“I just run it, I don’t own it.” Ah, trying to shift responsibility and escape punishment.
“Who does?”
With that question, Marge’s expression closed down.
“Don’t, Marge. Don’t do that ‘I can’t tell you’ routine. It’s really not worth it. I want answers. If you don’t give them to me, I will hurt you, and I will do it with utter pleasure. And then Jared will hurt you, and we’ll all clap and urge him on. Give me a name, Marge.”
“I can’t. Even if I could, you’d never find her.”
Jared’s brow rose. “Why exactly is that?”
“She’s untraceable. Literally. She has no scent. Never leaves even a hair fibre or footprint behind. It’s her gift. Part of that gift is that she never leaves a clear memory of herself anywhere – no image, no name, nothing. There is truly no way to track her down.”
Salem stiffened beside me. I cast him a curious glance, noting the thoughtful frown on his face.
“Then how do you know she’s a ‘her’?” Jared was clearly dubious. “There’s obviously a loophole in that gift if you know that.”
“The only memory of her appearance she leaves behind in your head is an impression…like a shadow, a silhouette.”
“Maybe Ryder could help,” Chico suggested.
Ryder was their top interrogator as he had a psychic hand – could rifle through people’s minds, access their thoughts and memories. The reason he wasn’t yet a member of the legion was that, being relatively newborn, he wasn’t yet in total control of his bloodlust or his gift.
“Not a bad idea. We have a few empty cells.” Sam gave Marge a winning smile. “I’m sure you’ll be thrilled to know you’re coming back to The Hollow with us.”
On the contrary, the woman looked like she was about to hyperventilate. “There’s nothing more I can tell you.”
“Sure there is. Like if there’s more than one brothel. Like how you managed to keep the captives sedated. Like where they were kidnapped from.”
“I don’t remember every name, don’t remember every –”
“You don’t need to. I have someone who can rummage through that brain of yours and tell me what I need to know.”
“Are you going to kill her after that?” I asked excitedly, clapping a little. “Ooh, can I watch?”
“Watch? You can join in. If anyone deserves a little pain, it’s this heartless bitch right here.”
I grinned. Damn fucking straight.
CHAPTER THREE
(Salem)
“Okay, here’s our issue,” began Sam, pacing outside the infirmary wherein the survivors and the injured squad members were settled. “The minute all those involved in the brothel learn it’s been destroyed, they’ll panic and worry that the staff or survivors gave up their identities. They’ll hide.”
“Maybe not,” argued Butch. “They don’t know we have someone like Ryder. They might be positive that Marge won’t talk.”
“None are more convinced that they are being pursued than those who are guilty,” said Antonio, who had come to speak to Sam and Jared on hearing about the brothel. The elegant ancient Keja was one of the calmest and most intelligent people I knew.
With a nod of agreement, Sam continued. “That means every single one of them will go to ground. Remember, they don’t just have us to fear. They know that if there are any survivors to tell the tale, they’ll also have the other species of preternatural on their arses. They won’t want to risk it. Which means the moment Ryder finds out their names, we act – hopefully it will be in time to locate the fuckers before they do a runner.”
“It should not take more than a few hours for our researchers to match the names with addresses,” Antonio assured her.
“Which means you all have a few hours to recover,” Jared informed the squad members. “Max, Denny, Stuart, and Reuben won’t be coming, since they need more time to recuperate from their injuries.”
“We’ll take Alora, Jude, Paige, and Imani in their place,” announced Sam. The four females had joined the battle to defend The Hollow against the attack a few months ago. Sam had then offered them a place in her upcoming female squad, and all four had gratefully accepted.
Jared smiled. “Evan won’t like it.” Evan, who happened to be Jared’s twin brother as well as Alora’s partner, was seriously overprotective of her. Almost as bad as I was with Ava…who had slinked away from me a few minutes ago, the minx.
Sam blinked at her mate. “You say that like it matters.” Jared just snorted. “Ava will be coming too,” she then told me.
Ignoring the ‘there’s no point fighting me on this’ expression on Sam’s face, I said, “She saw a lot of shit tonight. A break would be good for her.”
Sam slid me a look of complete disgust. “Either you’re underestimating her – which I strongly doubt – or you’re just being your interfering, overprotective self. She’s part of this now. She’ll want to see it through. Bloody deal with it or she’ll end up ramming the heel of one of her stilettos right up your arse.”
Antonio bowed his head, making his wealth of thick, shoulder length coal-black hair shield his face, and I knew he was trying to hide a smile – unlike everyone else, who openly showed how amused they were at my expense. Assholes.
Damien folded his arms across his chest. “Speaking of seeing the assignment through…What will happen to the clients, Coach? Are they next on the list?”
“Thanks to the fact that every DVD was marked with the client’s name, they’ll be easy enough to find and kill. We’ll assign the task to some of the other squads, send them hunting straight away.” All in all, there were ten squads in the legion. “The rest of us will concentrate on locating and destroying everyone involved in the making and running of the brothel.”
“Go eat, drink some NSTs, and wait for our call,” ordered Jared.
Wanting a quick word with Sam and Jared, I stayed behind as the rest of the squad left. Antonio also remained, but I didn’t mind speaking in front of him. “You got a minute?”
“Sure,” said Sam.
“The owner of the brothel…I think I may have met her before.”
Surprised, Jared asked, “When?”
“Before I joined the legion. My Sire ran a fight club.” Will had made me into a vampire forty-eight years ago; had given me a chance to get revenge on the bastards who –
I quickly shut the door on that memory. “Many vampires went there and fought against others for money. I was one of my Sire’s fighters. He ran the business, but he didn’t own it.”
“A woman did,” guessed Antonio.
“I saw her plenty of times; she was often a spectator at the fights. But when I try to remember her face, try to bring that image to my mind, it’s just as Marge described: vague impressions. Even though I know exactly where I saw her, exactly what she was doing, I can’t see her profile clearly in my head.”
Sam and Jared exchanged a look.
“It might not be the same vampire,” commented Antonio. “It could just be one with the same gift, or even something similar.”
“Maybe, but I thought it might be worth mentioning.”
“Would you be all right with Ryder scanning your mind?” asked Sam.
Not really.
She quickly assured me, “He won’t snoop where he’s not invited. He’ll just look for your memories – vague though they may be – of her.”
Nonetheless, I wasn’t comfortable with anyone poking around in my head. In truth, it wasn’t a good place for anyone to be. But this was too important to ignore. “All right.”
“At the moment, he’s visiting dear old Marge. I sent Harvey to keep her immobile, since it’s possible she’s able to put others under sedation. It might be that she needs to touch people in order to do it. We weren’t prepared to take the chance.” Sam glanced at her watch. “Meet me at my office in an hour. Ryder will be done with Marge by then.”
“Will do, Coach.” In the meantime, I’d go shower and then fi
nd out why my little Sventé thought she could run from me.
(Ava)
Standing under the hot spray of the shower, I sighed. I’d needed this; needed to wash off the blood of the survivors and the smells of death and despair from my skin. Needed to have this space and time to properly assimilate everything I’d seen at that manor.
Was the horror I’d witnessed discouraging me from joining the legion? Maybe it should. I had no problem admitting I had a soft heart and was nowhere near as emotionally tough as Sam. But I wasn’t discouraged, I wasn’t thinking of walking away. Quite the opposite, actually.
For weeks now, I’d been struggling about whether to accept Sam’s offer. Cristiano had assured me that he wouldn’t view me leaving him as disloyal, and he’d even encouraged me to stay at The Hollow for a little while; see if it was a place I could imagine myself being happy. It turned out that I could, but leaving him would be hard.
We had been inseparable growing up, thick as thieves. He had always been extremely protective of me, just as I had always been extremely protective of him – which was a good thing, since our parents hadn’t given a shit about either of us. They were both crack-heads that were wrapped up in their own little world and did nothing but argue. Only one thing kept them together: their addiction.
I was eight when the social workers came and took me and Cristiano away. First we were given to our maternal grandmother, then later to our maternal aunt, and then we pit-stopped at a few foster homes. Why had we moved around so much? Because no one found the package of a little girl with a mild case of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and a boy who had anger management issues to be all that attractive or rewarding.
Back then, Cristiano had had so much rage in him, so much suppressed violence. It had made him irritable, withdrawn, and unable to bond – always on the attack as a method of defence. I, on the other hand, had always been my usual upbeat, energetic self. At first, our new caretakers had liked that I was chatty and open; it made them feel good about themselves, I now understood. They felt like we were bonding, like they were good at the parenting stuff.
Later, though, they’d become irritated with my endless amount of energy; with the restlessness, the edginess, the difficulty keeping quiet, and the habit of misplacing things. I’d received a lot of tired sighs, eye rolls, groans, curses, and punishments. Whenever it got bad, Cristiano had leaped in and defended me – often in a violent way. Then the social workers would return and we’d be moved again.
Compared to what a lot of kids went through, it wasn’t at all a bad experience, even though there had been that one sickeningly perverted guy that had very soon deeply regretted what he’d done. But it was a constant cycle of rejection: being welcomed, being accepted, and then having both of those things ripped away.
I’d never truly felt ‘necessary’. Not to anyone. Not even to Cristiano. We were close, and he loved me, but he was a very self-sufficient person. He didn’t allow himself to need people, not even me. This lack of feeling important to anyone was probably a dumb thing to be upset about, but the hurt was there all the same.
Becoming a member of the legion would give me a sense of importance, make me something more. The existence of the legion was necessary. The assignments they went on were necessary. And if I was part of that legion, I would be necessary on some level. I could play a part in ending some of the shit that went on in the world. I could –
Hearing a knock on the front door of my apartment, I groaned. No doubt it would be Salem. I’d spent two hours trying to shake him off. But it was hard to get away from a six foot mountain of persistence. Each time he’d sensed me trying to slip away, he’d picked me up by the back of my t-shirt and returned me to the spot beside him. Eventually he’d been distracted enough for me to make a sharp exit.
Despite his incessant knocking, it wasn’t until I’d triple-tied the belt around my robe that I opened the door. And there he was: his powerful stance alert, his feet braced shoulder-width apart, and his hooded eyes honed on me. He looked as indomitable, imposing, and unflappable as always. He’d also changed and showered.
Stepping right into my personal space, he kicked the door shut behind him. “You ran from me.” He sounded a mixture of annoyed and amused.
Refusing to defend my actions, I shrugged carelessly. “I wanted a shower.”
“So I see.” He took in my apartment with a quick glance, his expression blank. But he was no doubt shuddering inwardly at the very feminine atmosphere. Despite that I hadn’t been sure I’d remain at The Hollow, I’d picked up some accessories to spruce up the place and give it some colour. Mostly pink.
“Why are you here?”
“I wanted to make sure you were okay.” He smoothed the wet locks away from my face. “It was a tough night.” He was as gruff as always, his tone empty of sensitivity. Anyone else might have mistaken that for apathy, but I knew him well enough to know that this was simply how Salem talked. Besides, he didn’t waste words, didn’t say anything he didn’t mean, so the fact that he’d bothered to check on me showed that he cared.
And that got to me. The fucker was good at this wearing-me-down thing. Cristiano had been sure to warn me away from Salem, of course. He was dangerous, Cristiano had said. He was a trained killer, he’d said. Yes, well, he was also freaking hot.
“I’m fine,” I assured him. His expression was doubtful. “Really, I’m fine.”
“Hmmm.” Burying his face in the crook of my neck, he groaned. “You smell good. Your scent makes me hard every time. I want to wear it on my skin.” His voice was thick with need. “And I want my scent on you.”
His tone, his words, and his body heat were all beating at my defences. “Salem.” It was supposed to be a warning, but it came out breathless and needy. Dammit, he wasn’t even touching me and I was melting for him. “You want something I can’t give you.” I was reminding myself as much as I was him.
“What I want” – he licked a line along my throat – “is you beneath me. Moaning my name.” He sucked at my pulse, nipping it lightly. “What I want is my teeth in your skin, and your taste on my tongue. Don’t you want that, Ava?”
No, I didn’t…Right?
He sucked on my earlobe before biting down gently, but not enough to draw blood. “Don’t you want to know how I taste?”
Oh, I did want that. I’d wondered about it more times than I could count.
When he went to open my robe and found the huge knot, his mouth curved in amusement. “You thought you could keep me out?” He tsked. “Ah, Ava, you can’t keep me away from what’s mine.”
As if to prove that, he brought his mouth down hard on mine, stabbing his tongue inside and seeking out my own. A large hand snapped around my throat as another slid under my robe and palmed my ass, pulling me to him. His cock, long and thick and hard, dug into my stomach. Like that, my nipples tightened and a fierce ache began to build deep inside me. Ah, crap.
I should have struggled, I should have hit out at him. But I seemed to have no willpower when it came to Salem. He’d eaten up every inch of my personal space…and yet I liked it. That wasn’t normal, right? I wasn’t sure – it was hard to think past the way my entire body burned for him. It reflexively responded to him, craved him, and was soothed by him.
Abruptly he froze, cursing. It was only then that I realised someone was knocking rhythmically on the door. “It seems you have a visitor.”
I swallowed hard, doing my best to look cool and composed. This could not happen again, because I was pathetically weak when it came to him. “Listen, Salem –”
He put a finger to my mouth. “You kissed me back, Ava. You want this as much as I do. If you deny it, you’re just insulting your own intelligence. Others might think you’re dizzy and flaky, but we both know that’s not true.”
That was probably the nicest thing a guy had ever said to me.
With that, he stalked to the door and opened it wide…only to find Alora there, her fist raised and ready to knock
again. Clearly taken aback, she simply stared at him.
“What’s up?” asked a familiar voice. Then Jude was bumping Alora aside. Her eyes widened at the sight of Salem. “Oh.”
And Salem being Salem, he just grunted at them. Then he glanced at me over his shoulder. “Expect a call from Sam and Jared in the next few hours. We’re not done with the assignment tonight. I’ll be seeing you soon.”
Once he was gone, Alora and Jude both rushed inside, talking at once.
“Well, well, well,” drawled Jude, closing the door.
“Now I know why you didn’t turn up at the café for lunch.” Alora grinned.
“Oh shit,” I muttered. I’d arranged to meet them at one of the cafés. The Hollow contained plenty of cafés, stores, bars, and even a nightclub and a bowling alley. It was surrounded by a tropical rainforest, and had a man-made beach in the centre for all the residents – vampires and humans – to use. Only Sam, Jared, their immediate staff, and the legion had access to the private beach behind the mansion.
“Sorry, I should have called to say I couldn’t make it. You heard about the brothel, right?” Nothing remained secret on the island for long.
Jude’s upper lip curled as all three of them settled on the sofa. “Sickening, isn’t it?”
“I went along.”
“So that’s what Salem meant.” Alora’s expression softened. “Aw, sweetie, that must have been hard. No wonder your mind was elsewhere.”
I told them about the assignment, filling in the gaps in the account they had been given.
“Why did Sam and Jared ask you to join them?” asked Jude.
“She said it would be good experience for me, and that I was in Luther’s vision so it was important that I went. It occurred to me that she might have been hoping that taking me on an assignment, showing me the good the legion do, would convince me to join. If so, it’s worked.”
Alora’s face lit up. “Yay!” With her quirky clothes, she often came across as hippy-like. It was true that the female was free-spirited, but she was also bold and daring.