Immortal Craving: Immortal Heart (16 page)

Kat woke to the sun streaming through the tinted window in Kale’s suite.

“Mmmm,” she groaned as she stretched out her muscles. She felt like a million bucks.

“Good afternoon, Kitten.”

Kat smiled at the sound of Kale’s deep voice and then frowned. “Afternoon?” she asked, sitting up and pulling the sheet with her to cover her very naked body. Most of it was nothing Kale hadn’t seen before… aside from the new tattoo marking the skin beneath her breast.

Kale sat on a plush suede couch, his cell phone in hand.

“What time is it?” she asked.

“It’s around four-thirty,” he answered. He locked the screen on his phone and shoved it in his pocket as he rose from his lounging position.

Kat’s eyes went wide. “You let me sleep the day away,” she said as she pulled the sheet even tighter around her and bolted from the bed.

Kale chuckled. “We’re on the night shift. Technically, you’re up early.”

She cocked her head to the side and gave him an exasperated look.

“Does everyone know I stayed with you last night?”

Kale arched an irritated brow at her. “If you mean does
Jake
know, the answer is
no
.”

Kat shook her head… Ok, he had every right to be irritated with the
question but he just didn’t understand the situation.

“I guess I should have asked last night if I was going to be your dirty little secret.”

Kat took a deep breath as she approached Kale. She wrapped one hand around his neck and reached up on tiptoes to press a soft kiss to his lips.

“You’re not a dirty secret, Kale. I can’t help but feel antsy; your whole family is here. I feel like a naughty teenager.”

Kale laughed and pulled her tight against him, kissing her deeply as he swiped his arm under her legs, carrying her to the bed where he laid her down and crawled on top of her.

“Naughty teenager works for me,” he murmured against her lips.

“I bet,” she laughed. “But I need a shower and some clothes. I’ll be back in thirty.”

Kale groaned and rolled off her. “I fail to see why you need clothing.”

“Because we have a job to do tonight.”

Kale winced at the thought… Yes, and once the job was over—where would that leave him and Kat?

Kat almost… almost made it to her room without so much as seeing a single one of the warriors… Well, the one who caught her wasn’t a warrior.

“Hello Kat,” Bain’s female purred at her.

Kat lifted her gaze to the dark-haired beauty. She expected to see disapproval or disgust in the woman’s pretty blue eyes, but all that twinkled in their depths was laughter. She wasn’t judging, and she didn’t appear to be gearing up for any sort of censure.

“You should hurry. The others are on their way back. Cree is planning an early dinner so we can go over what him,
Lothar, and Uriah came up with during today’s search and what we’re expected to do tonight.”

Kat nodded. “Ok. When is dinner?”

“Five-thirty, I was just about to go tell Kale, but then I saw you and figured I’d let you know first.”

Kat nodded. “Sure, thanks.”

“Would you like to let Kale know when you’re done… getting dressed?”

“Sure, has anyone told Jake yet?”

Izzy smiled. “Yep, Bain’s in there telling him now.”

“Thanks, Isabelle. Um, can
we….” Kat stumbled, not sure how to ask her not to say anything about catching her in the hall wrapped in a sheet.

“It’s
Izzy,” she smiled. “I won’t say a word.”

“You should feel grateful,
Kitten
. She only lets her friends call her Izzy, right
Iz
?” Kale smiled wide enough that his fangs peeked out as he came towards them. Kat groaned and slipped into her room.

****

Bain eyed Kale and Kat as they worked their way to the dining hall at Desert Brew. Cree had called a dinner meeting to go over what had happened during the day, as they started their search for Brie. It was all a little too weird for him, calling all of them to Vegas without knowing if the Succubus would even end up here was, well…
suspicious
.

Bain’s gaze drifted to
Izzy. A smile crept over his lips as he watched her gently pet her little
Argolette
. The small, brown creature was happily sitting on Izzy shoulder, his little tail wagging against her bare skin. Skin that all of an hour ago Bain had been exploring with his lips and tongue. Bain shook his head and focused back on the little dog-like creature nestled under a veil of curly, black hair. Izzy was one of a kind. She was curious about his world… her world now, and while he was cautious of some of the creatures in their world, Izzy viewed them all with an open mind and curiosity.

Izzy
was amazing, beautiful, strong, and caring. They fit perfectly together and she was all his. Every curve of her body molded perfectly into him. A low groan echoed softly from his throat.

“Whatever you’re thinking, you should stop… We don’t have time for it,”
Izzy said softly; her low, sultry voice pushing all his blood south to pool in his groin.

Bain wrapped an arm around her waist and pressed his lips to her bare shoulder; her little
Argolette
daring to bark at him. Bain growled at the creature. It flew from its perch to land on Izzy other shoulder.

Izzy
chuckled. “Be nice, Bain.”

“He barked at me for kissing you,” Bain said, scowling as he looked around to see her new pet.

“He’s protective. I’d think you’d like that.”

“I like anything that protects you. However, you don’t need protecting from me.”

Izzy chuckled “I think you’re mistaken—you
are
the most dangerous thing for me.”

Bain growled softly, pulling
Izzy to a stop so he could tip her face to his. He lips brushed hers softly at first, then turned into a hungry and devouring swirl of tongues and swollen lips. Izzy moaned into his mouth, causing his pooling blood to react in a way they really didn’t have time for.

Bain pulled back slightly, kissed her softly one more time, and smiled down at her.

Izzy let out a lusty breath. “A danger I am more than willing to run head first into.”

Bain and
Izzy were a sexually charged storm behind Kat, one she could not ignore—even if she wanted too.

“Are they getting to you again?” Kale whispered to Kat.

Jake looked over at Kale, then to Kat, and finally spared a glance behind him where he saw the giant blonde warrior and his petite black-haired beauty embracing.

Jake looked back to Kat and smiled. He could see the flood of lust in her features. He shook his head as he pulled open the door to the dining room.

Bain’s head whipped from Izzy to the open dining room door, a ferocious growl echoing in the hall.

All attention shifted to Bain as he stalked down and pushed his way into the dining hall.

“What’s that son of bitch doing here?” Bain roared as Izzy and the others hurried in behind him.

“
Ello
Bain,” a tall, athletic, and very pale male cooed at Bain. His fangs flashing in the dim light the chandelier threw out into the private dining room as he smiled.

Izzy
sucked in a breath…
a Vampire
. She looked to Bain’s enraged face just as he burst forward towards the newcomer.

Izzy
stood back by Jake and Kat while Lothar, Uriah, and Kale all tried to hold her lover back from the smirking vampire. Cree stood stoic as he always did, his massive arms crossed over his broad chest, his feet planted shoulder-width apart, standing between Bain and the Vampire.

“
Bain,
” Izzy called after him.

Bain shifted out of his brother’s grasp, a deep growl emanating from his chest, but
Izzy’s plea in the form of his name had him shifting to see her scared and confused face. He never wanted to see fear in the depths of those beautiful blue eyes. Bain jerked his arms free and moved to pull Izzy against his chest.

“It’s ok, sweetheart,
” he whispered in her ear, a protective arm wrapped around her.

Bain leveled furious eyes on Cree. “What the fuck is he doing here?”

“He has information for us,” Cree said. “Now take a seat. We’re going to have dinner while we discuss what we’ve learned.”

Bain scoffed. “I fucking doubt it. I’m not breaking bread with that murdering leech.”

Cree was quick in his movements. Before Izzy had time to blink, she was out of Bain’s arm and being held by a thick arm around her waist while Bain struggled against the steel that was Cree’s palm pressing him against the far wall.

If
Izzy had ever had any fallacies about the warrior’s leader being less of a fighter then the other brothers, she was sadly mistaken. It was obvious now that the gentle Cree she knew lived his life holding back his power. A power that sucked the air from the room and that would have brought Bain to his knees if Cree hadn’t been holding him up.

“You will do as you are told,” Cree snarled. “There is too much going on for me to deal with your prejudice and grudges.”

“It’s a fair grudge,” Bain growled.

“It is one I do not have time for. Holly made her choice—you need to let it go.”

Holly? Who was Holly?
Izzy wondered, her eyes darting to Bain as he erupted again.

“You son of bitch,” Bain roared at his leader. “She didn’t know.”

“She did—she made a choice,” the vampire leaning against the table said coolly.

Bain pushed against Cree and was rewarded with a slam against the wall, which dented in the form of his head and broad shoulders, and sent cracks up the plaster to the ceiling.

Izzy sucked in a sharp breath as she clawed at the arm holding her around the waist.

She felt warm breath against her sensitive skin as Uriah’s soft and calming voice spoke low in her ear.

“You cannot interfere in this, Izzy. Bain has to remember who is in charge. His hate for the vampires has gone on long enough.”

“Let me go,
goddamnit,” she screamed as she watched Bain slump to the ground.

“Let her go,” Cree said as he stepped back from Bain.

Izzy flew to Bain’s side, falling to her knees to cup his face. She patted his cheek lightly, trying to rouse him, but she got nothing. He was breathing, but the slam of his head against the wall courtesy of Cree had knocked him out cold.

“You son of a bitch,”
Izzy said, a cold fury rising in her veins as she rose to her feet. Narrowing glacial eyes on Cree, she took a step towards him. This time it was Kale who stopped her, pushing her back as she coiled to launch herself at Cree.

“
Izzy, calm down,” Kale said softly.

Kale felt the hum in her body only seconds before she threw Kale off her and rounded on Cree again.

Shock rolled over everyone’s face—there was no way she should have been able to overpower Kale. As Izzy shook with fury, the temperature in the room dropped, the lights flickered, and a vase flew from the table across the room—barely missing Cree before shattering against the wall.

“No fucking way,” Uriah muttered. “Wake Bain up,” he hollered at Kale as the dining room started coming apart around them—plates, glasses and flatware flew, the chandelier shook, and chairs slid back from the table and upended.

Uriah moved towards Izzy. “Izzy, you have to calm down. You can’t control the power when your this upset… it’s too new.”

“What power?” Cree hollered over the thundering and whipping wind in the room…

Izzy couldn’t focus. She heard Kat yelp, she felt Tracker run under her hair, and she heard Uriah, but she couldn’t pull her gaze from Cree.
Power?
She didn’t have any power—all she had was fury. For Cree. He hurt Bain; it wasn’t necessary. Ok…yeah, Bain was a hot head and he been pissed but Cree had him pinned. He didn’t need to hurt him.

“
Sweetheart. Stop.
”

She heard Bain, felt the familiar build of his body press against her back. When she pulled her gaze from Cree, she caught sight of those mesmerizing violet eyes staring down at her.

“
What’s wrong with me
?” she asked, before her knees gave and her vision swam into blackness.

****

Kale raked his eyes over the Vampire who had started the whole mess of an evening. Bain had taken Izzy back to their room after Makyle had somehow found his way to their destroyed dining room and verified what Uriah had sensed happening to Izzy… She was somehow tapping into the powers of anyone who touched her. Kale was just thankful she hadn’t tapped into his abilities. Uriah’s Telekinesis was bad enough—she didn’t need to start tossing fire around.

Makyle seemed unconcerned about Izzy’s newfound power and left with Bain when he took her back to their room. Kale would have to wait until tomorrow to find out what exactly was going on.

But right now, he was trying to focus on the Vampire in front of him.

“I hope he has something good to tell us,” Kale muttered as he flipped an overturned chair back on its legs. “Otherwise, this was all unnecessary.”

Cree shot cool eyes towards Kale, and then motioned for everyone to sit.

“This is Evan.” Cree gestured to the vampire sitting to his left. “He’s part of a coven of Light Vampires who live here in Vegas.”

Kale noticed he wasn’t the only one of his brothers who was surprised. Uriah was right there with him but
Lothar looked as though this was not news to him.

“For how long?”
Uriah asked.

“I’ve been living in the human realm for over seven hundred years but my coven and I have only been in Vegas a little over a decade.”

Kale’s eyes narrowed. “Who are you and why are you here?”

Evan grinned. “Because I have information you need. The fact is, while Bain hates me, he holds a grudge that has little to do with my species or even with me… It has to do with his pride.”

“Evan,” Cree said his name in warning.

“If you want my help, you’ll let me talk… You see, there’s more going on here then you can even imagine. The Drifters you’re so worried about only access one of five moving portals. What you need to worry about is the other four that aren’t regulated. Because that’s how the
Fae you don’t want here are coming in.”

Kale looked to Cree. “I thought this was about Brie?”

“It is. She’s here,” Evan said simply.

“Where?”
Kat demanded.

“That I can’t tell you for sure.
All I can say is I caught her feeding off one of my vampires. When I pulled her off of him, she took off.”

“You just let her go?” Kale asked.

“Yes, at the time I was worried about Josh. Only he was fine and more concerned about where she went.”

“He wanted retribution,” Kat muttered, leaning back in her seat. “Sounds like a Vamp…
sounds like a male. He was mad a little female took him down,” Kat scoffed. “She’s got to be gone by now.”

Evan smirked. “No, I’m pretty sure she’s here. And Josh was worried about her.”

“Right,” Kat snorted. “Sounds totally like a Vampire.”

“Maybe not like a Vampire,” Evan said. “But does it sound like a true mate?”

All eyes landed on Kat before volleying between her and Evan.

Evan smiled. “Yeah, I thought maybe so. You see, after Brie attacked him, this weird tattoo outline appeared on his neck.”

Kat blew out a deep breath. “What does it look like?”

Evan chuckled. “That’s the funny part—it looks like an infinity symbol with two puncture wounds inside of it.”

“So, you think just because your vampire is her true mate that she won’t run?”

“No, because I think she’s been looking him.”

“All the Succubi are looking for their true mate. It doesn’t mean they’re a good match or that she would have even known he was here.”

Evan smirked a knowing smile, which had them all waiting for the next piece of information that would make all of this
make sense.

“Why do you think she came here to look for him?” Uriah asked, suspicion lingering in his deep, silver eyes.

“Because of what I’ve been told about where she’s been finding her victim. She’s been following Josh. First in Arizona, then Colorado, and lastly in Idaho—all places Josh has been in the last month.”