Dangerous Promise by Gwendolyn Cease (2 page)

“So when are we going out again?” Tori asked. “You scored major hotness the last time. Maybe I’ll get lucky this time.”

“You score hotness all the time. What happened to Jim?”

“Jake,” Tori corrected, “and all he wanted to do was talk about working out and his motorcycle. Oh and how he wanted to, quote unquote, bang me. Uh, no, so not happening.”

“Yuck.”

“Yeah, so he’s out of the picture. Maybe when we go out your hot guy will show up with a hot guy for me.”

Kate laughed. “Come on, Tori, he’s not my anything. We danced, and he gave me an obviously fake name.”

“Dude, he was into you. He danced for like a second with that other chick then totally blew her off. It was like he was looking for you or something. At least let me live in my fantasy world where he’s going to sweep in and bring a hot friend for me.”

“Okay, I’ll let you imagine he’s out there pining for me. Totally desolate that I’m not in his life bringing sunshine and magic to every day.”

Tori made a gagging sound.

Kate laughed. “What? You wanted fantasy, so there it is.”

“Just decide when you want to go out again and let me know. Oh and IM me when we get off the phone. You know how bored I get while working.”

Kate did know how bored Tori got, and a bored Tori was not a good thing. “I’ll IM you, like I always do. I gotta go so I can log on and start working.”

The women hung up, and Kate wondered if she would see Grimm again when they went out. Probably not, since there was no way someone like that would really be attracted to her. Just wouldn’t ever happen, especially given that she had two kids to support. Sighing, she turned back to her computer. Thinking about a man she’d never see again wasn’t getting any work done, and that didn’t pay her very real bills.

* * * *

Grimm eased through the darkness. The smell of rotten meat mixed with garbage left out too long in the sun permeated the air, which meant a blood-addicted vampire had to be near. Not good since there were a number of bars close by. This equaled a very easy meal. He shook his head as he moved faster. They had to catch one of these fuckers in order to find out who was behind the blood cult. They were too much in the dark to be effective.

Styx met him at the corner, and the two of them exchanged a look. They didn’t need to speak since the smell was so intense. They both knew what they were tracking. As they moved toward the entrance of an alley, running behind one of the largest bars, the scent intensified. Both men pulled knives and eased into the close space.

The area was clear, but Grimm knew the vampire was there. The smell alone told him that. Styx took point as they stepped silently into the dark. Grimm scanned from side-to-side and still nothing. What the hell? How could something that smelly hide? A tiny movement up high on the building next door caught his eye, and he looked up in astonishment. The vampire was clinging to the side of the building like a grotesque spider. It reminded him of a bizarre scene from some ridiculous vampire movie, but this wasn’t a movie. He’d never seen any of his kind, even an Ancient, pull off a stunt like that.

He nudged Styx, who followed his gaze. The other man’s eyes widened for just a moment then he shrugged. He unsheathed additional blades and smiled. The man was a superb marksman with his knives. He never missed. Grimm nodded at him, giving him the go-ahead. No matter what, they couldn’t let the vampire get away. He preferred to take it alive, but if they couldn’t manage it, he wasn’t going to worry. Truthfully, dead worked better for him. The things freaked him the fuck out so one less in the world was a positive.

Styx let four knives fly. An inhuman squeal indicated the blades hit the mark. The vampire slid down the wall until it landed in the alley. The eyes flashed a strange red as it hissed and attempted to pull the knives from its back. Grimm and Styx moved forward, but instead of retreating, the thing leaped at them, taking Styx to the ground.

The vampire snapped its jaws at Styx, struggling to latch onto his neck. Styx flipped a knife over and drove it into the vamp’s side. The thing grunted and continued its attack. Grimm grabbed the vamp by the hair and tried to drag it off. It turned and jumped at him. The stun only lasted a second before Grimm swung it around and drove it into the wall of a building. He could hear bones crack but still the thing fought. The vamp lacked any kind of skill, but it had brute strength and quick movements.

Styx ran forward and drove two knives into the vampire’s heart. It struggled a moment more before it let out a last rattling breath. They looked at each other, shock written on both of their faces. None of the blood-addicted had ever been like this before. They had been strong, but there had been no strange abilities or abnormal strength.

“We need to get the body to medical and have someone look it over,” Grimm said, touching his earpiece to contact the PIA about body retrieval.

Styx shook his head. “This is getting fucked up. If one of us had run up on this thing, it might have killed us before we even knew what was happening.”

“Then we need to be more prepared.” Grimm said. “We can’t treat them casually anymore, and we can’t track them alone.”

“Fuck,” Styx said. “If we have to stick together, we won’t be able to cover the ground we need. No more nights off for any of us. I’ll let you tell Talon that since you two are so close.”

Grimm rolled his eyes, knowing how the most volatile member of their team would take the news. Since he’d found Joelle, Talon was more focused on getting her naked than running around looking for bad guys. Of course, Grimm couldn’t blame him. If he had a woman at home, he wouldn’t want to be out every night, either.

Without thought, his mind went back to the woman he’d danced with in the club. Kate. Her scent still invaded his dreams—explicit dreams that in the morning found him with tangled sheets and a raging hard-on. Even in the dirty alley with the dead body of a rotting vampire, he could conjure up her scent. He rubbed his face. Fuck, he needed to get laid.

A car pulled up at the curb near the alley and agents got out. Styx waved one over and began explaining how to transport the body and where to take it. Once that was settled, the two men glanced at one another and disappeared back to headquarters.

* * * *

The research library was up a level from where the Hunters lived and looked as if it was pulled directly from an English manor home. Rich wooden floors, thick carpets and small groupings of chairs created an ambiance of quiet elegance. Grimm sighed as he entered and wondered if Quenton would still refuse to speak to him. The two of them had had a falling out after Grimm had said some things that he heartily regretted. He’d apologized, but Quenton had frozen him out completely.

“You look like hell,” a voice denoting the English upper crust declared.

Grimm glanced around to find Quenton watching him. The man was dressed in his usual style of frock coat, white shirt with elegant cravat, and leather pants. On some it would appear a costume, but Quenton owned the look. He always completed any ensemble with round, wire-rimmed glasses with black lenses, which hid the red irises of his eyes. The eyes, inherited from his demon father, were just one more reason why Quenton fit in perfectly at the PIA.

Grimm slumped in a chair. “Quenton, I don’t know what the fuck is going on. Styx and I ran into one of the blood-addicted tonight, and it could climb walls.”

“Excuse me?” Quenton pulled off his glasses to stare at Grimm.

“Yeah, climb walls. Like a fucking spider. The thing was majorly fucked up.”

Quenton came to sit across from him. “Obviously, this is why Kenshin called all of you here tonight.”

“Yeah, we had to kill it, but it took both of us to do it. We brought the body back so somebody could figure out what the shit was wrong with it.”

Before Quenton could reply, Reaper walked in. The big redhead glanced at the two of them and Grimm noticed Quenton color just a bit.
Well, hello, what’s going on?

“Do you know what this is about?” Reaper asked as he settled himself on the arm of Quenton’s chair.

Grimm nodded, wondering what the hell was up between the two men. He knew Quenton had a thing for Reaper—fuck Grimm himself had blurted it out and that’s what had caused all the issues. But it seemed as if Reaper was making some kind of move. Damn, Grimm didn’t want Quenton to get hurt. If the man thought Reaper would settle for just one person, he was going to be out of luck. Reaper went through bed partners fast. He liked variety, and he wasn’t averse to sharing his bed with two or more people at a time.

Styx came in with Charon and Aislinn trailing behind. The small, auburn-haired woman carried her custom-made
naginata
and held Charon’s hand. She often went out with them and Grimm was impressed with her fighting. Charon had done a good job training her. Now that they worked out every day, and she was drinking his blood, she was faster and stronger than ever. Grimm didn’t know how Charon let her fight—hell, if she were his woman there’d be no way. But the two of them made a good team.

Finally, Talon and Joelle walked through the door with Kenshin following close behind. It was odd to see the pair before Kenshin showed up. They usually straggled in well after everyone else had arrived, with satisfied smiles on their faces. Grimm mentally shook his head. No, Joelle had the smile. Talon would glare around, daring anyone to say anything to upset her. It was comical really how fast the man had fallen for her. Grimm wondered if that’s how an Ancient/Liaison relationship went. Charon and Aislinn had experienced the same quick fall. He shivered at the idea of being trapped so utterly and completely. He wondered if the men had fought it or just accepted the slide into the inevitable trap.

“Something happened tonight, and I want to make sure everyone knows,” Kenshin, the director of the PIA, spoke. “Grimm, Styx, please explain to everyone what you discovered.”

Styx gave Grimm a subtle signal that he wanted him to talk.

Grimm shrugged. “I was out patrolling and got the scent of a blood-addicted vampire. I met up with Styx, who had apparently smelled the same thing. We ended up in an alley behind a bar. At first, we couldn’t see the vampire, but I finally looked up. The fucker was clinging to the side of a building—”

“Wait,” Reaper interrupted. “Clinging? Like with some kind of climbing rig?”

“No.” Styx cut in. “Clinging like a spider or something. There wasn’t anything holding that thing up there but its own hands and feet.”

Aislinn made a face. “That sounds like something from that movie Joelle and I watched. Um, the Dracula movie where the guy starts out looking really old. He climbs down the side of his castle. Totally creepsville.”

“Just like that,” Grimm said. “Styx hit it with four throwing knives, and the thing fell off the wall but didn’t die. Hell, it barely slowed it down.”

“Fucker came at us,” Styx said. “It was snapping at me like some kind of crazy animal. I stabbed it in the side, nothing. Grimm dragged it off and threw it into a building, but it still wouldn’t stop.”

Grimm nodded. “Styx finally stabbed it in the heart. That’s what killed it. But, it took six knives, and two of us. If either one of us had faced it alone, we might not be here. It was that strong.”

Chapter Two

The room was silent after Grimm made his pronouncement. They all usually went out alone unless a call specified a problem. There were only five Ancients who hunted, and they couldn’t afford to lose anyone.

“How is this possible?” Joelle finally asked. “I know when Juan came to my apartment, he didn’t do anything freaky like that. I mean, if he had, I would have had a total conniption and run around screaming.”

“All the other blood-addicts were strong,” Reaper added, “but nothing we couldn’t handle. So what’s different?”

“The lab is running tests on the body you brought in,” Kenshin said. “I hope they’ll have something to report within the next day or so.”

Quenton held up his hand. “What’s different?”

“I just asked that,” Reaper said.

“Yes, and it’s a good question so let’s think about it. What’s different? What do we know now that we didn’t know before?”

“An Ancient is apparently involved,” Aislinn put in. “Isn’t that right? Didn’t one kill my brother?”

Talon nodded. “Yes.”

Joelle sat up straight. “Hey, what happens when regular vamps drink Ancient blood? I know they don’t stink. At least, I don’t remember that they did. But do they get special powers or something?”

“They were stronger,” Talon answered her, referencing the vampires who’d held him and fed on him until Joelle had freed him. “But none of them manifested anything like Grimm and Styx describe.”

“What if they’re drinking both human and Ancient blood? Would that make a difference?” Joelle took Talon’s hand and leaned against him.

“Would that combo make a vamp into a wall-climber?” Reaper tossed in.

“I can’t see how drinking Ancient and human blood would make a blood-addict gain those kinds of powers,” Quenton said.

“Could it depend on the age of the Ancient?” Aislinn asked.

A thought flashed through Grimm’s mind. “Okay, this might sound crazy, but what if the Ancient’s not only old but also has a true Liaison? I mean, what kind of changes does that make in an Ancient’s blood?”

No one said anything as looks were exchanged. Finally, Reaper broke the silence. “Is there a way to test Talon or Charon’s blood without every asshole within the entire PIA finding out?”

“Yes,” Quenton said, “as long as Talon and Charon don’t mind. If not, then I’ll call Maeve.”

Neither man commented, but Kenshin rolled his eyes. Maeve was not Kenshin’s favorite person. Kenshin labeled her totally unprofessional and difficult to work with, which Grimm found laughable. The man worked with Joelle every day and took the shit the woman dealt out but never complained about her. Of course, he might also hold his tongue due to Talon’s temper.

Quenton pulled out his cell phone and dialed. His conversation was brief, but when he snapped the phone closed, he nodded. “She’s coming right down.”