by G. K. DeRosa
“Maybe we can catch up later?” She trailed her nose across the shell of my ear as she whispered.
“Maybe.” I released her and searched the quiet streets. “Where to?”
Her lips screwed into a pout. “I don’t know if I like this new serious Ransom. Where’s the fun one I met last year?”
“On vacation,” I quipped.
Her slender fingers weaved through mine, and she tugged me down the street. “The entrance is this way.”
An old warehouse with shattered windows and rusty siding stood halfway down the block. My guess was that was our destination. Not quite as swanky as the Gentleman’s Room we’d been to last night. I wondered if Carmen Rosa had any idea how many of the entertainment establishments Ronin had his claws into. Sending one of her sicari teams to nab him at one of those seemed like the easiest option.
I could have this whole thing tied up in a few days.
“This way.” Dinah turned into the alley behind the warehouse.
So predictable.
A smoky scent swirled in the air as she ushered me through a backdoor. A faint shimmer diverted my attention as we crossed the threshold before the stale stench of moisture and unwashed bodies filled my nostrils, distracting me. She turned down a narrow corridor, bypassing the yawning main floor of the warehouse. Instead, she led me to a stairwell, the dim overhead light the only telltale sign of life.
I made a move to go up the dingy steps, but Dinah pivoted to the opposite staircase which led further into the bowels of the old building. The pungent odor grew more obtrusive, and my nose twitched.
“You’ll get used to the smell,” she offered over her shoulder. “We all do.”
“What is it?”
“You’ll see.”
We finally came to the end of the stairwell, and Dinah paused at a massive metal door. A scanner was built into the doorframe, the sleek device an odd sight in juxtaposition to the dilapidated surroundings. She pressed her hand to the reader, and the whoosh of the door opening sent my brows shooting up.
“Ronin takes security pretty seriously I see.”
Dinah made a noncommittal sound, then motioned for me to enter, and I cautiously crept through. What if this was a trap? The door hissed shut behind us as the errant thought flashed across my subconscious. Too late now.
Glass enclosures lined the walls, bodies crammed inside. They were filthy; dirt and blood crusted on their faces and hair. My nostrils flared. They were humans. “What is this place?” I muttered as I took in the rows of never-ending glass.
“Our own blood production factory.” Her lips split into a feral smile.
“You’re farming humans?” My stomach twisted at the sight of two cells filled with pregnant women.
“Why not? The humans do it for their food sources, so why shouldn’t we?”
My brows furrowed, but I pinched my lips. “Great idea,” I forced out as we continued down the hall.
My mind spun with the implications. All I had to do was give Red the address of this place, and Ronin’s entire blood empire would crumble. Was he testing my allegiance by bringing me here? I scrubbed at my chin as I considered. I supposed it didn’t matter really. If I ratted him out and ran, I’d be long gone before he could retaliate.
We reached the end of the cells, and Dinah pressed her hand against yet another scanner. This room was a third the size of the one we’d just walked through but still filled with as many bodies. Only these weren’t humans, they were worse. Much worse.
Hundreds of serviles pushed and shoved at each other, their watery eyes focusing in on us. “Get back,” Dinah shouted. “Back!”
Their haggard expressions grew more dismal as we weaved our way past. Their fangs retracted, highlighting sallow cheeks as they returned to their enclosures. Unlike the area where the humans were held, all the vampires were clustered together. I could just make out bunkbeds along the perimeter.
“Why do you keep them here? Gods, they smell worse than the humans.”
“If they’re out on the streets, they make easy prey for the sicari. We keep them safe here until we need them.”
“For what?” I barked.
“Mostly to attack the borders. The more heat the queen faces from the Etrian Assembly, the better for our cause.”
“Ronin wants the assembly to force her to resign?”
She shrugged. “It would be easier than an all-out war. Then while there’s political unrest, the true king can step in.”
It was the second time Dinah had referred to the rebel as the king. A bit dramatic if you asked me. “The Assembly would never agree to Ronin claiming the throne of Nocturnis.” I didn’t know much about Azarian politics, but from what I’d heard from my father, keeping the vampires in their place was what started all this.
She stopped, her eyes fixing on mine. “They will if they have no other choice. We’ve been kept down for too long, Ransom. Feeding off that nasty Blud and the mixed supernatural stuff keeps us weak. If we consumed only human blood, we’d be stronger than all of them.”
I found that hard to believe. Sure, immortals were hard to kill, but I knew a wolf/witch hybrid or two that could put us all in place.
Ronin really had lost his mind.
“Come on, the others are waiting.” Dinah led me through yet another locked door before we reached what I imagined was a command room of some sort.
A long table stretched across the left wall with two males and a female huddled in front of a computer screen. The threesome turned to us as the door slammed shut. One of the males I recognized. Lazlo was Lucíano’s direct progeny. Lucíano, who was giving me shit for my behavior! Did he have any idea his offspring was consorting with the enemy? Or was Lucíano in on it too? I couldn’t believe that holier-than-thou vampire would ever betray his queen.
“Guys, this is Ransom. He’ll be filling in for Jekyll.”
“Filling in?” the other male snarled. “Jekyll’s nothing more than ash by now. There’s no way he’d be gone all this time.”
The female made a choking sound and slid back into the chair, facing away from us. Like Dinah and Jekyll, all three bore the same symbol Ronin had stamped across his cheek. Wouldn’t that make finding the infiltrator within the queen’s walls too easy?
“That’s Nizza, don’t mind her,” said Dinah, returning my focus to Ronin’s generals. “She and Jekyll were close.” She ticked her head at the two males. “And those two are Lazlo and Stark.”
Lazlo’s dark eyes sparkled with recognition. We’d only met a handful of times, but word of my escape from the Isle of Mordis had increased my notoriety. “Carmen Rosa’s golden boy?”
“Not anymore, unfortunately.”
“Yes, we’d heard you’d gone off the rails,” said Stark.
“Happens to the best of us, right?” I flashed them a grin.
“So that’s why you’re here?” Lazlo asked.
“Yeah. I want to eat who I want. And I want out from under the queen’s thumb.”
“Then you’re at the right place.” Stark moved to the computer screen, nudging Nizza over a spot. “This is our next target.” He pointed at the cluster of huts nestled within a thick copse of trees. “Doesn’t look like much, but the high alpha of the tigers is hanging out at this camp for the next two nights. Ronin wants us to kill him, turn him and slaughter the rest. The alpha, Deacon Darkridge is close to the queen. Turning him will hopefully deliver a debilitating blow not only to Carmen Rosa but also to the entire feline community along the border.”
The name sounded familiar. Surely, I’d met the alpha in Marlwoods. Sometimes my father dragged me to the high council meetings to schmooze with the leaders of the varied shifter groups within the realm. Next to the wolves, the feline factions were the largest.
Killing the male was one thing but cursing him to a fate similar to my own didn’t sit well. “Wouldn’t delivering his head to the queen provide a more brutal message?” I offered.
Lazlo shook his head. “We hav
e our orders, and Ronin was very particular about this one.”
I gritted my teeth but nodded anyway. I’d have to find a way out of this somehow. I had to prove my loyalty to the cause without condemning a decent man to this hellish life. “Fine. When do we move?”
“Tomorrow night.” Stark motioned to Dinah. “The two of you will go with a couple dozen serviles. You think you can handle that?”
“Of course.”
“Good.” He gnashed his teeth together. “If you’re successful, you’ll officially be part of the team.”
I pressed my arms across my chest, throwing my shoulders back. “I won’t say I’m not a little annoyed at being tested, but I suppose you do have to be careful. I don’t think Carmen Rosa will give up her throne so easily.”
“Watch your mouth,” Stark snapped. “Ronin is the true king of Nocturnis, and it’ll do you well to remember that.”
I raised my hands and plastered on a placating smile. “Whatever you say.”
Dinah nudged me in the ribs and ticked her head at the door. “Come on, I’ll take you home.”
As soon as the rusty metal warehouse door slammed behind us, that faint scent of magic swirled beneath my nostrils once again. My nose must have twitched because Dinah grinned up at me.
“You’re not crazy, it is magic.”
“Why?”
“I can’t get into the details until Ronin fully trusts you, but let’s just say headquarters isn’t exactly here.” She stomped on the crumbling cement.
“The doorway is a portal…” Everything finally clicked into place. No wonder Ronin had no qualms about showing me his hideout. “So it moves?”
Dinah nodded and smacked my cheek. “I knew you weren’t just a pretty face, Ransom.” She stalked closer, her dark eyes gleaming. I recognized the hunger in her gaze, and it wasn’t of the blood variety.
She pressed her body against me, shoving me against the back wall of the warehouse. A few of the bricks disintegrated at the hit, and a shower of plaster rained down on our heads. She didn’t even flinch from the dusty spray as her mouth crashed into mine.
Chapter
Twenty-Nine
Phoenix
* * *
A sharp stab of jealousy lanced across my chest as Dinah’s mouth captured Ransom’s. She pressed her tall, lithe frame against him, rubbing her perky breasts against his chest. I sucked in a breath and backed up, leaning on the wall at the opposite end of the alley. He and that female fanger had a thing. She’d made it blatantly obvious at Ronin’s club. They were probably just rekindling an old flame.
It didn’t matter. He didn’t matter.
Then why did it feel like scorching hot pokers were ravaging my insides?
My wolf clawed at my ribcage and I buckled over, letting out a tiny yelp. Bright auburn fur sprouted across my arms, and I hissed out a curse. No! Not right now. It took you ten years to make your reappearance and you’re really choosing now, ten feet away from Ronin’s hideout, for a cameo, wolfy?
I dropped to all fours as my bones lengthened, muscles stretched, and tendons snapped. I inhaled deeply, shoving back the sound of cracking bones and the fire racing through my veins. At least the pain wasn’t as excruciating as last time. I tried to force my shifting bones further around the block as I prayed to all the gods no one saw me.
I needed to practice shifting on command. My girl had to understand who was running the show around here.
A whoosh of wind caught my attention as I straightened, stretching out my lupine limbs. A dark blur zipped around the corner, and I staggered back. My furry tail smacked against the dilapidated brick of the old building.
“Red, what are you doing here?” Ransom snarled.
Thank the gods I wasn’t in human form, or I’d have more than a few choice words for him. Instead, I bared my teeth and growled.
He threw his hands up and offered a placating smile. “Easy, girl.” He slowly bent down, lowering his gaze. “I’m assuming you followed me here, which means you know we’re about fifty feet away from a whole horde of serviles and Ronin’s top generals. This is not the place for your wolf to make an appearance.”
Duh. I cocked my head at him and chuffed.
“Dinah heard you back there—remember vamp hearing? I had to distract her with all kinds of naughty promises to get her away from you.”
My lips curled, and I snarled at the mother fanger. Why didn’t he just tell me all about his nasty hook up? It was exactly what I wanted to hear.
“Easy, Red. Let’s get out of here, and we can talk about what happened when we’re not in the middle of vamp central.” He ticked his head toward the bridge back to the Darklands. “Come on, be a good little wolfy bloodwhore.”
Anger exploded in my core, and I lunged at the vamp-hole. Flashing my fangs, I leapt at him, dragging my claws down his perfectly pressed shirt. He stumbled back and landed flat on his back. I let out a victorious howl as I loomed over him, snapping my teeth.
“Okay, this is fun and all, Red, but we’re not really sure how those fangs of yours work, and I’d rather not become cat litter if it’s all the same to you.”
I backed off and sat down on my haunches, my hackles still bristling.
“What’s got you in such a foul mood anyway?” Ransom asked as he rose, sweeping the dirt from his designer shirt and jeans.
I growled in response.
“I’m not sure I like your wolf. She’s way too snarly.”
Lifting my nose to the dark sky, I sauntered by and whacked him with my tail as I passed.
He let out an incredibly satisfying grunt and trailed a few steps behind me. Now that I was in fur, I felt so much better. The pale crescent moon shone down on me, illuminating my fur to a brilliant red. The urge to run coursed through my lupine bones, and I quickened my pace.
Before long, I was galloping across the walkway along the river. The chilly night air sifted through my fur, cooling my temper and dousing the rage. At least a little. I wasn’t just mad at Ransom for making out with that vamp hussy, I was also pissed he’d left me. We were supposed to be working together on this damned mission. If he’d gone and gotten himself hurt and I wasn’t there…
I swallowed down the unwanted knot of emotions at my throat. He was my assignment, and that was it. All I should’ve cared about was his survival for the sake of the mission.
I felt Ransom’s presence before he appeared beside me. My wolf bristled. Then the annoyance morphed into something else. Something I refused to accept. Hurt. Betrayal. Jealousy.
I kept my gaze anchored on the dark lapping waters of the river alongside us. If it hadn’t been for the irritating vampire beside me, it would’ve been the perfect night for a run. Too soon, the rundown gray building of the safehouse appeared, and I slowed, turning down the side street.
Ransom matched my pace, and it annoyed me to no end knowing that he was going slow for me. Demetra had been right all those years ago, immortals would always be faster and stronger than us. Which was why I had to be smarter. And lately, I’d been acting like an idiot. It didn’t matter what my wolf felt for this vampire. I was in charge. She’d abandoned me for years, so why should I listen to her now?
Because you know I’m right. The silky, smooth voice flitted through my mind, and I threw my front paws out, sliding to a halt.
Holy shift! Did my wolf just talk to me?
“You okay, Red?” Ransom cocked his head at me as I stood frozen a few feet from the back entrance to the building.
Ignoring him, I forced my limbs to keep moving and trotted right past. Hello, wolfy can you hear me?
Yeah, I was going completely nuts now.
Ransom zipped by me and opened the door, bending into an exaggerated bow.
I rolled my eyes and sauntered past, taking the steps two at a time.
When we reached the apartment, I hopped up on the couch and stretched out my legs. I could feel Ransom’s gaze trailing my movements. But I ignored him. I knew we needed to talk, but
the freedom of hiding out in fur was too good.
He finally stopped his manic pacing and folded into the chair across from me. “You’re not even the least bit interested in finding out what happened in there?”
I let out a yawn, peeling my lips back to showcase my fangs.
“Come on, Red, shift already. Don’t you think you’re being a little childish?”
A deep growl vibrated my big chest, and I narrowed my wolfish eyes shooting him my best glare.
“I’m sorry I left without you. That’s why you’re pissed, right?”
I snorted and lowered my head, propping it up on the armrest.
“I figured it was safer,” he continued. “And it was the middle of the night. There was no point in waking you up.”
I wanted to scream, but only a howl erupted from my long snout. Okay, I was going to have to shift back so I could tear him a new one. And not because of that skanky vamp. I focused on the swirl of magic that resided deep within my core and imagined my human form. The change came swiftly this time and relatively painlessly.
By the time, I opened my eyes I was back in skin, splayed across the couch. Naked. Mother fanger!
Ransom’s heated gaze lanced over me, and I wrapped one arm across my chest as I reached for the nearest cushion with the other.
“I thought shifters didn’t mind nudity.” His dark eyes sparkled more brilliantly than the stars in the night sky.
“With other shifters,” I snarled.
He raised his finger. “Well, technically—”
I jumped up from the couch, cutting him off, hugging the pillow to my body and raced into the bedroom.
When I re-emerged from the closet fully clothed in a pair of comfy sweats, I found Ransom looming in the entryway. He leaned against the doorframe, all cocky smiles and mischievous dark eyes. “What a tease… from gloriously naked to an oversized sweatshirt.”
“Bite me,” I hissed.
“Any day, any time, Red.”
I curled my arms around my middle and slumped down on the bed. “So are you going to tell me what happened before you made out with the slutty vamp?”