one last night?
Fury snarled through her along with vivid memory of pain. Her claws began to grow with sudden, delicious anticipation. But this was no time to leap out of theshadows, rip the roof off the Jeep, and feast on the heart of her enemy. She had something more important to deal with right now. It wasn’t easy, but she kept her mind on her purpose for coming to Seattle rather than on the less important assignment to rid the world of Jebel Haven.
Cold premonition crawled up Haven’s spine as he stopped the Jeep. Haven didn’t like the feel of the situation, even though Santini was obviously unconcerned by the skinny weirdo standing near him. Haven got the strongest feeling that he didn’t want to look into the weirdo’s eyes. To Haven, the area beyond the yellow circle of streetlight was too dark. The block was too empty. The closer he’d gotten to the corner where Santini told him he’d be waiting, the stranger the city seemed.
Santini slid into the passenger seat. The skinny guy said something and held his arms out wide as Santini closed the door. Santini ignored the bum and asked, “What took you so long?”
“Got lost.” Haven put the Jeep in gear. He watched the side mirror as he pulled away from the curb. “You see someone back there?” Haven asked his partner. “In the shadows?”
“No.”
Haven ignored Santini’s answer in favor of squinting hard in the rearview mirror. The shadows had moved, he was sure of it. “There’s somebody back there.”
“The missionary sicko.”
“Yeah.” He didn’t actually see her, but she was there. Her? Haven’s skin prickled a warning, and his scalpstood on end. He gripped the wheel with sweating hands. The temptation was to stop the Jeep, get out, and start shooting.
Santini turned around in the seat. “Nothing back there but the loon, and he’s heading the other way.” Santini faced forward again. “Let’s get out of here. Place makes my skin crawl.”
“Yeah.”
They shared a quick sideways look that spoke volumes. Spooking either of them took a lot. Haven had been spooked too much since coming to this wet, cold place. Somebody was going to pay for that. Not tonight, though. Vampire hunters worked best in the daylight. Same rules probably applied to werewolf hunters. And if there was a girl lurking back in the shadows, she was probably some out-of-luck hooker having a slow night. Haven put his foot down hard on the gas.
Chapter 10
C HAR WATCHED THE Jeep pull away and marked it down as unfinished business. She saved her concentration for the more important target. There was a vampire in town all right, one with a very powerful companion.
Char wondered if Santini had the faintest inkling of the real danger that had been presented by the skinny man. If Santini had let the companion say another word or looked him too long in the eye, he’d have been caught. And then what would have happened? Would Santini have become a slave or a victim of the skinny man’s master? The former would be just desserts, she supposed, but the latter was quite unacceptable behavior.
And what vampire would that be? she wondered and stirred the shadows surrounding her to stay hidden. No way she was approaching one of her own kind’s lovers until she was certain Haven was long gone from the neighborhood.
She was puzzled but also elated to have finally found some connection to the strigoi. It occurred to her that she might have found another holdover from the past,someone who’d survived on the streets the way Della had, but she didn’t think so.
The companion made a rude gesture after the Jeep, then continued on up the street. Char cautiously followed. Take me home , she thought at him, equally cautiously. Ordering someone else’s companion around was not only against the Law, it was difficult and sometimes fatal.
He wanted to go back, but he couldn’t go back.
The Disciple looked around, frantic and afraid, and so frustrated he wanted to
Fury snarled through her along with vivid memory of pain. Her claws began to grow with sudden, delicious anticipation. But this was no time to leap out of theshadows, rip the roof off the Jeep, and feast on the heart of her enemy. She had something more important to deal with right now. It wasn’t easy, but she kept her mind on her purpose for coming to Seattle rather than on the less important assignment to rid the world of Jebel Haven.
Cold premonition crawled up Haven’s spine as he stopped the Jeep. Haven didn’t like the feel of the situation, even though Santini was obviously unconcerned by the skinny weirdo standing near him. Haven got the strongest feeling that he didn’t want to look into the weirdo’s eyes. To Haven, the area beyond the yellow circle of streetlight was too dark. The block was too empty. The closer he’d gotten to the corner where Santini told him he’d be waiting, the stranger the city seemed.
Santini slid into the passenger seat. The skinny guy said something and held his arms out wide as Santini closed the door. Santini ignored the bum and asked, “What took you so long?”
“Got lost.” Haven put the Jeep in gear. He watched the side mirror as he pulled away from the curb. “You see someone back there?” Haven asked his partner. “In the shadows?”
“No.”
Haven ignored Santini’s answer in favor of squinting hard in the rearview mirror. The shadows had moved, he was sure of it. “There’s somebody back there.”
“The missionary sicko.”
“Yeah.” He didn’t actually see her, but she was there. Her? Haven’s skin prickled a warning, and his scalpstood on end. He gripped the wheel with sweating hands. The temptation was to stop the Jeep, get out, and start shooting.
Santini turned around in the seat. “Nothing back there but the loon, and he’s heading the other way.” Santini faced forward again. “Let’s get out of here. Place makes my skin crawl.”
“Yeah.”
They shared a quick sideways look that spoke volumes. Spooking either of them took a lot. Haven had been spooked too much since coming to this wet, cold place. Somebody was going to pay for that. Not tonight, though. Vampire hunters worked best in the daylight. Same rules probably applied to werewolf hunters. And if there was a girl lurking back in the shadows, she was probably some out-of-luck hooker having a slow night. Haven put his foot down hard on the gas.
Chapter 10
C HAR WATCHED THE Jeep pull away and marked it down as unfinished business. She saved her concentration for the more important target. There was a vampire in town all right, one with a very powerful companion.
Char wondered if Santini had the faintest inkling of the real danger that had been presented by the skinny man. If Santini had let the companion say another word or looked him too long in the eye, he’d have been caught. And then what would have happened? Would Santini have become a slave or a victim of the skinny man’s master? The former would be just desserts, she supposed, but the latter was quite unacceptable behavior.
And what vampire would that be? she wondered and stirred the shadows surrounding her to stay hidden. No way she was approaching one of her own kind’s lovers until she was certain Haven was long gone from the neighborhood.
She was puzzled but also elated to have finally found some connection to the strigoi. It occurred to her that she might have found another holdover from the past,someone who’d survived on the streets the way Della had, but she didn’t think so.
The companion made a rude gesture after the Jeep, then continued on up the street. Char cautiously followed. Take me home , she thought at him, equally cautiously. Ordering someone else’s companion around was not only against the Law, it was difficult and sometimes fatal.
He wanted to go back, but he couldn’t go back.
The Disciple looked around, frantic and afraid, and so frustrated he wanted to
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