The Vampire Who Thirsted for a Wolf (14 page)

group, with the exception of Byron’s staff, had remained in Sydney,

which was probably better.

As they went in, Derek suppressed the urge to cover his nose at

the smell that assaulted his nostrils. The only thing he could identify it

with was death.

“Yes,
hana
,”
Kaname confirmed.
“Old blood. Death. It has a

certain smell when it came in a violent, unfair way. But try not to

think about it. We’ll get out of here as soon as we can.”

Derek offered his mate a brisk nod, but still felt thankful that Mel

had stayed behind instead of coming with him. He knew she was

strong enough to handle anything thrown her way, but he couldn’t

help wanting to protect her.

“Like I said, the bodies were removed and the injured taken to the

clinic,” Byron told them. “Other than that, everything is the way it

was then.”

“I noticed the outer fences were still in working order,” Kaname

said. “Can I hazard a guess and assume they came through the

underground?”

“Indeed,” Byron confirmed. “They broke in through the sewer

system, took out the surveillance equipment, killed the staff, and burst

in to release Sophia. They came out through the main gate. By that

point, the sensors and equipment in the courtyard were already down

and there was nothing to keep them from moving in and out as they

pleased.”

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“One question, Mr. Cunningham,” Noah said from behind them.

“Are there other prisoners here?”

“Yes,” Byron answered. “There were a few others here, but they

were ignored.”

“So she was specifically targeted,” Noah mused.

“Can you detect any traces of magic?” Byron inquired. It was the

reason why Rhys and Noah had come along in the first place, to

investigate whether any of their former enemies were involved in this.

“Not warlock-specific magic, no,” Noah answered. “There’s

something else, though, a different power.”

“It’s the lingering trace of vampire abilities being used,” Kaname

explained. “There’s no doubt that vampires were here, and strong

ones, too. Do you have surveillance recordings of Sophia? Did she

say anything before her escape, show any signs of knowing someone

was coming after her?”

“Not according to Malcolm. There are recordings of her

conversations with her psychiatrist. They are at our disposal.” As they

spoke, they continued to walk, exploring the ravaged compound.

Finally, Byron stopped in front of an area that seemed to have

suffered most. “This was where she was held.”

As it turned out, there had been several rooms dedicated to

Sophia. She herself had access to a small apartment, which was

downright luxurious given what she had done. Byron seemed to have

been aware of it, although he couldn’t have been happy about it. Then

again, since Sophia was a shifter, not even the biggest apartment

could replace the wide expanse of the sea. In that sense, Derek could

understand the small mercy that had been given to her, probably due

to her connection with Malcolm.

The apartment itself hadn’t been too affected. The doors were torn

apart, yes, but the rest of the furniture had been left untouched. Derek

noticed there was a glass on the floor, made out of unbreakable plastic

like all the silverware generally used for prisoners. It was something

Derek expected to see in a cell, but the fact that it was on the floor

The Vampire Who Thirsted for a Wolf

87

could mean that Sophia had been surprised when the vampires had

come in. Derek scanned the room, looking for any other significant

clues. The entire room held no electricity conductors, probably to

avoid Sophia using her powers. Sadly, except the glass, there seemed

to be no clear signs of violence.

However, the video surveillance room adjoining the apartment

had been ravaged. The screens of the monitors were cracked and most

of the equipment wrecked. “Many of the surveillance tapes were also

destroyed, but we have backups of everything which you’ll be able to

see,” the shark-shifter said. “Malcolm and Yuki were the only ones

who visited her on a regular basis. I believe Lou came once, shortly

after her arrival here, and another time, just a couple of days before

the attack.”

Derek made a mental note of that since it sounded quite

interesting. “Could we talk to her psychiatrist?” he inquired,

remembering Byron had mentioned counseling sessions.

“Unfortunately, he was in the building when the vampires

attacked. He was killed here, in the video room.”

“What about family?” Rhys inquired, speaking for the first time

since they’d come into the building. “Did she have any relatives

except Malcolm?”

“Her mother is still living in Sydney. She owns a mansion in

Edgecliff, although she often goes on cruises and such. They’re not

very close. Sophia’s father, Malcolm’s brother, died a long time ago.”

Rhys didn’t seem very surprised. “So if her psychiatrist was in the

video room, Sophia was alone in her quarters at the time of the

attack?”

“From what the guards mentioned and the surviving logs said,

yes,” Byron answered.

“There’s something very interesting about this building, Mr.

Cunningham,” the incubus said, moving around the video room as if

testing the entire area. “You see, when fear is strong enough, it can

linger within the energies of a location long after its origins or even

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the people feeling it have disappeared. Naturally, the same goes for

other emotions. This place, this compound is ripe with it. The same

way you can smell blood, I can smell the terror. But what strikes me

as strange isn’t this fear. Rather, it’s the fact that it is very present in

Sophia’s room as well. There was violence there. I can feel it.”

Derek remembered the glass on the floor. “You think she didn’t go

willingly, don’t you?”

Rhys shrugged. “It’s just an idea. I might be wrong. Emotions are

not always reliable guides and can be easily misinterpreted.”

Whatever Rhys said, Derek suspected this was, indeed, the case.

There was simply no way Sophia of all people could have known

vampires who had such an interest in releasing her.

Kaname seemed to agree. “I agree with Whitaker-san’s

suggestion. The situation as it currently presents itself is based on one

single, quite simple issue. Sophia is a vulnerable point for an

important shifter family and for magical creatures. It is increasingly

clear that there is someone on my side who wishes to break up our

tentative alliance. Sophia is merely a tool.”

Kaname’s voice was calm and collected, but Derek could sense

the effect these rooms had on the vampire. The smell of blood was

getting to him, and while the Australian sun didn’t hurt Kaname as

much as it would have a younger vampire, it hadn’t been comfortable,

either.

“We can’t know that for certain, though,” Noah cautioned.

Byron assented with a nod. “Agreed. We’ll discuss it with Lou

Figgs and Sophia’s mother. I’ve arranged a meeting with them. We’ll

also be able to look over the tapes then.”

Derek opened his mouth to ask Byron to perhaps leave the

meeting until later, perhaps that evening. It wouldn’t be long now, and

Kaname would get the chance to rest and recover from his exposure

to the sun.

Kaname stopped him with a light touch on his arm.
“Don’t,
hana
.

I can handle it just fine. It’s just a bit of discomfort, and once we’re

The Vampire Who Thirsted for a Wolf

89

out of here, I’ll honestly feel much better. This lingering scent of blood

and death is what bothers me.”

Even if he was still concerned for his mate, Derek complied.

Pointing out Kaname’s problem would just humiliate the elder

vampire, and that was something that needed to be avoided.

Unfortunately, leaders could not show vulnerability in any way. Derek

had learned that from his father. In a sense, though, it had been

somewhat easier for Soren to balance being a strong Alpha while still

keeping close family ties with his children and his mates. Werewolves

were expected to be like that, but vampires were culturally very

different. Derek still had a lot to learn there, but he was already

starting to suspect that vampires were far more likely to stab each

other in the back than werewolves were. Kaname had already

displayed considerable shrewdness, and the political dance of the

covens seemed far more complicated than the dealing between the

packs under Elder Wade’s rule.

It was quite natural that the species would be different, and Derek

couldn’t exactly say his people were all kind and honest. At the most

basic level, both vampires and shifters were predators. However, these

dissimilarities made Derek feel unprepared for protecting his mate.

Somehow, this threat seemed specifically targeted at Kaname, which

made Derek’s hackles rise and his wolf pace in restless frustration.

Kaname smiled at him fondly, a brief twist of lips that went

undetected by anyone else except Derek.
“You must stop worrying,

hana
. Normally, this would be quite easy for me, but it’s a bit of a

strain to have to keep a constant eye on Yakumo. Once our traitor

makes his or her move, we’ll be all right.”

“I’m sorry, Kaname, but I’ll always worry, no matter what.”

Nevertheless, Derek trusted Kaname, so he didn’t let his concern

show. “Are we done here, then?” he asked out loud, affecting

complete nonchalance.

“I believe so,” Byron replied. “If there’s anything else you need to

check…”

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He trailed off, giving all those present a look full of meaning.

Kaname was the only one who nodded, much to Derek’s dismay. “I

mostly got what I wanted from inside the building, but I’d like to see

the spot where they came in.”

“The sewer system. Of course. This way.”

Byron gestured them out of the video surveillance room and

deeper into the complex. They went down a set of stairs. “Usually, the

elevator is in use,” Byron explained, “but the attack disabled it, as it

did most of the systems.”

Here, the putrid scent was even more pungent. There was a big

hole through the pipe connecting with the sewers below ground.

Kaname tensed visibly, and Derek took his mate’s hand. It wasn’t just

the smell that bothered Kaname. It was something else, something the

vampire himself couldn’t put his finger on.

“It feels…It feels like someone I know was here,”
Kaname

whispered in Derek’s mind.
“I don’t like this, Derek. I have a feeling

this is bigger than I originally thought.”

From the very beginning, both Kaname and Derek had suspected

there must be someone within Kaname’s people, perhaps even his

coven, who aimed to sabotage him. They had known it might not be

about Sophia at all, but the balance of powers that was currently

changing. However, it seemed that their enemy was more powerful

than Kaname himself had expected, something that unsettled Derek

greatly.

Derek’s mind immediately went to Kaname’s brother. Yakumo

had bravely taken up the task given to him by Kaname, but while

Kaname was watching over him, a small risk did exist. He knew

Kaname was thinking the exact same thing. Given what Kaname had

sensed now, Yakumo might be in danger.

“Right,” Kaname said hastily. “We should be on our way to talk to

Sophia’s elder and her mother.”

The vampire’s slight nervousness didn’t go unnoticed. Byron

frowned slightly, eyeing the room as if to see what had spooked

The Vampire Who Thirsted for a Wolf

91

Kaname. When he didn’t spot anything, he nodded. “Very well. Let’s

go.”

As soon as they were outside, Kaname launched more questions.

“I just need to know some more exact data. At what time did they

attack, exactly? Did they drain the shifters, or just kill them? Is there

an estimate of the numbers of their group?”

“Reports say the attack started at midnight, during the shift

change. According to what we’ve pieced together from the surviving