Release book 3 of The Angler series Read online

  Iron strong fingers grabbed my shoulders from behind.

  I jerked away from the unfamiliar touch. As a blood slave I should have been able to break free without any effort. Most humans couldn’t compete with my strength, one of the perks of being bound to Tane, but the hand still held me in its steel grip. I twisted around and came face-to-face with Damius’s Asian blood slave.

  Any strength I’d gained from Tane’s bond was negated by the fact that this human male was also bound to a Nosferatu warrior. We were on equal ground and he’d squash me like a bug.

  Somehow he loomed over me even though we were almost the same height. Cold and dark, his glare bored into my soul and I could sense he wanted to hurt me bad.

  I widened my stance and twisted my body around sharply to break free. Yeah, that didn’t work either. I had yet to pass my yellow belt in martial arts so Asian dude would most likely clean the pavement with my ass.

  He smirked and said something that sounded Japanese.

  My heart dropped into my gut and sizzled in the stomach acid. He didn’t seem like the kind of person I could reason with. He had seppuku determination written all over his face and the whip-like reflexes in his limbs hinted at killer martial arts skills. So I did the one thing growing up on the streets of New York had taught me. I closed the distance between us and grabbed his jewel sack in my bone crunching grip. Didn’t need to pass no dumb belt test to learn this skill.

  His eyes bulged with a snarl, but he still refused to ease his hold. His fighting style might come with a code of honor, but mine sure didn’t. Fight dirty, fight to win was what my grandma had taught me.

  Like a synchronized dance, I swung upward as he folded forward in pain. My elbow met his nose and a satisfying bone-cracking noise followed. Sharp pain traveled along my arm and I yelped, stumbling free from Damius’ blood slave. I cradled my injured elbow. This all took place in a matter of seconds and from the shocked expressions of the bystanders’ faces, they hadn’t processed our fight yet.

  As I passed my bent-over assailant as I raced toward the crowd, he twisted around with a backhanded swing.

  The solid hit landed across my face. I flew against the crashed vehicle, knocking the wind out of me. I puddle to the ground. With moan sounding suspiciously like a moo, I sucked in air and relearned how to breathe. The left side of my face went numb for a second before a throbbing ache took its place. I tasted blood and tongued my teeth to check if any were missing. My left eye was already swelling and made it harder to see.

  The fellow blood slave in arms faced me, and I saw my death in his cold glare.

  Two police officers closed in on us with guns drawn. Score one point for humankind. Bullets could kill us, unlike our masters.

  I rose to my feet and spotted Kam on the edge of the crowd. A deep frown marred his handsome face, which meant I’d get a talking-to later if I lived.

  Damius’ slave watched my every step until I moved behind a policeman, and then he lunged.

  Shots went off, the crowd scattered and like any self-preserving herd animal, I ran with the stampede. In the confusion I lost track of Kam, so I stuck close to thickest part of the crowd and did my best to blend in. I glanced over my shoulder.

  Both police officers were down and others had drawn their weapons but lacked a target to aim them at.

  My assailant was nowhere in sight. I tried to look in every direction and run at the same time. Not an easy feat. Our simple escape plan to the yacht was falling apart. I’d lost Kam and I’d never found Rurik. Heck, I didn’t even know where the marina was located.

  A man’s arm snaked around my waist, and I screamed. Struggling, I twisted in his grasp like fish out of water until I met Rurik’s ice-blue gaze. He wore a blond wig and a paramedic’s jumper. Without a word, he fought against the scattering crowd and led me to the back of an empty ambulance, where he set me inside. “Strap in. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.” He slammed the doors shut in my face.

  I blinked and cradled my sore arm. I tried to smile but my face ached too much. Rurik was fine and I was a mess. Just like old times.

  Rurik entered the front of the ambulance and flicked the sirens on. The sound blared over the noise of the chaos outside. He geared it into drive, hitting the gas pedal as if we were in the grand prix. The tires peeled before we shot into motion.

  Flung back by the sudden acceleration, I hit the closed doors with a solid thunk that vibrated deep into my marrow. My bones melted and I sagged. What kind of life did I live where I needed self-defense classes to survive the people who loved me?

  The ambulance slowed, and the passenger side door opened long enough for Kam to clamber inside. He glared at me. “What are you doing on the floor?”

  Many retorts tangled on my tongue and I settled on giving him the one-fingered salute. I sat up, resting against the doors with my legs sprawled in front of me, and rubbed the back of my head. Son of a bitch, pain never grew more tolerable with experience. “What happened?” I shouted to be heard over the siren.

  “We were ambushed.” Rurik glanced at me through the review mirror. “Oh honey, you look…uncomfortable.”

  I crawled forward so we could talk easier. “I’ve suffered through worse.” Let me count the ways: whipped, fileted, beaten, almost drowned… This was just a scratch by comparison. “Did the Nosferatu do this?” Damn, they moved fast.

  “No, these were vampire soldiers.” Rurik steered around the cars that pulled out of our way. The marina came to view. “I’m sorry about your packmate, Kam. He was a good shifter.”

  Kam gripped the chicken bar in a white-knuckled grip. “What of the others?” There had been four guards left with Rurik.

  “They fought the vampires and allowed me time to escape and acquire this disguise. I knew you’d be stopped by the traffic so instead I waited.”

  I smacked his shoulder. “You should have run to the boat.” Didn’t he understand he had a bull’s eye painted on his back?

  He caught my hand within his and brought it to his lips. “If I waited here or at the boat, I would still be a sitting target. At least the accident caused enough commotion to possibly distract them.” He tossed me a questioning glance over his shoulder. “Can you reach Tane?” My lovers couldn’t commune mind to mind from a long distance, either.

  “No. He’s shut me off tight.” I pointed toward the gated marina. “There’s the entrance.”

  Chapter Three

  Rurik aimed for the entrance to the marina that was barred by a drop arm barrier.

  My gut clenched and I braced for impact, but the gate rose. Someone inside the guard house must have heard us coming. I sagged, sighing in relief.

  A familiar boat drew my attention as Rurik parked the stolen ambulance. Tane’s yacht, the same one he’d used in Budapest where he’d tortured Colby. Dread settled in my heart. The click of the front doors opening barely registered in my consciousness as I stared at the upper deck, where Tane had revealed his plans to kill Dragos and shocked me with the news—

  I hated Tane for the longest time. I would have happily staked him when we first met, but a fine line lay between hate and love.

  “Connie!” Rurik had opened the back doors while nightmares plagued my memories.

  I spun to face him and flung myself into his arms. Somehow we’d find a cure for him. I couldn’t face losing him again as I had in Budapest and I wouldn’t let a disease take another person I loved away.

  “Whoa.” He caught me in a hug and swung me to ground. “What’s that for?”

  Releasing my vice-like grip on him, I eased back and wiped the wayward curls from my face. “That boat holds bad memories.” Like waking in Tane’s arms for the first time. Who would have guessed we’d end up as lovers?

  Not me. He’d changed quite a bit since then, sort of, or I’d grown more tolerant. I glanced over my shoulder and spotted the plume of dark smoke from the wreckage rise in sky.

  Rurik slipped his arm around my shoulders. He hadn’t been with me o
n this yacht those many, many nights ago. He’d been chained to a wall in Dragos’s fortress facing east so he could greet the dawn. But he knew what Tane had made me do.

  I shook my head and huddled closer to him. “I hate this place.”

  He held me tighter. “We will replace those bad memories with good ones.”

  Kam was untying the ropes from the dock. “Hurry. We have to be out of sight before they locate us. Otherwise they’ll just swim to the boat.”

  Rurik climbed aboard then offered me his hand to steady my climb. As soon as my feet hit the deck, I headed for the ladder leading to the control room.

  Why? I didn’t know. Sailing wasn’t in my skillset; heck, I didn’t even know how to start this thing, but it seemed like a reasonable place to sit down.

  The dark dials were silent as I entered and stopped in my tracks, unsure where my next step would take me. I glanced over my shoulder, but Rurik hadn’t followed. Reaching my hands in front of me, I felt along the smooth walls until I discovered a light switch and flicked it on.

  I melted into the closest seat and watched the dock for any unnatural movement. The left side of my face throbbed where the Asian blood slave had backhanded me. I suspected it would leave a mark. Once Tane arrived, he could heal me with his blood and all these injuries would vanish.

  Kam stormed into the room and tossed me a flesh-searing glare. “The point of having a bodyguard is so he can protect you when the shit hits the fan.” He searched blindly under the control panel until he pulled out a key.

  I rested my aching head against the back of the chair. “I know. I didn’t think, I reacted.” He meant my crazed flight through the crowd when I’d seen the car wreck. Being small came in handy sometimes. I could fit in smaller spaces, while my hulking guard had to move either around or through the obstacles.

  He stuck the key in the ignition and started the boat. “That blood slave could have killed you.”

  “He almost did until Rurik showed up.”

  Kam grimaced. “You would make my job easier if you just stuck close instead of acting like a lunatic.”

  I flinched. Kam didn’t know about the consequences of being a blood slave or the threat of not having Tane’s blood available always hanging over my head. If I didn’t take a dose as needed, I would go insane. I’d met a blood slave who had suffered this condition. May Belle rest in peace.

  The boat drifted from the dock and the engines purred to propel us from the marina. I jerked in my seat. “Aren’t we waiting for Tane?” I rushed to the window, thinking I’d missed his arrival.

  “His orders were to get Rurik out of Monte Carlo.” Kam twisted the wheel and accelerated toward the open ocean.

  I reached out with my mind but sensed nothing. Nothing? My heart revved in time with the engine and I tore out of the control room. Taking the steep steps two at a time, I descended into the luxurious living space below.

  Rurik stood in the minimal kitchen, pouring ice into a Ziplok bag. He raised an eyebrow as I barged in.

  “We’re leaving without Tane.” I struggled with the words between breaths.

  “Yes?” He pressed the ice to the swollen side of my face while cradling my head in his other hand.

  “I can’t sense him. The only time I haven’t been able to sense him was when Luckard was torturing him.” I gripped Rurik’s wrists. “What if they are hurting him?” If Tane hadn’t blocked our mental connection, I’d sense all his pain. His seasoned mind could handle a lot more than mine.

  Rurik stroked my hair, his eyes growing sad. “Do you think he can’t handle it after everything he’s been through over the centuries?”

  I took a deep, slow breath. “He can take care of himself.” After being around for over a thousand years, he should be able to, right? Part of me didn’t believe he could.

  Rurik gave me a small smile. “Yes. He’s better off with us out of the way. We’re a—”

  “Weakness.” I leaned into the ice pack and allowed the cold to numb the pain. “What if they kill him?”

  The gentle fingers running through my hair tightened. Neither of us spoke, but that didn’t make the consequences of my bond any less real.

  I would die too.

  “Come let me check your injuries.” He handed me the ice pack and pushed me toward the bedroom. “How did you lose your shoes?”

  “Long story.” Basically, I was screwed. Separated from Tane, I couldn’t do anything to secure my future without risking Rurik’s life. Would the Nosferatu clan take Tane as a hostage? I didn’t know enough about vampire politics to hazard a guess. But I knew an expert. Glancing at Rurik, I smiled. He worked as Tane’s right-hand man. His people skills outweighed his fighting skills, which made him a fantastic ambassador and politician. Tane wouldn’t have such a strong hold on the Vampire Nation without Rurik’s network of spies and allies.

  He came to a halt. “What?”

  I gave him my best innocent blink. “Nothing. I’m happy you saved me.” I really was. If not for Rurik, I’d be human confetti. “You’re my hero.”

  He snorted and pulled the ice from my face. “You should learn to duck faster.”

  My smile became more crooked as a small wave of shame burned my cheeks. “I’ll take that into consideration.” I trained hard with Kam so I wouldn’t have to rely so much on a rescue, but the odds weren’t in my favor. Sure, I had a blood slave’s strength and speed; however, in comparison to a vampire’s or shifter’s it didn’t matter. I was still human, frail.

  He circled me with that unnatural predatory grace his people possessed, the kind that set off my genetic reflex to flee. Capturing me within his arms, he pressed his hard, muscled body against mine. After years together, my skin still tingled at Rurik’s touch.

  I leaned into his embrace, letting my curves conform to his solid plane.

  “Connie, I need to feed,” he whispered in my ear. An unusual plea tinged his voice.

  I sucked in a sharp breath and went stiff in his arms. “You already fed earlier today.” A vampire his age shouldn’t need to feed more than two or three times a week. I couldn’t keep up with his increasing demands for blood. Being bonded to Tane didn’t cover unlimited blood supply. Tane had been using his own magical blood to heal me more often than usual, due to anemia.

  With a groan, Rurik released his hold on me and leaned against the wall.

  I took note of the slight tremor in his hands. Things were getting worse and we weren’t closer to diagnosing what was wrong with him, let alone finding a cure.

  He gave me a weak smile. A dark, thinning fuzz covered his head now. He shaved in a poor attempt to hide his hair loss. If he were human, it wouldn’t be a big deal.

  I set my hands on my hips and took a deep breath. Tane had insisted Rurik drink only from me until we figured out what was happening so we could ensure a clean blood source. This meant some serious anemia unless Tane healed me.

  “I can’t help it. My hunger grows worse. It’s like I’ve drunk only water.” He crossed the small space between us and ran his hands over my arms, creating that sexual friction I couldn’t resist. He guided me backwards to the bed. “Lay down.” Pushing me onto the mattress, he ignored my weak protest. His darkening gaze held more than hunger for blood as he loomed over the bed. The way he raked his eyes over my body sent shivers up my spine.

  “Rurik.” I barely got his name beyond my lips.

  He unzipped his ambulance jumper. I always was a sucker for a man in uniform.

  Chapter Four

  Rurik’s jumpsuit parted enough to give me a fine view of his chest and stomach. Being predators tended to make vampires lean. They must metabolize any fat within the blood they consumed, because I’d never met an overweight blood-sucker. They all had the sleek edge of a hunter’s build.

  The zipper extended to his groin where he slipped out, hard and ready. He gripped his cock and stroked himself, making a rolling motion with his hips. “You called me your hero.”

  I pried my gaze away
from what he did with his hands and met his lustful stare. “I did.”

  “Then take off your clothes and show me how grateful you are.”

  I quirked my eyebrow at him and resisted the urge to grind my heel to his groin. “That’s abusing the uniform.”

  He made an appreciative noise deep in his throat and slid the hem of my dress over my hips. “There has to be some perks to saving lives for a living.” He gave me a playful wink. “Looks like you still need rescue. That dress appears too tight to breathe in.”

  “You’re right.” I mean, I was breathing heavy, except the dress didn’t constrict my chest in any way.

  In one swift jerk he tore the silk material from hem to collar. That took skill and I didn’t want to know the details of how he’d acquired such talents. The vampire had centuries on me. I was sure he wasn’t a virgin when we’d met.

  My breasts tumbled free.

  He sucked in a breath and stroked faster. Dark energy filled the small room. Something new that poured from Rurik. It shadowed his eyes and sharpened the edges of his face. With a shrug of his shoulders, he let the jumpsuit fall off and stepped out of it.

  I broke away from his burning glare. With the hair loss, I would have thought he’d grow weaker from the sickness, but Rurik kept growing more powerful. Tane didn’t see it though. To him, we were gnats metaphysically. I was on the bottom of the food chain in our threesome, so I noticed even the smallest spike. I had to. Prey should always know who the biggest, baddest predators in the room were.

  Spreading my legs with his hands, Rurik kept one on my knee and moved the other along the line of my thigh. He hooked the edge of my panties with a finger and guided it down my legs, where he tossed it to the floor with his jumpsuit. Eager, he bent forward, placing my legs over his broad shoulders and resting my heels on his back. He ran his fangs along the sensitive skin over my femoral artery.