Death's Rival (14 page)

I could see thoughts processing, his eyes taking on a slightly unfocused state as
he replayed the last half hour. “Five people that I know of, but we dispersed. Could
have been more.”

“Well, crap.” Why couldn’t it be just one? “If I stand down are you gonna shoot me?”

Chi-Chi barked a laugh, the humor not affecting his aim in the slightest. “I might.”

Great
. “I have a problem with trust when the other guy is armed.”

“Don’t we all?”

We could stand here all night. And Bruiser could die. Hoping I wasn’t being stupid,
I raised the weapon, removed the magazine, and unchambered the round. I stepped back.
Chi-Chi shrugged, not easy to do while lying on the floor, and sat straight up. Still
using mostly his abs, he rolled to his feet, proving he had stayed in top shape after
finishing active duty with the marines. Lastly, he holstered his sidearm. “What entry?”
he demanded. I pointed at the kitchen, and, keeping me in his field of vision, he
walked through my house as I followed. He knelt and inspected the door, swinging it
open and closed. He grunted, “One kick. Size eleven or twelve. Smooth soled, so not
wearing boots. All our guys are in boots tonight.”

“I knew it wasn’t one of your guys.” I almost added,
It was a stranger’s smell,
but didn’t. Go, me. I didn’t respond to his odd look either, after my comment about
trust problems. What else could I have meant, right? “There may be a security leak
in Leo’s chain of command, and it puts Bruiser in danger. He knows who drank from
Leo, and therefore which vamps are loyal to Leo and can be eliminated from the short
list of potential suspects. The ones who didn’t drink from the MOC may be involved
in the attack. Go keep the primo alive.”

Chi-Chi raised a single brow. There were three shaved lines in it, giving the brow
a jagged look, like a lightning strike. The look said that he wasn’t in my chain of
command and didn’t take orders from me. I thought about that, and about the fact that
one of Derek’s men might be the traitor. But who better to guard Bruiser than someone
who wanted to keep his lack of loyalty hidden? I pursed my lips and added, “Please.”

Chi-Chi laughed again, the odd bark of sound. “You have trouble with that word.”

“How long have you known the Vodka Boys and the new men in Derek’s Tequila Posse?”

“Posse? Nobody says posse no more. We been together off and on for as much as nine
years, most of us.”

“Any of you have bad financial trouble?”

His face hardened in the moonlight. “You calling one of us a traitor?”

“Not beyond the realm of possibility. Is it.” It wasn’t a question. The job market
in New Orleans sucked. Chi-Chi walked back to the front of the house and out the open
door. Without a reply, he disappeared into the shadows, silent as a cat. Drawing my
gun, I reinserted the round from my pocket into the magazine, snapped it home, and
chambered a round. I stepped into the shadow beside the door, feeling it close behind
Chi-Chi.

“Your security sucks,” a new voice said.

Lips tightly closed, I smiled and crouched low to the floor, pointed my weapon in
the direction of the voice. I had smelled him as he entered, a clean but musky undertone
that was natural to him. Not my thief. But maybe there was more than one. I could
start firing and hope to hit him, or I could chat a bit. Chatting sounded safer. “Unscented
deodorant, no cologne, unscented shampoo, and a body odor that says you shower often,”
I said. “You carry at least three weapons, all recently cleaned with an aerosol lubricant.
Dry lubricant is better. It doesn’t leave such a strong scent.”

“Most people can’t smell lubricants after an hour or so.”

I adjusted my aim a fraction. “I’m not most people.”

“Sergeant Lee said that much.”

My insides clenched.
Derek sent him? To take me out?
“What else did he say?”

“You probably aren’t human. You pay well. You need security experts—weapons, tactics,
intelligence, and electronics. I’m looking for a crew to join, but if the security
of this place is any indication, you aren’t what I’m looking for.”

“Not my house. You got a name?”

“Younger. Eli.”

“Training?”

“Courtesy of the U.S. military.”

“Ranger?”

“Is this a job interview?”

I thought about that. I had asked Derek for some guys of my own. He said he knew someone,
but if he’d given me a name I didn’t remember it. “Could be. How many knives do you
carry? Silver blades? Stakes? Crosses?”

“In this town? Unknown territory, full of vamps? I opted for two of each. And I like
steel—keeps an edge better than silver.”

“Silver plating on the flat of a steel blade poisons vamps, so if you didn’t get them
with the first cut, they get sick, sometimes fast. I usually carry thirteen stakes
and at least one cross, silver, in a lead-lined pocket. That way if a vamp surprises
me, it won’t give away my location when it glows.”

“Hmmm.”

I had a feeling I had made a point, and that his cross was on his neck on a chain
for all the world to see. “Silver is expensive,” he said, sounding grudging.

“So is dying. You work for me, I’ll supply the silver.”

I could practically hear him thinking. Even more grudgingly, he asked, “About this
place?”

“Looks like I’ll be staying for a while.” I surprised myself with the words. I hadn’t
intended to say them. Not ever. “You can handle the upgrade. Leo Pellissier or Katie
Fonteneau can pay for it.”

He named a price that made me wince. “That’s for the first month, for two of us, my
brother and me. Room and board is included in the price, along with a few upgrades
on the house—easily secured windows, better doors, and a security system.”

“I don’t cook.”

“I do. But you buy the food.”

I took one hand off the weapon and reached up. Flipped on the light. Younger and I
were aiming directly at each other, except his aim was a little high. Above my head.
I chuckled softly. Eli frowned.

CHAPTER NINE

If I Lose, the Kid Eats Like a Soldier

Eli Younger was my height, give or take an inch, solid as an oak, fast on his feet,
maybe mid-thirties, and not what I expected at all. All Derek’s men were black and
former marines. The Ranger was probably at least half white, and . . . Different was
too ordinary a word. He had dark gray eyes that might have a blue haze to them in
direct sunlight, dark hair cut military short, skin as brown as mine, and a still-healing,
jagged scar that started at his left jaw and ran down his neck to disappear into his
shirt collar. It didn’t look like a knife wound. Shrapnel, maybe. No tattoos that
I could see.

I took a beer from the fridge and passed it across to him. Eli grinned at the fridge,
twisted off the top, and drank. I was pretty sure he was smiling because the inside
light no longer functioned. Security. Or maybe it was the stack of steaks inside.
He seemed like a man who’d like steak.

I prepared tea for me, boiling water, pouring dried leaves into a strainer. Setting
an antique pot in the sink and filling it with hot tap water to temper the old ceramic.
We studied each other as we worked—him on his beer, me on my tea. I was tired, so
I chose a strong Irish breakfast blend and got out the sugar. I worked in silence.
It didn’t seem to bother him, which was nice. I never knew what to say to men who
needed chitchat. While the water heated, I sat and said, “Tell me about your brother.”

His eyes shifted for a moment, and I figured I was about to get a portion of the truth.
“Alex is my height, just turned eighteen, a graduate from MIT. He’s on juvie probation,
but if you hire me, you hire him. We’re a team.” I thought about that for a moment,
then nodded, waiting for more. “He got caught hacking into the Pentagon.” A smile
pulled at my lips and about a hundred emotions flitted across Eli’s face before he
settled on wry. “Yeah. He wants to know what happened.” Eli touched his scar. “He
hates secrets. I wouldn’t talk, so he tried hacking in, looking for my records. He’s
good. Arguably one of the top ten hackers in the country, not that they call it hacking
anymore. But he made a rookie mistake, probably because he’s worried.”

I raised my brows. Eli went on. “Alex says I’m different since it happened. He doesn’t
like it.”

“So different you can’t do the job?”

“So different I wanted out. I was a career soldier. Then I wasn’t.”

Cub,
Beast thought at me. It seemed like a good guess. I went with it. “Your parents are
deceased.” Eli’s eyes dilated a bit in surprise.
Bingo
. “You nearly died, and Alex would have been alone. You quit for him, and if he knew
that he’d be ticked off.” Surprise and irritation leaked from Eli’s skin. He’d not
be happy to know he was giving away the good parts of his personal story by his olfactory
tells, but I wasn’t sharing that. Let him think I was just that smart, or that Derek
had told me all. “So, with your injury, whatever the service gives you to retire early,
good contacts, and a pocketful of medals, you hope to start a business—one where you
can keep an eye on your brother—with your hard-won skills and your brother’s genius
IQ and computer flair.” I nodded slowly at what I was reading in the tension of his
jaw. Yeah. I was betting I had it all straight. “But you have to stay in Louisiana
until his probation is over, and I’m the fastest job possibility you have. I have
a big house at my disposal and you think you can bunk in here for a month or two,
make good cash, and look around for better things. Anything I get wrong? Anything
I need to know different?”

“No. And?”

“I’ll think about it.” I took the simmering kettle off the fire. Emptied the pot and
set the strainer inside. Poured the steaming water over the leaves and set the top
on with a little
clink
. I swathed the teapot in a towel and left it to steep. I walked into my bedroom and
right back out with the sheaf of papers and the Apple I had taken from Seattle. “Small
test to see if you are what you say you are. Get your brother to see what’s on this
computer. I want a list and summary of all files. I want the e-mail address book.
I want to read every e-mail sent in the last month. I’m looking—”

Eli held up a hand, pulled out a cell, and hit a button. We both heard it ring. Right
outside. “I told you to stay put. Get your sorry ass in here.” He closed the cell.
I laughed. Eli shook his head and sighed. “Crazy kid. He was supposed to stay in the
truck.”

A knock sounded at the front door. Eli got up and stood to the side of the door, checking
out the window before opening it. A kid came in, looking much younger than eighteen,
gangly, gawky, and carrying a slim electronic device about the size of two hands,
and at least three electronic devices under one arm—an e-reader, a tablet, whatever.
Eli pointed to a chair at the table. The kid seemed to melt into it, the electronics
in his lap. He wouldn’t meet my eyes.

Thief,
Beast whispered to me.

What did he take of mine? He didn’t have time to steal.
I turned my back on the pair. Not a dominance action this time, but a chance to think.
I got out two mugs and spoons and poured tea. Added sugar to both and stirred, putting
two and two together.

I walked around the table and put one cup in front of the kid. Beast-fast, I yanked
the electronic tablets off his lap and put the table between us again. I set the fancy
electronics on the table just out of his reach. Eli started to react and stopped himself
with a jerk, only his eyes showing a reaction to my speed and my thievery. “Are my
financials okay, kid? My background check out? Did Reach burn your little butt for
going deep into my life?”

The kid looked up at that. He was going to be a lot prettier than his brother, if
he ever got over the sullen glint in his eyes and the stubborn grinding of his teeth.
Then his mouth dropped slowly open. “That was Reach?
The
Reach? Like
Reacher
Reach?” He looked at the small e-tablet and cussed softly.

His brother slapped the back of his head. “Lady here.”

Alex rubbed his head, looking at me under too-long bangs. “Bugger’s not a bad word,
and she’s no lady. She’s a rogue-vampire killer. She’s got more kills under her belt
than any other licensed hunter in the business. She’s also the Enforcer for Leo Pellissier,
and no one knows how she got the position. Half of the fanghead hunters think she’s
his blood-servant. The other half think she’s got a legal writ on him and is getting
into position to take him out. She’s got more money than Midas.”

Eli rumpled his brow, and I knew he was thinking about the muffler company rather
than the mythical king. I laughed, half wondering how I could read the man so well.
It had to be more than his musky undertone. He was like a pheromone factory, every
emotion immediately available to my nose, but even that shouldn’t make him so transparent.
“And Reach burned a hole in your system for looking?”

“Fried my ass. Fried my Teckton.”

I didn’t know what a Teckton was, but it sounded expensive. After checking to make
sure his devices were all off, I pulled my cell and hit Reach’s speed dial. “Evening,
Money Honey,” he said.

I snorted. “The kid you just burned getting into my records. Is he dangerous? And
can he be trusted as an employee?”

“Yes and yes. Him and his Ranger brother. And for that and for taking care of you
when you weren’t looking, I just earned a crisp five hundred of your money.”

I didn’t bother to reply. I ended the call. Looked between Eli and Alex, and left
my gaze on the kid. “I’m thinking about hiring your bother. I understand you come
as part of the package deal. So, a test. You have one hour to get everything off that
laptop.” I pointed to the Seattle Apple. “I want a list and summary of all files.
I want the e-mail address book. I want to read every nonpersonal, business-type e-mail
sent in the last month. I’m looking for a challenge from one vamp to another. Travel
discussions. Anything about doctors and research, about vamps getting sick.” I tossed
the Blood-Call business card on the desk too. “It’s probably nothing, but that was
at a . . .” I hesitated, trying to decide how to describe the Seattle Clan Home. “A
crime scene. I want everything you can find on it. One hour.”

“Are you nuts? One hour?” I raised my brows at his tone and he said, “I haven’t had
any sleep. I’ll need coffee.”

“You’ll drink tea and like it. Your brother can cook you some dinner. If I like your
work and his cooking, you’re hired.”

“You’re hiring us on
his
work? Not what
I
can do?” Eli asked.

“You’re the brawn. You can supplement my own skills and maybe teach me a thing or
two. The kid, if he’s any good, can take me and my business all kids of places.
He’s
valuable.” I looked Eli over, smelling his shock, and I grinned, knowing I had just
verbally socked him in the gut. Men are so easy. After a moment I tossed him a bone.
“I need a secure room in this house, one with egress in case of fire. I was nearly
burned out not that long ago. Updated windows and doors. My vampire landlady and employer”—I
pointed out the back of the house—“needs a safe room too. I started one. Got as far
as installing a sprinkler system and dedicated communication devices. You can take
that over too. Assuming your brother is as good as he thinks he is.” The kid snorted
and said something my house mother in the children’s home would have washed out my
mouth for saying.

“Alex?” He looked up from the screen to me. “You ever say that in my house again,
or any other curse or swearword or phrase, in English or any other language, and I’ll
wash out your mouth with soap, something antibacterial, with a real slimy degreaser.”
His eyes sparked sullen again. “My house, my rules. Are we clear?” He looked at his
bother and nodded, lank hair falling forward. “And if you get the job, you’ll shower
every day, and you’ll do your own laundry and pick up after yourself. Your brother
cooks, so you’ll wash dishes and keep the entire house swept. I am not your mother.
And if I was, I’d be twice as hard on you for showing disrespect to me and to your
brother. Nod if you understand and agree.” A long moment later, the kid nodded, but
I could see the anger and a blue screen, both reflected in his eyes.

My cell rang and I opened it without taking my eyes off my current guests and potential
employees. “Yeah.”

Derek said, “We got a route for Leo. According to the crispy vamp, he was drained
in what sounds like a gang-feeding, and then whisked away by two vamps and two blood-servants.
Angel hacked the GPS of the car they were in and Chi-Chi, Lime Rickey, and Hi-Fi are
heading to observe and gather intel. I assume you want to be there, so I’ve sent the
coordinates to your cell.”

I inhaled slowly, letting the shock settle. I could think later about what the gang-feeding
analogy might mean to Leo, and moved to my bedroom to weapon up as I checked Derek’s
GPS info, merging it into a map and then taking a look at it on webcam pics. The car
was on the far side of Highway 10, parked at a one-story house on Ursulines Ave. According
to Google, there was a high school nearby, but not much else. Of course, Google was
not something I wanted to depend on when planning an op.

“Trap for us?” I asked, sliding into my M4 harness and the holsters for the nine-mils.

“Could be.”

“Okay. I’ll meet them there.” Behind me, I heard the familiar clicks and metal-against-metal
of guns being checked and glanced back to see Eli Younger weaponing up as well. I
watched to see what he carried and it was pretty much standard, the kind of stuff
I had utilized when I first started out.

“If it looks reliable,” Derek said, “we’ll send Leo’s blood-servants to be available.”

Leo was drained. Drained vamps are dangerous. Very. “Okay. I’ll get back to you.”

From my closet floor I lifted the boot box I use for a jewelry box and set it on the
bed. Inside were the few pieces I owned, each stuffed inside athletic socks to keep
them from rattling around. And to keep my socks all in one place. I placed the black
velvet gift box on the bed and lifted out my silver and titanium vamp-hunting collar.
Underneath it was the coyote earring that had appeared in the box following a particularly
horrible nightmare one night. I paused at the sight. I didn’t have nightmares often,
but this one had stuck with me. So had the earring, which was weird, but no weirder
than the fact that the pocket watch had somehow gotten into the black velvet box with
it. I distinctly remembered dropping the watch-amulet into the box, on top of the
socks. The amulet’s magic still smelled like meat. Like blood. Good thing Beast wasn’t
hanging around too much. She would want to taste it. Along with the watch, I stuffed
the earring in a sock, wondering if they would both reappear, in a different spot
in the box the next time I opened it. I removed the collar and put the box back on
the floor of the closet.

“You going somewhere?” I asked Eli, questioning his weapons with lifted brows.

He shrugged. “Consider it a job interview for the brawn half of the Younger team.”

“Suit yourself,” I said. “We’re going to rescue a starving master vamp from some kidnappers
and torturers. Try not to get your throat torn out.” That made Eli pause half a second
in his prep work. He looked over my necklace collar, considering the implications.
“No. I don’t have another one,” I said. “If I keep you around—”

“Yeah, yeah. You’ll spring for one.”

“Heck no. These suckers are expensive. I’ll send you to a supplier and you can buy
your own.”

“Sweet lady.”

“Your brother had it right. I’m no lady. We’ll take your vehicle.”

Eli shrugged and we were out the door and heading toward Highway 10, Eli driving,
me reading out directions on my cell.

* * *

The house was in need of a paint job, but it had a newish, post-Katrina roof. It was
deep but narrow on the front, with steps up to a porch and working shutters closed
over all the windows. In the Deep South, shutters are for hurricane protection, not
just looks. Unlike most of the duplexes around it, this was a single-family house,
up on seven-foot stilts, with the lower area used for low-head parking and storage.
We pulled down the block, behind the SUV, and parked, trees between us and the house.