Damek's Redemption: Legacy, Book 6 (2 page)

The woman fumbled in her rather large purse, drew out a card and handed it to Byron. “Please ask him to call me.”

Byron slid the card into his vest pocket but promised nothing. The woman sighed and turned to leave with the bouncer right behind her. Byron kept his hands to himself, for which Damek was extremely grateful. He was on edge and would hate to do something he’d regret tomorrow. Damek followed at a discreet pace, confident no one could see him. He was one with the night, a mere shadow to those around him.

The iron gate that acted as the first door to the club closed with a metallic bang behind the woman, the finality of it sending a shiver of dread down his spine. He frowned and eased from the shadows to stand beside Byron. He didn’t speak, but simply held out his hand.

Byron slid the card out of his vest pocket and put it in Damek’s hand. It was made of heavy vellum and etched in black lettering. Sonia Agostino, PhD in folklore and anthropology. Now what did some academic want with him and his club? He noted she taught at NYU and wondered what she was doing in Chicago.

“I’m going out. You can call me if there’s trouble.” Damek was out the door before he even realized he was going. It was sheer instinct that had him following her. No, not her. Sonia. Her name rolled around in his brain and he smiled. It suited her somehow, a bit old-fashioned and old world.

He had her in his sights now. Her shoes were clicking against the sidewalk as she made her way quickly down the street, her oversized purse slapping against her hip with each long stride. Damek shoved his hands in his pants pocket and strolled after her.

Sonia muttered to herself as she walked. “Well, you knew it wouldn’t be easy.” Yet, she’d expected to walk into a nightclub and talk to the owner. Damek, no last name, at least not one she could find, and she’d done her research.

She sighed, wishing she’d taken the time to change into flats or sneakers. But no, she’d been in such a rush she’d dumped her suitcase at the hotel and hurried straight to the club. Now her feet hurt, she was disappointed and her stomach was growling in protest to the fact she hadn’t eaten since early this morning. She’d been too busy teaching all day before racing to the airport to catch an early evening flight. She’d had plenty of coffee, but not much else.

She took a deep breath and forced herself to slow down and pay attention to her surroundings. Chicago was a city, and like any city, it wasn’t smart to be unaware. The Fulton River District was bustling. Empty warehouses sat alongside new condominiums, which cost more than she could ever hope to afford. Not that she’d ever leave New York and her family. They all lived in a building her grandparents owned in Astoria and she loved it there, loved being a part of a loud, opinionated, boisterous Greek family.

And speaking of family, she needed to call hers before they started worrying about her. She plucked her cell phone out of her jacket pocket and dialed. It was answered on the first ring.

“How was your flight? Have you eaten yet?” All of them might be adults, but Celia Agostino treated them all as though they were still children.

“Hi, Mom.” Sonia smiled as her mother continued to pepper her with questions, interrupting her to answer some of them. “The flight was great and I’m going to get something to eat now.” All she’d told her parents was that she was coming to Chicago to do some research. If they’d known her real reason, they would have stopped her, or all come along with her. She wasn’t quite certain which.

“Are you being careful? Your father worries.”

Her smile grew. It was a family joke that her mother never admitted to being worried about any of her three children. It was always her father who worried. Of course, if his wife wasn’t happy then Vincenzo Agostino wasn’t happy either, so she supposed her mother was telling the truth. “I’m always careful.” She shifted her purse so she had a better hold on it.

“Why are you really there, Sonia? I know it is not simply for research. I sense something more. Something darker.”

That was the problem with having a mother who was part gypsy and part, well, something else altogether. She always knew when Sonia wasn’t telling her everything. “I’m fine.”

“Be careful, my darling. Promise me.”

Her stomach lurched and she slowed, finally coming to a halt outside a small, bustling Italian restaurant. “Do you know something I don’t?” Some people might laugh, but Sonia believed in her mother’s premonitions. They’d been right far too often for her to discount them.

“No. It is all dark. Hidden. Maybe you should come home. Or one of your brothers could fly out to be with you.”

That was exactly what she didn’t need. She loved both Stefano and Milo with all her heart, but they were overbearing know-it-alls, as only older brothers could be. “I’ll be careful, Mom. I promise. Look, I’ve got to go. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“Please be careful, Sonia,” her mother pleaded.

“I will. Love you.” She ended the call but was left feeling anxious and unsettled. “Great. I should have waited until I was back at the hotel to call her.” She started walking fast again, aware of the rush of humanity on the streets as people headed to clubs and restaurants to meet friends and lovers. Roving packs of females and males all looking for some action and some up to more nefarious deeds that she’d rather not know about.

“Get a grip,” she muttered and picked up her pace. She was fine. She was faster and stronger than she looked, and her father had made sure she knew how to handle herself in less-than-desirable situations.

No one knew why she was truly here in Chicago, not even her family. There was nothing in her computer that would point to her real reason either. She was smart and had been trained from birth not to talk about the others.

Most people didn’t believe in the paranormal. Sonia knew better. Her family was a member of The Keepers, a part of a worldwide network of people who helped protect those who weren’t human. Werewolves, witches and other shapeshifters filled the world, but the most elusive supernatural creature of all was the vampire.

She’d come here in search of one.

Some people would call her crazy, but that was fine by her. She’d been ridiculed for her choice of study within the academic world anyway. She’d studied anthropology and folklore, making her field of study the myths and legends of the worlds, specifically those that pertained to otherworldly creatures.

She knew a lot about werewolves, but not nearly as much about vampires. It was only by sheer luck she’d stumbled across a newspaper clipping about the killings in a Chicago park last year. It had all the trademarks of a battle between a group of werewolves and bounty hunters. The bounty hunters were a nasty lot, wanting to kill every supernatural creature, no matter if they were good or bad. That made the hunters evil in her books.

Whether there were werewolves living in the city or not, she didn’t know. They weren’t in The Keepers database. But it had started her looking at Chicago, and in her research she’d come across a mention of a very exclusive club—Inhibitions. For some instinctive reason she’d been compelled to keep digging for information about the club and its mysterious owner.

She might not have the sight like her mother did, but Sonia always listened to her intuition. It had never been wrong. Her curiosity, and a gut feeling that she needed to pursue this further, had led her here.

“Probably all for nothing.” She was grateful for the advent of technology. Now when she talked to herself, people assumed she was talking on her cell phone and didn’t stare quite as much as they had when she was a kid.

A frisson of fear snaked down her spine and Sonia glanced over her shoulder, studying the sidewalk. It was filled with people and there didn’t seem to be anyone watching her. But everyone in her family was big on intuition and she
knew
there was someone out there following her.

The hotel was still a few blocks away. She was from New York and used to walking, but what had seemed like nothing more than a brisk evening stroll now seemed far too long a distance. Sonia yanked her phone back out of her purse and held her finger above speed dial. If something happened, she wanted her family to know. They were the only ones she could count on to help her if this was something out of the ordinary.

Beneath her tailored jacket, she was sweating and her heart was racing. She walked as fast as she could without running. A breeze hit her as she passed by an open alleyway. It was dark, but something moved down at the far end.

To hell with it. Sonia began to run, weaving in and out around the other people, calling out “excuse me” when she hit someone. She didn’t stop until she was at her hotel. Slightly winded, she paused in the safety of the lobby and peered back behind her, but saw nothing.

“Nerves. Nothing but nerves and lack of food.” She slid her cell phone back into her pocket and made quick time across the lobby to the bank of elevators. She checked to make certain the elevator was empty before she stepped inside and breathed a sigh of relief when the door
whooshed
shut.

Her fingers had a death grip on her purse strap and she forced herself to release it. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out, willing her heart rate back to normal. A bead of sweat rolled down her back and she couldn’t wait to get out of this godforsaken suit and into something more comfortable.

She dug into her oversized purse and found her keycard, having it ready before the elevator door opened on her floor. The hall was well lit, but Sonia still felt exposed and hurried to her room, her shoes making no sound on the carpet.

It took her two tries to get the card inserted into the slot, but the red light finally turned green and she shoved the handle down and pushed the door open. She shut it behind her and set the security lock. The lamp she’d left on earlier illuminated the room, her suitcase still sat on the bed and a low hum came from the heater.

Sighing with relief, she tossed her purse onto the bed and stepped out of her shoes. “See, nothing to worry about. Nothing at all.” She padded to the window, pulled back the sheer curtain and looked down six floors to the sidewalk below.

People walked in both directions and cars, trucks and buses flowed up and down the busy street. The “L”—the elevated, rapid transit system—rumbled in the distance, carrying people to work, home or wherever they were headed. There were lights as far as the eye could see. She let the white panel fall back into place.

She needed to eat but knew she couldn’t face going out again. The room service menu that sat alongside the phone looked very enticing. She picked it up and thumbed through her choices. When she’d made her selection, she picked up the phone and ordered her club sandwich and ice tea, along with a brownie for dessert. They told her it would be about forty-five minutes to an hour wait. Long enough to have a shower and change.

Sonia flipped open her suitcase, drew out a pair of comfy sleep pants and a T-shirt and headed to the bathroom.

Chapter Two

Damek followed Sonia from a safe distance, always keeping her in sight, but never getting close enough for her to detect him. It was harder to remain hidden outside in the bright lights of the city, but not impossible. Not for him.

He kept one eye on her and the other on his surroundings. Old habits died hard, and even though no one in the city knew about him, other than a pack of werewolves whom he trusted, he wasn’t taking any chances. Vampire hunters were everywhere. He cursed Bram Stoker for creating the character of Van Helsing, even as he gave thanks for the rise of the Goth culture, which helped his kind blend in much more easily.

She moved quickly and competently through the crowd, her long legs eating up the distance to her destination. He wondered what those legs would look like bare and, preferably, wrapped around his waist as he thrust into her.

He paused and shook his head. She really had unsettled him. His body responded to her nearness, his cock swelling and lengthening without his permission. His body was always under his command, until tonight.

She took out her phone and talked to someone, smiling at whatever the other person had to say. A flash of envy bolted through him. He wanted to be the one who brought a smile to her face.

He growled and swore under his breath. He should turn around and go back to his club. This woman was trouble. He felt it in his bones, in his very soul. She could undo everything he’d built here. Why he thought that, he didn’t know, but it didn’t matter. He believed it and that was enough.

He was about to head back to Inhibitions when an icy cold finger stroked his spine. Damek faded into the empty alcove of a closed bookstore and studied his surroundings. He narrowed his eyes, peered past the darkness and opened his mind to the thoughts of those around him. He was immediately bombarded by hundreds of images, words and feelings, many of them unsettling and dark. He picked through them at lightning speed, effortlessly discarding those not important to him.

There was a hitch in Sonia’s step and then she began to run. Damek quickened his step to keep pace with her, sliding through the shadows, searching for whatever had spooked her. A movement from an alleyway caught his attention. He turned his attention toward the area and found…nothing, even as his preternatural sense of hearing picked up a faint footstep. That in itself was disturbing. Few could naturally shield their thoughts from a vampire, although it was a skill that could be taught over time.