Eternal Prey (3 page)

“And?”

“His body died. His soul didn’t.” Utah met her gaze, his eyes almost black in the darkness. “Fin can remove souls from bodies. That’s how he saved all of the Eleven. He sends the souls to a safe place near a strong natural power source until he can return them to a body. Rap is tucked away underground somewhere near Sedona, Arizona, right now.”

“What’s stopping Fin from bringing Rap back now? Lord knows you need all the help you can get.”

Utah looked frustrated. “Fin needs his power to keep Zero off our backs. Hard to believe, but Fin says Zero is stronger than he is. Fin tries to distract the bastard with a constant barrage of psychic attacks. A soul transfer would drain too much from Fin. Besides, Fin needs the right body. So Rap will have to wait.”

What kind of being could manipulate souls? The word “god” popped into her mind, but she shoved it aside. “What if something happens to Fin?”

“Then Rap’s soul sleeps forever.”

Utah might sound casual, but there was nothing casual about his clenched fists.

“I’m sorry.” And she was. She studied his face, for the first time seeing just a man. A man who was hurting for his brother.

“Yeah.” He seemed to give in to weariness as he rested his head against the headrest and closed his eyes.

She took the hint and turned away to stare out the window. It seemed to take way too long before they pulled into the condo’s underground parking garage. No one said anything as they took the elevator up to the top floor.

Stepping from the car, Utah covered the distance to Fin’s door in a few long strides. He pounded on it. Lia would have rung the bell. She wondered if they had even one thing in common.

He’d raised his fist to pound again when the door swung open. A tall, dark-haired man stared at them. As doormen went, he looked a little intense.

“Lia, this is Shen, Fin’s assistant.” Utah stepped past the man into the condo.

Shen smiled and stood aside for Tor and her to enter. His smile didn’t exactly transform him into Mr. Relaxed, but at least he seemed welcoming. “Hi, Lia. Follow me. Everyone’s in the dining room.”

As she followed Shen, Lia tried not to let the total awesomeness of the condo impress her. Walls of glass overlooked the city and river. And Fin definitely didn’t shop for furniture in the same places she did. Mega cash outlay. Where had Fin scraped that kind of money together? But she figured if you had your own pack of predators working for you, people gave you what you wanted.

Shen stopped in front of a closed door. Lia could hear men’s voices behind it. She steeled herself as Tor swung the door open.

They were all seated around a long table. Everyone stopped talking. They turned and looked at her. These were the Eleven then. No, ten, since Rap was missing. All big, all lethal, and probably humanity’s best chance to survive the end of this year. She’d seen some of them in Philly, but in very different forms.

Lia straightened her spine, tipped her chin up at a confident angle, and walked with Utah and Tor into the room. She felt their stares follow her as she chose a seat between Utah and Tor. Then she met each of their gazes.

She’d lived around vampires her whole life. Lia understood predators. Never look nervous, never look away, and always send a message that you’re the biggest badass in the room. She saved the man at the head of the table for last.

This, then, was Utah’s boss, the leader of the Eleven. And no matter that she’d heard descriptions of him . . .

There were no words.

He had to be at least six foot seven, but it wasn’t his size that riveted her.

Long silver hair spilled over his shoulders and down his back. Not gray.
Silver.
The glittery glow of it raised goose bumps along her arms.

“I’ve been waiting to meet you, Lia.”

Fin’s voice, sensual or threatening? Lia came down on the side of threatening. But who would ever care about his voice when he had that face? It was a face carved from shadows and dark places where normal people never dared go. It was primitive force, sexual power, and unearthly beauty all stamped with an aura so ancient it took her breath away.

“We need to have a long talk soon.” Fin smiled.

Lia decided Fin’s smile wouldn’t fool anyone. Transfixing like the rest of him, the smile somehow didn’t ring true. Maybe because she sensed that no emotion lay beneath it. Fin’s smile would be the last thing you’d see as you died, and it wouldn’t make the dying easier.

“Sure.” She tried to sound casual, but she absolutely did
not
want to be closed into a room alone with this man.

“I don’t think you’ve met most of the Eleven.”

“Not in their human forms.”

Fin introduced all of them, a string of names attached to unfamiliar faces. But it wasn’t their faces she saw in her mind, but their beasts. She didn’t think humanity was ready to accept what walked among them. Lia wasn’t sure she was either.

Fin leaned back in his chair and shifted his attention to Utah. “What happened tonight?”

Utah told his story, straightforward with no apologies.

Lia found herself holding her breath, waiting for Fin’s anger to explode. It didn’t. His expression remained neutral.

“You have to control your anger, Utah.” There was no condemnation in Fin’s voice. He was simply stating a fact.

Lia surprised herself by speaking up. “He lost a brother he loved a month ago. Anyone’s emotions would still be raw.”

Utah’s look said her defense had shocked him. She frowned at him so he’d know that this didn’t make them friends. Lia just thought someone should keep things fair.

Tor leaned close. “Thanks. Not many outsiders would dare disagree with Fin.”

Lia
was
an outsider here. She had to remember that and maybe keep her mouth shut more.

When he spoke, Utah’s voice sounded calm, but she could almost feel the tension rolling off him.

“You knew what you were getting when you woke me four months ago. My last memory? A kill that Rap, Tor, and I made a lot of years ago. But that kill felt as though it’d happened only minutes before I woke. None of us have had much time to adapt. I’m still what I was back then. One of those online research sites called my beast cunning, savage, and ruthless. That’s me. I’m a killer. Deal.”

“You
will
overcome your animal nature.” Fin stood and strode to the bank of windows. He stared out at the city lights.

Lia sensed an or-else attached to that order.

“You made a big mistake, O Glorious Leader.”

Fin didn’t turn around.

“When you put my soul into a man’s body, you didn’t allow for human emotions. Now you have mindless savagery married to human feelings. I hurt. And my soul is big and bad enough to do something about it.”

Everyone in the room went still, waiting. From the tense glances the rest of the Eleven were sending Fin’s way, she got the feeling most of them trod a little more carefully around their leader.

Fin turned and walked back to the table. He sat and then looked at Utah. When his lips turned up in a rueful smile, Lia could hear the collective sigh of relief.

“I know what you’re feeling. You have no idea how much I know.” He tapped one finger on the table as his expression turned thoughtful. “Did you say the man who attacked you had red hair?”

Utah nodded. “Yeah. I figure it was Seven.”

Fin’s thoughts seemed to turn inward. “I think congratulations are in order for both you and Lia.”

Utah looked puzzled. Lia had a bad feeling about this.

“Because you both met Zero tonight.”

Beside her, Tor sucked in his breath.

“And survived.”

U
tah heard Lia’s small gasp, felt the shocked ripples circling the room.

“I wasn’t the target.” Utah was certain of that. “Zero didn’t want me to die in that car. He could’ve killed me anytime he wanted. He did want to scare the crap out of me, though, so I’d call you.” He met Fin’s gaze. “Zero wanted to draw you out. He even told me to call you.”

“And you didn’t.” Fin finally looked annoyed.

“No.”

“If there’s ever a next time, call.”

“No.” Utah saw Fin’s annoyance turning to anger and decided to explain. “You’re the only one who matches up with Zero. Sure, the rest of us might get lucky and manage to kick the rest of his gang back out into the cosmos, but then Zero would wipe us out. The way I see it,
you
need to survive.”

“And
you’re
not expendable.” Fin’s expression said the discussion was closed. “Now we need to talk about how to find Seven.”

Utah subsided.

Lia leaned toward him. “He’s right. Fin needs you guys as much as you need him. Don’t underestimate yourself.”

Utah didn’t want anything she said to make him feel good. It was bad enough that he was imagining those legs . . . No, he wasn’t going there. Ever.

“Does anyone have any leads on Seven?” Fin looked around the table. His question got no response. “Let me rephrase that. Has anyone heard of unusual events in Portland lately?”

“Homicides are way up. I checked the city crime stats.” Q kept up with things like that.

Fin nodded. “Right now Seven is recruiting from the paranormal population, from
your
people.” He glanced at Lia. “He’s promising them power and wealth, promising that they can kill at will. The killings serve a purpose. Terrorize the population and the battle is half won.”

“Adam’s mad because almost a third of the Portland clan has gone missing. He thinks there’s a rogue vampire out there luring them away to join a new clan.” Lia looked at Utah. “Then there’re the ones you killed.”

“Interesting.” Fin didn’t seem concerned with the dead vampires. “We can assume the missing vampires are with Seven.”

“That doesn’t help us find the bastard.” Car stated the obvious.

“We need the local vampires. They know Portland and all the places nonhumans gather.” Spin looked ready to tear the city apart to find Seven.

Lia leaned forward. “If you want the vampires’ help, then Adam is your key. As he goes, so goes the whole vampire nation.” She smiled. “Except for a few regional leaders with the guts to stand up to him.”

“Like Jude.” Fin went back to tapping the table with his finger. “He helped us in Philly, and he’s passed on some helpful information here in Portland. We’re lucky Adam called for all his regional leaders to help hunt Utah or else Jude would still be back in Texas.”

“Adam won’t like that. What’s his is his forever. He doesn’t share, and that includes information.” Lia looked worried for Jude.

“I explained to Adam how upset I’d be if any harm came to Jude.” Fin’s eyes turned glacial.

“One thing you need to know about Adam. He can’t be trusted. Sure, he seems to be leaning your way right now, but that could change in a second. Power motivates him.” Lia didn’t sound as though Adam was her leader of choice.

Utah let the conversation flow around him as he built a plan he thought might work. When he had everything straight in his head, he spoke. “We need Adam, and Adam needs a new enforcer to wipe out this rogue vampire and any vampires who follow him.”

“A new enforcer?” Ty was starting to look interested.

“I killed the old one.”

A few of the Eleven congratulated him, but Fin’s stare stopped that.

“I’ll volunteer to be Adam’s enforcer.”

Lia laughed. “Adam hates you.”

“What do you have in mind, Utah?” Fin sat forward.

“He needs an enforcer who can hunt down and eliminate this rogue vampire and his followers, and I like killing vampires. Tell him that I’d be doing what I like to do and at the same time atoning for my random kills. Both sides win.”

“Why would he believe you’d go for that idea? You’re already destroying vampires at a record rate.” Fin didn’t look happy about the thought.

Utah shrugged. “Tell him the truth with a twist. Explain that you need the vampires’ help, and offering my services is sort of a goodwill gesture.” He grinned. “Hell, tell him you threatened to kill me if I didn’t agree. He’d love that.”

“It might work.” Lia had stopped laughing. “Adam is all about intimidation. He’d respect someone who ruled through threats.”

Spin spoke for the first time. “Once Utah’s on the inside, he can feed us information even if Adam doesn’t feel like sharing.”

Fin turned his silver gaze on Utah. “Understand that once you’re working for Adam, you’ll be in constant danger. And not from Seven. Adam doesn’t seem the type to forgive and forget.”

Utah nodded. “Understood.”

“I’ll run it past Adam now. Dawn isn’t far away.” Fin glanced around the table. “That’s all for tonight. Keep searching. Oh, and never go anywhere without your human driver.”

“What about Zero?” Utah could still see the immortals’ leader standing in the middle of the freaking street.

Fin’s eyes suddenly swirled with purple, a rare display of emotion. “I’ll take care of Zero.” Without a backward glance, he strode to the door and left.