Blood Judgment (Judgment Series) (21 page)

“One blond, one redhead.”

“Excellent. I can’t wait. Now, I’ll bid you a good night, Margo.”

“Goodnight, David.”

The door opened. Closed. Margo moved off to the right of the stairs.

Julian remained hidden until the clicking of her high heels receded. He slid from the shadows and ascended the stairs, gliding over the runner. Saranna was upstairs. Somewhere.

At the upper landing, he inhaled, taking in scents of the whorehouse. Sweat. Cheap perfume. Semen.

And a faint trace of Saranna.

Heart drumming, he followed her scent to a room at the end of the hall where he squelched the urge to smash through the wood.

Three locks stood between him and Saranna. With shaking fingers, he coaxed them open. He took a deep breath and opened the door.

Saranna sat on the floor, unmoving. She stared as if in stunned disbelief. Then joy broke over her face like a sunrise, and she leapt to her feet and flew into his arms. He held her tight and shoved the door closed with his foot.

“Julian, oh God, I thought you were dead.” She burrowed her face into his neck and sobbed. Hot tears trickled down into his shirt.

Black rage coursed through him as he stroked her back. “It’s over. No one will hurt you again.”

The scent of hunger enveloped her. The dirty bastards had starved her. He couldn’t afford to feed her when he might have to battle their way out, which pissed him off even more.

He stroked her hair. “I told you I’d come for you.”

She quieted a little.

“Who’s your friend?” he asked.

“Nissa. We have to take her with us.”

He nodded. “Come on, we need to get out of here.” He motioned for Nissa to follow.

Nissa slid off the bed and scurried to Saranna. She looked at him with big, frightened eyes.

Saranna grabbed his arm. “The Security Center has Vali in custody and they’re looking for you.”

“What?”

“The dead prostitutes, they think you two did it.”

Her words landed like a punch to his guts. “Fucking hell no. We have to get him out of there. They’ll kill him.”

If they hadn’t already.

Julian cracked open the door. Silence filled the hallway. He motioned for them to follow him. Saranna closed the door behind Nissa and they hurried over red and gold carpet.

A doorknob rattled.

Saranna and Nissa froze. Julian sprang, placing himself between them and the door. His insides knotted painfully.

Then from behind the door, a woman laughed and shuffling ensued. The squeak of bed springs as weight settled on the mattress attested to the occupants finding something to do.

Julian’s gut unclenched. He motioned them forward. “Come on.”

He led them down the stairs and motioned for them to head for the door at the end of the hall.

But before they made it ten feet down the hall, the unmistakable click of high heels beat a Gatling gun tempo over the hardwood floor.

Margo. Practically on top of them.

“Shit, under here.” He pointed to the recessed area beneath the stairs.

Saranna and Nissa dove for cover.

Julian crouched at the edge of the shadows.

Margo. Saranna’s tormentor. The bitch was going to pay. He snarled and waited, hands curled. His body tightened.

The click-click of her high heels announced her approach. Julian dropped a little lower. She drew even with him and he sprang, landing in front of her.

Shock painted a rubbery, almost comical mask on her features. His hand shot out and locked on her arm, jerking her into an embrace. He slapped his other hand over her mouth before she gathered her wits enough to scream.

She stiffened in his grip, but only for a moment. She turned wildcat. Despite the hold he had on her arm, she went for him with her nails, slashing with both hands, going for his eyes.

He whipped his head aside and she clawed long burning furrows down one cheek. He hissed, drawing his lip off his fangs.

She brought her knee up, aiming for his balls. He jerked to the side, avoiding a blow that might have given her a chance to break his hold and scream like a raving lunatic.

She slammed her spiked heel down on his foot and he bit off a yelp of pain. Snarling, he let go of her arm and clamped his hand on her throat. He’d had enough of the hellcat bitch.

His fingers cranked shut like a vise, altering her attack into a fight to breathe. He tightened his grip until her clawing fingers fell away from his hand and she went limp. He dragged her into the shadows.

The urge to rip her throat open tempted him, but Saranna and Nissa needed it more. Julian offered Margo’s unconscious body to the females. “Who wants to go first?”

THREE HOURS after hitching a ride, Julian and Saranna stepped into the safety of their apartment.

“I need to let Slade and Ashton know we’re all right.” She dialed her brother and paced the apartment while she talked, giving him an abridged version of the truth.

He didn’t blame her.

She ended the call. “Slade said they’ll be over tomorrow night. They’re going to work out a plan to get Vali out of there.”

He could help them. He’d been there and had at least some idea of where Vali might be held. “I’m going with them.”

“I knew you would.” She stroked his cheek, her touch like warm silk. “I need a bath. I have to get that place off of me.”

“I’ll be here.”

TWO HOURS later, she came out of the bathroom and sat beside him on the sofa.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“No, but I will be.” She moved closer and laid her head on his shoulder.

“You’re safe, Saranna. I’ll kill anyone who tries to hurt you.” Like those two pigs he was going back for. His fangs ached with the desire to kill. He ground his teeth, wanting relief from the pain in his gums.

She drew her feet up and tucked them under her. Without looking at him, she said, “I don’t disgust you? I mean … you know what they did to me.”

His heart squeezed. “God, no. Why would you think that?”

She buried her face in his shoulder, hiding behind her hair. “I feel so dirty. Disgusting. Violated. How can you even look at me?”

He hesitated, half afraid to touch her. Dampness seeped through his shirt. He slipped his arm around her and she pushed into him. “It wasn’t your fault,” he said. “None of it. If anyone is to blame, it’s me. I’m so sorry.”

“Not your fault.”

But it was. He’d failed her in so many ways. “If I hadn’t been acting like a bastard and had been paying attention, we wouldn’t have got caught. I failed to protect you. I failed you in every way possible.”

“Don’t ever think that. You came for me. Like you said you would. And you saved me.”

He stroked her arm. He had, but she wouldn’t have been there in the first place if it hadn’t been for him. A fact he’d added to a list of deeds that would follow him to his grave.

Chapter Nineteen

VALI DIDN’T have much time left.

He tried to swallow past the taste of death, but it hung in his throat like dry cotton.

His leg smelled like a dead animal. The stench, combined with the odor of blood and feces, sent his stomach into a sick roll. Infection had a deep hold on him and he was too weak to fight or even care.

Most of the time, he didn’t know where he was. He hated the moments of lucidity, but they were growing further and further apart.

He lay on cold concrete, stiff and sore from immobility. His broken arm throbbed and kept him from repositioning himself and relieving the pressure points. A mass of pain enveloped his upper body, while his legs were dead, useless.

He took solace in knowing he couldn’t live much longer. Half-starved and dehydrated, he had no strength to battle for his life. He was okay with dying. Mostly.

He wanted his mother. Wanted her arms around him when the end arrived and he stepped into whatever came next. If anything. But he would die alone. And he deserved it. No one knew that better than him. He had no right to wish for comfort.

At least he would die knowing he hadn’t talked. Not one word. They hadn’t been able to break him no matter how they’d tortured him.

And they had tried.

He shivered. He didn’t remember everything they’d done to him. His mind had shut down during the worst of it. But he remembered enough.

None of it mattered now.

A deep chill had seeped into his broken body. His time was nearing, or rather, ending.

Soon, his organs would call it quits and shut down. He wouldn’t suffer long afterward. Another day, two at the most, and he would probably fall into unconsciousness hours before his heart stopped.

At least he hoped so.

ASHTON AND Slade showed up thirty minutes after sunset. Ashton didn’t bother with pleasantries. “Julian, I hope you can help us.” He pulled blueprints from a cardboard tube and spread them out on the scarred coffee table.

Saranna clutched at Julian’s arm.

“I’ll do anything I can to help.” This was his chance to show Ashton he could be an asset. Damn right he would help. Besides, Vali was his friend.

“Can you show us what part of the building you were held in? Vali will probably be in the same area.”

Julian sat on the sofa and studied the floor plans of the Vampire Control and Security Center until he oriented himself to the drawings.

He pointed to the garage. “This is where they go in and out with the vans. Here is where I was held.” He pointed to the rooms along a hallway. “Here’s where they do the processing.” A shudder ran through his body.

He met Ashton’s eyes. “I want to come along. He’s my friend. I want to help.”

“No.” Slade said. “You aren’t a fighter. This won’t be a trip to the Symphony.”

Julian bristled. “I can fight. I want to go. I want to help.”

“Breaking into a government building won’t be easy. And it’s going to be dangerous,” Ashton said. “You’re wanted. If they catch you and we can’t free you, you’ll be executed.”

“I want to go.”

Ashton nodded. “Okay. As long as you understand.”

Slade gave Julian a frosted look. Julian refused to back down. Slade was going to be a jerk at every turn. Well, tough shit. Slade could go piss up a rope if he wanted to.

“I’m coming, too,” Saranna said.

“No, you aren’t.” Julian wouldn’t stand for it. “It’s too dangerous. We’ll get him.”

She jammed her hands on her hips. “You can’t make me stay home.”

“He’s right.” Ashton backed him up. “I won’t allow it. You
both
agreed I’m leading. So, you will do as I say in regard to this.”

She gave Ashton a dirty look. “Fine.”

Ashton shoved his hair out of his face. “It may be too late for Vali, but I’ve put out feelers to find out who the hell is killing whores. I don’t know if it can do Julian any good at this point, but this bastard has to be stopped.”

“Even if you find him,” Julian said. “There’s no way to clear me. Is there?”

“No. But it might save some other poor bastard from getting blamed if…”

“If Vali and I are both killed and the whores keep turning up dead.”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

Julian swallowed at the brutal honesty, but said nothing.

“Now,” Ashton said. “I have information about your father.”

Julian jerked his head up. His heart pounded his ribs. “You’ve found him?”

“There’s a Christopher Wilkes here in Seattle. He’s originally from New York, but he’s lived here for the last fifty or so years. He’s wealthy. Very wealthy, in fact. That’s the good news.” Ashton paused. “The bad news is I haven’t been able to pin him down and none of my contacts know where he is. But as of a month ago, he was still alive.”

“My God,” Julian said. He had a living parent, a vampire parent.

“I’ll keep my contacts working on finding his residence. We’ll locate him eventually.”

“Thanks. I appreciate your help.” His father lived right here. And he sure as hell hadn’t been looking for Julian. His father didn’t want anything to do with him. His chest squeezed with the simple truth of being unwanted.

THE VAMPIRE Control and Security Center operated around the clock and though it was after eleven, the building was fully lit and people came and went through the front doors.

“Come on.” Ashton motioned for them to follow and they snaked their way to the back of the building.

Julian’s heart inched up his throat at the prospect of going inside the Security Center. Yet, he had to. Vali would die if they didn’t rescue him.

“Shit, there isn’t a door.” Julian looked up at the building. “There aren’t even any windows.”

“That’s right. It’s perfect. You’d think they would be smarter. Then again, it’s government run. The traders wouldn’t be this stupid.”

“What do you mean? How the hell are we going to get in?” Julian asked.

Slade touched the brick. “Have you tried to wall-climb yet?”

“Wall-climb?”

“Yeah, right up the wall, like Spiderman.”

Julian’s guts knotted up. “Oh, hell no.”

Slade gave him an evil smile of perverse enjoyment. “You’re about to learn.”

The roofline was nine floors overhead. His stomach did a slow flip. He’d never make it. He’d get halfway up and fall.

“Come on,” Ashton said. “We don’t have time to be pissing around. Grip the little spaces between the bricks. You can do it.” He moved forward and climbed.

Julian placed his hands on the brick but stood frozen. Cold sweat coated his skin and fear dug around in his belly with icepick claws.

He couldn’t do it. Not even the thought of Vali being tortured and slaughtered would make him move forward.

He had to do it.

Choking on fear, Julian gripped the little lines of mortar with his fingertips and placed the toe of one shoe against the wall.

Biting his lip hard enough to draw blood, he pushed off with his other foot. Amazed, he climbed spider-like, afraid to stop. If he lost momentum, he might hang there, suspended, too petrified to continue up or retreat back the way he’d come.

Don’t look down. God, don’t look down
.

Eyes fastened on the brick, Julian forced his hands and feet to move until, five floors up, the toe of his right shoe slid against the brick. Scrabbling for purchase with his foot, his heart dove into the back of his throat and lodged like a stone.