And To Hold: Vampire Assassin League #20 (6 page)

“Talk...about a one-track mind. Listen. Uh...babe. Either untie me or jump on the equipment. Okay? You’re really starting to kill the urge here.”

The last was a complete lie. He was making long, slow thrusting motions along her skin. Every nerve ending he had was involved and loving it.

“I’m serious, Zachariah.”

“You want me serious, love? You’re gonna have to get me at a better time. And be wearing more. A whole lot more.”

He lurched against her with a solid push his mind hadn’t even cleared. She blinked slowly, and regarded him with those amazing eyes. Looking like twin shimmering pools with a sun-kissed surface. And he wasn’t the poetic type.

“You just called me love,” she told him.

“Uh. I did? Ahem. Figure of speech. Meaningless.”

“Really? Well, I don’t believe you.”

She was closing in on his mouth. To touch her lips to his. For a kiss. And he lurched up from the bed in order to make it happen. And just then the most horrid shrieking noise interrupted them, coming in three sharp bursts, stopping, and then repeating.

Zach jerked, his mouth slammed into hers, hitting teeth. That stung. He had to blink rapidly to halt the instant tears. She looked in exactly the same state.

“I must go.”

“Wait!”

She was already scooting off one side of the bed, making the mattress sway.

“I have to answer it.”

“That’s a
phone
? You have the worst ringtone in existence, Roxie. I swear, that’s enough to wake the dead.” It was loud enough he had to raise his voice over it. “Can’t you just take a message?”

“I have to answer it, Zachariah. It’s the Vampire Assassin League.”

“The vampire
what
?”

“I’ll be right back, Zachariah.”

Wow. She sounded like he was asking for something unreasonable. He grabbed for her with his legs. Missed. She was at the side of the bed and donning his shirt. He watched as she pulled her hair through the collar. Whoa. The view was unbelievable. With the stockings and garters she still wore, he sure hoped she wasn’t going traipsing about the hall like that.

“You’re just going to leave me like this?” He jerked his arms to the ends of his tethers as he tried to sit up. That failed ignominiously as he got yanked back down onto the mattress.

“I’ll be back. I promise.”

“Cut these ties first! Roxie! Are you frickin’ kidding me? Ah!”

He yelled the last part. The sound of the big-ass door closing answered him. And then he got nothing but silence.

“Ah. Ruxanna! At last. There you are! Sir. I have Princess Ruxanna from Romania on the line. I’ll transfer the call.”

A moment later Akron’s voice came through her SAT phone. Ruxanna wasn’t really paying attention. She was too antsy. Uptight. Wound. Her mind was exactly where her body wished to be – with her mate.

“Princess?”

“Yes?”

“I’ve got a couple of assignments for you.”

“Can anyone else handle them?”

“Well. They both happen to be in your neck of the woods. Actually, I should specify. They’re both precisely in your location. Both of them. Pardon me for a moment. Nigel? What on earth are you doing up there?”

“High dusting, Sir. I should think it obvious.”

Nigel’s answer was easily audible, but she wasn’t truly paying attention. Ruxanna sat on a stone bench that chilled her thighs above the stockings, closed her eyes, and thoroughly enjoyed the series of tremors that ran through her body in a relentless pattern. Mating was incredible. Delightful. Magical.

“High dusting?”

“Remind me to never give Lizbeth free reign. Would you do that for me, Sir?”

“Ah. I begin to see. You called her a moniker, and this is what she required for payment. High dusting. In my study. You know, I have a cleaning staff. They come in regularly to do this. While I am absent.”

“She says I need to understand what women go through on a daily basis. She’s hoping doing household chores will make that happen. She offered me dishes. I declined.”

“You should have chosen dishwashing, Nigel. No one eats anything around here. You’d have been done in no time.”

“I thought of that, Sir, but you only half-turned her. She reminded me. She claims she’s always wanted to try her hand at being a gourmet chef. I wasn’t willing to chance it.”

“Ah. Well. That explains your feather duster and headscarf. I’m going to guess that is also why you’re wearing a skirt?”

“This is not a skirt, Sir. It’s a kilt. Scottish attire. I should think you’d recognize it. I ordered it from MacKettryck. It’s his clan colors.”

“You’ve got it on backwards Nigel. The pleats go in the back.”

“Oh. Holy snake scrotum...on rice. I ordered it too large. It won’t stay on straight. And...there. Is that better?”

“Snake scrotum? Snakes don’t have an external scrotum, Nigel. If they did, they’d have a real issue when slithering about. Imagine the pain potential. Don’t you agree?”

“It’s original, Sir. I’m earning extra credit as I speak.”

“I’m afraid to ask why. I really am. I believe I’ll just put it down to yet another unique and entertaining competition you have decided to pursue with Lizbeth. But, I am rather curious. Why did you order the wrong size for your Highland attire?”

“Because I’m tired of being the scrawny pipsqueak. MacKettryck hasn’t met me. Didn’t know me from Adam, or so he said. So I ordered a 32-inch waist. He doesn’t need to know I’m barely a 30.”

“You aren’t scrawny, Nigel. You’re lean. Fit enough. I believe you’d be described as athletic. You’re just young. Excruciatingly so. Dressing in large-size clothing and sticking on a false mustache and beard will not change that. Princess? You still with me?”

There was silence before she recognized he waited for her. Ruxanna blinked to bring the stone walls of her crypt back into view.

“Yes,” she finally replied.

“Good. We were discussing two assignments. Both were just received. Should be easy for you. One is a fellow by the name of Leroy...let me see. Yes. Here it is. Leroy Walters. Apparently, he has angered the wrong family. I have a price of one-point-five million Euros on his head. The Hong family originally wanted him alive. They put out a bounty on him. They are now out of patience. So, they called us.”

“Description? Distinguishing features?” she asked.

“Average height. Build. Light brown hair, thin on top. Caucasian. Mid-forties. Scar on right cheek. Known to frequent dens of iniquity. Has a fondness for mutilating women. I believe his preferred tool is a knife. According to our info, he was an early arrival to Castle Kraven last evening, or someone has stolen his identity.”

“Oh. No. He’s here. We have him in the dungeon.”

“See? Easy. About the other hit—. Forgive the intrusion, Ruxanna. Nigel. Please cease doing that directly above me. I’m not fond of dust particulates in my field of vision.”

“Sorry, Sir.”

“And put something on beneath your kilt.”

“Highlanders don’t wear anything beneath their kilts, Sir. You should know that.”

“You’re not a Highlander, and I’m not appreciative of the view.”

“Just give it a few more minutes, Sir. I’m sure Lizbeth will be in here any moment.”

“What on earth for? Video?”

“She says I need to understand how it feels to be sexually harassed. Why do you think I chose a kilt and high dusting?”

Akron laughed uproariously. The phone in her hand boomed with the sound of his amusement. Ruxanna stared uncomprehendingly first at it, and then at the dark alcoves where the bones of her ancestors rested. She’d never felt so adrift. Odd. Alien.

Alone.

Akron’s amusement drifted into chuckles. He was probably wiping his eyes.

“Thank you, Nigel. Sincerely. I haven’t laughed that hard in decades. And here I thought Lizbeth had extraordinary brilliance. In every arena.”

“You mean she doesn’t? You can’t be serious.”

“Well, someone is not thinking this little lesson through to a predictable end. You see, sexual harassment is only an issue if it’s
unwanted
attention of a sexual nature. In your case, I’d say Lizbeth is well off the mark. You not only want it. You dressed to make certain to receive it. Maybe I should page her. I do believe this could be memorable to watch.”

“Yes. Do that Sir. I am getting tired of swishing this duster about.”

“Well, come down from there, then. Princess?”

“Yes,” she responded automatically.

“I do like these satellite connections. No need to worry over tracing and time restrictions. That’s what comes from embedding code back in the eighties while they were still in the circuitry stage. Before they launched them into space. Of course, I’m not trusting technology to stagnate. We’ve probably only got a few more years before they discover our little trick. In the meantime, we can talk as long as we like. The other hit I have for you is for a fellow named Zachariah Reed.”

Ruxanna went cold. She dropped the phone. It bounced twice before coming to rest against an archaic funerary display. And she was shaking. She’d forgotten shock had a physical reaction to it.

“Princess? You still there?”

She retrieved the phone on legs that didn’t feel like they belonged to her. They moved her in a jerking fashion back to sit atop the stone bench. It was probably still chilly. She didn’t feel it anymore.

“Description? Distinguishing features?” she asked noncommittally.

“Twenty-nine. Wait. Looks like he has a birthday coming up. Thirty, next week. Dark hair. Dark eyes. Six foot, two inches in height. Weight is one ninety. Extremely fit. Handsome, if the picture is accurate. Specializes in bounty hunting and investigations. Hmm. I’d say he’s the bounty hunter the Hongs originally hired, if I don’t miss my guess. He’s adept in martial arts. Competes in kick-boxing tournaments. Took second place in one recently. Need I go on?”

“Yes, he’s here, too.”

“I know.”

“You don’t know everything.”

Akron chuckled. “Let me just continue on then. Zachariah Reed is your mate. He’s tied to your bed as we speak, although he won’t stay there. And you really should have figured all of this out already.”

“What did you just say?”

There was a loud crashing noise through the receiver. Ruxanna pulled the SAT phone from her ear and looked at it for a moment uncomprehendingly. It took some time before the noise abated. The crypt echoed with it. And then Akron gave a heavy sigh that added to the sound resonating about her.

“Nigel. It’s easier to use the ladder. And a lot less messy if you leave the shelves in place. And just look at this desecration of classic literature. I didn’t realize I had so many tomes up there.”

“Neon-colored smacked eel. On rye crackers. She’s got her mate? And she tied him to a bed? Wow. I could really use some time in the field, Sir. Really.”

“Neon-colored smacked eel? Hmm. Interesting visual.”

“So? What do you say, Sir? I could use a bit of training. Romania sounds pretty grim this time of year. Well off the map. And I have to wait seven-hundred and twelve years, anyway.”

“Seven hundred and—? Oh. That is right. I did give you that number range, didn’t I?”

“You mean...you may have made that number range up?”

“You know, Nigel, you may actually benefit from a bit of time in the field. I suppose I could rely on Lizbeth until Invaris returns. We’ll talk later. Fair enough? In the meantime, start picking up this mess, while I give the princess the particulars.”

“What particulars? She has her guy. He’s tied to her bed. Now, that’s the way to hold your mate. And bonus. She’s being paid to change him over. What else does she need?”

“There’s a bit more to it, than that. Ruxanna. You still there?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Like I said, the offer for Zachariah just came in. It’s...problematic.”

“Too low?”

“Oh, no. Nothing like that. The client didn’t care what it cost. I was given carte blanche. A blank check. Any amount. As long as the target is dead. Now, while that is surprising, that’s not the part that need concern you.”

“I’m listening,” she replied.

“Me, too,” Nigel said from somewhere in the background.

“The hit came from the castle.
Your
castle.”

Ruxanna’s eyes went wide.

“This is where the problematic part starts. The hit was ordered by Malcolm. Your partner-slash-henchman.”

Her mouth went as wide as her eyes. She almost dropped the phone again.

“You still there?”

“Yes.” she replied.

“Good. When this happens, I immediately start wondering why. You haven’t given Malcolm reason to – shall we say – believe he had a future with you, have you?”

“No.”

“Never spoke to him about vampire mates?”

“Why would I do that?”

“Ah. Then it’s in his head. I was afraid of that. Nigel. Ignore that mess and get to your post. I need something checked.”

“What am I checking for, Sir?”

“Working for you pays extremely well, Princess. I drained the client’s accounts a couple of minutes ago. He didn’t mind. I took that to mean he is desperate. Uncaring about the future. Do either of you follow, yet?”

“No.” The word was chorused by Ruxanna and Nigel.

“Check for calls from Kraven Castle to Hunters.”

“No. Malcolm wouldn’t call in Hunters. No. Not on me.” Ruxanna’s voice was as faint as she felt. She gripped the stone edge beneath her with her free hand.

“Perhaps. But I wouldn’t bet on it. Nigel?”

“Call just finished, Sir. Wow. You’re good.”

“Ruxanna. Listen. It’s a spurned love thing. Malcolm is envious. He’s devious. And he’s angry. You kept him as a pet for too long. He made his decision. Actually, I think he suspicions what Zachariah Reed means to you, and that made the decision for him. So. Think of your tragic plays. If he can’t have you, then he will make certain that no one can. Might I suggest you go and enlist your mate’s help about now? Call us when it’s over. I’ll send a 4-D Team. Oh. And one more thing, Princess.”

“Yes?”

“Zachariah Reed is not tied down anymore.”