Eternal Craving (20 page)

As if the fear wasn’t enough, its evil twin joined it. Helplessness. He couldn’t do a damn thing until someone found Jenna and Lia. How did humans live with feelings like these? Had his prey felt the same fear and helplessness?

For one of the few times since rising from Machu Picchu, he put aside his rage for something more important. At this moment, it was enough to pray that Jenna and Lia were alive, that he’d reach them in time. He wasn’t quite sure who to pray to, so he sent the words out to whatever deity might have some influence.

He had no idea how many hours had slid by before Fin called him. When he strode into the media room where the others waited, Al could feel the bloodlust that stained the air around them. But his need to kill was bigger and badder than all of them put together.

Fin had the picture of a building up on the monitor. Al frowned. It looked like a Greek temple set at the top of a hill. Familiar.

Fin didn’t waste words. “Jude’s vampires found them. They’re in the Museum of Art.”

Lio grinned. “Hey, now I’ll get to run up those steps like Rocky Balboa did. At the top I’ll pump my fists in the air and hum a few bars of ‘Gonna Fly Now.’ ”

Al wasn’t amused. The idiot was still in suit, jacket, and expensive tie mode. On the other hand, Al was dressed for killing. Jeans, boots, T-shirt, and black duster. His hair hung loose down his back. Tonight he hunted.

Jenna felt that she’d been fighting her way out of a black pit of goo for eternity. Her only point of reference was Al’s face. She didn’t understand why that was so. Didn’t even
try
to understand.

Finally. Light. She held her breath while awareness caught up with sensation. Wait a minute. The light had been there all along. All she’d had to do was crack her eyelids open and let it in. Dumb.

She opened her eyes wider and then blinked. “Bizarre” and “surreal” were the first words that came to mind. As her brain collected the bits and pieces of her most recent memory, she added “terrifying” to the list. She tried to look around without moving her head.

“Magnificent, isn’t it?” The male voice sounded normal and even a little friendly. “You’re in the Great Stair Hall of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The soaring ceiling with that grand staircase leading up to the statue of the goddess Diana makes me all emotional. I’ve tried to honor the architectural wonder of the building in my own little way.”

Uh-oh. Jenna didn’t need blinking yellow arrows pointing to “the spot.” Luke had kidnapped them. And she didn’t have to burn many brain cells to figure out who was signing his paycheck. Jenna looked for Lia. There, she was lying a few feet away. Still out. Then Jenna met the gaze of the man standing in the center of the hall. “You’re Eight.”

He winced. “Fin really doesn’t have much imagination. Call me Stake. I wasn’t expecting guests to night, but I admire Luke’s ability to grasp the moment. I’m afraid you’ve missed all the fun, though. The killing part is always good for a giggle. Feel free, though, to relax and watch me work.”

Jenna kept her mouth shut until she’d taken stock of what was happening. Eight was a tall man, about six one or two. Nice looking in a mature, middle-aged way. Touches of silver at his temples gave him a distinguished look. Expensive suit. He’d give Lio a run for his money.

She glanced into Eight’s eyes and froze. His human disguise was perfect except for his eyes. Black, with all the evil of the universe alive in them. Those eyes promised that he could watch the whole of humanity die and enjoy every moment of the dying. Jenna sucked in her breath and looked away.

His chuckle was warm and amused. “Scary, aren’t they? I’m among friends here, so I don’t feel the need to hide them. If you have any questions, ask me now. I don’t like to be interrupted while I work.”

For the first time, Jenna allowed herself to acknowledge the bodies arranged in front of Eight. No blood, but they were definitely dead.

“All nice and neat. Not like before. Why?” Did Jenna care about his method? No, but she did care about gaining time until help showed up or else she figured a way out of this herself. Whichever came first.

Oh, and she couldn’t forget the fear. She needed a few minutes, or maybe years, to get her terror under control. She tried to ease the pounding of her heart, tried to slow breaths that were coming way too fast. Maybe she needed a paper bag to breathe into.

“My vampires did a superb job. I’m impressed. Two punctures and not a drop of blood spilled.” Eight oozed pride in his minions. “I was interested in capturing the flow of lines rather than blood patterns this time. I found an abundance of unwilling models, security people and a few cops who came snooping around before I put up my ward.”

Eleven bodies. Someone had arranged them to form the number 2012 on the floor of the hall. Light spotlighted the gruesome scene. Shapes moved restlessly in the shadows where the light didn’t reach. She assumed these were Eight’s nonhuman recruits.

“Eleven. Clever.” She hoped her murmur hid the icy claws tearing at her mind.

“You recognized the symbolism. How bright of you.” Eight looked sincerely delighted. “I achieve two goals tonight. I tweak Fin’s nose at the same time I point Philadelphia down the path of mass hysteria. When I finish here, I’ll notify the media. It’ll be delicious.”

And the weirdness just went on. Eight had a sketchpad and pencils along with an iPod arranged on a small table beside him. There was a chair so that he could draw in comfort. On the floor beside the table was a cage with a seagull inside.
It
was alive.

“You like birds?” She recognized her mindless babble for what it was. Sound, any sound, kept her panic-stricken gibbering at bay.

“I appreciate anything that comes from the sea, Jenna. May I call you Jenna?” He didn’t wait for her reply. “The seagull is a bird of the sea. I found it injured and nursed it back to health. I’ll release it when the time is right.”

She didn’t try to hide her surprise. “Amazing. You get all gleeful about killing humans, but you care for a bird.”

He shook his head in mock sorrow. “You disappoint me. I thought that anyone who’d met Fin would realize that both black and white easily turn gray. There are many nuances to good and evil.”

Before she could ask him to elaborate, he called her attention to something else.

“I chose this spot because of the inspiration.” He swept his arms wide. “I took my pick from the best. I’ll take them with me when I leave.”

For the first time she noticed that paintings hung from the massive columns surrounding the hall. Obviously Eight had gone shopping in the museum’s galleries. The works of art all had one thing in common. The sea.

“Look.” He touched her shoulder and pointed.

She controlled her shudder.

“The painting on the third column.
Manet and the Sea.
My favorite.”

Jenna could only nod, because she’d seen something else as she’d turned to glance at the painting.

A man. No, not a man. Nothing human looked like that. He was the essence of all things beautiful, all things deadly, all things
unearthly
. His was a beauty forged in darkness.

Well over six feet, he was wrapped in a dark cloak, but it was his face that sucked the breath from her lungs. Every stark line of his jaw and cheekbones, every curve of his full lips spoke of sex. His eyes were deep forest green framed by thick dark lashes. Those eyes revealed what he could do to a woman’s body, the unspeakable pleasure-pain he could wring from her, sensations that would leave her screaming in ecstasy as she died because surely no woman could survive making love with him. Smoke-dark hair framed that sensual face, and Jenna knew if she stared into his eyes long enough she might just ask him to strangle her with that tangled glory. He had the kind of power to make a woman beg for even that kind of death. She was sure of it.

Oh God, oh God, oh God. Jenna had to look away, but she couldn’t. His gaze gripped her, tore her will away, and dragged her a step closer to him. Clenching her fists, she tried to resist. Because on a level far removed from reason, she knew that once she reached him, she’d tear her clothes from her body and offer herself to him. And there wouldn’t be a damn thing she could do to stop herself.

“Glorious, isn’t he?”

Eight’s voice broke the hypnotic hold the man’s gaze had on her. She blinked. Only then did she notice that only his eyes moved. The rest of his body seemed as inanimate as the steel sword that hung at his side.

“Who is he, and what have you done to him?” She forced herself not to look back at the man.

“Ah, my most prized possession.” Eight seemed to think about that. “Well, perhaps
Manet and the Sea
might be number one now.” Then he brightened. “But I’m still thrilled to have him. This is Kione, a Fae prince of the Unseelie Court. He’s an arrogant bastard. I’m sure he never thought anyone could capture him.” Eight’s smile was smug. “He knows better now. Oh, and he’s not moving because he’s less troublesome that way.”

“Unseelie Court?”

“He’s a dark fairy, my dear. A wonderfully evil addition to my collection. I acquire and use beautiful things.” Eight’s gaze turned predatory. “I’ll enjoy him.” He turned a speculative glance her way. “I might enjoy you as well.”

Over my cold and stiff body.

“Don’t tempt me. I find death in all its forms utterly fascinating.”

Eight’s smile was so normal it just didn’t fit the horror of his words. He seemed to sense her fear, and his smile widened. “Terror is the greatest aphrodisiac.”

Oh, hell.

Lia made whimpering noises as she regained consciousness. Eight turned his attention on her, and Jenna hated herself for feeling so much relief.

“And Luke also delivered the newly crowned queen of the vampires, who just happens to be human. Delightful. I must reward Luke for the amusement he’s giving me.”

While Eight’s focus was elsewhere, Jenna scanned the hall for possible escape routes. None. She wondered if Al cared that she was missing. Of course he did. The connection they’d forged when they’d made love was real, even if its links were created from the heat of sexual need.

And her sister. Kelly would be frantic.

Fin would sure care. He had bells for her to ring. Jenna got no further with her who-will-care list because Eight turned his attention back to her.

“I’d suggest you explain the facts to your friend. I can’t be bothered. I have a scene to capture.” He started to pick up his iPod.

“I know you don’t think we’ve got a chance to escape, but aren’t you afraid the Eleven will track us here?”

Eight looked mildly amused. “How? Fin can’t sense me, and I made sure that he couldn’t connect with you mentally. No one followed Luke. I have wards in place that’ll discourage interest in the museum.” He shrugged. “No, you’re completely at my mercy.” He winked. “And I have no mercy, none at all. I haven’t decided what part you’ll play in all this, but I’m thinking about it.” Once his iPod was in place, he began to sketch.

Lia was on her knees and about to struggle to her feet when Jenna reached her. Quickly, Jenna whispered what had happened. The other woman took everything in stride. And if she was terrified, she didn’t show it. Jenna felt a little resentful about that. She wanted someone to share her fear.

“So how do we get out of here?” Lia looked around the hall. “There’re too many of them for us to fight.”

“Uh, you think?” Jenna counted pairs of gleaming eyes in the darkness. Eight had brought at least thirty followers to his drawing party. She could only imagine what they were. Vampires for sure. She didn’t want to think beyond that.

Lia ignored Jenna’s sarcasm as she stared at the museum entrance. “The doors are glass, and so are the panels above them.”

“Yeah, but there’re a few pesky strips of steel in there too. What’re you thinking?”

Lia shrugged. “We can’t get out, but something might get in.”

Al.
It was sort of pitiful how all thoughts led back to him. But they couldn’t count on a rescue. They had to come up with their own plan. She took a deep breath and dared to look at the Fae prince. “If we could free him, we might have a chance. If nothing else, he’d be a distraction. How powerful
is
a prince of the Unseelie Court?”

Lia’s gaze held raw sexual hunger as she stared at the dark fairy. Jeez, was that how she had looked? Jenna felt embarrassed.

“I guarantee there’s nothing in here except for the nutjob drawing pictures of dead people that’s more powerful than…” Lia never took her gaze from the prince. “What’s his name?”

“Kione.”

“Right. Anyway, we can’t free him. Neither of us knows how.”

Jenna narrowed her gaze on Eight. “The ‘nutjob’ is controlling Kione. If we could come up with a big enough distraction, maybe his hold would weaken and Kione could escape.”

Lia didn’t seem impressed. “Yeah, Eight would be so focused on killing us that the prince could escape. Fat lot of good that would do our dead butts.”

Talk about negativity. Jenna didn’t say anything more as she made her own plans to escape. She figured she was dead either way. Eight would kill them. No, wait, he’d have one of his recruits kill them. He couldn’t do it himself. Jenna would rather die in a fruitless attempt at escape. Proactive to the end, that was her.

She was still working out the details of her escape attempt when the floor beneath her began to shake.

His beast’s need for violence spurred Al on as he powered up the museum’s steps. Beside him, Ty’s T. rex matched him stride for stride. Behind them, the two raptors eagerly leaped ten steps at a time. Lio, in his human form, along with Sara and some of her wolves, followed in the rear.

Ordinarily Al would have drawn comfort from the feel of pack around him. Not this time. He didn’t care if he was one or one of many. A single purpose drove him—Jenna.

The ground shook and groaned beneath them. Humans close by would suspect an earthquake. Nonhumans inside the museum would know better. No one would see them until it was much too late. Fin had made sure of that.

They reached the top of the steps and pounded toward the glass entrance doors. The glass panels above the doors stretched several stories high. Neither doors nor panels would stop him. He didn’t slow down as he felt Fin’s power-boost kick in.

Al hurtled through glass and steel. Beside him, he heard Ty’s roar of challenge. Utah and Tor moved silently, lethal if smaller shadows ghosting into the Great Stair Hall.

Jude, along with his five vampires, had been crouched on the roof of a nearby building when they’d arrived. The vampires and werewolves would trail them inside, eager to be in on the kill.

Fin had cleared the way. He’d quietly gotten rid of the ward Eight had put around the museum and replaced it with his own. Maybe Zero should’ve warned his fellow immortal against overconfidence. Eight hadn’t posted any lookouts. Al was glad he hadn’t. Not that it would have made any difference once Fin arrived.

He analyzed the scene through his predator’s eyes. The man in the center must be Eight. His power felt like the controlling force in the room. Off to the sides, half hidden behind large pillars, figures scuttled to escape the flying glass. Those would be Eight’s people. But where was the only one he really cared about?

There. Jenna stood a few yards behind Eight. Lia crouched on one side of her, and a man who seemed frozen in place stood on her other side. The intensity of Al’s relief stopped him in his tracks while the barbs of fear that had wrapped around his heart loosened and fell away.

Only one man stood between him and his woman. He roared his challenge and then charged. Eight’s eyes grew wide as he flung a power burst at Al. If Al had been in human form, it would have ripped him apart. He wasn’t, and it didn’t. Sure, it slowed him down a little, but nothing Eight could do would stop him now.

The immortal wasn’t stupid, though. Al watched Eight glance around, assessing the situation. Then the immortal grabbed some things from a table, picked up a cage that held a seagull, and simply disappeared.

Al screamed his disappointment. He hated to lose prey. While Eight had been focused on him, Jenna and Lia had retreated to a far corner, safe from the fighting for the moment. Al’s job was to see that they stayed safe.

He put enthusiasm into his slaughter. Every one of the enemy would’ve killed Jenna if given the chance. They’d never kill anyone again.

Al clamped his jaws around the head of a vampire. The head separated from the body. Too easy.

Three werewolves leaped at him. He shook them off and then stomped on them. Luckily for the museum cleaning crew, Fin would make sure this mess was taken care of by morning.

During a brief lull in the action he noticed the human bodies that formed 2012. All Eight’s work was for nothing. Fin would get rid of those bodies too.

Then rational thought fled as a group of demons attacked him, and his soul’s instincts took over. Grotesque in their true forms, they leaped onto him, digging sharp claws into his back and slashing at his flesh with barbed fangs. They beat the air with leathery wings and screamed their fury. He scraped against a pillar and swung his tail, trying to dislodge them. Twisting his neck as far as it would go, he was able to tear one of them off him. He ripped at the creature, the taste of blood and flesh freeing the savagery that always lurked close to the surface in all of the Eleven. Nothing human remained of him at that moment.

“Holy hell.” Lia sounded more awed than afraid.

That was okay, because Jenna was terrified enough for both of them. Eyes wide, she watched the carnage. Even if she were capable of moving, she’d probably never make it across a floor slippery with blood and littered with body parts. The head of a creature she couldn’t identify lay near her, the dead eyes glazing over even as it stared sightlessly at her. She swallowed hard to keep from throwing up.

Again and again her eyes returned to Al. No, not Al. She could hardly see his shape inside the animal whose giant teeth were tearing apart the creatures that clung to him. “What are they?” She pointed.

“Demons.” Lia’s tone was matter of fact.

Jenna watched horrified as a demon’s wing wiggled and moved, searching for its lost body. A hysterical giggle rose and was firmly shoved back. “Why are they even fighting? They can’t kill each other.”

“It’s their nature. They were born to destroy.”

Lia licked her lips. “If I had my sword I could help.” Her eyes gleamed with her desire to leap into the middle of the fight. The rest of her might still be human, but her heart was vampire.

Almost as though she were in a trance, Lia edged away from Jenna, her gaze never leaving the battle. And before Jenna could call her back, she slipped into the shadows and was gone.

They were born to destroy.
There it was. The one thing that would always separate her from Al. She didn’t have the killer instinct, didn’t understand what drove any of them, even Lia.

Jenna narrowed her gaze. Lia. Gone. She was alone in a hall filled with bloodlust-driven nightmares from humanity’s darkest imaginings.

But she forgot everything as she glanced back at Al. Bloody remains formed a gruesome circle around him, but some of those remains were pulling themselves together. Literally. The demons didn’t die, they just regrouped.

Al didn’t seem concerned with his almost-defeated enemies. He had a new worry. A pack of six wolves threw themselves at him. Werewolves? Yeah, the glowing eyes were a dead giveaway. They were huge gray animals as big as small horses, and they leaped and slashed at the already bleeding Allosaurus.

Logically, Jenna knew Al wouldn’t die. He was pretty much indestructible in his animal form. At least that’s what she’d been told. But what if that supposition was wrong? What if he could be worn down and killed? Rage exploded. Whether they could kill him or not, they were
hurting
him.

Frantically, she scanned the area. She needed a weapon. Then she remembered something. Drawing in a deep breath, she ran the short distance to the dark fairy still frozen on the edge of the action.

“Sorry about this, but I need the weapon more than you do right now.” Jenna pushed his cloak aside and pulled out the sword that she’d glimpsed earlier. She refused to look into his eyes. That way lay madness, and she needed a clear head right now.

Thank God no one paid any attention to her. She was human and therefore insignificant. The sword was lighter than she’d expected. Creeping closer to where Al still battled the werewolves, she set her sights on the biggest one, the one who seemed the most aggressive.

She didn’t stop to think. If she did, she’d never have the guts to do anything. Once she was close enough, she’d have to strike fast, because even though a human didn’t pose a danger to anyone here, a human with a bigass sword did. Then she’d have to run like hell to keep from being ripped apart by the other wolves or trampled by Al. She was counting on the momentary confusion among the wolves to give Al the advantage.

Her heart pounded out a terrified rhythm, and the coppery smell of blood made her want to gag, but she controlled her shaking for the precious seconds it took to raise the sword and strike.

As she brought the sword down, she pushed aside thousands of years of civilization to channel her inner cavewoman. The sword sliced into the wolf, there was a flash of light, and the wolf disappeared. She blinked and stared. Not even a drop of blood on the sword.

Whoa! Al and the rest of the wolves froze. She didn’t. Keeping a firm grip on the sword, she ran to the nearest shadowy corner. Breathing hard, she glanced behind her, expecting the pack of ravenous wolves to be in hot pursuit. She almost passed out from relief when she saw that Al was taking full advantage of her help. He methodically tore apart the remaining wolves. They’d
stay
dead. At least she thought so.

Luckily, everyone else was too busy trying to kill each other to pay much attention to a flash of light and one less werewolf. She hunkered down to wait out the fight. Jenna didn’t allow herself even to think about the possibility of the good guys losing.

She bit her lip as she watched the battle. It was hard to tell how many of Eight’s forces were still fighting. Al and the other members of the Eleven had come in with some vampires and werewolves. She couldn’t tell the good from the bad.

Jenna clenched her fists, trying to keep her courage from draining out of her fingertips. A screaming fit of hysterics right now might distract Al from his killing frenzy. No, that was
not
a tear sliding down her face.

Eyes held wide to discourage any more tear-leaking, she shifted her attention to something neutral, something that wasn’t clawing, screaming, and dying. And met the gaze of Kione.

But before the impact of that stare could knock her onto her butt, he moved his gaze to something else. She followed his stare.

Ohmigod. There were five massive vampires descending on the Unseelie prince. Swords in hands, hard faces tight with fury, they were definitely the bad guys. And they were going to cut him to pieces where he stood, unable to move.

She could stay right here and be relatively safe. After all, she didn’t know Kione. And if Eight were to be believed, the prince wasn’t exactly a protector of the light. He was evil, and evil should die. Right?

Jenna sighed. She hoped the sword worked on vampires as well as it did on werewolves, because she couldn’t let him be cut down without a chance to protect himself. Especially since she’d taken his sword.

But she wasn’t going to be stupid about this. She looked around for some backup. No one. Damn.

“Looking for a white knight, princess?” The deep and sensual male voice was familiar and very close.

“Seir. What’re you doing here?” Jenna didn’t turn around to look at him. “No, I don’t have time to listen. Come with me.” She might not be sure of Seir’s ultimate loyalty, but he was Fin’s brother. That had to count for something.

She reached the Fae prince a few strides before the vampires. Stepping in front of him, she hefted her sword with both hands and pointed it straight out in front of her. “We need to talk about whatever you have planned, guys.”

Perhaps this hadn’t been such a great idea. Close up, these men were beyond scary. No human emotion showed in their black eyes. The rage and hate surrounding them was so thick, Jenna believed she could reach out and touch it. Hot and sticky, it would cling to her, blocking out light and all other sensation until she suffocated from the pure malevolence of it.

“You wield a mighty phallic symbol, human woman. Too bad you have no male attached to it.” The vampire in the middle seemed to feel he’d made a great joke. His lips twitched in what must be a hearty grin for him.

“Move out of our way.” The vampire next to him had no sense of humor.

“No. I won’t let you kill him.” God, why didn’t Seir say something? She wanted to turn around to make sure he was there, but she didn’t dare take her attention from the five in front of her.

The end vampire hissed at her. “Jude brought us here to save you, but if you persist in defying us, we will do what we need do. Put down the sword.”

Jude? These five were on her side? If these were the good guys, she didn’t want to ever look into the eyes of the bad ones. Oh, wait, she had. She’d looked into Eight’s eyes and they’d looked a lot like these five.

“I won’t let you kill a helpless man.” She took a quick glance on either side of her. No Seir. Oh, hell.

One of the vampires who hadn’t spoken yet stepped forward. “Know you whom you defend, stupid female? He is a Fae prince of the Unseelie Court. He and his destroyed our clan. We will have our revenge.”

And without warning, she was swept aside as though a giant hand had slapped her silly. She landed on her behind with the sword still clutched in front of her.

“It’s never nice to knock a woman on her butt.”

Seir winked on. That was the only way Jenna could describe his sudden appearance. He didn’t look white-knightish to night. Worn jeans, scuffed biker boots, long black coat with hood up—he looked sort of like the grim reaper. Only those icy blue eyes and that quick slashing grin were the same as she remembered.

The five vampires moved so quickly they were just a blur. In a heartbeat they had Seir, Kione, and her surrounded.

“What be you?” The vampire who’d spoken wasn’t looking at Jenna. His gaze was fixed on Seir, and he seemed seriously concerned with his inability to identify this new threat. But at least for the moment he wasn’t thinking about Kione.

Seir shrugged. “Does it matter?”

A puzzled line formed between the vampire’s dark eyes. Jenna had the feeling lines didn’t often form there.

Since the five were focused on Seir, Jenna chanced a glance at Al. He was a monster magnet. Between tearing, rending, and stomping, he was scanning the hall. Looking for her? Something in the region of her heart did a hopeful flip-flop.

“I’m whatever you want me to be.” Seir the enigmatic.

The vampire leaned closer. “I’ve heard of only one Seir. Are you a demon prince of hell?” The vampire seemed to dare him not to be. “From what legends tell, you command twenty-six legions of demons.”

“Sounds good to me.”

“Which side do you battle for on this night?” The vampire tensed.

“My own side.”

The vampires didn’t seem to know what to do with that answer.

Seir turned to Jenna. “What do you want?”

“These guys want to kill Kione. Eight did something to him so he can’t move. I want him to have a fighting chance.”