Guarding Valentina [Paladin Protection Agency 3] (Siren Publishing Classic) (16 page)

Jase laughed. “I see you’ve already gotten to know her pretty well. You have my word, I’ll watch out for her. I would anyway, but I’m glad you care enough about her to ask.” His expression turned serious. “How bad is this going to get?”

“If he shows his fanged face tonight, I’m going to do everything in my power to end this. If I fail, I’ve left instructions with my employers to send someone else to continue the hunt. Val and the rest of you need to get your lives back, and that means Christoph has to die.”

“What do you mean by fail?” Jase’s eyes narrowed, and Aedan knew there was no sense lying to this man.

“I’m good, but Christoph is a dangerous son of a bitch. He may kill me.”

“Fuck. I was afraid you’d say that. But if he kills you, won’t you come back as a vampire?”

“No. Dhampir are immune to a vampire’s blood. He can kill me, but he can’t turn me.”

“Small mercies.” Jase reached out and bumped his fist to Aedan’s shoulder. “Do me a favor? Try not to die. If he gets to you, I’m not sure there’s a force on earth that will stop Val from going after that bastard herself.”

“Believe me, I’m not planning on dying. I’d rather live to a ripe old age and spend my golden years telling your puppies all about the day I first met their dad.”

“Puppies! Oh man, you are so going to pay for that later,” Jase grumped, and there was just a touch of the wolf’s growl present in his voice.

“When this is all over, we’ll just have to find out which one of us is the better fighter. Werewolf versus dhampir, we could sell tickets.”

“Just don’t tell the future mother of my children what we’re up to. She’d kick both our asses.”

“Really?” Aedan glanced over to the pretty young woman with jet-black curls who was still working her way through her dessert. It was hard to imagine she was tough enough to hold a black belt, never mind the fact she could sprout fur and fangs.

“You have no idea, man. She’s vicious.”

“Then you’re a braver man than I am.”

Jase just snickered. “Yeah, says the guy dating Paladin’s head instructor in hand-to-hand combat. Until I got bitten, Val could kick my ass, too.”

“I’m starting to think you just like having women beat up on you. Maybe you should get some professional help.”

“Cute.”

“Yes I am, thanks for noticing. And seriously, thank you for watching Val for me. I’ll worry less if I know she’s safe and sound.”

“Speaking of which…” Jase glanced around the dining room. “Where’d she go?”

“She was right over there.” Aedan realized she wasn’t out by the doors anymore, and he felt a faint pang of concern. Night was falling, and he didn’t like not knowing where Val was. It was his job to protect her. He jogged out of the dining room and scanned the hallway. Nothing. The sense of unease grew stronger, and he stood stock-still as he attempted to track her telepathically. He knew she’d be pissed if she caught him trying to read her mind again, but right now he’d rather face her anger than have to deal with not knowing where she was.

At first he couldn’t find any trace of her, and he felt his guts twist as he realized she wasn’t near the cafeteria any longer. He pushed his psychic ability to its absolute limit, searching every part of the building for a glimmer of her thoughts.
There!
He finally located her, and his heart sank as he managed to delve into her mind. Her emotions were strong enough they were overriding her mental shields, and he had no trouble reading the determination that radiated from her. Her sense of purpose was shot through with threads of deep sadness, and he pushed deeper. He got a single image, and then her shields slammed shut, throwing him out of her mind as she sensed his presence. That one image was enough.

He turned and yelled to Jase and the others, his voice carrying over the din. “Jase, she’s already doing something stupid! Get to the roof, now!”

Not waiting to see if the others would follow, he summoned every ounce of preternatural ability and launched himself down the hallway, heading for the nearest staircase. She couldn’t be doing this to him. Whatever plan she had going on in that pretty head of hers, there was no way in hell he was going to let her go.

* * * *

When her cell phone had sounded the ringtone that indicated she had a new voice mail, Val hadn’t thought twice before slipping out to check the message. Only family and her fellow Paladin employees had her cell number, and her family only used it in case of emergency. They knew her job included strange hours and out-of-country travel, so they’d gotten used to leaving her messages at home and waiting to hear back. She called up voice mail without checking to see what the incoming number was, and a few seconds later she wished like hell she’d taken the time to look. It was Christoph.

“Hello, Valentina. I hope you don’t mind my disturbing you. I took the liberty of recording this message before I went to sleep this morning. I hired a service to forward it to you via Denise’s phone at the appropriate time. It’s really amazing what you can have arranged these days. Isn’t technology glorious? It should now be just a few minutes before sunset, and I will be rousing myself for another night of hunting as you listen to this. I will confess that the chase hasn’t been as satisfying as I had hoped for. Your people are well guarded, and that damnable dhampir you insist upon trusting is no doubt helping you thwart my original plans. Which is why, my dear, I have a new offer for you. Give yourself over to me, and I’ll leave the others alone. I’ve already gotten two of your team, I can take you all eventually, but I am growing rather bored, and your pet freak is an unwelcome complication. So there it is, Valentina. There’s my offer. Be on the rooftop of Paladin within five minutes of getting this message, and I promise I’ll make it painless. If you don’t show, I’ll kill them all, and leave you drowning in guilt, grief, and blood before I finally come for you.”

The message ended, and Val slumped against the wall. Her heart twisted in her chest, and she had to fight to breathe past the lump in her throat. He wanted a trade, her life for the others. There was only one choice, but for the first time in her life she hesitated. After a lifetime of taking chances and charging in first, Val felt the bitter bite of heartache as she turned and sprinted for the stairs. This time she had something to live for, but that didn’t change what she knew she had to do. As she ran, she sent up a silent prayer to whatever gods were listening that Aedan would understand and maybe, one day, even forgive her. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him or his abilities. In fact she trusted him to track her down and destroy her vampire self before she could hurt anyone. She knew he’d take down Christoph, too, eventually. But this way, she wouldn’t have to live with the blood of another friend on her hands. She ran harder. She had to get to the roof before Christoph left without her. She had to end this.

She was charging up the last staircase when she felt Aedan in her mind, and she strengthened her mental shields, hoping she’d been quick enough to stop him from learning what she intended to do. She had to do this, and if he caught the slightest glimmer of her plans, she knew he’d do everything he could to stop her.

She paused just long enough to leave her phone by the access door, tucked into a corner where it would be found quickly. She grasped the door’s handle and sucked in a slow breath, strengthening her will and clearing her mind before she swung the door open and stepped out onto the rooftop.

“I’m here,” she called out as she looked around her, trying to see Christoph among the plum and navy shadows that grew deeper with every passing second.

The crunch of gravel came from somewhere to her left and she spun to face it, catching a flicker of movement just at the range of her night vision. She heard feminine laughter and realized that Christoph had not come alone.

“Hi, Val.” Ingrid appeared first, and Val could see that her face had the same terrible pallor as Christoph’s now. Ingrid had always favored bright, almost gaudy colors, but now she was clothed entirely in colors so dark she blended into the night. It hurt to look at her, but Val forced herself to meet the woman’s gaze.

“Hello, Ingrid. I’m so sorry this happened to you.”

“Don’t be. It’s wonderful.” The fledgling grinned, flashing her fangs. “Isn’t it, Denise?”

Denise’s cheery visage materialized out of the darkness, an obscenely chipper smile on her bloodless face. “We’re free, Val. Free to be whoever we want, to do whatever we wish. It’s glorious, you’ll see.”

“Indeed she will.” Christoph’s voice sounded from just behind her, and it was all Val could do not to spin around and try to take him down. Her instincts screamed at her to fight or run, and it took every ounce of her will to stay still and do nothing as she heard him step up behind her.

“I’m here, just like you wanted.” She forced the words past the tightness in her throat.

“I’m so pleased you came.” She felt his hand stroke over her bandaged neck where he’d bitten her just two short nights ago, and a shudder of revulsion ran through her.

“You’ll get used to my touching you, I promise.” He slid an arm around her waist and drew her back against his body, swaying them both to a melody only he could hear. “But not here. The freak is coming, and I don’t want him ruining this moment for me.”

He held her firmly, his grip so tight she could barely force air into her lungs. “Denise, stay here and see to it the dhampir doesn’t interfere. Ingrid, come with me. It’s time to go home.”

Val’s whole world shifted as she was lifted bodily into Christoph’s arms, and then they were moving, flying across the rooftop at an impossible speed. The wind shrieked in her ears, and she could see nothing but a blur of images that flew by too quickly to be understood. She felt her stomach roil in protest as they left the rooftop and plunged into the shadows below. As Christoph’s boots hit pavement, she thought she heard Aedan calling her name, but it was so far away, she couldn’t be sure. Taking a chance, Val dropped her mental shields and focused on Aedan as she pushed three words into her lover’s mind. “I love you.”

Seconds later she was sailing through the air to land in painful heap on the floor of a running vehicle. Doors slammed, and Christoph growled out a single command to their unseen driver. “Go.”

Christoph wasn’t gentle as he dragged her up onto the seat, and she hissed in pain as his fingers sank deep into her flesh. She found herself hauled into his lap, and she gritted her teeth against the revulsion that washed over her. His body was rank with the scent of death and rotting things, and the unnatural chill of his hands struck a chord of primal fear deep within her psyche.

“You gave your word, Christoph. This is the end of it. You get me and you leave the others alone.”

He eased the bandage off her neck, his icy fingers stroking her with obscene intimacy. “I did promise that, didn’t I?” She felt his cool breath fan over her freshly bared skin, and she nearly gagged at the graveyard stench that wafted over her mouth and nose.

She felt his arms wrap around her until she was held impossibly tight, and then his laughter filled her heart with despair. “Poor, trusting little mortal, of course it’s not over. I lied.”

Then his teeth were gouging fresh holes in her neck and there was nothing but pain. Red hot and glowing, the agony spread throughout her body, but she made no sound. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. The pain pushed out every other thought and sensation until her entire being was nothing but raw nerves and torment. Only then did she slip into unconsciousness, her screams still locked behind her teeth.

Aedan hit the door without slowing down and sent it flying off its hinges. The crash of mangled metal hitting gravel was almost loud enough to drown out his bellow of rage as he realized he was too late, Val was gone. He’d heard her telepathic message of love as he raced up the last flight of stairs, but despite the finality of her thoughts, he had hoped she’d still be within reach. He could sense Christoph’s presence, but it was already fading away. There was one vampire still on the roof, though, and he knew she’d been left behind to slow him down as the bastard spirited Val away.

Aedan forced himself to move slowly, drawing his blade from its scabbard in one smooth motion as he scanned the dark rooftop, looking for his prey. His hunting instincts surged to the forefront of his mind, controlling his body and filling every cell of his body with the full scope of his supernatural gifts. The darkness brightened, and his senses heightened, giving him all the information he needed to track down the fledgling left behind.

“So which one of you was he willing to sacrifice to get away? Which one of you did he love a little less than the other?” Aedan tossed out the mocking query as he moved further out onto the rooftop. “He left you to die up here, vampire.”

“He loves me. He said I was the strongest. He told me how to beat you.” A woman with dark hair and a cheery smile moved out from behind an air vent, letting him see her.

“Did he now? Somehow I doubt that. I’ve been hunting your kind for far too long to be taken down by a newborn creature like yourself.”

He shifted his grip on the blade and was about to move closer when he heard someone else racing up the stairs. It was too fast to be human, and Aedan wondered for a second if there was another vampire around, one he somehow hadn’t been able to sense. When something massive, furry, and fanged flew through the battered doorway Aedan realized it wasn’t a vampire he’d heard. It was a werewolf. Jase had joined the party.

“Holy hell man, you’re fucking huge!” Aedan stared in awe at the white-furred creature pacing just a few feet to his left. The werewolf swung his head to look at him, and Aedan pointed his sword at Denise. “Not me, her. The bastard took Val already. We need to take this one down and go find my girl before it’s too late.”

Jase growled and jerked his head in the affirmative before turning all of his attention back to Denise. Caught between the two of them, she looked less sure of herself, and the chipper grin had faded to a frown of deep concern bordering on fear. Her eyes flicked back and forth between the two men as they converged on her, and her lip curled back into a snarl that bared her fangs.