Dalakis Passion 4 - Eternal Brothers (12 page)

Dalakis
family until the
trouble with Prince and Delight. The man's a loner, was raised in foster homes in Texas
and has no immediate known family. He moved to Louisiana when he was eighteen
and studied to become a cop. He's lived here his whole adult life. He's thirty-five and
has never been married, never even come close. Why he's attached himself to the
Dalakis
family I don't know.
Maybe the money?
Maybe not?
Like I said, he's a
wildcard."
"Could they turn him into a vampire? Maybe he wants immortality." It wasn't
something she'd want, but Sophia knew that a lot of people would kill for the
opportunity.
Zane shook his head.
"Doesn't work that way.
The only person a vampire can
convert is his mate. Try it on anyone else and they'll just die or go mad. Other than that,
you're born a vampire or you're not."
The hair on the back of Sophia's neck stood on end. "Vampires have children?"
Wow! That was so outside all the mythology she'd read and the ideas she'd gleaned
from movies.
The corner of Zane's mouth kicked up in amusement. "Yes, vampires have children.
Not many, especially not in the past few hundred years, but yes. How do you think I
came into being?
Or the
Dalakis
brothers, for that matter?"
She shrugged. "Like in the movies, I figured they were bitten by a vampire and
turned." She hesitated and then took the plunge. "Where are your parents?"
"Dead." His voice was flat, encouraging no further questions. Still she had to ask.
"I thought vampires were immortal?"
He pushed away from the desk and began to pace. "I told you last night that
sunlight, a stake through the heart and being beheaded would kill us. Lack of blood will
eventually do the same thing, but that would take quite a long, long time. We don't die
easy." He laughed, but it wasn't a pleasant sound. "Love is a bitch too. Yeah, love can
be a real killer."
Sophia longed to ask what he meant by that, but she didn't dare. Anger and pain
were filling the room around them. She could sense how deeply this topic was hurting
Zane. Standing, she held out her hand to him. "Okay. So where do we go from here?"
Zane shook his head as if coming back from an unpleasant place. "You mentioned a
note."
Nodding, she tugged her desk drawer open and drew out the piece of parchment. It
wasn't very large, but the implications behind it were huge. He took it from her and
read the two words that were penned there. Swearing, he dropped it on the desk and
glared at it.
"Any ideas?"
Sophia shook her head. "I didn't even know who or what
Dalakis
meant when I
picked it up. It was just instinct that I pocketed it." She picked up her pen and tapped it
against the top of her desk as she leaned over it to study the paper. "It doesn't make
sense for the
Dalakis
family to put it there to implicate themselves. They have too many
secrets to hide."
Zane watched her, nodding thoughtfully. "So who do you think put it there?"
She thought for a moment, marshalling her thoughts. "Maybe the person who
called me saw the killing and wanted to leave a clue for the police."
"Possible."
"Or," she continued. "Maybe the real killer wants to frame the
Dalakis
family.
Maybe the killer is the one who wants revenge."
Zane was staring intently at her now. She stared into his muddy-brown eyes and
saw the faint edges of contact lenses. Why would he wear contacts? Did vampires have
problems with their eyesight? Before she could ask, he spoke, distracting her train of
thought.
"Now that's a very interesting idea." He placed his hands flat on the desk next to
hers. "I'll admit
,
I never considered any of this in that light before. It makes sense that
men as rich and powerful as they are would have enemies. Maybe I should look into
that side of things, starting with the incident with
Jethro
Prince."
"That's a good angle. It's local. I could see if anyone's taken over his club, his
business."
Zane scowled, his dark brows lowering ominously. "That's too dangerous."
"I've got all kinds of contacts, Zane," she reminded him. "All I have to do is place a
few calls."
"Okay," he reluctantly agreed.
"I don't need your approval." The man had to understand she was an independent
woman who also had a job to do. "I'm just doing you the courtesy of letting you know
what I'm doing." She sensed his frustration and anger with her reply, so she hurried on
before he had a chance to say something they both might regret. "Why don't you check
into what happened in North Carolina?"
He seemed surprised by her suggestion. "That's not local."
"So?" She pushed away from the desk and stood facing him. "The problem could
have followed them home. As a cop, you've got a better chance of finding out what
went on than I do. I don't have any contacts there."
He nodded. "Okay. Ex-cop, but that won't matter." At her raised brow, he sighed
and answered her unasked question. "I took a leave of absence to come back here. I'm
not sure if I'm going back to work. Promise me you won't do anything without talking
to me first."
Annoyance filled her. She'd been on her own for forever and didn't like the idea of
anyone, least of all a man, telling her what to do. "I'll do what I have to do."
"I could stop you, you know." Silken menace filled his voice as he leaned closer to
her.
"You mean with that vampire mind meld stuff." She tossed her head when he
nodded. "You can try, but I'm no longer weak or hungry. And if I ever found out you
tried it, I'd never trust you again."
Zane's anger grew. She could see it in the tenseness of his massive body and the
hard set of his shoulders. His lips thinned into a tight line, but she held firm. "Promise
me you won't do anything to put yourself in danger," he all but growled.
She realized then that he wasn't trying to control her so much as he was trying to
protect her. It was sweet, if misguided. He was probably in more danger every time
he'd gone to work as a cop, but she knew he'd disagree with her.
Typical male.
"Okay. I
promise not to do anything that I think will put me in danger."
He narrowed his eyes, but since he'd gotten what he thought he wanted, he relaxed.
She wasn't about to tell him that her idea of what constituted dangerous would
probably differ greatly from his.
"Now that that's decided, we should probably both get to work." Sophia was so far
behind that she had a good three or four hours to put in at her home office before she
could even begin to research. After all, a girl still had to earn the rent and food money.
"First things first."
Zane's husky tones shot straight to her core, melting it. He was
staring at her with that look in his eyes again. Lust made his face appear even harsher,
his lips parted, giving her a glimpse of sharp, white fangs.
"We've both got work to do," she protested halfheartedly. Her taut nipples were
poking through the cotton of her bra and her top. Her sex contracted and relaxed,
reminding her that she was empty, telling her that she needed him to fill her.
He reached for her, lifting her and perching her on the top of her desk. "I promised
you last night that I was going to eat you until you screamed with pleasure." His grin
was positively wicked as he reached for the opening of her jeans. "And I'm a man of my
word."
Chapter Nine
Cassidy studied the worn building as he took the stairs two at a time. It was an
older home on the edge of the French Quarter. Like many homes, it had once been quite
grand, but it had seen better times. It had been converted into apartments about thirty
years ago and, although it had sustained some damage during Katrina, it had remained
relatively unscathed by Mother Nature. His quarry lived in one of the small studio
apartments on the top floor.
Using the bank receipt he'd plucked from her pocket and Stefan's computer
hacking skills, Cassidy had found his mystery woman from the night before. Blythe
Nixon was a local singer of some reputation who'd actually worked for the deceased
Jethro
Prince for almost a year, and until very recently, she'd been the sole supporter of
her very sick mother. Her mother had passed away about a month ago, leaving Blythe
with no known relative. He could certainly relate to that.
Last night had been tense when he'd shown Lucian and Stefan the letter the woman
had dropped in the garden. Like a bloodhound, Lucian had wanted to see if he could
pick up the woman's scent and track her. Cassidy wasn't sure if Lucian could actually
do that, but he had discouraged it. The woman might be legitimate or she might be part
of an elaborate scheme to try to trap Lucian and his family. He'd wanted to check out
Blythe Nixon himself. And it had nothing to do with the fact that he'd been instantly
attracted to her.
Or so he kept telling himself.
It was better for everyone if no one in the family had any communication at all with
Blythe until he was sure she was clean and not involved in any way. He'd done some
research on his own last night, contacting some buddies on the force and picking their
brains about Adrian Prince. What he'd discovered hadn't been encouraging. If
anything, Adrian was even more ruthless and depraved than his older brother had
been. Added to the fact that he was calm and organized and not crazy like the elder
Prince, he made for a formidable enemy.
Cassidy had stayed home with the women last night as, according to the letter,
Prince had already sent some of his men out to kill them. The brothers had gone
hunting. The man Cassidy had been even a few years ago wouldn't have condoned
vigilante justice. But he'd seen too many criminals like Prince and his boys get off due
to technicalities or lack of witnesses. Anyone who went up against organized crime
bosses tended to disappear.
He knew there was no way to stop Lucian and Stefan in their quest for justice and
he didn't even try. He understood their need to protect their families at all cost. He only
wished he could have gone out hunting with them.
When they'd returned home just before dawn, they'd been grim but satisfied.
They'd also surprised him. Instead of killing the men sent to harm them, they'd messed
with their minds. Both of the men had calmly gotten back into their car and were
currently on their way to California. Stefan had smirked as he'd related how Lucian had
planted the suggestion that they had found religion and would spend the rest of their
lives atoning for the wrongs they had done. The fact that the men's minds were weak
after years of alcohol and substance abuse had made it possible. Plus, it would ensure
that there would be no missing persons or bodies for the police to concern
themselves
with. Cassidy thought it a brilliant solution.
Adrian Prince might have fired the first shot in this war, but the
Dalakis
family had
sent it right back at him. Prince would find himself short two men this morning. The
Dalakis
family was bracing for the next round of attacks.
Which was why he was here now.
It was just after seven in the evening and Cassidy
had been guarding the house all day. But now that the sun had gone down, the family
was awake and alert and ready for anything.
Both houses had underground tunnels and escape routes they could use if
necessary. And Lucian had already called Chase in New York. After his abduction last
time, the family wasn't taking any chances. Chase was currently on the private family
jet headed to Europe to spend some time with
Cristofor
and Johanna.
Cassidy had insisted that they have the jet return immediately in case the rest of the
family needed to be evacuated. The men had bristled but had seen the sense in it when
he'd pointed out that the women might have to be sent away for safety's sake. He
hadn't been stupid enough to say it in front of either of the women though. He knew
they wouldn't leave without their husbands, was in fact counting on that if he felt the
family would be better off leaving town.
Reaching the top landing, he glanced at the first door and then turned left to the
door at the end of the short hallway. According to his information, this was the place.
Raising his fist, he knocked on the door and waited. He knew she was home--he'd seen
a light shining from her window before he'd come up, plus he'd already found out
where she'd worked and called them as well. She wasn't working tonight. In fact, she'd
called in sick at the last minute.
He waited a few seconds and then pounded his fist against the door again. "Who is
it?" The voice was low, but he recognized it immediately.
"I need to talk to you, Ms. Nixon." Cassidy stood to one side of the door. He didn't
think she'd be armed or that she'd actually shoot, but it was better to be safe than
stupid. "My name is Sam Cassidy."
"I'm not well, Mr. Cassidy. You'll have to come back another time."
He could almost picture her on the other side of the door. Her tousled cap of white-
blonde hair and blue eyes had haunted his dreams when he'd managed to catch a few
hours' sleep. The dreams had been hot and erotic and he'd awakened with a raging
hard-on that had abated to a low-level arousal every time he thought of her.
He grunted and adjusted his jeans. Now was not the time to let his dick do his
thinking. He might be attracted to this woman, but he didn't know anything about her.
"You were fine last night when you delivered your message. And call me Cassidy."
Tension permeated the air. Cassidy could almost hear her thinking, contemplating
her options. Locks turned and the door opened, although two chains were still drawn
across the door. Frightened blue eyes stared out at him. "How did you find me and
what do you want?"
"It's not important how I found you. I just want to talk to you. To find out what you
know." He kept his voice low and unthreatening even as he kept out of the direct path
of the small opening in the door.
"I told you everything." Cassidy could hear the desperation in her voice and it
made his stomach clench. She was afraid, very afraid.