Caretaker

by Laken Cane

  “I’d like to visit that section.”

  “Not going to happen.”

  “I’m not surprised,” I muttered.

  “You can tour the island, though,” he offered, as I was handed my cell phone. “It’s a nice place.”

  “Not today. I’m in a hurry.”

  “Next time, then,” he said.

  I looked at him, a little surprised. He was only an inch or two taller than me—at five feet nine inches, I was rarely towered over by men—with thick, dark brown hair and blue eyes. He wore a pair of black-rimmed glasses, and the standard Byrdcage guard uniform of dark blue pants topped with a blue button-up shirt.

  I lifted an eyebrow. “I hope Beardy is absent next time.”

  His laugh was soft. “Beardy,” he repeated. “I’ll have to start calling him that.”

  “What do you usually call him?”

  He shrugged. “His name is Rory Gaines. I usually call him Asshole.”

  Al laughed, then winked when I looked at him. Obviously, there was at least one guard who didn’t like Beardy.

  “What’s your name?” I asked the guard.

  He offered me his hand. “I’m Jamie Stone.”

  “Stone,” I repeated, as he squeezed my fingers. “Are you—”

  “Related to the warden,” he interrupted, as though he’d been asked that question a thousand times. “James Stone is my father.”

  I traded glances with Shane. It would not be a bad idea to cultivate a relationship with the warden’s son.

  Then Jamie dashed my hopes. “I can’t sway my father to help your shifter, before you ask. I’m not exactly his favorite person.” He gestured at his uniform. “One reason I’m assigned the lowly position of prison guard.”

  “Hey,” one of the other guards said. “Fucker.”

  But no matter what he said, he was the warden’s son—and he was reaching out. Both those things meant something.

  I hesitated at the exit doors. “It’s nice to meet you, Jamie. I will take that tour…next time.”

  He smiled at me, and there was a definite spark of interest in his eyes. “I live on the island. I’ll show you around.”

  Before I left the prison I had Jamie’s cell phone number tucked into my pocket and a contact inside the Byrdcage.

  Chapter Seven

  “That went well.” Al leaned up from where he sat in the backseat of my car and grinned. “For the most part, it went very well. Rhys will be pleased.”

  Shane had decided to drive home, and I sat in the front passenger side thinking about Angus. “What are you to Rhys, exactly?” I asked Al.

  “His puppet,” Shane said.

  Al shrugged and sat back. “A lot of supernaturals have a human assistant. Rhys has many. We’re his eyes, ears, and muscle when he needs us.”

  “Are you a group?” I was fascinated. I unbuckled and turned around to face him. “Do the members know each other?”

  Shane snorted. “They’re fucking groupies.”

  For the first time, Al’s face changed from open and bland to just a little dark. “The way you’re Amias Sato’s groupie, Copas?”

  Shane gripped the steering wheel so hard his knuckles turned white. “Fuck you.”

  I frowned. “What does that mean?” I looked at Al, who met Shane’s glare in the mirror, then sat back and stared out his window, silent. “Shane, did Amias—”

  “Drop it.”

  I couldn’t get too pissed. It was my fault Shane was connected to the master at all. I’d been the one who’d screwed up a hunt and nearly gotten him killed. I’d been the one to beg Amias to help him.

  So I just stared out my window and lost myself once again in thoughts of finding the judge’s wife and getting Angus home.

  “What do you think they’re doing to him?” I asked when we were nearly home.

  Al cleared his throat, but neither he nor Shane answered.

  “When are you going to catch Madalyn Bennett’s scent?” Shane asked.

  “As soon as I have some dinner. I need protein.” I wasn’t hungry, really—a day of witnessing the systematic starvation of imprisoned supernaturals could curb a person’s appetite—but I had to eat if I was going to hunt.

  We parted ways with Alejandro when we reached the house—he declined the invitation to dinner—then I went inside, Shane at my side, to report to the waiting children.

  They’d lined up in the living room, nervous and quiet, to get news of their father. Cory, solemn and big-eyed, was the first to speak. “Did you tell him I got my shift?”

  I couldn’t help but smile, and when I did, I could feel everyone in the room giving a sigh of relief and relaxing just a little. I wouldn’t have smiled if Angus had been dead.

  “Your father is doing fine,” I told them. “He said to tell you he loves you and he’ll see you as soon as possible.” I still couldn’t bring myself to tell them I was working on getting him out. I guess I didn’t believe in myself that much.

  I talked to the kids for the next twenty minutes, then Shane took my arm. “Get cleaned up. I’ll have dinner waiting so you can eat before we track the judge’s woman.”

  I studied him. His changes had been subtle and gradual, and they’d sneaked up on me over the last few months. Oh, he was still a jerk, but he was attentive to me. Reluctantly so, sure, but still.

  My stare traced the familiar scars on his face before lingering on his lips, and I darted out a tongue to wet my suddenly dry ones. “You’re going to help me track Madalyn Bennett?”

  His eyebrows shot up. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I help you track her?”

  It was my turn to raise a brow. I shrugged. “I’m not working for money—only Angus’s release. You won’t be getting paid if you help.”

  As Red Valley’s official bloodhunter, I was employed by the city to hunt and kill vampires. Shane was paid as part of my hunting party. The other jobs—finding a human’s missing person or tracking a particular vampire—were side jobs and I was compensated privately. I split that money with Shane. He’d made no secret of the fact that he wouldn’t do it if not for the money. And I didn’t blame him, but it was a surprise that he’d help me now.

  “I said I’d help,” he muttered, turning away to stride toward the kitchen. Off to make our dinner.

  I shook my head and ran up the stairs. Shane Copas was hard to figure out. It wasn’t that long ago that he’d have laughed if someone suggested he cook for me, and now he was volunteering.

  Silverlight was waiting, safe and sound, when I opened the safe. There was always a little part of me that feared she’d be gone when I left her home alone. Someone would steal her, or the person or group she’d originally belonged to would find her and take her back.

  Amias had never told me who he’d stolen her from. It didn’t really matter. She’d never belonged to them. She belonged with a bloodhunter, and that was me.

  I caressed her hilt for a second before leaving Angus’s bedroom. I glanced at the bed before I went, as I always did, and my stomach did a little flip-flop.

  Soon.

  My cell phone buzzed, and I pulled it from my pocket as I hurried into my bathroom to freshen up. “Hello, Captain.”

  “You’re home?” he asked.

  “Just arrived. I’m going to have some dinner then catch Madalyn’s scent.”

  “How did it go at the prison?”

  I hesitated. “Angus seems…healthy. And that’s a little strange because every other supernat I saw was in bad shape.”

  “It’s a bad place,” he said.

  “I know it is. So why is Angus doing so well, Frank?” I rushed on before he could answer. “I mean, physically. His mental state isn’t good, but his body…”

  Frank cleared his throat. “Just be happy he’s surviving in there, Sinclair. Don’t question everything.”

  I stared at the phone. “Don’t question everything? That’s a stupid thing to say to me.”

  His sigh came through loud and clear. “I’m glad the
visit went well. Let me know how the search for Madalyn goes tonight.” He clicked off.

  I decided to have a quick shower—not because I’d been hunting and was filthy, sweaty, and bloody, but because I needed to wash the stench and feel of the Byrdcage off me. It clung like a slimy layer of pond scum.

  I unpinned Rhys’s brooch from my shirt, wondering if the visit to the prison might have gone differently if I hadn’t been wearing the hideous piece of “protective” jewelry. I placed it on the sink beside Silverlight.

  My stomach finally woke up and started growling for food as I undressed, so I hurried through my shower, eager to see what Shane had made for dinner. I was also eager to get started tracking, though I had to admit part of me was reluctant.

  I was afraid I wouldn’t find her.

  When I climbed out of the shower, I saw I’d missed a call from Judge Bennett. I listened to his message as I got dressed. It was as abrupt and unfriendly as he was.

  “I’ll expect an update within the hour.”

  I pulled on my boots, buckled on my belt, then slid Silverlight into her sheath at my side. Despite everything, my heart lightened once I had the sword on my body. It was getting harder to leave her. Harder to walk around in the world without her comforting presence. Without her, I was alone, naked, and defenseless.

  She made me feel invincible.

  What was I without Silverlight, really?

  I shrugged off my sudden morose mood, put Rhys’s pin on my nightstand, then hurried downstairs to join Shane for dinner.

  In the short amount of time he’d had, he’d cooked up a simple but delicious meal of steak and potatoes, and he poured me a glass of red wine when I sat down.

  “This was so nice,” I told him after we’d cleaned our plates and sat finishing our wine. “The only thing that could possibly have made it better…” I trailed off when I realized what I’d been about to say.

  “Go on.” He lifted an eyebrow. “What would make it better?” Then he cocked his head, his stare suddenly sharp. “Sex?”

  I stared at him. “What?”

  “I got that feeling.” He grinned, which was unusual for Shane. He wasn’t exactly the smiling type. “You want me for dessert? I can do that.”

  I returned his smile, realizing I very much enjoyed Shane Copas when he was less grim. “I was going to say if you’d served it to me wearing nothing under that frilly apron.”

  He glanced down. “Shit. I forgot to take it off.” Then he shrugged, his grin still lingering at the corners of his mouth. “If that’s what turns you on, I’ll wear it hunting.”

  I drew in a suddenly shaky breath and squirmed in my seat. “You turn me on no matter what you’re wearing,” I was a little surprised at myself for admitting that to him. Generally, I kept such things to myself.

  His eyes widened just the tiniest bit. He said nothing, as though afraid he’d ruin the moment, and we sat there staring at each other in silence.

  Finally, he spoke. “Anytime, baby hunter. Anyplace.”

  I placed a sweaty palm over my thumping heart, then downed the last of my wine to ease the sudden dryness in my throat.

  He stood and began clearing the table. “Just throwing that out there.” He sounded almost jolly.

  I carried my dishes to the dishwasher. “We should go. I don’t have a lot of time to find the judge’s wife.”

  “Do you have the item he gave you?”

  “It’s in my car.”

  “Get it. We can take my truck.”

  I nodded. I’d catch her scent and Shane would drive me—windows down—to where the scent was strongest. Then we’d leave the truck and track her on foot.

  As I pulled the pillowcase from my car and went to climb into Shane’s truck, tracking Madalyn Bennett wasn’t the only thing on my mind.

  The dark promise in Shane’s eyes stayed with me, and I knew that before the night was finished, I would end up in his arms.

  It was time.

  Chapter Eight

  We left the house and there was a little something extra between us. Heat, expectation, anticipation.

  “Tell me,” he said, as we walked toward my car. “Why did you have to see Angus before you could give in to your need?”

  I shrugged. “I deprive myself out of guilt and empathy. After my family was slaughtered, I didn’t feel like I deserved to feel good. And when Angus was locked up, I couldn’t let myself have a good time knowing he was suffering.”

  “That’s a bad habit you have,” he said, after a moment.

  “I know. I’m messed up.”

  “Yeah.”

  I laughed. “No more than you are, Copas.”

  He threw me a quick glance. “Maybe.”

  He strode on to his truck while I hurried to get the pillowcase out of my glovebox. I backed out of the passenger side, bag in hand, then turned around to find Clayton behind me.

  “Clayton.” My voice was little more than a whisper, and the bag fell from my suddenly nerveless fingers.

  He leaned over to retrieve the small bag, then handed it to me. He closed his eyes when I brushed his fingers with mine, and I lingered, unable to resist.

  “Where’s Miriam?” I murmured.

  He opened his eyes and pinned me with the dark intensity of his stare. “Getting dressed for a job tonight.”

  I didn’t want to make things worse for him. I didn’t. Miriam had forbidden him to touch me, and he was literally unable to disobey her command.

  But she couldn’t command me. I wasn’t her golem. She hadn’t brought me back to life, and she couldn’t command me.

  So I wrapped my arms around his body and pressed myself against him.

  He blew out a shaky breath and stood stiff and unmoving in my embrace, but the pulse in his throat beat crazily beneath my lips, and I could hear a soft, agonized groan trying to escape his closed mouth.

  And I couldn’t bear to let him go.

  “Trinity,” he whispered.

  His body trembled, and I knew I was hurting him, but the longer I held him, the longer I had to hold him. I couldn’t move away. It was as though I, too, was caught in Miriam’s spell, and I hadn’t the power to separate myself from him.

  My fingers touched raised ridges on his back, and I flinched as I traced the fresh marks that Miriam had likely given him that very day.

  “Please come back,” I begged. “Please come back.”

  He shuddered.

  I wasn’t talking to him, really. I was talking to the demon who’d been inside him. I’d seen the demon the day Angus had been shipped off to Byrd Island. The demon was still inside him, but it was…hiding, maybe.

  I hadn’t caught sight of it again, not once.

  It was there, though. It was there, the bastard.

  It had freed Clayton from Miriam once. I had to believe it could again, if only it would.

  I felt a hand on my arm and lifted my wet face from Clayton’s warm throat to see Shane peering at me, his face expressionless, but sympathy lurking in the blue depths. “Come on, baby hunter. Let him go now.”

  I resisted until I glanced at Clayton, then my breath whooshed from my lungs and I couldn’t breathe beneath the pain.

  Blood ran like scarlet tears from his eyes, and from his ears, even from the corner of his mouth.

  I threw myself away from him, horrified, and realized that I’d been wrong. Miriam could command me.

  Clayton turned to walk away, wiping blood from his eyes, and when I started after him, Shane caught my arm. “No, Trinity.”

  “Clayton,” I called.

  He halted but kept his back turned.

  “Tell Miriam I’m coming to see her soon.” I knew the threat was in my voice, but I figured I was doing pretty good seeing as how I hadn’t gone to kill her yet.

  I felt bad for her. Very bad.

  Clayton had fucked her up. He’d tortured her father as she watched. He’d helped make her into the monster she was. The monster who owned him.

  And if it h
adn’t been for Clayton, I’d have liked her. I did like her. But I was done watching her punish Clayton.

  I’d wanted to figure out a way to sneak him away from her, but that wasn’t working out for me.

  I was going to have to take him from the crazy bitch.

  I watched Clayton until he disappeared, then I climbed into Shane’s truck. “Miriam will be pissed. He didn’t get whatever it was she sent him here for.”

  Shane shifted gears and pulled away from the curb. “Yeah,” he said. “He did.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “He’s going home to her with blood leaking from every opening on his body because you touched him. I imagine that whatever voodoo shit she’s been cooking up has just had its trial run, and she’ll be pleased with its success.”

  I clutched the bag and stared out my window. “I’m going to have to do something about her.”

  “Yup.”

  “I’m going to have to take him from her.”

  “Uh huh.”

  “Do you think I can?”

  “Nope.”

  I sighed. “I’m going to.”

  “You ready to take on the responsibility of another man, baby hunter?”

  I looked at him, frowning. “Another man? Who’s the first one?”

  His eyebrow shot up. “Amias Sato. Angus.” He hesitated.

  “You?” I asked, lightly.

  He gestured at the bag. “Catch her fucking scent so we can get to work.”

  “I’m not responsible for Angus or the vampire. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “There’s too much talking.” His voice was harsh. “Get the scent. Angus is waiting.”

  He was right. I’d deal with Clayton and Miriam tomorrow. Tonight was about finding the judge’s wife.

  I slid the silky pillowcase from the bag and lifted it to my nose, and then, without hesitation, I pulled the scent of Madalyn Bennett into my brain.

  She hit me like a hammer right between the eyes. For a few long seconds, I was blind, deaf, and paralyzed. My body stiffened into a painful cramp, my jaw clenched so hard I nearly cracked my teeth, and the side of my face slammed into the window.

  Shane slammed on the brakes and if it hadn’t been for the seatbelt, I’d have bounced off the dashboard. He unbuckled me and dragged me across the seat.