Vengeance (Night Roamers) Book Three (7 page)

Duncan snorted. “Is that what your bat senses are telling you?”

Before Ethan could respond, the hotel room door swung open and a woman stormed out dressed in jeans, cowboy boots, and a white cable-knit sweater. Ethan flashed her one of his sparkling white smiles, but she ignored him, moving towards us with a determined look on her face.

“Wait! Megan!” called
a man in a dark gray suit, now standing in the doorway. “At least consider it.”

The woman muttered something under her breath but didn’t answer.

“Excuse me,” I said, moving aside so she could walk around me.

Instead, she stopped
abruptly and stared at me, her expression grim.

I smiled at her, not knowing what else to
do. She was pretty with auburn hair and deep green eyes. Although she was obviously upset about something, I didn’t feel any real animosity towards us. 

She
suddenly touched my cheek and sighed. “You must be Nikki. Poor child… what a nightmare for you. I hope they find your family.”

“
Do you know where they’ve taken her family?” asked Duncan.

Megan turned to him and shook her head. “No and unfortunately, I have
my own problems to worry about, so I can’t help locate her. You can trust Maximus, though. He’s a good man and I know he’ll do what he can to help.”

“Thank you,” I answered
.

She dropped her hand and
began walking away with her head down. It was then that I noticed that she’d smelled different. Not human or vampire. It wasn’t an unpleasant smell, either. Like Ethan had mentioned earlier, earthy.

“Megan!” hollered Maximus.

She stopped at the elevator and pushed the button. “What?” she asked turning back to look at him, her eyes watery.

His face softened and he raised his hand.
“Godspeed.”

The elevator dinged loudly.
With trembling lips, she nodded, and then got into the elevator.

Maximus sighed as the door closed and then wave
d to us. “Come on, then. I’m pretty sure we don’t have all night.”

Nikki

Maximus
led us through his luxurious hotel suite into a back office, and then motioned for us to sit down. I studied him as he went behind his desk and planted himself into the high-backed office chair. With his broad shoulders, longish-blond hair, and goatee, I had to admit, he was pretty hot for a guy in his thirties. He reminded me a little of Brad Pitt when he starred in
Legends of the Fall
. My mom’s favorite movie of all time.

“So,”
said Ethan, breaking an uncomfortable silence. “You have information for us?”

He leane
d back in his chair and rubbed his chin with his index finger. “Actually, I think we may both have information to share.”

“You go first,” said Ethan.

Maximus smirked. “Should we toss a coin?”

“Do you know where my mother is?” I blurted out
, wanting to get to the point. The testosterone in the air was starting to suffocate me and I had no time for Alpha males of any species.

His eyes shifted to mine
. “Not exactly. I’ve heard that she’s here with your brother, though.”

“Well, we suspected that,” replied Duncan, folding his hands across his chest. “Tell us something we don’t know.”

Maximus’s hazel eyes hardened. “First I need to know if any of you vampires are responsible for the motel murders happening around this city?”

“We haven’t killed anyone,” I replied
evenly. “And some of us prefer the term, Roamers, by the way.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that
Ethan was trying to keep a straight face.

“Roamers?
” replied Maximus. “Hell, I don’t give a shit if you call yourselves blood-sucking demons. What I need to know is who in the hell is discarding bodies in my city like goddamn candy wrappers? The last few weeks we’ve had three bloody massacres that are obviously vampire, excuse me,” he sneered, “
Roamer
related.”

“Sorry, but we really know nothing about it,” I replied. “We just arrived here.”

“Maybe so, but whoever is doing it, doesn’t seem to give a shit that it stirs up Vegas’s finest, making things more difficult for both of our kinds. Now, I need this shit to stop, so if you have information, spill it.”

“
Dude, we seriously know nothing,” said Duncan. “At least, Nikki nor I know squat about the murders. This vampire thing is new to us; we barely know how to make a hole let alone cause any massacres. Now, him,” he nodded towards Ethan, “I’m not so sure about.”

Ethan shook his head and sm
irked. “Thanks.”

“
Do
you know anything?” asked Maximus, turning to Ethan. “Or, hell, is it
you
leaving a mess in my city?”

“
I didn’t know this was your city?” he replied arrogantly. “I’m sorry, are you the mayor? Did I miss something?”

I wanted to slug him.

“Oh, make no mistake,” answered Maximus, his eyes beginning to glow a yellowish-orange. “It is. Not only do I own this hotel, but I’ve got investments all over the city. And, I don’t expect you to know this, but I’m also in law enforcement, so I have my hands in everything. I have the power to throw your ass in jail or worse, if I think you’re fucking with my little town.”

“
A cop?” I asked. “Aren’t you a… Lycan?”

He smiled. “
First and foremost, yes. But being a detective is something I truly enjoy. Not only do I get to hunt for bad guys, but I can keep better tabs on what’s going on in the city.”

“And you own businesses all over town, including this hotel?” asked Duncan.

He seemed to relax the more he spoke to Duncan. “Well, I inherited this hotel from my father, as well as the investments.”

“He died?”
asked Duncan.

“He was killed, actually. Murdered.”

Ethan sighed. “Let me guess, he was killed by a vampire?”

“No.
Another Lycan.” He smiled coldly. “Victor Van Buren. The same asshole who is now on the hunt for you. Specifically
you
, Nikki.”

I stared at him in surprise.
“Me?”

“Apparently, someone’s commissioned him to kill you.
”

“Caleb and Celeste,” said Ethan
, folding his arms under his chest. “Has to be.”

“Maybe,” replied Maximus. “But obviously your life is in grave danger. Not only will he be hunting for you, but so will his clan.”

I swallowed. “His clan?”

“
His pack. There are about ten or so of them.”

I couldn’t even respond. The idea of ten
Lycans hunting for me was even more terrifying than my recent change into a vampire.

“Obviously this guy is an Alpha?” asked Duncan.

Maximus turned to him. “Yes. My advice to you is to take her as far away as you can. There’s no way the three of you are going to be able to take on a big group like this.”

“Why don’t you help us?” I asked. “You said he killed your father? Help me find my family and we’ll leave.”

“I
have
helped you, by warning you about Victor.”

“But we can’t just leave without my mom and brother. And…
that gal who left here a few minutes ago, Megan? She said you’d help me.”

“Make no mistake, I’m hunting for Victor, but on my terms. Right now his entire clan has been dispatched and it’s too dangerous to try and take him out. One
Lycan and three vampires against that group. No way. It’s suicide.”

“Don’t you have your own
pack?” asked Duncan.

He sighed.
“I did. But they’ve scattered, wanting to live normal lives. Or at least try. Today was the first time I’d seen Megan in almost twenty years.”

“
Look, do you have any other information for us about my family?” I asked, on the edge of hysteria. Just when I thought things were going our way, bigger problems were erupting.

He shook his head. “No. The only reason I knew about Victor is because one of his pack
, an old friend of mine, confided in me.”

“Who?” I asked.

“A woman who hates Victor as much as I do, but is too terrified to leave.”

“Was that Megan?” asked Duncan. “Did she join his pack or something?”

He chuckled. “God, no, Megan hates the bastard. She’d love to kill him with her bare hands, and she’s one of the nicest people you’d ever meet.”

Ethan’s lips thinned. “You mean
Lycans
that you’ve ever met.”

“As far as I’m concerned, we’re still people.”

“Don’t listen to Ethan,” said Duncan. “He’s always trying to start something.”

“Fuck you,” replied Ethan.

“You’re not my type,” he replied with a cocky grin. “Ask Nikki, she knows.”

“I can still take you out,” growled Ethan, his eyes glowing. “Don’t test me.”

Duncan raised his hands in the air, mocking Ethan. “Oh, I’m shaking in my boots.”

I cleared my throat. “Can we get back to business?”

“Are they always like this?” asked Maximus, shaking his head in disgust.

I nodded.
“Pretty much.”

“Nikki is going to need
real
men to protect her, not two assholes constantly bickering,” warned Maximus. “If Victor gets his hands on her, he’ll do unimaginable things and that’s
before
he kills her.”

“
He sounds charming,” I replied, tapping my foot nervously.

He smiled bitterly.
“He’s a crazed lunatic, Nikki. Like I said before, get out of Vegas while you still can.”

I stood up. “Thanks for warning. I appreciate it. But, I’m not leaving Vegas. Not until I find my family. Come on
, guys.”

Duncan and Ethan stood up.

“Wait,” sighed Maximus. He got out of his chair and took out his wallet. “Here’s my card, call me right away when the shit starts to hit the fan, which it will. I guarantee it. I’ll do my best to try and help you.”

“Thanks,” I replied
, staring up at him. “I appreciate any help you can give us.”

“You’ll need it with these knuckleheads,” he said.

Ethan scowled.
“You’re a funny guy, Max. Listen, I doubt you’ll be hearing from us,” said Ethan, putting his arm around me. “Nothing is going to happen to Nikki. Not with me around.”

“Or me,” said Duncan.

“On the contrary, boys. Something
will
happen if you stay in town. Something bad,” he said. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Celeste

Celeste crept out of Victor’s suite while he slept, trying not to
wake him. Her body was still sore from being ravaged by the mongrel, who’d not only nipped her savagely a few too many times, but had also maimed her chest with his claws.

No accident there
.

Fortunately, she
’d healed quickly, but now needed to feed and regain her strength. She adjusted her bikini cover-up, making sure she showed enough skin, especially cleavage, and decided to search for dinner.

As she stepped i
nto the elevator, a distinguished gentleman in his sixties was inside by himself. He was dressed as if ready for a round of golf, and she suddenly recalled him from the night before. He’d been with his wife in the casino, drunk and boasting about how he was some big golf pro from Florida. Annoying as he was, his body was husky and now hers for the taking.

He eyed her cleavage
appreciatively as she moved to stand next to him. “Hello there.”

“Hi,” she smiled.

“What floor?”

She batted her long lashes
. “Whatever floor you’re getting off on, handsome.”

His eyes widened
and then he chuckled. “Now, honey, don’t go teasing an old man like me. You’ll bring my blood pressure up.”

“
Oh, I’m not teasing,” she replied, taking a step towards him. “Not yet, anyway. Let’s find a place where we can be alone, and I’ll show you how serious I am.”

“Are you one of those high-class
call-girls or something?”

Seething inside, she forced a smile.
At least he’d said high-class.
“No.”

“Oh, sorry. Hope I didn’t offend you?”

“Not at all. Listen,” she said, touching his zipper. “I’m just lonely and need a little companionship. Maybe a little more, if you know what I’m saying?”