“It always is,” he agreed.
“The call was routed through a cellular station about twenty miles northwest of here,” the police officer said. “We have the number of the cell phone.”
“He’ll have disposed of it now,” Xandra said.
Dante eyed the narrow ray of sunlight streaming in the kitchen window. “Do you think we can count on him to meet us at the factory?”
“I guess we’ll have to. It’s the only lead we’ve got.” She followed the line of his gaze to where the sun splashed across the window ledge. The sun had risen higher in the sky, moving across the top of the building. It didn’t shine as brightly into the narrow space between the buildings. It had to be closer to noon, she thought. They had until seven in the evening. She’d go crazy with worry by then. “How long before we can leave?”
“By about four I ought to be able to at least make a run for the car. Once the sun is sinking, it’s easier for me to move around.”
“What are we going to do until then?”
“Sleep. We both need rest. And Jeremy won’t be expecting us to do anything until sundown.”
“But he’ll have Alix at his mercy until then.”
He nodded grimly. “He won’t harm her until he knows whether or not we’re going to play along. And the police are tailing him.”
As if on cue, the radio crackled. “I’m afraid we’ve lost the subject, sir.” Dante cursed softly under his breath. “We thought we had him. But then he drove into an underground garage and switched cars. By the time we blocked the exits, he’d already gotten away.”
Dante reached for the radio, still muttering to himself. “Well, find him! A woman’s life might be at stake. And might I remind you, she’s a valuable informant.”
Only static from the radio. Xandra pictured the officer on the other end uttering his own oaths. Then, “Yes, sir!”
“Secure the place,” Dante said. “I don’t want anyone else breaking in here.” He put a protective arm around Xandra. “Let me know if the forensics people come up with anything.” He angled his head in the direction of the bedroom. “If you need me I’ll be down the hall.”
The only room available was the bedroom across the hall from where Alix had been sleeping. Xandra felt her face reddening at the suggestion, but the police officer only nodded.
Dante led her down the hall and closed the bedroom door securely behind them. He put his knapsack down on the dresser, then took a chair, the only other piece of furniture in the room besides the double bed, and wedged it under the doorknob.
The room faced east. Only the heavy drapery kept out the rising sun. In the confined air, it felt hot and stuffy The unfamiliar bed looked comfortable enough, and exhaustion threatened to overwhelm her with every step she took, but she was far too wound up to relax.
“I’ll never sleep,” she protested as Dante folded the blankets back.
He busied himself with removing his holster and slinging it over one of the posts on the headboard. He shed his jacket and hung it neatly in the closet. Returning to the bed, he stripped off his shirt and unbuckled his belt.
“Perhaps I can help you relax,” he offered in that voice that could tempt a woman beyond her better sense.
Xandra bit her lip and cast a longing look at the bed. “I can’t, not when Alix is in danger.”
“We’re not going to be any help to Alix if we’re overtired and not thinking straight. We’ll need our strength for what’s coming tonight.”
Stepping behind her, he placed his hands on her shoulders and began to rub in slow circles. Her muscles started to relax and the kink that been growing in her neck began to ease. His fingers strayed to the hem of her T-shirt and began to pull it upward.
Warm hands caressed her ribcage as he yanked the shirt over her head and tossed it on the bed. She’d been loved before, but never the way Dante did it. Never had a man made her feel so wanted. Never had she felt that she truly belonged.
Her hybrid blood called out for his, finding kinship. She leaned back against him, for a moment content to stand in this hot, stuffy room alone with him while life swirled around them like a giant whirlpool.
She didn’t object when he reached down to undo the tie on her pants and slide them down over her hips. The material of the yoga pants pooled around her feet and she stepped out of them.
Within the confines of his jeans, his erection pressed against the small of her back. Turning in his arms, she reached down to unzip him. The denim gave way and she reached beneath his briefs to take him into her hand.
With a groan, he pulled her hand away and slid the material down over his hips. Naked they faced each other.
He lowered her to the bed and covered her body with his. His erection pressed urgently at the juncture of her thighs. Gently, he pushed against her and she took him inside.
She marveled at how right he felt inside her. Like he belonged there. Perhaps it was simply the shared bond of their biology, came the fleeting thought. Then she gave herself over to the storm of sensation he was creating.
Dante quickened his pace, pushing her tired body toward the summit of their pleasure. Tension shattered within her all at once. She bit her lip to stop from moaning out loud and alerting everyone in the hallway beyond.
Dante’s teeth pierced the thin skin of her neck and she shuddered in a second orgasm.
Sensation drifted back slowly. Each tiny movement of his mouth against her neck sent little sparks down her spine. His warm, heavy body pressed against her.
He raised his head and looked down at her with golden-tinged, sated eyes. He rolled over. She opened her mouth to protest the sudden loss of him. He pricked his chest with one long-nailed finger and pulled her down on top of him. Her mouth closed on the wound, tasting his lifeblood, stealing a little of his superior strength.
After a moment she drew away and they lay together in the center of the bed. Xandra rested her head on his shoulder, listening to the slow intake of his breath.
Outside the sun moved across the sky. For a moment, she considered its golden glow around the edges of the drapery. Almost instantly she was asleep.
***
She awoke into the long shadows of afternoon with the sudden sensation that something was missing. From the deepening color of the light that ringed the window behind the drapes, she could tell a few hours had passed. She felt the bed beside her and found it empty.
“I’m here,” Dante said from the corner of the room. He stood in front of the closet, already in his shirt and jeans. “I didn’t want to wake you.”
Xandra sat up, stretching the kinks out of her muscles. “Is it late enough for us to move around?”
“Ten after four. If we get a car close enough to the front of the building and shield ourselves, we should at least be mobile.”
“I want to stop by my place before we head out to the candy factory.”
“I don’t know—”
She cut him off. “There are a few things I need.”
“Like what?”
“Like something decent to wear.” Xandra glanced disdainfully at the puddle of clothing on the floor. “And my Hummer.”
“That’s probably not a good idea.”
“Jeremy already knows we’re coming. He’ll expect me to arrive in style.”
He crossed his arms, ready to argue with her.
“There isn’t any point in trying to sneak up on him. We might as well start with a good offensive.”
Dante sighed. “You’re probably right. Okay, your place it is.”
He grabbed the blanket off the bed. Snatching up her clothes, Xandra dressed quickly and followed him. Officers snapped to attention as he walked out into the hall. More had apparently arrived as they slept. Whether they agreed with vampires being part of the police force or not, they certainly respected him.
“Forensics find anything?” he asked the police officer with the radio.
“No, sir. Just a boot print on some of the smashed glass.”
> “That would figure.”
“They wore gloves for the rest of the operation. There aren’t any prints on the kitchen table or anywhere else in the kitchen or bedroom. No blood, no hair, nothing.”
“Our people are working on the boot print?” he asked.
The officer nodded. “Yes sir, but we’re not expecting it to be anything out of the ordinary. Likely a basic steel-toed work boot, the kind found in any department store in the city.”
“Let me know if they come up with anything. It’s not like we don’t know who they are.” He paused to consider that for a moment. “But you never know. There might be someone involved that we weren’t expecting.” He started toward the door to the apartment.
“The sun’s still up,” one of the police officers said. Obviously, they were used to dealing with their vampire liaison officer’s shortcomings.
Dante cast a wary glance at the sunlight spilling over the windowsills into the living room. On his way through the apartment, he’d been careful to avoid so much as a glimmer of sunlight. The evasion came so naturally to him, she doubted he was even conscious of it. She tried to imagine what it would be like to live forever in darkness the way Dante did and shuddered. Hopefully, as he’d suggested, the effects of his blood on her metabolism were temporary.
Dante paused by the door. “I need a couple of you to scout the area and bring one of the cars around to the front door.”
“A squad car, sir?”
He nodded. “Can’t see it makes any difference at this point. They’re expecting us at dusk. And we need to make a pit stop first.”
Two of the officers got up to obey him, and in minutes a squad car pulled up to the front of the building, sirens blaring and lights blazing to clear the street and claim the no parking zone.
Neighbors and passersby stared as Dante wrapped the blanket around Xandra and himself and bolted for the waiting car. In the years since vampires had become known to the general population, this was hardly an unusual sight. Still, most vampires preferred the dignity of underground parking.
Xandra sincerely wished she’d thought of buying a place with a covered garage as they pulled up in front of her house and made a mad dash to her front porch. Huddled under the blanket, the fragile material the only barrier between them and the sun, she fumbled her key into the lock and they tumbled into her front hall.
The sun hung noticeably lower in the sky, but it still shone brightly enough to burn. Xandra shut the door behind them and then hurried through the living room to shut the blinds on the floor-to-ceiling windows. Her loft bedroom had seemed like a funky selling point when she’d bought the place. She’d considered the large windows that ran along one wall an attractive feature. If the effects of Dante’s blood didn’t wear off, she’d be moving. That, or installing blackout curtains on those beautiful windows.
The blinds served to shut out most of the light. She turned to Dante in the dimness. “I need to change my clothes.”
He nodded. “Don’t be long though. We want to scope out the area before dusk.”
Xandra hurried up the metal stairs to her loft bedroom. The half-wall that separated the bedroom from the tiny kitchen below had always seemed open and inviting. Now it just felt exposed.
She cast a glance below to find Dante sitting on her couch and inventorying the electronics she kept on the shelf opposite. She stripped off the yoga pants and top and tossed them in her hamper.
Digging in her closet, she found a pair of black leather pants and pulled them on. Leather would protect her better than cloth if Jeremy brought his feral vampire allies. It was far harder to chew through than denim. She topped it off with a red spandex T-shirt and added a black leather jacket that zipped up to the neck.
Still, she mused, the outfit lacked…something. The cuffs and torque she was almost never without. She glanced over the loft railing at Dante still sprawled on her sofa. “Are my silver cuffs still in the pack?”
Behind her the air shifted, and she turned to find Dante standing inches from her. “Here,” he said, handing her the bag. No way was a full-blooded vampire going to handle silver, she thought with a smile.
Reaching into the bag, her fingers closed around her torque. As soon as her fingers touched it, she pulled her hand away with a yelp. The silver didn’t burn exactly, but it felt distinctly hot.
“What’s wrong?” Dante sounded alarmed.
“That’s weird,” she told him. “It felt hot.”
“It’s silver,” he said, as if that explained everything.
“Pure silver.” She studied the silver jewelry sitting nested in the duffle bag along with a couple of T-shirts. “That’s strange, I wear them every day, but lately they’ve been kind of itching, making my skin feel warm.”
She dumped the torque and matching cuffs on to the floor. He took a step back. “It’s my blood,” he said gently. “It’s making you more of a vampire. We can’t tolerate silver.”
She reached for it again, determined to see if it would still burn. The metal felt hot to the touch, like it had been sitting out in the sun. The longer she held on to it, the more she felt she could tolerate it. Her skin rebelled against the warmth, but it wasn’t blackening or blistering…just itching. She fastened it around her neck and reached for the cuffs.
He hissed as the silver met her skin, apparently remembering how the metal felt against his own.
“It’s hot,” she told him, “but it doesn’t burn.” He didn’t look convinced.
“Where did you get those?” he asked, still keeping his distance.
“They were a birthday gift from Jeremy a long time ago…” She stopped, the significance of what she’d just said echoing in her mind. Yanking off the torque, she set it down on her dresser.
“Can I see that?” Dante reached into the knapsack and pulled out a T-shirt. Wrapping it around his hand, he lifted the necklace into the light.
A string of muffled curses followed.
“What?” She stepped in for a closer look.
The hammered silver V-shaped torque was smooth on the inside. The cuff bracelets she always wore were a perfect match. But on closer examination, she noticed that a seam ran across the edge of the V. Grabbing another T-shirt to cover his other hand, Dante swiftly broke the silver.
“Hey!” she said, reaching for her jewelry.
The tiny transmitter that fell to the floor made her snatch her hand back.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” Dante snarled.
She reached for the transmitter, but before she could grasp it, he ground it under his foot. Straightening, she looked into Dante’s amber gaze.
“Well, now we know how he’s been able to find us every time.” He examined the cuffs, but they showed no signs of being tampered with.
“I should have known,” she said, thinking of all the things she’d inadvertently revealed, like the location of Dante’s cottage, not to mention the two safe houses. “I’m sorry.”
Dante dropped the broken necklace onto the dresser. “It’s not your fault. You trusted Jeremy.” His hands clenched as a hot wave of fury rippled through him. She’d been betrayed by a simple gift of jewelry. A gift from someone she’d believed in.
That would likely be the last time she trusted anyone so openly. He knew the feeling well. His parents had moved from town to town in an attempt to hide him. He’d never been allowed to get to know a neighborhood. He’d rarely been permitted to make friends in case someone found out too much. Growing up, he’d fought against his nature, wanting to be just like everyone else. Now, in this moment, he would have given up his enhanced strength and swiftness just to be human, to have a normal life with Xandra.
Normal didn’t describe either of their lives. He remembered her fighting in the alley. That she’d been vastly outnumbered hadn’t stopped her from fighting. His vampire nature bristled at what Jeremy had done to her. Vampiric instincts demanded that he protect her. After all, his blood ran in her veins. But Xandra never backed down from a struggle
even if it threatened her own life. He had to admire a woman like that, wanted a woman like that for his own. Forever.
“I don’t trust Jeremy anymore.” Xandra’s voice broke into his thoughts.
He tamped down on his vampiric impulses, loosening his hands and dropping the T-shirts on the dresser. The irony was his vampire strength might just protect her.
He put a finger beneath her chin and raised her face to his. “All the more reason to get Alix back and deal with Jeremy. We’ll think about the rest of it…later.”
Later, Xandra looked at the rest of the silver in her jewelry box, marveling at how she could tell by instinct now which pieces were silver and which were made of gold. Later, it seemed, she’d be making a whole bunch of life changes and not just in her choice of jewelry.
“We’d better get moving,” Dante said gently.
She opened her closet and he gaped. Inside the quite ordinary-looking wardrobe was a veritable arsenal. Several handguns sat on specially made racks. Beside them were neatly labeled drawers full of ammunition. Wood-tipped bullets read one label in red. Silver-dipped said another. Today, she’d manage, she thought grimly. The bullets would itch when she loaded her gun, but they wouldn’t burn. Next time she drank Dante’s blood, she might not be so lucky.
“Nice.” He sounded at once both amused and appalled at the arsenal in her closet.
Below the handguns sat a trio of turbo-powered water pistols. And hanging beside the water guns were two large stainless steel thermoses marked Holy water.
Xandra reached for an ammo belt and started stuffing it full of regular bullets, wood-tipped and the silver-dipped variety. She slung the belt over her shoulder and then bent to fill the water guns with holy water. She offered one to Dante.
He looked at the glorified squirt gun in her hands. “I’m supposed to be the liaison officer. I can’t believe how many of my own kind I’ve had to kill in the past few days.”
“They aren’t your kind.” Despite the healthy amount of Dante’s blood in her system, she still felt no kinship with those pathetic creatures. “They’re Jeremy’s operatives. And trust me, they won’t have the same reservations about you.”
Feral Passion Page 20
