TangledHunger (6 page)

His eyes wandered and for a moment he couldn’t remember why
he was here.

Tanasha put her hand under Duncan’s loose shirt, touching
his naked back. Her touch shot through him. He stiffened for a second before
leaning into her. She was like a fresh breeze that blew away the fog that had
begun to cloud his mind.
He’s got some serious magic juice.

Duncan didn’t know why Tanasha’s touch shielded him from the
power. He needed to find out, but right now he had to get a better idea of what
kind of game Marius played.

The Naema intensified his ring play, but the fog couldn’t
get past Tanasha’s cool touch. Marius grew more and more tense and a wall of
power built before Duncan.

Uncertain how things would end if the other man continued to
pile on the magic like this, Duncan jumped to his feet, his hand around
Tanasha’s. “What made you go all modern in such an old-fashioned home?” He
walked to the windows, never letting go of her hand.

The wall of power at his back collapsed in on itself as if
Marius had finally given up with Duncan turning his back on him.

“I prefer more modern lines.” If a voice could drip ice, the
Naema’s would have. “Sydney loves me enough to want to make me happy.”

Duncan chuckled. “Ah, nothing lovelier than a woman who
wants to make you happy.” He nuzzled Tanasha’s cheek. “What about you, babe?
You want to make me happy?”

She stroked a finger down his neck. “Maybe. It would depend
on how distracted by worry I am.”

He nearly swallowed his tongue. He hadn’t anticipated
Tanasha in a flirty mood and he wanted more. With effort he dragged himself
back to the here and now. They circled the room and twice more he attempted to
touch the decorative crystals. Both times the stones shocked him before he
could get close.

He pulled back his power, focused it into one intense beam
and hurled it at one of the crystals. It managed to cut through the surrounding
field for a second, but then Duncan felt the backlash as if he’d been kicked in
the face.

He tasted blood in the back of his throat.

The energy tingling between Duncan and her told Tanasha that
the Vampire used his power as he ambled around the room asking about Sydney’s
mood, their honeymoon plans and whether Sydney owned personal transport. The
power grew and any moment she expected to see sparks flying. Instead sweat
built on his upper lip. Suddenly his knees buckled for a second. She pushed
closer, her shoulder under his, her arm around his waist, holding him upright.
He caught himself, but they needed to get out of the house. Her instincts told
her not to let Marius see any weakness.

“Thank you for your indulgence, Marius. Hopefully Duncan
will be able to track down details that will lead us to Sydney. She was so
looking forward to your honeymoon. I cannot imagine she would miss it. You
planned to leave today, but she hasn’t yet returned, which makes me worry even
more.”

Marius nodded, his eyes dropping to the ground, the edges of
his mouth turned downward. “Yes, her not being here in time hurts. But I love her.
I hope my heart will find what she’s looking for and will return to me safely
and prepared to join for eternity. And Tanasha, if you feel sad or alone,
please don’t hesitate to come to me. I’m always here for you.” He tried to
caress her cheek, but once again Duncan managed to move her out of the way.

“Thanks, kaveri. I’ll check on your wife’s finances. I can’t
imagine that a rich woman like her would suddenly decide to go days without
buying something. But don’t worry about little Tanasha here. I’ll take care of
every need she may have.” With a salacious smile he turned her around,
obviously patting her butt, and walked her to the door. “We’ll see ourselves
out. Thanks again, kaveri.”

Duncan put quite a bit of weight on Tanasha’s shoulder, even
though he pretended he only cuddled. She worried that Marius had done something
to hurt her Vampire, but when she tried to find out he only shook his head.
“Not here,” he whispered while nuzzling her cheek.

Tanasha bit her tongue and supported him out the door. She
felt Marius’ gaze like a weight on the back of her neck.

What the Jade had gotten into him? Never before had he been
so keen on touching her, on being alone with her. How could he behave like that
out in the open when his wife was missing?

They stepped out of the front door into pouring rain.
Cursing, Tanasha pulled the collar of her smock up. Neither Duncan nor she wore
a coat. Duncan made a small gesture with his right hand, as if to wave the rain
away. He did it a couple more times, growing more and more forceful, until he
stopped and rested more weight on her.

They’d reached the small gate. She walked through, heaving a
sigh of relief. The taxi transport still waited for them in the same space.
Duncan climbed inside and slumped into the far corner seat. For a second
Tanasha couldn’t decide if she wanted to sit beside or across from him. He
ended her dithering by grabbing her hand and pulling her next to him.

“That was interesting.” His eyes closed and his head dropped
back against the seat.

“Are you okay? You look gray.”

He chuckled. “Nothing a pint won’t cure.”

Tanasha froze, but to her surprise her stomach no longer
revolted at the thought of him drinking blood. “What happened?”

He opened his eyes and the intensity sparkling in them shot
through her. Breathing became difficult.

“Your best friend’s husband has strong magic.”

Tanasha’s heartbeat increased and elation ran through her.
“So he is using magic?”

Duncan played with her fingers, wreaking havoc with her
concentration. “Do you know what his Gift is?”

She shook her head. “Sydney never came right out and said
it. Is it important?”

“I think his Gift is Influence.”

“Have you been walking in outer space without a suit? That’s
a rumor. There is no Gift for influencing people.”

Duncan snorted. “Have you looked at the senators recently?
Sure there is such a Gift, but most of them hide it behind charisma and public
speaking. It wouldn’t help to tell the punters that the person they’re voting
for took away their choice.”

“And you think Marius has such a Gift?”

He rubbed his chin. “I do, but I also believe it’s not
solely Naema magic that he’s throwing around. There is something familiar about
the increase in power.”

She studied him for a moment. He looked as if he knew
something he didn’t want to tell her. “We had a deal. Tell me what you’re
thinking of.”

Duncan raised her hand to his lips and sucked one finger
into the inferno of his mouth. Tanasha’s body responded instantly. Her nipples
hardened and her slit moistened. She swallowed. “Tell me,” she croaked.

He twirled his tongue around her finger one last time before
slowly pulling it from his mouth. Heat flared in his eyes. “He has Vampire
magic supporting him.”

She pulled her hand out of his grip and sat back. “That’s
utterly impossible. He would never lower himself to work with a Vampire. Marius
thinks he is the superior being and that Vampires barely deserve to breathe the
same air as him.” She shook her head. “He would not work in conjunction with
them.”

When she looked back at him, Tanasha found him staring at
her beating pulse. She swallowed. “Are you in need of sustenance? Shall we stop
so you can buy some blood?”

He blinked and averted his gaze. “That won’t be necessary.
We’re nearly at your residence. Once I’ve dropped you off, I’ll get a bite to
eat and talk to some sources.”

His words distracted Tanasha. She hadn’t been tempted to
offer him her neck. No way the thought had popped into her head. “What
sources?”

“Anonymous ones,” he replied.

“I will accompany you.”

“You will not. The men I’m going to see are not the type
you’d want to bump into in an alley, not even on a bright, sunny day.” He waved
his hand at her. “And don’t pout. Isn’t this why you hired me?”

She couldn’t think of a snappy comeback. He was right. She
had hired him to find out what happened to Sydney, to ascertain what Marius was
up to. That didn’t mean she had to be happy about him traipsing off to danger
and her with no real idea what he was after.

“I still don’t believe that Marius would work with
Vampires.”

“How wealthy was he when your friend first started going out
with him?”

Tanasha fell silent for a brief moment. “She told me how
much of a kick it was for her to go out with somebody less well off. She felt
glamorous and as if she had a toy boy to play with. It helped that her father
kept complaining about the fact as well.” She shook her head. “He’s working
with them for money? Is that what you’re saying?”

Duncan shrugged. “Money is one of the oldest motives. I’ll
check into his financials. There are also a couple more rumors I have to run
down.” He pulled a card out of his pocket and scribbled something on the back.
“Here are my coordinates, just in case.”

Realizing he wasn’t going to give her more details, Tanasha
thrust the card in her pocket without looking at it and remained silent. They
didn’t speak until the transport arrived outside her complex. “Contact me as
soon as you have any new information,” she demanded and stomped out of the
vehicle without a backward glance. She could have sworn she heard him chuckling
in her head and felt the lightest touch on her cheek. Before she could change
her mind and look back the transport started up again.

He was gone.

Tanasha shivered and rubbed her upper arms. The rain fell
less heavy, but the breeze added to her damp clothes made her cold.

She strode through the elaborate front yard. Usually the
thick, shadow-filled greenery relaxed her, but tonight she only focused on the
annoying Vampire.

There was something connecting them, something she had never
felt before. In that moment, when she’d had the option to stop all his teasing
and flirting this something had dominated her mind. The idea that there would
be no more warmth between them had struck down the worry of inviting closer
contact with him.

If he hadn’t had to see those sources, she knew she would
have either invited him into her home or gone to his residence. She wanted him
and for once in her life she wouldn’t worry and fret about the consequences
before she’d even taken the first step.

A dirty hand covered her mouth.

Another grabbed her upper arm and pulled Tanasha back to the
present with a vengeance.

She struggled against her first attacker when a shadow
moved. It stepped out from behind the thick hedge into the glow of one of the
low solar lamps delivering ambient light along the path. A second man, tall,
gaunt, unshaven and wearing a stained coat. He walked close enough for her to
feel his breath against her face.

He had blood-red eyes.

He grinned.

If Tanasha had any breath to spare, it would have stopped
with that grin.

The smile showed a set of gleaming fangs. The nails on the
hand stroking across her cheek were long and sharp. “Looky, what have we got
here? You’ve been a bad, bad little Naema.” He licked across her cheek. “You’ll
be so delicious.” One hand grabbed her breast. “In more than one way.” He
chuckled. A chill ran down her back and made her shiver. She backed away into
her first captor.

His grin widened.

Ferals. She had no idea how the lawless Vampires had made it
onto the planet, let alone into the District. If she wanted to live, she needed
to get away. Tanasha shook. She’d never been in a situation where physical
violence was a possibility. She had no training. Except for the few times she’d
played in HoloWorld.

Panic swirled through her.

“W-what do you want?” she stuttered. Her mind raced through
her options. There weren’t many. The Feral behind her gripped her tight, making
movement difficult.

The other continued to maul her breasts. She swallowed bile.
Keep it together.
She promised herself a full-blown panic attack later.

Once she’d escaped.

A big one.

“What do I want?” The one manhandling her chuckled again.
His breath reeked of blood and death. “I want to suck you dry while drilling
into you like a laser.” He licked her other cheek. “That’s what I want.”

Tanasha clung to her composure. She needed information. “How
did you get here?”

“A fallen one gave us a helping hand.” He nodded at the one
behind her.

Jade, time to go. She swallowed.
You can do this.

She threw her full weight against the Feral holding her. He
stumbled back a couple of steps. She pulled her knees to her chest, her stomach
muscles straining, and kicked the one in front of her in the balls. He hadn’t
expected any resistance. He sank to his knees, holding his privates. Tanasha
slammed her foot into his head, the kick echoing up her leg. With a groan, he
slumped to the ground.

She should have worn synth-steel boots.

The exchange only lasted a few seconds, but the Feral
holding her recovered quickly. He tightened his grip so much his nails dug into
her flesh. Blood trickled down her arms. One hand grabbed her hair. He tore her
head back, stretching her neck.

Tanasha rematerialized her wings.

The Feral didn’t stand a chance and stumbled away. She
flapped her wings, trapping him between them. The hard outer feathers and the
strong wing bones vibrated as she knocked her opponent away from her. She
whirled around to face him, no idea what else to do.

With a growl he jumped toward her, fist raised. Tanasha
ducked, taking the fist on her wing. Pain raced through her. The Feral shook
his hand. She went with the one trick she knew would work and kicked him in the
balls. Then she slammed her uninjured wing against his head.

The Feral staggered and fell forward.