Bloodlust by Midnight

by Deanna Chase

  “Of course not me.” His voice was monotone and sounded far away. Then his sarcasm kicked in. “No one would ever let such a thing happen to an agent of the Void. Right, Phoebs? Void agents are far too valuable. Well, unless you factor in the politics and the posturing the directors do in order to keep their funding. But don’t worry, I’m sure your boy Allcot will find an antidote just in time to save us all and will end up the hero in this Greek tragedy that never would’ve existed without his greedy ass in the first place.”

  “Dax, I—” I placed my hand on his arm, but he pulled away.

  “Forget it, Phoebs.” He backed up. “It is what it is. Let me know if you find anything.”

  I stood in the brightly lit hallway, watching as my partner stalked off, his movements stiff with anger. Just before he turned the corner, Leo quietly slipped from one of the rooms. He and Dax talked for a moment, then Leo fell into step beside his mentor and the two rounded the corner and disappeared from my sight. I let out a sigh and started to go after them, but a text came in. It was from Dax. It read: Leo’s intel from the third shifter lines up with ours. Keep looking for Strix. You’re right—he’s the vampire at the center of all this.

  My fingers flew rapidly over the tiny keyboard as I thanked him for the update and let him know I’d meet him back at his place just as soon as I was done in the archives.

  He typed back one word: Fine.

  My heart ached. I knew deep down he wasn’t angry at me, just the situation. Hell, I would be too. Could anyone blame him? As far as any of us knew, he had five normal days left. Then what would he turn into? The thought was too painful to contemplate. I’d just have to make sure we never found out. I straightened my shoulders, held my head high, and with pure determination, I turned on my heel and made a beeline for the research department.

  19

  Dax couldn’t shake the rage that was boiling within his gut. He knew none of this was Phoebe’s fault. There was no reason to be angry at her, and yet Dax needed a little space. He knew she was just waiting for him to turn into some kind of a monster. He could see it in her eyes every time she looked at him. And it was all but killing him.

  Maybe he should’ve stayed back at the Void and helped Phoebe comb through the archives, but as the day wore on, he was finding it harder and harder to focus. His blood was pounding in his ears, and sitting still was proving to be impossible. All he wanted to do was run and work out all the frustration coiling in his gut.

  “You should’ve seen him, Dax,” Leo said suddenly. The younger shifter had his hands curled so tightly into fists his knuckles had gone white. “He’s barely holding it together.”

  “Do you think he’s on the verge of losing himself to his wolf?” Dax asked as they walked across the parking garage toward his Trooper.

  “No, that’s not it. It’s more like he’s completely given up. His girl…” Leo’s voice cracked on the word girl. He cleared his throat. “His girl, the one he loved, is just gone. She still looks like herself in her human form, but he can’t reach her. No one can. It must be pure torture. You know?”

  “I can imagine,” Dax said as he tried to picture Phoebe with gold eyes as she wielded her dagger with no regard for human life. A chill ran up his spine. She’d be a seriously dangerous weapon.

  “At least I don’t have to worry about that happening to Rhea,” Leo said, venom taking over his tone. Then he glanced over at Dax and scowled. “Fuck, man. If you lose your mind… I just can’t even deal with that right now.”

  Dax let out a derisive snort. “I’m not much a fan of the thought either.”

  “It won’t happen to you,” Leo said adamantly. “It can’t. You won’t let it.”

  Dax nodded as if he had any real control over what might happen. He’d do everything in his power to stop it, but if the toxin took him, there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t outrun it. The truth was that unless Allcot’s people happened to find a cure, Dax was certain he only had a handful of days left.

  The thought hit him like a ton of bricks. What was he doing running off with Leo when Phoebe was back at the Void? They had assistants who could go out and get food for them. There was no reason for Dax to be taking off into the night when he should be by Phoebe’s side.

  He stopped in his tracks and said, “You’re right, which is why we need to get back inside and help Phoebe.”

  “But— Argh!” Leo didn’t get to finish whatever he was going to say, because right then a dark gray wolf pounced on him, knocking him to the cement.

  “Fuck!” Dax shot forward, already shifting into his wolf form. His clothes ripped, and his bones broke and reformed as he morphed gracefully into a wolf. His paws hit the ground once before he leaped forward, jaws bared. But before he could reach Leo and the large gray wolf, a half-dozen wolves appeared out of nowhere, separating Leo from his sight line.

  With his hackles raised, he charged forward, intending to break through, but the pack wasn’t fucking around. They all closed in on him. In the next moment, he found himself in the middle of the nastiest wolf fight he’d ever been in. Jaws wrapped around his back leg as he sank his teeth into the shoulder of another wolf. Fur and teeth were everywhere.

  Six on one was no match. One after another tore into him, each taking their pound of flesh with them. There was no way he was going to beat them all, but he wasn’t going down without taking at least one of them with him. He eyed a pure-white wolf, and between attacks, he lunged. His teeth sank into the wolf’s neck and he clamped down hard.

  The other wolf let out a high-pitched cry, then went perfectly still. It was a sign of surrender, but the adrenaline pumping through Dax spurred him into action. He clamped down harder and shook his head, lifting the wolf like a rag doll, intending to shake the life out of his enemy.

  He heard a faint howl behind him just before something came down hard on his back. Pain reverberated through him, and his vision turned black at the edges. His jaw went slack just as he fell to the ground, limp and unable to move.

  A tall redheaded man, wearing nothing but a sneer, crouched down and stared Dax in the eye. “If Hailee doesn’t wake up from her coma, I’ll personally kill you with my bare hands. Got it?”

  Dax blinked once.

  “Good.” Then the man landed a powerful kick to Dax’s ribs.

  Dax let out a whimper and fought to keep his eyes open as he watched the man walk over to Dax’s Trooper. Red held the door open as two other naked men shoved an unconscious Leo into the back.

  “Get the agent,” Red ordered. “I understand he’ll be one of us soon.”

  Dax tried to lift his head, tried to scramble to his feet, but his weary body wouldn’t obey. Panic flooded his brain and his chest constricted, making it impossible to breathe. If he didn’t move, he was going to be trapped in his own vehicle and taken hostage by his attackers. He had no doubt they had plenty of drugs to keep him in line. His mind raced, and he knew he had to find a way out of this situation, find a way back to Phoebe and the healers so they could help Leo. But his wounds were too great. Searing pain radiated from every open wound and at least a half-dozen broken bones. He needed a few hours minimum to heal before he’d have any chance of even crawling his way back to the Void building.

  Two more of the wolves quickly shifted back into human form. Both appeared to be young, maybe college age. In unison they reached down, picked Dax up, and carried him to the Trooper. Just as they were getting ready to throw him in, Dax turned his head and clamped down on one of the shifter’s hands.

  “Fucking bastard!” the shifter yelled and brought his other fist down on Dax’s head. The blow exploded through his already battered bones just before his world turned black.

  Dax woke in a room thick with humidity. Sweat coated his itchy skin, and he lay on a rough surface with no idea how long he’d been in the dark, windowless room. Hours? Days? He couldn’t tell. Everything ached. He’d somehow turned back into his human form, and he was pretty sure blood coated the left sid
e of his face and most of his body.

  He tried to move, only to hear the clink of metal indicating that both his wrists and ankles were chained to something, probably a nearby wall. His first instinct was to let out a roar of frustration, to jerk on his restraints and use whatever strength he had left to free himself. But then he heard the callous voices floating in from a neighboring room.

  “What the hell are we going to do with the grandpa in the pit? That dude is old as fuck,” someone with a high-pitched voice said with a snicker. If Dax had to guess, he’d say the voice belonged to a kid, probably in his teens.

  There was a rustling sound. Then someone sniffed and in a gruff voice said, “Like it or not, he’s one of us now.”

  “Don’t you always say you can’t teach old dogs new tricks?” the kid asked. “Even if he can be brought over, it’s going to take forever. How is that worth it?”

  “If we’d left him with that bitch of a witch, there’s no telling what she would’ve done with him,” Gruff said. “Imagine what she could turn him into right after the drug kicks in.”

  “Jesus. You’re right,” the kid said, his tone hushed now. “Nightmare.”

  “Now imagine if he breaks and we turn him into one of us. Think of what we can make him do to his bitch.” Gruff let out a sinister laugh. “She’ll wish she were dead.”

  Dax sucked in a labored breath. They were talking as if they were going to turn him into some sort of sadistic robot who would do their bidding. Was that what they were doing with the rest of the shifters? No wonder they were all young. They were still impressionable and easier to control.

  “The blond kid, now he’s a damned good score,” Gruff said. “He’s got the skills we’re looking for. Real leader, that one.”

  “I won’t work for that punk ass,” the kid scoffed. “That little bitch bit me. I bet I have rabies now.”

  “He’s a wolf, not a fucking raccoon. And you’ll do whatever I fucking tell you to, Boomer. Or would you prefer I throw your ass in one of the pits while you readjust your attitude?”

  “Fuck you, Cade,” Boomer said. “King’s in charge around here, not you.”

  There was a commotion followed by a loud grunt. Then Dax heard Gruff let out a growl before he said, “You heard King. When he’s not here, you do what I tell you to. Got it?”

  Boomer grunted.

  “What was that? I didn’t hear you.”

  “Yes, sir,” Boomer squeaked out.

  “That’s right, soldier.” There was another rustling, then the sound of a chair scraping against a wood floor. “Next time you get the urge to talk back to your commanding officer, you won’t just be nursing a fucking welt on your head, I’ll give you a goddamned broken arm. Understood?”

  “Yes, sir,” Boomer said again.

  “Good. Now go get the little bitch in room two. We need to have a chat.”

  Footsteps echoed off the walls, followed by silence. Dax tried to put their conversation in some sort of context. Sir. Commanding officer. Training shifters… It didn’t take a genius to figure out these pieces of shit were building some sort of army. But for what?

  More footsteps sounded from the other room along with some sort of struggle that resulted in things crashing to the floor.

  “Put him on the table,” Gruff said.

  There was a grunt then a loud thud. “This bastard is heavier than he looks.”

  “Wake him up.”

  “Why? Can’t we just pump him full of Scarlet while he’s out? Seems a hell of a lot easier.”

  “Shit,” Dax muttered under his breath and involuntarily yanked on his chains.

  “Sounds like Grandpa’s awake,” Boomer said.

  The door squeaked as it swung open, and light splashed into the barren room. Dax flinched and recoiled from the bright light.

  “You look like shit,” Boomer said.

  “He looks like he got his ass kicked,” Cade said.

  Dax opened his eyes just in time to see a boot come right at his face. He heard the crunch of his nose just before pain exploded through his skull and his lights went out again.

  20

  I’d been sitting at the research computer for so long my eyes were starting to cross. The vampire Strix had over two dozen addresses. Each one had proved to be either an empty lot, a strip club, or a blood bar on Basin. I’d worked my way through all his known associates and had only come up with three viable addresses, all of them small apartments that didn’t match the large place Iris had described. I’d even searched for anyone who went by King in an effort to follow up on Hailee’s lead but came up with absolutely no one in New Orleans.

  The only shifter I found who went by King was one who was based in the UK and worked in security for a vampire organization that was as large and powerful as Cryrique. According to the travel information, he hadn’t even been in the States for over twenty years. It was highly unlikely he had anything to do with the toxic Scarlet.

  I sat back in my chair, rubbed my eyes, and then squinted at the clock. Holy hell, had I really been at it for two hours? I picked up my phone to check for messages. None. Dax still hadn’t called or texted. Neither had Leo, not that I’d expected him to. But Dax… I’d figured he’d call after he had a chance to cool off. I quickly tapped out a text asking if he’d gone home after picking up food.

  No immediate response.

  I tucked the phone into my pocket and decided he must’ve crashed for the night. It was just after midnight. And if I didn’t want to be dead on my feet the next day, I was going to need to get some sleep as well. The only question was where? My place or his?

  Normally the answer was obvious. We hadn’t spent a night apart in over a month, and I’d told him I’d meet him there. Even so, after him giving me the cold shoulder, I was tempted to go home to my own bed. To give him the space he needed to come to terms with his new reality. He didn’t need me pointing out the obvious while I vented about the case. I knew I wouldn’t though. I’d show up on his doorstep sooner or later. The truth was I couldn’t deny the pull that had me already deciding I needed to see him, to know he was okay. Because I knew from experience that Dax never slept through a phone call or text notice. Shifters were light sleepers, and unless he really was ignoring me, he hadn’t gotten my text.

  The more I thought about it, the more anxious I became. Dax was not sleeping. Something was seriously wrong. With my phone in one hand and the keys to the Charger in the other, I tore out of the research lab and hauled ass to the parking garage. In less than two minutes, I was in my Charger and tearing out of the garage.

  Then I saw it. It was just a glimpse of fabric, but it was fabric I knew well. The same silver-blue shirt Dax had been wearing earlier that day. I slammed on the brakes and jumped out of the car. I found the shirt first and pressed it to my nose, taking in Dax’s familiar woodsy smell. As I glanced around, I spotted his jeans and boots and underclothes.

  Trepidation mixed with real fear made my heart speed up. “Son of a bitch!” Dax never left his clothes just lying around after an unexpected shift unless he ended up tracking someone. But he’d left over two hours ago. Wouldn’t he have called if he’d run into trouble?

  There was also the fact that Dax hadn’t answered my text. That meant one of two things: he either didn’t have his phone or he was physically unable to call me. I grabbed his jeans and checked the pockets. Nothing. No keys. No phone. I supposed it was possible Leo had grabbed his keys and was driving, but if Dax had his phone, why wasn’t he answering?

  I quickly tapped out a 911 text, telling him it was urgent he contact me.

  A faint beep came from under one of the nearby cars.

  My heart caught in my throat. I immediately pulled up Dax’s name and hit Call. The ringing came from my left. I followed it until I fished the phone out, then shone a light under the cars, looking for his keys.

  They were nowhere.

  Panicked, I called Leo. It went straight to voicemail. After sending a text that went un
answered, I grabbed Dax’s phone and ran back into the Void building.

  “I thought you were headed home for the night,” the guard called after me as I sprinted past him.

  I didn’t answer as I made a beeline for the stairs. Two flights later and I stood inside the tech lab, breathing heavily as I handed the phone to the tech on duty.

  She glanced at it and frowned. “Looks like one of ours. What’s it need?”

  I sucked in air and huffed out, “Break through the password. I need access.”

  She handed it back. “You know I can’t do that. Not with company phones. It’s against protocol.”

  I thrust it back into her hands. “Daxon Marrok is missing. I have a strong suspicion so is his Trooper. I happen to know he keeps a tracking app for his vehicle on this phone. If I can get into it, I can track him down before he loses his mind and turns into a monster no one can control. Now, are you going to help me, or do I need to get the director on the phone?”

  “I can’t—”

  “Forget it.” I hit the director’s private number.

  Almost immediately, the woman’s voice barked in my ear. “This had better be important.”

  “I need you to authorize a phone hack. It’s Dax’s and—”

  “You know that’s against protocol, Kilsen.”

  “That’s why I’m calling you,” I snapped, no longer giving a shit about pissing someone off. They were both wasting time. “Dax is missing, and I have reason to believe there’s foul play involved. But more importantly, we’ve been separated, and if the toxin hits him when I’m not around—”

  “Give the phone to the tech,” she ordered.

  I did as I was told and waited for the director to give the order.

  The tech nodded and said, “Yes ma’am. I will, ma’am.” Then she handed the phone back to me. “She wants to talk to you again.”