by Nina Bangs
When Utah was finished, everyone turned to Fin.
“We haven’t had any luck finding where you were kept. Knowing that it’s a garden center will help. But once Seven discovers that you and Jude have escaped, she’ll move her operation elsewhere.” Fin tapped his finger on the table, his expression thoughtful.
Utah had to find out. “Do you know Seven? I got the feeling you did.”
Fin stared at Utah. Utah tried to meet his gaze, but it was like looking into the heart of chaos—terrifying and overwhelming. Utah had to look away, and he hated himself for his weakness.
“Yes.” Fin’s voice had no inflection, no warmth, no humanity.
Utah had opened his mouth to delve deeper when his thoughts disappeared into that familiar fog. Pain stabbed at his head. He rubbed at his temple while he tried to recapture his line of questioning. He couldn’t remember.
“It looks as though there’s only one person who can give us the information we need.” Fin stood. He walked to the wall of glass to stare out over the city and river.
No one said anything until Tor turned to Utah. “Did I miss something? Seems like half the conversation is missing.”
Utah shrugged.
Fin finally turned back to them. “My brother is getting what he’s wanted for millions of years. He’s forced me to talk to him. Seir will be here in a few minutes. I’d like all of you to stay.”
Chapter Ten
You and Seir would be a lot more comfortable if we weren’t here.”
Al’s wife wasn’t speaking for the rest of them. Utah felt the excitement building around the table.
“Shush, Jenna.” Kelly jabbed her sister in the side with her elbow. “We all want to hear.” Ty’s wife still had her tabloid reporter instincts.
“I’d rather you stay. Some of you have met Seir. Those who haven’t, I want you to know him. He’s capable of many things. He’s—”
“Here.” Seir emerged from the room’s shadows. He hadn’t been there a moment ago.
With all those crazy shades of gold in his hair and his icy eyes, Seir would look right at home on any branch of Fin’s family tree. Seir might smile more than Fin, but Utah would bet he could be as cold as his brother.
Seir dropped onto the chair at the opposite end of the table from Fin. “I guess I arrived just in time. Were you getting ready to tell them what a disappointment I was to you, brother?” He grinned, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
“I was getting ready to tell them you were powerful, manipulative, self-serving, and a lot more fun to be around than I ever was. Did I miss anything?”
“I think you left out the loving brother part.”
Utah would’ve missed it if he hadn’t been watching Seir. For just a moment, he saw real hurt in Seir’s eyes. Interesting. What had happened between these two?
“I don’t have time for a touching reunion. You set us up.” Purple flooded Fin’s silver eyes.
Seir looked relaxed. He seemed to be enjoying Fin’s anger. “Umm, maybe I got it wrong, but I could’ve sworn the only dead bodies around that bridge belonged to the vampires.”
“Utah and Lia were taken.” Fin’s voice vibrated with power. The table shook.
Now Utah was getting concerned. He wasn’t alone. The rest of the Eleven leaned forward.
“Yes, well, that wasn’t supposed to happen. If you hadn’t spent so much damn time trying to keep me away from the bridge instead of being there with your men, no one would’ve taken them.” Seir’s good humor seemed to be fading.
“So now you’re blaming me?” Fin’s eyes were completely purple. “You haven’t changed. Still trying to shift the blame. Still playing both ends against the middle.”
“You stubborn bastard.” Seir’s eyes freaking glowed. Pale blue ice backlit by cold fury. “This isn’t right. It’s never been right.”
Utah had reached his limit. He slid back his chair and stood. “Could we put a hold on the family feud for a second while I ask a question?”
The silence was complete as everyone turned to stare at him. And within the silence, Utah heard it. A heartbeat. Not his own. What the . . . ? There was something wrong with this heartbeat, though. It had a hitch in it. Thump-hitch-thump, thump-hitch-thump. Almost as though it was two different beats trying to be one but separated by the strange hitch. Didn’t make any sense, so he dismissed it.
“Where’s the garden center?”
Reluctantly, Seir shifted his attention from his brother. “It’s on Burnside Street just down from the bridge. But Christine moved everyone out as soon as she discovered you and Jude had escaped. I went back to check after I dropped you and the vampire off here.” He shrugged. “I don’t know where she has Lia now.”
Fin nodded at Spin and Q. “Go check. See if you can get a sense of where they went.” He didn’t watch the two men leave as he turned his gaze back to Seir. “Was this whole thing Zero’s idea?”
Fin’s question caught Utah by surprise. He’d assumed that Seir had been working with Seven. He hadn’t thought it went any higher up the chain.
For the first time, Seir seemed to avoid Fin’s gaze. “Yeah, maybe. It’s tough keeping everyone happy.”
If Utah wasn’t so mad at Seir, he might think that was a weird thing to say. He growled low in his throat. He should’ve tried to tear the bastard apart when he had the chance.
Fin actually smiled. “And so you make no one happy.”
Seir didn’t answer.
“I think you know more about Seven than you’re telling us, brother.”
“Not half as much as you know, brother.”
Utah was busy trying to put it all together. What secret messages were Fin and Seir sending each other? It was definitely in code, because Utah didn’t have a clue what they were talking about.
Ty stepped into the conversation. “What’s going on? I was there when Seir helped us in Houston and Philly, so now you’re saying he’s working for Zero? How can he be connected to both of you?”
Utah felt the collective intake of breath. Connected? He barely had a moment to consider the thought when the fog and pain rolled in. But for the first time, Utah fought it. And when the pain finally ebbed, he retained one thought. Fin was hiding something important from them. Utah had no proof. He couldn’t even remember what Fin and Seir had said a few seconds ago. But he knew. A quick glance around told him he was the only one. The rest of the faces around him showed no shock, no confusion, only ordinary interest.
When Utah’s gaze reached Seir, he found that Fin’s brother was watching him with narrow-eyed intensity.
“Perhaps you should’ve made our talk private, Fin. You missed one. Careless, careless.” Then he smiled at Utah, a smile that promised he’d be Utah’s best bud forever.
Utah knew that smile lied. Something was going on he didn’t understand, and he hated the feeling.
Fin glanced at Utah before transferring his attention to the rest of the Eleven. “I wanted you to meet my brother because he’s going to be here for a while.”
“No.” Seir straightened in his seat.
“Yes.” Fin smiled. An honest smile. “You’ll be my guest, and we can have long brotherly talks. You might remember things about Seven that could help us find her.” He shrugged. “And you won’t be able to get into any trouble here.”
“I wouldn’t count on that.” Seir looked outraged. “You can’t keep me here.”
Fin raised one brow. “Oh, but I can. I’m still your older brother.”
Utah saw the moment when Seir decided to test his limits. He locked gazes with his brother. The condo shook. Books flew off shelves, paintings fell from the walls, and the power filling the room made Utah feel as though a giant hand was pressing him down, and down, and down until he couldn’t breathe. Smoke detectors went off, and in the distance he could hear the sound of breaking glass.
Then it was over, and Seir slumped in his chair. He glared at Fin. “Jerk. Where’s my room?”
Fin looked more sel
f-satisfied than Utah had ever seen him look. He glanced at Utah. “Take him to one of the guest rooms. Oh, and it’s almost dawn, so you won’t need to report back to Adam until evening. I’ll call him and explain what happened.”
Utah nodded. The rest of the Eleven got up to leave. Tor lingered.
“You okay?” Utah’s brother looked concerned.
“Yeah.” No. He had to find Lia. It was a compulsion, and he didn’t trust compulsions. But he wouldn’t involve his brother.
Tor nodded, but he didn’t look like he believed Utah. “If you decide you need me, call. I’ll be ready.”
Utah clapped him on the shoulder. No words were necessary. This was what having a brother should mean. A small part of him pitied Fin and Seir.
“You’re supposed to show me to my prison cell.” Seir stopped beside Utah. “Will you chain me to my bed?” A wicked little smile worked at the corners of his mouth. “The kink calls to me. Maybe you . . . or your brother could entertain me there.”
Crap. Tor broke all kinds of speed limits getting away from them. Utah turned on Seir. “Follow me. And no entertainment packages come with your room. Shit, I’m surprised Fin didn’t kill you years ago.”
“If he had, there’d be a hole in his heart he could never fill.” Seir poked at his chest. “Seriously. A real hole.”
If Utah didn’t distrust everything Seir said, he’d almost believe Fin’s brother meant it. “Where do you think Seven will take Lia?” That’s all he cared about, not Fin’s and Seir’s family drama.
They stopped outside one of the guest rooms.
“Somewhere warm. Seven’s totally into the heat and life thing. She drove me crazy with it—the plants, the blood, the bullshit. She kept saying she was going to heat up the city. I’d believe her.”
Utah watched Seir open the door and step into the room. “Is Fin really keeping you here?”
Seir looked frustrated. “Believe it. I’ll always be his little brother. Just when I think I might catch up to his power, he has a growth spurt.”
Utah had one last question. “You said Lia and I weren’t supposed to be taken. What was supposed to happen?” Not that he’d believe what Seir said.
Seir shrugged and turned away. “Doesn’t matter. It didn’t happen.”
Then he shut the door, leaving Utah trying to work through the riddle that was Seir. Finally, Utah turned away from the room . . . and almost bumped into Fin.
Fin motioned him to follow and led Utah to his office. Utah sat across the desk from Fin and waited.
Fin swung his chair so he was facing the bank of windows behind his desk. Dawn was just beginning to lighten the sky. “All of the Eleven are scouring the city for Seven. I’ve assigned them different areas. You and Kione can search wherever you want. He has extraordinary skills, so give him his head.”
Utah laughed. “You think I could stop him?”
Fin’s smile didn’t have any real humor attached to it. “I’ll be staying here to keep an eye on my brother and to mentally mess with Zero. I have to keep him out of the equation while you search for Seven. I don’t have a human to put with you, so we’ll just have to hope Kione’s skills are up to the challenge.”
“When you and Zero play your mental games, do you ever talk to each other?” Utah was curious about Zero. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t.
“Our ‘mental games’ consist of giving and receiving pain. No communication involved. The migraine is my best friend and most feared enemy. I try to cause him so much pain that he can’t concentrate on the rest of you guys. But the pain runs both ways.”
Utah nodded and started to rise.
“Oh, and Jude’s five vampires will be hunting tonight. They’re supposed to help find Seven and protect Jude from Adam’s bullying, but they know Kione is here. They’ll be looking for him.” Fin swung his chair around to face Utah. “He’s your partner and our ally until Seven is found. If the vampires show up, call me.”
“Do you have any idea why Kione destroyed their clan?”
Fin shook his head. “But I do know we don’t need this kind of distraction now.”
For once, Utah agreed with him. And as he headed out of the condo to meet Kione, he just hoped Lia could hold on until he found her, because he was going to find her. Not Seven or even the almighty Zero would stop him.
Utah was in the elevator when he remembered what Kione could do.
Lia dreamed in dying color, coated herself in it, sank into it, became something else in its hot embrace. And when she finally opened her eyes, her need for it bound her with bands of searing agony. Blood. She’d never imagined she’d wake to this craving, the kind that made her want to claw out her stomach. Right now, insanity would be a relief.
She woke to darkness, and a presence. The darkness was dense, filled with power, and hopefully some freaking blood. Her reasoning couldn’t reach beyond that point.
The presence drew near. “What a beautiful little vampire, all new and hungry.”
Someone stroked her hair, and she tried to bite his hand.
He—the voice definitely belonged to a he—laughed softly.
“I’m sure you would rather have risen to find Jude at your side, ready to introduce you to your new life. Unfortunately, he’s not available. But I should be able to supply what you need.”
The man’s voice was low, with a mesmerizing quality that managed to calm her a little. He’d get blood for her, lots of blood. Hopefully, not from an unwilling source. But right now, she didn’t care. She needed blood, blood, and more blood flowing down her throat and putting out the fire that raged through her body.
Beside her bed—yes, she was definitely on a bed—the man moved. And then the scent of blood washed all logical thought from her mind. She sat up, reaching, clawing for the source of that scent. She barely recognized the man’s wrist when he pressed it to her lips. All she knew was that blood welled from the cut in his flesh. Lia fastened her mouth tightly around the wound and sucked.
Random thoughts and emotions turned liquid and formed a whirlpool that circled around only one thought—she had to please this man.
She closed her eyes. His blood, oh my God, his blood. Like a living thing, it slid into her, searching, searching . . . And when it found the right spot, it felt as though it curled up, waiting. Warm and powerful, it seemed right, it belonged.
After what seemed a way too short time, he pulled his arm away from her. She opened her eyes. While she sat trying to decide whether it was worth pursuing him for more blood, he got up and turned on a light.
Oh wow. Lia flung her hands over her eyes. She hadn’t been prepared for the enhanced vision thing. Everything was so bright and sharp it actually hurt her eyes. Gradually, she took her hands away, and immediately squinted against the light.
“It will get better.”
The man’s voice was the same—deep and filled with a subtle compulsion. Now that she’d emerged from her first bloodlust, she recognized its pull on her. Lia turned her head to look at him.
Not human. He was too beautiful. Long red hair in a dark shade she’d never seen before. She couldn’t drag her eyes away from it. No human ever had hair that glittered and gleamed like that. It reminded her of . . . The thought floated away on the euphoria filling her. She’d think about his hair later. Wow, would you look at that face. Pale, smooth skin stretched over incredible bone structure. Large eyes that seemed to swirl for a second before they settled into a brilliant blue green. And sensual lips that most women wouldn’t be able to resist.
But she could resist, because . . . She tried to latch on to the reason. There was someone else who had more sensual lips, a someone else whom she couldn’t resist.
A question popped into her head. “Where am I?”
The man returned to his seat beside her bed. “You’re at my place. I rescued you from Christine. You’ll stay here until Fin claims you.”
Her mind searched its database and finally located Fin. Leader of the Eleven and majo
r pain in the ass. He wasn’t the one with the irresistible lips.
“I’ll have to lock you in when I’m not here, Lia. Can’t have you out draining random Portland citizens. But I’m sure you won’t be here long.”
Lia felt she should argue with the locking-up part, but she couldn’t work up the will. She did have to know one more thing, though. “What’s your name?”
“Frost.” He sounded distracted.
Lia rolled the name around in her mind. “Unusual.”
“Fitting.” He sounded amused.
She began to feel the pull of sleep. “Is it close to dawn?” There were no windows to give her a clue.
“Yes.” He leaned close to her.
His scent went with his name—ice and wind-driven snow. “Good. Maybe when I wake things won’t be so jumbled in my mind.” She blinked and tried to focus. His hand. There was something about his hand . . .
“Sleep deeply and remember . . .”
Lia flipped off her awake switch before he finished his sentence. But somewhere during her dreamless day sleep, he came to her. She didn’t see him, but she heard everything he said.
“Your thirst will be unbearable when you’re alone with Utah. You won’t be able to control it. And you won’t stop feeding until he’s dead. You will also refuse to hunt Seven.”
His compulsion slipped through the cracks in her consciousness and took root.
“This is important, Lia. You won’t remember who told you these things, but you’ll know them to be true. Believe me. Trust me.”
She believed. She trusted. All faded into deeper sleep.
Chapter Eleven
Utah and Kione stood in the empty parking lot of the fast-food restaurant. Heartburn hell. Utah had gone from a diet of fresh meat to eating rubbery, overcooked beef patties and soggy fries. They’d been the last customers. Someone flipped off the outside lights.
“Tell me again why you can’t find her.” Utah pulled his coat tighter against the Portland chill.
“I’ve already explained. Maybe you should’ve listened the first ten times I told you.” Kione was not a patient person.