Dead Man Running: Book Two - Supernatural Bounty Hunter Romance Novellas (4 page)

Chapter Five

Viktor laid Alma down on her bed.  Shucking out of the rest of his clothes, he stretched out next to her and ran his thumb down her soft belly.  She purred before her heavy eyes closed, and she fell into a deep, satisfied sleep. 
Expending all that magic to capture the other vampire had worn her out more than she cared to admit.

The vampire lay next to her, watching her sleep, taking in every moan, every breath, and enjoying the rise and fall of her lovely breasts.  He stayed as long as he dared before wrenching himself away.

He retrieved his clothes and jerkily pulled them on.  The fury and frustration began to rise within him, as it always did when he was forced to leave her. 
Not for the first time did he regret leaving that weaselly bastard, Eric Van Dyne, alive.   

Viktor thought back to that fateful night twenty years ago.  He could have just reached out and snapped Eric’s neck; he would have gotten away with it, too.  He had been kidnapped and almost forced to illegally turn someone into a vampire.  Viktor would have been within his right to kill the man, but he had taken pity on the human.  Van Dyne was sick and in pain, Viktor was merciful.  He had not robbed the man of whatever little time he had left. 
That had been a mistake
.

The threats leveled at Viktor had not been idle.  Van Dyne said he would make Viktor suffer by hurting those he loved, and the human kept his promise.  After meeting Van Dyne, Viktor informed the Council of what he had done, they then kept a close eye on the human, in case he tried to force another vampire to turn him.

Fifteen years ago, Viktor was travelling in Japan; he met and fell in love with a woman called Naoko.  He even considered asking permission to turn her, but she declined.  Although she cared for him, she wanted children one day.  Viktor was disappointed, but he was old enough to realize that he should just accept the small amount of time he had with her. 
Which wasn’t much.

They were together for two months when Naoko did not return home from work.  She was mugged, raped, beaten and left to die in the street.  Viktor had been wracked with grief; he tried to hunt the men who had done this, but every lead turned into a dead end.  The police told him the attack was random; there was little hope of finding the perpetrator.

It wasn’t until a week later that Viktor even considered her death could be connected to Van Dyne.  After five years, the vampire had all but forgotten about the strange billionaire,
unfortunately, Van Dyne had not forgotten him.
  He sent Viktor a dozen roses, all dyed black, with a card that said ‘so sorry for your loss – EVD.' 
Eric Van Dyne
.  The crazy human attacked and murdered his woman, or, at least, paid someone else to do it. 
He made sure Naoko died in agony and alone in the street
.

Viktor’s wrath knew no bounds.  He returned to America and stormed Van Dyne’s fortress-like mansion. 
But the man wasn’t stupid; he knew Viktor would do this
.  Van Dyne had
surrounded himself with even more shifters and witches.  They easily captured the vampire and brought him before Van Dyne.  Viktor raged and told the man just to kill him.  The billionaire laughed and told him that wouldn’t be as satisfying. 
He wanted to enjoy Viktor’s pain
.

Over the years, Viktor tried to get to Van Dyne numerous times, all without success.  Dozens of shifters and witches were more than happy to protect the man for money; they didn’t give a damn about how evil he was. 
The vampire never got close to Van Dyne again
.

Feeling lonely, ten years ago Viktor took up with a Texan witch called
Lex.  Their relationship could hardly be called loving; it was more about mutual satisfaction.  The vampire wanted blood and sexual release, and the witch enjoyed the added pleasure that came with being fed on.  Viktor warned her of the threat, but Lex was confident she could defend herself.

Alas, the billionaire didn’t differentiate between love and just having a casual fling. 
Lex suffered her own horrific fate; she was torn apart by a bear shifter. 
The guilt Viktor felt was immense
.  He should never have been with Lex; he should never have been so selfish.

After that, he limited himself to one night stands and random encoun
ters.  For the 350-plus year old vampire, it was a hollow way to live. 
That had all changed four years ago…

His friend Marcus had asked for help.  Thankfully, Van Dyne’s ire only stretched as far as lovers, and not friends.  It was a small mercy at least.  The snake shifter needed to
take time off work, and Viktor offered to help out with the business. 
That was when he met Alma…

The vampire knew from the first moment he saw the tall, striking witch that she was his mate.  His whole body came alive at the soft scent of roses.  He knew she was his to have, to hold, to mate with, and to be with for the rest of his long life.  His arousal skyrocketed, and the urge to take her was unbearable, yet he had resisted.  He had to run away from her just to make sure he didn’t tear her clothes off and bend her over her desk, plunging right into her then and there.

Alma had been furious
.  She sensed he was her mate and had not been pleased with his reaction.  That night had been the first time he snuck into her apartment. 
The first of many times to come
.  The witch had wrathfully thrown stunning spells at him whilst yelling at him to get out.  When he finally calmed her, or at least when he finally had her pinned and trapped under his body, he explained his reaction. 

Alma was still angry, but as his hands slowly roamed her body she soon softened, and driven by a deep-seated desire to mate, she submitted to his ministrations.  They made love repeatedly, and it was glorious.  Viktor felt complete.  The hole, that had been in his heart for over three centuries, had finally been filled by his sparky, sexy witch. 
They just couldn’t be together, not yet, anyway
.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be with her, he just feared that if he were, she would get hurt.  When she was finally relaxed, she scoffed at his worries and told him she could take care of herself. 
As Lex had done
. 

Viktor would not relent.  It was too dangerous for them to openly be a couple.  He would not risk losing her because of his own impatience.  In spite of Alma’s abject protestations, he told her they must seemingly remain apart.

Alma would go on living her life whilst Viktor searched for a way to stop Van Dyne.  After four years, his patience had worn thin.  The vampire even considered approaching the billionaire and offering to turn him, but his conscience wouldn’t allow it. 
The human Van Dyne was a monster; he dreaded to think what kind of vampire he would be.

They
grasped at moments when they could.  Viktor came to her apartment; they spent a few hours together, and then he stole away like a thief.  For a while, this arrangement had satisfied him somewhat, but now he was hungry for more.  He wanted his mate sleeping in his arms every day; he wanted her to wear his permanent bonding mark, and more than anything, he wanted to turn her so she could be with him for all eternity.

Alma was adamant that she wouldn’t get hurt, and even suggested that he turn her.  As a vampire, she would be much stronger and faster.  His heart swelled that she didn’t even hesitate about becoming a vampire to be with him.  But as a newborn vampire she would spend the first few months of her life struggling with her new abilities, and would be vulnerable to attack. 
Viktor would not take that risk.

So, as it stood, Viktor was forced to watch her from the sidelines.  At his insistence, she had to treat him badly in public, and make people believe she hated him.  She told everyone they had a bad break-up and took scorned woman to a whole new level. 
He was disturbed at how good she was at that. 
If he didn’t know any better, he’d swear she loathed him. 

The only person who knew of their connection was Marcus.  At Viktor’s request, the snake tried his best to keep Alma out of trouble. 
But it was kind of like trying to make a dog wear roller skates
. 

It was also Viktor’s idea that she
should date other men.  She wasn’t allowed to sleep with them, of course;
he’d have to kill them if she did
, but for appearances sake, she went on dates with the multitude of men who asked her out. 

The vampire was displeased at how many men were actually interested in his mate, displeased, but not surprised.  He also made sure he was there in the background when she went on these dates. 
Just in case he had to snap their arms if they got too grabby
.  The alligator she had gone to dinner with that night had been especially abhorrent in trying to fondle her leg all night.  Still, it was his idea that she date…
she reminded him of that every time he complained about it
.

Viktor silently walked back into her bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed.  In sleep, she was an angel. 
He smirked, reflecting that when awake she was more of a devil.

His fangs unsheathed.  He pressed them into his bottom lip.  A few drops of blood bubbled.  Quickly he leaned over and pressed his mouth to hers, smearing the blood.  Instinctively she licked and swallowed.  The mark he had given her would heal by morning.  His chest tightened at the thought that no one would know she was his. 
It was like he hadn’t even been there, like they hadn’t been together…

He steeled himself with one last longing look at her beautiful body, before quietly leaving her apartment.  He carefully strolled down the street alert to the sights and sounds around him.  He was certain nobody was watching him.

With every step away from her, his heart grew leaden.  A growl caught in his throat.  He couldn’t go on like this. 
Something had to be done, and soon.

Chapter Six

Alma hummed happily as she moved around the bail bond office.  She pointedly ignored the other occupants who were huddled around Mia’s desk.  They were reading the lead story in Playa
Lunar’s second most-popular newspaper,
The Daily Lunar.  The most popular was basically a gossip rag that contained less than twenty percent of facts.
  Whilst reading, Mia gasped now and then, Carly tut-tutted, Jackson snorted and Logan sighed.

Vampi
res came out to humans about fifty years ago, just a little while after shifters.  Recently they had been making strides for vampires to have the same rights as all other species. 
As well as the same punishments for law breaking
.  There were a number of people who thought that, as vampires were dead, they shouldn’t be allowed to vote or own property. 
And there were a number of vampires who believed that, as they were dead, the laws didn’t apply to them
.  But, mostly due to the effort of the vampire member of the Council of Supernaturals, there would soon be total equality for the undead race. 
Or, at least until last night, there would have been…

The Council had assembled in Playa Lunar to discuss the law that would allow vampires to vote, and to even run for office. 
If it passed, there was a possibility that one day there could be a vampire congressman or even a senator!

However, last night the vampire Council member, Julian
Holgersson, had been arrested for double murder.  Reports say that he had been found late last night passed out in his hotel suite with the naked, ravaged bodies of two prostitutes.

Mia frowned.  “What would he do with two prostitutes?  He’s only one man.”

“I can think of a couple of things,” muttered Jackson, earning him a whack on his arm from his mate and a slap to the back of his head from Logan.

Alma’s buzz from last night was slowly starting to fade, and now she was just getting annoyed that the four of them were gossiping instead of working.

“Any chance of getting some work done around here?” she spat at the four shifters.

Mia quickly pushed the newspaper at Logan and started typing, whilst Carly retreated to the storage room.  Logan sauntered over to the waiting area couch and dropped down
to reread the article.  Jackson folded his arms and glowered at the witch. 
Asshole
.

Alma deliberately ignored him as she put together a list of skips and divvied up the work. 
Business, thankfully, was booming, so she wouldn’t have to look at Jackson’s irritating face for much longer
.

She didn’t even look up as the door the agency opened, and two of their other hunters barreled in, smiling and laughing.  Adam
Varma was an ex-special forces white tiger shifter, born in India but raised in Playa Lunar.  He took on skips now and again, but also did some security jobs. 
It was best not to ask for details
.  Zara Benoit, like Alma, was a witch, and currently their only female hunter -
soon to be one of two, if Carly got her way
.  But unlike Alma, Zara’s magic had Voodoo leanings, and she originally hailed from New Orleans.  Except for when she remembered, her accent was pretty much gone, though.