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  It had only been a short time ago that he had noticed people disappearing from Las Vegas. He and his fellow Alphas investigated and discovered a hunt club run by a vampire named Gage Lucio. Though they destroyed Gage and freed the humans who had been kidnapped for the hunt, it did not escape Marcus’ notice that all the humans taken for the hunt had been seized at night, and so far all of the women kidnapped from Savannah had also been taken at night. Perhaps that was no coincidence. He wondered if there might be a hunt club springing up here in Savannah.

  Walking away from the table, Marcus pulled his cell phone out of his jeans pocket and scrolled through his contacts, choosing Stephan. As he hit dial and waited, he glanced back over his shoulder to be sure he would not be overheard.

  “Hey, Marcus, what’s going on? We haven’t heard from you since you moved out of our place. How ya been?”

  “I’m good, man.”

  “What’s up?”

  “I think we might need to convene the Council again. We got something going on here in Savannah.” Marcus ran his fingers through his hair.

  “You moved back into the plantation house?” Stephan asked.

  “Yeah, I’m crashing in Savannah for a while. In fact, Demetri and Michael are in town, too.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “Look, we’ve got women going missing here. Every night one or two disappear. I think we might have a problem that the Alphas need to deal with.”

  “What makes you think this is a Council matter? It’s possible a human is doing this.”

  “Everything in my gut tells me it’s one of our kind. Some of the news reports the past few nights have shown the crime scenes. Something’s off. I can’t put my finger on it, but I just don’t think a human is taking all these girls.”

  “What do Michael and Demetri think about all the disappearances?” his sire asked, obviously questioning Marcus’ ability to correctly read the situation.

  Marcus sighed in frustration. He always had to prove himself to Stephan, who acted like an older brother more often than a friend. It didn’t matter how long they’d fought together, or the fact that Marcus happened to be over two hundred and fifty years old. He was younger than Stephan, who always questioned his opinions.

  “They have mixed feelings on the issue. Demetri thinks it might be something vampiric happening, but Michael thinks it’s too soon to bring in the team.”

  Stephan sighed across the line. “I’ll come to Savannah. Since Michael and Demetri are already there, the four of us will meet. I want to investigate the disappearances before we convene the whole Council.”

  Well at least Stephan agreed to look into the matter, and Marcus appreciated the effort. He paced the room. “When can you get here?”

  “I’ll materialize there in three hours. You contact Michael and Demetri and let them know we will meet tonight.”

  Marcus hung up the phone, his thoughts instantly returning to the woman waiting for him in the kitchen as he made his way there. They had much to discuss now that they were fully mated.

  She was his to protect and care for. His to love and cherish. And the burden made his heart heavy. He didn’t want this ugliness to touch her. The Alpha silently vowed to do everything in his power to keep her safe, and to that end there were a few things he must do before too much longer.

  They must exchange a small amount of blood, so they could create a mindlink. She also needed to become a vampire, because he could not live without her or watch her grow old. But all that would have to wait. For now, he just wanted to be with her and drink in the happiness they shared.

  Marcus rejoined Christina in the kitchen. When their eyes met, she gave him a wide smile.

  “Everything okay?” Christina asked, popping a strawberry into her mouth.

  He slid into the seat beside her at the kitchen table. “Yep. I have some people coming over tonight for a meeting.”

  “Anyone I know?”

  Marcus took a bite of fruit and chewed it before he answered. “No.”

  “How many people are coming?”

  “Three. The people who are coming are my fellow Alphas.”

  Christina looked at him questioningly. “What are Alphas?”

  She listened intently while Marcus explained about the Alpha Council. After several minutes of answering her questions, Marcus took a strawberry off the plate and fed it to his heartmate. His gaze followed a small amount of juice dripping down her chin. He wiped it off with his thumb and licked it clean. It tasted sweet, with a hint of Christina in the aftertaste. Utter perfection.

  Christina looked pensive. “Should I make some hors d’oeuvres for the meeting?”

  He was amazed at how easily she accepted the fantastic things he told her. It was almost an inhuman response to not question such tales in disbelief, but his heartmate took what he said in stride, believed his stories.

  “I don’t think that will be necessary, but thanks for the offer, my love.” Marcus rested his hand on the side of her face, rubbing the pad of his thumb along her jawline. “You really are something, always thinking of others. I’ll never know what I’ve done to deserve you.”

  Marcus wrapped his hand around her neck in a loose grip and pulled her toward him.

  Their foreheads touched as she whispered, “You are the sweetest man I have ever met. I love you so much.”

  “I love you too, cara. You make my heart sing.”

  Payton interrupted the moment by clearing his throat to announce his presence as he walked into the kitchen, and Marcus released her to inform him about the guests he expected for the evening.

  Time ticked by, and the trio prepared for the meeting in their own way. Payton straightened the mansion and stocked the wet bar. Christina decided to stay out of the way by working out then going for a swim in the indoor pool. Marcus put a fresh supply of blood, especially some O negative for Stephan, in the fridge. He replayed the crime scene in his head, searching for the details that might help Stephan understand why he was convinced a vampire was behind the deaths. Before he knew it, his home filled with guests.

  Marcus sensed Stephan materialize on the front porch and made it to the foyer before the doorbell rang. As the bell sounded, Marcus opened the door and grasped his sire’s forearms in greeting.

  “Welcome.” Marcus stepped aside so Stephan could enter before he continued. “Michael and Demetri are already here. They are waiting for us in the library.”

  Stephan followed Marcus down the hallway and into the library. Marcus watched his sire’s eyes scan the room. When they came to rest on Michael, he nodded his head in acknowledgement from where he stood against a wall with his arms crossed.

  Demetri raised his glass of brandy, drawing everyone’s attention with the gesture. “It’s good to see you again, comrade.”

  Marcus motioned toward one of the wingback chairs. “Can I get you anything to drink?”

  Stephan sat down and placed his ankle on his opposite knee. “No thanks, maybe later. Right now I want to get down to business. What do you know about what is happening to the women?”

  Demetri spoke first. “We don’t have a lot of firsthand information. All we know is what has been in the paper and on the news. I personally agree with Marcus. I think there may be a vampire behind all of these disappearances. It reminds me of what happened with Lucio.”

  A muscle ticked along Stephan’s jaw, the only indication of his anger at the reminder of what had happened in Vegas. One of the women Gage had kidnapped had been Stephan’s heartmate, Katrina. Stephan assembled the Alpha Council to deal with him and save Kat but not before she suffered at Gage’s hands. They barely arrived in time to save her.

  “But we killed Gage,” Stephan growled through clenched teeth.

  Demetri nodded his head in acknowledgement. “I didn’t say it’s Gage, but it’s déjà vous all over again.”

  Demetri was as old as Stephan. They had both been converted by the virus in the thirteen hundreds when the plague devastated their countries. They had fo
ught together for hundreds of years. In that time, trust formed into friendship. Marcus knew Stephan trusted Demetri’s judgment like no other.

  Stephan nodded in agreement. “We need to figure out what we’re dealing with. We need some reconnaissance. Marcus, you, Michael, and I will divide up the city tomorrow night and begin patrols. Maybe we’ll luck out and find something interesting. Demetri, can you contact the Vampire Enforcement Squad for this area? Maybe the VES agents will know something.”

  “Will do, comrade. I have someone I can contact. I will let you know what VES has to say.”

  “Very good.” Stephan gave his old friend a tilt of his chin in a show of confidence before turning his steely gaze on the vampire who stood stoically against the wall. “Michael you’ve been very quiet. What do you think is going on?”

  Straightening to his full height as he steeled his features, the supercilious Alpha responded, “I think we are wasting our time. It’s probably a human. A very sick human, but a human, nonetheless. However, I’ll do the patrols as you suggested, Stephan.”

  “Good, so we have a plan. Tomorrow night we will patrol the city and see what information VES has.”

  Marcus leaned forward, resting his forearms on his thighs. “Stephan, where is Kat? I thought she might come with you.”

  Marcus missed his friend. They had a special relationship that in the past went beyond friendship. The saying “friends with benefits” fit them nicely. At least until Stephan came into their lives. Now Kat belonged to him, and even if Marcus wasn’t completely in love with Christina, she would be off limits.

  “She can’t dematerialize yet or she would be here. I don’t like leaving her alone, so I’m going back to Vegas tonight. She and I will fly here tomorrow on my jet.”

  “I’ll send Payton to pick you up from the airport. Just let me know what time. Of course, I offer my home to you both. Please stay with us.”

  “Thank you. I accept your hospitality.” Stephan’s head snapped around, doing a double take. “Wait, who is ‘us’?”

  ****

  As Marcus blathered on to Stephan about his heartmate, Michael slipped out of the library. His nostrils flared to life when they caught a compelling scent. He used his predatory senses to track the aroma down the hallway and into the sitting room. When he stepped through the doors of the room, the sight of a beautiful redhead standing in front of the window, bathed in the light of the moon, greeted him.

  Marcus didn’t mention he’d arranged a snack.

  The human turned from the window and faced him. She smiled. “Oh, hello. I thought you might be Marcus. I’m Christina.”

  “Well hello, Christina. My name is Michael.” He gave her a sanguine smile, the sharp ends of his teeth glistening.

  “Can I get you a drink?” Christina offered, indicating the wet bar beside her.

  Michael swaggered across the room and stopped in front of the attractive woman. Leaning in to her, he braced his hands on the windowsill to wall her in. She backed against the sill, her legs pushing against the marble.

  Michael licked his lips. “I’d love a drink!” His head moved toward Christina’s neck.

  Christina brought her hands up on his chest in an attempt to push him away. Terror crept into her eyes. Her futile struggles barely registered to him as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him until they were so close not even air could come between them. His taut muscles and sinew flexed while he gripped her to him. He breathed in her scent—a delicate aroma of jasmine and honey with a hint of chlorine.

  “Yummm,” he purred, feeling his fangs extend from his gums. “You smell good enough to eat.”

  Chapter 16

  “Let her go. Now!” bellowed Marcus. He sprang from the entry of the room, landing on top of Michael just as the son of a bitch released Christina. The two hit the floor in a ball of limbs. They rolled around the hard wood, appendages flailing. Marcus came to rest on top of Michael, straddling his chest.

  “Christina is my heartmate. You will not touch her, ever.”

  Marcus turned his angry stare on the rest of the group gathered by the French doors. “Did you hear me? No one is to touch her.”

  Demetri put his hands up in front of his chest in a gesture of surrender. “We got it, Marcus. We got it. No one is going to hurt your mate.” His voice sounded like smooth silk, and Marcus detected the enchantment in his voice trying to push through the rage.

  Lowering his hands, Demetri continued, “Marcus, get off Michael. It was a misunderstanding. Wasn’t it, Michael?”

  “Yeah,” Michael replied in a breathy voice. The weight of Marcus on his chest obviously made it difficult for him to breathe. “I’m sorry. I thought she was a snack.”

  Marcus’ head snapped back to Michael. He bared his fangs, and a hiss pushed through his lips before he yelled, “A SNACK!”

  The Alpha pulled back his arm, his fingers curled into a tight fist. It made a satisfying crunch when it contacted with Michael’s nose. Before the sound ceased, Marcus brought his other fist down upon his cheek, assuring it was broken.

  He felt Christina grab his fist when he lifted it for round three.

  “Marcus,” Christina’s voice came out a whisper. “Please stop this. I am all right. No harm done. He didn’t bite me. Look at me, I’m fine. Please let him up.”

  Marcus’ stare raked her trembling body from toe to head, spending extra time to thoroughly examine her neck. He eased open his fist, then slowly rose off Michael and stepped back.

  “I was just kidding, Marcus.” Michael rose and wiped the blood from his mouth and nose.

  When Michael got to his feet, Marcus lunged forward, pinning Michael against the wall by his throat. “This is your only warning,” he growled, fangs bared. “If you ever touch her again, I’ll finish what was started here tonight. Capiche?”

  “I capiche,” said Michael, holding himself stone still. His eyebrows furrowed over his eyes.

  Stephan cleared his throat and drew the attention of everyone in the room. “So, Marcus, now that you’ve proven what a deadly Alpha you are, are you going to growl at Michael all night or are you going to be polite and formally present your heartmate to us? Which, I might as well point out, had you done earlier we might have avoided this misunderstanding.”

  Marcus removed his hand from Michael’s throat and raked it down his own face.

  After a deep, cleansing breath through his clenched teeth, Marcus turned and reached a hand toward Christina. When she placed her hand in his, he said, “This is Christina Prescott. Christina, this is Demetri Romanoff and Stephan von Haas.” He threw a disdainful look at the bloodied Alpha. “And you’ve met Michael.”

  Christina’s smile appeared strained as she nodded toward the two large males in the doorway. She wrapped an arm around Marcus’ waist and leaned into him. Her scent enveloped him, calming his nerves in a way nothing else could in that moment.

  “It is a pleasure to meet you, Christina.” Stephan bowed at his waist. “My heartmate, Katrina, will be here tomorrow. I hope you don’t mind, but Marcus invited us to stay here. We will be flying in tomorrow evening from Vegas. Katrina will be excited to meet the woman who stole Marcus’ heart.”

  “I can’t wait to meet her. It will be nice to have another woman in the house. There is too much testosterone in here.” She threw a chastising look toward first Marcus then Michael, making Stephan chuckle.

  Crossing his brawny arms across his thick chest, Demetri tipped back his head and laughed, the sonorous sound coming from deep in his chest cavity. “I like this human female. I think she might actually be able to keep Marcus in line—which is no small miracle. Tell me Christina, do you have a sister that I could introduce to some of our comrades?”

  “Sorry, I don’t have any sisters.” Christina looked up into the eyes of her love and smiled, appearing more relaxed now that some of the tension had eased from the room. “I’m hungry. If I go get something to eat, do you think you can behave yourself?”

>   “I’ll try,” Marcus promised and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. He gave her a reassuring smile and pulled her to him, tucking her head against his shoulder.

  After a quick squeeze, Christina pushed away and turned to address the group. “Would anyone like something to eat? I’d be happy to make something.”

  All the vampires shook their heads in unison, refusing the offer.

  Stephan stepped closer to the door and said, “We need to be leaving anyway.”

  Good. Marcus couldn’t deny that a little time alone with his mate would calm him. Maybe calm wasn’t the correct word. Perhaps excite would be a better descriptor. For the thought of having her to himself made his blood boil and wicked thoughts come to mind.

  Marcus gave Christina a little pat on her rump and flashed his sexiest smile. “We’re fine. You go make something to satisfy your hunger. I’ll meet you in the kitchen after I see these guys out.”

  Michael seized the moment to make a hasty exit. “I know when I’m not wanted,” he murmured, then dematerialized without saying farewell.

  “Good riddance,” Marcus muttered, his deep baritone voice rumbling in his chest.

  The remaining vampires walked together to the front doors with Demetri in the lead. “Well, comrade, thanks for the interesting evening. We have to do this again some time.” The Russian Alpha slapped Marcus on his shoulder.

  “Yes,” chimed in Stephan. “Just try not to lose it when Kitten is here tomorrow. Okay?”

  “I’ll try to control myself with Katrina in the house.” Marcus flashed a toothy grin at his sire. “But I have to say it was fun kicking Michael’s ass. You’ve got to admit he had it coming.”

  Stephan grinned and clasped each of Demetri’s forearms in the grasp of the warrior. “Bye, my friend. Safe travels.”

  “And to you, Stephan.” Demetri returned the valediction before dematerializing.

  “Safe travels to you and Kat,” Marcus said, turning to his sire. “Call me tomorrow and let me know what time to expect your plane. I’ll have Payton at the airport to pick you up.”