The Hunter: A Sinful Supes Novel (Red Crescent Book 3)

by Xandrie Kovak

  What was more terrifying?

  Gabe.

  His eyes burned neon blue as he stared at Vicks. He looked ravenous, but this wasn’t about lust. It was about power; about bringing an opponent to their knees. Gabe stood still as Vicks reverently pushed Gabe’s shirt up, and revealed the incubus’ own set of well-defined abs.

  Vicks nestled his cheek against Gabe’s stomach wearing a pleased expression.

  “As you can see, even though Carson isn’t interested in men, he would gladly bend over and present his ass for me.” He petted Vicks’ short wheat colored hair as if he was nothing more than a dog.

  I watched, stunned as Vicks rose to his feet and roughly grabbed Gabe. Then Vicks kissed the hell out of him. For a moment, Gabe seemed to be just as enthralled with the other man before suddenly pulling away.

  “On your knees,” his voice was huskier than usual. Vicks immediately obeyed and started to unbuckle the incubus’ pants. Gabe turned to me, “As you can see, it’s a double-edged sword. If you’re not careful, you could be just as swept up as your meal, especially the difficult ones. Though I suspect your condition will help you remain impassioned…” His voice trailed off as he looked down heatedly at the Hunter.

  “You’re going to stop though, right?” I blurted. Vicks’ hands were shaking, and he was having difficulty with the belt. I was pretty sure the cowboy would not be a happy camper about sucking dick.

  “Why should I?” Gabe petted Vicks’ head as he smirked at his victim. Vicks paused and looked up with adoration. “He wants nothing more than to feel my seed coursing down his throat right now.”

  “Can I?” Vicks pleaded. Need and desperation danced in his green eyes.

  I’d never seen him like that and I never wanted to see it again. This was wrong. This was rape. “Stop!”

  Gabe sighed, seeming annoyed. “You realize that Hunters bend the rules more than anyone? It’s nothing he doesn’t deserve.”

  I moved towards him. “That may be true, but it doesn’t make it OK.” I couldn’t believe I was actually defending Vicks, of all people! But I knew where I stood. “You have more than enough willing partners. Free Vicks and have one of them finish you off.”

  Gabe tilted his head as if seeing me for the first time. “This really bothers you?”

  “Yes.”

  Gabe smiled. “Fine. Time for your next lesson. If you want to save the Hunter so badly, take him from me.”

  “Take him from you?”

  “That’s right,” Gabe said. “Not only will you learn to take another’s enthralled, but you’re going to learn how to control him, too. You won’t be a succubus worth your salt if you seduce but cannot use it to your advantage.”

  The more I learned about what I was, the slimier I felt. He made it sound like the existence of a succubus was to be nothing more than a user. A master manipulator who turned your base instincts against you.

  “Vicks,” I said with a stern tone. “Get away from Gabe’s crotch.”

  The U.S. Hunter paid me no heed. In fact, he finally managed to unbuckle Gabe’s belt and was pulling it through the belt loops.

  “Better hurry up,” Gabe grinned.

  Vicks unbuttoned and unzipped Gabe’s straining jeans.

  “Vicks!” I moved forward and jerked him back by his shoulders. The moment I made contact, the prowling thing inside me latched onto Vicks and electrocuted him.

  I snatched my hand back, horrified.

  Vicks slowly looked up at me, blue lightning flashing in his eyes. Oh shit…

  “Uh, Gabe. A little help?” I pleaded as Vicks slowly stood to his full 6’8” height. While his eyes were trained on me, he unbuckled his rodeo belt and unzipped his wranglers.

  “You’re on your own.” Gabe folded his arms. “Control him.”

  Control him? How the fuck was I supposed to do that? I looked at the room full of naked people for help, but they were useless.

  Vicks took a step toward me. I lifted my hand and barked out a command like I would to a misbehaving dog. “Stay!”

  He froze and titled his head at me like a curious bird. His neon blue eyes dipped down to my breasts, then my hips. He licked his lips, and once again started walking toward me. Frantically, I looked around until my eyes settled on the gun table. I grabbed a clip and loaded a Desert Eagle, “Stay where you are, asshole.”

  Vicks didn’t even blink as he disarmed me in a split second by slapping my wrist outward and grabbing the barrel of the gun and ripping it in the opposite direction. Next thing I knew, Vicks had swept the arsenal to the floor and pushed me onto the table. One of his hands pinned down my torso while the other worked on removing my clothes.

  “Gabe!” I called, as I slapped Vicks’ hands away from my pants.

  “Yeah, yeah.” Gabe walked up to us and clasped Vicks’ forearm. Immediately the blue lightning receded towards his hands and the incubus sucked back all the energy.

  Vicks eyes cleared as he blinked down at me. When comprehension sank in, his face screwed up in disgust and he backed away.

  “What the fuck!” He screamed and pulled his gun on Gabe. “You assaulted a U.S. Hunter, ya suicidal sonuva bitch.”

  “Correction: he assaulted a U.S. Hunter off U.S. soil,” a young feminine voice broke in. Vaughn folded thin arms over her flat chest. “Let’s not get hasty, shall we. Put the gun down, Vicks.”

  Vicks contemplated it, his barrel still aimed at Gabe. He looked murderous, but eventually he holstered his weapon. Jaw clenched, he stalked out of the room, but not before he grabbed the kneeling blonde at the door and threw her over his shoulder.

  “Um…” I gestured at the door he just slammed. “Are we just going to let him take her?”

  Gabe shrugged. “She’ll enjoy it and he needs to work the lust out of his system. It won’t go away otherwise.”

  Sex noises suddenly erupted in the hall, followed by the rhythmic pounding against the wall.

  My eyebrows lifted to my hairline. Well OK then…

  “We’re discussing this later,” Vaughn’s voice was high pitched like a wind chime. It belied how furious she looked.

  Gabe zipped his pants with a smirk. “Oh please, like you haven’t wanted to lower that one a peg or two.”

  Vaughn’s mouth twitched before it flattened. “No more playing. Concentrate on your own charge. She clearly needs it.” The little vampire turned toward me. “No offense.”

  Offense taken.

  Even if she was right.

  I was all but useless as a succubus. If I couldn’t stop a human from attacking me, what hope did I have against another Supe? You know, the people my job would require me to hunt down? That is if I could even survive that long.

  My stomach rumbled. This whole being neutered thing was going to kill me.

  ***

  My stomach felt like a cavernous, black hole. No matter how much food I stuffed down my gullet, I couldn’t feel anything other than aching emptiness. My belly constantly growled with the conviction of a wildcat. I checked the clock. 3 A.M. It had only been two hours since I’d last scarfed down all the food I’d hoarded in my room.

  I slipped on a sweater and padded to the door. I gently closed it, careful not to wake my neighbor. The last thing I wanted to do was deal with that asshole.

  My legs felt heavy and weak as I made a beeline for the kitchen. I was so fucking ravenous. I could eat a whole cow. Better yet, I could just jump the next person I see and rip the energy right out of their body. Not that it would do my neutered self any good unless I wanted to do the unspeakable. It was one thing to be a monster by accident, quite another to be one by choice.

  I blinked at my surroundings. Somehow, my feet had taken me to the door that led to the dungeon. The current home for my “emergency energy drinks”. I looked down, my hand was already on the knob. I jerked my arm back. What on earth?

  I rubbed my sleepy eyes and slapped my cheek. My God, I’d almost gone down there and who knew what I would’ve done. I turned and
sprinted toward the kitchen.

  I froze at the entrance.

  Vaughn was on the counter, sucking down a bag of blood.

  “Oh… sorry,” I said awkwardly. I turned to leave.

  “Stay. I’m almost done.” She gestured toward the fridge, “Have at it.”

  I contemplated leaving anyway, but my stomach took the opportunity to growl. Loudly. I gritted my teeth and walked toward the stainless steel industrial-sized fridge. I wasn’t picky. I grabbed about half the fridge’s contents and piled them on the counter, before making another trip.

  Vaughn’s eyebrow lifted as she slurped down another red gulp.

  “What?” I murmured. “I’m hungry…”

  Vaughn shrugged. “Fair enough.”

  We didn’t talk for the first ten minutes. I was too busy stuffing my face like a pig, while she sipped blood demurely, but eventually I came up for air.

  “OK, I just got to ask, what is a vampire doing working with the Hunters?” I blurted.

  Vaughn played with the red baggy for a long moment. The silence stretched to the point where I thought she wasn’t going to answer, but finally she sighed and said, “They kill vampires. That’s a cause I can get behind.”

  I stuffed a handful of olives in my mouth and mulled over her words, remembering how she’d said she hated vamps when she first arrived. I swallowed my mouthful. “Why?”

  “Why the sudden interest?” She fired back. “You’ve avoided me from the moment I got here. What’s with the chatty Cathy routine?”

  Because I’ve got a gaping hole in my soul and now in my stomach too. I want distraction from how badly I want to walk over and eat you.

  I shrugged. “Maybe I’m just getting over how we met. You’ve gotta admit, you acted kind of psychotic.”

  Vaughn flashed a fang with her grin. “Yeah… well, you were pretty easy to mess with.”

  “You called me a bunny,” I said flatly. I’d recently learned what an insult that was in the Supe culture, especially amongst ferals.

  “You were a bunny,” she replied with no remorse, “but I’ll admit you’re different now.”

  I stuffed a donut into my mouth. Yeah, now I was a sexually frustrated succubus who couldn’t get it up for anyone other than the mate I’d shunned for his own good. Oh, and the whole wanting to eat vampires thing. I definitely wasn’t the same college girl I was a month ago.

  She played with one of her snake bite piercings as if contemplating something. “Fine I’ll tell you, but only because I feel a little bad about calling you a bunny.”

  I nodded as I continued eating.

  “You know how there’s fangbangers and Supe groupies? People who are essentially begging to join the Supernatural ranks?”

  “Yeah.” I took a gulp of orange juice, straight from the carton.

  “Well, I wasn’t one of those people. As you can see, I was pretty young when I was turned against my will.”

  My eyes tracked down past her flat chest to the stud belt around her tiny waist. Maybe she was physically younger than twelve? The hardcore make-up and punk rocker style was at odds with the cute apples of her cheeks.

  I just wanted to bite them. My inner succubus purred at the thought.

  “Let’s just say there’s not a lot of nice reasons for wanting to turn someone into a little girl forever.”

  Wait, was she talking about pedophile vampires? I suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

  “That’s… fucked up. I’m sorry.” That shit was awful.

  “The U.S. Hunters killed him back in the seventies. They would have killed me too if I hadn’t helped them take down my sire.” She lifted her head from the blood bag she’d been staring at. “I guess you could say the rest is history. I’ve been a vegetarian and working with the Hunters ever since.”

  “A vegetarian?” I asked, pointedly staring at the distinct lack of broccoli in her hand.

  “I don’t drink from the vein,” she clarified. “Tastes nasty, but it’s a requirement for work.”

  “Oh,” I said, starting to warm up to her. What she’d done with her life was actually kind of admirable. There were plenty of victims out there that ended up becoming worse monsters themselves. She had every right to be one of those people. And yet, she’d even changed her diet to be non-violent. “I hear they’re working on making synthetic blood. Maybe that will taste better?”

  Vaughn’s young, serious face was split by a sarcastic grin. “You think so?”

  “Probably not,” I admitted.

  She laughed. “Me either. I heard it tastes like shit.”

  “What about animal blood?”

  She made a face.

  “Or not.” I chuckled.

  “You know, Claire.” She grinned at me. “You’re not half bad. I think it’s going to be pretty cool to have another female hunter. As you can imagine, there aren’t many.”

  A little warmth lit inside me. It was kind of nice being around someone who didn’t want to get inside my pants. “So are you a hunter, too? Or an ‘associate’?”

  “Ah, you caught that?” Vaughn took a sip of blood. “I’ve hunted in the past, but ever since Vicks was recruited I’ve been assigned to be his handler.”

  “Handler?” I raised my brows. “Why would he need a handler?” From what Gabe had told me, he was the most well-known and accomplished Hunter our country had to offer.

  Now that I thought about it, it was a little weird that a newbie like myself would be tasked to partner with him.

  Vaughn stilled. Her red eyes locked onto mine, all amusement gone. “That’s classified.”

  Sensing the mood shift I began to throw away my trash. “Alright, well I should get going. Some of us mere mortals need to sleep.” I gave her a smile as I walked to the door.

  “Claire.”

  I paused.

  “A word for the wise: be careful around Vicks. Not all monsters have fangs or fur.”

  I woke from my trance in a strange room. Two male prisoners stared back at me. Well… technically one stared, while the other hissed and tried to attack me despite his silver shackles, and the fact that he was kept in a glass box. Obviously, it wasn’t the kind that shattered easily. He had long ratted black hair and a serious snarling problem. His fangs were extended and his eyes burned blood red with an unhinged gleam. Even his fingernails looked unkempt as he reached for me.

  I blinked, feeling stupefied. Could this be some strange dream or was I really in Gabriel Benson’s dungeon?

  My stomach growled, and I looked down. I was barefoot and in the shorts and tank top I’d fallen asleep in.

  “You were sleepwalking,” the other prisoner said in a British accent. I snapped my attention toward him.

  I immediately lowered my eyes when I realized what I was doing. Never make eye contact with a vamp.

  “Don’t worry, love.” He pointed to a necklace around his neck. “With this charm, I couldn’t glaze a toddler.”

  The wild-eyed vampire had one, too, so I was inclined to believe him. I turned back toward the Brit.

  He smiled at me, no fangs. His teeth were white and contrasted with his tan skin; something most vampires couldn’t lay claim to. His dirty blond hair was shaved at the sides but he wore it long on top, and he sported diamond studs in each earlobe. His eyes were bright red, but they crinkled with amusement. Before he had looked severe and serious, but the moment he grinned, his whole face lit up making him look like a carefree surfer dude.

  “I don’t sleepwalk,” I said, half distracted by the clawing need in my stomach. That thing inside me was desperate. It slammed against my skin, and urged me toward the vampire’s cage. I could almost taste his sweet essence.

  I licked my lips.

  “So, you’re the succubus that’s going to eat us?” He tilted his head, but otherwise remained perfectly still in his restraints. Even though the skin around his wrists and ankles looked charred and black, he didn’t portray an ounce of pain.

  “That won’t happen,” I vo
wed. It might’ve been more convincing if my stomach wasn’t growling. Stranger yet, I somehow ended up with my palm pressed to the glass like a child staring into a candy shop. I jerked my arm back, bewildered.

  What the hell was happening to me?

  Hunger pangs clawed at me. I shook my head and asked, “Are you being fed enough?”

  The captive looked surprised, but he answered. “The little one gives us the repulsive blood bags, but it does the trick.” His frown deepened, “What are you doing down here if not to eat us?”

  The long-haired vampire snarled and lunged toward me. Instinctively, I side-stepped further away from Mr. Unhinged.

  “Don’t mind Rowan,” the British vampire continued. “His mate was killed by an incubus. Needless to say, he’s not a fan.”

  “Well I didn’t do a thing to him.” I turned to the rabid vampire. “So you can calm the fuck down now, buddy.”

  Trying to talk to Rowan only incensed him further. He hissed and threw his entire body into lunging at me, only to be thwarted by the silver.

  I frowned at the psycho. “I’m not going to hurt you.” Even if it kills me. Every night I’d woken up screaming, reliving the events of that night. I didn’t want to be responsible for any more deaths. I’d changed my entire appearance. I couldn’t stand to look the old Claire in the eye anymore. I refused to see the Claire that kills.

  Now I faced my biggest temptation yet. I hungered for these vampires, and they were such easy pickings. Perfectly packaged to-go meals. I licked my lips again before I caught myself.

  “How old are you?”

  I snapped out of it. “Huh, what?”

  “How old are you? You’re not vengeful like an older succubus. Most would jump at the chance to kill one of us.”

  I sighed, “Because our kin have been at war for millennia?”

  “Yes, that tends to be the reason.” He flashed teeth.

  “Not for me.” I shrugged and rubbed the chills out of my arms. Every day I seemed to grow colder regardless of what I wore. I’d still shiver in a snow jacket. “I don’t care about old blood feuds. I didn’t even know there was one until recently.”