Fine. I could do this the hard way. I thrust a surge of fury-driven energy deep inside him, focusing on his cold, dead heart. And then I squeezed until blood filled his eyes and pooled in his mouth.
“Are you willing to die to keep that secret?” I asked, a cold smile tugging at my lips. “This just gets easier every time I do it. You’re about two seconds from being a pile of dust.”
A strangled cry escaped him. “The desert.” He coughed and spat blood. “They’ll be staked down in the desert for sunrise.”
The blood drained from my face, and my breath came faster. “Get up, nice and slow. You’re going to take me to them.”
I let Roscoe up, releasing my hold on him. He wiped the blood from his eyes and mouth with the back of his sleeve, glaring angrily. “I don’t know where they are. You’re on your own.”
“Why would you sell Jenner out like that? What happened to being his right hand?”
With a shrug of his wide shoulders, Roscoe pinned me with a fierce stare. “Survival of the fittest, I suppose. He wanted to pull out of the blood ring, but Harley started that ring decades ago. It wasn’t about to die off because Jenner didn’t want to play dirty anymore. I had to make the choice that best suited my needs.”
I wanted so badly to plunge the Dragon Claw into his guts and watch the horror and shock flash across his face when he realized he was dead. However, it was a big weapon, too big to flash inside the casino.
My phone rang, the vibration in my bag alerting me to it. I made the mistake of going for it, giving Roscoe his chance to bolt. He slammed his elbow into my face, and I dropped to my knees. He was gone before I could regain my focus.
Chapter Eleven
It was Briggs.
“Hey, O’Brien I have a trace for you. We only picked up data on one phone. The other two are offline, possibly destroyed. The one we found is registered to a Jezebel St. Claire out of Edmonton.”
“Yeah,” I gasped, holding my battered nose. A few scarlet drops stained my palm. “What’s the address?”
“Fremont Street. At The Golden Nugget. I’ll keep trying on those other two. Can’t promise anything though.”
So Jez was here. Roscoe had lied. Next time I saw him, he was getting acquainted with the Dragon Claw. “Thanks, Briggs. I appreciate this. I know you didn’t have to do it.”
“Are you ok?” He asked upon hearing the pain in my voice.
“Just took an elbow to the nose, actually. But I’m fine, thanks. Call me if you find anything else.”
There was hesitation on the line. Instead of hanging up, Briggs tentatively said, “You know, O’Brien, we may be able to offer assistance. Just say the word.”
I chuckled in spite of everything. “I’m not quite desperate enough to take you up on that. But I’ll keep it in mind.”
“You do that.”
Vampire politics were difficult enough. The last thing I wanted or needed was the Feds getting further into my business than they already were. Briggs had a hard-on for supernatural info. He’d take anything he could get. But he wouldn’t be getting it from me.
Evidently, Briggs believed I could be recruited to the predominantly human government organization, most likely because he had so easily recruited my younger sister, Juliet. I had seen enough of the FPA to know I was safer with the demons.
By the time I made it to The Golden Nugget, my lungs were heaving. I sprinted down floor after floor looking for Jez. Sensing vampires came easier. I could feel every vampire in the city if I concentrated hard enough. However, I was still able to pick out that earthy Were vibe when close enough.
Human. That’s all I could feel and smell. With a flurry of choice curse words, I continued up to the next floor. That’s when the heady scent of wildcat tickled my nose. I knocked on the door and waited. No one answered. I studied the lock, feeling less than confident. Jez wasn’t alone in there. I could feel the vampire with her.
I’d used my telekinetic abilities to manipulate locks before, but never had I tried it on a hotel room key card lock. Kicking the door down would have been easier. Taking a deep breath, I steeled my nerves and focused my energy on the lock. It wouldn’t give. I banged a fist on the door in frustration. Then I tried again. No deal.
“For fuck’s sakes,” I swore.
“Do you need help?” I turned to find a lady wearing housekeeping garb, pushing a cart filled with cleaning supplies. Here was my chance to get into that room.
“Yes, I do.” I approached her slowly, a huge smile pasted on my face. It was time to draw on the vampire glamour that I rarely used. It wasn’t my strongest skill. I gazed into her eyes and encouraged the thrall. “I must have lost my keycard somewhere. Can you let me in?”
She blinked a few times, seemingly puzzled. Then her pupils dilated, and her shoulders relaxed. “Of course, dear. That won’t be a problem.”
I waited with growing impatience for her to open the door. The lock released, and I grasped the door handle, waiting for her to move along down the hall in a mesmerized stupor. It wouldn’t last long.
“Thank you, Arys,” I muttered beneath my breath. As much as I feared the vampire essence that possessed me, it was growing harder to loathe it.
Shoving the door open, I flicked on the light and prepared to draw my dagger. Of all the scenarios that had flashed through my mind, this was not one of them. Jez was most certainly inside the hotel room. She was furry on four legs, a gorgeous leopard, not entirely out of place in a city like this. She was also mauling the shit out of a vampire.
It was a nice room, painted in dark colors with a carpet to match. The king size bed was accompanied by a couch and coffee table placed before the window. The minibar was housed in an elaborate entertainment unit boasting a big, flat screen TV.
What my gaze was drawn to most of all was the writhing vampire flailing about on the floor. She had already torn his throat out which explained the lack of screams. From the twisted agony on his bloody face, he was in absolute hell.
“Holy shit.” I closed the door firmly behind me.
Jez had done a real number on him. One of his hands lay several feet from his body, and she was currently working on a leg. What the fuck did he do to her?
She rounded on me with a snarl. Those green eyes sparkled with ruthless fury until she saw that it was me. Then she cleared the distance in a single leap, knocking me down in her haste to greet me. The golden black pattern on her svelte frame rippled. She was so rare, so gorgeous. I was a little jealous.
“I think it’s time to put this guy out of his misery.” I stood and drew the Dragon Claw from its sheath. “We have to get out of here before Roscoe comes back with reinforcements.”
The shift was fast and fluid. In just seconds, her body reformed, leaving her naked and quaking on the floor. I wasted no time in slicing the vampire’s head off. Immediately, he went up in a small puff of dust and ash.
“Lex? What happened to you?” Jez’s voice was rough, as if she’d just chain-smoked a carton of cigarettes. “I woke up here, and that fucking scumbag vampire was standing guard.”
I went through the bathroom and the small linen closet until I found a bathrobe. I wrapped it around her and pulled her up. She was a little shaky but appeared unharmed. “Did he hurt you? Do you remember anything from the past few hours?”
“No, it’s a total blank. I woke up with that crazy shithead leering at me. He said he was to watch me while Roscoe hunted you down.”
“That’s strange. I just had a run in with Roscoe. Once I put the squeeze on him, he wanted nothing to do with me.” I gathered the few things of Jez’s that I could find while she washed the blood from her face and hands. “We have to go. Arys is going to burn at sunrise unless I can find him first.”
“Have I mentioned yet how sorry I am for dragging you to this godforsaken fucking city?” Bitterness laced her tone. “I can’t go out like this.”
“We’ll grab something from a shop downstairs. You’re not going to like it though.”<
br />
She emerged from the bathroom wearing a frown. Her face, free of makeup, radiated an innocence that red lipstick and mascara hid well. I couldn’t understand why she wanted to hide such pure beauty beneath a crimson veil.
“Great, so I get to wear tacky Vegas tourist attire while we save your boyfriend. Give me what you’re wearing. You obviously had time to go back to the hotel.”
“Jez! We have to move it before anyone else shows up here.”
“Alright, alright.” She swiped her purse from my hands and tied the robe tighter. “So what happened to you anyway?”
By the time we purchased a Las Vegas t-shirt and Capri sweatpants, I’d filled her in on my brief time alone. Admitting to the death of almost half a dozen humans left me feeling hollow inside. I knew it wasn’t entirely my fault, yet I couldn’t shake the certainty that it had left a stain on my soul that would never wash clean.
Right there on Fremont Street, Jez slid the clothing on beneath the robe before ditching it in a trashcan. “Good Lord, I feel like the ‘fashion don’t’ page in a magazine. When I get home I’m burning these ugly rags.”
“The fun of being a shifter, huh?”
We hurried to the front of the hotel where the taxi line was thirty people long. I glanced around frantically with no real plan and mounting panic. I didn’t know what to do.
“Over there.” Jez pointed to a small line of limos. “The windows are blacked out. That’s what we need. Go do that handy vampire glamour thing on the driver.”
It was a start. I jerked open the driver door, almost giving the guy behind the wheel a heart attack.
“Can I help you, ladies?” He straightened his tie and smiled. “I’m afraid I’m waiting for a client at the moment, but if you’d like to book me for another time—”
I took a deep breath, finding it impossible to stay calm. Focus, I told myself.
“You’re going to get out of the car and go inside the hotel. Have a drink, play some slots. Forget you ever saw us.” A gentle push of power and a suggestive gaze earned me the same dopey expression the housekeeping lady had had, but I still held my breath in hopes that the glamour had worked. It was growing harder to achieve the same effect, taking more effort. The energy feed in the theatre earlier had done me wonders, but it was fading fast now. I could only handle so much in a night.
“Right, sure, ok.” The driver slid out of the car and walked away with a robotic gait. I let my breath out in a giant sigh of relief.
“You drive,” I said to Jez. “I need to concentrate on finding Arys.”
Driving a stolen limo through Las Vegas had most definitely not been on my agenda for this vacation. Of course, nothing that had happened so far had been on my agenda.
“You’re getting good at this vampire shit,” Jez remarked, adjusting the mirrors. “Scary good.”
“Fabulous. I’m thrilled.” I squeezed my eyes shut against the ache that surfaced at the back of my skull. My mortal body simply couldn’t handle so much undead power.
“Where to?”
“No idea. Just drive.”
With my face in my hands, I concentrated on deep, even breaths. Arys. I let his name whisper through my mind. That should have been enough to open the mental door between us, but it remained firmly closed.
“He’s shutting me out,” I groaned. “He thinks he’s going to die with the sunrise, and he doesn’t want me to feel it.”
“Is that how it works?” Jez was aghast. “Shit. Everything comes with a price, huh?”
If he wouldn’t let me connect with him, there was only one way to find him. I would have to sift through every vampire aura in the city until I found those that reflected Harley’s blood. This process of elimination might just make my head explode.
Sunrise was less than an hour away. The pressure was building, threatening my fragile grip on sanity. I’d already lost myself to the primal rage that lurked inside me all the time. It was a miracle I’d come back to myself at all after what I’d done to those men at Paris Las Vegas. I had to hold it together. Shaz and Arys needed me.
Letting my breath out slowly, I reached out to touch the City of Sin. Much like at home, The Wicked Kiss housed more vampires than any other dwelling. It shone like a beacon in my mind’s eye.
I turned my attention from it, seeking common blood elsewhere. A tug on my thoughts from Fremont Street showed me where Roscoe was. He was likely laying low, ready to vacate the street when dawn broke. I was so far from done with him.
The ache in my head grew until a wave of agony crashed over me. My breaths came faster and shorter until I grew dizzy. Arys was out there. I knew it. Where? I pleaded to the powers that be. Show me where. Power filled the car, thick and pulsating, making it hard to suck air into my lungs. Something warm and wet slid between my hands to splatter my lap; my nose was bleeding profusely. Just when my pained groan became a wail, when I thought for sure it was over and that I’d killed us all by coming here, I felt him.
It wasn’t like pointing out a location on a map. Instead, I felt the pull deep within me. My entire being called to him and received an answer. Our bond was forever. Nothing could break it or hide it, not even Arys himself.
“This way.” I waved a hand erratically, and Jez took a sharp and sudden turn. Several other drivers honked and gestured angrily as we careened around a corner in the big stretch limo.
Jez pulled a small packet of tissues from her purse and shoved it into my hands. “You’re scaring me now. That’s more blood than usual.”
I opened my eyes to find my hands held a scarlet puddle. Despite the tissue I pressed to my face, the blood kept coming. “I can’t let go of the hold I have on him, and it hurts like a bitch.” The pounding of my heart echoed in my ears, drowning out the sound of honks and jeers in traffic. Jez maneuvered the big car with as much finesse as she drove her old Jeep back home, which wasn’t saying a lot. Please, don’t crash, I tried to say, but the words wouldn’t come out. It took every bit of strength to stay tuned to Arys’s energy. I couldn’t afford to lose him now. “Left up ahead,” I gasped. “Follow it out of the city.”
Jez’s concern was palpable. She continued to shoot me worried glances. “Next time you can choose where we go. I promise. Just don’t spontaneously combust or anything. Ok?”
“I’ll see what I can do,” I said with a wry smile that made my face ache.
With the squeal of tires, we jerked to a halt. Jez laid on the horn and stuck her hand out the window to flip someone the bird. “The cab drivers are fucking nuts here.”
“What if we don’t make it in time?” I looked to the east, searching the sky for signs of the coming morning. “What if I lose him?”
“That won’t happen, Alexa. Stay positive. We proved already tonight that we’re a force to be reckoned with. You can’t give up now. You have to blow this blood ring apart. And you need Arys to do it.” Jez’s hand was warm on my arm as she gave it a squeeze. “By the time we leave, you will own this city.”
“I’m glad one of us is so sure.” I clenched my teeth and choked back a pained cry. The brain-shattering sensation was near blinding.
It felt like forever before we exited the city limits. The desert stretched wide around us. Mountains stood tall in the distance. It would have been beautiful at any other time. As we drew closer, the pressure in my head began to ease. I could almost breathe again. I continued to direct Jez, who did a great job of navigating with little more than random arm waves to go on. We turned off the main route and followed a secondary road for several miles. We were close now.
“Over there. That house.” A cool wind blew through me, chilling my insides. It was a confirmation that nearly brought me to tears. He was here.
The house was a small, two level with an attached garage. If the ramshackle exterior and the old rusted car outside were any indication, the place was abandoned. But not empty.
“There are vampires here,” I said. “They must be watching from inside.”
“To
make sure their enemies burn.” Jez nodded. “Makes sense. I doubt the head honchos would do a job like that. Whoever is here will be small time. Let’s take them out.”
I balled up the tissue and dropped it on the floor, satisfied that my nose had finally stopped bleeding. “Are you sure you’re up for that after the wolfsbane?”
“Please,” she scoffed. “That may have slowed down a regular shifter, but neither you or I are quite normal, are we? That idiot said he gave us enough to drop a bear. Should have used the elephant dose.”
I stared at the house as we came to a stop. The sun was just emerging over the horizon. It was dark enough still for the vampires inside to come out and stop us. That was a chance I’d have to take.
“Watch your back. They have weapons.”
There was no way to creep up to the house, no possible way to hide our arrival. We stepped out of the car with a score to settle. I held the Dragon Claw in one hand and a blazing blue and gold psi ball in the other.
Keeping our distance from the house, we went around to the back. The rising metaphysical wind tossed my hair. Every step I took toward Arys increased my strength.
I didn’t see him right away. It took scouring the desert land behind the house to spot the two figures on the ground in the distance. My heart sank at the realization that Shaz wasn’t there.
I broke into a run, fully expecting the crossbow bolt that whizzed over my head. The shot was way off. Three vampires burst out of the house. Preternatural speed made them a blur of motion.
“Keep going,” I shouted to Jez before jerking to a halt. With fangs bared, I turned to face my opponents.
The psi ball exploded on the ground before them. A cloud of dust rose up to engulf the two it knocked down. The third quickly became acquainted with the dagger blade as I slid it into his belly.
Without waiting for his ashen remains to settle, I advanced on the other two. “Which one of you wants to die first?” I pinned them with a steady push of power. Fueled by adrenaline and sheer will, it held, though I was going to feel it later. Both vampires were frozen in place. One sneered at me while the other quaked in terror. I preferred the latter. “Alright, together then.” With a swipe of my blade, I decapitated them both. More dust for the desert floor.
Freak Show (Alexa O'Brien Huntress Book 7) Page 14
