The Cyn & Raphael Novellas Page 9

Jared touched the earpiece he wore that connected him to the rest of Raphael’s security team. “Juro will meet us back at the estate. He’s taking Mars directly there. We’ll put Raphael in one of the SUVs. It’s more secure.”

  Cyn wanted to snap that it was a little late to be worrying about security, but she didn’t, only looking up as the big SUV rolled toward them, disregarding event security and everyone else in its determination.

  “Let’s go,” Jared said, indicating the surrounding vampires. He leaned down and hooked his arm under Raphael’s uninjured shoulder, then stood, bringing the wounded vampire lord with him.

  “Wait!” Cyn said frantically.

  “It’s all right,” Raphael reassured her calmly. “I can walk, my Cyn, and it is better that I do so.”

  She looked up and met his eyes almost unwillingly.

  “Walk with me, lubimaya,” he requested, his gaze never wavering.

  Cyn looked away, but she nodded once and took his other side, sliding under his injured arm carefully.

  It seemed to take forever to walk the few steps to the SUV. Cyn was conscious the whole time of the many curious human eyes, knowing they’d be watching to see if the vampire lord was truly as indestructible as rumor said he was. She was pretty sure they couldn’t see much, not with Raphael’s hulking bodyguards on all sides, but she pasted a smile on her face just in case, so that anyone watching would see nothing amiss.

  Of course, that wasn’t true. There was a lot amiss about this evening. But it had nothing to do with vampire politics.

  RAPHAEL STRODE into the basement holding cells, his bloody clothing gone, replaced by jeans and a sweater. He didn’t want to deal with this now, had no patience for a long interrogation. Something was going on with Cyn, something bad. He could feel her emotional turmoil, her mood swinging from anger to despair and determination all at once. It worried him more than he wanted to admit. He hadn’t told her of his plans for the Dakin charity event, certainly hadn’t told her they were hoping to draw the sniper in. They’d made a point of putting the word out, in circles both high and low, that he’d be there. They’d even gone so far as to have Lonnie start a rumor at the blood house, and the party had been the perfect venue. Will Rogers State Park was hilly and filled with trees, giving a potential assassin plenty of places to hide. It was impossible to secure, no matter how many guards one posted.

  Juro had argued against keeping Cyn in the dark about the plan, but Raphael had overruled him. Cyn would never have agreed to put Raphael at risk, and it was necessary this time. He’d had to dispose of this assassin as quickly as possible. Had to send a message to Klemens that he had failed, and that Raphael now stood with Lucas in their ongoing hostilities. He wanted Klemens to worry, and he wanted Lucas to win.

  He sighed and stared through the window into the interrogation cell. There was no escape from here. These cells had been designed with vampires in mind. No human could hope to get out. Not as long as he was still among the living.

  But escape wasn’t an issue tonight, because this particular human prisoner wouldn’t live to see the next dawn. Raphael wanted only one thing from this man before then, and that was the name of the vampire who’d hired him. He would leave the rest to Juro and the others. He needed to get upstairs, needed to talk to Cyn before her anger took her away from him.

  He opened the door to the cell without warning and went inside, along with Juro and Jared. Luther Mars sat in the corner. His gaze skittered over the three vampires, but settled immediately on Raphael. Mars was a big man, but muscled under the fat. His face bore a scar along one cheek that bisected his jawline and throat before disappearing beneath his T-shirt, and his eyes had the flat gaze of a man who had faced death and escaped. He wouldn’t be escaping this time, but maybe he didn’t realize that yet.

  “Mr. Mars,” Raphael began, “you don’t seem very worried.”

  “Hey, I figure I’m still alive, so you must need me for something,” Mars said, shrugging as well as he could within the chains binding him to the chair. “Maybe you want me to carry a message back to the vamp who sent me?”

  “Indeed,” Raphael agreed. “Although perhaps not the message you imagine.”

  Mars gave a short, cynical laugh that told Raphael the human knew exactly how this night was going to end. “It was worth a shot,” Mars sighed out. He winced as he attempted another shrug. “If I cooperate, will you kill me quick?”

  “You tried to assassinate my Sire,” Jared said in disbelief.

  “Yeah, well, that vamp bastard offered me a whole heck of a lot of money to do it.”

  “And what bastard might that be?” Raphael inquired.

  “You’ll make it quick?”

  It was Raphael’s turn to shrug. “Certainly quicker than if I had to drag it unwilling from your mind. And don’t bother trying to lie, Mister Mars. I assure you, it won’t work.”

  Mars sighed deeply, and for the first time since Raphael had been observing the human prisoner, he saw defeat in the droop of the man’s shoulders, the dullness of his eyes.

  “What the hell. Bastard’s name is Alfonso Heintz, or at least that’s what he told me. I only met him once, at a bar outside St. Paul. Everything after that, including money and instructions on where you’d be and when, was done by an e-mail dead drop.”

  “Thank you,” Raphael said, then reached out with his power and stopped the human’s heart. Mars slumped against the chains, dead.

  “Sire!” Jared protested.

  “I don’t have time for this, Jared,” Raphael said, his tone making it clear there’d be no arguing. Besides, what was the point? The human was dead. He pulled the cell door open, anxious to get upstairs to Cyn.

  Behind him, Jared asked “Do you want me to call Lucas and tell him about Heintz?”

  “No,” Raphael called over his shoulder. “I’ll call him myself later.”

  CYN SHIVERED IN the wet air and hugged the blanket more tightly around her shoulders. She knew she should go inside, or at least put on a jacket, but she couldn’t bring herself to move from this spot. The Malibu coastline was beautiful tonight. The moon was high, and the black water shimmered like silver, so bright it was nearly blinding to look at.

  The sliding door opened behind her, but she didn’t turn around.

  “Lubimaya,” Raphael’s deep voice rumbled as he stepped up and wrapped his arms around her, tugging her back against his chest.

  She didn’t resist, but she didn’t relax, either.

  Raphael sighed, his breath warm against her neck. “There was no real risk, my Cyn. I was never in danger.”

  “You got shot,” she scoffed.

  “In the shoulder. I was already healing by the time we reached the estate.”

  “How fortunate that it didn’t hit a few inches lower.”

  “Cyn, don’t do this.”

  “Don’t do what? What is this, Raphael? What if Mars had been smart enough to use the same ammo I do? You never saw Jabril after I shot him that night in the desert, but he was definitely dead. The stake I drove through his heart was pure overkill. You’re not invincible, Raphael. You can be killed.”

  “Cyn—”

  “No,” she said and shoved away from him. He held on briefly, then let her go, but not before she caught his wince of pain. Apparently, the shoulder wasn’t as healed as he claimed. He’d concealed that from her, too. She wasn’t even surprised. She met his eyes as she faced him. She had something to say, and it needed to be said face to face.

  “You promised, Raphael. And you lied to me.”

  “I don’t require your permission for my operations, Cynthia,” Raphael said tightly.

  “And I’m not asking for that. But don’t tell me one thing and then do another. Don’t lie to me about—”

  “As you’ve done so often in the past, you mean?” he asked, his own anger rising. “How many times have you slipped out during the day, hell bent on endangering yourself against my wishes?�
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  “Not since Seattle,” Cyn protested. “Not since . . .” She looked away, unable to finish.

  “Not since you almost died,” Raphael provided. “Say it, Cyn.”

  “Fine. You’re right. Not since I almost died. I heard every word you said when I was lying there in that bed, Raphael. How you swore to take yourself and everyone else down with me if I died. And all I could think about was how selfish I’d been. All those times I defied you, it was a game to me. Just a game. But suddenly it wasn’t a game any longer, and I didn’t want you or anyone else to die because of my stupidity.

  “I’m not asking you to clear every decision with me,” she continued quietly. “I know you can’t do that. But don’t lie to me. I may not agree with your decisions, but I’ll handle it. And if you don’t think I’m up to dealing with the reality of your life, then tell me that, too, and I’ll leave now and get out of your way.”

  “I don’t want you out of my way,” he snarled.

  Cyn stepped up and grasped his sweater in her fist, pulling his face down to hers. “I love you more than life, Raphael. But I won’t be dismissed like some piece of fluff whenever it’s convenient.”

  “I did not—”

  “If you ever do something like this again, I’ll be gone before the next sunset. It will break my heart, and I’ll miss you every day for the rest of my life, but I’ll do it.”

  He yanked her against him, his grip so tight it almost hurt. “I would search to the ends of the earth for you,” he growled. “You cannot hide from me.”

  “I don’t want to hide from you,” she said, her voice breaking with emotion. “I love you.”

  He studied her silently, his eyes flashing as silver as the moon on the waves. “I’m sorry,” he said finally. “But there was . . .” He drew a deep breath, then said instead, “I am sorry, lubimaya.”

  Cyn swallowed hard, knowing how difficult it was for him to apologize for anything. He was a vampire lord, a king in his own realm. But taking a stand against him had been the hardest thing she’d ever done, too.

  “It’s nearly dawn,” Raphael said, meeting her gaze. He let go of her and stepped back, holding out his hand.

  Cyn looked at it, her sight blurry with tears. Earlier, she’d gone so far as to consider leaving the estate and going to her own condo for the night. But he would simply have chased her down, and she didn’t want to leave anyway. She’d never believed problems could be solved by storming out and refusing to talk.

  But more than that, if she refused Raphael’s apology, refused to sleep with him this morning, it would cross a line that couldn’t be uncrossed. And it would hurt him. She didn’t want him hurt. She just wanted him to trust her enough to be honest with her.

  She reached out and took his hand.

  “I love you, my Cyn.”

  “I know,” she whispered. “I love you, too.” But she couldn’t help wondering if loving each other would be enough.

  Epilogue

  South Dakota

  LUCAS GLANCED UP a moment before a soft knock sounded on his office door. “Come in, Magda,” he called absently, not bothering to raise his voice. Magda was a vampire, one of his own. She also happened to be his lawyer, and he assumed this visit had something to do with that persistent FBI agent who’d finally informed them she’d be arriving this week, although she’d been annoyingly vague on specifics. If it had been anyone else, he’d have told his guards to send the person packing with a few memories missing. But this was the FBI, and disregarding a summons from them could be hazardous. Far easier to talk to the woman, answer her questions and send her on her way happy, or at least satisfied.

  Magda strolled into his office with her usual sexy sway. He thought it might have something to do with those spike heels she was always wearing. Lucas wasn’t immune to Magda’s considerable charms, had in fact sampled them back in the day, when he’d turned her. But it wasn’t her beauty that had convinced him to make her Vampire. Beautiful women were easily had, at least for Lucas. Magda was also very smart, and good lawyers were hard to find.

  “La femme FBI finally called,” Magda informed him.

  “At last!” Lucas said, dropping the report he’d been reading. “When will she be here?”

  “Tomorrow night.”

  Lucas made a face. “Did you thank her for the advance notice?”

  “Hey, she wanted to come tonight. I told her that was impossible.”

  “You think she did it on purpose? I mean, she’s been playing coy for weeks, and suddenly it’s ‘I must see you immediately’ time?”

  “Maybe. Or maybe she’s just—”

  Lucas’s phone rang and he held up a finger, telling Magda to wait a moment. The number of that particular phone was known to only seven vampires, and he recognized which one was calling.

  “My lord,” he said.

  “Lucas,” Raphael’s familiar voice greeted him. “I have a name for you.”

  Lucas’s eyes came up and met those of his lieutenant, Nicholas, who was sitting eagerly forward on his chair.

  “It worked then?” Lucas asked Raphael. Lucas had known of the plan to draw the sniper in, though he hadn’t liked it. What he wanted to know now was not only if the plan had worked, but if everyone was well in the aftermath.

  “It worked beautifully,” Raphael acknowledged, “although my Cyn might tell you differently.”

  “Ah,” Lucas said, understanding. Raphael must have been injured, but clearly not too terribly, or Lucas would have known. “And the vampire who hired the assassin?” he asked quietly.

  “Alfonso Heintz.”

  “Alfonso Heintz,” he repeated, exchanging a look with Nicholas. “I know him well. This will be his last sunrise, my lord.”

  “Go carefully, Lucas,” Raphael cautioned. “I would not lose you over this.”

  Lucas grinned and let amusement color his voice when he said, “You won’t be rid of me that easily, my lord. Give my love to Cynthia.”

  Raphael hung up without responding to that last, which only made Lucas grin harder. But when he stood from his desk, there was no trace of humor in his expression. Nicholas gave him a questioning look.

  “Gather the warriors, Nicholas. We’ve a traitor to kill.”

  To be continued . . .

  (Please continue reading for more information about the author)

  Hunted

  Chapter One

  Malibu, California

  CYN LOWERED THE twenty pound weight to the exercise mat—okay, so it was only a five pound weight, but it felt like twenty pounds when combined with thirty plank press reps, an exercise that was surely designed by a madman or a sadist. Or both.

  Every muscle in her body was whining at her to stop, so she surrendered, collapsing to the mat and rolling onto her back. Eyes closed, she pressed her spine flat to the floor a few times, then starting with her toes and working upward, she consciously relaxed each muscle in turn, focusing on every even breath, in and out, the steady beat of her heart—

  “Yo, Cyn.”

  Cyn’s Zen state collapsed. She kept her eyes determinedly closed and snapped out an irritated, “What?”

  Her workout partner cum sadistic trainer Elke laughed. “I wanted to be sure you were still breathing.”

  “I was relaxing. It’s good for me.”

  “It’s good for all of us, but it’s nearly midnight.”

  “And?”

  Elke gave an unladylike snort. “Pretending ignorance won’t get you out of it.”

  Cyn sat up and cast a scowling glance at the vampire who’d become a friend. Surprising, since she and Elke hadn’t exactly started on the best of terms.

  “Hey, don’t blame me,” the ice-blond vampire said now. “You’re the one who wanted to be more involved. Be careful what you wish for and all that.”

  “I wanted to be more involved in security issues, things to do with Raphael’s safety. Not every goddamned business meeting.
I hate business meetings. I don’t even go to my own. Besides, how do you know what I wanted? I never told anyone but Raphael.”

  Elke rolled her eyes. “Right. Like every single vampire in the compound didn’t know you were pissed about that business at the fund raiser in March.”

  Cyn grabbed a bottle of water, tipped her head back, and drained half of it, instead of responding. She wasn’t comfortable discussing her personal affairs with anyone, and there was nothing more personal than her relationship with Raphae . . . and especially what had happened between them at the end of March. She’d been furious about his decision to put himself at risk, essentially offering himself as bait to draw in the same man who’d already tried to kill him once. That had been bad enough, but his real offense had been keeping her in the dark precisely because he’d known she’d fight him on it. So rather than talk to her, try to reason with her, and maybe, just maybe, listen to her objections, he’d simply not told her. Until he was shot and she’d figured it out for herself.

  She’d almost left him that night. Had come closer to walking out the door than at any time in their relationship, including the earliest days when she’d still been coming to terms with the fact that she was falling in love with a bossy, fucking vampire lord who was alpha to the extreme. But, in the end, she couldn’t do it. She loved him in a way she’d never loved anyone in her entire life.

  Elke was right, though. She’d insisted Raphael keep her in the loop going forward. She didn’t like to call it an ultimatum, though that’s what it had been. She had told him if he ever lied to her like that again, she’d leave and he’d never find her. Raphael had contacts and money, but then, so did she. Of course, they had a blood bond which would make it easy for him to locate her, at least for a while. But, on the other hand, he was hampered by vampire politics, which would make it difficult for him to come after her overseas.

  But now Raphael was trying to make it up to her by including her in every little thing, and she didn’t have the heart to tell him it was too much. She’d already hurt him enough. Well, that and she didn’t want to sound like an ungrateful bitch who just couldn’t be satisfied.