to Angel, she was supposed to feed every hour for the first week of her pregnancy, and was way overdue. Please hurry, Angel.

  Laura sniffled while studying Ember’s face. “You have dark circles around your eyes.”

  Ember looked away. “I haven’t had much sleep lately.”

  “It’s more than that. What is it?”

  Darting her gaze toward the camera across the room, she changed the subject. “Let’s get some rest.”

  Laura glanced in the same direction and something passed through her eyes. “Talk in the morning then.”

  Chapter Eight

  “It’s two in the morning, Angel. It’ll be daylight in four hours.” Shon had been pacing the kitchen since they’d arrived back at the rental house.

  Angel turned from the window he’d been staring out. “I can’t feel her any longer.” His voice sounded as empty as he felt.

  “Why not? What does that mean?”

  He went back to staring into the night. “It means my link to her is gone. And she needs to feed. The baby…” His voice trailed off.

  “The baby, what?” Shon persisted, touching him on the shoulder.

  “The baby will not survive,” Vlad finished as he entered the room.

  Angel spun around. “Sire. I did not hear you arrive.” He lowered to one knee.

  Shon knelt also, but kept his mouth shut for the first time since Angel had known him.

  “Angelo.” Vlad drifted across the room and touched Angel on the shoulder. “Come now; give your grandfather a hug.”

  Angel stood, motioning for Shon to rise also before wrapping Vlad in a bear hug. “It’s good to see you, Sire.”

  “Likewise, my son. It’s been far too long.” He pulled back, holding Angel at arm’s length. “Let me look at you.” A flicker of emotion glimmered in his eyes. “So much like Marco.”

  He stepped back from Angel and turned to Ember’s cousin. “You must be Abraham’s son.”

  Shon extended his hand. “And you must be Dracula.”

  Angel’s stomach muscles tightened. Shon had no idea the power that stood before him. Vlad was capable of crushing him without batting an eye.

  The chuckle that burst from the elder vampire shocked Angel beyond words. He could only stare in disbelief as Vlad’s rusty sounding laugh filled the room.

  “How refreshing,” he murmured before pivoting on his heel. “It is time to go.”

  Shon tossed Angel his keys. “You drive.”

  “We go on foot,” Vlad announced, heading toward the door.

  “You know where they are?” Shon’s surprised voice nearly matched his shocked expression.

  Vlad ignored his question, addressing Angel instead. “We must make haste. They are not far from here, but the Seeker is not alone.”

  Angel had already come to the same conclusion. “I’m betting it’s Alan Boyd.”

  “I do not know of whom you speak,” Vlad replied. “But rest assured he would not survive in the company of Gina Calimari.”

  Angel’s heart stuttered. Gina Calimari, the most sadistic vampire in existence, had his mate. There was no way Ember would live through the night, if Gina hadn’t killed her already. “Laws be damned, Sire. Gina dies tonight.”

  Vlad stared into his eyes for long seconds before blurring across the yard and disappearing into the trees. Angel blasted off behind him with Shon right on his heels.

  It still impressed Angel that Ember’s cousin could move so quickly. He’d accomplished in a few short weeks what it had taken others months to perfect.

  * * * *

  “Ember, can you hear me?” Laura’s voice invaded Ember’s sleep-fogged brain. She had to be miles away, Ember guessed as she fought a yawn. If she would just come closer…

  “Can you hear me, Em?”

  It took an enormous amount of effort to crack her eyes open. Her unfocused gaze travelled across the ceiling, coming to land on a camera resting in the corner of the room. Memory came flooding back with a vengeance.

  She rolled her head to the side and took in Laura’s troubled expression. “I don’t think I can get up,” she mumbled through numb lips.

  Laura’s eyes sparkled with unshed tears. “Please. You have to try.”

  The door suddenly opened to admit the beautiful yet deadly Gina Calimari. “How very entertaining,” she purred. “Listening to you two simpletons plan such an impossible feat.”

  “Go to hell,” Ember slurred, focusing on Gina’s mop of blonde hair.

  “I plan on it,” the elder vampire shot back. She sat on the edge of the bed and ran her thumb across Ember’s bottom lip. “Does he bite you here?”

  “Leave her alone, you white trash bloodsucker!” Laura’s insult sailed through the air, seeming to suck all the oxygen from the small room.

  Gina’s thumb stilled. She glared at Laura with deadly blue eyes and sliced a fingernail across Ember’s cheek.

  Ember bit the inside of her lip to keep from crying out. She wouldn’t give the bitch the satisfaction of seeing her pain.

  “Don’t mess up her face,” Clay barked, bursting into the room. “Not until I’ve had a go at her.”

  “A go at her?” Gina shuddered. “Human men are such pigs. Wouldn’t you say, Miss Wells?”

  “She owes me a year’s worth of headaches, and I’m dying to cash in on it, so how about leaving us for a bit?”

  “Very well, but make it quick. I have plans for her.” She stood and spun toward the door in a twirl of skirts.

  “Finally.” Clay sauntered toward the bed, unbuckling his belt as he walked. Raw terror seeped into Ember’s mind with every step he took, robbing her of breath and settling into her heart. He was going to hurt her, and there was nothing she could do to stop him.

  “Don’t do this, Clay,” she whispered in fear. Pleading would do her no good, she realized, searching his face for the slightest sign of compassion only to find deadpan eyes staring back at her. How come she’d never noticed it before? she wondered numbly. It was as if he had no soul.

  No matter how hard she tried, Ember couldn’t block out Laura’s crying. It ripped her heart out to think her best friend would witness what was coming.

  “Shut that shit up.” Clay snarled, cutting his gaze toward the sobbing Laura. “The only reason you are still alive is for forensic purposes. You die after the others.”

  “I don’t understand.” Laura’s terror trickled across the room to seep into Ember’s skin.

  “Then allow me explain.” He continued removing his belt and unbuttoning his pants as he spoke. “Carnley hanged himself last night.” The grin that twisted his once good-looking face assured Ember the hanging had been staged.

  “You, dear Laura, will take the life of Angel, Ember, and her cousin before I kill you in self defense.”

  “Fuck you. You piece of shit.” Laura began fighting against her bonds in earnest, kicking her feet and jerking her body from side to side.

  Clay laughed, turning back toward Ember while sliding his pants down to his knees. “This is not going to be pleasant for you, I’m afraid.” His voice fairly dripped with sarcasm. “For every day this past year that you have snubbed me, I’m going to hurt you.” He grabbed her by the ankles and flipped her onto her stomach.

  Ember fought with everything she had to no avail. She couldn’t budge the chain that held her wrists together; she had the strength of a kitten.

  Tears spilled from her eyes as her pants were yanked down her legs. Humiliation ran deep, along with the knowledge that her last moments of life would be defiled and the child she’d created with Angel would never have a chance to live.

  Chapter Nine

  Ember realized the only chance she had at survival was to keep Clay talking and pray that Angel arrived in time. “What did I ever do to you?” Her words were soft, but audible.

  She could hear him removing his boots and sliding his pants completely off. She fought against the nausea rolling throu
gh her, grateful for once that she couldn’t see.

  He climbed onto the bed, resting his bare legs on either side of her thighs. She couldn’t prevent the gag that arose.

  “What did you ever do to me? Well, let’s see.” He grabbed a handful of her hair, jerking her head back. Pain was a welcome reprieve; it distracted her from the feel of his body against hers.

  Laura’s cries faded to the background as Clay continued to talk. “You just had to fuck that piece of shit, Dimitrov, didn’t you?” She couldn’t prevent the cry that escaped as he gave her hair another yank.

  Inflicting an enormous amount of pain, he continued to talk as if they were discussing the weather. “I only regret that I wasn’t there to see his expression when he discovered Helen’s body.”

  Ember went completely still. Her breath caught in her throat. “You killed Angel’s sister?”

  “What was that?” He pulled her head back far enough that she thought her neck would break. “Speak up.”

  She tried again, her raspy voice made worse by the angle of her neck. “Why did you kill Helen?”

  He grew quiet and his grip loosened slightly. “He killed my Jenny.”

  “Who is Jenny?”

  His grip suddenly tightened once again. “Was. Who was Jenny. She was my wife.”

  “What?” She couldn’t have heard him right.

  “That piece of shit took advantage of her, seduced her, and then killed her when she didn’t return his feelings.”

  Ember’s heart skipped a beat. He had to be mistaken. Angel would never take someone’s life. Especially not an innocent female.

  “So I took his sister the same way. Fitting huh?”

  The nausea Ember had been holding back kicked its way to the surface. She heaved with the force of it, gagging until her eyes hurt and breathing became nearly impossible.

  “Does that make you sick? That was a sugarcoated version. Would you like to hear about how he raped her before cutting her throat?”

  “Please…stop…” Ember managed to wheeze out between heaves.