Her stare shut him up. “Let’s get this over with, okay? I want my name cleared and I want to find out if more jerkoffs are gonna be coming to attack.” He didn’t know. Tony thought she’d just had one really kick-ass fighting night because she’d had those before.
You were getting stronger.
What would Tony do, when he saw what she’d become?
Growling, she shoved by him and went after her prey.
Leo stood in the middle of the room, his arms lifted and held in thick chains so that he dangled a good foot off the ground. The chains were hooked up to some kind of pulley, and one of the charmers stood near the master machine, sweat coating his brow.
“Bitch.”
Her brows lifted as she faced Leo. “Aw, you’re trying to sweet-talk me.”
He snarled and tried to lunge for her.
Stupid move. Even he wouldn’t be strong enough to break those chains.
He spun a bit, looking like a fish on two big hooks.
Leo’s teeth snapped together. “You should have killed me. I’m gonna get free—gonna come after you! You should have killed me!”
“Don’t worry, you’ll die.” From Simon. Hard. Cold. Ice.
“You. You fucking bastard! You think you found your damn golden ticket, don’t you? Think you can get away just because you’re screwing the new queen bitch?”
“Queen bitch?” Tony asked softly. “That’s…ah…different for you, isn’t it?”
“The bloodlust will get her,” Leo screamed. “Only a matter of time, then she’ll fuck like crazy and she’ll drink from any fool she wants. Drink, drain, and fuck—and you’ll be just as screwed as before!”
Dee flew at him. Not deliberate. Not really. She’d just seen the stiffening of Tony’s body and—
And, shit.
She launched at the vampire and slashed her claws down his chest. He howled and the blood flowed.
And the scent tempted.
Dee began to shake.
“What the hell? Dee? Dee, you’re not—”
She turned toward Tony and knew that her fangs were out. Fangs, claws. Bloodlust.
“Fuck!” Tony scrambled for his gun.
Simon punched him, a driving, brutal punch right in the jaw. Tony staggered back, hit the wall, then the ground.
Snick.
The two charmers had their weapons out and aimed.
“Won’t do you any good,” Simon told them, coming forward and—what? The guy was blocking her. Shielding her. Again. Kind of sweet. Kind of—“You know bullets won’t stop us.”
No, but Dee wasn’t exactly excited about testing that idea. She’d been shot as a human, could still remember the fiery blast, and didn’t want to go through that again, thank you very much. “Don’t even think about firing at me,” she told the charmers, aware of Leo laughing softly behind her. Laughing—freak.
“Hold your fire.” Tony rose slowly, rubbing his jaw. His gaze traveled over her. “Dee?” His dark eyes snapped to Simon and fury hardened his face. “You did this to her.” He had his gun out and aimed in an instant.
Simon, bastard, spread his arms wide as if to say, yeah, I can take it, so—
“Not to her!” Tony roared.
Damn.
Dee grabbed Simon’s arm and shoved him.
The bullet tore into her shoulder.
Her eyes squeezed shut. Still hurt like a bi—
“Dee!”
Her eyes cracked open. Tony ran toward her. “I didn’t mean—”
Simon caught him, lifted him by the throat. “You. Never. Shoot. Her.”
Um, he just did.
“I was aiming for you, asshole!”
More wild, loud laughter from Leo.
Screw this. “Lower the bastard,” she ordered. The charmer near the switch hesitated. “Lower him.”
A choked gasp. Tony’s face began to purple and the whir of the pulley filled the room.
“Simon.” Dee kept her voice soft. Too much tension. Too much rage. Simon walked a fine edge, and one push…“Simon, I want you to let him go.”
He dropped the cop.
Tony heaved, trying to suck in air.
Dee licked her lips and fought to ignore the throbbing in her shoulder. The bullet had gone straight through, she’d heard it clang against one of the metal pipes behind her. At least she didn’t have to worry about digging the thing out.
Just the blood loss. She had to stop that.
And she had to forget the pain. If Simon could stand there, with the hell he had to be feeling, then, somehow, so could she.
“Dee?” Tony’s voice, hoarse. Sad.
She couldn’t deal with him then.
“They’ll all turn from you now,” Leo taunted. She faced him. His feet touched the ground. “Every one you care about—they’ll turn away. They’ll see what you are, and they’ll come to kill you.”
Zane.
“You’ll be the one hunted now. You’ll be the one who’s scared and desperate and—”
She stepped forward. Smiled a bit. Then sank her teeth into his throat.
There was an instant of revulsion. Of horror. Of what-the-hell-am-I-doing.
Because she didn’t want his blood. Not like she’d wanted Simon’s. Didn’t want his taste in her mouth.
She’d longed for Simon. No revulsion. No fear. She’d been desperate to take from him.
This—this was just business.
And the woman inside, the woman who’d feared and hated vampires for so long, she shuddered and a scream rose in her throat.
Can’t do this. Can’t live like this. No. No.
Images came to her then. Flashing one right after the other.
Leo, covered in blood and grime, standing on an old battlefield. A sword lay cradled in his hands. The dead surrounded him and a wild smile stretched his face.
Dee forced herself to take more. Keep. It. Down.
Leo, drinking a woman dry as she screamed and screamed—a woman in a long, flowing white dress, with her hair so long and loose around them. A tall man with bright blond hair, braided on the sides, watched, a smile on his lips. “The first blood taste is always the sweetest.”
Leo lifted his head.
“Want more?” the blond man asked.
A quick nod, but a tear leaked down Leo’s cheek.
“Don’t worry, your wife doesn’t even feel the pain now.”
Laughter.
Madness.
Rage.
Pain.
She ripped her mouth away from his flesh. Her lips were wet. Blood trickled down Leo’s neck. His eyes had gone glassy and the guy had stopped laughing. Finally.
“The voice is quiet…” Leo spoke, a whisper.
Okay, so he seemed to be calming down, always a nice bonus and—
He lunged forward and sank his teeth into her shoulder. Dee howled and shoved him back. He shot away from her, but the chains groaned and jerked him up short.
Leo licked his lips. “Got you.”
Her teeth snapped together. “You—”
A shake of his dark head. “I-I can remember her…now.”
Dee rubbed her throbbing shoulder, then she punched him, because that shit hurt.
“Dee.” Simon’s voice. Steady and too controlled. Where was her big, bad protector when she’d actually needed his butt? She fired a glare at him, then nearly winced. Still damaged.
“Dee, he needed your blood, just like I did.”
She blinked.
“What the hell is going on here?” Tony shouted.
“I’m a vampire, you just tried to kill me, and I’m having one real pisser of a night.” Good sum-up. Dee narrowed her eyes on Leo. “And if you come at me again, I’ll take your head.”
A tear leaked from his left eye. “I can see my Sonja again.”