Department 57: Bloody Crystal (3 page)

Being an old town, Llandudno was also possessed of back alleys, and her assailant dragged her down one now. Raucous laughter surrounded her, and for a moment, fear rose in her throat and choked her. He could have killed her. For all her strength, she wasn’t invincible. A strike to her throat would have put her down. As it was, she had difficulty catching her breath. The hand around her throat slackened as another curled around her waist and dragged her back against a hard male body. Unmistakably male, unmistakably aroused. His cock jutted against her backbone. She considered playing dead but decided against it.

She’d feed and get out of here. And she was in luck. This gang was drunk.

She’d seen them before, surely. Ah shit, the men Rhodri had helped to eject earlier. They’d hung around instead of going on.

“Well, who have we here?” the one holding her taunted. He ground his cock against her ass, rotating his hips. His friends whooped and rotated their hips, like a stupid chorus or a particularly bad imitation of the Chippendales.

“A pretty little barmaid. Hey, pretty little barmaid, what’s your name?”

She raised her hand to her throat when the man holding her released it, rubbed at the mark he’d have left there had she been mortal. “Cerys,” she mumbled. No need to hide her name. She needed a moment to get her breath back, but after that…

Without warning, someone flew into the alley. He put the first guy down with a well-aimed kick to the jaw and went for another without hesitation. A normal man, even a vampire, would stop to take stock before going for someone else. The man previously holding her grabbed her again, but Cerys decided otherwise. With a swift jab of her elbow, she winded him. When he released her and doubled over, she spun around and stunned him with an openhanded snap to his jaw, pushing his head back against the filthy wall behind them.

When she turned back, Rhodri had already dispatched the fourth man and stood over him, glaring. “Are you all right?” he asked as he turned his attention to her.

His eyes burned, intensity and something else taking over. Excitement? She hoped not. Anyone who got off on hurting mortals didn’t hold any interest for her. “What do you think?” she said with a curl of her lip. “He grabbed my throat. I was just getting my breath back.” She nudged one of the men with her foot. “Did you have to be so—dramatic?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean I needed to feed tonight.” She stopped, caught her breath. It had been a long time since she’d shared that with anyone, and it made her almost giddy now to articulate her simple need.

“So feed.”

“With you looking?”

His eyes widened. This alley was lit dimly from the streetlight at the end, but he was half turned toward it, and she saw the telling gesture of surprise. “It’s private? I never thought of it like that before.”

“My mother brought me up properly.”

He laughed then. “If it makes you feel any easier, I’ll turn my back. But if you don’t mind, I’ll take one of these specimens. I haven’t fed for a while.”

How old would that make him? Older vampires didn’t need to feed as often, as their body became more efficient in processing the blood. Shrugging, he grabbed the nearest body and dragged him up the alley, turning his back to her. That made her feel a little better.

Her parents had emphasized the need for neatness when feeding. She’d always felt a little ashamed, a little shy about this, even feeding in front of her mother. But needs must, and she’d get very tired if she didn’t. She grabbed the man she’d knocked out and pushed aside his jacket and shirt. He’d already removed his tie and undone a couple of buttons, so she didn’t need to do more than that to reach the juicy artery close to the surface of his throat.

She extended her fangs when she had her mouth against his throat. Nice and neat. Although tempted, she didn’t glance Rhodri’s way.

Hot blood flowed up her fangs, warming her body like fine, old brandy. She sighed, her breath coming back at her and warming her cheek. The man groaned. When she fed, she gave out endorphins, a kind of vampire thank-you for the blood. It flowed. She let it, with very little effort.

He’d been drinking heavily. Lassitude filled her, and she vaguely wondered if he’d taken anything else. But it was too good not to feed.

“Stop.”

She blinked, and heat flooded her cheeks. He was watching her. How dare he?

Without looking, she withdrew, sealed the wound, and let her prey slide gently to the ground. His hands floundered. Then he was still. She heard them hit the hard concrete, probably bruising his knuckles. Rhodri took her elbow.

“They had more than alcohol in them. We’re both stoned. You’re not used to it, are you?” He shook his head and blinked. “Good stuff, whatever it was. Come on, we need to get out of here.”

She remembered one thing, like an instinct. “We can’t have them remember.” She needed to give them a false memory or at least remove the one about them feeding. No, in this state, she couldn’t be sure of doing that.

“I’ve dealt with it. They’ll think they got into a fight, that’s all.”

She blinked at him. “How’dyedothat?” She took a breath. “So fast?”

“Practice.” He tugged her elbow. “Come on, let’s go before somebody comes. The clubs will be emptying soon. We need to leave.”

She waved her free arm vaguely. “They party till dawn round here. Especially weekends. They come down from Man-Manchester and Liverpool and have fun.” She moved one leg, then two. Then she was walking.

At the end of the alley, he paused. “Which way?”

“Down. To the seafront.”

He nodded and led her in that direction. She took a gulp of fresh air, and her head swam. She felt sick, but the nausea was part of the high. “What did they take?”

“I have no fucking idea, but it’s a wonder they stayed on their feet.”

They’d reached the seafront. The tang of salty air welcomed her, and she immediately felt better. “Wow.”

“Yeah. I’m taking you home. Which way?”

Somehow that sounded natural, right. She had no idea why or how, but she didn’t question it. Only leaned on him when he slid his arm around her waist. It felt good, held close to his body, her head resting on his shoulder. And she needed the support. Only habit took her home.

The pavement swayed under her feet. No, that was her swaying. Rhodri chuckled and pulled her closer, leaning down to murmur in her ear. “There are people around. Just lean on me, pretend we’re lovers going home.”

The sound of police sirens startled her, but they didn’t come in her direction. Perhaps somebody had found the four men in the alley. A night in a jail cell would do them good. So instead of their nice, comfortable hotel rooms, they’d have hard benches. Served them right. Shit, they were going to have hangovers.

Vaguely she realized she shouldn’t be this intoxicated, even on drugs and alcohol. Would they even survive? “Did we leave them in the recovery position?”

“Sure we did.” He sounded assured, but she didn’t know him. Realization shot through her. He was a vampire, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t a rapist or a serial killer. And he was one of the few beings who could overwhelm her. But when she tried to pull away, he effortlessly drew her close. “I’m not that. Look.”

And he opened his mind. Enough that she could sense his lack of the elements that would disturb her. The fact that he’d done that—that he’d let her into another layer of his being—showed a trust that boded well. Vampires didn’t trust easily. And she couldn’t do anything about this, not now. He seemed less affected than her.

“It’s show. And I don’t think I took as much as you did.” He nuzzled her ear, no doubt in an effort to appear loverlike, but the feel of his damp breath made her shudder, and not in dislike.

“That’s nice.” She leaned against him.

“Easy. Let me take the strain.”

It wasn’t much farther to her flat. Lucky she had her keys on a chain, so all she had to do was pull on it and draw them out of the depths of her skirt pocket. Unlocking the door proved a bit more difficult, but eventually she managed it by dint of closing one eye and focusing. For some reason, that seemed hilarious to her, and she giggled before clapping her free hand over her mouth as if she’d done something wrong. “Shhh,” she warned him.

They crept into the house. Her flat was on the top floor, so they had three flights of stairs before they got there. This had once been a private house, many years ago. Now it contained flats and bedsits, all occupied by locals, most of them people on unemployment benefits or Social Security. Which accounted for the relatively low rent and the run-down quality of the property. She’d never really accustomed herself to the strong smell of damp in the house that had got worse in the last few years, but she could successfully ignore the shabby paintwork on the doors and the faded, peeling wallpaper.

When they reached her floor, neither of them was panting from the exertion. Not vampire skills but simple physical fitness, and in her case, she was used to the climb. But this time she couldn’t find her keys at first and had to grope for them. The bulb in the overhead light had died long ago. Usually she didn’t need it, but while she fumbled for her little flashlight, he calmly took the keys from her and unlocked the door. Either he hadn’t taken as much, or he coped with it better. In the dark, lights zipped in front of her eyes, blue and silver, with the occasional bright yellow. She didn’t like it. She wanted it to stop.

Once inside she flicked on the light. She had a large, open room that served as bedroom and living room, and a tiny closet of a bathroom, which, despite its name, didn’t contain a bath, only a shower, washbasin, and toilet. She had a microwave and fridge in one corner of the big room, hidden behind cupboard doors that she’d picked up at a kitchen equipment sale, and a small table with a hot plate and toaster.

He took in the room with one comprehensive sweep, but to his credit, he didn’t appear disgusted. “Why live here?” he murmured.

“Because it’s within my budget.”

He turned to her now, his frown showing his puzzlement. “How come? Why don’t you have enough money?”

She thrust up her chin. “Some people don’t set store by material possessions.”

He raised a brow. “It’s surely worth saving enough to find somewhere good to live. When you brought me here, I assumed you had the whole house. But the smell alerted me.”

“What smell?”

“Damp and cabbage. Who lives here?”

She shrugged. “Mainly people on income support. And there are a few low waged, like me. I get by in the summer and sign on in the winter.”

He shook his head. “I repeat. Why live like this?”

“Because this is what I can afford.” She strode across the room, careful to retain her balance, though she was still finding that part difficult. “Why? Too squalid for you?” The room was big enough for her, and it meant she didn’t have to clean up quite so often. It had always been enough for her. She paused, but she saw no reason not to tell him. “My parents owned the whole house once. Then they sold it and moved on, but I stayed.”

“Where are they now?” His voice had roughened, or maybe she imagined it.

“Dead.”

A wave of dizziness swept her off her feet. She staggered, and he was there, catching her before she hit the floor. Christ, he moved fast. Or she was moving slow. She had no idea which. He didn’t steady her. He lifted her and laid her on the bed. It felt so good. Until he put his hands on her waistband.

“Hey!”

“Easy, darling. I might be a bastard, but I’m not that kind of bastard. I’m going to take off your outer clothing, and then you can sleep.”

Nice of him, she thought drowsily. I always stink of the brewery when I get back.

Chapter Three

She worried him. When the drug had hit, her mind had spun open, far too much for his liking. Coke might have produced the lack of inhibition, but surely she should have learned better. Her parents being murdered concerned him too.

He needed something to think about, because he was uncovering the most delectable body he’d seen in a long, long time. And so not his type, but it appealed to him on a new level. Touched him in a way he couldn’t remember. She had a beautifully curved, petite body, lightly tanned. He grinned. Pale as a vampire indeed. Once vampires had prided themselves for their pallor, but it had made them stand out too much, and in any case, fashions change, even in the more slow-moving vampire universe.

He peeled off her skirt and lifted her so he could take off her top. He stopped there. She wore a white shirt, virginal white. And she worried him.

He sat on a nearby hard chair and stared at her, propping his chin on his hands, elbows on knees. Deliberately he kept his mind linked with hers, anchored it, so that if he fell asleep, any change in her would wake him. Not that he felt like sleep right now. The events in that dark alley had driven any tiredness out of his mind. Maybe he was just naturally suspicious—too many years spent working for the Department taking their toll—so that even a drunken brawl in an alley had sinister overtones.

But why she was so badly affected by a drugged and drunk businessman? he wondered. Was it her, or had the man taken more than he should? If it was her, she needed to meet some people who’d help her strengthen her psi. If not, then something else was going on here.

He laughed. In Llandudno?

He’d known it to happen in quieter places, whatever “it” was, and so far, he didn’t know for sure.

* * *

Cerys rolled over and hit something solid. Something solid and warm. She came instantly awake, then wished she hadn’t. Her groan woke him up.

Slowly the memories of last night returned as he blinked and smiled at her, one hand under his cheek. He leaned up on one elbow, looking far too sexy for his own good. Or for her good, come to that. His short haircut meant he looked pretty much immaculate, even first thing in the morning. “You slept with me?”

He grinned unrepentantly. “There weren’t many other places.” He lost the grin. “Besides, I wanted to keep a close eye on you. The blood shouldn’t have affected you that much.”