A Hunter Under the Mistletoe

by Addison Fox

  No one listened. Glad no small children were allowed on the casino floor, Gabe directed two of his other employees, both cocktail waitresses and both clearly terrified, to help him get the guests outside.

  “I’ve called 9-1-1,” one of the women said, her eyes huge in her pale face. “LVPD should be on the way.”

  “Good job.” Again he scanned the room, looking for the gunman. He saw nothing beyond the mad crush of panicked people rushing to get out. Across the melee, he caught sight of Rafe and Evangeline, both also herding people toward the exit. Gabe took off toward his brother.

  “What the hell’s going on?” he asked.

  “Not sure.” Mouth set in a grim line, Rafe grabbed an elderly woman in a wheelchair and began pushing her toward another employee. “Help get her out,” he ordered. He shot a look at Evangeline, who shepherded another old couple. “You’d better go outside, too.”

  “No.” She balked. “Not until all of the patrons are safe.”

  Rafe cursed. He crossed to her and cupped her face in his hands. “Please,” he said. “For me. I can’t concentrate until I know you’re safe.”

  Finally, she nodded. “I’ll be right outside if you need me.” Rafe watched until she’d disappeared through the double doors. When he turned to face Gabe, he took a deep breath.

  “Any signs of the shooter?” Gabe asked.

  “No. I’ve got the security team searching,” Rafe informed Gabe. “Beyond that, I don’t know who the actual target was or if there are any injuries or—gods forbid—any fatalities.”

  Feeling sick, Gabe nodded. The stampede had thinned and the cavernous casino floor appeared empty. The silence of the normally loud slot machines felt eerie.

  “Time to head out,” Gabe said.

  “The police are here.” No sooner had the words left Rafe’s mouth, when three men wearing black vests proclaiming them SWAT burst through the door.

  “Clear the room,” one of them ordered. “That includes you two,” he informed Gabe and Rafe.

  “We’re the owners,” Rafe began.

  “I don’t care if you’re a god,” the SWAT guy said, his choice of words causing Gabe to give him a second glance. “You need to get out until we secure the site.”

  Gabe nodded and took Rafe’s arm. “Come on.” Though he practically had to drag his brother away, he got him through the door and outside.

  The front of the Archangel, with its twin, tall, vengeful angel stone fountains and pavestone circular drive, normally bustled with taxis and limos, along with throngs of patrons coming and going from the Strip. Today, however, the police had roped off the front of the hotel with yellow crime scene tape. They’d posted several guards, turning away incoming vehicles and keeping people a good distance down the drive. Anyone needing to enter the hotel had been directed to wait. Even the employees’ side entrance was being manned by uniformed police.

  In effect, their entire operation had been shut down.

  Meghan. His heart skipped a beat. He had no idea if she was safe, if she’d gotten out. Pulling out his phone, he called her. The call went straight to voice mail.

  Glancing at the guards, he debated the difficulty of going back in and locating her.

  “I swear by ancient Rome, if the Hunters are behind this...” Rafe began, distracting him.

  “Do you think they are?” Eyes narrowed, Gabe glared at his brother. “With so many random, crazy humans in this world, why would the Hunters do such a thing?”

  “To create chaos.” Rafe’s simple answer rang with truth. “Their specialty. And since I was attacked, I know they’ve been around here waiting for the winter solstice and hoping to witness a Rejuvenation.”

  “But gunshots?” Gabe wasn’t convinced. “That would draw attention to them, maybe even get them arrested. I’d think that’d be the last thing they’d want.”

  Rafe pondered his words. Finally, he shrugged. “Who knows?” He jerked his head toward the front door. “Looks like we might just be about to find out.”

  One of the SWAT members, the one who’d done all the talking, strode toward them. “Kevin Kern,” he said, holding out his hand. “You two said you own this hotel? We need to ask you a few questions.”

  Gabe nodded. “Fine. Tell me you caught the guy first.”

  The police officer paused. “We didn’t find anyone. We’ve got several witnesses who claimed to have seen him, but none of their descriptions match.”

  “We’ve got security footage,” Rafe chimed in. “Let’s go take a look at those.”

  “Fire!” someone yelled, sending a shudder of foreboding up Gabe’s spine. His body took the reaction a step further, attempting to force Rejuvenation. Right here, right now.

  “Damn,” Rafe cursed. “That’s the last thing we need.”

  “Wait here,” Kevin ordered, taking off running. Of course Gabe and Rafe followed him inside. A cloud of thick, black smoke billowed from an area near the poker tables. The two brothers exchanged glances. Gabe could see his own inner struggle mirrored in his brother’s eyes. Fire called to fire. Though Rafe had already Rejuvenated early, Gabe had not. He was so close to the time. It took every ounce of self-control Gabe possessed to keep from bursting into flames.

  “There’s no doubt now,” Gabe said through clenched teeth. “It has to be the Hunters.”

  Rafe nodded, clearly not wanting to use any of his energy to speak.

  “Outside,” one of the SWAT members barked, shepherding them away from the smoke. “No civilians here until we secure the area.” Fire alarms sounded. “We’re evacuating the entire hotel.”

  The entire hotel. Gabe swallowed and nodded. Meghan. Had she heard the alarms? Again, he tried her cell. Once more, straight to voice mail.

  “You two. Out.”

  Rafe and Gabe looked at each other. “We can’t,” Rafe began. “We’re the owners.”

  “That’s irrelevant.”

  “It’s not. Since we own this place, we have a responsibility to make sure all our employees and guests get out safely,” Gabe countered. “We can’t leave until we’re certain of this.” No matter what, he had to make sure Meghan Frost had made it out. Though surely she heard the alarms, even up in her isolated penthouse suite. Despite this, he needed to see her personally and make sure she was safe.

  “No.” A second man, this one wearing an LVPD uniform, stepped up to assist the first. “We’ve got personnel doing exactly that. Now please, step outside and let us do our jobs.”

  Gabe didn’t move. “I’ve got a VIP guest staying in one of the penthouse suites. At least let me get up there and make sure she got out.”

  “No.” The officer moved to block his path. “Let me make a call.”

  Gabe glanced at his brother. Rafe knew him, knew what he was thinking, and shook his head. “You’re not charging past them to try and find her. There’s no way.”

  “Why not?” Gabe muttered back. “You’d do the same if it was Evangeline in there.”

  Rafe didn’t have an answer for that, as he knew Gabe was right. Shoulders tense, Gabe watched the officer on his radio, trying to formulate some sort of plan. He had to get to Meghan.

  “My guys have cleared the top three floors,” the officer said. “While they didn’t find any celebrities, they were able to evacuate a woman staying alone on one of the floors.”

  Gabe’s chest felt tight. “Did they get a name?”

  The other man looked at him as if he’d lost his mind. “No, sir. But she’s a very attractive young lady, according to my men.”

  “That had to be her.” Rafe grabbed his arm. “Come on outside with me. Surely you have her number. Call her and make sure she’s safe.”

  Gabe glowered, but finally nodded, aware Rafe had a point. Again, the nearby flames called to him. Rafe, too. Side by side, the two
brothers moved quickly outside again. Once away from the tantalizing lure of the flames, they breathed identical sighs of relief.

  “Damn Hunters. We’ve got to locate them,” Gabe began.

  “And then what?” Rafe countered, while scrolling through his contacts. “You know as well as I do that we can’t hurt them unless they attack us first. We need to direct the human police toward them. If we can get them arrested for their very real crimes, that’ll keep them away.”

  “I know you’re methodical, but come on.”

  Expression thunderous, Rafe didn’t immediately reply. Tamping down his mounting frustration, Gabe glowered while Rafe kept scrolling, aware his brother most likely was aware how badly Gabe still struggled with the urge to burst into flames.

  “What’s going on?” A petite woman with long blond hair and oversize sunglasses came up to them. If not for the husky purr of her voice and the smooth perfection of her skin, Gabe wouldn’t have recognized her. When he did, he felt instant relief and then a thrum of pleasure.

  “You made it out,” he said.

  “Exactly like the nice police officer told you she did,” Rafe interjected, barely glancing up from his phone.

  Gabe ignored him, unable to tear his gaze away from Meghan. “How many disguises do you have?” he asked.

  Her slow smile started a different kind of heat simmering inside him. “Several,” she replied. “I’m actually having fun playing dress-up. But you haven’t answered my question. They’re evacuating the entire hotel. Is the casino on fire?”

  “It would appear so,” Rafe answered glumly. “We’re hoping to have answers soon.”

  Which would be the understatement of the year. Gabe checked his watch. They had two large company parties being held that night. Both firms had paid lavishly for the use of the two ballrooms. The hotel catering staff had been busy all day preparing food. They had brought in additional bartenders to handle the alcohol since each company wanted open bars set up. These types of things were always profitable. With the holiday season upon them, the Archangel was booked every single night.

  “The fire’s out.” Kevin Kern strode toward them. “One of the card tables was set ablaze. You got lucky since it was contained and didn’t spread. Most of the damage is smoke related.”

  Relieved, Gabe nodded. “We can cordon off that area until it can be cleaned up. The rest of the casino can go back to normal.”

  “The fire department will have to approve that,” Kevin said. “Their investigator is in there now.”

  “I’ll go talk to him,” Rafe said immediately.

  “And I’ll take you to review the security footage,” Gabe put in. “This way, please.” As he led the way, he realized Meghan had decided to tag along.

  “Ma’am.” Kevin turned to face her. “I’m afraid this is a private matter. I’ll have to ask you to move away.”

  “She’s with me,” Gabe heard himself say. Meghan rewarded him with her trademark brilliant grin.

  “Employee?” Kevin asked.

  “Friend.” The no-nonsense tone in Gabe’s voice warned the other man not to pursue it any further. After all, this was Gabe’s hotel.

  Gabe used his security key card to unlock the door. “In here.” He stood aside, allowing Kevin and Meghan to precede him. “Let me introduce you to our head of security. He can cue up the video we need.”

  A short while later, they all clustered around a monitor, watching as a tall, thin man in a gray hoodie wandered up to the poker table, pulled a pistol from his pocket and shot the dealer point-blank in the chest. Then, while the man lay crumpled at his feet, he turned and fired a few shots up toward the ceiling.

  Meghan gasped. “Did he kill that man?”

  “He’s been transported to the hospital.” Kevin gave her a hard look. “Still alive, though obviously that could change.”

  Then the man in the hoodie pulled something from his pocket and tossed it on the poker table. He had unusually long and slender fingers. A flash occurred, a small explosion, knocking several people off their feet as they ran by.

  Meanwhile, the perpetrator strode swiftly away, vanishing into the growing cloud of smoke.

  “I can’t get a look at his face.” Frustration darkened Kevin’s voice. “He seems to know where the cameras are, so he’s making sure the hood keeps his face in shadow.”

  “I’ve got my men looking for him,” the security head said. “As soon as we saw that go down, I radioed them and they converged on the casino. I’m pretty sure most of them were there when the explosion happened.”

  Gabe cast him a startled look. “Did they get out?”

  “Yes.” The terse response spoke of the other man’s worry. “A little singed. One of my men can’t hear out of his left ear. But they’re alive. That’s all that matters.”

  “That, and finding out who did this.” Gabe couldn’t let on that he had a pretty good idea. After all, how could he explain Hunters to humans? Especially since humans were not even aware of such things as Helios.

  “Something about him looks familiar.” Meghan mused. “Though I can’t say where, I’d swear I’ve seen him before.”

  Kevin stared at her hard. “You seem familiar to me, too. Have we met?”

  “Nope.” Both Meghan and Gabe answered at the same time. They exchanged slight smiles before turning their attention back to the video.

  “Play it again, this time in slow motion,” Gabe ordered. They all watched intently, each struggling to see something that wasn’t there.

  “Maybe if we had another angle,” his security chief said. “But we don’t. We just need to catch that SOB.”

  “Agreed.” Kevin shook his head before handing over a card. “I’ll need a copy of that video, please.”

  “Sure. I’ll have one of my guys prepare it immediately.”

  They left the room, this time with Kevin leading the way and Gabe and Meghan bringing up the rear.

  “I’m going to go check on the progress,” Kevin said. “Mr. Stavros, please stick around in case we have any more questions.’

  Gabe nodded. “I’m always around. I not only work here, but I live here, too. So does my brother.”

  When they reached the common area, Rafe came hurrying over. “Anything?”

  “Not yet.” Kevin looked from one man to the other. “You have my card. Call me if you hear or see anything out of the ordinary. And you,” he added, pinning Meghan with a measured stare. “If you remember where you saw that man before, you call me, okay?”

  She nodded. They all watched silently as Kevin hurried off to rejoin his team.

  Rafe cleared his throat. “What did he mean by that?” he asked.

  “Meghan said the shooter looked familiar,” Gabe supplied. “She thinks she might have seen him somewhere.”

  Rafe swore in their native Greek.

  After a startled look, Meghan shrugged. “Sorry. I don’t know why or where I might have seen him. I still wasn’t able to be of any help.”

  “The important thing is that no one else was seriously hurt,” Gabe said, shooting his brother a hard look. “We need to find out the identity of the man who was shot and make sure neither he nor his family want for anything.”

  Rafe’s gaze narrowed as he looked from his brother to the pop superstar. “Agreed. But after those things are accomplished, I want every effort possible put into finding this man in the gray hoodie.”

  “Of course.” Putting his hand on Meghan’s shoulder, Gabe turned her to face him. “Are you going to be all right?”

  Slowly she nodded. “Sure. I’ll see you around later?”

  “Of course.” He kept his tone smooth. “Let me help Rafe deal with the cleanup and then I’ll find you.”

  She nodded and left them, probably aware his gaze followed her until she was out
of sight.

  “Getting pretty involved there, aren’t you?” Rafe asked, his tone serious.

  “Weren’t you worried about Evangeline?” Gabe countered.

  “I was, but I just spoke with her. She’s out back in the greenhouse, making sure the plants are okay. But that’s beside the point. We’re talking about you.”

  “I’m fine.” Gabe realized his clipped response meant he was anything but. “Or I will be.” He managed what he hoped was a cocky grin. “Once I get her out of my system.”

  Chapter 6

  As she walked away, Meghan couldn’t help but dwell on his words. He’d find her. She didn’t know why this particular phrase affected her so strongly. The way he said the words sounded as if he was making her a promise.

  Which was silly. They hadn’t known each other long enough to promise each other anything.

  More realistically, her feelings were heightened because when she was around him, she existed in a continual haze of sexual arousal.

  Soon, she hoped the time would come to do something about that. Not right now, while the Archangel was in a state of chaos and upheaval. Chaos. Her family thrived on that. Supposedly, her people were descended from an ancient Greek god of Chaos.

  Legends and stories. Because of their belief in them, her people belonged to a larger group who called themselves Hunters, with a capital H. As a teenager, she’d begun to wonder if they were a cult, especially since every single one she’d ever met, including her entire family, believed they’d been entrusted with a unique destiny. Bringing chaos to the modern world.

  Personally, she figured everything was chaotic enough, without the help of any Hunters. But when she’d tried to voice these thoughts, she’d been treated as if she’d gone insane. If not for her musical success, she honestly thought they might have sent her away to one of their retreats, where information would have been pounded into her until she believed as strongly as them.

  A shame really, because they were all nice people. Since she’d become a success, she took care of her entire family financially. She just wished, every once in a while, they’d take care of her emotionally.