The house was fitting for a vampire lair. Old, gloomy, isolated from its neighbors and shrouded by overgrown shrubbery. It looked like it might have been built during the days of the gold rush, or at least before Las Vegas blossomed into Sin City.
Roman was already there, leaning against his sports car with elegant ease. Heat rippled through Mystic's belly and cunt at the sight of him. Her nipples tightened and she ached to tilt her head back, to offer her neck and feel the ecstasy of his bite.
She allowed herself a moment to luxuriate in the feelings and sensations bombarding her, the satisfaction and happiness that came with having him as her mate. Then she pushed them aside with a scowl and a mental reminder that his smug confidence at being able to limit her activities grated on her nerves just as much as Christian's and Hawk's had.
Roman's husky chuckle along their link only served to deepen the frown. You won't win if you challenge me to a bedroom game, he reminded her. And you will not be going to Wolfsbane with Christian and Hawk. The young wolf and her brother can join them there.
Mystic got out of Hawk's car. She wasn't foolish enough to goad Roman by wrapping herself around one of her Were mates, but she was tempted. Had she really thought he was easygoing?
She made a point of not looking at him though she was aware of him shoving away from his sports car and walking toward them. His laugh had her clenching her teeth, but she was powerless to stop her body from melting against his when he pulled her back to his front and kissed along her neck. "No greeting for the mate who spent a long, lonely day waiting for the sun to set and the moon to rise so he could come for the one he's bound to?"
"You're not playing fair," Mystic said, moaning softly when his hands cupped her breasts.
"And you played fairly with Hawk and Christian?" Roman said, chuckling when his comment was met with irritated growls.
He grazed the tips of his fangs over her vein until she shivered. "Once the fledgling is taken care of, you and I will take our leave. I don't think Christian or Hawk will insist on having you accompany them to Wolfsbane."
He glanced up at the men in question and Mystic felt their relief though it didn't filter into their expression.
"We can handle Wolfsbane," Hawk said. "Let's get this taken care of."
Roman pressed one last kiss to Mystic's throat before reluctantly setting her aside. Playing with her was a two-edged sword, especially after the visit with Juric and the fantasies he'd entertained since then.
He was thankful her other mates had somewhere to be and would view his taking Mystic away as desirable. He didn't want to share, not tonight. The suite he favored at one of the larger casinos was waiting for them, the night beyond taking care of the fledgling already planned in exquisite detail.
"Rafe didn't know who the phone belonged to," Christian said. "It's a throwaway."
"There's a vampire in the house, a young, tainted one," Roman said. "Brallin's old magic recognizes me even if the fledgling doesn't."
"Can you control the fledgling?" Hawk asked.
"Of course." Roman laughed softly as Mystic's worry found him. If I didn't know you fret because it's natural to do so over a mate, I would be insulted. True, the fledgling will react violently when the mage's dark magic senses what I gained from Syndelle, but he's no match for me. Neither is it likely he'll have a chance to attack one of your other mates.
The rich purr of a car's engine reached them. Roman glanced at Hawk and Christian. He said, "Brann will be here in a few minutes. If it were up to me, I'd lock Mystic in the car and order her to wait until we secure the fledgling, but unfortunately that's not an option. So I would suggest you patrol outside the house. You'll be safe as wolves. Mystic will need to enter first and invite Brann inside. One of you can do the same for me. It should only take a few minutes to subdue the fledgling. But if he manages to escape the house you should be able to take him down. Go for his arms, as close to the wrists as you can get. Even the newly dead can produce talons sharp enough to gut a wolf."
Mystic was surprised at how quickly Hawk and Christian evaluated Roman's plan and agreed with it. As Brann's car drew near, they stripped out of their clothing and shifted into wolves.
Her breath caught at how beautifully matched they were. They were of equal size, their fur thick and luxurious, their eyes fierce and sharp.
Sadness uncurled inside her. She'd long ago accepted her inability to change forms. She'd cried her tears when puberty came and went and with it the last window of opportunity to be like most of the other Renaldi females. Now, looking at Hawk and Christian, she felt a deep sense of longing and a jagged pain of loss at being unable to run with them as a wolf.
She hid her feelings behind a hastily erected mental barrier. She tried to tell herself the downturn in her emotions was the natural aftereffect of a fading surge of adrenaline, but the truth was she felt completely useless at the moment. Roman said she needed to open the door for Brann and invite him into the house, but Christian or Hawk could do it and still change in time to provide and external guard.
All of them would just as soon have her wait in the car. She was the weak link here, the one who jeopardized the others because of her vulnerability.
For one split second she was tempted to throw in the towel. No one expected her to be a hunter, not her parents, not the Renaldis or the wolves they were allied with. Her mates would just as soon she never leave the bed. They'd be quite content with pleasure and in the future, children.
Mystic stiffened her spine and lifted her chin. She forced the old insecurities and hurts back into the box they'd escaped from. She was an Angelini. Until the magic responsible for her creation made it clear her path was different, then she would do what she was supposed to do. She would learn how to hunt so she could take her rightful place in the supernatural world she lived in.
Brann's sleek sports car pulled to a stop behind Roman's. The blood connection between them hummed with the strength of his power. No wonder Hawk and Christian had agreed to Roman's plan to let her go into the house without even a small snarl of dissent. The fledgling wouldn't get close to her, not while she was in the company of the council's executioner.
With the smooth grace of an ancient, Brann covered the distance between them. He glanced at the wolves and said, "Try not to kill him if he manages to escape the house. His continued existence has yet to be determined but his death isn't sanctioned."
Christian and Hawk trotted away. Roman followed the wolves, fading into the night as easily as they'd done.
Mystic ensured her mind was open, the links she held with all four men making it possible for them to communicate and know each other's positions as well as what was happening in each location. Brann studied the house, seemingly lost in thought. When the others were where they needed to be, he made a sweeping bow and ushered her forward.
The lock picks felt awkward and unfamiliar in her hand, strange tools that made her feel as though she had two thumbs. Without the link to Christian she would have been forced to break a window.
His warm assurances and guidance helped her through the process. A small burst of pride made her smile when the second and last lock yielded with a satisfying click.
The absence of wards or protections surprised her given the taint of the dark mage's magic. There were no symbols carved into the doorjamb, no spells woven around the perimeter of the house. Even the house itself was easily breached, the windows large and old-fashioned, though perhaps the remoteness of the location had lulled the fledgling into thinking he was safe.
Over the years she'd met a few of those sired by Falcone and Yorick, but they were centuries old, long past needing her fathers' blood or guidance. She'd spent no time around true fledglings, but she would have expected a fledgling to be paranoid, fanatical about ensuring his continued existence.
She thought of the elaborate security system her parents had. Wards and alarms, well-hidden rooms secured and built to withstand even a fire. Longing flared up in that instant, excitement over the prospect of her fathers no longer having to fear exposure to the sun.
Mystic stepped into the fledgling's house. To Brann, she said, "You may enter."
He stepped across the threshold. Through their link she knew Roman was already inside, at the back of the house and in the kitchen.
Your mates will never again trust me with your care if I allow you to precede me, Brann said, his voice rich with amusement.
Mystic smiled despite the seriousness of the situation. She stepped to the side so he could get in front of her.
The house was old, large, heavily tainted-though the last came to her through Brann and Roman's awareness. As she moved from room to room with Brann, absorbing his impressions as well as Roman's in the way a dry desert hungrily pulls the rainfall beneath its surface, some of her old doubts and insecurities leached away. In their place was a budding confidence. She could learn to be a hunter.
They found the door leading to the cellar just as Christian heard the sound of a ground level window being opened. An image flashed though her mind, a man bursting through the concealing shrubbery at the side of the house. A jolt of savage pleasure followed, wolves after prey.
Hawk rounded the corner just as the fledgling neared. Hugh veered, sprinted. He was fast but the wolves were faster. It was over even before Brann got close enough to the struggling vampire to be heard.
"Stop," Brann said, needing only his voice to freeze the fledgling in place.
The mage's dark magic writhed and fought inside Hugh, but his body remained perfectly still even as his muscles pressed against his skin in an agony of suspended motion. The struggle intensified as Roman drew near. Frustrated, terrified, confused tears of blood leaked from the corners of his eyes.
Brann knelt beside them and caught the droplets on the tips of his fingers. He used the moisture to draw elaborate symbols on Hugh's forehead. The fledgling's eyes went blank. The taut muscles relaxed though the connection with Brann and Roman allowed Mystic to feel the dark magic still seething deep inside Hugh.
"You can release him," Brann said.
Hawk and Christian released their grip on Hugh's forearms. Mystic's throat tightened when she saw the strands of fur caught on the tips of Hugh's deadly talons. With a thought she assured herself he had not managed to draw blood.
Both of her mates growled, but underneath their macho protest she felt their pleasure at knowing she worried and cared for them. They backed away, not stopping until they were crowded against Mystic's legs in a furry blockade.
Roman's chuckle sounded in her mind. It made Mystic smile. Another vampire might have taken offense, considered it an insult to have Weres position themselves in such a way as to make it obvious they were guarding the very person he was already guarding.
I am not just vampire, Roman said, leaning in to brush tantalizing kisses along her neck. I understand the beast's need to protect its mate above all other considerations. I would think less of your wolves if your safety wasn't constantly on their minds.
Mystic relaxed into him. It felt good to have all three of her mates with her. They'd been together such a short time and yet she thought they'd already adapted and adjusted amazingly well.
She shifted her attention to the fledgling vampire. Several drops of blood glistened on Brann's fingertips. As she watched he rubbed his thumb and fingers together, a contemplative expression on his face. When he looked up, he said, "If it weren't for the mage's old magic and the power inherent in Juric's line, this one would be dead. He's fed only on humans since he was reborn as vampire."
"A troubling development," Roman said.
Brann nodded.
"What happened to Juric's missing son?" Mystic asked.
Brann wiped the blood from his fingers onto Hugh's shirt. "A good question, one our captured fledgling will be receptive to answering in his current state." He removed a black-handled athame from a sheath hidden inside his shirt and casually sliced through the buttons holding Hugh's shirt closed. "Tell us how you came to be vampire, from the very beginning."
"We were in Laughlin-"
"We?" Brann said.
"Todd, Marta, and me."
"Go on."
"There was someone Marta was supposed to meet. She didn't tell us then. She just said she wanted to get out of Vegas and would we go with her. Later we learned why she wanted to go. She met-" Hugh's eyes closed. His back arched.
Brann nicked Hugh's neck with the athame. He gathered the droplets of blood and added more symbols to those he'd already written on Hugh's face.
The fledgling's back dropped to the ground with a soft thud. His eyelids fluttered open. "She met Egan Walsh. He calls himself The Dark Wizard." Hugh licked his lips. "We've played against him online. Only Todd and I didn't know it at first. We only knew it afterward. He always plays a wizard. Sometimes he has vampire servants, sometimes he has werewolf servants. But most of the time he plays solo. His usual strategy is to get the vampires fighting the wolves, and the black witches fighting the white ones so he can concentrate on destroying the other sorcerers.
"Marta slipped away from us. We looked everywhere but we couldn't find her. We hung around for days. When she didn't come back we told the police about her being missing then came home. A week later she calls Todd. She says the police are going to get in touch with us and we need to go along with what they say, not argue with them.
"The next day it happens. They tell us Marta was found dead, overdosed on drugs even though we knew she never did anything worse than smoking pot. They said her brother found her and her body had already been released for burial-only she doesn't have a brother.
"Todd went back to Laughlin. He disappeared too. Two weeks later he called to tell me to buy a suit for his funeral, same thing. When they found him it'd look like a drug overdose. No autopsy, no embalming, he knew his family wouldn't allow it. Just a quick ceremony and a hasty burial.
"Marta and Todd came to my place afterward. Stupid. It was stupid. They just about killed me. They thought they could turn me without Egan Walsh but then they lost their nerve. It took me days to recover. It took me weeks to get over being scared."
Hugh smiled. His fangs glistened. "But I couldn't forget what it felt like. I wanted it. I wanted the rush of being able to do it. To step inside the game. I wanted the game to be real for me too, not pretend. They took me to Egan.
"There was a vampire. Egan kept him naked, thin, like he was being starved to death. He looked barely legal. Totally feral. There were symbols painted all over him. There were symbols on the door leading into the room and painted in a circle around a mat on the floor. They left me in with him. I thought I'd have to screw up the courage, but as soon as I got close enough, I couldn't stop myself from going to him.
"It hurt. It was like being savaged. I lost consciousness and when I woke up I was in a room, starving, starving. They pushed someone in. A prostitute. I drank and drank and drank until there was nothing else. I didn't even care about killing her. I didn't care when another girl was pushed into the room. She screamed. She fought when she saw what I'd done to the first girl. But as soon as I bit her, she smiled. She died smiling and my heart started beating."
Christian and Hawk both growled deep in their throats. Mystic felt Christian's desire for justice on behalf of the dead. He wanted to lunge forward and rip Hugh to shreds.
She dug her fingers into the fur on the nape of their necks. She was sickened by Hugh's account but tried to remind herself he might be blameless under both Angelini and vampire law. A newly created vampire had little control. His deeds became the responsibility of the one who'd made him. It didn't mean Hugh was innocent, he'd have to be questioned further-especially about what he'd done since and what he'd known before agreeing to become vampire. At the moment the prostitutes' deaths weren't what was important.
"And after you found new life?" Brann said, his voice a smooth purr though he had not only the power, but the right to pass judgment and execute Hugh where he lay.
"Egan kept me in the room. After that he always kept one of us locked up. I didn't know it then, but Todd and Marta were getting stronger. They started going to a place called Wolfsbane. Sometime werewolves wandered in. They didn't know it at first. They thought they were humans, psychics maybe since they knew Todd and Marta were vampire. It was hard to hypnotize them, but sometimes when they were drunk, or when they dared one another, they'd offer a wrist or a neck.
"The blood made Todd and Marta more...independent. They were stealing for Egan, doing what he said. We all were. It seemed fair and we were coping okay until Toby.
"Toby's brother pimped him to Egan. That's what Egan liked-boys. Marta said she'd seen Toby before, and others, even younger. She said Egan couldn't get it up for an adult.
"Egan wanted to turn Toby. He had Todd bite Toby, drain him, give him his blood, only it didn't work. Toby didn't come back."
Nausea rose in Mystic's throat. She turned in Roman's arms so she could press her face to his neck and try to chase away the images with his clean scent. In that moment she was glad Todd Moore had screamed in the torturous rise of the sun even though he might well have been as much a victim as the young boy.
Hawk and Christian pushed against her legs. She ran her fingers in their fur, trying to soothe them as well as herself. This was why the Angelini had been created, to hunt, to protect the humans from becoming prey to the supernatural world. Beneath the horror Hugh's recitation brought, the fire to see this through until the bitter end burned hotter than ever in Mystic.
Roman's arms tightened around her waist. His cheek rubbed against hers. We can't undo what has happened but we will see justice served.
Behind her Brann said, "Go on."
Mystic forced herself to face Hugh.
"Todd and Marta tried to free the vampire who made us," Hugh said. "Egan caught them. He hurtled curses and froze them in place. Then he dragged me out of the room where I was kept. We watched while he slit the vampire's wrists and drained the blood. There wasn't much, less than a beaker full of it.
"I don't think the vampire had fed since I was thrown in with him. He was thin and gaunt, almost skeletal. At the very end Egan took the heart. He ate it. He laughed in between bites and said we wouldn't free ourselves from him. We were his until he decided we were more trouble than we were worth."
Moonlight glinted off the blade of Brann's athame. "And are you his now?"
"Only if I'm close enough for his spells to find me."
"The three of you escaped together?"
"Yes."
"How did you manage it?"
"Egan was preoccupied with the werewolf. He didn't realize Marta and Todd were strong enough to leave without his command. They'd slipped me notes, we had it planned."
"What werewolf?" Brann asked.
"A male. Egan told Marta and Todd to capture one. They took his blood, so much of it he passed out. He came to as they were carrying him into the house. He shifted. Somehow they got him in a cage. I heard it. They told me about it but I didn't see it."
"The werewolf had a brand?"
"I don't know."
"Have you been back?"
"Yes, but Egan's gone. We went back to kill him but someone else was living in the house. Even the realtor they'd rented it from didn't know where Egan was. We checked."
"You've killed others, besides the prostitutes you were given?"
"Yes. It's what I have to do to stay alive. Feeding isn't enough."
"Here in Las Vegas?"
"Sometimes. We spread it out, go other places. Find junkies and prostitutes mostly, people that won't be missed right away."
"Where's Todd?"
"I don't know. He was supposed to meet us last night but he didn't show."
Brann frowned. "He took blood from you?"
"Yes. The first time, when he and Marta nearly killed me."
"He can't reach you with his mind?"
"Only if we're near one another."
"What about Marta?"
"The same."
"Where was Todd going to hunt the last time you saw him?"
"Wolfsbane. He wanted to try for werewolf blood. I told him it was a bad idea. I reminded him that in the game The Dark Wizard set wolves against the vampires. I figured if Egan could make us from a captured vampire then he could make Weres from the one Todd and Marta delivered."
"And Marta? Where is she tonight?"
"Wyldfyres maybe. She's been trying to get up the courage to go there and be around other vampires."
Brann glanced at Mystic. "I can question him further in Rafe's presence. Perhaps my companion can find The Dark Wizard through the online game, but for tonight I think it's more urgent to capture the remaining fledgling. Do you have anything else you wish to ask him?"
Mystic took a minute to think, to touch Hawk and Christian's minds as well as Roman's. All seemed to agree the council's executioner had done an excellent job in gathering the information they needed.
"You'll judge him later?" Mystic asked.
Brann shrugged. "Perhaps. Or I might turn him over to a tribunal composed of vampire, Were and Angelini and let them decide his fate. It's too soon to tell."
"I think we're finished with him for now," Mystic said.
With the ease of long practice Brann thrust the athame into the fledgling's heart. "There are cells underneath Fangs. I will take him there and arrange for Gian to keep him guarded." An elegant eyebrow lifted as his attention shifted to Roman. "You will accompany your mate to Wyldfyres?"
Roman would prefer she never step foot in Wyldfyres, never see the excessive, brutally carnal and depraved side of vampire existence, but it was unavoidable. "I will accompany her."
Brann gathered the fledgling in his arms then stood. Silence reigned as they walked back to their cars, each lost in thought.
Hawk and Christian shapeshifted and dressed then crowded Mystic in their human forms just as they'd done in their furred ones. She put her arms around their waists, hugged them to her and Roman found he didn't mind. The three of them standing with her, offering their protection and caring, felt right to him.
"We'll go to Wolfsbane," Christian said, brushing his thumb across Mystic's mouth before she could protest. "Gabe and Gabby will join us."
"Some of Brann's vampires will be there as well." Roman touched his mind to Brann's to make sure he spoke the truth.
Mystic said, "I take it the other Weres haven't shown up at their house."
"Not yet," Brann said. "At sunrise it would be best if the wolves took over." Along the blood link with Roman he added, At the moment only a few of my line are able to walk underneath the sun. I won't risk Syndelle by letting others know the Masada lives among us and her blood will free us from the curse of eternal darkness. Perhaps it will become necessary once the Angelini finish with their meeting or if we learn the dark mage's magic has returned as well, but until then, her secret must be kept safe.
Roman gave a subtle nod of acknowledgement. He owed a debt to Syndelle he could never repay.
"We'd better get going," Hawk said.
Roman thought again of the hotel room. "Mystic and I will return at nightfall tomorrow."
It was easier than it would have been in other circumstances. Though he had no direct mental link to Hawk and Christian, he could read their thoughts easily. Better she be with him, safe in bed or wherever else he intended to fuck her than to be with them either at the club or when they took over the surveillance of the rogue werewolves' house.
Hawk and Christian agreed without snarling, growling or raising their hackles. Roman chuckled silently. They were indeed making great progress in getting along well together.