Chapter 1

 

“I swear if you’d just tell me what they paid you, I’ll double…even triple the amount!”

Drake Black shook his head as the last living member of Detroit’s Elder Council tried to negotiate for her life. He’d been in this situation before, and no matter how many times he thought it might go differently, it always had the same ending.

He’d stand right here, in the middle of the pitch-black room, while the lone survivor huddled under the heavy oak table throwing out reason after reason why they should be spared. They’d state how they helped their chosen city, how well they treated the humans around them, and then either how they didn’t deserve to die or how he didn’t know them.

The last two changed on occasion.

“I’ve done nothing but help the people of this city have a better life. I’ve treated them exactly like I’d treat anyone else. I don’t deserve this. Damn it! You don’t even know me!”

Drake chuckled. That was a first. Usually men argued they didn’t deserve death and women were the first to say he didn’t know them. He’d always chalked it up to men never being able to admit when they were wrong and women wanting to tug at the heartstrings.

Unfortunately for her, he’d left his heart in a different shirt and his give-a-shit was broken. Not to mention, his name tag said executioner in big black letters, not judge or jury. The judge in her case was the Lord of Detroit, who’d arranged for his own Council’s execution, and Drake had killed the jury of her peers right before she’d scurried under the table.

“You don’t have to do this! I’m sure if we spent some time together you’d see this is all a mistake. I’m not like those other idiots. They deserved to die, but not me. I can make you a better offer. It doesn’t even have to be money.” Her shrill voice took on the calculating, seductive quality of a scheming Elder vampiress. “You have to be lonely doing what you do. I’m sure we could work something out.”

Drake responded by spinning the custom silencer into the barrel of his .50 caliber Desert Eagle. He didn’t care for most female vampires to begin with, but ones who thought they could personally end his suffering just by being in his company occupied an even darker place in his heart.

He’d been there once – he wasn’t about to go back.

He moved to stand near the side of the table when his mark finally poked her head out. It quickly became obvious she hadn’t honed her ability to see in the dark as her head slowly turned from side to side, her narrowed eyes searching the large room.

“What do you say? Do you think we could be friends?” She licked her perfectly painted lips. “I think we could be great friends.”

Drake rolled his eyes. He usually didn’t talk to his targets, mainly because he didn’t want to instill any false hopes for negotiation, but she refused to take silence as an answer. “Lady, I don’t wanna know you. I don’t want your drug money, and I sure as hell don’t want your company.”

“I promise I’ll make it worth your while,” she all but purred.    

When he sensed the air around him charge with an overwhelming and completely unnatural feeling of acceptance, Drake glared down at the top of her soon-to-be-missing head. There was nothing in the entire world he hated more than someone trying to manipulate his emotions.

He opened his mouth to tell her exactly where she could stick her offer of friendship and her forced acceptance, but snapped it shut when he realized his thigh was vibrating. He pulled out his phone and stared down at the dark screen.

NEW CONTRACT: MARK ARRIVING AT THE RIVERS BUILDING, CHICAGO, @ 2 AM. MEET ME ON THE ROOF DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET IN 30 MINUTES. YOU ARE DONE IN DETROIT ALREADY, RIGHT?

Drake ground his teeth together and jammed the phone back into his coat pocket. So much for sleeping, or eating, or anything else he might want to do after two straight weeks of killing self-important vampires.

“Well, do you have an answer or not?”

He took a deep breath as the irritated note in her voice woke the beasts sleeping in the pit of his stomach. Crimson sparked at the edges of his vision. He was about to be done in Detroit all right. “Shove it, Lady.”

“Fine!” She crawled out a little more, fangs bared, her eyes glued on the one and only exit. “Have it your way, you pathetic waste of blood!”

He cocked his head. He was the pathetic waste of blood in the room? Really? He raised the gun. “Took ya long enough to find the door.”

In less than the time it took for her to suck in a complete breath, she burst out from under the table and made a run for the exit. Before she’d even taken that breath, Drake squeezed the trigger.

He squinted as the phosphorescent round left the chamber with a bright flash. The bullet struck her dead center in the back of the neck, in­stantly separating her head from her shoulders. Less than a second later her entire body burst into a golden red haze, signaling not only her very permanent exit from the world, but the end of Drake’s contract.

He caught the expended shell as it flipped through the air then waited for the shadows to consume what remained of the blood mist before he willed his gun away. It didn’t happen often, but every now and then one of the old bastards managed to reform, and he really wasn’t in the mood to deal with her again.

One round with a female vampire was more than enough.

He stretched and yawned as his darkness receded and six days without sleep fi­nally caught up with him. He pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes and tried to rub away the gritty sandpaper feeling. Fortunately, the quick massage worked, but the muffled growls and grumbles of his empty stomach couldn’t be fixed so easily.

Hopefully his next contract would be over fast, but just in case it wasn’t, he needed a plan. He concentrated on his good friend, Odin Nelek, and then waited for him to accept the mental connection.

No more than a few seconds passed before he heard Odin’s much too happy voice in his head. “What’s up, Big Man? Kill anyone lately?”

Drake smiled. Leave it to Odin to ask the most obvious question in the world. “Why yes, yes I have. I just finished up in Detroit. Would you be willing to do me a favor?”

“Always. What ya need?”

“Food and beer.”

“On it. One large pizza with everything but fungus and a case of beer. Where would you like that delivered, Sir?”

“To the roof of the building across from The Rivers complex. Is that a problem? Have you been there before?”

“Um…no, I don’t think I have. But I’ve been to The Rivers before, so I’ll just go there then hop on over.”

“Thanks, Odin. I appreciate it.”

“No problem, man. Give me about ten minutes.”

When he felt the mind link break, Drake rubbed his hands down his face. If he traveled the shadows they’d deposit him on the roof in roughly seven minutes, which meant if Odin showed up on time he could probably get two slices of pizza and two beers in his stomach before the Folder Go­pher appeared with his new contract. Not exactly a filling meal, but at least it would make for a good snack.

Hell, at this point he’d take whatever he could get.  

He cast one last glance over the quiet room to make sure everything was in order, but closed his eyes as an all too familiar sensation tugged at the top of his spine. For just the briefest of moments, he felt bad. Felt bad for the vampires who’d never exist again, bad because their fate had been purchased, but worse because it’d been carried out by his hand.

The feeling shouldn’t have been a surprise. Just like everything else that was the same about what had happened, almost every time he finished a contract he wondered what his life would be like if he wasn’t who he was. If he wasn’t what he was. But much like every time previous, he worked a few circles with his shoulders and gave himself a stern reminder that this was his life. This was what he excelled at…

This was the only thing he’d ever been good at.

Drake pushed the thoughts from his mind as he summoned the dark­ness back to him. When he felt the familiar blanket of icy shadows wrap around his body, he concentrated on his home in southern Chicago. It took a few minutes for the image to fully materialize, but once it did he moved north towards the Loop until The Rivers building came into view. From there, he focused on the building across the street and stepped out of the darkness just as he passed over the roof.

His boots had barely touched the concrete when a gust of cold wind rushed past him, nearly knocking him over. He planted a hand on the thigh high concrete wall bordering the roof as fresh snow spiraled everywhere, including but not limited to, all over his face and up his nose.

“Incoming!”

He shook his head as Odin landed in front of him a couple seconds later, quiet as a feather. “You do know that screaming your fool head off completely negates the purpose of a silent landing, right?”

Odin nodded. “I know, but it’s more fun that way.” He turned a slow circle and frowned. “Drake, why am I delivering pizza to a rooftop in the middle of February?”

Drake stared at his friend for a moment then burst out laughing. Had the innocent sounding question been asked by anyone else, it wouldn’t have been nearly as funny. However, considering Odin stood only a few feet away garbed in the jet black armor of an evil, undead warlord – the question was freaking hilarious.

“What?” Odin asked. He blinked his blacked-out eyes. “What’d I say?”

“It’s not what you said,” Drake managed to choke out between short bursts of laughter. “It’s how you said it. You sounded like a lost little kid.”

Odin scrunched up his face as he gently set his box of pizza on the ledge next to him. “It seemed like a good question at the time. But I see how it’s gonna be. Ask me to bring you dinner again and see what happens.” He dropped a case of beer on the concrete between them, the clank of the glass bottles serving as the perfect punctuation to his sentence.

Drake smiled. Only Odin would be so dramatic, or so careless with the safety of his beer. “Okay, fine. You’re delivering pizza to the roof because this is where Jake told me to meet him. Feel better now?”

“Yes,” Odin sighed as he flipped open the lid of the pizza box. He waved the rising steam towards his face and inhaled a deep breath. “I know you were probably hoping for Chicago style, but I was still in New York when you called.” He lifted a huge slice and smiled at the long strings of cheese he created. “I love Chicago, I really do, but New York makes the best pie. It’s like the Pizza Fairy flies by and sprinkles each one with a little crack dust before they put it in the box.”

Drake would have been able to stave off the second round of laughter, might have even managed to keep a straight face, but when Odin finished his rant by tipping his head from side to side while making flicking mo­tions with his free hand, all hope was lost.

“So,” Odin said as he slurped up a strand of cheese like a spag­hetti noodle. “I take it you asked me to bring food because you got another contract already?”

Drake drew a few calming breaths then nodded. “I was in the middle of dealing with the last member of Detroit’s Elder Council when the text came through to meet him here.”

“You’d think they’d let you finish the contract you’re on before they start harassing you about the next one.”

“Yeah, you’d think that,” Drake said as he liberated a bottle of beer from the cardboard so rudely holding it captive. “You’d think that, but you’d be wrong.” He twisted off the cap and took a big swig, enjoying the bit­ter taste of the ice cold liquid as it rolled across his tongue. “Thanks again for grabbing the food. I wasn’t sure I’d have time.” He cast a glance down to the empty street twenty-five stories below them. “The Folder Gopher should be here in about fifteen minutes.”

“No problem,” Odin offered between bites. “Do you know who you’re supposed to kill next? Wait.” He feigned an appalled gasp then slapped a hand against his chest. “It’s not me, is it?”

Drake considered the greasy handprint in the center of Odin’s molded metal chest plate. “If it was you, something tells me all I’d have to do is poison your food.” He set his beer on the ledge then checked his watch. “I don’t have all the details yet, but my new mark’s due at The Rivers in a little over an hour.” He reached over and picked up a slice of pizza, used a finger to break the cheese strings, then piled them back on top before he folded it in half. “Maybe I’ll get lucky and they’ll be late.”

Odin chuckled. “Did you have any problems in Detroit?”

Unlike Odin, Drake actually waited until he finished chewing before he answered, “Not really, aside from the usual when I’m dealing with the whole Council at the same time.” He shook his head at the memory. “Somebody’s always trying to ice skate uphill.”

“Let me guess.” Odin narrowed his eyes and stared up at the dark sky. “The last Councilor was a vampiress. I’m gonna go with…a Memory Guild sissy. She barricaded herself under the table, like they always do, then whined and blabbered about buying out your contract. Then she tried to seduce you. Am I right?” He grinned wide. “Tell me I’m right.”   

Drake couldn’t help but laugh. “She did crawl under the table, and she did offer triple my fee and her undying friendship if I let her go, but she wasn’t a Doll.” He picked up his beer and tipped it towards Odin. “She was an Elder Trump.”

He fisted a hand and shook it. “Damn! I was so close, so very, very close.” He grumbled something unintelligible then jumped and brandished a pointed index finger. “Did she run? Did you get to do some kick ass ninja move and chop her head off?”

Drake nearly spit out his beer at Odin’s animated movements but managed to keep the majority of the precious fluid in his mouth. “Sorry, man, no ninja moves for her. The terms of the contract specifically called for her to eat a bullet.”

“Phosphorous rounds?” When he nodded, Odin blew out a low whis­tle. “Damn. That makes for one hell of a painful exit. She must have really pissed in the Lord of Detroit’s Cheerios.”

“To put it mildly.” Drake finished off his first piece of pizza then snagged another. “According to the info Jake gave me, she was the one behind that last round of gang violence down on the mile roads. I guess she used all the gunfire to divert police attention while she moved, get this, almost a metric ton of cocaine through downtown.”

“Really?” Odin wrinkled his nose. “An Elder Trump, moving drugs?”

Drake raised a hand. He didn’t understand it either, especially since Trumps were usually the politicians of vampiric society, not the back alley drug dealers. “Don’t ask me, I just pull the trigger.”

“Well, if she was causing that much of a ruckus, she deserved whatever she got.” He grabbed a beer from the case and opened it. “She’s damn lucky she didn’t live here. I would’ve cut her arms…” He went quiet for a moment then narrowed his eyes. “You don’t feel bad, do you?”

Drake shrugged. “No more than usual.” He looked down at the street again. “Besides, working back to back contracts doesn’t leave me much time to think about it.”

“It also doesn’t leave you much time to do anything else, like sleep,” Odin said as he sat down on the ledge.

Drake tipped his head back and closed his eyes. “Ah, sleep. We used to be good friends, you know.” When he felt his eyes roll back and his body start to sway, he righted and shook his head. “Maybe after this one they’ll give me a break.”

“Maybe after this one they’ll give you a damn vacation.”

He opened his eyes and smiled. “Maybe, but I’m not counting on it.”

Odin shot him a serious, almost fatherly glare of disapproval. “They do realize you still need to sleep, right? How many contracts have you fulfilled in the last couple weeks anyway?”

“Aside from the one for your brother…I think this makes twelve.”

“Jesus, Drake. Let me give you a little piece of advice. Learn to say no.”

He blew out a heavy breath. If it were only that easy. “Mine don’t usually come with a refusal clause.”

“You need to renegotiate for better benefits.”

Drake kicked his head back and laughed. “Renegotiate for better ben­efits. I’ll call my union rep and have him get right on that. Maybe he can get me some company paid health insurance while he’s at it.”

When the rumble of an engine sounded on the street below, Drake leaned over the ledge hoping to see Jake’s new Beamer. Unfortu­nately, what he saw instead was a classic Trans-Am pulling into the small parking lot next to The Rivers building.

 He dropped his empty beer bottle into the case and pulled out another. “I bet you five hundred dollars that Jake doesn’t show up on time. Care to place a wager on his behalf?”

“Nope,” Odin said as he spun around so his legs dangled over the edge of the roof. “That mouthy bastard’s always late. Besides, I’m in deep enough as it is. I al­ready owe you two cars, a goldfish, and a half a million dollars.” He arched a brow as he peered down at the street. “Now what do you sup­pose she’s doing?” He kicked his armored legs in excitement. “You think she’s gonna rob the place?”

Drake followed Odin’s line of sight down to the sidewalk in front of The Rivers building, where a dark-haired Spanish woman now stood, her shoulders somewhat slumped, hands balled into fists at her sides. From his vantage point, she looked as though she was staring through the glass frontage at something inside the lobby.

“Nah, I doubt she’s gonna rob the place. She’s too tense.”

“How do you know that?” Odin asked, sounding somewhat surprised.

He motioned towards their would-be robber. “She doesn’t have an­ything to break the glass with. If you’re gonna hit a building in downtown Chicago, you need tools. She’s also standing in one place and her head’s not moving. She’s not looking around to see if anyone’s watching, she’s just standing there, like she’s been there before or is waiting for something. Plus, any thief worth her blood doesn’t stand in front of the building she’s about to rip so everyone and their mother can get a good look at her. The point of the job is to get what you came for and get out, not end up on the morning news.”

“Worth her blood?” Odin asked with a sneer.

Drake rolled his eyes. “She’s a vampire, you blind bastard.”

Odin gasped. “She is not.”

“Yes she is.” He pointed down at her. “Her shoulders rise and fall the way they should when someone breathes, but there’s no steam rising above her head at regular intervals. That tells me she’s the same temperature as the air around her. And if that ain’t enough to convince you, she’s standing outside, in Chicago, in the middle of February, while there’s snow everywhere, and all she’s wearing is a t-shirt, jeans and some boots. Normal people wear coats when they go outside in the winter.”

Odin knocked on his chest plate. “I’m not wearing a coat.”

Drake turned and cast a glance over the expanse of the roof before he focused back on his crazy friend. “You’re an Ancient vampire, Odin. You don’t count as normal people.”

His mouth gaped open. “What? What? The hell you say!” He cackled for a few seconds then stopped rather abruptly. “You can really see all those little details from this far up?”

“Hell yes I can. Can’t you?”

He cracked a cheesy grin. “Of course I can, I just didn’t realize you could.” He rubbed his hands together and bowed his head. “Most impressive, Young-But-Mighty-Grasshopper.”

Drake flipped him the bird. “I should push you off the damn ledge.”

“Go ahead.” He flapped his arms. “I can fly. Wanna see my wings?”

Drake reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. He really needed to find more mature friends. He opened his mouth to express that exact thought but stopped when the door to the roof creaked open behind him.

“You better be up here already,” grumbled an irritated voice.

Drake turned around just in time to see the hem of Jake’s dark blue overcoat get stuck as a blast of cold wind slammed the door closed. He tried not to laugh as the Folder Gopher was yanked backwards, lost his balance, and then nearly dropped the dozen or so manila folders clutched tightly in his hand.

 “Serves you right,” Odin laughed. “Talk some more trash like that and see what blows off the roof next.” He shifted his gaze to Drake. “You think Folder Gophers can fly? I’m guessin’ not. I’m guessin’ they sink like lead balloon animals.”

Jake tugged his coat free from the door then shot Odin a nasty glare. “Do that shit with the wind one more time and it’ll be your picture in the next folder I deliver to Drake.”

Odin completely ignored Jake’s threat and continued to stare at Drake. “Feel free to do your business. I’m just gonna sit here and watch the dead chick.”

Drake smiled when Jake’s angry glare landed on him. “Wow. You actually made it here on time. Are you feeling okay?”

Jake flipped through the small stack of folders then pulled out one near the bottom. “Am I feeling okay?” He shook the folder in Drake’s general direction, a wild look in his eyes. “I’ve been delivering contracts for the last five hours straight because it would appear everyone in the free world suddenly wants some undead slut of the night or hairy shapeshifter dead. So, no! I’m not feeling okay.”

Odin snorted behind Drake, so loud, he was sure the people in the next state heard it. “Undead slut of the night. That’s awesome. I’m so gonna use that the next time I see his mom.”

Jake let out a sigh as a look of complete resignation washed over his tanned face. “Are we gonna start with the mom jokes again? Because, seriously, like I told you the last time, my mom’s dead. She’s been dead for over three hundred years. You need to get some new material.”

Drake snapped his fingers then pointed at the folder he could only assume belonged to him. If he let the two of them go on any longer, he might never get off the roof. “How ‘bout you just tell me about my mark?”

Jake’s nostrils flared. “How ‘bout you tell your boyfriend over there to keep his mouth shut?”

When Odin opened his mouth, Drake raised a hand and made a sharp motion for him to stop. “No. Both of you need to knock it off.” He turned and pointed at Odin. “You, keep your comments to yourself and watch the dead girl.” He faced Jake again. “You, ignore the cranky vampire and tell me about the contract. The quicker you explain the details of the job, the sooner whoever it is dies, which means I can finally go home and sleep. So please, just do me a favor and open the damn folder.”

Jake flipped the folder around in his hand then flashed his signature shit-eating grin. “I hate to break it to you, but this little baby isn’t a kill contract, Drake.” If it was possible, the kid’s smile stretched even wider. “It’s an order for protection.”

And that would be why. Drake couldn’t do anything but stare at Jake while Odin burst out laughing. He’d fulfilled countless contracts over the years, but there was nothing he despised more than protecting someone who didn’t deserve it. And based on his experience, anyone who actually paid for protection…usually didn’t.

He stood silent for a long moment before he shook his head. Maybe now was the perfect time to test out Odin’s advice. “No. Tell the Boss to get somebody else. I’m not interested.”

Jake immediately started laughing. “You’re trying to refuse?” He looked over at Odin. “He’s trying to refuse.” He waved the folder towards his face like a fan. “Oh, this is great. Try to listen to me, okay? You can’t refuse. You’re not allowed.”

Drake stared hard at him. “I hear you loud and clear, I just don’t give a damn this time. I’m not spending the next week or God knows how long taking bullets for someone who screwed up so bad they have to buy a shield. Tell them to phone a friend.”

“First of all,” Jake said as he opened the folder and scanned the first page, “she didn’t pay for protection. This order originated from the Boss, himself. Second, you’re only being assigned to her because he wants someone familiar with Chicago. If you didn’t live here, you probably wouldn’t get it. So do us both a favor and don’t take it personally.”

“She?” Drake ground his teeth together when Jake smiled in response. “Tell me that bastard doesn’t want me playing bodyguard to a blood-guzzling female. He knows damn well how I feel about them.”

“Considering she’s only been a vampire for about four years, you could probably treat it like you’re protecting a human.” He shifted between his feet when Drake kept staring at him. “What? She’s only 22 years old, total. It’s not like she’s old enough to be some manipulative seductress. She’s just a kid.”

Drake cast a glance to Odin. “Are you hearing this shit?”

He nodded. “This is why I like my Evil Dictator better than yours.”

Drake couldn’t stop one corner of his mouth from rising. Odin’s Sire, Lord Stefan Nelek, was a hell of a lot more than an evil dictator. The man was a veritable Blood God. But on the bright side, he didn’t offer protection to any but his own. “Think he’d be open to adoption?”

Odin flashed a crooked smile. “The grass is always greener, huh?”

Drake glared at Jake again. “Right now it is.”

Jake rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Even if you get adopted by Lord Nelek tomorrow, the Boss ain’t letting you out of this one. Now, do you want the details or not? I don’t have all night to stand here and chat. Unlike some people up here right now, I have important business to do.”

Drake sucked in a deep breath then slowly blew it out. Whether he liked it or not, the chances of him getting out of the new contract were slim to none. And the chances of him getting to sleep anytime soon…were even smaller.

He swallowed the last of his beer then tossed the bottle back into the box. “Make it quick. Stay point to point and keep the snide commentary to a minimum or I’ll let Odin flay you.”

Jake’s eyes jumped back to scanning the pages. “Your new best friend was not only born here, but got fanged here about four years ago. Less than a year later she got exiled by Lord Locke.” He flipped the page over. “She got kicked out for a streak of violence that started in the club district and ended across the street, at The Rivers building. I don’t know exactly what happened or why, just that multiple shots were fired and six human security guards were dead when it was over. Not to mention, she almost killed another vampire during the fight.”

Drake groaned. Could his night possibly get any worse? “So let me get this straight. Not only am I being charged with the safety of an immortal Gun Bunny, but one who couldn’t even follow the rules for a full year. Did I lose a bet?”

“Sounds like it,” Odin chimed in. “Maybe you pissed in someone’s Wheaties.”

Drake rubbed a hand down his face. There had to be someone else they could tap for this job. “Where the hell is her Sire?”

“Dead,” Jake said rather flatly. “She’s a child of Alexander.”

“As in the former Head of Enforcement, Alexander?”

He nodded. “The same guy who died two years ago. Where he was back when she busted out the guns, I don’t know. But what I do know is that she’s been in contact with 8-Ball and Brick for the last two weeks, working out plans to come back. And since Brick has Alexander’s old position, he should be able to get Locke’s approval. Now, he might not be able to secure it right away, but it shouldn’t take more than a night.”

Drake massaged small circles over his temples. There had to be more to the situation. His contracts were never that easy. “What else?”

“She’s supposed to be meeting Brick at The Rivers building at two,” he said as he jumbled the folders and looked down at his expensive gold watch, “which gives you about an hour to prepare. We’ve already arranged for a situation that should force Brick to leave her with you, so all you need to do is react accordingly and keep her alive until she gets an official acceptance meeting with Lord Locke. Once she gets—”

“Don’t bother,” Drake interrupted as he recalled the woman standing on the sidewalk. “She’s already here.”  

Jake’s eyes went wide. “What? Where?”

Drake stuck his arm out over the ledge and pointed down at the street. “Call it a hunch, but something tells me that’s probably her.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s gotta be her,” Odin mumbled between more bites of pizza. “8-Ball’s walking up to her now. She’s turning around. Now she’s staring at his shiny bald head. And, OH! He shoots, he scores! They’re hugging. I think he likes her.”

Drake frowned as he turned and looked down at the sidewalk. Sure enough, the dead girl had her arms wrapped around 8-Ball’s neck. “When the hell did Baller get here?”

“While you were listening to Jake drone on and on about nothing.”

Jake rushed over to the edge of the roof and squinted until his eyes were nothing more than thin slits. “Shit! I can’t tell if that’s her or not. They both look like ants from up here.” He fumbled with the folder for a second then thrust a picture into Drake’s chest. “Here, look at this and tell me if it’s her.”

Before Drake even had a chance to look at the photo, Odin snatched it from his hand. He gave it a quick once over then narrowed his eyes on the street again. “Sí. Esa es la chica muerta.” After throwing the picture back at Jake, he raised both hands in the air and snapped his fingers in rapid succession. “Ella es muy caliente!”

Apparently a student of Spanish, Jake whirled around to face Drake. “Okay, okay. Obviously she’s a little early, but that’s okay. Brick’s not here yet. So, yeah. Uh, all you need to do is go down there when Brick gets here and play nice. When he gets called away, offer to stay with her and keep with her until she meets with Lord Locke. It’ll be a piece of cake.”  

Drake folded his arms over his chest. “A piece of cake?”

“Yeah, yeah.” He reached out and patted Drake’s arm. “Easy as pie.”

Drake inclined his head towards the street. “That girl down there doesn’t know me from Adam. You act like I’m supposed to just walk up to her and instantly become her best friend.” He did his best to remain calm as the absurdity of the situation fully kicked in. “Did you and the Boss forget I have a reputation when you decided to stick me on this? If that girl has even a shred of a survival instinct, she’s gonna know something’s up the minute she sees me.”

“He does have a point,” Odin added. “Most Fledglings know him by description alone. I mean, they don’t know exactly what he is, but they most definitely know who he is. You should see what happens when he walks down the street in New York. It’s like they’re all little pigs and he’s the Big Bad Wolf about to blow their house down.”

“Good God,” Jake groaned. “Would you two stop whining?” He took a few steps back. “I know you’ve been on back to back contracts for a while now, but think about what I just told you. She got kicked out of one of the most influential cities in the world, by a guy who’s better respected than even his Sire,” he said, motioning to Odin. “That kind of reputation, especially at her age, tends to stick with someone. I know all you fanged bitches like to think the sun doesn’t set until you wake up, but something tells me she’s probably been a little more worried about staying alive for the last few years than she’s been about keeping up on the who’s who of vampiric society. I’m willing to bet she won’t have the slightest clue as to who you are, let alone what you are. Now, if that stings your whiney, semi-undead ego, I apologize…but in this case, I gotta call it like I see it.”

“I’m not whining,” Drake grumbled. “I’m just tired, and really not in the mood to make fake friends with some bitchy vamp who’ll probably try to bite me…and not in a good way.”

Odin snickered as he picked up the last slice of pizza and sheared off half of it in one bite. “Something tells me if you call her a bitchy vamp to her face, she probably will bite you. And if she’s anything like my sisters, she’ll follow it up by breaking her foot off in your big ass.”

Drake feigned a smile. “If she was one of your sisters, she wouldn’t need my protection. And if she was one of your sisters, she would’ve never started a gun battle in the middle of downtown that ended with her ass getting kicked out of Chicago!”

Odin rubbed his ear against his shoulder. “You make a good point. Loud…but good.”

“For the record,” Jake said as he held the picture out towards Drake again, “and just so there’s absolutely no confusion, she’s not a Nelek. She’s a Fledgling of the Warrior or Thug lineage, whichever term you prefer, and her name is Toni Tutoro.”

Drake had no more than looked down at the photo when he felt the unmistakable power of Nelek telepathy slice through the air around them. He cast a quick glance to Odin just in time to see his entire body jerk before he coughed, sputtered, and tried not to choke on his last bite of pizza.

It took a few seconds for him to recover, but Odin slammed a fist against his obsidian chest plate then forcefully cleared his throat. He stood up and pinned Jake with a menacing glare. “What’d you say?”

Jake took another, much larger step backwards. “I said her name is Toni Tutoro. What the hell is your problem? Do you know her or something?”

Odin frowned. “Nope. Don’t know her.” He snatched up the empty pizza box and folded it under his arm. “I gotta go.” He nodded at Drake as he picked up the half full case of beer. “Give me a call when this whole contract thing is over.” He’d barely finished the sentence when an icy blast of wind cut across the rooftop, taking Odin with it.

Jake stared wide eyed at the space where Odin had been. “What the hell is his deal? Does he always disappear like that?”

Drake slowly nodded. “His whole family does that shit.”   

“Do they usually leave all pissy and abrupt like that?”

“Sometimes. It depends on what’s going on. I felt telepathy go off right before he choked. He probably got called home.”

Jake didn’t look the least bit convinced. “I say her name and he disappears? Doesn’t that strike you as a little odd?”

Drake shook his head. He knew better than to question the behavior of someone as old as Odin, and even more, someone who claimed the Nelek name as their own. “If his Sire calls, he goes. It doesn’t matter what he’s in the middle of doing. Sometimes he doesn’t even have control over it, which is why he doesn’t drive. Can you imagine him cruising down the Dan Ryan when it happens?”

Jake screwed up his face. “I don’t even wanna think about that. Everything about him and his damn family is freaky. Who the hell wears armor in this day and age anyway? I mean, come on.” He shook out his hands as if some slimy substance suddenly coated his fingers. “Anyway, did you see the picture? She’s kinda cute.”

Without Odin there to interrupt him, Drake finally took a moment to check out the photo. Although it wasn’t the best quality, he had to admit, for once, Jake was right. The girl didn’t exactly qualify as gorgeous, but she was cute. Seated on a couch at Grey’s Coffeehouse, she smiled softly at someone or something, appearing very young and almost as sweet.

Then again, even more for vampires, looks could be deceiving.

He handed the photo back to Jake. From what he’d seen of her so far, he would’ve never guessed her as the violent type. But if he had to be stuck with someone who might snap at any given moment and chew off one of his appendages, big brown eyes and a pretty face didn’t hurt.

At least he’d have something to look at while his wounds healed.

“So what else do I need to know?” Drake asked. “Aside from Brick and Baller, does she have any other friends in the city? Any known family? What kind of interference am I looking at?”

“Well, her human family’s deceased, and from what I could tell she doesn’t have any contact with Alexander’s other kids, so she’s pretty much alone in the world when it comes to relatives. However, as you’ve probably already figured out, she’s on friendly terms with most of the Enforcement Team, as well as Clint. And before you even ask, the Boss specifically said Clint took her under his wing back when Alexander was too busy running around the city to teach her properly.”

Drake tipped his head back and closed his eyes. “Tell me I’m not being assigned to protect one of Clint’s concubines.” When Jake didn’t answer right away, he ground his teeth together. “I know he’s friends with the Boss and all, but this is fucking ridiculous.”

“I was told that Clint spent a lot of time with her, but not for his normal woman chasing reasons. He supposedly taught her about her lineage and how society works, all without using body paints or whipped cream.” He paused to laugh at his own joke. “Anyhow, I’m not sure how well he really did though. She was only about ten months old when she got the boot from Lord Locke, and we both know that’s barely enough time to learn even the basics of being a vamp.”

Drake couldn’t argue his point. He’d been around long enough to know that it took at least ten years for a Fledgling to get their bearings as a newly created vampire. Between learning the rules, a little bit of history, and how to eat without causing a panic, the first decade of existence really wasn’t all that pleasant.

And that was with training.

If the girl hadn’t even had a full “childhood”, she was lucky she’d lived long enough to come back. But maybe that meant Jake was right for the second time that night. Maybe she’d been so busy fighting to stay alive that she wouldn’t recognize him or his reputation.

Maybe – but he wasn’t counting on it.

He opened his eyes and refocused on Jake. “Have you already confirmed someone’s out to get her? Is that why I’m on this?”

“The Boss wouldn’t tell me why he opened the contract. All he said was that she’s not safe until Locke officially accepts her as a resident again, and that it’s imperative she completes whatever tasks or conditions he sets forth for her. To be honest, if someone’s after her, I have no idea who it is. But all you have to do is get her to that meeting. Once you do, you can mark this as another success and go on your merry way.”

Drake raked a hand through his hair and tried to stave off the urge to yawn. “I hate it when you guys throw these kinds of contracts at me. Not only do I not have enough time to watch her first, but you either don’t have or won’t part with all the necessary information about her.”

Jake tucked the photo back into the proper folder then moved it to the bottom of the stack. “I gave you everything I could find on short notice, Drake.” He turned his back and headed for the door. “This got dropped in my lap about two hours ago, so don’t feel like you’re the only one who didn’t get decent prep time. If I could’ve gotten more info out of the Boss, I would have, but he wasn’t saying anything that wasn’t already in the report.” He opened the door and stepped inside, but turned around before it closed. “If I get any new info, you’ll be the first to know.”

Drake nodded as the door swung shut. “I’d appreciate that.”

Once the Folder Gopher was gone, he directed his full attention back to the sidewalk below. Even now, standing next to 8-Ball with her shoulders just as slumped as when he’d first seen her, Toni Tutoro’s fine Spanish features mirrored that innocent quality so obvious in the contract photo. But the longer he looked at her, the more he realized there was something else about her, something about the worn, almost apologetic way she held herself that didn’t quite fit with the information in her bio.

Why would his Boss be so interested in a Fledgling Warrior anyway?

He studied her even closer, watching the way 8-Ball reached out every so often to touch her arm or shoulder as she spoke. And at one point when she buried her face in her hands, he even leaned in close and kissed her forehead.

Either they were really good friends, or she was a lot better with the manipulation than Jake had given her credit for.

Drake would never judge her for attempting to kill another vampire, but it took a special kind of person to look that sweet and defenseless one minute, then turn around and slaughter a handful of human security guards the next. Granted, he didn’t know why she’d done it, but knowing she had made the puzzle all the more interesting.

He leaned forward and sharpened his senses in an attempt to pick up the conversation between her and 8-Ball, but the constant drone of the wind rushing through the buildings in the Business District easily drowned out their words.

He rolled his eyes. It figured, the one time he could’ve used Odin’s powers for good instead of evil – the bastard was nowhere to be seen. Then again, keeping Odin quiet long enough to actually hear someone else talk was a lot easier said than done.

The flash of headlights a few hundred yards down the road pulled Drake’s thoughts back to the matter at hand. If he wasn’t mistaken, that was Brick’s SUV heading towards The Rivers building, which meant it was almost time to make fake friends with the dead girl.

He leaned back and stretched out the tight muscles in his arms. If he was lucky and she played just as nice as he intended to, he’d be rid of her by sunset tomorrow. If he wasn’t so lucky…well, it certainly wouldn’t be the first time he ended up on the wrong side of a female vampire. He’d only been there once, but when all was said and done she’d left him nursing a hell of a lot more than a nasty bite wound.

Drake checked his watch one last time as Brick’s truck slid to a stop in front of the sidewalk. How long would it take before Toni Tutoro tried to bite him? Or worse?

No doubt, he’d have his answer the second she laid eyes on him.

 

 

Chapter 2

 

Toni Tutoro wrapped her arms around 8-Ball’s neck and held on to the big beautiful bald man with everything she had. She pressed her cheek against his hard shoulder, attempting to steady herself as three years’ worth of emotions rushed through her all at once. But they came so fast, and from so many different directions, she could barely distinguish one before it collided with the next.

“Took ya long enough,” 8-Ball laughed in her ear. “I thought you were just gonna stare at me. I almost told ya to take a damn picture.”

Toni squeezed him even tighter as cold tears welled in her eyes. She’d prayed for this moment over a thousand times, but now that she was here, she didn’t know what to say. How could she explain what it meant to hear a familiar voice so close, to feel the arms of a friend around her…to finally come back home?

She couldn’t. There just weren’t enough words.

When 8-Ball started to pull back, she released her death grip on him but caught his handsome face between her hands before he could slip away. “You have no idea how good it is to see you.”

He flashed a purely arrogant smile. “Of course I do.” He straightened to his full height, which was well over six feet, then pressed a large hand to the center of his muscular chest. “I see this every day.”

She smiled in spite of his massive ego. “You haven’t changed at all.”

He shook his head, his dark green eyes filled with humor. “No need to change perfection. Once it’s right, it’s right. But look at you,” he said as he reached out and tugged the long sleeve of her black t-shirt. “You’re still so…so…short.”

“Wow.” She blinked hard then shook her head, her smile still firmly in place. Only to someone like 8-Ball would 5’8” be considered small. “You haven’t seen me for how long, and the only thing you can think to do is tease me because you think I’m short?”

He broke into a huge grin. “Don’t worry, I like my women short.”

She returned his grin with one of her own. “You also like to leave a twenty on the dresser when you’re done with them.” She purposely made a display of flipping her long hair back over her shoulder. “You’re gonna have to start snacking a little farther up the food chain before you’re ready for something like this.”

His bronzed face sobered for a few seconds before only the corners of his mouth rose again. “Now there’s the little Latina spitfire I remember.” He reached out and playfully tapped her nose. “I knew she was in there somewhere.”

“Yeah,” Toni said as she lowered her gaze to the snow dusted sidewalk. He hadn’t meant for his comment to hurt, that much she knew, but knowing didn’t stop the dull ache from thrumming in place of her heartbeat. She dragged the toe of her boot through the glittering white flakes while she summoned the courage to ask the question now burning in her mind. She inhaled a deep breath then raised her eyes to meet his. “I know it’s been a while…but have I really changed that much?”

8-Ball held her questioning gaze for a long moment, hesitation playing across his face. “Am I being honest?” When she nodded, he stared off at something behind her. “Yeah, Toni…you’ve changed that much.”

She closed her eyes. Deep down, she knew she’d changed. She knew the last night she’d spent in Chicago had forced her to become someone else, maybe even something else. But to hear 8-Ball say the words, to hear him essentially confirm what she feared most…

Toni bit the inside of her lips as the tears from earlier threatened to return. What hearing 8-Ball say those words did was reaffirm her fear that the monster coiled deep in the pit of her stomach wasn’t just a part of her – it was her. She couldn’t blame what she’d done so long ago on a loss of control, couldn’t even blame it on a single lapse of judgment. She’d allowed the beast to take control that night because she’d wanted nothing more than to rip Natasha Stryker’s blonde head off.

Unfortunately, once the nearly blinding flash of rage had faded, Stryker hadn’t numbered among the nine casualties.

Toni’s thoughts scattered when she felt 8-Ball’s heavy hand touch her shoulder. She opened her eyes and focused on his blurry face. “I’m sorry. I missed what you said.”

Concern crept into his eyes. “Where’d you go?”

“Same place I always go.” She cast a glance to the sparkling glass frontage of The Rivers building, but looked away when she caught sight of her own reflection for the second time since she’d arrived.

“Why here, 8-Ball?” She twisted so his hand fell from her shoulder then backed away from him. “Of all the places in Chicago for me to meet you and Brick, why the hell did he pick here?”

The muscles in his jaw flexed hard. “You said you wanted honesty, so I’ll give it to you.” He folded his arms over his chest. “He said he wanted to make you think long and hard about why you came back. Said he hoped if you had to stand right there, you’d think about the choices you made the last time you were here and how it all could’ve gone different.”

Toni couldn’t do anything but blink as a sharp pain burst to life in the center of her chest. She struggled for a breath as dozens of bloodstained images flashed in her mind. “How it could’ve gone different?” She squeezed her hands closed tight when the beast stirred in her stomach. “All I’ve thought about for the last three years is how that night could’ve gone different. How I could have stopped her…how I could’ve saved them. So don’t tell me I need to stand in front of this damn building to think about what I did. It’s all I think about. It’s all I dream about. Most days…it’s the only thing I have left!”

When 8-Ball stepped forward and attempted to wrap her up in his arms, she wrenched herself free then shoved him back against the glass. “No! You wanted me to stand here. You wanted me to relive it all. But guess what?” She couldn’t hold back her tears any longer, so she quit trying. “I don’t need to relive it…because what you don’t understand is that I’m still living it!” She gnashed her teeth together as scarlet flames erupted at the edges of her vision. “Every time I see a table, I see my mother’s heart lying in the middle of it. I see my brother and sister tied to the chairs. And no matter how hard I try…I still can’t save them. So I just stand there, watching it happen all over again, just like I did back then.”

“I’m sorry about what happened to your family, Toni. You know I am.” He craned his neck, seemingly transfixed by the dark clouds gathering above The Rivers building, but then lowered his head and shot her a knowing glare. “I don’t blame you for going after Stryker. I’d a gone after the bitch, too. But the way you did it.” The muscles in his jaw flexed again as he shook his head. “What would’ve happened if you’d killed Stryker down on Rush Street, Toni? What would you have done next? Run off into the city looking for Oktober? Do you have any idea what would’ve happened if you’d found him? His Ancient ass would’ve chewed you up then spit you right the fuck out, that’s what would’ve happened! Then we’d have been burying you right along with your family.”

Toni stared straight into 8-Ball’s eyes as the beast dug its razor sharp claws into her stomach. “If I’d known Oktober then, if I’d known anything about him…” She ground her teeth together. “I would have gone after him first.”

8-Ball rolled his eyes. “So is that why you came back? To finish what you started? You gonna go after Oktober? You gonna suicide yourself so you can finally be with your family?” He straightened then slowly narrowed his eyes on her. “Or is that what you were trying to do the first time around, but Stryker just couldn’t get the job done?”

“I didn’t come back for Oktober or Stryker! I just wanted to come home!” She pressed her fingertips against her mouth as a sob caught in her throat. “I’ve never even seen their graves, 8-Ball. I just wanna tell them I’m sorry. I just wanna tell them I loved them…that I still love them. That I wish I could have saved them. That I tried, but I couldn’t.”

Toni shook the tears from her eyes as 8-Ball slowly faded away, only to be replaced by unwanted memories that stretched and distorted in her mind. She saw herself staring at the television in her old apartment, saw her own face twist in horror as something red streaked across the screen then landed with a sick, wet thud in the center of a familiar table.

The table she used to eat at when she was little. The table her family used to sit at, in a house once filled with more unconditional love than she’d ever found anywhere else, or since the day she’d left.

She heard her brother and sister scream when the thing on the table moved. Listened to Ray and Isabel cry for help as blood sprayed all over them and everything else in the room. They’d never sounded so scared, never looked more terrified…until he stepped in front of the camera.

She would never forget Oktober’s swirling black eyes. Never forget watching him sink his fangs into her mother’s heart. Never ever be able to forget what followed, or the sound of her own sister moaning his name.

Toni snapped back to the present at the sound of 8-Ball’s voice. She stared blindly at the wavering figure standing in front of her. “I only went after Stryker because of the note,” she breathed. “Oktober said to thank her for the address. I didn’t know him. I didn’t even know where to start looking for him. But I knew I could find her…I wanted to find her.” She blinked away a fresh round of tears. “Maybe I did the wrong thing that night. Maybe I overreacted. But if it was your family she sold out, if it was your brother…would you have done any different?”

This time when 8-Ball rested his hands on her shoulders, she didn’t move. “It’s not that I don’t care about you or what you’ve been through, Toni. But Brick’s my Sire, and he’s risking a hell of a lot by letting you back in without Locke’s permission. Do you really blame him for trying to make sure you’ve thought this through? If you were him, would you do any different?”

Toni tried hard to push her own pain aside for a moment and put herself in Brick’s shoes. She did her best to imagine how difficult the situation must be for him, considering what she’d asked could very well get him and his Children permanently banned from the city, or worse.

Would she do the same if the roles were reversed? Would she risk the only home she’d ever known to help a friend?

She’d like to think she would. She’d like to believe she’d do anything to help someone she cared about. But she also had to admit that she’d probably be just as determined to make that friend think about what they were asking, even if it meant taking them back to the very place everything went so horribly wrong.

“I don’t blame him.” She tipped her head back and looked up at 8-Ball. “I just wish I could go straight to Locke instead of getting you and Brick involved. If this whole plan blows up, I’d prefer it explode in my face – not yours. The last thing I want is someone else to get hurt because of me.”

“Hey, we made the choice to get involved.” He lowered his hands from her shoulders and rubbed her arms. “When you first called, we could’ve told you where to find Lord Locke, just like you asked. We also could’ve stood back and watched you waltz right up to his front door.” He flashed a devious grin. “God knows the look on his face would’ve been priceless.” 

“You know, you and Brick could wash your hands of me right now if you’d just tell me where he lives.” Though she didn’t truly feel it, she offered him her sweetest smile then sang the words, “It’s not too late to give Mr. Fancy Pants a panic attack.”

8-Ball burst out laughing. “Oh, it’s tempting, it’s damn tempting, but that man would kick my ass if he found out I told you where he lives. A little known fact about Mr. FP, or the Armani Avenger, as I like to call him, is that he can throw a beat down like you’ve never seen. And while I like a good fight, I like ones I know I can win even better.”

She arched a brow. “Armani Avenger?”

“Yeah, he likes that better than Mr. Fancy Pants. He thinks your term of endearment sounds more like a name for a male stripper. Needless to say, it doesn’t fit well with his image and all.”

She slapped her hands over her face, but peeked up at 8-Ball between her fingers. “He knows I call him that?”

“Of course he does.” He leaned in close and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “It’s not like you were ever shy about it.”

Toni let her arms fall and tried to keep her body from following. She waved as much frigid night air towards her face as possible when her world suddenly grew much smaller.

She’d driven for days to meet with Brick and 8-Ball, spent what little money she’d managed to save on gas, worried for two weeks about how much trouble her friends might get into because of her…and for what? So that Lord Christian Locke, Mr. Fancy Pants himself, could laugh in her face for even thinking he’d let her back in to Chicago?

What the hell had she been thinking?

Maybe she hadn’t been thinking, maybe that was the problem.

She stiffened as fear seized and tightened every muscle in her chest. Locke would never let her come back home and she’d been stupid to believe otherwise. She should’ve stayed on the outskirts of Albuquerque where no one knew her. She should’ve never called Brick in the first place, and more than anything, she should have never accepted his offer to talk to Locke on her behalf.

No, much like every other decision in her life, she’d made this one way too fast, without weighing all the potential consequences.

She whirled around, prepared to bolt straight for her Trans-Am when Brick’s black Chevy Avalanche slid to a stop on the street in front of her. He opened the door, slammed it closed, and was standing in front of her before she ever had a chance to move her feet.

“I know that look, Honey,” he drawled, his southern twang more pronounced than she remembered. “Don’t even think about it. Everything’s gonna be fine. Everybody’s gonna be fine. Don’t freak out on me now.”

She stared up into his grey eyes, wishing she possessed even a shred of the calm he seemed to be made of. “How do you know that, Brick? What if it’s not fine? What if he kills you? What if he kills 8-Ball? He can do that, ya know. No one will stop him. I can’t let that happen. I have to leave. I should’ve never come. I should have stayed…” Her words became nothing more than muffled sounds when Brick reached out, palmed the back of her head with one hand, and then pushed her face into the soft white t-shirt covering his chest.

“What you need to do is take a deep breath.” His other arm locked tight around her shoulders as 8-Ball’s loud laughter rang in her ears. “Damn, I know us Thugs can mood swing better than anyone, but Lord girl, you’re going in fifteen different directions. And I can’t very well yell at you and your brainless bald friend over there if you’re already upset.” He gently stroked her hair. “I hate seeing you cry.”

Toni flattened her hands against Brick’s hard chest and pushed herself back just far enough to look up at his weathered face again. “Why would you yell at us? We haven’t done anything yet.”

A stern but genuine smile tugged at his mouth. “Because you’re standing out here on the sidewalk,” he said as he released her, then moved back and pointed at the building, “instead of inside the lobby like I asked.” Irritation crinkled the deep lines at the corners of his eyes. “The last thing I need is for someone to see you standing out here.”

She slowly turned her head to glare at 8-Ball. “Why didn’t you tell me we were supposed to be inside? Does it look like I need any extra help getting into trouble?”

He gave her a droll stare. “No, you don’t. But with the fit you threw over standing out here, I figured the last place you wanted to be was in there. So excuse the fuck outta me if my concern for your emotional well-being made me a little hesitant to suggest we go inside.”

“Well, I can see some things never change,” Brick groaned as he rolled his eyes. He motioned towards the lobby again. “How about you two do me a favor and take the argument inside where God and everyone else in the world can’t see you.”

“Don’t worry, Brick,” a deep, gravelly voice called from behind them. “Even God’s not crazy enough to be out here right now.”

Toni turned around fully expecting to see a big guy, considering the gruff timbre of his voice, but big didn’t even begin to describe the man standing only a few feet away. She didn’t have to crane her neck to see his face, but she did have to tip her head back a bit.

And what a face that is. She pressed her lips together in response to the errant thought. The last thing she needed to be doing was ogling some hot guy who had…the most depressing set of blue eyes she’d ever seen.

She blinked hard then looked again. For a split second his deep set eyes appeared almost friendly, maybe even jovial, but then it was like some invisible curtain lifted, revealing so much sadness and pain she wondered how he could move with that much weight on his shoulders.

“Drake,” Brick yelled, sounding a little surprised. “Holy shit, you’re actually home. Did you finally get some time off?”

The man, who she assumed was Drake, tipped his head from side to side. “You could say that.” A smile spanned the hard line of his mouth as he leaned forward and extended a huge arm past her. “When was the last time you got a day off, Texan?”

“I don’t get days off,” Brick grumbled as he accepted Drake’s hand. “Keeping Chicago’s kids in line is a full-time job. And don’t even get me started on the damn Elders.”

Drake’s muscular chest rumbled with laughter. “I hear that.” He shook 8-Ball’s hand while they exchanged a friendly greeting, and then slowly shifted his sad blue eyes to her. He seemed to study her for a long moment before he finally offered his hand. “Hi. I’m Drake.”

She considered the interlocked, black crescent moons tattooed in the center of his palm before she trailed up the sleeve of his black leather trench coat and refocused on his face. His very attractive face, she noted, only enhanced by his strong cheekbones, straight nose, and a firm jaw line shadowed by dark stubble.

He didn’t have the dusky rancher allure of Brick, or the arrogant bad boy qualities that 8-Ball seemed to have far too many of, but his long black hair and hard features had a rugged appeal she couldn’t deny.

She reached out to take his hand but tensed when her fingertips grazed the rough pads of his. His skin wasn’t cold like hers. He felt warm…just like a human. She gripped his hand tight, extending her index finger to rest on the inside of his wrist while she shook it.

Sure enough, a rhythmic pulse drummed under the tip of her finger.

She frowned. “I’m Toni. It’s…nice to meet you.” Unfortunately, her greeting came out as more of a question.

“Don’t worry,” Drake chuckled. “I have fangs, too.”

When an unexpected pang of jealousy twisted in her gut, Toni jerked his arm forward, yanked his sleeve back, and then pressed her nose to his wrist. She breathed in deep and closed her eyes as the rich, metallic scent of his blood confirmed what he’d said.

The man was most definitely a vampire, and a powerful one at that.   

Powerful enough that fear quickly tainted her desire to taste the precious fluid coursing through his veins. But the sound of his steady heartbeat pounding in her ears, the delicious scent of his hot blood filling her nostrils – it was just too much.

Toni immediately released Drake’s arm when she felt her fangs break free. She covered her mouth with her hands and staggered back as she wrestled with the beast for control of her own thoughts.

It was a war she’d waged countless times over the last few years, but a battle she’d lost only once.

And that specific thought, combined with the flash of a single bloody memory from the very day she’d lost that fight, were all she needed to force the animal down.

She lowered her hands. “I’m sorry,” she breathed. “I didn’t mean—”

“For fuck’s sakes!” Brick’s loud voice drowned out the hungry growls of the animal inside her. “What do you mean he got caught feeding in the middle of a club? Son of a bitch! I’ll be right there.”

Toni felt her fangs slide back into place just as Brick slammed his cell phone closed against his thigh. He jammed the phone into the pocket of his leather driving coat as he grumbled a string of curses she couldn’t quite make out. He must have gotten the call while she was busy fighting off the urge to chew on a complete stranger.

How did you apologize to someone for something like that?  

She chanced a glance up at Drake only to find that his once sad eyes were now filled with no small amount of amusement. As the faint sensation of heat tingled in her cheeks, she turned and focused her full attention back on her friends.

Brick shook his head as he glared at 8-Ball, his sharp gray eyes glowing with anger. “That was Kane. We’ve got a Veil breach down on Rush Street. I’m gonna meet him and your brother down there.” He started back peddling towards his truck. “I need you to get Toni to the safe house and stay with her until I can talk Locke into letting her back in. Don’t make any stops. Go straight there and stay there. Do you understand?”

8-Ball’s eyes flicked between her and Brick, indecision marking his face. “Shouldn’t I go with you? It’s Friday night.” He took a step in Brick’s direction. “Rush Street’s packed with humans right now. You’re gonna need more help.”

Toni blew out a sigh. While she appreciated their concern, if there was one truth her past actions had proven – the last thing she needed was a bodyguard. “Just go guys, I’ll be fine. It’s not like I’m defenseless.”

“No!” Brick boomed. “This has shit to do with you being defenseless. You know damn well you’re fair game right now, and our kind is nothing if not opportunistic. If someone sees you and tells Locke before I get a chance to talk to him…you don’t even wanna know what’ll happen.”

“Go with your Sire, Baller,” Drake interjected. “I’ll keep Toni with me until you call. I’ll even play nice.” He pressed a hand to his chest, just above his heart. “I promise.”

Both 8-Ball’s and Brick’s eyes went as wide as the Chicago skyline. “What?” they asked in unison.

Drake pointed at 8-Ball with one hand. “It’s fairly obvious you wanna go with your Sire.” He motioned to Brick with the other. “And it’s pretty clear you’re torn between making sure she’s safe and needing all the help you can get. So go do whatever you need to do. I’ll stay with her until I hear different.”

Brick’s eyes narrowed on Drake. “Are you sure?”

He nodded. “Yes, I’m sure. I don’t have anything else to do right now anyway, except finish my walk and maybe grab a bite to eat.” Something strange seemed to pass between the two men before Drake raised both hands then waved him and 8-Ball away. “Just go. Trust me, I got this.”

With no further argument, Brick and 8-Ball made a break for the truck. The engine had barely roared to life before the squeal of tires against icy pavement filled the air. Within a few seconds, the men she’d driven hundreds of miles to see…were halfway down the block.

Didn’t need the protection, but could’ve used the company. Toni silenced the voice in her mind as she looked up at Drake. “You didn’t have to do that. I would’ve been fine.”

“Yeah I did.” He inclined his head to where Brick and 8-Ball had been. “If I didn’t, they’d still be standing right there fighting with each other.”

She puffed a strand of hair out of her eyes. “You’re probably right.” She shifted between her feet when he smiled at her and the tingles from before fluttered in her cheeks again. “I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to grab…it’s just that sometimes it’s hard to…oh, never mind. I’m just, I’m really sorry.”

“Hard to control your beast?” The curtain over his eyes lifted as she nodded, but this time a sliver of understanding split the sadness and pain. “I know exactly how you feel.” He blinked hard, as if his mind had wandered off somewhere, but then smiled at her again. “So is that why you got kicked out? Did you bite someone you shouldn’t have?”

She tilted her head. “How did you know I got kicked out?”

He raised a hand to rub the back of his neck, his biceps straining the leather sleeve of his long coat. “Well, since Brick mentioned he needs to talk Lord Locke into letting you back in, I assume you’ve already been here once. And the only reason you’d need Locke’s permission to come back is if he’s the one who kicked you out in the first place. So what’d ya do?” His smile stretched into a rather lopsided and equally as adorable grin. “Did you set his tailor on fire?”

Toni tried to mirror Drake’s smile, but the grin she’d tried so hard to match faded as she caught sight of the white sedan creeping up the street towards them. With its lights off, the car nearly disappeared against the street, helped even more by the snow covered pavement reflecting off the tinted windows.

“You were right the first time,” she absently mumbled as she watched the white Mercedes roll to a stop on the curb behind Drake. “Are you expecting some…” Panic stole the remainder of her words as the rear passenger door swung open.

Sign one that her night had just taken a turn for the worse was the golden blond hair pulled into a severe ponytail at the base of his neck. Sign two, was the way his cold blue eyes locked on her as he stepped up onto the curb. But sign three, and the one that really drove the last nail into her proverbial coffin…was the pristine Armani suit that expertly hugged every inch of his regal body.

 

 

Chapter 3

 

Every muscle Toni owned tensed as she stared up into the angry eyes of Lord Christian Locke, Mr. Fancy Pants himself, right there…in the flesh. She silently cursed her horrible luck as he deftly stepped around Drake and moved to stand directly in front of her.

For the second time that night, she shifted between her feet as a pair of veiled blue eyes bored into her. But unlike Drake’s, Christian’s eyes weren’t filled with sadness and pain – his were as cold and calculating as she remembered. And if anything else lurked somewhere deep behind them, anything at all, she either couldn’t see it or didn’t know how to recognize the emotions.

What she hoped was inside him somewhere was compassion and warmth. She wanted to believe that behind those frigid blue eyes and kingly demeanor was a good man, who just did everything he could to hide his true feelings from the world.

That’s what she wanted to believe – but that didn’t mean it was true.

She’d been burned enough times to know that what you wanted to believe was inside someone, and what was truly there…were sometimes two very different things.   

Silence stung the air for what felt like an hour before he finally opened his mouth. “Miss Tutoro, I’m so happy to see you’ve made it back to our fair city unharmed. Please, enlighten me as to why you’ve come home. I’m absolutely dying to know.” His smooth English accent made him sound every bit as snotty as he looked.

Feeling forced to defend herself in a way she wasn’t prepared for; Toni returned his sarcasm with a dash of her own. “As always, Christian, you’re looking lovely this evening. Did Armani make that suit especially for you? It’s simply ravishing,” she quipped, trying to mimic his accent.

It didn’t mix well with the Spanish hint she already had.

She tried not to smile when she heard Drake snort, but she couldn’t help it. She knew she should be nice, knew Christian Locke held everything she wanted in his fancy little manicured hands, but something about the smug, holier-than-thou look on his face just screamed for her to do everything in her power to annoy him.

“Do you find my suit unacceptable?” His sharp tone practically dared her to respond.

“Well, since you asked,” she said as she took a step back and gave him an obvious once over, “you might wanna tell him to keep his eye on the scissors. Your right sleeve looks a tad longer than your left.”

He didn’t react. Instead, he continued to stare at her with glaring disinterest. She thought she remembered how unsettling that stare was, but she was wrong. It made her feel icky all the way down to her toes this time. Last time it was only to her knees.

But she just…couldn’t…stop. “Oh wait, that’s right.” She waved a hand at him. “It’s all coming back to me now. It’s you that’s off. Your right arm’s just a little longer than your left, isn’t it?” She blew out a sigh then offered her most sympathetic smile. “We can’t all be perfect, can we?”

“Miss Tutoro, it would seem to me if one was seeking solace in a city they’d already been thrown out of once, one would adopt a little more humble attitude. Wouldn’t you agree?” The new, much darker edge to his voice sent fear tap dancing down her spine.

Toni sucked in a deep breath and slowly nodded. He was right. He was the only one who could give her permission to stay in Chicago, and here she was, treating him like crap.

She looked back up at him, hoping he could hear the truth in every word she was about to say. “I just wanted to come home, Christian. I’ve been driving around the country, trying to find a place that feels right. I’ve been in more cities than I can count, and I still haven’t found one that feels like home.” She struggled to keep her voice steady. “I’m not here to cause trouble, I swear. I just wanna see faces that actually smile at me again. I wanna sleep a full day without nightmares.” She turned away when, for the second time that night, she lost the battle against her tears.

How could she explain what Chicago meant to her? How much she needed to be home?

After a few moments passed, Toni wiped her cheeks and cleared her throat. She had to make him understand. But as she turned to face him again, a feeling of doom settled deep into the pit of her stomach.

He seemed to be watching her with an odd, detached curiosity.

Wanting desperately to believe she could reach him, she continued. “This city stays with me wherever I go. I was born here, and for every awful memory I have here, there are still fifty good ones.” She lowered her eyes when his face didn’t change. “I don’t know what I was thinking…you wouldn’t understand.”

“Have you secured yourself a place to stay? I know you haven’t purchased any homes or leased an apartment. There are also no reservations for you or any of your aliases at any hotel in the city.”

Toni surrendered with a spiteful laugh. He hadn’t changed at all. “No, Christian, I haven’t broken your rules by making any permanent arrangements. I have my car. That’s it.” She narrowed her eyes when a look of pure amusement swept across his face, instantly churning her doomed feeling into seething anger. “Look, if you’re gonna throw me out or kill me, could you get on with it already? It’s getting late and I don’t have much time to run before the sun comes up. You’re at least gonna be a good sport about this, right?”

His sharp features took on the texture of concrete. “I will arrange for you to stay in a suite at my hotel. When you arrive in the lobby, give the desk clerk your name and he’ll take care of your needs.” One of his brows rose slightly as his eyes moved over her. “I’ll also have him make a few calls in order to procure you an article of clothing more befitting a woman. I expect you dressed appropriately when you arrive at my office tomorrow evening, where we’ll finish discussing your official request to stay in my city. Be there at Midnight, not a second later.”

It took everything she had not to look down at the sidewalk to see if her jaw had landed on one of his expensive Italian shoes.

What did he say? Was she still sleeping?

Was she really in Chicago?

She barely registered the weight lift off her body as Christian’s gaze shifted up to Drake, who at some point during the conversation had moved to stand behind her.

“Mr. Black, it’s a pleasure as always,” he said as he extended a hand, which Drake easily accepted. “Since it would appear my Head of Enforcement felt so comfortable leaving Miss Tutoro in your capable hands, you’ll understand if I ask that you remain with her for now. Unfortunately, I have it on good authority that once Brick and 8-Ball finish sanitizing the scene on Rush Street, they’re going to find themselves otherwise occupied for a time.”

Toni stiffened at his words. “Christian, please don’t hurt them. I’m the one who called 8-Ball. He warned me not to come, but I didn’t listen. If you’re gonna punish someone, punish me. It’s my fault. They don’t deserve to get…” Her words faded into mumbles as Drake’s big hand clamped tight over her mouth.

“I’ll stay with her, Lord Locke. It’s not a problem.”

When the monster inside her thrashed and growled, Toni committed to the only action that blind instinct would allow – she sank her teeth into one of Drake’s meaty fingers.

“Ouch!” He ripped is hand away from her mouth. “I can’t believe you just fucking bit me! I should’ve known better.”

She whipped around to face him and jammed a finger into his hard chest. “Don’t you ever try to silence me again! Brick and 8-Ball are my friends, and I don’t wanna see anything happen to them. And I’d rather be put in the sun for five seconds because I said too much, than stand here knowing they might end up with some punishment they don’t deserve. I don’t even know you that well, but if Christian tried to pin you as an accessory to this whole, awful situation just because you’re standing here with me, I’d do the same for you!”

He couldn’t have looked any more shocked if she’d hoisted her leg up and kicked him in the junk. “You’d endure a Trial By Sun, for me? Lady, you don’t even know me.”

“I may not know you, but so far all you’ve tried to do is help.” She withdrew her hand. “You didn’t have to offer to stay with me so 8-Ball could go with Brick, but you did, and I appreciate that. It means a lot more to me than you’ll ever know.” She turned away from him as the stupid tears she’d been fighting all night welled up yet again. “I’d do anything for my friends. So just keep your big hands away from my mouth and we should be fine.”

Toni drew a deep breath in an attempt to pull her scrambled emotions together, then eyed Christian, who had a smile she could only describe as evil stretched all the way across his bronzed face. “What the hell are you smiling at now?”

He actually laughed at her. “Nothing, Miss Tutoro. Nothing at all.”

She fisted her hands. “Please, just promise me you won’t hurt them.”

“I have absolutely no intention of hurting them. After all, it does me no good if my Enforcement Team is out of commission.” If it was possible, his smile turned even more malicious at the edges. “However, I’m sure they’ll wish I had offered a physical punishment by the time I finish speaking with them about the disrespectful practice of keeping secrets from their Lord. If I remember correctly, don’t those of the Warrior lineage just love a good, long lecture?”

When Drake’s loud laughter boomed behind her, Toni had to smile. If there was one punishment she knew 8-Ball hated, it was some Trump giving him the verbal what-for. He’d always complained that Trumps had a bad habit of using words bigger than their egos, which as far as he could tell, no board room could hold without serious structural damage.

Not that 8-Ball was really one to talk when it came to huge egos, but she’d gladly take him and Brick being on the business end of a lecture over the possible alternatives any day.

“Now, Miss Tutoro, if you would kindly excuse me, I have other pressing business this evening. And please, do find yourself a coat. It’s far too cold to be out in the city without one. Actions as such make the humans look twice.” He gave a curt nod before he turned and walked back to his car. “Oh, and Mr. Black,” he called as he slid into the backseat, “please see to it that your charge arrives at my hotel within the hour.” He’d no more than finished his request before the door closed and his car was gone.

Toni watched as the glowing red taillights of the Lord of Chicago’s Mercedes quickly faded in the distance.

What the hell had just happened?

You’ve entered the Twilight Zone, that’s what just happened. She nodded in response to the voice in her mind. The last courtesy she’d expected when Locke had stepped out of his car was the offer of a meeting and a suite at his hotel. A swift kick in the behind and a warning to be out before sunrise, most definitely, especially since that was the response she’d gotten from the Lord’s of other cities as soon as she told them her name. But a warm place to stay without the threat of being hunted by the Enforcement Team…not even close.

Now, if she could only keep her mouth under control at the meeting.

She turned and looked up at Drake at the thought. Apparently, the meeting wasn’t the only place she needed to keep her mouth to herself.

She rested a hand on his forearm. “I’m sorry I bit you.”

He wrinkled his nose like a five year old and made a production of rubbing his booboo. “Me, too.”

“Oh, please.” She grabbed the offended hand and pressed a kiss to the wounded finger that had probably healed the second he’d removed it from her mouth. “There. All better.”

He jerked his arm back as though she’d touched him with an open flame. “Don’t do that.” The pain in his eyes deepened right before that invisible curtain slammed back into place. He flashed a smile that wasn’t true. “The last place my fingers need to be is anywhere near your mouth. You’ve already proven you’re a biter.”

Toni mirrored his false smile, even though what she wanted to do was ask why he kept trying to be someone else. But then, she knew all too well what it felt like not to be happy with who you were. She’d felt that way for the last three years, and to this day, she’d give anything to go back to who she was before. Back to a time when her life consisted of more than running to stay alive, back to before one night and a few bad decisions changed everything.

She stared down at his hand. “If I hurt you, Drake, I really am sorry.”

A long moment of silence stretched between them before he asked, “Can I ask you a question?”

She nodded, but couldn’t quite meet his eyes. “Sure.”

“Why do you apologize so much?”

“Because…” She bit at the inside of her bottom lip then cleared her throat. “Because I promised myself a long time ago that I’d never waste a chance to tell someone how I really feel. That I’d never walk away from someone I knew I’d hurt without telling them I was sorry…even if they couldn’t hear me.”

“Well,” he sighed, his voice seemingly filled with the same regret she felt. He rested a warm hand on her shoulder, sending a shiver straight down her spine. “Even though my finger will probably get all infected now and swell up like a bloated corpse, I want you to know that I’ll probably forgive you someday.” He slid his hand down her arm and squeezed her fingers tight. “But today’s not your day…and tomorrow ain’t lookin’ too good either.”

She ripped her hand away from him when he burst into a loud fit of laughter. “Oh my God!” She grabbed a fistful of his long hair then yanked his face down to her level. “What’s wrong with you? Why would you say something like that to me? What did I ever do to you?”

“Ow, ow, ow. You’re hurting me. Say you’re sorry! Say you’re sorry!”

She tugged hard on his hair again, but this time all she could do was laugh at the exaggerated way he bent at the waist and contorted sideways as his face scrunched up. “You’re just not right.”

He flashed the most beautiful, most genuine smile she’d ever seen. “Yeah, but now you’re laughing.”

She slowly released her hold on his hair, noticing for the first time how soft the dark strands felt as they slipped between her fingers. She couldn’t remember the last time someone tried to make her laugh. Couldn’t recall, aside from 8-Ball and Brick, the last time she’d been touched by another vampire who wasn’t trying to kill her.

She looked up at Drake, watching the way his eyes seemed to lighten a little more every second he stared back at her, until not even a trace of the sadness remained. Where the darkness had gone or why, she didn’t know, but she’d been alone and unwanted for so long that she wasn’t sure whether to smile because he made her feel so good, or cry because she knew she didn’t deserve it.

You don’t deserve it. Toni swallowed the jagged knot tightening her throat and backed away from the man who had no idea what kind of monster he stood so close to. “We should probably head for Locke’s hotel.” She tucked her hair behind her ears as the frigid wind picked up around them. “When we get there, I’ll see if I can find someone who knows him. Maybe I can get his phone number and talk him into letting you go. I’m sure you’ve got better things to do than be stuck with someone like me. Someone you don’t even know.”

“Oh, hell, no.” He folded his arms over his chest while that adorable, lopsided grin from earlier formed on his lips. “I’m not going to the hotel yet. I’m not moving an inch until you say it.”

She blinked at him. “Say what?”

“Say what?” His mouth gaped open like a suffocating fish. “I want you to say you’re sorry for pulling my hair. I want you to say you’re sorry for almost snapping my spine in two.” He scuffed one of his big black boots against the sidewalk. “There’s ice down there, ya know. I almost fell, and I don’t have health insurance yet.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes. I want an apology.”

She moved to stand in front of him again. “I’m sorry that I bit you. I’m sorry that I pulled your hair. And I’m sorry if I hurt you, because that’s not what I wanted.” She tipped her head back and stared into his eyes. “And I’m sorry that the longer you’re around me, the more I’ll have to say I’m sorry…because I will hurt you again. I’m sorry Brick and 8-Ball had to leave. I’m sorry you got stuck with me. And I’m sorry that I couldn’t be in this city for more than an hour without fucking everything up again. You have no idea just how sorry I am. But I promise I’ll do everything I can to get Christian to let you go. Now, can we go to the hotel?”

“Wow.” His blue eyes widened as he inhaled a deep breath. “When you Warriors swing…you really go for the fences don’t you? And then that fence, and that one, then the one over there, then you run back to where you started and do it all over again.” He shook his head. “Truthfully, I don’t know how you do it, because I’m getting tired just watching you.”

Toni gave in to the light tugging sensation at the corners of her mouth when Drake started laughing again. Deep and damningly contagious, the rich sound rolled over her in a soothing wave, making the air feel just a little bit warmer, a little less empty.

“I have an idea.” He rubbed his hands together then blew a breath between them. “How ‘bout you pick a mood and stick with it for five minutes, I’ll worry about what I’m getting myself into, and we’ll head to the hotel where they have this great invention called heat.”      

She studied him for a minute, watching the steady rise and fall of his chest as he breathed, the way each breath that slipped past his lips became a burst of steam as it mingled with the cold air, and how his tongue darted out every so often to moisten those lips.

Everything about him was human…  

And from what she could tell, he didn’t even try. He didn’t stop to concentrate every few minutes. Didn’t appear to give as much as a second thought to the human functions he maintained. He imitated life with perfection, down to the very last detail, as though he’d never lost it.

She bit down hard on the inside of her cheek as jealousy tingled through her again. He was right. She seriously needed to get her emotions under control. She’d already bitten the poor guy once because she’d let the beast get the better of her, the least she could do was pick one fence to swing at.

Besides, how much damage could she do to him in less than 24 hours?

You know exactly what you could do. Focusing back on Drake, Toni ignored her conscience and plastered a smile on her face. “I like your idea. Do you need a ride or do you have a car around here somewhere?”   

He inclined his head towards the parking lot. “That yours?”

She looked over at her ‘79 Trans-Am. “Yeah, she’s my baby.”

“You sound pretty proud.”

“My oldest brother built her.” She smiled, even though the memory stung. “He used to let me help. Not that I really did anything other than hand him tools, and half the time they weren’t even the right ones.”

“He give it to you for your birthday or something?”

She shook her head. “Nope, he left before she was finished. I was ten. Then my dad died a couple months later. So I asked my mom for books about cars, which she was totally against because she said girls don’t work on cars.” She drew a breath and tried one more time to fight her tears. “But I talked her into it eventually, and then I finished what my brother started. I figure if I ever find him…if he’s still alive, I’ll give her back. Kinda like a coming home present.”

“You don’t know where he is?”

“Nope. We never heard from him after he left…but I’m glad he got out when he did.” She spun around and headed for her car. Staring straight ahead, she pushed the memories firing in her mind as far back as possible then pulled her keys out of her pocket and jingled them over her shoulder. “Do you want a ride or not?”

“Uh, something tells me I’m not gonna fit in there.”

When she reached her car, Toni opened the door and looked inside before she cast a glance back to Drake, who still stood on the sidewalk. He was probably right, especially since he was a good foot, if not more, taller than her and easily twice as wide.

“You could try.” She sucked in a breath through her teeth as she recalculated the visual measurements. “I could take the T-top off on the passenger side. It might work.”

“No, no.” He raised his hands. “I have absolutely no desire to find out what it feels like to be a sardine. Why don’t I just meet you there?”

“Do you not have a car?” When he stared at her, she tipped her head to the side. “The hotel’s at least twenty blocks away. There’s no reason for you to walk all the way there in the cold. We can make it work.”

“I don’t need a car.” He cracked a devious smile as his eyes flicked between her and the dark alley across the street. “In fact, I bet I beat you there. And I’m willing to put money on it.”

She couldn’t hold back the laugh bubbling up inside her. The man was dreaming. “What are you gonna do? Run? It’s not even fair.” She smacked the roof of her car. “I know exactly how much horsepower this baby puts out. You don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of beating me.”

“Oh, what’s this all around me?” He made a production of blinking as he turned from left to right. “Why, it’s snow! And it’s everywhere!” He reached into his pocket then waved what looked to be a fifty dollar bill at her. “Care to put your money where your mouth is, Warrior? That’s right. I just issued you a challenge.” He clucked his tongue at her. “What would Brick and Baller say if they knew you chickened out?”

“I’m not chickening out.” She leaned in and started her car then stood back up and smiled at him. “I just don’t wanna see your heart break or your ego burst when you lose to a girl.”

When he shuffled his feet then made a break for the alley, Toni jumped into her car and took a brief moment to situate herself. After closing the door and strapping on her seatbelt, she cranked the wheel and slammed her foot down on the gas. She easily steered out of a spin as the tires connected with the snow slicked street, then smiled and aimed for Lord Locke’s hotel.

There was no way Drake could beat her.

But as she sped past the alley he’d disappeared into, she swore she heard him yell, “I don’t lose!”

She gripped the wheel tighter as she whipped around a corner.

Neither did she, at least not when it came to racing.