Fate would decide.
Luther Kostas frowned as John gave his report. “She went to dinner and back to her hotel. Nothing out of the ordinary.” It wasn’t so much what John said but how he said it, as though it was a recitation rather than an actual memory.
“Did she talk to anyone?”
John hesitated for a moment. “No.”
“Not even the waiter or waitress at the restaurant?” Luther prompted.
“Shit, I don’t know. I’ve got some kind of stomach virus and have a splitting headache too.”
Luther pushed up from his chair and strode to the window, looking out over the New York skyline, the reports on his desk forgotten. “None of this sounds right. I think you ran into a vampire.”
“No, that’s impossible,” John protested. “I’m too strong for one of those bloodsuckers to get into my mind.”
“Maybe not.” The possibilities were exciting. “What if we’re dealing with a very old vampire? Maybe the sire of the last one we executed didn’t go back to Europe. Maybe he’s still in Chicago. And maybe our Ms. Agostino knows more than we thought.”
“What do you want me to do?”
Luther turned away from the city lights and began pacing back and forth in his office. “I want her kept her under surveillance and I want you wearing a wire. I want to know what’s being said and where you are at all times. We can’t afford to take any chances.”
“I’ll take care of it.” Luther could hear the caution and the excitement in John’s voice. An older vampire was a challenge and the hunt was on.
“I’m going to call in Aaron from North Carolina and have him meet you. I’ll join you as soon as I can get away. In the meantime, stay sharp.”
“Always.”
Luther ended the call and stared at the clock. It was too late to do anything tonight. Tomorrow he’d tie up some business here in the city and then head to Chicago. He strode over to the wall covered in swords and pulled down a short, sharp one that came from the Roman era. It was well made and strong, but he put it back. He was in the mood for something more modern. He plucked a crossbow from the wall and added a machete and Bowie knife for good measure. He’d take his Glock as well. Good thing he was driving as he’d never make it past airport security.
The thrill of the hunt was upon him. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe it was nothing more than John being slightly ill, but Luther didn’t think so. Years of hunting the creatures of the night had honed his intuition and it was screaming that there was a vampire living in Chicago, and somehow Sonia Agostino was connected to him.
He drew the blade of the machete over his thumb and watched a bead of blood swell from the shallow cut. He brought his thumb to his mouth, sucked the warm blood and smiled.
Chapter Four
It was the sun shining through her window that woke her. Sonia yawned and stretched, amazed she’d slept at all. For most of the night, she’d tossed and turned, her body filled with a sexual ache that wasn’t going to be fulfilled. The sun was rising by the time she’d finally drifted off, total exhaustion pushing her over the edge into sleep.
She glanced at the clock and gasped at the time. It was eleven in the morning. She hadn’t slept that late since…well, ever. She was usually up at the crack of dawn and hard at work. She definitely wasn’t a night person, but considering her restless night, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that she’d slept the morning away.
She shoved the covers off and eased her legs over the side of the bed, taking a moment to just sit as her memory drifted back to the night before. That was some dream she’d had, especially since she’d only been asleep for such a short time.
Heat flushed her face and she knew she was blushing without having to look in the mirror. Even now, her breasts ached and she felt empty inside. What would have happened next in her dream if room service hadn’t arrived? As it was, she wasn’t sure if she should be grateful to them for being late, or not. She shook her head and smiled. It certainly would have been interesting.
She’d never had a dream so vivid, so very real. Her body was still humming with a low-grade arousal and that simply wouldn’t do. She had a lot on her to-do list today. First of which, was getting another shower, this one on the cool side to wash away the remnants of her fantasy lover.
Sonia stood and padded to the bathroom. The mirror reflected a woman she almost didn’t recognize. Her curly hair was tousled and looked more sexy than unkempt. Her lips appeared almost swollen and her eyes were still slumberous. She looked as though she’d just rolled out of bed after a night with a lover.
Not that such an event had happened often in her lifetime. She was circumspect and choosy when it came to letting a man into her bed. She was more intellectual than sexy, and she’d had only three lovers in her life, all of them long-term commitments that had fizzled out over time. They were all great guys, but as dedicated to their work as she was to hers, leaving little time for their relationship.
But she’d never climbed out of bed with any of those men looking quite like this. She patted her rosy cheeks and sighed. Her dream lover might have spoiled her for anyone else.
And where the heck had she conjured him from? He was male perfection, strong without being muscle-bound, tall, but not too tall, his eyes black and compelling. She sighed and turned away from the mirror, determined to put the dream behind her. After all, it wasn’t like she was ever going to meet him. He was a figment of her rather vivid imagination.
Sonia stepped up to the shower, turned on the water and adjusted it to slightly on the cool side. She needed to rid herself of the remnants of last night’s dream and get back down to business. Then she peeled off her pajamas and stepped beneath the spray, cringing as the water hit her bare skin. “Crap, that’s cold.” She quickly adjusted the water so it was slightly warmer, grabbed the bar of soap off the ledge and began to lather it between her hands. Usually she enjoyed her morning shower. This morning she didn’t linger.
She stepped out, grabbed one of the thick, fluffy towels the hotel provided and quickly dried off and wrapped the towel around her. She hadn’t washed her hair and it was only damp on the ends, so she dragged her brush through the thick mass and pulled it back, clipping it at her nape with a hammered silver barrette.
Moisturizer, a light brush of mascara and a swipe of lipstick and she was done with her morning routine. Sonia never bothered with much makeup, had never really gotten the knack for it, much to the chagrin of her mother, who was the most stylish person Sonia knew. Obviously, she’d been born without that particular gene, but it no longer bothered her. She’d long ago come to accept who she was, a regular-looking woman with a good brain and a healthy body.
According to her mother, her best features were her smoky-gray eyes and her rather ample chest, which Sonia did her best to downplay. But she did love beautiful lingerie and spent more money than she should on her one vice. She reached into her suitcase and pulled out a bra and panty set in a lovely shade of lavender. She dropped the towel and put them on, loving the sensual slide of the silky fabric and lace against her skin. The textures seemed more intense this morning and she shivered, her nipples pebbling against the cups of the bra.
Comfort was the key for today and she pulled on well-worn jeans and paired them with a charcoal-gray turtleneck. The color of the top brought out her eyes and she knew it looked good on her. She topped it with a black blazer, making her appear casual, but professional. She strapped on her watch and added small silver hoops to her ears, deciding that was good enough.